This weeks column on Christian Today – for the original click Here
Let’s try a little test. Would you accept a hotel room with the number 666? When your car reaches 666 miles and crashes do you think that’s a coincidence? What do you think is on channel 666 on your TV? It’s possible that you may be suffering from Hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia – now there’s a word you don’t hear every day. It’s the fear of the number 666 and it’s all to do with our Revelation passage this week – Revelation 13.
In case you think it’s not a real fear, there genuinely are people who won’t travel on route 666 – apparently you can get your kicks on route 66, but route 666 is another matter altogether. It is a road serving the Four Corners area of the US (New Mexico, Nevada) and had a higher than average number of accidents. It has now been renamed Route 491. And then there was the infamous case of President Ronald and Nancy Reagan who in 1989 bought a new home in the Bel Air area of Los Angeles, 666 St Cloud Road. They renumbered it to 668. They too suffered from Hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia.
You can get your kicks on Route 66 – but not on Route 666.Wikimedia Commons
Many people have an awareness of the number 666 which has now passed into popular culture, because of films like The Omen and of course the obsession with the number in rock music. Britney Spears wearing a 666 t-shirt, Iron Maiden singing ‘The Number of the Beast’, Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin have all provided plenty of material for those Christian conspiracy theorists who see rock music as the mark of the Beast, the spawn of Satan.
But let’s turn away from the eccentric, the odd and the ridiculous and instead go to what the word of God actually says.
Following on from Revelation 12, we see that the devil (the dragon) now has two allies, the beast out of the sea, and the beast out of the earth. The first beast is straight out of the book of Daniel – the lion/leopard/bear – cruel, strong and fierce. The second is from Job 41, the great behemoth. The dragon and the two beasts are an unholy Trinity, a parody of the Holy Trinity. The first beast is a parody of Christ; he almost died (some people thought this might be the emperor Nero who had died in AD 68 but was widely rumoured to be coming back as a resurrected conqueror). The second is a parody of the Holy Spirit, whose work is to get people to worship the first beast.
The beast out of the earth was able to perform miracles and to recruit people to worship and serve the beast out of the sea. In a grotesque parody of baptism they all had to receive the mark of the beast, or they would suffer economic persecution and social ostracism. Often if you had sacrificed to Caesar you received a certificate to say you had done so. And again our conspiracy theorists have had so much fun with this one. The mark of the beast is your social insurance number, or your credit card, or an implant in your body put there by the state when you were born. The theories are numerous. To my mind it is a complete waste of time, energy and money wasting time on such silly speculations. The apostle John was not writing about credit cards or Western social welfare systems. He was not writing about Barack Obama, Donald Trump, Saddam Hussein, Adolf Hitler, Napoleon or even Bill Gates. So what did he mean?
If you were a slave, as many of John’s readers would have been, then you would have been branded, like cattle. You would also have been aware of the image of Caesar on coinage, indicating that it ultimately belonged to him. The mark was all about who you belonged to. In ancient languages letters were often used for numbers. So for example a=1, b=2, c=3 etc. A name could be represented by adding up the numbers. There is an example in Pompeii of graffiti on a wall reading, ‘I love her whose name is 545.’ When you transliterate Nero Caesar from Greek to Hebrew you end up with the number 666. The number of the beast is simply the number of the Roman emperor who was persecuting the Christians. This numerical code/imagery was actually quite clever for the Christians. Why? Because they could see themselves as the number above, the heavenly 777. Even better, the name Jesus in Greek transliterated into 888.
The point of this whole passage is not to provide 21st century Western Christian authors with material to apply to our particular political circumstances – as though the Holy Spirit was recording the event before it happened. No: he is showing John firstly that the opposition is fierce, perhaps worse even than John’s worse nightmare. But he is also showing him in pictorial form that the opposition is limited. The beast out of the sea was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and in the opposite of Revelation 7 to rule over every tribe, language, people and nation. It’s not the Lamb at the centre of the throne who is ruling; apparently it is the beast. But even in the midst of that evil John is being told it is limited. He was ‘given’ the authority. His time was limited (the 42 months). We are not told the reason any of these things. But we are told that the Lord’s people have to be patient and faithful. That’s one of the key lessons.
There are also a couple of warnings which the Church would do well to heed. It’s always a mistake for the Church to be allied with state power, and even worse when the there is a false priesthood. The combination of state power and false religion is disastrous for humanity. The other warning is to beware of those who claim their power, not through the state, but through miracle-working power. The devil has signs too.
