The Hebrew letters are used for numbers, [[Hebrew numbers | each letter having a numeric value]]. The name of the letter can be spelled out, and so the name has a number also. It is the number of the name that John refers to when John speaks of the beast. ([[Re 13.17]]) The letters are added together by their value. The name of the letter is often a word or subroot in it's own right. The word alef has a meaning coincidentally of 'one thousand' which reduces to 1. To reduce a number, add the values of the digits together. If the sum has more than one digit, then add them together until a single digit remains. The letter bet has a value of 2, a name value of 402 which reduces to 6, a dictionary meaning of daughter, and a hieroglyphic meaning of “revelation to man”.