Understanding the Kingdom of GodSýnishorn

Who is Your King? The Beast or the Lamb?

When it comes to counterfeit products, no matter how much it looks like the real thing, it’s just not it! In our journey through the Bible, we have already established that Jesus is the true King of kings. He rules supreme. However, there are also impostors pretending to be the real thing. These impostors might appear powerful, but they are just pathetic counterfeits. This is what we find in the book of Revelation.

When reading Revelation, it is always important to understand that the book employs complex symbolism to communicate a theological message. Understanding the meaning behind these symbols requires us to dig deeper into Revelation’s literary and cultural context.

The Roman emperors saw themselves as the embodiment of the gods. They were often referred to as the “son of god” (or gods) and “high priest” (mediating the realm of the gods to the physical world). Roman coins of the time had images of the emperors with these blasphemous titles engraved. The emperor demanded that his citizens worship him. That is why images and statues of the emperors were found in pagan temples all over the empire.

In Revelation 13, there are two beasts. Now, much has been speculated about the interpretation of this chapter. However, the meaning starts to make more sense when we look at the context of emperor worship. The beasts in this chapter represent the imperial cult of the tyrannical Roman emperors. For example, the number “666” is an intricate codename for the emperor.

The emperors paraded themselves as the true image-bearers of God. But in reality, they were evil counterfeits. Instead of being ambassadors of God, they were under the dominion of the Dragon, or Satan (Revelation 12), whose reign was tyranny, perversion, greed, immorality, and injustice. Allegiance to Caesar, therefore, meant the endorsement of all evil.

In Revelation 14, we see the true Image of God, Jesus the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion. With Him are His followers (symbolically represented by the 144 000) who refuse to serve the Beast. They have the name of the Lamb and the Father on their foreheads. Their words and deeds proclaim the Lamb’s righteous ways: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23, ESV). For “in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless” (Revelation 14:5, ESV).

As modern Christians, we might not have a Roman emperor demanding our worship. However, we are constantly tempted to endorse the ethos of the Beast in our lives. It becomes a daily task for us not to bow down to an impostor. Therefore, choose who you will serve on this day: the Beast or the Lamb.