XII. The Winning Ticket Is A. Review. Subject: Numerical Symbolism

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1 XII. The Winning Ticket Is Subject: Numerical Symbolism Date: Theme: 16-Feb-14 The Bible uses numbers in a symbolic fashion. For example, the number four is symbolic of the world structure and God s action in it; the number seven is associated with the seven-day pattern of Creation and thus is a number of completeness or fullness; twelve is the number of the people of God. Key Verses: 12 He will raise a banner for the nations and gather the exiles of Israel; he will assemble the scattered people of Judah from the four quarters of the earth (Isaiah 11:12). 11 For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy (Exodus 20:11). 12 It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. 14 The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb (Revelation 21:12, 14). A. Review Last week, we studied forty-day or forty-year periods in Scripture. There are quite a few examples of these forty s in the Bible. I proposed the following theme that is common to all of them: the period of 40 days and nights (or 40 years) in Scripture symbolizes for us a period of testing, leading either to salvation or judgment. Let me repeat the period of 40 days and nights is a picture of testing, temptation, or trials. It leads to either redemption, and sanctification, and life; or it leads to judgment, and condemnation, and death. Now, there are several key elements that are found in many (although not all) of these examples. The first one is the wilderness. The wilderness is barren, lonely, unfamiliar. The participants are no longer on their terms, but on God s terms. The wilderness it s an important element in the concept of testing. The second prevalent element in many of these case studies is that of fasting, or deprivation. Notice how this is closely related to the element of the wilderness. In the wilderness, there is not much bounty. There is deprivation. Not many people live out in the desert. For people, it is significant deprivation not much food or water. And that s what you find in the wilderness tough going. We looked at seven case studies to see how this period of 40 days (or years) is used in Scripture. The seven case studies we looked at were: 1) Noah and the Great Flood; 2) Moses at Mt. Sinai; 3) Spying the Land/In the Wilderness; 4) David and Goliath; 5) Elijah and Mt. Horeb; 6) Jonah and Nineveh; and 7) The Temptation of Christ. All of these 40-day test periods point to the ultimate wilderness trial the temptation of Christ. And a key learning from this archetype is that we have a Savior who understands our weakness. We have a Savior who has undergone trial, and testing, and temptation. We have a Savior who has fasted in the wilderness for 40 days and then undergone the ultimate trial. Hebrews 4:15 Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 113 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

2 teaches us, For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are yet was without sin. The time of testing comes when we are most vulnerable. When we are weak from deprivation or disoriented from unfamiliar circumstances. When we are in the wilderness. And if you are not there now, don t worry, it s coming! God promises us periods of testing, that trials will come. We all will undergo the 40-day wilderness experience. The question is, how are you going to approach that time of testing? James gives us the answer: 2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him (James 1:2-5). Consider it joy. Consider it joy! Why? Because when trials come, they make us more like Christ. In the first letter to the Corinthians, Paul exhorts us in the time of testing, in the time of trial, in the time of temptation, to remember that no temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it (1 Cor. 10:13). For the Christian in the wilderness, there is always hope. Let us remember with the Psalmist, Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows (Ps. 23:4-5). We do have a high priest who was tested in every way, yet without sin. And as Christians, we are called to be like that high priest, to be like our elder brother Jesus Christ, to face trials and sin not. God gives us the power through His Holy Spirit to avoid the sin, so that we can stand firm. Sadly, we do not stand as strong as we should, and we continually fall into sin. Yet, Christian, take encouragement, Christ has faced the challenge, Christ has defeated the enemy. Christ says, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness (2 Cor. 12:9). It is the sufficiency of Christ in the time of trial, in the wilderness, in the 40 days and nights of testing, that we must cling to as Christians. B. Introduction Today is the third week in our mini-series of Biblical numerology. Two weeks ago, we looked at the number three in the context of three-day journeys. Last week, we looked at periods of forty days or forty years. Today, we are going for the jackpot, by looking briefly at three prevalent numbers in Scripture: four, seven, and twelve. For all three of these numbers, I did a computer word search to see how many times each is mentioned in the Bible. Which one do you think has the most citations? How many? Well, here is the data. The third runner up is the number twelve. Twelve is cited 131 times in Scripture. The runner up is the number four, which is found 194 times in Scripture (also including four hundred, four thousand, etc.). And the grand prizewinner is the number seven, which is repeated a whopping 419 times (including the word seventh ). And just to mix things up a little bit, rather than in numerical order, we ll take them in order from least to most citations: Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 114 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

