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The Four Beasts
of Revelation
“A great and
wondrous sign appeared in heaven; a
woman clothed with the sun, with the moon
under her feet
and a crown of twelve stars on her head.”
-Revelation
12:1
We
will examine two prophecies in this study. The
first prophecy is a short story about Lucifer’s
hatred for Jesus and the second prophecy is a
longer story about Lucifer’s hatred for
those who follow the teachings of Jesus. The
first prophecy is found in Revelation 12:1-6 and
the second prophecy immediately flows in
Revelation 12:7-14:5. According to Rule One of
Apocalyptic Prophecy, Revelation 12:1-14:5
consists of two different prophecies because
chronological order is broken between verse 6 and
7. These two prophecies are intimately related,
so we should examine both in this study. The two
prophecies identify four beasts we need to
consider. They are:
1.
A lamb with seven horns and seven eyes
(Revelation 5:6; 12:11; 13:8,11; 14:1,4)
2.
A great red dragon with seven heads and ten horns
(Revelation 12:3)
3.
A leopard-like beast with seven heads and ten
horns (Revelation 13:1,2)
4.
A beast with two horns like a lamb, but speaks
like the dragon (Revelation 13:11,17)
What
Do the Four Beasts Represent?
1.
The Lamb represents Jesus, the Lamb of God, who
was slain for our sins. (John 1:29)
2.
The great red dragon with seven heads and ten
horns represents the fallen angel, Lucifer, who
is also called Satan or the devil. (Revelation
12:9)
3.
The leopard-like beast with seven heads and ten
horns represents Babylon. (Revelation 14:8;
18:2-4) Babylon will form during the first four
trumpets and rule over the world as a
church-state government.
4.
The beast with two horns like the Lamb,
but speaks like the dragon, represents
Lucifer in human form. The devil and his angels
will be released from the Abyss (the spirit
realm) at the fifth trumpet. (Revelation 9:1-11)
These evil beings will be given physical bodies
so the inhabitants of Earth can see them, touch
them, and freely talk with them.
Now
that we have identified the four beasts, we need
to investigate each of them.
The Lamb
Ever
since the day that Adam and Eve sinned, a
flawless lamb has been used to represent the
sinless life of Jesus Christ. Although the Bible
does not explicitly say the burnt offering was a
lamb, the Bible does say, “The Lord
God made garments of skin
for Adam and his wife and clothed them.” (Genesis
3:21, italics mine) Since the Bible does not
elaborate further on the first sin offering, we
can deduce two things. First, the use of skin for
clothing indicates an animal died. Second, when
we assemble everything God has said in the Bible
about sin offerings, it is safe to assume that
Adam sorrowfully killed the first lamb because “…sin
entered the world through one man and death
through sin….” (Romans 5:12)
When
Jesus began His ministry on Earth, John the
Baptist announced the mission of Jesus with a
single sentence: “The next day John saw
Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look, the
Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!’”(John
1:29) I am sure that God choose a lamb to
represent Jesus for several reasons. First, what
are more adorable than baby lambs? They are
loving, gentle, and easily bond to human beings.
Second, in terms of survival, sheep are valuable
animals in Bible times, providing a source of
food and clothing. They are hearty creatures and
they reproduce often. Sheep often have multiple
births, and since gestation is only five months,
a herd of sheep can quickly double in size.
Symbolically, Jesus is to eternal life what a
lamb was to earthly life in Bible times. Last,
sheep are social creatures. They are typically
meek and gentle. Consider the words of Isaiah
concerning Jesus: “He was oppressed and
afflicted, yet, he did not open his mouth; he was
led like a lamb to the slaughter [i.e.,
without resistance], and as a sheep before her
shearers is silent [submissive], so he did
not open his mouth.” (Isaiah 53:7,
insertions mine) When we put these features
together, a lamb symbolizes the life of Christ
very well.
Notice’s
John’s description of Jesus in Revelation 5.
“Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had
been slain, standing in the center of the throne,
encircled by four living creatures and the [24]
elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes
which are the seven spirits [the seven
angels] of God sent out into all the earth. He
came and took the scroll from the right hand of
him who sat on the throne.” (Revelation
5:6,7, insertions mine) Three fascinating aspects
about Jesus are highlighted in this passage.
