Let's have a look at the ominous number 666.
We know about the number 666 from the book of Revelation, the final book of the Bible.
In chapter 13, John the Revelator discusses two beasts. The first one (verses 1 to 10) comes out of the sea and seems similar to an earlier mentioned dragon who gives it its authority (v2). The second beast comes out of the earth (v11 to 18). This second beast exercises all authority of the first beast in the presence of the first beast (12). One of the acts of this second beast is to equip all people with a mark on either their right hand or on their forehead. That mark, John explains, is 666.
Is 666 the Number of the Devil?
Too bad for all the metal heads and horror fans who thought it was, but 666 is a human number, the number of a man (v 18). Some say that, surely, this "man" must be demon possessed but that too is unbiblical. In the Bible no demon ever possesses anything and at best gets to influence people. In fact, God is the sole owner of everything: the entire world (Ps 24:1), and all souls (Eze 18:4).
The number 666 is often associated with the Antichrist, but it's by no means certain that the two are the same. There are many more villains or mysterious entities mentioned in Revelation and other Bible books.
What Might 666 Mean?
John seems to invite the "wise" among us to figure out what 666 means. He says, "Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding reckon the number of the beast" (Rev 13:18). This may seem like a summons to all smarties out there, but in the Biblical arena, understanding means something else than being smart. King Solomon says it like this, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge" (Prov 1:7).
Wisdom starts with reverence for truth, not with being clever, and certainly not with being hexakosioihexekontahexaphobic (that's being scared of 666 - such a cool word, I had to put it in).
The Beast
The word that John uses for the creatures from the earth and the sea is "therion." Therion usually denotes ferocious creatures like lions or vipers. A verb that's tied into this word is "thera," which means to hunt or chase. Paul uses this verb in Rom 11:9 to describe a trap. He quotes Ps 69:22, which paints a picture of deception and dullness that leads to complete ruin.
It should be noted that the word "therion" did then not carry the distinct negative connotation it does today. Aspiring beast-hunters should also know that the constellation we now call Lupus was called Therion in John's time.
Suggested Interpretations
The most popular approach in interpreting the number 666 is to render numerical values to letters, transnumerate personal names and add the letter-values together (this is called Gematria). By adding titles and trying different languages, the number of the beast has been pinned to a large amount of people and institutions, from Emperor Nero to Pope Benedict and the papacy at large.
Since 666 has to do with trade, especially global trade, people have wondered if this number may have something to do with the Internet. It has been overly reported that the name Bill Gates III converted to ASCII codes would add up to 666. But a little scrutiny shows that this isn't true. The name Bill Gates in ASCII adds up to 663 but the decimal number 3 has ASCII value 51. That's 714 together.
Others note that the "w" is the transliteration of the sixth Hebrew letter (the waw), and that thus "www," the signature prefix of all website URLs, transnumerates to 666.
A similar construction (that none of the dozens of the consulted websites, including Wikipedia, mentions, so I reckon it's my claim to fame) occurs when we realize that the Hebrew word for lily is "sixie," a word which is closely related to the word for six. Displaying three lilies (Pope Simplicius, 468-483, left, and pope Paulus VI, 1963-1978, right) does therefore seem not very clever.
All this would have been very worrisome is John the Revelator had said anything about six-six-six. He doesn't. He is talking about six-hundred and sixty-six. And that is something completely different.
A More Sensible Attempt
Revelation 13 is mesmerizing but wildly guessing after its meaning has no merit. Even if we would accidentally guess right, it wouldn't serve us much if we still don't understand the meaning of the chapter, or the book, or even the Bible as a whole. Gematria certainly existed when John wrote Revelation, but nowhere in the Bible is Gematria employed or even mentioned. It is highly unlikely that John inserted a hip riddle in his book, and that the outcome of it denoted something that had nothing to do with wisdom, or even helped anyone who managed to figure it out.
Judging from the many references to established Biblical symbolisms, John obviously meant Revelation to be a commentary on the rest of the Bible. To be specific: it's virtually doused with references to the tabernacle, which evolved into the Temple, which in turn evolved into the Body of Christ. All the lamp stands, the bowls, God's throne, the trumpets, and perhaps even the sealed books, are all temple related. And so is 666.
