Hello,
It has come to my attention that Jack Van Impe issued a newsletter from his website just a few days ago (July 28, 2003) that he is endorsing the English gematria codes for calculating the number of the beast and 666.
Here is Jack's message and the url to this newsletter on his site.
-------------------------------
A MESSAGE OF HOPE FROM DR. JACK VAN IMPE
http://www.geocities.com/iamthekey_2000/onefiveone.htmlhttp://www.geocities.com/iamthekey_2000/onefiveone.html
What is the nature of the "coming world church"? How will this international institution cooperate with the world identification number "666" and the "image of the beast"?
Revelation 13:11 introduces us to a beast who will serve as ally to the infamous Antichrist. This beast is known as the false prophet or leader of the world church of Revelation 17. Closely identified with the religion of the Roman Empire, this beast will influence the nations of the world to worship the Antichrist to the extent of setting up an image in the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. The Lord Jesus referred to this image as the "abomination of desolation" (Matthew 24:15). When this unholy act takes place in the Temple, the true Jewish heart will be broken, because any hint at idolatry flies in the face of the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20. The second commandment states,
"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth" (v. 4).
The false prophet?s religion, however, will have no qualms or conscience with respect to these idols and statues. Thus, the beast will erect an idol in honor of the Antichrist, and the world will be forced to bow to it. Anyone who remains true to the Lord Jesus Christ, His blood, and the inspiration of the Scriptures will be killed:
"I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years" (Revelation 20:4).
The Coming World Number
The false prophet of the coming world church will also issue an international identification number. This is a prophecy that is fast becoming reality:
"And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six [or 666]" (Revelation 13:15-18).
What about the Antichrist? Where is he during this time? What connection will he have to the dreaded number 666? I have no doubt that he is alive and presently on the scene, impatiently awaiting his moment to ascend the world throne. When he arises he will set up a world computer system that will keep track of every person on earth, giving each the number 666, according to Revelation 13:6-18. What is the relationship between this number and the Antichrist? Revelation 13:17 states that 666 is the number of his name. Verse 18 adds, "Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man."
666 and Gematria
Let us look more closely at this number particularly at some of the scholarly research done on its future impact on humankind. The Rev. J. R. Church, founder and director of the "Prophecy in the News Ministry" in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, has spent many hours studying the development of the number 666 as it relates to modern society. He says that the word count in Revelation 13:18 comes from the Greek word meaning "to compute." Thus, the verse literally states, "Let him that hath understanding compute the number of the beast." To compute a number from a name, one must devise a system of ascribing numeric values to the letters of the alphabet. This procedure is known as gematria.
In attempting to find a gematria for the English alphabet, Church discovered that the ancient Sumerian civilization of modern-day southern Iraq used a sexagesimal system of numerics. The Sumerians lived in the days of Noah and, therefore, constitute the earliest civilization known to archaeologists. Their numbering system was based on a root of six as opposed to our ten. Thus, the common fractions 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, and 1/5 would be written 30/60, 20/60, 15/60, and 12/60. In fact, the Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible, volume 4, implies the likelihood that the number 6 was the base of civilization?s first system of computation.
Church also discovered that the English alphabet is essentially the same as that of every other language of the world since all tongues found their origin in a common source prior to the tower of Babel. Thus we have a, b, c in English; alpha, beta, and gamma in the Greek; and aleph, beth, and gimel in the Hebrew.
Reasoning that the Antichrist may have an English name, Church used a gematria formed by adding the number 6 to each letter of the alphabet. Thus, A=6, B=12, C=18, D=24, E=30. F=36, etc. He then proceeded to compute the numerical values of various words associated with Scripture. Identical values were found for the following: Lucifer (444) + hell (222)=666; Lucifer + hades =666; devil + sheol= 666; devil + dragon =666; mark + beast =666; people + sin =666.
Since the image of the beast (Revelation 13:14-15) is undoubtedly a sophisticated computer, Church decided to find the numerical value of the word computer (C=18, 0=90, M=78, P=96, U=126, T=120, E=30, R=108). The total: 666! I first noted that his findings were given credence by a statement in the November 1981 issue of Science Digest. Harvard theologian Harvey Cox wrote, "The true successors of the [ancient] sorcerers and the alchemists are not the priests and theologians but the physicists and the computer engineers." Certainly this will be true in the case of the Antichrist.
