616 (number) i.e. (2!)² + (3!)² + (4!)² = 4+36+576=616. 666 is generally believed to have been the original Number of the Beast in the Book of Revelation in the Christian Bible. In 2005, however, a fragment of papyrus 115 was revealed, containing the earliest known version of that part of the Book of Revelation discussing the Number of the Beast. It gave the number as 616, suggesting that this may have been the original. One possible explanation for the two different numbers is that they reflect two different spellings of Emperor Nero/Neron's name, for which (according to this theory) this number
The Number of the Beast (novel) plays into the ideology of "Thou Art God" from Heinlein's earlier work "Stranger in a Strange Land". Jack Kirwan wrote in the "National Review" that the novel is "about two men and two women in a time machine safari through this and other universes. But describing "The Number of the Beast" thus is like saying "Moby Dick" is about a one-legged guy trying to catch a fish". He goes on to say that Heinlein celebrates the "competent person". Sue K. Hurwitz said in her review for the "School Library Journal" that it is "a catalog of Heinlein's sins as an