Rev 13:4– The phrase “who is like the beast?” is not chosen at random. For one thing, it is a mocking counterpart of the Old Testament phrase “who is like You?” (addressed to God– Exod 15:11; Psa 35:10; Mic 7:18) It is also related to the Jesus Christ counterfeit in this passage. The previous symbolic reference to Jesus Christ is the term "Michael" in Revelation 12:7. (See notes on that verse for a survey of the uses of “Michael” throughout the Bible.) In Hebrew, the name Michael means "Who is like God?" In using this language the people of earth in the story are seeing the beast from the sea as a Christ figure. The beast’s history involves a counterfeit of Jesus Christ and, therefore, the beast from the sea should be understood as the Antichrist, even though the term itself is not used in the book of Revelation.
Posted on: Thu, 12 Sep 2013 05:13:02 +0000