Next, Church began searching for a city whose numerical value would indicate it as a possible location from which the Antichrist will arise. Since Rome plays a central role in Bible prophecy, he began there. However, Rome?s gematria totaled only 306. Likewise, the ancient city of Babylon (currently being rebuilt) equals 426 and Jerusalem comes to just 624. Continuing on through the other major cities of the world London, Paris, Brussels, Moscow, Beijing, Tokyo, and even Washington, D.C. each effort proved fruitless until he came to New York City (N=84, E=30, W=138, Y=1S0, 0=90, R=108, K=66, Total: 666).
Although one cannot conclusively prove that New York is the city that will produce the Antichrist, it is chilling to note that it serves as the home of the current world parliament (the United Nations) and is also a base for the international banking industry. Incidentally, just outside New York City is a suburb by the name of Babylon.
To cement the validity of Church?s research, there was a telephone call from a computer programmer who had been studying the numbering systems of the great empires of world history Rome, Greece, and Babylon (along with the Medo-Persian Empire, which had the same numbering system as Babylon). The programmer had found that a modern-day name could be formed from the letter values of the number 6 as taken from these three ancient numbering systems.
Note this discovery: The number 6 in Roman numerals is made up of the letters VI. The ancient Greek number 6 was taken from the sixth letter of the alphabet, the letter sigma, which looks like the English letter s. Returning to the Babylonian Empire and its sexagesimal system of numbers, the programmer considered the possibility that its letter A equaled 6. Thus, from the three great world empires of history, he found that the composition of the number 666 spells the word VISA the precise name of today?s most accepted and popular credit card!
What relationship Church?s unusual finding might have to the fulfillment of Bible prophecy remains to be seen. I do not set dates, nor do I make predictions. Personally, I am convinced that Christians will not know who the Antichrist is (or from which city he will come) because we will be gone (via the Rapture) before his identity is revealed. Still, it is both interesting and exciting to see the number 666 exposed in so many ways through this system of gematria.
FOR MORE INFO:
http://www.geocities.com/iamthekey_2000/calculator.html
Jack Van Impe endorses the English codes for calculating 666
It has come to my attention that Jack Van Impe issued a newsletter from his website just a few days ago (July 28, 2003) that he is endorsing the English gematria codes for calculating the number of the beast and 666.
Here is Jack's message and the url to this newsletter on his site.
-------------------------------
A MESSAGE OF HOPE FROM DR. JACK VAN IMPE
http://www.geocities.com/iamthekey_2000/onefiveone.htmlhttp://www.geocities.com/iamthekey_2000/onefiveone.html
What is the nature of the "coming world church"? How will this international institution cooperate with the world identification number "666" and the "image of the beast"?
Revelation 13:11 introduces us to a beast who will serve as ally to the infamous Antichrist. This beast is known as the false prophet or leader of the world church of Revelation 17. Closely identified with the religion of the Roman Empire, this beast will influence the nations of the world to worship the Antichrist to the extent of setting up an image in the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. The Lord Jesus referred to this image as the "abomination of desolation" (Matthew 24:15). When this unholy act takes place in the Temple, the true Jewish heart will be broken, because any hint at idolatry flies in the face of the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20. The second commandment states,
"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth" (v. 4).
The false prophet?s religion, however, will have no qualms or conscience with respect to these idols and statues. Thus, the beast will erect an idol in honor of the Antichrist, and the world will be forced to bow to it. Anyone who remains true to the Lord Jesus Christ, His blood, and the inspiration of the Scriptures will be killed:
"I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years" (Revelation 20:4).
The Coming World Number
The false prophet of the coming world church will also issue an international identification number. This is a prophecy that is fast becoming reality:
"And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six [or 666]" (Revelation 13:15-18).
What about the Antichrist? Where is he during this time? What connection will he have to the dreaded number 666? I have no doubt that he is alive and presently on the scene, impatiently awaiting his moment to ascend the world throne. When he arises he will set up a world computer system that will keep track of every person on earth, giving each the number 666, according to Revelation 13:6-18. What is the relationship between this number and the Antichrist? Revelation 13:17 states that 666 is the number of his name. Verse 18 adds, "Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man."
