The Third Angel’s Message – Part 1

 
You may recall from school days that a score equals 20. Therefore three score would be 60 (20 x 3).

3. Who gives the beast his power?
   Revelation 13:2: “. . . and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.”

 

4. Who is the dragon?
   Revelation 12:9: “And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which  deceiveth the whole world: . . . “

 

5. What other names are given to the beast?
   2 Thessalonians 2:3, 8: “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; . . . And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.”

 

6. What does the beast demand?
   Revelation 13:4, 8, 15: “And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? . . . And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain  from the foundation of the world. . . . And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.”

 

7. What do beasts or animals represent in the Bible?
   Daniel 7:17, 23: “These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth. . . . Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, . . .”

 
In Bible prophecy political powers are often represented by animals. Even today the United States is represented by an eagle, Russia a bear, etc.

8. Where does the Bible say the beast comes from?
   Revelation 13:1: “And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, . .      .”
   Revelation 17:1: “And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will show unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters;”

 

9. What do waters represent?
   Revelation 17:15: “And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.”

 
The beast came to power in a densely populated area by conquering an established kingdom, not by starting a new civilization.

10. History and the Bible tell us that Rome was the controlling power when Jesus was born, conquering the Greeks in 168 B.C. and extending its reign to 476 A.D. Who was in control of the Roman empire and what did he try to do?
    Revelation 12:4-6, 14: “. . .  and the dragon stood before the woman (the church, Jeremiah 6:2; Isaiah 51:16) which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child (Christ) as soon as it was born. And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days. . . . And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.”
    Jeremiah 6:2 “I have likened the daughter of Zion to a comely and delicate woman.”
    Isaiah 51:16 “And I have put my words in thy mouth, and I have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand, that I may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and say unto Zion, Thou art my people.”

 
The 1260 days of Revelation 12:6 and the time, times, and half a time of verse 14 represents the same time period. Applying the day for a year principle in time prophecy (Numbers 14:34; Ezekiel 4:6), 1260 days would literally be 1260 years.
Numbers 14:34 “After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise.”
Ezekiel 4:6 “And when thou hast accomplished them, lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a year.”
 
Using different terminology Strong’s Concordance says “a time is a year”. So a time equals one year, times plural equals two years, and a half a time equals a half a year. The Jewish calendar has a 30-day month and is used here to figure this prophecy. One year equals 12 months, two years equals 24 months, and half a year equals 6 months, totaling 42 months or 1260 days (42 x 30). Out of the ruins of the fallen Roman empire (pagan Rome) arose the Church of Rome or papal Rome. Since we are dealing with a time prophecy concerning the Church of Christ (the woman) that is longer than the reign of the Roman empire, it must be understood as taking place during the supremacy of papal Rome. The beast power with the pope at its head came to full power in 538 A.D. by the decree of Justinian and the defeat of the Ostrogoths in Italy. “1260 years” later in 1798 the French general Berthier, under Napoleon’s army took the pope prisoner (receiving a deadly wound, Revelation 13:3) returning him to France to live out his remaining days in exile. Satan used papal Rome as a vehicle to try to destroy God’s church by sending a flood of persecution (known as the Dark Ages) in an attempt to do away with her. As a result God’s church would be forced to flee into the wilderness (a land sparsely populated) where preparation was made for her preservation.

11. According to the Scriptures would the beast/papacy be resurrected after receiving its deadly wound?
    Revelation 13:3: “And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed:  and all the world wondered after the beast.”

 
In 1929, Cardinal Gasparri and Benito Mussolini signed the concordat which restored the temporal power of the papacy. No one can question that since that time the papacy has regained much of the prestige lost two centuries ago. When President Harry Truman attempted to appoint General Mark Clark as an official ambassador to the Vatican, there arose such a protest that it was not possible for him to follow through. Thirty years later President Reagan would accomplish this with virtually no opposition. The beast power, it is declared, would make war with the saints.
 
Revelation 13:7 “And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.”
 
No one can deny that this description also fits the Catholic church. It is conservatively estimated that the Church of Rome caused over 50 million people to be put to death. What was their crime? They followed their conscience which was educated by God’s word instead of the traditions of men. While it is true that religious tolerance is more widespread today than ever, the Bible points to a time when this will not always be so. The Catholic church once having re-established its lost authority will again revive the persecutions of the past (Revelation 13:15-17) in an attempt to undo all that Protestantism has done.
 
Revelation 13:15-17 “And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. 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: 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.”
 
In Revelation 18:1-4 we see this same beast power referred to as Babylon along with apostate protestantism.
Revelation 18:1-4 “And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.”
 
A loving God is calling people out of an apostate religious system of worship, to one that is based on the truths of the Bible. It’s time to examine everything we have ever been taught and compare it with God’s Word and if it doesn’t line up reject it, that we partake not of the sins of Babylon and that we receive not of her plagues.

12. The Bible says we are to count the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. What is his number?
    Revelation 13:18: “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.”

We have already determined in this lesson that the beast represents the papacy, the head of which is a man, namely the pope. The official title of the pope in his own language (Latin) is ‘Vicarius Filii Dei” or substitute for the Son of God. As you may remember from school, the Latin language has a number assigned to some of its alphabet and these are called Roman Numerals. Here is the solution to the pope’s number.

  V  =   5       F  =   0       D  =  500

  I  =   1       I  =   1       E  =    0

  C  = 100       L  =  50       I  =    1

  A  =   0       I  =   1             501

  R  =   0       I  =   1

  I  =   1             53

  U  =   5

  S  =   0

       112

 

The total is:
112

53

501

666

This is no coincidence, friend, this is the number of the beast and the number of a man, the pope. God has sent you this message in mercy because He doesn’t want you to be fooled. In part two of this lesson we will discover what the image of the beast is and how to avoid the mark.