Excursus 03 – The Scarlet Beast.

The great Babylon, the mother of harlots and of earth’s abominations.

The beast rising out of the sea and the scarlet beast ascending from the bottomless pit.

The seven heads.

The seven world empires.

Table – The Antichrist, the "queen" in the devil’s chess game.

Table – The World Empires in the Bible.

The ten horns.

The first and the second Antichrist – Discourse 86

Babylon the Great – the Global High-Finance? – Discourse 109

The great Babylon, the mother of harlots and of earth’s abominations

The standard interpretation.

In the standard interpretation of this chapter 17 of the Revelation the harlot of Babylon is interpreted as the Rome of that time. The moral statements in this text about Babylon are brought into connection with the profligacy prevailing in Rome at that time and interprets the destruction of the great city of Babylon by the ten kings as a foresight to the decline of Rome.

They will hate the harlot; and will make her desolate and burn her up with fire.

Rev 17,15 And he said to me, "The waters that you saw, where the harlot is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues. 17,16 And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the harlot; they will make her desolate and naked, and will eat her flesh and burn her up with fire. Rev 17,15-16;

The beast is seen as the Roman Empire and its seven heads and / or kings are seen as certain Roman emperors, in most cases beginning with Julius Caesar (49-44 B.C.) or Augustus (31 B.C. – 14 A.D.), followed by Tiberius (14-37 A.D.), Gaius (Caligula/37-41 A.D.), Claudius (41-54 A.D.), Nero (54-68 A.D.), Vespasian (69-79 A.D.) and Titus (79-83 A.D.). The year of the four emperors after Nero’s death with Galba (68-69 A.D.), Otho (69 A.D.) and Vitellius (69 A.D.) is deliberately left out on account of their short reign and it is continued with Vespasian and Titus. The eighth king is - according to a legend – even described as the "Nero redivivus", that is to say as the resurrected emperor Nero in the last days.

On the other hand, other exegetes – especially Catholic exegetes – of course avoid any connection with Rome and call Babylon "the mankind that fell away from God". A paraphrase which would not be so bad in itself, if there were not a definite connection in the Scriptures speaking against it.

For there is agreement among all exegetes that the prophesied decline of Babylon will take place even before the Millennium, that is to say before the kingdom that will last for a thousand years, or – in the case of the interpretation as the ancient Rome – has already taken place. But this would mean that from that time on there could not be any "people who fell away from God" any more. The fact that today we probably have even more godless and despisers of God on this world than at the time of a Nero, excludes this possibility of interpretation for the past.

Taking a look now at the statements of the Revelation about the reappearance of Satan on this world after the Millennium, at the end of the age, we learn that even then, in the future, the godless will by no means be wiped out.

He will come out to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea.

Rev 20,7 And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be loosed from his prison 20,8 and will come out to deceive the nations which are at the four corners of the earth, that is, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. Rev 20, 7- 8;

So, even after the kingdom of peace that will last for a thousand years Satan will still find people in numbers "like the sand of the sea" who will ally themselves with him in order to fight against God.

From that it becomes clear, if Babylon actually were "the mankind who fell away from God", this mankind would have to exist still at the end of the world and the destruction of Babylon by the ten kings would have to be an event after the Millennium and before the Last Fight, which is, however, very unlikely on account of the text in Rev 17,12-14.

At a thorough study we realize, however, that all these interpretations think in much too narrow terms. We are here confronted with a book of the Bible, in which the Lord Jesus grants an insight into the timeless point of view of God to John – and with that also to us. That means that not only prophecies for thousands of years in the future are described here, but these prophecies also include thousands of years of the past. And especially here, in Rev 17, a survey of the entire history of mankind is given in few sentences.

The background.

The standard interpretation has probably been triggered off by the fact that the moral impression which the Babylon of the Revelation gives, does remind us very much indeed of the Rome of the time of the persecution of the Christians. Furthermore, "the harlot of Babylon" is also called "the great city which has dominion over the kings of the earth". So, this is a further connection to Rome as the capital of the Roman Empire as well as later on, as the center of the Roman Catholic Church whose position in certain areas has quite definitely been above those of emperors and kings in the past centuries.

Thus, the Pope took over the (Gentile) title "Pontifex Maximus" from the Roman emperors. In the Roman Empire this position of the "supreme head of the Pontifices" was exclusively linked to the person of the emperor. In the subsequent centuries – especially from the 11^th up to the 13^th century – the Popes often also had great power over the princes of Europe and they did not only inaugurate emperors and kings in office, but also "chose" them – and they still have a certain "dominion" over the "kings" of the earth even up to now.

For instance, in temporal diplomacy it is an established law (law of envoys) that the senior head of the mission (dean) comes first in the hierarchy of all diplomatic representatives of a country and is therefore the spokesman of the entire diplomatic corps (deanery) of this recipient country. The Vatican, however, reserved itself this superiority by concordats – irrespective of the duration of the years of service and other criteria – for its own representatives (Papal nuncio). This is the reason why the diplomatic representative of the Vatican always holds this position of a dean of the diplomatic corps in the countries of the world. And since the diplomats are the representatives of their governments abroad, the assertion is that the Roman Church – in a restricted form, but still - has "dominion" over the "kings of the earth" is applicable up to now.

Also the statement "…seven mountains on which the woman is seated" reminds us very much of the Roma Septicollis, the seven hills, on which Rome was built. And finally we have a text in the New Testament itself, which refers to Rome as "Babylon", namely the First Epistle of Peter, which is said to be wrote from Rome and which he concludes with the words, "She who is at Babylon sends you greetings"

She who is at Babylon, who is likewise chosen, sends you greetings.

1Pet 5,13 She who is at Babylon, who is likewise chosen, sends you greetings; and so does my son Mark. 5,14 Greet one another with the kiss of love. Peace to all of you that are in Christ. 1Pet 5,13-14;

Taking a look at the contents of the three "Babylon-chapters" in Rev 17-19, it is really difficult not to think of Rome. So, it says there:

The woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.

Rev 17,6 And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. When I saw her I marveled greatly. Rev 17, 6;

Here, the thought of the persecutions of the Christians in the ancient Rome crowds immediately into our mind, but also the thoughts of the Inquisition and the Counter-Reformation of the Roman Church. Or in another passage as well:

And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints.

Rev 18,24 And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of all who have been slain on earth. Rev 18,24;

Proceeding from the assumption that both the Apostle Peter and Paul – in order to mention only the most well-known ones – were executed in Rome according to tradition, this seems to speak for Rome. However, we find statements in the Gospels, which even correspond better to this text. Thus, in Mt 23,35 the Lord is speaking of the "righteous blood shed on earth" and he means with that the Jewish scribes and consequently the city of Jerusalem.

That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth.

Mt 23,33 You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell? 23,34 Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, 23,35 that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of innocent Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar.

23,36 Truly, I say to you, all this will come upon this generation. Mt 23,33-36;

The subsequent statement, "and the blood of all those who have been murdered on earth" can hardly be related exclusively to Rome, there is no doubt about that, and probably it cannot be related to any city of the world at all. If it should be a city, it would have to be a "symbolic" city that, for instance, incorporates all big cities of the world with their crimes and murders.

Furthermore: "for your merchants were the great men of the earth, because all the nations were deceived by your sorcery" (Rev 18,23). The normal trade relations of the Vatican probably do not suffice for such a classification. Unless we want to impute intense relations with the Mafia to the Vatican, these statements cannot be related to Rome either.

Something similar applies to the following text:

The great city that was clothed in purple and scarlet, bedecked with jewels, and with pearls

Rev 18,15 The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud, 18,16 "Alas, alas, for the great city that was clothed in fine linen, in purple and scarlet, bedecked with gold, with jewels, and with pearls! 18,17 In one hour all this wealth has been laid waste." And all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off. Rev 18,15-17;

Although purple and scarlet as well as gold and jewels might well be related to the garment of Roman cardinals and bishops and the jewelry might be related to the fabulous wealth of the Pope, the relations and arguments are missing on the other hand as far as the merchants and shipmasters with their trade are concerned. These are only a few examples, which shall stand for all statements about Babylon in the chapters 17,18, and 19 of the Revelation.

So, if you take an unbiased look at the matter, it cannot be determined for certain, who or what is meant here by Babylon. However, in order to get a feeling for that – for it says "Come out of her, my people" (Rev 18,4) – we can compile and try to interpret those statements, which the text offers.

The characteristics of Babylon.

The fact that Babylon is also called "great harlot" speaks for the assumption that it was some way or other linked to God and that it then fell away from God. The cities of Israel are called harlots in the Old Testament, because they have left their God. But this also implies on the other hand that they belonged to God at one time. From this point of view this is a very strong hint at a religious organization, which fell away from the true faith in the course of time.

That she "sits on many waters" means in the prophetic language that it is spread among many peoples and nations.

That she "has committed fornication with the kings of the earth" can mean that she deceived her "husband", namely God, with the kings, that is to say secular politics.

She is "drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of the martyrs of Jesus". That means that she did not only deceive God, but also persecuted and killed those, who resisted her and continued to stick to God and their faith. We have to take into account here that the term "saints" does not only mean those of the New Covenant, but that of course also the prophets and the servants of God of the Old Covenant are included in this term. And from that point of view we realize that an exclusive interpretation toward the Roman Church means that we are thinking in much too narrow terms.

"She is sitting on a beast which is full of blasphemous names": She lets herself be carried and supported by the enemy of God (blasphemous names) and utilizes this for the maintenance of her power.

"She is the mother of harlots and of earth’s abominations": She propagates the falling away from God (harlotry) and orders to worship other gods and idols (abominations). Also here the term "mother of harlots" implies an earthly power, which has been active and effective from the very beginning of mankind. The Roman Church could be seen here as the "daughter" of this harlot at best.

"The merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her", "your merchants were the great men of the earth": She has worldwide business and trade relations and probably does not even shrink from blackmail and bribery.

"All who had ships at sea became rich by her wealth": She has a worldwide network of agents, dealers, and suppliers and works with large profit margins. Even if the Roman Church were said to have very good contacts to the Mafia, such a worldwide commercial network would undoubtedly have become public knowledge sometime or other.

"All the nations were deceived by your sorcery": The things she offers/sells to the peoples, are in fact fraud (she deceives them). But she does it so well (sorcery) that these peoples do not realize it.

