2025/06/30

202. The Beast That Ascends from the Bottomless Pit Will Make War Upon Them and Conquer Them and Kill Them

The two witnesses appearing in Revelation 11 represent the Acts of the Apostles and the letters of Paul. When these two books have finished their testimony, "the beast that ascends from the bottomless pit will make war upon them and conquer them and kill them, and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which is allegorically called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified" (Rev 11:7-8). This is a prophecy that people will use the knowledge of the past, or the "bottomless pit," to interpret these two books, distort the truth they convey, and even interpret the teachings of the Lord's crucifixion with the knowledge of the past. Furthermore, it foretells a future in which, as a result, people on earth will pursue money and wealth, and power and authority will be bought and sold. This "beast" is a foreshadowing of the phenomenon that will occur when the beast "rising out of the sea" (13:1) and the beast that "rose out of the earth" (13:11) in Revelation 13 are intertwined in history. 

The phrase "rising out of the sea" reminds us of the Israelites, who crossed the Red Sea in the time of Moses. It is written, "One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth followed the beast with wonder" (Rev 13:3). The "mortal wound" refers to the fact, despite God's promise to David, regarding his son Solomon, "I will be his father, and he shall be my son" (2 Sam 7:14), Solomon turned away from God, failing this promise to be fulfilled (cf. 1 King 11:1-10). The Israelites failed to get the chance to become the one who was equal to God by establishing the relationship of father and son with God. Thus, a beast arose from their history, that is, a theology that likens the relationship between God and His people to marriage. Thanks to this illusion, the mortal wound was healed, and the people surrendered themselves to this theology. However, the wound remained. That is why the Jews, filled with intense jealousy toward Jesus, who called God his Father, all the more sought to kill him (cf. Jn 5:17-18). 

In his letter to the Philippians, Paul writes, "circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law a Pharisee, as to zeal a persecutor of the church, as to righteousness under the law blameless. But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ" (Phil 3:5-7). And he continues, "Indeed I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as refuse, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him " (3:8-9). In these words, we find a man who has regained the relationship between God and people as father and son, God and son (cf. Jn 1:12, Rom 8:14-17, Gal 4:6-7, and Rev 21:7). 

On the other hand, the beast that "rose out of the earth" refers to Greek philosophy, which pursued earthly matters. The "two horns" in the description: "[I]t had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon" (Rev 13:11), likely refer to the philosophies of Plato (427-347 BC) and Aristotle (384-322 BC), which had a significant influence on Christianity. In his letter to the Colossians, Paul writes, "See to it that no one makes a prey of you by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ" (Col 2:8). The following words give us an image of the Eucharist, which is the body of Christ: "For in him the whole fulness of deity dwells bodily, and you have come to fulness of life in him, who is the head of all rule and authority" (2:9-10). 

For Paul, who desired to "attain the resurrection from the dead" (Phil 3:11), there was nothing else to do but to "press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus" (3:14). However, he also encouraged people, saying, "If in anything you are otherwise minded, God will reveal that also to you" (3:15). Nevertheless, he hopes that everyone will move forward based on what he has achieved, and strongly urges them, "Brethren, join in imitating me" (3:17). That is because he says, "For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, live as enemies of the cross of Christ" (3:18). There are still believers who aim for self-realisation, making their belly their God, glorying in their shame, with minds set on earthly things, not knowing where they will end up (cf. 3:19). Despite being baptised, they are also those who have been marked with the name of "the beast" (cf. Rev 13:16). 

However, Paul was not afraid of them because he was convinced that Jesus Christ "will change our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power which enables him even to subject all things to himself" (Phil 3:21). At the beginning of the latter half of Revelation, "the power which enables him even to subject all things to himself" is revealed as follows: "And a great portent appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars" (Rev 12:1). Therefore, Paul strongly encourages us saying, "Therefore, my brethren, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved" (Phil 4:1). 

Maria K. M.