Oregon community college gunman sympathized with Va. TV shooter, shared Newtown school shooting documentary … U.S. economic policy and religion explained in the book: 666, the Mark of America, Seat of the Beast
October 2, 2015 |
| 48 min read
The Humanity Party® has the solutions to many of the issues that disturb people enough that they act out in emotional desperation to be heard about the changes and reforms they believe are needed in human society.
Foremost, this shooter, as well as every other perpetrator of the most prolific mass killings in U.S. history, passed every and any background check that would have limited access to the weapons that each used to kill innocent people.
There’s only one way to change access to guns: a Constitutional amendment.
ARTICLE IV, Section 5 – Right to Bear Arms
a. Authorization to Bear Arms. No person shall have the right to bear arms except those authorized by law to do so under Section 4 of this Article. The right to bear arms shall be strictly prohibited, except as authorized by Congress in the establishment and support of Law Enforcement.
b. Arms for Sport and Entertainment. The people shall have the right to bear arms for sport or entertainment exclusively under the supervision of Armories and Weapon Facilities as determined and established by Congress.
c. Manufacture and Distribution of Weapons. It shall be strictly prohibited for any person or entity to manufacture or distribute any weapon or any of its ammunition, of any kind, except as authorized by Congress for the sake of law enforcement, or for the sake of personal sport as authorized by Congress. Weapons manufactures, of any kind, shall be regulated and only approved by a license issued by Congress. The person or entity that initiates or performs the manufacture of any weapon or its ammunition, without Congressional approval, shall be charged with an act of treason against the people of the Republic.
d. Possession of Weapons and Ammunition and Related Punishments. The possession of any weapon or ammunition by any person in violation of this Article shall be a first-degree felony offense and punished by imprisonment for six months on that person’s first offense, one year on the second offense, and then an additional one year of imprisonment for each new offense thereafter. A person who commits a crime with any arm, of any kind, shall be required to serve a period 50% longer than the sentence requirements of the original crime.
Usually, the media doesn’t report exactly WHY people act out by killing others to make their statement. The mainstream media reported a little more insight into Chris Harper-Mercer’s mental state before the killings.
Harper-Mercer sympathized with 20 year-old Adam Lanza, who shot his way into an elementary school and killed 20 innocent children and 6 adult staff members in 2012. The media never reported exactly WHY Lanza shot the children. THumP®’s resources found that Lanza shot the children believing that they wouldn’t be forced to grow up in an unfair world like he did. In Lanza’s mind, he did a good thing by sparing the children the negative experiences he had encountered while growing up.
Harper-Mercer (the Oregon shooter) allegedly wrote in a blog post on Aug. 31:
“People like him [Lanza] have nothing left to live for, and the only thing left to do is lash out at a society that has abandoned them.”
Allegedly, Harper-Mercer asked each victim what their religion was and shot those who said they were Christian in the head; and those who responded differently, he shot in the leg. Religion also played a large role in the reasons why two high school students in Columbine, Colorado, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, killed 12 students and one teacher in 1999.
Harper-Mercer, Lanza, Harris, and Klebold join thousands of youth of their age group in the Middle East who “… have nothing left to live for, and the only thing left to do is lash out at a society that has abandoned them.”
As long as the human species is able to individualize and allow each person the ability to think and act outside the whole, there will be religion (the philosophies of men mingled with their invented scriptures). Religion won’t end anytime soon. Since religion is the individualized philosophy (cognitive paradigm) of each human, it becomes the centralized psychological theme that gives each personal value and self-worth. When one isn’t getting value from the whole of humanity, that one seeks it from within where religion dominates and controls thoughts and actions. And joining others with the same sense of hopelessness and despair, group mentality motivates action and makes it much easier to find self-worth and a purpose to live.
Christians, of all kinds, are more apt, especially in America, to spout their religious beliefs as the “only way.” Christians are not shy in telling the world that “the Lord, Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the light,” regardless of what their Jesus allegedly taught to the contrary. What a Christian seems to be implying to a non-Christian is, “I am better than you because I believe in Christ and you don’t. And unless you do, you cannot be saved in the kingdom of God.”
It was this reasoning that was responsible for the conquering and development of the Western world, more particularly, the Western Hemisphere.
The Western world, which includes the Eastern Hemisphere countries that were liberated by the United States during World War II (Britain, France, Germany), as well as other countries which have adopted the U.S. dollar as the driving force behind their economies, directly control the world’s economy. For this reason, the United States and its economic power has caused many non-Christian people to hate it and fight against it. They hate it and fight against it because they feel that America “[left them with] nothing left to live for, and the only thing left to do is lash out at a society that has abandoned them.”
For this very reason, Osama Bin Laden motivated a few young men to attack the World Trade Center in 2001. The World Trade Center was the symbolic center of world economic policy.
