Revelation 13:16

Revelation 13:16 in other versions

• King James Version (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:
• New International Version (NIV)It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads,
• English Standard Version (ESV)Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead,
• New King James Version (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,

Context of Revelation 13:16

14and, by the signs he was permitted to perform on behalf of the beast, he deceived those who live on the earth. He told those who live on the earth to make an image to the beast who had been wounded by the sword, but still lived. 15The second beast was empowered to give life to the image of the first beast so that it could speak, and could cause all those who did not worship the image of the beast to be killed. He also caused everyone (small and great, rich and poor, free and slave) to obtain a mark on their right hand or on their forehead. 17Thus no one was allowed to buy or sell things unless he bore the mark of the beast – that is, his name or his number. 18This calls for wisdom: Let the one who has insight calculate the beast’s number, for it is man’s number, and his number is 666.

Revelation 13:16 word by word

καὶ ποιεῖ πάντας, τοὺς μικροὺς καὶ τοὺς μεγάλους καὶ τοὺς πλουσίους καὶ τοὺς πτωχοὺς καὶ τοὺς ἐλευθέρους καὶ τοὺς δούλους, ἵνα δῶσιν αὐτοῖς χάραγμα ἐπὶ τῆς χειρὸς αὐτῶν τῆς δεξιᾶς ἢ ἐπὶ τὸ μέτωπον αὐτῶν,Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Andκαίkai · andG2532
• he causethποιέωpoieō · to do/make: doG4160
• allπᾶςpas · allG3956
• smallὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• smallμικρόςmikros mikroteros · smallG3398
• greatμέγαςmegas · greatG3173
• richπλούσιοςplousios · richG4145
• poorπτωχόςptōchos · poorG4434
• freeἐλεύθεροςeleutheros · free/freedomG1658
• bondδοῦλοςdoulos · slaveG1401
• toἵναhina · in order that/toG2443
• receiveδίδωμιdidōmi · to giveG1325
• ·αὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• a markχάραγμαcharagma · image/markG5480
• inἐπίepi · upon/to/againstG1909
• rightδεξιόςdexios · rightG1188
• handχείρcheir · handG5495
• orἤē · orG2228
• foreheadsμέτωπονmetopon · foreheadG3359

Cross-references for Revelation 13:16

• Revelation 11:18The nations were enraged, but your wrath has come, and the time has come for the dead to be judged, and the time has come to give to your servants, the prophets, their reward, as well as to the saints and to those who revere your name, both small and great, and the time has come to destroy those who destroy the earth.”
• Revelation 19:5Then a voice came from the throne, saying: “Praise our God all you his servants, and all you who fear Him, both the small and the great!”
• Revelation 20:12And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne. Then books were opened, and another book was opened – the book of life. So the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to their deeds.
• 2 Chronicles 15:13Anyone who would not seek the Lord God of Israel would be executed, whether they were young or old, male or female.
• Psalms 115:13He will bless his loyal followers, both young and old.
• Acts 26:22I have experienced help from God to this day, and so I stand testifying to both small and great, saying nothing except what the prophets and Moses said was going to happen:
• Job 34:19who shows no partiality to princes, and does not take note of the rich more than the poor, because all of them are the work of his hands?
• Psalms 49:2Pay attention, all you people, both rich and poor!
• Revelation 6:15Then the kings of the earth, the very important people, the generals, the rich, the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains.
• Revelation 19:18to eat your fill of the flesh of kings, the flesh of generals, the flesh of powerful people, the flesh of horses and those who ride them, and the flesh of all people, both free and slave, and small and great!”
• 1 Corinthians 12:13For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body. Whether Jews or Greeks or slaves or free, we were all made to drink of the one Spirit.
• Galatians 3:28There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female – for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.
• Ephesians 6:8because you know that each person, whether slave or free, if he does something good, this will be rewarded by the Lord.
• Colossians 3:11Here there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all and in all.
• Revelation 14:9A third angel followed the first two, declaring in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and takes the mark on his forehead or his hand,
• Revelation 15:2Then I saw something like a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who had conquered the beast and his image and the number of his name. They were standing by the sea of glass, holding harps given to them by God.

Commentaries on Revelation 13:16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16And he caused all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark - To ascertain the meaning of the mark which the two-horned beast causes all orders and degrees of men in the Latin world to receive, we need only refer to Revelation 14:11, where the mark imposed by the two-horned beast is called the mark of his name. The name of the beast is the Latin empire: the mark of his name must therefore be his Latin worship: for this very…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16And he caused all - He claims jurisdiction, in the matters here referred to, over all classes of persons, and compels them to do his will. This is the second beast, and, according to the interpretation given above, it relates to the papal power, and to its claim of universal jurisdiction. Both small and great - All these expressions are designed to denote universality - referring to various divisions into which the human family may be regarded as divided…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 11-18Verses 11-18 Those who understand the first beast to denote a worldly power, take the second to be also a persecuting and assumed power, which acts under the disguise of religion, and of charity to the souls of men. It is a spiritual dominion, professing to be derived from Christ, and exercised at first in a gentle manner, but soon spake like the dragon. Its speech betrayed it; for it gives forth those false doctrines and cruel decrees, which show it to…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16-17small and great, rich and poor, free and slave: Everyone must accept the beast's evil mark of ownership (see Revelation 14:9, 11; 19:20; 20:4). This mark is needed to buy or sell. The text does not clearly describe what the mark is or how it looks. On the right hand or forehead suggests the branding of slaves, showing the beast owns them. the name of the beast or the number of its name: In both Hebrew and Greek, letters of the alphabet stand for numbers…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. to receive a mark--literally, "that they should give them a mark"; such a brand as masters stamp on their slaves, and monarchs on their subjects. Soldiers voluntarily punctured their arms with marks of the general under whom they served. Votaries of idols branded themselves with the idol's cipher or symbol. Thus Antiochus Epiphanes branded the Jews with the ivy leaf, the symbol of Bacchus (2 Maccabees 6:7; 3 Maccabees 2:29). Contrast God's seal and…Read the comment

Topics related to Revelation 13:16

• Vision

In the dictionaries

• Forehead
• Deuteronomy
• Dragon
• Eschatology of the New Testament
• Literature, Sub-Apostolic
• Mark
• Nero
• Print; Printing; Printed
• Revelation of John
• Alpha

Commentaries on Revelation 13

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings