THE SEVEN HEADED BEAST OF REVELATION

[Pipiripi]

Who is the seven headed beast of Revelation 12, 13 and 17? What do the seven heads represent? What do the ten horns represent? On this page I will delve into the Bible and history to find out exactly who this beast is and what it represents.

Revelation 13:1, Revelation 17:3

Did you notice that the crowns are on the 'heads' in Revelation 12 and then move to the 'horns' in Revelation 13? I will discuss this later and find out what this means. But first, let us find out who this dragon of chapter 12 represents.

Can there be any doubt that these are the same beast power, but in different stages of it's history? It is represented as a 'dragon' in Revelation 12, and as Revelation 12:9 confirms, the dragon is "that old serpent, called the devil and Satan.", but does Satan wage war against God's kingdom directly himself? No, he uses the kingdoms of the world. Thus the dragon of Revelation 12 must also represent a kingdom. But I have also shown that Satan is the one ultimately behind it all.

WHO IS THE RED DRAGON OF REVELATION 12?

So as I have already stated, the dragon represents Satan. But because Satan uses kingdoms of this world to persecute God's people, then the dragon must also represent a kingdom. Now to understand which kingdom, we must find out the context of Revelation 12.

Revelation 12:1-5

It is clear to all that this 'man child' who was born of the woman, and whom Satan wanted to devour when He was born (Matthew 2:13-16) and then was caught up to God to sit at His throne (Ephesians 1:20; Hebrews 8:1), is none other than Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Also, as prophesied in Psalm 2:7-9 and Revelation 19:15, Christ was to 'rule the nations with a rod of iron.' So there can be no doubt about the identity of the 'man child'. It is none other than Jesus Christ. But what about the woman? Some believe the woman to be Mary, while others believe the woman to be the Jews. But there is a big problem with both those interpretations, which we will see.

The woman of Revelation 12 cannot be Mary for the following reasons. A woman in prophecy does not represent one person, but God's people as a whole. See Ezekiel 16:26-32, 2 Corinthians 11:2 and Isaiah 62:5 for more regarding this. Also, verses 13-16 of Revelation 12 tell us that this woman was persecuted for a 'time, times and half a time.', which equates to 3 and a half prophetic years, or 1260 years, using the day for a year prophetic principle. And this happened AFTER the cross, as verse 10 shows us. So was Mary persecuted for either 3 and a half years or 1260 years after the cross? No. There is no record of any such thing concerning Mary.

So what about the woman being the Jewish people? Well, what is the description of the woman of Revelation 12? She is 'clothed with the sun' and has the 'moon under her feet' and has a 'garland of 12 stars'. The moon represents the old Mosaic dispensation, which was a 'lesser light' of the 'sun' of the gospel of Christ. The moon shines only at night when we are unable to see fully, just like the Mosaic dispensation. But the sun shines during the day when we can see fully and is a clear representation of the gospel dispensation, which the 'sun of righteousness' being Christ Himself (Malachi 4:2). The 12 stars represent the 12 apotles whose names are on the 12 foundations of New Jerusalem, and also possibly the 12 tribes whose names are on the 12 gates of the city (Revelation 21:12-14). Now were the Jewish people 'clothed' with the sun of righteousness [Christ]? NO! They rejected the Prince of life, therefore they could never be pictured as being clothed with the sun. And neither is there any record of the Jews being persecuted for either 3 and a half years, or 1260 years.

The woman of Revelation 12 can be none other than the Christian Church. In other words she is God's true people. Now I hear some say .... No! That cannot be! Jesus was not born from the Christian church!". But what many don't realize is that God has always had a true church throughout history. Look at what Stephen said in Acts:




Acts 7:37-38

What was in the wilderness in the days of Moses? The CHURCH of God - His true people who live according to His will, and Jesus WAS brought forth as a man through a man through God's true 'church' [people]. The only 'woman' who is 'clothed with the sun' is God's true people. His true church.

So who is the dragon? Well, we have seen that this chapter spans from the time that Jesus was to become a man. The dragon sought to kill this man child [Christ] and then go on to persecute the church. So which kingdom did Satan use to try and kill Jesus as a child and then actually crucify Jesus and later persecuted the church? ROME! There can be no other kingdom whom this dragon represents. So Pagan Rome is the dragon of Revelation 12.

 

[shroom]

The woman of Revelation 12 can be none other than the Christian Church.

