Who is the Beast of Revelations 13?
 
 
 
 
 

Here is wisdom. He that has understanding

let him count the number of the beast;

for it is the number of a man;

and his number is six hundred sixty six.

Introduction

Few topics have generated as much speculation as this enigmatic topic. Perhaps NO other topic has been the subject of such extensive speculation. Why is there such mystery surrounding this passage? Why is there so much speculation? Why are there so many differing opinions? I have studied this subject in great detail for more than fifteen years and have encountered many differing opinions as to the identity of this "beast" of prophecy.

There is in fact such widespread speculation and dis-agreement that usually anyone who attempts to discuss the topic is almost immediately relegated to the category of delusional fanatic. This prophecy has been almost entirely reduced to nothing more than fodder for Hollywood film productions, vis., The Omen, The Prophecy, The Omega Code, etc.

Usually when someone attempts a discussion about the number "666", the groans are immediate:

"Oh brother!"

"You know who it is too?"

"Well, I've gotta go now."

"I'd rather not discuss it."

"Well, everyone has their own opinion, I like mine just fine."

Most people either have decided they do know who it is, and do not wish to be proven wrong or they have decided that no one knows who it is. Often, those who have decided that no-one knows will go even further as to deride any discussion of the topic as the domain of madmen or futility or both.

Even among those who have decided they know who this "Beast" is, there is great controversy. Again, why is there such widespread dis-agreement? Why should there be such differing of opinions? Perhaps that is exactly the problem: it is a difference of opinions.

It will be the objective of this article to provide a definitive and authoritative answer to this mystery. I will proceed not by making subjective conclusions, but by using irrefutable proofs. I will proceed from fact to fact, in an investigative manner, directly supporting each conclusion as it is made.

All the world wondered after the beast

With this point, the reader should be cautioned that in exposing who this is, the reader himself is likely included in the subject "all the world". I know I was astonished at finding out who it is. I was even more astonished when I found it to be true. When you have finished this article, you will not need to take my word for anything. You can prove it all yourself. Although I'm sure that what you will find will be something much less exciting and dramatic than what has been popularized by the media.

Folly through the Ages

If we look closely at all the various suggested candidates we will notice only one major commonality. The majority of the candidates suggested through time, share only one simple aspect of the prophecy, namely "The Number." This is the ONLY commonality they share.

Only a very few of these speculations begin by taking a scriptural approach towards defining the beast. Almost all of them take the approach of establishing some connection of the ominous number to their target, and usually stopping right there, with no further information or evidence. Imagine that! Some go a bit further and explain why their particular candidate is the real beast by making some vague connection with Revelations 13, which is invariably mere circumstantial evidence!

Only a very few of these go into great detail in explaining how their candidate fulfills the prophecy. The most detailed of these that I have seen are the ones concerning the Papacy and also the European Common Market. Yet even in these most detailed explanations, the connections are still nothing more than vague, circumstantial and immaterial connections to the prophecy. Never is there any truly relevant connection to the scripture.

If this were a courtroom, not a single one of these so-called interpretations would bring about a conviction. In fact, 95% of these would not even merit a case. Although it is irrelevant, I want you to keep in mind, that if this were a courtroom, the information I present here would be enough evidence for a conviction. That is, I will prove my point beyond a reasonable doubt. I would like the reader to maintain the objectivity of a material presentation. I am not presenting vague circumstantial or subjective or interpreted theories, but hard facts and easily verifiable information.

I am currently in the process of compiling a list of candidates that I have seen suggested as being the fulfillment of this prophecy. So far I have found an astounding number of potential "Beasts". I remember quite a while back I saw a list of "666 Beasts" and there were something like 134 candidates, all of whom could be shown to have the number in one way or another. So far I have enumerated nearly 50 specific possibilities which have been suggested by various people. Please see appendix "A" for this list.

There are so many competing theories, it is no wonder the average reader dismisses the topic entirely; especially when the majority of those claiming to know the mystery are incoherent or incomprehensible. Furthermore it is usually presented in an inconsistent and inflammatory manner; rather than as qualified, authoritative and objective research, as befits this and all scriptural study.

To get an idea of how many theories are out there, I looked up this topic on the Internet. One search on AltaVista for "666" AND "Beast" AND "List" produced 1,945,730 Matches ! - Almost two million? Another search on "666" by itself resulted in nearly 500,000 matches!

Is it the European Common Market?

Is it the Roman Catholic Church? Or the Pope?

Dr. Klaus Wagner claims it is the Queen of England.

http://www.aloha.net/~mikesch/666.htm  has VERY convincing evidence that it is the pope.

The Bank of America branch in Big Bear Lake, Ca is branch number 666.

What about Hitler? Bill Gates? Ronald Reagan?

click here! Perhaps YOU are the beast!

Remember: This is not prophetical interpretation, it is speculation in its purest form. Speculation is tantamount to divination, which is in fact witchcraft. At the very least, it contributes to confusion on the topic, and contributes to the public perception that all studies of this nature are nothing more than the rantings of madmen. click here for an example of the extent of these rantings.

In ALL these cases, the approach comes exclusively from establishing any connection with the number 666. ANY type of connection at all will do, apparently.

There are no rules that I have seen defined or followed or agreed upon. BY FAR the most popular method is by using any one of countless mathematical operations. In other words, these are using numerology to interpret scriptural prophecy. I hope the reader is aware of what the Father has to say about using divination instead of the Word of Truth to interpret prophecy.

After counting the various methods used to associate a number with a name, I have determined that there is no end to the possibilities. If we use enough mathematical operations, then there is NO name that cannot be shown to have the number. The only requirement is the ingenuity of the person doing the calculation. If the numerologist is diligent, he can attach ANY number to ANY name. I am currently engaged in creating a software program to prove precisely this point.

