In a recent episode of Word Matters, Trevin Wax and I discussed a few different views on the strange number 666. Let’s take a look at the passage in Revelation where we find this number, and then consider a few different options for the meaning of 666.
Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth; he had two horns like a lamb, but he spoke like a dragon. He exercises all the authority of the first beast in his name and compels the earth and its inhabitants to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. He also performs great signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to earth in front of the people. He deceives the inhabitants of the earth because of the signs that they are allowed to do in the presence of the beast, commanding the inhabitants of the earth to make for themselves an image of the beast that was wounded by the sword and lived.
He was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast could speak and make anyone who would not worship the beast the image of the beast that is to be killed. And he causes everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark: the name of the beast or the number of his name. This requires wisdom: Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a person. His number is 666. (Revelation 13:11-18, CSB)
It’s worth noting at the outset that “666” isn’t even necessarily the number, because “616” appears in the oldest manuscript we have of Revelation 13:18. “666” is the most common among most manuscripts, but it is not the only number we see. In the CSB, for example, “666” is in the text, but there is a footnote that says: “Other Greek mss say 616“. When translators of any Bible translation try to decide how to translate a text like this, they often go with the word or number that appears on the most of the manuscripts, but the earlier manuscripts carry some weight. because they could be closer in time to the originals.
So with that in mind, let’s look at some of the main views. Note: There are dozens of other views on what “666” means, but these are probably the most popular and plausible.
What does the number 666 mean?
1. 666 represents a person or a symbol in the future.
This vision is sometimes called the vision futuristic, because he sees the “mark of the beast” as something that has not yet happened, and is related to a future Antichrist who will prepare the way for the return of Jesus. John is talking about something in the future, and therefore 666 does not represent anything that can be applied to his own time. This is popular in many churches, and particularly carries weight with dispensational-leaning crowds, who see almost all of Revelation as a description of future events.
Some theories have suggested that “the mark of the beast” could be some kind of world currency or designation. Therefore, they would say that this mark could be referring to a certain type of microchip that people would need to use or possess in order to spend money, or it could be a way of claiming citizenship or allegiance to a particular world government. So “666” may or may not be the literal number, but this “mark” has something to do with the future and is a sign that Christ is coming back soon.
So, in summary, this view holds that “666” is part of a key to unlocking when and how Jesus will return.
2. 666 represents Nero, the hostile Roman Caesar.
This point of view is sometimes called the point of view preterist, although that term carries some theological baggage; some preterists would deny the future return of Jesus, for example, but the idea here is that “666” refers to a particular person or object at the time John wrote the book. So the latter view would say that the “mark of the beast” is something that will occur later in relation to a future Antichrist. This view places 666 within the direct context of the writing of Revelation and the immediate audience.
This is where the number variants 666 and 616 come into play a little more. This requires a little explanation, but wait with me. Advocates of this view follow an approach called “gematria,” which is the practice of assigning numbers to letters. The idea, then, is that each letter in a name has a numerical value (such as B = 10 and T = 200), which gives your name a numerical value when all the letters are added together. So if G = 10 and O = 5 and D = 5, the word “God” would equal 20, and that would be the numerical value of his name. So a Christian might say, “I worship the number of a being, and his number is 20.”
This view points to the “666” representing Nero, the Roman emperor who was notoriously evil and violent. In different ways, gematria points to N + E + R + O = 666. Nero may have died when Revelation was written (depending on whether he claims a date of 65 AD or 95 AD), but his reputation was felt throughout Rome for a long time after his death. Depending on whether John was using the Hebrew, Greek, or Latin spelling of “Nero” or “Ceasar Nero,” there are several ways to add the letters of his name to arrive at the numbers 666 or 616. This would make sense, since Nero certainly qualified as a beast that tried to frustrate the purposes of God.
Proponents of this viewpoint also point to some pieces of context in this passage. For example, it is mentioned in Revelation 13 that this mark has something to do with buying and selling. This is similar to a point the first sighters make – it must have something to do with economics or government, Roman coins contained the emperor’s face and name on them, so John could be trying to convey the idea that Roman coins had the “mark of the beast,” Nero’s name, on them, so Christians should be careful not to get too involved in the economic or governmental governance of an anti-God government. And depending on which side of the kingdom he is on, Nero’s name may have been spelled differently, meaning manuscripts from different areas of the Roman Empire could use 616 instead of 666.
There is a lot more to say about this view, but basically: “666” represents Nero, and John is telling his audience to remember that Jesus is Lord and Caesar is not. You can’t be loyal to both kingdoms.
3. 666 represents an unholy Trinity.
This point of view is often called the point of view idealisticeither figurative. Although it is similar to the last opinion in saying that “666” is symbolic, they would say that trying to add the numbers to reveal someone’s name is a waste of time, because it is easy to manipulate the numbers or the spelling to add any number. you want.
Instead, this opinion says that “666” has a universal or symbolic meaning. So it’s not a future code to crack before Jesus returns, but it’s also not a code to crack to understand who the number might represent.
Many proponents of this view would say that “666” is used. intentionally in contrast to “777”, the number understood as complete perfection. So God’s number is 777, and 666 is a kind of unholy Trinity, three numbers added together that are just below 777 and therefore below perfection. While sympathetic to the other two views by saying that 666 represents something or someone against God, it is a more generic contrast to God’s good purposes of redemption.
In his monumental commentary on Revelation, GK Beale says:
The repetition of six three times seems to indicate what might be called the “fullness of incomplete sinfulness” found in the beast. The beast personifies imperfection, while seeming to attain divine perfection. The three sixes parody the divine Trinity of the three sevens. …the beast as a false Christ and the second beast as a false prophet. When believers successfully resist the beast’s deception, they avoid being identified with the essence of his name, which is imperfection personified.
My opinion
First of all, we must remember that John uses numbers as symbols often, everyone should agree with that. The real problem is which numbers we should take “literally” and which are figurative or encoded. But I think too often we see Revelation as merely a book of future predictions, forgetting that it is a book rooted in its time, like all the books of the Bible. The author, John, is receiving a vision from God that certainly describes some future events, but he is still a man in a context with an audience.
Revelation’s audience lives under heavy persecution in most places, and is challenged by the government to bow down to Caesar, who believes himself to be divine. So I think a lot of Revelation comes from and is meant for that context. The listeners of Revelation were not passive listeners to a book that was not really about them, but simply about some people in the future.
Having said all this, I would lean towards a hybrid of views 2 and 3.
Here there are a code to crack: John tells them to “calculate the number of the beast” and points out that the number is in fact a name. So it sounds like it’s some kind of play on a person’s name, and he tells them that those who have wisdom and understanding they actually have the ability to decipher that number and know who the person is. I’m leaning towards a later date for Revelation (95 AD), so I think it was probably written during the time of Caesar Domitian and not Nero, but there is also some historical evidence indicating that Nero was some kind of archetype of persecution by caesarean section, and Domitian was considered a type of Nero. In that sense, John could have been telling his audience that Nero and others like him are the “beast.”
I think the third point of view also comes into play. That 666 is contrasted with 777 as an “Unholy Trinity” could be true at the same time as view 2, because John could be using a double entendre here, and we shouldn’t let that slide, considering how symbolic and clever he is with idiom. So the “mark of the beast” could also be pointing out that Nero is part of the anti-Trinity. But with the 616 manuscript variant, it’s a bit less likely to me, although there are some arguments showing that 616 could indicate imperfection or an unholy Trinity.
The main point is this: Jesus is Lord and Caesar is not. Do not bow down to false gods or false governments, but rather put your…