THE MARK will become "NOT OPTIONAL"

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Dear Roger,

You said in today's post that you will post your answer to "what does 666 mean" when somebody asks you. May I please be considered a "somebody" so that you will do so?

I, too, believe in "types and shadows" and do believe that the Bible is to be read both historically and predictively. We are certainly living in some very frightening, scary times, aren't we? The antichrist knows his days are numbered . . . and so do we. So, what is the real meaning of 666? May you be greatly blessed. Mary Kay

Dear Mary Kay,

Here is your answer to what 666 means according to the book of Revelation:


1. 666 literally means a name.
The number "666" is the number of the name of the coming Antichrist. Giving a number to a name is called "gematria," which is the Greek practice of adding up the letters in someone's name. In Latin this practice is called "isopsephism." Each letter in the Greek language has a numeral equivalent. Add up the letters and you get the number of the name.

2. Greeks used this number-name practice in their daily lives.
When Julie and I were dating I often wrote the initials, "RB + JT" in my notebook or in the wet cement of a newly poured sidewalk. Of course, the Initials stand for, "Roger Barrier plus Julie Tacker." Young lovers in Greece and Rome used gematria to express their relationships. For example, one inscription on a wall in Pompei reads, "I love the girl whose number is 545."

Of course, it is quite easy to take a name and turn it into a number. It is much harder to take a number and turn it back into a name.
Turning the number into a name is the key to unlocking the name of the Antichrist.

3. Revelation 13:8 is the verse that mentions 666.

"This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man's number. His number is 666." (Revelation 13:8)

According to John, those who are wise can get an insight into the Antichrist's identity by knowing the number of his name.

4. In ancient Greek, Hebrew and Latin letters represented numerals according to their order in the alphabet.
For example, in Greek, Alpha is one, Bata is two and so on.

The letters in Greek for “Nero” (Neron) add up to 1005. However, if the Greek letters for Nero Caesar (Neron Kaisar) are transliterated into Hebrew (nrwn qsr), the letter numbers add up to 666 (50 + 200 + 6 + 50 + 100 + 60 + 200 =666).

5. The original 666 wasn’t written the way we write it.
Slide 5 of 12
The number of the beast" was not written as a figure like “666.” Rather, the letters of the alphabet were written out in full.

6. Many interpreters consider the Roman Emperor Nero to be the “antichrist” of Revelation 13.
...because the number of his name is 666 and because he inflicted “Antichrist-like” horror upon the first century Christians. Some consider Nero to be a historical Antichrist and we that we are not to expect a future Antichrist. Yet, for the number to have any significance for a first century AD reader, it would have to refer to a contemporary historical figure.

7. Other interpreters consider the number to be applicable to both past and future.
 Other interpreters, myself included, view the Book of Revelation as being both historical and predictive of coming future events (This is the double fulfillment principle of prophecy.) According to this view, Nero was indeed an “antichrist” as well as a type or picture of the coming future Antichrist—whose number-name will also add up to 666.


8. History shows us why Nero would perfectly reflect the character of a 666 "antichrist".
Nero was a despicable man who murdered his own mother. Nero fiddled the night Rome burned. By blaming Christians for the fire, he justified his tortuous murdering of uncounted hundreds of those who proclaimed Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. He proclaimed his supposed divinity on coins, identifying him as the "Savior of the World.”

Since Christians have only one Lord, refusing to burn incense and declare Caesar Nero as Lord was like signing your own death warrant. As an aside, since Nero ruled from A.D. 54-68 he would have been the emperor to whom Paul appealed his case as recorded in Acts 25:10-12.

Nero's evil acts don't stop there...
For those who may be interested, I quote below a passage from Tacitus, the Greek historian (c. A.D. 60-120), who preserved in his Annals (XV.44) the viciousness of the Neronian persecutions which give us some idea of the horror the coming Antichrist will inflict on both Jews and Christians.


Nero falsely accused as the culprits [who started the fire] and punished with the utmost refinement of cruelty a class … who are commonly called Christians. “Christus,” from whom their name is derived, was executed at the hands of the procurator Pontius Pilate in the reign of Tiberius.… Accordingly, arrest was first made of those who confessed [to being Christians]; then, on their evidence [refusing to worship Nero as Lord], an immense multitude was convicted ... Besides being put to death they were made to serve as objects of amusement; they were clothed in the hides of beasts and torn to death by dogs; others were crucified, others set on fire to serve to illuminate the night when daylight failed…. All this gave rise to a feeling of pity, even towards men whose guilt merited the most exemplary punishment; for it was felt that they were being destroyed not for the public good but to gratify the cruelty of an individual.
 

