The Mark of the Beast

It is clear that the whole law of God, especially the Sabbath, is His seal by which He will select His people when He comes the second time. Yet there is another mark mentioned in Revelation by which the wicked are discerned. In fact, the bearers of this mark are under the most terrible judgment ever to befall human beings: "If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation." (Rev. 14:9-10) Only in this verse, out of all Scripture, do we see human beings receiving the wrath of God without mixture (or as other translations say, "without mercy.") Receiving this mark must be the supreme affront against God, because it brings the supreme punishment. What is this mark?

In order to learn about the mark, we must first understand the "beast" of which the prophecy speaks. This "beast" symbolizes the Roman Catholic Church. |0| Now that we know what the beast is, we can move on to examine what may be the "mark of the beast."

Remember that the seal of God is His Sabbath commandment. The Sabbath command holds the attributes of a seal and establishes His authority to rule His dominion. When we receive the seal of God, we acknowledge His right to rule our lives and enter into a covenant with Him. The seal of this covenant is an outward display of an inward reality. So, keeping the Sabbath demonstrates to the world that we have chosen the God who is Creator and Redeemer. With this in mind, let us examine what the Papacy (the beast) might use as its mark or seal.

First, the mark must establish the authority of the Papacy. Second, it must show the dominion of the Papacy. Finally, it must demonstrate an allegiance to the Papacy in all who have the mark. What aspect of the Papacy does all these things?

Remember that in Daniel, chapter 7, the "little horn" (which is the Papacy) "thinks to change times and laws." Let us examine specifically what times and laws fulfill this prophecy.

Certainly the laws spoken of here are not earthly laws, because it is nothing of special notice or importance when one earthly power changes the laws of another earthly power. There would be nothing worthy of prophetic notice in one power's change of another's laws. No, the times and laws spoken of here refer to times and laws that the little horn could only "think" to change. It could not be successful because these times and laws are really out of its reach. Has the Papacy "thought" to change times and laws?

The "little horn speaking great words against the Most High" has tried to change the supreme law of the Supreme Being. In old official Catholic Catechisms the second commandment was added to the first and the wording changed to avoid the injunction against making graven images. Then, to make up the lack created by this "nine commandment" law, the tenth commandment has been divided into two: forbidding the coveting of a neighbor's wife, and forbidding the coveting of a neighbor's property.

While the full wording of the second commandment is retained in the Roman Catholic Bible and in the new Roman Catechism authorized by the Council of Trent, painstaking explanation is made that in the case of images and likenesses of any kind, except that of God Himself, their making and use are not forbidden by the commandment when employed only to venerate the virtues of the saints and not to worship them as gods, which latter is expressly forbidden in the commandment. The same principle is applied also to ashes, bones, and other relics of saints, and to representations of angels.

As to the Fourth Commandment (the third in their representation), the catechism of highest authority in the Roman Catholic Church retains the commandment entirely, and urges absolute observance of the Sabbath in the personal life and in public worship as a sacred privilege and duty. However, the position that is taken is that the particular day to call the Sabbath has been changed. Reasons are given why the Sabbath should be observed on the first day of the week, commonly called "Sunday."

Notice the strained logic of this quotation: "It pleased the church of God, that the religious celebration of the Sabbath day should be transferred to the 'Lord's day' (meaning Sunday); for as on that day light first shone on the world; so by the resurrection of our Redeemer on that day, who opened to us the gate to life eternal, our life was recalled out of darkness into light; whence also the Apostles would have it named 'the Lord's day.' We also observe in the Sacred Scriptures that this day was held sacred because on that day the creation of the world commenced, and the Holy Ghost was given to the Apostles." (Catechism of the Council of Trent, p.347.)

In addition to falsely charging the Apostles with changing the day, this quotation assumes the right to change the symbolism of the Sabbath. God made the Sabbath a symbol of His creative and redemptive power. The Papacy here makes it a symbol of the light which God made on the first day and the light of the resurrection of Jesus Christ; neither are supported by Scripture! Indeed, the Papal logic here stands in direct conflict with God's logic as expressed in the very commandment that the Papacy claims remains sacred!

Protestants may not be aware that, when they use arguments about Sunday memorializing the first creation day, or the resurrection of Jesus, or the supposed change by the Apostles, they are in fact quoting Papal arguments from the earliest centuries of the Roman Catholic Church. We urge every Protestant to break fully from the Papacy and her arguments. Stand up for what your name means: a "protest"ant; one who protests against the Papal errors and lies.

