Naming the Beast

There are many ways that man can interpret the concept of "Antichrist" and the intense imagery of Biblical end-times prophecy. For thousands of years, numerous men and women have pointed their fingers at one particular political leader, spiritual authority or person of interest; always certain that they had found the "man of sin". It has been proven time and time again that men with our own dim eyes cannot fully decipher the mystery of the beast. However, it is also said that by God's design and in his timing he gives sight to the blind. In the last days we are assured that what was once sealed up and swallowed (by both Daniel and John of Patmos, respectively) will become clear, and will be made manifest, to the nourishment of the saints.

What I am about to share with you came to me in the fall of 2005, 11 months after I first read the "Bush is Antichrist" website. It hit me like a bolt of lightning, and validated the beliefs that I had come to form about the nature of the beast, and the power of God's ability to give us "eyes to see". It was at that point that my assurance was rooted in the truth of these matters. I had received a revelation.

That vision involved Daniel 7 and Revelation 12, 13. It shed light on the beasts described by revealing how they fit into the overall apocalyptic picture. I knew the stories already, but had no real grasp of their meaning before the night in question. What hit me was the presence and significance of the four sacred elements in this epic tale. Air, Water, Earth and Fire. They stood out purposeful, reflecting the nature of the Creator, as well as the nature of his impostor. When that connection dawned on me, it felt just like a key had slipped into a rusty lock, turned, and let loose the truth. For this revelation defined the nature of the unholy trinity as directly related to the holy trinity. Both God and our adversary, the red dragon are represented by Air, or Heaven. Likewise both the Holy Spirit and the unholy spirit of the world are represented by water, (for we are baptized in water and in spirit). And finally, the flesh is the dust of the earth, so both Jesus Christ and the "man of sin" will be bound together by the earth. Now to those of you who are unfamiliar with modern apocalyptic studies and interpretations, let me explain. Revelation 13 depicts two beasts, the first arises from the sea, and the second emerges from the earth. Most, if not all Christians believe that the beast from the sea is depicting the Antichrist. R Stephen Hanchett is among that number. But what I saw that night, and have come to believe since, is that the beast of the earth is the real Antichrist. And today I will set out not only to confirm that link by scripture, but also to show how George W Bush is fulfilling that prophecy these days.

But first let's return to the sacred elements. During the spiritual lightning storm that was this revelation, I wondered about how four elements could represent any trinity. At first, I expected the whole idea to fall like a house of cards because of fire, but then realized that fire is covered very well throughout the Bible. For who is God without worshipers? I am not question his completion by saying this, but like to point out that God did choose to create us, and has chosen to put up with us, because he wants us to play a part in this; likewise the devil will do whatever he can to steal us. Fire is what separates humanity; it burns and destroys all wickedness at the same time that it purifies all righteousness. The symbolic nature of fire in this relationship is summarized in Daniel 7:9-11.

I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened. I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.

The Holy Spirit shows us truth, which the scriptures will fully verify. I'm not saying this as a reason for you to blindly accept what I'm teaching here. This isn't preachy chicanery. I'm telling you that once the spirit opens your eyes to the truth, you will look in the scriptures and clearly see what they've always been proclaiming. Air, Water, Earth and Fire are universal elements, known intimately by all men. Each one is distinctive from the other, and each is a crucial ingredient in the makeup of creation. Also the three elements of Air, Water, and Earth represent the natural trinity of the states of matter; solid, liquid, and gas.

Going back to the prophecy, I hope you have read Revelation 12, Revelation 13, and Daniel 7 already, but we'll do a summary of them anyway. Revelation 12 describes a great red dragon and an army of soon-to-be fallen angels who are at war with Michael and his angels. This red dragon is, according to verse 9, "...that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, who deceives the whole world...". The dragon is defeated in heaven, and cast down to earth for a time to await his judgment. I have previously established by scripture the devil's obsession with God, and his desire to replace him. Being banished from heaven, the dragon sets his eyes on the earth he's been imprisoned on. Revelation 12:12 says, "Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that his time is short.” His plan is to replace God in the minds of men, for in our thoughts we can primarily focus on either the presence of God, or ourselves, our nation, our lover etc. Honoring God in our minds is not a matter of exclusivity as much as it is a matter of priority. Christ instructed us to "seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness" The process of replacing God in our hearts and minds has been gradual and subtle, but consistent. God is a presence and priority in many people's belief system, but more as a backdrop than anything. The religious right is certainly as guilty of this as anyone outside the church. Their social takeover and political agenda have replaced the commands and instructions of the Bible, even though they believe that they are defending the Bible. You can't share or defend what you yourself refuse to obey!

