God’s character, who He is, does not change.[4]
For I am the Lord, I change not…[5]
From eternity past to eternity forward, God is who He is, the I AM. In the words of Paul, “Without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life.”[6] When the Bible reveals to us dimensions of God’s character, in His name, these discoveries must be understood to be unchangeable realities about God. God is the Rock, solid and unmoveable. Praise the Lord that this is so!
And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.[7]
And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: 4 and they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.[8]
The meaning behind the name of God gets all the more important when we see, in Revelation, the one hundred and forty-four thousand, as well as the “servants” of God with the name of the Father written on their foreheads. Elsewhere in the same book, a sealing work is done on the forehead.[9] Who, of the persons of the Godhead, does the sealing work? That would be the Holy Spirit.[10]
It is God who writes the law on our hearts, according to the New Covenant language.[11] Does this also fit into the discussion of the name of God and His character? Examine the following passages.
I have remembered thy name, O Lord, in the night, and have kept thy law.[12]
If thou wilt not observe to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that thou mayest fear this glorious and fearful name, The Lord Thy God…[13]
He sent redemption unto his people: he hath commanded his covenant for ever: holy and reverend is his name. 10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.[14]
In synonymous parallelism, the name of God is equivalent to His law.
At Mt Sinai, the ten commandments were broken and remade. Moses presented the newly cut stones atop Sinai before God. It is at that time that God revealed His name.
And he said, “I beseech thee, shew me thy glory.” 19 And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.”[15]
And the Lord descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. 6 And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, “The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, 7 keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation… 14 For thou shalt worship no other god: for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God…”[16]
God’s mercy and justice are revealed in the work Jesus did at Calvary. It is also noteworthy that the demonstration God makes of His name upon Mount Sinai is equivalent to wording within the Ten Commandments themselves.
Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; 6 and shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.[17]
God’s mercy and justice, the expression of God’s name and character, is part of the second Commandment. This is vital to understand, for Scripture says, “Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered.”[18] God poured the entirety of the revelation of His mercy in the person of Jesus. Therefore, because of Calvary, God’s people call on the name of Jesus. The Old Testament way of expressing this was in the sacrificial system.
And the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the Lord, who appeared unto him. 8 And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the Lord, and called upon the name of the Lord.[19]
And the Lord appeared unto him the same night, and said, I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham’s sake. 25 And he builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the Lord, and pitched his tent there: and there Isaac’s servants digged a well.[20]
Both Abraham and Isaac built an altar and called on the name of the Lord. That God’s name is seen in His plan of salvation is also demonstrated when we look at the sanctuary. Look at how the ark of the covenant, that contained the law, is referred to in the following verse.
And David arose, and went with all the people that were with him from Baale of Judah, to bring up from thence the ark of God, whose name is called by the name of the Lord of hosts that dwelleth between the cherubims.[21]
In continuity with this concept, we see also that the sanctuary is connected with the name of the Lord:
And David said to Solomon, My son, as for me, it was in my mind to build an house unto the name of the Lord my God: 8 but the word of the Lord came to me, saying, Thou hast shed blood abundantly, and hast made great wars: thou shalt not build an house unto my name, because thou hast shed much blood upon the earth in my sight… 10 He shall build an house for my name; and he shall be my son, and I will be his father; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel for ever… 19 Now set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God; arise therefore, and build ye the sanctuary of the Lord God, to bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and the holy vessels of God, into the house that is to be built to the name of the Lord.[22]
This is in a similar pattern of the Ten Commandments being referred to as the “Testimony,”[23] the ark associated with the “Testimony,”[24] and the sanctuary of God associated with the “Testimony.”[25]
Jesus is the revelation of who God is.[26] He is the fulfillment of the sacrifices and the sanctuary symbolism. Thus, continuing with the pattern of the name of the Lord, let us look at the Angel of the Lord. God said of Him, “Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. 21 Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him.”[27]
The Angel of the Lord, who is Jesus, has the name of God in Him. This explains how the Messiah child is also spoken of having the name of the Father.
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called… everlasting Father…[28]
And so it is that Jesus speaks in the language of manifesting the name of the Father.