Incredibly, the organizers and writers of the Christian New Testament issued a warning to the people of the world about an economic policy that would cause problems in the world. Written near the end of the Great Roman Empire, the author of the great “Disclosure” (Greek: Apocalypse; English: Revelation) presented an outline of how an economic power, patterned after the Great Roman Empire, would rise up and control the world.
Of course, Christians have “eyes that do not see and ears that do not hear,” because they do not want to believe that they, Christians, who put themselves above others, are the cause of most of the human problems upon Earth.
Published in 2006, the most profound and detailed explanation of the esoteric book of Revelation became available to the public (to the chagrin of the American people): 666, The Mark of America, Seat of the Beast. Although greatly offended by the book’s implication, any American would benefit from a study of its contents. It reveals the real truth about the world’s modern-day problems in unprecedented reality.
THumP® includes one of the most prolific chapters below. Reading this one chapter of 666, The Mark of America, Seat of the Beast, will leave the sincere seeker of truth bewildered at Christian ignorance when the truth stares them in the face as their touted “word of God” and clearly explains the reasons behind human suffering upon Earth:
( 666, The Mark of America, Seat of the Beast, Chapter 13, the Bible, New Testament, book of Revelation, chapter 13.)
13:1 And I saw another sign in heaven in likeness of the kingdoms of the earth. And I saw a beast rise up out of the sea and stand upon the sand of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
The “beast” referred to here is the same beast John later describes in Revelation 17:3. This “beast” is a “beast of the earth,” unlike the “four beasts of heaven” mentioned previously by John. To properly understand what this “beast” represents, it is necessary to review what John later reveals in Revelation.
The “woman” who is described previously as being in the “wilderness,” is presented later as “sitting upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns” (17:3). The “woman in the wilderness” represents those saints who escaped the “dragon.” However, in Revelation 13:6–7, the “beast” is finally allowed to “overcome the saints,” and gain “power over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.” This prepares the reader appropriately to see the “woman sitting upon the beast.”
The description of the “woman” and the “beast” gives the reader all the information needed to understand what this “beast” represents:
And I was carried away in the spirit into the wilderness where I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads with seven crowns and ten horns. And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and the filthiness of her fornication: And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. (Revelation 17:3–5)
The “beast” represents a political and social design established (“rise up”) by the societies of humankind (“out of the sea”) to satisfy the desires of human nature. This design “stands upon the sand of the sea,” meaning it covers the entire earth, as the “sand of the sea” represents the people of the earth:
That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; (Genesis 22:17)
The unquenchable desire for money, materialism, and worldly comforts to satiate human lust, is what the “beast” offers the “woman.” The governments and democracies (“ten horns”) of the world (“seven heads”/continents) are set up to please those whom they govern. When a democracy reigns with power, its sole purpose is to satisfy the wants of the
constituents who support it. It cares nothing for the mandates of God (“the name of blasphemy”), which would create equality by providing for the needs of all people of the earth. The purpose of the “beast” is to allow for and provide the material wants and lusts of the heart (“a woman sit upon a scarlet colored beast”).
In modern terms, the best way to describe what the “beast” promises is: “The American Dream.” Later in Revelation, John presents how this hope and dream has “overcome the saints” of God, and is the desire of the whole world.
13:2 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.
In the first part of this verse, John has borrowed heavily from Daniel in the presentation of the governments and powers that represent “the beast.” Whereas Daniel writes of separate and “diverse” governments, John makes no such distinction, and figuratively expresses all as “one beast”:
Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. The first was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man’s heart was given to it. And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh. After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it. After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things. (Daniel 7:2–8)
The “beast” has great power over the people of the earth. Its strength is powerful and exercised in darkness (“leopards” are dark and hunt at night). It moves with force, crushing under its “feet” anything that rises against it (there is no animal as strong in its feet/paws as the “bear”). The sound of its voice is both intimidating and fierce (“the mouth of a lion”) to all who dare challenge it.
“His power, and his seat, and great authority” as mentioned in thelatter part of this verse, comes only one way: by the voice and election of the people who are driven by the “power” of the flesh (“the dragon gave him his power”) to hope and desire for what the “beast” can offer them. Though it “sits upon many waters,” “the seat” (throne) of this “beast” is established firmly in the midst of the people who devour more of the earth’s resources in pursuit of their fleshly lusts than anyone else in the world. From its most powerful “seat,” the “beast” rules the world with its economic policies, laws, and mandates. In former times, it was Rome that maintained this “seat and great authority”; in modern times, THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA is THE SEAT OF THE BEAST.
13:3 And I saw one of his heads as if it were wounded even unto death; but his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast and bowed down before him.
In order to properly understand what John is establishing here as “one of his heads” being “wounded,” and also to fully understand the rest of the figurative expressions presented in Chapter 13, it is imperative to introduce a brief and concise history of Roman Law.
Laws are the basis of any human society, and govern those subjected to them. A society of people that lives to fulfill its selfish desires, no matter what the cost might be to others, will establish laws which codify and support these desires—this premise is the “beast” John presents throughout this part of Revelation. One of the ten horns upon one of the “seven heads” of this “beast” was the Great Roman Empire that extended into all parts of the continent (Europe, one of the “seven heads”) on which it was established.
Though there were other governments established throughout the world at the time of the Romans, (and all were set up under the premise of the “beast,”) none compared to the Roman Empire, which has been called by historians one of the greatest civilizations in the history of the world.
From the 6th Century B.C.E., the principles, procedures, and institutions of Roman law dominated both Western and parts of Eastern civilization. Most of the current legal systems of Western Europe are based on Roman law, and are called civil law systems. The United States claims common law as its precedent, but there is little doubt of the influence Roman law had on its establishment.
Roman law began as an attempt to codify a single set of legal principles for all citizens, but selectively (with purpose) protected the rights and supported the agendas of the educated and elite, who could read, write, and establish such laws and convince the people to follow them. The Roman republic developed the jus civile, or civil law, the beginnings of which were based on both custom and local legislation that applied only to Roman citizens. Later, the Romans developed the jus gentium, or the law of nations, which were rules of international law that applied to interactions between Romans and foreigners. Eventually, these laws became a massive compendium produced and manipulated by the magistrates and governors from the elitist class.
Roman law was divided into two parts: the written law, and the unwritten law. The unwritten law was based on custom and tradition, while the written law came primarily from legislation by those who held the power over the people. These included their edicts, proclamations, and any resolutions that supported their power. Their laws covered every type of legal issue including contracts, inheritance of property, family law, business organizations and criminal acts, all of which centered on the desires to earn, sustain, and keep individual and family wealth secured and controlled.
With time, Roman law steadily expanded as new ideas and laws were introduced when necessary in order to protect a Roman citizen’s right to accumulate and maintain wealth. Because of the corruption and greed of government officials, the legal books became contradictory and confusing.
This is how the Romans dug a “pit” for themselves out of which they could not climb, eventually filling it with those who dug it. The “smoke” that rose out of the “pit” produced “locusts” (see comentary on Revelation 9) that tormented and struck fear in the hearts and the minds of the people under the influence of Roman law. The “beast” prevailed over the people and would eventually lead to their demise. The Great Roman Empire was “wounded” and fell; and great was the fall thereof.
Though Roman government policies and laws were “wounded” when the Great Empire fell, they did not “die”; but “his deadly wound was healed” when later empires incorporated Roman customs and laws into their societies. These later empires had just as strong a desire to accumulate individual and family wealth as did the Romans, and thus the people “wondered after the beast.”
A number of years later, the Byzantine emperor Justinian I appointed a commission to examine the body of Roman law and determine what should be kept and what should be discarded. From this effort came the Corpus Juris Civilis, or Body of Civil Law, which is a codification of Roman law that became the chief book of law that remained of the “wounded” Roman Empire. Of course, the Byzantine leaders chose those laws which supported their incessant lust for material wealth, as did the Romans before them.
Throughout Medieval Times, Roman law influenced the legal system of the Catholic (worldwide) Church, as well as almost every country in Europe. Consequently, church leaders (“the locusts”) became the wealthiest and most powerful people in the world, “blaspheming” in word and deed the gospel of Jesus Christ, which demands equality for all individuals.
13:4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they praised the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?
Today, people are pursuing the lusts and desires of the flesh (“worshipped the dragon”) which give life and “power” to the systems of government (“beast”), both politically and spiritually. These systems allow the people the ability to realize their dreams of worldliness, or they at least provide their citizens with the glimmer of hope that they might. People strive their whole lives to become popular, accepted, and obtain as much money as they can, not only for their immediate fleshly needs, but also for the future when they hope they will not have to work.
Because this type of focus is self-centered or family-centered, it is “praised” and supported through political patriotism and religious affiliation. This attitude leads to a more isolated human being, which leads to a more tightly knit family unit, which then forms communities, cities, states, and nations that set up borders to protect those rights that are “praised” as virtuous and righteous. They protect their borders against all others who do not believe as they do, many times forcing their beliefs upon others by extending the borders of their system of human desire supported by the force of law. The only way their beliefs can be protected and promulgated, is through war. When this value system is accepted and protected by the strongest governments, and praised by the people, “who is able to make war with” it?
13:5 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.
Some historians have marked the official end of the Roman Empire as circa 478 A.D.; however, John was alive during the course of its downfall, and personally determined from his own prophetic perspective that it continued for a longer period of time. Eventually, remnant governments were assimilated into the Byzantine Empire around the year 570 A.D. This is John’s reference point used in Revelation 11:2, when he was commanded to not preach the fullness of the gospel any longer amongst the people to whom he had been sent.