666 and Gematria
Let us look more closely at this number particularly at some of the scholarly research done on its future impact on humankind. The Rev. J. R. Church, founder and director of the "Prophecy in the News Ministry" in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, has spent many hours studying the development of the number 666 as it relates to modern society. He says that the word count in Revelation 13:18 comes from the Greek word meaning "to compute." Thus, the verse literally states, "Let him that hath understanding compute the number of the beast." To compute a number from a name, one must devise a system of ascribing numeric values to the letters of the alphabet. This procedure is known as gematria.
In attempting to find a gematria for the English alphabet, Church discovered that the ancient Sumerian civilization of modern-day southern Iraq used a sexagesimal system of numerics. The Sumerians lived in the days of Noah and, therefore, constitute the earliest civilization known to archaeologists. Their numbering system was based on a root of six as opposed to our ten. Thus, the common fractions 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, and 1/5 would be written 30/60, 20/60, 15/60, and 12/60. In fact, the Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible, volume 4, implies the likelihood that the number 6 was the base of civilization?s first system of computation.
Church also discovered that the English alphabet is essentially the same as that of every other language of the world since all tongues found their origin in a common source prior to the tower of Babel. Thus we have a, b, c in English; alpha, beta, and gamma in the Greek; and aleph, beth, and gimel in the Hebrew.
Reasoning that the Antichrist may have an English name, Church used a gematria formed by adding the number 6 to each letter of the alphabet. Thus, A=6, B=12, C=18, D=24, E=30. F=36, etc. He then proceeded to compute the numerical values of various words associated with Scripture. Identical values were found for the following: Lucifer (444) + hell (222)=666; Lucifer + hades =666; devil + sheol= 666; devil + dragon =666; mark + beast =666; people + sin =666.
Since the image of the beast (Revelation 13:14-15) is undoubtedly a sophisticated computer, Church decided to find the numerical value of the word computer (C=18, 0=90, M=78, P=96, U=126, T=120, E=30, R=108). The total: 666! I first noted that his findings were given credence by a statement in the November 1981 issue of Science Digest. Harvard theologian Harvey Cox wrote, "The true successors of the [ancient] sorcerers and the alchemists are not the priests and theologians but the physicists and the computer engineers." Certainly this will be true in the case of the Antichrist.
Next, Church began searching for a city whose numerical value would indicate it as a possible location from which the Antichrist will arise. Since Rome plays a central role in Bible prophecy, he began there. However, Rome?s gematria totaled only 306. Likewise, the ancient city of Babylon (currently being rebuilt) equals 426 and Jerusalem comes to just 624. Continuing on through the other major cities of the world London, Paris, Brussels, Moscow, Beijing, Tokyo, and even Washington, D.C. each effort proved fruitless until he came to New York City (N=84, E=30, W=138, Y=1S0, 0=90, R=108, K=66, Total: 666).
Although one cannot conclusively prove that New York is the city that will produce the Antichrist, it is chilling to note that it serves as the home of the current world parliament (the United Nations) and is also a base for the international banking industry. Incidentally, just outside New York City is a suburb by the name of Babylon.
To cement the validity of Church?s research, there was a telephone call from a computer programmer who had been studying the numbering systems of the great empires of world history Rome, Greece, and Babylon (along with the Medo-Persian Empire, which had the same numbering system as Babylon). The programmer had found that a modern-day name could be formed from the letter values of the number 6 as taken from these three ancient numbering systems.
Note this discovery: The number 6 in Roman numerals is made up of the letters VI. The ancient Greek number 6 was taken from the sixth letter of the alphabet, the letter sigma, which looks like the English letter s. Returning to the Babylonian Empire and its sexagesimal system of numbers, the programmer considered the possibility that its letter A equaled 6. Thus, from the three great world empires of history, he found that the composition of the number 666 spells the word VISA the precise name of today?s most accepted and popular credit card!
What relationship Church?s unusual finding might have to the fulfillment of Bible prophecy remains to be seen. I do not set dates, nor do I make predictions. Personally, I am convinced that Christians will not know who the Antichrist is (or from which city he will come) because we will be gone (via the Rapture) before his identity is revealed. Still, it is both interesting and exciting to see the number 666 exposed in so many ways through this system of gematria.
FOR MORE INFO:
http://www.geocities.com/iamthekey_2000/calculator.html
Jack Van Impe endorses the English codes for calculating 666
