The Mystery of Ephraim

Chapter 13 appears as an insert chapter, sort of flashbacks. It contains a description of two beasts, one emerging from the sea, representing in civil power; the other coming out on land, one with ecclesiastical power.

The first beast is described by its origin, the sea, and by the monstrous parts; its heads seven, in which were the name of blasphemy; its horns ten, having power, a throne, and great authority; and having one of its heads wounded, and healed; and by the great regard had unto him, being wondered at, and worshipped by all the world, and declared to be more powerful than any, and none to be like them.

And John beheld a second beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spoke as a dragon.

Revelation 13

¹ And I stood upon the sand of the sea. And I saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. — sea usually indicates vastness as ocean is; so from this vastness of humanity; it arose out of the sea or ocean of nations, gradually, but surely, until it had power over practically the entire world;

— seven heads; the seven mountains on which Rome was built, its heads seven, in which were the name of blasphemy; its horns ten, on which were crowns; its skin like a leopard, its feet as a bear, and its mouth as a lion; and by its state and condition, having power, a throne, and great authoritynd so design the city itself built on them; this beast is the Roman Empire;

— ten horns; refers to the ten provinces of the Roman Empire; or ten kingdoms, into which the empire was divide it upon its being wasted and vanquished by the Goths, and the ten kings of them, which reigned with the beast, and gave their kingdoms to him; so horns signify kingdoms in Zechariah 1:18;

² And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. — this beast has the best or strongest of other beasts;

— like unto a leopard; to which the Grecian kingdom is compared in Daniel 7:6; because of that rapidity and swiftness with which Alexander overran the world;

— the feet of a bear; to which the Persian monarchy is compared, Daniel 7:5;

— his mouth as the mouth of a lion; which was the first beast, or the Babylonian empire;

— the dragon gave him his power: for the coming of the second beast after the working of Satan.

³ And I saw that one of his heads was, as it were, wounded to death, and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world wondered after the beast. — the great Roman Empire which the beast represents received a temporary setback, a wound which looked like a deadly wound; which came to an end in the year 476;

— but a revived Rome will retain its power in spite of all that, for the worldly authority remained sometimes with the Pope and at other times, the Emperor, supporting and strengthening each other.

⁴ And they worshiped the dragon which gave power unto the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like unto the beast? Who is able to make war with him?” — and this Roman Empire worshipped the dragon; indeed they do;

— as the cast out one has embedded himself into the Godhead, the Trinity; whom we know the Trinity is fake? So indeed over a billion people or more than 99.99 percent of professing Christians, even including those of the true Church, are conned by the dragon.

⁵ And there was given unto him a mouth, speaking great things and blasphemies, and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. — power is given unto the beast to continue or to make war and prevail, forty-two months;

— speaking great things, and blasphemies; great swelling words of vanity; calling himself Christ’s vicar, Peter’s successor, head of the church, universal bishop; promising to his followers: riches, honours, pleasures, pardons, and heaven itself and uttering things of blasphemies mentioned in Revelation 13:6;

⁶ And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God to blaspheme His name, and His tabernacle, and them that dwell in Heaven. — and it is well known what blasphemous and extravagant claims of authority and power have been made by him,

— who has been styled, His Holiness, Infallible Sovereign of kings and kingdoms Christ’s Vicegerent, and yea, God upon earth; and give him power to insert the “holy ghost” into the Godhead to create the fake Trinity.

⁷ And it was given unto him to make war with the saints and to overcome them; and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. — it was given unto him to make war with the saints; the remnant of the woman’s seed, Revelation 12:17;

— let the Romanists boast, that theirs is the catholic church, and universal empire with universal values; the Gregorian calendar become the universal calendar; Sunday has become the standard day of rest; Easter and Christmas have become standard holidays worldwide, etc; and most of these Great Whore doctrines were later adopted by her harlotry protesting daughters.

