CONTINUED FROM AUGUST NUMBER. IF YOU DID NOT RECEIVE A COPY, FULLY DESCRIBING "WHO IS THE BEAST?" WRITE FOR ONE. ONLY A FEW COPIES ARE LEFT. BUT THEY WILL BE MAILED FREE WHILE THEY LAST.
We have seen that the "Beast" of Revelation 13 is the ancient Roman Empire. That it had a "deadly wound" in 476 A.D., which was "healed" in 554 A.D. and "continued" exactly 1260 years as the Holy Roman Empire, going into the "bottomless pit" of virtual non-existence in 1814; and shall once more rise "out of the bottomless pit" in the restoration of the Roman Empire by a federation of ten nation (Rev. 17:12-18). This, Mussolini is now bringing rapidly to pass under our very eyes!
The "Two-Horned Beast"
Now notice again the 13th chapter of Revelation, beginning verse 11: "And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a LAMB, and he spake as a DRAGON." The Bible interprets its own symbols. A "beast" is a kingdom, or government (Dan. 7:17, 23). So this is another kingdom, or government. In these prophecies God views earthly Gentile governments as the beasts whose characters describe them. This beast appears as a LAMB. But he only PRETENDS to be a LAMB, for actually he speaks as a DRAGON. What does a "lamb" symbolize in the Bible?" CHRIST! (John 1:29; Rev. 17:14). And the DRAGON symbolizes the DEVIL (Rev. 12:9; 20:2). And since this is a KINGDOM, and the saints, under Christ, ultimately shall take over all THESE kingdoms, establishing the Kingdom of God; and since FALSE CHRISTS were to appear, this "beast" must be a kingdom PRETENDING to be the KINGDOM OF GOD, but actually of Satan! Now notice verse 12: "and he excerciseth ALL the power of the first beast before him." This kingdom, claiming to be CHRIST'S, takes, exercises, uses, ALL the power of the first kingdom — the Roman government after it became "healed." And ONLY the CATHOLIC CHURCH did that! It was a KINGDOM, and ruled over the Roman civil government — the first beast. Some say the "two-horned beast" is the United States, and the "Beast" is the Catholic Church! Did the United States ever exercise all the power of the Roman Catholic Church? NO! Will it? It is unthinkable! But the Catholic Church government DID wield ALL the power of the Holy Roman Empire, for the full 1260 years! Let us continue: "and causeth the earth and them that dwell therein to worship the first beast whose deadly wound was healed." Notice this second beast wields power over ALL THE EARTH. The Catholics did that! AFTER the wound was healed! See Encyclopedia Britannica, article "Millennium." They called it the KINGDOM OF GOD on earth! Notice verse 14: "And DECEIVITH them that dwell on the earth." The Catholic Church is the greatest DECEIVING power the world has ever known! It has deceived the whole Christian-professing earth! "... saying to them that dwell on the earth that they should make an IMAGE to the BEAST, which had the wound by the sword and did live." Now what is this IMAGE? What does "image" mean? The dictionary says it is a "likeness," a "copy, representation, model, semblance, counterpart." Therefore it must be a likeness, semblance, model, or counterpart, of the GOVERNMENT of the ROMAN EMPIRE! We quote from Myers' Ancient History: During the reign of Leo I, the first real pope, the Church set up "within the Roman Empire and ecclesiastical state (government) which, in its constitution and its administrative system was shaping itself upon the IMPERIAL MODEL." An IMAGE of the Roman Empire GOVERNMENT! "The first pope, in the real sense of the word, was Leo I. (440-461 A.D.)" says the Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature, Vol. 7, page 629. To him the plan of government of the Roman Empire was the most marvelous thing on earth. He applied the system to the Church, forming the PAPACY, which is an exact IMAGE of the government of the Roman Empire! The pope wears a crown. He is literally a KING! Vatican City is a separate state — a NATION, GOVERNMENT, or KINGDOM. The nations of earth send their ambassadors there. The Britannica calls the Papacy an ECCLESIASTICAL WORLD EMPIRE. Its government was shaped upon the Imperial MODEL — a likeness, or IMAGE of the "Beast." Now verse 15: "and he" — the Catholic Church government, one horn representing church, the other state government of this Church — "had power to give life unto 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." The "image" COMPELLED the people of Christendom to WORSHIP HIM. The pope did this. And CAUSED as many as refused to be killed! The papacy declared all dissenters "anathema from Christ" — heretics — which was a DEATH SENTENCE. The STATE killed them — the Church CAUSED them to be killed! And now verse 16: "and CAUSETH all.... to receive a MARK." What is the MARK of the BEAST? A later article will tell!
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