Compliance or Embargo - Rumor notes 119

 Revelation 13

16 He causes all, the small and the great, the rich and the poor, and the free and the slave, to be given marks on their right hands, or on their foreheads; 17 and that no one would be able to buy or to sell, unless he has that mark, the name of the beast or the number of his name.

that no one would be able to buy or to sell

So much could be said about this that could take days to unpack. Buying and selling lie at the very root, and permeates every aspect of Satan's counterfeit design of reality he invented while still in heaven as Lucifer. This involves the mindset and practice of trading, something never imagined before the beginnings of sin. Trading and commerce is a distortion of the principle of agape love which is unconditional with no strings attached, no expectations or obligations of a return. Trading by definition expects return on investments – ROI. Heaven's principle is expressed clearly this way:

Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons. Freely you received, so freely give. (Matthew 10:8)

But we received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is from God, that we might know the things that were freely given to us by God. (1 Corinthians 2:12)

This embargo action on the part of the collective hierarchy of this world's powers is the ultimate way to polarize and force everyone to conform to Satan's counterfeit system rooted in trading. The spirit of trading is the hallmark of Satan's handiwork, and at this point in history, participation in that system will be predicated on conformity, or at least acquiescence, to the spirit and methods of the dragon enforced by his henchmen. This is all embodied in receiving the mark, the mindset of the beast which is reflective of the mindset of the dragon who still insists he is the prince of this world.

For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her sexual immorality, the kings of the earth committed sexual immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from the abundance of her luxury."

The merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her, for no one buys their merchandise any more;

The fruits which your soul lusted after have been lost to you, and all things that were dainty and sumptuous have perished from you, and you will find them no more at all. The merchants of these things, who were made rich by her, will stand far away for the fear of her torment, weeping and mourning;

They cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and mourning, saying, 'Woe, woe, the great city, in which all who had their ships in the sea were made rich by reason of her great wealth!' For in one hour is she made desolate. (Revelation 18:3,11,14-15,19)

When your wares went forth out of the seas, you filled many peoples; you did enrich the kings of the earth with the multitude of your riches and of your merchandise. In the time that you were broken by the seas in the depths of the waters, your merchandise and all your company did fall in the midst of you. All the inhabitants of the islands are astonished at you, and their kings are horribly afraid; they are troubled in their face. The merchants among the peoples hiss at you; you are become a terror, and you shall nevermore have any being. (Ezekiel 27:33-36)

The idea of trading seems completely innocent and innocuous to us today because that is all we have known most of our lives. It may come as a shock to learn that this is part of the poison of Satan's subtle design to undermine and distort creation design. Yet as we come to understand how this is indeed the case, it becomes easier to discern how it defines so much of our thinking and interferes in our relationships, especially when it comes to God.

They joined with their brothers, their nobles, and entered into a curse, and into an oath, to walk in God's law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the commandments of Yahweh our Lord, and his ordinances and his statutes; and that we would not give our daughters to the peoples of the land, nor take their daughters for our sons; and if the peoples of the land bring wares or any grain on the Sabbath day to sell, that we would not buy of them on the Sabbath, or on a holy day; and that we would forego the seventh year, and the exaction of every debt. (Nehemiah 10:29-31)

This is a prime example of how the subtle spirit of trading includes the spirit of legalism. Most assume God relates to us on a legal basis; blessings in exchange for obedience. Keep in mind that trading (an invention of Lucifer turned Satan) is foreign to God's design, for it opens the way to every other kind of evil. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. (1 Timothy 6:10 KJV) It defies the existence of unconditional love, which is not based on obligations of return but a deep desire for joy-based intimacy. When we come to view God as issuing laws, statutes and regulations for others to obey before He will give favor, rather than as instructions for how to live in harmony with design principles of creation, we erode our capacity to enter into His rest, peace and joy. The result is emotional starvation. When legalism (viewing God as demanding obedience, and becoming offended and executing punishments when we are not) replaces love motivated by appreciation for His kindness, goodness and love, our heart is infected with a spirit of violence, and sooner or later it acts out in violating others. This is what happened to Lucifer and is a natural byproduct of trading, and this is inevitable in all who have this as the basis of their relationships.