The agenda of the religious right has become their God, and they are willing to suffer persecution on it's behalf. Spiritually, these churches have suffered greatly for this decision. Bitter and battle-ready churches breed paranoid and unloving congregations. As long as the light of God is not in the throne of our minds, the darkness of the devil is free to occupy it. While he is imprisoned on earth, the devil is working around the clock to do just that.

However, it is clearly established in scriptures that the heavenly father actually sits enthroned in heaven. "Thus saith the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest?"~ Isaiah 66:1. "And (Jesus) said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven."~ Luke 11:2. Interestingly enough, the phrase "as above, so below" is a cherished proverb for the Masonic, Illuminati elite. Heaven is the battleground of eternity, as well as the home of the seat of power so fiercely coveted by Satan. The war which was waged in heaven has spilled over into the spiritual war we are in the midst of today. The red dragon will always be a fallen creature, driven mad by the darkness he is sentenced to, suffering because he can never return to the position he was created for. And he will always yearn to be in the heaven he came from.

God, by nature, is trinity. Father, Son and Spirit. Which means that for his plan of replacing God to work, the devil will have to rise up counterfeits of all three aspects of trinity. And that brings us to the next character starting in Revelation 13:1-4. In this passage, we find a great beast rising up out of the sea, having the characteristics of a lion, a bear, and a leopard. This beast has seven heads, and ten horns with a crown on each horn. Verse 2 states that the dragon (devil) gave this beast "his power and seat and great authority", and verse 12 states that the beast of the Earth "exercises all the authority of the first beast", which ties in all three together by an unholy anointing. So does that mean this first beast from the sea is the Antichrist so many have been searching for? Most would think so, and many have taught so, mainly based on the erroneous resurrection connection between Jesus and one of the heads of this beast which "suffered a fatal wound and yet lived". Another tie-in used by the mainstream teaching is the connection between Daniel 7:25 and Revelation 13:5-7. In these passages, both the "little horn" from Daniel, and the "mouth" given to the beast of the sea are given power for three and a half years, while they spew blasphemies from their lips and wage a successful war of oppression against the saints. But what should be noted and explored is the one and only distinctive difference between the beast of the sea and the four beasts compiled together in Daniel 7. There are four beasts which rise up from the sea- one is like a lion, another like a bear, a third like a leopard with four heads, and the fourth having ten horns- which gives us a total of seven heads and ten horns in Daniel7:2-7. In the Revelation account, yet again, we have one beast which encompasses all of those characteristics. In both accounts, this description is directly followed by the rise of a malevolent leader. In Daniel, the character is a "little horn, with eyes like a man and a mouth which speaks boastfully", in Revelation it is described as a mouth given to the beast and once again as it's own separate entity called the beast of the earth. Great spiritual significance is granted to this particularly boastful and blasphemous leader who emerges to rule this final empire in the last days. His actions will cause a devastation greater than the world has ever known. His blasphemies will inspire the judgment of heaven.

The Rev. beast has ten horns altogether, but it's horns have crowns which makes them kings by inference. In the Daniel 7 account there are no crowns on the horns, but an angel does identify the horns as "kings" and the beast as a "kingdom" in verse 23. Considering that the beast of the earth is said to "exercise all the power of the first beast before him" in Rev:13:12, I submit that the 11th, "little horn" from Daniel is the same king or representative leader as the beast of the earth.

The seven-headed beast described in Revelation 13:1-4 is 1/3rd of the unholy trinity, and it is not the flesh, but rather the spirit. The beast of the sea represents the unholy spirit of the world. It represents the spirit of empire, conquest, greed and control. It represents the kingdom of the antichrist, which is the antithesis of the kingdom of God. 1 Corinthians 2:12 verbalizes the reality of the unholy spirit, as it compares to the Holy Spirit, "Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God." This unholy spirit rises up before the Antichrist just as the Holy Spirit came into the world through the prophets and John the Baptist, who baptized Jesus into his ministry, and paved the way for him to ascend to his destiny (compare that to the Supreme Court decision to grant George W Bush the presidency). The spirit spreads among men like wildfire, preparing the way by preparing their minds to receive the Christ (or the Antichrist). That is the purpose and the nature of the spirit. The spirit is the mortar which helps to build a city. The spirit is the very lifeblood of a kingdom. It keeps us all together. I have come to believe that the final world empire which shall be ruled by the antichrist is, in fact, the American empire.

