Revelation 22:4 ....and his name shall be in
their foreheads.
Apparently
marks or branding on the forehead in the ancient world were a common
thing. Mostly for slaves, criminals or groups in disfavor of the ruling
powers. With the advent of Bible based Christianity, meaning when the
general public gained access to Bibles which did not occur until after
the last part of the Roman Empire fell in 1453 AD. This practice like
legal human slavery and cruel punishments for crimes began to slowly
fade away. The Bible uses the practice that must have been well known in
Bible times to illustrate ownership, servant hood or slavery. It would
be hard to imagine that someone reading a very large prophecy like
Revelation where 90% of the literal events are prophesied using
illustrations taking this particular visual aid itself as a literal
event. In other words taking symbolic imagery of what is meant to convey
ownership or citizenship of the Kingdom of heaven as a literal mark on
the forehead of those who belong to Christ. Even though this particular
half verse does absolutely nothing as far as proving this articles
contention. (While most of the other verses offer un-assailable proof.)
I would be curious as to how people who can't get beyond the
illustrations themselves in the book of Revelation to the events they
are actually prophesying about think of this verse. Here
are some other verses in the Bible that use marking the forehead as an
illustration to convey certain ideas.
Exodus 28:36 And you
shall make a plate of pure gold, and grave upon it, like the engravings
of a signet, HOLINESS TO THE LORD. 37 And you shall put it on a blue
lace, that it may be upon the mitre; upon the forefront of the mitre it
shall be. 38 And it shall be upon Aaron's
forehead, that Aaron may bear the iniquity of the holy things,
which the children of Israel shall hallow in all their holy gifts;
and it shall be always upon his forehead, that they may be
accepted before the LORD.
Ezekiel 9:3 And the
glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he
was, to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed
with linen, which had the writer's inkhorn by his side; 4 And the LORD
said to him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of
Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads
of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that
be done in the midst thereof.
Revelation 7:2 And I
saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living
God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was
given to hurt the earth and the sea, 3 Saying, Hurt not the earth,
neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have
sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads...... 9:4 And
it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth,
neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which
have not the seal of God in their foreheads.
Revelation 13:15 And he
had power to give life to 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. 16 And he causes all, both small
and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to
receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: 17 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. Note* The "beast"
described uses the same illustration as the four empires in Daniel.
Named and dated as Babylonian, Medo\Perisan, Greek and Roman. The
successive prophecies in the Bible about these four empires always give
as prophecy more details about the same four empires. The animal with
two horns that looks like a lamb but speaks as a dragon is the Roman
empire when it claimed Christianity, (looked like a lamb but spoke as a
dragon.) Split into an eastern and western branch, (the two horns.) and
moved the capitol of the empire to Constantinople in the fourth century
A.D.
Revelation 14:1 And I
looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Zion, and with him an hundred
forty and four thousand, having his Father's
name written in their foreheads.
Revelation 14:8 And
there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that
great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath
of her fornication. 9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a
loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image,
and receive his mark in his forehead, or in
his hand, 10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of
God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his
indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the
presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
Revelation 17:3 So he
carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit
upon a scarlet colored beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven
heads and ten horns. 4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet
color, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a
golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her
fornication: which is great Babylon, the mother of all abominations
5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE
GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
Again as a progressive revelation or prophecy given to many
prophets over hundreds of years. We have the ten horns interpreted by
Daniel as the fourth empire, the Roman one. The seven heads were added
details about the Roman empire as the prophecy progressed in Revelation
13. Now we have a further detail about the nature of Rome's
despotic empire. The Babylonian system of government that imposes
idolatry on the people to keep them ignorant, superstitious, easily
manipulated and separated from God the author of freedom from tyranny.
Revelation 20:4 And I
saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them:
and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus,
and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither
his image, neither had received his mark upon
their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned
with Christ a thousand years.
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