At first, the question may occur to the reader, "Then how can we even begin?" If you continue to read, I will show you that there is indeed a specific method whereby certain persons were associated with a number. However, I will also demonstrate that the association with the number is the LAST thing that is needed to establish who it is. Let me say that again: The association with the number is the last, and the least significant method of identifying the beast. It is not even needed to prove the point, and is offered only as a final supporting reference. Most certainly it is the least relevant point. After I have demonstrated the scriptural answer, and proven the identity of the beast, and shown that it is entirely unnecessary, then I will reveal the mystery of the number

Going even further than that, the association between the number, as expounded upon later in this article is NOT ARRIVED AT BY ANY MATHEMATICAL OPERATION, OR CONVERSION OF LETTERS TO NUMBERS, BUT BY THE WELL ESTABLISHED AND DOCUMENTED SCRIPTURAL METHOD. THE SACRED SCRIPTURES STATE EXPLICITLY WHAT THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN A MAN AND A NUMBER IS, AND IT IS NOT A MATHEMATICAL EQUATION, MOREOVER, THE SCRIPTURES STATE EXPLICITLY WHO HAS THE NUMBER SIX-SIXTY-SIX.

Remove your obstacles

It is of the utmost importance that the reader is clear and objective. The following chapter is necessary because of the many obstacles, or stumbling-blocks, that have been created. I want to make sure the reader is clear, alert and objective. To that end I have written the following section on "Remove Your Obstacles," which is essentially my expounding on the FIRST prerequisite of all End-Time prophecy:

Take heed that no man lead you astray. Matthew 24:24

And Yahshua answered and said to them, Take heed that no man leads you astray. 5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am the Messiah; and shall lead many astray. Mt 24:4,5

And Yahshua began to say to them, Take heed that no man lead you astray. Many shall come in my name, saying, I am he; and shall lead many astray. Mark 13:5,6

And he said, Take heed that you be not led astray: For many shall come in my name, saying, I am I he; and, The time is at hand: do not go after them. Luke 21:8

Let no man beguile you in any wise: for except the falling away come first, and the man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition, 4 He that opposes and exalts himself against all that is called Elohim or that is worshiped; so that the sits in the temple of Elohim, setting himself forth as Elohim. II Thessalonians 2:3,4

Beloved, believe not every spirit, but prove the spirits, whether they are of Yahweh; because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 1 John 4:1

Remember that Satan is known as the deceiver of the whole Earth. Likely this includes yourself. Is there not a great tendency to exclude oneself from the group of the deceived? Of course! We always automatically assume we are not deceived. But we cannot continue our discussion without acknowledging this: He is the deceiver of the whole world.

9 … he that is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole wold;
Revelations 12:9

13 And he does great signs, that he should even make fire to come down out of heaven upon the earth in the sight of men. 14 And he deceives them that dwell on the earth by reason of the signs, which it was given him to do in the sight of the beast.
Rev. 13:13-14

23 … for with your sorcery were all the nations deceived.
Rev. 18:23

A brief study of "the world" will show that there are many, many more references to this.
 

Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. II Cor 11:14

All the world wondered after the beast; … Rev 13:3

Behold, you are wiser than Daniel; … Ezekial 28:3

… all power and signs and wonders of falsehood, II Thess 2:9

How can you or anyone not be caught off-guard? We must confront this issue squarely. We must read exactly what is written and consider carefully. We must verify that we are accurate in our information. We have been warned numerous times about about this. We absolutely must be clear and objective in our research.

We will begin removing these obstacles by identifying them first.

As concerning this prophecy, people almost invariable fall into one of these two classes:

1) Already know who it is (Speculative)

2) Already decided NOBODY knows who it is. (Defeatist)

Please take the time to establish which category you are in and then take a few moments and see if you will be able to place yourself in the third category:

3) Believe there is an absolute answer, just haven't seen anyone prove it from scripture instead of their own opinion. (Neutral and Objective)

If the reader is able to absolve himself of any preconceived notion, this study can be a profitable one. The primary obstacles here are Romanticism, The inability to free oneself of preconceived notions, and the most insidious. Of all: "Everyone has their own opinion."
 

Romanticism

It is compelling to put ourselves in the first category: To have the wisdom and understanding to know the number of the beast. This allows us to "be a prophet", to "know the secret" to be a part of something larger than you and I. To have the wisdom and understanding of the number of the beast means that the scripture speaks to us directly, personally.

Those who speculate on the topic are subject to romanticizing the issue and generally also have the problem of not relinquishing a cherished idea. When one decides they "know the answer" then he or she has made himself or herself "special" or "gifted" because it has been "revealed" to them.

There are many romantic ideas of "world domination" and a great man rising to world power and demanding the compliance of all on earth; cataclysmic, earth-shattering events, tribulation, plagues, trumpets. The various end-time scenarios propounded by every street-corner prophet are earth shattering, apocalyptic, grand fulfillments indeed: Nuclear holocaust, Cataclysmic Asteroid/Earth collisions; destruction on a truly cosmic scale.

It is understandable why so many seek comfort by becoming one of the "few who know the secrets of the coming apocalypse, and will therefore be spared." Unfortunately this leads us to problem #2: Preconceived notions
 

Preconceived notions

Nothing is more difficult to overcome than someone's preconceived notions. It is a great shortcoming of almost all humans that error is viewed as a threat to ones personal security. If we admit we are wrong, then we have revealed a weakness. Such a sad state of affairs! How can we move forward? How can we learn? How can we become more enlightened?