R. Stephen Hanchett does an excellent job in connecting the dots on his website. His writing got my mental wheels spinning, and for that I am grateful. One of the most compelling points he made was this:

(Dan 7: 24) “the ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones. (the Antichrist)” America acquired superpower status, and gained the reach of a world-class Empire, when it acquired the nuclear bomb - at the very end of WWII. Since then there have been exactly ten “kings” or post-war presidents: Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush Sr, and Clinton. The prophecy from Daniel says that after these ten presidents, there will appear another one, an arrogant “little horn”, which is the Antichrist, George W Bush. It says this “little horn” is unlike the other ten presidents, and this is in reference to the fact that Bush had no popular mandate, that he lost the popular vote by over a million votes, and was appointed to office when five un-elected judges on the Supreme Court stopped the counting of votes in Florida. This never happened before in American history, and it makes him different from his predecessors – that and his arrogance, dishonesty, law-breaking, and lust for world power.

And that brings us to the Beast of the earth, who we will line up side by side against Christ, to see what kind of comparisons exist. This third beast (Rev. 13:11-18) is described as,
1. coming out of the earth
2. having horns "like a lamb"
3. and the mouth of a dragon, speaking what the dragon would have him say, which reiterates the importance of Rev 13:5-8.
4. He rules the empire beast, and causes all men to worship it, which is the spirit of the devil.
5. He performs destructive "signs and wonders", and is said to deceive (and continuously lie to) the whole world.

Alternatively, Jesus Christ,
1. Is God in the flesh, which is the dust of the earth.
2. Is the Lamb of God
3. Is the Word of God, who spoke only what the Father would have him say.
4. Rules the kingdom of God, and is promised to subdue all earthly kingdoms.
5. Obviously Jesus is the master of miracles, who offers the world the truth.

Also, considering that the word "antichrist" doesn't appear once in Revelation, we should be careful in interpreting the book in order to find out who best represents that concept. The best way to do this is by searching for an M.O. which is a dark mirror image of the Christ. To conduct this search properly grounded, let's start by defining the word "Christ", which is Greek for the Hebrew word "Messiah".

c.1300, Messias, from L.L. Messias, from Gk. Messias, from Aramaic meshiha and Heb. mashiah "anointed" (of the Lord), from mashah "anoint."

This fact should lead us to ask what sort of men received anointing in the Hebrew tradition. Those men were either kings (1 Sam 16:13), High Priests (Leviticus 4:16), or prophets (1 Kings 19:16). Revelation 19 describes Jesus emerging in the day of Judgment, revealed before the world in glory. In this account, the angel proclaims to John that "the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of Prophecy" (vs.10), and Jesus is called the "King of Kings"(vs 16). Also, most of the book of Hebrew deals with the way that Christ is the eternal High Priest. Hebrews also starts out by establishing that Jesus was anointed "above his fellows" directly by the Holy Spirit, and not by the customary oil. He uses many prophecies to elaborate his over-all point, including Psalm 45:7

"Thou loved righteousness, and hated wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows."

Consider how the church whole-heartedly embraced George W Bush during the presidential race and election after-math of 2000. Many popular preachers were telling their congregation that God appointed Bush to be the president. They cited a miracle where voter-fraud was responsible, setting the stage for the demonic deception and double-speak that was to follow. From before his inauguration, George W Bush was unlike any president before him, which is another fulfillment of Antichrist prophecy. The "image of the beast", by this new interpretation of prophecy can be seen very easily as the new Iraq, being recreated in the image of America. The "mark of the beast" can be seen as a fierce sense of patriotism inspired by Bush, either for or against him, but away from God regardless, it might also represent a microchip implant that has yet to be implemented, but will if/when Bush declares martial law. As far as causing all the world to worship the image, Bush's America has clearly threatened destruction to any nations that will not support our expanding empire or "American Interests".

Most every Christian who looks for the Antichrist in Revelation 13, is being led to the wrong beast. It would make sense, if Christ warned the last generation of great deception, that the true identity of the Antichrist would be distorted by doctrine, blinding and misguiding the church to look for an attacker to come from the world to offend and destroy the church. The truth is that the Antichrist was foretold instead to come from out of the church to offend and destroy the world, which means the established church will fully endorse him. Most people think of Antichrist as a charismatic, sensual, alluring man of obvious darkness who speaks with the flicker of a silver tongue. He has to be masterfully intelligent, because of course he will be planning to single-mindedly conquer and deceive the world, without any help from the dragon whose mouth he has, and the empire whose power he represents.

The greatest deception that we could be submitted to is a fantastic, fabled view of the world's greatest nemesis, distracting us from observing the true evil one's lies disguised as bumbling and destructive "faulty intelligence". Remember, it is a fool who dismisses a matter before considering it. Don't let the apparent foolishness of George W Bush continue to deceive you about the mark he is making on the world.