— Benson: that in the war with the Albigenses and Waldenses, there perished of these poor creatures in France alone a million! From the first institution of the Jesuits to AD 1480, that is, in little more than thirty years, nine hundred thousand orthodox Christians were slain; (for more, click here)

⁸ And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the Book of Life of the Lamb, slain from the foundation of the world. — and all that dwell upon the earth shall worship the beast, the Roman empire;

⁹ If any man have an ear, let him hear:

¹⁰ He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity. He that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints. — he that killeth with the sword, must be killed with the sword; he that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity, that is, he that imprisoned others must be imprisoned!

— as a parallel Scripture in Jeremiah: “And it shall come to pass, if they say unto thee, ‘Whither shall we go forth?’ then thou shalt tell them, ‘Thus saith the Lord: “‘Such as are for death, to death; and such as are for the sword, to the sword; and such as are for the famine, to the famine; and such as are for the captivity, to the captivity,’” Jeremial 15:2

¹¹ And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spoke as a dragon. — the first beast with ten crowned horns is the Roman empire, as divided into ten kingdoms;

— but this other beast had two horns like a lamb, the appearance of a lamb; or pretended to be like a lamb, all meekness and mildness; but he spake as a dragon; he had a voice of terror, like Roman emperors, in usurping divine titles, in commanding idolatry;

— this beast is otherwise called the false prophet; than which there cannot be a stronger or plainer argument to prove that false doctors or teachers were particularly designed. For the false prophet, no more than the beast, is a single man, but a body or succession of men, propagating false doctrines, and he spake like a dragon.

¹² And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him; and he causeth the earth and them that dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. — he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him; he holdeth an empire within an empire; claiming temporal authority as well as a spiritual, and enforceth his canons and decrees with the sword of a magistrate;

— the papacy, considered as a spiritual domination, was in fact a new power starting up in the same place as the old Roman dominion, and causeth the earth and them who dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed; he supports tyranny, as he is by tyranny supported;

— all the authority; that is, his influence over men, though less directly asserted, is equal to that of the first beast.and this Roman Papacy was proven to be the Great Whore of Babylon of whom most of her doctrines were later adopted by her harlotry daughters.

¹³ And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.

— Gill: “of the pretensions of the Papacy to confer the Holy Ghost, and his gifts upon men, by breathing on them, which on the day of Pentecost were represented by cloven tongues, as of fire, coming down from heaven; or of their anathemas, curses, and excommunications, at which time burning torches and candles are cast up, and fall down, as emblems of divine wrath, which is called cursing men with bell, book, and candle; or else of the fire of persecution.”

— still more concerning this beast: and the dragon gave his own power and his throne and great authority to him; and quid pro quo in response for its favour, the Roman Church incorporates the ‘Holy Ghost’ into the Godhead so that he could be like the Most High.

¹⁴ And he deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast, saying to them that dwell on the earth that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword and lived.

— as the first beast concurs to maintain his authority, so he, the second beast, with the dragon behind him, in return confirms and maintains the sovereignty and dominion of the first beast over his subjects;

— the little horn and the two-horned beast act precisely in the same capacity; each exercising the power of the first beast before him, and each perishing in one common destruction with him.

¹⁵ And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause to be killed as many as would not worship the image of the beast. — he enslaves the consciences by lying wonders and pretended miracles, as the first beast subjugates the bodies of men;

— and by joining with them, procures them a blind obedience from their subjects: and so he is the occasion of the preservation of the old Roman empire in some kind of unity, and name and strength, (for more, click here).

¹⁶ And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand or in their foreheads, — as slaves received a brand or mark in their flesh, betokening to whom they belonged, so in the conflict here is on the side of good and of evil a brand or mark; but what is this?

¹⁷ that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark or the name of the beast or the number of his name. — the number is the number of a man, computed after the usual manner among men, and it is 666 (or in some manuscripts it reads – χις equals 616); but what or who is intended by this remains a mystery;

— Kretzmann: there are the two swords, the temporal and the spiritual, which the Pope still claims for himself; there are the many cases of interdict, or spiritual boycott, when congregations, cities, and states were suspended from the means of grace; there are the cases of indulgences, when the forgiveness of sins was made a matter of traffic and bargaining;

— Benson: the canon of the council of Lateran, under Pope Alexander the Third, made against the Waldenses and Albigenses, enjoins, upon pain of anathema, that “no one presume to entertain or cherish them in his house or land, or exercise traffic with them.” The synod of Tours, in France, under the same pope, ordered, under the like intermination, that “no man should presume to receive or assist them, no, not so much as to hold any communion with them in selling or buying, that, being deprived of the comfort of humanity, they may be compelled to repent of the error of their way.”

