Are you suggesting that I'm just telling you what I've been taught willy nilly without having studied this subject biblically? Well you are wrong. Yes I first found out about this subject in church but then I chose to go see if its the truth of the Bible. We are not supposed to just believe what is taught to us but to go and research the Word of God for ourselves. Of course we've got to ask God for wisdom and knowledge to understand His Word. We are supposed to be like the Bereans who Paul taught but they went back home and searched the Bible to see if what he taught them was the truth (
Acts 17:10-12).
Well that is not me. It is used to be when I was young and didn't know better. But for a long time now, I do not just believe whatever I'm told. I have known and studied this subject for more than twenty years.
Jesus does teach me and as long as I let Him, will continue to until He returns.
Actually Revelation is not very clear because of a lot of symbolic language in it. Revelation 13 uses symbolic language, for example the first beast has seven heads and ten horns, is like a leopard, has feet of a bear and has a mouth of a lion. What do those symbols mean or do you think they are real? How can we tell what such symbols mean?
You are being vague here. Let me ask you, who is the man with the number 666? Is this man walking around with this number publicly displayed on him?
Revelation 13:18 says,
"Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666." So we have to calculate the number of the man. The mark and number are not the same thing biblically. We don't have to calculate the mark, just the number.
No, but I don't just rely on
Revelation 13:16-17 to know what the Bible means. As I've said I've known and studied this subject for over twenty years. The Bible tells us to compare scripture with scripture plus the Bible does not contradict itself.
The book of Revelation is a compilation of the whole Bible and uses language from It especially the Old Testament. It is not the first time the words
“in the hand” and
“in the forehead” or words similar to them are used in the Bible. In
Deuteronomy 6:4-8, the Bible says,
"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes." These verses talk about the Covenant being in the hand and in the forehead/frontlet. And whenever "forehead" or "in the hand" were mentioned, it was always symbolic 100% of the time. So if we’re going to be consistent in interpreting the Bible when we get to Revelation, you can’t now change the rules and say it’s a literal stamp in the forehead or in the hand.
Remember
Revelation7:3 also tells us that God’s people will have the Seal of God in their forehead. Do you think that will be literal too? Will God stamp His people with some sort of Mark?
2 Timothy 2:19 says,
"Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.”
The only way the mark of the beast is going to be avoided is by having God's Mark/Seal. It is going to be about worship and obedience to God and His commandments.
Revelation 14:12 says,
"Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus." This is according to the Word of God.
It won't be a mark on the Body and you will be very disappointed because this is not biblical at all. Ultimately all those who will be sealed with God's Mark or Seal will have chosen to be obedient to Him even on pain of death. Just like in the dark ages when many Christians were burnt at the stake, hang, drawn and quartered and killed in many other evil ways because they refused to worship God according to the Catholic Church. Although it will be much worse than what happened in the dark ages according to the Bible.
So let me ask you the same question you asked me at the beginning of your response.
"Did the Holy Spirit teach you this or a leader of a church?" Because what you're saying is contradicting the Bible.
