BABYLON THE GREAT (Part 9)
B — THE IMAGE OF THE WILD BEAST AND ITS NUMBER 666
“This is where it calls for wisdom: Let the one who has insight calculate the number of the wild beast, for it is a man’s number, and its number is 666 (Revelation 13:18)
On the basis of this biblical observation, we will take a special attention to the narrative of the seventh trumpet and the seventh bowl. The two plagues inform about the kingship of Christ, the persecution of the holy ones, the fall of Babylon the Great, the marriage of the lamb and the great tribulation. The seventh trumpet plague description has the particularity of repeating a prophetic event twice, in a different way (like the seven trumpets and the seven bowls). Take for example the circumstances of the heavenly enthronement of Christ in Revelation 12:1–6 and 12:7–12:
1 — The war in the heavens to expel Satan and demons in Revelation 12:1–4: The heavenly woman is crying out in pain before giving birth to the child (the kingdom of God), while the dragon stands before her, ready to devour it. The cries of pain of the heavenly woman correspond to the war to get rid of the presence of this heavenly dragon. This understanding is confirmed by the parallel account of Revelation 12: 7–9 (repetition). This biblical text directly describes the war in heaven to expel Satan and the demons around the earth before the birth of the child, the kingdom of God in heaven, through the heavenly enthronement of King Jesus Christ.
2 — The birth of the heavenly kingdom of Christ (Revelation 12:5): The woman gives birth to the child. After the victory over Satan and the demons, the heavenly enthronement of King Jesus is celebrated (Revelation 12:10 (repetition)).
3 — The protection of the celestial woman (Revelation 12:6 “1260 days” compare with (repetition) 12:14 “a time and times and half a time”).
4 — The persecution of the heavenly woman (Compare Revelation 12:13 and (repetition) 12:15).
5 — The persecution of “the remaining ones of her offspring”, the offspring of the heavenly woman (Compare Revelation 12:17 and the much longer and more detailed account of Revelation 13:1–15 (repetition)).
After this biblical observation, let us examine the part of the narrative of the seventh trumpet, which corresponds to the announcement of the fall of Babylon the Great and the marriage of the lamb, by comparing it with the account of the seventh bowl. However, this time we will first take attention to the description of the seventh bowl, because it is much longer and more precise, see more clearly understandable, regarding the chronology of events:
1 — The very detailed account of the circumstances which led to the fall and destruction of Babylon the Great: Revelation chapters 17, 18 and 19:1–3.
2 — The proclamation of the marriage of the lamb (Jesus Christ and the 144,000): Revelation 19: 6–10.
3 — The dramatic account of the great tribulation: Revelation 19: 11–21.
In the account of the seventh bowl, the chronology of events is not difficult to understand. In the parallel account of the seventh trumpet it is less obvious to perceive this same chronology, which exists biblically for two reasons. The first reason was explained above, there is a repetition of the prophetic statement. The second reason is the enigma of the number 666, which suddenly appears in the biblical text without knowing, in the beginning, what it corresponds to. The number 666 is the famous unknown in the prophetic equation. How to know which event this number 666 corresponds to? It is enough to apply the same succession of the three main events, mentioned above, taking into account the famous repetition of the declaration, to know which event corresponds to the number 666. The description of the seventh plague of the trumpet:
1 — The mention of the enigmatic number 666 (Revelation 13:16–18).
2 — The description of the King Jesus Christ and the 144,000 (The New Jerusalem), which corresponds with the marriage of the lamb (Compare Revelation 14:1–5 and 19 6–10).
In Revelation 14:6, there is what should correspond to the repetition of the proclamation of the fall of Babylon the Great, and the proclamation of the marriage of the lamb, expressed differently:
1 — The preaching of the Good News and the proclamation of the fall of Babylon the Great (Revelation 14:6–12).
2 — The mention of the reward of the holy ones who will participate or attend the marriage of the lamb (Compare Revelation 14:13 with Revelation 19:6–10).
And then there is the prophetic narrative of the great tribulation in Revelation 14:14–20 (compare with Revelation 19:11–21).
The biblical observation is: if we juxtapose the two repetitions of Revelation 13:16–18 at 14:1–5, and Revelation 14:6–13, we realize that the enigmatic number 666 corresponds to the parallel sequence of the declaration of the fall of Babylon the Great (Compare Revelation 13:16–18 and 14:6–12 (parallel sequence): proclamation of the fall of Babylon the Great; 14:1–5 and 14:13 (sequence parallel): allusion to the marriage of the lamb). Now, in the last part of this biblical examination, we will see the relation of the number 666, written in Revelation 13:16–18 and the resolution 666 UN, in order to know if the contemporary historical events, can correspond to the fall of Babylon the Great mentioned in the Bible. We will see at what chronological stage this corresponds to, regarding the signs which precede, the great tribulation (Matthew 24:29).
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