Number of the beast
number associated with the beast in the Book of Revelation; either 666 or 616, depending on the manuscript
The number of the beast (Koine Greek: Ἀριθμὸς τοῦ θηρίου, Arithmós toû thēríou) is associated with the Beast of Revelation in chapter 13, verse 18 of the Book of Revelation. In most manuscripts of the New Testament and in English translations of the Bible, the number of the beast is six hundred sixty-six (666) or χξϛ (in Greek numerals, χ represents 600, ξ represents 60 and ϛ represents 6). Papyrus 115 (which is the oldest preserved manuscript of the Revelation as of 2017), as well as other ancient sources like Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus, give the number of the beast as χιϛ (616), not 666; critical editions of the Greek text, such as the Novum Testamentum Graece, note χιϛ/616 as a variant. There is a broad consensus in contemporary scholarship that the number of the beast is linked by gematria to the typology of Roman Emperor Nero, an infamous persecutor of Christians.
In the Bible
χξϛ
The number of the beast is described in Revelation 13:15–18. Several translations have been interpreted for the meaning of the phrase "Here is Wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast..." where the peculiar Greek word ψηφισάτω (psephisato) is used. Possible translations include "to count", "to reckon" and also "to vote" or "to decide".
In the Textus Receptus, derived from Byzantine text-type manuscripts, the number six hundred sixty-six is represented by the Greek numerals χξϛ, with the Greek ligature stigma (ϛ) representing the number 6:
17καὶ ἵνα μή τις δύνηται ἀγοράσαι ἢ πωλῆσαι εἰ μὴ ὁ ἔχων τὸ χάραγμα, τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ θηρίου ἢ τὸν ἀριθμὸν τοῦ ὀνόματος αὐτοῦ. 18Ὧδε ἡ σοφία ἐστίν· ὁ ἔχων τὸν νοῦν ψηφισάτω τὸν ἀριθμὸν τοῦ θηρίου· ἀριθμὸς γὰρ ἀνθρώπου ἐστί· καὶ ὁ ἀριθμὸς αὐτοῦ χξϛʹ.
“Number of the beast” enters the record as number associated with the beast in the Book of Revelation; either 666 or 616, depending on the manuscript. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Number, beast and number can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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Reception evidence should be dated and situated: later canonical status may differ sharply from the work’s initial circulation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 9, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q666. The Library of Congress control number is sh85123065. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2017.
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This entry incorporates text from “Number of the beast” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.