¹⁸ Here is wisdom: Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man; and his number is six hundred threescore and six. — here is wisdom; this most difficult verse is introduced by this preface; it warns us that wisdom and understanding are needed; but what is it?

Chapter 14 is unusual, in that three angels would be called out to do redemptive work which had been normally reserved for human beings.

Revelation 14

¹ And I looked and lo, a Lamb stood on Mount Zion, and with Him a hundred forty and four thousand, having His Father’s name written in their foreheads.

— the vision of the Lamb, the Messiah, standing on Mount Zion; and companied by the 144,000, his Father’s name written on their foreheads; but here no mention of “clothed in white robes,” as described in Revelation 7:13.

— here is also no mention of “a great multitude” (Revelation 7:9) ~ those from the nations, the Gentiles, the goyim; they are clothed in white robes; but no mention of them having the Father’s name; so is this a different group of 144,000?

² And I heard a voice from heaven as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder, and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps. — for those still on earth; at the same time a voice was heard from heaven, comparable to the sound of many waters, of thunders and of harps.

³ And they sang, as it were, a new song before the throne, and before the four living beings and the elders; and no man could learn that song, except the hundred and forty and four thousand who were redeemed from the earth. — a voice before the throne, hence in heaven, and as the voice of many waters and as the rumbling of great thunder;

— and the voice which John heard resembled that of harpists playing on their harps; and they sang a new song and before the four living beings and the elders; and no one can learn the song except the hundred and forty-four thousand that have been redeemed from the earth.

⁴ These are they that were not defiled with women, for they are virgins. These are they that follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. — these are virgins which were not defiled with any idolatry nor with the whore of Rome;

— nor corrupting themselves with her protesting daughters; while the kings and inhabitants of the earth were drunk these were free from such their idolatrous practices.

⁵ And in their mouth was found no guile, for they are without fault before the throne of God. — in their mouth was found no guile; for idols and idolatrous practices are often called lies, and lying vanities; these are redeemed from the consequence of this evil world, and from a vain, wicked, and idolatrous lying tongues with false doctrines in them.

⁶ And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation and kindred, and tongue and people, — in the SDA doctrines, would this be the first angel? A first angel message? to warn them that dwell on the earth?

⁷ saying with a loud voice, “Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His Judgement is come. Worship Him that made heaven and earth, and the sea and the fountains of waters.” — these are messages from the first angel to the nations, to every nation and tribe and tongue and people, all and every nations that may have not heard of the gospel, nor of the kingdom;

— so this first angel is doing a “Fear God” missionary work? So far only men, if any, are doing “Fear God” work, because most Pretenders are engrossed with the “Covenant of Grace” a non-sensical no-fear gospel.

⁸ And there followed another angel, saying, “Babylon is fallen! Fallen is that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” — Babylon is a figure of speech for (1) Roman empire: and of this it is said, that it “is fallen, is fallen” which words are repeated for the confirmation of it, as matter of fact;

— (2) but Babylon could also be Ephraim, the message of Ezekiel’s warning of her abominations and all her idolatries; fornication and whoredoms. A day would come that they would be fallen, is fallen.

— so this would be the SDA second angel message?

⁹ And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead or in his hand,

— if any man worship the beast and his image; give in to the idolatries of the church of Rome, or her daughter harlots and embrace, maintain, and defend the Popish religion, which bears a resemblance to the worship of the heathens, and is the very image of Rome Pagan; see Revelation 13:4;

— Seventh-day Adventists preach a lot on this third angel message; so much emphasis that it is as if it’s more important than the gospel itself? They seem to know so much on this theme, but nothing about the other prophets; nothing about what Ezekiel says;

— observing on Samaritan Sundays isn’t okay to Adventists, but indulging in a pagan Christmas is okay! And there is no fear among Adventists where their doctrines are corrupted by her prophetness Jezebel; and if they don’t repent, “I will kill her children with death,” Revelation 2:23. Therefore Adventists should take warning from their own First Angel Message: “Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His Judgement is come.”

