Legions of metalheads who’ve saluted “the number of the beast” may need to subtract 50 from the numeral that adorns their notebook doodlings, T-shirts and tattoos.
A newly discovered fragment of the Book of Revelation challenges the conventional belief that the Antichrist’s mark is 666, indicating instead that it is 616. Expert classicists used multi-spectral imaging to get a better view of the text, which is written in archaic Greek and dates to the late third century.
“It is clearly an important new manuscript, giving us a relatively very early copy of the text of Revelation,” said Christopher Tuckett, a theology professor at Oxford University’s Pembroke College. “It is probably not the earliest manuscript of Revelation that we have … but this is the first time [the 616 reading] has been found in such an early text.”
Fear of 666 is so extensive it actually has a name — hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia — and has inspired everything from televangelist speeches to Hollywood films. …
So, as NewMexiKen has asked before, can we change the name of the highway back now?
Thanks to Reecie for the link (in her comment to the entry below).