Issue 69
Kingdom Knowledge & Practice

666 decoding

"And he causes all, great and small, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads. No one shall receive a mark on their right hand, or on their foreheads, except he who is marked, and has the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Buy and sell. Here is wisdom: let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast; for it is the number of man, and its number is six and six."
(startRevelation13:16-18)

Looking at the battle between gods and ghosts from the password

The Book of Revelation is the book that has fascinated and confused believers throughout the ages. The main reason is that the use of symbols in it is confusing! One of the most confusing, and also the key issue of this article, appears in chapters 12 and 13, including: Who is the pregnant woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and a crown of twelve stars on her head? Who is the sea beast? What is an earth beast? What is "666"? Is it a code name for a dictator or a dictatorship? Is the human chip a tool for popularizing Satan’s code? Will taking the COVID-19 vaccine fall into the 666 trap? If this number is related to the "Big Red Dragon", should believers avoid singing "Descendants of the Dragon", as well as numbers with 666 on car plates, house numbers, banknotes, etc., lest they fall into Satan's camp and lose their salvation?

To decipher the number six hundred and sixty-six, we cannot simply start with "Here is wisdom: whoever understands, let him calculate the number of the beast; for it is the number of man, and his number is six hundred and sixty-six" (13:18) . Because the "beast" here refers to the sea beast and the earth beast in Chapter 13, and these two beasts are related to Chapter 12: because "the devil = Satan" was cast down from the sky by the Lamb, he "went down to the sea in anger" and the earth", so that "woe to the earth and the sea"! And this "Devil = Satan" is also called the great dragon, which is the great red dragon whose "tail drags a third of the stars in the sky and throws them to the ground... to devour her children."

Working backwards like this, I immediately discovered that to decode 666, we must interpret chapters 12-13, including who are the woman and the little boy? The relationship between sea beasts, earth beasts and the devil/big red dragon? Otherwise, there is no way to understand the "war between gods and ghosts" foretold in the Book of Revelation.

God’s children are caught in the battlefield

Don't panic! Let’s explain the obvious first. Who is the pregnant woman? from“The woman gave birth to a son who was to rule all the nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up to the throne of God” (12:5)It can be seen that the one who was born, ruled over all nations, resurrected and ascended to heaven is undoubtedly Jesus. However, the woman who "gave birth to a son" was not Mary, because there is no record in the New Testament of Mary being chased by a dragon and escaping into the wilderness.

This woman "clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and with a crown of twelve stars on her head" is not Joseph who worshiped with "the sun, moon, and eleven stars", nor is she Israel who represents the "twelve tribes" , because Israel did not suffer and escape to the wilderness after the Messiah was born, resurrected, and ascended to heaven, but had already been taken captive to the wilderness and suffered in agony when they were far away in the northern and southern kingdoms.

From the Old Testament to the New Testament, this woman had to go through the "pain of conceiving and giving birth to children" after sinning. Throughout the ages, she has been waiting for the Messiah and hope that God predicted would "bruise Satan's head" and "bruise his heel." The faith community of salvation through the cross.

After Jesus was resurrected and ascended to heaven, the big red dragon/Satan and his followers in the spirit world (refer to Revelation 12:4) tried to "devour" the boy Jesus but failed (because God raised Jesus from the dead) and instead wanted to devour God’s people (= women) throughout the ages, and the woman fled into the wilderness.

You and I who follow the Lord are already caught in the battlefield of "the war between gods and ghosts." rest assured! Just as Jesus said: "I have seen Satan fall from heaven." Satan (=big red dragon=ancient serpent=devil) and his followers in the spiritual world have already fallen to the ground at the beginning of creation! It is no match for the Archangel Michael; its power was completely defeated on the cross, and its followers were "cast down from heaven together"!

The one that was knocked down could at best be called the "King of the World" or the "God of the World." This "spiritual demon who rules over this dark world and in the sky" originally wanted to cause havoc in heaven like Sun Wukong. Now that he has been forced down from the palace in heaven, he is ready to cause havoc on the earth and sea where he lands, just as the Apostle John said :"Therefore, rejoice, you heavens and you who live in them! But woe to you, but woe to the earth and the sea! For the devil knows that he has only a short time, and he has come down to you in anger." (12:12)The battlefield between gods and ghosts has moved from heaven to earth and sea!

If you fight against a trapped beast, you will eventually be defeated

Since the creation of the world, this Satan/big red dragon has followed a "trilogy of falls", including 1. Falling from heaven; 2. Complete collapse on the cross; 3. Falling into the lake of fire and brimstone during the great judgment of the last days. On this road of no return before destruction, it is "determined to lose" and "determined to die." Waiting for the end of the crossbow before the death penalty, it will naturally "become a trapped beast and still fight" and "force the woman who gave birth to a male child" for "a year, two years and a half" (1,260 days = 42 months). "And water came out of his mouth like a river to sweep the woman away", just as Israel experienced in the wilderness (see Numbers 16:30, 32). However, his plan to sweep away the woman "hit a wall" again, because "the earth helped the woman and opened its mouth to swallow the water spewed out of the dragon's mouth."