I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me… 26 And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.[29]
I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.[30]
Jesus saith unto him, “Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, ‘Show us the Father?’ 10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. 11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.”[31]
Based on the investigation so far, let us apply these insights to the antediluvian world. After Adam and Eve were expelled from Eden, we find their first two sons offering sacrifice to the Lord. Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground. Abel, in addition to a produce offering, also brought an animal sacrifice.[32] God accepted the offering of Abel, and his jealous brother Cain murdered him over it.
What happened to the offering of sacrifice after this point? There is reason to believe that there was a cessation of this worship. This is because of the following language in the Bible.
And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew. 26 And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the Lord. 5:1 This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him…[33]
After Seth is born, and then has a child “then began men to call upon the name of the Lord.” What this meant is that they were again appealing to God’s mercy, His name or character that would bring the Messiah. This act of faith was demonstrated in the offering of sacrifice. Further, that is also when Genesis records the antediluvian genealogy, the line of the righteous, that would bring forth the Holy Seed.
The children of Cain were without faith, and there was no hope of salvation to come from their lineage. There is a curious highlighting of the name of one daughter in the lineage of Cain with the name Naamah, naʿămâ, נַעֲמָה (H5279).[34]
And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah.[35]
Her name means “sweet” or “pleasant.” It may appear innocuous, but its meaning is very similar to the meaning of the word “beautiful” in the following passage:
Now it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, 2 that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose.[36]
That word for “beautiful,” ṭōḇōṯ, טֹבֹת (H2896) also has a meaning of “pleasant.” It gives the indication that the daughters, the children of Naamah of the lineage of Cain, were being married into the line of the “sons of God.” The “sons of God” is one of the ways the Bible describes the lineage of the righteous. For, in Jesus’ genealogy given by Luke, Adam at the bottom of the list is called the “son of God.”[37]
What happened to the “sons of God” in the antediluvian world is revealed as follows in the YLT version.
The fallen ones were in the earth in those days, and even afterwards when sons of God come in unto daughters of men, and they have borne to them — they [are] the heroes, who, from of old, [are] the men of name.[38]
In the original language it actually says men of “the name,” haššēm, הַשֵּׁם. The word for “name” is “shem,” šēm, שֵׁם (H8034). The “sons of God” were known as “men of the name,” as in the name of the Lord, but they became the fallen ones because of their intermarriage with the family of Cain, the “daughters of men.”
Thus it is that Noah calls one of his sons “Shem” or “name,” šēm, שֵׁם (H8035). The name of the Lord was kept in faith in this son, and he is the one who continues carrying the Holy Seed into the post-diluvian world.
We now turn to the matter of the Sabbath as it applies to the name of the Lord.
And he said unto them, “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: 28 therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.”[39]
When Christ said that He is Lord of the Sabbath, it is an extraordinarily powerful statement. When you review Genesis, in the first chapter, God is mentioned over and over, but the title of “Lord” is nowhere to be found. Only upon the completion of the Sabbath rest, in the second chapter, does the prophet Moses begin to use the title “Lord God.”[40] In this, the statement of Christ makes it clear that He is the tetragrammaton/Yahweh/Jehovah God of the Bible and that it is in the Sabbath that He is acknowledged by His creation as such. As the Husband, King, and Lord of His Creation, He seeks time with us, and that time is especially found in the Sabbath day.
It should come as no surprise that Satan, filled with envy and hatred toward his Creator, does not acknowledge God as “Lord” when speaking of Him to Eve.
Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, “Yea, hath God said, ‘Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?’”[41]
The Serpent said “has God” rather than “has the Lord God.”
Moses wrote Genesis first to the nation of Israel that would be entering into the land of Canaan. The system of worship therein was titled “Baal.” What does “Baal” mean? It means “Lord.”[42] Satan seeks to have that title for himself.
Which think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbour, as their fathers have forgotten my name for Baal.[43]
So, it stands to reason that as the title “Lord God” is affirmed in the Sabbath, Satan would seek to destroy this day and set up his own counterfeit as a means of stealing the title. The religion of Canaan was at odds with the Creator God. Since that system was seeking to steal God’s name for Satan, it is noteworthy that the very names of the Baals were to be utterly wiped out.
