Editor’s Note: Students of the Bible have often found themselves confounded by how to interpret sections of the book of Revelation. One of the most puzzling questions is how to interpret Revelation’s villains such as the beast and the false prophet. In this article, biblical scholar Larry Pechawer (PhD, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion) explores the dragon and his henchman and offers a plausible interpretation for how to best understand them. End-times frameworks are not “essentials” of the faith, and however you have traditionally approached Revelation, you will find this article helpful.
With Revelation 12, the main narrative of the book unfolds, presenting what some have labeled the “cosmic drama” or “cosmic conflict” featured in the book. A great conflict is described, one which engulfs the audience of the book. The great dragon is now introduced with his two prominent henchmen: the beast (sea beast) and the false prophet (land beast).
Much of what follows in Revelation focuses upon the activities and final destruction of these characters or characterizations. In contrast to the dragon, a designation devoted to a single entity, Satan himself, both the beast and the false prophet likely represent a plurality of individuals involving a sequence presented by John especially in Revelation 17.
Christ and Satan in Conflict
Even if the heads of the beast in Revelation 17 represent various Roman emperors, as will be suggested, the true enemy of the church as depicted in Revelation is not Rome and its leaders. Rather, Satan is singled out in John’s visions as the great opponent of Christ and His church. The overarching theme of Revelation 12-22 is the cosmic conflict between Christ and Satan that culminates in Christ’s second coming, the punishment of Satan and his followers, and the establishment of God’s new creation: His new heavens and new earth.
Satan’s role in Revelation continues as described elsewhere throughout the New Testament, including the teaching that he is a defeated foe because of Christ’s redemptive work on the cross and His victory over death (Hebrews 2:14-15; 1 John 3:8). Through Christ’s atoning death, His followers have conquered Satan already (Revelation 12:10-11).
At both Revelation 12 and 20, Satan’s full complement of titles is expressed: the great dragon, that ancient serpent, the devil, Satan, the deceiver (Revelation 12:9; 20:2-3). The term “devil” comes from the Greek diabolos, which means the “accuser,” while the name “Satan” comes from the Hebrew satan, which indicates “adversary.” In the Greek Old Testament, diabolos is also sometimes used to translate the Hebrew satan. There is a thin line between accuser and adversary.
“There is a thin line between accuser and adversary.”
The Beginning: Bethlehem and Beyond
In light of the emphasis in the New Testament that Christ conquered Satan at His first coming (see “The Fall of Satan” below), it is noteworthy that the cosmic conflict between Christ and Satan depicted in Revelation 12 begins with the birth of Christ and the great dragon’s attempt to destroy Him.
I have friends who have insisted upon placing a toy dragon within their Christmas nativity scenes! I support their theology, if not necessarily their praxis. The description proceeds from the birthing scene to the male child’s ascension to heaven (Revelation 12:2-5), repeating the biblical refrain that the child would rule the nations with a rod of iron (Revelation 12:5; 2:27; Psalm 2:9).
The dragon’s extensive description includes the phrase “that ancient serpent” (Revelation 12:9; or “that serpent of old,” NKJV), a designation that may remind the reader of a commencement of conflict much earlier than Christ’s birth at Bethlehem. In Genesis 3 we find what has been labeled the Protevangelium, the “first gospel promise,” in connection with the sin of Adam and Eve and the curse upon them and especially upon the serpent (Genesis 3:14-19).
In longstanding church tradition, the bruising of the heel of the “seed of woman” points to the crucifixion of Jesus, while the bruising or crushing of the head of the serpent speaks to Christ’s resurrection and victory over the one who (had) had the power of death (Hebrews 2:14; Romans 1:4; 8:34-39; 16:20). Reference to the “serpent of old” in Revelation seems to take us back to Genesis 3 and the victory over Satan depicted there in the Protevangelium.
“It is noteworthy that the cosmic conflict between Christ and Satan depicted in Revelation 12 begins with the birth of Christ and the great dragon’s attempt to destroy Him.”
The victory over Satan is stressed two ways in Revelation 12: first, the woman is nourished by God during the time the dragon pursues her (Revelation 12:6, 14-16); and second, even if their faithful testimony leads to death, the church overcomes Satan, the accuser, “by the blood of the lamb and by the word of their testimony” (Revelation 12:11, NIV). In the first half of the book especially we find reminders of Christ’s victory accomplished through His resurrection (Revelation 1:18; 2:8; 3:21) and His death or blood (Revelation 1:5, 7, 18; 2:8; 5:6, 9, 12; 7:14; 11:8; 12:11). Revelation stresses that for believers death and resurrection will be the path for overcoming as well, with special mention of the path of martyrdom (Revelation 2:10; 6:9-11; 7:13-14; 11:7; 12:11; 13:7, 10; 15:2; 16:6; 17:6; 19:2; 20:4-6).
