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To begin, we need to look at some of the figurative words in the Bible, like "beast." The definition for "beasts" can be found in the book of Daniel, chapter 7. Here the figurative word "beast" was used to depict world empires that existed during or after Daniel's time. They were foretelling Gentile control of the Holy Land into the far future.
1. The first beast in Daniel 7 was a Lion. History shows this Lion beast to be a figurative picture of the Babylonian empire. (Babylon controlled the Holy Land from 606 to 536 B.C.)
2. The next beast was a Bear. History shows this Bear to be a figurative picture of the Medo-Persian empire. (Medo-Persia controlled the Holy Land from 536 B.C. to 332 B.C.)
3. The third beast was a Leopard. History shows this Leopard to be a figurative picture of the Greek empire (Grecian rulers controlled the Holy Land from 332 B.C. to 65 B.C. when Rome took control).
Unless God changes the definition of "beast" later in Scripture, beasts in visions should always be understood as empires! Babylon the Lion, Medo-Persia the Bear and Greece the Leopard. Each of these empires controlled the whole known world, from India to Greece, the Holy Land, and even part of North Africa. In other words, the whole Middle East.
Now lets pan forward to 95 A.D., when John, a New Testament prophet, foretells the future of the Middle East during the Christian Era. In his visions, guess what John sees? Three more beasts: the Leopard-Bear-Lion "beast," a Two Horned "beast" and a Scarlet "beast". These three "beasts" are not real beasts because we now know that beasts in visions doesn’t mean wild animals:
Revelation 13:2 "And the beast which I saw was like unto a Leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a Bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a Lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority."
Remember, Beasts=Empires? But this beastly empire in Revelation is a composite beast, a Leopard-Bear-Lion, so it isn't just one of Daniel's three empires; it's all three empires rolled into one! In other words, this new empire is composed of the descendants of those earlier empires, in the same geographic location. Looking back at the history of the Middle East, we can now identify this new empire as the various Islamic powers that controlled the Holy Land, and particularly Jerusalem, since the 1st Jihad (beginning in 639 A.D.)
Some may claim that the Islamic states in the Middle East do not constitute a real "empire" because they are not united under one central government, but the God of the Bible is far more concerned with the spiritual realities in a land than He is with how many earthly governments it may have. The reality is this: All Middle Eastern states are united under one religion, Islam, and all Moslems have one central goal: world conquest for their religion. So how should Revelation 13 be understood? Quoted below is part of the chapter, with a few of my words inserted (in red and parenthesis) to explain the figures . . .
Revelation 13:1-5 "And I stood upon the sand of the sea and saw a beast (an empire) rise up out of the sea (of people Rev 17:15), having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns (various Islamic rulers in the Middle East who controlled the Holy Land), and upon his heads the name of blasphemy (this empire stands against the God of the Bible). And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion (Leopard-Bear-Lion gives the reader a positive ID; it's the Middle East): and the dragon (Satan) gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads (governments) as it were wounded to death (the first Jihad was defeated at the battle of Tours and the battle of Vienna);and his deadly wound was healed (the rise of Islam and the new Jihad we face today): and all the world wondered after the beast (this Islamic empire). And they (the people of the Middle East) worshipped the dragon (Satan) which gave power unto the (Islamic) beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast, who is able to make war with him? And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue (controlling Jerusalem) forty and two months."
Those 42 months is how the above interpretation can be proven correct. 42 months is 1278.34 days. Construction of the Islamic Dome of the Rock on God's Temple Mount in Jerusalem began in 688 A.D.. Jerusalem was freed of Islamic control in 1967 A.D.. Applying the prophetic days as given in Ezekiel 4:5-6 . . .
1967A.D. - 1278.34 years = 688.66 A. D. An exact historic fit; so the interpretation is correct. But to continue on . . .
Revelation 13:6-9 "And he (the Leopard-Bear-Lion) opened his mouth in blasphemy against God (by saying "God forbid that He should have a Son"), to blaspheme his name (by trying to change the name of the true God from I AM, to that of a local Arab deity), and his tabernacle (God's temple mount in Jerusalem), and them that dwell in heaven (Believers are presently seated in heaven with Christ, Eph 2:6). And it was given unto him (the Islamic empire) to make war with the saints (the Christians and Jews), and to overcome them (during the 1st Jihad): and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations (of the Middle East). And all that dwell upon the earth (the known world at the time of John) shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb (Jesus, the Son of God) slain from the foundation of the world. If any man have an ear, let him hear."
Not many can hear, but it is now apparent that 1.5 billion people are being terribly deceived by Satan. The God of the Bible and the god of Islam are not the same being because the God of the Bible said, "they worship the dragon," Satan! We should pray for Moslems, not hate them. If they do not turn to Jesus, their eventual fate will be the greatest tragedy in all human history.