Do we know everything? No! Certainly not! We invariable admit (immediately) that indeed we do not. Yet how often do we admit we are mistaken? On one point? On any point? Rare indeed. Can you see this paradox? We readily admit we do not know everything, yet only as a last resort do we admit fault and error!

How can this be? We CANNOT learn anything without admitting we DON'T know something, and thus we have the difficulty of learning new things. We believe we cannot learn something new without revealing a weakness. We view the instructor as being greater somehow, as having some advantage over us somehow, because the instructor knows something we don't. This is an unacceptable attitude. We must realize that life is an ongoing learning process. We must change our attitude about error and fault. Finding error in our reasoning is a blessing, because as soon as we see it, we can remove it and come to a greater understanding. Finding fault with ourselves is a blessing, because unless we admit a fault, we can never overcome it. Although admittedly this may be a painful process.

Another obstacle is the fear of being wrong because we do not want to believe that we are misled, especially about something so important. What does that say of our stewardship? We may believe that this threatens our "personal relationship" with our creator, but we could not be more mistaken. To turn away from instruction because we fear we may be wrong? Or because we feel like it is wrong? If we do that, then we are indeed letting our flesh have its way above our spirit. Even though we may claim that we are "following the spirit," We have already illustrated this danger. We cannot just follow any spirit or feeling or person or prophet. The chosen ones follow the truth wherever it leads:
 

I am the way, the truth and the life … John 14:6

… These are they who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. Rev 14:4

This shows our love of the truth and willingness to follow truth wherever it may lead. The fate of those who do not love truth is to perish.

 
And with all deceit of unrighteousness for them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. II Thess. 2:10

If you have a preconceived idea of the interpretation of this prophecy, please allow that in all likelihood, you are mistaken. If this makes you uncomfortable, I understand how you feel, but do not let your feelings close your mind to instruction. If you need to take a moment, then do so. Adjust while you consider Matthew 19:16-26, (esp. 20-22)

 
20 The young man says to him, All these things have I observed: what do I yet lack? 21 Yahshua said to him, If you would be perfect, go, sell that which you have, and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me. 22 But when the young man heard the saying, he went away sorrowful; for he was one that had great possessions.

It is not easy to give up something cherished, even when it is in exchange for something yet greater. Therefore, though it may be difficult, it is only with humility that we can receive instruction.

In this study I will indeed bring you to a greater truth, but only at the cost of any possessions (knowledge) you have regarding the prophecy of Revelations 13. I am asking you now to abandon any inkling you have of what or who this "beast" might be.
 

Everyone has their own opinion

There is no denying the fact that by far the most popular position today is "Everyone has their own opinion." As long as we cling to this, we allow ourselves to speculate endlessly on this and all prophecy, without responsibility or qualification.

By taking the position that "Everyone has their own opinion" one immediately removes any possibility of anyone else having an authoritative answer.

If we take this route, then we have reduced all prophecy and indeed the entire Bible to our own personal religion, forever subject to our own personal interpretation, since nobody else knows anything more than anyone else. Ask yourself this question: Can there be anything else that is more exclusive or elitist? Is the Bible written to you exclusively? Would not that be height of arrogance? Did the Messiah Yahshua die for you and you alone? Did he die for your truth or his?

So long as "Everyone has their own opinion" then no-one else knows anything more than anyone else. Ask yourself this: Can the entire world have differing opinions and all of them be correct? Is there one truth or many? Do we have instructors or not?

Has Almighty Yahweh sent Teachers or not?

Has Almighty Yahweh sent Prophets or not?

Has Almighty Yahweh sent his own Son to instruct or not?

How many different truths are there? If there is a different truth for everyone, then we would need six billion bibles, six billion Messiah's, and six billion second comings. We would also need six billion separate heavens, because everyone is living in thier own personal one. Did the Messiah teach a different truth to each individual?

EVERYONE CANNOT HAVE A DIFFERENT TRUTH AND ALL OF THEM BE CORRECT. THERE IS ONLY ONE TRUTH.

Perhaps we should consider whether we are able to arrive at an objective conclusion at all. If we are unable to reach an objective conclusion, then scriptural study becomes nothing more than speculation. If we are to say that the Bible means something different to everyone that reads it, then there is no difference between the Bible and astrology or any of the myriad pantheistic religions of the world. We would very well be better off writing our own bibles or formulating our own religion. In fact, if we have this opinion we already have created our own religion. This is the very epitome of paganism.

If we are using the Hebrew scriptures as a basis of our faith, then we must follow it as it describes itself and NOT as we define it in OUR own terms. To do otherwise is the very same as claiming we ourselves can create our own salvation. If you cannot write your own Bible and guarantee your own salvation, then I suggest you take what is written by Yahweh and DON'T change it to suit yourself.
 
 

Worshipped As Most High

Let us begin looking at this prophecy in depth. The prophecy of the "Anti-Chr-st" (sic) is often erroneously assumed to originate in Revelations chapter 13, however there are numerous references to this prophecy throughout the Old Testament. We have already looked at some of them. Refer back to pages 6 and 7.

The reader should be aware, the book of Revelations is largely comprised of quotes and allusions to Old Testament passages. Of the 403 verses in the book of Revelations, more than 300 are either direct quotes or allusions to other passages elsewhere in the O.T.

If one is to interpret Revelations, then the FIRST prerequisite would be familiarity with the quoted material. If it were not relevant, the author would not be quoting it. The prophet has gone to great lengths to indicate the importance of the O.T. scriptures by his continually referring to them.

Let us continue by reading more of these other scriptures on the prophecy. As we collect these references, we immediately see there is a definitive description of the entity we are looking for.

According to these prophecies, the beast would assume the position of the most high. He would sit in the temple, proclaiming himself as the most high.

