Revelation 13 John stand on the shore and sees a hellish, nightmarish vision of a dragon and two beasts. The first beast comes out of the sea and receives power from the dragon, or Satan. This beast is a true monstrosity: "It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its 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" (Revelation 13:1-2). Daniel's vision of the beast is similar in many ways to John's (Daniel 7:7-8, 19-27). The seven heads and ten horns indicate that the beast will be a coalition of nations that rises to power to subdue the earth under Satan's control. Later references to "the beast" in Revelation picture an individual-the man who is the political leader and head of the beastly empire.
The beast will receive a deadly wound and be healed of it (Revelation 13:3). He will exert authority over the whole world and demand worship (verses 7-8). He will wage war against God's people, and he will prevail against them for a time (Revelation 13:7; Daniel 7:21). However, the beast's time is short: according to Revelation 13:5 and Daniel 7:25, he will only be permitted absolute authority for forty-two months (three-and-a-half years).
We believe that the beast in Revelation is the Antichrist, the one who will "oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God" (2 Thessalonians 2:4). He is also called "the man of lawlessness" and "the man doomed to destruction" (2 Thessalonians 2:3). In Daniel's vision, the Antichrist is the "little horn" that rises from the head of the terrifying beast (Daniel 7:8).
It is interesting to compare the differing biblical visions of the kingdoms of the world. In Daniel 2, King Nebuchadnezzar dreams of the kingdoms of the world as "a large statue-an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance" (Daniel 2:31).
Simmons, Matthew: - I was drawn into the depths and heartbeat of this supernatural war. When God called me to this ministry, I had an LLC roofing company, but God closed that door. He wanted me to carry a cross-crucified and sanctified. This ministry has prepared me, broken me, and crushed me! It has brought me down to the depths of despair. The cross has kept me in the fetters of sweet slavery. It has crushed my pity and peacock pride. It has crushed my arrogance. It has kept me on my knees before the throne, desperate for Jesus. Crushed is the god of self on the throne of my soul. I started this ministry out of the fountain of obedience, not for glory. This ministry is a cross that I carry: it is heavy, it is weighty, and it crushes me for God's glory. Out of tragedy, He turned it into blessings; He took my old song and made it a symphony.Testimonies of what I have experienced, and testimonies I hope to experience: I stood before the Lord like Isaiah; I experienced rejection like Joseph; I went through a wilderness like Job; I've warned like Noah; I was given a thorn like Paul; I saw the fallen angels described in Jude 1:6; I saw demons as described in Ephesians 6; I experienced persecution like Peter; I have had a born-again experience like every apostle. Lastly, I hope to be raptured like Elijah and walk with God like Enoch, until I am not. This book took a lifetime to write-from a story, a testimony, a ministry, and sound biblical doctrine.Share this book with people you love, people in the deepest depths of darkness, people struggling with addictions, and anyone else in the gloomy pits and prisons-from an 8x10 room to the four corners of the earth! Let us unite, fight this war together, and be soul-winners! Don't just keep Jesus in the church house; get Him into their house! Don't keep Him in there; get Him out there! It's the last call to win the lost. God bless you all! In Jesus' name, amen! "...behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee..."-Matthew 19:27 (KJV)
