Six Hundred Threescore and Six

“And here is wisdom.  Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is six hundred threescore and six.”  Revelation 13:18

If you think that I have some special revelation about the number 666 or the identity of the antichrist, well, I don’t.  People for centuries have tried to figure out the mystery of the number 666 and have tried to guess the identity, or the nationality, of the antichrist to no avail.  Scholars have taken the letters of the Greek and Hebrew alphabets, assigning numbers to them, and coming up with all sorts of answers of which none are accurate.  The Apostle John wrote in Revelation that those who are wise and have understanding may be able to solve these mysteries, but I believe he was speaking of the believers who will be alive during the tribulation.  God told Daniel to “shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end” (Daniel 12:4).

God reveals to us what we need to know for the hour in which we live just as He gives us grace for each day.  This verse does reveal that 666 is the number identified with imperfect and sinful mankind in contrast to the number 7 which is the number of perfection associated with our sovereign God.  The holy Trinity is made up of three distinct persons, God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  The devil also has his unholy “trinity”, made up of three distinct beings, Satan, the beast, and the false prophet (Revelation 20:10).  No matter how hard the devil tries to take God’s place as sovereign ruler over all, he will never be successful.  The only way to achieve perfection is to have the righteousness of Christ which is imparted to those who receive Him, and the devil will never know that righteousness.

Many Christians believe that the second coming of Christ is near.  They base that on all the turmoil in the world and the blatant hatred of God and Christians that is being displayed throughout the nations including ours.  Turmoil and hatred have always been with us since the beginning of time.  Cain, the third human being on earth, killed his own younger brother, Abel.  However, Jesus said that in the time of the end that “iniquity shall abound, (and) the love of many would wax (grow) cold (Matthew 24:12).  Think of some melted wax that is warm and pliable, but then gets cold and hard.  That’s how Jesus is describing the hearts of folks in the end times.  Sin is definitely rampant, spreading unchecked.  Some people want to do away with those who serve to protect us.

The great advances in technology that have been made are another indicator of the nearness of the end times.  Revelation 13:16-17 tells us that during the period of tribulation that will occur before Christ returns, the antichrist will force people to receive a mark in their right hand or their forehead, which will be a number associated with the number 666. Without that mark, no one will be able to buy or sell.  Some folks don’t believe this could ever happen, but my thought is that the increase in identity theft will eventually require that chip that is in our credit cards to be placed in the right hand of people.  That will be the only acceptable way of identification and thus the only way to make purchases.  If that wasn’t bad enough, those who receive this “mark of the beast” will have the wrath of God poured out on them (Revelation 14:9-10).

Some folks don’t believe any of this, but it comes straight from God’s word and shouldn’t be ignored.  Jesus is returning to claim His own, maybe sooner than later.  It is the wise thing to be prepared.