By your wisdom and by your understanding you have gotten you riches, and have gotten gold and silver into your treasures; by your great wisdom and by your traffic have you increased your riches, and your heart is lifted up because of your riches--

By the abundance of your traffic they filled the midst of you with violence, and you have sinned: therefore I have cast you as profane out of the mountain of God; and I have destroyed you, covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.

By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your traffic, you have profaned your sanctuaries; therefore have I brought forth a fire from the midst of you; it has devoured you, and I have turned you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all those who see you. (Ezekiel 28:4-5,16,18)

Here we see the spirit of violence emerges whenever the spirit of trading defines our relationships.

It was given to him to give breath to it, to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause as many as wouldn't worship the image of the beast to be killed. (Revelation 13:15)

Worship involves receiving our identity as well as learning how to act like ourselves from some source. Satan invented trading, but it is a denial of God's faithfulness and undermines trust in God's constant care and provision for all His creation. The spirit of expecting something in return sets us up for the spirit of offense and bitterness to fester in our heart whenever our expectations are unmet. As unresolved offenses accumulate, they become volatile emotions increasing tension until finally violence explodes. Violence means violating any part of God's design, and our heart is designed for unconditional love, graciousness, kindness, peace, joy and anything else reflective of God's heart. Trading contradicts who God is and thus produces dissonance in hearts never designed to live that way. The image of God becomes defaced so that the reflections of the heart become reflections of Satan's twisted view God. This is at the root of sin, not that God gets upset because people break His rules, but rather people distrusting His heart because they imagine Him to be demanding, severe and threatening punishments when He does not get paid back what He expects out of His investments in us. This is what it means to worship the beast, and the result is being transformed by the beast's version of God while rejecting the Lamb's true revelation of God's heart.

Thus says Yahweh my God: "Feed the flock of slaughter. Their buyers slaughter them, and go unpunished. Those who sell them say, 'Blessed be Yahweh, for I am rich;' and their own shepherds don't pity them. For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land," says Yahweh; "but, behold, I will deliver the men everyone into his neighbor's hand, and into the hand of his king. They will strike the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them." (Zechariah 11:4-6)

When people cling to dark views of God despite all His efforts to attract them through exposure to His unconditional love, the only thing left He can do is to respect our choices and to release us to experience the tragic consequences that result from worshiping beast-like gods. The principle of reflection and projection means that God will be perceived to be acting like us, yet in reality it is our own darkened views of God distilled from our own sordid thinking and reinforced by the father of lies that condemns and destroys us. God's wrath literally means giving us over, releasing us to the authority of the god we have chosen to serve. When the version of god we insist is accurate is actually a false twisted god perception, we project back onto Him the likeness of Satan rather than of Jesus.

Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' But the wise answered, saying, 'What if there isn't enough for us and you? You go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.' While they went away to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. (Matthew 25:7-10)

Notice the source relied on by these foolish virgins. Their mindset was shaped by the economic system while the wise virgins were more focused on their relationship with the Bridegroom, so they had planned ahead because relationships was their highest priority.

Trading is predicated on expecting something in return in all our dealings with others. This way of thinking infects not just assets or services but becomes entangled in all our relationships. The spirit of trading and exchange under-girding our monetary systems can be summarized as the love of money, but we are told how to push back against that mindset.