 
II Thess. 2:4 He that opposes and exalts himself against all that is called Elohim or that is worshiped; so that he sits in the temple of Elohim, setting himself forth as Elohim.

Daniel 11:36 And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every El, and shall speak marvelous things against the El of Elohim; and he shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished; for that which is determined shall be done.

Rev 13:3 ...and the whole earth wondered after the beast; 4) and they worshipped the dragon, because he gave his authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, Who is like the beast? And who is able to war with him?

Isaiah 14:13 And you said in your heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of El; and I will sit upon the mount of congregation, in the utmost parts of the north; 14) I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High

Ezekiel 28:2 Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre, In this manner says the Sovereign Yahweh. Because your heart is lifted up, and you have said, I am El, I sit in the seat of Elohim, in the middle of the seas; yet you are man, and not El, though you did set your heart as the heart of Elohim;

Daniel 8:9 And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which became very great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the glorious land 10) And it became great, even to the host of heaven; and some of the host and of the stars it cast down to the ground, and trampled upon them. 11)yes, it magnified itself, even to the prince of the host; and it took away from him the continual burnt-offering, and the place of his sanctuary was cast down. . 12) And the host was given over to it together with the continual burnt-offering through transgression; and it cast down truth to the ground, and it did its pleasure and prospered.

Rev 13:8 And all that dwell on the earth shall worship him,every one whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb that has been killed. [see Malachi 3:16]

Now then, it should be abundantly clear that the beast will indeed be found in the temple of Elohim, claiming to be Elohim, and being worshipped as such. Exactly as II Thess. Chapter two prophesies. Many candidates have been suggested to be the beast: Ronald Reagan, Bill Gates, the UPC barcode, etc., however, NONE of these even remotely fulfill the first identifier: Worshipped as Almighty. Nobody prays to Caeser or computers or Barney.

Over and over again, the beast is described as one who usurps the power and authority of Almighty Yahweh. In fact, if we are able to identify someone who fulfills the above description, this one must undeniably be the beast REGARDLESS of what his number is. Because he is almost always described in this way it is his most defining characteristic. No one else is described in these terms, and the beast is almost always described in these terms.

There is only a single scriptural reference with his number used as an identifier, Rev. 13:8. Here I have shown seven independent descriptions characterized by this usurping of power. This is the definitive description. Therefore we will proceed using this as a direction. If there were a more definitive description, we would use that as our search criteria. As it stands, there is not a more defining characteristic that we can use.

"The Beast of Revelations" is the one who sits in the temple and takes the place of Yahweh. In all these prophecies, when he is mentioned, it is made clear that he is taking the position of Yahweh. All prophecy that concerns the beast, talks about this specific event. No other person or being is mentioned as taking this position. Only the beast. aka Lucifer, The Morning Star, etc.

The next step then, would be to go to the temple and see who is there. Of course, we would then have to qualify this individual by showing that, as a man, his number is 666. - and not by any numerological operation. Even further than that, the scriptures themselves must state that this man's number is 666. Remember, if we can do exactly this, then we will have precluded the error of using our own preconceived idea of who it might be and we will have identified him absolutely and incontestably. Agreed?

The qualification that he must be sitting in the temple will eliminate 99% of the false beasts that have been proposed over the years. Bill Gates is NOT worshipped as the most high. Nobody that I know of prays in the name of Caesar Nero. There are no temples of Barney the Cute Purple Dinosaur - although I think there is a "jihad" against him. Nobody worships UPC barcodes, and nobody has them tattooed on their head, invisible or otherwise.

If we are to conduct a logical, foolproof approach, our criteria, as according to the scriptural references above, will be as follows:

• Find the temple

• See who is there

• Observe that the present occupant is not the correct one.

• Observe that he proclaims himself as the most high,

• Observe the he is actually worshipped by Israel as the Most High

• His number is 666

• All verified by scripture

• All verified in fact

The Temple

Now that we have identified that the person we find taking the place of Yahweh in the temple is the one we are looking for, the next step is to find the temple. Once we find the temple, if the current occupant is the incorrect one, then that person must be the beast we are looking for. Otherwise, we would have an armload of scriptural references to throw out the window, or start constructing arguments about why they don't really mean what they say, etc. etc. etc.

It is important to note that the temple Solomon built is always referred to as "The dwelling place of the Name." Referring to Appendix B we find it is referred to as "the dwelling place of the Name" 28 times! The terms "Holy Place", "Temple", and "dwelling place of the Name" are used interchangeably. Read about the building of the temple in I Kings Chapter 8. Not once is it referred to as the place where the Father himself dwells.

As Yahweh himself has stated:
 

Heaven is my throne and the Earth is my footstool, what manner of house will you build to me? Isaiah 66:1

Indeed. Do we presume that we can build a home for Yahweh? Not likely. Solomon was allowed to build a house for him, but remember that the house was not built for Yahweh himself to dwell in. It was built for his name to dwell there. What was placed in the temple, in the Holy of Holies, the Most Holy Place, was the Ark of the Covenant. Inside the Ark were the tables of stone, the commandments Moses brought down from the Mount Horeb.
 

And you shall put into the ark the testimony which I shall give you.
Exodus 25:16, 21.

There was nothing in the ark save the two tables which Moses put there at Horeb, when Yahweh made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of Egypt. 2 Chronicles 5:10

These two references demonstrate conclusively that the tables of stone, the law Moses received at Horeb, is the testimony of Yahweh, and that is all that is within the ark of the covenant. This is the dwelling place of the name, in the temple, in the most holy place.

The book of Yahweh, his word and covenant is kept in the temple. This is where he has chosen to record his name.
 

