Introduction

The issue of the mark of the beast has been a mystery within the church for two thousand years. As with all great prophetic mysteries of the Bible, they can only be fully understood when they are fulfilled.

This means, at this point we can only have a shadow of understanding of what it is and the picture will only be fully revealed when the antiChrist begins his reign of terror.

However, for now we shall explore what the scriptures have revealed so we can be prepared.

The Name, The Mark, The Number

Revelation 13 speaks of beast from the earth, and this Beast from the earth introduces three things, His Name, His Mark and the Number of His Name.

Let’s look at the scriptures

Revelation 13:16-17 (KJV)

16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

Receiving The Mark

There’s a very important point that’s often overlooked in understanding the mark of the beast

If you receive the Name, The Mark or The number of the beast you are going to hell. You can not be saved, you can never have forgiveness.

Revelation 14:9-11 (KJV)

9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,

10 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:

11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.

Revelation 20:4 (KJV)

And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.

From the above scriptures you can see that receiving the mark of the beast is an unforgivable sin. 

There’s no redemption for those who receive the mark of the Beast.

Jesus tells us that all manner of sin and blasphemies can be forgiven of men, but there’s one sin that can never be forgiven men, that is the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

Jesus then says something interesting… He says… Whether in this age, or in the age to come.

Matthew 12:31-32 (WEB)

31 Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. 

32 Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, neither in this age, nor in that which is to come.

Because this remains the one unforgivable sin in this age and in the next.  Therefore, since receiving the name, mark or number of the beast is an unforgivable sin,  it means the act will involve blaspheming the Holy Spirit in one way or the other.

Let’s look more into that.

Mark of the Beast vs Seal of God

The Antichrist is a counterfeit, a fake, an imitation of Jesus the true Christ. In order to understand the fake, we must look at the original. Jesus came in the flesh to establish the kingdom of God on earth.  However, His kingdom is a spiritual kingdom and in order to enter it, people must be born again.

In order to be born again, you must receive the NAME of Jesus and The Seal of Jesus.

John 1:12 (WEB)
But as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become God’s children, to those who believe in his name: 

The Seal of Jesus is His own Spirit.

Ephesians 1:13 (NET)
And when you heard the word of truth (the gospel of your salvation‚ when you believed in Christ ‚ *you were marked with the seal* of the promised Holy Spirit,

Ephesians 4:30 (WEB)
Don’t grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 

Romans 8:9 (NET)
You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, this person does not belong to him.

So when a person believes in Jesus and receives his name, he is marked by his seal, which is the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit of Christ transforms your human spirit to be like Christ. You become a son of God just like Christ. Your character changes and you are transformed to become more like Christ. When the Antichrist comes to establish his kingdom, he comes to establish it in a similar way.

The Forehead and The Right Hand

Scripture tells us that the name, mark and number of the AntiChrist shall be placed on people’s foreheads and right hands.

In order to understand the fake, lets look at the original. We know that all born agin believers are Marked by the seal of God which is the Holy Spirit. The book of revelation also tells us that God’s seal is on the foreheads of the saints.

Revelation 9:4 New King James Version (NKJV)

4 They were commanded not to harm the grass of the earth, or any green thing, or any tree, but only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.

Obviously, believers don’t move around with the words Holy Spirit on their actual foreheads. So, there must be a deeper meaning to this. The AntiChrist is not the first person to make his people put a mark on their foreheads and hands.

The first was Moses. 

Learn from Moses

1. Passover Lamb

The sacrifice of the Passover Lamb was to be a Mark on people’s hands and foreheads.

Let’s read

Exodus 13:15-16 (BBE)

15 And when Pharaoh made his heart hard and would not let us go, the Lord sent death on all the first sons in Egypt, of man and of beast: and so every first male who comes to birth is offered to the Lord; but for all the first of my sons I give a price.

16 And *this will be for a sign on your hand and for a mark on your brow:* for by the strength of his hand the Lord took us out of Egypt.

What God simply meant was that the message of the passover should be expressed in their mindsets and in their actions. That’s why it was given as a yearly ritual.

Let’s look at another…

The Law

Deuteronomy 6:6-8 (WEB)

6 These words, which I command you today, shall be on your heart; 

7 and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up. 

8 You shall bind them for a sign on your hand, and they shall be for frontlets between your eyes.

 Deuteronomy 11:18-19 (WEB)

18 Therefore you shall lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul. You shall bind them for a sign on your hand, and they shall be for frontlets between your eyes. 

19 You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. 

When God was telling the Israelites things that they had to always remember and always practice, and teach their children… He would say, they should be a sign on your right hand and on your foreheads.

The pharisees, who were overzealous, would write verses on their arms and foreheads. When Jesus came along, he rebuked them for being whitewashed walls, because they didn’t get the point. It’s not about the outward signs, it’s about the inward transformation.

