16 It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads
Insight:
The Greek word for mark is charagma which means an engraving, a stamp, a sign. It will be a mark that you can visibly see and would identify the party that you belong to.
The false prophet of the Antichrist will force everyone without exception to receive the mark of the beast and to give their full allegiance to him.
Insight:
The right hand and forehead symbolize commitment that the person will give their hearts and minds to it (Deuteronomy 11:18-19).
17 so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.
The Antichrist will be the ultimate dictator and he will rule with an iron fist. Either you will serve him or die.
This mark seems to be a way to get credit, a job, shop for all kinds of things, and survive. Without it, you cannot survive in the New World Order of the beast which will last 7 years. In the second half of the 7 years, God’s wrath will be poured out on the earth and the beasts will let loose their fury and try to kill all those who have faith in Jesus.
Satan wants his name or the number that represents his name on our foreheads so as to illustrate to God that he is in our hearts and minds and not the Lord. Satan doesn’t just want to rule over us but wants to steal our hearts away from God so that he can receive devotion.
18 This calls for wisdom. Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. That number is 666.
Those with wisdom and insight will be the ones with the Holy Spirit dwelling in their hearts. The Lord will reveal the Antichrist and his system to the believers in the time of the great tribulation.
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