Commentary on the Mark of the Beast (Rev 13:18)

This is an excerpt from the notes of a commentary I am currently working on concerning the entire Apocalypse of John.

"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." Rev. 13:18 (NRSV)

In biblical allegory the Beast represents corrupt earthly empires, systemic greed, and human arrogance that set itself up against God. The primary understanding concerning the allegorical method are as follows:

1. Total devotion of the actions and thoughts

In this book the mark is placed on either the hand or the forehead, the forehead represents your mind, intellect, beliefs, and philosophy. Receiving the mark on your forehead represents the person giving their mind, intellect, beliefs and philosophy over to the corrupt materialistic system. Every thought is based in this corrupt system. The right hand represents your labor and actions. Receiving the mark on the right hand represents your laboring for this immoral and unethical system.

2. A spiritual parody of Gods seal

In scripture, God also places a symbolic seal or mark on the foreheads of His faithful followers ( Rev. 7:3 and Ez. 9:4) This is very similar to Deuteronomy 6:8 in which God commands believers to bind His laws "as a sign on your hand" and "between your eyes".

The mark of the beast is a counterfeit to Gods seal and it symbolizes a soul that has chosen to internalize the values of the world rather than the values of Christ.

3. Complicity with exploitative systems

Because scripture states that nobody can buy or sell without the mark of the beast we look at this as economic and social conformity. The mark represents the ethical compromises a person makes just to achieve comfort, wealth, or status. It symbolizes participating in a corrupt status quo, such as an economic system driven wholly on exploitation where a person determines that financial survival or luxury is more important than moral integrity, such as feeding the poor or housing the homeless or ensuring everyone has access to clean water and food or even healthcare. 

4. Gematria and the "imperfect" human standard

In ancient biblical numerology the number 7 stands as divine perfection, completion, and the Sabbath rest. The number 6, however, falls short of perfection. Therefore 6 three times symbolizes a system or person completely trapped in a states of fallenness and imperfection. Striving for self-glorification and failing to reach spiritual maturity. It represents worshipping humanity and human technology instead of the creator.

*this is not the finalized form of the text, this is pulled from my notes on the commentary I am currently working on. The final form may be very different to what is posted above.