What Is Babylon?

 

Babylon’s story spans the tower of Babel to the fall of Babylon. And we’re warned to come out of the Babylonian system, before the fall of Babylon the great.

Babel (Hebrew), or Babylon (Greek), was one of the cities of an ancient kingdom established by Nimrod early in mankind’s history (Genesis 10:10). It is considered by some to be the place where life began and was the site where humans attempted to build a tower that would extend up to heaven (Genesis 11:1-4).

The Tower of Babel

God had commanded the people after the Flood to “be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth” (Genesis 9:1). He did not want a repeat of the downward spiral of sin that had led to the Flood.

But instead of obeying God, the people who settled Babel said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth” (11:4).

This attitude of rebellion and of humanism—exalting humanity above God—has pervaded the Babylonian system ever since.

Seeing what humans were trying to do, God confused their language so they could not complete the tower they had begun. “Babel” means confusion and was a fitting name for this city whose residents were not obeying God. This same city became the epitome of all idolatrous worship and the capital city of an empire with its name.

The fall of Babylon

Some 1,500 years after its founding, God spoke of Babylon through the prophet Isaiah, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen! And all the carved images of her gods He has broken to the ground” (Isaiah 21:9).

The kingdom of Babylon would continue for another 200 years beyond the life of Isaiah until 539 B.C. Then Isaiah’s prophecies came to pass, and the fall of Babylon to the Medo-Persian Empire is recorded in Daniel 5. Read more about this in our article “The Fall of Babylon.”

The city would continue to be inhabited up until the Islamic invasions around A.D. 650.

The prophecy of Isaiah had a dual meaning. It not only referred to ancient Babylon, but also to a second Babylon, the Babylon of the book of Revelation (Revelation 14:8; Revelation 18:2).

Another Babylon: end-time Babylon the great

When students of the Bible come to the book of Revelation, they find a Babylon much different from the one described in the Old Testament. In addition to being a great kingdom like the Babylon of the Old Testament, this Babylon is described as a woman who sits on a beast.

Recording the vision he had seen, John wrote: “So he carried me away in the Spirit into the wilderness. And I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast which was full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. … And on her forehead a name was written: MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH” (Revelation 17:3, 5).

To understand this Babylon, we must first understand the symbolic language being used in the book of Revelation. What is represented by a “woman,” a “beast,” “seven heads and ten horns,” and “Babylon the great”?

There have been different ideas and opinions about this Babylon, in large part because men have read their own interpretations into these symbols. This usually results in false conclusions.

What does a woman symbolize in the Bible?

It is important to understand that when the Bible uses symbolic language, the Bible interprets its symbols for us. We do not have to guess at the meaning.

For example, when a woman is used symbolically in Scripture, she represents a church—a group of people. Paul uses the symbol of “a chaste virgin” for the Church that will be presented to Christ (2 Corinthians 11:2), and Christ refers to His bride in Revelation as a wife or woman (Revelation 19:7).

This immoral woman, called Babylon the great, is an apostate church that has been responsible for the martyrdom of many true followers of Jesus Christ.The woman in Revelation 17 is a church, but not the Church that was established by Jesus Christ. Notice what this church does to those who obey God and follow Jesus Christ: “And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I marveled with great amazement” (Revelation 17:6).

This immoral woman, called Babylon the great, is an apostate church that has been responsible for the martyrdom of many true followers of Jesus Christ.

The identity of Mystery, Babylon the great

The Bible identifies this woman clothed in purple and scarlet and sitting on a scarlet beast in the last verse of chapter 17, “And the woman whom you saw is that great city which reigns over the kings of the earth” (verse 18).

At the time John wrote this verse, and in the centuries that followed, the city that reigned over the kings of the earth was Rome. And the church associated with Rome is the Roman Catholic Church, which is headquartered in Vatican City in Rome.

The Adam Clarke Commentary adds this statement, “It has already been shown that the woman sitting upon the seven-headed beast is a representation of the Latin [meaning Roman] Church; here we have the greatest assurance that it is so, because the woman is called a city, which is a much plainer emblem of a Church, as the word is used unequivocally in this sense in so many parts of Scripture that we cannot well mistake its meaning” (notes on Revelation 17:18).

Who is the beast?

The Bible says the woman rides or sits on a scarlet beast (Revelation 17:3). This beast is described in Revelation 13:2 as being “like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon [Satan, Revelation 12:9] gave him his power, his throne, and great authority.”

This scarlet beast is not a description of a church. Instead, it represents the civil government of the Roman Empire. (See our article “Who Is the Beast?”)

This beast was “mortally wounded,” but later this “deadly wound was healed” (verses 3-4). Historically, the Roman Empire was overrun and came to an end in A.D. 476. Ten horns (Revelation 13:1) representing restorations of this empire were predicted to occur. The first revivals included the Vandals (429-533), the Heruli (476-493) and the Ostrogoths (493-554).

The next revival was the “Imperial Restoration” in 554 when Justinian, emperor of Byzantium, the Eastern Roman Empire, restored the western provinces to his domain.

Through succeeding restorations, Catholic popes conferred the title of Holy Roman Emperor to Charlemagne (800), Otto the Great (962), Charles V (1520) and Napoleon (1804).

The most recent revival was the German-Italian alliance (under Hitler and Mussolini), which tried to unite Europe by force in the 1930s and 1940s. Adolf Hitler considered Nazi Germany an extension of past German-dominated revivals of the Holy Roman Empire, while Benito Mussolini saw himself as a modern “Caesar” over a revived Roman Empire.

Who is the second beast?

How did the revived Roman Empire receive the title of “holy”? We are told in Revelation 13:11-12 about a second beast. “Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.”

This beast is the woman (church), Babylon the great, that appears as a lamb like Christ, but actually speaks “like a dragon”—Satan. This beast, through its head, the pope, crowned the various heads of state as emperors of the “holy” Roman Empire.

This church designed its ecclesiastical government in the image of the Roman system (verses 14-15). To learn more about this second beast, read “What Is the ‘Image of the Beast’?”

Two beasts prophesied by Daniel

The book of Revelation is not the beginning of the prophecy of this union of church and state. The prophecy begins in the seventh chapter of Daniel. The first six verses of Daniel 7 recount the dream Daniel was given, symbolizing the first three great empires of the ancient world. Babylon was represented by a lion; Persia, by a bear; and Greece, by a leopard.

In verse 7, Daniel continues: “After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns.”

History has shown that the fourth great kingdom, which had “iron teeth,” was the Roman Empire. (Compare this with Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in Daniel 2:40.)

Daniel then wrote: “I was considering the horns, and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them. … And there, in this horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking pompous words” (verse 8). This little horn accompanies the beast and its 10 kings that “arise from this kingdom” (verse 24).

This little horn is described as “making war against the saints, and prevailing against them” (verse 21). This is what the woman called Babylon the great will do to true Christians (Revelation 17:6).

The “little horn” of Daniel 7, the second beast of Revelation 13, and the woman of Revelation 17 are all describing the same New Testament Babylon, which is the Roman Catholic Church.

Future actions of Babylon the great

So far, we have looked briefly at the prophecies of Babylon that have taken place over the last 2,000 years and at what it will do in the future. But what else does the Bible say about the future of this apostate church that is called Babylon the great?

Jesus, speaking of events before His return, said, “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matthew 24:21). He followed this by saying there would be strong religious deception so as “to deceive, if possible, even the elect” (verses 23-24).

The apostle Paul explained how this deception would come about in writing to the church at Thessalonica.

He wrote, “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God” (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4). The popes have claimed the title “vicar of Christ,” which means “to stand in the place of Jesus Christ.”

God reveals that prior to the return of Jesus Christ many will be deceived by this coming individual and the false religious system that is behind him.The Adam Clarke Commentary describes this “man of sin” in verse 4 as “having the highest place and authority in the Christian Church, he acts as God—taking upon himself God’s titles and attributes, and arrogating to himself the authority that belongs to the Most High” (note on 2 Thessalonians 2:4).

God reveals that prior to the return of Jesus Christ many will be deceived by this coming individual and the false religious system that is behind him.

“Babylon the great is fallen”

Babylon the great with its entire system centered in Rome and the final pope who is called a false prophet (Revelation 19:20) will come to a sudden end when Jesus Christ returns.

