A Study of Revelation 13

Part of the

Series

Presented on June 14, 2015

at Calvary Bible Church East

in Kalamazoo, Michigan

by

Calvary Bible Church East

5495 East Main St

Kalamazoo, MI 49048

CalvaryEast.com

Copyright © 2015 by Bryan Craddock

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the

ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®),

copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good

News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved

— 1 —

I have a question that I challenge you to answer in

all honesty. Have you ever been tempted to see if

some unsuspecting clerk at a store might accept

monopoly money for a purchase? Don’t we all wish

that we could pull that stunt off? Of course, we know

it’s impossible.

Monopoly money doesn’t look anything at all like

the real thing, but some counterfeit money does. In

2006 the United States Treasury estimated that $70

million in counterfeit bills were in circulation. Some

of that phony money was made by criminals, but the

— 2 —

government also accused other countries like North

Korea of producing very high quality counterfeit bills

made with the right paper and ink and only the

slightest imperfections. Of course, the counterfeiting

of currency is illegal, but money is not the only thing

that can be counterfeited.

There have always been false teachers who seek to

counterfeit God’s truth. The Apostle Paul confronted

this problem in his second letter to the Corinthians.

He says,

For such men are false apostles, deceitful

workmen, disguising themselves as apostles

of Christ. And no wonder, for even Satan

disguises himself as an angel of light (2 Cor

11:13-14).

Some people associate Satan’s work with the kinds of

occult practices that get a lot of attention around

Halloween, but he is far more subtle, and those

activities are the spiritual equivalent of Monopoly

money. Satan’s main focus is to draw people into

religious activity that mirrors Christianity as closely as

possible.

As we resume our study of Revelation that I have

titled “Knowledge of the Future--Strength to

— 3 —

Persevere,” we learn that in the final years before the

return of Christ, God will allow Satan to orchestrate

his most powerful counterfeit ever. Revelation 13

introduces two individuals described as beasts, one a

political leader and the other a religious leader.

Elsewhere in the Bible they are referred to as the

Antichrist and the false prophet. Their worldwide

movement will be the ultimate expression of a

deception Satan has used throughout history.

In 1 John 2:18, John said,

Children, it is the last hour, and as you have

heard that antichrist is coming, so now

many antichrists have come. Therefore we

know that it is the last hour.

There have always been antichrists and false prophets

at work. So the study of the ultimate deception in

Revelation 13 should help us recognize the deceptive

influence of false religion in our world today.

Revelation 13 shows us six contrasts between

Christianity and satanic counterfeits. In each

contrasting area, the difference is not so much a

question of what false religion does, but how and why.

False religion is built around power and control, but

— 4 —

true Christianity is built upon the grace demonstrated

by the saving work of Jesus through his death on the

cross. Paul emphasized this difference in 1

Corinthians 1:22-23 where he says,

For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek

wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a

stumbling block to Jews and folly to

Gentiles.

Satan plays upon that desire for power and wisdom to

draw people into counterfeit religion. The pull is so

strong that many people who claim to be Christians

are actually pursuing something other than the

humble weakness of the cross.

To recognize false religion you have to begin by

seeing its influence in your own heart. Don’t lose sight

of that goal as we walk through the details of John’s

vision in Revelation 13.

— 5 —

Contrast 1: Kingdom .................................................... 6

Contrast 2: Worship .................................................... 11

Contrast 3: Unity ........................................................ 15

Contrast 4: Teaching .................................................. 18

Contrast 5: Miracles ................................................... 21

Contrast 6: Identity .................................................... 24

Conclusion .................................................................. 27

Questions for Further Reflection ............................... 28

— 6 —

We live in a nation that prides itself in not having a

king. The United States is a representative democracy

where we, the people, select our leaders, but we still

love stories of kings. Ultimately, all of history boils

down to a battle between two kingdoms. Both Satan

and Christ seek to establish a kingdom, but they take

very different approaches.