And ye shall overthrow their altars, and break their pillars, and burn their groves with fire; and ye shall hew down the graven images of their gods, and destroy the names of them out of that place.[44]
For I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall no more be remembered by their name.[45]
“And it shall come to pass in that day,” saith the Lord 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.”[46]
Now we turn to Egypt at the eve of Israel’s deliverance.
And Pharaoh said, “Behold, the people of the land now are many, and ye make them rest from their burdens.” 6 And Pharaoh commanded the same day the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying, 7 “Ye shall no more give the people straw to make brick, as heretofore: let them go and gather straw for themselves.”[47]
There is only one thing Moses could have been doing that would have caused Israel to “rest from their labor,” over which Pharaoh was so unhappy. Moses was bringing them back into the Sabbath rest. The word for “rest” in the passage above is šāḇaṯ, שָׁבַת (H7673). This is a word that certainly can be applied to Sabbath-keeping. Pharaoh sought to make the Sabbath rest impossible by commanding their labor to be increased. That command was an anti-Sabbath law.
What was Israel doing in their worship that was distracting them from the Sabbath?
For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord.[48]
And the Lord said unto Moses, “Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.” 22 And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days…[49]
Archeologists will tell you that sun worship was at the top of the Egyptian pantheon, but there are hints in the Bible also to support this. In the series of plagues focused on the Egyptian gods, the last of these is darkness. The ninth plague was a punishment against the worship of the sun. In the following passage, we see Jeremiah make reference to Egyptian sun worship.
… and he hath broken the standing pillars of the house of the sun, that [is] in the land of Egypt, and the houses of the gods of Egypt he doth burn with fire.[50]
When Israel was at Mount Sinai, they made a golden idol calf.
But they rebelled against me, and would not hearken unto me: they did not every man cast away the abominations of their eyes, neither did they forsake the idols of Egypt: then I said, “I will pour out my fury upon them, to accomplish my anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt.”[51]
And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf. Then they said, “This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!”[52]
For pagan idolatry, the material used is often significant. Wood or trees, for example, are especially associated with nature worship. Silver is often used for moon worship. Gold is often sought, if it can be afforded, for the veneration of the sun. What deity in the Egyptian pantheon is a calf? It is the Apis calf, of which a solar disk may be seen on the head, between the horns.
And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands. 42 Then God turned, and gave them up to worship the host of heaven…[53]
The martyr Stephen directly connects the worship of the calf with worship of the host of heaven. While Israel had been turning away from honoring the Sabbath, they concurrently were engaging in Egyptian sun worship.
The system of Baal worship in Canaan is not elaborated on much in the Bible. The people of Israel were not even to utter the names of the Baals.
And in all things that I have said unto you be circumspect: and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.[54]
… 7 That ye come not among these nations, these that remain among you; neither make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause to swear by them, neither serve them, nor bow yourselves unto them…[55]
Despite that reality, there are details the Bible does reveal. Baal can be thought of as a system of paganism that included child sacrifice,[56] sexually perverse acts with the associated Astarte goddess,[57] eating disgusting things,[58] spiritualism or worship of the dead,[59] and the veneration of the heavenly bodies.[60] Of these, the pinnacle abomination, according to Ezekiel, was the veneration of the sun.
Then said he unto me, “Hast thou seen this, O son of man? Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations than these.” 16 And he brought me into the inner court of the Lord’s house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east.[61]
The leaders of Israel had their backs to the daily service of the sanctuary. As a result, Israel was finally made desolate and sent into Babylonian bondage.[62]
The worship of the heavenly bodies explains why the places of worship were “high places.” They were seeking out the highest vantage points to observe the sun, moon, and stars. Recall that God brought plagues, including darkness, on the Egyptian gods. So also, during the time of Ahab, the word of the prophet caused three and a half years of no rain. In this, God was punishing Israel for their worship of the sun. The sun was to bear down on them, unabated, year after year.
The kings of Israel had horses and chariots dedicated to the sun.
And he took away the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the sun, at the entering in of the house of the Lord, by the chamber of Nathanmelech the chamberlain, which was in the suburbs, and burned the chariots of the sun with fire.[63]
Those involved in Baal worship at the borders of the promised land were hung up “against the sun.”