As we can see here very clearly everything hints quite unambiguously at a worldwide power or organization. An organization, which originally had the right faith and fell away from it later on.

Although nearly all Christian churches and denominations have paid tribute to the spirit of the time these days, and although in the past probably none persecuted the faithful in Christ as much as the Roman Church did, an exclusive relation to Rome does not seem to be justified.

Also the interpretation that Babylon represents worldwide Judaism which had fallen away from God, may be plausible in some parts (hypocrisy, trade, wealth), but it cannot be maintained as a whole.

The Babylon of the Bible does not seem to be a time-specific phenomenon. Neither in the last days, nor at our time or the time of the Roman Empire. And even if we go still further back in time, to the time of Nebuchadnezzar, we do find a representative of this phenomenon in the Babel of the Chaldeans – similar to the Rome of the time of the emperors -, but not its origin.

The origin might be found perhaps in the first Babel of all, the Babel of Nimrod.

Nimrod; he was the first on earth to be a mighty man.

1Mo 10,7 The sons of Cush: Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca. The sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan. 10,8 Cush became the father of Nimrod; he was the first on earth to be a mighty man.10,9 He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; therefore it is said, "Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the LORD." Gen 10, 7- 9;

1Chr 1,9 The sons of Cush: Seba, Havilah, Sabta, Raama, and Sabteca. The sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan. 1,10 Cush was the father of Nimrod; he began to be a mighty one in the earth. 1Chr 1, 9-10;

The beginning of his kingdom was Babel.

1Mo 10,10 The beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, and Accad, all of them in the land of Shinar. 10,11 From that land he went into Assyria, and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-Ir, Calah, and 10,12 Resen between Nineveh and Calah; that is the great city. 1Mo 10,10-12;

As Gen 10,8 and 1Chr 1,10 tell us, Nimrod was "the first on earth to be a mighty man". So, he was the first ruler. And "the beginning of his kingdom was Babel". And there men wanted to build themselves a tower "with its top in the heavens".

Let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens.

1Mo 11,1 Now the whole earth had one language and few words.11,2 And as men migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. 11,3 And they said to one another, "Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly." And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. 11,4 Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. 11,5 And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the sons of men had built.

11,6 And the LORD said, "Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; and nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. 11,7 Come, let us go down, and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech."

11,8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. 11,9 Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the LORD confused the language of all the earth; and from there the LORD scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth. Gen 11, 1- 9;

We can identify two subjects which are running in opposite directions in these texts. One subject is the very first aspiration for power of man up to the attempt to be on a par with God by means of the building of a tower "with its top in the heavens". The other subject is the second barrier after the Flood, which God put up against this aspiration by confusing the language of men. And the name of "Babel" is derived from this confusion of tongues which is called babel.

(See also Table 01: "Chronological table from Adam to Jacob.")

Now we know that this aspiration for power has not diminished, but on the contrary, has steadily increased in the course of history – up to these days. It found its greatest impress in the past in the big world empires. Nowadays, the emphasis seems to have been shifted, however, a little bit. Of course, there are big states and above all communities of states nowadays, too. But apart from some few – certainly nevertheless still too many – dictatorships, democratic forms of government prevail now, in which the authority of the rulers is basically confined to the absolutely necessary.

The real centers of power of our time are the big, multinational business, finance, and technology companies. They try to consolidate and strengthen their dominating status also in the future by means of bigger and bigger fusions and amalgamations.

And now it is interesting to state that the first Babel of the Bible is handed down to us as the beginning of the kingdom and the power of Nimrod, while the last Babel, the Babylon of the Revelation, is also referred to as the city which "has dominion over the kings of the earth", but where it follows from the context that this dominion is obviously not only of a purely political nature.

On the contrary, the merchants are mentioned here again and again, who have become rich through her and who lament now, because nobody will buy their merchandise any more. The shipmasters, seafaring men and sailors mourn, too, because also all who had ships at sea became rich by her wealth. And finally, in Rev 18,23 it says like a confirmation of this, "for your merchants were the great men of the earth":

So, if we take a right look at these texts, they move more and more away from a religious ambiance and aim at more and more concrete terms at an economic, commercial power. This way of looking at it should therefore also be at least a starting point for getting to a more realistic interpretation of Rev 17,18 and 19.

The beast rising out of the sea and the scarlet beast ascending from the bottomless pit.

In both cases the Antichrist?

While the harlot of Babylon stands rather for the religious and economic component of the metaphor, the scarlet beast obviously represents the worldly and political aspect. So, let us turn to this scarlet beast.

Apart from the advocates of the historical interpretation, who interpret this beast as the Roman Empire and which we already referred to above, the scarlet beast is interpreted by many exegetes as the Antichrist. The reason is obvious, since in Rev 17,3.7 there is talk about a beast with seven heads and ten horns, which is very similar to the beast in the description of the Antichrist, the "first beast" in Rev 13,1.

Nevertheless, there are doubts at some places if these two beasts are really identical. The reason for these doubts is among other things the description of the beast in Rev 17,3.7-8 as "the beast that ascend (again) from the bottomless pit ". So, we have in Rev 13,1 a beast rising out of the sea, and in Rev 17,8 a beast ascending (again) from the bottomless pit. And here some exegetes think now, two different "beasts" are meant here.

Therefore, we will try to prove first of all basically that these two beasts, the one from Rev 13,1 and the other one from Rev 17,8 are identical.

A beast was rising out of the sea and its mortal wound was healed.

Rev 13,1 And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems upon its horns and a blasphemous name upon its heads. 13,2 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. 13,3 One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth followed the beast with wonder. 13,4 Men worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?" Rev 13, 1- 4;

Here, in Rev 13,1-4 it says that the beast rising out of the sea had ten horns and seven heads, and that one of its heads had a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed. We must not let ourselves be confused that in verse 3 there is talk about only one of the "heads", which had a mortal wound. It emerges from the subsequent text in Rev 13,12-14 that the whole beast was killed by this wound.

The beast which was wounded by the sword and yet lived.

Rev 13,12 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. 13,13 It works great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in the sight of men; 13,14 and by the signs which it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast, it deceives those who dwell on earth, bidding them make an image for the beast which was wounded by the sword and yet lived; Rev 13,12-14;

So, by means of this mortal wound on one of its head the whole beast was killed. And this mortal wound was caused by a sword, as it says in Rev 13,14. Accordingly, there must have been also someone who drew this sword, a fight must have taken place, in which the beast was defeated. This conjecture is also confirmed by the statement in Rev 13,4, where it says, "Who is like the beast and who can fight against it?"

These admiring words have their reason undoubtedly in the fact that the beast came to life again now. Therefore, it must have been dead before. So, it is a kind of "resurrection" that takes place here with the beast, and the "whole earth", that is to say all people living on earth, follow the beast with wonder with full justification.

In the following text, in Rev 17,8, we see the same connection.

The beast ascends from the bottomless pit and the dwellers on earth will marvel to behold the beast.

Rev 17,3 And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast which was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. 17,4 The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and bedecked with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her fornication; 17,5 and on her forehead was written a name of mystery: "Babylon the great, mother of harlots and of earth’s abominations." 17,6 And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. When I saw her I marveled greatly. 17,7 But the angel said to me, "Why marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. 17,8 The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is to ascend (again) from the bottomless pit and go to perdition; and the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will marvel to behold the beast, because it was and is not and is to come. Rev 17, 3- 8;

Also this beast has seven heads and ten hors. It "was" and "is not now". That means, it lived and is dead now or at least some way or other "inactive". And then it says, "and is to ascend from the bottomless pit". So, we see also here this "resurrection" of the beast. And also here we learn in the second part of verse 8, "and the dwellers on earth will marvel … that it was and is not and is to come". So, the subject of resurrection runs like a red thread through both texts.

The fact that the horns and the hands are mentioned in a varying order in the two texts – in Rev 13,1 first the horns, and then the heads are mentioned, whereas in Rev 17,3.7 the heads are mentioned first and only then the horns – is linked to the specific "status" of the beast. As we learn from Rev 17,9.12 below, both heads and horns represent kings. And the crowns (strictly speaking "diadems") they wear show us that the respective kings are in power at the moment. We see that quite clearly when we compare the text from Rev 12,3 with this one:

The red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems upon his heads.

Rev 12,3 And another portent appeared in heaven; behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems upon his heads. 12,4 His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven, and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to bear a child, that he might devour her child when she brought it forth; Rev 12, 3- 4;

Also here, in the case of the dragon, we have seven heads and ten horns. And as the seven heads/kings wear their crowns here and are thus "active" and rule, they are mentioned first in the enumeration.

In our text above, that is to say in Rev 17,3.7, the heads are mentioned first as well. And here below, in Rev 17,10, we learn then that out of the seven kings, five have already fallen, one "is", the other one has not yet come. So, they are "active", although five of them have already been eliminated. At least one "is", that means rules, and another one is yet to come.

However, as for the horns, it says in Rev 17,12 that these kings have not yet received their power, that is to say that they do not rule yet. Therefore, they do not have any crowns and are mentioned in the second place.

Seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come.

Rev 17,8 The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is to ascend from the bottomless pit and go to perdition; and the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will marvel to behold the beast, because it was and is not and is to come.

17,9 This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; 17,10 they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he comes he must remain only a little while.

17,11 As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to perdition. 17,12 And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. Rev 17, 8-12;

We can recognize quite clearly in this text that the "kings represented by the heads" make their appearance in a certain succession – five have fallen, one is, the other one is still to come – , whereas the "kings represented by the horns" will obviously get into power simultaneously.

The statement mentioned in Rev 17,8: "and is to go to perdition", finds its compliance in Rev 19,20, where the beast which has risen out of the sea and its false prophet are thrown into the lake of fire.

And the beast was captured and thrown alive into the lake of fire.

Rev 19,20 And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had worked the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulphur. Rev 19,20;

A fundamental difference in both texts is, however, the provenance of these beasts: one time out of the sea, the other time from the bottomless pit. And here the text from Rev 11,7 forms the linking element. It is about the murder of the two witnesses of God in Jerusalem by the "beast that ascends from the bottomless pit".

The beast that ascends from the bottomless pit, will kill the two witnesses.

Rev 11,7 And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that ascends from the bottomless pit will make war upon them and conquer them and kill them. Rev 11, 7;

So, we have here, too, the beast that ascends from the bottomless pit. Nevertheless one could still advocate the opinion that the beast from Rev 17,8 is concerned here as well and not the one from 13,1, unless there were a connection which runs counter to this conclusion.

