dly wound and yet lived." After they wondered, they worshipped. First
they worshipped Satan, who performed the mighty miracle; and then they
worshipped the beast, saying, "Who is like unto the beast? who is able
to make war with him?" The terrible blasphemy of the Man of Sin has been
emphasized in all Scripture references to him, and is here still more
vividly pictured.

The time he is to continue is said to be forty and two months, which
would be one-half the tribulation period; and this statement is probably
not at all figurative. By his overwhelming supernatural power and wisdom
he gains authority over every living thing in the Satanic system,
excepting those recorded in the Lamb's book of life. These are not
brought under his governing power.

The latter part of the chapter presents still another mighty person, who
is also called a "beast," but later appears as the false prophet (Rev.
19:20); and who exercises all the power of the first beast, and
receives his power from the dragon, Satan. Much is said of this second
"beast," but his mission is in no way to attract attention to himself.
He co-operates in gaining world-wide worship and authority for the first
beast, whose deadly wound was healed. The second beast seems to deal
directly with the people and by his mighty signs and miracles, as well
as by his authority, he compels loyalty to the first beast. Fire is
called down from heaven; and a dumb idol is made to speak and live. He
is able to establish a union of all people in trade, imposing a death
penalty upon them. And by all these means he furthers the interests of
the first beast. The Scripture here referred to is as follows: "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 (Satan). And he exerciseth all the
power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them
which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was
healed. And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down
from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, and deceiveth them that
dwell on the earth, by the means of those miracles which he had power to
do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth,
that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a
sword, and did live. And he had power to give life unto the image of the
beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as
many as woul