3 C. Lesson 1. Twelve So first, the number twelve. When you see a twelve in Scripture, what do you think of? The two key uses of the number twelve have to do with the 12 sons of the patriarch Jacob (Israel), or the 12 tribes of the nation of Israel, descended from those sons. Twelve in reference to the sons/tribes of Israel is used at least 24 times directly in Scripture, although there are many, many more indirect references to these tribes. Meanwhile, in the New Testament, we see that the number twelve has a new meaning: it refers to The Twelve, the disciples, the apostles of Jesus Christ. There are 34 direct references to the twelve disciples or apostles of Christ. David Chilton says that twelve is a number Biblically associated with the people of God. This is true whether we are talking about the people of God either in the Old Testament or in the New Testament, because the Church is the New Israel. We can see the combination of the two in the following verse: 28 Jesus said to them, I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel (Matthew 19:28). In the Old Testament, we see that the number 12 is often used with other objects, but in each case, the symbolism is pointing directly to the people of God. For example: a. Stones 4 Moses got up early the next morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain and set up twelve stone pillars representing the twelve tribes of Israel (Exodus 24:4). 2 Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe, 3 and tell them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan. Joshua set up the twelve stones that had been in the middle of the Jordan at the spot where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant had stood. And they are there to this day (Joshua 4:2-3a, 9). 31 Elijah took twelve stones, one for each of the tribes descended from Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD had come, saying, Your name shall be Israel (1 Kings 18:31). b. Bread 5 Take fine flour and bake twelve loaves of bread, using two-tenths of an ephah for each loaf. 6 Set them in two rows, six in each row, on the table of pure gold before the LORD. 7 Along each row put some pure incense as a memorial portion to represent the bread and to be an offering made to the LORD by fire. 8 This bread is to be set out before the LORD regularly, Sabbath after Sabbath, on behalf of the Israelites, as a lasting covenant (Leviticus 24:5-8). c. Gifts 84 These were the offerings of the Israelite leaders for the dedication of the altar when it was anointed: twelve silver plates, twelve silver sprinkling bowls and twelve gold dishes. 87 The total number of animals for the burnt offering came to twelve young bulls, twelve rams and twelve male lambs a year old, together with their grain offering. Twelve male goats were used for the sin offering (Numbers 7:84-87). Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 115 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

4 d. Staffs 2 Speak to the Israelites and get twelve staffs from them, one from the leader of each of their ancestral tribes. Write the name of each man on his staff. 6 So Moses spoke to the Israelites, and their leaders gave him twelve staffs, one for the leader of each of their ancestral tribes, and Aaron's staff was among them (Numbers 17:2, 6). e. Springs 27 Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there near the water (Exodus 15:27). [Note: the number symbolism here is important. The number 70 refers to the nations of the world from Genesis 10. So, the symbolism here is that the nations (trees) flourish by the life-giving springs of God s people.] f. Torn Cloak 30 Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing and tore it into twelve pieces. 31 Then he said to Jeroboam, Take ten pieces for yourself, for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: See, I am going to tear the kingdom out of Solomon's hand and give you ten tribes. 32 But for the sake of my servant David and the city of Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, he will have one tribe (1 Kings 11:30-32). g. Animals 34 Then the exiles who had returned from captivity sacrificed burnt offerings to the God of Israel: twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven male lambs and, as a sin offering, twelve male goats. All this was a burnt offering to the LORD (Ezra 8:34). h. New Testament Usage There are more examples, but I think you get the picture. In fact, James uses this symbolism when he addresses his epistle: 1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes scattered among the nations: Greetings (James 1:1). Notice how James uses the twelve tribes language in reference to the church the people of God. This is another example of the continuity of the people of God of which I taught a few weeks ago. As we move to the New Testament, the most symbolic use of the number twelve apart from the disciples/apostles is found in the book of Revelation. And there are three main uses of this number in the book of Revelation, but they all point to the same truth. The first one has to do with a multiple of twelve: twenty-four. You see, 24 is simply 12 x 2, and I believe that number is significant. For one of the key images in the book of Revelation is that of the four and twenty elders (not blackbirds baked in a pie!). The 24 elders sit on 24 thrones, clothed in white with golden crowns. These 24 elders are involved in the worship of the Lamb, casting down their crowns and praising and worshiping God (Rev. 4:4-12; 5:8-10; 11:16-18; 19:4). When reading Revelation, it is helpful to view it as a worship service in heaven. And so we see the 24 elders worshipping God. And I believe that these 24 elders represent the 12 tribes of Old Testament Israel and the 12 Apostles of the New Testament. In other words, they represent the entire people of God, worshipping Him around His throne! Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 116 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

