Is The Covid Vaccine The Mark Of The Beast?

 

            Some Christians think that the Covid vaccine is the ‘Mark of the Beast.’ Hence, they avoid taking the vaccine.

            Is it theologically correct to think so? If we understand more about the mark of the beast, then we would know whether the Covid vaccine could be the mark of the beast or not.

            What is the Mark of the Beast? Let’s collate answers from a few credible Christian websites:

            Gotquestions.org teaches that “The main passage in the Bible that mentions the “mark of the beast” is Revelation 13:15-18. Other references can be found in Revelation 14:9, 11, 15:2, 16:2, 19:20, and 20:4. This mark acts as a seal for the followers of Antichrist and the false prophet (the spokesperson for the Antichrist). The false prophet (the second beast) is the one who causes people to take this mark. The mark is literally placed in the hand or forehead and is not simply a card someone carries... it is important to realize that a medical implant chip is not the mark of the beast. The mark of the beast will be something given only to those who worship the Antichrist. Having a medical or financial microchip inserted into your right hand or forehead is not the mark of the beast. The mark of the beast will be an end-times identification required by the Antichrist in order to buy or sell, and it will be given only to those who worship the Antichrist” [Emphasis Mine].¹

            Pastor John Macarthur (expounding on Revelation 13:16-17) teaches that the mark “...will consist of either the name of the beast or the number of his name. Antichrist will have a universal designation, his name within a numbering system...What is clear is that everyone will be required to have the identifying mark or suffer the consequences.” [Emphasis Mine].²

            He goes on to add, “God sealed, with a mark on the forehead, the 144,000 to preserve them from His wrath against the unbelieving world (7:2–3); the false prophet marks the unsaved to preserve them from Antichrist’s wrath against God’s people. The mark will signify that the person bearing it is a worshiper and loyal follower of the Antichrist... The pressure to give in to the worship of Antichrist will be far worse than anything ever experienced in human history. Life will be virtually unlivable, so the people are forced to bow to the demonized king, not prompted merely by religious deception, but also by economic necessity.” [Emphasis Mine].³

            Theologian Curtis Chang, writing on the website of Biologos, emphasizes that Christians, through the years, have incorrectly predicted the mark of the beast. He recollects how Christians were quick to deem the government, or the CDC, or some other institution as the beast.⁴

            An article entitled COVID-19 and The Mark of the Beast in the website of theLAB states, “I know of no reputable biblical scholar or theologian who would endorse that the COVID-19 quarantine or a vaccine is related to the “mark of the beast”. For starters, in Revelation, the “mark of the beast” is by no means a medical procedure... the mark of the beast (Rev. 13:16-18) is a mark that is closely tied to the worship of the beast (13:12, 15; cf. 19:20; 20:4). Thus, the mark of the beast is a mark of loyalty and devotion to the beast... the “mark of the beast” is most likely a spiritual, non-visible mark; it’s a mark of loyalty and worship and is not, therefore, something you could accidentally accept.” [Emphasis Mine].⁵

            Dr. Matthew L. Halsted teaches that the mark of the beast will force us to curse the Lord Jesus Christ and worship HIS enemy (i.e. the Antichrist), “the historical data does not permit us to think the “mark of the beast” is something you can accidentally take. It’s a mark of loyalty and worship, which requires full cognitive and heart-felt awareness of what you are doing (otherwise it’s not worship)... There is no biblical reason to think that accepting government-mandated social security numbers is the equivalent of taking the mark of the beast. Whatever the current issue may be (vaccines, SSN, chip implants, SIM cards, etc), we need to be careful about confusing our personal and/or political convictions with the meaning of a biblical text...But either way, unless “They” require you to forsake your faith in Jesus as the exclusive object of your worship, They have no relation to the mark of the beast. Again, given what we know about the historical context of these biblical texts, the “mark of the beast” must be tied back into worship if it is to be applied properly.”⁶

            To conclude, these teachings agree on one point i.e. the mark of the beast requires the bearer to renounce/curse Christ the Lord and worship the Antichrist. Since the Covid vaccine neither requires us to curse the Lord Jesus Christ nor worship anyone in particular, Covid vaccine cannot be the mark of the beast.

Endnotes:

¹https://www.gotquestions.org/mark-beast.html

²https://www.gty.org/library/bibleqnas-library/QA0174/what-is-the-mark-of-the-beast

³Ibid.   

⁴https://biologos.org/series/should-christians-take-the-vaccine/resources/is-the-covid-vaccine-the-mark-of-the-beast

⁵https://academic.logos.com/covid-19-and-the-mark-of-the-beast/

⁶http://academiclogos.wpengine.com/the-covid-vaccine-has-666-written-all-over-it-and-why-that-doesnt-matter-according-to-revelation/

Websites last accessed on 26^th May 2021.

Should Christians Take Covid Vaccine?

            The anti-vaccine movement is rather rampant. Quite a few anti-vaxxers are actively feeding seeds of doubt into the cautious and contemplative minds of certain Christians, who are uncertain about receiving vaccine shots.

