A BOOK OF NUMBERS?
by Richard Burkard
Is Sex Sin? was arguably the most provocative booklet title in the history of the old Worldwide Church of God (now Grace Communion International). It was one of the first booklets I ordered from WCG, as a teenager.
But over the years, I've discovered some church members have a slightly different viewpoint. They consider six sin - as in the number six.
This viewpoint came out when the United Church of God had a series of Bible studies called Six Steps to Passover. The presenters explained the schedule only allowed for six biweekly studies before the annual Passover service - but they apparently heard from some members, who thought there needed to be seven.
Longtime Church of God members know why. Seven is considered the Biblical number of "perfection" or "completion." They're not alone in this view; I've heard it from famous modern mainstream ministers as well, such as Jimmy Swaggart. And some online checking shows ministers have looked for deep meaning in Bible numbers for hundreds of years. The problem is that their conclusions can end up in conflict and confusion.
Can we learn deep mysteries of God from Bible numerology? If different ministers reach different conclusions about a number, does that mean there are multiple meanings - or simply a lot of confusion? We went to a Bible concordance, "ran the numbers" and tried to find out.
Rolling in 7's
It's easy to start with the number 7, because the Bible has it in many places. Consider what the Lord told Joshua, in advising how to take Jericho:
"Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams' horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets" (Joshua 6:4).
God started all this, of course, with the seven-day pattern of creation outlined in Genesis 1-2. COG members can cite many other examples. There are seven days of unleavened bread (Exodus 23:15). Seven annual festivals. Seven Sabbaths leading to Pentecost (Leviticus 15-16). Seven days of the Feast of Tabernacles, during the "seventh month" (Leviticus 23:33-36). Even a seven-year rule for keeping slaves and debts (Deuteronomy 15/Jeremiah 34:14). Your own study undoubtedly can find more.
A pattern of sevens is evident at the end of the Bible as well. Messages are sent to seven churches (Revelation 2-3). Seven seals are on a scroll (5:1) -- opened by a Lamb with seven horns and seven eyes, representing "the seven spirits of God" or "the sevenfold Spirit" (NIV margin; 5:6). Revelation goes on to tell of seven trumpets sounding and seven bowls being poured out.
The early church apparently thought something of this number, based on this advice of the apostles: "Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom" (Acts 6:3). Yet notice there were not seven apostles - there were 12 (6:2), as Jesus had called 12 (Matthew 10:1).
What Was Jesus's Number?
The fact that Jesus had 12 apostles, and at one point sent out at least 70 other disciples (Luke 10:1 - perhaps 72, depending on your translation), should be a hint that our Lord did not feel tied down to doing everything in sevens. In fact, His miracles on Earth utilized a wide range of numbers.
The first recorded one required changing water into wine at a wedding feast. "Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from 20 to 30 gallons," John 2:6 says. Did Jesus demand a seventh jar? No. He had the six filled with water. The outcome "revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him" (verse 11).
Skeptics might say this is one area where Jesus had to "learn perfection" - that He had to learn He was supposed to use sevens in miracles. Yet the Lord pointed out to His disciples in Matthew 16:9-10, "Don't you remember the five loaves for the 5,000, and how many basketfuls you gathered? Or the seven loaves for the 4,000, and how many basketfuls you gathered?"
How interesting that the so-called "perfect number" of loaves for a miracle (a later event, based on Matthew 13-14) actually seemed to feed fewer people! (You may draw your own comparisons with "Gideon's army" of Judges 7.) Our point is simply this: God and Jesus Christ can accomplish amazing things with any number - not only the ones you might consider Biblical or "lucky."
Other People's Numbers
We mentioned how some ministers use Bible numerology to find meanings far beyond seven. The late Harold Camping went to an extreme with this, using numerology as part of his basis for declaring May 21, 2011 "Judgment Day" for Earth (which it wasn't).
As I studied in preparation for this article, I happened (?!) to hear a Love Worth Finding radio broadcast where the late Baptist minister Adrian Rogers went through a series of numbers and gave them Bible meanings. The message contained several Biblical errors, but I reviewed it to see how he justified numerical meanings.
Dr. Rogers agreed with the standard COG view that 7 is a number of perfection in Scripture. But we must be careful, because that number also can refer to very imperfect things.
"There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him," says Proverbs 6:16. Seven negative traits indeed follow in verses 17-19 (although some might say lying is condemned twice). Jesus also warned about evil spirits bringing seven more wicked ones (Luke 11:24-26) - and He had to remove "seven devils" from Mary Magdalene (Mark 16:9).
Dr. Rogers also preached 8 as a Biblical number of "new beginnings." An obvious example of this is the number of people saved through the great flood -- mentioned in Genesis 7:13, and noted by Peter twice (I Peter 3:20; II Peter 2:5). A less obvious example cited by the preacher might be the circumcising of eight-day-old babies (Genesis 17:12). Doesn't a new baby have a "new beginning" only about a week earlier?