Revelation 18 says in “one day” and “in one hour” “that great city” will come to an end (verses 2, 8, 10, 17, 19, 21). It also reveals that God will hold Babylon responsible for having martyred the true servants of Jesus Christ (verses 20, 24).

God has decreed harsh judgment on Babylon the great because of her rebellion against God and her cruel treatment of God’s people.

As Albert Barnes explains, “The idea is that of utter desolation; and the meaning here is, that spiritual Babylon—papal Rome will be reduced to a state of utter desolation resembling that of the real Babylon” (Notes on the Bible, Revelation 18:2).

A final warning: come out of Babylon

The end of Babylon comes with a warning to all believers to act before it is too late. “And I heard another voice from heaven saying, ‘Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues’” (Revelation 18:4).

Coming out of spiritual Babylon includes coming out of her sins and false doctrines and not compromising with the truths taught in the Bible.

May we all heed this warning so we will not share in the sins of end-time Babylon or receive her plagues described in detail in the book of Revelation. (These include the seven last plagues.)

For more about the end-time Babylon the great, see our article “Mystery, Babylon the Great.” For additional study on the false religious leader prophesied to appear at the end of this age, read our article “Antichrist.”

Revelation 17: Who Is the Scarlet Woman?

 

Revelation 17 portrays a harlot in purple and scarlet who has conducted her business with the kings of the earth. Who is this woman? What does she represent?

As we’ve noted in other articles in this series on the book of Revelation, this book is a vision from Jesus Christ, given to Him by God the Father, which primarily reveals what is going to happen before Christ’s return to establish the Kingdom of God on earth.

While this prophetic book is generally written in a chronological style, there are also historical overviews of specific subjects.

Revelation 17 explained

Similar to chapter 12, which provides a concise history of Satan’s efforts to destroy Christ and God’s people, including the true Church of God, Revelation 17 documents the work of a powerful, false religious system that has long deceived and ruled over numerous nations and peoples.

In our article on “Revelation 12: Who Are the Woman, Child and Dragon?” we saw that a woman represented Old Testament Israel and the Church of God. In Revelation 17, an immoral woman is depicted.

Why use the term “whore” or “harlot”?

Revelation 17 begins in verse 1 by identifying the woman in this chapter as a “whore” (King James Version) or “harlot” (New King James Version) “with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication” (verse 2).

This seems to refer to political intrigues in which the leaders of these nations collaborate with this immoral woman in spiritual misconduct, with each party seeking its own advantage. Similarly, God called Israel’s disobedience to Him adultery and harlotry (Jeremiah 3:8-9; Jeremiah 5:7; Jeremiah 13:27; Ezekiel 16:32).

This fallen woman’s influence was and is extensive. In addition to her influence over the kings of the earth, she holds sway over a large portion of the earth’s population.

The description of her as one “who sits on many waters” (Revelation 17:1) is later explained: “The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues” (verse 15).

In verse 2 she is further described as making the inhabitants of the earth “drunk with the wine of her fornication.”

How is the whore of Babylon described?

The woman of this chapter is described as being “arrayed [dressed] in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the filthiness of her fornication” (verse 4). Because of the color of her clothing, she is also referred to as the scarlet woman of Revelation.

While modern implications of the color scarlet include infidelity, in the first century when the book of Revelation was written, clothing of a reddish-purple color was “much prized” and was “commonly worn by persons of rank and wealth, Mark 15:17, Mark 15:20, Luke 16:19. The purple color contains more blue than the crimson, though the limits are not very accurately defined, and the words are sometimes interchanged. Thus the mock robe put on the Saviour is called in Mark 15:17, Mark 15:20, πορφύραν porphuran—‘purple,’ and in Matthew 27:28, κοκκίνην kokkinen—‘crimson’” (Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible, Revelation 17:4).

The point behind being dressed in purple and scarlet is that the woman appears to be a woman of wealth and authority. This color of clothing complements her also wearing gold, precious stones and pearls and her use of a golden cup.

The contrast to this beautifully impressive exterior is that her cup is filled with “abominations and the filthiness of her fornication” (verse 4). In other words, she deceives many by her appearance. Although she looks beautiful and has the trappings of wealth, luxury and authority, her actions are an abomination to God.

