IMPORTANT: In Biblical prophesy, a beast symbolises a kingdom, government or form of administration.
As the Book of Revelation is essentially about God's dealings with His people during the Church age as the introductory letters to the seven church of Asia attest, and as nearly 2,000 years of that age have already passed into history, there should be sufficient evidence from that period to identify at least the first Beast, if not the second. All we need to do is take a look at church history and see what man and/or manmade organisations have extended their influence or control over the Church of Jesus Christ to identify it. One man-ordained institution stands out above all others as the dominant force during the Church age so far, and that is the Roman Catholic Church.
By analysing the descriptions given of the Beasts and comparing them with known facts about the Roman Empire and the Roman Catholic Church, it is possible to determine with considerable accuracy, whether or not Rome fits the description of the Beasts as recorded in Revelation 13. To this end, the of the descriptions Beasts are listed below as they appear in Revelation 13, with an analysis of any way in which the Roman Catholic Church bears similarities. Readers are invited to draw their own conclusions. To help us identify the Beast, Revelation 13 indicates that it has a number and a mark.
After the death of Constantine, the Roman Empire continued its Christian practices. Upon the disintegration of the Imperial Roman Empire, God placed the Church under the covering of two eagle's wings, a reference to the Roman eagle design representing Papal Rome and its two wings - the western Roman Catholic Church and the eastern Byzantine or Orthodox church. The era of Papal rule lasted 1,260 years, and began in 533 AD when Emperor Justinian granted ecclesiastical supremacy throughout the Empire to the Roman Catholic Church, and ended in 1793 when the National Assembly of France abolished the supremacy of Rome over France, an act quickly followed by other European Nations.
The Book of Revelation indicates that Satan realised he could never defeat the Church by attacking it from without, but he could corrupt it by attacking it from within. Through the riches and honours that Constantine and others after him had bestowed upon the Christian leaders, they became vain, proud, ambitious, and careless. Ultimate power went to the heads of the Popes, false doctrine and superstition found their way in and the established Church went into a spiritual wilderness. Anti-christian apostasy prevailed and increased to such a degree that even the reading of the Bible was declared illegal by all but the Church hierarchy. Even then it could only be read in Latin. So obscure became the true church of Christ's sealed ones, in the process of time it became almost invisible, existing only in the caves of the mountainsides and in the valleys, not to be seen or heard.
We will now examine Chapter 15 line by line to understand more about The Beast. The words in black are the words of Chapter 15, following them is the likely meaning determined by interpreting the numbers and the symbols.
The first thing to note about verse 1 is that it starts with the word "And", indicating that this is a continuation of the dialogue of the previous chapter. Our study on the Woman Clothed in the Sun, which examines the narrative of the previous chapter, indicates that it refers to the period of the Early Church from the time of the Apostles, through the years of the second and third century persecutions, and on to the time that its offspring came under the protective banner of Papal Rome. Chapter 12 ends with Satan plotting a way to wage war on the remainder of the Church's offspring who have kept the commandments of God and have the testimony of Christ. Chapter 13 begins with Satan setting in motion a plan to hijack the bulk of the offspring who it is inferred have not kept the commandments of God and who appear not have the testimony of Christ, who God has placed under the two wings of the Roman Eagle, the Roman Catholic Church, for a period of 1,260 years.
The second thing to note is that most ancient manuscripts, including the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, and Ethiopic versions, read, "and he stood", meaning "the Dragon stood", because the Dragon was the last creature referred to in the previous verse. So the Dragon - Satan, the persecuting monarch who has been kicked out of his kingdom - is standing there contriving a way to corrupt the protective wings of Papal Rome. He comes up with a Beast that symbolises the carnal nature of Church leadership to corrupt the covering of the two eagle's wings and render them useless. The Beast's ten horns and seven heads confirm the identity of the vehicle through which this would be accomplished - Rome. This Beast's control over the Church will last for 1,260 years (verse 5).
The first Beast came up out of the sea:In Bible prophesy, a beast is a symbolic representation of an earthly kingdom, government or political power. The next few verses detail the characteristic of this particular beast, in order for us to be able to identify it. In prophesy, the sea symbolises a wide area of inhabited land some distance away, rather than home or places within close proximity. The word is used in prophesy in the same way we use the word 'abroad'. The term 'out of the sea' infers a land mass, thus such references are either to countries, continents, empires or kingdoms. In this instance, the nattative is written by a Jew being held prisoner on the island of Patmos, therefore this beast has emerged from a country, continent, empire or kingdom some distance from either Patmos or Judea.
having ten horns:The Roman Empire was divided into ten districts, each with its local ruler under Caesar. When the Goths destroyed the Roman Empire, the ten provinces were retained and became divisions within the Catholic Church. Ruled by deputies and pro consuls, they were the Huns, the Ostrogoths, the Visigoths, the Franks, the Vandals, the Suevi, the Burgundians, the Heruli, the Anglo-Saxons and the Lombards. Centuries later, northern Europe, which unilaterally embraced Catholicism, emerged as ten separate kingdoms, each with a royal family but all under one Pope. Many of these monarchies still exist today.
and seven heads:Rome, the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church, is a city built on seven hills and was known in the ancient world as such. The Roman Empire had seven capital cities. The Roman Catholic Church originated at the latter end of The Roman Empire and in fact it became that empire's official religion. Some scholars believe that the seven heads of the beast represent the seven Roman emperors who reigned during the early years of the reign of the Beast. The popular contemporary belief concerning Nero's death and his unexpected return unscathed seems to be referred to in the passage (verse 3): "And I saw one of its heads as it were slain to death: and its death's wound was healed."
