I'm going to create a post here that I believe is a pragmatic conclusion to the identity of the man that the six hundred threescore and six stands for. That is the number 666. The application of drawing a conclusion from the authority of the scripture of the Old and New Testaments is the means for this kind of conclusion. Chronologically speaking, in the Holy Bible, the number appears:
- In the Book of 1st Kings 10:14 KJV; "Now the weight of the gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold,".
- In the Book of 2nd 9:13 KJV; "Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred and threescore and six talents of gold;"
- In the Book of Revelation 13:18 KJV; "Here is wisdom, Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six."
The third incidence in the list is the one that has made a point of making the number 666 one of interest. So much so, as to create an abundance of fictional literature, movies and whatever mankind has come up with to exploit the mystery of the identity of the Beast. It probably never entered the minds of the people that have exploited that ignorance of Man, about the number 666, may become solved in reality. Well the reasoning, the third instance indicated is the hook. The number 666, in Revelation, was intended to demonstrate that understanding who the identity is involves wisdom. This can be misconstrued that I’m looking down my nose at you as ignorant. And yes you are, until you yield to the wisdom involved in the pragmatic understanding within the Bible, nowhere else. Don’t look for the identity, anywhere else, other than the Bible.
In the Book of Deuteronomy, the Laws for the Israelite were handed down. The following verse is the Law for the Kings of Israel. Deuteronomy 17:14 KJV, “When thou art come unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt possess it, and shalt dwell therein, and shalt say, I will set a king over me, like as all the nations that are about me; 15 Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the LORD thy God shall choose: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother. 16 But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses: forasmuch as the LORD hath said unto you, Ye shall henceforth return no more that way. 17 Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold. 18 And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites: 19 And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them: 20 That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel.”. This Law applied to no one else but the Kings of Israel.
Also, in the Book of Deuteronomy there are cusres called down on anyone that willingly turns away from God in the Promised Land. To understand that, there is also a blessing involved. Deuteronomy 29:14 “Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath; 15 But with him that standeth here with us this day before the LORD our God, and also with him that is not here with us this day: 16 (For ye know how we have dwelt in the land of Egypt; and how we came through the nations which ye passed by; 17 And ye have seen their abominations, and their idols, wood and stone, silver and gold, which were among them:) 18 Lest there should be among you man, or woman, or family, or tribe, whose heart turneth away this day from the LORD our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations; lest there should be among you a root that beareth gall and wormwood; 19 And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add drunkenness to thirst: 20 The LORD will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the LORD shall blot out his name from under heaven. 21 And the LORD shall separate him unto evil out of all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this book of the law: 22 So that the generation to come of your children that shall rise up after you, and the stranger that shall come from a far land, shall say, when they see the plagues of that land, and the sicknesses which the LORD hath laid upon it;”. This is per the command of the Lord God.
To prove the case of God’s ire toward King Solomon, that is, his name is blotted out as He said He would do. 1st Kings 10: 14 KJV, “Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold, 15 Beside that he had of the merchantmen, and of the traffic of the spice merchants, and of all the kings of Arabia, and of the governors of the country. 16 And king Solomon made two hundred targets of beaten gold: six hundred shekels of gold went to one target. 17 And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold; three pound of gold went to one shield: and the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon. 18 Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the best gold. 19 The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne was round behind: and there were stays on either side on, the place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the stays. 20 And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other upon the six steps: there was not the like made in any kingdom. 21 And all king Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold; none were of silver: it was nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon. 22 For the king had at sea a navy of Tarshish with the navy of Hiram: once in three years came the navy of Tarshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks. 23 So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom. 24 And all the earth sought Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 25 And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year. 26 And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Jerusalem. 27 And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made him to be as the sycamore trees that are in the vale, for abundance. 28 And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and linen yarn: the king's merchants received the linen yarn at a price. 29 And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for an hundred and fifty: and so for all the kings of the Hittites, and for the kings of Syria, did they bring them out by their means.”