And Israel joined himself unto Baalpeor: and the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel. 4 And the Lord said unto Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before the Lord against the sun, that the fierce anger of the Lord may be turned away from Israel.[64]
When God stops the sun in its place during the battle with the Amorites, the message to Canaanite Baal worshipers was that He is mightier than their sun worship.
Then spake Joshua to the Lord in the day when the Lord delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, “Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon.” 13 And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day.[65]
Ezekiel indicates that despite the teachings of Moses and the miracle of the Sabbath-teaching manna, Israel failed to enter this rest. This rejection of the Sabbath extended all the way to the time of Ezekiel.
Moreover also I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them. 13 But the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness: they walked not in my statutes, and they despised my judgments, which if a man do, he shall even live in them; and my sabbaths they greatly polluted: then I said, I would pour out my fury upon them in the wilderness, to consume them… 15 Yet also I lifted up my hand unto them in the wilderness, that I would not bring them into the land which I had given them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the glory of all lands; 16 because they despised my judgments, and walked not in my statutes, but polluted my sabbaths: for their heart went after their idols… 21 Notwithstanding the children rebelled against me: they walked not in my statutes, neither kept my judgments to do them, which if a man do, he shall even live in them; they polluted my sabbaths: then I said, I would pour out my fury upon them, to accomplish my anger against them in the wilderness… 23 I lifted up mine hand unto them also in the wilderness, that I would scatter them among the heathen, and disperse them through the countries; 24 because they had not executed my judgments, but had despised my statutes, and had polluted my sabbaths, and their eyes were after their fathers’ idols.[66]
Thou hast despised mine holy things, and hast profaned my sabbaths… 26 Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they shewed difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.[67]
Moreover this they have done unto me: they have defiled my sanctuary in the same day, and have profaned my sabbaths.[68]
The testimony of Jeremiah, Nehemiah, and Isaiah also indicate that a disregard of the Sabbath continued on in the history of Israel and was a primary cause for them being taken into Babylonian captivity. All the while, they were embracing the Baalish sun worship.
Thus saith the Lord; “Take heed to yourselves, and bear no burden on the sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem; 22 neither carry forth a burden out of your houses on the sabbath day, neither do ye any work, but hallow ye the sabbath day, as I commanded your fathers. 23 But they obeyed not, neither inclined their ear, but made their neck stiff, that they might not hear, nor receive instruction… 27 But if ye will not hearken unto me to hallow the sabbath day, and not to bear a burden, even entering in at the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath day; then will I kindle a fire in the gates thereof, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched.”[69]
Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said unto them, “What evil thing is this that ye do, and profane the sabbath day? 18 Did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath.”[70]
Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins… 13 If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words…[71]
The use of fire can also be seen as often associated with sun worship.
And Nadab and Abihu died, when they offered strange fire before the Lord.[72]
The execution of Nadab and Abihu by God for bringing profane or strange fire into the sanctuary was not arbitrary. This act by the priesthood would be understood as bringing foreign sun worship into God’s message of the gospel.
When Aaron speaks of the creation of the Apis sun calf, he said, “I cast it into the fire, and this calf came out.”[73] He also built an altar before the calf.[74] There is a sense of trying to say the fire is magical and self producing of this image. It was part of the worship.
In the performance of Baalish sun worship in Canaan, children were murdered in the fire of their altars.[75]
The challenge upon Mount Carmel between Elijah, the prophet of God, versus the prophets of Baalish sun worship was a test of fire.[76]
The stories of the deliverance from Egypt, Mount Carmel, and Israel in Babylon are especially types of the end time experience.
In the story of Egypt, there were plagues, and the army of the nation was unleashed against Israel. But God provided a mighty deliverance praised in the song of Moses.[77] Revelation also makes reference to the song of Moses.[78] The experience of Mount Carmel is referenced in Revelation 13 when the end-time Earth Beast calls fire down from Heaven.[79] This test between Elijah and the prophets of Baal occurs also after three and one half years, similar to the one thousand two hundred sixty days of Revelation.[80] Israel’s experience of being taken into Babylon captivity is drawn upon with the declaration of Babylon’s fall and the imperative to get out of it in Revelation 14 and 18.[81] In the context of these Old Testament references, we see a repeated pattern of God’s people having forgotten the Sabbath while concurrently worshiping the host of heaven, especially the sun.
