Reference: Number
Fausets
After the captivity the Hebrew used the alphabet letters for numbers, 'Aleph (?) equalling 1; Bet[h] (?) equalling 2, etc.; Yod[h] (?) equalling 10; Qoph (?) equalling 100, etc. The final letters expressed 500 to 900; 'Aleph (?) + a line over it equalling 1000. Our manuscripts all write numbers at full length. But the variations make it likely that letters (which copyists could so easily mistake) originally were written for numbers: compare 2Ki 24:8 with 2Ch 36:9; Isa 7:8, where 65 is in one reading, 16 and 5 in another. 1Sa 6:19 has 50,070, but Syriac and Arabic 5070 (1Ki 4:26 with 2Ch 9:25). Numbers also have often a symbolical rather than a mere arithmetical value. But straining is to be avoided, and subtle trifling. The author's sense, history, the context, and the general analogy of the Scripture scheme as a whole are to be examined, in order to decide whether a figure is employed in a merely ordinary sense, or in an ordinary and symbolical, or in an exclusively symbolical sense.
Zechariah and Daniel dwell upon seven; Daniel and Revelation use several numbers to "characterize periods", rather than indicate arithmetical duration. Science reveals in crystallization and chemical combinations what an important part number plays in the proportion of combining molecules of organic and inorganic life.
Two notes "intensification" (Ge 41:32), "requital in full" (Job 42:10; Jer 16:18; Isa 61:7; Re 18:6); the proportions of the temple were double those of the tabernacle; two especially symbolizes "testimony" (Zec 4:11; 11:7; Isa 8:2; Re 11:3), two tables of the testimony (Ex 31:18), two cherubim over the ark of the testimony. God is His own witness; but that witness is twofold, "His word and His oath" (Heb 6:13,17), "Himself and His Son" (Joh 8:18).
Three, like seven, is "a divine number". The Trinity (Re 1:4; 4:8); three great feasts (Ex 23:14-17; De 16:16); the threefold blessing (Nu 6:14,24); the thrice holy (Isa 6:3); the three hours of prayer (Da 6:10; Ps 55:17); the third heaven (2Co 12:2). Christ is "the Way, the Truth, the Life," "Prophet, Priest, and King." The threefold theophany (Ge 18:2; 1Sa 3:4,6,8; Ac 10:16).
The number 3 1/2, one-half of 7, is "a period of evil cut short", shortened for the elect's sake (Mt 24:22; Jas 5:17, three years' and a half drought in Israel; Lu 4:25; Re 11:2-3,9; 12:6). Da 7:25; 12:7, time, times, and a half, 1,260 days, three days and a half. The 42 months (30 days in each) answer to the 1,260 days; three years and a half equals 1,260 days (360 in each year). Probably the 1,260 years of the papal rule date from A.D. 754, when his temporal power began, and end 2014. (See ANTICHRIST.)
At the close of spurious Christianity's long rule open antichristianity and persecution will prevail for the three years and a half before the millennium. Witnessing churches will be followed by witnessing individuals, even as the apostate church will give place to the personal man of sin (Da 7:25; Re 11:2-3). The 2,300 (Da 8:14) years may date from Alexander's conquests (323 B.C.), and end about the same time as the 1,260, namely, 1977. The 1,290 (Da 12:11-12) and 1,335 days correspond to 1290, during which Antiochus Epiphanes profaned the temple, from the month Ijar, 145th year of the era of the Seleucidae, to Judas Maccabeus' restoration of worship, the 25th day of the ninth month Chisleu, 148th year (1Ma 1:54; 1Ma 4:52-56); in 45 days more Antiochus died, ending the Jews' calamities; in all 1,335. Again, 1,260, 1,290 and 1,335 may be counted from Mahomet's retirement to the cave, A.D. 606-610, and his flight from Mecca, 622: these figures added may mark the closing epochs of Mahometan power.
Again, the 2,300 may be the years between 480 B.C., the time of Xerxes' invasion of Greece (Da 11:2), and A.D. 1820, when Ali Pasha cast off the yoke of the Porte and precipitated the Greek revolution. Thirdly, the 2,300 may date from Antichrist's profanation (Da 9:27). After the 1,260 days Jesus in person will deliver the Jews; during the 30 more their consciences are awakened to penitent faith, making 1,290; in 45 more Israel's outcasts are gathered, and the united blessing descends. These all are conjectures. Evidently these numbers symbolize the long "Gentile times" from the overthrow of Judah's kingdom by Babylon, and of Jerusalem by Titus, down to the restoration of the theocracy in Him "whose right it is" (Eze 21:27). The seven times of Israel's punishment (Le 26:18,21-24) are the times of the Gentile monarchies; the seven times of antichrist's tyranny in the Holy Land will be the recapitulation and open consummation of what is as yet "the mystery of iniquity."
The three and a half during which the two witnesses prophesy in sackcloth is the sacred seven halved, for the antichristian world powers' time is broken at best, and is followed immediately by judgment on them. It answers to the three years and a half of Christ's witness for the truth, when the Jews disowned and the God-opposed world power crucified Him (Da 9:27). He died in the midst of the last of the 70 weeks; the three and a half which seemed the world's triumph over Him was immediately followed by their defeat in His resurrection (Joh 12:31). The world powers never reach the sacred fullness of seven times 360, i.e. 2,520, though they approach it in the 2,300 (Da 8:14). The 42 months answer to Israel's 42 sojournings in the desert (Nu 33:1-50), contrasted with the sabbatic rest of Canaan. Three and a half represents "the church's time of toil, pilgrimage, persecution". Three and a half is "the antagonism to seven".
Four symbolizes "worldwide extension". The four winds and quarters of the earth (Re 7:1; Da 7:2). The four living creatures or cherubim with four wings and four faces (Eze 1:5, etc.; Re 4:6, in contrast to the four beasts, Daniel 7; Da 2:40 the four kingdoms); Eden's four streams (Ge 2:10; Eze 40:47). Four expresses "the spread of God's kingdom over the earth". As Christ's seamless vest marks its unity, so the rending of the outer garment into four by the four Roman soldiers symbolizes its ultimate worldwide extension (Joh 19:23-24). The numbers especially symbolical are 3, 4, 7, 10, 12, 40; 6 is so because coming short of the "sacred" 7, 8 as coming after 7 and introducing "a new series or era".
Three and a half is seven broken in two. The Bible begins with seven days, and ends with a succession of sevens. Seven represents "rest and release from toil", also "a divine work", in judgment or mercy or revelation (Ge 4:24; 41:3,7; Mt 18:22; Ex 7:25). Le 26:18, "I will punish you seven times more for your sins," Le 26:21-24,28; Isa 4:1; 11:15; 2Sa 24:13. Da 4:16,25, "seven times shall pass over thee" (Nebuchadnezzar). Re 15:1, "the seven last plagues." "divine fullness and completeness" is the thing signified; as Re 1:4, "the seven spirits ... before His throne" are "the one Holy Spirit in His manifold fullness"; Isa 11:2-3 corresponds.
