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May 1, 2005
The Number of the Beast - 616
Get out your Bible and look up Revelation of John 13:18. You will read something like,
This calls for wisdom: let him who has understanding reckon the number of the beast, for it is a human number, its number is six hundred and sixty six.(RSV)
And if you have a good translation and look in the footnotes you'll see, "Other ancient authorities read 'six hundred and sixteen.'"
The principle authorities for 616 are Codex C (4th century) and Papyrus 115 (3rd or 4th century). Irenaeus of Lyons also knew the 616 reading in the late second century (Adversus Haereses V; 30). Irenaeus rejects 616 as a scribal error. 665 is also known in the eleventh century Codex 2344.
Now, the late 3rd/early 4th century papyrus LVI 4499, one of the Oxyrhynchus Papyri fragments, joins C, Papyrus 115, and Irenaeus. It reads 616. Which reading best represents the original? The answer may well be found in Hellenistic Greek numerology.
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 Independent]
Posted by Duane Smith at May 1, 2005 2:42 PM | Read more on Archaeology |
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