The Unholy Trinity Explained || It’s a Zoo in Here || Part 4

Revelation 13:11-18

11          Then I saw another beast come up out of the earth. He had two horns like those of a lamb, but he spoke with the voice of a dragon.

12          He exercised all the authority of the first beast. And he required all the earth and its people to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed.

13          He did astounding miracles, even making fire flash down to earth from the sky while everyone was watching.

14          And with all the miracles he was allowed to perform on behalf of the first beast, he deceived all the people who belong to this world. He ordered the people to make a great statue of the first beast, who was fatally wounded and then came back to life.

15          He was then permitted to give life to this statue so that it could speak. Then the statue of the beast commanded that anyone refusing to worship it must die.

16          He required everyone – small and great, rich and poor, free and slave – to be given a mark on the right hand or on the forehead.

17          And no one could buy or sell anything without that mark, which was either the name of the beast or the number representing his name.

18          Wisdom is needed here. Let the one with understanding solve the meaning of the number of beast, for it is the number of a man. His number is 666.

The first beast came up out of the water (see Revelation 13:1-10). This beast comes out of the earth. This beast was later identified as the false prophet, he tries to counterfeit the Holy Spirit. So, now we have the reverse trinity:

• God                      à           Satan
• Jesus Christ    à           Antichrist
• Holy Spirit        à           False Prophet

The false prophet would appear to do good, but he uses his deception through his miracles. These miracles would be a counterfeit. We see many different miracles performed by God and Jesus as a proof of God’s power, love, and authority. The acts of the false prophet will appear the same, but they are performed with the intent to deceive. This referred to the magicians that Pharaoh hired, who duplicated Moses’ signs in Egypt. The true signs and miracles take us to Jesus, but miracles by itself can be deceptive. When we hear about miracles that occur in daily life, we must be perceptive of what.

The second beast gains his influence through the signs and wonders he can perform on behalf of the Antichrist. The second beast order people to worship a statue in honor of the first beast – a direct violation of the second commandment. Think about how upset God was when the Jewish people worshipped the Golden Calf when Moses did not return down from the mountain fast enough. Allowing God’s word to guide our faith and practice will keep us from deceived by these false signs and miracles, however convincing they appear to be.

The mark of the beast copies and makes fun of the seals that God places on his followers. (See more about these seals in my series called “Sealed No More”  Just as God seals his people to save them, the Beast marks his people to save them from the persecution that Satan will inflict upon God’s followers. Just to see how confusing this is getting, listen to what I just said again:

• God seals his people to save them from destruction against the powers of Satan.
• Satan marks his people to save from the persecution that Satan will inflict upon God’s people.

Naming this particular mark is not as important as identifying the purpose of the mark. I remember when we were deep into the at-home part of the pandemic, and everything was going touchless and digital. People believed that moving away from the use of paper money was this mark, just as getting the vaccine was. This is just a reminder what the mark is not as important as why the mark exists in the first place. Those who accept it shows their allegiance to Satan, their willingness to work within the economic system he promotes, and their rebellion against God. To refuse the mark means to commit oneself entirely to God, preferring death to compromising one’s faith to God.

In every generation, Christians should keep a healthy sense of skepticism about society’s pleasures, ideals, values, and rewards. Educational, economic, and civic structures give incentives and rewards for full participation in their programs and policies. Cooperative Christians must always support good and healthy programs that help care for their neighbor and the marginalized, but we must be aware for things that try and prevent us from expressing our faith without fear. In some cases, as mentioned here, the system or structure will be so evil that cooperating with it will be virtually impossible.

The meaning of the number “666” has been a focal point of this book for many years. The three sixes have been to stand for many things, including the number of humans or the unholy trinity mentioned above. If the number seven represents the perfect number, and three sevens represent complete perfection, then three sixes fall completely short of perfection. The first readers probably applied the number to the Roman emperor Nero, who symbolized all the evils of the Roman empire. The Greek letters of Nero’s name represent numbers that total 666. Whatever the meaning is, it symbolizes worldwide dominion and complete evil of this unholy trinity design to undo Christ’s work and overthrow him.

Next Bible Study blog: It’s a Zoo in Here – Part 5

Associated Scripture

Revelation 13:11       Revelation 13:1, 4

Revelation 13:12       Revelation 14:9-10, 19:20

Revelation 13:13       1 Kings 18:24-39; Matthew 24:24; 2 Thessalonians 2:9; Revelation 19:20

Revelation 13:14       2 Thessalonians 2:9; Revelation 12:9, 13:3, 12

Revelation 13:15       Daniel 3:3-6; Revelation 20:4

Revelation 13:16       Revelation 14:9, 19:18

Revelation 13:17       Revelation 14:9, 11; 16:2; 19:20; 20:4

Revelation 13:18       Revelation 17:9