Q. What is the "mark of the Beast?"

A. The "mark of the Beast" comes out of Revelation 13.16-18 where it says "he (the false prophet) causes all (a lot of people but not all) the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand, or on the forehead and that no one would be able to buy or sell, except the one who has the mark, the name of the beast or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for the number is that of man and his number is 666." Many have the belief that this will be some mark, tattoo or a bio-chip that will be placed under the skin in the right hand or forehead and this will allow financial transactions and so on. To get this "mark" you must accept the false messiah. The Bible says that anyone who does this will suffer eternal damnation ( Rev 14.9-10). On the other hand there are those who believe that this mark is "spiritual" in that God marks those who are His and those who are not. There are several Scriptures that seem to support this view so let's look at those. In Ezekiel 9.4 God tells his "executioners", probably angels, to go through the city of Jerusalem and put a "mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations which are being committed in its midst." He then tells them to slay everyone who does not have the "mark", starting with the elders. No particular mark is specified and it could not be seen by anyone with the natural eye but the angels knew who they were. In Revelation 14.1 it says that the 144,000 will have God's name and the name of the Messiah "written on their foreheads."So, here are two examples where believers are "marked" by God in their foreheads because they follow the Lord. This was not a physical mark, but spiritual. Now, the forehead was used to indicate comprehension or a mental assent to something. With believers, it was to indicate their faith in the Lord and a desire to follow Him. In Psa 37.37 it says that we should "mark the blameless man and behold the upright." But, Rom 16.17 it says to "mark those who cause division" or in other words, take notice of them. There are many other verses which convey the same idea In Revelation 13 it seems to indicate that unbelievers will be "marked" by their behavior. It "marks" those who do not believe and they have a comprehension or a mental assent to follow the false messiah and the false prophet. Now, it says that the 144,00 have God's name on their foreheads and in Hebrew, the letter "shin" stands for God. It is the first letter for the name "shaddai" and "shalom", both names of God. The letter shin is also the first letter in the name "satan" in Hebrew. This letter has three heads when you write it. Now, in Rev 13.18 it says that this mark of the beast is his name or number and that number is 666. The number six in Hebrew is the letter "vav" and it looks like an upright snake. The number 6 is the number of man and the three 6's in our numerics would look like 3 vavs in Hebrew, with three heads. If you put 3 vavs together (name of the beast) you can make it look like the letter shin (God's name). In other words unless you have understanding from God you can be deceived into thinking that you are following the Messiah. when you are following a false messiah and that is the idea being conveyed here in Revelation. It is possible that the mark of the beast has to do more with a mental assent or a comprehension in line with the false teachings of the false prophet in regards to who the false messiah is and those who follow him. It could involve a physical mark but doesn't have to. Part of the deception is to get people looking for a physical mark when in reality they already have it by what they believe, comprehend or mentally assent to. But, it says you won't be able to buy or sell without the mark and if it isn't a physical thing, how can that be possible? Well, nations have been able to control buying and selling without computers for centuries. Rome did it, Spain, England and the United States did it with blue laws and rationing, the Nazi's did it buy marking Jewish stores and vendors and warning people to avoid them. You are also "marked" by your behavior. If one doesn't buy or sell on the Sabbath it will become known very quickly, especially in an atmosphere of persecution which will be the norm in the realm of the false messiah (Rev 12.17, Dan 7.25). One other point needs to be brought out here. The false messiah will not control the whole world nor will he control the economy of the world with this mark. This will only be imposed in his kingdom. There are many nations that will oppose him such as Russia, Kings of the East and the Kings of the South and he will be at war with these nations during the Tribulation, so this is not worldwide and seems to confined to Europe for the most part. There is so much more to this subject but this should give you some other things to think about and investigate as far as the mark, and it may not be what has been traditionally taught. A delusion is when you believe something that isn't true and an illusion is seeing something when in fact it isn't there. Both could be at play here and it is all a part of the deception of the last days.

There are several questions that have come up and so this would be a good time to answer a number of them with shorter answers.