In Revelation 12 John described his vision of Satan

as a great dragon. With the help of other angels, the

archangel Michael cast Satan out of heaven in

preparation for the return of Christ. The chapter

— 7 —

finishes with Satan standing on the sand of the sea.

John’s vision continues in Revelation 13, as Satan

makes one last effort to establish his own kingdom. In

verses 1-3 he says,

And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with

ten horns and seven heads, with ten

diadems on its horns and blasphemous

names on its heads. And the beast that I saw

was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear's,

and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. And

to it the dragon gave his power and his

throne and great authority. One of its heads

seemed to have a mortal wound, but its

mortal wound was healed, and the whole

earth marveled as they followed the beast.

This strange beast lines up with a vision that the

prophet Daniel describes in Daniel 7. Daniel saw four

different beasts, one like a lion, one like a bear, one

like a leopard, and a fourth beast with ten horns that

possessed elements similar to each of the previous

three. It’s clear in Daniel that these beasts represented

a succession of powerful kingdoms, world empires:

Babylon ruling like a roaring lion, Persia with the

stability of a bear, Greece with the speed of the

leopard, and Rome combining all of these

— 8 —

characteristics. Satan worked through each of those

empires, and he will make one final attempt in the

time immediately before the return of Christ.

This final empire will combine all the powers that

characterized ancient Rome, including one key leader

who will be wounded and miraculously healed. John

will say more about that event later in the chapter, but

at this point it will suffice to say that this healing is an

effort to appear Christ-like.

What becomes clear in this first part of John’s

vision is that from a human perspective the empire of

Antichrist will be formed like every other empire in

history. Men will exercise power and political

cunning. There will not be any outward indication

that it is directed and empowered by the devil. As

John says in verse 3, the whole earth will simply feel

compelled to follow this one impressive leader.

The kingdom of Christ comes in an entirely

different way. Jesus spoke of the ways of his kingdom

in the passage we call the Beatitudes, Matthew 5:3-10.

There he says,

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is

the kingdom of heaven.

— 9 —

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall

be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit

the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for

righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall

receive mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall

see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall

be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for

righteousness' sake, for theirs is the

kingdom of heaven.

These characteristics are exactly opposite of what

will be seen in the formation of Antichrist’s empire. Of

course, the fullest expression of these characteristics

is seen in Jesus himself, who rather than claiming

power, humbly submitted to the sufferings of the

cross. Revelation 19 tells us that Jesus will return in

power at some point, but that will be a sudden

dramatic invasion, not a gradual rise to power.

— 10 —

What difference does this contrast between

kingdoms make for us today? We need to consider

which kingdom we are really seeking. Are you staking

your hopes on some person or group gaining power

and political influence? If so, we make ourselves an

easy target for the spirit of antichrist at work in the

world today. Even if we ever manage to force the

world into conformity with some semblance of biblical

morality, it will have very little to do with the true

character of Christ. The impulse to control people,

even for some moral purpose, is a mark of false

religion.

— 11 —

Right now in our society many atheists assert that

all religion is bad, so other people respond by

claiming that all religion is good. Satan loves that kind

of undiscriminating thinking, because it makes

someone an easy target to be led astray from the

truth.

John continues to describe his vision in Revelation

13:4-6 by saying,

And they worshiped the dragon, for he had

given his authority to the beast, and they

worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like

— 12 —

the beast, and who can fight against it?" And

the beast was given a mouth uttering

haughty and blasphemous words, and it was

allowed to exercise authority for forty-two

months. It opened its mouth to utter

blasphemies against God, blaspheming his

name and his dwelling, that is, those who

dwell in heaven.

The previous verses described the beast in terms of

political power, but here his religious intent is

identified. People worship him, and because the

dragon is the source of his power, that worship is

ultimately directed to him. The relationship of the

beast and the dragon is designed to counterfeit that of

Jesus with His heavenly Father.