Its names were blasphemous:During the 5th Century, Rome became known by one of the names of Jerusalem, the Eternal City; The Pope took on the title of His Holiness (though the Bible says that no man is righteous - Rom. 3: 10). The pope took the title "Vicar of Christ" meaning he is presented as Christ on Earth, in his place; the church assumed the power to forgive sins, bestowed sainthood on certain of its members and deified Mary who was treated as equal to Jesus.
It resembled a leopard:The leopard was the symbol of ancient Greece. The Papal monarchy was established on the principles of Ancient Greece, which had seven divisions or provinces. Leopards are fast, cunning and spring quickly, first attracting their prey with a pleasant scent. The Roman Catholic Church was able to bring the countries of Europe under its influence in a remarkably short period of time, attracting them with its none threatening disposition, outward riches, pomp, splendour and the performance of miracles and wonders by its popes and saints.
Its feet were like those of a bear:The bear, which symbolises a destructive power, has big strong feet, and is the sturdiest of animals. During its 1,600 or so years of existence, the Roman Catholic Church has attracted severe criticism on many occasions but has had the ability to shake them off and carry on, going from strength to strength. Among world leaders, it does not have nor has it ever had enemies that have threatened its existence, having retained a neutral, peaceful, positive stance.
Its mouth was like that of a lion:The lion's status as king of the jungle was gained through its ability to demand respect and instil terror into those around it by its roar. The Roman Catholic Church has always has a powerful voice, its power has always been in the spoken word. It has never resorted to physical power or strength to get what it wants - it has no army and is run by a group of retirement-age men. The lion was the symbol of Babylon, a city where people were held captive but given a degree of freedom to pass to and fro within it.
It had its own throne and great dominion:Though it has its own seat of Government (The Vatican), it is not a country as such but over the years it has commanded great power. Throughout its existence it has dictated to countries what they should do, and as in disputes between Spain and Portugal, it acted as mediator. The Pope's edicts were treated as final by these countries' respective kings &endash; on one occasion the Pope actually determined the border between their empires. In addition, its edicts are accepted by Catholics as law to be observed in the same manner as the laws of the lands in which they live.
One of the beast's heads seemed to have a deadly wound, but its death stroke was healed:Rome was almost destroyed by the Goths and lost its power as the administrate centre of the Roman Empire but regained it as the administrative centre of the Roman Catholic Church. The might of Imperial Rome received a mortal wound, but she came back to life as the Holy Roman Empire. Rome's power base thus transferred from political to ecumenical.
The Beast had the power of great speech:The Roman Catholic Church has always ruled by the power of the spoken word through the Papal edicts, and not by military power or might.
He exerted his authority and his will during forty-two months (three and a half years, or 1,260 days):If ever there was any opportunity to prove whether or not the Holy Roman Empire was the First Beast, this is it. We are given the exact period of years for its reign - 1,260 days, which in Biblical numerics, represents 1,260 years.
Of immense significance is the fact that Papal supremacy over the nations of Europe lasted for a period of exactly 1260 years. It began in 538 AD the year in which the last of the Barbarian tribes were removed from Rome, allowing the Bishop of Rome to exercise his full power over the Roman Empire. It came to an abrupt end exactly 1260 years later, when the French army under Napoleon entered Rome and took the Pope Pius VI prisoner. His power and control was taken away and he died in exile. Though a new pope was soon afterward elected, the power of the papal hierarchy was not restored and The Vatican has never since been able to wield the power that it previously possessed.
It is also of interest to note that Revelation 11:2-11 states "I will give power unto My two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days (the same period of time), clothed in sackcloth". The periods here mentioned - "forty and two months," and "a thousand two hundred and threescore days" - are the same and appear to cover the same time period.
He spoke slanders against God:The Roman Catholic Church downgraded the status of Jesus and God himself by upgrading Mary to the position of the Mother of God, inferring that a woman was God's mother.
He waged war on God's Holy People and overcame them:Thousands of Christians who refused to accept the sovereignty of the Pope over them were murdered during the Inquisition.
Power and authority was given to him to extend his authority over every tribe and people, and tongue and nation:The Roman Catholic Church has been permitted to establish itself in every continent and nearly every country of the world and maintain its spiritual authority over Roman Catholics without objection by their governments. Many even call themselves Roman Catholic countries, though they have a non-religious government.
All the inhabitants of the earth will fall down in adoration and pay homage:Wherever the Pope goes, he is treated like royalty and attracts greater crowds universally than any other person on earth. Heads of state, even of none Catholic and non Christian countries, welcome him with open arms, seeing him as an ambassador or peace and goodwill.
He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity ... he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword ... Here is the patience and the faith of the saints:This may well be a reference to Pope Pius VI being held captive in jail by Napoleon in 1798 where he died as a prisoner, and to the end of the reign of the first Beast. The Roman Catholic Church was broken as a political power at that time. The reference to the patience and faith of the saints is explained in the vision of the Seven Trumpets in which the cries of the Saints rising up to God prompt the blowing of the trumpets.
Now, one word of caution, we do not intend for this web page to promote the hatred of Catholics. All criticism is of the Holy Roman Empire - that is the First Beast of the Book of Revelation, not the people who worshipped God under its covering.
The Second Beast of the Book of Revelation
The Number of The Beast: Detailed Study
The Mark of The Beast
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