1 THEN I stood on the sand of the sea and I saw rising out of the sea a Beast with ten horns and seven heads. On his horns were ten diadems and upon his heads were profane names.
2 The Beast that I saw was like a leopard, but his feet were like a bear's feet and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The Dragon gave to him his own power and his throne and great authority.
3 I saw one of his heads, as it were, mortally wounded, but the mortal wound was healed. The whole world followed the Beast in amazement,
4 and they worshiped the Dragon because he had given such power to the Beast, and they worshiped the Beast, saying, "Who is like the Beast, and who can battle with him?"
5 There was given to him a mouth speaking boasts and profanities, and there was given to him power to act for forty-two months.
6 He opened his mouth to insult God, to speak profanely of his name and of his Tent and of those who tent in heaven.
7 It was granted to the Beast to make war with the holy and to conquer them, and power was granted to him over every tribe and people and tongue and nation.
8 All the inhabitants of the earth will worship him, all whose names have not been written from the foundation of the world in the slain Iamb's Book of Life.
9 If any one has an ear let him hear.
10 If any one is destined to captivity, into captivity he will go. If any one is to be killed by the sword, by the sword must he be killed. Here is the endurance and the faith of the holy.
11 Then I saw another Beast coming up out of the land. It had two horns like those of a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon.
12 It exercises all the authority of the first Beast in his presence. It compels the earth and its inhabitants to worship the first Beast whose mortal wound was healed.
13 It does great signs, making fire descend from heaven to earth in the sight of men.
14 It leads astray the inhabitants of the earth because of the signs which it has been granted power to do in the presence of the Beast. It tells the inhabitants of the earth to make an image of the Beast which was wounded by the sword, yet lived.
15 Power was granted to it to give breath to the image of the Beast, so that the image of the Beast spoke and it caused all who did not worship the image of the Beast to be put to death.
16 It causes all, small and great, rich and poor, freemen and slaves, to have a mark put on their right hands or on their foreheads,
17 so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark \'97 the name of the Beast or the number of his name.
18 Here wisdom is required. Let him who has understanding count the number of the Beast; for it is the number of a man. His number is six hundred and sixty-six.