Beast of Revelation

The Fatima Incident

Revelation 13:13-14 – and it doth great signs, that fire also it may make to come down from the heaven to the earth before men, and it leadeth astray those dwelling on the land, because of the signs that were given it to do before the beast, saying to those dwelling upon the land to make an image to the beast that hath the stroke of the sword and did live, (YLT)

Another part of the beast is described in the passage above. It says that that fire will come from the sky, which people will interpret as some kind of sign from heaven. However, it is just the beast tricking people. This probably has happened many times throughout history, but the best example of this is the Fatima incident:

"The Message of Fatima consists of a number of precise predictions, requests, warnings and promises concerning the Faith and the world which were conveyed by the Blessed Virgin Mary to three shepherd children—Lucia, Jacinta and Francisco—in a series of apparitions at Fatima, Portugal from May to October 1917. […] It was confirmed by an unprecedented public miracle, the Miracle of the Sun, which occurred at precisely the moment Lucia said it would. More than 70,000 people, including Masons, communists and atheists, saw the sun, contrary to all cosmic laws, twirl in the sky, throw off colors and descend to the earth. The event was reported in newspapers around the world, including the New York Times." – www.fatima.org

Basically, Roman Catholics claim that this swirling of the Sun was a sign that had several predictions. One important prediction was that Russia would convert to Catholicism. Remember that Russia has been Eastern Orthodox since 1054, when it split from the Roman Church. The Catholics also claim that Fatima predicted the end of World War I as well as World War II. Several popes have actually visited Fatima and verified its authenticity including Paul VI, John Paul I, and John Paul II. They were so convinced of this sign that they even aided Hitler in World War II. Pope Pius XI signed the Lateran Treaty with Mussolini and the Concordat with Hitler in 1933.

"In June, 1941, Hitler invaded soviet Russia. The Virgin’s prophecy was being fulfilled to the letter. Catholic volunteers joined the nazi armies from Italy, France, Ireland, Belgium, Holland, Latin America, the U.S.A., and Portugal. Spain sent her Blue Division. Many of the volunteers went to fight the soviets, prompted by ideological hatred, but most by their desire to become the chose instruments for the fulfillment of the Fatima prophecy." – Avo Manhattan, Vatican Imperialism in the Twentieth Century, p. 68

The Fatima incident can be explained with a normal astronomical event called a coronal mass ejection. A coronal mass ejection is a massive burst of solar wind, light isotope plasma, and magnetic fields rising above the solar corona or being released into space. This is caused by rearrangement of magnetic field lines. Basically, they are storms on the Sun. These storms cause the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis), volcanoes, earthquakes, satellite malfunction, and even cell phone malfunction here on Earth. Below is a picture of a coronal mass ejection from NASA:

Conclusion

This concludes our study on the beast found in Revelation 13, 17, and Daniel 7. The beast often claims some sort of religious authority and points fingers at others. In truth, the religious authority does not have any authority at all. We must be careful when judging others as Matthew tells us:

Matthew 7:1-3 – Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speack of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? (NIV)

Therefore, when a church accuses someone of something, we must question their authority. Is it really coming from God, or is the beast trying to deceive us? This is an important Biblical theme.

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