theLAB

The Logos Academic Blog

The Covid Vaccine has 666 Written All Over It…and Why that Doesn’t Matter According to Revelation

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by Matthew L. Halsted, PhD

In an article published last week on theLAB, COVID-19 and The Mark of the Beast, I claimed that the mark of the beast (666) is most likely not a physical or visible mark (Rev. 13:16). The biggest objection I received from readers had to do with this very point: how could the mark be non-physical and invisible if having the mark was what allowed people to “buy or sell” things (Rev. 13:17)? Wouldn’t the mark need to be visible in order to do that? Furthermore, isn’t there enough evidence that the vaccine is the “number” of the beast, including a bill currently before the House of Representatives (6666) and the very letters “C-O-R-O-N-A” themselves?1 These are good questions, and I think a response would be helpful. But first, we need to start from square one and do some background work.

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COVID-19 and The Mark of the Beast

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Watching the news a few days ago, I saw photos and videos of those protesting the COVID-19 quarantine on full display. I’m growing weary of how certain biblical texts are attached to certain political movements and demonstrations—texts that are, quite frankly, misused and misunderstood. Sadly, Christianity ends up getting misrepresented in the process.

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Logos Responds to COVID-19 with Thousands of Free Resources: the Remote Learning Library

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Logos has just created the Remote Learning Library in response to the COVID-19 crisis. Knowing that thousands of students are now restricted to studying from home, we are making thousands of resources freely available to faculty and students worldwide. Here are the details:

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Finally available for Logos Bible Software: Texte aus der Umwelt des Alten Testaments (TUAT)

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At long last, Logos Bible Software (Faithlife.com) has managed to integrate an outstanding resource, “Texte aus der Umwelt des Alten Testaments” (TUAT), into its electronic library. One meter of shelf space in printed books has become available on PCs, laptops, or smartphones, to be searched from a computer, and to be copied and cited for one’s own research. 

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Grammatical Aspect and Lexical “Aktionsartpotential”: Some Basic Observations

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From the cover of Siebenthal’s Ancient Greek Grammar for the Study of the New Testament. Source: Peter Lang.

Part 3 of the series Observations from a Linguistic Spectator: An Annual Report. See also Part 1 and Part 2.

From events to verbs

As announced in my last blog post, I want to explore now in more detail the lexical semantics and the lexicography of Greek verbs. Verbs express events or “situations” as we call them on the most general level. We probably all have an intuitive understanding of what events/situations are: something that happens in the real world at a given point in time. We perceive these events and interpret them and give them a specific shape on a conceptual level.

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a priori: Gideon Sam’s Work on Destitution and Hunger in Luke

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A Priori is a new series on the theLAB in which we put three simple questions to scholars undertaking important research in biblical studies, theology, ethics, and more. We seek out the authors who may be poised for future renown at this early stage in their career, whose mission is the church, whose vocation is research. This week we hear from Gideon Sam and his work on destitution and hunger in the Gospel of Luke.

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Beyond ‘Us’ and ‘Them’: Lynn Cohick on Teaching with a Spirit of Mutuality and Authenticity

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How do we teach well amid the volatile social climate of our world today? How should educators from Western nations interact with scholars around the globe? And what can seminary professors do to confront racism and sexism in the classroom? These questions arose during the recent conversation between Cohick and Didaktikos editor Douglas Estes.

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Lexical Semantics and Lexicography

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Part 2 of the series Observations from a Linguistic Spectator: An Annual Report.

For part 1, see here.

A Semiotic Framework

I’m going to cheat right away in this first post in this series that discusses an actual linguistic subject – quite a bit of what I discuss here isn’t that new to me. So it’s not really part of the honest annual report of new insights that I promised. Still, I feel like I have to include these considerations because in my experience this is perhaps the single issue where publications in biblical studies fail most often.

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a priori: David McCollough’s work on Identity Fusion in Luke-Acts

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A Priori is a recently launched series on the theLAB in which we put three simple questions to scholars undertaking important research in biblical studies, theology, ethics, and more. This week we hear from David McCollough and his social anthropological work, called Identity Fusion, in Luke-Acts.

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Best Resources for Studying New Testament Backgrounds and Context

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Image: © Tavis Bohlinger

One of the most important set of resources in which students of the Bible and pastors can invest is New Testament backgrounds and context. We will divide up our discussion into four categories.

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