5 The next key usage of the number 12 takes place in Revelation 7, where we have the 144,000 sealed. That is, 12 x 12 x Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God. 4 Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel. 5 From the tribe of Judah 12,000 were sealed, from the tribe of Reuben 12,000, from the tribe of Gad 12,000, 6 from the tribe of Asher 12,000, from the tribe of Naphtali 12,000, from the tribe of Manasseh 12,000, 7 from the tribe of Simeon 12,000, from the tribe of Levi 12,000, from the tribe of Issachar 12,000, 8 from the tribe of Zebulun 12,000, from the tribe of Joseph 12,000, from the tribe of Benjamin 12, After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice: Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb (Revelation 7:3-10). Now, there are all sorts of interpretations for this passage, but I want you to note two things: 1) the people of God are precisely numbered in groups of 12 thousand, corresponding to the tribes of Israel; and 2) the people of God are an uncountable multitude made of every nation, tribe, people and language. Twelve squared times ten squared pictures for us the perfect, complete, numbered people of God. And these people are not Israelites only, but come from every nation and time on earth. Seen from one perspective, the Church is the new, the true, Israel of God: the sons of Jacob gathered into all their tribes, full and complete. From another, equally true perspective, the Church is the whole world: a great multitude redeemed from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues (David Chilton, Days of Vengeance, p. 214). Finally, in Revelation 21, we are given this description of the City of God: 12 It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. 14 The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass (Revelation 21:12, 14, 21). Again, we see the clear connection between the people of the Old and New Testaments as being part of the City of God. St. John s concept of the City of God, the Church, is that it comprehends both Old and New Testament believers within its walls. As the historic Church has always recognized, there is only one way of salvation, one Covenant of Grace; the fact that it has operated under various administrations does not affect the essential unity of the one people of God through the ages (Chilton, p. 556). So we see, that the number twelve in the book of Revelation is used in three different ways, but each time the emphasis is on the complete people of God. And this symbolic usage is consistent with the rest of Scripture, where the number twelve is used repeatedly either to refer to the nation of Israel or the apostles of Christ, in both cases symbolic of the people of God. If we had more time, we could consider other twelve s in Scripture, such as Christ at age 12 in the Temple, the woman who bled for 12 years, the 12-yr old girl Christ raised from the dead, the 12 baskets of leftovers when Christ fed the multitude, the concept of 12 in time such as 12 Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 117 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

