You need to read your last paragraph... Conditioning... It's really crazy. We've always just lived this way. But 100 years ago, not so. Some people think the Mark will be a 666 on tattoo on the right hand or forehead. The "right hand" also means "right side" in Greek. We need to see most of it as symbolic. What a man in a cave on Patmos saw. He wouldn't understand computers.Ken wrote: ↑Fri Oct 08, 2021 11:57 am Here is a question for the biblical scholars here who have studied these topics much more than I have.
How do you know for sure what portions of scripture are meant to be taken literally, and which are to be taken figuratively or as allegory? For example, we had recent threads here that involved detailed literal interpretation of every single word of Genesis from the two creation stories to events like Noah's flood. And there are many who take offense at the notion that Genesis may involve allegory rather than literal events.
Yet here we are at the other end of the Bible with Revelations and no one is taking this passage literally. Everyone here is looking for hidden meanings and allegory in this section of scripture. Why the difference and who decides which portion of scripture is allegory and which is literal? What does Revelations 13 actually say about the "beast?" It literally says...
I haven't seen any 7-headed sea monsters with 10 horns and leopard, lion, and bear parts, or any dragons. The whole planet is covered in cell phones with cameras. I'm not aware that anyone else as spied the beat yet anywhere else on the planet. So as far as I can tell, the beast it not yet among us and so any talk of 'the mark of the beast' seems premature as well. Based on the actual physical description in Revelations, it doesn't sound like we will be at all confused about it when the best is actually in our midst. It is going to be pretty hard to miss. And why vaccine cards? Why not driver's licenses which I need to cash a check these days or open a bank account? Or maybe social security cards. I need my social security number for certain financial transactions? And why the US-centric focus? This text was written somewhere in Asia Minor, perhaps in Ephesus. Maybe we should be looking for signs of the beast in Turkey and not North America?13 And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. 2 And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. 3 One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast. 4 And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?”
"He gave power to give life unto the image of the beast" sounds very much like a screen. The only way John could have described it.
Some of that symbology is pictured here https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/ ... es.svg.png they say it's one of the heads of the dragon. The head is a lion, body of a leopard, and feet of a bear. Red dragon. These such things.
But if you have to show something to buy and sell - especially in the marketplace, be warned. Don't do it.
1 Greek transliteration is "Having, possessing, or holding in the marketplace" dealing with the Mark.
So could it be that John on the island was watching a moving image on a phone (life unto the image), with people who would NEVER put the stinking things down (worship the image and call on the image in distress rather than God just Google it), and on the same thing showing a QR code "mark" in order to buy/sell?
It's actually extremely creepy and plausible in my opinion. If it's plausible I want nothing to do with it.
So many think it will be "so obvious". I don't think so. It's really a question if you are going to be with "the world system" or "trusting in God".
Remember by his sorceries (pharmakia which a shot is) he was able to "deceive the nations".
Our enemy is a liar. Don't expect it to be obvious. Expect to trust in God. Cling to God always.