|
The Mark Of The Beast~Definitions Study
Rev 13:15 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.
Rev 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:
Rev 13:17 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.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
Mark
mark: In the King James Version this word is used 22
times as a noun and 26 times as a predicate. In the
former case it is represented by 5 Hebrew and 3 Greek
words; in the latter by 11 Hebrew and 2 Greek words. As
a noun IT IS PURELY A PHYSICAL TERM, GAINING ALMOST A TECHNICAL SIGNIFICANCE
As a noun the term “mark” may signify, according to its
various Hebrew and Greek originals, a sign, “a target” an
object of assault, a brand or STIGMA CUT or burnt IN the
flesh, a goal or end in view, a stamp or imprinted or
engraved sign.
(4) ????, k?a?a?k?a?, “A STIGMA” CUTor burnt. The
Israelites were forbidden (Lev_19:28) to follow the
custom of other oriental and heathen nations in CUTTING,
disfiguring or branding their bodies.
The specific prohibition “not to print any marks upon”
themselves evidently has reference to the custom of
tattooing common among savage tribes, and in vogue
among both men and women of the lower orders in
Arabia, Egypt, and many other lands. It was intended to
cultivate reverence for and a sense of the sacredness of
the human body, as God’s creation, known in the
Christian era as the temple of the Holy Spirit. See also
CUTTINGS IN THE FLESH.
Strong’s Hebrew & Greek Dictionaries
G4742
st?´?µa
stigma
stig’-mah
From a primary word st?´?? stizo¯ (to “STICK”, that is, PRICK); a mark INCISED or PUNCHED (for recognition of ownership), that is, (figuratively) scar of service: – mark.
G5516
???
chi xi stigma
khee xee stig’-ma
The
22nd, 14th and an obsolete letter (G4742 as a cross) of the Greek
alphabet (intermediate between the 5th and 6th), used as numbers;
denoting respectively 600, 60 and 6; 666 as a numeral: – six hundred threescore and six.
Thayer’s Greek Definitions
G4742
st?´?µa
stigma
Thayer Definition:
1) a mark PRICKED IN or
branded upon the body. To ancient oriental usage, slaves and soldiers
bore the name or the stamp of their master or commander branded or PRICKED (CUT) into
their bodies to indicate what master or general they belonged to, and
there were even some devotee’s who stamped themselves in this way with
the token of their gods
Part of Speech: noun neuter
A Related Word by Thayer’s/Strong’s Number: from a primary stizo (to “STICK”, i.e. PRICK)
Citing in TDNT: 7:657, 1086
Vincent’s Word Studies
Rev 13:16 –
A mark (?a´?a?µa)
The
word occurs frequently in Revelation, and only once elsewhere
(Act_17:29) on which see note. Commentators find illustrations in the
brand set upon slaves by their masters, or upon soldiers by their
monarchs, and in the branding of slaves attached to certain temples.
Herodotus describes a temple to Hercules at the Canopic mouth of the
Nile, and says: “If a slave runs away from his master, and taking
sanctuary at this shrine gives himself up to the God, and receives certain sacred marks upon his person,
whosoever his master may be, he cannot lay hand on him” (ii., 113). In
the treatise “concerning the Syrian goddess” falsely attributed to
Lucian, it is said of the slaves of the temple, “all are branded, some
upon the wrist and some upon the neck.” Paul, in Gal_6:17, applies the
word for these brands, st?´?µata, to the marks of Christ’s service
which he bears in his body. In 3 Macc. 2:29, we read that Ptolemy
Philopator required all the Jews of Alexandria to be registered among
the common people; and that those who were thus registered were to be
marked (?a?a´ses?a?) on their persons by the ivy-leaf symbol of
Dionysus (Bacchus). In Lev_19:28, the Israelites are forbidden to make CUTTINGS IN THEIR FLESH for the dead and to print marks (??a´µµata st??ta`) upon themselves.
Albert Barnes’ Notes On The Bible
Rev 13:16 –
To receive a mark IN their right hand, or IN their
foreheads – The word here rendered “mark” – ?a´?a?µa
charagma – occurs only in one place in the New
Testament except in the Book of Revelation Act_17:29,
where it is rendered “graven.” In all the other places
where it is found Rev_13:16-17; Rev_14:9, Rev_14:11;
Rev_15:2; Rev_16:2; Rev_19:20; Rev_20:4, it is rendered
“mark,” and is applied to the same thing – the “mark of
the beast.” The word properly means “something graven
or sculptured”; hence:
(a) a graving, sculpture, sculptured work, as
images or idols;
(b) a mark CUT IN or stamped – as the stamp on a
coin.
Applied to people, it was used to denote some stamp or
mark on the hand or elsewhere – as in the case of a
servant on whose hand or arm the name of the master
was impressed; or of a soldier on whom some mark was
impressed denoting the company or phalanx to which he
belonged. It was no uncommon thing to mark slaves or
soldiers in this way; and the design was either to denote
their ownership or rank, or to prevent their escaping so
as not to be detected.
Most of us have seen such marks made on the hands or
arms of sailors, in which, by a voluntary tattooing, their
names, or the names of their vessels, were written, or
the figure of an anchor, or some other DEVICE, was
indelibly made BY PUNCTURES IN the skin, and BY INSERTING
some kind of coloring matter. The thing which it is here
said was engraven on the hand or the forehead was the
“name” of the beast, or the “number” of his name,
Rev_13:17. That is, the “name” or the “number” was so
indelibly inscribed either on the hand or the forehead, as
to show that he who bare it pertained to the “beast,” and
was subject to his authority – as a slave is to his master,
or a soldier to his commander. Applied to the papacy, the
meaning is, that there would be some mark of distinction;
some indelible sign; something which would designate,
with entire certainty, those persons who belonged to it,
and who were subject to it. It is hardly necessary to say
that, in point of fact, this has eminently characterized
the papacy. All possible care has been taken to designate
with accuracy those who belong to that communion, and,
all over the world, it is easy to distinguish those who
render allegiance to the papal power. Compare the notes
on Rev_7:3.
{Capitol Letters & Letters in Pink~Imphasis-Mine}
Blessings
In Jesus’ Love
Swan Song
|
Swans_Scripture_Scrolls 