Unsurprisingly, Scripture is full of numbers. These don’t just appear in the obvious way—out in the open for even the most casual reader to see, but also in the connections and symbolism which must be searched out. Though the arrangement of some is obvious, others require more in-depth study to discover.
This article will look at only some of the more significant numbers and their symbolisms found in Scripture.
One
The first is, of course, the number one. One is unique in being the only number divisible by itself. It’s independent of any other number, yet it composes all of them. Its meaning in the Bible centres on the unity and primacy of the Godhead being One. What’s known as the Shema (or Shema Yisrael) quote of Deuteronomy 6:4 that’s often used in Jewish prayer services, attests to this fact.
It represents the unity between God the Father and His Son Jesus (1 John chapter 10 verse 30). Jesus, by His singular sacrifice, has made possible the forgiveness of all our sins.
The first thing designated as holy is the Sabbath (Genesis chapter 2 verses 1-3). Between His birth and beginning of His ministry at 30, Scripture records only one sentence Jesus spoke (Luke chapter 2 verse 49).
Also, of the 10 shortest books in the Bible, 5 are the shortest with only 1 chapter.
Two
Two conveys the meaning of a union, division, or the verification of facts by witnesses. For example, there are two witnesses in Revelation (Revelation chapter 11). Jesus sent out His apostles by twos (Luke chapter 10). Two is also the first and smallest prime number.
Man and woman, though two, are made one in marriage (Genesis chapter 2 verses 23-24). God made two great lights—the sun and the moon.
Three
Three conveys completeness, though to a lesser degree than seven. There were three patriarchs of Israel, and Jesus prayed three times in the Garden of Gethsemane before His arrest.
Four
Four symbolises the heavens, angels, and the material universe. God completed creating the material universe on the fourth day of creation. The fourth commandment is to observe the Sabbath, which is connected to creation week.
The Garden of Eden had a river which parted into the headwaters of four other rivers (Genesis chapter 2 verses 10-14).
After Jesus was nailed and hung on the cross, the Roman soldiers divided His clothes into four parts (John chapter 19 verse 23).
Five
Five represents God’s grace, goodness, and favour towards humans. There were five types of offerings God commanded Israel to bring to Him: burnt, sin, trespass, grain, and peace. The holy anointing oil mentioned in Exodus 30 verses 23-25 used to consecrate furniture of the tabernacle was comprised of five parts: olive oil, myrrh, sweet cinnamon, sweet calamus, and cassia.
Six
Six is the number related to humanity, human weakness, the evils of Satan, and sin. Man was created on day six, and was appointed six days to labour.
Hebrew slaves in Israel served six years before being released in the seventh year. Additionally, six years were appointed for the land to be sown and harvested.
Seven
Seven symbolises completeness and perfection (both physical and spiritual). “Created” was used seven times to describe God’s creative work. There are seven days in a week, with the Sabbath being on the seventh day.
Jesus performed seven miracles on the Sabbath (Matthew chapter 12 verse 9, Mark chapter 1 verse 29, Luke chapter 13 verse 11, Luke chapter 17 verse 7, John chapter 5 verses 8-9, John chapter 9 verse 14).
Twelve
Twelve symbolises God’s power and authority, and perfect governmental foundation. Jacob had 12 sons, each of whom was the head of a tribe. Ishmael also produced 12 tribes. Jesus had 12 disciples. The New Jerusalem, made in Heaven and brought to Earth, has a total of 12 pearl gates.
153
153 is another interesting number. It represents an overflow blessing from God.
153 is attached to the miraculous catch of large fish which is recalled by John in chapter 21 verses 1-11. This event occurred after Jesus’ resurrection. Peter counted 153 large fish in the net. Altogether, Jesus directly blessed 153 people in 48 separate incidents.
Also, back in Israel’s earlier days, it took 153 men in 3 groups of 50 soldiers plus 1 captain per group for King Ahaziah to have Elijah brought to him (2 Kings chapter 1 verses 2-17).
144,000
144,000 is the number of people sealed by God from each of the 12 tribes of Israel except Dan, in Revelation chapter 14 verses 1-5.
The most known symbolic significance of this number comes from 144 being the square of 12.
The meaning of 144 is the accomplishment of the fullness of (righteous) government in the Earth, in this case via the release of the 144,000 as God’s emissaries who display God’s power and authority, with 1,000 meaning a multitude. Thus, a meaning of 144,000 being a full display of God’s power and authority via the people who are sent out in the last days.
As you can see from this brief overview of the numbers found in Scripture, the numbers do not always simply represent the literal numbers, but also have hidden meanings.
Through careful study believers can discover an endless number of mysteries and wonders in Scripture.
Katelin Staples is from Gladstone, Queensland. By day Katelin is employed as a proofreader. Katelin has a passion for discovering the deep things of God and how they affect the world around us.