Besides Ezra 2:13 - where 666 occurs as a literal amount, mentioned in a long list of numbers of tribesmen - the only other occurrence of the number 666 in he Bible denotes the annual amount of gold talents that Solomon received from the surrounding nations (I Kings 10:14 and II Chronicles 9:13).
The defining quality of gold is that it doesn't rust and seems eternal. Hence gold is often used in the Bible as a symbol for truth. In Rev 3:18 Jesus advises the church in Laodicea to buy gold from Him. But Jesus also explains that gold doesn't make the temple holy, the temple makes the gold holy (Matt 23:17). In other words: knowledge doesn't sanctify the Body of Christ but the Body of Christ sanctifies knowledge. And this knowledge is not vague esotericism or limited to philosophical or theological knowledge, but any kind of (scientific) knowledge that would help people serve others and glorify God (see Rom 1:20, Ph 1:9, 4:8, 1 Tess 5:21 and Hebr 1:11 - the latter two references were reinvented in the scientific method).
Why the Six?
The Bible uses symbols and metaphors much more frequently than a modern text, and numbers are used symbolically as well. Apart from simply denoting a quantity, the number six often indicates an incomplete set or cycle (as seven denotes a whole set or cycle, still reminiscent in our phrase "the seven seas").
Since the Greek language in which John wrote had no exclamation marks, he used an amplification technique that is common in Scriptures. Jesus does something similar in Matt 18:22, where He amplifies seven to seventy-times-seven. In effect, the number 666 could be interpreted as 6!!
Perhaps the author of the temple story literally meant that Solomon received 666 talents of gold each year (which today would come down to a cool four billion dollars) but perhaps this number was chosen to explain that no matter how much gold came, it was never sufficient.
If that is true, then Kurt Gödel earth-shattering discovery that any logical system based on axioms must always remain incomplete was preceded by Biblical insight by two and a half millennia.
Michael and the Dragon
The dragon & beasts cycle covers chapters 12 and 13, and its main theme is a handing over of the authority of the red dragon (who is known as the devil and satan - 12:9). Whatever that authority might be, the whole story is an obvious allegory of the evolution of knowledge, or rather the acquisition thereof. Here's why:
John divides the whole of man's mental activity in two, and depicts this division as a battle between the arch-angel Michael and the red dragon. The name Michael means Who Is Like God? Or rather: What's God Like? And it denotes man's quest to know God. The Greek word for dragon, "drakon" comes from the verb "derkomai," which means to look at or behold, and seems to denote a greed for knowledge for the sake of self. The Hebrew word for snake, "nahash," is identical to the word for to observe or to learn by experience. All this ties wonderfully into the Eden story in which Adam and Eve are tempted by a snake to consume the fruits of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
The difference between Michael and the dragon is often misunderstood and it must be stressed that both desire or promote knowledge. Yet Michael shows reality to be a kingdom, while the dragon shows reality to be a republic.
Michael's efforts mould a mind into a centralized throne for the Word of God, while the dragon turns a mind into a cloud without a center. The Hebrew word for Word (or Logos) is "dabar," which is the masculine version of the feminine word "deborah," meaning honey bee. Bees dwell in centralized societies, may form vast armies, have a protective house, focus on living flowers, produce honey and care for their offspring. Flies on the other hand (Beelzebub means Lord of the Flies) are not centralized, are inveterately on their own, focus on dung and carcasses, produce nothing, and don't care for their offspring. Bees are armed; flies are not.
Land and Sea
Land vs sea is a very common Biblical metaphor for stability/security/certainty vs instability/insecurity/uncertainty (see for instance Mat 7:24-27). The Hebrew word for sea is "mayim," which is a plural word (literally: the waters). The singular form of this word would be "may," which is identical to the common particle of inquisition: what? who? It's this particle that forms the first element of the name Michael.