A Dubious Fast-Forward
Dispensational scholars who relegate much of Revelation to a literal “three-and-a-half-year” post-rapture tribulation period must explain away the clear message of Revelation 12. After the birth and ascension of Christ (the male child), the woman who has given birth now flees to the wilderness for a time of nourishment, described as both “1,260 days” (Revelation 12:6) and “a time, and times, and half a time” (Revelation 12:14).
Now we are at a key juncture in the book. With the dispensational approach, a pretribulational rapture would now seem to be awkwardly inserted between Revelation 12:5 and 12:6 at a place where Christ’s ascension after His resurrection is immediately followed in the text by the 1,260-day period of nourishment for God’s people. The dispensationalists’ desired result: the church age is completely bypassed!
This presumed fast-forward by pretribulational dispensationalists is completely unwarranted. The fact that in the text, the 1,260 days immediately follow the ascension of Christ to God’s throne strongly suggests that this numerical representation (along with “a time, and times, and half a time” and “forty-two months”) represents the church age in its entirety from the perspective of tribulation or opposition as well as, in this case, protection from such.
“Dispensational scholars who relegate much of Revelation to a literal “three-and-a-half-year” post-rapture tribulation period must explain away the clear message of Revelation 12.”
Putting things in plainest terms, the text says that the male child (Jesus) was caught up to God’s heavenly throne (the ascension) and the woman (God’s people/ the church) fled into the wilderness. It does not say (or suggest) that the male child (Jesus) was caught up to God’s heavenly throne (the ascension) and then, after the church age was over and the church had been raptured from the earth, the woman (now the post-rapture tribulation saints) fled into the wilderness.
Key finding here? The 1,260 days of tribulation in Revelation do not follow the church age: they coincide with the church age!
The Fall of Satan
Revelation 12 depicts the defeat of the dragon and his angels by Michael and his angels in a war fought in heaven (regarding Michael, note Daniel 10:13-14, 21; 12:1). Consequently, heaven no longer has a place for them and so the great dragon and his angels are thrown down to earth (Revelation 12:7-9). Three realities result from this remarkable development:
- The throwing down of Satan from heaven involves the establishment of God’s kingdom and the authority of His Messiah (Revelation 12:10).
- In connection with this, the saints have conquered Satan by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony (Revelation 12:11).
- Having been cast down to earth, the devil is full of great wrath, for he knows his time is short (Revelation 12:12).
In addition, Revelation 12:10 seems to suggest that the devil, having been cast out of heaven, no longer can function as the accuser who accuses God’s people day and night before God’s throne. We seem to find Satan’s role as accuser several times in the Old Testament (Job 1:9-10; 2:4-5; Zechariah 3:1-10). His attacks against Job are well known.
In the Gospels, when the seventy-two returned to Jesus after their mission in which even the demons submitted to them as they employed His name, Jesus affirmed, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven” (Luke 10:18, NIV). In the hours between His Triumphal Entry and arrest, Jesus spoke of His impending crucifixion as a triumph over Satan: “Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (John 12:31-32, NIV).
“Revelation 12:10 seems to suggest that the devil, having been cast out of heaven, no longer can function as the accuser who accuses God’s people day and night before God’s throne.”
John adds, “He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die” (John 12:33, NIV). At the crucifixion and resurrection, the serpent’s striking the heel of the seed of woman would trigger the crushing of its own head by that very seed of woman, Jesus the Messiah (Genesis 3:15). As some theologians rightly proclaim as part of their “already and not yet” paradigm, the great cosmic conflict is yet being fought, but is already won!
The Bible’s teaching on the fall of Satan is not easy to untangle. Much less is found on the devil in the Old Testament than most realize. Revelation adds to our supply of data but also to our level of confusion. Painting in broad strokes, we can present a basic, if sketchy, portrayal.
Although found present in the garden of Eden (Genesis 3), Satan apparently at that time still had access to the heavenly throne and functioned as the accuser (see above). The supernatural promoter of human sin against God, more and more the devil could be labeled “the ruler of this world” (John 12:31), or even, as Paul put it, “the god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4).
As angels throughout the Bible illustrate, access to the heavenly realm and to the earthly landscape are not mutually exclusive. Through his redemptive work on the cross, Jesus effected the casting out of Satan from heaven as both the Gospel of John and the Revelation from John indicate (John 12:31-32; Revelation 12:7-13). The casting out of demons during His public ministry signaled Christ’s authority, one that even the demons themselves recognized (Matthew 8:28-32) and one that resulted in laying waste Satan’s domain by Christ’s “binding the strongman” (Matthew 12:25-29; compare Revelation 20:1-3).
