The Bible Says!
Lesson 5
"The Mark of the Beast!"
"If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:" We have identified who the beast is, and what the image to the beast is, now we want to look for the mark of the beast. How amazing it is that with such a warning as is given in this verse, that the majority of Bible teachers have never considered what the mark of the beast is. You can search the churches of this land and you will only find a handful who will even guess as to what this important prophecy symbol represents. God has not left us without an answer to this crucial question. Let's look to God's Word now for the mark of the beast. Remember to ask for the Holy Spirit's help and guidance as you begin your study.
1. What does the second beast of Revelation 13 cause the people of the world to receive? Verse 16
2. What three things does he use to restrict the buying and selling? Revelation 13:17
a. "save that he had the _______"
b. "or the ________________ of the beast,"
c. "or the _____________________ of his name."
The first point to understand about the mark of the beast, should be what it is not. Many have mistakenly thought that the mark of the beast and the number of his name are one in the same. It is obvious when you look at Revelation 13:17, that there are three distinct things mentioned here: 1] the mark of the beast; 2] the name of the beast; and 3] the number of his name. If we do any one of these, in disregard of the commandments of God, we are worshipping the beast and his image. "Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?" (Romans 6:16). The whole issue at stake is whether we will obey God's commandments or will we obey the false doctrines of Satan's counterfeit system of religion. "Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men." (Mark 7:7). Some will do this by choice. They marvel at the beast and serve him gladly. They take on the name of the beast. There is still another class who do not want to worship the beast, but they are not really very committed to God, so when the persecution comes, they will give in to it and worship the beast by their obedience to it. "Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men." (Acts 5:29)
3. What is the number of the name of the beast? Revelation 13:18
Remember that it is the number of his name that we are concerned with here. The official Latin title of the Pope is Vicarius Felii Dei. This title is inscribed upon the triple crown that the Pope wears during his inauguration. Using the simple Roman numerals and their values we all learned in school, we find something amazing.
Translated, this title means "the vicar of the Son of God."Roman numerals have numerical values attached to them, so it is literally possible to "count the number of the beast."-- The same procedure can be done in both the Greek and the Hebrew as well.
​
So you see the number of the name of the beast is yet another identifying mark of who this beast really is. While it is probable that a number will be incorporated into the system of controlling the people as we read in Revelation 13:17, the number 666 helps show us the identity of the beast power.
"Now we challenge the world to find another name in these languages: GREEK, HEBREW, and LATIN (See John 19:20), which shall designate the same number." Joseph F. Berg, "The Great Apostasy," pp. 156-158.
4. What else are we specifically told about the number 666? Revelation 13:18
"it is the number of a _______________."
5. Where does this second beast cause people to receive the mark of the beast? Revelation 13:16
6. What else, do we find in the book of Revelation, being placed on the forehead? Revelation 7:3 & 9:4
The book of Revelation is full of contrasts. It contrasts the truth verses error; the righteous verses the wicked; the commandments of God verses the dictates of men; the true church of God verses the false church of Satan; the Sabbath verses the Sunday; and so on, and so on.
Here we find one more in a long list of contrasts; the Seal of God verses the mark of the beast. Both of these are placed in the forehead. They both serve the same purpose; to show allegiance to either God or Satan. It stands to reason that if we can understand what the seal of God is, we can better understand what the mark of the beast is.
7. What did God command to be sealed among His people? Isaiah 8:16
8. How does the Lord put His seal in our foreheads? Hebrews 8:10
To put the seal into the forehead of a person means that the truth, or God's law has been placed in our mind. The forehead represents the mind.
9. Read Exodus 13:9 to see how the Bible represents the hand as our works, and the forehead as our beliefs.
"And it shall be for a sign unto thee upon thine______________, and for
a_________________between thine eyes, that the Lord's law may be in thy mouth:
Notice the verse says that these are given as a sign. In Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, the word that is translated seal in Revelation 7:3 & 9:4 is defined as a sign, and a mark of genuineness. The same word that is translated "mark" in Revelation 13, was used in the above verse when it was translated into the Greek language in the Septuagint version of the Old Testament.
