When the United Kingdom held a referendum about European Union membership, people voted either:
Leave
or
Remain
So the nation was separated into two groups of people - depending on the decision they’d made.
In the same way, God separates everyone into two groups of people, depending on the decision they’ve made - those who:
Believe that Jesus is their Saviour.
Do not believe that Jesus is their Saviour.
In this message we’ll look at:
This separation into two groups.
How God marks people belonging to Him - they go to heaven & eternal life.
How the devil marks those belonging to him - they go to hell & the lake of fire.
Matthew 13:47-50
47Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind (= caught all kinds of fish):
48Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels (= baskets), but cast the bad away.
49So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever (= separate) the wicked from among the just,
50And shall cast them (= the wicked) into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
Today we’re like those fish in the net - everyone’s living together on earth:
Believers.
Unbelievers.
But at the end of this age - angels will separate everyone into two distinct groups:
Believers --> heaven & eternal life.
Unbelievers --> hell & the lake of fire.
Further reading
Exodus 8:22-23, 9:23-27, 10:22-23, 11:4-7 (The similar separation in Egypt)
Leviticus 20:26
Ezra 7:13
Psalms 1:4-6, 9:17, 37:9-11, 22, 28-29, 34 & 37-38; 145:20
Proverbs 2:21-22, 10:2, 25 & 30, 20:26
Ezekiel 42:20 & 44:23 then Revelation 21:10-27
Joel 3:14
Malachi 3:16-18
Matthew 3:10 & 12, 10:34-36, 13:24-30 & 36-43, 25:31-46
Luke 3:15-17, 12:51-53
John 5:28-29
Philippians 4:3
Hebrews 12:23
A - God gives us three marks (or seals): so that we’re completely confident of our destination.
These three marks are like the three sides of a strong, stable triangle.
God helps us to remember these three marks, by giving us vivid pictures in the Old Testament.
This is what God told the Israelites in Exodus 12:1-5
1And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 2This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you.
3Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house:
4And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls;
every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb (= take the required quantity of lamb, to meet the needs of the people).
5Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats:
Q - Who’s this lamb a picture of?
A - Jesus.
John the Baptist calls Jesus the Lamb of God in John 1:29 & 36
29The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, Which taketh away the sin of the world.
…
36And looking upon Jesus as He walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!
Peter gives us more detail: by explaining that Jesus is the perfect Lamb, without blemish - as required in Exodus 12:5 (above).
1 Peter 1:18-19
18Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation (= empty way of life) received by tradition from your fathers;
19But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.
Let’s go back to Exodus 12
Verse 7
7And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post (= lintel) of the houses, wherein they shall eat it.
--> The Israelites had to take the blood and apply it.
For us - that means:
It’s not enough just to know about Jesus.
We each need to make a positive decision - to believe that Jesus is our Saviour.
Verse 13
13And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are:
and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.
The Israelites were only safe, if they were marked by the blood of the lamb.
God then destroyed the first-born who were not marked by the blood (Exodus 12:29).
Further reading
Hebrews 11:24 then 28
For us - that means we’re ONLY SAFE if we’re MARKED by the BLOOD OF JESUS.
Notice also - God didn’t act according to whether the people were ‘good’ or ‘bad’:
All that mattered was whether or not they’d applied the blood.
This shows us that even when we’ve done bad things - God forgives our sins when we apply the blood of Jesus.
--> Mark #1 = the blood of Jesus.
There’s another vivid picture of being marked & saved by the blood in Joshua 2:1 & 9-13
1And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho.
And they went, and came into an harlot’s house, named Rahab, and lodged there.
…
9And she said unto the men, I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you.
10For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt;
and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed.
11And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you:
for the LORD your God, He is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath.
12Now therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the LORD, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness unto my father’s house, and give me a true token:
13And that ye will save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death.
--> Rahab asked for a token to save them.
Illustration
It's like when we use a Pay & Display car park.
The ticket (= our token) on our windscreen saves us from the dreaded parking fine.
This is the men’s reply to Rahab in verse 18:
18Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by:
and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father’s household, home unto thee.
The two men gave Rahab a token of scarlet thread = a picture of the blood of Jesus.
They gave the token to a prostitute - to emphasise that the blood of Jesus covers all our sins, however bad they are.
Further reading
Matthew 21:31-32
Everyone in Jericho was then killed - unless they were marked by the scarlet thread. (Joshua 6:21-25)
It’s the same logic as we saw in Egypt, and which also applies to us today:
If we make the right decision --> we’re marked out for salvation.
