What's That Number Again?

It is thought that the ciper 666 was formed in an identical manner. But what name lies behind it? According to John it is a human number (RSV) or the number of a man (KJV), which may mean that the hidden name is personal and historical. This, however, is not certain, since in apocalypticism human beings often symbolize angels, just as animals symbolize human beings. But on the assumption that the name is personal, since the number is that of the beast symbolizing the imperial line, it should be the name or title of an emperor. This rules out suggestions like lateinos (the Roman Empire) and teitan (Titan) in Greek, or the Hebrew equivalent of Primitive Chaos (Tiamet; a proposal of Gunkel). The search being narrowed to an emperor, the notorious gaios kaisar (Gaius Caesar) has been proposed. The letters of his name do add up to 616, the variant noted by Irenaeus, but this fails to account for the much better attested 666.

The connection of the beast with Nero redivivus has led others to find the solution in his name. This may be done by transliterating the Greek neron kaisar (Neron Caesar) into Hebrew letters and giving them their numerical equivalents in the following manner: resh(200) + samekh(60) + qoph(100) + nun(50) + vav(6) + resh(200) + nun(50). [rsqnwrn???] These sums, when added up, total 666. Furthermore, if the proper name is written without the final "n", according to the Latin form, the sum is 616, the variant reading already noted.

If this identification is correct, it fits very well into the practically certain belief that the beast is closely related to the satanic Nero, returned to life. [Seems everyone was getting ressurected back in them days!] It quite fittingly bears his name, just as the scarlet woman in 17:3-5 quite properly has the name Babylon (symbolizing Rome) on her forward. Furthermore, as Nero redivivus, the Antichrist is compared and contrasted with Christ; thus the number 666 may be compared and contrasted with his number, 888.

Lohmeyer in his commentary proposes a wholly different solution (Die Offenbarung des Johannes [Tubingen: J.C.B.Mohr, 1926; "Handbuch zum Neuen Testament"], pp. 115-15). He states that according to Pythagorean numerology, 666 is a so-called triangular number, being the sum of the numbers from 1 to 36 inclusive; further, 36 is itself the sum of the numbers from 1 to 8. Accordingly, 666 is resolved into 8, a number which has special significance in 17:11, "As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but belongs to the seven, and it goes to perdition." Accordingly, so Lohmeyer observes, the number 8 designates the fearful, demonic Antichrist whose end is at hand. The number 666, then, is a human number which is a cipher for the demonic number 8. Thus by coincidence Lohmeyer arrives at pratically the same conclusion: the number is that of the Antichrist who in 17:11 is also Nero redivivus.

With the appearance of these two beasts in ch.13, the leading characters of the apocalyptic drama have now come on the stage, save for the scarlet woman, the bride of Christ, and Gog and Magog, [Oh, is that all?], who make their entrance later. On the one side [Here comes Persian Dualism, are ya ready?], the evil side, are Satan, the beasts representing the demonic Roman emperors and the Antichrist, the angels of Satan, the pagans [Natch] who are generally grouped as enemies and persecutors of the Christians [Very funny!], as well as Jews and apostate Christians, who are also on Satan's side. [Quite a lineup!] On the other, the good side, are God, Christ, the archangels and angels, the two heavenly witnesses, the four living creatures, the twenty-four elders, and the faithful Christians, especially the martyrs. {Fun Fact: Webster'sII: martyr [ME < OE < LLat. < Gk. murtus, witness.]; So, everytime you see the word witness in an English translation of the Greek scriptures, replace it with martyr to get the true sense of the original meaning} The forces of Satan and God are in battle array; the two sides of evil and good are about evenly balanced; [It promises to be a fair fight - NOT!] and the cosmic war is reaching its dramatic and inevitable conclusion. The struggle will be a desperate one to determine whether righteousness or evil is to rule. Through it all, however, the reader is made conscious of the author's belief that God is more powerful than Satan, indeed, that he is all-powerful; and he is assured that despite temporary [TEMPORARY!!!] evidences to the contrary, God will overcome Satan and bring his evil reign to an end. [Yeah but at what cost? How many dead? How many faithful Christians martyred? And which network will carry it live? And just where is the better third of the Holy Trinity - the Holy Spirit? And how about the Virgin Mary? Shouldn't she be pitted against Babylon the mother of all whores and abominations of the earth? Talk about a cat fight!]