“Through his redemptive work on the cross, Jesus effected the casting out of Satan from heaven as both the Gospel of John and the Revelation from John indicate.”
The picture throughout many of the New Testament epistles and the sermons in Acts presents Satan as a now-defeated foe (Ephesians 4:27; 6:1; 1 Timothy 3:6; 2 Timothy 2:24-26; Hebrews 2:14; James 4:7; 1 John 3:8; also Acts 10:38; 13:10-12; 16:16-18; 19:12-17; 26:18). This a formidable list of texts!
Even Peter’s oft-cited description of the devil as a prowling, devouring lion concludes with the call to resist and the promise that those who do will be called into eternal glory (1 Peter 5:8-10). They win! Satan loses. Sounds like Revelation’s hope for the faithful who conquer through Christ (Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 26; 3:5, 12, 21; 12:10-11).
Escape from death is not the promise in Revelation, but rather conquering through death or in spite of death. Jesus challenged, “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Revelation 2:10b, ESV). John warns, “If anyone is to be taken captive, to captivity he goes; if anyone is to be slain with the sword, with the sword must he be slain. Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints” (Revelation 13:10, ESV). Key is recognition of Satan as a fallen foe. He cannot win.
Strong connections exist between the language of Revelation 12 and Revelation 20. The same designations for the devil are listed in the same order: dragon, serpent (“that ancient serpent”), the devil, Satan (Revelation 12:9; 20:2). In Revelation 12, the dragon is defeated by Michael and his angels and thrown (ballō) down to earth (Revelation 12:8-9) while in Revelation 20 the dragon is bound by an angel and thrown (ballō) into the pit (abyssos, “abyss” or “bottomless pit”) for a thousand years (Revelation 20:1-3).
“Escape from death is not the promise in Revelation, but rather conquering through death or in spite of death.”
According to amillennialism, just as in Revelation 12, a “defeated” dragon continues to make war with the saints (Revelation 12:8, 11, 17), so in Revelation 20 a “bound” and “imprisoned” dragon no longer can deceive the nations in the way he once did, and yet his influence in the world is still very real (Revelation 20:2-3; 13:1-2).
Under Attack “Three and a Half Years”
In the midst of the description of the dragon’s pursuit of the woman who had given birth to the male child, we are told that the woman, now apparently the persecuted church, is nourished in the wilderness “for 1,260 days” (Revelation 12:6) or “for a time, and times, and half a time” (Revelation 12:14).
As previously noted (Part Three), numbers equivalent to three and a half (years) seem to be used in the book to describe the church age as a time of tribulation, trial, and testing. Half of seven denotes the opposite of what the “perfect” number seven suggests.
In Revelation, we find these three equivalent expressions: “forty-two months” (Revelation 11:2; 13:5); “1,260 days” (Revelation 11:3; 12:6); and “time, times and half a time” (Revelation 12:14 compare Daniel 7:25; 12:7). While the woman is nourished and protected (spiritually!) by God, times of conflict and struggle unfold “1,260 days” (Revelation 12:6) or “a time, times and half a time” (Revelation 12:14). Jerusalem is trampled down by the Gentiles “forty-two months” (Revelation 11:2 ); Jesus’ two witnesses prophesy “1,260 days” (Revelation 11:3), are killed, and are raised back to life and ascend to heaven (Revelation 11:7-12); and the “beast,” promoted and assisted by the “false prophet” (Revelation 13:11-14; 16:13; 19:20), persecutes the church “forty-two months” (Revelation 13:5). Each of these scenes likely describes symbolically the entire church age viewed from the perspective of testing and tribulation.
“In Revelation, we find these three equivalent expressions: ‘forty-two months’; ‘1,260 days’; and ‘time, times and half a time.'”
Satan’s Short Time
The mention of Satan having only a “short time” (oligon kairon) at Revelation 12:12 raises several questions. Is this “short time” the same as the “little while” (mikron chronon) that follows Satan’s release from his prison (Revelation 20:3)?
That is unlikely. (See forthcoming Part Seven in this series.) Might it instead be a reference to the “three and a half” period of testing present throughout the church age?
This seems more to the point, especially when we consider that the battle fought is not over the masses but for the individual soul. Satan wins or loses the conflict one person at a time. The Bible teaches us to “number our days” for “they are soon gone” (Psalm 90:10-12).
Our time is short. The devil knows this already; his intentions toward us are unwavering and time-sensitive. John warns of his great wrath and fury (Revelation 12:12, 17).
