how many people will take the mark of beast . I believe no one will take it

[Bible Linker]

"This many..

Revelation 13:8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world".


The scope of Bible prophets' visions is one of Middle Eastern focus, has been in the past, and is for the future

So the primary geographics are of the same .... and none of the beast's followers will be named in the Lord's book of life [Revelation 14:9-11]

 

[ezrider]

"So does the grocery store when scanning bar codes, check bar codes or credit cards."


The mark of the beast will not be either of these as many think

It will be an identifying mark taken willfully by those chose to follow him

This marking is already being displayed by Middle Eastern terrorist factions [head bands, arm bands, and flags]

Interestingly enough, he points to the movie "The Kingdom of Heaven" (good movie by the way) and asks you to pause the movie to look at couple of Islamic symbols, but completely ignore the symbol with which the crusaders march, and you don't have to pause it either. It is hard to miss the big cross they carry before them.

 

[Bible Linker]

Explain your view of the crusaders and the cross, and relationship to the mark of the beast please

I need more information

 

[ezrider]

Explain your view of the crusaders and the cross, and relationship to the mark of the beast please

I need more information

http://christianforums.net/Fellowship/index.php?threads/the-image-of-christ.52924/#post-911842

 

[Bible Linker]

OK .... I read your post

And I must say that Revelation 13 tells me this ..... all who choose to willfully follow and worship the beast will take his mark and will submit to his system of engaging in his cultural economic environment

All others subjected to his jurisdiction will not be marked because they will refuse to follow and worship him .... and many those of the same who are caught in rejection will be killed .... not all will be discovered and many will survive his persecutions .... there will be mortal survivors of the days of the coming tribulation period in which he will operate [Matthew 24:29-31; 25:31-46]

His marking will be exclusive to his followers who will want to identify with him [Revelation 14:9-11]

I believe that these will be principally the adherents of Islam .... and I will post further supports for this koranic intransigence instigated by Satan through the false prophet Mohammed on this forum soon

 

[ezrider]

And I must say that Revelation 13 tells me this ..... all who choose to willfully follow and worship the beast will take his mark and will submit to his system of engaging in his cultural economic environment

Oh yes, manifest destiny.

You mean quite like the native Americans who were forced to take Christian names and adapt to the Christian culture and economic system, forced to be taught in Christian schools, taken from their own land or be slaughtered without mercy. Is that the beast you speak of. The one that makes treaties and promises to get them to submit, but then tramples them under foot without honor. Manifest Destiny; For the gospel of the Cross and the death of Christ must be spread to all the world before the end can come, and it certainly was spread without regard, justifying their actions under the symbol of the cross, and in the name of Christ.

.

 

[john darling]

His marking will be exclusive to his followers who will want to identify with him [Revelation 14:9-11]

According to the description of the purpose of the Mark, all it will take to want to "identify" with the AC is to take his Mark, and the purpose of the Mark will be to control buying/selling.

In a world dominated by the belief that we cannot survive without buying/selling, it makes perfect sense for him to use this method to turn people away from God. It's the same choice Jesus put to people back in his own day. God or money. (Matthew 6:24-34).

It's just that the Mark represents a final line in the sand. No more games. No more masks. If you follow God you will reject it, which consequently means no more buying and selling. Christians will be forced to finally live by faith the way Jesus and his followers did. Compare Luke 10:4-8 and Luke 22:35)

It's a prophecy written nearly 2000 years ago and looking at developments in global finance and world banking we can see the concept of electronic money becoming more accepted. Did you see the pics I posted in post# 7? Buying and selling via a microchip (or "Mark") on the hand. Of course, the picture shows buying/selling via a microchip in a wrist band, but the technology for implanting the chip into the hand already exists. This wristband thing is just a step in that direction to get people used to the idea.

 

[john darling]

Others will be religious fanatics and not take it and go hungry...???!!!
I don't think it would surprise me very much if it started raining manna inside my house. God has to have plans to keep us fed if we're the hold-outs that say no to the mark.

You're right, Edward. God is definitely able to provide for his laborers, though the criteria is that we seek his kingdom first. Perhaps it could be manna from Heaven, but I think that the more unlikely solution. God's Kingdom is all about people learning to share with one another. That's what Luke 10:4-8 is all about. Jesus sent them out into the world with nothing and told them to eat whatever people shared with them. God was the one behind the scenes organizing all that, but the disciples first had to go out there into the world with nothing in order to be able to see it.

