'A Woman Sitting On A Scarlet Beast'

by Leonard V Johnson

Greetings, Brethren, Friends, and Co-Workers in Christ around the world. I’m Leonard V Johnson, welcome to the Church of Jesus Christ Online Ministries. Welcome our friends in Montreal, Canada, Japan, and here in the states ── Fayetteville, North Carolina, and Boardman, Oregon. Welcome. Thank you and God bless! 

As you might have seen, black smoke emerged from the chimney over the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City State, Rome, Italy, yesterday, signaling the first day of the conclave. A new and possibly final pope is emerging.

And speaking of emerging ── for this… the chosen and faithful begotten children of God, it should remind us of Revelation chapter 17. 

“ …’ Come, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters, 2) with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication.’” – Revelation 17:2.

ARMAGEDDON is closer than ever before! Tribulations, and even wars ── note the ongoing war between India and Pakistan, that just flared up, again! And, what is going on in the Middle East ── Houthis capitulate? What, for 1352 days – 20 hours – 2 minutes – and 26 seconds? Until the United States of America votes into office another weak and feckless Democratic president? Allowing the Houthis to survive only leaves in the Middle East a smouldering flame. How near to a third world war we are! And, that was not a question ── rather, that was a statement! Well, like I had mentioned in a previous write-up, only God’s living word can tell us what our future holds. His living word tells us what is going to take place. Not necessarily the details, but in a general way. And by seeing and hearing what God’s Spirit has to say, we can know a great deal about Bible prophecy. 

 The Apostle John’s Visions

The Apostle John, while imprisoned on the Isle of Patmos – a Greek island in the Aegean Sea – had a series of visions. He was told by our Lord Jesus Christ Himself,  “’ What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia …’” – Revelation 1:10-11.

The Book of Revelation is a book of the Past and the Future. Our future. Your future. So, let’s begin in the 17th chapter of the Book of Revelation ── 

“So he [one of the seven angels of God who had the seven bowls] carried me away in the Spirit [in other words, in vision] into the wilderness. …”

Now, the Apostle John wrote this book of revealing. It is “the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants ── things which must shortly take place. …” – Revelation 1:1.

Of course, he wrote down all that he had seen in the series of visions which he had ── which the series of visions surely must have taken weeks or months. 

“So he [the angel of God that was revealing all this to him] carried me away into the Spirit [in a vision] into the wilderness. And I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast [now, this was a beast that he would have never imagined seeing! Surely, we can only put an image in our mind of what this massive beast must have looked like in the Apostle John’s vision] which was full of names of blasphemy, having SEVEN HEADS AND TEN HORNS.”

Now, you might recall that much of the Book of Revelation speaks in symbols and metaphors. Symbols can be likened to parables ── parables are an illustration of an occurrence that happened that represents something else. Symbols are normally a thing that represents something else. This beast is symbolic. 

Moving on down ── and I’ll certainly come back to this ── to verse 12. 

“’ The TEN HORNS which you saw are TEN KINGS [or, kingdoms ── as the LORD God views kingdoms, not the way mankind views kingdoms] who have received no kingdom as yet, …’” – Revelation 17:12.  

Now, this was a vision for our future.

“ … ‘but they receive authority FOR ONE HOUR [a very short period] as kings [or, kingdoms] with the beast. …’”

The very beast that we are speaking of here ── this beast with seven heads and ten horns.

“’ These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast. 14) These will make war with the Lamb [a symbol for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, at His glorious and powerful second coming ── for indeed He will come as ‘King of kings and Lord of lords’!] … and those who are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful.’” – Revelation 17:13-14. 

Now, at this very moment in time, our Lord Jesus Christ is not King of kings and Lord of lords. O’, but He will be! (cf. Daniel 7:13-14). And, His second coming to Earth is not that far away! We, of course, do not know the day or the hour on which He will return (Matthew 24:36) ── will it be this year? Probably not. Will it be in five years, ten years, or twenty years? We do not know. But, do know this, “knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.” – Romans 13:11. 

 Symbols Revealed

What is meant by “beast”? The Book of Revelation often speaks in symbols and metaphors. Here it speaks of a strange, monstrous beast with seven heads and ten horns. We are taken back to the 13th chapter of the Book of Revelation to another vision ── 

“Then I stood on the sand of the sea [the sea here represents a great multitude of peoples, nations, and languages along the Mediterranean Sea; see Revelation 17:15]. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having SEVEN HEADS AND TEN HORNS, …” – Revelation 13:1.

Speaking of the same beast he wrote about in Revelation 17. 

“ … and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name.” 

Verse 2 – “Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard [so, it had characteristics of a leopard], his feet were like the feet of a bear [again, the characteristics of a bear], and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. …” – Revelation 13:2. 

So, this massive monstrous beast wasn’t a leopard, or a bear, or a lion – yet it had the characteristics of all three. 

“ … The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority.”

It’s undeniable what this dragon is a symbol of ── it’s Satan the Devil. Notice – Revelation 12:9 – “So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, …”   

So, it’s Satan the Devil that will give this beast with seven heads and ten horns its power, throne, and great authority!