This date was also used by John to mark the period known as the “times” (see commentary on Revelation 11), in which there would be no more effort made by the prophets of God to preach to the Jewish people, who by this time, were scattered throughout the world into every nation and kingdom, both on the Eastern and the Western Hemispheres.
The influence of this quest for personal wealth and easy living spread throughout the world (“a mouth speaking great things”), promising the kings, priests, and warriors great wealth as they conquered other peoples and nations, and brought them under their subjection. For these “forty and two months” (1260 years according to John’s timetable), this “beast” would continue to devour the inhabitants of the earth. It did this through the strength of the secular kings and the religious priests who ruled over the people, completely disregarding (“speaking…blasphemies”) the tenets of the gospel of Jesus Christ, which command us:
But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. (Matthew 5:45)
The people were convinced by the “beast” (“a mouth speaking great things”) that there was no other way to protect their self-interests, their families, their communities, their cities, and their nations unless they did so by killing their enemies.
13:6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.
The people were no longer doing the works (“his name”) commanded by God. No one was attempting to establish the kingdom of God (“his tabernacle”) anywhere on earth; nor were the people being led by spiritual beings, angels, or prophets sent from heaven, and which the sun and the moon (“that dwell in heaven”) represent.
13:7 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.
The people give the “beast” (“and it was given unto him”) his power by supporting the kings, queens, presidents, magistrates, and religious leaders who speak (“mouth speaking great things”) to them. The leaders decieve their followers into believing that one’s religious and patriotic duty is to support their nation and their church leaders. Even the righteous humble peasants (“the saints”) who live in harmony with each other and with nature, striving to do unto each other what they would want done unto them when allowed to do so, are overcome by the deceiving words of the “beast,” and the power of “the dragon” that rages in their flesh. Eventually, the whole world is overcome.
13:8 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.
The only ones who do not worship the “beast” (and there were few during this 1260 years or “forty and two months”) are those who have subdued “the dragon” (desires of the flesh) within, and live (“whose names”/works) according to the example and the teachings of the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is the same teaching that has always been taught from the foundation of the world, and is the only way to eternal life (the instructions and directions in “the Lamb’s Book of Life” received from the Father).
During Medieval Times (appropriately called The Dark Ages), no religious leader could teach or lead the people in truth and righteousness. This was because they, more than the people who followed them, were led by “the dragon,” their master, which gave much power to “the beast.” Catholic and orthodox religious leaders were the richest and most revered men on earth. They called and anointed the kings and political leaders, and influenced or directly controlled almost all political decisions.
13:9 If any man have an ear, let him hear.
Review the commentary on Revelation 2:7, keeping in mind that by unfolding the mystery of Revelation in this book, what was only known to very few, is now available for all the world to hear and understand:
What ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops. (Matthew 10:27)
13:10 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.
The course of action taken by the religious and political leaders during these tumultuous and unsettled times led to the invasion and occupation of other lands which were filled with the material goods and slaves these leaders needed to support their lifestyles. Explorers and conquerors were sent by the leaders of their nations to find new lands and subdue them, bringing back to their financiers the plunder of their many wars and “captivity.”
There was no other way to support their governments’ greed and material lust without going into other countries, “killing” any who defended themselves with “the sword,” and “leading into captivity” the conquered people, so that their homeland would gain from the exploits. The leaders had already exploited their own nation’s resources, and promised their citizens prosperity. To fulfill these promises, the governments went beyond their borders, usually doing so without the consent and knowledge of the citizens that supported them.
The “saints” of God, or those who “elect” to keep His commandments and have received the “seal of God in their foreheads,” know that war only leads to war, and captivity only leads to captivity, because a nation is not doing unto another nation what they would want done to them in the same situation. With faith and patience, the saints await the coming of the One anointed to bring peace to this planet without war, and without captivity, but with the overwhelming strength of love and truth.
Whereas the prophets use “beasts” to symbolize a menagerie of strong and vicious animals (leopards, bears, lions), this new system of laws and government is always presented as a “lamb.” But before this “Lamb” establishes a kingdom of peace, “another beast,” different from the first, pretending to be “like a lamb,” must rise “up out of the earth” and replace the first “beast, which was wounded and healed.” This “psuedo-lamb” promises to fulfill the desires of the mortal flesh without “the sword” or “captivity,” (so it shall deceive the people of the earth into believing).
13:11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.
Christianity became the religion of choice for the monarchies and aristocracies of the Middle Ages. Christianity was used to introduce false notions and doctrines, which were incorporated into the early Catholic Church. It taught the people that one who sinned against God (a sin being anything that was contrary to the mandates and commandments of the Church and its leaders), could not only be recompensed and forgiven by the leaders of the Church through communion and confession, but most importantly, by the payment of tithes and offerings. This blind obeisance sustained the lifestyles of the leaders who benefited the most, not only with material goods, but by maintaining strict control over the minds of the people.