As Revelation draws on these stories, it is notable that this is the only book of the Bible that explicitly tells us what day of the week it was given on, the Lord’s day.[82] John could have said the Sabbath, but he did not. By employing the language of “Lord’s day,” he is underscoring that the matter of importance with regard to this day is “Who is your Lord?”
We have already discussed that the name of God is equivalent to His law, His character, and His justice revealed in the system of salvation with Jesus at the center.
And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.[83]
If God’s name is His law, then the name of the beast should be thought of as Satan’s counterfeit law and counterfeit system of worship.
And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads…[84]
Now these are the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments, which the Lord your God commanded to teach you, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go to possess it: 2 that thou mightest fear the Lord thy God, to keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son, and thy son’s son, all the days of thy life; and that thy days may be prolonged… 8 And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.[85]
The law in Israel was spoken of as being bound to the hand and as frontlets between the eyes. That the mark is placed in the same locations again demonstrates its nature as a counterfeit to the law of God.
Ask a question. What is the number of God, the number of His name? The number seven first finds its spiritual importance in the completion of creation on the seventh-day rest. The name of God is equivalent to His character, His law, and the number that is especially linked with this is seven. The book of Revelation employs the use of sevens many times throughout. Thus, it stands to reason, with such highlights, that this day of rest, the Sabbath, would be an important matter within its pages.
And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.[86]
In Revelation 12, it is demonstrated what the war between Christ and Satan is about. Satan hates Christ, His law, and those who keep that law.
And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.[87]
And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.[88]
In Revelation 13, when the beast blasphemes the name of God, it is His law that is being attacked. The parallel to this is found in the little horn of Daniel 7. The nature of the attack is that he “shall intend to change times and law.” It is none other than God’s law that he attempts to change. Further confirming this is the contrast in Revelation 14 of those “who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.”[89] The subject of Revelation 13 is the matter of worship. One by one, the commandments pertaining to the worship of God are broken. There is the worship of the dragon and beast where the first commandment is broken.[90] There is worship of an image in which the second commandment is broken.[91] There is blasphemy against God so that the third commandment is broken.[92] Where might we find the fourth commandment being broken? That would be the mark.
And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads…[93]
In the first angel’s message of Revelation 14, the worship of God as Creator, expressed in the Sabbath, is brought to mind in the language of “worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.”
Saying with a loud voice, “Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.”[94]
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: 10 but the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: 11 for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.[95]
By contrast, Revelation 13 employs a counterfeit creation sequence. To demonstrate this, compare the following passages.
And God said, “Let us make man in our image… 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.[96]
And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.[97]
And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.[98]
He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast…[99]
Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. 3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.[100]
And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: 17 and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.[101]
God, in the creation, made man in His image. He breathed the breath of life into that image. Then the Sabbath was instituted. The second beast of Revelation 13 causes an image to be made. He puts breath into it. Then the mark, the counterfeit to the Sabbath, is instituted.
Revelation 13 speaks of the number of the beast as the “number of a man.” What might that be about?
Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, “Thus saith the Lord God; ‘Because thine heart is lifted up, and thou hast said, “I am a God, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas;” yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God… 9 Wilt thou yet say before him that slayeth thee, “I am God?” but thou shalt be a man, and no God, in the hand of him that slayeth thee.’”[102]
They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, “Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms…”[103]
… and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or 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 it is the number of a man: His number is 666.[104]
When we speak of man’s ways, what do we really mean? Aren’t man’s ways the way of Satan? According to Ezekiel and Isaiah, Satan is spoken of as being “a man, and not a god.” Thus, the “number of a man” is Satan’s cherished number, the number of his counterfeit system of worship.
Let us take a quick look at some mysteries in the Bible.
The gospel message and the kingdom of God are compared in the Bible with a mystery.
And he said unto them, “Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables…”[105]
And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel.[106]
The harlot riding the beast of Revelation 17 has synonymous features with the beast of Revelation 13. Look at her name.
And upon her forehead was a name written, Mystery, Babylon The Great, The Mother Of Harlots And Abominations Of The Earth.[107]
Her name, her counterfeit law, and system of worship are also a mystery and are directly connected with the concept of Babylon. What does this mean?