“Is this ‘short time’ the same as the ‘little while’ that follows Satan’s release from his prison?”
The Rise of the Beast
As the transition from Revelation 12 to Revelation 13 shows, Satan’s opposition to the church utilizes a human element, one involving pagan rulers and authorities. In Revelation 13 we are introduced to two entities, the beast from the sea and the beast from the land, the latter also being referred to as the “false prophet” (Revelation 16:13; 19:20). Both Greece and Rome were identified by the Jews as empires from the sea. At Daniel 11:30, the expression “ships of Kittim (Cyprus)” is used to describe the Romans. The Dead Sea Scrolls employ such designations also, for example, in the Habakkuk Commentary.
Daniel 7 describes a vision in which four great beasts come out of the sea, beasts representing world empires, while the description in Revelation 13 presents a single beast incorporating various elements of Daniel’s previous symbolic descriptions (leopard, bear, lion). If Rome indeed is the fourth beast of the book of Daniel as Josephus believed (Antiquities 10.208-210, 276), the Jewish author of 4 Ezra believed (4 Ezra 12:10-30), and most conservative Christian interpreters have reasonably maintained, it would make sense for Revelation to present the Roman Empire as a composite beast, one that had incorporated elements of the previous ones described in Daniel (Babylon: lion; Medo-Persia: bear; Greece: leopard).
The connections with Daniel strengthen the likelihood that Revelation’s beast was a phenomenon emerging in the first century, not a post-church-age, post-rapture entity as some would maintain. As well, the link with Revelation 12 suggests that the church is center stage in the conflict even as the dragon enlists the beast from the sea in attempts to destroy the people of God.
“It would make sense for Revelation to present the Roman Empire as a composite beast, one that had incorporated elements of the previous ones described in Daniel.”
The words “sea” (thalassa) and “abyss” (abyssos) are closely connected and often equated in antiquity, frequently with ominous overtones. The beast is described as coming out of both the abyss (Revelation 11:7; ESV “bottomless pit”) and the sea (Revelation 13:1). The previous mention of the beast at Revelation 11:7 seems to anticipate the conflict narrative that commences at Revelation 12.
The introduction of the beast in Revelation 13 contains four noteworthy elements.
- The beast derives his power from the dragon, and that power allows him to “conquer” the saints (Revelation 13:7), even though, in the spiritual realm, the saints have already conquered the dragon by the blood of the lamb, even in death (Revelation 12:11).
- The remarkable survival of the beast from its “mortal wound” takes center stage (Revelation 13:3 [2x], 13:12, compare Revelation 13:14, “wounded by the sword and yet lived”), a survival that causes “the whole earth” to marvel (Revelation 13:3-4; compare Revelation 17:8).
- The call for wisdom in connecting the beast to the number “666” suggests a challenge likely intended for the book’s initial first-century audience, not just one for distant future generations. A similar call for wisdom is echoed by John at Revelation 17:9-11 where the riddle of the seven kings and seven mountains is presented. Discernment of past and present events and their significance is likely what is needed here, not clever prognostication of the future.
- The other beast, the land beast, also labeled the “false prophet” (Revelation 16:13; 19:20; 20:10), demands the people’s worship of the beast from the sea. Emperor worship was prevalent during the early years of the Roman Empire, especially in the eastern (Greek) provinces.
“Discernment of past and present events and their significance is likely what is needed here, not clever prognostication of the future.”
Special attention will be given below to the interpretation of the “mortal wound,” the number “666,” the identification of the “false prophet,” and the issue of possible connections between the beast, the “man of lawlessness,” and the “antichrist.” More suggestions will be given in the next article regarding the beast, its various heads, and its interaction with the “Great Harlot Babylon.”
The “Mortal Wound” and the “Is Not” Phase
John’s mention of the “mortal wound” most likely relates to the beast as a whole, namely the Roman Empire, since the individual emperors are also viewed by John as heads upon the beast (Revelation 17:3, 7, 9). The mortal wound of the empire coincided with the death of the emperor Nero and its chaotic aftermath.
As will be noted in the next article, I take Nero to be the fifth king who was fallen, followed by the brief “is not” phase of the empire, i.e., the frightful ensuing civil unrest and political turmoil after Nero’s death (Revelation 17:8-11). Vespasian (the sixth king) and his sons (kings seven and eight) healed the wound, restoring and revitalizing the empire, and the Roman world “marveled.” John explains, however, that the revival of the beast is temporary: the beast will rise only to go to its destruction (Revelation 17:8, 11). There is only one “eternal city,” and it is not Rome.