The corrupted doctrine that Jesus died on the cross for our sins (instead of Christ’s simple message of love your neighbor as yourself) benefited these leaders greatly because of the people’s desire to feel emotionally balanced and right with God. To the people, the Church was God, and the leaders were His appointed spokesmen.
No longer were there vagabond prophets of God, coming forth out of the wilderness dressed in sackcloth and ashes, eating honeycomb and locusts and living without material wealth––not allowing themselves to be put above another in any type of leadership position. These types were not “blessed” with the riches and luxuries that were indicative of the leaders of the Church; therefore, not being blessed with these things by the god who rules the earth (“the dragon”), why would the people accept them as being divinely appointed?
Having the power of the “beast” and being supported by “the dragon,” the Church and its people spread throughout the earth, fighting wars and conquering other nations in the name of their god—material wealth and political gain. This was the “first beast,” which was figuratively presented by John to represent the Roman Empire and its system of government and laws, as explained previously.
“Another beast” came forth, not from “out of the sea” as did the first, but “out of the earth,” which had soaked up the blood from the wound received by the first beast. This represents the fact that the Roman Empire was established over time, as the inhabitants of the earth pursued their fleshly desires. The peoples of the world (“the sea”) established this form of society, in which the rich minority reigned over and exploited the poor majority in order to maintain itself. Having been thus established “in the earth,” this final “beast” came “up out of the earth,” or in other words, was established by the rich and powerful who had already gained (received the blood soaked into the earth) from the “healed wound of the first beast” before it.
After the European powers had discovered new lands filled with gold, silver, precious herbs, spices, and fertile uncharted territory, they sent people there, and guarded these new colonies with armies and navies. These nations colonized these new lands with one purpose in mind: to exploit the natural resources and tax the people living there.
The Americas became a prize to the Europeans. The native peoples of this new land were seen as corrupt and evil demons who had no belief in the “lamb” of God; therefore, they were expendable for the promotion of orthodox Christianity. In just a short time, those who had gained riches and power among the new colonies in America formed this “other beast.”
Rich American landowners began to see the distance between them and the government they were supporting as an opportunity to gain even more personal wealth and power. Why should they remain subjected to other powers and pay part of their wealth to a government many miles across the vast ocean, when they could just as easily set up their own government, collect taxes from their own citizens, and eliminate the tax forced upon them? As a result, they presented themselves as Christian believers full of peace with love for all men, and spoke great words of equality that all are endowed with certain inalienable rights from God (“like a lamb”).
In time, this new “beast” would rise up, and though it was “like a lamb,” it had what no lamb is endowed with—“horns.” Horns are for protection, and are grown upon the head as a warning sign to others that, “We might look like a lamb, but we will defend ourselves (two horns like a lamb) against any who mess with us.”
When other nations struggled to survive their own revolutionary wars and pled with the United States for help, America was not willing to risk going to war for nations they did not believe could survive. However, the true reason why the United States did not go to war for these nations, was that American leaders understood that these rebellious nations did not intend to submit themselves to the laws and government of the United States, and wanted to form their own governments. If the rich landowners and politicians would not personally gain from another nation’s desire to be free, why should they involve themselves? From their point of view, as long as the other European powers did not intervene, the government of the United States could let other rebellious colonies fight it out amongst themselves.
The American motherland, Great Britain, was torn between monarchical principle and a desire for new markets. South America as a whole, constituted at the time, a much larger market for English goods than the United States, which had rebelled against them. Instead of war, the United States negotiated the purchase of lands from other European countries, who could see their power slipping away in these foreign parcels of America. With adroit political wrangling, the wealth of the United States increased unlike any other nation ever before it, all the while whispering sweet fragrant empty words of freedom and democracy to the people, who were exploited to perpetuate the “beast” that was supported by “the dragon.”
While the European nations were fighting among themselves for dominance in the Eastern Hemisphere, the “other beast” was establishing its “seat” securely in the Western.
After the American Founding Fathers had successfully seduced the people into fighting a revolutionary war and establishing them as patriotic leaders, these wealthy and powerful land and business owners made sure that “law and order” served them well. A subsequent president, James Monroe, summed up the purpose of American power, and the new society of “freedom” they had created in what became known as The Monroe Doctrine.
The Monroe Doctrine essentially proclaimed that the United States was informing the powers of the Old World that the American continents were no longer open to European colonization, and that any effort to extend European political influence into the New World would be considered by the United States as “dangerous to our peace and safety” (protected by the “two horns like a lamb”). The United States would not interfere in European wars or internal affairs, and expected Europe to stay out of American affairs. Over time, this new “beast” coalesced this Doctrine into an identifiable policy, raising a standard of an independent American foreign policy so strong that future administrations could not ignore it.
