Lamb or Beast

The Inhabitants of the Earth refuse to follow the Lamb, choosing instead to swear allegiance to the Dragon and his Beast. In the Book of Revelation, there are no geographic restrictions on the reign of the “Beast.” All the “Inhabitants of the Earth” take the Beast’s “Mark” or “Number” and venerate its image. No national government resists the monster from the Sea, for it is granted “authority over every tribe, people, tongue and nation.” There are no exceptions.

[Photo by Jürgen Scheeff on Unsplash]

Only the “overcoming” followers of the “Lamb” refuse to submit to the Beast’s requirement of total allegiance. The Book of Revelation describes the attempts of the “Dragon” to destroy the saints. The animosity of the “Beast” toward this group is driven by its demand for absolute loyalty:

• “The dragon was enraged against the woman and went away to make war with the rest of her seed, those men who keep the commands of God and have the Testimony of Jesus Christ” - (Revelation 12:17).

This is an old story. Whenever the State is absolutized, it does not tolerate allegiance given to anyone or anything other than itself. Since Jesus is the absolute Sovereign over all things, clashes between his followers and the State are inevitable.

Humanity falls into two groups - Those who follow the Lamb wherever he goes and those who render homage to the Beast from the Sea. There is no room for any third category or neutral ground.

When one of the “Seven Heads” of the “Beast” is mortally wounded and healed, the “whole earth marvels after the Beast and pays homage to the Dragon.” In contrast, through his Death and Resurrection, the “Lamb” redeems men and women “out of” every nation and ethnic group for his Priestly Kingdom - (Revelation 1:5-7, 5:9-10).

The “Lamb” and the “Dragon” compete for our allegiance, though they use very different methods for doing so. The Son of God “shepherds” the nations by leading them to “living waters.” Satan’s earthly agents impoverish anyone who does not swear everlasting fealty to the “Beast” and its “image.”

Satan’s final attempt to destroy the Body of Christ extends over humanity. If the language in Revelation is limited geographically or ethnically when applied to the “Beast,” the same is true of the extent of the “Lamb’s” authority. Just as Christ’s redeeming activities extend over the Earth, so Satan’s effort to persecute the Lamb’s followers and subjugate all men reaches every corner of the planet - (Revelation 7:9).

Not only do “all the Inhabitants of the Earth pay homage” to the “Beast,” the same group is identified as “those whose names are not written in the Book of Life of the Lamb.” All men whose names are not written in the Book will “swear allegiance to the Beast.”

INHABITANTS OF THE EARTH

Whether a man’s name is excluded from the “Book of Life” is determined by how he responds to the “Lamb” and the “Beast.” The statement regarding the Beast’s reign - “All who dwell upon the Earth will render it homage” – is not limited by geography or nationality. Whether we “follow the Lamb wherever he goes” and refuse to give allegiance to the “Beast” determines if our names are “written in the Book of Life.”

In Chapter 13, another “Beast” ascends “from the Earth,” the “False Prophet.” He uses deception and economic sanctions to “cause the Inhabitants of the Earth to render homage to the First Beast.” Elsewhere, the term “Inhabitants of the Earth” refers to all men who rebel against the rule of the “Lamb” - (Revelation 3:10, 13:11-15).

• “Because you kept the word of my endurance, I also will keep you from the hour of the trial that is about to come upon all the world to try the Inhabitants of the Earth” - (Revelation 3:10).

Likewise, after the Fourth Trumpet sounds, the angel cries out, “Woe, woe, woe, for the Inhabitants of the Earth.” The judgments unleashed by the “Seven Trumpets” target the “Inhabitants of the Earth” since they refuse to repent and instead worship the “Dragon,” the “Beast from the Sea,” and its image.

The “False Prophet” deceives the “Inhabitants of the Earth.” All men, whether “small or great, rich or poor, free or slave,” take the “Mark of the Beast.” In contrast, those who “follow the Lamb wherever he goes” have his Father’s name inscribed on their foreheads, the “Seal of God.” Every man and woman is branded with the “Mark of the Beast” or has the name of God written on his or her forehead. It is one or the other.

Once again, only two groups are in view. There is no “third way,” no holdout nation, nor is there any middle ground where we may hide. Each of us must declare for the “Lamb” or the “Beast.”

In Chapter 14, the angel announces the “everlasting gospel to the Inhabitants of the Earth, even to every nation and tribe and tongue and people.” If anyone gives homage to the “Beast, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God.” This pronouncement anticipates the final judgment when the angel “gathers the vine of the earth and casts it into the great winepress of the wrath of God,” the judgment of all men whose “names are not written in the Lamb’s Book” - (Revelation 14:9-10).

At the final battle, Satan gathers all the “Kings of the Earth” and the “nations from the four corners of the Earth” to destroy the “camp of the saints.” This description stresses the global scope of this final assault – (Revelation 19:17-21, 20:7-10).

Nowhere does Revelation describe or even suggest the possibility of any nation or government resisting the reign of the “Beast.” Our only hope is to submit to the “Lamb” and refuse the “Mark of the Beast,” and by suffering the consequences of that decision. Loyalty to Jesus must be absolute. We overcome the Dragon by the “word of our Testimony, and because we love not our lives unto death” – (Revelation 12:11).

History repeats itself because the “Dragon” has been pursuing the same agenda since Adam’s disobedience when he succumbed to the lies of that “Ancient Serpent.” This is why whenever the opportunity presents itself, the State demands absolute allegiance from its subjects, something a faithful follower of Jesus Christ can never give. We must choose – Jesus or Satan’s Beast.

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SEE ALSO:

• Allegiance - (In Revelation, “all” men must choose between loyalty to the Beast from the sea or the sacrificial Lamb)

• Allegiance to Whom? - (Satan offered Jesus unlimited political power for his Messianic mission if only he would accept the Devil as his overlord)

• The Ancient Régime - (The Beast of Revelation embodies the ancient imperial power that has stalked the saints since the Tower of Babel incident)

• Loving Caesar - (The Inhabitants of the Earth willingly venerate the Beast and take its mark, and even believers are not immune from its allurements)