The meaning of number 6 in the Bible is that it represents the number of man. It is also known as the number of imperfection and mortality. In other words, when you add up all the numbers from 1 to 6, you get 666.
According to some, this means that there was something imperfect about man at creation. Some people believe that it means we are mortal and will eventually die. Others say it means we have imperfections that have been passed down through generations since Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden.
The Bible also says that there are six days in a week and six hours in a day so this could be another way of saying that God created us on a perfect day but it was broken by sin when Adam ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil which he was not supposed to do according to God’s commandment given earlier in Genesis 2:16-17: “You may freely eat from every tree of the garden; but surely not from this tree!”
The number 666 has long been a topic of fascination and debate, particularly within religious circles. In the Book of Revelation, the number is associated with the infamous Antichrist, a figure of ultimate evil and destruction. The standard explanation is that the authors of Revelation were throwing shade on Nero, a ruthless Roman emperor who persecuted Christians. By adding up the values of “Caesar Nero” in both Greek and Hebrew, one arrives at the number 666, linking Nero to the Antichrist figure.
In the Bible, the number 6 often carries a negative connotation. For example, Christ suffered on the cross for six hours, emphasizing the pain and sacrifice of his crucifixion. Additionally, in Exodus, men were commanded to work six days a week, with the seventh day designated as a day of rest and worship. This connection between the number 6 and negative or challenging situations can be seen throughout the Bible.
What Does The Number 6 Symbolize Spiritually
The standard explanation is that the authors of Revelation were throwing shade on Nero, a ruthless Roman emperor who liked to martyr Christians. If you add up the values of “Caesar Nero” in Greek, you’ll get 666. The same thing happens if you translate Caesar Nero to Hebrew as “Neron Kesar,” where it also adds up to 666.
Since there are a lot of candidates for the antichrist, modern preachers have concocted mathematical equations identifying Adolf Hitler, Mussolini, even Pope Paul VI as the “beastly” 666.
The number 6 usually has a negative connotation in the Bible. For instance, Christ suffered on the cross for six hours and men were commanded to work six days a week in Exodus. In the Greek alphabet the number 6 is represented by a symbol called the “stigma.”
To Further Explore the Biblical Significance of The Number 666, Let’s Look at Five Key Meanings:
1. Imperfection: The number 6 is often associated with imperfection and incompleteness. In biblical numerology, the number 7 is considered a symbol of perfection, while 6 falls short of this ideal.
2. Human Labor: As mentioned earlier, the commandment to work six days a week highlights the importance of human labor and productivity. The number 6 represents the toil and effort required for sustenance and survival.
3. Sin and Evil: In some interpretations, the number 6 is linked to sin and evil. The Antichrist figure associated with the number 666 embodies the ultimate expression of this negative force in the world.
4. Deception: The number 666 is often seen as a symbol of deception and falsehood. Just as the Antichrist deceives many with his cunning and charm, the number 666 represents the allure of lies and deceit.
5. Fallen Humanity: The number 6 can also symbolize the fallen nature of humanity. In the Bible, humans are often portrayed as flawed and sinful beings, prone to temptation and moral failings.
To illustrate these meanings further, let’s look at three relevant Bible verses:
1. Revelation 13:18 – “This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.” This verse emphasizes the significance of understanding and discernment when interpreting the meaning behind the number 666.
2. Genesis 3:6 – “When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it.” This passage from Genesis highlights the theme of deception and temptation, which are often associated with the number 666.
3. Romans 3:23 – “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” This verse underscores the fallen nature of humanity, a theme that is reflected in the negative connotations of the number 666.
Overall, the number 666 remains a complex and intriguing symbol within the Bible, representing a range of themes such as imperfection, sin, and deception. By exploring the biblical meanings associated with this number, we can gain a deeper understanding of its significance in religious and spiritual contexts.
Meaning Of Number 6 In The Bible
The Bible is full of numbers — how many rivers flowed out of the Garden of Eden (4), the length, in cubits, of the walls of Solomon’s temple (60), how many souls will be “sealed” in the Second Coming (144,000), etc.
But what are we to make of all of those numbers? Do we take them at face value or invest them with mystical significance?
The Greek philosopher Pythagoras, who lived in the sixth century B.C.E., was the first to teach that numbers themselves had meaning beyond counting and calculating. Numbers were esoteric symbols with divine significance. Both Jewish and later Christian readers of the Bible took inspiration from Pythagoras and attempted to derive mystical meanings from numbers using all manner of creative methods, writes John Davis, author of “Biblical Numerology: A Basic Study of the Use of Numbers in the Bible.”