Clearly the Papacy has tried to change both times (the time of the Sabbath) and laws (the Ten Commandments). It has been unsuccessful because the times and laws are in the Lord's hands, yet, the attempt has been made. Why? What did the Roman Church hope to gain by these efforts? Further quotations will absolutely show what the Papacy hoped to gain.

"The Jews observe Saturday. Nowhere in the Bible is it stated that worship should be changed from Saturday to Sunday." (Martin J. Scott, THINGS CATHOLICS ARE ASKED ABOUT, 1927, p. 236)

They admit this. Why?

"Protestantism, in discarding the authority of the (Catholic) Church, has no good reasons for its Sunday theory, and ought logically to keep Saturday as the Sabbath." (John G. Shey, "The Observance of Sunday and Civil Laws For Its Enforcement," THE AMERICAN CATHOLIC QUARTERLY REVIEW, Jan. 1883, p. 152)

First, note the title of Shey's article. Second, notice the first line, "in discarding the authority of the Church." This whole issue revolves around the concept of authority. As we have already noted, the Seal of God and the Mark of the Beast revolve around the issue of authority.

"We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday." (Peter Geiermann, THE CONVERT'S CATACHISM OF CATHOLIC DOCTRINE, 1957 edition, p. 50)

"It is well to remind the Presbyterians, Baptists, Methodists, and all other Christians, that the Bible does not support them anywhere in their observance of Sunday. Sunday is an institution of the Roman Catholic Church, and those who observe the day observe a commandment of the Catholic Church." (Priest Brady, in an address at Elizabeth, N.J. on March 17, 1903, reported in the Elizabeth, N.J. NEWS of March 18, 1903.)

Now we are seeing the real issue here. The "transference of solemnity" from Sabbath to Sunday is the act of a Church seeking POWER and AUTHORITY that is due to God alone. Those who keep Sunday holy are unwittingly paying homage to the Roman Catholic Church rather than to God. But why did the Papacy say first that the Apostles changed the day, then change their logic? Very simple: first the Papacy set up false arguments to justify the change (these are still parroted by Protestants today), then, in order to establish the authority of the Papacy, they changed over to their present stance which states that the Papacy was given such power by God. Of course, Protestantism will not admit that the Papacy ever did receive this power, yet, they inadvertently acknowledge the Papal claims of authority by keeping a solely Papal institution. It does not matter to the Papacy whether or not her subjects admit that they are slaves to her, just as long as they are indeed slaves to her.

Now, how does this all fit into the "mark of the beast?" As we have seen, the change in times and laws revolves around the issue of authority. Did the Papacy receive authority by God to change His law? Of course not! So, if the true law of God is His badge of authority, the changed law of God is the badge of Papal authority. Both contain seals of that authority. The Sabbath is the peculiar commandment that distinguishes the true followers of God from the followers of Satan in the last hours of earth's history. Those who keep the Sabbath do so as a "mark" or "seal" of the covenant they have made with God: that He is the supreme Ruler of their lives. Those that keep the false sabbath (Sunday) do so as a "mark" or "seal" of the covenant they have made with Satan: that they will disobey God, and that they will follow tradition, errors, and lies; because these are the only authority that Satan can muster. The attempt to gain authority is well demonstrated by the Papacy's efforts to perform an act allowable to God only. Only God may make or change universal laws. Since Satan has always desired to make himself "like the Most High," his counterfeit sabbath is the crowning "mark" of these efforts.

"Of course the Catholic Church claims that the change (of the Sabbath to Sunday) was her act. . . AND THE ACT IS A MARK of her ecclesiastical power." (Cardinal Gibbons, through H.F. Thomas, Nov. 11, 1895., emphasis supplied)

Now we can understand the warnings of Revelation 14. At the time of Christ's return there will be no "fence riders". Everyone will have made a decision as to whom their ruler will be. Even as you now read, you are making a decision about how seriously you will take these words. You are no longer ignorant. When that time comes, if you have decided to not receive the seal of God, you will have presented yourself as a rebel against God, worthy of nothing better than death. Then, you have nothing to look forward to except the terrifying judgments pronounced upon those who have chosen the mark of the beast.

Even now the Lord waits to make a covenant of salvation with you. He wants to be the supreme Lord of your life. He wants you to acknowledge that fact before the whole world so that He can proudly point to you and say, "There is my servant who would rather die than to sin against me. There is one who has overcome through faith in my Son Jesus and I'm going to bring my servant home."

Which mark are you going to take?