First, John saw a “resurrected Lamb”
standing in the center of God’s throne. This
scene indicates the scene occurs after the cross.
Second, John saw seven horns on the Lamb. This
means the Lamb has sovereign power (the number
seven represents completion and the horns
represent authority). Third, the Lamb has seven
eyes. These eyes represent the seven angels who
stand (notice their posture) before the throne of
God. (Revelation 1:4) These eyes are the seven
angels who receive the seven trumpets.
(Revelation 8:2) They are also called “seven
spirits” (as in seven ghosts) because they
are highly exalted beings that can appear and
disappear on command. (Revelation 1:4, 3:1, 4:5,
5:6) Notice Paul words: Are not all angels
ministering spirits sent to
serve those who will inherit salvation?” (Hebrews
1:14, italics mine) The seven eyes of the Lamb
are the seven angels of the seven churches, the
seven angels who receive the seven trumpets, and
the seven angels who pour out the seven bowls.
(Revelation 1:20; 8:2; 15:6) These seven angels
are servants of Jesus. They are sent from the
throne and they report back to Him whatever they
see. The beauty of understanding the seven eyes
is that they serve an omnipotent Lamb who had
been slain.
The Great Red
Dragon
“Then
another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous
red dragon with seven heads and ten
horns and seven crowns on his heads. His tail
swept a third of the stars out of the sky and
flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in
front of the woman who was about to give birth
[to Jesus], so that he might devour her child
the moment it was born.” (Revelation
12:3,4, italics and insertion mine)
The
great red dragon symbolizes Lucifer. We know this
to be true because the Bible interprets the
symbol with a relevant text: “And there
was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought
against the dragon, and the dragon fought back.
But he was not strong enough, and lost their
place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down
– that ancient serpent called the
devil, or Satan, who leads the whole
world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his
angels with him.” (Revelation 12:7-9,
italics mine) The great red dragon is the devil.
He is God’s adversary and man’s
accuser.
(Revelation
12:10)
Please
consider two points that will prove useful later
in this study:
1.
The great red dragon and the Lamb are not
governments or nations. I emphasize this
distinction because some people insist that
beasts in Bible prophecy always represent nations
or governments. This assertion is not valid. The
four beasts in Daniel 7 do represent four world
empires because Daniel 7:17 says the four beasts
are world empires, but Daniel 7:17 does not force
the four beasts in Revelation to be four world
empires. The Bible is not internally conflicted.
If we allow the Bible to define symbols with
texts that point to the symbol, we will find that
the Lamb in Revelation 5 represents Jesus, and
the great red dragon in Revelation 12 represents
His adversary, the devil. These two beasts are
caricatures two supernatural beings – Jesus
and Satan.
2.
The great red dragon has seven heads and ten
horns when he is introduced in Revelation 12:3.
Later, we will learn that these seventeen
features represents future extensions of Satan’s
authority over mankind. In other words, when the
story begins in Revelation 12 (at the birth of
Jesus), the seven heads and ten horns on the
great red dragon are not functioning, but they
will “come alive” and function when
their appointed time comes. This technique is not
unusual in apocalyptic prophecy. When the fourth
beast (Rome) rises out of the sea in Daniel 7:7,
it has ten horns. History says that Rome began to
function as a world empire in 168 B.C., but the
ten horns did not begin functioning until six
hundred years later. The beasts in Daniel and
Revelation may have various parts when they are
introduced in a story, but these parts may not
have any function when the beast is first
introduced.
The Devil’s Name
The
devil was an exalted angel before he was cast out
of Heaven. Please consider three different
translations of the same verse:
KJV
“How
art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer,
son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the
ground, which didst weaken the nations!” (Isaiah
14:12, italics mine)
NIV
“How
you had fallen from heaven, O Morning
star, son of the dawn! You have been
cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the
nations!” (Isaiah 14:12, italics mine)
NASB
“How
you have fallen from heaven, O star of
the morning, son of the dawn! You have
been cut down to the earth, you who have weakened
the nations!”
