The beast that you saw—it was, and now is no more, but is about to come up out of the Abyss and go to its destruction. And those who dwell on the earth whose names were not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world will marvel when they see the beast that was, and is not, and yet will be.

— Revelation 17:8

While I was with them, I protected and preserved them by Your name, the name You gave Me. Not one of them has been lost, except the son of destruction, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.

— John 17:12

Let no one deceive you in any way, for it will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness—the son of destruction—is revealed.

— 2 Thessalonians 2:3

For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive even the elect, if that were possible.

— Matthew 24:24

Thoughts on Today’s Reading

Grace, mercy and salvation from Christ to you.

In Revelation 17 John recorded the anti-Christ beast will come to destruction. This illustrates Satan’s defeat by the Lord Jesus Christ. Before the cross, Satan’s power over sinful humanity seemed complete, but no longer! The Lamb of God triumphed over Satan on the cross. When Jesus died and rose again, He dealt Satan a blow which he will never recover. Jesus thoroughly broke Satan’s previous power over the earth. At present, Satan experiences a little more time to oppose God and His people. Yet, Satan’s final defeat remains certain, along with the judgment of everyone who persists in following his evil ways.

Only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life remain undeceived by the beast’s impressive show of power. All others respond with amazement, giving the beast their attention and worship. Jesus warned that in the time before His return, false messiahs will perform great signs that will deceive all who do not know Him. With overwhelmingly convincing signs, the false messiahs will even attempt to deceive those who follow Jesus. But God’s promise is stronger than Satan’s lie. No deception, no persecution, not even death can separate God’s people from His love for us in Christ Jesus. God has promised He will put an end to all satanic violence and Satan and his followers face fearful and eternal judgment.