So in offerings and divine rites: Le 12:2,5; 13:4,6,21-26,31,33,50,54; 14:7-9,16,27,38,51; 15:13,19/type/ylt'>19,28; 16:14,19/type/ylt'>19; Nu 12:14; 2Ki 5:10,14. The seven days' grace (Ge 7:1-10); and at the taking of Jericho (Jos 5:13-6:20); the antitype, spiritual Babylon, shall fall at the sounding of the seventh trumpet (Re 11:13,15; 14:8). The sevenfold candlestick (Ex 25:37), the seven churches corresponding (Re 1:12,20), the seven deacons (Acts 6), the sevenfold ministry (12/type/ylt'>Romans 12; 1 Corinthians 12). Seven prayers are given in full in the Old Testament. (See PRAYER.) Seven petitions of the Lord's prayer in the New Testament. The seven beatitudes (Matthew 5; Ps 12:7). Satan mimics the "divine" seven (Pr 6:16; 26:25): Mary Magdalene's seven devils (Mr 16:9; Lu 8:2); the unclean spirit returning with seven (Mt 12:45); the seven Canaanite nations subdued by Israel (De 7:1; Ac 13:19); the dragon with seven heads and seven crowns (Re 12:3; Nu 23:1).
Eight begins a new era and life after the seven has been completed (Ex 22:30; Le 9:1; 22:27). Lepers are reinstated on the eighth day (Le 14:10; 15:13,29). Circumcision on the eighth day begins a new life in the covenant. The eighth day after the seven of the feast of tabernacles (Le 23:36). From the eighth day, when the
See Verses Found in Dictionary
These are births of the heavens and of the earth in their being prepared, in the day of Jehovah God's making earth and heavens;
And a river is going out from Eden to water the garden, and from thence it is parted, and hath become four chief rivers;
For sevenfold is required for Cain, And for Lamech seventy and sevenfold.'
For sevenfold is required for Cain, And for Lamech seventy and sevenfold.'
This is an account of the births of Adam: In the day of God's preparing man, in the likeness of God He hath made him;
These are births of Noah: Noah is a righteous man; perfect he hath been among his generations; with God hath Noah walked habitually.
And Jehovah saith to Noah, 'Come in, thou and all thy house, unto the ark, for thee I have seen righteous before Me in this generation; of all the clean beasts thou dost take to thee seven pairs, a male and its female; and of the beasts which are not clean two, a male and its female; read more. also, of fowl of the heavens seven pairs, a male and a female, to keep alive seed on the face of all the earth; for after other seven days I am sending rain on the earth forty days and forty nights, and have wiped away all the substance that I have made from off the face of the ground.'
for after other seven days I am sending rain on the earth forty days and forty nights, and have wiped away all the substance that I have made from off the face of the ground.' And Noah doth according to all that Jehovah hath commanded him: read more. and Noah is a son of six hundred years, and the deluge of waters hath been upon the earth. And Noah goeth in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him, unto the ark, from the presence of the waters of the deluge; of the clean beasts and of the beasts that are not clean, and of the fowl, and of every thing that is creeping upon the ground, two by two they have come in unto Noah, unto the ark, a male and a female, as God hath commanded Noah. And it cometh to pass, after the seventh of the days, that waters of the deluge have been on the earth.
and the shower is on the earth forty days and forty nights.
And the deluge is forty days on the earth, and the waters multiply, and lift up the ark, and it is raised up from off the earth;
And these are births of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth; and born to them are sons after the deluge.
These are births of Shem: Shem is a son of an hundred years, and begetteth Arphaxad two years after the deluge.
And these are births of Terah: Terah hath begotten Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran hath begotten Lot;
and blessed is God Most High, who hath delivered thine adversaries into thy hand;' and he giveth to him a tenth of all.
and he lifteth up his eyes and looketh, and lo, three men standing by him, and he seeth, and runneth to meet them from the opening of the tent, and boweth himself towards the earth,
And these are births of Ishmael, Abraham's son, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah's handmaid, hath borne to Abraham;
These are births of Jacob: Joseph, a son of seventeen years, hath been enjoying himself with his brethren among the flock, (and he is a youth,) with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives, and Joseph bringeth in an account of their evil unto their father.
and lo, seven other kine are coming up after them out of the River, of bad appearance, and lean in flesh, and they stand near the kine on the edge of the River,
and the thin ears swallow the seven fat and full ears -- and Pharaoh awaketh, and lo, a dream.
'And because of the repeating of the dream unto Pharaoh twice, surely the thing is established by God, and God is hastening to do it.
And the sons of Joseph who have been born to him in Egypt are two persons. All the persons of the house of Jacob who are coming into Egypt are seventy.
And the dwelling of the sons of Israel which they have dwelt in Egypt is four hundred and thirty years; and it cometh to pass, at the end of four hundred and thirty years -- yea, it cometh to pass in this self-same day -- all the hosts of Jehovah have gone out from the land of Egypt.
'When a man doth steal an ox or sheep, and hath slaughtered it or sold it, five of the herd he doth repay for the ox, and four of the flock for the sheep.
so thou dost to thine ox, to thy sheep; seven days it is with its dam, on the eighth day thou dost give it to Me.
'Three times thou dost keep a feast to Me in a year; the Feast of Unleavened things thou dost keep; seven days thou dost eat unleavened things, as I have commanded thee, at the time appointed in the month of Abib; for in it thou hast come forth out of Egypt, and ye do not appear in My presence empty; read more. and the Feast of Harvest, the first fruits of thy works which thou sowest in the field; and the Feast of the In-Gathering, in the outgoing of the year, in thy gathering thy works out of the field. 'Three times in a year do all thy males appear before the face of the Lord Jehovah.
And unto Moses He said, 'Come up unto Jehovah, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and ye have bowed yourselves afar off;'
and Moses goeth into the midst of the cloud, and goeth up unto the mount, and Moses is on the mount forty days and forty nights.
and thou hast made its seven lamps, and one hath caused its lights to go up, and it hath given light over-against its front.
And He giveth unto Moses, when He finisheth speaking with him in mount Sinai, two tables of the testimony, tables of stone, written by the finger of God.
And He giveth unto Moses, when He finisheth speaking with him in mount Sinai, two tables of the testimony, tables of stone, written by the finger of God.
'And that which he hath sinned against the holy thing he repayeth, and its fifth is adding to it, and hath given it to the priest, and the priest maketh atonement for him with the ram of the guilt-offering, and it hath been forgiven him.