Here below, in the continuation of the vision of the beast rising out of the sea, John mentions in Rev 13,7 as well that this beast was given authority "to make war on the saints and to conquer them". This is a pretty clear hint at the above text from Rev 11,7, where it is said of the two witnesses, the saints of God, as well "when they have finished their testimony, the beast that ascends from the bottomless pit will make war upon them and conquer them and kill them".

Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them.

Rev 13,5 And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months; 13,6 it opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. 13,7 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 tongue and nation, 13,8 and all who dwell on earth will worship it, every one whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb that was slain. 13,9 If any one has an ear, let him hear: 13,10 If any one is to be taken captive, to captivity he goes; if any one slays with the sword, with the sword must he be slain. Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints. 13,11 Then I saw another beast which rose out of the earth; it had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. Rev 13, 5-11;

So, in Rev 11,7 we have on the one hand a connection to Rev 17,8 by the description of the beast "that ascends from the bottomless pit", on the other hand we also have the connection to Rev 13,7 by the hint that it will make war on the saints (the two witnesses!) and conquer them.

The sea and the bottomless pit.

Although Rev 11,7 now suggests a connection between Rev 13,1 and the following verses and Rev 17,3.8, the question arises nevertheless, why the sea is mentioned in the first text, whereas in the second text the beast ascends from the bottomless pit.

There are two possible explanations for that. As we saw in both texts above this beast was "dead" and came to life again. And now one could assume that the "sea" and the "bottomless pit" are just simply two designations for one and the same prophetic place – namely for the whereabouts of the evil spirits.

This assumption is even confirmed by two further passages from the Bible, where we can see that the Scriptures uses two different terms for the realm of the dead as well.

The sea gave up the dead in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead in them.

Rev 20,13 And the sea gave up the dead in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead in them, and all were judged by what they had done. Rev 20,13;

Here, in Rev 20,13 the Universal Resurrection is described. And apart from the statement that Death and Hades gave up the dead in them" it also says here "And the sea gave up the dead in it". The fact that in this connection not those dead are concerned, who were drowned in the sea or died in any other way and could not be buried, but that the "sea" is parallel to Death and Hades a "whereabouts" of its own, is finally confirmed by the fact that in Rev 21,1, in the New Creation, there will be quite definitely a heaven and an earth. Death and Hades and the sea, however, will not exist any more.

So, the sea is the bottomless pit and consequently the whereabouts of the evil spirits, whereas Death (Hades) is the whereabouts of the deceased men, as the subsequent passages from the Bible confirm to us.

Job 26,6 Sheol is naked before God, and Abaddon has no covering. Job 26, 6;

Prv 15,11 Sheol and Abaddon lie open before the LORD, how much more the hearts of men! Pro 15,11;

Job 28,22 Abaddon and Death say, ‘We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.’ Job 28,22;

Prv 27,20 Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied, and never satisfied are the eyes of man. Pro 27,20;

The demons begged him not to command them to depart into the abyss.

Lk 8,30 Jesus then asked him, "What is your name?" And he said, "Legion"; for many demons had entered him. 8,31 And they begged him not to command them to depart into the abyss. 8,32 Now a large herd of swine was feeding there on the hillside; and they begged him to let them enter these. So he gave them leave. 8,33 Then the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned. Lk 8,30-33;

Satan was thrown into the pit for a thousand years.

Rev 20,1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain. 20,2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 20,3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years were ended. After that he must be loosed for a little while. Rev 20, 1- 3;

In the New Creation, when all people have risen from the realm of the dead and all evil has been thrown into the lake of fire, there will consequently also be no realm of the dead and also no abyss, i.e. no more sea.

Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire.

Rev 20,14 Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire; 20,15 and if any one’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. Rev 20,14-15;

A new heaven and a new earth and the sea was no more.

Rev 21,1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. Rev 21, 1;

Two different approaches.

The second, maybe more plausible explanation, would be the approach where the two texts from Rev 13,1-14 and 17,3-14 are shifted in time. While John reports in Rev 13,1, "And I saw a beast rising out of the sea" and thus gives us to understand that he was in the vision immediately at the time and at the place of the events, the angel tells him in Rev 17,8, "The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is to ascend from the bottomless pit".

Hence it is obvious that this beast "is not" at the moment of the contemplation and that it will ascend from the bottomless pit only afterward, later on. So, here in Rev 17,3-6, we have a "vision in the vision", which the angel lets see John in order to show him the judgment upon the great harlot and whom he explains and interprets himself afterward in Rev 17,7-18. Therefore, this text is situated in time immediately before the one from Rev 13,1-14 and shows the beast still in the bottomless pit, while it already ascends again from this bottomless pit in Rev 13,1. In order to be able to understand this somewhat more complex situation better, we would like to represent it in a somewhat more analytic way.

An analysis of the scheme of the three tenses.

We should once again examine the coherence of the text closely for the analysis.

The beast and his heads / kings.

Rev 17,7 But the angel said to me, "Why marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. 17,8 The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is to ascend from the bottomless pit and go to perdition; and the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will marvel to behold the beast, because it was and is not and is to come.

17,9 This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; 17,10 they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he comes he must remain only a little while.

17,11 As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to perdition. Rev 17, 7-11;

When the angel says in Rev 17,7, "I will tell you the mystery …", the reader expects quite spontaneously an explanation of this mystery. But this is not the case. And this is not the intention of the angel either. He says that he will "tell" the mystery, that is to say that he will explain it, and not that he will reveal it. The original "mystery", namely the woman on the beast, is complemented by a somewhat more detailed description. But this does not alter the fact that it continues to be a mystery, which hundreds or even thousands of exegetes have already tried to fathom in the past.

If one does not want to keep to the beaten track of the historical interpretation on the one hand, with its relation to the Roman Empire and the Roman emperors, but if one does not want to support the far too trivial and hardly verifiable "symbolic" interpretation on the other hand either, there is in fact only one starting point left in this text for a more or less objective analysis. These are the indications of time in the scheme of the three tenses, in Rev 17,8.10 and 11. There it says that the beast "is not", whereas the sixth king is said to "be".

In order to illustrate this, let us take a look at this in a schematic outline.

We will consider the question if the "king", that is to say the sixth head of the beast can be "there", while the beast itself, on which this head is sitting, "is not", right below. For the present, we have to clarify, however, which time level the statement of the angel refers to. On the one hand it could be the real time, that is to say the time, in which John received this revelation, namely approximately between 81 – 96 A.D., or the angel refers to the time of the prophetic happenings of this vision.

Since immediately before, in chapter 16,17-21 the seventh bowl of wrath was poured out and since parallel to this event in 16,19 also the decline of the great city of Babylon takes place, we must be here on the "day of the wrath of the Lord", after the decline of Babylon, and therefore we consequently must be at a first prophetic time level.

Due to the fact that we have here, as already mentioned, a "vision in the vision", the angel carried John back once again into the time, when Babylon was still flourishing and when the beast, which she was sitting on, "was". This is therefore the second prophetic time level.

The relations get even a little bit more complicated, if one takes into consideration that it says then in Rev 17,10 of the sixth king that he "is" and that therefore the question arises, which time level this "is" refers to – by the way just as the "is not" of the beast. Is it the real time level, the prophetic time level, in which the angel appears to John or the second prophetic time level, in which the angel shows to John the woman and the beast?

Let us take a look at the possible combinations in a table in order to orientate ourselves within it better.

As far as variant A) is concerned, the question posed above rises again right away: Is it possible that the sixth king, the sixth head, exists, while its carrier, the beast, does not exist? Since in all parallel passages of the Scriptures the beasts always appear with their heads and since there is never a head that would appear without the beast, this possibility might be excluded. Also the fact that the mortal wound of one of the heads led to the "death" of the whole beast in Rev 13,3, hints at an existential connection between the heads and the beast and thus excludes an independent existence at the same time level.

The variants B) and C) are now the counterpart of that at the prophetic time levels one and two. And since the change of the time level cannot have any effects on the logical contents of the prophecy, what was said above applies here, too.

The rejection of the first three variants helps us now to maintain the logical connection of the two statements, but the consequence of it is that these two subjects, the beast and the head and/or the king, have to be see in at different time levels – no matter in which combination.

The variants D) and E), which operate with the sixth king at the first prophetic time level, imply, however, that the sixth king must be the Antichrist, who exists at that moment, at that time level, but who is not defeated yet. As a consequence the question arises then, of course, who should be the seventh (and eighth) king. Even if we put the eighth king after the Millennium and interpret him with Satan himself, during his Last Fight against God – which quite definitely makes sense -, the seventh king cannot be cast out of the course of action of the Revelation and therefore we should exclude these variants as well.

The variants F) and G) see the sixth king at the second prophetic level. As already mentioned, this second prophetic level is only a flashback, a text which is "inserted" into the original vision. It starts with Rev 17,3 and ends with 17,6. From Rev 17,7 on John sees the angel again and with the further explanations of the angel we are once again in the framework of the first prophetic level. Consequently, the subsequent statements ("was and is not …") cannot refer to the second level any more and therefore, these two variants are not sound either.

This applies also to variant H). Also the statement "The beast (…) was and is not…" is made once again at the first prophetic level and therefore, cannot be fulfilled at the second level.

So, finally only variant I) is left. This variant proceeds from the assumption that the beast "is not" at the first prophetic time level due to some circumstance, but that it "is to ascend from the bottomless pit and goes to perdition", while the relation to the sixth king is based on real time and this king has to be interpreted as "being here", that is to say as being existent and as being in power at the end of the first century A.D.

Now the latter is the view which in part also the historical interpretation supports, in which it tries to assign the individual kings represented by the heads to the various Roman emperors. Apart from the inconsistencies and the arbitrariness which arise from this kind of interpretation, it seems to be clear, too, that just this prophecy goes by far beyond the historical horizon.

If we therefore interpret the kings represented by the heads not as individual emperors of the Roman Empire – at best the kings represented by the horns would correspond to them – , but as world empires, and if we interpret the sixth king, who is referred to as "being there" at the level of real time, as the Roman Empire, we probably do more justice to the meaning of this vision in all respects.

The consequence of this view is, however, that now the beast cannot be only the Antichrist any more. If the Roman Empire is a head of this beast, also the other heads – no matter if they went under or are still to come – must be more or less world empires. And the beast itself must be, seen from the comprehensive understanding, the ruler over all these empires.