24 And it came to pass, when Moses had made an end of writing the words of this law in a book, until they were finished, 25 that Moses commanded the Levites, that bore the ark of the covenant of Yahweh, saying, 26 Take this book of the law, and put it by the side of the ark of the covenant of Yahweh your Elohim, that it may be there for a witness against you.

14 And when they brought out the money that was brought into the house of Yahweh, Hilkiah the priest found the book of the law of Yahweh given by Moses. 15 And Hilkiah answered and said to Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of Yahweh. And Hilkiah delivered the book to Shaphan.

29… and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant that was found in the house of Yahweh

II Chr. 34:14,15, 29

The concept of the importance of the Holy Name is a large study in itself. It is most essential to be familiar with these concepts before proceeding. There is little else in scripture that is more important. I have compiled a list of every scripture that contains the term 'the name' and found that there are more than 500 instances where the name is described as being 'one specific' name. Please refer to "The Memorial Name" by Jacob O. Meyer, Assemblies of Yahweh, as well as memorial.htm for a more thorough discussion of this critical topic, as well as the specific references I have just mentioned.

Now then, there are only a few places that would qualify as "The dwelling place of the name."

I. The Book of scriptures

 
Exodus 20:2-17 speaks to us directly from within the Ark of the Covenant. Notice the very first statement:

2 I am Yahweh your Elohim, who has brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

3 You shall have no other elohim before me.

4 You shall not make for yourself a graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: 5 You shall not bow down yourself to them, or serve them; for I Yahweh your Elohim am a jealous El, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, 6 And showing mercy to thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

7 You shall not take the name of Yahweh your Elohim in vain; for Yahweh will not leave unpunished the man who misuses his name.

Notice that the entire first half of the commandments deal exclusively with the identity and position Yahweh. There are the repeating instructions that we revere him and his name. He begins by stating his name, and then warns against idolatry. He again warns against idolatry and warns of its consequences and offers mercy to those that take heed. He finishes this half of the commandments with an even more stern warning against misusing his name. Compare this with what we learned on pages 6 and 12. We are warned about being deceived of a false elohim that assumes the place of the name.

There follows a summary at the end of the commandments:

In all places where I record my name I will come unto you and bless you. Exodus 20:24

The temple was built for the express purpose of providing a place for the name to dwell and what was actually physically placed there is the tablets of stone, and the Book of the Covenant, The Bible. This should prove conclusively that the Bible itself is in fact a holy place, because he has chosen to record his name there.

II. Assembly of Worshippers,
 

 1 Cor 3:17 Do you not know that you are a temple of Yahweh, and that the spirit of Yahweh dwells in you? 17) If any man destroys the temple of Yahweh, Yahweh shall destroy him; for the temple of Yahweh is holy, and you are such.

5 you also, as living stones, are built up a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to Yahweh through Yahshua the Messiah 1 Peter 2:5

17 If any man destroys the temple of Yahweh, Yahweh shall destroy him; for the temple of Yahweh is holy, and you are such.

1 Cor 3:17

… 6 but the Messiah as a son, over his house; whose house we are, if we hold fast our boldness and the glorying of our hope firm to the end. Hebrews 3:6

31 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be closely joined to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh. 32 This mystery is great: but I speak in regard of the Messiah and of the assembly. Ephesians 5:31,32

It is obvious that the assembly of worshippers is indeed counted as the temple, the dwelling place of the name.
 
 

III. The physical temple that Solomon built; the building itself.

This temple has been destroyed for thousands of years. Nobody sits in this temple because it does not exist. Neither does the name dwell there, as Yahweh has said, he would destroy this temple because of the idolatry of Israel.

Furthermore, as we have already illustrated, what actually dwelt in the temple, is the book of scriptures themselves. By counting the book of scriptures as the dwelling place of the name, the building itself is already included because this is where the book is found. That is the purpose of the building, to house the name by housing the book where it is found.
 
 

To recap, we have determined that the beast will be someone who has taken up residence in the place of the name of Yahweh. That is, we will find his name in the place where we should find the name of Yahweh. The places where we will look for the name of Yahweh are the book of scriptures themselves, and in the assembly of worshippers. If the building which Solomon constructed were still standing today, we would also look there, but remember, as according to prophecy, that building has been destroyed – its replacement being the assembly.

Going now to the scriptures themselves, we will indeed find the name of Yahweh. It is written in Hebrew (which reads from right to left) yothe, hay, waw, hay :

This is a sample taken from the Dead Sea Scrolls. Looking at the place of the name in the Hebrew scriptures, from the oldest text known, the name of Yahweh is easily recognizable.

Here is an extract from the well-respected Strongs Exhaustive Concordance:

What this says is the Jews pronounce the name of Yahweh as "Adonai" (136) in order to prevent the repetition of the same sound, since elsewhere they pronounce Yahweh as "Elohim" (430). In other words, at NO time is the name Yahweh pronounced at all.

Observe that the small marks around the letters in this name are nearly identical to ones we found in the name Yahweh, above.

Vowels?

These marks are not "vowels" as often suggested by people who are unfamiliar with the language. These marks are diacritical marks, which were created to help preserve the pronunciation. These diacriticals are precisely the same as the pronunciation marks we find in the English language, most particularly in our dictionaries.

When we look up a word in an english dictionary, it is written with various "marks" : the 'accent' mark, the umlaut, the dot over a vowel to indicate it is short, or the bar over a vowel to indicate it is long, etc, For example:

Prompt ( 'prämpt ) adj : ready and quick

- has an umlaut over the 'a'

Prosaic ( pro 'za · ik ) adj : dull

- has long-bars over the 'o' and the 'a'

Open any dictionary and you will see that there are dozens of these pronunciation marks used in the English language. We have been using them for many years, and they are NOT vowels. The Hebrew language also uses these pronunciation marks, the difference being that in English we find them usually only in dictionaries, but in Hebrew they are used all the time in writing plain text.