And it cometh to pass on the eighth day, Moses hath called for Aaron and for his sons, and for the elders of Israel,
'Speak unto the sons of Israel, saying, A woman when she giveth seed, and hath born a male, then she hath been unclean seven days, according to the days of separation for her sickness she is unclean;
'And if a female she bear, then she hath been unclean two weeks, as in her separation; and sixty and six days she doth abide for the blood of her cleansing.
And if the bright spot is white in the skin of his flesh, and its appearance is not deeper than the skin, and its hair hath not turned white, then hath the priest shut up him who hath the plague seven days.
And the priest hath seen him on the second seventh day, and lo, the plague is become weak, and the plague hath not spread in the skin -- and the priest hath pronounced him clean, it is a scab, and he hath washed his garments, and hath been clean.
'And if the priest see it, and lo, there is no white hair in it, and it is not lower than the skin, and is become weak, then hath the priest shut him up seven days; and if it spread greatly in the skin, then hath the priest pronounced him unclean, it is a plague; read more. and if in its place the bright spot stay -- it hath not spread -- it is an inflammation of the ulcer; and the priest hath pronounced him clean. 'Or when flesh hath in its skin a fiery burning, and the quickening of the burning, the bright white spot, hath been very red or white, and the priest hath seen it, and lo, the hair hath turned white in the bright spot, and its appearance is deeper than the skin; leprosy it is, in the burning it hath broken out, and the priest hath pronounced him unclean; it is a plague of leprosy. 'And if the priest see it, and lo, there is no white hair on the bright spot, and it is not lower than the skin, and it is become weak, then the priest hath shut him up seven days;
And when the priest seeth the plague of the scall, and lo, its appearance is not deeper than the skin, and there is no black hair in it, then hath the priest shut up him who hath the plague of the scall seven days.
then he hath shaved himself, but the scall he doth not shave; and the priest hath shut up him who hath the scall a second seven days.
And the priest hath seen the plague, and hath shut up that which hath the plague, seven days;
then hath the priest commanded, and they have washed that in which the plague is, and he hath shut it up a second seven days.
and he hath sprinkled on him who is to be cleansed from the leprosy seven times, and hath pronounced him clean, and hath sent out the living bird on the face of the field. 'And he who is to be cleansed hath washed his garments, and hath shaved all his hair, and hath bathed with water, and hath been clean, and afterwards he doth come in unto the camp, and hath dwelt at the outside of his tent seven days. read more. And it hath been, on the seventh day -- he shaveth all his hair, his head, and his beard, and his eyebrows, even all his hair he doth shave, and he hath washed his garments, and hath bathed his flesh with water, and hath been clean. And on the eighth day he taketh two lambs, perfect ones, and one ewe-lamb, daughter of a year, a perfect one, and three tenth deals of flour for a present, mixed with oil, and one log of oil.
and the priest hath dipped his right finger in the oil which is on his left palm, and hath sprinkled of the oil with his finger seven times before Jehovah.
and the priest hath sprinkled with his right finger of the oil which is on his left palm, seven times before Jehovah.
and the priest hath gone out of the house unto the opening of the house, and hath shut up the house seven days.
and he hath taken the cedar wood, and the hyssop, and the scarlet, and the living bird, and hath dipped them in the blood of the slaughtered bird, and in the running water, and hath sprinkled upon the house seven times.
'And when he who hath the issue is clean from his issue, then he hath numbered to himself seven days for his cleansing, and hath washed his garments, and hath bathed his flesh with running water, and been clean.
'And when he who hath the issue is clean from his issue, then he hath numbered to himself seven days for his cleansing, and hath washed his garments, and hath bathed his flesh with running water, and been clean.
And when a woman hath an issue -- blood is her issue in her flesh -- seven days she is in her separation, and any one who is coming against her is unclean till the evening.
'And if she hath been clean from her issue, then she hath numbered to herself seven days, and afterwards she is clean; and on the eighth day she taketh to herself two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, and hath brought them in unto the priest, unto the opening of the tent of meeting;
'And he hath taken of the blood of the bullock, and hath sprinkled with his finger on the front of the mercy-seat eastward; even at the front of the mercy-seat he doth sprinkle seven times of the blood with his finger.
and he hath sprinkled on it of the blood with his finger seven times, and hath cleansed it, and hath hallowed it from the uncleannesses of the sons of Israel.
'When ox or lamb or goat is born, and it hath been seven days under its dam, then from the eighth day and henceforth, it is pleasing for an offering, a fire-offering to Jehovah;
then he hath waved the sheaf before Jehovah for your acceptance; on the morrow of the sabbath doth the priest wave it.
'And ye have numbered to you from the morrow of the sabbath, from the day of your bringing in the sheaf of the wave-offering: they are seven perfect sabbaths; unto the morrow of the seventh sabbath ye do number fifty days, and ye have brought near a new present to Jehovah;
seven days ye bring near a fire-offering to Jehovah, on the eighth day ye have a holy convocation, and ye have brought near a fire-offering to Jehovah; it is a restraint, ye do no servile work.
'And thou hast numbered to thee seven sabbaths of years, seven years seven times, and the days of the seven sabbaths of years have been to thee nine and forty years, and thou hast caused a trumpet of shouting to pass over in the seventh month, in the tenth of the month; in the day of the atonements ye do cause a trumpet to pass over through all your land;
And if unto these ye hearken not to Me, -- then I have added to chastise you seven times for your sins;
And if unto these ye hearken not to Me, -- then I have added to chastise you seven times for your sins;
And if ye walk with Me in opposition, and are not willing to hearken to Me, then I have added to you a plague seven times, according to your sins,
And if ye walk with Me in opposition, and are not willing to hearken to Me, then I have added to you a plague seven times, according to your sins, and sent against you the beast of the field, and it hath bereaved you; and I have cut off your cattle, and have made you few, and your ways have been desolate.
and sent against you the beast of the field, and it hath bereaved you; and I have cut off your cattle, and have made you few, and your ways have been desolate. And if by these ye are not instructed by Me, and have walked with Me in opposition,
And if by these ye are not instructed by Me, and have walked with Me in opposition, then I have walked -- I also -- with you in opposition, and have smitten you, even I, seven times for your sins;
then I have walked -- I also -- with you in opposition, and have smitten you, even I, seven times for your sins;
then I have walked with you in the fury of opposition, and have chastised you, even I, seven times for your sins.
and he hath brought near his offering to Jehovah, one he-lamb, a son of a year, a perfect one, for a burnt-offering, and one she-lamb, a daughter of a year, a perfect one, for a sin-offering, and one ram, a perfect one, for peace-offerings,
And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou hast known that they are elders of the people, and its authorities; and thou hast taken them unto the tent of meeting, and they have stationed themselves there with thee,
And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'And her father had but spat in her face -- is she not ashamed seven days? she is shut out seven days at the outside of the camp, and afterwards she is gathered.'