Q. What is your opinion on who the false messiah is? I've heard he may be a Muslim
A. I've heard some Bible teachers teach that but that doesn't line up with what the Bible actually teaches. He will be a political leader from Europe and probably Jewish. His rise to power will have the backing of apostate Christianity and the false prophet but contrary to popular opinion he will not be controlling the world. He will have a 3 year war with Russia and Russia will be winning until they invade Israel and are defeated. Exploiting that void, the false messiah will move into Israel and be fighting the Kings of the East and the Kings of the South, so that hardly looks like world control.

Q. In Colossians 2.14 it says that the Law was nailed to the cross so why do people teach that the Law has not been done away with?
A. Well, that verse does not talk about the Law being done away with. Let's look at it for moment. It says that the certificate of debt was cancelled out, consisting of decree's against us. The word "cheirographon" is a term for payment owed, a debt. When Yeshua died, out debt to God was cancelled, our debt was paid. What is important to see here and what is grammatically important is that the record of debt was erased not he ordinances. The idea being illustrated here by Paul is the placard on our own cross that lists our crimes against God (sin). A condemned man on a cross had his crimes listed and placed over his head or somewhere around so that people would know why he was being executed. Paul says that Yeshua took our placard and it was nailed to his cross. The Torah is not being done away with here but the record of debt against us that could only be satisfied by our death.

Q. What is the Book of Galatians about?
A. There were some believers in the first century that thought that a gentile had to be ritually circumcised and become Jewish to be saved (Acts 15.1). Some of these brethren had come to Galatia and told them this and they believed it. Paul comes there and tried to show them that one is saved by faith and that there is nothing you can do to become saved, no works to perform. This has nothing to do with Abrahamic circumcision which was a command in the Torah for any descendant of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. There was an oral tradition that said that along with faith in Yeshua one had to be "ritually" circumcised to be saved. Acts 15 and the Book of Galatians refutes that teaching.

Q. Who is Babylon the Great and the great Whore in Revelation 17?
A. These terms are symbolic of spiritual idolatry and false, seducing religion. This system has been around since the beginning and it certainly will be around in the end. It's not taking about any one particular religion that many suspect today but any false religious system that seduces would be considered a part of the great harlot. She is the antithesis of the virtuous woman in Rev 12 and in the Proverbs. Mankind is intoxicated with her false teachings and she is the habitation of demons. It seems she has wealth, a history and class and notice she commits fornication (17.4) not adultery because the Lord "never knew you." She is called "Babylon" because the word means to confuse, to mix and that is exactly what she taught by confusing the Lord's Torah and mixing pagan beliefs in with it. Any belief system that does this would be considered a part of Babylon the Great

Q. Based on your last article about false prophecy, how can you tell whether someone is a false prophet?

A. The basic sign of a false prophet is that his word will go against the Word of God. But, that is also where the problem lies because many people do not know the Word of God correctly and have never been taught the Scriptures so they don't know enough to test the words of a so-called prophecy. But, it is possible to know the Scriptures and to be taught correctly so it is on that basis that I will proceed with how it is done .I'm going to use several Scriptures as my basis and so let's start. There are basically two things that will tell if a person is a false prophet. First, does his word contradict the Scriptures and secondly if his predictions come true or not. So, let's look at the first test, whether his word contradicts the Scriptures. Deut 13.1-5 says " If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder and the sign or wonder comes true, concerning which he spoke to you, saying 'let us go after other gods whom you have not known and let us serve them,' you shall not listen to the word of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams; for the Lord your God is testing (examining) you to find out if you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall follow the Lord your God and fear Him; and you shall keep his commandments, listen to his voice, serve Him, and cling to Him. But that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death, because he has counseled rebellion against the Lord your God who brought you from the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery, to seduce you from the way in which the Lord your God commanded you to walk. So you shall purge the evil from among you."
In this passage, the Lord is saying that if a prophet or a dreamer comes forward with a word to depart from the ways of God (v5) and shows a sign or a wonder, you are not to listen to what he says. In fact, God will cause this to happen to test you to see if you will follow the sign or wonder, or follow the Word of God. You do not follow anyone or their words if it contradicts the Scriptures, no matter what sign they give. An example of a false prophecy can be found in 1 Kings 13.18. In this passage, God told a prophet to do a certain thing and another prophet came along and told him that God told him that he didn't have to do it. The first prophet was deceived and he died. True prophecy cannot be annulled by another prophet unless the first prophet hears directly from the Lord that it was. Another verse that goes along the same lines can be found in Isa 8.20 where it reads "To the Law (Torah) and to the testimonies (prophets). If they do not speak according to this word it is because they have no light (understanding)." In Acts 17.10-11 it says that the Bereans were "more noble than those in Thessalonica for they received the word (which Paul spoke) with great eagerness, examining daily, to see whether these things were true." They did not rely on some "oral law" passed down from the rabbis but checked the Word of God. And the Word they were checking was the Tanak, or "old" testament. Everything Paul taught was out of the Tanak and it could be verified by the Tanak, and that's what we need to do when confronted with anyone's teaching, check it out. Unfortunately, many have been taught wrong doctrine and that needs to be straightened out before they will be able to test anything.
The second thing used to test a false prophet is whether what they say comes to pass or not. Deut 18. 21-22 says "And you may say in your heart,' how shall we know the word which the Lord has not spoken?' "When a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the thing does not come about or come true, that is the thing which the Lord has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him." So, if the person prophesies in the name of the Lord and the event does not come true or come about, then he is a false prophet. Now, notice he does it "in the name of the Lord" and that is important. Nobody has all the answers and we see through a glass dimly so we aren't always right about some of our interpretations, but that doesn't make us a false prophet. A false prophet will say that the "Lord has shown me", or has "told me to say" something and if it isn't true, then he is false. Yeshua had these things in mind when he discussed false prophets in Mt 17.10-11 where he says "Beware of the false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You shall know them by their fruits . Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit; but a rotten tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a rotten tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So, then, you will know them by their fruits" What Yeshua is saying here is that a tree is a person and the fruit is their doctrine. A good tree, or a believer, will have sound doctrine and an unbeliever will have corrupt doctrine. So, how can you know? You have to test their doctrines by the Scriptures. External works is not really the intent of "fruits" here otherwise a false prophet can appear righteous outwardly. But the true prophet will be true to the Word of God and a false prophet can't.
In conclusion, there are two tests for a false prophet. First, check to see if what they say lines up with the Word of God (Deut 13.1-5; Isa 8.20) no matter what sign or wonders happens to occur. Remember, the false prophet may perform many signs and wonders but he wants you to follow the sign and not the Word of God. Secondly, if a person makes a prediction in the name of the Lord and it does not come to pass, then the Lord did not speak. So, in short, check what a person says by the Word of God and disregard any signs or wonders. A sign or a wonder just calls attention to what the person is saying and check the event, if it occurs or not. These are two basic ways to test for false prophets.

