wisdom

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The Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek that is translated as “wisdom” in English is rendered in Amganad Ifugao and Tabasco Chontal as “(big) mind,” in Bulu and Yamba as “heart-thinking,” in Tae’ as “cleverness of heart” (source for this and all above: Reiling / Swellengrebel), in Palauan as “bright spirit (innermost)” (source: Bratcher / Hatton), in Ixcatlán Mazatec as “with your best/biggest thinking” (source: Robert Bascom), in Noongar as dwangka-boola, lit. “ear much” (source: Portions of the Holy Bible in the Nyunga language of Australia, 2018 — see also remember), and in Dobel, it is translated with the idiom “their ear holes are long-lasting” (in Acts 6:3) (source: Jock Hughes).

See also wisdom (Proverbs).

complete verse (Revelation 13:18)

Following are a number of back-translations of Revelation 13:18:

  • Uma: “We must ask for wisdom [lit., clearness of heart] from God so that we understand this figure-of-speech. Whoever has knowledge, they are able count and to understand the number of that animal. Because that number, it is the number that is a figure-of-speech for a person. That number: six hundred sixty-six (666).” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “It is difficult to find the meaning of this number. But whoever has wisdom, he can figure out what the meaning of this creature’s number is. Because it is a person’s name. This number is six hundred and sixty-six.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “The only one who can understand this is the one given wisdom by God. He who has a good head can understand the meaning of this number of the beast because it is the number of a person. That number is six hundred and sixty-six.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “It requires a wise/intelligent person to know/discover the meaning/significance of the number of the fearsome animal. But the one who has wisdom/intelligence, he will be able to calculate the meaning of the number, because the number, that’s the hiding-place of the person’s name. The number, it is six hundred and sixty six.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Well, this can only be comprehended if there is big wisdom/understanding. For it is indeed possible that those having understanding can know the meaning of this number, which signifies the name of that animal. Because this is the name of a man/male, this number six hundred and sixty six.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “A person should think carefully to understand this word here. He should figure how much the number is that comes from the name of the terrible animal. The number is that which accompanies the name of a person This number is 666.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Revelation 13:18

This calls for wisdom: here the writer is addressing his readers (see a similar statement at the end of 13.10), and the exhortation may be made more directly in translation: “You must be wise in order to understand this (or, to figure this out).” But it is possible to take this as an affirmation, “Here is wisdom,” that is, the key to understanding the true meaning of the beast. Most translations, however, understand this as an exhortation. For the translation of wisdom see 5.12. Calls for wisdom may also be rendered as “One must use wisdom (or, great understanding)” or “It is necessary to have wisdom for this.”

Let him who has understanding reckon: this is the way in English to express a command. Another way is “Whoever has sense (or, understanding) must figure out what the number of the beast means.”

It is a human number: this is the writer’s way of telling the readers that the number stands for the name of some person. Good News Translation “stands for” means “represents.”

Six hundred and sixty-six: there are many interpretations of the name represented by the number 666. The most widely accepted one is that it stands for the Roman Emperor Nero. Written in Hebrew letters, the numerical value of the letters of the (Latin) name “Neron Caesar” adds up to 666. Some commentators are of the opinion that no one specific person was in the writer’s mind, but that by 666 the writer meant total imperfection. Number six is one short of the perfect seven, and three indicates completeness, so the imperfect number six given three times symbolizes “complete imperfection.” But the way in which the writer states the matter makes it quite probable that he had some historical person in mind. In languages where, for example, there are only two numerals, and any amount above two is thought of as “many,” translators will have to be very creative here. It may in fact in some languages be impossible to accurately represent 666.

As the RSV footnote shows, one Greek manuscript and a few ancient versions have 616, but 666 is the better attested text.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Revelation to John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .