Revelation's 666

[Warren]

I've wondered if the number 6 is repeated three times for emphasis, not to make the number 666 itself, but to say the number of the beast is a "curse, then a curse, and a curse again". The interpretation shifts from a vain grasping after a numerical hidden meaning, to seeing that the wisdom being got by the beast fills man with cursing, blasphemy, pride, and all sorts of corruption.

Rev. 13:17-18 "And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark or the name of the beast or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that has wit, count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man, and his number is six hundred threescore and six."

The 1599 Geneva commentaries seem to expound what I'm saying, a bit, until they get bogged down in the Pope. I'm not going that far, not here, anyway. I only contend the number 666 is not a value, but an emphatic curse on the getting of the beast's wisdom.

What say you?

 

[VictorBravo]

People have a wide variety of interpretations of 666. One thing working against the repeated for emphasis theory is that it is written as a number in the older Greek form: χξς

Which would be read as one number rather than repeated sixes.

But that doesn't say that there may be an allusion to curses.

I tend to think that whenever you see something in Revelation that seems strange, it is good to look elsewhere in the Old Testament for further clarification. You see a lot of language drawing from the prophets, for instance.

Here I see something interesting, and maybe it is too prosaic: the "666" number comes up in 1 Kings 10:1 and 2 Chronicles 9. Both passages describe Solomon's great accumulation of wealth and power.

1Ki 10:14: "Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold."

The very next thing we hear of Solomon in 1 Kings is his falling into sin at the beginning of Chapter 11.

1Ki 11:1 But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites;
1Ki 11:2 Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.

Could this be a warning to avoid following great men or to emulate their example at building wealth? Maybe there is more to it, but at least there is this, I think.

I've discovered that my view is sort of a minority opinion, though.

 

[timfost]

William Hendriksen:

"Now, man was created on the sixth day. Six, moreoever, is not seven and never reaches seven. It always fails to attain to perfection; that is, it never becomes seven. Six means missing the mark, or failure. Seven means perfection or victory. Rejoice, O Church of God! The victory is on your side. The number of the beast is 666, that is, failure upon failure upon failure! It is the number of man, for the beast glories in man; and must fail!" (More than Conquerors p. 151)

Additionally, it seems to me (just my thought on it) that it references our labor without Christ, our Sabbath rest. That is, man who remains under the curse of the law.

 

[R Harris]

A few things:

1. You have "count" as the word there, but the better translations have "calculate". The greek does seem to indicate something of a mathematical calculation is needed to figure out who the man is - after all, it does say that it is the number of a MAN.

2. There are textual variants in manuscripts which say the number is "616" instead of "666". This has to be accounted for; some skeptics have claimed error here since the variant does exist. To my knowledge, I have not seen the dispensational premils deal with this, but again I have not done an exhaustive search.

I think Kenneth Gentry's book "The Beast of Revelation" was convincing in demonstrating that the emperor Nero was indeed the beast. If you haven't read the book, I would recommend you do so. He exhaustively covered the issue from all perspectives, in my opinion.

 

[JimmyH]

I think Kenneth Gentry's book "The Beast of Revelation" was convincing in demonstrating that the emperor Nero was indeed the beast. If you haven't read the book, I would recommend you do so. He exhaustively covered the issue from all perspectives, in my opinion.

Here is an old thread with links to youtube videos of Kenneth Gentry expounding on his interpretation of The Book Of Revelation. His explanation of Nero's relation to the number is in there somewhere. Very thought provoking point of view.

http://www.puritanboard.com/showthr...-Series-on-Partial-Preterism-By-Dr-Ken-Gentry

 

[Warren]

Thank you for your insight, gentlemen.

As a digression, there's one doctrine of the Apocalypse, (which I can't pinpoint, so maybe I'm making it up...) arguing John peers into a larger, spiritual reality unfolding around our sabbath worship. That the book is depicting a liturgy in heaven, commencing with Christ's apotheosis, and (mysteriously) coeval with all our Lord's day worship... is that premil?

 

[Contra_Mundum]

That the book is depicting a liturgy in heaven,

You find this view (intertwined with two or three other layers of interpretation) in David Chilton's Days of Vengeance (DoV). Chilton was a postmil, though I'm sure he did not invent the liturgical strain of interpretation. I am almost dead certain that JamesJordan (of FederalVision infamy) was inspirational to Chilton, but also not the originator of liturgical interpretation of Revelation.

