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Number of the Beast
[Bible]The number 666, which appears in Revelation 13:18. It is mentioned in connection with the mark that the beast rising out of the earth causes people to receive, and interpretations of what it signifies vary widely.
Beast (Book of Revelation)
[Bible]In the Book of Revelation, the beast is a figure that receives authority from the dragon (Satan) and symbolizes the powers that oppose God and His saints. The best-known forms are the beast from the sea and the beast from the earth, and interpreters remain divided over their identity.
Revelation 13:16-18
[Bible Verses]In this passage the beast that rises out of the earth causes all people to receive a mark in their right hand or in their foreheads, so that no one may buy or sell without the mark, and its number is given as six hundred threescore and six (666). The identity of the "mark of the beast" and of "666" has prompted endless speculation, and the passage becomes the subject of renewed controversy whenever a new technology appears.
Revelation 13:1–10
[Bible Verses]In this passage John sees in a vision a "beast rising up out of the sea" that receives authority from the dragon, blasphemes God, and persecutes the saints. Interpreters differ widely on the beast's identity, and the passage is frequently cited in discussions of eschatology.
Revelation 14:9–11
[Bible Verses]The third angel's warning that whoever worships the beast and its image and receives its mark will drink of the wine of the wrath of God. The passage is frequently cited in discussions of the identity of the "mark of the beast" and the nature of punishment in hell.
Two Witnesses
[Bible]The Two Witnesses are two prophetic figures in Revelation 11 who prophesy for 1,260 days, are killed by the beast, and then come back to life and ascend to heaven. Interpreters differ over who they are.
Methods of Interpreting the Book of Revelation
[Doctrine & Theology]Methods of interpreting the Book of Revelation are approaches to understanding which events, and in which era, the visions and symbols of Revelation refer to. The principal approaches are preterism, historicism, futurism, and idealism.
Revelation 13
[Bible]Revelation 13 contains the vision of two beasts that receive authority from the dragon: the beast that rises out of the sea and the beast that comes up out of the earth. The chapter introduces the mark of the beast and the number 666.
Revelation 14:1-5
[Bible Verses]A vision of the 144,000 standing with the Lamb on Mount Zion and singing a new song. Interpreters disagree about the identity of the 144,000, and the passage is frequently discussed because some groups cite it in support of their doctrines.
Revelation 20:4–6
[Bible Verses]A passage describing how the martyrs and those who had not worshiped the beast "lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years." It is the only text in Scripture that directly mentions the millennium, and it stands at the center of the eschatological debate among premillennialism, amillennialism, and postmillennialism.
Lake of Fire
[Bible]The lake of fire is the place of final judgment described in the Book of Revelation. The beast, the false prophet, the devil, death and Hades, and all whose names are not found written in the book of life are cast into it, and the text calls it "the second death."
Sea of Glass
[Bible]The sea of glass is the sea "like unto crystal" that the Book of Revelation describes as spread before the throne of God in heaven. In chapter 15, those who have overcome the beast stand beside it and sing the song of Moses and the song of the Lamb.
Seven Bowls
[Bible]The seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God that seven angels pour out in succession upon the earth, the sea, the rivers, the sun, the throne of the beast, the river Euphrates, and the air in Revelation 15–16, together with the plagues they bring.
Revelation 17
[Bible]Revelation 17 is the chapter in which one of the angels with the seven bowls shows John the "great whore" riding a scarlet beast and explains the meaning of the woman, the beast, the seven heads, and the ten horns.
Revelation 15
[Bible]Revelation 15 is the chapter in which seven angels appear holding the seven last plagues. Beside the sea of glass, those who have overcome the beast sing the song of Moses and the song of the Lamb, and the seven angels receive golden bowls filled with the wrath of God.
Revelation 19
[Bible]Revelation 19 depicts heaven praising God with hallelujahs for the judgment of Babylon, the great whore, and announcing the marriage supper of the Lamb. The rider on the white horse then defeats the armies of the beast and the false prophet.
Revelation 20:1–3
[Bible Verses]John's vision in which an angel seizes the dragon, that is, Satan, and shuts him in the bottomless pit for a thousand years. Because it is the first passage in the Bible to mention the "thousand years," it is the central text in debates over the interpretation of the millennium.
Revelation 14
[Bible]Revelation 14 is the chapter of Revelation that presents the Lamb standing on Mount Zion with the 144,000, the proclamations of the three angels, the blessing on those who die in the Lord, and two harvest visions: the reaping of grain and the gathering of grapes.
Revelation 20
[Bible]Revelation 20 depicts Satan bound in the bottomless pit for a thousand years while the saints reign with Christ, followed by Satan's final rebellion and defeat and the Last Judgment before the great white throne.
Ezekiel 39
[Bible]Ezekiel 39 is a prophecy that Gog and his army will fall on the mountains of Israel and be buried in the Valley of Hamon-gog. It closes with God's promise to gather scattered Israel again and to pour out His Spirit.