The Antichrist, Beasts, the Man of Lawlessness, and 666

A Collection of Works by Gary DeMar

Many today mistakenly use antichrist and beast interchangeably. Generally, a Christian hears the word antichrist and thinks of the beast in the book of Revelation.

The number 666 has long fascinated theologians and mathematicians. Maybe the interest in the number has something to do with the attainment of wisdom and understanding since to “calculate the number of the beast” will reward the diligent (Rev. 13:18). The first readers were to have “understanding” to “calculate the number of the Beast” (Rev. 13:18). The Beast must have been a contemporary of the first-century readers. We can have the same “understanding” by studying the history of the period. We don’t have to speculate on the identity of some future Beast.

What then is the solution? The symbols used in the book of Revelation were familiar to first century readers and meant to represent familiar concepts. This is why Revelation must be read against the backdrop of the Old Testament. As Ferrel Jenkins writes: “The book of Revelation is the most thoroughly Jewish in its language and imagery of any New Testament book. This book speaks not the language of Paul, but of the Old Testament prophets Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel.”

The beasts, both sea and land, the mark on the hand or head, and the number 666 should be interpreted in light of the Old Testament, similar to the way Sodom (11:8), Egypt (11:8), Jezebel (2:20), Balaam (2:14), and Babylon (14:8; 16:19; 17:5; 18:2, 10, 21) are interpreted. Understanding the way the Old Testament uses and applies marks, it is not that difficult to determine what John is describing in Revelation 13. Whoever carried the mark of the beast would be protected by Satan, and whoever carried the mark of the Lamb would be protected by God. Those who identified with Rome against Jesus Christ died in the destruction of Jerusalem when Titus and his army swept in to destroy the temple and the city. (Excerpts from the book)

On March 30, 1981, six shots cracked across the air outside the Washington Hilton and the president of the United States crumpled toward his limousine. Within minutes, reports were circulating that a top White House official was dead, that the president had suffered a near-fatal wound, and that he had somehow survived.

For Christians in the 1980s who saw "Antichrist" and "666" hiding behind every headline, Ronald Wilson Reagan-three six-letter names, a bullet, a wound, a "death" announced and then reversed —looked like the perfect candidate for the Beast of Revelation. In The Antichrist, Beasts, the Man of Lawlessness, and 666, Gary DeMar shows how moments like that are far from unique.

Across history, sincere believers have repeatedly "found" the Beast in popes, dictators, presidents, barcodes, credit cards, and even children's characters-because their own interpretive methods virtually guaranteed they would. This book exposes how those speculative systems work, why they keep failing, and how they can quietly deceive God's people. More importantly, it offers a careful, historically rooted, and thoroughly biblical approach to prophecy-one that takes time texts seriously, honors the original audience, and helps you read Revelation and the rest of Scripture with clarity, confidence, and conviction, unlocking God's Word without chasing the latest prophetic fad.

Paperback, ePub or PDF Download; 130 pages