I'm not trying to produce "guilt by association" here. Advocates of sound general interpretations or excellent precise insights may be mixed up in other ways, great and small. GregBahnsen--well known postmil--famously critiqued DoV for its multilayered and consequently incoherent presentation (for which the publisher and editor was more than a bit blameworthy). I don't recommend DoV as a book to read through, to understand Revelation as a meaningful piece of divine communication. That said, there are occasionally some interesting thoughts found in the book; a different sort of thinker produced it.

Chilton himself thereafter became quasi-EasternOrthodox in his thinking and worship; until he had some sort of stroke, awoke (literally) in a mind that was 5-to-10yrs younger and couldn't make heads or tails of the evidence of his recent (very non-Reformed) theology and worship practice. He died shortly thereafter, still in his 50s I think, probably in the belief he and his flock had been providentially delivered from a very strange and serious error.

 

[Peairtach]

Nero and the Roman Empire encapsulate and symbolise beastliness in society and state throughout the "Interadventual Age", as it's sometimes called, but that beastliness continues long after the Roman Empire has been Christianised.

And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.(Revelation 13:3)

the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.(Revelation 13:12)

Eventually beastliness is given a crushing defeat by Christ - through His Word, Spirit, People and Providence - in history (Revelation 19)

See e.g. Robert L. Reymond "Systematic Theology" on 666.

 

[Jerusalem Blade]

G.K. Beale in his (larger) commentary on Revelation, pp 720-727, concurs with Hendriksen (see post #3) that 6 being the number of imperfection, falling short, which is the case with fallen humanity, is intensified by its threefold repetition, the beast being the human most fully exemplifying imperfection and falling short of the divine image, i.e., most fully evil.

Beale suggests that the attempts at finding a name to match the numbers, called gematria, fail due to a) such a variety of names that can be made to fit the number, and b) the number 666 is meant to be metaphorical, not literal, as is the case with most of the numbers John used in Revelation. He also discusses the antichrist / man of sin in both his commentary, 1-2 Thessalonians, and his book, The Temple and the Church's Mission.

 

[MW]

It is a dominion issue. There is nothing inherently wrong with man exercising authority; but we find a beast exercising authority over man and using the number of man to enslave man in false worship.

 

[Warren]

I'm not trying to produce "guilt by association" here. Advocates of sound general interpretations or excellent precise insights may be mixed up in other ways, great and small. GregBahnsen--well known postmil--famously critiqued DoV for its multilayered and consequently incoherent presentation (for which the publisher and editor was more than a bit blameworthy). I don't recommend DoV as a book to read through, to understand Revelation as a meaningful piece of divine communication. That said, there are occasionally some interesting thoughts found in the book; a different sort of thinker produced it.

"Recalling the Hope of Glory", by Allen Ross takes that interpretation. That was my exposure to it.

But I've got some leads. Thanks all!

 

[Nicholas Perella]

I tend to think that whenever you see something in Revelation that seems strange, it is good to look elsewhere in the Old Testament for further clarification.

This is a persuasive interpretation of the Revelation passage (1 Kings 10-11 and 2 Chron. 9) because of the analogy of faith.

 

[Warren]

I tend to think that whenever you see something in Revelation that seems strange, it is good to look elsewhere in the Old Testament for further clarification.

This is a persuasive interpretation of the Revelation passage (1 Kings 10-11 and 2 Chron. 9) because of the analogy of faith.

And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark or the name of the beast or the number of his name.

So there's a mark and name for the beast, as well as a number of the name.

Some more thoughts: if the beast signifies a flipped dominion, as Matthew Winzer points out, then we can spot parallels with Daniel's prophecy of the curse upon Nebuchadnezzar. That he would be debased for a time, allowed to repent, and God would restore him. He was mercifully protected, so he would repent and give glory to God, after the full time of his curse. However, the story of the beast is even more like Lamech's than Nebuchadnezzar's. It boasts in God's judgment, like his sin is a shield to indulge in murder, until Christ comes in glory.

 

[Leslie]

John was a Jew. The Jews reportedly had a system for using the letters of their alphabet to represent numbers. So aleph was 1,bet was 2, gimel 3 etc. But after 9 or 10, the numbers jumped to higher orders to make it possible to represent larger numbers with the letters of the alphabet. Therefore, the number 666 has a group of letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Anyway, this is what I learned at one point. If anyone can confirm or refute that, it would be of interest.