What many lay persons claim is that these Hebrew diacriticals are in fact vowels. However that is the same as claiming that the tilde and the umlaut are vowels, which obviously they are not. These diacritical marks were introduced around the year 1100 AD, by the Masoretic scribes in an effort to preserve the pronunciation of the Hebrew language. So they are a modern invention, that was never a part of the Holy Scriptures.

If we look closer at the text, and at the place of the name of Yahweh in particular we will notice that the pronunciation marks which have been inserted here are not the appropriate ones for the name of Yahweh, but they are the diacriticals belonging to "Adonai." Compare Strongs 136 "Adonay" with 3068. "Yahweh" (see illus.)

Kethiv-qere means "written one way, pronounced another." This is a device that was created to remind the reader that he should not pronounce the name of Yahweh, but change it to Adonai instead. Therefore, should Israel look to the place of the name and read the name of the most high, what they say with their mouth is the name "Adonai".

The end result here is that in the place where the name "Yahweh" is recorded, the name "Adonai" is honored instead. Consider for a moment the impact. In fulfillment of the prophecy, He must have his name being spoken by the chosen people, and further, he must be worshipped as most high. This will include praying in his name. His name must be in a position where he usurps all the glory and worship of the most high. This is according to virtually every end-time prophecy. If there is going to be a "Beast", he must absolutely be someone who is worshipped as most high. He must be sitting in the temple. This is fulfilled absolutely by the substitution of the name Yahweh, with another name. And remember that Yahweh has spoken:
 

I am Yahweh. That is my name, and my glory will I not give to another. Niether my praise to graven images. Isaiah 42:8

So we have demonstrated that in the text of the Bible, where we should find Yahweh, we find that another "Adonai" has taken its place. Secondly, as concerning the assembly, by the confession of their own mouth, Adonai is honored, instead of Yahweh.

It is common knowledge that the Hebrews refer to YHWH as "Adonai". It should be most obvious that this is extremely dangerous ground for a worshipper, to pray in another name. By substituting the name Adonai, all of the above prophecies are fulfilled precisely to the letter, since all of Israel worships in this name.

This constitutes everything required to fulfill the "in the temple proclaiming himself as most high" prophecy. There is not any other conclusion about where the temple is. These are the scriptural references.

Now we have both temples defiled, even though only a single one is required to fulfill the prophecy.

I  The book of the covenant

II  The assembly of worshippers professes a different name, in the place of the name, and worship in that different substituted name.

III  If the original, physical temple still stood, do not doubt that it would be there as well, irrelevant as that may be, however much of the historical accountants choose to use the name "Adonai" in their descriptions anyway. Furthermore, if you go to any "synagogue" today and find the Tetragrammaton written, one has only to inquire of the Rabbi what the name is, and you will find that the name "Adonai" is quickly asserted as Elohim.

If there are any other possibilities as to what the temple is, I do not know of any scripture to support it. We have demonstrated that Yahweh should be there, he is NOT there, and Adonai is there instead.
 
 

Now we should look most carefully at this "Adonai", since we have determined from strict scriptural definition, that this Adonai does indeed sit in the temple proclaiming himself as most high, and that his name is professed by Israel as most high.
 

Who is this ?

136 ad-o-noy': an emphatic form of 113; the Lord (used as a prop. name of God only):-(my) Lord.

Emphatic form of 113

113 Adon

It is interesting to note that at no place in these definitions, is Yahweh mentioned. Adon is used like the term "lord". It is either a common title as baal, adon, lord or when it is capitolized, i.e. used as a proper name, it becomes Baal, or the LORD or Adon or Adonai. These terms are all equivalent. They all mean "master, lord" or as a proper name, "The Master".

This is far different than the meaning conveyed by the holy name of Yahweh. Yahweh means "(the) Eternal" or "(the) Everliving", Existance. The essence of the statement in Exodus 3:15 is that He is that he is, and he will be that he will be. The rendering in the KJV is "I am that I am", however, Yahweh exists now and in the future, therefore "I will be that I will be". Eyah asher eyah or to include "will be" the verb for existance is actually pronounced "Yahweh".

Documenting the association of a number to a man

How does the Bible number a man? Amazing how people leap into this without making the basic element clear. Why is a man's number, his number? Do you think that prophecy is meant to be a wild-goose-chase? Is Yahweh the author of confusion? Does the very same prophecy not state the chosen people would know the meaning of this? Yes it does.

The book of Numbers
 

Chapter 1

1 And Yahweh spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, 2 Take the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, by their families, by their fathers' houses. According to the number of the names, every male, by their polls; 2 from twenty years old and upward, all that are able to go forth to war in Israel, you and Aaron shall number them by their hosts. 4 And with you there shall be a man of every tribe; every one head of his fathers' house.

So the number of a name is the number of persons with that name. The numbers of the names equals sum of the names. This is how the population was counted. By each family, the head of the family and the sum of the household. Therefore each name had a number, and that number, is the number of men over 20 years old in that particular family.

For example the numbers of the tribes of Israel were as follows: (Numbers 1:5-24)

 
Rueben:   46,500    Simeon:  59,300     Gad:    45,650    Yahudaw:   74,600

Issachar: 54,400    Zebulun: 57,400     Joseph:  40,500   Manasseh:  32,200

Benjamin: 35,400    Dan:     62,700     Asher:   41,500   Naphtali:  53,400

Total: 603,550 (The tribe of Levi was not numbered per Numbers 1:47-54)

The number of a name is a census of that household. The book of Numbers speaks extensively about numbering the people according to their names and counting the sum, or number of their names. Read Numbers chapter 1 through chapter 4. Here are some more examples:

 
3:40 And Yahweh said to Moses, Number all the first-born males of the children of Israel from a month old and upward, and take the number of their names.

