The Beast that Was, Is Not, and Yet Is
The BEast that Was, is not, and yet is
In Revelation 17, John describes a Beast; however, this description is different from the previous Beasts mentioned in his prophecy. Notice what the Revelator saw:
"The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that WAS, and IS NOT, and YET IS." Revelation 17:8
According to the Seventh-day Adventist Commentary, we see this symbol in one of these two ways:
- Was represents the Pagan Roman Empire, Is NOT refers to Rome during the fall of the Papacy, and the Yet IS, refers to when the Papacy was established.
- The Was represents the Papacy, the Is Not symbolizes the Papacy after its fall, and the Yet Is refers to the Papacy's revival.
Both of these interpretations are logical and correlate with history. However, I would like to present a third view:
In light of our understanding of prophecy's main actors, I want you to consider that the Beast that Was, Is Not, and Yet Is represents the Dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet.
During the time of John, Pagan Rome WAS already in power. However, after the fall of the Empire, the Papacy would rise, but at the time of John, this power IS NOT yet ruling. Then, John was shown that even after the Papacy's fall, the United States would rise and revive the Papacy, thus the Papacy YET IS still in power at the end of time.
One Beast or Three Beasts?
The Dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet are three separate entities. Pagan Rome ruled until it gave way to the Papacy, and then the United States rose to power after the Papacy's fall in 1798. They are clearly three separate political powers. However, Revelation 17 refers to them as one Beast, not three separate beasts.
The question is, how can they all be one Beast? The answer is quite simple: Revelation 17:11 says, "And the beast that was and is not, even he is the eighth" We know that the eighth is the United States of America; however, we recall from our previous study that the US will establish Babylon. And once it, as the eighth head, establishes Babylon, then the United States becomes a world union of sorts. Thus the United States will form some kind of confederacy with the Papacy, and will be joined together by Spiritualism.
Regarding this union, Ellen White makes the observation:
The Protestants of the United States will be foremost in stretching their hands across the gulf to grasp the hand of Spiritualism; they will reach over the abyss to clasp hands with the Roman power; and under the influence of this threefold union, this country will follow in the steps of Rome in trampling on the rights of conscience. GC88 p. 588
Ellen White reveals so much in her writings, however, we often miss the connection those writings make with Bible prophecy. Ellen White may not have understood this, but you and I should be able to see that when Ellen White spoke about a threefold union, she was referring to the threefold union that consists of the Dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet. Thus we should understand that the eighth Beast is the United States of America, but in reality its Babylon the Great that the prophecy is referring to.
In Revelation 17, John describes a Beast; however, this description is different from the previous Beasts mentioned in his prophecy. Notice what the Revelator saw:
"The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that WAS, and IS NOT, and YET IS." Revelation 17:8
According to the Seventh-day Adventist Commentary, we see this symbol in one of these two ways:
- Was represents the Pagan Roman Empire, Is NOT refers to Rome during the fall of the Papacy, and the Yet IS, refers to when the Papacy was established.
- The Was represents the Papacy, the Is Not symbolizes the Papacy after its fall, and the Yet Is refers to the Papacy's revival.
Both of these interpretations are logical and correlate with history. However, I would like to present a third view:
In light of our understanding of prophecy's main actors, I want you to consider that the Beast that Was, Is Not, and Yet Is represents the Dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet.
During the time of John, Pagan Rome WAS already in power. However, after the fall of the Empire, the Papacy would rise, but at the time of John, this power IS NOT yet ruling. Then, John was shown that even after the Papacy's fall, the United States would rise and revive the Papacy, thus the Papacy YET IS still in power at the end of time.
One Beast or Three Beasts?
The Dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet are three separate entities. Pagan Rome ruled until it gave way to the Papacy, and then the United States rose to power after the Papacy's fall in 1798. They are clearly three separate political powers. However, Revelation 17 refers to them as one Beast, not three separate beasts.
The question is, how can they all be one Beast? The answer is quite simple: Revelation 17:11 says, "And the beast that was and is not, even he is the eighth" We know that the eighth is the United States of America; however, we recall from our previous study that the US will establish Babylon. And once it, as the eighth head, establishes Babylon, then the United States becomes a world union of sorts. Thus the United States will form some kind of confederacy with the Papacy, and will be joined together by Spiritualism.
Regarding this union, Ellen White makes the observation:
The Protestants of the United States will be foremost in stretching their hands across the gulf to grasp the hand of Spiritualism; they will reach over the abyss to clasp hands with the Roman power; and under the influence of this threefold union, this country will follow in the steps of Rome in trampling on the rights of conscience. GC88 p. 588
Ellen White reveals so much in her writings, however, we often miss the connection those writings make with Bible prophecy. Ellen White may not have understood this, but you and I should be able to see that when Ellen White spoke about a threefold union, she was referring to the threefold union that consists of the Dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet. Thus we should understand that the eighth Beast is the United States of America, but in reality its Babylon the Great that the prophecy is referring to.
In Revelation 17, John describes a Beast; however, this description is different from the previous Beasts mentioned in his prophecy. Notice what the Revelator saw:
"The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that WAS, and IS NOT, and YET IS." Revelation 17:8
According to the Seventh-day Adventist Commentary, we see this symbol in one of these two ways:
- Was represents the Pagan Roman Empire, Is NOT refers to Rome during the fall of the Papacy, and the Yet IS, refers to when the Papacy was established.
- The Was represents the Papacy, the Is Not symbolizes the Papacy after its fall, and the Yet Is refers to the Papacy's revival.
Both of these interpretations are logical and correlate with history. However, I would like to present a third view:
In light of our understanding of prophecy's main actors, I want you to consider that the Beast that Was, Is Not, and Yet Is represents the Dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet.
During the time of John, Pagan Rome WAS already in power. However, after the fall of the Empire, the Papacy would rise, but at the time of John, this power IS NOT yet ruling. Then, John was shown that even after the Papacy's fall, the United States would rise and revive the Papacy, thus the Papacy YET IS still in power at the end of time.
One Beast or Three Beasts?
The Dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet are three separate entities. Pagan Rome ruled until it gave way to the Papacy, and then the United States rose to power after the Papacy's fall in 1798. They are clearly three separate political powers. However, Revelation 17 refers to them as one Beast, not three separate beasts.
The question is, how can they all be one Beast? The answer is quite simple: Revelation 17:11 says, "And the beast that was and is not, even he is the eighth" We know that the eighth is the United States of America; however, we recall from our previous study that the US will establish Babylon. And once it, as the eighth head, establishes Babylon, then the United States becomes a world union of sorts. Thus the United States will form some kind of confederacy with the Papacy and will be joined together by Spiritualism.
Regarding this union, Ellen White makes the observation:
The Protestants of the United States will be foremost in stretching their hands across the gulf to grasp the hand of Spiritualism; they will reach over the abyss to clasp hands with the Roman power; and under the influence of this threefold union, this country will follow in the steps of Rome in trampling on the rights of conscience. GC88 p. 588
Ellen White reveals so much in her writings, however, we often miss the connection those writings make with Bible prophecy. Ellen White may not have understood this, but you and I should be able to see that when Ellen White spoke about a threefold union, she was referring to the threefold union that consists of the Dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet. Thus we should understand that the eighth Beast is the United States of America, but in reality its Babylon the Great that the prophecy is referring to.
