Paul the Poke

During my scripture studies, I have been reading about the number seven (7). I find the truth and reliability of the Scriptures reinforced in a number. When you see the number and the situations that stretch across the time of the Old and New Testaments, you cannot dismiss the divine as coincidence but see it as proof of its truth.

In the Old Testament:
There were seven days of creation. The seventh day being the day of completion and rest.

In Hebrew scriptures, there are seven words in Genesis 1:1 and 14 words in Genesis 1:2.

Also in Hebrew Scriptures, there are seven paragraphs from Genesis 1:1 to Genesis 2:3, which is the verse about the seventh day.

According to Jewish tradition, the creation of Adam occurred on September 26, which is the first day of Tishri, the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar.

It is also believed that Jesus, the 2nd Adam, was born around this time, during the fall feasts. (Bethlehem & Herodium Hill)

There are seven sabbatical feasts:

1. The Passover (Leviticus 23:5)
2. The Feast of Unleavened Bread (Leviticus 23:6-8)
3. The Feast of First Fruit (Leviticus 23:9-14)
4. The Feast of Weeks (Leviticus 23:15-21)
5. The Feast of Trumpets (Leviticus 23: 23-25)
6. The Day of Atonement (Leviticus 23:26-32)
7. The Feast of Tabernacles (Leviticus 23:33-34)

There are seven colors in the rainbow that God created as a covenant after the flood.

Abraham swore an oath of ownership over a well at Beersheba. The well is called “The Well of Seven”. Seven lambs were given as payment. (Genesis 21:25-34).

At Jericho, Joshua was instructed to march seven days around the walls. On the seventh day, seven priests joined the march while blowing seven trumpets (Joshua 6:1-27).

In 2 Kings 5:1-19, Naaman was instructed to wash seven times in the Jordan River for healing.

Isaiah 11:1-2 speaks of the coming of Christ and the seven spirits (traits of perfection) that will upon him:

1. The spirit of the Lord
2. The spirit of wisdom
3. The spirit of understanding
4. The spirit of counsel
5. The spirit of might
6. The spirit of knowledge
7. The spirit of the fear of the Lord

King David referred to God’s word “like gold refined seven times” (Psalm 12:6).

In the New Testament:
There are seven petitions in the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6: 9-13).

1. Thy kingdom come
2. Thy will be done on earth as in heaven
3. Give us this day our daily bread
4. Forgive us our debts
5. As we (let us) forgive our debtors
6. Lead us not into temptation
7. Deliver us from evil

In Matthew 18:21-22, we are told to forgive not seven times but seventy times seven or seventy-seven (depending translation).

Christ used seven metaphors to describe himself as the path to salvation:

1. The Bread of Life (John 6:35)
2. The Light of the World (John 8:12)
3. The Door to Salvation (John 10:9)
4. The Good Shepherd (John 10:11)
5. The Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25-26)
6. The Way, The Truth, The Life (John 14:6)
7. The Vine (John 15:5)

Jesus healed seven individuals on the seventh day of the week. He made them complete on the day of completion.

1. A man with a deformed hand (Mark 12:9-13)
2. A man possessed by an unclean spirit (Mark 12:23-26)
3. Peter’s mother-in-law with fever (Mark 12:29-31)
4. A woman with an eighteen year infirmity (Luke 13:10-13)
5. A man with dropsy (Luke 14:1-4)
6. An invalid man by the pool of Bethesda (John 5:5-9)
7. A man blind from birth (John 9:1-7)

Christ made seven statements from the cross:

1. “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:4)
2. “Verily I say unto thee, today shalt thou be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43)
3. “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.” (Luke 2:45)
4. “Woman, behold thy son” and in the same statement “Behold thy mother” (John 19:26-27).
5. “I thirst.” (John 19:28)
6. “It is finished.” (John 19:30)
7. “My God, my God why hast thou forsaken me.” (Matthew 27:46)

In Revelation, there are:

Seven letters to seven churches
Seven seals to be broken
Seven trumpets blown by seven angels
Seven bowls of wrath to be poured out by seven angels

While this is not a comprehensive list of the number seven in the Bible, I believe this supports my belief in the truth of the scriptures. It is truth not coincidence.

Citations
Bethlehem & Herodium Hill. The Birth of Yeshua (Jesus) and the Fall Feasts, https://free.messianicbible.com/feature/birth-of-yeshua-jesus-fall-feasts/.