![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2004\/08\/666.jpg\")
Do microchips and bar codes have anything to do with “the mark of the beast” (Revelation 16:2; 19:20)?<\/p>\nby Jerry Falk<\/p>\n
Do microchips and bar codes have anything to do with “the mark of the beast” (Revelation 16:2; 19:20)?<\/p>\n
Before answering this question, we would do well to remember that the word of God is “handled” a lot in the world. However, it’s not good enough to just handle it; we need to handle it\u00a0accurately<\/em>. II Timothy 2:15 says, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth<\/em>” (New American Standard Bible).<\/p>\n What, then, does “the mark of the beast” refer to? When studying the Bible, it’s always important to take into account the historical context in which it was written.<\/p>\n The recipients of the book of Revelation were being persecuted for having refused to worship the Caesars and participate in other sinful pagan customs. The “dragon” (that is, Satan, Revelation 13:2,4) had given authority to the “beast” to wage war against Christians (Revelation 13:7), and many people ended up worshiping him or it (Revelation 13:4).<\/p>\n The beast is an adequate description of the Roman Empire, which persecuted Christians from about 64 to 313 A.D. In the Great Fire of Rome (64 A.D.), it is believed that Nero, the emperor at the time, cast the blame on Christians. After this initial persecution, Christians enjoyed a brief time of peace, which ended when Emperor Domitian (81-96 A.D.) resumed persecution of the servants of God. In the year 313 A.D., Emperor Constantine legalized Christianity, thus bringing to an end an evil policy that lasted for almost 250 years.<\/p>\n Concerning this time, the Archeological Supplement in my Bible (by G. Frederick Owen, translated from the Spanish), says,<\/p>\n “Christians were accused of being unsociable and strange, and they came to be hated and were regarded as enemies of society \u2026. The people came to fear them since they were afraid that the wrath of the gods might be inflamed due to the fact that Christians refused to offer sacrifices to them. If the crops failed, if the Tiber River overflowed, if there was an epidemic, the people exclaimed, ‘The Christians to the lions’ \u2026. To prove the loyalty of men, the Roman government demanded that everyone be present in certain public places and that there they burn a little incense to honor the emperor. Christians regarded this as an act of worship to the emperor and refused to participate. The authorities began to point them out and punish them, even with death.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n In the Bible, sometimes the numbers three and seven refer to that which is perfect or complete (that is, to God, to Jesus, to the Holy Spirit, to the Word, etc. (Revelation 1:4,11-13,16,20; 5:1,6)). The number six refers to that which is incomplete or imperfect because it falls short of seven. Thus, when six is written three times (666), it refers to that which is\u00a0completely incomplete.<\/em><\/p>\n Revelation 13:18 says,\u00a0“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 six hundred and sixty-six.<\/em>” Both the Roman Empire and those who desired to worship this “beast” (with its Caesars and false gods) were completely incomplete. Today, it might be said that 666 is the number of all those who wish to follow the false religions of this world and live without Christ. Without serving Christ we are completely incomplete!<\/p>\n 666 is an adequate number to describe all those who live without Christ, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God<\/em>” (Romans 3:23, NASB). As much as we may try, we will never attain the glory of God (that is, His holiness) by means of our own works of human merit. Sin, and separation from God because of sin, is the problem that all men have in common.<\/p>\n Therefore, 666 does not have anything to do with microchips, nor bar codes, nor Russia, nor China, nor nuclear weapons, nor the International Monetary Fund, nor with the countless absurd interpretations that people come up with. It is simply another way of saying that\u00a0without Jesus Christ we can never be complete<\/em>. For this same reason, Jesus said in John 15:5, “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for\u00a0apart from me you can do nothing<\/strong>.<\/em>“<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Jerry Falk Do microchips and bar codes have anything to do with “the mark of the beast” (Revelation 16:2; 19:20)? Before answering this question, we would do well to remember that the word of God is “handled” a lot in the world. However, it’s not good enough to just handle it; we need to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[644,643],"class_list":["post-24323","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-644","tag-mark-of-the-beast"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3324,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-mistranslation-of-jesus-is-the-666-in-revelation\/","url_meta":{"origin":24323,"position":0},"title":"The mistranslation of “Jesus” is the 666 in Revelation","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 18, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Does it mean that the verb \"count\" in\u00a0Revelation 13:18\u00a0must be ignored? Does it mean that the counting operation in\u00a0Revelation 13:18\u00a0leads to no result at all? I have found that if you assign numeric values to the alphabet from 1 to 26, then Iesvs (74) + Jesus (74) + Joshua\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":31826,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-it-a-sin-to-get-vaccinated\/","url_meta":{"origin":24323,"position":1},"title":"Is it a sin to get vaccinated?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 9, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hello beloved brother! I always give thanks to God concerning you, for your exhortation, correction, encouragement. The worldwide has been overtaken by the coronavirus pandemic, which is responsible for a scary number of deaths daily.\u00a0\u00a0The various religions seek responses to give to the hopeless world, trying to comfort the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":47227,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/god-has-an-answer\/","url_meta":{"origin":24323,"position":2},"title":"God Has an Answer","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 2, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"by Matthew W. Bassford The contrast between Revelation 13 and Revelation 14 is one of the most striking between any two chapters in the Bible. In Revelation 13, all the news is bad. Even though the dragon has been defeated in heaven, a new ally for him, the beast, emerges\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":20220,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-there-a-connection-between-the-mark-of-the-beast-and-the-mark-of-cain\/","url_meta":{"origin":24323,"position":3},"title":"Is there a connection between the mark of the beast and the mark of Cain?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 21, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I would like to ask you a question concerning the 'mark' of Cain. In Genesis 4:15, it talks about the 'sign for Cain.' I understand this was something God did. In Revelation 20:4, it talks about the 'mark of the beast, on the forehead and hands'. My question is:\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":7942,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-are-there-musical-instruments-in-revelation\/","url_meta":{"origin":24323,"position":4},"title":"Why are there musical instruments in Revelation?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 4, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: If the New Testament forbids the use of musical instruments in the worship service, why are there musical instruments in the Book of Revelation? Answer: Before answering your question, let's get a bit more precision. The New Testament doesn't forbid the use of instrumental music in worship; that is,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":18518,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-revelation-1410-referring-to-judgment-on-a-place-or-to-the-final-judgment\/","url_meta":{"origin":24323,"position":5},"title":"Is Revelation 14:10 referring to judgment on a place or to the final judgment?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 24, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: \"He also will drink the wine of God's wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb\" (Revelation 14:10). I am guessing this is talking\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24323","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24323"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24323\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24323"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24323"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24323"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}