Is COVID-19 vaccine the 'mark of the beast'? Is there a connection to the Bible?

The COVID-19 vaccine has been scientifically proven to save lives, but for a select group of people in the religious realm, a more important matter is at stake – eternal salvation. 

Many people around the world resist COVID-19 vaccines, some citing the uncertainty of long-term side effects, others lacking trust in the medical field. Some vaccine resisters have been galvanized by the idea that the shot is the "mark of the beast." 

The "mark of the beast" in the New Testament's Book of Revelation signals an allegiance to Satan or those who reject God. 

"Studies show that any conflicts between religion and science are not about facts, they are more about values and morals," said John Evans, a professor of sociology and religious studies at the University of California, San Diego.

What does the 'mark of the beast' scripture in Revelation say?

The apocalyptic biblical term comes from Revelation 13: 16-18. According to the Apostle John in the New International Version Bible, a pair of beasts will rule the Earth with cruelty. Their evil reach – which can be interpreted as hidden manipulation – will require all people who engage in commerce to wear the mark of the beast. The Apostle John did not identify what the mark looks like, although some theologians translate Scripture to associate the number "666" with it. 

Pastor Darin Wood of First Baptist Church in the oil town of Midland, Texas, wrote an op-ed in August for the Midland Reporter-Telegram that said, "One of my church family posed an honest question: 'Pastor, is the COVID vaccine the mark of the beast? I’ve been told it is.' Their question was an honest and heartfelt one, and clearly, they were anguished about it. In kindness, I answered, 'no' and thought little more about it. Until the question came again. And again. And again.

"There’s no indication that the vaccine matches the mark described by the Apostle John. … I’ve been sent numerous articles and videos ... that (suggest) the vaccine represents a conspiracy of governmental control or that the vaccine contains some sort of marking agent to indelibly identify those foolish enough to receive the vaccine. It’s just not reasonable or logical to presume such a wide conspiracy is even possible. The question then arises as to why this wide mistrust in medical treatment has come."

Why do people call COVID-19 vaccine the 'mark of the beast?'

Evans said that lack of trust in the government and medical field is a driving force behind the "mark of the beast" belief.  

Evans has said that "(Former President) Donald Trump tapped into American populism, and with that comes the disbelief of experts,". According to Evans, "There is a small group of people who believe in 'the mark of the beast,' and I think what's driving that thought process is starting with various concerns about receiving the coronavirus vaccine that are not specifically religious."

Evans said he suspect that the "mark of the beast" popularity stems from an adherence to a social or political identity.

Peter Feaman, a top Republican National Committee official in Florida, has said that vaccines are "the mark of the beast" and comparable to a "false god." In May, Feaman wrote on his blog of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer encouraging vaccines in Michigan: "Diabolical Michigan Governor Whiter wants her citizens to get the Mark of the Beast to participate in society."

According to  studies, the majority of "mark of the beast" believers appear to be politically conservative and from Protestant Christian backgrounds. 

"People with spiritual beliefs that all things are influenced by religion are more likely to believe 'mark of the beast,' which is in every Christian's Bible, but people will focus on particular passages in the Bible to support their belief system," Evans said.

What do religious leaders say?

Harvest Christian Fellowship Pastor Greg Laurie said COVID-19 vaccines are not "the mark of the beast," but many Christians may believe they are, thinking the world is in what the Bible calls "the last days."

 "The Bible speaks of someone identified as the 'Antichrist' and he will require people have a 'mark' that people will receive to buy and sell," Laurie has said. "The COVID-19 vaccine – or any vaccines – have nothing to do with any of this."

Laurie, who has been vaccinated, said the mark will be a pledge of loyalty to the Antichrist, and no one would take the mark unknowingly.

"In Revelation 14, we learn that those who take the mark are doomed," he said. "God will not doom people for taking something unwittingly."

Misinterpretations of Revelation 13:16-18 can stem from social media where people can spread unreliable information, according to Laurie. 

"People read erroneous comments and believe they are true," he said. 

"Sometimes these statements are packaged to look like Bible Prophecy," he said, "but they are false and misapplied because many people do not understand what the Bible actually says about these things."

What do health care workers say? Do people actually cite this as a reason to avoid the shot?

Nicole Williams, a traveling intensive care unit nurse, said she has heard the "mark of the beast" as a reason not to get vaccinated many times. She further said "I get being hesitant because it is new and we don't know the long-term effects, but calling it the 'mark of the beast' is crazy,". 

Williams has worked in hospitals in Texas, New York, California and Hawaii in her three years as a nurse. She said the latest surge of COVID-19 cases has been "hell," and a lot of younger people have died. She said vaccines are not a magical shot that cures all, but they're one of many tools to fight the virus. "I understand that people want to get back to how things were, but calling something you don't understand the 'mark of the beast' is extreme and harmful," she said.  "I'm exhausted and tired of seeing so many people die, but I will do my damnedest to try and keep my patients alive."