And they go and come in unto Moses, and unto Aaron, and unto all the company of the sons of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and they bring them and all the company back word, and shew them the fruit of the land.
by the number of the days in which ye spied the land, forty days, -- a day for a year, a day for a year -- ye do bear your iniquities, forty years, and ye have known my breaking off;
And their ransomed ones from a son of a month, thou dost ransom with thy valuation, of silver, five shekels, by the shekel of the sanctuary, twenty gerahs it is.
And Balaam saith unto Balak, 'Build for me in this place seven altars, and make ready for me in this place seven bullocks and seven rams.'
These are journeys of the sons of Israel who have come out of the land of Egypt, by their hosts, by the hand of Moses and Aaron; and Moses writeth their outgoings, by their journeys, by the command of Jehovah; and these are their journeys, by their outgoings: read more. And they journey from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month, on the morrow of the passover have the sons of Israel gone out with a high hand, before the eyes of all the Egyptians -- and the Egyptians are burying those whom Jehovah hath smitten among them, every first-born, and on their gods hath Jehovah done judgments -- and the sons of Israel journey from Rameses, and encamp in Succoth. And they journey from Succoth, and encamp in Etham, which is in the extremity of the wilderness; and they journey from Etham, and turn back on Pi-Hahiroth, which is on the front of Baal-Zephon, and they encamp before Migdol. And they journey from Pi-Hahiroth, and pass over through the midst of the sea, into the wilderness, and go a journey of three days in the wilderness of Etham, and encamp in Marah. And they journey from Marah, and come in to Elim, and in Elim are twelve fountains of waters, and seventy palm trees, and they encamp there; and they journey from Elim, and encamp by the Red Sea. And they journey from the Red Sea, and encamp in the wilderness of Sin; and they journey from the wilderness of Sin, and encamp in Dophkah. And they journey from Dophkah, and encamp in Alush; and they journey from Alush, and encamp in Rephidim; and there was there no water for the people to drink. And they journey from Rephidim, and encamp in the wilderness of Sinai; and they journey from the wilderness of Sinai, and encamp in Kibroth-Hattaavah. And they journey from Kibroth-Hattaavah, and encamp in Hazeroth; and they journey from Hazeroth, and encamp in Rithmah. And they journey from Rithmah, and encamp in Rimmon-Parez; and they journey from Rimmon-Parez, and encamp in Libnah. And they journey from Libnah, and encamp in Rissah; and they journey from Rissah, and encamp in Kehelathah. And they journey from Kehelathah, and encamp in mount Shapher; and they journey from mount Shapher, and encamp in Haradah. And they journey from Haradah, and encamp in Makheloth; and they journey from Makheloth, and encamp in Tahath. And they journey from Tahath, and encamp in Tarah; and they journey from Tarah, and encamp in Mithcah. And they journey from Mithcah, and encamp in Hashmonah; and they journey from Hashmonah, and encamp in Moseroth. And they journey from Moseroth, and encamp in Bene-Jaakan; and they journey from Bene-Jaakan, and encamp at Hor-Hagidgad. And they journey from Hor-Hagidgad, and encamp in Jotbathah; and they journey from Jotbathah, and encamp in Ebronah. And they journey from Ebronah, and encamp in Ezion-Gaber; and they journey from Ezion-Gaber, and encamp in the wilderness of Zin, which is Kadesh. And they journey from Kadesh, and encamp in mount Hor, in the extremity of the land of Edom. And Aaron the priest goeth up unto mount Hor, by the command of Jehovah, and dieth there, in the fortieth year of the going out of the sons of Israel from the land of Egypt, in the fifth month, on the first of the month; and Aaron is a son of a hundred and twenty and three years in his dying in mount Hor. And the Canaanite -- king Arad -- who is dwelling in the south, in the land of Canaan, heareth of the coming of the sons of Israel. And they journey from mount Hor, and encamp in Zalmonah; and they journey from Zalmonah, and encamp in Punon. And they journey from Punon, and encamp in Oboth; and they journey from Oboth, and encamp in Ije-Abarim, in the border of Moab. And they journey from Iim, and encamp in Dibon-Gad; and they journey from Dibon-Gad, and encamp in Almon-Diblathaim. And they journey from Almon-Diblathaim, and encamp in the mountains of Abarim, before Nebo; and they journey from the mountains of Abarim, and encamp in the plains of Moab, by Jordan, near Jericho. And they encamp by the Jordan from Beth-Jeshimoth, unto Abel-Shittim, in the plains of Moab. And Jehovah speaketh unto Moses, in the plains of Moab, by Jordan, near Jericho, saying,
'When Jehovah thy God doth bring thee in unto the land whither thou art going in to possess it, and He hath cast out many nations from thy presence, the Hittite, and the Girgashite, and the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, seven nations more numerous and mighty than thou,
and I throw myself before Jehovah, as at first, forty days and forty nights; bread I have not eaten, and water I have not drunk, because of all your sins which ye have sinned, by doing the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah, to make Him angry.
And I throw myself before Jehovah, the forty days and the forty nights, as I had thrown myself, for Jehovah hath said -- to destroy you;
Three times in a year doth every one of thy males appear before Jehovah thy God in the place which He doth choose -- in the feast of unleavened things, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of booths; and they do not appear before Jehovah empty;
So do all Thine enemies perish, O Jehovah, And those loving Him are As the going out of the sun in its might!' and the land resteth forty years.
And Midian is humbled before the sons of Israel, and have not added to lift up their head; and the land resteth forty years in the days of Gideon.
And the sons of Israel add to do the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah, and Jehovah giveth them into the hand of the Philistines forty years.
And He smiteth among the men of Beth-Shemesh, for they looked into the ark of Jehovah, yea, He smiteth among the people seventy men -- fifty chief men; and the people mourn, because Jehovah smote among the people -- a great smiting.
And Solomon hath forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen.
and he riseth, and eateth, and drinketh, and goeth in the power of that food forty days and forty nights, unto the mount of God -- Horeb.
A son of eighteen years is Jehoiachin in his reigning, and three months he hath reigned in Jerusalem, and the name of his mother is Nehushta, daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem,
And there are to Solomon four thousand stalls for horses and chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, and he placed them in cities of the chariot, and with the king in Jerusalem.
A son of eight years is Jehoiachin in his reigning, and three months and ten days he hath reigned in Jerusalem, and he doth the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah;
And Jehovah hath turned to the captivity of Job in his praying for his friends, and Jehovah doth add to all that Job hath -- to double.
To the Overseer, 'On the Gittith.' A Psalm of David. Jehovah, our Lord, How honourable Thy name in all the earth! Who settest thine honour on the heavens.
Thou, O Jehovah, dost preserve them, Thou keepest us from this generation to the age.