The arrogant blasphemies of the beast may simply

be that he claims to have the authority of God and

Christ, or perhaps, he will present himself as an

alternative to Christianity. However the beast

blasphemes, people will be drawn to worship him

because of his power. Verse 4 tells us that people will

say, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against

it?" The kingdom contrast showed us that false

religion seeks power, but this worship contrast shows

us that false religion adores and exalts power.

— 13 —

Of course, the beast’s power is a lie; he will be

defeated after just 42 months. God is far more

powerful, but his most attractive characteristics are

his mercy, love, and grace. When God revealed

himself to Moses in Exodus 34:6 we read that,

The LORD passed before him and

proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God

merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and

abounding in steadfast love and

faithfulness.”

As the Old Testament prophets looked forward to

the coming of Christ, the same characteristics come to

the forefront. Isaiah 42:2-3 says,

He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or

make it heard in the street; a bruised reed

he will not break, and a faintly burning wick

he will not quench; he will faithfully bring

forth justice.

It’s no surprise then that Jesus presents himself in

similar terms. Matthew 11:29 tells us that he said,

“Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am

gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for

your souls.”

— 14 —

Paul picks up on this same theme and claims it as

the reason for devoting our lives to Christ. In Romans

12:1 he says,

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the

mercies of God, to present your bodies as a

living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God,

which is your spiritual worship.

What is it that draws you to worship? Is it power

or mercy? Beware of any religion, even one that seems

to be Christian, but boasts in power rather than

celebrating grace.

— 15 —

In our society today, the people who speak most

about unity, acceptance, and tolerance are often very

quick to use force toward those who hold different

views. The antichrist will take the same approach. As

John continue to speak of the beast in Revelation

13:7-10, he says,

Also it was allowed to make war on the

saints and to conquer them. And authority

was given it over every tribe and people and

language and nation, and all who dwell on

earth will worship it, everyone whose name

— 16 —

has not been written before the foundation

of the world in the book of life of the Lamb

who was slain. If anyone has an ear, let him

hear: If anyone is to be taken captive, to

captivity he goes; if anyone is to be slain

with the sword, with the sword must he be

slain. Here is a call for the endurance and

faith of the saints.

The beast will unite the entire world in worship,

but in order to achieve that goal, he must make war

against the saints. The term “saints” could also be

translated as “holy ones.” They are not holy through

their own efforts, however. The New Testament often

refers to believers as saints because we are made holy

in God’s eyes through the saving work of Christ. In

fact, the saints are those whose names were written in

the book of life before the foundation of the world.

They were chosen by God, but John makes it clear

that by this point the rest of the world is not.

You might assume that this persecution of the

saints is out of God’s control, but that is not the case.

According to verse 7, the beast could not make war

unless it was allowed. The authority he has was

granted to him. The instructions in verses 9 and 10,

— 17 —

show that God allows his saints to undergo

persecution to demonstrate their endurance and faith.

True unity is not a matter of outward conformity

like that brought about by the beast. True unity arises

when people hold the same convictions of faith. In

Ephesians 4:4-6 Paul says,

There is one body and one Spirit--just as

you were called to the one hope that belongs

to your call--one Lord, one faith, one

baptism, one God and Father of all, who is

over all and through all and in all.

The beast will attempt to mimic that unity, but it will

all be a farce brought about through persecution. At

times in history, those claiming the name of Christ

have used force to compel people to believe, but again

that reliance upon power is a mark of false religion

reflecting Satan’s deceitful influence.

This passage reminds us not to abandon biblical

convictions to conform to the world’s idea of unity

even when that unity is based in religion. Times of

persecution will come even before this beast arrives,

but God’s people must endure and stay true to the

faith.

— 18 —

Every time someone teaches, whether it be in a

church or a school, the teacher always points to

someone or something as the authority. School

teachers may point to a textbook or a curriculum as

their authority, but both of those are liable to change.

