The Christian Post's top 10 most-read stories of 2023
6. Here's what you need to know about the number 666
The number 666, one of the most frequently discussed aspects of the book of Revelation, is identified in Scripture as “the number of the beast.” The Christian Post asked established theological experts for their thoughts on the significance of the number.
Hank Hanegraff, known as “The Bible Answer Man,” told CP that the number of the beast was actually 660 and six as opposed to three consecutive sixes. Pastor Jack Hibbs of Calvary Chapel Chino Hills explained that “The Bible does tell us in Revelation Chapter 13 that there will come a time when a global economic system is digitized, that all those who participate in a global economy will need to do so with what we could call a prefix, meaning a number that is the head of an account.”
Hibbs contended that the COVID-19 pandemic brought society to the brink of the reality envisioned in the book of Revelation: “For the first time in human history, the world was immediately affected and united for good or for evil regarding COVID. … It brought the world — all of it at once — into real time.”
Get Our Latest News for FREE
The number 666 doesn't only refer to “the number of the beast.” The figure appears in the Bible as the number of talents of gold that came to Solomon in one year. Scripture also identifies Goliath as 6 cubits tall and as possessing a spear’s head that weighed 600 shekels of iron. A term exists for those who have a pervasive fear of the number: hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia.
Read the full story.
Ryan Foley is a reporter for The Christian Post. He can be reached at: ryan.foley@christianpost.com