Revelation 13:16 "And he (the Leopard-Bear-Lion) 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 (Islamic) beast, or the number of his name."
Like the rest of the church, I used to teach that above verse was a worldwide prophecy, but that doesn't fit context. The Leopard-Bear-Lion prophecy is about the Middle East and the Islamic control of the Holy Land and nowhere else. Contextually, the mark of the beast is given by the Leopard-Bear-Lion, the Islamic empire. There are 1.5 billion Muslims in the world now, but do you see that mark on a forehead of any of the servants of the Leopard-Bear-Lion? No? Then that mark must be an invisible Satanic mark, on the forehead of Moslems, seen only in the spiritual world. That "no man might buy or sell" is not about China, Europe or the Americas, it's about conditions that have existed for Christians and Jews in Islamic countries ever since the 1st Jihad. One only needs to watch the nightly news or read about the latest beheading to see how accurate that prophecy is.
Revelation 14:9-11 ". . . If any man worship the (Islamic) beast and his image (some eschatologists believe that image to be the Kaaba stone in Mecca), and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand (man thinks evil thoughts in his mind and with his hands he does them), the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb (Jesus): And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the (Leopard-Bear-Lion) beast and his image (the Kaaba stone?), and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name."
So will Islam fall? The God of the Bible says so. As written earlier, it will be a spiritual tragedy of unimaginable proportions, and it will happen because the followers of the Leopard-Bear-Lion have been deceived into rejecting the Son of God who sacrificed Himself for all mankind on the Cross of Calvary. Scripture goes on to say:
Revelation 13:18 "Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the (Leopard-Bear-Lion) beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six," i.e., 666.
Many books have been written about that number, all speculative, but about 20 years ago a former Muslim who could read Arabic told me that 666 was the number of the Koran. There were many Islamic sites on the Internet claiming 666 to be the number of the Koran, just search Quran666. And that did it; knowing the true identity of 666, the last piece of the Leopard-Bear-Lion puzzle fell into place.
We can now see the verse in a new light: 666 The number of a man! So what man has led a billion and a half people away from the Savior of the world? What man said, "God forbid that he should have a son." Is this not Muhammad, the prophet of the Leopard-Bear-Lion? Of course, and according to the Bible, the end for him and his followers will be grim indeed:
Revelation 19:20 "And the (Leopard-Bear-Lion) beast was taken, and with him the false prophet (Muhammad) that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image (the Kaaba stone?). These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone."
May our beloved God, who sacrificed His only begotten Son for all mankind, take the blindness from their eyes while there is still time.
1. The first beast in Daniel 7 was a Lion. History shows this Lion beast to be a figurative picture of the Babylonian empire. (Babylon controlled the Holy Land from 606 to 536 B.C.)
2. The next beast was a Bear. History shows this Bear to be a figurative picture of the Medo-Persian empire. (Medo-Persia controlled the Holy Land from 536 B.C. to 332 B.C.)
3. The third beast was a Leopard. History shows this Leopard to be a figurative picture of the Greek empire (Grecian rulers controlled the Holy Land from 332 B.C. to 65 B.C. when Rome took control).
Unless God changes the definition of "beast" later in Scripture, beasts in visions should always be understood as empires! Babylon the Lion, Medo-Persia the Bear and Greece the Leopard. Each of these empires controlled the whole known world, from India to Greece, the Holy Land, and even part of North Africa. In other words, the whole Middle East.
Now lets pan forward to 95 A.D., when John, a New Testament prophet, foretells the future of the Middle East during the Christian Era. In his visions, guess what John sees? Three more beasts: the Leopard-Bear-Lion "beast," a Two Horned "beast" and a Scarlet "beast". These three "beasts" are not real beasts because we now know that beasts in visions doesn’t mean wild animals:
Revelation 13:2 "And the beast which I saw was like unto a Leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a Bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a Lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority."
Remember, Beasts=Empires? But this beastly empire in Revelation is a composite beast, a Leopard-Bear-Lion, so it isn't just one of Daniel's three empires; it's all three empires rolled into one! In other words, this new empire is composed of the descendants of those earlier empires, in the same geographic location. Looking back at the history of the Middle East, we can now identify this new empire as the various Islamic powers that controlled the Holy Land, and particularly Jerusalem, since the 1st Jihad (beginning in 639 A.D.)
Some may claim that the Islamic states in the Middle East do not constitute a real "empire" because they are not united under one central government, but the God of the Bible is far more concerned with the spiritual realities in a land than He is with how many earthly governments it may have. The reality is this: All Middle Eastern states are united under one religion, Islam, and all Moslems have one central goal: world conquest for their religion. So how should Revelation 13 be understood? Quoted below is part of the chapter, with a few of my words inserted (in red and parenthesis) to explain the figures . . .
