The second beast of Revelation is the religious leader and religious governmental system who causes the world to worship the first beast, the Antichrist.
Les Feldick explains that the word 'beast' does not mean a literal monster—it represents a government. This second beast comes up out of the earth, appears as a lamb-like religious leader, but receives his power from Satan. His significance is that he establishes a satanic religious system, exercises the first beast's authority, and compels the earth to worship the first beast, the political leader identified as the Antichrist.
Revelation 13:11-12 — These are the verses where John sees the second beast coming out of the earth, describes his lamb-like/dragon-speech appearance, and reveals his mission to make the world worship the first beast.
In Revelation 13:11, John says, "And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon." The text immediately distinguishes this second beast from the first, which had come up out of the sea. He comes from the earth, wears the appearance of a lamb, and yet speaks like a dragon. Revelation 13:12 reveals his mission: "And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed." Scripture here does not name this figure, but it shows that he acts with the first beast's authority and directs worship toward the first beast.
Les says 'beast' in Revelation is a symbol for government. The first beast comes up out of the sea—the mass of humanity—and is the political leader, the Antichrist. The second beast, seen in Revelation 13:11, is not the same beast; it is 'another beast,' and it comes up out of the earth. Les points out that because the earth is the one place God concerns Himself with, Israel, some interpreters believe this second beast would have to be a Jew. Les says, "I don't say he has to be, I think he could be, but not necessarily." The second beast is centered in an individual and is the religious government. He has 'two horns like a lamb' because he is a religious leader, but he 'speaks like a dragon' because his power comes from Satan. So he is a satanic religious system. In Les's teaching this religious leader works 'hand in glove' with the first beast, exercising all the first beast's power and causing the earth to worship the Antichrist. Les also places the second beast in the 'counterfeit trinity' of Revelation. Just as a counterfeit looks like the original, this is a satanic imitation: Satan is the counterfeit of God the Father, the Antichrist is the counterfeit of God the Son, and the false prophet—the religious leader of verse 11—is a counterfeit of the Holy Spirit, not in his makeup but in his operation.
Les explains that in Revelation's symbolic language, the sea is the sea of humanity—the masses of people around the globe. That is where the first beast comes from. This second beast, however, comes up out of the earth. Some take the view that since the earth is the only part of the earth God concerns Himself with—Israel—the second beast would have to be a Jew. Les says he does not say he has to be, but that he could be, not necessarily.
In Revelation 13:12 the second beast "exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed." Les identifies the first beast as the political leader, the Antichrist, and says the two are working hand in glove. The religious leader, under the cloak of religion and under the inspiration of Satan, causes the mass of humanity to worship the other great world leader—the political leader, the Antichrist.
Les likes to point out in Revelation a counterfeit trinity. A counterfeit is something that looks like the original. In this satanic system, Satan is the counterfeit of God the Father, the Antichrist is the counterfeit of God the Son, and the false prophet—the religious leader of verse 11—is a counterfeit of the Holy Spirit, not so much in his makeup but in his operation.
No. Les teaches that the word 'beast' in Revelation refers to a government. The first beast is a government—the revival of the ancient Roman Empire—headed up by the man of sin, the Antichrist. The second beast is also a man and a system, but it is a religious system rather than a political government. Even though it is called a beast, it is not a literal monster or sea creature.
Nebuchadnezzar's Dream That Predicted Every World Empire — Daniel 2
And again, because they were both written from outside of Israel, and I guess I should have tied in another analogy that falls into that same kind of a category, and that is between the twelve apostles and Paul. Now very few people realize that drastic difference. Jesus chose the twelve within the borders of Israel, didn't he? Every one of them, mostly up along the Galilee.
The Second Beast From the Earth
Les shows that the second beast is a religious government centered in a person, coming out of the earth rather than the sea; it appears as a lamb but speaks like a dragon because its power is from Satan.
The Second Beast Makes the World Worship the Antichrist
Les explains that the religious leader exercises all the power of the first beast and causes the earth to worship the political leader, the Antichrist—a clue that this is a counterfeit trinity with Satan counterfeiting God the Father.
The False Prophet and the Counterfeit Trinity
Les identifies the second beast of verse 11 as the false prophet, a religious system and man, and says he is the counterfeit of the Holy Spirit in the unholy trinity of the tribulation.
Who Can Open the Scroll? Daniel 7 & Revelation 5 Explained
So all of the attributes of these previous kingdoms are going to be headed up in this final empire. So you have the feet of the bear, the mouth of a lion, but as we saw last week, Satan gives it its power. And then you come down to, oh, verse 4. They worshipped the dragon who gave power to the beast. In other words, Satan is going to begin to show his authority through this man Antichrist.
Beast Means Government
Les explains that the word 'beast' refers to a government that operates in a bestial way, not a literal animal; this supports understanding the second beast as a religious government.
The Sea Is Humanity
Les defines the 'sea' in Revelation as the sea of humanity—the masses of the globe—which explains why the first beast comes from there and why the second beast's origin from the earth is a deliberate contrast.
Beast and Antichrist
Les shows that the beast can refer to the Roman Empire and the man of sin who rules it, giving context for how 'beast' is a two-fold term in Revelation.
Revelation 13:11: And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.
John introduces a second beast whose lamb-like appearance and dragon voice are what Les uses to identify him as a satanic religious leader.
Revelation 13:12: And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
This verse directly answers the second beast's significance: he exercises the first beast's authority and causes the world to worship the first beast.
No. Les says 'beast' in Revelation is a symbol for government. The second beast is a religious government centered in a person—the false prophet—and is called a beast because it is bestial in operation, not because it is an actual animal.
No. In Les's teaching, the first beast is the political leader, the Antichrist. The second beast is a separate religious leader who exercises the first beast's power and causes the world to worship him, as Revelation 13:12 describes.
Les says some take the view that 'the earth' points to Israel, the only part of the earth God concerns Himself with, so the second beast would have to be a Jew. Les responds, "I don't say he has to be, I think he could be, but not necessarily."
Les explains the two horns like a lamb show the second beast is a religious leader. But he speaks like a dragon, which shows his real source of power is Satan. So this is a satanic religious system under a religious cloak.
Watch the Teaching: Nebuchadnezzar's Dream That Predicted Every World Empire — Daniel 2