Q. There is a man on the radio that says judgment day is May 21, 2011 and he seems to be very sure of it. Is he right?

A. I am familiar with this teaching and have listened to his reasoning and his conclusions and he couldn't be more wrong. He has predicted the same thing before and obviously he was wrong and he is wrong again. This hasn't prevented him from making this prediction and people still listen to him. That is because his listeners are more ignorant of the Scriptures than he is. They make the same fundamental errors over and over again, and he isn't the only one. Many so-called "prophecy experts" on TV and radio are unaware that the Lord has given us a blueprint in the Word that will guide us to what He is doing. Again, as I have said over and over, you must understand the Torah, the biblical festivals, the Temple services and what the Lord has given through the Hebrew prophets to understand prophecy. This man does not understand any of these but misinterprets many verses to come up with that date.
Let's look at the biblical festivals for an example. In Leviticus 23, God lists 8 festivals, if you include the weekly Sabbath day, so let's start with that one. The Lord created the heavens and the earth in 6 days and then rested on the Sabbath day.Why would the Lord take 6 days to create the world and everything in it. He could have done it in a second, or millions of years. It's because he is giving us a blueprint, a pattern, a plan for mankind. We know from several verses found in Psalms and 2 Peter that a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years like a day to the Lord. So, the six days of creation relate to 6000 years of history since creation. The Sabbath day, or seventh day, relates to 1000 years. In other words, God gave a blueprint of the time when man was created till the Lords day. Adam, therefore, was created less than 6000 years ago. When the 6000 years are complete, we enter into the Lords day, the day of the Lord, the Sabbath rest as it is known in the Scriptures. Now, years always begin on a Rosh ha Shanah, which means "head of the year" so this "day of the Lord" will not begin until 6000 years (6 days) are complete. The first 7 years of this "day of the Lord" will be what is called the "birth pains of the Messiah" or the Tribulation period. So, the time of the end cannot start until a Rosh ha Shanah, year 6001 from creation. May 21st of this year is not a Rosh ha Shanah so this individual is incorrect in teaching that judgment day will happen then. Now, there are seven more festivals given in Leviticus 23. There is Passover, Unleavened Bread, First Fruits, Pentecost, Rosh ha Shanah, the Day of Atonement and Tabernacles. The Lord will fulfill certain aspects of the redemption on these days. One must study each festival with its corresponding services, prayers, themes, idioms and phrases to get a proper picture of what the Lord is trying to communicate in regards to Bible prophecy. It is "prophecy 101" if you will. If one does not fully understand these festivals he will not fully understand Bible prophecy, and this man doesn't. Yeshua was crucified on Passover, he was buried on Unleavened Bread, he was raised from the dead on First Fruits and sent the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. These are call the Spring festivals. Now, if he fulfilled each of the first 4 festivals by accomplishing something in regards to our redemption, it is reasonable to deduct that the last 3 will be fulfilled on their exact day in regards to something else concerning the redemption. So, one must study the corresponding services, prayers, themes, idioms and phrases of these 3 remaining festivals to see what the Lord is going to do next.
After Pentecost, there is a long growing period of about 4 months for the wheat, then comes the harvest period. On the first day of the seventh month we have Rosh ha Shanah, the head of the civil year. This festival in Hebrew is called "Yom Teruah" or the day of the awakening shofar blast. It is called "the last trumpet " and Paul teaches that the resurrection of the righteous will happen on this day. Judgment will begin on earth after this and if the Lord fulfilled 4 previous festivals on their exact day, he is going to fulfill this on it's exact day also. Ten days later there is another feast called Yom Yippur. That is the day the 7 year Tribulation will begin. We know this from several verses. We know the Lord returns in his second coming on a Yom Kippur from Matt 24. It says that he will return at the sound of "the Great Trumpet" which is an idiom for Yom Kippur. We now that the Tribulation period is 2520 days long, or 7 biblical years of 360 days each. So if he comes back on a Yom Kippur the Tribulation must start on a Yom Kippur. This individual does not take into account any of this and totally neglects God's blueprint for prophecy so his conclusions are way off. After the Lord returns there is one remaining festival called the Tabernacles. This teaches all aspects of the coming Messianic Kingdom and the "tabernacling" among us. It was the day Yeshua was born and it is the day the kingdom will begin on earth. There is not enough room to go into each and every aspect of these festivals but if the Lord gave these festivals it was for a reason and one of those reasons was to show us his plan. Paul says that he taught these things and that those he taught were not ignorant of the times and seasons so that they should not be taken by surprise when prophetic things occur. But, those who are ignorant are living in darkness and they will be surprised like those who are asleep when the thief comes. May 21st of this year is not judgment day and they Lord is not coming because it is not Rosh ha Shanah and it is as simple as that. The Lord has a specific prophetic plan that he has laid out in the Scriptures and he will not deviate from it. This is deceiving many and he will have his reward, but there are many unknowing people who will be devastated in their walk with the Lord because they are ignorant of God's plan. Please, with all earnestness, study the biblical festivals and their prophetic significance. There's plenty of help out there.