. 1st Kings 11:1 KJV, “But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites; 2 Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love. 3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart. 4 For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. 5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 6 And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father. 7 Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon. 8 And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods. 9 And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice, 10 And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the LORD commanded. 11 Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant. 12 Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father's sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son. 13 Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen.”. As a historical record, 1st Kings 10:14-20 and 1st Kings 11:1-13, in particular 1st Kings 11:6 KJV, “And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father.”, with Faith, it is understood that this isn’t wise. How can people still revere this man, as wise? Even his methodology in judgement was flawed when he incorporated deception to trick about a judgement between mothers. Note that even though King Solomon started out Loved by the Lord God, his demise was imminent with the turning to other gods. Further historical record includes 2nd Chronicles 9:13 KJV, “Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred and threescore and six talents of gold; 14 Beside that which chapmen and merchants brought. And all the kings of Arabia and governors of the country brought gold and silver to Solomon. 15 And king Solomon made two hundred targets of beaten gold: six hundred shekels of beaten gold went to one target. 16 And three hundred shields made he of beaten gold: three hundred shekels of gold went to one shield. And the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon. 17 Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold. 18 And there were six steps to the throne, with a footstool of gold, which were fastened to the throne, and stays on each side of the sitting place, and two lions standing by the stays: 19 And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other upon the six steps. There was not the like made in any kingdom. 20 And all the drinking vessels of king Solomon were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold: none were of silver; it was not any thing accounted of in the days of Solomon. 21 For the king's ships went to Tarshish with the servants of Huram: every three years once came the ships of Tarshish bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks. 22 And king Solomon passed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom. 23 And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, that God had put in his heart. 24 And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and raiment, harness, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year. 25 And Solomon had four thousand stalls for horses and chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen; whom he bestowed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem. 26 And he reigned over all the kings from the river even unto the land of the Philistines, and to the border of Egypt. 27 And the king made silver in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar trees made he as the sycamore trees that are in the low plains in abundance. 28 And they brought unto Solomon horses out of Egypt, and out of all lands. 29 Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, first and last, are they not written in the book of Nathan the prophet, and in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the visions of Iddo the seer against Jeroboam the son of Nebat? 30 And Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years. 31 And Solomon slept with his fathers, and he was buried in the city of David his father:”. These verses expose that King Solomon disobeyed the Law for the Kings of Israel, cited early as Deuteronomy 17:14-20.
For the case of comparing King Solomon as being the Devil, the Fallen Angel, I will refer the reader to the Book of Ecclesiastes. A book that was written by King Solomon, explaining his point of view, about everything. It is up to the reader, as always, to determine whether they accept these conclusions of my observances as valid. As a matter of reference, the word “meaningless” is the first word of interest for peeling back a layer of King Solomon’s psyche and his inability to remain Humble before his Lord God. The following referenced verses, all taken from the Bible NIV, for purposes of simplification of illustration reasons;
Ecclesiastes 1:2, “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.” (Heck of a start from a Teacher. I prefer to call Jesus my Teacher)
Ecclesiastes 1:14, I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind. (He’s lost)
Ecclesiastes 2:1, I said to myself, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good.” But that also proved to be meaningless. (If he would have followed the Law for the Kings of Israel, he would have had a feeling of joy and accomplishment)
Ecclesiastes 2:11, Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun. (Didn’t realize the influence he had)
Ecclesiastes 2:15, Then I said to myself, “The fate of the fool will overtake me also. What then do I gain by being wise?” I said to myself, “This too is meaningless.” (He didn’t understand that learning from our mistakes was what was needed)
Ecclesiastes 2:17, So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. (He didn’t have a clue how close Israel was to leading the planet into Heaven on Earth)
Ecclesiastes 2:19, And who knows whether that person will be wise or foolish? Yet they will have control over all the fruit of my toil into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless. (It would have been an honor for him to have the Throne of David remain in Israel)