9. The number ‘6’ is the number of man.
The number “6” in the Bible is often associated with man; just as the number “7” is the perfect number and “3” often correlates to the Trinity. 666 is thus a number that consistently falls short of triple perfection: 777. The number also refers to the “unholy trinity,” Satan, the Beast and the False Prophet.


10. 616 also has significance.
Slide 11 of 12
Some early manuscripts identify the number-name of the Antichrist as 616 (instead of 666). By omitting the final “n” in Nero’s name in Greek, transliterating that name into Hebrew, and then adding up the letters, the number of Nero and of the coming Antichrist both add up to 616. Regardless of the number, Nero is the only name that can account for both 666 and 616. But, 616 is a story for another time.

I hope my answer to what 666 means is both interesting and informative. Thanks for the question.

Love Roger

Editor's Note: Pastor Roger Barrier's "Ask Roger" column regularly appears at Preach It, Teach It. Every week at Crosswalk, Dr. Barrier puts nearly 40 years of experience in the pastorate to work answering questions of doctrine or practice for laypeople, or giving advice on church leadership issues. Email him your questions at roger@preachitteachit.org.

SEE ALSO: Who is the Antichrist?
https://www.christianity.com/theology/end-times/who-is-the-antichrist.html
4.10min video
Who Is the Antichrist?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EclmZA8R4PY&t=10s

SEE ALSO: Is Obama the Antichrist?
https://www.crosswalk.com/church/pastors-or-leadership/ask-roger/is-obama-the-antichrist.html

According to how I read the Scriptures, the Antichrist will rise up out of the ashes of the old Roman Empire, subduing three nations and forcing the others to join in a coalition that moves to destroy Israel—leading up to the Battle of Armageddon (Daniel 7-9; Ezekiel 38; Revelation 13:2-3; 16:16-21  and 17:9-18). While there is some question as to his heritage, the Antichrist will most likely be a Jew. Obama fails to qualify on several accounts including: he is not European and not a Jew. He is not, nor apparently will he ever be the leader of one or more of the nations in Europe.

Before we go further, let's remember that Paul distinctly tells us to pray for our governmental leaders. Paul's reasoning is that those who rule over us need all the help they can get. The easier and better governmental leaders are able to do their jobs, the better off we all will be (Romans 13:1-7). We need to pray for President Obama—not vilify him just because his political leanings might be different from ours.


To put things in perspective, my most intensive prayer for our President is that he lead!

Remember, the Constitution is structured to keep the minority from being over run by the majority. Stubbornly refusing to compromise is the abdication of true leadership.


It's unfortunate that many rumors attempt to tie Obama to the Antichrist. Some are really nasty. One rumor has it that the Antichrist will be a man of Muslim/Arab descent, in his 40s, and will rule for 42 months (close to the length of a U.S. presidency). President Obama declares a Christian faith and emphatically denies he is a Muslim—and he is not of Arab descent. The "42 months" idea occurs in numerous prophetical passages, but there is absolutely nothing to connect the 42 months with the 4-year (48 months) first-term of a U.S. President. Rumors and wild speculation only distract us from perhaps identifying the real Antichrist.

Now, let's continue. The Antichrist will be a man indwelt by Satan himself (Revelation 12:7-9). The indwelling of the Antichrist apparently occurs three-and-a-half years after the Antichrist engineers a peace treaty between the coalition of European nations and Israel. Israel will dwell safe and secure for three and one-half years (Ezekiel 38:10-11, 14-16  and Daniel 9:27) until shortly after the Antichrist is Satan indwelt. Then, all Hell breaks out on the earth. The Antichrist will slaughter a pig and set up a graven image of himself on the altar of a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem (Daniel 9:24-27). Jesus verified this image as the Abomination of Desolation which initiates the greatest slaughter of Jews in history. Jesus's advice for the inhabitants of Israel at this time is to "get out of town" as soon as possible. I'm using The Message paraphrase Bible below to give Jesus's teaching a more contemporary rendering:

Jesus said, "… When reports come in of wars and rumored wars, keep your head and don't panic. This is routine history; this is no sign of the end. Nation will fight nation and ruler fight ruler, over and over. Famines and earthquakes will occur in various places. This is nothing compared to what is coming.

"They are going to throw you to the wolves and kill you, everyone hating you because you carry my name. And then, going from bad to worse, it will be dog-eat-dog, everyone at each other's throat, everyone hating each other…. Stay with it to the end. You won't be sorry, and you'll be saved. All during this time, the good news—the Message of the kingdom—will be preached all over the world,… and then the end will come.


