Albert Barnes Commentary Revelation 13:17

"and that no man should be able to buy or to sell, save he that hath the mark, [even] the name of the beast or the number of his name." — Revelation 13:17 (ASV)

And that no man might buy or sell. That is, this mighty power would claim jurisdiction over the traffic of the world, and endeavor to make it tributary to its own purposes. (Compare to Revelation 18:11-13, 17-19).

This is represented by saying that no one might "buy and sell" except by its permission; and it is clear that where this power exists of determining who may "buy and sell," there is absolute control over the wealth of the world.

Save he that had the mark. To keep it all among its own friends; among those who showed allegiance to this power.

Or the name of the beast. That is, the "mark" referred to was either the name of the beast, or the number of his name. The meaning is, that he had something branded on him that showed that he belonged to the beast—as a slave had the name of his master; in other words, there was something that certainly showed that he was subject to its authority.

Or the number of his name. In regard to what is denoted by the number of the beast, see the comments on Revelation 13:18.

The idea here is, that that "number," whatever it was, was so marked on him as to show to whom he belonged. According to the interpretation here proposed, the meaning of this passage is, that the Papacy would claim jurisdiction over traffic and commerce, or would endeavor to bring it under its control and make it subservient to its own ends.

Traffic or commerce is one of the principal means by which property is acquired, and the one who has control of this has, to a great degree, control of the wealth of a nation. The question now is whether any such jurisdiction has been set up, or whether any such control has in fact been exercised, so that the wealth of the world has been subject to Papal Rome.

For a more complete illustration of this, refer to the comments on Revelation 18:11 and following; but at present it may be sufficient to remark that the manifest aim of the Papacy in all its history has been to control the world and to gain dominion over its wealth, in order that it might accomplish its own purposes.

But, besides this, there have been numerous specific acts more particularly designed to control the business of "buying and selling." It has been common in Rome to prohibit, by express law, all traffic with heretics.

Thus, a canon of the Lateran Council, under Pope Alexander III, commanded that no one should entertain or cherish them in his house or land, or traffic with them (Hard, vi. it. 1684).

The Synod of Tours, under the same Pope Alexander, passed the law that no one should presume to receive or assist the heretics, no, not so much as to exercise commerce with them in selling or buying.

And so, too, the Constance Council, as expressed in Pope Martin's bull (Elliott, iii. 220, 221).