If they had stayed in their old lives charging people for their help (i.e. participating in the same-ole worldly system of buying/selling) they would not have seen God's ability to provide without dependence on the worldly system. They needed to step out in faith, first.

I think a lot of people are going to be completely unprepared, simply because they've always said to themselves, "I'll deal with it when the time comes". They push and push to get as close to the edge as they can before turning around and as a result most of them will end up taking the Mark while those who resist won't know what to do with themselves. We need to start training and preparing now.

 

[Bible Linker]

Here is reality ..... do not forget these things

The tribulation is the Lord's judgment that is coming upon an unbelieving world .... unprecedented [Psalms 2; Jude 1:14-15; Revelation 3:10; 6:12-17]

.... He will even use Satan his beast in the human little horn of Daniel's visions and those who willfully take his mark to identify with him to cause horrific destruction to the "great city" of MBG at the beginning of the tribulation [Revelation 8:6-12; 14:8; 17:16-18; 18]

This judgment alone will cause unmitigated upheaval related to commerce, economic, and financial infrastructures which will create blade runner societies across the globe .... not to mention the disruption,vexation, and human death from the natural disasters that will be on going [Luke 21:20-36]

The Lord's anger is pent up and the world is going to see billions of humans killed by all of this [Matthew 24:36-39] .... there will be no corner of the earth to hid in for 2550 days of nonstop turmoil, satanic and human warfare, starvation, rebellions, deceptions, etc [Joel 2:31; Zephaniah 1:14-18]

.... and those who follow the beast will thrive in this chaos of instability .... humans outside of the cult of this Satanically contrived movement will be their victims .... it is called terrorism .... and I believe Islamic terrorism of Koranic proportions

If anyone thinks that they can prepare in advance and hold out against this onslaught of the continuous pounding in the tribulation from every venue they are fooling themselves .... human governments are going to fail and come crashing down at the hands of the Lord and human institutions of self direction will crumble [Isaiah 13:6-13; Revelation 14:8; 16:15-21]

There will be no where to run until the Lord calls the game by taking over the reigns and ruling the earth Himself .... but few mortals will survive against His intent to destroy an intransigent lost world of human depravity [Micah 4:1-3]

So if any think that they will be untouched and can weather the storm .... think again .... and preparations before will not be enough, or last long enough

The only saving out of this coming tribulation will be for those who are believers in Jesus Christ .... some snatched away just before ... and the balance of those humans who will repent in the tribulation and gain their salvation.... most martyred, a few protected, and the small balance gathered after by the Lord at the end who will separate them from the rest .... sheep from the goats

In conclusion .... the mark taking will be by those who choose to identify with and worship Satan's mimic [Abaddon/Apollyon] who some call the "antichrist" [Revelation 9:11; 11:7; 13:1-4; 17:8-18]

 

[john darling]

Koranic proportions

Koranic proportions? It's not clear what you mean here, but I get the impression that a phrase like this is designed to motivate fear rather than faith.

If anyone thinks that they can prepare in advance and hold out against this onslaught of the continuous pounding in the tribulation from every venue they are fooling themselves ...

You make it sound as though attempting to stay faithful, even though the persecution be great, is somehow foolish. I can't see that teaching anywhere in scripture. Jesus said that we should watch and stay faithful (Luke 12:35-48). These verses are all about be prepared, being ready, and faithfully watching.

a few protected,

Earlier you suggested it would be foolish to think anyone could "hold out" against the Great Tribulation, but here you talk about protection. Can you elaborate on this a bit? Thanks.

The only saving out of this coming tribulation will be for those who are believers in Jesus Christ .... some snatched away just before ...

In Matthew 24:21-29 Jesus gives a description of the time Just before he returns. He starts by saying there will be great tribulation such as the world has never seen. Then he describes what sounds like a scenario in which people had expected him to return at a particular time but did not. When he did not return according to their expectations confusion results, with people claiming he has return to "the secret chambers" or "in the desert". He says we should not follow after these people, because his return will be like lightening in the sky; not secret at all.