But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.[108]
It is God who numbers the hairs of our head. It is God who weighs and measures the creation. It is God who sets the prophetic times. It is God who determines the numbers of significance such as twelve for His people.
Does Satan have his counterfeit? He does, and it shows up in Babel right after the flood.
And they said, “Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.”[109]
Not long after the flood, under the united rebellion led by Nimrod at Babel, something was designed. They did not just build a tower to get to Heaven on their own works. In opposition to the name of God, they designed a name, a system of worship for themselves, saying, “Let us make a name.” With the subsequent dispersion from Babel at the confusion of language, the reason for the similarities in pagan religions in many different cultures is found. At their root, they are all the religion of Babel, which is Babylon.[110]
One of the lessons of the idol image of Daniel 2 is that the religion of Babylon continues in an unbroken continuum to the end of time. It is Satan’s mystery religion.
… 19 Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night, and Daniel blessed the God of heaven…[111]
The kingdoms may change in strength and appearance, but they have the same idolatry from Babylon to God’s kingdom.[112]
Babylon is the mother of sorcery and astrology, the systematized worship of the host of heaven,[113] similar to that of Baal. The mathematics of Babylon were applied to this idolatry. Their numbering system was base sixty. This is why we have sixty seconds in a minute and sixty minutes in an hour. Just as the degrees of a circle are, to the present, divided by three hundred sixty, as a heritage from Babylon, the zodiac of astrology has 360 degrees. The smallest representative divisions are separated 10 degrees apiece as decans/decanates with their appointed demons. That makes 36 positions. The migration through these decans/decanates is based on the movement of the sun throughout the year. Adding up these positions, calculating the number, the summation of the series 1 to 36 gives you the number of the entity behind it all, 666.[114]
Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof six cubits: he set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon.[115]
In Revelation 13, an image is worshiped and there is a death sentence for dissenters. This calls to mind the story of the image of Daniel 3 and the fiery furnace. Nebuchadnezzar makes an image 60 by 6, which multiplied equals 360. Just as idol images were often directed at worshiping the host of heaven, as avatars of the various celestial assigned demons, the image of Daniel 3 would have had the same purpose. Anyone familiar with astrology would immediately see in this image, with these published dimensions, a deference to the zodiac with its 360 degrees. The presence of the fiery furnace should be noted, as well as the choice of gold. In one sense, this was to defy the prediction in Daniel 2, but in another sense, it served to identify what aspect of the zodiac was being worshiped, the sun. Modern astrologers may call the sun demon Sorath, but it is the same serpent of old, the Devil.
The number of a man, that is 666, is telling us that the counterfeit to the Sabbath is actually a day linked with sun worship.[116] It may be disguised, shrouded in a sophisticated way to appeal to the modern mind, but it is actually part of a pagan system derived all the way back to the religion of Babylon/Babel. The children of darkness know this, as in the modern age they often prominently embrace this number, 666, as their own.
Is there a day, linked with sun worship, that would serve as a counterfeit to the Sabbath in God’s law and His name? A day that is a change of God’s times and law? That would be Sunday.
And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men…[117]
In Revelation 13, fire is called down from heaven in the sight of men to deceive the world into false worship. This draws our attention to the story of Mount Carmel. In that story, the contest was between the true God versus Baalish sun worship. Only this time, at the end of time, Satan will be allowed to be the one to bring down the fire. We must trust our Bible more than our eyes, having spiritual eyesight cleansed with eye salve rather than having eyes like a man.
Ye are of your father the devil… there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.[118]
And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years…[119]
And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.[120]
The beast that compels into false worship speaks like a dragon, meaning it is full of lies like the Devil. This contrasts with those who preach the three warning messages of Revelation 14. They have no deceit.[121] They are speaking the truth when they raise their alarm to the world.[122]
And among those nations you shall find no rest, nor shall the sole of your foot have a resting place; but there the Lord will give you a trembling heart, failing eyes, and anguish of soul. 66 Your life shall hang in doubt before you; you shall fear day and night, and have no assurance of life. 67 In the morning you shall say, “Oh, that it were evening!” And at evening you shall say, “Oh, that it were morning!” because of the fear which terrifies your heart, and because of the sight which your eyes see.[123]
And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.[124]
Those that accept the mark and refuse to enter the true rest of the Sabbath will receive the curse of God described in Deuteronomy 28. They will have no rest day or night, given up to the slavery of sin.
