“If anyone has an ear, let him hear” (Revelation 13:9).
Revelation 13:9 offers a familiar admonition to readers of this book. In His earlier letters to the seven churches of Revelation chapters two and three, Jesus repeated the following cautionary message: “He who has an ear, let him hear.” That message reappears here in verse nine as a warning to avoid the mistake of abandoning the Creator to worship a blasphemous substitute.
“He who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; he who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints” (Revelation 13:10).
As this future era unfolds, the people of God will face intense pressure to abandon their faith in God amidst the pervasive evil that will characterize that period. They will also have to hold to God’s promise of a future world where righteousness dwells despite the apparent triumph of evil over good. Nevertheless, this is something that has always held true for God’s people.
For instance, we may look at the grievous events that occur within our world and ask, “Where is God in this?” Those harsh realities call for “…steadfast endurance and faith from the saints” (NET) whenever they take place. As the Biblical book of Romans reminds us, “…God will reward each of us according to what we have done” (GNT). Thus, we can rest assured that God give people whatever they deserve, both now and in the future.
“Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. 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. He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men.
And he deceives those who dwell on the earth–by those signs which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who was wounded by the sword and lived. He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed” (Revelation 13:11-15).
We have already seen two of the three major figures in Revelation chapter thirteen. The first is the dragon who was previously identified as Satan in chapter twelve. The second is the beast from the sea, commonly known as “the antichrist.” Verse eleven now marks the unveiling of our third and final character: the beast of the earth. As we continue our look at Revelation chapter thirteen, we will soon discover why this figure is also known as “the false prophet.”