Revelation 13:2 Commentary and Bible Study

This vision is closely connected with Daniel 7. In Daniel’s case four beasts arise separately, but these four are obviously connected with the single beast that John sees, for where Daniel sees the four resembling a lion, a bear, a leopard and a fourth dreadful beast, John sees a single beast that has parts that are like a leopard, a bear and a lion, all furious and fierce creatures, and powerful and strong and destructive. Daniel sees separate kingdoms as they will be seen at specific points in history; John sees a composite beast which spans all of history. Daniel saw four beasts, each one of which represented one of the seven heads that John describes. But John, who is looking at the beast as a whole, sees it with seven heads representing its completeness. In John’s day, three of Daniel’s beasts had passed away – the Babylonian, Medo-Persian and Grecian empires – yet the spirit of the beast continued and there was a unity which linked them all, and came from the devil who gave them their authority. ‘And the dragon gave him his power’ – he delegates it, he channels it through this beast – ‘and his seat and great authority.’ So the devil’s method of fighting Christ and his church is to take over governments, and range them against the truth. The devil even gives the beast his throne, his pride of place, for this beast is of the devil’s making. When it is worshipped, it is the devil himself who receives praise. Governments are given by God as a way of preventing this world from erupting into absolute chaos and anarchy. They restrain human wickedness long enough for God’s harvest to be gathered in. But at the same time, they are often not what they are supposed to be. Instead of restraining evil and rewarding good, they become the instruments of evil. In this chapter the beast is also worshipped, and Satan is worshipped through the beast.