Mark of the Beast

Revelation 16:2 and 19:20 cite the "mark of the beast" as a sign that identifies those who worship the beast out of the sea ( Rev 13:1 ). This beast is usually identified as the antichrist. This mark is first mentioned in 13:16-17, where it is imposed on humanity by the beast out of the earth ( 13:11 ). This second beast is the false prophet ( 19:20 ), who forces the worship of the antichrist and brands those who do so with the mark. This mark is equivalent to the beast's name or number ( 13:17 ; cf. 14:11 ). This enigmatic number is announced in 13:18 as 666.

The term "mark" has no special biblical usage apart from its association with the beast. The Greek term charagma [cavragma] was most commonly used for imprints on documents or coins. Charagma [cavragma] is well attested to have been an imperial seal of the Roman Empire used on official documents during the first and second centuries. This term does not occur in the Septuagint, and its use in the church fathers is insignificant. The only other reference to charagma [cavragma] in the New Testament besides those in Revelation, is Acts 17:29, where it stands for an image formed by art. A more common term for "mark" or "brand" is stigma [stivgma] in its noun and verb forms. Branding was practiced in the ancient world, and even in relation to religious concerns. Religious tattooing was observed (cf. Lucian, Syr. Dea 59; Herodotus 2.113). Third Maccabees 2:29 records an incident in which Jews were branded by Ptolemy Philopator I (217 b.c.) with the Greek religious Dionysian ivy-leaf symbol. The "mark" on Cain in Genesis 4:15 is rendered by semeion [shmei'on] in the Septuagint, the term for "sign." Paul's reference to his bearing in his body the "marks" of Jesus ( Gal 6:17 ) utilizes stigma [stivgma], not charagma [cavragma].

The contextual significance of marking those who worship the beast may be accounted for by noting how this motif answers to the seal on the foreheads of those who worship the Lamb ( Rev 7:3 ; 14:1 ). This contrast is particularly noted in 20:4, where those who are martyred for the Lamb are resurrected to reign with Christ. The mark and seal well image the two earthly groups who dominate the narrative.

The interpretive difficulty in understanding the mark of the beast resides in identifying what response John expected by his challenge in Revelation 13:18 to calculate the number of the beast. The process of working from a number to a name was an ancient process called gematria in Hebrew and isopsephia in Greek. Many ancient languages utilized the letters of the alphabet for their numerical systems. The letter and number ratio was known by all. This existing process was used in enigmatic statements to conceal the identity of the person under consideration. An oft-quoted graffito from Pompeii (about a.d. 79) reads "I love her whose number is 545." Only those who knew the name or the pool of candidates could work out the riddle. The apocalyptic Sibylline Oracles used "888, " the numerical equivalent of Iesous [ÅIhsou'"] (Greek letters for Jesus), as an indirect reference to Jesus as the incarnate God. Therefore, John could have expected his audience to solve the riddle, but only if there was a shared pool of understanding concerning the enigmatic nature of the reference.

The history of interpretation concerning the correlation of a person with the number 666 has only resulted in endless speculations. One of the most prominent candidates has been the first-century Roman emperor Nero. A rare rendering of his name into Neron Caesar, transliterated into Hebrew as nrwn qsr, renders the number 666 (nun/50, resh/200, waw/6, nun/50, qof/100, samech/60, and resh/200 = 666). This rare form of Nero's name was actually found in an Aramaic document from Qumran (cf. John's play on Hebrew words in the Book of Revelation at 9:11 and 16:16 ). It is also noteworthy that a variant reading in Greek New Testament manuscripts exits that cites the number as "616" rather than "666." The transliteration of the normal Nero Caesar into the Hebrew nrw qsr, renders the number 616. There was also a belief in a revived Nero as the antichrist from the first century (cf. book 5 of the Sibylline Oracles) to the time of Augustine, who cites this idea in The City of God.