But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: 21 for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.[125]
And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.[126]
And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it any more.[127]
Jesus, in speaking of the end times, directly associated prayer for the Sabbath with the final tribulation. He quotes from Daniel 12, where, at the end of time, Michael, who is Jesus, stands up for His people. In other words, the Sabbath is at stake at the end of time.
And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God. 3 And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.”[128]
O Lord, how great are thy works! And thy thoughts are very deep.[129]
Those who have victory over the mark begin their song of Moses by quoting from Psalm 92. What is Psalm 92? It is titled “A Song for the Sabbath day” and speaks of victory over the enemies of God and the reward of the righteous.
The language of “singing the song of Moses,” references the story of the Exodus out of Egypt. As we have already discussed, Pharaoh was attacking Sabbath-keeping in the contest with Moses where he said, “You make them rest from their labor!” The original song of Moses celebrated God’s judgment against a power that, among other evils, was attacking the Sabbath.
Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? For thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.[130]
And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the Lord.[131]
This song of Moses, in Revelation, also references the language of Isaiah where it speaks of all flesh worshiping before God on the Sabbath.
Let us join in that song and worship God as our Lord, on the Sabbath.
[4] It may also be observed that some passages personify the name of God; Isaiah 30:27; Isaiah 60:9; Psalm 20:1, 7; Psalm 44:5-6.
[7] Revelation 14:1; in Exodus and Deuteronomy the law is also associated with the forehead. Exodus 13:9; Deuteronomy 6:6-9; Deuteronomy 11:18-20.
[9] Revelation 7:3; Revelation 9:4.
[10] Ephesians 1:13; Ephesians 4:30.
[11] Jeremiah 31:33; Hebrews 8:10; Hebrews 10:16.
[16] Exodus 34:5-7, 14.
[17] Exodus 20:5-6; also compare with John 12:23-32.
[18] Joel 2:32; Acts 2:21; Romans 10:13.
[21] 2 Samuel 6:2; also Deuteronomy 10:8.
[22] 1 Chronicles 22:7-8, 10, 19; also Exodus 20:24; Leviticus 20:3; Deuteronomy 12:5, 11, 21; Deuteronomy 14:23-24; Deuteronomy 16:2, 5-6; Deuteronomy 18:5-8; Deuteronomy 26:2-3; 2 Samuel 7:13; 1 Kings 3:2; 1 Kings 5:5; 1 Kings 8:16-20, 29, 34-35, 41-44, 48; 1 Kings 9:3, 7; 1 Kings 11:36; 1 Kings 14:21; 2 Kings 21:4, 7; 2 Kings 23:27; 1 Chronicles 13:6; 1 Chronicles 22:7-8, 10, 19; 1 Chronicles 28:2-3; 1 Chronicles 29:16; 2 Chronicles 2:1, 4; 2 Chronicles 6:5-10, 20, 24, 26, 32-34, 38; 2 Chronicles 7:14-16, 20; 2 Chronicles 12:13; 2 Chronicles 20:8-9; 2 Chronicles 33:3-7; Ezra 6:12; Nehemiah 1:9; Psalm 74:7; Psalm 138:2; Jeremiah 7:10-12, 14, 30; Jeremiah 25:29; Jeremiah 32:34; Jeremiah 34:15.
[23] Exodus 31:18; Exodus 32:15; Exodus 34:29.
[24] Exodus 25:16, 21-22; Exodus 26:33-34; Exodus 30:6, 26; Exodus 31:7; Exodus 39:35; Exodus 40:3, 5, 20-21; Numbers 4:5; Numbers 7:89; Joshua 4:6.
[25] Exodus 27:21; Exodus 30:36; Exodus 38:21; Leviticus 24:3; Numbers 1:50, 53; Numbers 9:15; Numbers 10:11; Numbers 17:4; Acts 7:44 NASB 2020; Revelation 15:5; as tabernacle of witness, Numbers 17:7-8; Numbers 18:2; 2 Chronicles 24:6; Acts 7:44 NKJV.
