13:17a–b

the name of the beast or the number of its name:
The Berean Standard Bible uses a long dash after 13:17a to indicate that 13:17b explains that the mark was the beast’s name or the number of its name. In some languages a literal translation would wrongly indicate that there are other marks that John was thinking of and only this one was the beast’s name or the number of its name. If that is true in your language, translate this clause so that it tells more about this mark. One way to do that is to start a new sentence here. For example:

It is the name of the beast or the number of his name.

the name of the beast: This phrase refers to name of the first beast.

the number of its name: There are many ways to interpret this phrase. Some possibilities are:

(1) It indicates that the number in 13:18d is strictly symbolic. For example, three sixes may refer to three beings, namely, the dragon and the two beasts. They always fall short of God and perfection, often represented by the number seven.

(2) Add up the numbers of the beast’s name based on a numbering system using the Greek or Hebrew alphabet. The total would be 666.

(3) Each number represents a Greek letter (“Α” = 1, “Β” = 2, and so forth). One possible solution for “666” would be “ZZZ” in the Greek alphabet. This would be the initials of the beast’s name.

You should translate this phrase so that it allows these interpretations. For example:

the number that stands for the name (Good News Translation)

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