According to Emergency room physician Stephen Smith at Hennepin Healthcare, he hasn't heard the 'mark of the beast' as a reason to not get vaccinated  but a few other outlandish reasons.

Smith said one woman brought her child in for a fever and cough, and he explained that the toddler might have COVID-19. When he asked the mother if she had been vaccinated, Smith said her response was "Oh no, that turns you into a zombie." 

Other reasons Smith has heard for not getting vaccinated include: not wanting to get microchipped, it's outside their world view, vaccines were developed too fast, they haven't gotten sick, they're not high-risk, they don't trust the government and they read that people have died from the vaccine.

"Social media plays a 100% role in the misconceptions about the vaccine," Smith said. "They get all their information off Facebook and get all this garbage.

"Anyone who is telling you not to get the vaccine is either lying to you or an idiot or a combination of the two."

Some Facts about the COVID-19 vaccines?

Peer-reviewed data has deemed the Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines safe, and they demonstrated 94% to 95% effectiveness against the virus, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The same journal published that the Johnson & Johnson single dose shot provided protection against the virus and was effective against hospitalization and death.

On Sept. 20, Pfizer BioNTech released data that its vaccine was safe for children ages 5 to 11. The company received its full stamp of approval from the Food and Drug Administration late last month.

Moderna has begun the process of applying to get a full license, and Johnson & Johnson plans to apply this year. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 54.7% of Americans are vaccinated and 63.9% have received at least one dose.

By the end of September, 56% of people in the USA are projected to be fully vaccinated and 59% by Jan. 1, 2022, according to data from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.

The Vaccine and the Mark of the Beast

My thought — the COVID-19 vaccine is not the mark of the Beast. Taking the vaccine is not an automatic condemnation to spend eternity in hell. The opposite is also true — refusing the vaccination does not grant anyone eternal life. Heaven and hell will contain both the vaccinated and the unvaccinated.

The most significant reason the vaccine is not the mark is the time in history we live.

The mark of the Beast comes during the Tribulation Period. It would be easy to argue that we are in full speed ahead mode toward the Tribulation. Still, the truth is the Tribulation Period has not yet started. Just as a quarterback cannot throw an interception before the start of the game, we cannot have a mark until after the Tribulation begins.

The Tribulation begins when the Antichrist signs a seven-year covenant with many (Daniel 9:27). The same verse describes that in the middle of those seven years, the Antichrist will overspread abominations around the globe. Even Jesus comments on this “abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet” in Matthew 24:15 and Mark 13:14.

Every indication is that the mark is part of the abominations of the Antichrist orchestrates. These occur “in the midst” of the Tribulation. As of today, the covenant does not exist, let alone signed; the Antichrist does not rule the world. There is no possible way the vaccine is the mark.

Still, some will argue that we are in the Tribulation. The thought is that the signing of the covenant was not a huge news event, and it happened without the world populace noticing. Even if the start of the Tribulation goes unnoticed, there is another way we can see if we are in the Tribulation — the 21 judgments.

About every time a meteor falls, I receive emails telling me the fifth trumpet just sounded. Yes, the fifth trumpet does include “a star fall from heaven unto the earth.” Meteors fall to earth every day. Most are small and go unnoticed. Some are bright lights, cause sonic booms, and raise some excitement, but none of these is the fifth trumpet. What about the rest of the fifth trumpet? Where is the locust with stings like scorpions that torment every person on the planet except the saved (Revelation 9:1-12)? By the way, the scorpion/locust is only one of several effects of the fifth trumpet, but I figured that was enough to make the point.

I am trying to illustrate that there is a lot of stuff out there announcing we are in the Tribulation by declaring a specific judgment just came to pass.

The 21 judgments (seven each of the seals, trumpets, and vials) come in chronological order in the book of Revelation. They are in sequence. We cannot grab an event and claim it is a judgment of Revelation unless the full judgment comes, and it falls in line with the rest of the judgments.

How do we know they are in sequence?

Proof the judgments come in sequence is that the Bible tells us they do.

Inside the sixth seal are the seven trumpets (Revelation 8:1-6). Therefore, the trumpets come after the seals. The Scriptures announced the vials as the “seven last plagues” (Revelation 15:1). Seals, trumpets, vials, in that order, and since God is not a God of confusion, the first seal is first, the second seal is second, and so on (1 Corinthians 14:33).

The first seal, Revelation 6:1-2, is the rise of the Antichrist, aka the Beast.

To recap:

1. The covenant is yet to be signed; therefore, the Tribulation has not started.

2. The mark does not come until “the midst;” sometime in the middle of the Tribulation.

3. Anyone without the mark loses the ability to buy or sell immediately.

4. The mark of the Beast comes when the Beast (the Antichrist) rules the world.

As you can see, none of the four criteria mentioned are in place.

Nothing out there today is the mark of the Beast. Not the vaccine or some computer chip that a factory mandates on its employees. The world’s populace will know precisely the choice they are making when receiving the Beast’s mark. We will leave that explanation for another day.