If we stay in 'default mode' and don’t make the correct, positive decision --> we’re destroyed.
--> Mark #1 = the blood of Jesus.
Genesis 6:17-18
17And, behold, I (= God), even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and everything that is in the earth shall die.
18But with thee (= Noah) will I establish My covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons’ wives with thee.
--> God made a covenant with Noah & his family.
Genesis 7:23 ~ And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven;
and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark.
Q - Which people were saved?
A - Only those in a covenant relationship with God.
--> We need to be in a covenant relationship with God.
--> Mark #2 = Covenant relationship with God.
Further reading
'Covenant' message on WholeCounselofGod.com
Notice that God acted CONSISTENTLY in:
A. The Flood
B. Egypt
C. Jericho
He:
Marked out the people belonging to Him.
Then destroyed everyone else.
… and He’ll do the same at the end of this age / when we die (whichever comes first).
Genesis 9
Verses 8-11
8And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying,
9And I, behold, I establish My covenant with you, and with your seed after you;
10And with every living creature that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth.
11And I will establish My covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there anymore be a flood to destroy the earth.
--> God made a covenant with Noah.
Q - Why does God make a covenant with us?
A - To give us CONFIDENCE:
God never breaks His covenants.
So we can be 100% sure that we're going to heaven & have eternal life.
Verse 12
12And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations.
The covenant is so important that God gave Noah a token - like the spies gave Rahab a token.
The next two verses describe the token:
Verses 13-14
13I do set My bow (from the Hebrew word for 'bending' i.e. curved) in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between Me and the earth.
14And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud:
--> This token of God's covenant was the rainbow.
Further reading
Genesis 9:15-17
A rainbow has seven colours (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo & violet).
This rainbow token is a SIGNPOST - pointing us to the THIRD way God marks us out for salvation.
Scripture interprets Scripture - so to see what the third mark is, let’s read about the other rainbow in the Bible:
Revelation 4:2-5
2And immediately I (= John) was in the Spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and One sat on the throne.
3And He that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone (= a gemstone from Sardis in Lydia): and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.
4And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.
5And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.
Seven colours in the rainbow.
Seven lamps of fire - which are the seven Spirits of God.
A RAINBOW links the:
Sky
Earth
… and is a token of God’s covenant.
The HOLY SPIRIT links:
God in Heaven.
Believers on Earth.
… and is a token of God’s covenant.
Further reading
1 Corinthians 2:10-12
Revelation 1:4, 3:1, 5:6
2 Corinthians 1:22 ~ Who hath also sealed (= marked) us, and given the earnest (= the deposit / guarantee) of the Spirit in our hearts.
Illustration
The seal in our passport gives us the right to enter our country.
The seal of the Holy Spirit gives us the right to enter heaven.
Q - How do we know that we've been marked by the Holy Spirit?
A - We feel the Holy Spirit within us / in our hearts.
As John Wesley explained, when he was born again:
“I felt my heart strangely warmed.”
John 3:5 ~ Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God.
--> The Holy Spirit is our ticket to heaven.
--> We MUST have that ticket!
Further reading
Matthew 12:31-32 / Mark 3:29 / Luke 12:10
Matthew 25:1-13 (In the Bible - Oil & Lamps are often pictures of the Holy Spirit)
Acts 2:37-40, 5:32
Romans 8:9
1 Corinthians 2:14
Ephesians 1:13-14, 4:30
1 John 3:24, 4:13
So that:
A. God knows that we belong to Him.
B. We know that we belong to God.
Mark #1 - We believe that the blood of Jesus paid the penalty for our sins.
Mark #2 - Covenant relationship - between God & us.
Mark #3 - The Holy Spirit - living within us.
We receive all three marks at the SAME TIME - when we believe that Jesus is our Saviour.
Further reading
Romans 5:5 then 9
1 Corinthians 3:16
Galatians 4:4-6
These marks are like the three sides of a strong, stable triangle.
This passage may seem harsh.
But the people had sinned appallingly and had not repented (see Ezekiel chapters 5-8).
Ezekiel 9:4
4And the LORD said unto him (= to the man clothed with linen, who had the the writing kit),
Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem,
and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof.
--> Notice in verse 4 that it’s nothing new for believers to be appalled at the sin in the surrounding world.
--> But here we're looking at how:
1. God marks people belonging to Him.
2. God then destroys everyone without His mark:
Ezekiel 9:5-6
5And to the others He said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity:
6Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at My sanctuary.
--> It will be the same when we die / at the end of this age (whichever comes first).