Evening, and morning, and noon, I meditate, and make a noise, and He heareth my voice,
Forty years I am weary of the generation, And I say, 'A people erring in heart -- they! And they have not known My ways:'
These six hath Jehovah hated, Yea, seven are abominations to His soul.
When his voice is gracious trust not in him, For seven abominations are in his heart.
A crooked thing one is not able to make straight, and a lacking thing is not able to be numbered.
And taken hold have seven women on one man, In that day, saying, 'Our own bread we do eat, And our own raiment we put on, Only, let thy name be called over us, Remove thou our reproach.'
And this one hath called unto that, and hath said: 'Holy, Holy, Holy, is Jehovah of Hosts, The fulness of all the earth is His glory.'
For the head of Aram is Damascus, And the head of Damascus is Rezin, And within sixty and five years Is Ephraim broken from being a people.
And I cause faithful witnesses to testify to me, Uriah the priest, and Zechariah son of Jeberechiah.
Rested on him hath the Spirit of Jehovah, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and might, The spirit of knowledge and fear of Jehovah. To refresh him in the fear of Jehovah, And by the sight of his eyes he judgeth not, Nor by the hearing of his ears decideth.
And Jehovah hath devoted to destruction The tongue of the sea of Egypt, And hath waved His hand over the river, In the terror of his wind, And hath smitten it at the seven streams, And hath caused men to tread it with shoes.
Every valley is raised up, And every mountain and hill become low, And the crooked place hath become a plain, And the entangled places a valley.
The Spirit of the Lord Jehovah is on me, Because Jehovah did anoint me To proclaim tidings to the humble, He sent me to bind the broken of heart, To proclaim to captives liberty, And to bound ones an opening of bands.
Instead of your shame and confusion, A second time they sing of their portion, Therefore in their land A second time do they take possession, Joy age-during is for them.
And I have recompensed a first -- A second time -- their iniquity and their sin, Because of their polluting My land, With the carcase of their detestable things, Yea, their abominable things have filled Mine inheritance.
And all this land hath been for a waste, for an astonishment, and these nations have served the king of Babylon seventy years.
And out of its midst is a likeness of four living creatures, and this is their appearance; a likeness of man is to them,
'And thou, lie on thy left side, and thou hast placed the iniquity of the house of Israel on it; the number of the days that thou liest on it, thou bearest their iniquity. And I -- I have laid on thee the years of their iniquity, the number of days, three hundred and ninety days; and thou hast borne the iniquity of the house of Israel. read more. And thou hast completed these, and hast lain on thy right side, a second time, and hast borne the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days -- a day for a year -- a day for a year I have appointed to thee.
An overturn, overturn, overturn, I make it, Also this hath not been till the coming of Him, Whose is the judgment, and I have given it.
Not pass over into it doth a foot of man, Yea, the foot of beast doth not pass into it, Nor is it inhabited forty years. And I have made the land of Egypt a desolation, In the midst of desolate lands, And its cities, in the midst of waste cities, Are a desolation forty years, And I have scattered the Egyptians among nations, And I have dispersed them through lands.
And he measureth the court: the length a hundred cubits, and the breadth a hundred cubits, square, and the altar is before the house.
And the fourth kingdom is strong as iron, because that iron is breaking small, and making feeble, all things, even as iron that is breaking all these, it beateth small and breaketh. As to that which thou hast seen: the feet and toes, part of them potter's clay, and part of them iron, the kingdom is divided: and some of the standing of the iron is to be in it, because that thou hast seen the iron mixed with miry clay.
his heart from man's is changed, and the heart of a beast is given to him, and seven times pass over him;
and they are driving thee away from men, and with the beast of the field is thy dwelling, and the herb as oxen they do cause thee to eat, and by the dew of the heavens they are wetting thee, and seven times do pass over thee, till that thou knowest that the Most High is ruler in the kingdom of men, and to whom He willeth He giveth it.
Weighed -- Thou art weighed in the balances, and hast been found lacking.
And Daniel, when he hath known that the writing is signed, hath gone up to his house, and the window being opened for him, in his upper chamber, over-against Jerusalem, three times in a day he is kneeling on his knees, and praying, and confessing before his God, because that he was doing it before this.
Answered hath Daniel and said, 'I was seeing in my vision by night, and lo, the four winds of the heavens are coming forth to the great sea;
After this I was seeing in the visions of the night, and lo, a fourth beast, terrible and fearful, and exceedingly strong; and it hath iron teeth very great, it hath consumed, yea, it doth break small, and the remnant with its feet it hath trampled; and it is diverse from all the beasts that are before it; and it hath ten horns.
and concerning the ten horns that are in its heads, and of the other that came up, and before which three have fallen, even of that horn that hath eyes, and a mouth speaking great things, and whose appearance is great above its companions.
And the ten horns out of the kingdom are ten kings, they rise, and another doth rise after them, and it is diverse from the former, and three kings it humbleth; and words as an adversary of the Most High it doth speak, and the saints of the Most High it doth wear out, and it hopeth to change seasons and law; and they are given into its hand, till a time, and times, and a division of a time.
and words as an adversary of the Most High it doth speak, and the saints of the Most High it doth wear out, and it hopeth to change seasons and law; and they are given into its hand, till a time, and times, and a division of a time.
And he saith unto me, Till evening -- morning two thousand and three hundred, then is the holy place declared right.
And he saith unto me, Till evening -- morning two thousand and three hundred, then is the holy place declared right.
'Seventy weeks are determined for thy people, and for thy holy city, to shut up the transgression, and to seal up sins, and to cover iniquity, and to bring in righteousness age-during, and to seal up vision and prophet, and to anoint the holy of holies.
And he hath strengthened a covenant with many -- one week, and in the midst of the week he causeth sacrifice and present to cease, and by the wing of abominations he is making desolate, even till the consummation, and that which is determined is poured on the desolate one.'
And he hath strengthened a covenant with many -- one week, and in the midst of the week he causeth sacrifice and present to cease, and by the wing of abominations he is making desolate, even till the consummation, and that which is determined is poured on the desolate one.'
and, now, truth I declare to thee, Lo, yet three kings are standing for Persia, and the fourth doth become far richer than all, and according to his strength by his riches he stirreth up the whole, with the kingdom of Javan.
And I hear the one clothed in linen, who is upon the waters of the flood, and he doth lift up his right hand and his left unto the heavens, and sweareth by Him who is living to the age, that, 'After a time, times, and a half, and at the completion of the scattering of the power of the holy people, finished are all these.'
and from the time of the turning aside of the perpetual sacrifice, and to the giving out of the desolating abomination, are days a thousand, two hundred, and ninety. O the blessedness of him who is waiting earnestly, and doth come to the days, a thousand, three hundred, thirty and five.
And Jonah beginneth to go in to the city a journey of one day, and proclaimeth, and saith, 'Yet forty days -- and Nineveh is overturned.'
