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More Beastly Numbers
(six more, partly inspired by all the hoopla over June 6, 2006!)

• ZIP Codes: There are no Zip Codes 00666, 06660, 66600, or 66666 in the USA, but 60606 is in Chicago, IL, and several with 666XX are in Topeka, KS! Is anyone out there superstitious?
• Area Codes: There is no 666 area code for telephone numbers in the USA, but for international calling, the country code for Thailand is 66, and Saudi Arabia is 966. Hmmm!
• OT Statistic: The number of Adonikam's descendants who return to Judah after the Babylonian exile is 666 (see Ezra 2:13).
• NT Statistic: There are 678 verses in the full Gospel of Mark; but the last 12 verses (Mark 16:9-20) were added later as an appendix; so Mark's Gospel originally contained exactly 666 verses!

• 666 = 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + ... + 36  [the sum of all the numbers on a roulette wheel!]
• 666 = 2² + 3² + 5² + 7² + 11² + 13² + 17²  [the sum of the squares of the first 7 prime numbers!]
• 666 = 6 + 6 + 6 + 6³ + 6³ + 6³  [the sum of its digits and the cubes of its digits]
• 666 = 1⁶ - 2⁶ + 3⁶  [a simple sum and difference of the first three sixth powers]
• 666 = 2*3*3*37 [its factors], while 6+6+6 = 2+3+3+3+7 [the sum of the digits of its factors]
• 666 = the sum of the first 144 digits of PI, beginning after the decimal point  [PI = 3.14159265358979323846264338327950288419716 9399375105820974944592307816406286208998628034825342117067982148086513282306647093844609550582231725359...]
• There are 6 sixes in 666⁶ (87,266,061,345,623,616)
• The Roman numeral for 666 (DCLXVI) has exactly one occurrence of the six symbols whose value is less than 1000 (D=500, C=100, L=50, X=10, V=5, I=1).
• For more mathematical fun with 666, see The Number of the Beast, compiled by Mike Keith. or Beast Number, compiled by Eric W. Weisstein.

Other Fun and Humorous 666 Sites
(a.k.a. Are YOU the Beast?)

• Find the Antichrist(s): A Quiz - from the PBS Frontline: Apocalypse! website
• The Antichrist: Have You Seen This Man? - a long list of names of famous people thought to be the Antichrist
• Was Ronald Wilson Reagan the Beast of Revelation - proof or coincidence???
• William J. Clinton has the number of the Beast - an argument (seriously?) from the BeComing One Church (see also their "Beast Links")
• Number of the Beast (Wikipedia) - a good overview of various aspects of 666

Addendum: Internet Users Beware!

In the ancient Hebrew practice of gematria (assigning numerical values to letters),
the letter "waw" is equivalent to the number "six."

So  WWW  is also equivalent to  666  !!!
( or is it really? )

Thanks to John Stewart Muller, one of my former students, for first pointing this out to me.

Who or What Is the Beast?

The answer to this nearly 2000-year-old question depends on how you choose to interpret the Book of Revelation (a.k.a. the Apocalypse), the last book of the New Testament.

Near the middle of this highly symbolic book are descriptions of several strange creatures:

• First, "a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads"; it is described further after being defeated by Michael and his angels in a battle in heaven: "The great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world--he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him" (Rev 12:3-18);
• Second, "a beast rising out of the sea having ten horns and seven heads; and on its horns were ten diadems, and on its heads were blasphemous names... [it] was like a leopard, its feet were like a bear's, and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. And the dragon gave it his power and his throne and great authority..." (Rev 13:1-10);
• Third, "another beast that rose out of the earth; it had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. It exercises all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and it makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast..." (Rev 13:11-18).

At the end of the paragraph about this third beast, the author challenges the reader with an intriguing puzzle: "This calls for wisdom: let anyone with understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a person. Its number is six hundred sixty-six." (13:18).

In order to understand this text, one must know that ancient Hebrew (like Greek and other ancient languages) did not have a separate set of characters to indicate numbers, but simply used the letters of its alphabet to represent numbers. This fact provides the basis for the ancient practice of "gematria," in which numerical equivalents of words and names are calculated (still a popular game today!).

