Revelation 13

And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

Standing on the beach, I watched in awe as a monstrous creature emerged from the ocean. It had seven heads and ten horns, each horn adorned with a crown. On each head, a name that mocked the sacred was inscribed.

And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.

I saw a beast, fearsome and powerful, with the sleekness of a leopard, the strength of a bear's feet, and the ferocity of a lion's roar. The dragon, in all its might, bestowed upon this beast its power, throne, and immense authority.

And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

I witnessed one of its heads severely injured, almost to the point of death. Yet, miraculously, its fatal wound was healed. This astonishing recovery left the entire world in awe of the beast.

And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

They revered the dragon that empowered the beast, and they also adored the beast, asking, "Who can compare to the beast? Who can dare to challenge him?"

And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.

He was gifted with a persuasive tongue, uttering grand yet sacrilegious words. He was granted the strength to persist for three and a half years.

And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.

He dared to speak disrespectfully about God, insulting His name, His sacred home, and the heavenly beings.

And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.

He was granted the power to battle the faithful and defeat them. He was given authority over all families, languages, and countries.

And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

Everyone living on earth will worship him, except those whose names are recorded in the book of life of the Lamb, who was slain since the world began.

If any man have an ear, let him hear.

If anyone can listen, let them truly understand.

He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.

Those who imprison others will themselves be imprisoned; those who kill by the sword will meet their end by the sword. This is the test of endurance and faith for the virtuous.

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.

I saw another creature rise from the ground. It had two gentle lamb-like horns, but its voice was as fierce as a dragon's.

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.

He wields the same authority as the first beast, compelling everyone on earth to worship it, the beast that had survived a fatal wound.

And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,

He performs incredible miracles, even making fire rain down from the sky for all to see.

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.

He tricks the people of the earth with his miraculous powers, seen by the beast. He tells them to honor the beast, who survived a deadly wound, by creating an image of it.

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 would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

He held the power to breathe life into the beast's image, enabling it to speak and to have killed all who refused to worship it.

And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

He ensures everyone, regardless of status, wealth, or freedom, bears a mark either on their right hand or forehead.

And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

No one could trade or purchase anything unless they bore the beast's mark, its name, or its number.

Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

Here's a profound truth. If you're wise, figure out the beast's number. It's a human number, and it's 666.