Bestia illa de Apocalypsi, cui datum est os loquens blasphemias, et bellum gerere cum sanctis (Apoc. XIII, 5-7), Petri cathedram occupat, tanquam leo paratus ad praedam." - Meaning and context.">
That beast of the Apocalypse, to whom is given a mouth speaking blasphemies, and to make war with the saints, is sitting on the throne of Peter, like a lion ready for his prey.
• To Magister Geoffrey of Loretto (afterwards Archbishop of Bordeaux), Letter 37 ( c. 1131), in Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux (1904), Dr. Samuel John Eales, trans., John Hodges, London, p. 139. http://books.google.com/books?id=BmTZAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA139&dq=%22That+beast+of+the+Apocalypse+%28Apoc.+xiii.+5-7%29%22&lr=&ei=H1-gS9e4PJTaMcmenNIH&cd=1#v=onepage&q=%22That%20beast%20of%20the%20Apocalypse%20%28Apoc.%20xiii.%205-7%29%22&f=false
• "That beast" to which Bernard refers is antipope Peter Leonis.
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Bestia illa de Apocalypsi, cui datum est os loquens blasphemias, et bellum gerere cum sanctis (Apoc. XIII, 5-7), Petri cathedram occupat, tanquam leo paratus ad praedam.

— Bernard of Clairvaux

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "Bestia illa de Apocalypsi, cui datum est os loquens blasphemias, et bellum gerere cum sanctis (Apoc. XIII, 5-7), Petri cathedram occupat, tanquam leo paratus ad praedam." in the context of "That beast of the Apocalypse, to whom is given a mouth speaking blasphemies, and to make war with the saints, is sitting on the throne of Peter, like a lion ready for his prey.
• To Magister Geoffrey of Loretto (afterwards Archbishop of Bordeaux), Letter 37 ( c. 1131), in Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux (1904), Dr. Samuel John Eales, trans., John Hodges, London, p. 139. http://books.google.com/books?id=BmTZAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA139&dq=%22That+beast+of+the+Apocalypse+%28Apoc.+xiii.+5-7%29%22&lr=&ei=H1-gS9e4PJTaMcmenNIH&cd=1#v=onepage&q=%22That%20beast%20of%20the%20Apocalypse%20%28Apoc.%20xiii.%205-7%29%22&f=false
• "That beast" to which Bernard refers is antipope Peter Leonis." to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Source: Wikiquote: "Bernard of Clairvaux" (Quotes) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Bernard of Clairvaux

About Bernard of Clairvaux

St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090 – August 21 1153), abbot of Clairvaux, was a highly influential French churchman, theologian and mystic. He was one of the founders of the Cistercian, or Bernardine, monastic order.