Why is 666 the number of the Devil?
Pauline Russack, Northampton

In the Book of Revelation “six hundred threescore and six” is “the number of the beast” which blasphemed against God, but the association with the Devil may be more figurative. The number 666 is perhaps the best-known example of that cod-science, numerology, in which any combination of numbers and letters ascribed numerical values can be shown to have bogus significance. One 16th-century numerologist decoded it as a reference to Pope Leo X and another as referring to Martin Luther. As the former decoder was a Protestant and the latter a Roman Catholic the implication that the target of each was seen as “the Devil” is all too obvious.
Ray Long, London, SW16

The only reference to the number 666 in the Bible is in the Book of Revelation, XIII, 18: “Let the one that has intelligence calculate the number of the wild beast, for it is a man’s number; and its number is six hundred and sixty-six.” The Book of Revelation uses numbers in a symbolic way, eg, the number 7 signifies completeness, perfection as to God’s purposes. Number 6 stands for imperfection, something not normal, something monstrous. So the number 6 falls short of seven, which stands for completeness from God’s standpoint. In this verse the number 666 doesn’t refer to the Devil but to “the wild beast”. The wild beast in this verse symbolises human government under the control of the Devil.
Hannah Wardle, Glasgow

Not the Devil, but the number that the author of the Book of Revelation attributed to a man who would rule the whole earth in the end times (13:18 Rev). It is meant as a clue, but only to those who understood that, in Hebrew, numbers were assigned letters (gematria) and so a name could be a number.

Because he thought that he was living in the end times, it is almost certain that the author intended to indicate the name of a person living at the time. Consequently 666 has been identified with the numerical values of the names of a variety of personalities from Caligula and Nero Caesar onwards. Most think that Nero was intended.

In Hebrew, numbers have a mystical significance and the number six is associated with mankind.

A triple six emphasised the humanity of this “beast”, the Devil’s representative.
Steuart Campbell, Edinburgh

If I put a lamp in front of a mirror will I double the light?
John Unsworth, Sheffield

From the white cliffs above Dover I can often see France quite clearly. On other occasions on a bright day with a clear blue sky all I see is a sharp horizon but no France. How can this be?
Dave Kitson, Carcassonne, France

We are regularly told that during the Second World War the nation was fed on whale meat and snoek. It is my recollection that both of these were in fact introduced on a large scale after the war had ended. Is there any firm evidence as to when these delicacies were first made available in Britain?
Peter Neufeld, Sidcup, Kent

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