Gimme Five?
One of the biggest examples of disputed numerical interpretation is the number 5. Adrian Rogers declared it a number of "completeness." Jimmy Swaggart and the pro-COG website BibleStudy.org say it's the number of "grace." Yet I once heard a radio preacher (whose name I do not recall) declare 5 also was the number of Satan - and he even called the U.S. Defense Department Satanic, because it's based at the five-sided Pentagon!
Based on an Internet search engine check, the pinning of 5 on the devil might be traced to Isaiah 14. Lucifer makes five "I will" statements in verses 13-14, in desiring supremacy above God in heaven. Some also might note the five-pointed star symbol on the insignia of the "Church of Satan."
But long before I began working on this article, I was reminded of that "miracle of loaves and fishes" we mentioned earlier. Jesus used five loaves in Matthew 14. If the number truly is Satanic, why would the Lord use it for good? Much less divide "ten virgins" in the parable of Matthew of Matthew 25:1-2 into five foolish ones and five wise ones? Why not divide them into three/seven?
In fact, Adrian Rogers used the virgins as an example to show both the number 5 and the number 10 picture completeness. But I found no direct Bible statement connecting "five" to grace. BibleStudy.org points out the Old Testament has five "books of the law" (known as the Pentateuch) - then suggests a similar set of five books in the New Testament gospels plus Acts. But that would seem to make 5 as much a "law number" as a "grace number."
Keep in mind David had "five smooth stones" in I Samuel 17:40 - and they turned out to be killers. Also, Revelation 9:5, 10 (ironic verse numbers) mention five months of torture and torment which people will face at the end of the age. While that time limit is set by God's angels, does that prove a "grace" number?
Do Threes Rule?
Bring up the number 3 in the Bible, and some COG members could become defensive. After all, Sabbath-keeping groups tend to reject the "trinity" concept of the Godhead. Yet mainstream church ministers call 3 a "divine" number for the very reason of the trinity. (We have several articles on that concept, but that's not our focus here.)
The "rule of threes" is something writers are taught along the way in their career - whether it means having three "action points" in a TV news item, or three steps leading to a punch line in a joke. The U.S. Declaration of Independence includes it, by referring to "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness." And even some COG ministers accept this, whether they realize it or not, by telling speakers to have three points or "Bible turns" in a sermonette.
Why does this rule exist? I think because it's embedded in the Bible. Meditate on how often threes come up....
* Patriarchs "Abraham, Isaac and Jacob" - a combination listed more than 25 times within individual verses of the KJV.
* The all-star Old Testament trio "Noah, Daniel and Job," mentioned twice to a prophet by "the word of the Lord" in Ezekiel 14:14, 20.
* Punishment "by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence" (Jeremiah 42:22) - a three-pronged combination mentioned by Jeremiah 12 times.
* Jesus took Peter, James and John with Him to the transfiguration - where Peter talked of building "three shelters" for the Lord, Moses and Elijah (Matthew 17:1-4).
Again, your own study probably can find other examples. But if God permits these threes in the Bible, is the concept of a Father-Son-Holy Spirit "triune" Godhead really that far-fetched?
Four - the Beauty of the Earth?
Adrian Rogers argued 4 was the number of "Earth," based on several verses claiming the planet has "four corners"(Isaiah 11:12, Ezekiel 7:2, KJV; Revelation 20:8, NIV). In fact, the European-based Adventist network Radio 74 calls itself "God's perfect 7 to the 4 corners of the earth."
The problem here is that God sometimes does things in fours. "The angel answered me, 'These are the four spirits of heaven, going out from standing in the presence of the Lord to the whole world'" (Zechariah 6:5). The NIV margin calls the spirits "winds," yet they refer to four chariots which appeared to the prophet in a vision - and came from heaven, not Earth.
God also sends out four killer angels in Revelation 9:14-15. Ezekiel saw a vision of "four living creatures" in 1:4-9 - then something similar with cherubim in 10:14. And the New Jerusalem is described in the KJV of Revelation 21:16 as "the city lieth foursquare" (probably without the 4square app).
From 4 to 40
Many people consider 40 the Biblical number of testing. We can cite Jesus's 40 days and nights of fasting (which for some reason opponents of "three days and three nights" literalism in the tomb do not seem to reduce), Noah's family witnessing 40 days of rain and Israel's 40 years of wandering. A few old WCG ministers even pinned this number on the Ronald Reagan administration, when he was the 40th U.S. President.
But hold on a moment. Jesus appeared to His apostles "over a period of 40 days and spoke about the kingdom of God" after His resurrection (Acts 1:3). What sort of "testing" was this? Didn't the larger test for the apostles come after Jesus ascended to heaven - as they waited ten days for the Holy Spirit to endow them? (Acts 1:4-5)
The same sort of question could be asked about two periods in Israel's history when "the land had peace for 40 years" (Judges 3:11, 8:28). Then a national leader died, and evil revived. So when was the test - during the years of peace, or after it in year 41?
