who is 666? my opinion

[cristian_gavrilescu]

18 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)
gematria is a calculation, a number from a name, a word, a phrase. every letter has a number allocated. the amount of all numbers is the number allocated to that word. if in latin alphabet, you allocate to the letter z, the number 1 and to next letters in inverse order of the alphabet, you allocate 2,3,4, etc, until 10, then 10,20,30, etc, until 100, then 100,200,300, etc, until last letter a, the word (name) hitler is 666. h=100, i=90, t=7, l=60, e=400, r=9. this is one of many possible gematries. in "real" gematria, the hebrew alphabet, nero is the only famous person with the number 666.
caesar neron = nron qsr = נרונ קסר
resh (ר) samekh (ס) qoph (ק) nun (נ) vav (ו) resh (ר) nun (נ)
200 + 60 + 100 + 50 + 6 + 200 + 50 = 666
8 The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. (Revelation 17:8)
from this quote, we can understand the beast (666) will live two times. what similarities have hitler and nero? both they fought jews, both they killed themselves after they lost the war, both were the biggest killers in the history of humanity, nero killed paul and peter, in one word: 666. maybe God gave two chances to 666 to be a human, but he refused those.

[onewithhim]

It is very simple, and can be discerned with a bit of examination. "666" is not a literal man, but it is the number designating the world-wide political systems....the governments around the world that stand in opposition to Jehovah and His Son. Yes, they ALL do. The number 6 is reiterated three times because all the governments fall WAY short of God's own government, which would be designated the number "7." 7 means perfection, and the world's governments are very severely lacking any kind of perfection. That is why their number is a triple 6. If you're looking for a particular man to be designated as "666," you'll be waiting in vain. It is the number of a conglomerate of governments---world-wide.

[woodtick]

[Replying to onewithhim in post #51]

It is very simple, and can be discerned with a bit of examination.

The number designating the world-wide political systems....the governments around the world that stand in opposition to Jehovah and His Son. Yes, they ALL do.

[Checkpoint]

[Replying to cristian_gavrilescu in post #1]

In my opinion, the number 666 refers to both "the beast" and his worshipers. The beast is not "a man", but a group, class, or type of people.

I believe Revelation 13:8 is describing these, in saying "all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life".

666 is the number that signals imperfection and incompleteness, falling short of the number that would indicate perfection and completeness, 777.

[Icey]

[Replying to cristian_gavrilescu in post #1]

I've personally known a few I'd consider a beast in the sense they were murderous, incestuous killers.
I've known of others throughout history that embodied the worst humanity has to offer.
The problem is, what my POV of whom is or isn't 'a beast' (in this regard) may not be another person's POV. So that leads to arguments over who/what is 'the beast'.
In other words, it's all opinion without any real consensus.
So 'your guess is as good as mine'. as they say

[PinSeeker]

It is very simple, and can be discerned with a bit of examination. "666" is not a literal man, but it is the number designating the world-wide political systems....the governments around the world that stand in opposition to Jehovah and His Son. Yes, they ALL do. The number 6 is reiterated three times because all the governments fall WAY short of God's own government, which would be designated the number "7." 7 means perfection, and the world's governments are very severely lacking any kind of perfection. That is why their number is a triple 6. If you're looking for a particular man to be designated as "666," you'll be waiting in vain. It is the number of a conglomerate of governments---world-wide.

I both agree and disagree; let me explain:

Ancient numbering systems used an alphanumeric method. Since the book of Revelation is written in a Hebrew context by a Jew with numerous allusions to the Old Testament, we should expect the solution to deciphering the meaning of 666 to be Hebraic. The reason clearly is that, while John writes in Greek, he thinks in Hebrew, and the thought has naturally affected the vehicle of expression. When Nero Caesar’s name is transliterated into Hebrew -- which a first-century Jew would probably have done immediately -- he would have gotten Neron Kesar (nrwn qsr, since Hebrew has no letters to represent vowels). It has been documented by archaeological finds that a first century Hebrew spelling of Nero’s name provides us with precisely the value of 666. not only does Nero Caesar add up to 666 when transliterated into Hebrew letters, but the Hebrew transliteration of the Greek word for “beast” also comes to 666.

So, I disagree in this sense, that John's beast is a literal man, Nero. But Nero is long dead and gone, right? Well, sure he is. Therefore:

I agree with you in the sense that Nero is not -- was not -- the one Antichrist. In John's Revelation, Nero is used to represent the true Antichrist, who is not one man/person but rather a plurality of individuals, organizations, political systems, and governments... over the entire age of the Christ's Church... that stand as one in opposition, as you said, to Jehovah God and His Son -- actually, the triune Jehovah: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

In short, today’s end-time speculation is foolish and counter-productive and dilutes the Bible’s message of the finished work of Jesus Christ. We should focus on the name of Jesus “and the name of His Father” (Rev. 14:1). The Lamb has conquered the Beast of Revelation 13 and any beasts to follow.

Grace and peace to all.

[woodtick]

[Replying to PinSeeker in post #55]

[JehovahsWitness]

"...Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast:" for it is the number of a man;

We already know the number 666 is the number of "the wild (SEA) beast" but in presenting his (the beast's) number as being a [hu]man* number (the number of a man) we learn that that beast is linked not with the spiritual realm but with the earth. Daniels visions presented a series of ferocious beasts as representing dominant world empires and Revelation seems very much to be in the same tradition. Revelation is highly symbolic, as are the numbers there in and "a man's number" doesnt have to represent a literal single male individual; given the scope of its power arguably it could not be.


* Man is often spoken in scripture as refering to humankind (humans)





There is no reason to link the beast of Revelation 13/17 with the antichrist of Johns later letters.

[woodtick]

[Replying to Icey in post #54]

[JehovahsWitness]

So you believe the wild beast beast of Revelation 17 is ...Saddam Hussein?

(Who's dead)

[woodtick]

[Replying to JehovahsWitness in post #59]