Q. What does it mean in Mark 10.43-47 where it says that we are to cut off our hands and feet and cut out our eyes if they cause us to stumble?
A. These are idioms for things that are important to us. Let's start in v 43 with the hand. His sense is that dear friends and relatives are to be renounced or "given up" if they draw us away from the Lord. It is better to part with everything now that is detrimental to us. In v 45 he mentions the foot. The foot is what supports us and he is saying that we have to give those up who "support" us than to give in to evil. In v 47 he mentions the eye and that symbolizes that which is most dear to us (Deut 32.10). Now, in these verses he mentions "where their worm does not die" and that has to do with the conscience (Rev 20.10; Isa 66.24). If one does not give up those people or things that are important to us and they keep us from entering into the salvation that the Lord has, we will be lost. It would be better to lose those things here, in this life, than to lose our souls. If we don't, than in hell our consciences will "gnaw at us like a worm" and torment us, filling us with anguish over what was lost. The key to this whole passage is v 49 where it says "for everyone will be salted with salt.". This means that every follower of the Lord will have "fiery trials" to go through. And, like the sacrifices in the Temple had to be salted with salt to be acceptable, we, too, must be salted with salt to be acceptable and a well pleasing "odor" to the Lord, so we must be salted. Salt is good, but if the salt loses its flavor, how are we to make it favorable again? We are to have salt in ourselves, which means we are to retain in ourselves those valuable qualities that will make us a blessing (favorable) to others.

This week we are going to continue with the topic of "coverings" and we have been working out of 1 Cor 11. 1-16 and hopefully what Paul intended to convey is much clearer. He was dealing with the marriage relationship and he was using Gen 3.16 and Num 30 as a source for what he was teaching. Now we are going to look at several verses in the New Testament in light of what we have learned and to clear up what the meanings are. Remember, we are reading from translations and although most do a good job in trying to convey a proper meaning, the text often will come across with the particular slant of the translators. We do not have the original autographs of Paul so we have to do the best we can to decipher what was really going on. In the verses we are going to look at, this truly is the case and they have been misinterpreted for a long time. But, if we look at them with what we have now learned about coverings as based on what the Torah teaches they become much clearer.
The first one we are going to take a look at is 1 Cor 14.34-35. What Paul is basing his teaching on is Gen 3.16 and Num 30.1-16. Also, Zodiates Hebrew-Greek translation of the Bible has excellent notes on these verses. So, let's look at these verses like before with some commentary to help bring out the meaning. Keep in mind what we have already gone over in 1 Cor 11 as we do this.
v34....Let the women (wives in particular) keep silent in the churches (be courteous, don't interrupt by breaking in to judge a prophecy. Paul already said that they could speak, pray and prophesy in 1 Cor 11.5. So, silent is not the issue but judging a prophecy is)
....for they are not permitted to speak (or go against the authority of the their husbands. This instruction had to do with the Corinthian women in particular and not an overall injunction for all believing women. They did not have the knowledge or experience yet and some believed that they were superior to men)
....but let them subject themselves, just as the Law (Torah) also says (Gen 3.16, Num 30 ..they key to understanding these passages)
v35....and if they desire to learn anything, let them ask their own husbands (their covering) at home, for it is improper for
a woman (wife) to speak in church (against the authority of her husband).
The second verse is1 Tim 2.11-15 which has a very similar theme as 1 Cor 14so let's look at this verse.
v11....Let a woman (wife) quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness (learn in tranquility, silence or an attitude of composure)
v12....But I do not allow a woman (wife) to teach (wrong doctrine) or exercise authority (by dominating) over a man (husband), but to remain quiet (composed). Zodiates in his translation says this "A wife, in quietness, I let learn in submission, but a wife I will not let dominate a husband but to be in all quietness." Now, Paul was writing to believers in Ephesus which was home to the Diana cult and they tried to seduce believers with wrong doctrine and the women believed in their superiority over men. Paul is trying to lay a proper, Torah-based foundation with these believers which went against much of their previous religious training
v13....For it was Adam who was first created, not Eve (which is why she is to be subject to her own husband)
v14....and not Adam who was deceived, but the woman being quite deceived, fell into transgression
v15....But women (wives) shall be preserved through the bearing of children (women are preserved for this even though they bring forth children in pain and sorrow according to the original curse in Gen 3.16) if they continue in faith and love and sanctity with self restraint (and not a temporary confession like in Luke 8.13).
So, as you can see, once you put these verses back into their proper Hebraic context you can see that Paul was teaching the proper authority in a marriage and "who covers who" in a spiritual context before the Lord and using that knowledge to deal with particular issues that had arisen in Corinth and Ephesus, two very pagan and Greek cities. It is a classic example of Hebraic thought over Hellenistic thought. It was a problem back then and it is a problem now but hopefully you have some better insight into what Paul was trying to communicate. These verses and their misinterpretation has subjected women to a second class position in congregations but that was the furthest thing from Paul's mind. Why would God fill a woman with the Holy Spirit and then tell her to be silent! The answer is He doesn't and this can be shown using these controversial verses and putting them into the correct Hebraic context.