But those who are determined to be rich fall into a temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful lusts, such as drown men in ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. [the root of all evil. (KJV)] Some have been led astray from the faith in their greed, and have pierced themselves through with many sorrows. (1 Timothy 6:9-10)

Be free from the love of money, content with such things as you have, for he has said, "I will in no way leave you, neither will I in any way forsake you." So that with good courage we say, "The Lord is my helper. I will not fear. What can man do to me?" (Hebrews 13:5-6)

Buy the truth, and don't sell it. Get wisdom, discipline, and understanding. (Proverbs 23:23)

My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19)

Because you say, 'I am rich, and have gotten riches, and have need of nothing;' and don't know that you are the wretched one, miserable, poor, blind, and naked; I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, that you may become rich; and white garments, that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes, that you may see. (Revelation 3:17-18)

What we must not miss in this last passage is the currency we are to use in this transaction. Jesus says we are poor, despite the fact we think we are rich and need nothing. If we are poor, how does He expect us to pay Him when He says we must buy from Him what we lack? The currency is what He just listed as our condition; that is what He wants in exchange for the valuable things we desperately need. What He wants is our wretchedness, our misery, our poverty (blessed are the poor in spirit...), our blindness and our naked condition. In short, it is our sins, our garbage, our filth, our dark feelings of shame and condemnation and guilt – these are what we must unload onto Jesus so we can receive what we need most, His gold of faith and love, His white garments that reflect the righteousness of God, and eye salve that can remedy our spiritual blindness so we will see true reality more clearly. This is the strange currency Jesus invites us to use to become truly rich, clothed with light that liberates us from shame, and with clear thinking and hearts to experience the joy of being free and healed by love. This is the startling but powerful invitation Jesus offers all who want to experience true life.

Ho, everyone who thirsts, come you to the waters, and he who has no money; come you, buy, and eat; yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend money for that which is not bread? and your labor for that which doesn't satisfy? listen diligently to me, and eat you that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Turn your ear, and come to me; hear, and your soul shall live: and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. (Isaiah 55:1-3)

Here is a pivotal passage related to trading and exchange that exposes the core of our problem.

For the invisible things of him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made, even his everlasting power and divinity; that they may be without excuse. Because, knowing God, they didn't glorify him as God, neither gave thanks, but became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and traded the glory of the incorruptible God for the likeness of an image of corruptible man, and of birds, and four-footed animals, and creeping things.

Therefore God also gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to uncleanness, that their bodies should be dishonored among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason, God gave them up to vile passions.... (Romans 1:20-26)

This cuts to the very heart of the nature of evil. Humans are created to reflect the image of God, and key to this is our freedom to choose. In Revelation we find the beast and its image demanding worship to them, using even threats of death to compel everyone to conform to their image. In Romans 1 we find the description of how this comes about.

Our original design was to glorify and reflect God's goodness and kindness, and ever express continual gratitude to Him (the essence of the New Song). But our logic has become confused and vain in the way we think and reason. Our heart has lost sensibility, capacity for sympathy, compassion, love and joy. Heavenly wisdom has been displaced with worldly wisdom, and without realizing it we have been made fools. We imagine we are rich, wise, healthy and have little need for God, but this is because we traded the truth about God for lies and false ideas that seduced us into believing we could live independent of God. By exchanging the truth of God for THE LIE, we worship and serve Satan, the creature, the most subtle, crafty and dangerous liar that ever existed. Worship means we receive our identity through his value system. We are kidnapped to be his slaves, serving him with ever-increasing fear rather than serving God in joy and freedom. We keep giving up our freedom in exchange of the truth about God, keeping us in bondage to fear or pride. Our hearts are darkened, empty and desperate inside. Yet we imagine we must participate in the trading system of this world to sustain our own life and satisfy our desires. Yet this is no different than the Israelites clamoring to go back into Egypt rather than staying in the wilderness dependent on God.

unless he has that mark

Now great multitudes were going with him. He turned and said to them, "If anyone comes to me, and doesn't hate his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers, and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he can't be my disciple. Whoever doesn't bear his own cross, and come after me, can't be my disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a tower, doesn't first sit down and count the cost, to see if he has enough to complete it? Or perhaps, when he has laid a foundation, and is not able to finish, everyone who sees begins to mock him, saying, 'This man began to build, and wasn't able to finish.' Or what king, as he goes to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends an envoy, and asks for conditions of peace. So therefore whoever of you who doesn't renounce all that he has, he can't be my disciple. (Luke 14:25-33)

People must weigh the consequences of being cut off from participation in the trading and exchange system this world uses to control the lives of all who dwell on the earth. Initially it may feel terrifying and overwhelming. Yet compare that with the rest of the story outlined in these others references to this mark in Revelation.

