The false prophet deceives people by using Satan-empowered miracles to persuade the world into worshiping the Antichrist.
Revelation 13:13 shows him making fire come down from heaven, and verse 14 says he deceives earth-dwellers through those miracles. Les Feldick teaches that Satan has miracle-working power, and this false religious leader acts as a counterfeit Holy Spirit, drawing worship to the Antichrist rather than to Christ.
Revelation 13:13-14 — This is the key passage that directly describes the false prophet's miracle-working deception and his call to worship the Antichrist.
Revelation 19:20 — This verse specifically identifies the miracle-working religious leader as the false prophet.
Revelation 13 presents another beast coming up out of the earth, and this beast is later called the false prophet in Revelation 19:20. The Scripture says he “doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men” (Revelation 13:13). The method of his deception is stated directly: “And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast” (Revelation 13:14). Revelation 19:20 also says he “wrought miracles before him,” and by those signs he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and worshipped his image.
Les emphasizes that the word “beast” in Revelation does not mean a ferocious animal; it speaks of a governmental power. The false prophet is a religious leader who comes up “out of the earth” and works alongside the political leader, the Antichrist. Both are men—one in politics, the other in world religion—and the false prophet performs miracles before the Antichrist (Clips 0, 6, 7). Les repeatedly warns that miracles are not automatic proof that God is at work. Satan has tremendous miracle-working power, and the false prophet will use it to convince people that he is telling the truth. He makes fire come down from heaven and deceives those on earth through those signs, just as Pharaoh's magicians performed miracles in the Old Testament (Clips 1, 2). Les calls the false prophet a counterfeit of the Holy Spirit. As the Holy Spirit draws people to God the Son, this false spirit draws people to worship the Antichrist, the counterfeit son. This forms what Les calls an unholy trinity: Satan with the Father, the false prophet with the Holy Spirit, and the Antichrist with Christ. All of this is under Satan's control and power, and the false prophet tells the people of the earth to make an image of the Antichrist, just as Nebuchadnezzar built an image to centralize worship around himself (Clips 2, 3, 4, 5).
Les teaches that the second beast of Revelation 13 is not an animal. He says the word “beast” refers to a governmental power, and he identifies this second beast as the false prophet. Both the Antichrist and the false prophet are men who rose through their respective areas—politics and world religion. Revelation 19:20 defines this miracle-working religious leader as the false prophet.
Les explains that Satan has miracle-working power, so a miracle does not always mean God did it. The false prophet “doeth great wonders” and brings fire from heaven, and he uses those signs to convince the human race that he is the truth. Revelation 13:14 says he deceives those on earth by the means of those miracles. Les also points to Pharaoh's magicians as proof that supernatural signs can come from Satan, not God.
Les calls the Antichrist a counterfeit of God the Son and the false prophet a counterfeit of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit leads people to worship Christ, while the false prophet causes people to worship the Antichrist. Les describes this as an unholy trinity: Satan with the Father, the false prophet with the Holy Spirit, and the Antichrist with Christ. Under Satan's power and control, the false prophet fulfills this counterfeit role during the tribulation.
The false prophet causes the people of the earth to worship the Antichrist. He tells earth-dwellers to make an image of the Antichrist, just as Nebuchadnezzar tried to centralize all worship around himself by constructing a great image. Les says his goal is to concentrate worship on this political ruler, and he does it with the Antichrist's permission.
Beast as Government Power
Les explains that the word “beast” in Revelation refers to a governmental power, not an animal, and that the second beast arises “out of the earth,” helping identify the false prophet's origin.
Miracles as Deception
Les teaches that the false prophet will do great wonders such as fire from heaven, and will use those Satan-empowered miracles to convince the human race that he is telling the truth.
Counterfeit Holy Spirit
Les teaches that this false religious leader is a false Holy Spirit who causes people to worship the Antichrist and tells them to make an image of him, like Nebuchadnezzar's image.
Counterfeit of the Holy Spirit
Les draws the parallel: the Holy Spirit draws people to God the Son, while the false prophet draws people to worship the Antichrist, the counterfeit Son.
Deception with the Antichrist's Permission
Les says the false prophet deceives earth-dwellers through miracles “in the sight of the beast”—with the Antichrist's permission—and begins his power base in the revived Roman Empire.
Satan-Controlled Deception
Les teaches the false prophet causes people to worship the Antichrist, acting as the counterfeit Holy Spirit, with both under Satan's control and power.
Unholy Trinity
Les teaches that both the Antichrist and the false prophet are men—the false prophet in world religion—and that the false prophet leads people to worship the Antichrist as the Holy Spirit leads us to Christ.
Identification in Revelation 19
Les uses Revelation 19:20 to show that the miracle-working religious leader is specifically called “the false prophet.”
Revelation 13:13: And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
This verse describes the outward miracle that the false prophet uses to make himself convincing before the world.
Revelation 13:14: And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.
This verse reveals the direct method of deception: miracles lead people to make an image of the Antichrist.
Revelation 19:20: And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
This verse identifies the second beast as the false prophet and confirms that his miracles were the means of deception.
In Revelation 19:20, he is called the false prophet, the one who performed miracles before the Antichrist. Les describes him as a religious leader and a man who rose in world religion; he is the second beast of Revelation 13.
No. Les teaches that they come from Satan, who has miracle-working power. The false prophet uses these Satan-empowered signs to deceive people on earth, not to prove God is at work.
Les teaches that the Antichrist is a counterfeit of God the Son and the false prophet is a counterfeit of the Holy Spirit. Just as the Holy Spirit leads people to worship Christ, the false prophet leads the world to worship the Antichrist.
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