As can be easily realized, only one figure offers itself in this connection: it is Satan himself, the great red dragon. Proceeding from that assumption, there is also an explanation for the fact why first the seven heads and only after that the ten horns are mentioned in Rev 12,7, where the dragon is described: these seven heads and/or kings with their world empires are directly "subordinated" to Satan and are therefore mentioned first. And it is also the seven heads which here, in connection with the dragon, are seen with crowns – that is to say as being "active" – , while the ten horns are still without any crowns and wait for an "activation" at a later date. In contrast to that, in the case of the beast rising out of the sea (Antichrist) in Rev 13,1 the ten horns are described first. These horns are those "kings of the world", who are subordinated to the Antichrist and who wear the crowns under his rule and will rule for a short time.

When the scarlet beast is described in Rev 17,3.7, yet again the seven heads are mentioned first and the ten horns afterward – as it is the case with the dragon. So, the dragon is "bleached" here from fire red to scarlet-red. However, the fact that neither heads nor horns wear crowns any more, shows that it is here at the provisional end of its power. This is also confirmed by the blasphemous names on the beast. But as the text from Rev 17,11 says, this scarlet beast is at the same time also one of its seven heads (kings). And here, of course, only the seventh king can come into consideration, who "has not yet come, and when he comes he must remain only a little while".

And this brings us back to the Antichrist and his world empire of the last days. It can be realized that this seventh king is the last trump of Satan. And in order to make this king as strong as possible, he invested him with his own authority and power and even gave his throne to him (Rev 13,2). So, the red dragon "splitted up" itself and became its own head in the seventh king, the Antichrist.

We can derive from that that the Antichrist – the beast rising out of the sea from Rev 13,1 – and the scarlet beast from Rev 17,3.8 are, no doubt, two different personalities, but basically one and the same spirit. The Antichrist is not a compliant victim of Satan, but it is Satan himself, who takes possession of this person and determines its acts of this person.

(See also Table 06: "The Antichrist, the ’queen’ in the devil’s chess game.")

This empire of the Antichrist will now bring forth another ten kings (ten horns), who will then be crushed with their armies by the kingdom of God, the "stone which was cut out by no human hand and which came down upon them" (Dan 2,34).

Finally the question remains to be answered, why it is said of this beast that "it was, and is not, and is to ascend from the bottomless pit and go to perdition" (Rev 17,8).

Also this formulation (scheme of the three tenses) supports the view that dragon, scarlet beast, and Antichrist are identical to a large extent. On the one hand we know of the Antichrist that he "was", that he went to the bottomless pit due to a mortal wound caused by the sword (at the return of the Lord, 2The 2,8!) after that and that he subsequently owing to satanic miracles "ascended again from the bottomless pit (sea)". In the Battle of Har-Magedon the Lord Jesus will destroy him, however, with the sword of his mouth and he will "go to perdition".

Satan himself "was" before the Millennium. After the Battle of Har-Magedon also he will be thrown into the bottomless pit, and "he is not" during the Millennium. After the Millennium he will be loosed for a little while and will "ascend from the bottomless pit" in order to be defeated then in the Last Fight against God and to "go to perdition".

(See also Chapter 11: "The end of the world.")

Satan was thrown into the pit for a thousand years.

Rev 20,1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain. 20,2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 20,3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years were ended. After that he must be loosed for a little while. Rev 20, 1- 3;

The devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulphur.

Rev 20,7 And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be loosed from his prison 20,8 and will come out to deceive the nations which are at the four corners of the earth, that is, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. 20,9 And they marched up over the broad earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city; but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, 20,10 and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulphur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night for ever and ever. Rev 20, 7-10;

Finally it is also said of both – Antichrist and Satan -, that men will marvel at them. In the case of the Antichrist, because he "had the mortal wound caused by the sword and came to life again" (13,3.12.14) and in the case of the dragon, "because (after the Millennium) they see that he was and is not and is to come" (17,8).

The Scheme of Three Tenses and its Interpretation.

(See also Table 18: "The Schema of Three Tenses and its Interpretation.")

(See also Excursus 06: "From the face of God into the lake of fire.")

Now let us see to what extent an adequate interpretation of the seven heads is possible.

The seven heads.

Seven mountains – seven empires.

In Rev 17,9 the seven heads are also called seven mountains by the angel.

The seven heads are seven mountains.

Rev 17,8 The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is to ascend from the bottomless pit and go to perdition; and the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will marvel to behold the beast, because it was and is not and is to come. 17,9 This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; 17,10 they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he comes he must remain only a little while. Rev 17, 8-10;

There are several hints at the fact that "mountains" often mean kingdoms. We have such a comparison in Dan 2,34-35.44-45:

The dream of Nebuchadnezzar:

The stone became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

Dan 2,34 As you looked, a stone was cut out by no human hand, and it smote the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces;

2,35 then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold, all together were broken in pieces, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. Dan 2,34-35;

The interpretation by Daniel:

And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom.

Dan 2,44 And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, nor shall its sovereignty be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand for ever; 2,45 just as you saw that a stone was cut from a mountain by no human hand, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. A great God has made known to the king what shall be hereafter. The dream is certain, and its interpretation sure." Dan 2,44-45;

Daniel is speaking here of the kingdom of God. All kingdoms of the world are "crushed" and the great mountain – the kingdom of God – fills the whole earth.

And Isaiah also tells us in Isa 41,15-16, who shall crush and thresh the kingdoms of the world on behalf of the Lord, when he prophesies of Israel:

You shall thresh the mountains and crush them, and you shall make the hills like chaff.

Isa 41,15 Behold, I will make of you a threshing sledge, new, sharp, and having teeth; you shall thresh the mountains and crush them, and you shall make the hills like chaff;

41,16 You shall winnow them and the wind shall carry them away, and the tempest shall scatter them. And you shall rejoice in the LORD; in the Holy One of Israel you shall glory. Isa 41,15-16;

Also here Isaiah is speaking of "mountains" when he prophesies that Israel will defeat all of its hostile neighboring kingdoms.

Last but not least we also find in Jeremiah 51,24-26, in the prophecy of the decline of Babel – by which all of Babylonia (all inhabitants of Chaldea) is meant – the designation "destroying mountain" for the Babylonian Empire.

I am against you, destroying mountain, which destroys the whole earth.

Jer 51,24 "I will requite Babylon and all the inhabitants of Chaldea before your very eyes for all the evil that they have done in Zion, says the LORD.

51,25 "Behold, I am against you, O destroying mountain, says the LORD, which destroys the whole earth; I will stretch out my hand against you, and roll you down from the crags, and make you a burnt mountain. 51,26 No stone shall be taken from you for a corner and no stone for a foundation, but you shall be a perpetual waste, says the LORD. Jer 51,24-26;

So, the designation "mountain" is often used in the Bible, and especially in the prophecies, also for kingdoms, or here finally in Jer 51,25 even for a world empire.

If we look upon these seven mountains from Rev 17,3 as seven world empires, a possibility for an interpretation which is oriented toward history emerges from that quickly.

(See also Table 03: "The historical empires and their effects on Israel.")

According to the hint of the angel in Rev 17,10, "Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he comes he must remain only a little while", we first find those five empires, which have "fallen" – that is to say which have gone under.

*) (See also table 20: "World history: A week of millennial days.

The argument that Egypt was not directly a world empire, is true to a certain extent; but the term "world empire" has to be seen here not so much from a geographical point of view, but rather from a historical and political point of view. And the fact that Egypt was at its time the most famous kingdom of the world in those days, is, no doubt, confirmed not only by the Egyptologists.)

The sixth world empire is specified by the angel as the one which "is". So, it is the world empire which exercised power at the time of this prophecy (approximately between 81 – 96 A.D.). That is to say the Roman Empire.

he seventh world empire, the one which "has not yet come", would consequently be the world empire of the Antichrist. This is also confirmed by the statement of the king of this kingdom in Rev 17,10, "and when he comes he must remain only a little while". And this also corresponds with the statement in Rev 13,5, that the Antichrist was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months – that is to say a "little while" in relation to all other world empires.

With that we have recognized then the beast as Satan and the seven heads as the great world empires of the history of mankind.

But what and/or who are now these seven kings, who shall be represented by these seven heads as well?

Seven heads – seven archangels (princes).

In the text of Rev 17,12-14 we have the ten horns, which are also referred to as ten kings. To be more precise ten human kings, who get into power together with the beast and fight against the Lamb.

Therefore it does not seem to be very logical to see also the seven heads as such human kings. For the heads "wear" the horns, and just as real horns grow out of the heads, also these horns find the origin of their authority and power in the heads. Therefore these kings represented by the heads must obviously stand for more. They must be "superhuman" kings in some way.

And also here Satan appears as the "ape of God", who wants to imitate God’s acts. In Rev 1,20 we have quite a similar situation in heaven.

The seven stars are the angels and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

Rev 1,20 As for the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches and the seven lampstands are the seven churches. Rev 1,20;

Just as its says above, in Rev 17,7, "And the angel said to me, ’Why marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her’", also here, in Rev 1,20, there is talk about a "mystery". It is the mystery of the seven stars. These stars are the angels of the seven churches and the lampstands, which John had seen, are the seven churches.

And it seems to be similar in Rev 17,7-9, too. The seven kings represented by the heads are the seven archangels of the world empires who fell away from God, and the seven mountains are the seven world empires.

As it was the case with this subject already several times, we again find the concrete clue with Daniel.

In Dan 10,13.20 the angel Gabriel informs Daniel that he, Gabriel, had to fight against the "prince of the kingdom of Persia" before his appearance with Daniel, and that he has to go there again after his appearance in order to fight against the "prince of Greece" – which sounds somewhat amazing to us.

The prince (archangel) of the kingdom of Persia.

Dan 10,13 "But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was withstanding me for twenty-one days; then behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia. Dan 10,13;

The prince of Greece.

Dan 10,20 Then he said, "Do you know why I have come to you? But now I will return to fight against the prince of Persia; and when I am through with him, lo, the prince of Greece will come. Dan 10,20;

So it seems that on the one hand each of these two empires had a "prince" (archangel) and that on the other hand on account of the fact that the princes of God, the archangels Michael (Dan 12,1) and Gabriel, fought against them, these princes of Persia and Greece were not adherents of God as one would suppose -, but of Satan.