¹⁰ the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out unmixed into the cup of His indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. — the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God; which is a just punishment for their sin;

— that as such have drank of the wine of the wrath of Rome’s fornication, Revelation 14:8 so they shall now drink of the wine of God’s wrath; it is usual in Scripture to express the punishment God inflicts upon wicked men by his wrath, and by the wine cup of his fury; and their suffering such punishment, by their drinking of it; see Jeremiah 25:15.

¹¹ And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.” — and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever; that is, the smoke of that fire which torments them will for ever arise;

— or, in other words, there will be no end of their torment; like that of Sodom and Gomorrah; hence their misery is called everlasting fire, everlasting punishment, and everlasting destruction.

¹² Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. — here are they that keep the true commandments of God;

— that is, including the Sabbath and annual Feast days; including the calendar established by the Sanhedrin; the judgement of God in AD 70 was just a preamble; a foretaste; where the Sadducees, the Essenes and the house of Shammai Pharisees and those of its military arm, the Zealots were wiped out in an inforno. Were these sects facing their Sodom and Gomorrah? Another major similar judgement lies for the future (for more details, see An Autopsy of JERUSALEM in the AD 70 INFERNO).

¹³ And I heard a voice from heaven, saying unto me, “Write: ’Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from henceforth.’” “Yea,” saith the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, and their works do follow them.” — those that die in the Lord or for the Lord are those that remain steadfast in his Word and faith unto the end, whether this end be that of a quiet death or that of martyrdom.

¹⁴ And I looked, and behold, a white cloud; and upon the cloud sat one like unto the Son of Man, having on his head a golden crown and in his hand a sharp sickle.

— and in the hand of the Son of Man, he has a sharp sickle: to reap the earth with, as hereafter, and is expressive of his power as King of kings, Lord of lords and Chief Judge of the world, to gather all nations before him; for the sickle is used to gather with, as well as to cut them down.

¹⁵ And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, “Thrust in thy sickle and reap; for the time has come for thee to reap, for the harvest of the earth is ripe.” — would this be the fourth angel?

— not only the grapes are gathered, but all the shoots and branches are cut off; the day and hour of judgement has come; the fruit of sin and unbelief has reached its full maturity, the patience of the Lord is exhausted; or rewards to be reaped?

¹⁶ And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth, and the earth was reaped.— the Being that sat “upon the cloud like unto the Son of Man,” has a sickle on the earth; the Son of Man ready to reap and he did so;

¹⁷ And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. — beside the Son of Man having a sharp sickle, this angel also has one sharp sickle; would this be the fifth angel?

¹⁸ And another angel came out from the altar, who had power over fire, and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, “Thrust in thy sharp sickle and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, for her grapes are fully ripe.”— would this be the sixth angel?

— this sixth angel came out of the altar, and shouted (giving a message or an order) with a loud voice to him (the fifth angel) that had the sharp sickle, saying, Send forth thy sharp sickle and cull the grape-clusters from the vine of the earth, for its grapes have matured. Here the fire of God’s wrath, of God’s Judgement, is in evidence. The final Judgement will not be a partial judgement, but will strike fruit, branches, stem and roots.

¹⁹ And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great wine press of the wrath of God. — and the fifth angel thrust with his sickle into the earth and executes God’s final Judgement;

— at the end of the world: this vine may be said to be cut down at the burning of the world, and to be gathered at the resurrection, as the wheat harvest of the saints will be at a resurrection.

²⁰ And the wine press was trodden outside the city, and blood came out of the wine press, even unto the horse bridles, for the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs. — even unto the horses’ bridles, for the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs; which could be:

— (a) measuring a thousand and six hundred miles, between 600 and 625 feet in width, with a depth of about five feet;

— (b) an hyperbolical expression, setting forth the largeness and universality of the destruction of the wicked, and the impossibility of their escaping it.

~ by Joel Huan on January 14, 2023.

Posted in Revelation