Mystery, Babylon the Great

In verse 5 we see the woman’s name: “MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.”

Although the letters of this passage were not capitalized in the original Greek manuscripts, a number of translators have done so here (and similarly in Matthew 27:37; Mark 15:26; Luke 23:38; John 19:19) to indicate that this was a title or inscription. 

The reference to Babylon indicates that, just as Babylon (the first of four world-ruling empires foretold by God in the book of Daniel) had spread and enforced its false, idolatrous form of worship, so would this woman. As the mother of harlots, she would also have daughters that would teach similar abominable doctrines—teachings that would be in opposition to what Jesus and His disciples taught. For additional information, see “What Is Babylon?”

Additionally, we are told that this woman is responsible for the deaths of the faithful “martyrs of Jesus” (Revelation 17:6) and that this woman “is that great city which reigns over the kings of the earth” (verse 18).

In viewing history since the time of Christ, the Roman Catholic Church, located in Rome (in the independent territory of the Vatican) has indeed ruled over kings of the earth in the past. Though Christian in name, this institution has also persecuted God’s faithful people throughout the ages and changed fundamental doctrines taught by Christ and the first-century apostles.

How the Roman Catholic Church changed the gospel of Christ

Pressure to change the doctrines Christ and His disciples established began in the first century not long after the Church of God began.

Pressure to change the doctrines Christ and His disciples established began in the first century not long after the Church of God began.Writing to early Christians, Jude wrote, “I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ” (Jude 1:3-4).

The first-century Church of God faced pressure from Jews to make the Church more Jewish by requiring male circumcision (Acts 15). It also faced pressure from people claiming to be Christians to make the Church less Jewish.

What became the Roman Catholic Church led those who were determined to make the Church less Jewish. Anti-Semitism was clearly involved in this church’s unscriptural decision to worship on Sunday rather than Saturday.

The Council of Laodicea in A.D. 365 determined that “Christians must not judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must work on that day, rather honouring the Lord’s Day, and, if they can, resting then as Christians. But if any shall be found to be judaizers, let them be anathema from Christ” (Canon 29).

The change from Saturday to Sunday as the day of worship is one of the most prominent changes made by the Roman Catholic Church to the biblically sanctioned doctrines of the Church of God. Many other equally wrong changes took place regarding God’s holy days.  

For further study regarding God’s holy days, see the article “Smyrna” for documentation of how this church tried to convince God’s people to abandon the observance of Passover as taught by Jesus and His apostles.

For a more extensive study of the unauthorized changes made by this church to the gospel of Christ, see our free booklet Where Is the Church Jesus Built?

What or who is the beast in Revelation 17?

The beast in this section of Scripture is the Roman Empire. Although the human leader of this empire is also called “the beast” in Revelation 19:20, here (in Revelation 17:3) this term refers to the empire.

One of the most intriguing descriptions of the woman of Revelation 17 is found in verse 3: “And I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast which was full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.”

As explained in our article “Mark of the Beast,” the beast in the book of Revelation is a continuation of the fourth great historical empire (the Roman Empire) prophesied in Daniel 7:1-8. This kingdom was prophesied to receive a “deadly wound” before rising again prior to the end of this age (Revelation 13:1, 3).

It appears that the woman sitting on the beast controls or rules the beast—as the rider on a horse controls or directs it.

In his commentary, Adam Clarke further explains, “This is a representation of the Latin [Roman] Church in her highest state of antichristian prosperity, for she sits upon the scarlet coloured beast, a striking emblem of her complete domination over the secular Latin [Roman] empire” (Adam Clarke’s Commentary on the Bible, Revelation 17:3).

“The Holy Roman Empire” was thus the name of the empire centered in Europe and controlled by the Roman Catholic Church.

As for the seven heads of the beast, these “are seven mountains on which the woman sits. There are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet come. And when he comes, he must continue a short time” (Revelation 17:9-10).

And concerning the 10 horns, Revelation 17 explains: “The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast. These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast” (verses 12-13).

Putting this information together, we see that the scarlet woman—the Roman Catholic Church—was prophesied to ride or control successive continuations of the Roman Empire, the last of which will arise at the end of this age.

