THE FALSE PROPHET OF REVELATION

[13:11] And I beheld Another Beast [The False Prophet - see 16:13; 19:20; 20:10 below] coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as (The) Dragon.  [This is the only time in the N.T. where δράκων (drakōn) was translated "a dragon."  It is translated "The Dragon" nine times in Revelation alone!]
[13:12] 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.
[13:13] And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
[13:14] 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 (First) Beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the (First) Beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.
[13:15] And he had power to give life unto the image of the (First) Beast, that the image of the (First) Beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the (First) Beast should be killed.
[13:16] 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:
[13:17] And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the (First) Beast, or the number of his name.
[13:18] Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the (First) Beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.
[16:13] And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of The Dragon, and out of the mouth of the (First) Beast, and out of the mouth of the False Prophet.
[19:20] And the (First) Beast was taken, and with him the False Prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the (First) Beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
[21:10] And the Devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the (First) Beast and the False Prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever.

There has been much speculation as to the identity of the False Prophet.  Some say that because he comes up out of "the earth," and  that "the earth" could also be translated "the land," that he must be a Jew.  However, because he is not mentioned prior to the middle of the Tribulation, after the "Antichrist" is recognized as "The Beast" by his claiming to be God, his "religion" can be any of the world's religions, or for that matter, none that exist today.  What is very clear, is that from the time he appears on the scene, his religious focus is on The Beast. 

Likewise, we do not know the name of the Antichrist/The Beast.  In Rev. 13:17, we learn that there are three ways the worshippers of The Beast will be identified:  1) they will have a particular "mark"; 2) they will have the name of The Beast; or 3) they will have the number of the name of The Beast.  That number is 666.  Either the numbers for the letters of his name add up to 666, or quite possibly, they are, themselves, letters!  Six in Hebrew is Vav (Ps. 119:41).  Today, most people say it is supposed to be a "W" rather than a "V."  Why, I have no idea!  But if they are correct, then the "number" will actually be "WWW."  Does that ring a bell?  The "image of The Beast" is something manufactured, something that can scan, something which can speak - perhaps a computer?!?

Anyone who says he knows who these two are, is wrong; they are not revealed until the middle of the seven-year Tribulation.  And praise God, His Church will not be here to deal with them!