Jewish Numerology

1.

ONE – Unity and singularity as in:

• Genesis 2:24 – "The two become one..."
• Deuteronomy 6:4 – "The Lord is one..."
• John 17:20-22 – "That they be one..."

2.

TWO – Capability, reliability and sufficiency as in:

• Genesis 7:9 – Two of each animal
• Exodus 31:18 – Two stone tablets
• Deuteronomy 17:1-7 – Two witnesses
• Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 – The twelve and the seventy sent out 2x2

3.

THREE – God's Number – one of several numbers that denote fullness, completion or perfection as in the divine triad (Father, Son and Spirit)

When this number is used to note completion, it always seems to be with a reference towards god's view or his judgment

• Three major feasts
• "These three men" (Noah, Daniel and Job) of Ezekiel 14:14-20
• Amos' eight "3 transgressions"
• Jonah in the fish
• Jesus in the tomb
• Jesus' temptations
• Jesus in the garden

4.

FOUR – The number of "man's world" – seems to be used to denote completeness in man's world:

• 4 rivers flowing from Eden
• 4 corners of the earth, Isaiah 11:12
• 4 winds, Jeremiah 49:36, Ezekiel 37:9, Daniel 7:2
• God's 4 judgments, Ezekiel 14:21
• 4 gospels

Note also multiples of 4 x 10:

• 40 days and nights of rain in the flood
• 40 days spying out Canaan
• 40 days on Sinai
• 40 years in the wilderness
• 40 stripes – Deuteronomy 25:1-3
• Jesus fasted 40 days
• Jesus was seen for 40 days after His resurrection – Acts 1:3

7.

SEVEN – Perfect completion – combination of the perfect divine number 3 and the perfect world number 4 God and man in harmony:

• 7 days of the week
• 7 lamps on the tabernacle lampstand – Exodus 25:37
• Feasts were held for 7 days
  • Passover – Leviticus 23:4-8
  • Tabernacles – Leviticus 23:33-43
• 7th year was the sabbatical year – Deuteronomy 15
• Blood of the sin offering sprinkled 7 times – Leviticus 4:6; 17
• Leper cleansed 7 days and sprinkled 7 times – Leviticus 14:1-9
• Naaman the leper dips 7 times – II Kings 5:10-14
• Jericho circled 7 times, on the 7th day – Joshua 6

Other times too numerous to mention but not also multiples of 7 x 10:

• 70 helpers for Moses
• 70 members of the Sanhedrin
• 70 years in exile
• 70 sent out by Jesus

6.

SIX – Understood best when seen in contrast to the perfect number 7.

• Six denotes coming up short
• Closely associated with man, created on the 6th day
• Sinister, this is defeat with success just within the grasp, doom, failure and symbolically short of the perfect 7.

3½

THREE AND A HALF – This number occurs in a variety of ways:

• "42 months" (3 ½ years) – Revelation 11:2; 13:5
• "1260 days" (3 ½ years) – Revelation 11:3; 12:6
• "3 ½ days" – Revelation 11:9
• "Time and times and half a time" – Revelation 12:14; Daniel 7:25;12:7

3 ½ always seems to describe times when evil has been allowed to take some control

3 ½ being half of the perfect number 7 seems to represent perfect "incompleteness" – nothing prospers or is brought to fulfillment being done in a 3 ½.

8.

EIGHT – A "new beginning" – You have come to the perfect "7" and begun again

• 8 were saved in the flood
• Circumcision takes place on the 8th day – Leviticus 12:1-3
• Priests in the new temple Ezekiel sees make their offering on the 8th day – Ezekiel 43:27
• Pentecost is the first day following 7 sevens (Feast of Weeks) or the beginning of the 8th week – Leviticus 23:9-21