6 months in a year or 2 x 12-hour periods of light and darkness to make a day, etc. But we have to move on. 2. Four Now, on to the number four. The usage and meaning of the number four in Scripture is not quite as plain as that of twelve, but hopefully we can make some sense out of it this morning. What are some examples of the number four in Scripture? The key to understanding the number four is to remember that the Bible in many ways pictures the world as a 4-cornered house in which men live. To picture this for us, the Scriptures often talk about the four quarters of the earth or heavens, the four winds, four spirits or angels throughout the earth, the four cardinal directions of the compass, etc. For example: 12 He will raise a banner for the nations and gather the exiles of Israel; he will assemble the scattered people of Judah from the four quarters of the earth (Isaiah 11:12). 36 I will bring against Elam the four winds from the four quarters of the heavens; I will scatter them to the four winds, and there will not be a nation where Elam's exiles do not go (Jeremiah 49:36). 2 Son of man, this is what the Sovereign LORD says to the land of Israel: The end! The end has come upon the four corners of the land (Ezekiel 7:2). 9 This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live (Ezekiel 37:9). 2 Daniel said: In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea (Daniel 7:2). 4 After he has appeared, his empire will be broken up and parceled out toward the four winds of heaven (Daniel 11:4). 6 Come! Come! Flee from the land of the north, declares the LORD, for I have scattered you to the four winds of heaven, declares the LORD (Zechariah 2:6). 5 The angel answered me, These are the four spirits of heaven, going out from standing in the presence of the Lord of the whole world. 6 The one with the black horses is going toward the north country, the one with the white horses toward the west, and the one with the dappled horses toward the south. 7 When the powerful horses went out, they were straining to go throughout the earth. And he said, Go throughout the earth! So they went throughout the earth (Zechariah 6:5-7). 27 And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens (Mark 13:27). 1 After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth to prevent any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree. 2 Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the land and the sea (Revelation 7:1-2). 8 And will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth (Revelation 20:8a). Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 118 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

7 So, we see the number four associated with the structure of the world and God s action in it. God scatters his people to the four winds; He gathers them from the four quarters of the earth. God brings judgment from the four winds and four quarters of the heavens through his ministering spirits the angels throughout the earth. God also brings grace to the four corners. In terms of God s grace to the world, consider the vision of Peter in Acts chapter 10: 11 He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. 12 It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles of the earth and birds of the air (Acts 10:11-12). What is the meaning of this vision? Well, Peter learns that it is not really about animals, but about people: 34 Then Peter began to speak: I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism 35 but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right (Acts 10:34-35). God was teaching Peter that the blessing of God s grace descends from heaven to the four corners of the earth, touching men and women of every nation, not just the Jews. James Jordan says: In terms of the world as a house, judgment means the collapse of the house, the shaking of its mountain-pillars, the falling of its ceiling-stars, etc. Positively, the world is a house to be adorned and in which man worships (Jordan, Through New Eyes, pp ). We can see this judgment aspect in a literal collapse of the house, as in Job chapter 1: 18 While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother's house, 19 when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you! (Job 1:18-19). Notice the same language as that used above to describe the world: a mighty wind comes and strikes the four corners of the house. Now, just as an aside, on one of our past vacations, we went to the Four Corners National Monument. This is the only place in the United States where the corners of four states meet: Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah. Speaking of judgment, it really is a desolate wilderness there. I couldn t imagine spending forty minutes there in that wilderness, let alone forty days. We drove there, took a couple of pictures, and then immediately turned around and drove two hours back to civilization! The Four Corners area is certainly not representative of the four corners of the earth! Jordan continues: This image of the four-cornered world takes its rise from the fact that four rivers flowed out of the Garden of Eden to water the whole world (Gen. 2:10). Symbolically, they carried the Edenic pattern to the four corners of the earth. The task of Adam s descendants would be to follow the four rivers and carry with them the Kingdom pattern, extending it over the whole earth and bring the world from primordial to eschatological glory. The four rivers going to the four corners can and should be associated with the four faces of the cherubim (Ez. 1:10), the four sides of the camp of Israel (Num. 2), and the four limbs of the cross. It is a fundamental symbol of the world structure (Jordan, p. 148). Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 119 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