What is meant by these symbols ── beast, seven heads, ten horns, like a leopard, like a bear, and like the mouth of a lion? Well, God’s living word interprets itself! And the Prophet Daniel shows us what these symbols represent. It’s in the 7th chapter of the Book of Daniel. It describes this monstrous beast of the 13th chapter of the Book of Revelation ──

“In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, …” 

Belshazzar was the last king of ancient Babylon. Sadly, millions are growing in their belief that this is a work of historical fiction. 1

“ … Daniel had a dream and visions of his head while on his bed. Then he wrote down the dream, telling the main facts. 2) Daniel spoke, saying, ‘I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the Great Sea.’” – Daniel 7:1-2.

Again, the four winds of heaven were stirring up a great multitude of peoples, nations, and languages along the Mediterranean Sea.

 “’ And four great beasts came up from the sea, each different from the other. 4) The FIRST was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings. … 5) … another beast, a second, like a bear. … 6) … and there was another, like a leopard, …’” – Daniel 7:3-6.

Notice that the symbols, or rather the characteristics, of these beasts are the same as Revelation chapter 13 ── like a lion, like a bear, and like a leopard. 

“ …’ like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird. The beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it.’” – Daniel 7:6.  

 A Dreadful and Terrible Fourth Beast 

courtesy of freebibleimages.org
 

“’ AFTER THIS I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth [so much stronger than any of the other beasts]; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet. It was different from all the beasts that were before it and it had TEN HORNS.’” – Daniel 7:7.

What could this “beast” be representing? Notice that the beast, like a lion, had ONE HEAD. The beast, like a bear, had ONE HEAD. The beast, like a leopard, had FOUR HEADS. All adding up to SIX HEADS.

So, we see ── as we see in Revelation chapter 13 ── that ten horns are on this fourth beast.

Notice verse 17 ── “’ Those great beasts, which are FOUR, are four kings [or rather, kingdoms] which arise out of the earth.’” 

So, “beasts” represent kingdoms. They are four kingdoms.

“ …’ are four kings [synonymous with kingdoms] which arise out of the earth. 18) But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever.’” – Daniel 7:17-18. 

Verse 23 ── “’ Thus he said: ‘The FOURTH BEAST shall be a fourth kingdom on earth, Which shall be different from all other kingdoms, And shall devour [eventually] the whole earth, Trample it and break it in pieces. 24) The TEN HORNS are ten kings [again, or rather, kingdoms] Who shall arise from THIS KINGDOM. …’” – Daniel 7:23.

Verse 27 ── “’ Then the kingdom and dominion, And the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven [the atmosphere. THIS KINGDOM], Shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High. …’”  

So, this Kingdom will take over and consume all other kingdoms of the earth! 

“ … ‘His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, And all dominions shall serve and obey Him.’” – Daniel 7:27.

This is referring to the glorious and powerful second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the saints of the Most High will be co-ruling under Him.

Again, notice ── “’ To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.’” – Revelation 3:21. 

A Dream of Kingdoms

 

In Daniel chapter 2, we read of an amazing dream. A dream dreamed by King Nebuchadnezzar II. A very troubling dream.

King Nebuchadnezzar II of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, who had taken into captivity the kingdom of Judah, had a troubling dream, and the interpretation of which the LORD God gave unto the prophet Daniel.

The dream is described for us in verses 31-35. The king saw in his dream a great image. “This image’s head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay.”

 Eventually, a “stone” ── cut out without hands ── struck the image upon its feet and toes. Breaking into “pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold ── the great God has made known to the king what will come to pass after this.” Then, the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. 

“’ This is the dream,’” the prophet Daniel was told, “’ Now we will tell the interpretation of it before the king. 37) You, O king, are a king of kings. … 38) … you are this head of gold. 39) But after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours; then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth. 40) And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything; and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others.’” – Daniel 2:36-40.

Then, notice verse 44 – “And IN THE DAYS OF THESE KINGS the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.” 

This stone is our Lord Jesus Christ and His world-ruling kingdom. The proper understanding of this stone is spoken in many different places throughout His living word. As an example ── “let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, … This is the ‘stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.’” – Acts 4:10, 11. 

So, this great and troubling dream, symbolically, is FOUR WORLD-RULING EMPIRES. It begins with King Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom ── the Neo-Babylonian Empire, which took the Jews captive to Babylon (597 BC). And as the LORD God revealed to the prophet Daniel, it was God who had allowed this world-ruling empire to become a succession of Gentile empires to come. And these carry to the glorious and powerful Second Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and the establishment of the kingdom of God──that will fill the whole earth. 

Who the Symbols of Animals Represent

The FIRST like a lion (Daniel 7) ── that was equivalent to the HEAD of King Nebuchadnezzar II’s image in his dream. The Neo-Babylonian Empire was called “Babylon” after the name of its capital city (606-538 BC). 

