WHAT IS THE "TWO-HORNED BEAST" OF REVELATION 13:11?
Rev 13:11 -- 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.
What is this metaphor of a "two-horned beast" who had two horns like
a lamb, and spoke as a dragon referring to?
Let us go back to the middle ages in Europe for a minute. The Roman
Catholic church was dominant (supposedly "Christian"). They maintained
strict control over the minds of the people. Reading the Bible was
forbidden. They were supported by the God who rules the earth - the
dragon.
This church fought wars (e.g. crusades) and conquered other nations in
the name of their "god" - material wealth and political gain for some
with no regard for the welfare of others they crushed in the process.
God`s way is to "do unto others as you would they would do unto you"
as magnified in the 10 commandments.
This is John`s first "beast" which metaphorically represents the Roman
Empire and its system of government and laws which finally fell apart,
unlike God`s commandments which always work.
"Another beast" came forth, not from "out of the sea" as did the
first, but "out of the earth", which had soaked up the blood from
(gained from) the healed wound received by the first beast. The
peoples of the earth (the sea) established this form of society, as in
ancient Rome, where the rich minority reigned over and exploited the
poor majority to maintain itself.
After the European powers had discovered new lands filled with gold,
silver, precious herbs, spices and fertile uncharted territory, they
sent people to these new lands guarded by armies and navies. These
nations colonized these new lands with one purpose in mind: to exploit
the natural resources and tax the people living there.
Who else do we know of - a man by the name of King Solomon - who
invaded the countries around him and made them pay taxes to him
(tribute)? Extracting taxes unfairly through force gave him an income
of 666 talents of gold per year. This number "666" is the number of a
man - King Solomon of ancient Israel.
The kings of this earth, to support their lavish lifestyles, take
compulsory tribute:
Mt 17:25 He saith, Yes. And when he was come into the house, Jesus
prevented him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings
of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of
strangers?
God also takes freewill offerings of people, freely given, not under
force. God`s money is used to educate and benefit all, not to be
wasted on unnecessary opulence by the few.
Sad to say, to the Europeans, instead of improving the lot of the
native Americans, viewed them as expendable in their own quest for
riches and power.
The rich American land owners presented themselves as Christians full
of peace with love for all men while holding personal gain as their
chief objective. When other nations asked them for help, America was
not willing to risk going to war for nations who they did not believe
could survive. They did not help nations who they believed did not
intend to submit themselves to the laws and govermnemts of the United
States.
The other horn on the lamb was the American motherland - Great Britain
- from where they came and who spoke the same language. The U.S.
purchased lands and their wealth increased unlike any other nation
ever before it.
So while European nations fought among themselves for dominance in the
East, the "other beast" was establishing its "seat" securely in the
West.
The United States of America is Daniel`s "other horn which came up
with a mouth that spake very great things - which made war with the
saints and prevailed against them" (Dan. 7:19-21).
English law became the basis of American law and drew its power and
establishment from Roman Law. Roman Law would now be used to buttress
the arguments of the rich and powerful as they struggled to assert
their sovereignty and influence over the ignorant majority. To the
majority of people it seemed that as long as their fleshly meeds were
met they could support their pretended democracy.
This new "beast" (the USA) - John said, "exercised all the power of
the first beast before him" (Roman Empire). The beast, the USA, would
subsequently cause the whole earth to fall down and worship a set of
laws and precepts which are summarised by this "whatever needs to be
done to the earth, or to another, to fulfill the desires of the flesh
("the dragon") and promote self-worth, is good."
So the law of God to "do unto others as you would have them do to you"
is replaced by "don`t do to others if it would not give yourselves
more material wealth and more power".
At her gates is a woman with a crown with seven points (the statue of
liberty beckoning to the seven continents of the earth). She holds a
book in her left hand on which is written "July 4, 1776 - the day this
"other beast rose out of the earth with two horns like a lamb".
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