John had been transported in vision to a time near the time of the end. When John wrote that five kings had fallen and that one existed, he was describing the Roman Empire. A final revival of the Roman Empire—the one John said “has not yet come” (verse 10)—will be a combination of 10 kings that will come together to form a final, short-lived resurgence of this historic fourth empire of Daniel 7.

This end-of-the-age empire—which the harlot will control for a short time—will receive its power from Satan the devil. Speaking of this beast, Revelation 13:4 says, “So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast.”

Earlier, the dragon—Satan—is described as “having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads” (Revelation 12:3). This passage simply shows that as the god of this present evil age, Satan has control of and power over the kingdoms of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4; Galatians 1:4; Matthew 4:8-9).

The end of the whore of Babylon (the scarlet woman)

Because of the influence of Satan and the woman clothed in scarlet, the 10 horns or kings “will give their power and authority to the beast” (Revelation 17:13) and “receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast” (verse 12). Before their short rule is over, these kings “will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings” (verse 14). 

Apparently realizing that these nations had been deceived or disappointed by the scarlet woman, they will then turn on her and destroy her. “And the ten horns which you saw on the beast, these will hate the harlot, make her desolate and naked, eat her flesh and burn her with fire. For God has put it into their hearts to fulfill His purpose, to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled” (verses 16-17).

For further study

To learn more about the work of the spokesperson for false religion during the end times prior to the return of Jesus Christ, see the article “Antichrist.” An example of how the false church described in Revelation 17 has wrongfully changed the teaching of Christ regarding the Sabbath can be found in the articles on this website in the section titled “The Fourth Commandment: Remember the Sabbath Day.”

Mark of the Beast

 

Will you accept the mark of the beast? Without it, you won’t be able to buy or sell. With it, you’ll suffer the plagues of Revelation. What should you do?

It seems that no subject has intrigued and baffled people more than this mysterious mark spoken of in the book of Revelation. Many books have been written and many sermons have been preached about this subject. Scholars and theologians have offered many different ideas about it.

Some suggest it is a microchip implanted in one’s forehead or an invisible mark or a visible mark. Some even think it could be one’s credit card or debit card.

But what does the Bible reveal about this puzzling mark?

The key passage reads: “He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name” (Revelation 13:16-17). Verse 18 identifies the related “number of the beast” as 666, which is covered in our article “666: The Number of the Beast.”

If one does not have one of these identifying signs, he or she will not be able to legally transact business. This person will find it difficult to earn a living, to hold a job or to run a business.

What or who is the beast of Revelation?

John, the one God chose to write down the book of Revelation, saw a vision of the future. Here is what he wrote concerning this beast:

“Then I stood on the sand of the sea. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name. Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority” (Revelation 13:1-2).

To understand what or who this beast in the book of Revelation is, we need to begin in Daniel 7:1-8, where we find the imagery of four animals, representing the four great historical empires. These were a lion (Babylon), a bear (Persia), a leopard (Greece) and a fourth beast (Rome).

It is this fourth beast described by Daniel and recorded by John that would have “ten horns” and receive a “deadly wound” before rising again before the end of this age (Daniel 7:7-8; Revelation 13:3). This empire is the “beast” of the book of Revelation.

The book of Revelation explains that the dragon gives the beast its power and authority. This dragon is Satan the devil.We should note that the human leader of this revived empire is also referred to as “the beast” (Revelation 19:20). The mark of the beast is the mark or identifying sign of this empire.

The book of Revelation explains that the dragon gives the beast its power and authority. This dragon is Satan the devil (Revelation 12:9; Revelation 20:2). Satan uses this beast to rule and deceive the world.

A second beast causes people to receive the mark of the beast

Let’s now turn our attention to the word “he” in Revelation 13:16. The passage says, “He causes all … to receive a mark.” Who is “he”? Verse 11 says, “Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.”

These characteristics indicate a false religious leader who “causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast” (verse 12). This second beast is called the “false prophet” (Revelation 19:20). This mark or sign represents a final revival of the Roman Empire at the time of the end. The religious leader that supports the beast “causes” people to accept it.

The mark of the beast represents disobedience to God

The mark of the beast will separate people into two groups. One group will accept the mark and the other group will reject it.

