666 (Six Hundred and Sixty-Six)
Symbolic treatment of this number in the corpus by E.W. Bullinger and Stephen E. Jones.
Six hundred and sixty-six is the number of man in his ultimate self-assertion: six — the human number — cubed. Bullinger connects it to the Greek gematria of Rev. 13:18 and to the structural meaning of six as human imperfection. Jones places it in his system as the number of human authority over God’s creation and notes the mathematical link with the number thirty-six (adversary): the sum of all integers from one to thirty-six equals six hundred and sixty-six.
Biblical References
| Reference | Context |
|---|---|
| 1Kgs. 10:14 | Solomon received six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold per year |
| Rev. 13:18 | Count the number of the beast: six hundred and sixty-six, a human number |
| Ezra 2:13 | Sons of Adonikam: six hundred and sixty-six |
Symbolism in the Corpus
E.W. Bullinger
Bullinger describes six hundred and sixty-six as human imperfection cubed: six is the number of man (created on the sixth day, six days of labour), and 6 × 6 × 6 = 666 expresses that imperfection at its furthest limit. He draws attention to the Greek letters ΧξΣ (chi-xi-sigma) in Rev. 13:18, which contain the first and last letters of Christos with the serpent symbol between them — a visual marker of the counterfeit character of the Beast. Solomon’s annual gold income of six hundred and sixty-six talents (1Kgs. 10:14) is an early biblical instance: the transgression of the law that forbade the king to multiply gold excessively (Deut. 17:17). 1
Stephen E. Jones
Jones describes six hundred and sixty-six as “Human Authority over God’s Creation” and connects it in his number system to the number thirty-six (adversary). In his discussion of the number 36 he writes: “If we add up all the numbers from one to thirty-six, we get 666.” Thirty-six represents the adversary; the triangular number of thirty-six is six hundred and sixty-six — the totality of human opposition at its absolute limit, simultaneously the threshold at which God’s authority over all human authority becomes manifest. 2