The SECOND, like the feet of a bear ── that was equivalent to its “chest and arms of silver.” The great Medo/Persian Empire (538 – 331 BC). It was composed of Medes and Persians. 

The THIRD like a leopard, that is known for speed and agility. The Greco/Macedonian Empire under King Alexander the Great (331 – 63 BC) conquered the Persian Empire (334 BC). However, King Alexander only lived a few short years after his blitzkrieg conquest, and his FOUR GENERALS divided the empire into four separate regions──Macedonia and Greece, Thrace and Western Asia, Syria and the territory east to the Indus River, and Egypt. So, symbolically, this represents the FOUR HEADS of the third beast of the prophet Daniel’s dream of Daniel 7. 

Philip II of Macedon was the king of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia from 359 BC until he died in 336 BC. His son Alexander ── who became known as Alexander the Great ── was his successor. By the age of 30, he had created one of the largest empires in history, stretching from Greece to northwestern India. He also had the swiftest army, like a leopard. Two differing versions of his death have emerged. One is that he died either on the 10th or 11th of June 323 BC, in the palace of Nebuchadnezzar II, in Babylon, at age 32 ── and the second, Plutarch's account is that roughly 14 days before his death, Alexander entertained admiral Nearchus and spent the night and next day drinking with Medius of Larissa. 2 The “whole world” centered around the Eastern Mediterranean in those days.

After his untimely death, came four divisions, each headed by one of his four generals ── representing the FOUR HEADS of the Prophet Daniel’s third beast, like a leopard.

The FOURTH dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. The fourth empire, which developed into what is known as the Roman Empire (27 BC – 1453 AD), spread out and eventually absorbed one after another these four separate regions ── “dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong.” The “HOLY” ROMAN EMPIRE! Ruling the west and ruling all of the east, on both sides of the Mediterranean Sea. 

The Six Resurrections of the “Holy” Roman Empire

1. King Charlemagne – or Charles the Great of France. Pope Leo III – He had been driven from Rome by his enemies. He appealed to Charlemagne for help. Charlemagne reinstated the pope, stayed on in Rome to protect Leo III, and on Christmas day 800 AD, the pope placed the imperial crown on Charlemagne’s head, and hailed him as “Augustus.” And once again, the West had an emperor.
2. Otto the Great – a German of 962 AD. He was the great leader of – what the history books call – a German Roman Empire. He was crowned emperor in 962 by the pope, and Otto as successor to Charlemagne, thought of himself as the leader of the Christian West and the protector of the papacy.
3. Frederick Barbarossa, of about 1152 AD, or Frederick I of Germany. He became the first of what history calls the Hohenstaufen emperors. And they were Germans. And this very Frederick Barbarossa drowned while on a crusade in Asia Minor in 1190. Then King Henry VI, Frederick Barbarossa’s son. Then Frederick II. He was made emperor by Pope Innocent III. 
4. The House of Hapsburg. It actually had two branches. One which controlled Austria and Hungary – actually had influence there for five hundred years, beginning in 1438. And also another branch of the Hapsburg family controlled Spain from 1516 until 1698. Now, most of that is considered ‘Spain’s golden age.’ Their main desire was to export the Catholic faith to the New World. This is why, if you go to Mexico, the predominant church is the Catholic Church. 
5. Napoléon Bonaparte. A man who was on the scene for a very short time, but really had a massive effect on European history. Born on the island of Corsica, and by the age of 9, he was at a military school. By age 24, he became a brigadier general. In 1801, he concluded an agreement with Pope Pius VII, which recognized that the majority of the French were to be Roman Catholic. And then from 1805 to 1807, he had a series of victories, gained control over the whole continent, and he was the master of Europe. And he was looked upon as the emperor. Rumor says he crowned himself “Holy” Roman Emperor. Just grabbed the crown from the pope, put it on his own head, and said, “I am the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire!” 
6. Adolf Hitler of Germany and Benito Mussolini of Italy. Mussolini seized power in 1922. Hitler came to power in 1933, and immediately he began the persecution of the Jews, and with help from Germany and Italy, General Francisco Franco gained control of Spain. And then, we know about World War II. 

God’s living word tells us that there is to be a SEVENTH REVIVAL of the so-called “Holy” Roman Empire! The ten toes “of its feet, partly of iron and partly of clay” will come to be TEN KINGDOMS that are in the process of becoming one in mind in Europe at this time. The Prophet Daniel saw in vision “a stone was cut without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces” – Daniel 2:34. The glorious and powerful second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ! 

“ … ‘But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever.’” □

Bibliography

1 Laughlin, John C. (1990). “Belshazzar”. In Mills, Watson E.; Bullard, Roger Aubrey (eds.). Mercer Dictionary of the Bible. Mercer University Press. Pgs. 95-96. Note: The Wycliffe Bible Dictionary also makes a point to mention, “Critical scholarship had long questioned the statements in Daniel 5 regarding the kingship of Belshazzar. 1999, Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., pg. 215. 

2. Plutarch, “Alexander,” Chapter 75 §3.

(https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Plut.%20Alex.%2075.3). Retrieved 8 May 2025.