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Revelation 13:16

And the second beast required all people small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their forehead,
Revelation 13:16 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB He causes all, the small and the great, the rich and the poor, and the free and the slave, to be given marks on their right hands, or on their foreheads;
  • KJV And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:
  • NKJV He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads,
  • NASB And he causes all, the small and the great, the rich and the poor, and the free and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads,
  • NLT He required everyone—small and great, rich and poor, free and slave—to be given a mark on the right hand or on the forehead.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

The beast forces everyone, regardless of status, to receive a mark on hand or forehead. Allegiance to worldly power is made total and visible.

Overview

The mark on the right hand or forehead is a parody of God's seal on his servants (7:3; 14:1) and of Israel's call to bind God's word on hand and forehead (Deut 6:8). It signals total ownership and loyalty to the beast across every social class. The image presses the question of whose mark, and whose worship, defines a person's true identity.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 26

  • Rev 20:4Then I saw the thrones, and those seated on them had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image, and had not received its mark on their foreheads or hands. And they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
  • Rev 19:20But the beast was captured along with the false prophet, who on its behalf had performed signs deceiving those who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. Both the beast and the false prophet were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.
  • Ezek 9:4“Go throughout the city of Jerusalem,” said the LORD, “and put a mark on the foreheads of the men sighing and groaning over all the abominations committed there.”
  • Deut 6:8Tie them as reminders on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.
  • Rev 14:9–11And a third angel followed them, calling out in a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image, and receives its mark on his forehead or on his hand,
  • Rev 7:3“Do not harm the land or sea or trees until we have sealed the foreheads of the servants of our God.”
  • Rev 19:18so that you may eat the flesh of kings and commanders and mighty men, of horses and riders, of everyone slave and free, small and great.”
  • Deut 11:18Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as reminders on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.
  • Exod 13:9It shall be a sign for you on your hand and a reminder on your forehead that the Law of the LORD is to be on your lips. For with a mighty hand the LORD brought you out of Egypt.
  • Rev 6:15Then the kings of the earth, the nobles, the commanders, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and free man hid in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains.
  • Rev 19:5Then a voice came from the throne, saying: “Praise our God, all you who serve Him, and those who fear Him, small and great alike!”
  • Ps 115:13He will bless those who fear the LORD—small and great alike.
  • Acts 26:22But I have had God’s help to this day, and I stand here to testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen:
  • Job 34:19who is not partial to princes and does not favor rich over poor? For they are all the work of His hands.
  • Rev 20:12And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. And there were open books, and one of them was the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their deeds, as recorded in the books.
  • Col 3:11Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, or free, but Christ is all and is in all.
  • Rev 15:2And I saw something like a sea of glass mixed with fire, beside which stood those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name. They were holding harps from God,
  • Rev 11:18The nations were enraged, and Your wrath has come. The time has come to judge the dead and to reward Your servants the prophets, as well as the saints and those who fear Your name, both small and great—and to destroy those who destroy the earth.”
  • 1 Cor 12:13For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free, and we were all given one Spirit to drink.
  • Ps 49:2both low and high, rich and poor alike.
  • 2 Chr 15:13And whoever would not seek the LORD, the God of Israel, would be put to death, whether young or old, man or woman.
  • Eph 6:8because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
  • Gal 6:17From now on let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.
  • Gal 3:28There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
  • 2 Tim 3:8Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth. They are depraved in mind and disqualified from the faith.
  • Zech 13:6If someone asks him, ‘What are these wounds on your chest?’ he will answer, ‘These are the wounds I received in the house of my friends.’

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Revelation videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Revelation 13:16YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on RevelationMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Revelation ends the story with the slain-yet-standing Lamb who is worthy, the Lion of Judah, the Alpha and Omega, the returning King who makes all things new and dwells with his people forever.

How Revelation 13:16 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.