I knew the number 7 came up a lot in the Bible, but not HOW much… or that it’s use often was part of a pattern (but not always) . Of the 513 in the Bible, lots are referring to repeat events – for instance the 2 seven day festivals which span over a 1000 years in the Bible get quite a few mentions. smile emoticon
Why does it matter? Because He is still working the end of the story.
My chart wont be without errors, but I distilled it down to approx. 110 different and significant uses of 7. And out of THAT, several distinct things happen.
For
instance:
# Every single period of time that has something to do with purification is
measured by lots of 7 days.
# Every single time there is a ‘sprinkling’ (also for purification) – it is
done 7 times
# Over and over and over, significant things are completed/finished in 7 days.
The
“7’s” (and multiples) in the Bible most often thought of would be…
# Creation – the first week – the last day being the Sabbath.
# Forgiving 70 x 7
A
favourite of mine which is often missed/glossed over…
# There were six lots of 7 generations between Abraham and Jesus.
A
few more perhaps not so easily thought of…
# 70 years captivity in Babylon
# The menorah in the tabernacle/temple having 7 lamps
# 7 day feast of unleavened bread
# 7 day feast of Trumpets
# 7 Feasts of Israel
# Marching around Jericho for 7 days with 7 priests and 7 trumpets, and on the
last day, 7 times
And
the 7’s in Revelation…
• Spirits before Gods throne
• Lampstands – churches
• Stars – angels
• Seals
• Lamb with 7 horns and 7 eyes (which are the 7 spirits of God)
• 7 angels with 7 trumpets
• 7 thunders
• 7000 killed in an earthquake
• Dragon with 7 heads (hills – kings)) and 7 crowns
• 7 last plagues
• 7 bowls of wrath
And the rest:
• He blessed the 7th day
• Vengeance 7 times over to Cains killer if killed
• Seven pairs of animals on the ark
• God sent the rain 7 days after telling Noah to enter it
• Seventh month the ark rested on Mt Ararat
• Sent the dream of 7 cows and heads of grain to pharaoh
• Resulting in 7 years abundance and 7 years famine
• Jacob’s family of SEVENty
• Seven days between Nile turning to blood and frog plague
• Seven day feast of unleavened Bread
• Sacred assembly on 1st and 7th days
• No manna – so as no work on each 7th day in wilderness
• God created Sabbath to be 7th day – day of REST – Jews, animals, slaves and foreigners to all rest
• Servants set free in 7th year
• Land to be rested each 7th year
• SEVENty elders to accompany Moses to worship
• The Lord called Moses into the cloud of His glory on the mountain to receive the Law on the 7th day of the cloud
• Seven lamps on the lampstand
• Priestly garments to be worn seven days after succeeding Aaron – and to be anointed in them
• Seven days taken to anoint Aaron and his sons – same seven days to consecrate the altar
• If an anointed priest sins – the guilt offering sprinkled seven times
• If the whole Israelite community sins unintentionally – the blood of the bull is sprinkled seven times
• Anointing oil sprinkled seven times on altar
• Woman unclean for 7 days after a sons birth – double after a girls
• Separated from community for multiples of 7 days with a rash
• Pronounced clean on 7th day or multiples thereof
• Same procedure for articles and homes
• Ritual cleansing for diseased person (on multiples of the 7th day) includes sprinkling 7 times
• Anointing oil sprinkled 7 times for cleansing
• Same as above for men with unusual bodily discharge
• Impurity of period lasts 7 days
• If a man lies with her during that, he is unclean 7 days as well
• Seventh month holds 3 final feast days
• Seven weeks after Firstfuits to Weeks
• Tabernacles lasts for seven days in the seventh month
• To live in temporary shelters for the seven days o Tabernacles
• Seen lots of seven years to the 50th – the jubilee
• No work in the 7th year of the land – God will provide enough as in the 7th day in the wilderness with the manna
• Punishment for refusal to listen and continuing sin – seven times over
• Bowl of offering weighed SEVENTY shekels each day of the Tabernacles consecration
• Uncleanness lasts 7 days
• 7 animals to be sacrificed
• 7 bigger nations to drive out
• Debts cancelled
• Celebrate WHERE the Lord chooses
• Read the law aloud every seven years in the year of cancelling debts
• Jericho (on 7 days of Unleavened Bread) – 7 priests, 7 trumpets, march once for 6 days then on the 7th, 7 times
• Punishment at hands of Midian for 7 years
• Ruth paralleled to being better than 7 sons
• Ark captive by Philistines 7 months
• God stuck 70 from Beth Shemesh for breaking His command and looking into the ark
• Davids infant son dies on the 7th day
• Seventy THOUSAND killed because of David’s pride
• Third level of Temple 7 cubits wide
• 7 years to build the temple
• 7 pillars in temple
• Elijah send Ahab to look at the sea 7 times
• God reserves 7000 who don’t bow to Baal
• Ahab’s battle completed on 7th day?
• The boy Elisha brought healing to sneezed 7 times!!!
• Elijah sends Naaman to wash in Jordan 7 times
• Another famine 7 years decreed by God – Shunammite provided for
• Joash hidden in temple till rules at age 7
• Levites on a 7 day roster at temple
• 7000 talents silver in temple
• David rules in Hebron 3 years and 33 in Jerusalem. (Total 40 – same number as days of purification to bear a son. JESUS – SON OF DAVID)
• 700 cattle and 7000 sheep sacrificed as they entered into covenant with God
• 70 years captivity for all the years the land had not been given its rest. (490 years without its rest?)
• Ezra returns to Jerusalem in 7th year of Artaxerxes reign
• Job – 7 sons (3 daughters), 7000 sheep, 3000 camels, mourning period 7 days, 19 From six calamities he will rescue you;in seven no harm will touch you. Jobs friends told by God to sacrifice 7 each bulls and rams. Job ha 7 more sons (3 more daughters)
• God’s word flawless and compared to gold refined 7 times
• “Our days may come to SEVENty years” David
• Wisdom has seven pillars
• God will break the Euphrates River into seven streams
• Tyre will be forgotten for SEVENty years
• The sun will become seven times brighter – like the light of seven full days
• Ezekiel sat with those at Tel Aviv seven days and then the Word of the Lord came to him
• SEVENy elders in Ezekiels vision
• Israeli will burn the weapons of those they defeat for fuel for seven years
• Will tale Israelites seven months to bury the dead in the valley of Hamon Gog
• Seven steps on the Ezekiel temple north and south. Section 7 cubits wide, 70 cubits wide
• Seven days making atonement at Ezekiel temple – then be accepted.
• Priest waits seven days after contact with death in Ezekiel’s temple
• Ezekiel’s vision – 1st and 7th days unintentional sin offerings. (14th day Passover)
• Nebuchadnezzar deranged for 7 years
• SEVENTY sevens decreed between Daniels vision. Also 62 sevens. Also one seven .Jesus will raise 7 shepherds (and 8 commanders) to rule
• Zechariah – 7 eyes on a stone (7 eyes of the Lord).
• 7 lamps and channels on gold lampstand
• 7 loaves and 2 fish (as in pairs on Noahs ark) Then 7 baskets leftover
And if you make it this far… another intriguing thing is how often the number “3” shows up in sync with “7”.