The time immediately following Nero’s suicide in A.D. 68 has been labeled “The Long Year” or “The Year of the Four Emperors” by historians of the times. Within the span of a year and a half, Rome was terrorized by the rapid succession of four emperors. After Nero’s death, we find the generals Galba, Otho, and Vitellius ruling for short periods, followed by Vespasian, the general who had been commissioned by Nero to quell the Jewish rebellion that had erupted in A.D. 66. Both Galba and Otho took their own lives while Vitellius was captured, tortured, and murdered by those loyal to what would become the dynasty of the Flavian familial line (Vespasian, Titus, Domitian).
“The mortal wound of the empire coincided with the death of the emperor Nero and its chaotic aftermath.”
Regarding the land beast or “false prophet” (Revelation 16:13; 19:20; 20:10), Revelation 13 depicts the practice of emperor worship that increased dramatically in the last half of the first century in the eastern, Greek-dominated sector of the empire centered in Roman Asia (Asia Minor), the location of Revelation’s “Seven Churches of Asia.” A later section here briefly examines the importance of the Roman imperial cult for the book of Revelation. But first… 666!
The Number of the Beast: 666
Current speculations about the number “666” abound, a puzzle that calls for “wisdom” (Revelation 13:18). These include linking it with numerous villains from the past and present. Modern candidates have included Hitler, Khrushchev, and many others. I have not yet investigated derivatives of Putin’s name in light of current events at the time of writing. Please stay tuned. For now, we must move on.
While on a tour of Beverly Hills some thirty years ago, our group was informed by the tour guide outside of one of Ronald Reagan’s homes that the home’s address “668” we were viewing had been altered from an original “666” at the request of Nancy. I couldn’t blame her!
More recently, the impact of the internet upon the world spawned a popular theory. Combining the abbreviation www (World Wide Web) with the fact that the Hebrew letter w (waw) represents the number “6,” one gets the equation Internet = 666. I am just the messenger on this.
Among the candidates from antiquity, the emperor Nero is most mentioned. The name Nero(n) Caesar, if written in Hebrew (also Aramaic) letters (nrwn qsr), provides the total numerical value of 666. An inscription from near the Dead Sea shows this precise spelling of Nero’s name.
The alternate spelling nrw qsr (Nero Caesar) without the final letter n (nun) totals 616, which, interestingly, is found as an alternative in various Greek manuscripts of Revelation. In addition, the Greek word for “beast” (thērion), if spelled with Hebrew letters, gives us trywn, another “666!” Thus Neron Caesar = 666 = “beast.” That works as well as anything, perhaps. Multiple speculations have surfaced throughout the centuries.
“Among the candidates from antiquity, the emperor Nero is most mentioned.”
At the end of the day, I do view the Nero connection as a possibility. The use of numerical equivalents of Hebrew letters in conveying connections or messages is called gematria, a popular Jewish interpretive practice. For the use of Greek letters in a similar way, the term is isopsephy. A famous wall graffito from Pompeii reads “I love her whose number is 545.” Concerning Nero, the letters of his name also spelled out for some a grim accusation by its Greek numerical value (1,005): “He killed his own mother!”
In connection with ancient options, I venture to make one observation involving the Roman numeral system not generally offered in Revelation commentaries.
Many today are familiar with the basic numbers represented by Roman numerals.: D (500), C (100), L (50), X (10), V (5), and I (1). There was no zero. The letter M, later used for 1,000, should be excluded from the discussion for our purposes since it was not normally employed until centuries later and was not a part of the standard ledger of symbols used every day at the time Revelation was written.
Later, along with the growing use of M, the multiplier 1,000 was often indicated by a horizontal line above another number. Thus, 5,000 would have been V with a horizontal line above it. The earliest examples of the symbol for 1,000 involved a circle with a vertical line through it with possibly an additional horizontal line across the middle. Larger numbers involving tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, and beyond were indicated by various circle/line combinations. For a remarkable discussion of ancient numbering systems, including ancient Roman, see Karl Menninger, Number Words and Number Symbols: A Cultural History of Numbers (1957-58; translated from German 1969).
“I venture to make one observation involving the Roman numeral system not generally offered in Revelation commentaries.”
In the first century, six basic numerical symbols formed by Roman letters were utilized in the empire, borrowed and adapted mostly from the neighboring Etruscan civilization. Proceeding left to right in descending order with the six symbols generally utilized in Roman numerical records, including tax and commercial, we are left with the list DCLXVI, which, if read as a single number, would be 666.
Dealings throughout the empire required the repeated use of these six symbols in various combinations. Perhaps this was John’s (or the angel’s) somewhat cryptic way to point to the distinctive Roman counting system and its ubiquitous employment throughout the Roman Empire’s financial dealings (note the mention of “buying and selling” at Revelation 13:17).
