Fire, in the spiritual sense, can mean either love or hatred depending on the context, just as natural fire can be either comforting in keeping you warm, or scary in burning down your house. Our language reflects this, too -- we use concepts like a smoldering hatred or a burning love. So fire signifies a love, either a good love of the neighbor and to the Lord, or, in a bad sense, selfish love of oneself that, if unchecked by conscience, leads to hatred of anyone that opposes it.

600. 13:14 And to lead astray those who dwell on the earth, because of the signs which it was granted to do in the presence of the beast. This symbolically means that through their testifications and assertions the clergy lead people in the church into errors.

To lead astray means, symbolically, to lead into errors. Those who dwell on the earth symbolize people in the Protestant Reformed Church, as in nos. 578, 588, 597 above. The signs which the second beast was granted to do in the presence of the first beast symbolize testifications and assertions (nos. 598, 599). The beast from the sea, before whom the signs were done, symbolizes the faith of the dragon among the laity (no. 567); and the beast coming up out of the earth that did the signs, which is elsewhere called a false prophet, symbolizes the faith of the dragon among the clergy (no. 594).

The Lord says something akin to this in Matthew 24:24-26.