Ecclesiastes 2:21, For a person may labor with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then they must leave all they own to another who has not toiled for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune. (He must have felt that way about himself, since the Throne of David was handed down to him)
Ecclesiastes 2:23, All their days their work is grief and pain; even at night their minds do not rest. This too is meaningless. (Thank God for Jesus Christ)
Ecclesiastes 2:26, To the person who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. (Why is it meaningless when it is at God’s pleasure that he even had the Nation, Israel, as his to raise up before the Lord God)
Ecclesiastes 3:19, Surely the fate of human beings is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath ; humans have no advantage over animals. Everything is meaningless. (He thought of people as no better than animals)
Ecclesiastes 4:4, And I saw that all toil and all achievement spring from one person’s envy of another. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. (Thank God for Jesus Christ, His Love endures forever)
Ecclesiastes 4:7, Again I saw something meaningless under the sun: (Ok, what is it)
Ecclesiastes 4:8, There was a man all alone; he had neither son nor brother. There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth. “For whom am I toiling,” he asked, “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?” This too is meaningless— a miserable business! (With Jesus Christ, he could figure something out)
Ecclesiastes 4:16, There was no end to all the people who were before them. But those who came later were not pleased with the successor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. (Maybe mankind hadn’t started learning from their mistakes, still even after the Israelite suffered for their mistakes in the desert)
Ecclesiastes 5:7, Much dreaming and many words are meaningless. Therefore fear God. (Can’t argue with this. Even Jesus warned of the wordy prayer)
Ecclesiastes 5:10, Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. This too is meaningless. (The sole is satisfied with giving more so than hoarding wealth, this is why he felt this way)
Ecclesiastes 6:2, God gives some people wealth, possessions and honor, so that they lack nothing their hearts desire, but God does not grant them the ability to enjoy them, and strangers enjoy them instead. This is meaningless, a grievous evil. (Is he calling God evil)
Ecclesiastes 6:9, Better what the eye sees than the roving of the appetite. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
Ecclesiastes 6:12, For who knows what is good for a person in life, during the few and meaningless days they pass through like a shadow? Who can tell them what will happen under the sun after they are gone? (Depressing to read)
Ecclesiastes 7:6, Like the crackling of thorns under the pot, so is the laughter of fools. This too is meaningless. (I love a good laugh)
Ecclesiastes 7:15, In this meaningless life of mine I have seen both of these: the righteous perishing in their righteousness, and the wicked living long in their wickedness. (This is why we need to read the Bible, to learn from our mistakes, giving our lives meaning)
Ecclesiastes 8:10, Then too, I saw the wicked buried—those who used to come and go from the holy place and receive praise in the city where they did this. This too is meaningless. (if he witnessed these things why didn’t he intervene)
Ecclesiastes 8:14, There is something else meaningless that occurs on earth: the righteous who get what the wicked deserve, and the wicked who get what the righteous deserve. This too, I say, is meaningless. (He doesn’t rectify these problems to bring Israel about into being a better Nation)
Ecclesiastes 9:9, Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun—all your meaningless days. For this is your lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun. (Not very supportive)
Ecclesiastes 11:8, However many years anyone may live, let them enjoy them all. But let them remember the days of darkness, for there will be many. Everything to come is meaningless. (The future is bleak)
Ecclesiastes 11:10, So then, banish anxiety from your heart and cast off the troubles of your body, for youth and vigor are meaningless. (The Lord God says that when the day comes, every knee is bent for Him, and at that time people won’t age and will be as youths at 100 years old. Rare for anyone to die young. This is the one I believe in, even though I may not physically benefit as they)
Ecclesiastes 12:8, “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher.“Everything is meaningless!” (Read the Four Gospels to find out what Jesus says about Teachers)
King Solomon missed the point completely. He became self absorbed, a narcissist! The point that he missed is the one that was made when God didn’t allow the original slaves of the Israelite to enter the Promised Land. King Solomon didn’t understand that even though Israel never fully complied with God’s demands, God was Patient. God would accept being acknowledged as a Just and Powerful Lord. If King Solomon would have fulfilled the Law for the Kings of Israel, I doubt that he would have become the confused and deluded person that he became. The Lord Loved the Israelite so much that silver was more abundant than stones on the ground. The Richest Nation ever or since. Well the Planet has paid ever since. All they needed to do was acknowledge God the way He wanted. He is a Good and Loving God. He is a Fair and Just God. I think God wants us to become more concise in our acknowledgment of Him. One way, I believe is by understanding that the only begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ, is the Ruler of all Nature, God’s Creation (Revelation 3:14 NIV and John 1:3 NIV). I will end with this question, are you going to be more intelligent by reading the Bible or not?
