I wanted to use this emoji from our covert ops...
Anyhow, check out this view from Arnold Fruchtenbaum that I found this morning:
"
Revelation 13:16–18—The Mark of the Beast
To counterfeit the seal of God on the foreheads of the saints, the false prophet will introduce his own seal, the infamous “mark of the beast” that will be placed on one’s forehead or right hand (v.
16). It will be given to all who subject themselves to the authority of the Antichrist and accept him as god and will serve as a passport for business (v.
17a). People will be unable to buy or sell anything unless they have the mark.
It should be pointed out that the verse does not speak of credit cards, banking systems, or a cashless society, as is often taught. In a credit or cashless system, everyone must have a different number; in this case, everyone has the same number. The purpose of the mark is to serve as an identification of those who own the Antichrist as their god.
Five clues describe the mark (vv.
17b–18):
• It is the name of the beast.I
• It is the number of his name.
• It is the number of the beast.
• It is the number of a man.
• The number is 666.
The number of the Beast is also the number of a man because the Antichrist will be a man who will be the last ruler of the final form of the fourth Gentile empire. Furthermore, the numerical value of the Antichrist’s name in Hebrew will be 666.5 There are 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet, and in the order of numerical value they are as follows: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, 200, 300, and 400. So everyone’s name in Hebrew has a numerical value. The value of the author’s name is 966. The name of Jesus the Messiah has the numerical value of 749. In this passage, the Antichrist’s personal name will have the numerical value of 666, and this is the number that will be put on the worshipers of the Antichrist. Since several different calculations can equal 666, it is impossible to figure out the name in advance. But when the Antichrist does appear, those who are wise will be able to point him out (v.
18)." (emphasis mine)