Daily Bible Study — Revelation 13
In any drama, there is a cast of characters which must be kept in mind as the story unfolds. Revelation 13 continues the cast of characters in this apocalyptic drama.
What must be kept in mind is that the reader of the book of Revelation is not viewing literal, actual entities. There are no such things as dragons or beasts with multiple heads. The book uses these creatures as symbols, representing parts in the drama.
As in any drama, there are two sides; in this case one side represents God and his Son Jesus. The other side is represented by Satan and his minions, one of which is Imperial Rome.
The beast appears from the abyss, the dark and scary sea. It is a horrible creature, one having seven heads, 10 horns and on those horns diadems. There is another creature, a beast from the earth. It has limited power, two horns, and tells lies. People reading this would recognize the sea creature as Rome and the earth creature as the lying priests of emperor worship.
Then, there are the ones who wear the number “666.” This number has been portrayed as the anti-Christ, but it is really all those who enlist in the service of Rome and its lying priests.
Now, everything is ready for the drama unfolding in the remainder of the book. We know the two sides. We know who the servants of each are. We believe there is going to be conflict. But what form will the conflict take?