In verse 28 he says, "for where the carcass is, there will the eagles be gathered"; a reference to protection in the wilderness (Revelation 12:6). It's interesting that this reference about protection and provision of the birds/eagles corresponds to what Jesus said in Matthew 6:24-33 about how the birds/flowers don't work for money and yet God still cares for them. This is the answer to the Mark of the Beast. We don't need the Beast's system of buy and sell because God will care for us.

He then says "Immediately after the tribulation of those days" and goes on to describe his return, calling the saints up into the air etc...

People who pin their hopes on the idea that they won't ever need to suffer for their faith miss the point. It is our faithfulness to the values of Heaven which causes the persecution. When we refuse to conform to the values of the world they will hate us. Our courage and integrity will convict them. If we refuse to prepare for tribulation we will be like the person caught by a their, unprepared and unaware (Matthew 24:43-44).

 

[Bible Linker]

"Earlier you suggested it would be foolish to think anyone could "hold out" against the Great Tribulation, but here you talk about protection. Can you elaborate on this a bit? Thanks"


Specifically:
[Revelation 7:1-8; 11:2-6; 14:1-7].

The Christian is saved by faith alone and not by works as some tell .... and certainly not by receiving His unmitigated wrath intended for an unbelieving world of unregenerate humans

Trials, tribulation, and persecutions of this present life are one thing .... the wrath and tribulation of the Lord that is coming is a far different matter, not only by intensity and purpose, but it will be His judgment against an intransigent unbelieving word that has refused to believe the truth about who His is and His rightful position as the only true God of His creation

Many believers have not and will not experience His hour of trial that is coming upon the whole world .... and not all Christians have received persecution during their physical life .... so why would only those that happened to be around at the time need more whipping in the coming tribulation than any others?

I don't think your views about this matter are rational and the scriptures tell a far different story [1 Thessalonians 5:9; Revelation 3:10]

Few will survive the intensity of the Lord's coming time wrath and judgment, but there will still be opportunity to turn and repent, and to be saved during the period

Not many will do this, and those who do will be few .... and most of them will martyred for their faith

So if you intend to be on the earth at the time, I would have to say that any prior preparations will do little for you

What I suggest is that you be certain that you are ready [saved] if you are not .... today is the opportunity during the present dispensation of His grace [Ephesians 3:1-6]

The coming tribulation will not be conducive to a time of anyones testing

 

[JCitoL]

how many people will take the mark of beast . I believe no one will take it
well there might be some foolish people who will but i dont take them into considiration might be one or two

it is not just about politics, but it is about spiritual iniquity/lawlessness - the "fourth kingdom"(Daniel 7) is the human spiritual/religious kingdom, because exactly the spiritual iniquity/lawlessness is the original sin, the very sin, and even the only, because it is the cause and the source of all other (kinds of) iniquities/evils, and it is shown as the last kingdom in Daniel, for it is the most invisible/imperceptible, because the ordering there is from the viewpoint of the visibility/perceptibility of the things, for example the physical iniquity(which is of the first kingdom) is the most visible/perceptible, the economic iniquity(which is of the second kingdom) is less visible/perceptible than the physical iniquity, the intellectual/mental iniquity(which is of the third kingdom) is less visible/perceptible than the economic iniquity, but the spiritual iniquity(which is of the fourth kingdom) is the most invisible/imperceptible, that is why most part of the humankind even till now did not know about the spiritual iniquity though it manifests primarily in the form of human religion/spirituality, it is the unrighteous human spirituality/religion that is not consistent with the universal principles of That Who really is the true Lord God, and which comes from the attempt of the human to become system Administrator of the world like God Himself by acquiring knowledge(wisdom and abilities) like His, because God has forbidden the human to "eat" of the "tree" of the knowledge of good and evil(Genesis 2:17), which is occultism, esoterism and idolatry for the human, i.e. "eating" of it the human can only know the "dark" side of the faith(the spiritual/religious activity)


here is one antichrist(art image):

the "tree" that is beyond the Eden (garden) and that has been forbidden by God, also called (the) "fig tree"(art image):

a human can "eat" of it by exercising/practicing occultism, esotericism, idolatry and unrighteous faith/spirituality/religion in general, but initially this happened in the form of the creed that for the last millennia has been known as yoga of krishna and patanjali


yoga as a "tree" of the knowledge of good and evil and the yogi as cognizing/knowing and joining/uniting in it(art image):

the "third eye"(a.k.a. the sixth chakra) on the forehead of yogin in the process of yoga(art image):