Well did Daniel prophesy concerning the United States of America:
Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet; And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows. I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; (Daniel 7:19–21)
13:12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
English law became the basis of American law, and drew its power and establishment from Roman law. English ecclesiastical courts applied canon law, which was based on Roman law, and the universities of Oxford and Cambridge taught both. Scholars have long noted the similarities between Roman and English laws. Most important to the success of the “beast” was that much of western European commercial law (which contained Roman law), became part of English law without much change. (NOTE: This paragraph was included as a pseudo tongue twister, demonstrating the use of the same laws with the same purpose, a vicious circle, which is to enrich those in power.)
The legal systems of most continental European nations owe their basic structures and categories to Roman law; however, what was most important to the “beast” was ensuring the reception of Roman law and the political principles it contained. Roman law that had been produced in a centralized state under a sovereign emperor, could now be used to buttress the arguments of the rich and powerful as they struggled to assert their sovereignty and influence over the ignorant majority.
At the same time the rich were benefiting from the establishment of laws that would protect their lusts for power and material goods, they were
also consolidating their power and expanding the role of government administration. Only those who were trained in the law—lawyers—could fill these new positions in government. The majority of the people had no clue from whence their government and courts obtained their laws, and knew little of their true purpose and meaning. And as long as the fleshly needs of the masses were met, or as long as they believed their government could provide them with the ability to meet these needs, the people loved their pretended democracy.
European customary law had developed in an agrarian (relating to the farmers and other laborers who produced the bulk of the nation’s resources) economy. Roman law, on the other hand, supported the rich by enforcing written and verbal contracts that supported their agenda to gain wealth, and which were needed for an economy where commerce played an increasingly larger role.
John pulled no punches when he figuratively expressed that this new “beast” “exercised all the power of the first beast before him.” This “beast” would subsequently “cause the whole earth”––its environs and resources, as well as all “them which dwell therein”––to fall down and “worship” a set of societal laws and precepts set up solely on one premise: whatever needs to be done to the earth or to another in order to fulfill the desires of the flesh (“the dragon”), and support and promote self-worth, is good.
Why should the people do unto others what they would have others do unto them, when doing so would not give them more material wealth, more worldly acceptance, and more power over those who are not seen as their equals? The “beast” has indeed “made war with the saints, and pre- vailed against them.” (See Daniel 7:21.)
13:13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of the beast,
It was an obscure and relatively unknown American prophet who made the following prophecy:
For I the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance; Nevertheless, he that repents and does the commandments of the Lord shall be forgiven; And he that repents not, from him shall be taken even the light which he has received; for my Spirit shall not always strive with man, saith the Lord of Hosts. And again, verily I say unto you, O inhabitants of the earth: I the Lord am willing to make these things known unto all flesh; For I am no respecter of persons, and will that all men shall know that the day speedily cometh; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand, when my Spirit shall be taken from the earth, and the devil shall have power over his own dominion. (Source withheld)
This prophecy was given in November of 1831. Shortly after this time (“the hour is not yet, but is night at hand”), mortals began to discover the knowledge and understanding (“fire come down from heaven”––see commentary on Revelation 4:5) of some of the mysteries of God.
The American lifestyle (the “other beast” and the “he” referred to in this verse) influenced the scientific and technological advancements needed to satisfy the appetites of its belly. For thousands of years, the greatest minds on earth could not decipher the mysteries and riddles of scientific observations, which were necessary to control the powers of nature for the benefit of mortal man. The secrets of kinetic energy, theorized and speculated on by the great minds of science, were kept hidden away. Unable to utilize what they understood, the world advanced very little from the time of the Ancient Egyptians until the time of the isolated colonies of the American pilgrims.
The extraordinary power of electricity was kept hidden from the very foundations of the world so that humankind would not discover its potential and use it inappropriately. The ancient prophets knew of this great power, yet none of them mentioned it to his contemporaries, guarding this incredible mystery that is a small, but important portion of the power of a God. They knew that when the earth was approaching its last days of exercising universal free agency and democracy, it would be safe to allow the devil to have power over his own dominion; thus permitting the use of this knowledge (“fire”) so “he” could experience the effects of this power when used improperly.
Not one ancient prophet who received knowledge of the latter days prophesied anything but great wickedness upon the earth. They saw the computers, the medical advancements, and the technological cornucopia of ease and wealth, given to those who would experience the effects of this “fire from heaven,” but they prophesied of nothing but wickedness.
As the world began to lust more and more after the ease and com- forts that this “fire” provided them, the “great furnace of the bottomless pit” was stoked and fueled (see Revelation 9:1–2). Nature’s power was bridled, and the “beast” was given the ability by “the dragon” to hold the reigns in his hands, taking the “horse” and its “rider” anywhere he so desired.