Gods and ghosts fight, and Satan is defeated again. When God's children are in trouble, they will be like this woman who fled into the wilderness.“There was a place prepared for her by God, where she was fed for one thousand two hundred and sixty days.”It turns out that suffering and refuge are like the two sides of a copper plate given to children by God!

The defeated dragon stood on the beach and continued to fight like a trapped beast. Since the area of activity is limited to the sea and the earth, the big red dragon has no choice but to (and can only) transform into a sea beast and an earth beast. This sea beast (the sea symbolizes evil in this book), no matter how it incarnates, the essence of evil, deception, confusion and blasphemy remains unchanged. It is still "ten horns and seven heads" and continues to fight against the gods in heaven - even though the dragon has seven heads. There are seven crowns, and there are ten crowns on the ten horns of the leviathan. The two seem to be different in body, but the function and essence are the same - imitating the lamb with seven horns (the "horns" represent power and authority).

Since the sea monster received "special powers" from Satan ("the dragon gave him his power, his seat, and his great authority"), he played the role of the Antichrist, imitating the resurrected lamb from the dead in order to attract and deceive people. Come and follow him (“One of the seven heads of the beast seemed to have received a death wound, but the death wound was healed. And all the earth marveled and followed the beast”)!

As soon as the sea monster opened its mouth, it "opened its mouth to blaspheme God, blaspheming His name and His tabernacle and those who dwell in heaven"! Since it received authority from the leader of the dragon ("and a mouth was given to it to speak great things and blasphemies, and authority was given to it to do whatever it pleased for forty-two months"), it continued to carry out the task of the leader of the dragon to subdue the fierceness of the world. "War between Gods and Demons" ("And he gave it to make war with the saints and prevail; and gave him authority over every tribe, people, language, and nation") in order to achieve their common evil goal: "Everyone who lives in Everyone on the earth whose name is not written in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain from the foundation of the world will worship him”—stealing the worship that the world should give to the Triune God!

The third beast from the earth was even more unconcealed when it appeared, imitating a lamb in every aspect, "I saw another beast coming up from the earth, with two horns like a lamb." But as soon as it opened its mouth, its true colors were revealed: "It spoke like a dragon. ”. From the sixth bowl of God's wrath, these three "dragon's mouth, beast's mouth, and false prophet" appeared at the same time, confirming that the sea beast is the Antichrist, and the earth beast is the false prophet who speaks like a dragon. The three of them work together to participate in "God's Fighting ghosts."

This "third" earth beast imitates the resurrected lamb and heals its wounds, thereby stealing people's due worship to the Triune God. It is not only similar to the "second" sea monster/antichrist ("it In the presence of the first beast, he exercised all the authority of the first beast, and made the earth and those who live on the earth worship the first beast whose death and wounds were healed."), seems to be superior in the authority of "the war between gods and demons" (" And it does great wonders, even causing fire to come down from heaven on the earth in the presence of men. Because it was given power to do wonders in the presence of the beast, it deceives those who live on the earth, saying, "I will give him the wound of the sword." The living beast made an image. 』”), in order to force people to worship the sea beast/Antichrist who was “dead and wounded but healed”. If people refused to worship the image of the beast, the beast of the earth would use the boss, Satan. The transplanted authority is killing people!

▲No imitation can steal the glory of the Triune God. The Lamb who was slain on the throne is worthy of worship. The picture is a work by the 15th century Dutch painter Jan van Eyck.
(Image Source:https://observer.com/2020/01/ghent-altarpiece-lamb-restoration/)

Stealing worship through imitation

Finally, we have reached the peak of the "war between gods and ghosts": Satan sets the mark of "666" to become the mechanism for his social and economic control over the world ("It (the earth beast) also calls everyone..., all No one shall buy or sell, except he who has the mark on his right hand or on his forehead, and has the name of the beast, or the number of the beast... This is the number of a man, six hundred and sixty-six. ”).

Anyone who does not have the "code" of the beast's name 666, who is unwilling to bow to Satan (= children of God = women), will be ostracized socially and economically. The goal of the beast of the earth in persecuting the woman is the same as that of the beast of the sea: to steal the worship of the Lamb whose name has nothing to do with it (“Everyone who dwells on the earth, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain from the foundation of the world; worship it”). It turns out that these three "dragon's mouth, beast's mouth, and false prophet" participated in the battle between gods and ghosts, and the ultimate "trophy" was the worship of the world!

Satan, who appears on the human stage in the form of a dragon, a sea beast, and an earth beast, originally wanted to imitate sitting on a throne and fight through gods and ghosts. He most wanted to possess the Trinity God worshiped by the world. The result is not like the perfect "seven-seven-seven" of the Trinity. It is shortened to "six-six-six". It is nothing more than a complete blasphemy and fake, the sum total of evil and tempting images!

It turns out that 666 is not a specific "person", let alone Nero in the first century to Hitler in the 20th century. The sea beast is actually the Antichrist with the appearance of an army and a tyrant, while the earth beast is obviously a false prophet. The two are actually the "incarnations" of Satan who imitate the Trinity, the so-called "false trinity", which is in the spiritual world. A "person", not just an empire or a personal power!