this is a process that turns the human(the practitioner) into a spiritual servant/worker of satan, while the culmination is its transformation in (complete) angel of satan


an yogin in process of cosmic transcendental meditation and the so-called "chakras"(seven main satanic spirits)(art image):

an yogin in process of intensive and deep yoga meditation, there is a powerful prana(satanic force) unleashing in him(art image):

the peak culmination of yoga is when after an intensive, deep and long-standing meditation there occurs physical death for the yogi(n) and it resurrects in the "darkness" like the Lord, Jesus Christ, Who has resurrected in the "Light", so the yogi(n) turns into a complete angel of satan mastering/having powers for great signs and wonders even of cosmic scale whereby maximum number of people to be misled/lied, including various types of wisdom, omnipresence, telepathy, telekinesis, teleportation, materialization, dematerialization, etc.


a complete angel of satan showing great signs and wonders of cosmic scale (in this case cosmic nebulas, supernova and other cosmic phenomena)(art image):

the kingdom of satan can exist for no more than 5-6 millennia reckoned from the day of the original sin(fall) on, then there will be a full destruction for it and all that inhabit it

Blessings

 

[john darling]

the spiritual iniquity(which is of the fourth kingdom) is the most invisible/imperceptible, that is why most part of the humankind even till now did not know about the spiritual iniquity though it manifests primarily in the form of human religion/spirituality,

What are your thoughts on the Mark of the Beast?

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.

In particular, what do you think about the phrase "no one can buy or sell without the Mark"?

 

[john darling]

Trials, tribulation, and persecutions of this present life are one thing .... the wrath and tribulation of the Lord that is coming is a far different matter,

Hi BL,

I think you are misunderstanding the difference between tribulation and wrath. Tribulation is something all Christians experience (2 Tim 3:12). However, God's wrath is directed specifically at God's enemies (Rom 5:9-10).

In the first part of your sentence you acknowledge that Christians will face persecution, but then you go on to talk about wrath and tribulation as though they are the same thing, implying that tribulation is meant to destroy Christains rather than teach them valuable lessons. One gets the impression that your first mention of tribulation is lip service, whereas your second mention of tribulation (the one you equate to God's wrath) is the expression of your true feelings on the issue. In other words, you admit that Christians will face tribulation, but in order to reconcile the good of tribulation you then equate wrath and tribulation as the same thing thus creating a convenient escape clause from any need to suffer for your faith. This is how it comes across to me, though I'm open to being wrong about your feelings on this issue.

I don't think anyone particularly wants or likes tribulation, but tribulation is a part of Christian life. It's meant to teach us lessons about character, integrity, compassion etc... But because these lessons often can be hard and painful we've invented doctrines to excuse ourselves from them. This "secret rapture" teaching is an example of that. It's hardly ever taught on the basis of how such a teaching fits in with the overall context of spiritual discipline, but rather the opposite in that it's a way for us to escape the harshness of spiritual disciplines which come from tribulation.

This is why I asked you to consider the context Jesus described of the endtime, where people appear to be confused about his return, claiming he is "in the desert" or "in the secret chambers". Why would people make such claims? The "secret rapture" doctrine gives the best explanation; a people who belived he should have returned before the troubles started but who are too proud to admit they were wrong so they invent new doctrines about Jesus having returned secretly to some part of the Earth and is just waiting for peopel to come to him (Matthew 24:21-29).

 

[Bible Linker]

JD

Many false prophets will abound in Israel giving false reports of the Lord's appearance during the coming time of Jacob's trouble prior to His actual and visible appearance at the ending of the tribulation [Matthew 24:4-5] .... there are already messianic movements in Israel today led by rabbis who lead their memberships into law keeping contrary to the gospel of Jesus Christ

Your skew on this matter is totally unrelated

The view against the Lord's intent to call His true church before His coming wrath and tribulation is common and prevalent today, that the teaching is a "lie" of the devil, that the Lord is finished with His national people of Israel [replacement theology] and related, are the hallmarks of preteristic/amil/post-tribulation false teaching

And just as I said, His coming wrath and judgment will have a very different purpose than the trials and tribulations of this present life ..... you are attempting to minimize His unprecedented coming hour [time] of trial by discounting the difference .... your purpose is to force the issue into the direction of you preconceptions

