Abstract
The book of Revelation contains many unusual and symbolic images that convey the theological concepts of the author. In the central part of the book are passages about the Antichrist. The number 666 is one of his characteristics and has always attracted the attention of Christian commentators. Throughout church history, many different hermeneutic methods have been applied to determine the meaning of the number 666. The Seventh-day Adventist Church emerged in the 19th century from research into the prophetic texts of the apocalyptic books of Daniel and Revelation. The lack of a hermeneutic analysis of the interpretation of the number 666 among early Adventists necessitates this study. The article is devoted to the definition and analysis of the features of the hermeneutics of early Adventists in the interpretation of the number 666. In the first part of the study, I analyze the interpretation of the number 666 in the Millerite movement from 1833 to 1844, and in the second part – in the Adventist movement from 1844 to 1888. The hermeneutic of commentators from the Millerite and Adventist movements was based on historicism. They interpreted biblical prophecy in the context of specific historical events. Three main interpretations of the number 666 were formed: 1) 666 years; 2) 666 church organizations; 3) Title Vicarius Filii Dei. Through the influence of William Miller, it was widely believed among the Millerites that the number 666 meant a span of 666 years. 666 years was included in the chronological calculations of other prophetic periods from the biblical apocalyptic books: 2300, 1260, 1290 and 1335. Early Adventists ignored William Miller’s interpretation and popularized a second interpretation that the number 666 symbolizes the 666 church organizations that are part of spiritual Babylon. The third interpretation was introduced by Uriah Smith, who used the hermeneutical method of gematria. Uriah Smith popularized the interpretation that the Latin title of the pope, Vicarius Filii Dei, has a numerical value of 666.
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