“Pastor, are vaccines the Mark of the Beast.”
This was a sincere question from a church member about a year ago. My answer was definite.
“No, vaccines are not the Mark. Believers will KNOW what it is when it comes.”
I do believe in a pre-tribulational rapture, so I do not expect to have to refuse the mark myself, but there will be people saved after the rapture of the Church who will refuse it.
There are four passages that describe the Mark of the Beast—Revelation 13:16-18, 14:9-10, 16:2, 19:20. Let’s take them one at a time. First, the most thorough passage (Revelation 13:16-18).
The Mark will be associated with the worship of Antichrist.
The context from the previous verses is the worship of the Beast—Antichrist. In this context, this worship could be a form of national obeisance or declared loyalty. The mark is then introduced. It is clearly associated with the worship of a false god. This Mark will be a clear “three Hebrew children” moment where it will require a choice between the worship of God and the worship of a false god.
The Mark is intended to be universal.
All are supposed to receive this Mark. No one will be exempted—not oligarchs, politicians, slaves, free people—not anyone.
The Mark is placed on or in the human body.
The Bible is so specific here. It is not just placed upon or in the hand, it will be the right hand. I assume that because some people do not have right hands because of birth malady or accident, the forehead is used as an alternative. In one way or another, it will be detectible. It will be visible to the human eye or detectible by machines.
The Mark will be required for all financial transactions.
No buying or selling will be allowed without the Mark. This could be accomplished in one of two ways. The Mark could be required as a sort of passport for every financial transaction. This could have been enacted at almost any time in human history. The second way of accomplishing this is that the mark itself functions as a sort of digital access key to financial currency. This is fully possible now.
This Mark will allow social, political, religious, and financial control of all people under the jurisdiction of the Antichrist.
The personal Mark of the Beast will be associated with a number.
The Mark will have a number associated with it. It is all speculation how this might work. The Beast has a number. The number is associated with his name. The number associated with his name is 666. The original language is definitive here. It is not a series of three digits—each 6—as in a padlock combination. It is the number six hundred sixty-six.
This number is associated with the name of the Antichrist and it will not be apparent to everyone. People who have some understanding (assumedly of the Bible and biblical prophecy) will be able to identify it as they calculate it.
Those who receive the Mark will be judged eternally.
Revelation 14:9-10 the fate associated with the Beast will also be the destiny of those that worship the Beast and receive the Mark. This punishment will be torment. It will be relentless day and night. It will be forever.
Those who receive the Mark will be judged on earth as well.
The first bowl judgment of Revelation 16 is that painful sores or ulcers will develop on those who have received the Mark and worship the Beast. This should not be interpreted that those who received the Mark of the Beast but do not worship t where efforts to create a digital currency as part of its social credit system are a sign of what might be coming here soon.
Physical currency likely will be phased out entirely over time, in favor of a digital format controlled by the Federal Reserve. The ubiquity of cell phones and scannable codes will make integration of a digital currency, under some form of the blockchain, relatively easy to implement. This soft-nationalization of the banking sector would leave the United States in uncharted waters. Nearly every transaction, from political donations to purchases as seemingly insignificant as a pack of gum, would be visible to the government and subject to scrutiny. Government regulations could block or track certain transactions with no trial or public recourse. Even worse, if you were placed on a list by a federal bureaucrat — not a judge — your access to banking and credit cards potentially could be shut off without a warrant or trial.