To the Hebrews, the sea was in the west and land stretched towards the east. The Hebrew word for east is identical to the word for past. The whole metaphorical system is obvious: from the past comes experience, knowledge and thus certainty and footing. The future is fluidic and can only be wondered about. Depicting the disciples of Jesus as fishermen thus becomes a very bold statement about their ability to harvest the great unknown. And the story of the two fish and five loaves (= seven items) is much more than a miraculous picnic. (Also see Rev 21:1)
The Beast from the Sea
Any beast that comes from the sea therefore must have to do with something pertaining to the unknown. My guess is that with this beast John depicts the great human ability to plan ahead, to foresee either future or any underlying system to appearing chaos by means of reason. Why this beast should have seven heads and ten horns or ten diadems (compare Rev 12:3 with 13:1) is not explained, but the seven & ten couple also appears in the design of the tabernacle (Ex 25:37 & Ex 34:28 or 36:8 and 38:12). In addition to this, Solomon states that wisdom is based on seven pillars (Pr 9:1).
Why one of the seven heads gets mortally wounded by a sword and is then healed is also not clear, but the sword is a very common metaphor for the Word of God (Eph 6:17). It should be noted that Moses the law-giver married Zipporah (which means bird but is closely related to the word for diadem, see here) and she was one of seven sisters.
When Moses came down from the mountain with the Law, his face shone with the radiance of God (Ex 34:29). Since the Hebrew words for radiance and horn are nearly identical, theologians of old thought that Moses had grown horns in God's presence. Hence Moses is often depicted with horns, by Michelangelo for instance:
I'm guessing that the mortally wounded head depicts mankind's natural sense of religion. It must have been through this avenue that God was able to speak to the first believers such as Seth, Noah and Abraham. Paul actually pulls off something similar when he invades the Greek mind through the temple of the unknown God (Acts 17:23). Also compare Rev 13:3 with Zech 8:23.
The Beast from the Earth
Following the previous, the beast from the earth must depict mankind's entire body of knowledge. John sees this body as having the appearance of a lamb, which is an overly obvious reference to the redemptive element of Jesus' earthly mission. Perhaps John wants his audience to also think of Dan 8, where a two-horned ram represents the Medo Persian empire (8:20). But I'm guessing that he still has the temple in mind, the temple that would become the body of Christ, which John most frequently depicts as a lamb. Just outside Solomon's temple stood two pillars which had no other function than to just stand there. Their names are Boaz and Jachin, and these names put together mean: By Strength He Will Give Certainty (1 Ki 7:21).
John's description of how society presently runs is chilling because indeed everything is based on information and the gathering thereof. It's not enough to simply be a human being; nobody will do business with you or even let you subscribe to any service, unless you bring your social security number, address and bank account numbers. Our entire collective identity is based on the exchange of data. As John notes, there's no way around it: all people are to receive the mark (13:16). The key difference between those who end up in the fiery lake and those who don't is the same difference as that between the mission of Michael and that of the dragon. Those who worship God live, those who don't die (14:9, 15:2, 16:2). And the cause of death is not their worship of the beast, it's the lack of worship of God. See Numb 21:8.
The beast from the earth also creates an image of the beast of the sea (in blatant violation of the 2nd commandment - Ex 20:4-5). Again, I too am not sure what this might mean but, following the previous, I'm guessing this has to do with mankind's absurd insistence to mark their mental territory with symbols. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that we should adorn the countryside with crosses, or stars, or half moons and the likes. In fact, Jesus says, "By this shall all men know that you are My disciples: that you have love for one another" (Joh 13:35).
Should We Be Worried?
John the Revelator doesn't paint a very pretty picture and if any of the described horrors will have a physical manifestation we're all in for a rough ride. But I strongly suspect that neither of the two beasts will turn out to be something organic, as some religions teach. They would unceremoniously be nuked if they emerged.
Should we be worried? I don't think so. The devil's battle is with Michael, not with God. And there is no power anywhere in existence that can separate us from Him (Rom 8:38-39).
Nobody will be condemned by accident or because they didn't manage to figure out a highly complex riddle, or any other conundrum. Salvation is not a matter of knowing all the right things (as Tony Campolo once said, "Even the devil knows all the right things") but about being in with God. Some of us might make it through pretty clean, but I suspect a large majority of us will be slimed upon, bitten, marred by a wide variety of marks and claims, bent, broken and sunk nose deep in puddles of murk.
But there's no way that any of us will end up on the wrong side of the fence.
Or as Jesus says, "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)
译文:
数字666，我们是否应该恐惧？
我们来一起看看不吉利的数字666.
我们是从圣经最后一卷《启示录》中知道数字666的.
在第十三章中，约翰启示中谈到了两只野兽。第一只来自海洋之中，长相跟在书中前面提到的赋予它权力的一条龙相似。第二只来自陆地，它在见到第一只野兽的时候，就可以完全获取它的能量。第二只野兽的其中一个能力就是在所有人的右手或是额头上做标记。约翰说，那个标记就是666.
666是魔鬼之数吗？
要很遗憾的告诉那些顽固不化坚信它代表魔鬼的人，666是一个人的数字，是人之数。有些人肯定的说，这里的“人”是指那些不恪守《圣经》的人。在圣经中，恶棍是不会拥有任何财富的，他们充其量只能影响他人。事实上，只有上帝才是唯一影响一切的主：整个物质世界(Ps 24:1)，冥冥众生 (Eze 18:4)。
数字666还常常与反基督的人联系在一起，但这绝不意味着两者就完全是一码事。还有《启示录》及其他《圣经》章节中提到的一些恶棍及神秘力量与666有关。
666可能意味着什么？
看来上帝是在邀请一些聪明的人来探究666的意思。他说：在这里就有智慧，凡是聪明的人就会知道这些数字和野兽的联系。这个或许是想让多有的聪明人离开哪儿，但是在圣经里的一些部分，包含的意思相当的聪明。所罗门曾这样说过：随着对真理的崇敬，智慧开始觉醒。
并不是人类生来就很聪明的，当然也不是生来对一切都很恐惧。
神兽
神兽通常是指凶猛的动物像狮子或者毒蛇，一个动词可以指的是“野孩子”，它表示狩猎或追逐保罗把这个词形容成一个陷阱在Rom 11:9。他引用Ps 69:22这一篇章，他们画了一幅欺骗和迷惑的画导致了最后的毁灭。
我们应该注意到“兽神”这个词，也并没有代表消极的方面的含义。阿斯匹林山的狩猎勇士，都知道我们现在称为“天狼座”的或许就是耶稣世纪神兽的化身。
其他解释
现在对数字666最能被大众接受的解释是对信件的价值表示，送信人的姓名编号，或者是信件的重要性编码（这个叫希伯来代码）。添加的标题和尝试不同的语言，野兽的数量被很多人或者团体多注意，这些都是来自教皇尼禄与教廷的统治。
后来666和贸易联系起来，特别是全球化贸易，人们开始异想，是否它和国际网路有着某些联系呢？曾经有过分的报道说比尔盖茨三世的名字转为 ASCII码（美国信息交换标准码）的和是666。但是检查审核显示这不是真实的。别人盖茨的名字的ASCII码的和是663，而十进制数3在ASCII码的值是51。它们最后的和是714。
另外一些人注解，“W”是系希伯来字母的第六个音译，那就是“www”，一个所有网址的前缀，反过来转换就是666。
一个类似的建筑（没有可以咨询的网站，包括维基百科，我首先提出所以是我的荣誉）的出现让我意识到希伯来文里表示百合花的是“sixie”，这个词也可以和数字6紧密的联系起来。教堂展现的三支百合花（罗马教皇Simplicius、468 - 483年(左)与教皇Paulus六世,1963年- 1978年右边）但并没有显示出他们的特别意图。
所有的这些仍然让人摸不着头脑，约翰先知所说的6-6-6到底是什么。他什么都没说，他一直在说六百六十六。那样有些东西肯定是完全不同。
更合理的意图
启示录里13是迷惑意思仅仅是无边际的猜想，是没有什么根据的。即使我们意外地猜对了，如果还是不能理解这一章或这本书甚至是整个圣经的意思，还是没有什么用。希伯来人肯定是存在的当耶稣写启示录的时候，但是在圣经里却找不到雇佣的希伯来人甚至提都没有提到。这极大可能的是约翰将它插入书中的谜语部分，结果似乎说明不做什么却很聪明，乃至让一些人能够猜想到它。
从很多圣经研究建立起的参考资料来判断，约翰很明显在用启示录来评论圣经的其他部分。具体的说：这实际上开始了圣体龛浇注，然后进化成殿，继而演化成基督的身体。所有的那些灯座，上帝的宝位，喇叭，甚至可能还有一些密封的书籍，都与庙宇有关。因此这些就是666。
除了以斯拉 2:13 里出现了666字面的数字意思，还有在部落的一长串的数量上也被提到，这个仅仅是另外的发现。在他圣经里表示所罗门从四方外邦收罗黄金人才的年度（烈王记 10：14，旧约圣经II 9：13）。
对黄金的定义是永远不会失色，似乎是永恒的。因此在圣经里黄金被作为真理的象征。 在启示录3：18，耶稣劝告老底嘉教堂购买他的黄金。但是耶稣也解释道黄金并不能让庙宇变得神圣，而教堂能让黄金变得更圣洁（马太福音 23：17） 换一句话说：知识不是使基督的身体变得神圣，而是基督的身体让知识成为神圣之物。知识不是局限于私人的传播或者是有限的哲学逻辑或神学知识上的交流，但是任何自然科学知识都会帮助人们去服务其他人和赞美上帝（见 新约1：20，, Ph 1:9, 4:8, 1 Tess 5:21 和希伯来圣经1:11）后两部参考本重新使用在科学方法上。
为什么是6？
圣经比现代的文本有更多的象征和隐喻，那些数字也被象征性的使用。除了简单的指数量，数字6通常也暗指一些不完整的设置或周期（如七表示一整套或一个周期，还让我们回忆起词组“七个海洋”）。
后来约翰用希腊语写作没有惊叹的标志，他在经文中普片的使用用一种放大的手法。这个手法和马太福音18:22 里相似，他放大7 到77。实际上，数字666也可能被解释成6.
或许圣庙故事的作者的按字面意思是所罗门每年收到的666个黄金人才（今天可能意味着40亿美元），但是这个数值也可能是不不确定数量的黄金的解释，这样的说法也还是不充分的。
如果这个是真实的，那么科特德尔地球的震动的发现是任何基于公理的逻辑系统必须一直保持完整的前提就是对2500年的圣经深刻理解。
迈克尔和龙
龙和野兽的环节在第12和13章，他的主题是红龙掌握着超强的权势（就是传说中的恶魔和撒旦王 12：9）。不管它们权势如何，整个故事很明显是由寓言演化过来的，或者说是只是的截取。原因是： 约翰将整个人的精神活动分为两部分，叙述这个分开部分就是一个箭形天使迈克尔和红龙的斗争。名字迈克尔就是神？或者更确切的说：上帝是什么样的？这表示人类对了解上帝的探索。希腊词语龙，“德古拉”来自动词“德古迈”,它的意思是看啦或者注视着，似乎是指本人对知识的贪婪。蛇的希伯来语，“那哈续”，它和注意观察和学习经验是相一致的是。所有的这些关系到伊甸园里亚当和夏娃受蛇诱惑偷吃智慧之树的果实的善与恶的故事。
迈克尔和龙的不同经常被人误解，必须强调他们都渴求和提高知识。然而迈克尔的真心是一个王国，龙的愿望是一个理想国。
迈克尔的努力集中到神道的心型宝座上，而龙的努力转为天下，没有中心。希伯来的语（理法）是“达巴”，表示雄性的阳刚，女性的词是“ 黛博拉”，意思是蜜蜂。 蜜蜂是集中居住，可以组成巨大军队，是一个防卫性的居所，它们采集鲜艳的花朵，生产出蜂蜜并照顾自己的子孙后代。另一方面苍蝇（苍蝇王）不集中，只顾自我，根深蒂固的盯着大粪和残留物，什么都不生产，也不关心后代。蜜蜂是武装，苍蝇不是。
陆地和海洋
陆地对海洋在圣经上很常见的隐喻为稳定/安全/确定性 对 不稳定/不安全感/不确定性（见马太福音 7:24-27）。希伯来语称海洋为“水舞之族”，这是个复数词（字面意思：水）和普通的异端裁判所的鸡毛蒜皮的调查一样：什么？谁？ 这正是这种元素的名字迈克尔。对于圣经中的希伯来书，海洋在西方和陆地延伸到东方。希伯来语对于东方和过去一词又是一致。整个比喻的体系是很明显的：由过去的经验和知识从而确定和稳固。将耶稣的很多门徒形容成渔民，因而有一个很大胆的宣称他们有能力获得很多莫名的知识。两条鱼和五个烤面包的故事就像是一个奇迹般的野餐（见启示录21：1）。