And I answer and say unto him, 'What are these two olive-trees, on the right of the candlestick, and on its left?'
And I feed the flock of slaughter, even you, ye afflicted of the flock; and I take to me two staves, the one I have called Pleasantness, and the other I have called Bands, and I feed the flock.
and having fasted forty days and forty nights, afterwards he did hunger.
then doth it go, and take with itself seven other spirits more evil than itself, and having gone in they dwell there, and the last of that man doth become worse than the first; so shall it be also to this evil generation.'
Jesus saith to him, 'I do not say to thee till seven times, but till seventy times seven.
Jesus saith to him, 'I do not say to thee till seven times, but till seventy times seven.
And if those days were not shortened, no flesh would have been saved; but because of the chosen, shall those days be shortened.
And he, having risen in the morning of the first of the sabbaths, did appear first to Mary the Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven demons;
and of a truth I say to you, Many widows were in the days of Elijah, in Israel, when the heaven was shut for three years and six months, when great famine came on all the land,
and certain women, who were healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary who is called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone forth,
and he said, 'The things impossible with men are possible with God.'
I am one who is testifying of myself, and the Father who sent me doth testify of me.'
now is a judgment of this world, now shall the ruler of this world be cast forth;
The soldiers, therefore, when they did crucify Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to each soldier a part, also the coat, and the coat was seamless, from the top woven throughout, they said, therefore, to one another, 'We may not rend it, but cast a lot for it, whose it shall be;' that the Writing might be fulfilled, that is saying, 'They divided my garments to themselves, and upon my raiment they did cast a lot;' the soldiers, therefore, indeed, did these things.
And in the day of the Pentecost being fulfilled, they were all with one accord at the same place,
whom it behoveth heaven, indeed, to receive till times of a restitution of all things, of which God spake through the mouth of all His holy prophets from the age.
and having destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, He did divide by lot to them their land.
that also the creation itself shall be set free from the servitude of the corruption to the liberty of the glory of the children of God;
I have known a man in Christ, fourteen years ago -- whether in the body I have not known, whether out of the body I have not known, God hath known -- such an one being caught away unto the third heaven;
and this I say, A covenant confirmed before by God to Christ, the law, that came four hundred and thirty years after, doth not set aside, to make void the promise,
and ye are in him made full, who is the head of all principality and authority,
For to Abraham God, having made promise, seeing He was able to swear by no greater, did swear by Himself,
in which God, more abundantly willing to shew to the heirs of the promise the immutability of his counsel, did interpose by an oath,
Elijah was a man like affected as we, and with prayer he did pray -- not to rain, and it did not rain upon the land three years and six months;
John to the seven assemblies that are in Asia: Grace to you, and peace, from Him who is, and who was, and who is coming, and from the Seven Spirits that are before His throne,
John to the seven assemblies that are in Asia: Grace to you, and peace, from Him who is, and who was, and who is coming, and from the Seven Spirits that are before His throne,
And I did turn to see the voice that did speak with me, and having turned, I saw seven golden lamp-stands,
the secret of the seven stars that thou hast seen upon my right hand, and the seven golden lamp-stands: the seven stars are messengers of the seven assemblies, and the seven lamp-stands that thou hast seen are seven assemblies.
'Be not afraid of the things that thou art about to suffer; lo, the devil is about to cast of you to prison, that ye may be tried, and ye shall have tribulation ten days; become thou faithful unto death, and I will give to thee the crown of the life.
And around the throne are thrones twenty and four, and upon the thrones I saw the twenty and four elders sitting, clothed in white garments, and they had upon their heads crowns of gold;
and before the throne is a sea of glass like to crystal, and in the midst of the throne, and round the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes before and behind;
And the four living creatures, each by itself severally, had six wings, around and within are full of eyes, and rest they have not day and night, saying, 'Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was, and who is, and who is coming;'
And after these things I saw four messengers, standing upon the four corners of the land, holding the four winds of the land, that the wind may not blow upon the land, nor upon the sea, nor upon any tree;
And I heard the number of those sealed, (one hundred and forty four thousands were sealed out of all the tribes of the sons of Israel):
and the court that is without the sanctuary leave out, and thou mayest not measure it, because it was given to the nations, and the holy city they shall tread down forty-two months;
and the court that is without the sanctuary leave out, and thou mayest not measure it, because it was given to the nations, and the holy city they shall tread down forty-two months; and I will give to My two witnesses, and they shall prophesy days, a thousand, two hundred, sixty, arrayed with sackcloth;
and I will give to My two witnesses, and they shall prophesy days, a thousand, two hundred, sixty, arrayed with sackcloth;
and I will give to My two witnesses, and they shall prophesy days, a thousand, two hundred, sixty, arrayed with sackcloth;
and they shall behold -- they of the peoples, and tribes, and tongues, and nations -- their dead bodies three days and a half, and their dead bodies they shall not suffer to be put into tombs,
and in that hour came a great earthquake, and the tenth of the city did fall, and killed in the earthquake were names of men -- seven thousands, and the rest became affrighted, and they gave glory to the God of the heaven.
And the seventh messenger did sound, and there came great voices in the heaven, saying, 'The kingdoms of the world did become those of our Lord and of His Christ, and he shall reign to the ages of the ages!'
And a great sign was seen in the heaven, a woman arrayed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars,
And there was seen another sign in the heaven, and, lo, a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his head seven diadems,
And there was seen another sign in the heaven, and, lo, a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his head seven diadems,
and the woman did flee to the wilderness, where she hath a place made ready from God, that there they may nourish her -- days a thousand, two hundred, sixty.
And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and I saw out of the sea a beast coming up, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon its horns ten diadems, and upon its heads a name of evil speaking,
And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and I saw out of the sea a beast coming up, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon its horns ten diadems, and upon its heads a name of evil speaking,
Here is the wisdom! He who is having the understanding, let him count the number of the beast, for the number of a man it is, and its number is six hundred and sixty six.
And another messenger did follow, saying, 'Fall, fall, did Babylon, the great city, because of the wine of the wrath of her whoredom she hath given to all nations to drink.'
And I saw another sign in the heaven, great and wonderful, seven messengers having the seven last plagues, because in these was completed the wrath of God,
and he carried me away to a wilderness in the Spirit, and I saw a woman sitting upon a scarlet-coloured beast, full of names of evil-speaking, having seven heads and ten horns,
and the messenger said to me, 'Wherefore didst thou wonder? I -- I will tell thee the secret of the woman and of the beast that is carrying her, which hath the seven heads and the ten horns.