(Isaiah
14:12, italics mine)
The
translators of the KJV chose to translate the
Hebrew word heylel with the Latin name
“Lucifer,” whereas the translators of
the NIV and NASB chose to translate heylel
as “morning star” or “star of the
morning.” The differences between the KJV
and later translations stems from an ancient
practice. Venus was a prominent morning star
during the first century A.D. Pliny the Elder
(A.D. 23-79) lived during the time of Christ and
he wrote, “The star called Venus [has two
names]…when it rises in the morning it is
given the name ‘Lucifer’ [which means
‘light bringer’]…but when it
[Venus] shines at sunset it is called ‘Vesper.’”
(Pliny the Elder, Natural History, Book 2,
par. 36, insertions mine) Early translators of
the Bible, as far back as Jerome’s fifth
century Latin Vulgate, preferred to use the Latin
name “Lucifer” for heylel rather
than translating the Hebrew word as “morning
star.” This is how the name Lucifer found
its way into the KJV because Lucifer’s given
name is unknown. It is ironic that Venus shone
brighter than any of the other stars each morning
and in a spiritual sense, Lucifer allowed his
surpassing glory to bring about his downfall. “You
were the model of perfection, full of wisdom and
perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden
of God; every precious stone adorned you: ruby,
topaz and emerald, chrysolite, onyx and jasper,
sapphire, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and
mountings were made of gold; on the day you were
created they were prepared. You were anointed as
a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you.
You were on the holy mount of God; you walked
among the fiery stones. You were blameless in
your ways from the day you were created till
wickedness was found in you.” (Ezekiel
28:12-15)
A
review of Isaiah 14:12-17 and Ezekiel 28: 12-18
reveals that Lucifer was once an anointed cherub
in Heaven.
Eventually,
he became arrogant and self-seeking. He became
dissatisfied with God and His government. He
coveted worship and adoration that belonged to
Michael, the archangel. When Lucifer became
jealous of the archangel Michael, Lucifer did not
know Michael was God living “in the
feathers.“ Let me explain what I mean. The
Bible indicates that Jesus, the Creator, lived
among the angels. This seems to be Jesus’
pattern. Jesus created the angels and lived among
them (as Michael) – He also created man and
lived among us. Michael lived among the angels,
but Lucifer did not recognize that Michael was
God. This mistake led to his undoing. Lucifer’s
experience in Heaven is similar to what happened
when Jesus lived as a man on Earth. The Jews did
not know that Jesus was God living “in the
flesh.” Our Creator (whether of angels or
men) so closely identifies with His creation that
no one can know that He is God unless there is a
revelation of this truth! (This is the essential
reason for the upcoming revelation of Jesus
Christ!) Through malicious lies and deceptive
innuendo, Lucifer persuaded one-third of Heaven’s
angels to join him in rebellion against Michael,
and this is how Lucifer became the
Antichrist. The Godhead loved Lucifer and his
followers. They did everything possible to change
the feelings and attitudes of their subjects, but
there was no repentance. When it became evident
that extended mercy would bring no change and
have no redeeming effect, God’s forbearance
ended. God cast Lucifer and his angels out of
Heaven. Jesus told His disciples, “I saw
Satan fall like lightening from Heaven.”
(Luke
10:18)
When Lucifer and his angels were
cast out of Heaven, their anger and bitterness
toward the Godhead turned into a roaring rage. To
get even, they focused their wrath on Jesus’
handiwork-the creation of Earth. The devil
studied Adam and Eve for several years before he
developed his subtle and deadly approach. The
devil led Eve to disobey God and Eve led Adam
into disobedience. Of course, the devil did not
stop there. Cain, the first born of Adam and Eve,
became a murderer. Astoundingly, within ten
generations of creating Adam, human beings became
so degenerate that God grieved that He had even
made man! (Genesis 6) Consequently, God washed
Earth with a flood of water, sparing just eight
people – Noah and his family. The flood may
have slowed the devil’s efforts to destroy
mankind, but Peter reminds us that the devil is
relentless. He goes around like a roaring lion
seeking whom he may devour! (1 Peter 5:8,9)
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