10. What does God say His sign or mark is? Ezekiel 20:12
Note: The same word that is here translated "sign," is translated as "mark" in Genesis 4:15! Ezekiel 20:12 declares that the sign of allegiance of God's people is the Sabbath. It is easy to see that the "mark" of the beast will involve one of the ten commandments; (See Revelation 14:9-12).
11. How are the saints of God described? Revelation 14:12
a. "here are they that keep the __________________________________"
b. "and the___________________________of Jesus."
In verse 12, the Lord contrasts those who "keep the commandments of God" with those who receive the mark of the beast. This makes it clear that the mark of the beast will involve disobedience to God's law. The only commandment that most of the world has been deceived about is the fourth one involving the seventh - day Sabbath. This is the only day that God calls His sign or mark. This is the day that the church of Rome has changed to Sunday and this she claims as her mark of authority. See the following Catholic statements:
"Sunday is our mark of authority... the church is above the Bible, and this transference of Sabbath observance is proof of that fact" -- The Catholic Record of London, Ontario, Canada, September 1, 1923
​
"The observance of Sunday by the Protestants is an homage they pay, in spite of themselves to the authority of the Catholic Church."-- Monsignor Louis Segur, "Plain Talk about the Protestantism of Today,"p. 213
​
"Q: How prove you that the church hath power to command feasts and holy days?" -- "A: By the very act of changing Sabbath into Sunday, which Protestants allow of, and therefore they fondly contradict themselves by keeping Sunday strictly, and breaking most other feasts commanded by the same church."
"Q: How prove you that?" -- "A: Because by keeping Sunday, they acknowledge the church's power to ordain feasts, and to command them under
sin."-- Douay Catechism, p. 59.
​
"If the Bible is the only guide for the Christian then the Seventh - Day Adventist is right, in observing the Saturday with the Jew. . . . Is it not strange, that those who make the Bible their only teacher, should insistently follow in this matter of tradition of the Catholic Church?" -- "The Question Box" (Catholic), Ed., 1915 p. 179.
​
"The Catholic Church for over one thousand years before the existence of a Protestant, by virtue of her divine mission, changed the day from Saturday to Sunday."-- "The Catholic Mirror", Sept., 1893.
​
"Of course the Catholic Church claims that the change was her act. . . . And the act is a MARK of her ecclesiastical authority in religious things."-- H.F. Thomas, Chancellor of Cardinal Gibbons.
​
"The Roman Catholic Church changed the observance of the Sabbath to Sunday by right of the divine, infallible authority given to her by her Founder, Jesus Christ. The Protestant claiming the Bible to be the only guide of faith, has no warrant for observing Sunday. In this matter, the Seventh-Day Adventist is the only consistent Protestant."-- The Catholic Universe bulletin, August 14, 1942, page 4.
​
"From this same Catholic Church you Protestants accepted your Sunday, and that Sunday, as the Lord's Day, the Roman Catholic Church has handed down as a tradition; and the entire Protestant world has accepted it as tradition, for there is not an iota of Scripture to establish it!
Therefore, that which Protestants have accepted as their rule of faith, inadequate as it of course is, as well as your Sunday, you have accepted on the authority of the Roman Catholic Church." -- The Papal Controversy, page 179.
​
The Roman church proudly boasts that it has changed the Sabbath to Sunday, and she laughs at Protestants for obeying her commandment of Sunday worship even though there is no Scriptural evidence to support it!
12. If we follow the beast and its teachings, who are we really worshipping? Revelation 13:4
The great controversy is over obedience to God and His holy Word, verses obedience to the enemy of souls and his counterfeit ways. The whole world has been led astray, deceived by the false system of religion. Sunday worship is not now the mark of the beast, but it soon will be. When it is enforced by law and the "everlasting gospel" has been preached, then those who keep the Sunday will have received the mark of the beast (see James 4:17). You are right now being privileged to hear the truth about this important warning. Everyone must make the decision to follow truth or error!
13. Don't you want to make sure that you are on the Lord's side, and always obedient to Him?