During our life on earth, WE DECIDE whether to:
Be marked by God - and go to heaven & eternal life.
or
Have the mark of the beast (we’ll see later what this is) - and go to hell / the lake of fire:
There's no middle ground.
Illustration
It's like there are no grey stripes on a zebra crossing - only black or white.
Acts 3:20 then 23
20And He (= God the Father) shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you.
…
23And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that Prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.
Further reading
Genesis 19:1 & 12-25 (Lot’s escape - before God destroyed Sodom & Gomorrah)
Is in the Bible to help and guide us - not to scare us!
Has the same message as the rest of the Bible - but told in a different way: like different newspapers report the same event in contrasting styles.
Uses vivid symbols to hammer home the message - like Jesus explained at the beginning of the book:
Revelation 1:20 ~ The mystery (= hidden meaning, which is now revealed to believers) of the seven stars which thou sawest in My right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks.
The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.
Symbols
Star = Angel
Candlestick = Church
The Book of Revelation goes on to explain the TWO MARKS:
Mark of God.
Mark of the beast.
These two marks are also described in SYMBOLIC LANGUAGE.
Just like the:
Stars = Angels
Candlesticks = Churches.
Revelation 7:2-3
2And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,
3Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.
God marks out believers as belonging to Him.
Illustration: it's like how farmers mark their sheep & cattle.
Further reading
Revelation 14:1
Q: Why is it VITAL that we’re marked by God?
A:
Revelation 9:3-4
3And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.
4And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree;
but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.
--> Anyone NOT MARKED BY GOD --> Torment.
--> The same pattern as we saw earlier in:
The flood in Noah's time
The Passover in Egypt
Jericho
Ezekiel 9
So being marked by GOD = GOOD news.
The Greek word translated into English as 'Beast' actually means: 'Dangerous animal'.
The Bible also describes the devil / Satan as a: 'Lion / Serpent / Dragon' - all of which are dangerous animals.
Further reading
'Defeating the enemy' message on WholeCounselofGod.com
This 'Beast' in the book of Revelation is therefore a SYMBOL for: the devil / Satan.
Revelation 13:16 ~ And he (= the beast from verse 15) causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.
Marked by God = Belong to God.
Mark of the Beast = Belong to Satan.
Revelation 14:9-11
9And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
10The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture (= in full strength / undiluted) into the cup of His indignation;
and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone (= sulphur) in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
11And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
People having the mark of the beast / mark of the devil will receive God’s eternal punishment - the worst thing which could ever happen to anyone.
So it’s vital that we don’t have the mark of the beast!
Further reading
Revelation 16:1-2
Illustration
It’s like two opposing football teams:
A player can only be in one team - not both.
The players wear different coloured shirts to show which team they’re in - the shirt colour is their ‘mark’.
In the same way:
We can only be in one team - God’s team or the devil’s team.
There’s no middle-ground / grey area. Remember the zebra crossing.
We’re either marked by God (as we saw earlier) or by Satan - to show whose team we’re in.
Further reading
Revelation 20:4
Dogs have microchips implanted in their forehead - to identify them e.g. if they’re lost.
Some believers have incorrectly concluded (based on a single verse, which we'll interpret later) that the mark of the beast is a similar scheme for humans!
We can buy many books which speculate on this topic:
But just because someone publishes a book - doesn’t mean it’s true.
Remember the similar books about the forthcoming ‘Y2K / Millennium bug disaster’ - which never happened!
A. Why would God judge us on this basis?
It’s completely out of line with the rest of the Bible.
If a microchip determines our eternal destiny - why didn’t:
Jesus warn us in the four gospels?
Especially when He clearly described all the ‘end-time signs’ we should watch out for, in: Matthew 24 / Mark 13 / Luke 21?
Paul teach this in his thirteen letters?
Remember - it's a bad & dangerous practice to create a Christian doctrine from a SINGLE BIBLE VERSE:
If it's important for us to know something - God reinforces it in His Word multiple times, in different places.
That's why I've included 'Further Reading' throughout WholeCounselofGod.com
B. What is the equivalent for being - MARKED BY GOD?
As we saw earlier - God ‘Marks people belonging to Him in their foreheads’.
Let's look again at Revelation 7:2-3
2And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,
3Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.
--> Do we expect God to put a 'Different microchip' in our forehead?
C. It would mean a two-tier salvation
Before ‘microchips in the forehead’ are introduced - people only need to believe that Jesus is their Saviour:
John 3:16 ~ For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
After ‘microchips in the forehead’ are introduced, there would be another step - gritting our teeth and refusing to accept such an implant.