v17:10 - And there are seven kings; five are fallen, and one is, and the other
         is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.
v17:11 - And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of
         the seven, and goeth into perdition.

These two verses are among the most obscure in Revelation, though the general sense is quite clear. The seven heads, which were seven hills in the preceding verse, now shift in meaning and represent Roman emperors. Furthermore, one of them is related to Nero, who died and yet lived [resurrected]. All this is in conformity with the general sense of 13:1-4. The difficulty centers in discovering just which seven emperors are meant, and the precise relationship of Nero redivivus to the group.

The discussion may be helped if it is prefaced with a consideration of symbolism of a similar character. The earliest examples of this type are to be found in Daniel, which John has used as a main source for his own book.

One of the exemplars for the beast in Revelation is the four-headed leopard of Dan7:6. It is obvious that this animal signifies the kingdom of Persia, and later the four heads are said to stand for four Kings (Dan11:2) One head is probably Cyrus, the fourth Xerxes, but it is impossible to identify the other two with any certainty at all. Another model for the beast of Revelation is the fourth one in Daniel with its ten horns, with an additional little horn growing out where three others, plucked out by the roots, had been. (Dan7:7-8) The beast itself is the Greco-Syrian kingdom, one of the divisions of Alexander's empire following his death. The little horn is undoubtedly Antiochus IV Epiphanes, the persecutor of the Jews, who was the special concern of the author. The ten horns are said to represent ten kings (Dan7:24), but again, no one can determine just which ten are meant. Prior to Antiochus there were but six kings in the Seleucid line, of if Alexander is included, but seven. This leaves either four or three to be accounted for to make up the ten. It is possible, therefore, that in Daniel the numbers four and ten are used symbolically to represent the kings of Persia and the kings of Syria respectively, and not historically with reference to four or ten specific kings.

Another illustration, important because it is practically contemporary with Revelation, is provided by the eagle vision in IIEsdras11-12. "Ezra" saw a strange eagle rising from the sea with three heads and twelve large wings, with eight smaller wings growing out of the larger ones. The eagle has power for a while, but with the coming of a conquering lion it is destroyed. Ezra is puzzled and disturbed by this sight, but God interprets it for him. However, the divine explanation is almost as mystifying as the vision was, although in general the meaning is clear. The eagle is the Roman Empire, the oppressor of the Jews. The three heads are three emperors, one the current ruler, Domitian, the others his brother Titus and his father Vespasian. The lion is the Messiah, who soon is to bring about the destruction of the empire and its evil emperor. The twelve large wings are twelve imperial predecessors of these three from the Flavian house. If two wings are counted to an emperor and only the Julian line is considered, this solution is reached; but it seems quite arbitrary to omit Galba, Otho, and Vitellius. On the other hand, if one wing is assigned to an emperor, there very obscure pretenders must be added to make up a total of twelve, and this too is arbitrary. Apparently twelve is to be taken as a symbolic number to indicate those emperors preceding the Flavian line, without any attempt at a more specific indentification. As for the eight smaller wings which are dependent upon the others, these are clearly lesser rulers or governors, but any further attempts to identify them are sheer guesswork. The author, actually, is not interested in these or in the twelve larger wings - his main concern is with the Flavian line, whose last representative was the infamous Domitian.