From that we can draw the conclusion that each world empire has its prince and that all of these princes are subordinated to Satan. This is also in line with the statement of Mt 4,7-11.

All kingdoms of the world I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.

Mt 4,8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them; 4,9 and he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." Mt 4, 8- 9;

Here Satan shows "all the kingdoms of the world" to the Lord and offers him to give them to him. So, Satan has the dominion over this world. If this were not the case, he would not have been able to try to bring the Son of God over to his side with this offer.

So, if these seven kings represented by the heads are princes of Satan, quite a few statements of the Scriptures which have been hard to understand up to now can be interpreted more easily. Such as

The seven world empires.

The first head, the first mountain, the first king.

The empire of Egypt.

Say to Pharaoh king of Egypt: Whom are you like in your greatness?

Eze 31,2 "Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his hordes: "Whom are you like in your greatness?

31,3 Behold, Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon, with beautiful branches and forest shade, and of great height, its top among the clouds. 31,4 The waters nourished it, the deep made it grow tall, making its rivers flow round the place of its planting, sending forth its streams to all the trees of the forest. 31,5 So it towered high above all the trees of the forest; its boughs grew large and its branches long, from abundant water in its shoots. 31,6 All the birds of the air made their nests in its boughs; under its branches all the beasts of the field brought forth their young; and under its shadow dwelt all great nations.

31,7 It was beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its branches; for its roots went down to abundant waters.

31,8 The cedars in the garden of God could not rival it, nor the cypresses equal its boughs; the plane trees were as nothing compared with its branches; no tree in the garden of God was like it in beauty.

31,9 I made it beautiful in the mass of its branches, and all the trees of Eden envied it, that were in the garden of God.

31,10 "Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Because it towered high and set its top among the clouds, and its heart was proud of its height, 31,11 I will give it into the hand of a mighty one of the nations; he shall surely deal with it as its wickedness deserves. I have cast it out. Eze 31, 2-11;

Do we recognize here not only the Pharaoh, but also the first "king", the prince of Egypt? (See also Eze 29:1-8, 32:1-16)

The second head, the second mountain, the second king.

The empire of Assyria.

The same applies to the text from Isa 10,5-16. Does this text only refer to the king of Assyria or is also the prince of Assyria meant here?

By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom.

Isa 10,5 Ah, Assyria, the rod of my anger, the staff of my fury! 10,6 Against a godless nation I send him, and against the people of my wrath I command him, to take spoil and seize plunder, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.

10,7 But he does not so intend, and his mind does not so think; but it is in his mind to destroy, and to cut off nations not a few; 10,8 for he says: "Are not my commanders all kings?

10,9 Is not Calno like Carchemish? Is not Hamath like Arpad? Is not Samaria like Damascus? 10,10 As my hand has reached to the kingdoms of the idols whose graven images were greater than those of Jerusalem and Samaria, 10,11 shall I not do to Jerusalem and her idols as I have done to Samaria and her images?" 10,12 When the Lord has finished all his work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem he will punish the arrogant boasting of the king of Assyria and his haughty pride. 10,13 For he says: "By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom, for I have understanding; I have removed the boundaries of peoples, and have plundered their treasures; like a bull I have brought down those who sat on thrones. 10,14 My hand has found like a nest the wealth of the peoples; and as men gather eggs that have been forsaken so I have gathered all the earth; and there was none that moved a wing, or opened the mouth, or chirped." 10,15 Shall the axe vaunt itself over him who hews with it, or the saw magnify itself against him who wields it? As if a rod should wield him who lifts it, or as if a staff should lift him who is not wood!

10,16 Therefore the Lord, the LORD of hosts, will send wasting sickness among his stout warriors, and under his glory a burning will be kindled, like the burning of fire. Isa 10, 5-16;

It seems as if the words of the king of Assur do not only reflect human megalomania, but also that haughtiness is speaking through them, which obviously is a characteristic of all creatures who fell away from God.

The third head, the third mountain, the third king.

The empire of Babylonia.

In the interpretation of the dream of Nebuchadnezzar by Daniel Babylonia and/or Nebuchadnezzar is the head of gold. (Dan 2,32-33;)

You are the head of gold

Dan 2,37 You, O king, the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, and the might, and the glory, 2,38 and into whose hand he has given, wherever they dwell, the sons of men, the beasts of the field, and the birds of the air, making you rule over them all – you are the head of gold. Dan 2,37-38;

In Daniel’s vision of the world empires, the Babylonian Empire is symbolized by a lion with eagles’ wings.

The first was like a lion and had eagles’ wings.

Dan 7,4 The first was like a lion and had eagles’ wings. Then as I looked its wings were plucked off, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand upon two feet like a man; and the mind of a man was given to it. Dan 7, 4;

By plucking off the eagles’ wings the fact is documented here that Nebuchadnezzar was deprived of his mind for seven years by an intervention of God as punishment for his megalomania and that after these seven years – when he was brought back to his senses – he had to realize – that not he, but God had the power. So, he was put "upon two feet" again "like a man".

But in the following text, Isa 14,3-15, we can see that it cannot only be the king of Babel who is meant here. Behind the king of Babel there is someone else, someone more powerful, someone who wanted to be on a par with God. The prince of Babylonia?

How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star.

Isa 14,3 When the LORD has given you rest from your pain and turmoil and the hard service with which you were made to serve, 14,4 you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon: "How the oppressor has ceased, the insolent fury ceased! 14,5 The LORD has broken the staff of the wicked, the scepter of rulers,

14,6 that smote the peoples in wrath with unceasing blows, that ruled the nations in anger with unrelenting persecution. 14,7 The whole earth is at rest and quiet; they break forth into singing. 14,8 The cypresses rejoice at you, the cedars of Lebanon, saying, ‘Since you were laid low, no hewer comes up against us.’

4,9 Sheol beneath is stirred up to meet you when you come, it rouses the shades to greet you, all who were leaders of the earth; it raises from their thrones all who were kings of the nations. 14,10 All of them will speak and say to you: ‘You too have become as weak as we! You have become like us!’

14,11 Your pomp is brought down to Sheol, the sound of your harps; maggots are the bed beneath you, and worms are your covering. 14,12 "How you are fallen from heaven, O Day Star, son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low! 14,13 You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far north; 14,14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will make myself like the Most High.’ 14,15 But you are brought down to Sheol, to the depths of the Pit. Isa 14, 3-15;

The fourth head, the fourth mountain, the fourth king.

The empire of Medo-Persia.

In the interpretation of Daniel the empire of Medo-Persia is described with a silver breast and silver arms of the image. (Dan 2,32-33;)

After you shall arise another kingdom inferior to you.

Dan 2,39 After you shall arise another kingdom inferior to you. Dan 2,39;

And in Daniel’s vision of the world empires, Medo-Persia is the bear, who was raised up on the one side. This documents, no doubt, the fact that the Persians were the stronger ones in this coalition.

A second one, like a bear. It was raised up on one side.

Dan 7,5 And behold, another beast, a second one, like a bear. It was raised up on one side; it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth; and it was told, ‘Arise, devour much flesh.’ Dan 7, 5;

We have already learned above that this fourth world empire, Medo-Persia, definitely had a prince.

The prince of the kingdom of Persia.

Dan 10,13 The prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; but Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, so I left him there with the prince of the kingdom of Persia. Dan 10,13;

(See also Table 04: "What is written in the Book of truth.")

The fifth head, the fifth mountain, the fifth king.

The empire of Greece.

In the vision of Nebuchadnezzar belly and loins of copper stand for Greece. (Dan 2,32-33;)

A third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth.

Dan 2,39 After you shall arise another kingdom inferior to you, and yet a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth. Dan 2,39;

And in Daniel’s vision of the world empires Greece is described as a leopard with four heads and four wings. The "leopard" and the four wings are perhaps a hint at the speed of its expansion under Alexander and the four heads might be a prophecy concerning the division of the empire among the Diadochi kings after Alexander’s death.

With four wings of a bird on its back; and the beast had four heads.

Dan 7,6 After this I looked, and lo, another, like a leopard, with four wings of a bird on its back; and the beast had four heads; and dominion was given to it. Dan 7, 6;

We have already got to know the prince of the fifth world empire, Greece, too.

lo, the prince of Greece will come.

Dan 10,20 Then he said, "Do you know why I have come to you? But now I will return to fight against the prince of Persia; and when I am through with him, lo, the prince of Greece will come. Dan 10,20;

The sixth head, the sixth mountain, the sixth king.

The Roman Empire.

In the image of Nebuchadnezzar the Roman Empire is symbolized by the legs of iron. (Dan 2,32-33;)

And like iron which crushes, it shall break and crush all these.

Dan 2,40 And there shall be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron, because iron breaks to pieces and shatters all things; and like iron which crushes, it shall break and crush all these. Dan 2,40;

Also in Daniel’s vision of the world empires the Roman Empire is equated with iron. It is very strong and crushes and breaks everything.

It devoured and broke in pieces, and stamped the residue with its feet.

Dan 7,7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, terrible and dreadful and exceedingly strong; and it had great iron teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces, and stamped the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. Dan 7, 7;

There are no statements about the prince of the Roman Empire in the Scriptures. But - as already broached above – we learn from the Gospels that Jesus had an encounter with Satan and that he was tempted by him. In fact, the Lord met Satan right at the spot where Satan dwells, and where also the scarlet beast has its whereabouts: in the desert.

And he was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan.

Mk 1,9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 1,10 And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens opened and the Spirit descending upon him like a dove;

1,11 and a voice came from heaven, "You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased." 1,12 The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. 1,13 And he was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to him. Mk 1, 9-13;

What this temptation looked like, is reported to us by Matthew:

All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.

Mt 4,8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them; 4,9 and he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me."

4,10 Then Jesus said to him, "Begone, Satan! for it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’" 4,11 Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and ministered to him. Mt 4, 8-11;

This was at the time when the Roman Empire was in its heyday and Satan offered here the dominion over all the kingdoms of the world to the Lord Jesus. This is – as already mentioned - a clear proof of the fact that he, Satan, also had the "power of disposal" over these kingdoms. Otherwise the Lord would have answered this temptation with completely different words. But Jesus did not doubt the authority of the Devil in the least, but on the contrary, he condemned him for it, because he abused this power to tempt him.

Later on in history Satan will find one, who will not chase him away, but who will accept his offer willingly and who will also get his power and his throne and great authority from him (Rev 13,2), namely the Antichrist.

The seventh head, the seventh mountain, the seventh king.

The empire of the Antichrist.

The last world empire, which is then finally succeeded by the Kingdom of Peace on earth of the Lord Jesus which will last for a thousand years, is represented by the feet in the dream of Nebuchadnezzar. They are partly of iron and partly of clay. (Dan 2,33-34;)

And as the toes of the feet were partly iron and partly clay.

Dan 2,41 And as you saw the feet and toes partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom; but some of the firmness of iron shall be in it, just as you saw iron mixed with the miry clay. 2,42 And as the toes of the feet were partly iron and partly clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly brittle.

2,43 As you saw the iron mixed with miry clay, so they will mix with one another in marriage, but they will not hold together, just as iron does not mix with clay. Dan 2,41-43;

Although in the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream here above the fifth world empire (feet) is mentioned as a kingdom of its own ("… it shall be a divided kingdom …"), with its "content" of iron it is an offshoot/offspring of the fourth world empire (leg). However, in Daniel’s vision of the world empires this last empire is not mentioned explicitly. It rather grows out of the ten horns of the fourth empire.

There came up among them another horn, a little one.

Dan 7,7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, terrible and dreadful and exceedingly strong; and it had great iron teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces, and stamped the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. 7,8 I considered the horns, and behold, there came up among them another horn, a little one, before which three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots; and behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking great things. Dan 7, 7- 8;

Also in the more detailed explication, which Daniel gets by the angel Gabriel in answer to his question the starting point for this empire is the fourth empire.

Another shall arise after them; he shall be different from the former ones.

Dan 7,23 "Thus he said: ‘As for the fourth beast, there shall be a fourth kingdom on earth, which shall be different from all the kingdoms, and it shall devour the whole earth, and trample it down, and break it to pieces. 7,24 As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings shall arise, and another shall arise after them; he shall be different from the former ones, and shall put down three kings.

7,25 He shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and shall think to change the times and the law; and they shall be given into his hand for a time, two times, and half a time. Dan 7,23-25;

It is true that the last world empire of Satan before the establishment of the kingdom of God on earth in the Millennium will have its historical roots (legislature, executive authority, military, medicine, etc.) in the Roman Empire, but it is by no means identical with it. And what is even more, it cannot even be equated with the "horns", that is to say with the original rulers (ten toes) of this empire. The king of this last empire will, no doubt, rise among these rulers, but – just as the Roman Empire was completely different from its predecessors – also he will be completely different from them. Possibly he will not only be different in his acts and deeds from the human rulers, but also in his entire nature.

The Antichrist gets from Satan his power, his throne, and great authority.

And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. Rev 13, 2;

Rev 13,2 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. Rev 13, 2;

When we look at this description, we cannot help getting away from the impression that this king here is not at all a human being any more. Satan gave him all his power and great authority, and even left his throne – that is to say the dominion over all the earth – to him. So, what is actually left to Satan to exercise his power? We cannot assume that the Devil would put himself at someone’s mercy here.

But since the above words from Rev 13,2 must be true by all means, only one possibility is conceivable. Satan "gives" all his power to the Antichrist by "taking possession of" him. In that way the Antichrist does have all the power of Satan, but in reality it is the Devil itself residing in the Antichrist, who steers everything and who has everything under his control.

If this assumption is correct, we have here a further example of the fact how Satan tries again and again to imitate God. Just as God himself was in a mysterious way in Christ and Christ in God, Satan is in the Antichrist and the Antichrist exercises all the power of Satan.

But with that the Antichrist is at the same time also the seventh prince. If he was a human being before, he is not only a human being any more now. By the fact that Satan is "residing" in him, he mutated so to speak into an angel. And his power is considerably greater than the power of the princes of bygone world empires.

The fact that Satan is bound to the Antichrist and his false prophet in spirit as well, is shown to us by the "mobilization" for the Battle of Har-Magedon.

Dragon, beast and false prophet assemble the kings of the whole world for battle.

Rev 16,13 And I saw, issuing from the mouth of the dragon and from the mouth of the beast and from the mouth of the false prophet, three foul spirits like frogs; 16,14 for they are demonic spirits, performing signs, who go abroad to the kings of the whole world, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty. Rev 16,13-14;

Here below, in the description of the king of Tyre, in Eze 28, we recognize then both: In Eze 28,1-10 the "prince" Antichrist and in Eze 28,11-19 (see below), the "king" Satan.

I am a god, I sit in the seat of the gods, in the heart of the seas.

EEze 28,1 The word of the LORD came to me: 28,2 "Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre, Thus says the Lord GOD: "Because your heart is proud, and you have said, ‘I am a god, I sit in the seat of the gods, in the heart of the seas,’ yet you are but a man, and no god, though you consider yourself as wise as a god – 28,3 you are indeed wiser than Daniel; no secret is hidden from you;

28,4 by your wisdom and your understanding you have gotten wealth for yourself, and have gathered gold and silver into your treasuries; 28,5 by your great wisdom in trade you have increased your wealth, and your heart has become proud in your wealth – 28,6 therefore thus says the Lord GOD: "Because you consider yourself as wise as a god, 28,7 therefore, behold, I will bring strangers upon you, the most terrible of the nations; and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of your wisdom and defile your splendor. 28,8 They shall thrust you down into the Pit, and you shall die the death of the slain in the heart of the seas.

28,9 Will you still say, ‘I am a god,’ in the presence of those who slay you, though you are but a man, and no god, in the hands of those who wound you?

28,10 You shall die the death of the uncircumcised by the hand of foreigners; for I have spoken, says the Lord GOD." Eze 28, 1-10;

With that we have analyzed the seven heads in their meaning as seven kings, and proceed now to Rev 17,11:

The scarlet beast as one of the seven kings.

As for the beast it belongs to the seven.

Rev 17,11 As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to perdition. Rev 17,11;

Here, once again, the scarlet beast is mentioned. It says, this beast "that was and is not now is the eighth (king) but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to perdition."

Since at the beginning we interpreted the scarlet beast as Satan, and since we shed light upon the political side of the Antichrist in the interpretation of the seventh "king", we can now realize the religious dimension of this satanic fraud out of the fact that the scarlet beast is one of the seven kings, that Satan will manifest himself so to speak in the Antichrist.

The Antichrist, the prince and ruler of the antichristian empire, does not only have all the authority and power of Satan, he also has united in himself all characteristics of the preceding princes, as they are described in Dan 7,4-25. While Satan had always ceded only one part of his power to the predecessors of the Antichrist, the princes of the world empires, he invested the Antichrist with his entire authority. He is like a leopard as the Greek used to be, has feet like a bear as the Persian used to have and a lion’s mouth as the Babylonian used to have.

The beast was like a leopard, its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth.

Rev 13,2 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. Rev 13, 2;

Table 06 – The Antichrist, the "queen" in the devil’s chess game.

And just as the Lord said of himself,

Mt 28,18 And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Mt 28,18;

also the Antichrist will say of himself that he has been given all authority and power – however by Satan. And he will even prove this by signs and wonders. Also the fact that Satan manifests himself in the Antichrist is an imitation of the Son of God, when he stayed on the earth. In Jn 14,7-11 the Lord is speaking to his Disciples about the Father.

Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father in me.

Jn 14,6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me. 14,7 If you had known me, you would have known my Father also; henceforth you know him and have seen him." 14,8 Philip said to him, "Lord, show us the Father, and we shall be satisfied." 14,9 Jesus said to him, " Have I been with you so long, and yet you do not know me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 14,10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. 14,11 Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father in me; or else believe me for the sake of the works themselves. Jn 14, 6-11;

Philip reacted to the statement of the Lord, "If you had known me, you would have known my Father also; henceforth you know him and have seen him" quite amazed and said, "Lord, show us the Father!". And then the Lord reveals the following mystery to them, "Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father in me". So, he who has seen Jesus, has also seen the Father. And the same thing will apply to the Antichrist: He who sees him, will see Satan, he who worships him, will worship Satan.

And we see here, too, that Satan again and again endeavors to imitate God. He is, as Luther already said, "the ape of God". However, he is not only aiming at simply aping God. What he is driving at is fooling people. He uses the prophecies made by God in order to make people believe that these prophecies are being fulfilled now. The Antichrist is his "Christ". (For the Greek syllable :"anti" does not only mean "against", but also "instead of", so he is an "Instead of Christ" so to speak).

And the people who do not know their Lord will not realize this fraud. And as Jesus said,

Jn 12,45 And he who sees me sees him who sent me. Jn 12,45;

also the Antichrist will personify the one who sent him, namely the Devil.

And when the people in the antichristian empire worship the Devil as God, as we learn it from Rev 13,4:

Men worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast.

Rev 13,4 Men worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?" Rev 13, 4;

it is then absolutely certain: what is happening here, is a plagiarism on the parousia of Christ and they will venerate the Antichrist as the "Son of God", the Messiah.

And one can imagine that it will be very difficult even for faithful Christians to see through this trick and to resist these temptations. The Antichrist will try everything in order to lead astray even "the elect".

So as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.

Mt 24,24 For false Christs and false prophets will arise and show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. Mt 24,24;

He calls himself Christ, he looks like Christ, he works miracles like Christ, and what is even more, he works signs which Christ refused to do (Mt 12,38-40). He brought peace and prosperity to the world. So, who should still doubt him when he does that? But he will not succeed in it.

(See also Chapter 03: "The Great Tribulation.")

And when the Antichrist and the kings of the world have assembled their armies in Har-Magedon, the Lord comes with his heavenly armies and destroys them. The beast – that is to say the Antichrist – and the false prophet are thrown into the lake of fire and Satan is bound in the bottomless pit for a thousand years.

Satan’s concrete participation in the antichristian reign also follows from Eze 39. We find there a description of the proceedings and events around the Battle of Har-Magedon, where the Antichrist with his worldly armies competed against the heavenly army under the leadership of the Son of Man and is destroyed himself.

Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.

Eze 39,1 "And you, son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal; 39,2 and I will turn you around, drive you on, take you up from the remotest parts of the north and bring you against the mountains of Israel. 39,3 "I will strike your bow from your left hand and dash down your arrows from your right hand. 39,4 "You will fall on the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops and the peoples who are with you; I will give you as food to every kind of predatory bird and beast of the field. 39,5 "You will fall on the open field; for it is I who have spoken," declares the Lord GOD. EEze 39,1-5;

And here precisely that "Gog" is mentioned and "turned around", who can unequivocally be identified as Satan also in the Last Fight, in the Revelation and in Eze 38. (Rev 20,8; Eze 38,2). Also this is finally a reference to the fact that Satan himself fights in this battle as seventh king in the person of the Antichrist against the Lord.

