Assignment – Read Revelation 13:16-18
“He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name.” (Rev. 13:16-17)
Let’s quickly review: Satan is kicked out of heaven and declares war against Jews and Christians (Rev. 12:17).He empowers his first beast to achieve a position of power and authority to kill God’s people. His assistant, the false prophet (beast #2), will work behind the scenes to bolster the first beast and further deceive the world. In the process, beast #2 will attempt to force everyone to receive a “mark on his right hand or on his forehead” as a means of controlling the people through forced loyalty and identification.
What is this mark? Truthfully, no one really knows. Some claim it is a symbol of the unholy trinity that will be tattooed or branded on right hands and foreheads. Others contend it will be similar to a microchip placed under the skin, which is currently in use in our world today for both humans and animals (for example, your veterinarian can embed a chip the size of a grain of rice under your dog’s skin for tracking and medical purposes). Still others argue it is a spiritual mark of some kind, similar to what God paced on His saints, and therefore invisible to the naked eye.
Unfortunately, there will be negative consequences for those who refuse this mark (such as persecution, starvation, death). This is nothing new, as evil governments have always found ways to force their subjects into submission and conformity. In fact, John’s 1st century audience was all too familiar with this form of persecution and pressure from the Romans. Yet, God is just, and He will punish those who do take this mark! We must never forget Christ’s words in Matthew 10:28 to fear God more than man or Satan! Thankfully, not everyone agrees to bear this mark of the beast.
Satan is a copy-cat. Remember how the 144,000 servants of God were “sealed” with a mark on their forehead in Revelation chapter seven? This mark somehow identified and protected God’s people. It should not surprise us, then, that Satan does something similar with a mark of his own on those who worship him!
# 6-6-6
Few passages in the Bible have caused more speculation and angst throughout Christian history than the “mark of the beast” in Rev. 13:17-18. Since numbers are important in apocalyptic writing, many have speculated that certain names have numerical value and can add up to 666. This is called gematria, or the practice of assigning a numerical value to words, phrases, or letters of the alphabet. It has led to all kinds of speculation, calculations, and theories regarding the number of his name in this passage.
In verse 18, John appears to invite his audience to make certain calculations to solve this mystery! What is the number of the beast? A number of Bible scholars believe the answer is found in the name “Emperor Nero.” In Hebrew, n = 50, r = 200, w = 6, q = 100, and s = 60. Thus, nrwn qsr (“Nero Caesar”) adds up to 666. In this view, John was directing his original audience to think of the Roman Empire in all its sinfulness and opposition to Christ.
As you may know, there have been other attempts to link this mysterious number with other Roman emperors and with other world leaders. In fact, hundreds of names have been proposed (unsuccessfully) over the centuries and seem to include every evil dictator that came along (including Napolean, Hitler and Stalin, to name a recent few). Gematria is fraught with difficulty, however, because the numbers can be easily manipulated based on variations of spelling in either the Hebrew, Greek, or Latin, leaving the interpreter room to creatively influence it to say whatever he or she desires.
A different (and perhaps better?) way of looking at this might be to ignore all efforts to identify this number through gematria. Rather, recognize that in the Bible the number seven stands for perfection and completeness. It is God’s number because He is perfect and complete and holy. No one else will ever qualify for the divine number seven. Therefore, God could be represented as “7-7-7.” Satan, on the other hand, is a created being and will never achieve perfection. As we have seen repeatedly throughout Revelation, Satan tries to be like God but always falls short. He will always be incomplete and will never be more than “man’s number” … 6-6-6. Perhaps it’s as simple as that!
We should be careful and show discernment regarding this passage. At the very least, we need to avoid foolish speculation and conspiracy theories about the meaning and identity of 6-6-6. If the two beasts represent evil government and false religion, respectively, then it makes no sense to try and identify a specific person. Therefore, John may have been imploring his readers to protect themselves from the second beast’s religious lies and treachery by being wise and discerning. How do we do that? By using wisdom and critical thinking. We also need to pay attention! The lies are not divine in origin. Therefore, we can see through the falsehoods and avoid deception.
John tells us to be wise. While he may have had an ancient figure like Nero in mind, evil dictators, ungodly cultures, and atheistic or wicked religions have been with us throughout history. John is imploring believers to have the spiritual discernment to recognize false teachers and prophets and evil leaders and the cultural poison they bring into our lives and church. Do not be afraid. Stand firm in the fiery furnace and trust in God’s ultimate reward. It is worth far more than anything this world can offer.
