Revelation! 666 is not the number of the beast

[Amelia]

Revelation! 666 is not the number of the beast (it's a devilish 616)

By Tom Anderson

01 May 2005

Independent News & Media

A newly discovered fragment of the oldest surviving copy of the New Testament indicates that, as far as the Antichrist goes, theologians, scholars, heavy metal groups, and television evangelists have got the wrong number. Instead of 666, it's actually the far less ominous 616.

The new fragment from the Book of Revelation, written in ancient Greek and dating from the late third century, is part of a hoard of previously unintelligible manuscripts discovered in historic dumps outside Oxyrhynchus in Egypt. Now a team of expert classicists, using new photographic techniques, are finally deciphering the original writing.

Professor David Parker, Professor of New Testament Textual Criticism and Paleography at the University of Birmingham, thinks that 616, although less memorable than 666, is the original. He said: "This is an example of gematria, where numbers are based on the numerical values of letters in people's names. Early Christians would use numbers to hide the identity of people who they were attacking: 616 refers to the Emperor Caligula."

The Book of Revelation is traditionally considered to be written by John, a disciple of Jesus; it identifies 666 as the mark of the Antichrist. In America, the fundamentalist Christian right often use the number in sermons about the coming Apocalypse.

They and satanists responded coolly to the new "Revelation". Peter Gilmore, High Priest of the Church of Satan, based in New York, said: "By using 666 we're using something that the Christians fear. Mind you, if they do switch to 616 being the number of the beast then we'll start using that."

[Ron Lambert]

This is nothing new. The number 616 has been suggested as an alternate rendering for a long time. But this find of a fragment from a manuscript dating to the late third century is not the last word. There are a few other manuscripts or fragments already known that are that old, and even so, that is still some 200 years after the autograph originals, with who knows how many iterations of copying and recopying by hand. Some copyists evidently inserted their own interpretations, and there were copies of various Biblical books that were fraudulent. So we need to find a number of ancient manuscripts that agree with each other before we can be reasonably sure we have a true copy.

[Guest]

QUICK ....EVERYONE SWITCH TO DANIEL SEMINARS AND SCRAP THE REVELATION SEMINARS!!

[Amelia]

ROFL Jim. Ok now stop that.

[Ron Lambert]

JimBob7, that would be OK with me. Most of what we Adventists have taught over the years in our Revelation seminars has been mistaken, based on unsound exegesis, and shows a failure to allow the Bible to define its own prophetic symbols, the way we are supposed to do. For the record, Revelation 2-11 applies primarily to the end of time, and not to past history. The first trumpet has not sounded yet.

But even in our Daniel seminars, there are areas where improvement is needed. All of Daniel 12, including the time prophecies, apply only to the end of time. All attempts to make them apply to past history, as if God has nothing better to do that just repeat the time prophecy of Daniel 7:25 (which did apply to what is now past history), are contradicted by a sound exegetical analysis of the text.

[Guest]

Well ..seems like the denomination needs a major renovation..

I have seen some of the discussion on what you post...

One thing that I don't see happening en mass is any change...

the clue is the word exegesis in your post...

As I have ranted about since about the beginning..

as long as the diet from pulpits is NFDMTTS and not expository /exegetical sermons..there wil be no change..and since most people don't give a hoot..the status quo will be maintained..

That is why the statement is valid...that if a revival is not accompanied by a reformation...the effects soon wear off.

The revival is after threats.increased sensitivity..repentence ..prayer...consecration and renewed interest in the word as far as contemporary application....

If the follow up is not based on a reformation of the religious social club and the homiletics..then back to the usual.

I am in joy that I found another expository SDA minister I can listen to and support. Just checkin out to see how many Rom 8:7 churchians are around..

The experience will be to see how the sparks will fly as things progress.