The singling out of the number 666, then, would encapsulate the number system employed in the everyday financial bustle of human endeavor in John’s day, the system introduced to the Mediterranean world and its environs by the Roman Empire, the all-intrusive “beast.”
But is not 666 the number of a specific man? Maybe not. The phrase “the number of a man” (Revelation 13:18) could also be rendered “a human number”—neither arithmos, “number,” nor anthrōpou, “of (a) man” has the article (“the”) in the Greek. Note Revelation 21:17 where “144 cubits by human measurement” (literally “by measure [metron] of man [anthrōpou]”) offers a useful parallel. The expression there clearly does not refer to a specific man.
“But is not 666 the number of a specific man? Maybe not.”
As with a few other Bible passages, the mark on the hand or forehead may be symbolic or non-literal (Revelation 13:16-17; 14:9, 11; 7:3-4; 14:1; Ezekiel 9:4-6), but the DCLXVI (666) here may represent “markings” (financial records) that were all too visible for those “in business” with the beast and its system.
To be clear, the actual terms used in Revelation are the three Greek words “600” (+) “60” (+) “6,” spelled out: hexakosioi hexēkonta hex, totaling 666. However, the everyday reality of 666 visualized in the Roman world would have been the representative numerical inventory DCLXVI. Puzzle solved?
The False Prophet
Regarding the land beast or “false prophet” (Revelation 16:13; 19:20; 20:10), Revelation 13 here depicts the practice of emperor worship that increased dramatically in the last half of the first century in the eastern, Greek-dominated sector of the empire centered in Roman Asia (Asia Minor), the location of Revelation’s “Seven Churches of Asia.” The importance of the Roman imperial cult for the book of Revelation’s message seems undeniable.
Many modern commentators point to the burgeoning imperial cult in the eastern provinces of the first-century Roman Empire as the historical reality behind the actions of the false prophet or beast from the land. Much has been written about this so-called imperial cult. It goes too far to suggest that the focus of Revelation is anti-imperial or anti-Roman. Shane Wood has offered the term “alter-imperial” (The Alter-Imperial Paradigm: Empire Studies and the Book of Revelation [2016]). As Wood notes throughout his work, the focus of Revelation is not the destruction of the Roman Empire, but the creation of an alternate empire, the kingdom of God. As noted earlier, Rome is not the primary enemy in the book. Satan is.
The Greek cities of the eastern portion of the empire promoted the worship of emperors, and they sought the honor of hosting temples dedicated to leaders both dead and alive. Benefits flowed in both directions as local officials honored rulers while rulers bestowed blessings to loyal subjects through a royal patron-client arrangement. Backs were scratched in both directions.
“The Greek cities of the eastern portion of the empire promoted the worship of emperors, and they sought the honor of hosting temples dedicated to leaders both dead and alive.”
In addition, emperors shared honor with deities in these temples and thus politics and religion were intimately intertwined. Among the seven churches of Asia in Revelation, Smyrna, Pergamum, and Ephesus stood out as hosts of provincial temples devoted to the honor of Roman emperors.
Worship of the image of the beast from the sea was demanded by the false prophet, also designated as the beast from the land (Revelation 13:11-15), and loyalty to the (sea-)beast could also be measured by the subjects’ participation in the established socio-economic order, including trade guilds and other associations in which ancillary pagan worship would have been prevalent and expected. Again, little agreement has been reached regarding any literal, historical basis for the mark on the right hand or forehead required for one’s “buying and selling” in the marketplace (Revelation 13:16-17; 14:9-11; compare Revelation 7:3; 14:1).
The mark on the forehead described in a vision in Ezekiel 9, a vision in connection with the 586 B.C. destruction of Jerusalem, seems to have been symbolic or spiritual, not physical. Less certain is the nature of the markings described in these enigmatic words in Revelation from John, whom I have elsewhere labeled the “new Ezekiel.” What is clear in Revelation is the sharp distinction between those marked in this manner (Revelation 14:9-11) and those who bear the seal of God on their foreheads (Revelation 7:3; 14:1; 22:4).
“Emperors shared honor with deities in these temples and thus politics and religion were intimately intertwined.”
A much-discussed question is whether the descriptions of persecution in Revelation fit best with the time of Nero or that of Domitian. The descriptions in fact could fit either. However, the intense persecution under Nero was limited in both time and scope, primarily involving Nero’s brutal attacks that made the Christians in Rome scapegoats for the devastating fire of A.D. 64. The memory of these atrocities against Christians would have lived on for decades, so an audience during either emperor’s time is possible.
