What is the meaning of 666?

The meaning of 666 – the number often referred to as the Mark of the Beast – is a highly contested concept. The number 666 is found in Revelation 13:16-18: “He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name. 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.”

John MacArthur explains the meaning of 666 this way: “The number represents the essential number of a man. The number 6 falls one short of God’s perfect number, 7, and thus points to human imperfection. Antichrist, the most powerful human the world will ever know, will still be a man – a 6. The ultimate in human and demonic power is a 6, not perfect, as God is.”1

MacArthur goes on to explain that the three digits emphasizes man’s identity. When Antichrist is revealed, he will be identified with this number. The Bible is not clear what the mark will be: an implant, a microchip, a tattoo. It is wise not to speculate since the Bible does not give detailed information regarding this mark.

Mark of the Beast – A Popular Topic

The Mark of the Beast is a popular topic these days. It seems everyone’s heard of 666, the Antichrist, Armageddon, and other “end times” terms. However, many people bundle these concepts together in a big basket of Urban Folklore, right along side Nostradamus, UFO’s and a myriad of “conspiracy theories.”

Mark of the Beast – Where the Term Comes From

The Mark of the Beast actually comes from the Bible. Its context is a future period when the charismatic leader of a new international government system implements a program for controlling people through economics and registration. We learn that all people will be required to receive a “mark” on the right hand or forehead in order to participate in basic transactions of life. Whether this mark refers to a bank-like numeric code, a social security-like numeric code, or a genetic-based identifier, who knows? Whether this mark is affixed via tattoo, barcode or imbedded chip of some sort, who knows? However, with modern technology and recent calls for worldwide “registration” in light of the terrorist threat, this Biblical prediction looks more and more credible every day, even to the greatest of skeptics.

Mark of the Beast – The Biblical Reference

The Mark of the Beast comes from the last book of the Bible, Revelation. It’s referred to in a number of places, but the major passage of description is Revelation 13:16-18:

“He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name. 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 14:9 goes on to say, that no matter how much pressure there is to receive the mark, we must, under no circumstances, receive it: “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, he, too, will drink of the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath.”

Mark of the Beast – Recent News of Intrigue

The Mark of the Beast is a technological reality. Here is a recent excerpt from BUSINESS WIRE (April 22, 2002): On December 19, 2001, VeriChip first announced its miniaturized, implantable, radio frequency identification device (RFID) that can be used in a variety of security, emergency and healthcare applications. On April 4, 2002, the company announced that it had received written guidance that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not consider VeriChip’s personal verification device to be a regulated medical device, enabling the company to begin sales, marketing and distribution of VeriChip in the United States. About the size of a grain of rice, each VeriChip is composed of FDA-accepted materials and contains a unique verification number. That number can “seamlessly integrate” into the Global VeriChip Subscriber (GVS) Registry, and can be used for numerous purposes now and in the future.