As I teach our church family every Sunday, I point to

the Bible as God’s authoritative revelation.

In Revelation 13:11-12, John sees a second beast

that serves as a religious leader. He says,

Then I saw another beast rising out of the

earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it

— 19 —

spoke like a dragon. It exercises all the

authority of the first beast in its presence,

and makes the earth and its inhabitants

worship the first beast, whose mortal wound

was healed.

Verse 8 just spoke of Jesus as the Lamb who was

slain, so this beast seems to present itself in a Christ-

like form. The passage does not specifically say how

he seeks to resemble Christ, but his speech reveals his

true nature. He speaks like a dragon, like Satan

himself. It was Satan’s deceitful speech that enticed

Eve to eat the forbidden fruit at the beginning of

creation. We find another record of Satan speaking in

Matthew 4 when he tempted Jesus. In both cases, he

used God’s Word but twisted it to suit his own

purpose. This second beast will undoubtedly do the

same.

The beast’s appearance as a lamb may suggest

some pretense of gentleness. That may also be the

idea of him rising out of the earth as compared to the

first beast rising out of the tumultuous sea. However

he appears, his teaching points to the first beast as the

authority and the object of worship. He leads the

entire earth in worshiping the first beast.

— 20 —

The one true reliable authority is God’s Word. In 2

Timothy 3:16 Paul says,

All Scripture is breathed out by God and

profitable for teaching, for reproof, for

correction, and for training in righteous-

ness.

Sound Christian teaching is rooted in the simple,

straightforward interpretation and explanation of the

Bible. It doesn’t show off the teacher’s intellect,

creativity, drama, or sense of humor. You will find a

lot of teaching like that in churches, but that approach

leaves hearers unable to recognize false teaching.

Sound Christian teaching clearly points to God’s

authority in his Word. Is that what you look for as you

read a book or listen to some teaching that claims to

be Christian? The spirit of antichrist is already active

in propagating false religion today. We must exercise

careful discernment.

— 21 —

The greatest miracle that has ever occurred was

the resurrection of Jesus. That event is foundational

to the Christian faith. False teachers throughout

history have tried to entice people with tricks and

stories of miracles, but during those final years before

the return of Christ, God allows Satan to work a series

of impressive signs.

In Revelation 13:13-15 John continues speaking

about this second beast and says,

It performs great signs, even making fire

come down from heaven to earth in front of

— 22 —

people, and by the signs that it is allowed to

work in the presence of the beast it deceives

those who dwell on earth, telling them to

make an image for the beast that was

wounded by the sword and yet lived. And it

was allowed to give breath to the image of

the beast, so that the image of the beast

might even speak and might cause those

who would not worship the image of the

beast to be slain.

These signs will be genuine supernatural events,

but they are still counterfeits. In 1 Kings 17, the

Prophet Elijah challenged the false prophets of his day

to a competition to see who could call down fire upon

a sacrifice. The prophets of Baal failed, but God

answered Elijah’s prayer. This future false prophet

tries to validate his ministry by copying Elijah.

The healing of the first beast has already been

mentioned twice in the chapter. Verse 14 gives us

more detail saying that he was wounded by the sword.

His healing is surely an attempt to duplicate the

resurrection of Christ. The false prophet then uses this

miracle to justify the creation of an image or an idol of

the first beast for people to worship. Of course,

idolatry like this violates God’s commandments, but

— 23 —

the second beast confirms his instructions by

miraculously enabling this statue to speak, calling for

the death of anyone who does not worship.

This passage shows us that performing powerful

miraculous signs, in and of itself, does not confirm

that someone is speaking God’s truth. As we saw a

moment ago, Scripture is the authority, not miracles.

True miracles are actually rare in the pages of

Scripture. We find them clustered at certain key times

in history. Moses performed miracles at the time of

the Exodus to show God’s power against Egypt. Elijah

and Elisha performed miracles to demonstrate God’s

power when Israel had fallen into worshiping the false

god, Baal. Then Jesus and the apostles performed

miracles to show the authority of Christ and his

coming kingdom.

