Understanding the Beast and Prophetic Horns in Revelation

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Revelation 17

1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying to me, Come here; I will show to you the judgment of the great whore that sits on many waters:

2 With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.

3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit on a scarlet colored beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.

4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet color, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:

5 And on her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.

6 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.

7 And the angel said to me, Why did you marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and ten horns.

8 The beast that you saw was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

9 And here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sits.

10 And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he comes, he must continue a short space.

11 And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goes into perdition.

12 And the ten horns which you saw are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.

13 These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength to the beast.

14 These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.

15 And he says to me, The waters which you saw, where the whore sits, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

16 And the ten horns which you saw on the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.

17 For God has put in their hearts to fulfill his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.

18 And the woman which you saw is that great city, which reigns over the kings of the earth.

Revelation 18

1 And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.

2 And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.

3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.

4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that you be not partakers of her sins, and that you receive not of her plagues.

5 For her sins have reached to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities.

6 Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double to her double according to her works: in the cup which she has filled fill to her double.

7 How much she has glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she says in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.

8 Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judges her.

9 And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall mourn her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,

10 Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is your judgment come.

11 And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buys their merchandise any more:

12 The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble,

13 And cinnamon, and odors, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men.

14 And the fruits that your soul lusted after are departed from you, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from you, and you shall find them no more at all.

15 The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,

16 And saying, Alas, alas that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls!

17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nothing. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,

18 And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like to this great city!

19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.

20 Rejoice over her, you heaven, and you holy apostles and prophets; for God has avenged you on her.

21 And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.

22 And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in you; and no craftsman, of whatever craft he be, shall be found any more in you; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in you;

23 And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in you; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in you: for your merchants were the great men of the earth; for by your sorceries were all nations deceived.

24 And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain on the earth.

Revelation 13

1 And I stood on the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads the name of blasphemy.

2 And the beast which I saw was like to 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.

3 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.

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

5 And there was given to him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given to him to continue forty and two months.

6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.

7 And it was given to him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.

8 And all that dwell on the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

9 If any man have an ear, let him hear.

10 He that leads into captivity shall go into captivity: he that kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.

11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spoke as a dragon.

12 And he exercises all the power of the first beast before him, and causes the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.

13 And he does great wonders, so that he makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,

14 And deceives them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.

15 And he had power to give life to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

16 And he causes 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.

18 Here is wisdom. Let him that has understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred three score and six.

Revelation is a profound warning that power which demands ultimate loyalty and sets aside God’s law functions as a beastly system. The beast of Revelation 13 is clearly identified as the papacy, an organization that has for centuries thought to change times and laws and now influences the world through a combination of religious and civil power Daniel 7:25EVRR552+1.

The Nature of the Beast and the Image

The beast represents a union of church and state where the ecclesiastical power is supreme and uses the state to enforce its dogmasARSH March 20, 1900, page 184.11+1. In the final crisis, an "image to the beast" is formed when religious bodies, particularly in the United States, influence the government to enforce their institutions, such as Sunday observanceECE 871.2+1. This image is not a literal monster but a reproduction of the papal system of church-state unionSITI November 25, 1897, page 724.4+1.

• Ultimate Loyalty: The beast compels all to worship it, creating a system where human enactments are placed above the law of God Revelation 13:12EVRR459+1.

• The Mark: Receiving the mark of the beast involves a willful choice to honor a human institution—specifically the Sunday-Sabbath—while knowing it has no scriptural foundation, thereby accepting the sign of allegiance to a human power rather than the Creator7BC 980.1+2.

• Economic Control: The system is designed to be all-encompassing, decreeing that no one may buy or sell unless they submit to the mark, name, or number of the beast Revelation 13:17EVRR460+1.

Babylon’s Influence and the Global Crisis

In Revelation 17-18 Babylon is depicted as a corrupt church system—the "mother of harlots"—that has made all nations drink of the wine of her false doctrines and spiritual fornication Revelation 17:5BDOC 69.120+1.

• Spiritual Fornication: Nations commit spiritual fornication when they divorce themselves from God’s commandments and unite with apostate religious powers to control the conscience of men Revelation 18:314MR 159.1+1.