After decoding 666, we can see that the Satan that appeared along the history of mankind is not a person (no matter how authoritarian) or a country (no matter how evil); nor can it be represented by the dragon totem of Chinese culture, let alone Only in the 21st century did chips appear that could be injected into the human body (Children of God should understand and use technology, but they don’t have to dance with it)!

You don’t have to worry that the COVID-19 vaccine will inject the 666 mark along with it; you can still sing "Descendants of the Dragon" (but you can sing more hymns); there is no need to be taboo with the 666 number on license plates, house numbers, banknotes, etc., and there is no need to deliberately flaunt it, because It won’t pull you into Satan’s stronghold. You can respect your ancestors (careful pursuit of your ancestors is consistent with the Ten Commandments of the Bible), but avoid worshiping your ancestors (Satan can imitate the handwriting and tone of your ancestors), so as not to fall into the "war between gods and ghosts"!

Satan, who imitates the Triune God to steal people’s worship of the Triune God, is not a physical person or nation, let alone a technology; Satan is bigger and longer than these! In this world, no matter what kind of political, religious, or cultural system, they are all "lying in the hands of the evil one"!

What is hidden behind the mysterious number 666 is that in human history, Satan has used various methods and forms (including heresy, ancestor worship, false prophets, idolatry, and various ideologies that regard the world as God) to confuse or confuse or The forces that persecute the world and not worship the Triune God but follow the "false Triune God" (empire).This power will not disappear. Kingdoms in this world will pass away and dictatorships will die. However, Satan’s “life span” is basically the same as the time and space created by God. He has existed since the creation of the world and will not be thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone until the great judgment of the last days.

▲Children of God not only understand the scriptures, but also have spiritual vision above the sun, see the truth, and live in the present.

spiritual vision of truth

I hope that God’s children will see the following spiritual truths from the narrative of the war between gods and demons in Revelation 12-13:

1. Seeing the war between gods and ghosts behind superficial issues from a spiritual perspective

There are three dimensions of disasters faced by mankind: humanistic disasters that historians are concerned about (such as the first four seals in Revelation 6; 1/4 of the people were killed), and natural disasters that scientists are concerned about (such as the first four seals in Revelation 8). The first four trumpets; 1/3 of the natural world was destroyed), and supernatural disasters that only Christians will notice (including the fifth trumpet, the sixth trumpet, the seven bowls, and Revelation chapters 12-13; everyone falls into "gods and demons" war”). Children of God, please do not ignore this most important spiritual battle in human history because you pay one-sided attention to many superficial issues such as plagues, vaccines, political disputes, economy, and even environmental protection!

2. Seeing the deceptive nature of Satan’s true face from a spiritual perspective

Satan appears in the form of the "illusory and counterfeit trinity" of the great red dragon, the sea beast, and the earth beast. No matter how he imitates it, it only robs people of their due worship of God. Therefore, children of God should not be deceived by various illusions in the world, including ancestor worship, worship of emperors or political figures, false prophets and heresies, psychic activities or movements (believers should develop praise exercises instead of meditation and yoga), secularization (money , fame, wealth, status, pornography, technology), etc., as long as it will attract people away from God, avoid all types of idolatry. Don’t be deceived, let alone be curious or show off. Without the Lamb, you and I can’t overcome!

3. The vision under the sun cannot see that the world is in the hands of the evil one

A Western proverb goes: The devil lives in the subtleties. Understand that Satan is omnipresent, and his followers may have special powers. Therefore, do not just be attracted by religious "efficacy", but also pay attention to the truth behind it - this is something that churches that take an extreme charismatic route must be especially wary of. The church must value the Holy Spirit and let the work of the Holy Spirit be based on the Holy Word. Satan's death has not yet come, and even Jesus did not execute Satan's "death sentence." The church drives out demons to save the world controlled by Satan, but it does not need to deliberately go around the border through prayer parades and provoke other religious circles. God’s children must have a perspective above the sun, live in the present with Christ’s heart of mercy for the world’s people who are controlled by the evil one without realizing it!

“Having looked forward to these things, make every effort to present yourself blameless and blameless in safety to the Lord.” (2 Peter)3:14)


WuPresent a seal, received a master's degree from the Institute of Civil Engineering at National Taiwan University and a doctorate in theoretical and applied mechanics from the University of Illinois. He later switched to studying theology and received a master of divinity and a doctorate in Old Testament theology from Trinity Theological Seminary in Chicago. Currently, he is professor of Old Testament, director of the Doctoral Department of Pastoral Affairs, director of the Doctoral Department of Mission, and CEO of the Pastoral and Mission Research Center at China Evangelical Theological Seminary.
Professor Wu has written numerous books, whether they are commentaries, sermons, character studies, or reflections on important issues. He always keeps the church and believers in mind, and presents the essence of biblical theology with a caring eye. His words contain theologians, The playwright and novelist's timeless insights, passion and earnestness penetrate the back of the page, and reading his writing is like seeing the person himself.