"But be ready to run for it when you see the monster of desecration [literally: “The Abomination That Makes Desolate”) set up in the Temple sanctuary…. If you've read Daniel, you'll know what I'm talking about. If you're living in Judea at the time, run for the hills; if you're working in the yard, don't return to the house to get anything; if you're out in the field, don't go back and get your coat. Pregnant and nursing mothers will have it especially hard. Hope and pray this won't happen during the winter or on a Sabbath.

"This is going to be trouble on a scale beyond what the world has ever seen, or will see again. If these days of trouble were left to run their course, nobody would make it. But on account of God's chosen people, the trouble will be cut short.

"Following those hard times, the sun will fade out, the moon will cloud over, the stars fall out of the sky, and the cosmic powers will tremble.

“Then, the Arrival of the Son of Man will fill the skies—no one will miss it. Unready people all over the world, outsiders to the splendor and power, will raise a huge lament as they watch the Son of Man blazing out of heaven. At that same moment, he'll dispatch his angels with a trumpet-blast summons, pulling in God's chosen from the four winds, from pole to pole” (Matthew 24:4-30).

The Antichrist will be a counterfeit Christ. Satan continually tries to mimic the works of God. He longs to be worshipped. His ungodly pride was unveiled by his rebellion in Heaven—which resulted in his fall (Isaiah 14). He begged Jesus to worship him (Matthew 4:8-10). One day he will use the Antichrist as a tool to elicit worship. This man will receive a mortal wound and yet, miraculously, he will survive (Revelation 13:3-4, 12). The Greek word for "wound" describes cutting the throat. He will stage a resurrection and demand to be worshipped as god—under penalty of death and starvation for those who refuse (Revelation 13:14-18).

The Antichrist's coming will be with all sorts of power, signs, wonders, deceit and sin. Fortunately, he will be destroyed by a puff of the breath of Christ (2 Thessalonians 2:8-10).

Already many "antichrists" are now preparing the way for the coming of the Antichrist. The Bible defines all who fail to surrender to Christ as their Lord and Savior as antichrists (1 John 2:18 and Matthew 12:30).


It is fashionable today for some to identify the Pope as the Antichrist. I don’t know what to think about their guess; however, I have a hard time believing that he will fulfill the role.

Fortunately, we know his name—at least the number of his name. Greek gematria is useful in adding up the letter values of his name. The letter-numbers add up to "666" (or "606"). I will answer the meaning of "666" as soon as someone asks me on "Ask Roger" for an answer!

Many believe that even Satan has no idea who the Antichrist will be. The Roman Emperors Augustus Caesar through Nero were all prime candidates during the first century. Charlemagne was ready in the 800s. The Pope was in a great position to fulfill the role during the 1200s and the 1500s. Adolph Hitler was certainly ready in the 20th century. Watch those in power in Europe. It could be the real Antichrist is already alive and well on planet Earth.

But none of the Antichrist, Satan and the False Prophet will escape punishment for their crimes:

When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations… to gather them for battle... They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God's people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them. And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night forever and ever (Revelation 20:7-10).

Good riddance! I hope my answer gives you all some helpful insights to the identity and coming of the Antichrist. President Obama is not he!

Sincerely, Roger

Ask RogerDr. Roger Barrier retired as senior teaching pastor from Casas Church in Tucson, Arizona. In addition to being an author and sought-after conference speaker, Roger has mentored or taught thousands of pastors, missionaries, and Christian leaders worldwide. Casas Church, where Roger served throughout his thirty-five-year career, is a megachurch known for a well-integrated, multi-generational ministry. The value of including new generations is deeply ingrained throughout Casas to help the church move strongly right through the twenty-first century and beyond. Dr. Barrier holds degrees from Baylor University, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and Golden Gate Seminary in Greek, religion, theology, and pastoral care. His popular book, Listening to the Voice of God, published by Bethany House, is in its second printing and is available in Thai and Portuguese. His latest work is, Got Guts? Get Godly! Pray the Prayer God Guarantees to Answer, from Xulon Press. Roger can be found blogging at Preach It, Teach It, the pastoral teaching site founded with his wife, Dr. Julie Barrier.


Article adapted from Dr. Roger Barrier's original article, "What Is the Meaning of 666? Answers in Revelation." Read the full version here.

Editor's Note: Pastor Roger Barrier's "Ask Roger" column regularly appears at Preach It, Teach It. Every week at Crosswalk, Dr. Barrier puts nearly 40 years of experience in the pastorate to work answering questions of doctrine or practice for laypeople, or giving advice on church leadership issues. Email him your questions at roger@preachitteachit.org.