Back to the Beast

Considering we have seen how Israel put a mark on their hands and foreheads, when the same bible says that the AntiChrist shall cause people to receive the mark of his name on their hands and foreheads it doesn’t have to be literal.

It also means, he shall give people instructions or a ritual to perform that establishes his name and his authority constantly in their minds and in their actions. Just Jesus gave us baptism, which is allows christians to participate in his death and resurrection, the antichrist will have his own rite of conversion.

And those who do not perform this ritual, will be seen as the enemies.

THE NUMBER 666

Revelation 13:18 (WEB)

Here is wisdom. He who has understanding, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. His number is six hundred sixty-six. 

Firstly,

the number is not six, six, six. It’s Six Hundred and Sixty and Six.

In greek: Chi, Xi, Stigma

Secondly

This number is not so obvious. If it was obvious, scriptures would not have said, ” Let he that has wisdom, calculate”

It means, this number requires special wisdom from God to understand it. And it requires Calculation.

In the past 2000 years, many christians and non christians have calculated people’s names to add up to 666.

Here are a few.

NERON CEASAR

_A cruel leader of the Roman empire, who persecuted and killed the apostles_

VICARIUS FILLIDEI =666

_Latin Title of the Pope, which means, ‘In Place of Christ’_

LATINOS = 666

_Title of the Roman People_

MUHAMMAD = 666

_Prophet and Founder of the Islamic Religion_

LUTHER=666

_Leader of the Reformation of the Church, to leave Roman Catholic_

ELLEN GOULD WHITE = 666

_Prophetess and pioneer of the Seventh Day Adventist Movement_

WILLIAM MARION BRANHAM = 666

Charismatic Prophet

WILLIAM J CLINTON =666

_Former American president_

GEORGE WALKER BUSH = 666

_Former American President_

BARAK HUSEIN OBAMA=666

_Former American President_

B. NYATANAU

_Prime minister of Israel_

With enough mathematics, you can make anyone’s name add up to 666. I can go on all day. So firstly, before calculating the number of the beast, you need to find out the best method.

For example, the book of revelation was not written in English, Hebrew or Latin. It was written in greek, and the number is expressed using greek numbering system.

You have to factor that in. 

For example, There are people who calculated the Name Jesus in the Abary language, and it came up to 666 and the name Christ is also 666 in that language. So we have to tread carefully otherwise we will make wrong conclusions and lead ourselves into further confusion.

But what scripture assures us is this, when the real AntiChrist comes, you don’t have to convince him that he is 666. He is the one who will convince you.

ANTICHRIST VS FALSE CHRIST

The Bible speaks of false Christs and Antichrist.

These are different. Any person who claims to be Jesus or Christ returned is a false Christ.

Matthew 24:24 (WEB)

For there will arise false christs, and false prophets, and they will show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the chosen ones.

The Antichrist on the other hand, is not a man claiming to be Jesus. What Jesus is to God, is what the Antichrist is to Satan. The revelation of Christ in the bible is known as The Mystery of Godliness and though this mystery we learn that Jesus the Christ is a Manifestation of God in the flesh.

Timothy 3:16 King James Version (KJV)

16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

On the other hand, the revelation of the antiChrist is known as The Mystery of Lawlessness and through this mystery we learn that the antiChrist will be a complete manifestation of Satan in the flesh and he can only be killed by Jesus.

2 Thessalonians 2:7-8 New King James Version (NKJV)

7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only [b]He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.

SIX SIGNS OF THE ANTICHRIST

There are signs that the bible gives us that are useful in identifying the antiChrist. Whoever we identify as the identifyChrist must meet all the qualifications that the scriptures give. In here I list six of them.

1-He can perform all miracles, signs and wonders.

2 Thessalonians 2:9 Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

9 When that Man of Evil comes, it will be the work of Satan. He will come with great power, and he will do all kinds of false miracles, signs, and wonders.

There is no miracle, no kind of sign and no wonder he can not perform. By whatever false means at his disposal, the antiChrist will raise the dead, heal the sick, move mountains and perform all kinds of signs, just as Jesus Christ did. 

2-He shall be honoured and praised by the whole world

2 Thessalonians 2:10-11 Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

10 The Man of Evil will use every kind of evil to fool those who are lost. They are lost because they refused to love the truth and be saved. 11 So God will send them something powerful that leads them away from the truth and causes them to believe a lie.

Revelation 13:12

And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.

3-He will fight against people of God and Overcome them

He will not only have God given authority to defeat the people of God, he will have authority to rule every nation, every tribe and every language.

Revelation 13:7 New King James Version (NKJV)

7 It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation.

4-He will be received by the Nation of Israel

The antiChrist will come to take the place of the true Christ. Jesus was the Christ that Israel rejected. The AntiChrist will be the Messiah that they shall receive, because he shall come in the give them exactly what they want; victory over the nations that want to destroy Israel.

So he has to come as an Israelite, just as the Jesus Christ did.This is why Jesus warns. 

