1 The dragon took his stand on the seashore. Then I saw emerge out of the sea a beast coming up, with ten horns and seven heads. On its horns were ten diadem crowns, and on each of its heads a blasphemous name. 2 The beast that I saw looked like a leopard, and yet its feet were like the feet of a bear and its mouth like that of a lion. The dragon conferred on the beast his power and his throne and vast authority. 3 One of the beast’s heads looked like it had received a fatal wound. The fatal wound was healed, and the whole earth was in awe and followed the beast. 4 They worshiped the dragon because he had conferred his authority on the beast, and they worshiped the beast, too, exclaiming, “Who is like the beast? Who can possibly defeat it in battle?” 5 The beast was given “a mouth making arrogant boasts”+ and speaking blasphemous things, and it was granted authority to act for forty-two months. 6 With its mouth it began to utter grave blasphemies against God, profaning his name and his tabernacle, that is, those who dwell in heaven. 7 The beast was allowed to wage war against the Lord’s holy people+ and to conquer them, and it was given authority over every tribe and people and language and nation. 8 All the inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—those whose names had not been written, from the foundation of the world, in the Book of Life belonging to the Lamb who was slain. 9 If anyone has an ear to hear, let him listen and pay close attention! 10 If someone is destined for captivity, he will into captivity certainly go. If someone is destined to be put to death by the sword, he will by the sword surely be put to death. This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the Lord’s holy people.

11 Then I saw another beast coming up out of the land. It had two horns, similar to those of a lamb, but was speaking like a dragon. 12 It was the authority of the first beast, its full authority, that this other beast was wielding on its behalf, and it was compelling the earth and its inhabitants to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. 13 It was performing spectacular signs, even causing fire to come down to the earth from the sky, in full view of everyone. 14 It was deceiving the inhabitants of the earth by the signs that it was allowed to perform on behalf of the first beast, ordering them to make an image in honor of the beast who had been fatally wounded by the sword but then came back to life. 15 This second beast was allowed to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image of the beast could speak and have anyone who refused to worship the image put to death. 16 The second beast required everyone—young and old, rich and poor, slave and free—to be given a mark+ on their right hand or on their forehead, 17 and made it impossible for anyone to buy or sell without the mark, which is the beast’s name or the number of his name. 18 This calls for wisdom. If someone has a mind for thinking, let him add up the numerical value of each letter in the beast’s name.+ The beast’s number is the number, you see, of a man. His number is 666.