The use of numbers

There definitely seems to be something to the idea that numbers have special meaning.  At least, dates and numbers are used in ways that we don't use them in our culture.  In fact, there seem to be no dates at all.  Which is especially odd given how important it seems to be to tell us how old someone was when they died, how old they were when they became the father of this or that person, and sometimes even how old they were when a specific thing happened.  In order to know those things, one would need to have a calendar of some sort, and so you would think they could give the dates things happened.

For example, Genesis 7:11 - "In the sixth hundredth year of Noah's life, on the seventh day of the second month - on that day..." (the flood began).  Why tie it to Noah's age like that - why not give us a date?  A cynic might say this was done in order to avoid having anyone question the event - to stop people from showing other historical events on that date that show it couldn't be true.  But I'm pretty sure this lack of dates continues into the New Testament - where many of the events would be unquestionable facts.  For example, Christ is a historically documented person.  He had a specific birth date and a specific date of death.  I don't see how anyone would think there was any harm in giving those dates.  But I'm pretty sure the Bible never does.  Why?


As to the use of numbers - Genesis at least - at least so far - seems to be using numbers in ways that we would not.  Not only with regard to ages of people (although that stands out the most) - there are also other numbers - such as the specific dimensions of the Arc, the number of animal pairs (one and seven - which is thus also two and fourteen), number of years warring, etc.  And, the creatures are divided into three groups - clean animals, unclean animals, and birds.  In the New Testament - in Matthew at least - in the lineage of Christ we have 14 generations between various people - divided into three groups.

I should also note that numbers certainly have power outside the Biblical context.  There is for example the number Pi, which apparently ties into many mathematical formulas.  There is a number (or formula?? - I can't remember it's name) that describes many natural forms - such as a nautilus or the branches of a tree.  Science is full of important and powerful numbers.  We like to think this is a modern phenomenon - the unlocking of the power of these numbers, but so often the ancient people surprise us with what they knew.  It seems very likely, even, that they knew things that were since forgotten and modern man has not figured out.  So, there could well be power in many of the numbers of the Bible.

But beyond that, clearly numbers have power culturally in the Bible.  In our culture, it is widely agreed that there is a lot of power in the number three.  It is powerful, when giving lists of things, to list three.  Two or four or more just doesn't pack the same punch.  I get the distinct impression from what I've read so far that understanding the numbers of the Bible would likely increase my understanding of what is being told, and, although I'm not normally a numbers guy, I definitely want to pursue this further.     





A work in progress - as always comments are encouraged during the progress -