666

The Antichrist!...The Beast!...666!...Damien!....(Cue spooky "Halloween" theme music). Ok, sorry for the drama, and for comingling movies (Damien is from "The Omen"), but I couldn't recall the music from The Omen, and I do remember how creepy the music from the original Halloween movie was. The names "Antichrist," and "The Beast," along with the number "666" carry a lot of meaning with them in our Western culture (not least because of Hollywood and the media), as well as in Western churches. There is something about scaring ourselves that we strangely enjoy, and superstitions surrounding these names are great movie fodder. Well, I am probably going to bore you with the following--nothing scary. But hopefully it will cause you to stop and think--and perhaps even encourage you.

As I mentioned in my last post, "fresh eyes," I took an advanced class in biblical interpretation at Regent University (which does NOT qualify me as an expert in biblical interpretation by any means). In that class, we used the book of Revelation as our text to learn how to properly interpret scripture. The purpose of using that book in particular was to get us to learn how to forget what we had learned and heard in the past and approach scripture with fresh eyes. Our instructor for that class was Dr. Mark Wilson. At the time he was considered an expert in interpreting the book of Revelation, and he lived about 6 months of the year in Turkey (the country in which all seven churches in the book of Revelation are located). Dr. Wilson wrote the "Revelation" section of the Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary (2002). One of the issues he addresses in that volume (as well as in our class) is what the number 666 means.

First, when you see the number 666 as it relates to the book of Revelation, it is inappropriate to say or think "six, six, six"--because that is not what the verse says. The verse (13:8) says "six hundred and sixty-six," (NASB), or "six hundred threescore and six," (KJV). The distinction is important because the number is meant to be the quantitative calculation of a man's name--specifically the name of the beast. The first readers would have understood this, and would have been perplexed by 21st (or 20th) century Christians searching headlines and databases for patterns that include the digits "six, six and six." That is not what John intended when he wrote this verse. As a matter of fact, it is clear from the context of the verse that someone in each church--the one "with understanding" or "wisdom" (depending on your version)--would be able to decode the number to reveal the name of "the beast."

The practice is called "gematria." It was known and practiced in the first century. Dr. Wilson notes that graffiti was found from ruins in Pompeii that says "I love her whose number is 545," (Arnold, 2002, p. 330). So, whose number was (or is) 666? Well, again, we must remember that John expected that someone in those churches would be able to figure it out. Of course, there has been some debate over the years about who it refers to, but Dr. Wilson believes the strongest argument is that 666 refers to the emperor Nero. Sorry for bursting your bubble. It is not Osama bin Laden or George Bush, or any other 21st century person. Now Dr. Wilson is not the final authority on the matter. But his conclusion is based on the fact that both ancient Greek and ancient Hebrew letters were assigned number equivalents--just for this purpose. Incidentally, Jesus' number is 888 (I know. It doesn't do anything for me either).

Nero's Greek name was Neron Kaisar. When the Hebrew transliteration of Neron Kaisar is used (NRONKSR), the letters add up to 666. Supporting this theory is the fact that after Nero's death, a myth was circulating that declared that Nero had risen from the dead (Nero Redevivus).  There were even several impostors in the years following who tried to claim that they were Nero risen from the dead. The fact that Nero was such a "beastly" emperor who persecuted the Christians so cruelly also supports this theory (Arnold, 2002).

Ok, so it's only a theory. The point is that the first readers of Revelation were supposed to know who this was. It is possible that this passage has a primary and secondary fulfillment (like some prophecies do), but it is unlikely that another person's name in our day will calculate to equal 666--partly because we don't practice gematria anymore, so it wouldn't be commonly known in our churches (a prerequisite for this passage to be applied in this way); and partly because it is unlikely that another emperor will arise whose name is Neron Kaisar. What I am saying here is "relax" when it comes to the number 666 (six hundred sixty-six). John didn't intend for Christians in successive generations to become creeped out or obssessed with trying to decode what the first readers could do with a little effort--it is more likely that he didn't even imagine multiple generations to follow his.

In the coming weeks, I may post more thoughts on Revelation, but until then, it is important to remember one of the themes of the book (as I learned it at Regent). John wrote to these churches, not just to admonish them (as in chapters 2 and 3), but to encourage them in the face of great persecution. He wanted them to not fear what may happen to them--because they had a glorious future beyond Rome. The proof of this future hope was that Jesus had already died and risen from the dead. This fact was evidence that the hope of resurrection was a real and sure thing. So if in this life they suffered and died at the hands of Nero (or any other despot), they would one day rise again--and in the mean time they would be with Jesus. This was great encouragement, which is what they needed. It's also what persecuted Christians in the world need today--not superstitious searching of databases for numerical patterns. See the Voice of the Martyrs website at http://www.persecution.com/ for information on how our persecuted brothers and sisters are standing strong in the 21st century. Be encouraged. Your hope is not in vain.

Reference:
Arnold, C. E. (general editor). 2002. Zondervan illustrated Bible backgrounds commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.