(Otherwise we’d go to hell, as seen earlier).
So our salvation would NO LONGER DEPEND only on the GRACE OF GOD - but on what WE can manage, in our own strength.
If anyone truly believes the ‘microchip in the forehead’ theory:
During evangelism: they must tell people about the ‘Need to resist the chip’ and update their outreach literature.
Otherwise they're lying to people and giving them false hope.
How can we know that we’re saved?
No-one can be 100% sure that they could resist this ‘microchip’ in the future - so no-one can be sure that they’ll go to heaven.
The disciples had BEEN WITH Jesus for three years and SAW Him:
Walk on water.
Feed the 5,000.
Raise Lazarus from the dead.
etc.
… so they THOUGHT they had unwavering faith:
Matthew 26:35 ~ Peter said unto Him (= to Jesus), Though I should die with Thee, yet will I not deny Thee. Likewise also said all the disciples.
Q - But what happened just a few hours later?
Matthew 26:56 ~ … Then all the disciples forsook Him, and fled.
Further reading
Matthew 26:31-34, 69-75
Mark 14:27-31, 50 & 66-72
Luke 22:33-34 & 55-62
John 13:37-38, 18:17 & 25-27
D. The Bible applies to ALL PEOPLE of ALL GENERATIONS in EVERY LOCATION
Revelation 13:16 ~ And he causeth (= causes) all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.
'Causeth / Causes' = present tense.
The Bible does not say: ‘Will cause’.
--> So the devil has been trying to mark people for at least 2,000 years - centuries before microchips were invented!
Revelation 22:10 ~ And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book (= the Book of Revelation is to be understood & applied from the time of its writing onwards):
for the time is at hand (= the time is near).
The Bible also applies to people living in the remotest areas of the world - where they don’t even have electricity, let alone the infrastructure to support microchips.
Revelation 13:18 ~ Here (Greek = 'In the same spot') 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 (= 666).
These are all SIGNPOSTS back to Bible passages 'In the same spot' about:
A. A man
B. Wisdom
C. 666
These OTHER PASSAGES - which we'll now look at - then EXPLAIN what the mark of the beast is:
Everything we need to know about Christian doctrine is in the self-contained Bible.
Scripture interprets Scripture.
Signpost A - 'The number of a man'
The number (666) refers to a man - so we need to look for a man in the Bible who's associated with 666.
Signpost B - 'Here is wisdom'
Q - Which man in the Bible do we associate with wisdom?
A - Solomon:
1 Kings 4:29-30
29And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea shore.
30And Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east country, and all the wisdom of Egypt.
So Revelation 13:18 links the number 666 with:
A. A man
B. Wisdom
And we know that Solomon was a man with much wisdom.
Signpost C - 666
The first mention of something in the Bible often explains its meaning in later passages.
So let’s look at the first mention of 666 in the Bible:
1 Kings 10:14 ~ Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold (= 666).
--> This passage is also about Solomon!
Further reading
2 Chronicles 9:13
RECAP - All three signposts in Revelation 13:18 link back to Solomon:
A. He was a man.
B. He had much wisdom.
C. He received 666 talents of gold in one year.
The link starts at Revelation 13:18, and ends with Solomon.
Solomon started well - he:
Built the Temple in Jerusalem.
Wrote most of the book of Proverbs (and probably Ecclesiastes).
But it’s not how we start that’s important - but how we finish.
Further reading
Jeremiah 2:21
Let’s see how Solomon measured up against GOD'S STANDARDS:
Deuteronomy 17:15-17
15Thou shalt in any wise (= be sure to) set him king over thee, whom the LORD thy God shall choose:
one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother
16But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses:
forasmuch as (= since) the LORD hath said unto you, Ye shall henceforth return no more that way.
17Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.
--> God commanded Israel’s kings not to accumulate lots of:
A. Silver & gold.
B. Horses - especially from Egypt.
C. Wives - because they would turn the king’s heart away from God.
But what did Solomon do?
1 Kings 10:21-22
21And all king Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold;
none were of silver: it was nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon.
22For the king had at sea a navy of Tharshish with the navy of Hiram: once in three years came the navy of Tharshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.
A. Solomon collected lots of gold & silver = He DISOBEYED God.
1 Kings 10:26-28
26And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots,
and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Jerusalem.
27And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycomore trees that are in the vale, for abundance.
28And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt …
B. Solomon brought many horses from Egypt = He DISOBEYED God.
1 Kings 11:3-4
3And he (= Solomon) had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart.