Rev 12:
2 And she [the woman] being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.
4 And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.
5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

So the Christian church was pregnant and gave birth to Jesus Christ?

No, Pip.

 

[Pipiripi]

Rev 12:
2 And she [the woman] being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.
4 And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.
5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

So the Christian church was pregnant and gave birth to Jesus Christ?

No, Pip.

Revelation and Daniel is full with symbolically language my friend.

Go learn again but search for yourself if you cannot understand what a symbol is.

When God called His church wife, are He calling only the woman or everybody His wife?

The 10 virgins, are they just 10 woman only waiting for the bridegroom (Jesus) or all those that are following Him exactly how He has teach us?

The woman riding on a beast, shall we see sooner a woman riding a beast and seduce the people of the world? Common Shroom wake up man!!

 

[Pipiripi]

SEVEN HEADS AND TEN HORNS

Now what about the 7 heads and 10 horns of the dragon? What do they represent? There are many people who believe the heads represent the various kingdoms that ruled the world before Rome, like Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo Persia, Greece, etc. Others believe the 7 heads to various leaders or even various popes, but all of these interpretations are wrong, and I will show you why. Remember where the crowns are on the dragon, as apposed to the crowns on the beast of Revelation 13? The crowns on the dragon are on the heads. The crowns on the heads mean that these heads are the ruling powers of the dragon - Pagan Rome. Now was Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, etc. ruling powers of the Roman Empire? No, these past nations had fallen long before and were no longer ruling. So the heads cannot represent any other nations in the past, as they are ruling heads of the Roman Empire.

Now please notice the following important rule regarding prophetic symbols of nations that God laid out:

A popular interpretation of the 7 heads today is that they represent Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome and (America or Papal Rome). The thought is that they represent the great nations of history which waged war against God's people. But there is a problem. God never introduces a new symbol in Bible prophecy to represent an old government which has had its day and passed away. The dragon is introduced in John's day. Which kingdom was ruling in that time? Pagan Rome. So why would God introduce a new symbol which includes old governments that have had their day? Let me give you examples from the book of Daniel, which Revelation ties in with strongly.

In Daniel 2 God gives a vision to Nebuchadnezzar of the great kingdoms that would rule the world right up to the end, and which kingdom does God start with? Babylon (the head of gold). Now why didn't God include Egypt and Assyria? Because Babylon was the current ruling nation and both Egypt and Assyria's time as ruling powers had passed, so God didn't include them. The same happens with the 4 beasts of Daniel 7. Babylon is still the ruling power and therefore God begins with Babylon, and this of course ties in with the image in Daniel 2. Then we turn to Daniel 8. Here we have the vision? Because this took place in the "third year of Belshazza" which was the last year of Babylon would reign, and Medo-Persia were "at the door" to take control. Thus God didn't include Babylon in the vision.

Do you see what God does here in Bible prophecy when dealing with nations? He doesn't include nations of the past. He only includes current nations and future nations. So when we jump to Revelation 12 and 13 regarding the 7 heads of the beast, the current ruling power was Pagan Rome. So God is not going to include nations of the past in that image. To include those nations of the past in the image is to go against the precedence that God laid out. So we are dealing with Pagan Rome and going forward from Pagan Rome.

"The head of a kingdom is its king or government. The seven heads, of the dragon naturally denote, therefore, the seven heads, or governments, which at different times have ruled over Rome; to with, kings, consuls, decemvirs, dictators, and popes. The ten horns represent the ten kingdoms which arose from the division of Rome ... The crowns being placed on the heads and not on the horns, shows that the kingdom had not yet been divided" (J.G. Matteson, Review and Herald, Vol. 64, No. 22, May 31, 1887)

The seven forms of government that have existed in the Roman Empire are usually enumerated as follows: (1) kingly; (2) consular; (3) decemvirate; (4) dictatorial; (5) triumvirate; (6) imperial; and (7) papal." (Uriah Smith, Daniel and the Revelation, 1897, p. 660)

So the seven heads of the dragon must denote the various forms of government that ruled the Roman Empire, as shown above. And the fact that the 'head' that was mortally wounded in Revelation 13:13 is the Papacy (which I will show further down), proves again that the 7 heads are not other kingdoms of the past, or even popes, but the ruling governments of the Roman Empire.