Even Dozens
The number 12 abounds in the Bible - from the number of tribes of Israel (based on Jacob's sons) to the number of Jesus's closest disciples, whom Jesus promised will someday sit on thrones judging those 12 tribes (Matthew 19:28). Thus Adrian Rogers called 12 the "number of government."
That number is evident in the number of hours in daylight, as declared by Jesus (John 11:9), and the number of months in an ordinary Biblical year. At least two COG groups are overseen by a 12-person Council of Elders.
Yet God said Ishmael also would be "the father of 12 rulers" (Genesis 17:20). Those 12 are listed in 25:13-16 - yet I can't name any COG group which has traced the lineage of those 12, the way they've tried to track the "lost tribes." And Jesus pointed out during His arrest He could have called "more than 12 legions of angels" to rescue Him (Matthew 26:53).
Doing the Other Numbers
The Adrian Rogers sermon I heard completely skipped over several numbers. So let's do a quick review of some others, to see whether they fit into Biblical patterns:
* 9 - The hour of the day when people prayed in the book of Acts (3:1, 10:3). The only other place where it's evident is in the number of fruit of the Holy Spirit, in Galatians 5:22-23.
* 11 - Noteworthy only for the number of curtains used in making the tent over the Old Testament tabernacle (Exodus 26:7-8). Does the number of disciples without Judas really count as noteworthy?
* 13 - Considered an "unlucky" number to many, the Bible doesn't show it that way. God called for a "burnt offering of 13 young bulls" on the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles (Numbers 29:13), with the number going down daily from there. And God intervened to keep the 13th day of the 12th month from becoming a day of Jewish ethnic slaughter (Esther 9:1, 17).
* 19 - A significant number to Herbert Armstrong, as he talked of WCG history running in "19-year time cycles." The Philadelphia Church of God claims WCG started in the 1930s with 19 members. But while that time cycle has a degree of scientific accuracy, I see no 19's of spiritual significance in Scripture.
* 21 - "That's three sevens," I've heard several church pastors proclaim when they spot a 21-inch-long baby. But ask for the Biblical significance of 21, and they tend to become quiet. It only comes up twice in Scripture: Zedekiah's age on becoming an evil king of Judah (Jeremiah 52:1-2) - and the number of days an angel was hindered in reaching Daniel (Daniel 10:13).
Division Problems
Some people try to divide large numbers in two, to fit their Biblical theories. The Scripture does this in several places - from five wise and five foolish virgins equaling 10 (Matthew 25:1-2) to King David's 40-year reign being "seven years in Hebron and 33 in Jerusalem" (I Kings 2:11).
But we must be careful when we force our own divisions into a text. The late Harold Camping did this to his hurt, computing there were exactly 23 years between "the end of the church age" on Pentecost 1988 and "judgment day" in May 2011, when Jesus supposedly would return.
COG ministers have taken this line of reasoning as well. The late Gerald Waterhouse divided Herbert Armstrong's ministry timeline several times - including "two 19-year time cycles" and "two seven-year time cycles" between 1934 and 1986. Most major COG's have kept time cycle theories very quiet since Mr. Armstrong's death in 1986, if they still believe in them at all. (For instance, what happened in January 2005? Or 2010?)
One-time WCG and UCG minister Ronald Weinland also went off-track in figuring three-and-a-half years of a "final warning" to Earth would end with the second advent on Pentecost 2012 -- a date he tried to trace back 18 ½ years to a "Sabbath is voluntary" message by then-WCG leader Joseph Tkach in suburban Atlanta. An attempt to roll the return date back to Pentecost 2013 also did not bring Jesus back.
Conclusions
If this article has left you questioning your faith in God or Jesus Christ, we must emphasize something: that is not our goal or purpose.
Our overall point is that we should be wary about putting God "in a box" - even when it comes to the numbers he might use in fulfilling His plans. While some numbers in the Bible might point toward specific meanings, we've tried to show there's Biblical evidence to put those stereotypes in question.
Instead of looking for specific numbers which might point to God, we suggest looking directly to God and His Word. We think the Bible reveals what God plans to do and how we should act in response to it, without using "Bible code" numerological clues. Yet the Bible also shows there are some numbers we should think about - numbers which are unknown and vague.
"Teach us to number our days aright," Psalm 90:12 says, "that we may gain a heart of wisdom." The number of days we have on Earth in the flesh are unclear (they'll top 20,000 if you live to age 55). So we should use every day wisely, and in an upright way.
"Surely then you will count my steps," Job 14:16 adds. And as you let Him do that, look to Him for blessings - "great things and unsearchable; marvelous things without number.... wonders without number" (Job 5:9 and 9:10, KJV).
"Many, O Lord my God, are the wonderful works which you have done.... if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered," David wrote in Psalm 40:5. May we all learn to trust God for amazing things which don't necessarily fit in any "numbers game."
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© 2014, Richard Burkard, All Rights Reserved.