The Scarlet Beast
"The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits" are five significant kings, whoever they
may be, that have come into existence and have since "fallen." John appears to describe the sixth "king" as
presently "ruling," and the seventh "has not yet come" (Rev 17:10).
The seventh king that "has not yet come" is baffling to understand, because the Scarlet "Beast which was
and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction" (Rev 17:11).
There is one possible interpretation of this is based on the account of the Antichrist.
Bestowed his power, throne, and authority by Satan, the Scarlet Beast appears to be the
Antichrist and seventh king under the dominion of the Great Harlot.
In the context of Daniel's prophecy of the fourth kingdom, an angel provides a partial
interpretation where of ten kings, another supplants three, and becomes the seventh king. And the description
corresponds to the Antichrist introduced in Revelation 13:1-7.
Daniel's number of seven king matches John's Scarlet Beast's seven kings.
"Thus he said: 'The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on the earth, which will be
different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth and tread it down and crush it. As for
the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings will arise; and another will arise after them, and he will be
different from the previous ones and will make low three kings. He will speak words against the Most High and
wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make changes in seasons and in law; and they
will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time. (Dan 7:23-25)
In addition, corresponding to a body "full of blasphemous names" (Rev 17:3),
the Antichrist is known by the angel Gabriel as "one who makes desolate" (Dan 9:27)
and by Jesus as "abomination of desolation" (Matt 24:15;
Mark 13:14).
The Antichrist is the seventh king that "has not yet come and when he comes, he must remain
a little while" (Rev 17:9-10). When the Antichrist is judged and thrown
into the Lake of Fire, the Scarlet Beast "was, and is not" (Rev 17:8).
While the Antichrist is thrown into the Lake of Fire, Satan is thrown and bound into the
abyss for one thousand years. When he is free of the abyss, Satan assumes the image of the Scarlet Beast,
because the Antichrist was essentially a surrogate of Satan. And as the eighth king, Satan is not under the
dominion of the Great Harlot who sat on the Scarlet Beast with seven heads. Satan, now as the Scarlet Beast,
"is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction" (Rev 17:8-11).