13:14 And them that dwell on the earth are deceived by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; by 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 did live.
As technology began to provide immediate pleasures and satisfaction to humankind, faith in an unseen God, and any hope of an afterlife, became less and less important to “them that dwell on the earth.” New advancements and apparent “miracles” were introduced with each new generation. In a brief amount of time (compared to the thousands of years that humans existed without the miracles of science and technology), mortals have gained power to travel hundreds of miles per hour through the sky, and to entertain themselves with these wonderful “miracles.”
These “miracles” provide large amounts of leisure time, and instead of working as expected by their Creator (“in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return”––Genesis 3:19), the people of the earth search for ways to be free from all labor. “Them,” so “deceived,” live by the “sweat of the faces” of the poor, causing them to grind at the wheel of an economy that feeds the wants and needs of the “deceived.”
“Grinding the faces of the poor” as prophesied, is the result of those who believe that their individual and family goals of financial wealth and independence are more important than another’s. The “other beast that came out of the earth like a lamb,” opened up and developed a land where these miracles could be seen (“sight of the beast”) and believed. Millions of people around the world were deceived into believing that the “American Dream” was equally attainable for all.
Prophetically, the Statue of Liberty, a figurative representation of the “image” of the “beast” (a graven image), was constructed and erected in order to entice the “deceived” to sit upon the “beast”; while the “woman” stands upon the “sea,” welcoming the world to come into her bed and enjoy “her fornication” (Revelation 17:1–5).
The giant “image––a woman clothed in a robe” holds a torch in her right hand (giving the appearance of righteousness) offering “enlightenment” (“fire come down from heaven”) to the world, and is profoundly represented by the “seven heads,” or seven rays (seven continents of the world) jutting from “her crown.”
The chains on her feet, by which she was bound, have been unlocked (see Revelation 3:10), giving her power to do the “miracles in the sight of the beast.” In her left hand she holds a book, symbolizing a diary of her unrighteous works (left hand), which she has accomplished and recorded therein.
What is written upon the book she holds?
Chiseled in Roman numerals in honor of the “first beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live,” is the celebrated and “worshipped” (holy day) holiday: July 4, 1776. This is the celebrated day this “other beast rose out of the earth with two horns like a lamb,” deceiving them that dwell upon the earth by saying, “Bring us your tired, your poor, your huddled masses” and we will “face” them toward the grinding wheel that feeds “the dragon,” and has given us this great “power.”
The “image of the beast” is the illusory belief that all peoples of the earth have the ability to achieve a life of freedom from work, oppression, and sadness under the current economic policies and laws of the United States’ form of democracy. To support the lifestyle of one rich person, at least ninety-nine poor people are needed to fulfill their selfish “Dream.” Food needs to be picked, garbage needs to be removed, hotels need to be staffed, and raw materials need to be produced and turned into the products that the rich use to live their desired “standard of living.”
The “deceived of the earth” are convinced that if they are not “worshipping the image” (living this standard of living), then they have not arrived, and they are not successful; therefore, they are not happy. Thus, these are they who are “deceived.”
13:15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.
The US government and its laws have the power to guarantee a person a high standard of living (“power to give life unto the image”). Corporate and business law, as well as diverse litigation in US courts, has created personal and family wealth for the few who have heard the great and marvelous words and promises of financial independence spoken by the “beast” that is “that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.” (Daniel 7:20)
The lure of financial independence can be figuratively expressed as the mythical ‘Siren’s Song’ (the very great things that “the beast’s mouth speaks”) that metaphorically caused many ships to steer off course and wreck. Profound are the words of a contemporary song that reflect its title:
Beware the siren song
A song of delirious beauty
Though you want to sing along
A song full of promised delight
Lash yourself onto the mast
A song that will lead you to madness
Till the siren song has passed
A song that ends only in painThrough the wind and through the rain
Through the long night of tempting
Of torment and of doubt
He cried out in his painBut this captain stayed the course
Guiding the ship through danger
Past the siren’s melody
On to the promise of home.Beware the siren song
Try not to listen
Make sure the ropes are strong
Focus your vision
Beware the siren song
A song of beauty
Guide your ship on the right course.And the ocean is so deep
Blackening water is raging
As the ship is tossed about
A speck in the infinite void
And the map is old and worn
Stained with the tears of captains
Who have sailed this way before
To follow the song of the heart.(Brave Combo, Siren Song, Hernandez, Carter/Don Cenobio Music, BMI)
The Roman Empire, and those who claimed citizenship under its realm, set the precedent for the standard of living currently perpetuated by the United States (“that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live”). Like the Romans, Americans believe they are the greatest of all peoples of the earth, and that they deserve the finest standard of living possible, regardless of what supporting this “image” does to other nations and people.
