The Worst False Prophet Ever Series

But the False Prophet is not yet done; no, not by a long shot. He’s by now centered or grouped just about all the power there is into his religious system, but now he’s going to grab more. He’s going to create a world-wide system that nobody could buy or sell anything unless that person, male or female, no exceptions, takes the “mark”, name, or number of the Beast.

Some of us may have seen or at least remember the Christian movie, “A Thief in the Night”, released in the early 1970’s. Of course it took some liberties with the Bible but as far as it went, it gave a very plausible glimpse of life after the Rapture. There was a scene where a young woman, maybe in her 20’s, had gone to an office to receive the mark on her hand. She asked, “Will this wash off”” to which the mark-applier snapped, “No! It’s permanent!” Then a senior citizen sat down, pointed to his forehead, and said something like, “Put it right there! I’m not afraid to show I’m a good citizen!”

The sad thing is that once any person receives the Mark, there is no hope for any of them to receive salvation. There could be any number of reasons why people will take the Mark, but the end result is being separated from God forever (Revelation 20:4-10).

One last word about these early effects: we’ve probably heard any and every explanation and definition of “666” that there is. I remember people taking a Latin title of a certain official, and then adding the Roman numbers to equal, you guessed it, 666. The same kind of “logic” had another candidate: starting with “A” equaling 6, “B” equaling 12, and on through the alphabet, take the name of President Nixon’s secretary of state and the addition totaled, again, 666. The teacher who demonstrated this “proof”, though, had a sense of humor: he said, “So this equals 666. What does it prove? Absolutely nothing!”

But it’s going to be real during the Tribulation. If anyone living in the Tribulation reads this, do not, I repeat, do not take the Mark of the Beast. You will survive for a few years, but once the Tribulation is over, you’ll suffer in Hell forever.

These are the early goals and effects the False Prophet will begin and control beginning fairly soon after he is selected. They aren’t the only things, though, as there will be a later effect which he, the Antichrist, and Satan himself will start.

B The Later Effects

Text, Revelation 16:13-16, KJV: 13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14 For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. 15 Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. 16 And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.

Most of us know that I tend to stay in one passage to share things from it. This evening is a little different, as we need to look, if only for a moment, and a couple of other passages. John wrote in Revelation 16, first, about the seven angels, each of whom had a “vial” or bowl, like a long flat dish (https://biblehub.com/greek/5357.htm). After six of the angels have emptied their bowls or vials on the earth, we have this incident as recorded in the text.