[29] John 17:6-12, 26.
[34] https://www.abarim-publications.com/Meaning/Naamah.html.
[36] Genesis 6:1-2 NKJV.
[38] Genesis 6:4 YLT.
[42] https://www.abarim-publications.com/Meaning/Baal.html.
[50] Jeremiah 43:13 YLT.
[52] Exodus 32:4 NKJV.
[56] Leviticus 18:21; Deuteronomy 18:10; 2 Kings 16:2-3; 2 Kings 17:16-17; 2 Kings 21:1-6; 2 Kings 23:10; 2 Chronicles 28:2-3; 2 Chronicles 33:1-6; Psalm 106:37-38; Isaiah 57:3-6; Jeremiah 7:31; Jeremiah 19:1-15; Jeremiah 32:34-35; Ezekiel 16:20-21; Ezekiel 20:25-26, 31; Ezekiel 23:37-39.
[57] 2 Chronicles 15:16; 1 Kings 14:23-24; Deuteronomy 23:17-18; 2 Kings 23:7; Ezekiel 16:17.
[60] 2 Kings 17:16; 2 Kings 21:3-7; 2 Kings 23:4-7, 11, 15; 2 Chronicles 33:3-5; Zephaniah 1:5; Acts 7:39-42.
[62] Jeremiah 25:8-11, 18.
[66] Ezekiel 20:12-13, 15-16, 21, 23-24.
[67] Ezekiel 22:8, 26.
[69] Jeremiah 17:21-23, 27.
[71] Isaiah 58:1, 13.
[75] Jeremiah 19:5; Jeremiah 32:35; 2 Kings 16:3; 2 Kings 21:6; 2 Chronicles 28:3; 2 Chronicles 33:6.
[80] Luke 4:25; Revelation 11:3, Revelation 12:6.
[81] Revelation 14:8; Revelation 18:2-4.
[90] Revelation 13:4, 8, 12.
[99] Revelation 13:15 NKJV.
[102] Ezekiel 28:2, 9.
[104] Revelation 13:17-18 NKJV.
[110] Babel and Babylon are the same word in Hebrew, bāḇel, בָּבֶל (H894).
[111] Daniel 2:18-19, 27, 30, 47 NRSVue & NASB 1995.
[112] Note that the beasts of Daniel 7, according to historicist interpretation, are understood to cover the same historical sweep as the metals of the Daniel 2 image. Also note that the little horn of Daniel 7:8 is understood to be the same as the “man of sin” of 2 Thessalonians 2:3. It is important, therefore, that there is a recurring theme of “man” symbols. The first lion beast of Daniel 7, representing Babylon, is made to stand like a man, is given the heart of a man, and the little horn near the end of the series has eyes like the eyes of a man. This can be seen as a further correlation to 666 being the “number of a man,” pointing to the religious system stretching all the way back to Babylon.
[113] Daniel 2:7, 27; Daniel 4:7.
[114] 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + 7 + 8 + 9 + 10 + 11 + 12 + 13 + 14 + 15 + 16 + 17 + 18 + 19 + 20 + 21 + 22 + 23 + 24 + 25 + 26 + 27 + 28 + 29 + 30 + 31 + 32 + 33 + 34 + 35 + 36 = 666; it is also noteworthy that the Greek word for Satan satanas, Σατανᾶς (G4567) occurs thirty six times in the New Testament.
[116] Also note that 666 is in Ezra 2:13 that reads “the sons of Adonikam, 666”; Adonikam, ‘ăḏōnîqām, אֲדֹנִיקָם (H140) means “My Lord Has Risen” and may be seen as another reference to Sunday as the day the Lord raised from the dead; https://www.abarim-publications.com/Meaning/Adonikam.html.
[119] Revelation 20:2; Revelation 12:9.
[123] Deuteronomy 28:65-67 NKJV.
[127] Exodus 11:6; this language, being similar to Mathew 24:21 and Daniel 12:1, is an additional link between the Exodus experience and the end time deliverance. Recall that Pharaoh punished Israel because of the call to Sabbath rest by Moses.
Comments
Be the first to comment on this article — share your thoughts above and start the discussion.