Revelation 13:16-18
16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six. (KJV)
The “Mark of the Beast” is much simpler than what many Christians today think it is. Like salvation and several other concepts in the Bible, it is so simple that even a foolish man such as I can understand it. That is, if I let the “Good Book” do the interpreting for me!
As many theologians have often said, “the Bible explains itself.” Now if we use current events or news headlines as our lens for viewing the Bible, well, almost any interpretations are possible.
However, if we use the historical context of the Bible as our frame of reference then we have considerably refined our focus. So, what does the rest of the Bible tell us about this “Mark of the Beast”?
The answer begins in Genesis 4 with the events surrounding Cain slaying his brother Abel. After Cain slays his brother the Lord places a “mark” upon Cain, so everyone will know Cain is a murderer!
The New Testament writer Jude, while reflecting upon sinful men, gives us this wonderful insight when he refers to Cain and those like him as “brute beast” which naturally corrupt themselves.
I am constantly amazed at the light the New Testament writers shed upon the Old Testament and how it relates to the New.
The Apostle John in 1 John 3 tells us that Cain served the devil. In the Revelation of Jesus Christ, this same John relates how this devil is also called a serpent and a dragon and that the devil is allowed to give power unto multiple beasts which persecute God’s people, or bride, if you will.
In Revelation 13:18 John gives that persecuted bride living then, a clue as to the identity of the second beast of their time. Again, this explanation as to the identity of the second beast in their time comes from the Old Testament when he says “Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.”
The Old Testament reference to which John is referring can be found within the story of Daniel, and it regards all the events surrounding his life, and highlights two key events in his dealings with King Nebuchadnezzar.
The first key event can be found in Daniel 3 in which Nebuchadnezzar makes a decree that anyone which does not bow down to the great statue he has made to reflect his dream in Daniel 2 will not survive. I am sure even many non-Christians know the story of Daniel’s friends Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, so I am just going to recant the key part of the statue story, that relates to Revelation 13:18.
Here goes. Nebuchadnezzar built a statue which reflected his dream that Daniel interpreted in chapter 2, in which Dan tells King Neb his dream represented the kingdoms of men and Nebuchadnezzar was the head of gold. Now check out the not so coincidental dimensions of a statue that represents the kingdoms of men: Height = threescore cubits, Breadth = six cubits. Adding the height to the breadth you get 66 cubits.
I have been told all my life that 6 is the Bible’s number for a man and never knew where they got that until I read Genesis 1 for the zillionth time and realized that God created man on the sixth day. So, we have a statue with dimensions that total 66, which is not a coincidence.
Then after they wheel out this statue the musicians begin to play all kinds of music on the following musical instruments; cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery and dulcimer. In case you did not count the instruments, that is a total of six musical instruments.
Let me spell it out again for anyone that might have missed it. We have a statue built by a man and its measurements 66 cubits in total. After it was wheeled out, they play six musical instruments, and if you don’t bow down to this man-made statue that represents the kingdoms of men, then you die.
To further illustrate the beastly nature of man, we see Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 4 basically going insane and reverting to a type of beast, until he later comes to his senses.
So, in summary, Jesus, through John, is using and expanding on Old Testament imagery to warn a persecuted bride of Christ, of impending tribulation “soon” to come. Remember, Revelation was written to Seven Churches that are trapped in the middle of a cultic Roman empire which says bow down and declare that Caesar is lord or you can’t buy or sell.
The mark of the beast in Revelation 13 is a parody to Revelation chapters 7, 9, 14, 20, 21 and 22 in which we see the brides of Christ who have the seal/mark of the lamb in their foreheads.
How could this bride of Christ know who belongs to the beastly Roman Caesar and who belongs to King Jesus? Why, they would know them by the fruit they bore. The mark in their forehead represented what they thought and said. The mark on their hands represented what they did. Did they hold fast to the faith of Jesus, like the Hebrew children in the fiery furnace, or bow down and declare Caesar is lord like the rest of the world?
Are you trusting in mankind’s beastly nature and bowing down to the kingdoms of men or are you trusting in Jesus to lead you out of the fiery furnace?