4:21 And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 22 Take the sum of the sons of Gershon also, by their fathers' houses, by their families; 23 from thirty years old and upward until fifty years old shall you number them;

26:52 And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 53 Unto these the land shall be divided for an inheritance according to the number of names. 54 To the more you shall give thr more inheritance, and to the fewer you shall give the less inheritance: to every one according to those that were numbered of him shall his inheritance be given. 55 However, the land shall be divided by lot: according to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit. 56 According to the lot shall their inheritance be divided between the more and the fewer.

Deut 32:8

2 Sam 24:1-9

I Chr 23:24 These were the sons of Levi after their fathers' houses, even the heads of the fathers' houses of those of them that ere counted, in the number of names by their polls, who did the work for the service of the house of Yahweh, from twenty years old and upward.

Acts 1:15 And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,) [KJV]

Therefore if we are looking for a name with a number of 666, then we are looking for a household who, by their fathers name, has a sum of 666 persons counted in that household, per the Hebrew census-takers. This would be the only method of numbering a man or a name that was known to the Hebrews, and it is a common and customary numbering.

If we are to conduct a search for such a man, the only logical, reasonable, scriptural place to begin would be with the census rolls. Other than that, there is no other method whereby anyone is recognized by number. It is either in the census rolls, or it does not exist.

Ezra 2:13.   The children of Adonikam, six hundred, sixty, six.

Notice something here: The number of the children of Adonikam, 666. This is the numbering of a man by his children, a common practice. The number of a man referred to the number of his children. this is how the children of Israel were counted. Each man was numbered by his children.

Revelation 16:12 And the sixth poured out his bowl upon the great river, the Euphrates[Euphrates means time]; and the water of it was dried up, that the way might be made ready for the kings [representing kingdoms - kingdoms being beasts] that come from the sunrising [from the east]. 13 And I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon[serpent, Satan, leviathan], and out of the mouth of the beast[Adon*], and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits, as it were frogs:

There is only one true name, and the name that is used now is NOT the correct one, EXACTLY as prophesied, TO THE LETTER, and without resorting to wild goose chases like barcodes, Bill Gates or Barney the cute purple dinosaur.

Adonai replacing the name of YHWH
Abaddon - the king of the abyss. ( Ab is hebrew for "Father" )
Adonikam - The lord of rising

There is a clear and obvious correlation between these.

Adonikam: Lord of Rising This also means he is from the east.
Lucifer: Morning Star, which rises from the the east.

So then, we have established:

Adonai replacing Yahweh both verbally and literally
Abaddon is the king of the abyss.
Adoni-kam numbered as a man
Adon is referred to as the Father
ab- Adon is referred to as the Father ( Ab is hebrew for "Father" )

To deny the correlation at this point would be denial of clear factual evidence. Clear factual evidence is also known as 'TRUTH'. The book of Revelations states that his people would follow the truth no matter where the truth leads. Rev 14:1 "They follow the Lamb wherever he goes."

Looking closer, we find that Adonai is actually the plural form of Adon, and with very little further researching, Adonis, but remember, a connection with Adonis is more of a "bonus" than anything necessary for the prophecy. Its only peripherally supporting evidence. Quite nearly any encyclopedia will quickly verify this. There is in fact an etymological link between the names "Adonis" and "Adon" - although the connection should be quite obvious under even the most casual scrutiny.

Incidentally, often the Hebrews refer to the Father as "ab-Adon." as well. Ask almost any Hebrew, esp. an orthodox rabbi. Keep in mind that these people were supposed to be the house of Israel.

As I promised, you may demonstrate this for yourself. Go now and ask any Rabbi, point to the Tetragrammaton, the Holy Name, and ask that Rabbi to speak that name. Do this as many times as it takes to convince you. But do it at least once. I do not want to be accused of heresy. Go ask a Rabbi, or any Hebrew speaking person for that matter. Don't believe me. This point is far too important for you to trust any man, including myself. Take heed that no man lead you astray. Find out for yourself what the Hebrew people, the sand of the sea, confess as the name of the most high.

There is nothing else that is needed to establish this. There is no other description that this doesn't fulfill. If you can find any point I may have missed, let me know. But as you can see, the prophecy is fulfilled. And it is precisely to the letter.

There is a name, of a man, whose number is 666, who stands in the temple, as defined by scripture, proclaimed as most high, by the chosen people.

To drive the point home yet further, consider this: idolatry has always been Israel's downfall. Every time they were carried away to captivity it was for the cause of idolatry; being decieved into idolatry. Since the people of Yahweh are in fact betrothed to him, Idolatry is spiritual adultery, which is the only justifiable cause for divorce. Israel has continually played the harlot by chasing after other elohim (ore else you need to read your Bible again. this makes Israel the great harlot. worshipping a false deity - Adonai

The Book of the Covenant
 

4 And Moses wrote all the words of Yahweh, and rose up early in the morning, and built an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. 5 And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt offerings, and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen unto Yahweh, 6 and Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basins; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. 7 And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that Yahweh has said will we do, and be obedient. 8 And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which Yahweh has made with you concerning all these words. Exodus 24:4-8

Great is the wrath of Yahweh that is poured out upon us, because our fathers have not kept the word of Yahweh, to do according to all that is written in his book.

2 Chronicles 34:21

We should be able to see by now what great significance is placed on the book of scriptures themselves. The entire covenant is contained within it. The name of Yahweh is recorded there.

Wherever he places his name, that place is his temple, his house.