Another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a great voice, "If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead, or on his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is prepared unmixed in the cup of his anger. He will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb. The smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever. They have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name. (Revelation 14:9-11)

I heard a loud voice out of the temple, saying to the seven angels, "Go and pour out the seven bowls of the wrath of God on the earth!" The first went, and poured out his bowl into the earth, and it became a harmful and evil sore on the people who had the mark of the beast, and who worshiped his image. (Revelation 16:1-2)

The beast was taken, and with him the false prophet who worked the signs in his sight, with which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. (Revelation 19:20)

I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, and for the word of God, and such as didn't worship the beast nor his image, and didn't receive the mark on their forehead and on their hand. They lived, and reigned with Christ for the thousand years. (Revelation 20:4)

Cain said to Yahweh, "My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, you have driven me out this day from the surface of the ground. I will be hidden from your face, and I will be a fugitive and a wanderer in the earth. It will happen that whoever finds me will kill me."

Yahweh said to him, "Therefore whoever slays Cain, vengeance will be taken on him sevenfold." Yahweh appointed a sign [mark] for Cain, lest any finding him should strike him. Cain went out from Yahweh's presence, and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden. (Genesis 4:13-16)

Yahweh said to him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark on the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry over all the abominations that are done in the midst of it. To the others he said in my hearing, Go you through the city after him, and strike: don't let your eye spare, neither have you pity; kill utterly the old man, the young man and the virgin, and little children and women; but don't come near any man on whom is the mark: and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the old men that were before the house. (Ezekiel 9:4-6)

How does this link to the mark in Revelation 13 and the kind of God Jesus brings into the open?

In Ezekiel the ones being marked appear to be the good guys while everyone else is in line to be killed. In Revelation the ones being marked worship the beast to avoid being killed. These passages appear to contradict each other. Are they referring to the same thing or are they opposite?

Previously in this chapter we discussed implications involved in bringing fire down out of heaven onto the earth as part of a program to deceive all who dwell on the earth. By relying on Elijah's precedent set on Mt. Carmel, the beast powers use his example of killing off the prophets of Baal as justification to kill off all who dare defy the clear evidence that God is behind the agenda being promoted by the beast.

How might this be repeated here in relation to the mark? In Ezekiel it appears clear that those who are on the side of God and have His favor and protection, are the ones who receive the mark on their forehead. Thus a strong argument could be advanced that in order to avoid punishment and death, people need to get with the program to save the planet for the good of mankind. To receive the mark can be portrayed as taking God's side who supports the agenda promoted by the beast powers. They are simply promoting the common good of humanity and portray dissenters and resistors as deserving of punishment and eventually death should they continue to resist compliance with the requirements for unifying a solid front to existential threats on the planet, and to restore and secure law and order in all the earth. What we learn here is that it all depends on the perspective one has about an issue that determines the meaning and interpretations of the symbols involved.

As previously discussed, this mark is more about disposition and perceived identity than anything. In Revelation the mark is located in two specific places – the right hand and/or the forehead. This sentence we are analyzing refers to 1 mark with 2 location options along with 3 different ways of identifying with the mindset of the beast and its image. What are the implications of this?

the name of the beast

The smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever. They have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name. (Revelation 14:11)

And on her forehead a name was written, "MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF THE PROSTITUTES AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH." (Revelation 17:5)

They said, "Come, let's build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top reaches to the sky, and let's make ourselves a name, lest we be scattered abroad on the surface of the whole earth." (Genesis 11:4)

Clearly here in chapter 13, none of the beasts have been identified with names like we think of them, so to suddenly bring up the issue of the name of the beast highlights that this is about character and disposition. The name or character of the beast is being exposed increasingly throughout this chapter and reflects the methods and motives of the dragon, the arch opponent and mortal enemy of the Lamb, the real hero of this book. So a good way to identity the name of the beast, the dragon and those with them is to get to know the Lamb who brings the light that exposes everything hidden in our darkness of lies and superstition that induces animosity against goodness and truth.

