I was telling my friend about my collecting strategy for ancient coins, in that each had to have an interesting story. To give her an example, I told her about my Nero denarius and put it into historical context, with Nero's gluttony and obesity, the Jewish revolts, and some theories I had read about the origins and meanings of the number 666 representing the antichrist. When I was done, she was so engrossed in the story that she had forgotten that it was all tied to the coin. When I brought the coin back up, she was amazed that so much history was packed into a little round metal disk. My friend had no interest in collecting coins, but I think enamoring friends/spouses/kids/etc. with interesting stories is the way to spark an interest or respect for our passion.
This is the theory I read: Revelations was written by the apostle John in Greek. However, "666" was written with the Hebrew numerical system. So why the discrepancy? Some believe that John was referring to Nero Caesar, whose name, when spelled out in Hebrew, summed up to 666 in the Hebrew numerical system. It may be far-fetched, but here is a clincher: the Hebrew way of spelling Nero was the equivalent of Nron, pronounced "Neron" (If I remember correctly). Some felt it should be spelled Nro, pronounced "Nero." When this change is made, the sum is now 616, which is what some scholars claim is the symbol of the antichrist. Does this mean Nero was the antichrist described by John? If so, then the book of Revelation was inspired by man, not God. However it could also symbolize that an oppressing tyrant like Nero will be the antichrist. Coincidence? Maybe. But still interesting.
If John wrote Revelations while exiled on the island of Patmos (the author claims this in the text) by Domition then Nero would have been dead for well over a decade. This doesn't mean he wasn't still referring to Nero (zombie Nero sounds pretty apocalyptic to me ) but it's hard to say if that's the case. Interesting theory though! I often wish more ancient documents had survived the Middle Ages for just these kinds of interesting questions.