Which is the covenant Psalms 105:8-10

Which is contained in book of all the words of Yahweh Exodus 24:1-8

The book of the covenant Deuteronomy 29:20-22, 2 Kings 23:2, 2 Chronicles 34:14 – 33

Who is the word John 1:14

A. The confession of lips.

Although, this is more properly identified as a sacrifice or offering done in the holy place, it should be remembered that our sacrifices and offerings are our prayers which we make in his name. The purpose of these sacrifices and offerings is to make ourselves clean. The prayers in his name represent the "continual burnt offering" (Hos. 14:1,2; Heb. 13:15)

His name is called the word Rev 19:13, Acts 4:12 Also remember this:
 

Not that which proceeds into the mouth defiles the man, but that which proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man. For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. Mt 15:11

All of this means that what we speak is of extreme importance, and there is nothing that comes out of our mouth that is more important than the name of our creator.
 

Consider the significance if we choose to pray in another name.

B. In our hearts

We must worship in spirit and in truth, in heart and in word: again, of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.

The Ark

Exodus 31:7

Numbers 4:6

7:89

Refer to the ark of the covenant as the ark of the testimony. In most other references it is referred to as the "Ark of the Covenant", but it is important to note that it is also known as the "Ark of the Testimony".

Footnotes

The law that was commanded to Moses on Mount Horeb has a special significance. The tablets of stone were written by the hand of Yahweh himself. These tablets were placed inside the ark of the covenant. This is why the ark of the covenant is known as the ark of the COVENANT, because the tablets ARE the covenant.

Referring back to Exodus 20, From the very first verse, his VERY FIRST WORDS on the subject are:

1) I AM YAHWEH your Elohim ...

(This same statement is made 149 times throughout the O.T.)
2) You shall have NO OTHER Elohim before me.
3) You shall not make ANY graven image
4) You shall not bow down to them or serve them
5) You shall not make wrong use of my name.

The phrase I AM YAHWEH appears at least 149 times in the OT alone. This indicates a great deal of significance, and should not be dismissed as mere salutation.

Although most people never realize it, 3 of the 10 commandments and nearly half of the text is devoted to instructing against idolatry. Not the least point of which is that it is the FIRST half of the commandments, AND that the summary discusses the same topic Ex. 20:22-24, Notice here that this is the summation of the law as delivered to Moses, again. Do not make other elohim is repeated. Do not make elohim of silver and gold.

Also notice that the law is summarized and the people are instructed to wear it on their hands and between their eyes. When the beast of revelations takes power, his mark, his name is on the hands and foreheads of the people. Therefore, when one takes the place of Yahweh, they are placing their name on the hands and foreheads of Israel, because that is his name, his covenant, his seal. This is the place of the name.
 

If we let the scripture interpret themselves, without OURSELVES getting in the way, we can arrive at an objective conclusion, a conclusion that is not our own, but one which states itself. I challenge the reader to find in this interpretation any conclusion that can even be remotely considered my own interpretation or conclusion.
 
   

Zechariah 13:2 And it shall come to pass in that day, says Yahweh of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered; and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.

Hosea 2:16 And it shall be at that day, says Yahweh, that you shall call me Ishi, and shall call me no more Baali. 17 For I will take away the names of the Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall no more be mentioned by their name.

Constantly Israel was carried away in captivity to Babylon for idolatry. For praying to false idols.
 

Which think to cause my people to forget my name, as thier fathers have forgotten my name for Baal.

The House of Yahweh

The temple is the house of Yahweh. 1 Kings 7:48-51 shows that these two terms are used interchangeably.
 

48 And Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of Yahweh: the golden altar, and the table upon which the show-bread was, of gold; 49 and the candlesticks, five on the right side, and five on the left, before the oracle, of pure gold; and the flowers, and the lamps, and the tongs, of gold; 50 and the cups, and the snuffers, and the basins, and the spoons, and the firepans, of pure gold: and the hinges, both for the doors of the inner house, the most holy place, and for the doors of the house, namely, of the temples of gold.
51 In this manner all the work that king Solomon worked in the house of Yahweh was finished. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated, even the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, and put them in the treasures of the house of Yahweh. I Kings 7:48-51

[ THE BEAST ] . . . [ THE IMAGE ] . . . [ THE CONTINUAL BURNT OFFERING ] . . . [ 666 ? ]

More symbolism explained:

  Let the man of wisdom count the number of the beast. This is a reference to Solomon (the man of wisdom), who built the temple. This is why Solomon counted the number of the beast, because the beast would be found in the temple, proclaiming himself as most high. Remember, the amount of gold that came to Solomon in one year was 666 talents of gold. But remember, it is the number of a MAN. Solomon counted the gold, he did not count the man; he counted the number of the man. This indicates the relationship between the Beast and the Image of the Beast. The IMAGE of the beast has a head of gold. (because Solomon did not count the man, he counted the gold. ) The gold is representative of the Head of Gold, of the Image of Nebuchadnezzar's dream which represent Babylon, which symbolizes confusion because the languages were confounded precisely because the people wanted make their own way into heaven.(This is exactly the same as claiming the promise of the covenant in another name which is also idolatry) What this means is that without using the true name, the promise of Yahweh does not apply.
 
 
 
 

Bibliography

The Sacred Scriptures,

Bethel Edition, Premier Publication 1981

Copyright 1981, Assemblies of Yahweh, Bethel, PA 19507

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 81-69752

Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible

James Strong, S.T.D., L L.D.

Copyright 1979 by Thomas Nelson Inc.,

Nashville, Tennessee 37203

ISBN 0-8407-49999-6

ISBN 0-8407-49999-6I (Indexed Edition)

Websters Twentieth Century Dictionary

Unabridged Edition Second Edition