We are looking today at the second beast that is found in this chapter. The first beast we have looked at and identified as whom we call the antichrist. He is the principal character, the leader of the world during this time. The second beast is, “the beast out of the land,” according to Revelation 13:11. He is the beast that plays a secondary, but very valuable and important role.
As a matter of fact, this beast is identified in Revelation 16:13 as the false prophet. Let’s look at that verse, “And I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs.” We are not going to look at this any further right now because we will look at it later in our study, but notice that the unholy trinity is identified.
Satan is the dragon who mimics the Father. We have the beast of the antichrist who mimics the Son, and we have the false prophet (the second beast in Revelation 13) who mimics the Holy Spirit because he functions as the spiritual leader drawing attention and worship to the antichrist. That’s his task. While the antichrist seems to be the leader economically, militarily, and politically of the whole world system during this time, the false prophet is the leader of the spiritual world at this same time.
We have seen the description of the second beast, and as we look at Revelation 13:13, we see what he does, “He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men.” He has power. He may not have the same amount of power as the antichrist, but he has power, and he brings fire out of heaven. What else does he do? He deceives, 13:14, “And he deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs which it was given him to perform in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to life.” He is a deceiver. We recall that this is what Satan does all the time. This is his principal weapon. In Revelation 12:9 for example, in speaking of the devil, it calls him here the “great dragon…the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world.” Satan, as we find in the New Testament epistles, deceives. In the book of Revelation, he deceives. So, we are not surprised that his minions deceive, especially the antichrist and the false prophet. He does it by using signs. He can do these miracles and wonders and so forth. The world is impressed, and they worship the antichrist, and they are deceived because of his power, his methods and so forth that he does in the presence of the beast. We pick up halfway in Revelation 13:14 and it says, “telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image of the beast,” not only are they worshiping the antichrist correctly, but they made an idol of him. This image is probably the one that is set up in the temple of God that perhaps is spoken of in 2 Thessalonians 2, but also is spoken of in Daniel 9 where it talks about the abomination of desolation in which there is actual worship in the temple of someone other than God Himself. This image is set up there at this time so that these people worship the image of the beast . . .