Because one of the locations for the mark is in the forehead, this corresponds to our chosen identity and character, share mindset with the spirit of compulsion and force exhibited by the beastly powers. When one has the name of the beast, it means they have not just chosen compliance to the intimidating demands of the beast powers, but they have come to embrace their spirit until they reflect them and form permanent characters in the likeness of the beast. This is different from those who have the mark on their hand which we discussed previously. This is willingly choosing to embrace an identity in opposition to those who choose to follow and reflect the Lamb.

the number of his name

These are people identified by a number relating to the name just discussed. What does this mean? Why are there three distinct categories as highlighted by the word 'or' in this sentence?

I believe it is helpful to contemplate the counterparts of these symbols we will study in the next chapter. When comparing truth with counterfeits, the true that is being counterfeited can sometimes be uncovered by noting why or how the counterfeit has power.

That mark on their right hand or forehead	Lamb and Father's name on their foreheads
The name of the beast	Name of the Lamb and his Father
The number of his name (666)	With the Lamb a number,144,000

This is part of a chart comparing Revelation 13 with the first half of Revelation 14. Here we see the counterparts on each side of the war and how their identity is located on their forehead as is the name they are associated with. Closely linked is a number by which they are also identified.

There appears to be a progression of ID here beginning with a mark, then connection with a name and finally a number. If the mark is primarily about a disposition, a mindset shaped by how we perceive God relating to us, this would indicate an internal condition of the heart and mind witnessed in how we express our thoughts, attitudes and character externally. Those who receive the mark of the beast will either embrace it enthusiastically with their mind and join the beast in its agenda to unify the world through means of compulsion and enforced laws (relying on the reward punishment system invented by the dragon), or at the least they will succumb to the pressure of threats of severe economic boycotts and conform to the demands and agenda of the beast even while not believing it internally but mainly out of fear.

The second ID relates to which source is allowed to shape our character, influence our choices and determine what direction each moves toward as far as worship. Keep in mind that worship is primarily about who we permit to define our identity, our sense of worth, and who we rely on to provide for our needs and satisfy our cravings. Those who worship the beast, its image and ultimately the dragon behind all of them, are squeezed into the world's mold while simultaneously becoming less like the image of the One who created them. They perceive their identity by how the world defines them, and their character absorbs the attributes of the name/character of who they identify with as their master. This is what it means to have the name of the beast. It means a person chooses to embrace, or at least comply with the ways and motives and agenda of the beast rather than resist it and thus incur the wrath of the dragon over them.

The last ID is more external, the number of the name of the beast. We will focus on this in our study of the next verse, but most important is heavenly wisdom and divinely assisted discernment to calculate what that number means. Note that having one's name displaced by a number is intentional dehumanization. Being identified only by a number diminishes our perceived sense of value, being merely a digit among many with no rights, little respect and buried in the psyche of the trading system which is about mind control.

By contrast, the number identifying the followers of the true Lamb denotes a perfect cube. This is found in Revelation in the dimensions of the New Jerusalem which is really a symbol of God's people. 144,000 is the product of 12 cubed times 1000, the latter being the symbolic number of God's presence (the cubic volume of the Most Holy room of the sanctuary where the literal presence of God's Shekina glory dwelt).

In contrast, those who dwell on the earth are identified by a number of fallen humanity, different from their counterpart group who identify with the Lamb. Freed from fear of death, they can no longer manipulated by fear or threats, for the Lamb overcame the power of death and has neutralized the enemy whose only power is fear. They live in freedom from fear for they live by faith in the Christ revealing that God is love and light with no darkness in Him. They receive His love freely and give love freely without resistance. They no longer love their own lives above others. They are motivated by the Spirit of the One who is love and they derive their identity from Him.