With this background in mind it may be easier to examine the interpretation of the beast with seven heads and ten horns. The beast, as we have seen before represents the empire and the imperial line, and is also a symbol of the Antichrist. But now the seven heads are said by the angel to be seven kings, no doubt seven Roman emperors. Five of those have died; one, the sixth, is now ruling; the seventh has not yet come, and when he does, he will remain only a little while. Also, and somewhat less cryptically, the beast itself that was and is not is said to be an eighth, i.e., he is an eighth emperor, who at the same time is one of the seven; [SPOOKY!] moreover, he is to go to perdition. This explanation is most confusing, although the second part, vs.11, presents fewer difficulties than vs.10. The beast is said to be an eighth emperor who also was one of the seven, a rather definite identification of the beast with the emperor Nero, who had died and yet was expected to return to life (see on 13:3 and 18). Furthermore, this Neronic beast, which previously has been related to the Antichrist, is going to destruction, a prediction that has been made before. However, there seems to be a discrepancy, for if this eighth is also the seventh of vs.10 who is yet to come, it would mean that the Antichrist, who according to ch.13 has already appeared, actually is not to come until sometime in the future, after the ruling emperor has died, and then is to have a brief reign. This is not in harmony with the repeated assurances of the author that the end is to come very soon, for apparently the rule of the sixth or present ruler is indefinite in length.

Also, who are the five emperors who have died? The answer depends upon a number [number?] of variables. First, should the computation begin with Julius Caesar or with Augustus? Second, should Galba, Otto, and Vitellius be omitted from consideration by reason of the brevity of their reigns, or should they be counted among the five who had fallen? Depending upon the formula used, the sixth, or current, ruler, could be Nero, Galba, or Vespasian. Nero should be excluded as the ruling emperor, for it is impossible to see how the Nero redivivus belief could have originated prior to his death. The reign of Galba, it is thought, was too brief and uneventful to cause him to merit consideration. But by begining with Augustus, and eliminating Galba, Otho, and Vitellius from consideration, Vespasian becomes the sixth emperor. Consequently, it has been proposed that this passage was originally a Jewish oracle written soon after AD 70, and was directed against Vespasian, who initiated the siege against Jerusalem. His probable successor, the seventh, would be his son Titus, who completed the siege and was blamed for the destruction of the temple. According to the view, the eighth and last would be the infamous Nero returned to life, whose brief reign would terminate with his destruction and with the end of this age. According to this theory, John incorporated this Vespasianic oracle into his work, bringing it up to date by considering Domitian as the sixth and ruling emperor; with the anticipation the he would soon be replaced by the Neronic Antichrist. A variation of this theory would be to suppose that Domitian not only was the sixth emperor, but that he also was the reincarnation of the seventh, the revived Nero. [Of course! Why didn't I think of this! I'm so stupid!] This gains some support when it is realized that Domitian was considered another Neor by some of his subjects. (cf. Juvenal Satires IV.37,38; Martial Epigrams XI.33).

Another solution - proposed now, it is believed, for the first time - is based upon the observation that only those dead rulers who have been apotheosized by the senate were worshiped. Consequently, it is possible that the first five heads of the beast that is worshiped are the first five rulers to be so honored - Caesar, Augustus, Claudius, Vespasian, and Titus. If this is true, Domitian, who demanded worship while living, would be the sixth and ruling emperor, while the seventh and last, the Neronic Antichrist, who at the same time might be considered as reincarnated in the person of Domitian, was still to come.

But it is possible that none of these interesting conjectures is correct. In Daniel the four heads and the ten horns were used symbolically, not historically, and the same is true of the twelve eagle wings in II Esdras. Accordingly, it is conceivable that the beast had seven heads because of John's partiality for this number, or because in his sources there was a beast with seven heads, just as there was one with ten horns. One of the heads represents the present ruler, another the Antichrist who is to come; as for the other five, they may represent the imperial predecessors as a group, and not five specific individuals. Indeed, it has been suggested that John would probably have been unable to name the rulers of the century or more preceding the date of Revelation.