Widespread persecutions are not spelled out in the ancient records involving Domitian’s reign, but clues do exist for such a circumstance of tribulation and opposition. Domitian encouraged a culture of fear, promoting the actions of spies and informants against his various targets, as numerous ancient historians relate after his death.
The famous correspondence between the emperor Trajan (A.D. 98-117) and Pliny the Younger, governor of Bithynia in Roman Asia (A.D. 111-113), describes a slightly later situation in which Christians are in grave danger if they are exposed to the Roman authorities by their coworkers, neighbors, or associates (for text excerpts see David L. Barr, Tales of the End: A Narrative Commentary on the Book of Revelation, 1998, 166-169). The emperor’s instructions emphasize that there is not to be an organized, official attempt at rooting out the Christian elements in society, but if certain individuals are brought to the attention of those in charge and if such individuals are unwilling to deny Christ and offer worship to the emperor, they are to be summarily executed.
“Domitian encouraged a culture of fear, promoting the actions of spies and informants against his various targets, as numerous ancient historians relate after his death.”
To be clear: the penalty for any accused of being Christians who did not deny such charges was death! This precarious situation had existed apparently for several decades and very possibly had been initiated during the time of Domitian. A picture of danger and persecution around the end of the first century and soon after is strikingly painted, therefore, but the details are fuzzy. Any claim that Revelation could not have come from the time of Domitian since there was no intense persecution at that time should be dismissed. Conditions described in the correspondence between Trajan and Pliny were sobering for the Christian community, a community at great risk. The impression from the exhortations in Revelation is that, whatever had transpired by the time of writing, more was to come.
The Identity of the Beast Revisited
Both the beast and the false prophet are cast into the lake of fire at Christ’s second coming (Revelation 19:20) and thus apparently have continued their efforts throughout the church age (as the eighth head of the beast [Revelation 17:11] and its religious support system?). Governments and false religions will bolster one another throughout this entire period; opposition to the Bible and the gospel will come from both until Christ’s return. So how do we best wrap our heads around Revelation’s (sea-)beast?
A reasonable conclusion here is that the beast refers to human governance that opposes God and His righteous kingdom. Demonic influence may certainly be involved. The beast arrives as an opponent of the church with the rise of the Roman Empire, and the title “beast” refers generally to the empire as a whole. The individual rulers of Rome, such as Augustus and Nero, are the heads. The “eighth head” mentioned by John suggests that the “seven-headed beast” is complicated indeed! 
The eighth head in some sense belonged to the seven and would go to destruction, possibly at Christ’s return. Before then, however, the beast (Rome under Vespasian?) destroys the Great Harlot (Jerusalem?) and thus carries out God’s purpose in the matter (Revelation 17:16-17). Room is left here in John’s visionary computation for an eighth head, a future manifestation of the beast, one that derives from the seven but will ultimately be destroyed by God’s power and purposes in due time. Does this eighth head represent a single ruler (Domitian?) or could it comprise a sequence or series of rulers, Roman or otherwise (Domitian and successors?)? This uncertainty buttresses the view that Revelation was penned during the reign of Domitian, a reign marked by uncertainties for the early church.
“A reasonable conclusion here is that the beast refers to human governance that opposes God and His righteous kingdom.”
Since the beast and the false prophet are destroyed at Christ’s return (Revelation 19), it would seem that the manifestation of these anti-Christ forces began with Rome’s antagonism and that the ancient empire’s opposition to the church was the initial stage of a continuing spiritual conflict that awaits final resolution at the second coming. The entire church age seems to be in view, as already suggested in previous mentions of the symbolic “three-and-a-half” (year) period of opposition and protection—the “forty-two months,” “1,260 days,” and “time, times and half a time”—that seems to span the time between Christ’s first and second comings.
Paul’s Man of Lawlessness
Appendix A of my Unraveling Revelation develops the thesis that the designation “man of lawlessness” in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 described the Jewish leadership in connection with the Jewish Revolt of A.D. 66-70. In harmony with Jesus’ teachings in the Olivet Discourse concerning the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple (Matthew 24; Mark 13; Luke 21), Paul affirms that Christ will not return until the lawless one who takes control of the Jewish temple has arrived on the scene. This evildoer will seek to manipulate his Jewish followers through various signs and wonders. The result: the destruction of the Jewish temple at the hands of the Romans.
Jesus had prophesied that the destruction of Jerusalem would occur within a single generation (Matthew 24:32-35). Paul’s words allow that as well since no time frame is given by him for the arrival of the man of lawlessness. All Paul affirms is that this evil personage must come before the return (parousia, “presence, coming”) of Jesus as described throughout the Thessalonian letters. How much before is not stated. If Paul’s words in 2 Thessalonians 2 are understood as an oracle in reference to the A.D. 70 fall of Jerusalem, then the arrival of the man of lawlessness and the subsequent second coming of Christ have in fact been separated by a significant period of time.