• The basic idea is that every word has a number associated with it, obtained by adding up the numerical equivalent of each letter in the word.
  • This is mostly commonly done with names; thus every person has a number, the numerical value of his or her name.
• There are several different ways of assigning numbers to the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet, but the system most commonly used is this:
  alef = 1; bet = 2; gimel = 3; dalet = 4; hey = 5; waw = 6; zayin = 7; chet = 8; tet = 9; yod = 10; kaf = 20; lamed = 30; mem = 40; nun = 50; samek = 60; ayin = 70; pey = 80; tsadeh = 90; qof = 100; resh = 200; shin = 300; taw = 400.
  • For example, the name "David" has a value of 14 in Hebrew (since it is written dalet-waw-dalet, which is 4+6+4); see Matthew 1:17.
• The same game can be played in any language by assigning numerical values to each letter of the alphabet:
  • In English, for example, we could have
    a = 1, b = 2, c = 3, d = 4, e = 5, f = 6, g = 7, h = 8, i = 9, j = 10,
    k = 20, l = 30, m = 40, n = 50, o = 60, p = 70, q = 80, r = 90, s = 100,
    t = 200, u = 300, v = 400, w = 500, x = 600, y = 700, z = 800.
  • Now calculate the number of YOUR name! Find the value of each letter of your name, and add them all together. You can get a number corresponding to your first name, another number for your last name, and another number for both together. You will get different results if you use longer or shorter versions of your name, or nicknames, or include middle names, or titles or suffices.
  • The results you want to get may also determine which numerical system you choose; for example, you can get HITLER = 666 if you choose a system in which a=100, b=101, c=102, etc.
• For a more extensive introduction to Hebrew gematria, see The Art of Gematria: Hebrew Numerology.

So, Who Is the Person Whose Number Is 666?

Throughout history, attempts have been made to identify 666 with many famous people (usually one's enemies)!

• Since the Reformation (and still today!), some Protestants have tried to connect 666 with the Pope, either with the "Roman Pontiff" in general or with a specific Pope in particular. (For example, see the article by Michael Scheifler, from a Seventh Day Adventist perspective; but see also a response to this article by Mario Derksen on the "Catholic Insight" webpages.) On the other hand, some Catholics used to see a link between the apocalyptic beast and Martin Luther.
• Some Democrats have tried to associate the beast with Ronald Reagan or George W. Bush, while some Republicans might argue it was John F. Kennedy or Bill Clinton (see the websites listed in the "Fun and Humorous" section above).

Most biblical historians agree, however, that the Book of Revelation is simply referring to the Roman Emperor NERO, the most "beastly" ruler of the first Christian Century:

• The Hebrew equivalent of "Emperor Nero" could be written NRWN QSR (nun-resh-waw-nun qof-samek-resh in Hebrew spelling); thus, the first word is 50+200+6+50, the second word is 100+60+200, and the total is no surprise!
• For more extensive discussion of the first-century Roman Empire and the historical references behind the dragon, the sea beast, and the land beast in Rev 12-13, see any good biblical commentary on the Book of Revelation.

Is the Number Really 666, or Was It Originally 616?

• While most ancient Greek manuscripts of the New Testament have the number "six hundred sixty-six" in Rev 13:18, some ancient manuscripts contain the alternate reading "six hundred sixteen" (616), which might well be the older or original reading of this text.
  • A branch of biblical scholarship called "textual" criticism deals with such issues, trying to determine which variant was more likely the original reading. If the text originally said 666, how and why was it changed to 616 in later manuscripts? Or vice-versa, if the original text was 616, how and why was it later changed to 666?
• The proposal that 616 is the older and better reading of Rev 13:18 was recently bolstered by some newly published Oxyrhynchus Papyri.
  • The Oxyrhynchus Papyri website also has a discussion of Numerology, but opposes the application to Nero.
  • Thanks to my friend and colleague Robert M. Royalty, Jr., Ph.D., for telling me about this new discovery and website!
• The change from "616" to "666" can easily be explained, especially if the historical reference was originally to Emperor Nero.
  • The final letter "nun" is optional in the Hebrew spelling of Nero. Thus, NRW QSR would be 50+200+6+100+60+200 = 616.
  • If this was the original reading, it is easy to see how the text of Rev 13:8 would have been changed to "666," due to its more highly symbolic value (since "6" represents lack or incompleteness, in contrast to the number "7" representing completion, the triple 666 represents evil more clearly than 616.)

What about June 6, 2006?

