‘Close but no Cigar’
The identification of 666 with Nero has long been a favorite conclusion among scholars, particularly within the realm of textual criticism and historical analysis. This solution rests on the practice of gematria, the numerical value of letters, whereby the Hebrew rendering of “Nero Caesar” (Neron Kesar נרון קסר) sums to 666. While compelling, this interpretation is ultimately too easy and fails to capture the fuller depth of what the number signifies. It is not just about Nero, nor merely about a single historical tyrant, but rather a pattern, a recurring distortion of divine truth that finds its origins in a much deeper theological controversy—one that extends to the Telyia story, the accusations against Yeshu HaNotzri, and the manipulation of his identity in Jewish polemics and later Gnostic traditions.
The gematria of 666 is not a cipher for a single man but a hook, a vav, the nail that links multiple narratives together. If one stops at Nero, one misses the entire cosmic deception that was unfolding—one that distorted Jesus of Nazareth into a false image, conflating him with other figures, particularly Jose Pandera and Ben Stada. This misidentification not only muddied historical truth but also fed into later legends of Jesus being married to Mary Magdalene, an idea rooted in confusion between Yeshu and Jose Pandera. More significantly, the number 666 as applied to Yeshu HaNotzri in gematria reveals a deeper connection to the Beast with seven heads and ten crowns—pointing to Esau’s nail (vav), the hook that distorts and counterfeits the true Messiah.
The ‘Hung One’ who Rome says is
St. Peter on the Duomo in Milan.
There is something deeper to this.
The Original in Duomo Museum
In addition, the declaration “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree” (Deuteronomy 21:23) carries profound theological and historical significance, particularly in the Roman weaponization of crucifixion. In Jewish law, public execution by hanging on a tree was not only a death sentence but also a sign of divine rejection, making the executed person a symbol of shame and separation from God. The Romans, understanding the potency of this curse, exploited it by using crucifixion as a political and psychological tool to delegitimize their enemies, particularly Jewish rebels and messianic claimants.
By crucifying Jesus of Nazareth, Rome sought to not only physically eliminate him but also to cast him as a false messiah, one abandoned by God, reinforcing the imperial narrative that resistance was futile and divinely condemned. Paul, however, in Galatians 3:13, subverts this Roman and legalistic interpretation by declaring that Jesus took upon himself the curse of the Law to redeem those under it—transforming what was meant as a mark of divine judgment into a sign of divine victory. Yet this Roman manipulation of Jewish theology did not end with the crucifixion; it laid the foundation for later distortions, from Jewish polemics like the Telyia story to Gnostic reinterpretations, ensuring that even after his death, Jesus’ identity remained a battleground.
Yeshu HaNotzri, Ben Stada, and Jose Pandera: The Confusion in the Telyia
The Talmudic traditions surrounding Yeshu HaNotzri (ישו הנצרי) and Ben Stada (בן סטדא) present a complex web of polemical responses to Jesus of Nazareth. In the Babylonian Talmud (Sanhedrin 67a), Ben Stada is associated with sorcery and accused of learning magic in Egypt. His mother is called Miriam, sometimes linked to Magdala, creating confusion with Mary Magdalene. Yet the Talmud also mentions Jose Pandera as an individual involved with Miriam, possibly suggesting that the figure of Ben Stada and Yeshu HaNotzri were conflated in later traditions.
The distortion here is critical: it creates an alternative lineage for Jesus, placing him as an illegitimate child, the product of a Roman soldier rather than a divine conception. The Telyia (the hanged one), a reference to Jesus’ crucifixion, thus becomes embedded within a framework designed to delegitimize his claims to messianic authority. This distortion of his identity then reemerges later in Gnostic and heterodox Christian traditions, where Jesus is often depicted as married to Mary Magdalene—a concept that likely arose from the mistaken identification of Miriam of Magdala with Miriam, the mother of Ben Stada.
But this misidentification is more than an error—it is a carefully placed hook, a nail of Esav (Edom), designed to obscure the true messianic lineage and create an alternative narrative that would lead both Jews and Christians astray.
The Nail of Esav: The Gematria of Yeshu HaNotzri and the Beast
In Revelation 13:1, the Beast is described as having seven heads and ten crowns. The number 666 is given as its mark, a signature of corruption and false authority. While Nero’s association with this number is well-documented, the deeper revelation lies in the gematria of Yeshu HaNotzri (ישו הנצרי), which connects him to this same imagery.
When one calculates the numerical value:
Yeshu HaNotzri (ישו הנצרי) = 666 in certain calculations.
Seven heads, ten crowns—the distortion of divine governance, a counterfeit authority.
The number 666 in this case does not merely point to a historical tyrant but to a system of falsification, a false Christology that reappears in different ages under different forms. It is the nail (ו), the hook of Esav, which seeks to redefine the true Messiah and replace him with a counterfeit—whether that counterfeit is Nero, a Romanized Jesus, or a reinterpreted Gnostic Christ.
Esav (Esau or Christianty as Edom) is emblematic of the adversarial power that seeks to distort the inheritance of Jacob. He is the older brother, the firstborn who sells his birthright, and in this way, he mirrors the distortion of Jesus’ true identity. The nail of Esav is the mechanism by which false messianic claims are inserted into history, shaping narratives that lead away from the truth.
The Larger Picture: A Counterfeit Christology and Its Legacy
The misidentification of Jesus in the Telyia story, the conflation with Jose Pandera, and the evolution of these distortions into medieval and modern theories about Jesus’ relationship with Mary Magdalene are all symptoms of the same problem: the attempt to redefine the Messiah in a way that suits the world’s agenda. The Beast of Revelation is not just Rome—it is a system of false messianic claims, of counterfeit religious authority, of theological deception.
Nero is a piece of the puzzle, but stopping at him is like seeing only the shadow and not the object casting it. The real struggle is one of identity—who is the true Messiah, and how has his image been distorted? The gematria of Yeshu HaNotzri connects him to the Beast, not because Jesus himself is the Beast, but because the distorted image of him—the counterfeit Christ—has been used as a tool of deception throughout history.
This is why stopping at Nero is too easy. The real question is: Who is behind the distortion? The vav of Esav, the nail of falsification, continues to drive itself into history, obscuring the truth. But those who seek the true Messiah must look beyond the distortions, beyond the hooks placed in the narrative, and see the revelation that was from the beginning.
