A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing

Now the vision switches. Immediately after describing the captivity of the pope, John sees a second beast, that is, another nation or kingdom (Daniel 7:17, 23). But what kind of nation is this?

Whereas the first beast, the papacy, is characterized as a monstrous predator—the roaring lion, the brutal bear, the fierce leopard—this second beast looks “like a lamb.” But is this of the same ilk as “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8)? No! Beware, for this two-faced beast wears the guise of Christ yet, in reality, is an agent of the devil, the dragon (12:9).

Notice that aside from its association with the dragon, this second beast is in many more ways distinct from the first beast. Whereas the first beast came out of the sea (13:1), this beast emerges “out of the earth.” If, as we have learned, the sea in the Bible symbolizes a populated region, then the earth must mean the opposite. You might even call it the New World.

Also note that whereas the first beast has “ten crowns” on his “ten horns,” this beast has only “two horns” and no crowns whatsoever. Who wears crowns? Typically, kings and queens; that is, reigning monarchs wear crowns. So it follows that a nation with no crowns has no monarch. In fact, that nation would be the opposite of a “kingdom”; it would be a republic, a form of government in which the power lies not with one man but with the populace.

There is only one nation that fits all these characteristics: the United States of America. The United States rose to power in the late eighteenth century, around the same time that the pope went into captivity. The United States was also born out of papal persecution, when Christians fled across the ocean to the sparsely inhabited land—the New World. And the United States is the most renowned republic in world history. Indeed, it was founded on two principles: republicanism, a government without a king, and Protestantism, a church without a pope. These are represented by the second beast’s two lamb-like horns.

Everlasting God, open our eyes to these startling, difficult truths, that we may not be deceived in these last days.

For Further Study: Isaiah 5:20; Matthew 7:15; Revelation 12:13–16

Key Bible Texts

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. (Revelation 13:11 KJV)