Revelation 13:16

“And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, etc.] Men of all ranks and degrees, states and conditions, within his jurisdiction; this refers to the beast, and not to the image: to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads; or “that they might give themselves marks”, as the Complutensian edition reads; which is an allusion either to the custom among the Romans of imprinting marks upon their servants and soldiers, by which they might be known to whom they belonged; servants had them in their foreheads f345, and soldiers in their hands f346; or to the usages of the Jews in binding their phylacteries upon their arms and foreheads, to put them in mind of…”

“to receive a mark--literally, "that they should give them a mark"; such a brand as masters stamp on their slaves, and monarchs on their subjects. Soldiers voluntarily punctured their arms with marks of the general under whom they served. Votaries of idols branded themselves with the idol's cipher or symbol. Thus Antiochus Epiphanes branded the Jews with the ivy leaf, the symbol of Bacchus (2 Maccabees 6:7; 3 Maccabees 2:29). Contrast God's seal and name in the foreheads of His servants, Rev 7:3; Rev 14:1; Rev 22:4; and Gal 6:17, "I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus," that is, I am His soldier and servant. The mark in the right hand and forehead implies the prostration of bodily and…”

“And he caused all - He claims jurisdiction, in the matters here referred to, over all classes of persons, and compels them to do his will. This is the second beast, and, according to the interpretation given above, it relates to the papal power, and to its claim of universal jurisdiction. Both small and great - All these expressions are designed to denote universality - referring to various divisions into which the human family may be regarded as divided. One of those divisions is into “small and great”; that is, into young and old; those small in stature and those large in stature; those of humble, and those of elevated rank. Rich and poor - Another way of dividing the human race, and…”

“13:16-17 small and great, rich and poor, free and slave: All humanity is required to accept the beast’s evil mark of ownership (see 14:9, 11; 19:20; 20:4), a precondition for all commerce (the right to buy or sell). The text does not explicitly tell us what the mark is or looks like. • On the right hand or on the forehead suggests the branding of slaves—the beast owns them. • the number representing his name: In both Hebrew and Greek, letters of the alphabet represent numbers, which gave names a numerical value (13:18).”

“both: Rev 11:18, Rev 19:5, Rev 19:18, Rev 20:12; Ch2 15:13; Psa 115:13; Act 26:22 rich: Job 34:19; Psa 49:2 free: Rev 6:15, Rev 19:18; Co1 12:13; Gal 3:28; Eph 6:8; Col 3:11 receive: Gr. give them a mark: Rev 14:9-11, Rev 15:2, Rev 19:20, Rev 20:4; Zac 13:6 or: Rev 7:3; Exo 13:9; Deu 6:8, Deu 11:18; Eze 9:4; Ti2 3:8 Revelation 13:17”