The Meaning of Revelation 13:5 (Mouth of the Beast)

...and the meaning of 42 months, 3.5 years and 1260 days.

"And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months."
Revelation 13:5

The numbers “10” and “100” represent wholeness. We use them to count, measure, and show completeness. We have ten fingers, we talk about top 10 lists, and we often think of things in groups of 10. When we take an exam, a perfect score is usually 100%. If you are a math geek, you call this a “base-10 (decimal) number system”, and it is believed to have developed because humans have ten fingers.

However, in biblical times, the number “7”, rather than 10, was used to signify completeness. God rested on the 7th day. When Jesus spoke to Peter about forgiveness, he instructed to forgive "up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven," instead of saying to forgive ten times or a hundred times, emphasizing the symbolic meaning of the number “7”.

"Then Peter came to Him and said, 'Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?' Jesus said to him, 'I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.'"
Matthew 18:21-22

Today, when we talk about half, we use the term 50%, which means 50 out of 100, or simply, one-half. However, in biblical times, the concept of half wasn't necessarily thought of in terms of percentages like we do now. If the number 7 symbolized completeness, then half of that completeness would be represented as 3.5 which is half of 7.

The meaning of 42 Months or 3.5 Years or 1260 days

Seven years equals 84 months (since 7 times 12 months equals 84). Therefore, half of that period, which is 3.5 years, is equivalent to 42 months, or 1,260 days (because 42 times 30 days equals 1,260).

Also, in the bible, the phrase "a time, times, and half a time" is used interchangeably with 42 months or 1,260 days.

In biblical literature, "a time" typically signifies one year, rooted in Hebrew tradition, where a "time" signifies a complete cycle of seasons. "Times" (plural) is generally interpreted as two years. Therefore, when combining a time (1 year), times (2 years), and half a time (0.5 years), it totals 3.5 years, equivalent to 42 months or 1,260 days.

The terms 42 months, 1,260 days, and "a time, times, and half a time" in Bible prophecy aren't meant to be exact measurements of time. Instead, these numbers represent "half a period."

To grasp this concept, think about halftime in sports: In an NBA game, halftime occurs after two quarters; in soccer, it happens at the 45-minute mark; in American Football, it is after the second quarter of a 60-minute game; and in Australian Rules Football, halftime takes place at the end of the second quarter, around 40 minutes into the game.

Beyond sports, we can apply this idea to other contexts, such as a US presidential term. In U.S. politics, a president can serve two terms, so "half-time" would mean serving one full term.

There are seven instances in the Bible where 1260 days, 42 months, or a "time, times, and half a time" are referenced. They all appear in the Book of Revelation and the Book of Daniel, thus connecting the two prophetic books together.

Again, using a sports analogy, all these passages all describe the first half of a game.

Revelation 11:3: "And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth."

Revelation 11:2: "But leave out the court which is outside the temple, and do not measure it, for it has been given to the Gentiles. And they will tread the holy city underfoot for forty-two months."

Revelation 12:6: "Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there one thousand two hundred and sixty days."

Revelation 12:14: "But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent."

Revelation 13:5: "And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months."

Daniel 12:7: "Then I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand to heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever, that it shall be for a time, times, and half a time; and when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished."

Daniel 7:25: "He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time."

The Fake Mainstream News Media

All the verses above are, again using a sports analogy, a halftime commentary on a two-part game.

With that, let’s examine Revelation 13:5 more deeply.

Revelation 13:5: "And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months."

During the first half of the game, a beast emerging from the sea was granted a mouth to speak great things and blasphemy, which means spreading lies.

The "mouth" represents communication, symbolizing the mainstream media as a propaganda tool. It was given a mouth, meaning it was empowered to spread a mixture of truth and lies intended to cause confusion. Deception only works because it combines some truth with falsehoods, rather than being made up of outright lies. This mix makes it more difficult to recognize and, therefore, more misleading and it ultimately ends in "death”. This is why God instructed man not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, which represents a mixture. You can read about it here:

Regardless, the "mouth" was given a loud voice (“given authority” and "speaking great things") that could be heard everywhere—in gyms, public spaces, airports, bars, restaurants, and so forth. It was truly pervasive. Some of us noticed its uniformity and sensed something was amiss, as it spoke in unison below:

The word "blasphemy" originates from the root word "blaptō," meaning "to hurt, harm, or injure."

In the past few years of the COVID pandemic, individuals who challenged the mouth’s "safe and effective" message faced various harms and injuries. These included job losses, estrangement from friends and family, exclusion from churches, hospitals, and other organizations, and damage to their reputations.

They were often portrayed as bad people for not wanting to "save grandma and grandpa." Ironically, these individuals did not suffer any physical harm from the experimental COVID vaccine itself.

As I mentioned above, the Book of Daniel and the Book of Revelation are connected. The same beast with ten horns appears in Daniel 7:7, mirroring a similar description in Revelation 13:1.

"After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns."

Daniel 7:7

In Daniel 7:7, the beast is described as having “great iron teeth”. This can be interpreted metaphorically as 'iron gates,' symbolizing imprisonment. Anyone who existed within the beast's system could not speak(i.e. relied on the beast for employment and livelihood), as their voices were imprisoned by the beast with its iron teeth/iron gates.

Those who managed to escape its iron gates and speak were stamped (harmed and injured) by the feet of the beast.

What’s next?

As we near the end of 2024, we find ourselves at a crucial juncture. The verses previously mentioned represent the first half of a period during which the "Mouth was given authority."

The second half is about to unfold, marked by the diminishing authority of the Mouth, as trust in mainstream media has reached a critical tipping point.

For the first time in history, a Gallup poll indicates that those who fully trust the mainstream media have become the minority.

SOURCE

An Admonition

The second half of the game is about to unfold, and we should remain watchful. Those who escaped the first beast will soon face a dilemma sharper than the current one, posed by another beast. The next beast will come with two horns “like a lamb”, subtly suggesting it is "like a saviour."

Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.
Revelation 13:11

Signing off for now
A17