Revelation commentary william barclays daily study bible. The book of revelation in the bible is one of the more difficult books of the bible to understand. Verses 12 1 and i stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. Its meaning is positive, not fearful or terrifying to those who serve god. Parts of the old testament, particularly in the book of daniel, are also written in the apocalyptic genre. I have heard many sayings about the 666 the mark of the beast. Verse 1 and i stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea before we can proceed in the interpretation of this chapter, it will be highly necessary to ascertain the meaning of the prophetic symbol beast, as the want of a proper understanding of this term has probably been one reason.
The beast seemed to be an amalgam of other frightful animals. These are often linked to the entities beast and false prophet entities mentioned in revelation 16. Book of revelation explained a testimony of jesus christ. Even though nations may agree on few things, they unite in their determination to maintain their authority rather than submit to the rule of god s kingdom. Book of revelation explained scripture by scripture. Revelation, new king james version nkjv the bible app. We see antichrists rise and reign, ruindeadly wound and the healing of this wound which is his resurrection and restoration. F85 the number 666 is therefore the crowding out of perfection in christ, and the contradiction of all. Revelation greek apokalupsis means an uncovering, an unveiling, or a disclosure. Revelation commentary matthew henry commentary on the. And he deceives those who dwell on the earth by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword. This chapter contains four of the most iconic concepts contained in revelation. Revelation is written using vivid symbols and figures that are intended to grab our imagination and paint a picture in our minds. Can you please explain to me fully the meaning of 666 as used in revelation chapter.
Revelation bible commentary matthew henry concise. The events revealed in revelation occur during the midtribulation period. Theres a secret meaning behind the devils number 666. Associated with one, or both, of these beasts is the number 666 verse 18. The antichrist and the false prophet chapter of the revelation of jesus christ, which god gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass. Why is the number 666 given to the wild beast in the book of revelation. Revelation is a very critical chapter in understanding the tribulation period, which requires integrating old testament and new testament passages with these verses in revelation to fully appreciate the events as they unfold. It had seven heads and its seven heads held ten horns with ten crowns on top of the horns. Both hebrew and greek do not have a separate numbering system, so letters of their respective alphabets have numerical values. The beast out of the sea, the beast out of the earth, the mark of the beast, and the number of the beast 666.
Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. It had seven heads and ten horns, with ten crowns on its horns. The two beasts described here are the figures often referred to as the antichrist and the false prophet. What is the sevenheaded wild beast of revelation chapter. And the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. Verse 1 and i stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea before we can proceed in the interpretation of this chapter, it will be highly necessary to ascertain the meaning of the prophetic symbol beast, as the want of a proper understanding of this term has probably been one reason why so many discordant hypotheses have been published to the world. John nowhere else makes such use of a number, though numbers form a prominent feature of the book. It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon. Revelation the beast from the sea 1 then ia stood on the sand of. The fact that john saw antichrist rising up out of the sea signifies that he will rise up from among the people. He will be the final world ruler, also known as the little horn in the book of daniel.
A testimony of jesus christ is a commentary that explains some of the mysteries of revelation. A wild beast rises out of the sea, to whom the dragon gives his power. The symbol mandated for all followers of antichrist, administered by the false prophet, is the mark of the beast, which. A commentary on the book of revelation chapter the.
Your score results are displayed on the page immediately. No other new testament book poses more serious and difficult interpretive challenges than revelation. Book of revelation chapter receive the revelationbe prepared current events confirm that we are in the last days. Something to keep in mind as we look at this chapter. A blasphemous name was emblazoned on the monsters heads. The most dazzling display of gods wisdom is seen in rev. Although irenaeus 2nd century ad affirmed the number to be 666 and reported several scribal errors of the number, theologians have doubts. The book s vivid imagery and striking symbolism have produced 4 main interpretive approaches. The mark of the beast is 666 which is the mark of man. Revelation commentary, one of over 110 bible commentaries freely available, this commentary, as set of 17 volumes on the new testament, the result of barclays dedicated work. Christs redemption can only be perfect and complete when it has abolished all the works of. Read revelation commentary using matthew henry commentary on the whole bible complete. Revelation chapter coffmans commentary of the new. The number 666 is calculated by using a form of gematria where only the.
