Revelation 13:1-6

(Rev 13:1 KJV)
And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

In Revelation 12:3 we saw the scene in heaven of this very same beast.

(Rev 12:3 KJV) And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.

In Revelation 12:3, we read that there were seven crowns on the seven heads but here in 13:1, we are seeing that the crowns are upon his horns. Horns in Scripture represent power. The fact that there are crowns upon the horns tells us that this beast has been given authority of a king and accompanying power to accomplish his evil tasks.

(Dan 7:7 KJV) After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns.

Now in 13:1, the beast is on earth because we see him coming out of the sea. This is not speaking of a sea like a physical ocean but is speaking of the nations of the world.

(Isa 17:12-13 KJV) Woe to the multitude of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations, that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters! {13} The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.

Isaiah speaks of the multitude of peoples and nations like the sea and the sound of mighty waters. In fact, even the Lord stated in His Olivet Discourse that the nations are like the restless seas. (Luke 21:25 KJV) And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; The sea and the waves are roaring in our day because Satan has been cast down and he is putting the nations of the world in perplexity. The word “perplexity” carries with it meaning of “distress, difficulty, and consternation.” Can anyone who watches a news broadcast say that this world is in anything beside perplexity?

This beast in13:1 is not Satan but it is the entire kingdom of Satan who has much power to accomplish his dastardly deeds. Satan is not omnipresent but has a large army of demons to help him in his attack upon the church on earth. Since Satan has been cast down to earth, the spiritual war now rages on the earth and that is why we see many of his demons coming out of the world system. These demons also have on their heads the name of blasphemy. We are not told here what the name is but you can be assured that whatever it is, it will be blasphemy against God, Christ, and the redeemed church. (Mark 7:21-22 KJV) For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, {22} Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: The unsaved heart of man contains blasphemy as well as other heinous sins. The word “blasphemy” carries with it in the Greek the meaning of “evil speaking, slander, and reviling.” How many millions of times has the body of Christ been reviled by the unsaved world?

(Rev 13:2 KJV)
And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.

John now gives a description of this beast. He states that it was like unto a leopard. The leopard is a very strong cat which is very adept at climbing which means it can go through the mountains very quickly and without much hindrance. Then next he states that his feet were like that of a bear. When one looks at bear’s foot, the one thing which sticks out is their vicious claws. Bears can claw a victim to death because the bear is also a very strong animal. Then we are told his mouth was like that of a lion. When a lion roars, it lets out a very intimidating sound which causes fear in the hearts of those who hear him. So with the description John is giving, we can see that this particular demon has the swiftness of a leopard, the strength and ferociousness of the bear’s claws and the roar of the lion which is why he will be spewing out blasphemies against God. Satan had lost his authority to accuse the brethren and was cast out of heaven but here we see that he still has the power to empower the demons who are helping wage war on the church on earth. This beast also has a seat which means that he now has an established authority but it will only be temporary.

(Rev 13:3 KJV)
And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

Here we are told that one of the seven heads of this beast was wounded to death, and according to Rev. 13:14, the wound was caused by a sword. It also must be noted here that the beast, not the head recovered.

(Isa 27:1 KJV) In that day the LORD with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea.

The Isaiah verse is fitting here because it teaches us that God is going to raise the sword that is going to kill the dragon which is in the sea. Here in Revelation 13, we are seeing that the beast has come out of the sea. Now when we look at one head being wounded to death but the beast still lives, we can liken that to times when the kingdom of Satan is assaulted in various areas with the Gospel. We all remember the Reformation in 1517 when the kingdom of Satan was assaulted by the truth of the Gospel going forth throughout Europe. However, the Reformation did not put an end to the kingdom of Satan because that will be done on the last day when his kingdom will be completely destroyed. Until then, the Gospel continues to plunder the kingdom here and there and gives a partial wound to the kingdom. Whenever someone becomes saved, they are in essence dead to the kingdom of Satan which means that his kingdom received another partial death blow. (Mark 3:27 KJV) No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man; and then he will spoil his house. Satan had been bound at the cross and was unable to stop any of God’s Elect from becoming saved. Then we are told that all the world had wondered after the beast. The word “wondered” in the Greek carries with it the meaning of “admire or be amazed.” The fact that the world system has not yet had a completely fatal wound means that the unsaved of the world still adhere to it. Millions still believe in evolution even though many scientists are turning away from it and going to creationism. This still does not stop those who are tied to this world because they refuse to believe in God. The truth of the Gospel is proclaimed every day around the world yet there are still a billion people tied to Rome and a billion tied to Islam. Some may become saved out of these systems, but that does not stop them from going on with the other adherents. This is what is meant by the world wondering or admiring their system.

(Rev 13:4 KJV)
And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

Now we are told that those in the world are worshipping Satan through the world system. When one places man and his worldly governments on the throne of their hearts, they are in essence worshipping Satan and his beast. The mindset is that who can challenge the authority of the world system with all its education and systems. Then there are the religious systems of the world. When Martin Luther challenged the Roman Catholic establishment in 1517, I am sure there were many who asked who can challenge it and win because it was the ruling power for about one thousand years already. We look at large countries like China and say who can challenge that large country to allow us to bring the true Gospel? So when we look at the beast, it represents the belief that it is invincible and cannot be challenged and overcome.

(Rev 13:5 KJV)
And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.

Daniel also saw that this beast would speak blasphemies against God.

(Dan 7:25 KJV) And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

The beast is going to do the bidding of Satan while here on earth for the time period of the New Testament. The blasphemies which he will speak will be against God. Today we have attacks on God from every corner of society. In fact, November 25, 2005, the University of Kansas chose to place a course called creation and intelligent design under the category of mythology. This is relegating God to that of a myth. If this is not speaking great things and blasphemies against God then nothing is. This is a perfect example of how the beast is doing the bidding of Satan. It is taking God and blaspheming Him by making Him a myth and this same university, and all the other secular ones, will exalt evolution. These attacks on God and the church are being allowed as God readies Satan’s kingdom for judgment. Throughout the entire New Testament period attacks on God, Christ, and the church have been steady. Wherever the true Gospel is or was being preached, that is where the beast mounts or mounted a campaign to quash it.

(Rev 13:6 KJV)
And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.

The beast opens his mouth and blasphemes the name of God. He will blaspheme God as Creator, as Supreme Being of the entire universe, he will blaspheme God’s reputation, he will blaspheme God’s salvation plan by getting people to believe you must do works to get to heaven, He will blaspheme God’s name in language through swear words and jokes, etc. The beast will blaspheme God’s name in any manner and on any subject he can in hopes to discredit Him and getting people to place their faith in the beast system.

The tabernacle was the place where God dwelt with Israel on their wilderness sojourn. The tabernacle in view here is identified with that of Revelation 11:1-2. The temple or tabernacle of God is both in heaven and on earth as God dwells in His people on earth. (2 Pet 1:13-14 KJV) Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance; {14} Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath showed me. The human body of the believers where God dwells is called the tabernacle. The tabernacle was a dwelling place in Israel and in the body of believers, God dwells within them in the person of the Holy Spirit. When a believer physically dies, they are putting off their tabernacle as Peter states in 2 Peter 1:13-14.

Then the beast blasphemes against those who are in heaven. This would include blasphemy against God, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, angels, and of course the redeemed Saints. Satan’s kingdom comes against all aspects of the Kingdom of God. There is nothing that Satan will not attack in his effort to rule the universe and especially man.