Allegiance
In Revelation, every man must choose between loyalty to the Beast from the sea or the sacrificial Lamb. Discussions on the “mark of the Beast” focus on the significance of its number, ‘666.’ But to understand the ramifications of taking the “mark,” we must see how Revelation contrasts it with the “seal of God.”
And this conflict in Revelation is relevant to the life
of every Christian. The demand of the “Beast” for absolute allegiance
from all men has characterized virtually every government in human history. And
since Jesus is the absolute Lord and king of all his followers, the kind of
conflict portrayed in Revelation between church and state is inevitable.
And Revelation also presents the dire consequences for every man and
woman who makes the wrong decision.
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| [Photo by Daniel Klaffke on Unsplash] |
In the book, the “mark of the Beast” is the satanic counterpart to God’s “seal,” and everyone who takes it pledges his or her allegiance to the “beast.” In contrast, the men who receive the “seal of God” follow the “Lamb wherever he goes.”
In this way, humanity is divided into two groups: Those
whose “names are written in the Lamb’s book of life,” and those whose
names are not. And all who fall into the latter category are destined for the “second
death,” namely, the “lake of fire.”
ORIGINAL AUDIENCE
The book is addressed to churches in Roman Empire at a
time when some Christians were undergoing pressure to conform to local religious
practices, especially the imperial cult that paid divine honors to the emperor,
offered incense to his image, and other tokens of loyalty to Caesar.
In the ancient world, there was no concept of the separation
of religion and state. Political ideology and religious and cultural
practices were all intermingled. One’s religion was determined by one’s place
of origin. The Roman government left local populations alone to practice their
indigenous religions, though Rome expected all its subjects to pay
homage to Caesar.
At least five of the seven cities named in Revelation
featured temples dedicated to the emperor or Roma, the
patron goddess of the city of Rome. Citizens were free to worship traditional
gods, but on public occasions, they would offer incense to the image of the
emperor and otherwise acknowledge him as chief patron and lord.
To venerate the emperor was both a religious act
and political duty. It demonstrated allegiance to the Empire. Refusal
to participate constituted disloyalty, a crime against the state.
Christians were taught to be law-abiding citizens, but
their faith prevented them from acknowledging anyone as “Lord” except
Jesus Christ. Thus, persecution by Rome was inevitable - (Romans 13:1-7).
That conflict is reflected in the Greek verbs used in Revelation
for “worship.” The terms employed include the verbs latreuō
and proskuneō. The former denotes the “rendering of divine service”
to a divine person or image. In the Greek scriptures, it is applied to priests
serving in a Temple. It occurs twice in Revelation for priestly
service to God.
The second verb occurs twenty-four times. It is a
compound of the preposition pros or “toward” and the verb kuneō
or “kiss,” hence the idea, “to kiss towards,” to prostrate oneself. Derived
meanings include “render homage,” “give obeisance,” “revere,” and “venerate.”
It applies to the deference and honor paid to a superior being, human or divine.
To “render homage” is to give absolute allegiance, whether to God, Jesus,
or the “beast” - (Revelation 7:15, 22:3).
HUMANITY DIVIDED
In chapter 13, two groups are presented - The “inhabitants
of the earth” and those who “tabernacle in heaven,” Awed
by the “beast,” the first group “renders homage to the beast,” demonstrating
that “their names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb.” The
“slander” of the “beast” is directed against those who “tabernacle
in heaven” - (Revelation 13:6-7, 12:12).
Next, the “beast from the earth” appears, the “False Prophet.” He mimics the “Lamb” and uses religious deception to encourage the “inhabitants of the earth” to erect an image of the first “beast” - (Revelation 13:14-16).
In verse 10, those who “tabernacle in heaven”
are identified as the “saints,” the same group targeted for destruction
by the “Dragon” - those who “keep the commandments of God and have the
faith of Jesus.” Their names are “written in the book of life.”
The “mark of the beast” is the counterfeit of the “seal
of God” that was received by the “servants of our God.” Elsewhere,
this group is identified as the followers of the “Lamb.” This “sealed”
company is identical to the “great innumerable multitude from every nation
and tribe and people and tongue” redeemed by the blood of the Lamb.
The “seal of God” identifies those who belong to Jesus.
They are preserved through the coming tribulation, but
they are not removed from the earth to escape it. Instead, they are equipped to
endure it. Their identification with the “Lamb” spares them from God’s
judicial “wrath,” the “second Death” - (Revelation 2:11, 7:1-3,
20:6).
Men who “render homage to the image of the beast” are
“branded” with its “mark,” and anyone with it may participate in the
economic life of society. Anyone who refuses the “mark” is ostracized
and faces economic deprivation and even execution.
SEALED BY GOD
In contrast, the men who belong to the “Lamb” have
“his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads.”
They are found before the Throne. They have been “purchased from the earth
by the Lamb.” Anyone who “renders homage to the image of the beast”
automatically takes its “mark.” In contrast, anyone who “follows the
Lamb wherever he goes” receives the name of the “Lamb” and the seal
of God on the forehead.
If the “seal of God” is figurative, the same holds
true for the “mark of the beast.” This is how Revelation divides humanity
into two groups. God “seals” all who give their allegiance to the “Lamb,”
whereas, all who render homage to the “beast” take its “mark” and
have their names excluded from “the book of life.”
This connection is made clear when an angel warns that “anyone
who renders homage to the beast and his image and receives its mark will drink
of the wine of the Wrath of God.” To give allegiance to the “beast”
is tantamount to taking its “mark.” ALL who do so will
partake of God’s “wrath” - (Revelation 14:9-11).
The coming “wrath” is not a series of plagues, but
the full and everlasting “wrath” “prepared unmixed” and
poured out at the final judgment, the time when the wicked are cast into the “lake
of fire,” the “second death” - (Revelation 20:11-15).
The “saints” who “keep the faithfulness of
Jesus” will overcome the “beast” and find themselves “standing
on the glassy sea” before the Throne. There, they “sing the song of the
Lamb.” In contrast to the “inhabitants of the earth,” they
participate in the “first resurrection,” and therefore, they “live
and reign with Christ.”
