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 so that he might devour her child the moment it was born.
She gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule the Nations with an iron scepter; her child was snatched up to God and to His Throne; the woman fled into the desert to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of 1,260 days.
When the Dragon saw that he had been hurled to the Earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the desert, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s reach.
From his mouth, the serpent spewed water like a river to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent. But the Earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.
From his mouth, the serpent spewed water like a river to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent. But the Earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.
The Dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to make War against the rest of her offspring—those who obey God’s commandments and hold to the Testimony of Jesus. As the Dragon stood on the shore of the Sea I saw a beast coming out of the Sea; he had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on his horns and on each head, a blasphemous name.
The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The Dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed.
The whole World was astonished and followed the beast; men worshipped the Dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshipped the beast and asked, ‘Who is like the Beast; who can make War against him?’
The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The Dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority. One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed.
The whole World was astonished and followed the beast; men worshipped the Dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshipped the beast and asked, ‘Who is like the Beast; who can make War against him?’
The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise his authority for forty-two months; he opened his mouth to blaspheme GOD and to slander His Name and His dwelling place and those who live in Heaven. He was given power to make War against the Saints and to conquer them; he was given authority over every Tribe, people, language, and Nation. All inhabitant of the Earth will worship the Beast; all whose names have not been written in the Book of Life belonging to the Lamb of God that was slain from the creation of the World.
Then I saw another beast coming out of the Earth. He had two horns like a lamb, but he spoke like a dragon; he exercised all the authority of the first beast, and made the Earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast whose fatal wounds had been healed. He performed great and miraculous signs, even causing fire to come down from Heaven to Earth in full view of men, and because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the beast, he deceived the inhabitants of the Earth.
He ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast that was wounded by the Sword and yet lived; he was given power to breathe into the image of the first beast so that it could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image, to be killed. He forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark which is the name of the beast or the number of his name. This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast; for it is a man’s number, 666.
