Translation
THE BEAST
which was, but is not,
Go to footnote numberis also an eighth king,
and belongs to
the seven kings, and yet he is
going to his destruction.
Paraphrase
THE FEROCIOUS CREATURE who is trying to imitate Jesus, goes beyond them in his level of influence, and yet he belongs to the complete array of leaders who can influence many people, but he is headed toward his destruction.
Footnotes
1
As is typical in symbolism, it is not necessary to write out a long symbol, all the writer needs to do is place the idea in the reader’s mind. Here the full symbol is not given but the power of the symbol is the same as if it had all been written out.