Biblical studiesnew testament commentariesrevelation. In the middle portion of chapter vs 1115, we will learn more about the spiritual kingdoms of this world as they afflict the people of god. And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast. Home commentaries coffman commentaries revelation chapter. The contextual biblical exegesis of 666 in revelation. Chapter of the book of revelation has long hidden its teaching, but it is time it was made clearer. Then, in the following portion of chapter, we will be introduced the mark major characteristic of those who join the. And written on each head were names that blasphemed god. We will begin in the book of daniel, which gives us important information in a repeat and enlarge format regarding the antichrist that is paralleled in revelation.
John is told that these baddies have been busy convincing the people of earth to worship them instead of god. In chapter we have the clear and full development of satans instruments of evil. In revelation 12, satan had been kicked out of the heavenly realm forever. Revelation we have, in this chapter, a further discovery and description of the churchs enemies. In the second place, the adoption of this method seems to have been a consequence upon the interpretation of the words, number of a man, as meaning a number to be calculated.
This mark is connected, in some unknown way, to the figure 666 revelation. Even though nations may agree on few things, they unite in their determination to maintain their authority rather than submit to the rule of gods kingdom. Let the one with understanding solve the meaning of the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. And i stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, dan. They also like to kill christians and just generally be evil. Let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, because it is the number of a person. The number of the beast also known as the devils number in the book of revelation, of the new testament, is associated with the beast of revelation in chapter, verse 18. Book summary the word revelation means an unveiling or.
We have, in this chapter, a further discovery and description of the churchs enemies. The beast had two horns like a lamb but it spoke like a dragon. John claimed in revelation chapter that he stood on the shore and saw a beast emerge from the ocean. John was a hebrew writing to hebrews and hiding the information from the roman overlords. Revelation chapter begins with a beast the antichrist, raising up out of the sea, which represents the nations of the world. John the divine is an example of apocalyptic writing a form that delivers a message using symbols, images and numbers. When we examined chapters 23 we noted that these cities in asia had a very strong center of imperial worship there. A giant red dragon, a beast with seven heads, and another beast who also happens to love the number 666. So back to the bible, where in chapter of the book of revelation. Revelation, new international version niv the bible app. Satan versus the followers of yahushua the church through his incarnation antimessiah antichrist and the false prophet this chapter details how the devil, after being thwarted in his attempts to destroy the children of israel, makes war on the disciples of yahushua the church cf. The book of revelation also called the revelation of john or the revelation of st. A commentary on the book of revelation chapter the antichrist and the false prophet. Revelation presents descriptions of two beasts, a beast from the sea verse 1 a beast from the land verse 11.
What is the significance of the number 666 in revelation. I am explaining the entire chapter mostly just to tell you about the image of the beast described in revelation. To the first the dragon, who swept with his tail a third part of the stars to earth, satan under the form of the roman empire, gave his throne and much authority. Keeping the context of the revelation and its time in view, the number 666 may refer to lateinos which in greek can be calculated to 666. Unlike most books of the bible, revelation contains its own title. While many associate the word apocalypse with great disaster, the book of revelation begins and ends by saying that those who read, understand, and apply its message would be happy for doing so. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. I have some teaching on it, but your help would be greatly appreciated. Revelation 1, 17, 18 this beast is a symbol of the worldwide political system, which rules over every. The description of the beast is found in revelation chapters thirteen and.
The central purpose of this book is to bring us a revelation of jesus christ and his perfect redemption in all of humanity. In johns vision he saw a beast rising up out of the sea. Other bible verses reveal the meaning of 666 and the mark of the beast. They are twothe tenhorned and the twohorned beasts. Chapter 17 the supreme pontiff is absolutely above a council. This beast looked like a leopard, but it had bears feet and a lions mouth. Can you explain something to me from chapter of the book of revelation. It is inconceivable that these 666 verses were ordered by men. Revelation niv the beast out of the sea the dragon bible. Weve all heard about the infamous number 666, which is rather. See how much you learned about the thirteenth chapter of revelation with this interactive quiz.