'And the ten horns that thou sawest, are ten kings, who a kingdom did not yet receive, but authority as kings the same hour do receive with the beast,
Render to her as also she did render to you, and double to her doubles according to her works; in the cup that she did mingle mingle to her double.
and he laid hold on the dragon, the old serpent, who is Devil and Adversary, and did bind him a thousand years,
and the city lieth square, and the length of it is as great as the breadth; and he did measure the city with the reed -- furlongs twelve thousand; the length, and the breadth, and the height, of it are equal; and he measured its wall, an hundred forty-four cubits, the measure of a man, that is, of the messenger; read more. and the building of its wall was jasper, and the city is pure gold -- like to pure glass; and the foundations of the wall of the city with every precious stone have been adorned; the first foundation jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprasus; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst. And the twelve gates are twelve pearls, each several one of the gates was of one pearl; and the broad-place of the city is pure gold -- as transparent glass.
Hastings
NUMBER
1. Notation.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And I have set thy seed as dust of the earth, so that, if one is able to number the dust of the earth, even thy seed is numbered;
And Abram heareth that his brother hath been taken captive, and he draweth out his trained domestics, three hundred and eighteen, and pursueth unto Dan.
and they bless Rebekah, and say to her, 'Thou art our sister; become thou thousands of myriads, and thy seed doth possess the gate of those hating it.'
And all the persons coming out of the thigh of Jacob are seventy persons; as to Joseph, he was in Egypt.
and the priest hath dipped his finger in the blood, and sprinkled of the blood seven times before Jehovah, at the front of the vail of the sanctuary;
and two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, which his hand reacheth to, and one hath been a sin-offering, and the one a burnt-offering;
and to thy cattle, and to the beast which is in thy land, is all thine increase for food. 'And thou hast numbered to thee seven sabbaths of years, seven years seven times, and the days of the seven sabbaths of years have been to thee nine and forty years,
'And he hath reckoned with his buyer from the year of his being sold to him till the year of jubilee, and the money of his sale hath been by the number of years; as the days of an hireling it is with him.
and five of you have pursued a hundred, and a hundred of you do pursue a myriad; and your enemies have fallen before you by the sword.
and if after the jubilee he sanctify his field, then hath the priest reckoned to him the money according to the years which are left, unto the year of the jubilee, and it hath been abated from thy valuation.
Of the sons of Simeon -- their births, by their families, by the house of their fathers, its numbered ones in the number of names, by their polls, every male from a son of twenty years and upward, every one going out to the host --
These are those numbered of the sons of Israel by the house of their fathers; all those numbered of the camps by their hosts are six hundred thousand, and three thousand, and five hundred and fifty.
All those numbered of the Levites whom Moses numbered -- Aaron also -- by the command of Jehovah, by their families, every male from a son of a month and upward, are two and twenty thousand.
And all the first-born -- male -- by the number of names, from a son of a month and upward, of their numbered ones, are two and twenty thousand two hundred and seventy and three. And Jehovah speaketh unto Moses, saying, read more. Take the Levites instead of every first-born among the sons of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of their cattle; and the Levites have been Mine; I am Jehovah. And from those ransomed of the two hundred and seventy and three (who are more than the Levites) of the first-born of the sons of Israel, thou hast even taken five shekels a-piece by the poll -- by the shekel of the sanctuary thou takest; twenty gerahs the shekel is; and thou hast given the money to Aaron, and to his sons, whereby those over and above are ransomed.' And Moses taketh the ransom money from those over and above those ransomed by the Levites; from the first-born of the sons of Israel he hath taken the money, a thousand and three hundred and sixty and five -- by the shekel of the sanctuary; and Moses giveth the money of those ransomed to Aaron, and to his sons, according to the command of Jehovah, as Jehovah hath commanded Moses.
These are families of the Reubenite, and their numbered ones are three and forty thousand and seven hundred and thirty.
These are numbered ones of the sons of Israel, six hundred thousand, and a thousand, seven hundred and thirty.
'And in the beginnings of your months ye bring near a burnt-offering to Jehovah: two bullocks, sons of the herd, and one ram, seven lambs, sons of a year, perfect ones;
'And I take the heads of your tribes, men, wise and known, and I appoint them heads over you, princes of thousands, and princes of hundreds, and princes of fifties, and princes of tens, and authorities, for your tribes.
Hear, O Israel, Jehovah our God is one Jehovah;
And Joshua son of Nun sendeth from Shittim, two men, spies, silently, saying, 'Go, see the land -- and Jericho;' and they go and come into the house of a woman, a harlot, and her name is Rahab, and they lie down there.
And he saith unto him, 'O, my lord, wherewith do I save Israel? lo, my chief is weak in Manasseh, and I the least in the house of my father.'
And he divideth the three hundred men into three detachments, and putteth trumpets into the hand of all of them, and empty pitchers, and lamps within the pitchers.
and Joab giveth the account of the inspection of the people unto the king, and Israel is eight hundred thousand men of valour, drawing sword, and the men of Judah five hundred thousand men.
And Levi and Benjamin he hath not numbered in their midst, for the word of the king was abominable with Joab.
either for three years -- famine, or three months to be consumed from the face of thine adversaries, even the sword of thine enemies to overtake, or three days the sword of Jehovah, even pestilence in the land, and a messenger of Jehovah destroying in all the border of Israel; and now, see; what word do I return to Him who is sending me?'
And come out unto them doth Zerah the Cushite with a force of a thousand thousand, and chariots three hundred, and he cometh in unto Mareshah,
And Jehoshaphat is going on and becoming very great, and he buildeth in Judah palaces and cities of store,
For three things hath earth been troubled, And for four -- it is not able to bear:
And left in him have been gleanings, As the compassing of an olive, Two -- three berries on the top of a branch, Four -- five on the fruitful boughs, The affirmation of Jehovah, God of Israel!
And all this land hath been for a waste, for an astonishment, and these nations have served the king of Babylon seventy years.
Not pass over into it doth a foot of man, Yea, the foot of beast doth not pass into it, Nor is it inhabited forty years.
A flood of fire is proceeding and coming forth from before Him, a thousand thousands do serve Him, and a myriad of myriads before Him do rise up, the Judge is seated, and the books have been opened.
in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, have understood by books the number of the years, (in that a word of Jehovah hath been unto Jeremiah the prophet,) concerning the fulfilling of the wastes of Jerusalem -- seventy years;
The maker of Kimah and Kesil, And the turner to morning of death-shade, And day as night He hath made dark, Who is calling to the waters of the sea, And poureth them on the face of the earth, Jehovah is His name;
'Speak unto all the people of the land, and unto the priests, saying:
All the generations, therefore, from Abraham unto David are fourteen generations, and from David unto the Babylonian removal fourteen generations, and from the Babylonian removal unto the Christ, fourteen generations.
for, as Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights, so shall the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights.
Jesus saith to him, 'I do not say to thee till seven times, but till seventy times seven.
Jesus saith to him, 'I do not say to thee till seven times, but till seventy times seven.