Relax! Although this date could be abbreviated 6/6/6, it has absolutely nothing to do with the "Beast" of the Book of Revelation! Consider these few points:

• First, this date should more properly be written 6/6/06 or 06/06/06 or even 06/06/2006, since 6/6/6 is ambiguous as to the decade or century.
• Second, this date depends on the Gregorian calendar commonly used today, but is different on the calendars in use at the time the Book of Revelation was written (Julian, Roman, Hebrew), and also different on other calendars in use today (Islamic, Chinese, etc.)
• Third, Revelation 13:18 clearly says that 666 is "the number of a person," not an indication of any date.
• Fourth, combinations of three sixes can be found almost anywhere we want, if we look hard enough.
• Fifth, we can lots of have fun with all this, but there's no need to be worried or superstitious about it!
• Sixth, I had to put a sixth bullet in this list, but I don't really have much else to say about June 6!   ;-)

Despite this last bullet, several people asked me to "predict" what would happen on June 6, 2006. Here's what I replied:

As a biblical scholar and Catholic priest, I think trying to predict the future is a misuse of the Bible. Biblical prophecy is not about crystal-ball gazing into the future. Rather, prophets of the Bible are those who speak on behalf of God, conveying God's messages to people, interpreting the past, present, and future through God's eyes, so to speak. Biblical prophets call people to repent and to remain faithful to God, not to worry about when the world will end or who is the "beast" of the Book of Revelation.

But just for fun, since people really pressed me to "predict" something, here is what I said would happen on June 6, 2006: 

• Most adults will go to work, but a few will call in sick, as on any other weekday;
• many children will go to the beach or a park, enjoying their first days of summer vacation, while an unfortunate few still struggle through their last days of school;
• websites like mine with information on 666 and related apocalyptic themes will have a spike in the number of visitors;
• millions of automobile odometers will briefly show a 666 sequence at some time during the day, but very few drivers will notice; 
• only a few math aficionados will practice their factoring skills (666=2x3x3x37), while millions of shoppers will look for a 666 in a product bar code or on their sales receipts;
• lamentably few people will vote in California's primary election, and similarly few will go to see the remake of the "Omen" movie on its unusual mid-week opening night;
• more gamblers than usual will sit at a roulette table that evening, but few of them will know that the sum of the numbers on the spinning wheel equals 666;
• more people will get married than on most other Tuesdays, but very few pregnant women will seriously worry whether their newborn child could be the anti-Christ. 
• Then, on June 7, most of us will wake up again and wonder what all the fuss was about!

Reflections after June 6, 2006:

I was somewhat amazed by all the media interest and popular hoopla surrounding June 6. The first person to contact me was Seth Borenstein, a reporter from the Associated Press, who prominently featured this webpage and some of my comments from a telephone interview in an article published June 4, 2006 (entitled "Humor, curiosity surround June 6, 2006"; alt title "A calendar date to end all others nears"). Searches on Google News in 2006 showed that this AP article was reprinted by over 250 news outlets in the U.S. and around the world (including Australia, Canada, China, Dominican Republic, Great Britain, Kazakhstan, Romania, Russia, South Africa, and Turkey).

As a result, in the following two days I was contacted by and/or gave live interviews on three television networks, six other newspapers, and fifteen radio stations (not just from the USA, but also Canada, Great Britain, and Argentina). Some of the radio interviews were on syndicated programs that ran in hundreds of cities in the U.S. Each interview was somewhat different from all the others: some reporters asked about the biblical/historical background of the number 666, others about the differences between 666 and 616; some radio hosts were interested in Emperor Nero and Ancient Rome, others in bar codes and implanted chips! Some of the interviews lasted about 30 seconds, others about 30 minutes, most were rather fun to do, especially those that combined the report with the party going on that day in the little town of Hell, Michigan!

In the past few years, my website has gotten between 1000 and 2000 visitors daily. However, as I had "predicted" above, it received well over 10,000 visitors on June 4, over 18,000 on June 5, and spiked at over 36,000 on June 6! Why are so many people interested in 666? Are that many people really scared about the future? It seems that some people need to have more faith in God to find peace in their lives! I'm just glad there are only 60 minutes in every hour; otherwise, some people might freak out twice a day, at 6:66 a.m. and 6:66 p.m.!

So, when all is said and done, the number 666 will continue to intrigue numerologists and fascinate gamblers, be profitable for Hollywood but avoided by most other businesses, provide fodder for the apocalyptic warnings of fundamentalist preachers and challenges for the teachings of mainline Christian pastors. But after June 6, 2006, has come and gone, biblical scholars will go back to studying 616, while the wedding industry looks forward to July 7, 2007!

Return to the Study Guides for Apocalyptic Literature

or to my explanation of What Biblical Prophecy Really Is (and Isn't)

or return to the HOME PAGE of Felix Just, S.J.

This page was established around 9/9/99, significantly expanded 01/01/01, revised again 02/02/02,
and (contrary to some people's "predictions") did not self-destruct on 06/06/06 (nor on 09/09/09)!