Those believers who actually and correctly render and understand the related biblical scriptures already know in advance what is coming in the tribulation in every detail and would never be fooled in the same as you speculate .... in fact it will be those who discount and scoff at the Lord's sudden move to bring His wrath who will be taken in ignorance and will not know how to relate to the environment of His vengeance upon them

I am going to suggest to you that your current views are a "lie of the devil" .... nothing personal here, but just the facts as I see them

It is Satan who is spreading the ruse in order to claim that the Lord's promise to keep His own from His coming wrath and tribulation is a "lie"

His motive? ..... to mislead those living at the time into the tribulation where he will set out to deceive and to kill as many as possible .... he will be there [Revelation 12:12]

Here is the Lord's warning against the devil's lie [Matthew 25:1-13; 2 Peter 3:1-6; Revelation 3:15-22] .... His admonition for those who find themselves in His judgment is to turn and repent .... and the wiles of the tribulation will not be conducive to this requirement

I know all of the arguments against the Lord's intent to call His true church just before .... the Internet boards are abundant with the same today as the world moves closer to the Lord's next intervention .... this is to be expected .... so no need to belabor the issue

Those who seek the answer .... must decide for themselves

Here is the proof of His intent: [Revelation 3:10; 4:4; 5:1-10; 7:9-17; 11:1; 12:12; 13:6; 17:4; 19:1-9; 19:14; 20:4 [those on "thrones" .... symbol of the Lord's government]]

 

[JCitoL]

What are your thoughts on the Mark of the Beast?

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.

In particular, what do you think about the phrase "no one can buy or sell without the Mark"?

the mark of the beast is the participation in the occult and idolatrous activity as well as the activity of the spiritual iniquity/lawlessness as a whole, e.g. the so-called "tilaka" and "bindi" in the hinduism and yoga are one of the examples of the mark of the beast on the forehead:

this symbolizes the so-called "third eye" a.k.a. sixth "chakra" that appears in the heads(the physical location is the center on the forehead in the point between the eyebrows) of the humans who exercise/practice yoga, hinduism, and suchlike occultism and idolatry in general, it is actually a whole consciousness that makes the people who exercise/practice occultism/idolatry perceive the things and think differently from the normal people, it kind of overturns the things upside down, e.g. very typical for it is the fact that the sex, the physical sense activities and the physical world as a whole, which have been created by the true Lord God as good things, are considered to be shameful/sinful of themselves by such people, while the very sin, which is the spiritual iniquity/lawlessness, is considered to be the holiest thing in the form of human religion/spirituality, so the things of God are defiled and negativized/demonized, while the very sin is spiritualized/consecrated, which is actually the very abomination standing in the holy place

the biblical words "buy" and "sell" in Revelation 13:17 mean to receive/have and give grace, because the system of (the) spiritual iniquity/lawlessness tries to enclose the people who do not obey it in distress/affliction/tribulation as much as possible so that they might also choose the way of the sin or otherwise be killed, that is why the system of the human(666) religion/spirituality is depicted as a murderous whore/harlot, in which was found the afflictions of all true saints, prophets and people whose "blood" was ever "shed" (Revelation 17-18)

the "name" of the beast is the doctrine of the spiritual iniquity/lawlessness, which the unrighteous believers/worshipers and clerics follow, while its "number" is the principle way of the beast to rule in the world, because it is kind of parasitizing the creation of God, also, the main way of the occult practice is the meditation in the "sixth chakra" which is also known as "third eye" (six hundred three score and six)

Blessings

 

[john darling]

the biblical words "buy" and "sell" in Revelation 13:17 mean to receive/have and give grace

Hi JC,

Can you give some scriptural support for this interpretation? What information have you used to conclude that "buy" and "sell" means to receive and give grace? Can you list any other examples of this usage in the Bible?

Also, it seems strange that it would be grace. Considering your interpretation, the prophecy would say, "No person can give or receive grace without the Mark of the beast". How would something like that even be monitored? If someone wrongs me, what's to stop me from having grace on that person by saying, "no problem"? How would a bit of paint on my forhead stop me from doing that?

On the other hand, if we believe that the words "buy" and "sell" mean what they actually say, then it's easy to see how such activity can be controlled via advances in digital/electronic money. I was at a bank today which had a notice saying that they will be switching over to biometric thumbprints to authorize access to accounts.