8 Now it should come as no surprise that if the number four is associated with world structure, that world models such as the Tabernacle, the Temple, and Ezekiel s Temple should have prominent associations with this numerical symbol. In Exodus 25-28, the number four is mentioned 10 different times with respect to the design of the Tabernacle. For example, there are four rings, four feet, four corners, four legs, four cups, four posts, four bases, four horns, and four rows of stones. Each one of these 10 references is repeated in Exodus as the Tabernacle is constructed. Certainly, Moses faithfully followed the pattern given to him in the construction of this world-model! Likewise, the number four is prevalent in the descriptions of the Temple and also in Ezekiel s visionary temple. Finally, I just want to touch on the four four-faced cherubim of Ezekiel 1& 10 and the four fourfaced Living Creatures of Revelation 4-7. In Ezekiel, these cherubim comprise God s chariot throne, and they move over the face of the earth, doing God s will. For example, in Ezekiel 10, the cherubim convey God s glory away from the Temple as a sign of judgment on Jerusalem. We also see the same creatures in Revelation, again around God s throne, singing praise and glorifying God. Thus, the ministering servants of God are portrayed by the number four as well. This leads me to amend slightly Jordan s statement about four being a fundamental symbol of the world structure. I would add to it this phrase, and God s action in it. Thus, the number four is a fundamental symbol of the world structure and God s action in it. We ve seen the structural aspect in the depiction of the world as a four-cornered house, but there is plenty of action that God takes to maintain this house. God is not an absentee landlord. He is active in the maintenance of his creation, blessing and judging the inhabitants of the house through his ministering spirits, the angels and cherubim. 3. Seven Finally, we have arrived at lucky seven! With 419 different verses with seven or seventh in them, we have quite a large number of potential cases to study! But first, let me ask you once again, when you think of the number seven in Scripture, what do you think of? Obviously, the key to understanding the number seven is tied to the seven-day pattern of Creation established by God, which is the foundation for the fourth commandment regarding the Sabbath: 2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. [3] And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done (Genesis 2:2-3). 8 Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. 11 For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy (Exodus 20:8-11). So, the number seven is tied to Creation and the Sabbath day. As such, it is a number of completeness or fullness, as we rest from our labors because they are finished. What books do you think have the highest concentration or usage of the number seven? The number seven is especially prevalent in the books of the Pentateuch and in the Revelation of Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 120 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

9 John. Here is a list of the number of verses in each book with the number seven or seventh in them: Verses Mentions Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy Revelation Here are a few examples from Pentateuch. In each of these examples, notice how the concept of fullness, of completeness is working. In Genesis, the number seven is used 7 times in conjunction with Noah and the Great Flood (7 clean animals, 7-day final warning, waiting 7 days to send out the dove, etc.). The number seven occurs six times in the life of Jacob, working seven years for each of his two wives, bowing seven times before his brother, etc. Pharaoh has two dreams full of sevens that Joseph interprets for him. The seven fat cows and the seven skinny cows, the seven full ears of grain, and the seven withered ears of grain, representing seven years of bounty and seven years of famine. The number seven is present a full 22 times in this section of Genesis. In the institution of the Passover, the people of God are to prepare seven days by removing leaven from the house before the celebration feast. Manna falls in the wilderness for six days, but the people are to refrain from collecting it on the seventh, because it is the Sabbath day. God calls Moses up onto Mt. Sinai on the seventh day. Miriam is exiled from the camp seven days after being struck with leprosy as the result of her disobedience. The prophet Balaam even gets into the act, building seven altars to sacrifice 7 bulls and 7 rams in a vain attempt to gain God s favor and curse Israel. As we get into the Law section of the Pentateuch, let me just list for some of the ways in which the number seven is used. Again, as you hear this list, consider in each case that the underlying meaning of the number seven has to do with fulfillment or completion. Of course, there is the Sabbath day, the day of rest, the day of worship, the day of the creature imitating the Creator by following the Creation pattern (Ex. 20:10-11; Lev. 23:3; Dt. 5:14). There are many seven-day periods of waiting, preparation, or consecration (Ex. 29:35, 37; Lev. 8:33, 35). Blood is dipped and sprinkled seven times (Lev. 4:6, 14:51; 16:14, 19). Oil is also sprinkled seven times (Lev. 8:11; Lev. 14:6, 27). If you are unclean, it takes seven days to become clean again (Lev. 12:2, Lev. 15:13, 19). If you have a skin disease or your house has mildew, it takes seven days of washing to be clean (Lev. 13:4-6, 21-34, 50-54). There are many examples of seven-fold cleansings in the Law (Num. 19:12, 19; 31:19, 24). The Feast of Unleavened Bread lasts seven days (Ex. 23:15). Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 121 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

