666 Talents of Gold

Q

I ran across 1 Kings 10:14 and was curious about 666 talents of gold. This seems ominous. Could you please elaborate???

A

I don’t think there’s any sinister intent connected with the number 666 in this passage. Remember the context is King Solomon’s splendor. 666 talents of gold was his annual salary. In today’s market it would be equal to just over $1 billion, 33 million dollars. 6 being the number of man, perhaps the Israelites thought this was the maximum salary a man could earn. Even today it’s an incredible amount, and remember this was all cash, and it was tax free. Has any other man ever earned so much?