Did you see the photos I posted in post# 7? Barclays bank has released a series of electronic money gadgets including a wrist band, key chain, and sticker, all of which use stored credit for buying and selling. You just "tap-and-pay". All around the world "buying and selling" is slowly shifting over to a cashless economy in general and, specifically, towards a "tap-and-pay" method using the hand. Money has always changed it's shape, evolving into more and more efficient means while still maintaining it's same basic purpose. In other words, the shape changes, but the spirit behind it always stays the same. The world is being prepared for microchip implants. It makes sense they they will be put in the hand since the hand is the most versatile appendage we have and it makes sense to be put in the right hand since the majority of the world is right-handed.

Jesus said A LOT about money and our relationship to it (Luke 12:15). He said that we cannot work for God and mammon (money and the things money can buy) without chating on one or the other. He said we will love one and despise the other. His followers said things like, "the love of money is the root of all evil" (1 Tim 6:10) and "beware of those who teach that wealth is proof of spirituality" (1 Tim 6:10). With all this emphasis on the dangers of materialism, it's quite amazing that people find so many different theories for what the Mark could be which have nothing to do with what the prophecy plainly says about the Mark (i.e. it wil be used to control buying and selling). It's like people have become so dependent on money that teachings against dependence get automatically reinterpreted as anything but a teaching against money.

People do this with the word "work". People see the word "work" in the Bible any they automatically assume it must mean "for money" (2 Thess 3:10). They do not consider that it could be talking about working for love, or working for the Kingdom of Heaven. It's always assumed to be "work for money".

Your interpretation of "buy and sell" actually meaning to "give and receive grace" is one of the more extreme examples of this tendency. Anyway, I guess it's all just part of the overall scenario of people choosing who they will work for.

 

[john darling]

Those who seek the answer .... must decide for themselves

Fair enough. Good luck with that.

 

[Not_Now.Soon]

There's so little understanding about the mark, that I've heard several theories on it, and any of them could be true. The scary part is that people could take the make willingly, and not know it.

 

[john darling]

There's so little understanding about the mark, that I've heard several theories on it, and any of them could be true

Hey NNS. I'm not so sure that any of them could be true. Or, it may be more accurate to discuss which theory appears to be more consistent with what the prophecy actually says about the Mark.

For example, I've heard some people talk about a "ritual scar" as the Mark. This scar would be at least somewhat religious in that it's meant to denote loyalty to the Beast. I was fairly open to this interpretation at one point, but when I consider that the purpose of the Mark will be to control buying/selling, and when I compare this information to what's happening in world banking, where microchip implants (in the hand) are becoming more popular, I'm far less inclined to think it will be a ritual scar.

Or, consider JCitoL's interpretation that the Mark is a hindu "bindi" (or some other such marking) on the forehead. Will the entire world convert to hinduism or in some other way be convinced to take a bit of paint on the forehead? He says the "buy and sell" part of the prophecy isn't about buying and selling, but about receiving and giving grace. So the AC will cause the entire world to get a bit of paint on their foreheads without which they cannot receive or give grace? It makes no sense and completely misses the point of the lesson behind the Mark. The AC doesn't use buying/selling (i.e. mammon, which is money and the things money can buy) because he's got some speacial interest in money. He uses it because WE have a special interest in it. In a world dominated by materialism we've come to believe that we cannot live without buying and selling.

In revelation 19 an angel tells John that "the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy" (Revelation 19:10). This is consistent with the opening line of the Revelation. It says the book is a revelation of Jesus Christ (Revelation 1:1). It makes perfect sense that all the answers to the revelation, the key to understanding the symbolism and lessons points back to Jesus.

Since the purpose of the Mark is to control buying and selling, then the answer to the Mark must be found in the things Jesus said about materialism and money. He said we cannot work for God and mammon (money and the things money can buy) without cheating on one or the other. Since Jesus first gave the teaching people have been serving two masters while claiming to only serve one. The Mark represents a time when that option will no longer be available. No more games. No more masks. The fact that it's prophesied so far in advance is meant to be proof that he really does care about this issue; a final, miraculous warning.

Jesus said we cannot work for God and money at the same time. The Mark is about controlling buying/selling. Any interpretation which does not deal specifically with our dependence on money is not really addressing the testimony of Jesus nor the spirit behind the Mark.