Any nation that makes an attempt of independence and sovereignty by severing its economical ties with the United States will be invaded, conquered, and occupied (“as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed”). Oil-rich countries that refuse to bow down to the pressure of American interests, are threatened and subdued. If a country has no economical relevance in sustaining the American lifestyle, it is left alone until it does.
All nations of the earth hearken to the speech of the beast and have bowed in worship, genuflecting with their arms splayed and overflowing with the natural resources their nation can offer this “image”; if not, they “should be killed.” If a nation’s resources can support the American standard of living, it has no choice but to bow down before the “image of the beast.”
13:16 And he causeth all, both righteous and wicked, small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:
A “mark” is left after something has been accomplished or experienced. The works of Shakespeare left a “mark” on the literary world. After a well-attended parade, a “mark” is left by the amount of litter left in the street. Jesus left his “mark” upon the world, and kept the “mark” in his hands and feet, which will one day prove him to be he who was anointed to become the Christ of this solar system. By no choice of their own, the Jews were “marked” for annihilation by Hitler’s regime, and those who John describes as “the saints” of God, receive a “mark” in their forehead as has been explained previously.
There is not a person in this world that has not received the “mark of the beast” in his or her “right hand”—not one! It is impossible to live in this world without being affected in some way by commercialism, money, or the economic structures set up by the societies of the earth. Jewish custom taught that what one does with one’s “right hand” is a reflection of the actions one makes in his daily life. What one thinks and focuses upon, is represented by a “mark” in the “forehead.”
The greatest portion of our waking hours are spent in pursuit (“mark in right hand”) of the lifestyle (“the image of the beast”) we have imagined in our minds (“mark in their foreheads”) for our families and ourselves. Those who have the mark, or “seal of the Father in their forehead” think of others and how their actions affect the least among us, trying in every way possible to do unto others what they would want done unto them. Nevertheless, because “the beast has overcome the saints,” they too, have the “mark of the beast in their right hand.” They too are unable to live without it in a world which steadily revolves around the idea of doing whatever is necessary in order to assure a secure life for the individual and the family.
13:17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
We cannot buy or sell in this world unless we involve ourselves in its economies. We have idolized the almighty dollar, prostrating ourselves before it, and worshipping all it can do for us.
It has become our God.
The more we have, the more secure we feel, and the more we worship it. Our bank accounts, our retirement accounts, our investments, our promised pensions, and our life insurance policies give us the false sense of security that our future is provided for and secure. The “number of his name” is the accounting and value system we have established to perpetuate the “beast.” It is money. Without it, “no man might buy or sell.”
13:18 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 John capitalizes on the metaphors, symbolism, and figurative expressions borrowed from the Old Testament. He knew that only those who are wise and have a proper understanding of truth, would be able to make the connection between the riddle he gives here, and the reality of what the “number of the beast” is.
How foolish the world has become. How arrogant and deceived are those who unknowingly carry the mark of the beast prominently displayed in their right hand and in their forehead, yet ignorantly believe they would never allow anyone to mark their right hand with 666, which they have erroneously named the “mark of the beast.”
Look carefully at the actual text, and you will note that John did not write “666 (“six hundred threescore and six”) is the mark of the beast, nor did he say “666” is the number of the beast. He specifically and purposefully wrote that the number “666 corresponded to” the “number of the beast, which is the number of a man, and his number is six hundred threescore and six.” Neither did John say: “is the number of man (as in ‘mankind’),” but he specifically wrote: “is the number of a man,” meaning a particular man.
That particular man to whom John was pointing those who “hath understanding,” is Solomon. “His number” corresponds to “money,” as in the amount of “gold” he received in a one-year period:
Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold. (I Kings 10:14)
Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred and threescore and six talents of gold; (II Chronicles 9:13)
You will notice that this chapter of Revelation suffered less than most canonized scripture at the hands of those who took it upon themselves to decide what portions needed to be altered or deleted. These powerful prophetic passages retained their basic meaning in spite of translation difficulties. With the possible exception of verse 1, these verses appear almost exactly as John intended, when they were first given in such plainness and simplicity that even a child could have figured it out; but few have, because the people and their leaders do not have “understanding.” They are the blind being led by the blind, stumbling forward toward the pit they have dug for themselves. A pit into which they will fall headlong and become consumed in the fire that burns fervently with the fuel from the bodies of those who have dug it and fallen therein.
“Here is wisdom,” wrote John;
The “name of the beast” is The God of This World (our natural selves).
The “image of the beast” is the dream or vision of material prosperity that is “imaged” or imagined (the “American Dream”).
The “mark of the beast” is displayed in how we worship him (our works). The “number of the beast” is money.
…And upon “his number, his name” is inscribed:
In GOD We Trust
The god that has the “great power and authority” in this world is the necessity and pursuit of money. It is in this graven “image” we do trust!
For those with “eyes that see and ears that hear,” John’s Revelation cannot make the point more clear.
