"These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them, for He is King of kings, He is the Lord of lords: and they that are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful.” (v.14)
This chapter has a great deal of symbolism found in verses 1-6: a great harlot (v.1), who sits on a scarlet beast which has seven heads and ten horns (v.3), who has a name written on her forehead (v.5), and who is drunk with the blood of the saints and the martyrs of Jesus (v.6). Yet, all of the symbolism is angelically identified for us in verses 7-13, even to the point of identifying the beast as someone who: "was, and is not; and yet is” (v.8).
So, the beast (the anti-christ) mentioned here is one of the seven major Roman emperors (7 heads, seven hills of Rome), of which “five have fallen” (v.10b), one is (v.10c) and the other is “yet to come” (v.10d). The one that comes closest to fitting the description is none other than Caesar Nero whose name numerically in Hebrew totals to six hundred and sixty-six. Caesar Nero was called by the early church "the beast”, because the horrific things that he did to the church could only be done by a mind perverted by Satan.
At the time that John was writing, there had been seven Roman emperors: Julius Caesar, Caesar Augusts, Tiberias, Caligula, Claudius, Nero, and Domitian. Of the original seven, five were cut short (five have fallen): Julius assassinated, Tiberias poisoned, Caligula stabbed, Claudius smothered, and Nero committed suicide. We know from the history of the time period that Domitian was on the throne (one was), leaving one yet to come.
Therefore, it is entirely possible that Cesar Nero (or his spirit) will one day reappear as "the eighth and of the seven” to lead a 10 nation (10 heads) confederation, “to make war against the Lamb.” But as we read, “the lamb shall overcome them.” And not only will this coup be unsuccessful, but God will use the beast to destroy the false religious system created by the women (vv.15-16), and Babylon the great harlot will fall.
The Truth: "I will come like a lion from the thickets of the Jordan, leaping on the sheep in the pasture. I will chase Babylon from its land, and I will appoint the leader of my choice. For who is like me, and who can challenge me? What ruler can oppose my will?"
