The Antichrist suffers a fatal head wound during the world wars of Rev. 6:3-4. But he rises again with the power of Satan. Then “he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God” (2 Thess. 2:4).
But he will need an intimidating ally to enforce his worship. Accordingly, a diabolical false prophet arises to support him.
“He exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence. And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed. He performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men. And he deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs which it was given him to perform in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to life” (Rev. 13:12-14).
Images with demonic power
These mandatory personal images of the Antichrist possess far more than artificial intelligence. They have demonic power to breathe, speak, spy on and cause the death of those who refuse to worship them.
“And it was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast would even speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed. And he causes 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 their forehead, and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name” (Rev. 13:15-17; upcoming article on 666 Calculated—the Number of His Name).
Still, many refuse to take the mark, even though it means death. For “they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death” (Rev 12:11).
Among the overcomers are 144,000 martyrs. At the same time that the Antichrist persecutes them, God Himself seals them against the effects of the 7 trumpet plagues that He sends on the Antichrist’s kingdom.
ETG articles related to antichrist mark 666:
Tribulation for saints, wrath for unbelievers
Related sources for rebuilding temple:
Affirming Israel’s borders: Scripture & history.
Bible supports Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
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Can we decipher antichrist mark 666?