We should be skeptical of claims of the miraculous

and careful to evaluate whatever anyone says by the

clear teaching of Scripture.

— 24 —

For many people religion is just a minor part of

their lives, but genuine faith in Christ shapes your

entire identity. It defines who you are. Anything less

than that is not true Christianity. We call it nominal

Christianity, Christian in name only.

False religions do not settle for nominal

commitment either. Even today, false religions are

often controlling and manipulative. I remember one

friend in college who mistakenly got involved with a

cult group. When she skipped a few small group

— 25 —

meetings, leaders confronted her and called her

salvation into question.

The second beast of Revelation 13 is a master

manipulator. In Revelation 13:16-18 John says,

Also it causes all, both small and great, both

rich and poor, both free and slave, to be

marked on the right hand or the forehead,

so that no one can buy or sell unless he has

the mark, that is, the name of the beast or

the number of its name. This calls for

wisdom: let the one who has understanding

calculate the number of the beast, for it is

the number of a man, and his number is

666.

Many students of Revelation get caught up in wild

speculation about this number, supposing that it

somehow reveals the identity of the beast. Others

worry that they will inadvertently receive the mark

through some credit card, barcode, or computer chip.

The point of the passage is clear. Whatever this

mark will be, it will not be a secret because it will

serve to identify someone’s devotion to the beast. By

associating the mark with buying and selling, the

beast will attempt to control all of someone’s life. He

will be their identity. But the wisdom that John

— 26 —

relates in verse 18 is the reality that the beast is only a

man. He is not the Messiah and he will be defeated.

The real question posed by this passage is how you

define your identity. You will never need the name of

Christ on your body to buy and sell, but do people still

see that you belong to Christ? In 1 Corinthians 6:19-

20 Paul says,

Or do you not know that your body is a

temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom

you have from God? You are not your own,

for you were bought with a price. So glorify

God in your body.

Jesus does not use some manipulation tactic to force

us to be devoted to him. He invites us by his grace to

be his willing followers.

— 27 —

False religion revolves around power. It

counterfeits Christ's kingdom, worship, unity,

teaching, miracles, and the identifying role he plays in

the lives of believers, but the contrast with genuine

Christianity is still evident. God does not manipulate

us by his power. He draws us by his grace. Have you

personally received his saving grace? Have you

responded to him in humble faith? If not, I invite you

to do so today. If you want to learn more about God's

grace, I would encourage you to read Romans 5. If you

are following Christ, one of the best passages to help

us recognize false teaching may be Christ's Beatitudes

in Matthew 5:3-10. You might benefit by focusing on

living out those characteristics and maybe even

committing those verses to memory. May God help us

live in light of his mercy and grace!

— 28 —

1. How would you respond to someone who claims

that all religions are the same?

2. In light of these contrasts in Revelation 13, how

has false religion seeped into your life?

3. What steps will you take to guard your heart from

the influence of false religion?

Bryan Craddock has served as the Pastor of Calvary Bible Church

East in Kalamazoo, Michigan since the church began in 2007. He

is a graduate of the Master’s College and Seminary (B.A. and

M.Div.) and the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

(D.Min.). He and his wife, Shari, live in Kalamazoo, Michigan,

with their three children.

Calvary Bible Church East is an independent, non-

denominational, Bible church in Kalamazoo, Michigan, guided

by a three-part vision. First, we seek to understand the Bible in

order to live out its teaching as Spirit-filled worshippers of God

and followers of Jesus Christ. Next, we seek to deepen our love

for one another as the family of God. Finally, we seek to be

actively engaged in our community in order to shine Christ’s

light through meeting pressing needs and communicating the

gospel of Jesus Christ. For more information, visit us online at

CalvaryEast.com.