So what about the 10 horns? Revelation 17:12 tells us that they are 'ten kings'. Kings can also be interpreted in prophecy as 'kingdoms'. Now if we take a look at the fourth beast of Daniel 7,which again is the Roman Empire, we also see 10 horns coming up out of that beast, and Daniel 7:24 says that the ten horns are 'ten kings that shall arise.' So these 10 horns naturally must denote the 10 kingdoms that the Roman Empire originally split into when it fell. Which matches also the prophecy in Daniel 2 of Nebuchadnezzar's image with the 10 toes.

So it is clear that the 7 heads represent the 7 forms of government of the Roman Empire. And the 10 horns are the original 10 kingdoms of Europe that the Roman Empire split into.

 

[shroom]

Revelation and Daniel is full with symbolically language my friend.

Go learn again but search for yourself if you cannot understand what a symbol is.

When God called His church wife, are He calling only the woman or everybody His wife?

The 10 virgins, are they just 10 woman only waiting for the bridegroom (Jesus) or all those that are following Him exactly how He has teach us?

The woman riding on a beast, shall we see sooner a woman riding a beast and seduce the people of the world? Common Shroom wake up man!!

I know what symbolic language is.

You claimed “The woman of Revelation 12 can be none other than the Christian Church.”

The Christian church did not give birth to Jesus Christ. I believe the woman, symbolically, is Israel.

 

[Comingfrom]

Thank you for that. I was reminded of this passage in Psalms while I was reading your post.
Not sure how it fits with your interpretation, but I suspect it could be connected somehow.

And there appeared another wonder in heaven;
and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.
And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth:
and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.
...
And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle,
that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished
for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.
Revelation 12:3-4 & 14

Thou didst divide the sea by Thy strength:
Thou brakest the heads of the dragons in the waters.
Thou brakest the heads of leviathan in pieces, and gavest Him to be meat to the people inhabiting the wilderness.
Psalm 74:13-14

 

[Mr G Lee]

Seven is used to represent complete or perfect ten to represent a unknow concealed ten in multiples 10 . 100 1000 1,000,000

A picture of the legion, the serpent, Lucifer Satan coming on the last day under the Sun

 

[Pipiripi]

I know what symbolic language is.

You claimed “The woman of Revelation 12 can be none other than the Christian Church.”

The Christian church did not give birth to Jesus Christ. I believe the woman, symbolically, is Israel.

Okay now we can talk. You think that the woman represents Israel. But do you have read that Israel has rejected Jesus Christ? How can it be pure, but rejected the 'baby man'?

 

[Pipiripi]

Thank you for that. I was reminded of this passage in Psalms while I was reading your post.
Not sure how it fits with your interpretation, but I suspect it could be connected somehow.

And there appeared another wonder in heaven;
and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.
And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth:
and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.
...
And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle,
that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished
for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.
Revelation 12:3-4 & 14

Thou didst divide the sea by Thy strength:
Thou brakest the heads of the dragons in the waters.
Thou brakest the heads of leviathan in pieces, and gavest Him to be meat to the people inhabiting the wilderness.
Psalm 74:13-14

Thank God that you are open to search what the Bible teaches, not man. Keep digging in the Bible and you will find great richest!!

 

[Comingfrom]

I know what symbolic language is.

You claimed “The woman of Revelation 12 can be none other than the Christian Church.”

The Christian church did not give birth to Jesus Christ. I believe the woman, symbolically, is Israel.

Or maybe, 'the woman' in Rev 12 is the same 'the woman' as in Gen 3.
Just something to consider.

And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman,
that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
Revelation 12:15

And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done?
And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
Genesis 3:13

 

[Comingfrom]

Seven is used to represent complete or perfect ten to represent a unknow concealed ten in multiples 10 . 100 1000 1,000,000

A picture of the legion, the serpent, Lucifer Satan coming on the last day under the Sun

I like your numerology.
But what is this picture? and how did you arrive at that?

Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life;
and I will raise him up at the last day.
Jon 6:54

And this is the Father's will which hath sent Me,
that of all which He hath given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.
John 6:40

 

[shroom]

Or maybe, 'the woman' in Rev 12 is the same 'the woman' as in Gen 3.
Just something to consider.

No it isn't.

And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman,
that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
Revelation 12:15

And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done?
And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
Genesis 3:13

?????

I usually do not respond to you and this is an example of the reason why. You make no sense.