The apostle John writes, “Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, ‘If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb’” (Revelation 14:9-10).

This shows great suffering will come on those who receive this mark of the beast.

In verse 12 we see the group of people who do not receive this mark. “Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.” This is speaking of the saints of God—all those who are obedient and faithful followers of Jesus Christ.

Throughout the Bible obeying God is a mark or sign of those who are God’s.

For example, in instructing the ancient Israelites how to observe His annual festival the Days of Unleavened Bread, God said this act of obedience to His law would “be as a sign to you on your hand” (Exodus 13:9). The apostle Paul reinforced this in telling the Christians in Corinth to continue to “keep the feast … with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth” (1 Corinthians 5:8).

The mark of the beast thus represents disobedience to God’s commandments and rejection of the faith of Jesus.

The book of Revelation says that those who receive the mark will be subject to the seven last plagues, while the obedient saints are described as having attained “victory over the beast” (Revelation 15:2). These faithful people will be given eternal life and reign with Christ at His second coming (Revelation 20:4).

What is the mark of the beast?

As we’ve already seen, this specific sign determines who may officially transact business. One who has this identifying sign will be able to “buy and sell.” The Bible clearly explains the financial repercussions that will come based upon whether one has this mark or not.

We also note that there is one commandment of God that is often closely connected to one’s ability to do business and that identifies God’s people. Of God’s 10 Commandments, the Fourth Commandment is the one most likely to affect one’s ability to work, earn a living and do business.

The command says, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God” (Exodus 20:8-10).

Most people think it does not make any difference what day one observes, but it does to God. In this age, it takes the “faith of Jesus” to avoid working on the Sabbath and to keep it holy. (For more on this subject, read our articles on the Sabbath.)

What is a mark in the Bible?

The Greek word charagma in Revelation 14:9 means “a scratch or etching, that is, stamp (as a badge of servitude)” (Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries). A mark is thus a brand or sign of identification.

The Sabbath is called a “sign” between God and His people in the Bible (Exodus 31:13, 17; Ezekiel 20:12). It identifies God’s people as being sanctified or set apart by God.

Jesus said, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27-28). The Sabbath today is still a commandment and an identifying sign of God’s people.

Another occasion of marking or identifying people is found in the book of Ezekiel where God tells one with a writer’s inkhorn, “Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and cry over all the abominations that are done within it” (Ezekiel 9:4). This mark identified those who obeyed God and mourned over the sins of the city.

The location of the mark of the beast

The account in Revelation says those who receive the mark of the beast will receive it “on their right hand or on their foreheads” (Revelation 13:16). Many people think it will be some kind of physical mark in or on one’s skin, and this certainly could be.

Yet because the book of Revelation employs many symbols, we must also consider the possibility that these references to the “right hand” and “forehead” are symbolic. If so, what do they mean?

If we hold to and practice the faith of Jesus and keep the commandments of God, we can reject the mark of the beast.In the Bible, the right hand can represent our actions, works and labor. The forehead can symbolize the inner beliefs, the intellect and what is in the mind. The mark of the beast is thus related to what we believe in our mind and what we do with our hands. 

Compare this with Deuteronomy 6:8, where God commanded ancient Israel to bind the commandments “as a sign on your hand, and … as frontlets between your eyes.”

The connection between our thoughts and our actions is a good explanation of faith. In the Bible the real “faith of Jesus” has two parts, belief and acting in faith on those beliefs. (See more about this in our article “How to Grow in Faith.”)

How to avoid the mark of the beast

The Bible says the mark of the beast will be forced on an unsuspecting world before the return of Jesus Christ. This world will not realize it is following the teachings of a false religious system.

But God gives those who read the Bible and believe the Scriptures a clear choice. If we hold to and practice the faith of Jesus and keep the commandments of God, we can reject the mark of the beast. Our booklets God’s 10 Commandments: Still Relevant Today and The Sabbath: A Neglected Gift From God examine the sign God gave that stands in opposition to the mark of the beast.

Choosing to obey God will have consequences for those who reject the mark of the beast. But this is the choice we must make in order to please God and to receive eternal life in the family of God.

See more about the beast power in the article “Who Is the Beast?”