• A System of Confusion: The name Babylon signifies "confusion," reflecting the mixture of truth and error found in various denominations that cling to the traditions of the "mother" church rather than the Word of GodARSH March 10, 1859, page 122.4+1.

• The Call to Separate: God's mercy is seen in the urgent command, "Come out of her, my people," which is a call for individuals to leave these corrupt systems to avoid participating in their sins and receiving their final plagues Revelation 18:4EVRR552+1.

The Final Conflict: Worship and Character

The central issue in the books of Daniel and Revelation is worshipBDOC 69.52+1. Just as the three Hebrews in Daniel 3 refused to bow to a literal image on pain of death, God’s remnant people in the last days will refuse to worship the image of the beast, choosing instead to keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus Revelation 14:12EVRR460+1.

• The True Standard: While the beast offers a spurious sabbath, the seventh-day Sabbath remains God’s perpetual sign of sanctification and allegiance to the government of heaven Exodus 31:13BDOC 56.67+1.

• The Wrath of God: Those who choose the beast’s cup of false doctrine will eventually drink from the cup of God’s indignation, which is poured out without mixture in the seven last plagues Revelation 14:10EVRR508+1.

• The Triumph of the Saints: Despite the death decree and economic pressure, those who are loyal to God will stand victorious on the sea of glass, having overcome the beast, his image, and his mark Revelation 15:2SC3 213.1+1.

Revelation serves as a call to pay attention to where our loyalties lie, ensuring that we worship Him who made heaven and earth rather than any human system that seeks to take God's place Revelation 14:7GCB/GCDB 1893, page 147.7.

In prophetic symbolism, a horn represents a ruler or power, which can be either civil or ecclesiastical in natureTMR 88.1+2. These symbols are used to denote the strength and authority of the nations and kingdoms they represent, sometimes showing a division of power and other times symbolizing a union of elements within a single governmentTMR 88.1+2.

General Meaning of Horns in Prophecy

The interpretation of horns is established through several key biblical examples where God provides the specific meaning:

• Media and Persia: The two horns of the ram in Daniel 8 denote the union of the two powers of Media and Persia into one empireTMR 88.1+2.

• Grecia: The great horn of the Grecian goat symbolizes the first form of that power under its first king, Alexander the Great Daniel 8:21TMR 88.1+1. When this horn was broken, four others stood up, representing the division of the empire into four kingdoms ruled by his generalsTMR 88.1+2.

• Rome: The ten horns of the fourth beast in Daniel 7 represent the ten distinct kingdoms into which the Roman Empire was divided between A.D. 356 and 483TMR 88.1+2.

• The Papacy: The "little horn" that came up among the ten represents the papacy, which is a purely ecclesiastical power that eventually acquired temporal dominionTMR 88.1+2.

The Horns of the Two-Horned Beast

The beast with two horns like a lamb in Revelation 13:11 represents the United States of America, and its unique horns carry specific significanceLIFIN 242.1+2.

• Republicanism and Protestantism: These two horns symbolize the civil and religious power of the nation—specifically its Republican civil power and its Protestant ecclesiastical powerTMR 88.1+2.

• Youth and Peace: Their lamb-like appearance, being without crowns, indicates a youthful power that arose peacefully in unoccupied territory, representing a government where the people bear rule rather than a traditional monarchyTMR 88.1+2.

• Church and State: The two horns denote the "two evangels" of civil and religious liberty, which are the fundamental principles of the American governmentFEE 165.2+1.

• Union, Not Division: Unlike the horns of the fourth beast which represent a divided kingdom, these lamb-like horns represent the nature of the power and its two leading principles united in one governmentTMR 88.1+2.

The Horns of the Lamb and the Dragon

The Bible also contrasts the horns of Christ with those of Satan to show their differing characters:

• The Lamb: The seven horns of the Lamb represent the seven Spirits of God and the nature of Christ's undivided dominion as King of kings Revelation 5:6TMR 90.1.

• The Dragon: The ten horns of the dragon represent the ten kingdoms of the Roman Empire, a kingdom full of division and confusion under the influence of Satan Revelation 12:3TMR 88.1+1.

While these horns begin with a mild, lamb-like appearance, the prophecy warns that the nation they represent will eventually speak like a dragon, exercising all the power of the first beast and enforcing the mark of the papacy upon the worldTMR 88.1+2.