This week we are going to continue with 1Cor 11.1-16 and the subject of head coverings. Again, the key to understanding this portion is v3 and we are going to continue with verse 10 and will intermingle commentary with the verse.
v10....Therefore, the woman ought to have authority (a ruling power, like a husband or father) on her head (v3), because of of the angels (who usurped authority that wasn't theirs and fell).
v11....However, in the Lord neither is woman independent of man nor is man independent of the woman(but together are complete).
v12....For as the woman originated from man, so also the man has his birth through a woman and all things originate from God.
v13....Judge for yourselves, is it proper for a woman (remember, woman in many cases is to be understood as "wife", especially here) to pray to God uncovered (by going against her husband's authority..no!).
v14....Does not even nature teach you that if a man has long hair, it is dishonorable to him..
v15....but if a woman has long hair it is a glory to her. For her hair is given to her for a covering.
v16....But if one is inclined to be contentious, we have no other practice nor have the churches (don't bother to argue about this because the Scriptures teach this headship concept).
So, with that in mind let's briefly look at Num 30. 1-16. This chapter is called the Law of the Tongue and it has to do with the power of the spoken word and it is based on tribal concepts and customs. These concepts would be carried down even after Israel was settled in their own land. When congregations were established, these concepts were used to keep order not only in the congregation, but also the family. The basis for this Torah instruction is found in Gen 3.16. Basically, the heads of the tribes were told that if a man makes a vow, he better keep it. Also, if a woman makes a vow but lives in her father's house and her father hears the vow, he can annul the vow. But, if he does nothing the vow stands. The same is true for a wife.The husband can annul her vow on the day he hears of it, but if he says nothing then it stands. The point is the daughter and the wife have a head over them and they cannot usurp authority over their "head". This basic order goes all the way back to Gen 3.16 and when Paul is giving this basic instruction in 1 Cor 11 he is drawing from many verses and concepts found in the Torah. This concept in 1 Cor 11 is nothing new and is merely passing on to the Corinthians what was already being taught since creation. The Corinthians had a particular problem at that time because of the Greek religious cults that told women that they didn't have to listen to men, that they were independent and could do what they wanted to. Well, once these pagan people became believers they still carried some of their old religious concepts with them and that's why Paul had to deal with it. This is not saying that a man is better than a woman but that there was an order established since creation and the Corinthians had no idea about them, so Paul is establishing a biblical order for their congregation. Remember, he praised them in 1 Cor 11.2 for holding fast to the "traditions" (Jewish concepts and laws in line with Scripture) and this one of the concepts he is teaching them. Now, in light of what we have learned so far about authority, next week we'll look at 1 Cor 14.34-36 and 1 Tim 2.11-15 in the New Testament and hopefully clear up some misinterpretation concerning these verses.