4For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods:
and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.
C. Solomon had many wives who turned his heart away from God = Solomon again DISOBEYED God.
1 Kings 11:5-6
5For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
6And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father.
--> Solomon - who started well by building the Temple - was now doing EVIL!
1 Kings 11:7-10
7Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon.
8And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.
9And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, Which (= Who) had appeared unto him twice,
10And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the LORD commanded.
Q - What does God call it when we DISOBEY His commands?
A - SIN
The three ‘mark of the beast’ signposts in Revelation 13:18:
A man
Wisdom
666
… all link back to SOLOMON - who committed gross SIN:
Nehemiah 13:26 ~ Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? ...
Q - What are the CONSEQUENCES of unrepentant sin?
1 Chronicles 28:9 ~ And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve Him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind:
for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek Him, He will be found of thee;
but if thou forsake Him, He will cast thee off for ever.
A - The consequence of unrepentant sin, is that God banishes people from His presence: into hell & the lake of fire.
Further reading
1 Kings 9:1-9
2 Kings 23:13
Psalm 73:27
SIN is how the devil MARKS those BELONGING TO HIM.
Just like he tempted Adam & Eve to sin in the Garden of Eden. (Genesis chapter 3)
Satan then:
Has control over the eternal destiny of unrepentant sinners.
Ensures that when they die, they'll join him in his future home of hell & the lake of fire - this is his evil purpose.
In the Book of Revelation God uses vivid & symbolic language to hammer home the message, that to avoid going to hell & the lake of fire - we must deal with our sins.
This is CONSISTENT with the KEY MESSAGE of the Bible
For example, in 1 John 3:
Verse 8
8He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning.
For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
Jesus died on the cross - to pay the penalty for our sins.
But anyone not accepting this free offer - still belongs to the devil.
Verse 10a
10 In this the children of God are manifest (= are made known), and the children of the devil …
--> It’s unrepentant, and therefore unforgiven, SIN which marks out and separates the eternal destinies of:
Christians
Non-Christians
Further reading
Job 10:14
Jeremiah 2:22
Ezekiel 18:4 & 21
Interestingly, there’s also a pattern in the Bible of 2/3 (= 0.666) being destroyed, but 1/3 being saved:
Zechariah 13:8-9
8And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein.
9And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried:
they shall call on My name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is My people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.
Further reading
2 Samuel 8:1-2 ~ King David kept 1/3 of the Moabites alive, but killed 2/3.
Revelation 13:17 ~ 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.
Q - How do we find out what this means?
A - Scripture interprets Scripture.
The ‘Buy or sell’ in Revelation 13:17 is a signpost which links back to other passages about trading / buying & selling.
These other Bible passages are about sin and God’s resulting punishment:
A. Luke 17:28-29
28Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;
29But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.
B. Sodom, Tyre, Tarshish & other trading cities are associated in the Bible with God’s punishment for sin.
Further reading
Isaiah chapter 23
Ezekiel chapters 27 & 28
2 Chronicles 20:35-37
Jonah 1:3-4
C. The first mention of trading (Genesis 34:1-2 & 8-10) is associated with:
The temptation to disobey God’s commands (by inter-marrying with the Canaanites), for the sake of financial gain.
Sin (the rape of Jacob’s daughter Dinah).
Further reading
Ezekiel 7:12
James 4:12-13 then 17
Jesus cast out the traders in the Temple - Matthew 21:12-13 / Mark 11:15-17 / Luke 19:45-46
So the ‘Buy or sell’ in Revelation 13:17 is a signpost which links back to other passages about trading / buying & selling.
These other Bible passages are about sin and God’s resulting punishment.
Revelation 13:16 ~ And he causeth (= causes) all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.
Remember - the book of Revelation is full of symbols.
So to understand its message - we need to interpret the meaning of the symbols.
A mark on our:
Right hand - symbolises what we do.
Forehead - symbolises what we say & think.
… which are the main ways we sin.
We’ll either be:
Saved
or
Destroyed
--> That’s the separation into two distinct groups.
Q - What’s this separation based on?
A - Sin
Exodus 32:33 ~ And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against Me, him will I blot out of My book.
Revelation 15:2 ~ And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast,
and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.
--> We need to have VICTORY over SIN.
Q - How?
A - By ACCEPTING Jesus' free offer to pay the penalty for our sins: with His sacrifice on the cross.
We can then look forward to going to heaven, and enjoying eternal life with God!
Amen
Further reading
'The Cross' message on WholeCounselofGod.com