mark of the beast

From Middle English, 1350–1400; earliest use in Wycliffe's Bible. Calque of Ancient Greek χάραγμα τοῦ θηρίου (kháragma toû thēríou).

mark of the beast (plural marks of the beast)

1. (theology, eschatology) a mark on the person of worshippers of the Antichrist; without the mark one cannot buy or sell.

   Synonym: charagma

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Revelation 13:16–18:

     [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: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.]

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Revelation 16:1–2:

     And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth. And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image.

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Revelation 19:19–20:

     And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.

   • 1662, “Saint George for England”, in Rump: or An Exact Collection Of the Choycest Poems and Songs Relating to the Late Times‎, volume II, London: Henry Brome, Henry Marsh, →OCLC, page 126:

     'Tis much disputed who Antichrist is,
     I think 'tis the Rump, nor am I in jest,
     For indeed, although of the number it miss,
     Of this I am sure 'thas the mark of the Beast.

   • 1662, Lodowicke Muggleton, A True Interpretation of the Eleventh Chapter of the Revelation of St. John‎ (Religion), published 1753, page 177:

     Now a man may be said to receive the mark of the beast in his forehead, when as a man doth worship in that form and manner, as is set up by the beast's authority willingly, then doth a man receive the mark in his forehead. And when a man receives the mark of the beast in his right hand, it is when men do worship, and bow down to that form of worship, or image set up by the beast against a man's own mind, or unwillingly, for fear he shall suffer if he do it not. This is to receive the mark of the beast in his right hand. For if the mark of the beast be not seen in the forehead, or in the right hand, they shall either be killed or not suffered to trade ; that is, to buy and sell; one of these he must be sure to suffer if he hath not the mark in either of those two places, aforesaid. That is, if the people do not come to the public worship set up by the beast, either willingly or unwillingly, it was known that they had not received the mark of the beast, neither in the forehead, nor in the right hand.

   • 1755, John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament‎, 12th edition (Religion), New York: Carlton & Porter, published 1856, →OCLC, page 705:

     17. That no man might buy or sell—Such edicts have been published long since against the poor Vaudois; but he that had the mark, namely, the name of the first beast, or the number of his name—The name of the beast is that which he bears through his whole duration, viz. that of papa or pope. The number of his name is the whole time during which he bears this name. Whosoever therefore receives the mark of the beast, does as much as if he said expressly, " I acknowledge the present papacy as proceeding from God:" or, " I acknowledge that what St. Gregory VII. has done according to his legend, (authorized from Benedict XIII.,) and what has been maintained in virtue thereof, by his successors to this day, is from God." By the former, a man hath the name of the beast, as a mark; by the latter, the number of his name. In a word, to have the name of the beast is to acknowledge his papal holiness: to have the number of his name is to acknowledge the papal succession. The second beast will enforce the receiving this mark, under the severest penalties.

   • 2021 February 11, Teo Armus, “Among Latino immigrants, false vaccine claims are spreading as fast as the virus”, in Washington Post‎, archived from the original on February 12, 2021:

     Floridalma Galvez, 34, said the calls and WhatsApp messages began weeks before any vaccine was approved, from cousins in Chicago, Florida and her native Guatemala: The vaccine was “the mark of the beast,” they told her, a reference to Satan or the Antichrist in the Book of Revelation.

2. (nautical, slang, archaic) The patches on the lapels of a midshipman's jacket.

• M.B. coat

• 666, Number of the Beast

• “mark of the beast”, in Collins English Dictionary.
• “mark of the beast, n.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• “mark of the beast”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• “mark of the beast”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.