But the encouragement is that the sovereignty of God is always more apparent when it seems as though wickedness has reached its deepest limit. There is nothing blacker than the horror of the cross. And yet God meant it for the ultimate good. John talks about the Lamb slain from the creation of the world. The cross was not God’s plan B or Z. It was his means all along to rescue not just humanity but the whole creation. It’s in the horror of the cross that the unholy Trinity is defeated, without humanity being wiped out.
And there lies the great challenge for us all. The passage lays before us a simple choice – in the words of Bob Dylan, ‘You gotta serve somebody. It may be the devil or it may be the Lord, but you gotta serve somebody.’Your name is either in the Lamb’s book of life, or you have the mark of the beast. Which one do you choose? Follow the Lamb or serve the Beast?
Love this version!
Reblogged this on Talmidimblogging.
Number 666.
A couple of weeks ago I was invited to a day’s teaching by Canadian David H Campbell on the book of Revelation. GK Beale’s Shorter Commentary on Revelation was “with Campbell”. His teaching was based on his book “Mystery Explained” which in turn was based on the Shorter Commentary.
He opens with a statement that Revelation was writen as a pastoral letter written to Christians of every age and generation and visions of prophetic picture of the Sovereignty of God, working through sufferings of believers in this present world due to their faithfulness to Christ.
It is a book full of Old Testament allusions, more than all books in the New Testament combined and most current interpretation is through the lens of current news reports, than the Bible itself, rather than scriptura scripturae interpres, scripture interprets itself.
So Revelation is also prophetic, John identified as a prophet (1:3) in the line of OT prophets calling to repentence, obedience, faithfulness, perseverence in persecution.
Setting some of the scene by Campbell: Here, (following the second vision (13:1-10) where “the devil uses the spiritual power behind evil human governments to attack the church and deceive the lost”) in “the third vision,the state uses its religious allies to persecute he church and decieve the lost.” (13:11-18)
The “mark, that is , the name of beast or the number of its name” (13: 16 -17) is the satanic counterpart to the “seal” which represents the name of God written on the foreheads of believers (7:3;l 14:1) They are symbolic, figurative ways of signifying ownership. The name of the Lord denotes God’s ownership of us, that is why we are baptised in the “name of Jesus” (Acts 10:48).
In Exodus 13:9 , Deut. 6:8; 11:17 God’s law is understood to be ” a sign on your hand and a memorial between your eyes = forehead. This contrasts the name of the beast written on unbelievers following their refusal to worship the true God by compromised social and poitical systems that persecute directly or indirectly, true believers who can expect to to suffer economically, physically and socially.
Now that Number of its name is revealed: ” This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666″ ( v 18)
Here the number is to be interpreted by the bible , not “gematria”.
In verse 17 the number of the beast is equivalent to the name of the beast, which both constitutes the mark written on foreheads of the lost. This is immediately followed (14:) by believers picutured with the name of the Lord on their foreheads. The contrast is between the opposing reality of God and the beast, Satan. Therefore no human being, ever, can be identified with 666.
“For it is the number of a man”. Campbell: The indefinite article “a” is best translated here “for it is the number of humanity.” Fallen humanity under the rule of the devil is specifically in mind. The definite article “the” would have been used if a specific person were in mind.
So whence the number?
Number 7 repeatedly used in Revelation, refers to completeness and is God’s number.
Number 6 is the number of man, created on the 6th day.
Following the fall humanity failed to enter into rest, completeness. Only in Christ is it restored.
The 6th seal, 6th trumpet, 6th bowl pictuer God;s final judgment. BUT the 7th component in each series portrays the eternal kingdom of Christ, or judgement which ends with the establishment of the eternal kingdom.
So 3 sixes points to a fallenness beyond fallenness of humanity of demonic activity out of which fallen humanity emerged, likely signifying demonic counterfeit of the Trinity.
The beast receives authority from the dragon, (NOT the Father) the beast has crowns, appears slain but is resurrected to receive a fallen world as kingdom as counterfeit of Son. And more.
The second beast or false prophet as counterfeit Spirit, giving breath to the statue of the beast,(13:15) and glorifies the beast (13:12-15) and empowers unbelievers to use false religious institutions to advance the kingdom of darkness and counteract true witness of the church. (13:11-18.)