So, let us summarize the development of the beast as Antichrist:

He was.

The hint in Rev 13,3.12.14 that the beast had a mortal wound caused by a sword and came to life again implies that this wound was inflicted upon it by somebody when it was still alive as a human being.

He is in the bottomless pit and "is not".

The statement that the beast came to life again, presupposes that it had been dead before. This assumption is also confirmed by text of Rev 17,8, where it says , "it is to ascend from the bottomless pit".

He ascends again from the bottomless pit.

Both Rev 17,8 and Rev 11,7, the latter one even in particular, refer to the fact that the beast is to ascend from the bottomless pit.

Men will marvel.

In Rev 13,3 and 17,8 we learn that men will follow the beast with wonder.

He conquers the saints.

According to Rev 11,7 it will conquer the two witnesses, the saints of God, and kill them, when it ascends from the bottomless pit.

He goes to perdition.

And after the Battle of Har-Magedon it is finally thrown alive into the lake of fire together with the second beast, the false prophet.


And now we return to our original text from Rev 17,11:

We are now able to answer the question why the beast itself can be one of its own seven heads, and which of these seven kings is at the same time also the beast. It is the seventh king, the Antichrist, in which this beast, the Satan, also manifests himself and therefore necessitates this mysterious description.

The eighth king.

The last empire.

But with that we already have also the starting point for the solution to the last open question, which arises from this text.

As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth and it goes to perdition.

Rev 17,11 As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to perdition. Rev 17,11;

So, the beast will not only be one of the seven, but will itself even be the eighth king and will go to perdition.

Since we interpreted the kings represented by the heads in their definition as "mountains", as world empires, it has to be an – eighth – empire here, too. And since we identified the scarlet beast as Satan, it must be an empire, in which Satan himself appears as its ruler.

We know that after the decline of the antichristian empire the Kingdom of Peace of our Lord Jesus Christ which will last for a thousand years will set in. In these thousand years Satan will lie bound in the pit.

And he seized the dragon, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.

Rev 20,1Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain. 20,2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 20,3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years were ended. After that he must be loosed for a little while. Rev 20, 1- 3;

So, he will not act on earth during that time and thus he will not be able to lead men astray. After these thousand years, however, he will be loosed again for a "little while".

He will come out to deceive the nations at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog.

Rev 20,7 And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be loosed from his prison 20,8 and will come out to deceive the nations which are at the four corners of the earth, that is, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. Rev 20, 7- 8;

When the one thousand years are over, Satan will be loosed. And he will do precisely the things he has already done from the very beginning: He will deceive men, that is to say "Gog und Magog". And he gathers all those men, who (after a thousand years of the reign of peace of Jesus!) let themselves be led astray and who go to the battle against God with him.

As we could see in the comments on the Antichrist, we find "Gog" even several times in the Scriptures. He is the "prince of Rosh (or also chief prince of), Meshech and Tubal". And his name always appears in the prophecies, when Satan is about to fight against God.

As already described above, "Gog" is turned around by God in Eze 39, in order to be gathered with his armies for the Battle of Har-Magedon. There we identified him as Satan, and/or "what belongs to Satan".

Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.

Eze 39,1 "And you, son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal; EEze 39,1;

Here below, in Eze 38 however, there is talk about the "Last Fight" after the Millennium, in which Satan alone – all his princes have fallen now – intervenes into history as "eighth king" in his own shape, gathers an army and makes war upon God.

Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.

Eze 38,2 "Son of man, set your face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him 38,3 and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal; Eze 38, 2- 3;

And in both cases "Gog, prince of Rosh, Meshech und Tubal" is addressed. So, in both cases it is obviously the same person, the two prophecies refer to.

Above, in Eze 38,2, it says, however, also "Gog, of the land of Magog …". And this corresponds to the text from Rev 20,7, where there is also talk about that Last Fight.

He will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog.

Rev 20,7 When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison, 20,8 and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore. Rev 20, 7- 8;

It is a confirmation of the fact that this interpretation hits on the true crux of the matter, and that Gog is identical with Satan. So, Satan becomes the eighth king in this last time. However, it is rather doubtful if he will be able to set up an eighth world empire in the traditional sense. Above, in Rev 17,11, it says that he will be an eighth "king" all right, but there is no eighth head on the beast belonging to that king and consequently no eighth "mountain" either. From that it can be derived that during that last – very short – time (Rev 20,3) Satan will in fact succeed in gathering huge crowds of people behind him, however, without being able to set up a world power, a world empire.

Nevertheless, it is astonishing that after a thousand years of the Kingdom of Peace, full of justice and grace, the Devil succeeds again in leading men astray after he has been loosed from the bottomless pit. This shows on the one hand that there will be a great number of people then, who detest justice. They do not want justice. They want to safeguard their personal advantages. They want to have again a life without the consciousness of their responsibility toward God. They want to have a civilization of an unvarnished egoism, of a sophisticated enjoyment of life without consideration for others. They want to have success, wealth, high repute. And that as soon as possible. Without any effort of their own. Without any performance. Without any obligation.

But on the other hand we also realize that this attitude of men at the time shortly before the end of the world, will not be a new one. We know these traits of character even today only too well. And hence we can draw the conclusion that these people have not really experienced a conversion during the Millennium. They yielded and adapted themselves because the pressure from above was too high, the punishment, was too hard so that they did not dare to do anything against it (Jer 12,16-17; Isa 60,12; Zech 14,16-19). Otherwise they would have starved to death or would have lost their lives in any other way. So, they gave in. But in their heart they remained what they had always been: liars, cheaters, murderers, and despisers of God.

Therefore their fate is sealed just as the fate of their lord, Satan. They did not believe the one who had come in those days in the name of God. They will believe the one who will come then in his own name.

If another comes in his own name, him you will receive.

Jn 5,41 I do not receive glory from men. 5,42 But I know that you have not the love of God within you. 5,43 I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive. Jn 5,41-43;

And thus Satan sets out again in order to gather his followers. And he finds them. The number of those who will follow him is like the sand of the sea. And so the last act of world history is staged.

Now, at the end of this very short fight, also Satan is thrown into the lake of fire and sulphur - he goes to perdition.

And here we see the double fulfillment of the prophecy in Rev 17,8.

The beast that was, and is not(1^st Antichrist), and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction (2^nd Antichrist).

Rev 17,8 The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction. And those who dwell on the earth, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come. Rev 17, 8;

Just as it held true for the scarlet beast with the seven heads and the ten horns, it also holds true for the red dragon with the seven heads and ten horns:

He was.

He has dominated the world during its entire history up to the antichristian empire. In the Battle of Har-Magedon he was finally beaten all hollow.

He is in the bottomless pit and "is not".

While the Antichrist and the false prophet go to perdition, Satan is bound and kept in prison in the bottomless pit for a thousand years.

He is to ascend from the bottomless pit.

This concerns the Last Fight, at the end of this world. Satan, who was held prisoner in the bottomless pit during the one thousand years of the Millennium, is now loosed again. He ascends from the bottomless pit. In a last attempt to seize control of this world maybe once more, he gathers followers around him. And as Rev 20,8 prophesies, he will find them "like the sand of the sea".

Men will marvel.

Although not explicitly mentioned in Rev 20,7-10, it can be assumed yet that the reappearance of the Devil on this world will arouse astonishment and probably also admiration – with those who gather around him "like the sand of the sea".

He conquers the saints.

And he gets as far as to Jerusalem (Eze 38,5-16;), where the saints – to be more precise: this time all the people of God – live in peace and have not learned any more to make war (Isa 2,2-5; 9,4-6; Mi 4,3-5; 5,9-14; Hos 2,20; etc.). And he succeeds in encircling the army camp of the saints, the Holy City of Jerusalem. Moreover, we can conclude from the fact that Satan was able to work his way through to Jerusalem with his army that he must have won some fights beforehand on the way there – that is to say fights against the saints also in Israel.

He goes to perdition.

But it does not come to the very worst. Before they can seize Jerusalem, it says in short words, "And fire came down from heaven and consumed them". And of Satan it says, "And the Devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulphur where the beast and the false prophet were, too".

If we now compare both developments – the development of the scarlet beast and the development of the red dragon -, we realize the double meaning of Rev 17,8.

This is the deserved end of that being which has tempted and seduced mankind and told God on men since the creation of mankind.

It is incomprehensible from man’s point of view how such a perfect creature of God, abuses the freedom granted to it by God, to frustrate God’s plan with his Creation again and again. And one is filled with a kind of sadnesses thinking of how it could have been, if the old serpent in the Garden of Eden had loved its human fellow creatures and had not hated and seduced them.

You were blameless in your ways, till iniquity was found in you.

EEze 28,11 Moreover the word of the LORD came to me: 28,12 "Son of man, raise a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus says the Lord GOD: "You were the signet of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.

28,13 You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, carnelian, topaz, and jasper, chrysolite, beryl, and onyx, sapphire, carbuncle, and emerald; and wrought in gold were your settings and your engravings. On the day that you were created they were prepared.

28,14 With an anointed guardian cherub I placed you; you were on the holy mountain of God; in the midst of the stones of fire you walked. 28,15 You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till iniquity was found in you.

28,16 In the abundance of your trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned; so I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God, and the guardian cherub drove you out from the midst of the stones of fire. 28,17 Your heart was proud because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I exposed you before kings, to feast their eyes on you.

28,18 By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your trade you profaned your sanctuaries; so I brought forth fire from the midst of you; it consumed you, and I turned you to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all who saw you. 28,19 All who know you among the peoples are appalled at you; you have come to a dreadful end and shall be no more for ever." Eze 28,11-19;

The World Empires in the Bible. (LANDSCAPE)

(See also Discourse 13: "Which world empires do the 7 (or 8) heads (or kings) of Revelation 17 represent?")

(See also Discourse 98: "The fifth kingdom in the dream of Nebuchadnezzar: America?")

(See also Discourse 86: "The fist and the second Antichrist.")

The ten horns.

They are to receive authority together with the beast.