John 5:43 King James Version (KJV)

43 I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.

Matthew 24:26 Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

26 Someone might tell you, The Messiah is there in the desert! But don’t go into the desert to look for him. Someone else might say, There is the Messiah in that room! But don’t believe it.

5-He will restore temple worship

The AntiChrist will take Israel back to the Law of Moses in temple, but later on, he will then sit and proclaim himself to be God in that temple.

2 Thessalonians 2:4 Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

4 He will stand against and put himself above everything that people worship or think is worthy of worship. He will even go into God‚ Temple and sit there, claiming that he is God.

6-He Shall make fire come down from heaven

When Moses built the first tabernacle, he placed a sacrifice to dedicate the temple and God approved it by sending fire from heaven. This is the same thing that happened after Solomon had built the temple in Jerusalem and when David built his altar. This is also the same thing that happened when Elijah restored true worship I Israel.

1 Chronicles 21:26

And David built there an altar to the Lord and presented burnt offerings and peace offerings and called on the Lord, and *the Lord answered him with fire from heaven upon the altar of burnt offering.*

2 Chronicles 7:1

As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, *fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices,* and the glory of the Lord filled the temple.

Israel is already waiting for the messiah to come and restore them to the Law of Moses, and fire from heaven is the sign that they need.

Revelation 13:13 New King James Version (NKJV)

13 He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.

The Spirit of AntiChrist already at Work

Scripture says that this mystery of lawlessness is already working in the world now, but the Man of Evil has not yet been revealed. In order to understand this, we have to understand how the Christ was revealed.

Before The Christ was revealed, what first came to the world was the Spirit of the Christ. The Spirit of the Christ was manifest in the three offices that the coming Christ would occupy: The High Priest, The King, The Prophet. 

1 Peter 1:10-11 Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

10 The prophets studied carefully and tried to learn about this salvation. They spoke about the grace that was coming to you.

11The Spirit of Christ was in those prophets. And the Spirit was telling about the sufferings that would happen to Christ and about the glory that would come after those sufferings. The prophets tried to learn about what the Spirit was showing them‚ when it would happen and what the world would be like at that time.

All those who had the spirit of Christ upon them were called Christs in their time, yet they were not The Christ. In the same way, all those who have the spirit of the AntiChrist today are antiChrists but they are not The antiChrist. The antiChrist will be a full manifestation of Satan.

For this reason, over church history people have rightly identified many antichrists. But these were only types and shadows of the coming Man of Sin.

John expresses this well.

1 John 2:18 New King James Version (NKJV)

18 Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour.

 Identifying The AntiChrist Spirit

The Bible gives us a few ways to identify the Spirit of the antichrist.

1- Denies Jesus Christ came in the Flesh

1 John 4:3 New King James Version (NKJV)

3 and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.

The Spirit of antichrist does not acknowledge that the Christ has come in the flesh. The reason being they are waiting for their own Christ to come in the flesh. So in order for the deception of the mystery of lawlessness to be established, it has to deny the reality of the mystery of godliness. When the antichrist comes, he has to reveal himself as God in flesh, so to do that, he has to deny that Jesus was God manifest in the flesh. So the Spirit of the antichrist denies the incarnation of Christ, and by extension the virgin birth.

As we said, those who currently have the Spirit of the antichrist are called antichrists.

2-Denies that Jesus is the Christ-The Son of God

1 John 2:22 New King James Version (NKJV)

22 Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son.

The spirit of the antiChrist effectively denies the Christhood of Jesus by denying his sonship. Once you deny that Jesus is the son of God then you have denied that he is the Christ. This is because the Christ is The son of God.

Matthew 26:63

But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest answered and said to Him, I put You under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the *Christ, the Son of God!*

Matthew 16:16

Simon Peter answered and said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.

The Christ, is the son of God. So even if a person says, I believe that Jesus is the Christ but I do not believe that he is the Son of God, they have denied that he is Christ. The reason why the spirit of the antichrist says this, is because when the antiChrist comes he will claim to be the Son of God.

THE MARK OF THE BEAST- CONCLUSION

I want to conclude by taking note of this. As we have seen, the antChrist is a counterfeit of the real Christ Jesus Christ.

I believe that the Mark of the Beast is The Spirit of the antiChrist just as the Seal of God is the Spirit of Christ.

Take a note of this: even though the Spirit of Christ would come UPON the prophets and kings, no man could receive the Spirit of Christ was a living seal within them until the Christ himself had been revealed, and only THE CHRIST can seal his people in his spirit.

John 7:39 New King James Version (NKJV)

39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those [a]believing in Him would receive; for the [b]Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

In the same way, The Spirit of the antiChrist has operated upon different prophets, religious and national leaders but no-one can receive his spirit as a mark as yet. Only after the antiChrist has been revealed, can people receive and be marked by his spirit. Because once marked by his spirit, you will become like him.