For example, in both the Hebrew and Greek languages, letters and words also have numerical values. Since there were no Arabic numerals back then (1, 2, 3, etc.), numbers were written out with letters. In Greek, alpha is 1, beta is 2 and so on. What this means is that you can take any word from the original Greek New Testament and turn it into a number. Or take any number and turn it into a word.
In Hebrew, the practice of assigning symbolic meaning to the numerical values of words is called gematria and was popular with kabbalists and Jewish mystics. In Greek, it’s called isopsephy and was a favorite technique employed by Christian gnostics searching for deeper meaning in the New Testament.
Today, these practices survive as “biblical numerology,” the popular belief that God reveals hidden meanings through the numbers written in the Bible. There are countless websites and books devoted to decoding divine mysteries by deploying creative math on Bible verses.
Serious scholars of the Bible are quick to dismiss numerology as a playful lark, but not as a legitimate way of interpreting scripture or grasping spiritual truths. Davis, a believing Christian who wrote the aforementioned book on biblical numerology, concluded that “the whole system must be rejected as a valid form of exegesis [critical interpretation of the Bible]” and that “such interpretations are purely artificial and arbitrary and have no place in Christian theology.”
That said, certain biblical numbers are hard to ignore, especially those that recur with frequency (7, 12, 40) and numbers invested with centuries of symbolism (666!). So let’s see what we can figure out about the symbolism and significance of the most famous biblical numbers.
7: The Ancient ‘Perfection’
Even the naysayer Davis has to admit that of all the numbers mentioned in the Bible, 7 is clearly symbolic and likely the most sacred. And it wasn’t only the ancient Israelite authors of the Bible that felt that way. Davis writes that cuneiform texts from the Sumerians and the Babylonians confirm that across the Ancient Near East the number 7 meant totality, completeness and perfection.
The number 7 appears more than 600 times in the Bible, but here are some of the most significant mentions:
God rested from Creation on the seventh day
Jacob labored seven years to win the hand of Rachel
In Joseph’s time, Egypt suffered seven years of plenty and seven years of famine
God commanded the Israelites to eat unleavened bread for seven days in memory of the exodus from Egypt
Naaman, suffering from leprosy, was told to dip in the Jordan River seven times
The apocalyptic book of Revelation is loaded with sevens, including: seven churches, seven seals, seven angels, seven trumpets, seven golden bowls, seven stars, seven hills, etc.
As a sign of the spiritual significance of 7, many people cite the poignant exchange in Matthew 18:22, when Peter asks Jesus how many times he should forgive his brother. Peter asks, “As many as seven times?” And Jesus responds, “Not seven times, but seventy-seven times” or “seventy times seven” in some translations. Here, the idea is that Jesus uses these large multiples of 7 to show that forgiveness should be as “complete” and “perfect” as the number itself and that there was no limit on how many times someone should be forgiven.
12: The Number of Authority
Like 7, the number 12 seems to be imbued with special meaning by the authors of both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament. Jacob has 12 sons, for example, who go on to become the fathers of the 12 tribes of Israel.
When Jesus chose his disciples from among his early Jewish followers, it seems more than coincidental that he picked 12. Some interpret the number 12 as representing authority and governmental rule. So the 12 sons and the 12 apostles are symbols of authority both in ancient Israel and in the Christian church.
Jesus with his 12 disciples
In this painting of the Last Supper, Jesus is depicted with his 12 disciples.
And again, the book of Revelation doubles down on the symbolism of 12, mentioning it 22 times in relation to the New Jerusalem that will descend to Earth after the Second Coming of Christ. In Revelation 7, the infamous 144,000 are “sealed” for salvation with 12,000 chosen from each of the 12 tribes of Israel. New Jerusalem will have 12 gates each manned by 12 angels, and the new city will be 12,000 furlongs squared.
40: Trials and Transformation
The number 40 is another recurring figure in the Bible and seems to be closely associated with times of trial and testing that lead to transformation.
When God commands Noah to build the ark, the rains flood the Earth for 40 days and 40 nights. When the Israelites are punished for lacking faith, they are forced to wander in the wilderness for 40 years before reaching the promised land. Moses went on a 40-day fast before he received the 10 commandments from God. And before Jesus was tempted by Satan, he fasted for 40 days and 40 nights.
Some scholars note that 40 days in the Bible doesn’t always mean 40 days literally, but may be a symbolic way of saying “a long time.”
666: The Number of ‘The Beast’
In Revelation 13:18, it reads: “Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for the number is that of a man; and his number is 666.”
Of all of the numbers in the Bible, this one is just begging for mathematical speculation. And over the centuries, there have been endless attempts to use gematria and isopsephy (Hebrew and Greek number values) to calculate the true name of the “beast,” also known as the “Antichrist.”