Proceeding from the assumption that the scarlet beast is identical with Satan, two and only two possibilities emerge from the statement of Rev 17,12 concerning the ten horns and/or kings and concerning their chronological appearance in world history. Either they fight with the Antichrist in the Battle of Har-Magedon before the Millennium or they fight with Satan in the Last Fight after the Millennium.

Ten kings are to receive authority for one hour, together with the beast.

Rev 17,12 And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. 17,13 These are of one mind and give over their power and authority to the beast; Rev 17,12-13;

According to this text the ten kings are to receive authority together with the beast "for one hour" – that is to say for a very short time.

As already described above, the scarlet beast, that is to say Satan, will personally intervene into the course of the events of the last days only twice: the first time – as "seventh king" - in the person of the Antichrist and a second time after the Millennium, at the end of the world, as "eighth king" in his own person.

In order to get further indications, the hint "for one hour" could be very helpful, but it is not. For we have a very short time documented for both appearances of Satan. One time as Antichrist his reign will not last longer than three and a half years, a really very short time of duration for an empire.

And it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months.

Rev 13,5 And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months; Rev 13, 5;

And the other time it is said with respect to his activity after he has been loosed at the end of the world that he is loosed only for "a little while".

After that he must be loosed for a little while.

Rev 20,2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 20,3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years were ended. After that he must be loosed for a little while. Rev 20, 2- 3;

Also the subsequent verses from Rev 17,15-18 could theoretically apply to both situations. At least there is no statement contained in it – unless one wants to prejudge the decline of Babylon before the Millennium -, which would exclude one of the two events.

The ten kings and the beast will hate the harlot and burn her up with fire.

Rev 17,15 And he said to me, "The waters that you saw, where the harlot is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues. 17,16 And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the harlot; they will make her desolate and naked, and devour her flesh and burn her up with fire, 17,17 for God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and giving over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled. 17,18 And the woman that you saw is the great city which has dominion over the kings of the earth." Rev 17,15-18;

They burn the great city of Babylon.

A definite clarification of the chronology – of the ten kings as well as of the decline of Babylon – can only be achieved with the next chapter of the Revelation. We have the connection between the ten kings and Babylon already in the above text, Rev 17,16. They will "hate the harlot (…) and burn her up with fire." In the subsequent text from Rev 16 and 18 we see then the connection between the beast, the ten kings, and the decline of Babylon.

Babylon, drains the cup of the fury of his wrath.

Rev 16,17 The seventh angel poured his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, "It is done!" 16,18 And there were flashes of lightning, voices, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as had never been since men were on the earth, so great was that earthquake. 16,19 The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell, and God remembered great Babylon, to drain the cup of the fury of his wrath. Rev 16,17-19;

Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!

Rev 18,1 After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority; and the earth was made bright with his splendor. 18,2 And he called out with a mighty voice, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! It has become a dwelling place of demons, a haunt of every foul spirit, a haunt of every foul and hateful bird; 18,3 for all nations have drunk the wine of her impure passion, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth have grown rich with the wealth of her wantonness." Rev 18, 1- 3;

When they see the smoke of her burning.

Rev 18,9 And the kings of the earth, who committed fornication and were wanton with her, will weep and wail over her when they see the smoke of her burning; 18,10 they will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say, "Alas! alas! you great city, you mighty city, Babylon! In one hour has your judgment come." Rev 18, 9-10;

In one hour all this wealth has been laid waste.

Rev 18,16 "Alas, alas, for the great city that was clothed in fine linen, in purple and scarlet, bedecked with gold, with jewels, and with pearls! 18,17 In one hour all this wealth has been laid waste." And all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off 18,18 and cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning, "What city was like the great city?" Rev 18,16-18;

In these texts there is talk about the fact that Babylon will burn down (Rev 18,9.18). This conforms with the statements of Rev 17,16, where it says that the ten kings hate the harlot, will make her desolate and naked and devour her flesh and will burn her up with fire.

The time of "an hour" is mentioned as well, in which the city will be devastated. This is also precisely the one hour, of which it is said before in Rev 17,12 that the kings will receive authority together with the beast for that period of time. And precisely there, namely in Rev 17,14, we also have the first hint at the epoch of time, into which this event has to be classified.

(See also Chapter 05: "The Day of the Lord.")

They fight with the Antichrist in the Battle of Har-Magedon.

The beast assembles the kings at the place which is called in Hebrew Har-Magedon.

Rev 16,13 And I saw, issuing from the mouth of the dragon and from the mouth of the beast and from the mouth of the false prophet, three foul spirits like frogs; 16,14 for they are demonic spirits, performing signs, who go abroad to the kings of the whole world, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty. 16,15 ("Lo, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is he who is awake, keeping his garments that he may not go naked and be seen exposed!") 16,16 And they assembled them at the place which is called in Hebrew Har-Magedon. Rev 16,13-16;

They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them.

Rev 17,12 And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. 17,13 These are of one mind and give over their power and authority to the beast;

17,14 they will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful." Rev 17,12-14;

Here John is speaking of the "Lamb" against which the ten kings will fight together with the beast. While one could still believe so far that all these events could have taken place after the Millennium as well, when Satan is loosed, in preparation for the Last Fight, this view cannot be upheld here any longer.

We have here a connection between the announcement in Rev 17,14, "they will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings" and the statements of the entire chapter 19, in particular, however, the verses Rev 19,1-4.13.16.19-20;.

For his judgments are true and just; he has judged the great harlot.

Rev 19,1 After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying, "Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, 19,2 for his judgments are true and just; he has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication, and he has avenged on her the blood of his servants." Rev 19, 1- 2;

The smoke from her goes up for ever and ever.

Rev 19,3 Once more they cried, "Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up for ever and ever." 19,4 And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who is seated on the throne, saying, "Amen. Hallelujah!" Rev 19, 3- 4;

In Rev 19,1-4 we have now once more the confirmation that Babylon was destroyed - namely by fire. And this happened, as it is shown by the further succession, before the battle of the kings and the beast against the Lamb.

In the next passage, Rev 19,5-6, we learn that at that time, after the decline of Babylon, God the Almighty has taken over the empire and the reign.

For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns.

Rev 19,5 And from the throne came a voice crying, "Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, small and great." 19,6 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty thunderpeals, crying, "Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Rev 19, 5- 6;

Although now the rejoicing about that can be heard above all in heaven, the "empire" which God has now finally taken over is not heaven, for God has always reigned there already. No, this "empire" is the world, this empire is made up of the kingdoms of this world, which are now the kingdoms of the Lord. Although the decisive battle in Har-Magedon is still to come, the outcome of this battle has already been that certain for thousands of years that that the angels can rejoice with an absolute certainty, "Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns".

And this fact must, of course, also have its consequences on earth accordingly. It is the Day of the Lord and the Day of the "marriage of the Lamb", and the "Bride" has made herself ready in heaven.

The marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready.

Rev 19,7 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; 19,8 it was granted her to be clothed with fine linen, bright and pure" – for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. 19,9 And the angel said to me, "Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb." And he said to me, "These are true words of God."

19,10 Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, "You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brethren who hold the testimony of Jesus. Worship God." For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. Rev 19, 7-10;

After the Lord has taken home his elect, he comes for the battle against the Antichrist and his kings and their armies. He is clad in a robe dipped in blood. It is obviously also his blood which was shed for the world. And his name is: The Word of God. We know this name of the Lord Jesus from John’s Gospel: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (Jn 1,1).

He is clad in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God.

Rev 19,11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! He who sat upon it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 19,12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems; and he has a name inscribed which no one knows but himself. 19,13 He is clad in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. Rev 19,11-13; 

And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, followed him.

Rev 19,14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, followed him on white horses. 19,15 From his mouth issues a sharp sword with which to smite the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron; he will tread the wine press of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 19,16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name inscribed, King of kings and Lord of lords. Rev 19,14-16;

But the Lord does not come alone. The army of heaven followed him on white horses and clothed in white and pure linen. We realize that here "the Bride" that is to say the elect, and also the risen saints who had been caught up into heaven at the Rapture already ride along with this army.

We learned of them above, in Rev 19,8 at the marriage of the Lamb, "And it was granted her to be clothed in fine linen, bright and pure – for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints". And we read of them also in Rev 17,12-14 that they are with the Lord, when he will fight against the ten kings.

Those with him are called and chosen and faithful.

Rev 17,12 And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. 17,13 These are of one mind and give over their power and authority to the beast;

17,14 they will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful." Rev 17,12-14;

And now it comes to this battle, the end of which is already settled, before it has even begun. It is over and over again amazing to realize how far blindness and unbelief can go with the great mass of men. A glance into the Bible could open the eyes of many of them. But they allowed Satan and his accomplices to obscure their eyes and to withhold from them any understanding of the Scriptures.

The beast and the kings of the earth gathered to make war against him who sits upon the horse.

Rev 19,17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly in midheaven, "Come, gather for the great supper of God, 19,18 to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great." 19,19 And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who sits upon the horse and against his army. Rev 19,17-19;

Antichrist, false prophet and the kings destroyed.

The beast and the false prophet were thrown into the lake of fire.

Rev 19,20 And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had worked the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulphur.

19,21 And the rest were slain by the sword of him who sits upon the horse, the sword that issues from his mouth; and all the birds were gorged with their flesh. Rev 19,20-21;

(See also Chapter 07: "The Battle of Har-Magedon.")

And now, after the battle, after the destruction of all antichristian armies, Satan separates again from the Antichrist. The Antichrist and his false prophet are thrown into the lake of fire, Satan, however, is for the time being only seized by the angel of God, bound, and held prisoner in the bottomless pit.

And he seized the dragon, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.

Rev 20,1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain. 20,2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 20,3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years were ended. After that he must be loosed for a little while. Rev 20, 1- 3;

As already mentioned at the beginning, the entire history of the world is displayed before us in this chapter 17 of the Revelation. Although there are some mysteries, the interpretation of which is not easy and not absolutely certain either, but we can see in the above interpretation that this "mystery" of the beast is not an arbitrary encodement, but that these connections quite simply arise from the conditions of another dimension, and that they therefore require an abstraction in order to be understood by us human beings.


To sum up we can recognize the following chronology:

Although the scarlet beast from Rev 17,3.8, and the Antichrist – the beast arising out of the sea from Rev 13,1 – are two different personalities, it is, however, the same spirit, which controls both. It is Satan, who after the decline of his first six heads / kings now concentrates all his might in the seventh king, the second Antichrist, by manifesting himself in it.