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Now in verse 11, Rev. 13, John in his vision sees another
"beast" coming up out of the earth, with two horns like a lamb,
"and he spake as a dragon." The two horns represent two government
heads. "Like a lamb"--appearing as the Church of Christ, the Lamb
of God. One of these horns represented the Papacy as RELIGIOUS
head, the other is head of Vatican City, one of the world's civil
governments.
This second "beast"--the Papacy--(verse 12) exercised all the
power of the first beast before him, -- that is of the civil "Holy
Roman Empire"--the United Europe! This same situation is pictured
in Rev. 17 as a woman (church) riding astride a "beast"--the Roman
government.
They claimed the "Holy Roman Empire" was the Kingdom of God.
Christ had come, not in His own Person, but in that of the Pope's,
and was ruling. This explains why they called the CHURCH the
Kingdom of God! The Popes have taken the title "Vicar of Christ,"
which does not mean representative of Christ, but "in place of
Christ." In other words, Christ has been banished, and the Roman
leader has taken His place.
Then, this religious leader--yet to come--is to perform "great
wonders," or apparent miracles--even as Simon the Magician of Acts
did among those of the Babylonian Mystery religion of his day in
the land of Samaria, north of Jerusalem. But it was all deception
--not real miracles, but magic.
Verse 14--this religious leader brought into being an "image
to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live." That
is, a replica, likeness, imitation of the Imperial Roman Empire
GOVERNMENT. Vatican City--a civil GOVERNMENT--is patterned after
the system of government of the Roman Empire.
"And (verse 15) he had power to...cause that as many as would
not worship the image of the beast should be killed." Notice, the
religious power did not do the actual killing--he caused them to
be killed. The church pronounced dissenters "heretics" which was
tantamount to a death-sentence. They were tortured, and unless
they recanted and accepted the Catholic teaching, they were
martyred. THIS WILL HAPPEN AGAIN--AND SOON--(Rev. 6:11) during the
Great Tribulation!
Now comes verse 16 (Rev. 13). This same religious power,
through the military and police of the STATE government of the
"Holy Roman Empire," and its now very imminent resurrection--will
cause all within the jurisdiction of the civil state to RECEIVE A
MARK and (verse 17) no person was then, or will be in the coming
Great Tribulation, able to buy or sell--engage in earning a living,
or purchase food or necessities of life--unless they have that
mark! Send for our free booklet, "The Mark of the Beast."
The "beast" has a number we should be able to count--666!
Now to Revelation 17!
The same Gentile CHURCH-AND-STATE system in its final and