Revelation 17:12: And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.

The scarlet coloured beast that represented the ancient Roman Empire in Revelation 17:3 had ten horns that are referred to again in Revelation 17:12.¹ These ten horns symbolize the power of the ancient Roman Empire.² In addition, the ten horns ... are ten kings.³ Their kingdoms are the modern nations of the entire earth,⁴ which are also represented by the ten toes of iron and clay from Nebuchadnezzar's dream in Daniel chapter 2.⁵ They are also the ten horns on the fourth hideous beast in Daniel chapter 7.⁶ The ten horns and ten kings represent the whole sum of the parts of Satan's entire earthly kingdom in the latter days⁷ called the Second Beast, the Great Whore, and Modern Babylon.⁸

In addition to the visions of Daniel, several other sources and circumstances confirm that the ten kings in Revelation 17:12 are the modern (latter-day) nations of the earth.⁹ John, for example, confirms that the ten kings of the modern nations did not exist at the time of his vision in 96 AD.¹⁰ In Revelation 13:1 he saw ten horns on the seventh head of the First Beast. Since the ten horns were on the seventh head of the modern era‒rather than the sixth head of the Roman Empire‒they symbolize the modern nations that emerged as part of the seventh kingdom after the collapse of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806¹¹ during the Reformation.¹² As a matter of historical fact, the ten symbolic kings became ten horns of power only as the political power of the papacy¹³ came to an end in the modern era.¹⁴ Finally, since the beast in Revelation 17:12 is the modern embodiment of evil, it also corresponds with the image of the Second Beast identified in Revelation 13:11-18.¹⁵

Revelation 17:12 identifies a power-sharing relationship between the ten kings‒or modern nations‒and the Second Beast.¹⁶ The power of the Second Beast comes from Satan¹⁷ and the rulers of nations receive power as kings one hour with the beast.¹⁸ Many scholars believe the one hour in this verse is the short space mentioned in Revelation 17:10.¹⁹ They also believe that all ten kings receive their power at the same time²⁰ and in the same symbolic hour.²¹ These are not correct interpretations.

The short space of time in verse 10 refers to the short duration of Satan's seventh world kingdom from 1830 to the Second Coming.²² Verse 11 divides this short space of time into one hour increments or seasons.²³ The Second Beast gives its power to the ten kings in these symbolic increments of time,²⁴ each in their time and season.²⁵ This power-sharing continues until all ten kings are made part of Modern Babylon in their turn²⁶ and all ten kingdoms are corrupted by the spiritual wickedness in high places described by Paul in Ephesians 6:12-13.²⁷ In other words, the one-hour increments represent the progressive and infectious growth of Satan's kingdom among all nations in the modern era.

Daniel 7:8-9 describes the same incremental growth of Satan's seventh kingdom among all the modern nations as the little horn that emerges from the ten horns of the fourth dreadful beast and then incrementally grows in power until the future gathering of saints at Adam-ondi-Ahman.²⁸ The incremental growth of Satan's latter-day kingdom also mirrors the incremental growth of God's latter-day kingdom since the restoration of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1830.²⁹ The same pattern existed in Christ's ancient church, which grew and expanded incrementally beginning with the Jews and later among all nations of the known world.³⁰

Revelation 17:13: These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.

Whenever and wherever the Second Beast gives its corrupting power to the ten kings, they unite themselves with the Second Beast.³¹ John describes this same unholy union as spiritual fornication between the ten kings and the Great Whore of false religion in Revelation 17:2.³² The kings and popes from the Dark Ages of the Holy Roman Empire are the prototype for this unholy alliance between church and state.³³ Today, evil co-conspirators of every kind unite themselves in secret combinations to commit wickedness.³⁴ The greatest threat comes as the leaders of nations (ten kings)³⁵ conspire to have one mind³⁶ with the Great Whore of false religion.³⁷

Once the leaders in each of the modern nations (ten kings) are empowered by their one hour relationship with the Second Beast they invariably abuse their position of power to engage in acts of evil and corruption.³⁸ In essence, they receive power from the Second Beast and once they have established their power base, they give back their power and strength unto the beast.³⁹ This results in the spread of evil, corruption, and wickedness throughout the world.⁴⁰ Increasing wickedness gives the Second Beast more power to fight against the Lamb.⁴¹

In the world today, the ten kings have already been empowered by the one hour they have had with the Second Beast, and they now promote all forms of false religion worldwide,⁴² including anti-religion.⁴³ Their false forms of religion are antithetical to the one true religion of Jesus Christ.⁴⁴