This is the Wisdom called for – the Spiritual reality that only true Christians of every age can understand. This has clear echoes of “eyes to see” “ears to hear”.
I’ve benefited greatly from your teaching on Revelation and the above from Campbell has also enhanced my appreciation of the book and our Triune God to be shared, in my view with believers. Not all on the day of teaching were initially on board, and some were offended as not many had come across the teaching having been raised and fed on historisist , preterist, or futurist view, especially if they were of charismatic or dispensationist backgrounds. To me it was joyful, uplifting and a substantial and sustaining meal.
The mark and number of the beast are related to a technology and because man worship technology God will burn them in to sulfur because Satan will use technology to destroy the world (atomic war).
I suppose it could just be one hell of an amazing set of coincidences, but it describes multiple interwoven layers, quite literally, forward and backward and inside and out, of my first and last and full name, initials, exact time and date of birth, …in context, other verses, aspects of my life and experiences, etc, etc…
You people scare the hell out of me.
Revelation 13:18 is describing a number set/sequence that corresponds to a lot of other things, in the bible and elsewhere, dating all the way back to Sumerian culture with things such as magic squares.
The Hebrew letter Aleph is symbolized by the divine MAN as well as an OX, which is commonly referred to as a BEAST. The number of Aleph is 1, or 111 when using the Shemi method of Gematria. 111 is a significant number in numerology, as is 6 or 666, 6666, etc..
http://biblehub.com/text/revelation/13-18.htm
13:18 Ὧδε ἡ σοφία ἐστίν. ὁ ἔχων νοῦν ψηφισάτω τὸν ἀριθμὸν τοῦ θηρίου· ἀριθμὸς γὰρ ἀνθρώπου ἐστίν. καὶ ὁ ἀριθμὸς αὐτοῦ ἑξακόσιοι ἑξήκοντα ἕξ.
13:18 <—-Here the wisdom is. The one who has understanding, let him count the number(1 or 111) of the beast(ox). Number indeed a man's it is (Aleph=divine man). And the number of it six hundred sixty six(666).
It's a number set that can be interpreted a few ways; 1, 3, 18, 11, 666 ..or… 3, 18, 111, 666 …or ..13, 18, 111, 666
It can also be interpreted as simply 111 and 666.
There are probably hundreds or millions in the last few centuries who qualify as the beast by popular standards, probably without ever realizing it. I have already identified a few others who are a close fit. There are indications that others from centuries past include Isaiah and Yeshua and/or Yeshai.
A lot of what people are interpreting as literal, more closely resembles spiritual allegory for the process of spiritual growth and enlightenment, ascension, Gnosis, becoming connected to god through the spirit of christ or christ consciousness, being raptured or adopted into the house of god to become a child of god, a "son of god".
The name Yeshua/Jesus itself is spiritual allegory for ascension and salvation of god, hence 'savior'
You go through a process of spiritual death and rebirth that is like battling evil and being knocked around a bit, until you hit rock bottom, enter the pit of hell, find the evil within and are able to discern the difference between good and evil thus identifying the christ spirit and following it out from the bottomless pit of fire and damnation to an eventual connection to god and your greater self.
That stuff is like profound spiritual poetry that people are butchering in favor of some mega-cult fear mongering NWO slavery nonsense. Not that there aren't prophetic things as well, but I see a lot of it being mixed up or confused over the course of so many years, …not that it is exactly clear and concise.
Whatever the case, I am a close enough fit to make the claim, or compete with another. So if there is another like me who intends to enslave you or whatever, then you should all officially accept me as your 'beast' character so we can call it prophecy fulfilled without incident and more like a boring disappointment. Then everyone can go back to their regularly scheduled lives and not worry about it.
I have no idea what you are talking about….and I fear that you don’t either! It sounds like Gnostic non-sense!
Oh yes you do. And your condescension is only a means of reinforcing your ego that is attached to a life of lies and brainwashing.
I don’t lie…and I still havn’t a clue what you are talking about nor this life of ‘lies and brainwashing’ that you claim I lead! However I do understand that you appear somewhat unbalanced and rude – so unless your future posts contain something intelligible and edifying I doubt you will be appearing on here again. Sad that you can be so vitriolic over someone you don’t know!
Watch ‘lunate sigma’ on Vimeo.