10 Seven weeks of days are counted out to arrive at the Feast of Firstfruits, later called Pentecost (Lev. 23:16, Dt. 16:9). The seventh month is the holy month. In it we start out with a Feast of Trumpets on the first day, followed by the Day of Atonement on the tenth day of the seventh month, and then the Feast of Tabernacles on the 15 th day of the seventh month (Lev. 23:24, 27, 37). The Feast of Tabernacles lasts seven days (Lev. 23:34, 36, 39-42). In the seventh year, there is freedom for slaves and the cancellation of debts (Ex. 21:2; Dt. 15:9, 12). Also, in the seventh year, the fields are to lie fallow (Ex. 23:11, Lev. 25:4). The Year of Jubilee is counted off by seven Sabbaths of years 7x7 (Lev. 25:8). If Israel disobeys the covenant, God promises to punish their sins seven times over (Lev. 26:18, 21, 24, 28). Now here is an interesting verse: 25 The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will come at them from one direction but flee from them in seven, and you will become a thing of horror to all the kingdoms on earth (Deuteronomy 28:25). As I read through this list rapidly, I hope you heard how the number seven is used to indicate fullness or completion. Your sins are forgiven completely by a seven-fold sprinkling of blood. You are consecrated to service after a seven-day period. Sprinkling oil seven times indicates consecration is completed. If you are unclean, you must wash and wait seven days to be clean again. The Feasts of Israel are complete after seven days. Debts are canceled, slaves set free, land is rested all in the seventh year. In all of these things, the seven indicates completeness, fullness. The same concept is true in the book of Revelation, that symbolic book which uses the number seven more frequently than any other Book in the Bible. Here is a list of the seven s in Revelation: There are 7 churches, 7 stars, 7 golden lampstands, 7 spirits of God, 7 seals, 7 trumpets, 7 thunders, 7 angels, 7 crowns, 7 heads, 7 plagues, 7 bowls, 7 hills, and 7 kings. The book is organized with 7 cycles of judgment, each leading up to a vision of the Second Coming of Christ. Now, I am not going to even attempt to explain today what all of those sevens represent. But I will say this: the overwhelming usage of the number seven indicates completeness. Revelation completes the Scriptures. Revelation gives us a complete picture of history up to the Second Coming of Christ and the establishment of the final state, the New Heavens and Earth. While Revelation may be difficult to understand, this one thing we can be assured of: it s complete! D. Conclusion Today, I tried briefly to cover the symbolism of three common numbers used in Scripture, 12, 4, and 7. And from our brief look, we can safely say that the Bible uses numbers in a symbolic fashion. We saw that that twelve is the number of the people of God; the number four is symbolic of the world structure and God s action in it, and that the number seven is associated with the seven-day pattern of Creation and thus is a number of completeness or fullness. Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 122 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

11 That s all well and good, but of what practical benefit is this? Overall, I think realizing the symbolic nature and use of these numbers can help us to read and understand the Scriptures more clearly. For example, if you ve ever tried to read the book of Leviticus, you are bound to get bogged down many times. Leviticus 13 and 14 are particularly slow going, because those are the chapters concerning leprosy and mildew. And you may say to yourself, Self, what is going on here? This is just not making much sense to my enlightened 21 st century mind! But if you begin to associate the leprosy or the mildew of uncleanness with our condition as sinners, and then recognize that a seven-day program of cleansing restores you, you can make the connection that Christ fully and completely cleanses us of our sin and restores us to fellowship with God. Is that a bit of a stretch? I don t know. But I do know this, that in our state of sinfulness, we need complete, full, perfect redemption that is found only in Christ. We need a perfect seven! As you read the Scriptures, look for patterns. Look for repetitions. Look for connections. Look for the common themes. But most of all, look to the Savior, who is gathering together from all over the world a full and complete people of God: a global, complete, people of God. Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 123 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13