“Jesus had prophesied that the destruction of Jerusalem would occur within a single generation.”
My research on this topic has led me to what I consider to be a number of important findings, two of which are listed below.
- The Greek word Paul uses here, apostasia, can be translated as “apostasy,” but also “rebellion” or “revolt” (2 Thessalonians 2:3) It is a word Josephus employs (along with apostasis) to describe the Jewish War against Rome that ended in the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. That is how Paul is using the word, in my opinion.
- The Greek text at 2 Thessalonians 2:8-9 needs more careful consideration than it has generally received. It is universally maintained that the wording leads us to the conclusion that Jesus will destroy the man of lawlessness at the second coming. With this assumption, several extra words are often inserted into the text by translators to make the meaning clear. Instead, I believe that translators have commonly muddied the waters with their “helpful” efforts.
“And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders…” (2 Thessalonians 2:8-9 ESV).
“‘And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming.'”
Two things are important to note regarding the wording here. First, the reading “by the appearance of his coming” could read “at the appearance of his coming” (“his” now possibly referring to the man of lawlessness, not Jesus!). The Greek dative case with the word “appearance” (epiphaneia) could either be dative of means or manner (“by”), OR dative of time when, “at.” Second, the words “of the lawless one “ are often added by translators. They do not occur in the Greek text. They are thrown in to “help” us. But do they? A more literal rendering would be “whose coming,” not “the coming of the lawlessness one.” Instead of what appears above, one could translate:
“And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing at the appearance of his coming, whose coming is by the activity of Satan….”
In a nutshell: the Lord, through the instrumentality of the Roman army, will destroy the lawless one and his followers when they arrive on the scene. Jesus, near the end of His earthly ministry, had prophesied that Jerusalem would fall within a generation. In the above understanding of Paul’s teaching to the Thessalonians, Paul is emphasizing Christ’s previous promises, not inserting a new, troubling, confusing, seemingly incompatible message.
The many atrocities committed by the Jewish rebel forces during this devastating conflict are well documented in Josephus’ remarkable work, The War of the Jews. For a more complete analysis, see my upcoming The Man of Lawlessness: Recovering Paul’s Jerusalem Apocalypse (target: November, 2026).
“Jesus, near the end of His earthly ministry, had prophesied that Jerusalem would fall within a generation.”
John’s Antichrist Teaching
It should be noted that John’s teaching on the “antichrist” in his Johannine Epistles had little in common with Revelation’s depiction of the “beast” or with Paul’s teaching on the man of lawlessness. In 1 and 2 John, we find references to the antichrist and, more specifically, the spirit of antichrist. Involved here is no military conflict or acute persecution of the church, but rather a theological heresy in which some denied that Jesus had come in the flesh or that Jesus was in fact God’s Messiah (1 John 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 John 7).
In spite of the majority opinion (or assumption) of Bible teachers and preachers, Paul’s man of lawlessness and John’s antichrist are separate, mostly unrelated entities. As well, Revelation’s beast shows little similarity to either. The oft-assumed equation “antichrist” = “man of lawlessness” = “beast” needs rethinking. Many commentators, including prominent, highly-regarded scholars, regularly use the terms interchangeably. A discussion about the beast of Revelation is assumed to be a discussion about the antichrist or the man of lawlessness (“man of sin” KJV).
However, a closer look suggests little about the beast of Revelation that corresponds with either the man of lawlessness or the antichrist. The beast is no theologian or heretic and never set up headquarters in the Jerusalem temple. (Paul’s use of naos here refers to the Jewish temple’s holy place or holy of holies, not the much larger general temple area or Temple Mount.)
“A closer look suggests little about the beast of Revelation that corresponds with either the man of lawlessness or the antichrist.”
The antichrist is not said to have any political or military connections or supernatural miraculous powers. His domain of influence is church doctrine and belief. Paul’s man of lawlessness sits in the temple of God and brings about the destruction of those who mistakenly follow him. No church doctrine is debated. In fact, in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12, there is no mention of the church at all, persecuted or otherwise! Consequently, the above assumed three-fold equation may actually refer to three entities that have little in common with one another. Broad assumptions and speculations have long taken center stage in the discussion concerning the man of lawlessness, the antichrist, and the beast. Caution is advised. I hope the above content has done more good than harm.
To check out Dr. Larry Pechawer’s book Unraveling Revelation: Hope, Wisdom, and Mystery in John’s Apocalypse, click here.
