Number of the beast
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The number of the beast, is associated with the Beast of Revelation in chapter 13, verse 18 of the Book of Revelation. In most manuscripts of the New Testament and in English translation a of the Bible, the number of the beast is six hundred sixty-six or χξϛ (in Greek numerals, χ represents 600, ξ represents 60 and ϛ is 6).
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Quotes
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- καὶ ποιεῖ πάντας, τοὺς μικροὺς καὶ τοὺς μεγάλους, καὶ τοὺς πλουσίους καὶ τοὺς πτωχούς, καὶ τοὺς ἐλευθέρους καὶ τοὺς δούλους, ἵνα δῶσιν αὐτοῖς χάραγμα ἐπὶ τῆς χειρὸς αὐτῶν τῆς δεξιᾶς ἢ ἐπὶ τὸ μέτωπον αὐτῶν,
καὶ ἵνα μή τις δύνηται ἀγοράσαι ἢ πωλῆσαι εἰ μὴ ὁ ἔχων τὸ χάραγμα, τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ θηρίου ἢ τὸν ἀριθμὸν τοῦ ὀνόματος αὐτοῦ.
Ὧδε ἡ σοφία ἐστίν· ὁ ἔχων τὸν νοῦν ψηφισάτω τὸν ἀριθμὸν τοῦ θηρίου· ἀριθμὸς γὰρ ἀνθρώπου ἐστί· καὶ ὁ ἀριθμὸς αὐτοῦ χξϛʹ.- And he [the Beast] causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark (χάραγμα) in their right hand, or in their foreheads:
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 hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is 666. - Book of Revelation, 13:16–18
- And he [the Beast] causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark (χάραγμα) in their right hand, or in their foreheads:
- The juxtaposition of buying and selling with the mark of the beast refers to the fact that Roman coins normally bore the image and name of the current emperor. The inability to buy or sell would then be the result of the refusal to use Roman coins. Such a refusal is analogous to the Zealot refusal to carry, look at, or manufacture coins bearing any sort of [graven] image.
- Adela Yarbro Collins, Crisis and Catharsis: The Power of the Apocalypse (1984)
- George Read thought the words [allowing the Federal government to “emit bills of credit” i.e., print paper money], if not struck out [of the Constitution] would be as alarming as the mark of the beast in Revelation.
- James Madison, Notes of Debates in the Federal Convention of 1787 (August 16, 1787)
- Although John held all emperors in contempt, he apparently chose Nero - who was said to have burned Jewish followers of Jesus alive to illuminate his garden — to epitomize "the beast" that was Roman rule. To make sure that no one missed his meaning, he offered this telling clue: "This calls for wisdom: let anyone with understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a person. Its number is six hundred sixty-six”.
Historians familiar with the numerological system Jews called gematria, which assigns a numerical value to each letter and calculates the relationship between the numbers, have offered various suggestions to interpret this mysterious number. Some still debate its meaning, but many now agree that the most obvious calculations suggest that the "number of the beast" spells out Nero's imperial name.- Elaine Pagels, Revelations: Visions, prophecy, & politics in the Book of Revelation (2012) p.33
- Besides separating from outsiders socially and sexually, some Essenes sought to separate financially as well, or at least to limit their financial dealings with them. John, too, associates commerce with idolatrous worship and savagely caricatures "the beast from the land” for trying to force everyone to worship its master and to require that everyone who buys or sells bear the mark of the beast—that is, "the name of the beast, or the number of its name." We do not know exactly what John had in mind. This mark may have been an imperial stamp required on official documents, or perhaps a tattoo (στίγμα) on the body authorizing people to engage in business or participate in trade guilds that required members to pour libations to the gods or offer grain to their statues. John might also have had in mind the images and names of Roman emperors and gods stamped on coins, which he and other devout Jews bitterly resented. Some refused to handle or touch such coins, insisting that even looking at such demonic images implicated one in idolatry.
- Elaine Pagels, Revelations: Visions, prophecy, & politics in the Book of Revelation (2012) pp.51-52
- Robert: The three 6s.
Monk: 6 is the sign of the devil.
Jennings: But why three 6s?
Monk: We think it means the diabolical trinity: the Devil, the Antichrist and the false prophet.
Jennings: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Monk: For every holy thing there is an unholy one, that is the essence of temptation.- The Omen, 1976
- Some modern Christian biblical scholars, such as Delbert Hillers (Johns Hopkins University) of the American Schools of Oriental Research and the editors of the Oxford Study Bible and HarperCollins Study Bible, contend that the number of the beast in the Book of Revelation is a code for Nero, a view that is also supported in Roman Catholic biblical commentaries. The claim is in regard to the "Babylon" mentioned in Revelation 17:1–18, which, according to Scott G. Sinclair, in the period of the book's authorship, referred to Rome (e.g., 1 Peter 5:13).
See also
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