Revelation 13:2

13:2 Now ¹  the beast that I saw was like a leopard, but its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. The ²  dragon gave the beast ³  his power, his throne, and great authority to rule. ⁴ 

Revelation 13:7

13:7 The beast ⁵  was permitted to go to war against the saints and conquer them. ⁶  He was given ruling authority ⁷  over every tribe, people, ⁸  language, and nation,

Revelation 13:15-17

13:15 The second beast ⁹  was empowered ¹⁰  to give life ¹¹  to the image of the first beast ¹²  so that it could speak, and could cause all those who did not worship the image of the beast to be killed. 13:16 He also caused ¹³  everyone (small and great, rich and poor, free and slave ¹⁴ ) to obtain a mark on their right hand or on their forehead. 13:17 Thus no one was allowed to buy ¹⁵  or sell things ¹⁶  unless he bore ¹⁷  the mark of the beast – that is, his name or his number. ¹⁸ 

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¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the parenthetical nature of the following description of the beast.

² tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

³ tn Grk “gave it”; the referent (the beast) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴ tn For the translation “authority to rule” for ἐξουσία (exousia) see L&N 37.35.

⁵ tn Grk “and it was given to him to go to war.” Here the passive construction has been simplified, the referent (the beast) has been specified for clarity, and καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

⁶ tc Many mss omit the phrase “it was given to make war with the saints and to overcome them” (Ì⁴⁷ A C 2053 Ï^A sa). It is, however, found in Ì^115vid א 051 1006 (1611) 1841 (1854) 2329 2344 2351 (Ï^K) lat sy^ph,(h) bo. Although the ms evidence is somewhat in favor of the shorter reading, the support of ̹¹⁵ (a recently-discovered ms) for the longer reading balances things out. Normally, the shorter reading should be given preference. However, in an instance in which homoioteleuton could play a role, caution must be exercised. In this passage, accidental omission is quite likely. That this could have happened seems apparent from the two occurrences of the identical phrase “and it was given to him” (καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτῷ, kai edoqh autw) in v. 7. The scribe’s eye skipped over the first καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτῷ and went to the second, hence creating an accidental omission of eleven words.

⁷ tn For the translation “ruling authority” for ἐξουσία (exousia) see L&N 37.35.

⁸ tn Grk “and people,” but καί (kai) has not been translated here or before the following term since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

⁹ tn Grk “it”; the referent (the second beast) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁰ tn Grk “it was given [permitted] to it [the second beast].”

¹¹ tn Grk “breath,” but in context the point is that the image of the first beast is made to come to life and speak.

¹² tn Grk “of the beast”; the word “first” has been supplied to specify the referent.

¹³ tn Or “forced”; Grk “makes” (ποιεῖ, poiei).

¹⁴ tn See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.

¹⁵ tn Grk “and that no one be able to buy or sell.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation. Although the ἵνα (Jina) is left untranslated, the English conjunction “thus” is used to indicate that this is a result clause.

¹⁶ tn The word “things” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context. In the context of buying and selling, food could be primarily in view, but the more general “things” was used in the translation because the context is not specific.

¹⁷ tn Grk “except the one who had.”

¹⁸ tn Grk “his name or the number of his name.”