来自大海的野兽
任何的野兽都是来自海洋，因此肯定有 一些附属的不为人知的事情。我猜想耶稣描述野兽具有伟大的能力去做超前的计划，去预测未来或者对于任何潜在的体系出现骚乱的原因。为什么这个野兽有七个头十只脚或十冠冕？并没有解释（比较启示录12：3和13：1），在圣体龛的描绘里也有出现七对和十对。除此之外，所罗门国的智慧是建立在七大支柱基础上的(Pr 9:1)。
其中原因之一是七头兽被剑所伤病也无法治愈，而剑也是上帝的一种暗喻（以弗所书 6：17）。应该注意的是摩西已经在法律上娶得了西坡拉（鸟的意思但和王冠有紧密联系），她也是七姐妹之一。
当摩西下山时带着法权，他的脸闪耀着神的光辉（Ex 34：29）。 因为希伯来语的光芒和角有近乎相同，老神学者认为在上帝的面前摩西角已经长成。从此米开朗琪罗描述摩西长了角。下图。
我猜想：受伤的头脑是对人类自然宗教意识的描述，上帝一定是通过这种途径，服一些信徒，如塞斯，诺亚和亚伯拉罕。保罗实际上丢了一些相似的东西当他有侵入希腊的主意时(Acts 17:23)。也可以比较启示录13：3和撒迦利亚 8：23。
陆地的野兽
陆地的野兽被描绘为人类知识的身体。约翰看到这个羔羊一般的身体，过明显的提到要赎回耶稣俗世的使命。或许约翰想让他的听众也也知道丹 8，在那儿两角的雄羊代表着波斯帝国（8：20）。但是我猜他心中仍然有殿,这殿将成为基督的身体,而约翰最常见的描绘像羊羔。在所罗门的寺庙外站立着两根铜柱,没有其它的可与之相比的建筑站立在那里。他们的名字是波阿斯和雅斤,这些名字加在一起,意思是:力量确定一切(1基里7：21)。
约翰的描述是目前社会的运行让人恐惧,因为实际上一切都是基于信息和聚会。它对于一个人来说是不够的,谁也不愿意和你做生意或甚至让你订阅服务,除非你把你的社会安全号码、地址和银行帐号给他登记。我们整个集体的身份是建立在数据交换的基础上的。根据约翰的笔记,没有方法:所有人都是有标记的(13：16)。人的关键区别在火海里结束一切是不同的，就像龙和迈克尔的任务是不一样的。 那些敬畏神的人还活着,他们没有死去(14：9,15：2、16：2)。而死亡的渊源不是对野兽的崇拜，而是缺少对上帝的崇敬。（见 拉伯 21：8）
陆地上的野兽也创造了一幅海兽的图像(公然违反了戒令第二条-Ex20：4-5)。后来，我也不知道这将意味着什么,但根据先前,我猜这与人类的荒谬的坚持他们的精神领地的象征有联系。在圣经里说我们应该用十字架的心装饰我们的乡村或是星星和半月,或做喜欢做的事。事实上,耶稣说：众人因此就认出你们是我的门徒了:你们已经相互友爱了（约翰 13：35）
我们应该担心吗？
约翰启示者不画非常美丽的画面,如果任何的一个恐惧描述将会有一个物理表现我们称之一个粗糙的骑车。但我强烈地感觉到这两个兽会自然的出来,就像一些宗教教导。人们会沦落到随便被裸露的,如果他们真的出现。
我们应该担心吗?我不这么认为。魔鬼和迈克尔的战斗,神没有参与其中。也没有任何力量存在将他从我们之中分离(所罗门 8：38-39)。
没人会被谴责发生的事故或者任何其他难题因为他们没能解决一个非常复杂的谜团。拯救的并不是所有正确的事物(如托尼甘普路 ;甚至魔鬼知道所有正确事情。但是人类与神同在。我们中的一些人可能会使它很好,但是我怀疑我们大多数人会被涂上泥,或被咬,印上各种野蛮的标志、索赔、磨难、断陷鼻子,陷入深泥那些。
但是没有任何一个人结束于失败的一方。
或者就像耶稣所说：我将这些事情告诉你们，是让你们在我这里有平安。在世上，你们有苦难；但是你们可以放心，我已经胜了世界。（约翰16：33）