Revelation 13:1-5 "And I stood upon the sand of the sea and saw a beast (an empire) rise up out of the sea (of people Rev 17:15), having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns (various Islamic rulers in the Middle East who controlled the Holy Land), and upon his heads the name of blasphemy (this empire stands against the God of the Bible). And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion (Leopard-Bear-Lion gives the reader a positive ID; it's the Middle East): and the dragon (Satan) gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads (governments) as it were wounded to death (the first Jihad was defeated at the battle of Tours and the battle of Vienna);and his deadly wound was healed (the rise of Islam and the new Jihad we face today): and all the world wondered after the beast (this Islamic empire). And they (the people of the Middle East) worshipped the dragon (Satan) which gave power unto the (Islamic) beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast, who is able to make war with him? And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue (controlling Jerusalem) forty and two months."
Those 42 months is how the above interpretation can be proven correct. 42 months is 1278.34 days. Construction of the Islamic Dome of the Rock on God's Temple Mount in Jerusalem began in 688 A.D.. Jerusalem was freed of Islamic control in 1967 A.D.. Applying the prophetic days as given in Ezekiel 4:5-6 . . .
1967A.D. - 1278.34 years = 688.66 A. D. An exact historic fit; so the interpretation is correct. But to continue on . . .
Revelation 13:6-9 "And he (the Leopard-Bear-Lion) opened his mouth in blasphemy against God (by saying "God forbid that He should have a Son"), to blaspheme his name (by trying to change the name of the true God from I AM, to that of a local Arab deity), and his tabernacle (God's temple mount in Jerusalem), and them that dwell in heaven (Believers are presently seated in heaven with Christ, Eph 2:6). And it was given unto him (the Islamic empire) to make war with the saints (the Christians and Jews), and to overcome them (during the 1st Jihad): and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations (of the Middle East). And all that dwell upon the earth (the known world at the time of John) shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb (Jesus, the Son of God) slain from the foundation of the world. If any man have an ear, let him hear."
Not many can hear, but it is now apparent that 1.5 billion people are being terribly deceived by Satan. The God of the Bible and the god of Islam are not the same being because the God of the Bible said, "they worship the dragon," Satan! We should pray for Moslems, not hate them. If they do not turn to Jesus, their eventual fate will be the greatest tragedy in all human history.
Revelation 13:16 "And he (the Leopard-Bear-Lion) 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 (Islamic) beast, or the number of his name."
Like the rest of the church, I used to teach that above verse was a worldwide prophecy, but that doesn't fit context. The Leopard-Bear-Lion prophecy is about the Middle East and the Islamic control of the Holy Land and nowhere else. Contextually, the mark of the beast is given by the Leopard-Bear-Lion, the Islamic empire. There are 1.5 billion Muslims in the world now, but do you see that mark on a forehead of any of the servants of the Leopard-Bear-Lion? No? Then that mark must be an invisible Satanic mark, on the forehead of Moslems, seen only in the spiritual world. That "no man might buy or sell" is not about China, Europe or the Americas, it's about conditions that have existed for Christians and Jews in Islamic countries ever since the 1st Jihad. One only needs to watch the nightly news or read about the latest beheading to see how accurate that prophecy is.
Revelation 14:9-11 ". . . If any man worship the (Islamic) beast and his image (some eschatologists believe that image to be the Kaaba stone in Mecca), and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand (man thinks evil thoughts in his mind and with his hands he does them), the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb (Jesus): And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the (Leopard-Bear-Lion) beast and his image (the Kaaba stone?), and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name."
So will Islam fall? The God of the Bible says so. As written earlier, it will be a spiritual tragedy of unimaginable proportions, and it will happen because the followers of the Leopard-Bear-Lion have been deceived into rejecting the Son of God who sacrificed Himself for all mankind on the Cross of Calvary. Scripture goes on to say:
Revelation 13:18 "Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the (Leopard-Bear-Lion) beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six," i.e., 666.
Many books have been written about that number, all speculative, but about 20 years ago a former Muslim who could read Arabic told me that 666 was the number of the Koran. There were many Islamic sites on the Internet claiming 666 to be the number of the Koran, just search Quran666. And that did it; knowing the true identity of 666, the last piece of the Leopard-Bear-Lion puzzle fell into place.
We can now see the verse in a new light: 666 The number of a man! So what man has led a billion and a half people away from the Savior of the world? What man said, "God forbid that he should have a son." Is this not Muhammad, the prophet of the Leopard-Bear-Lion? Of course, and according to the Bible, the end for him and his followers will be grim indeed:
Revelation 19:20 "And the (Leopard-Bear-Lion) beast was taken, and with him the false prophet (Muhammad) that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image (the Kaaba stone?). These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone."
May our beloved God, who sacrificed His only begotten Son for all mankind, take the blindness from their eyes while there is still time.
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