And after these things, the Lord did appoint also other seventy, and sent them by twos before his face, to every city and place whither he himself was about to come,
Jesus answered and said to them, 'Destroy this sanctuary, and in three days I will raise it up.'
And I saw, and I heard the voice of many messengers round the throne, and the living creatures, and the elders -- and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands --
After these things I saw, and lo, a great multitude, which to number no one was able, out of all nations, and tribes, and peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne, and before the Lamb, arrayed in white robes, and palms in their hands,
And the third messenger did sound, and there fell out of the heaven a great star, burning as a lamp, and it did fall upon the third of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters,
And the fourth messenger did sound, and smitten was the third of the sun, and the third of the moon, and the third of the stars, that darkened may be the third of them, and that the day may not shine -- the third of it, and the night in like manner.
Here is the wisdom! He who is having the understanding, let him count the number of the beast, for the number of a man it is, and its number is six hundred and sixty six.
Here is the wisdom! He who is having the understanding, let him count the number of the beast, for the number of a man it is, and its number is six hundred and sixty six.
Smith
Number.
Like most Oriental nations, it is probable that the Hebrews in their written calculations made use of the letters of the alphabet. That they did so in post-Babylonian times we have conclusive evidence in the Maccabaean coins; and it is highly probable that this was the ease also in earlier times. But though, on the one hand, it is certain that in all existing MSS of the Hebrew text of the Old Testament the numerical expressions are written at length, yet, on the other, the variations in the several versions between themselves and from the Hebrew text, added to the evident inconsistencies in numerical statement between certain passages of that text itself seems to prove that some shorter mode of writing was originally in vogue, liable to be misunderstood, and in fact misunderstood by copyists and translators. These variations appear to have proceeded from the alphabetic method of writing numbers. There can be little doubt, however, that some at least of the numbers mentioned in Scripture are intended to be representative rather than determinative. Certain numbers, as 7,10,40,100, were regarded as giving the idea of completeness. Without entering into St. Augustine's theory of this usage, we may remark that the notion of representative numbers in certain cases is one extremely common among eastern nations, who have a prejudice against counting their possessions accurately; that it enters largely into many ancient systems of chronology, and that it is found in the philosophical and metaphysical speculations not only of the Pythagorean and other ancient schools of philosophy, both Greek and Roman, but also in those of the later Jewish writers, of the Gnostics, and also of such Christian writers se St. Augustine himself. We proceed to give some instances of numbers used, (a) representatively, and thus probably by design indefinitely, or, (b) definitely, but, as we may say, preferentially, i.e. because some meaning (which we do not in all cases understand) was attached to them.
1. Seven as denoting either plurality or completeness, perhaps because seven days completed the week is so frequent as to make a selection only of instances necessary, e.g. seven fold
seven times, i.e. completely,
seven (i.e. many) ways,
De 28:25
2. Ten as a preferential number is exemplified in the Ten Commandments and the law of tithe.
3. Seventy, as compounded of 7 X 10, appears frequently e.g. seventy fold.
Its definite use appears in the offerings of 70 shekels,
ff,; the 70 elders, ch.
70 years of captivity.
4. Five appears in the table of punishments, of legal requirements,
Ex 22:1; Le 5:16; 22:14; 27:15; Nu 5:7; 18:16
and in the five empires of Daniel.
...
5. Four is used in reference to the 4 winds,
and the so-called 4 corners of the earth; the creatures, each with 4 wings and 4 faces, of Ezekiel,
ff.; 4 rivers of Paradise
4 beasts,
... and Reve 4:6 the 4 equal-sided temple-chamber.
6. Three was regarded, by both the Jews and other nations as a specially complete and mystic number.
7. Twelve (3X4) appears in 12 tribes 12 stones in the high priest's breastplate, 12 apostles, 12 foundation-stones, and 12 gates.
8. Lastly, the mystic number 666.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
For sevenfold is required for Cain, And for Lamech seventy and sevenfold.'
For sevenfold is required for Cain, And for Lamech seventy and sevenfold.'
'When a man doth steal an ox or sheep, and hath slaughtered it or sold it, five of the herd he doth repay for the ox, and four of the flock for the sheep.
'And that which he hath sinned against the holy thing he repayeth, and its fifth is adding to it, and hath given it to the priest, and the priest maketh atonement for him with the ram of the guilt-offering, and it hath been forgiven him.
And when a man doth eat of a holy thing through ignorance, then he hath added its fifth part to it, and hath given it to the priest, with the holy thing;
then I have walked -- I also -- with you in opposition, and have smitten you, even I, seven times for your sins;
and if he who is sanctifying doth redeem his house, then he hath added a fifth of the money of thy valuation to it, and it hath become his.
and they have confessed their sin which they have done, then he hath restored his guilt in its principal, and its fifth is adding to it, and hath given it to him in reference to whom he hath been guilty.
And his offering is one silver dish, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels; one silver bowl of seventy shekels, by the shekel of the sanctuary; both of them full of flour mixed with oil, for a present;
He hath brought near his offering, one silver dish, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels; one silver bowl of seventy shekels, by the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of flour mixed with oil, for a present;
And Jehovah saith unto Moses, 'Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou hast known that they are elders of the people, and its authorities; and thou hast taken them unto the tent of meeting, and they have stationed themselves there with thee,
And their ransomed ones from a son of a month, thou dost ransom with thy valuation, of silver, five shekels, by the shekel of the sanctuary, twenty gerahs it is.
'Jehovah giveth thee smitten before thine enemies; in one way thou goest out unto them, and in seven ways dost flee before them, and thou hast been for a trembling to all kingdoms of the earth;
Sayings of Jehovah are pure sayings; Silver tried in a furnace of earth refined sevenfold.
And all this land hath been for a waste, for an astonishment, and these nations have served the king of Babylon seventy years.
And out of its midst is a likeness of four living creatures, and this is their appearance; a likeness of man is to them,
And he measureth the court: the length a hundred cubits, and the breadth a hundred cubits, square, and the altar is before the house.
And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, dreamed hath Nebuchadnezzar dreams, and his spirit doth move itself, and his sleep hath been against him;
In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel hath seen a dream, and the visions of his head on his bed, then the dream he hath written, the chief of the things he hath said. Answered hath Daniel and said, 'I was seeing in my vision by night, and lo, the four winds of the heavens are coming forth to the great sea;
Jesus saith to him, 'I do not say to thee till seven times, but till seventy times seven.
Here is the wisdom! He who is having the understanding, let him count the number of the beast, for the number of a man it is, and its number is six hundred and sixty six.
and the foundations of the wall of the city with every precious stone have been adorned; the first foundation jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprasus; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst. read more. And the twelve gates are twelve pearls, each several one of the gates was of one pearl; and the broad-place of the city is pure gold -- as transparent glass.