            Some critical objections of the anti-vaxxers are:

1.      Vaccines have not been tested properly. Animal tests have been either inadequate or the vaccine made animals deathly ill in trials.¹

2.      Some Covid vaccines are mRNA vaccines, which are completely new type of vaccine. We are clueless if these vaccines will be effective or safe.²

3.      mRNA vaccines will alter our DNA. We would, then, become genetically modified organisms, if we received the vaccines.³

4.      Vaccine hooks us all up to an artificial intelligence interface.⁴

5.      Some vaccines (Oxford University/AstraZeneca) were developed using HEK-293 cells that were obtained from a human fetus (unborn baby) who was legally aborted.⁵ So it would be a violation of Christian ethics if we are to take these vaccines.

6.      Covid vaccines are related to the “mark of the beast.”⁶

How should we respond to these doubts?

A.     mRNA vaccines cannot alter the human DNA, according to the fact-checking website Snopes. “The mRNA is incapable of crossing the nuclear envelope of the cell where that human DNA lives. It means the vaccine cannot alter human DNA,” says Snopes.⁷

Christian biochemist, Dr. Fazale Rana, in his article entitled The COVID-19 Vaccines and God’s Providence claims God’s presence in the rapid developments of the Covid vaccines. mRNA vaccines are safe to use, he claims.⁸

B.     Should we receive a ‘morally tainted’ vaccine? John Wyatt, who was the Emeritus Professor of Neonatal Paediatrics, Ethics & Perinatology at University College London, encourages Christians to receive vaccines that may be ‘morally tainted.’ A Covid patient or a relative of the Covid patient is not as morally responsible as the Christian technologist or  a Christian pharmaceutical executive making decisions about which vaccine candidates to invest in or a Christian politician with responsibilities for public spending.

If our viable option is only the ‘morally tainted’ vaccine, we should receive that vaccine than risk our lives by not receiving one. But if there is another option, then we could opt for the ‘non-morally-tainted’ option.⁹ 

This, of course, matters only to those Christians who are staunch ‘pro-lifers.’ (Pro-choice Christians don’t care about abortion.)

C.     Many Christian leaders (Fazale Rana, Franklin Graham, s/o famous evangelist Billy Graham, Robert Jeffress, Francis Collins etc.) have encouraged vaccination.¹⁰

The ‘mark of the beast’ is not a medical procedure and most certainly is not at all something that could be accidentally taken, claims an article in the Logos Academic Blog entitled COVID-19 and The Mark of the Beast.¹¹

D.     There is no concrete evidence for the vaccine to hook us all up to an artificial intelligence interface.

These assertions negate doubts about the inadequacy of the vaccine tests.

            Aside from these doubts, Snopes has refuted an apparent claim that Covid vaccines are called Luciferase, indicating that the vaccines possess satanic connotations. In reality, Luciferase refers to a group of enzymes which act upon a chemical compound called luciferins.¹²

            Believers of the Lord Jesus should not worry about death with respect to receiving Covid vaccination. Unless, God allows, we will not die. If God allows our death through Covid infection, we would be in God’s presence – a much better place than this evil world.

            Finally, if our government makes vaccine mandatory, could Christians resist receiving the vaccine? “Therefore, since the word of God gives us no specific direction on medical treatment (including on taking vaccines), believers have no Scriptural basis for choosing to disobey a government requirement to take the vaccine,” according to an article entitled Should Christians receive the COVID-19 vaccine?¹³

            In conclusion, when we have overwhelming evidence to receive vaccination, what then prevents us?

Endnotes:

¹https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/covid-19-critical-thinking-pseudoscience/enough-make-scientists-cry

²https://www.hartleychiropracticsaintaugustine.com/letter-from-frank-shallenberger-md-hmd-regarding-the-covid-19-vaccine/

³https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/covid-19-critical-thinking-pseudoscience/enough-make-scientists-cry

⁴Ibid.  

⁵https://johnwyatt.com/2021/01/04/article-coronavirus-vaccines-and-christian-ethics/

⁶https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/02/16/covid-vaccine-misinformation-evangelical-mark-beast/

⁷https://www.snopes.com/news/2020/12/17/frank-shallenberger-covid-vaccine/

⁸https://reasons.org/explore/blogs/the-cells-design/read/the-cells-design/2020/12/23/the-covid-19-vaccines-and-god-s-providence

⁹https://johnwyatt.com/2021/01/04/article-coronavirus-vaccines-and-christian-ethics/

&

https://pastorsacademy.org/blog/pro-life-christians-are-free-to-get-a-covid-vaccine/

&

https://pastorsacademy.org/blog/can-christians-get-a-covid-vaccine/

¹⁰https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-26/u-s-evangelical-leaders-preach-vaccine-to-holdout-flocks

¹¹http://academiclogos.wpengine.com/covid-19-and-the-mark-of-the-beast/

¹²https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/covid-19-vaccine-luciferase/

¹³https://www.versebyverseministry.org/bible-answers/should-christian-receive-the-covid-19-vaccine

Websites last accessed on 14^th March, 2021