Biblical numerology

Biblical numerology is the use of numerology in the Bible to convey a meaning outside of the numerical value of the actual number being used. Numerological values in the Bible often relate to a wider usage in the Ancient Near East.

The following table lists all the ages of the patriarchs from Adam to Moses as listed in the Bible. These add up to 12,600.

The value of 12,600 is a variant of the symbolic value of 1,260 known from apocalyptic theology (although may derive from earlier traditions), only multiplied by ten. The patriarchal ages were selected in order to achieve this numerological total. Another example of the numerical schema of 12,600 can be found in the War Scroll discovered at Qumran, where "the Sons of Light shall fight against the Sons of Darkness in the final days for a period of 35 years. Employing the Jewish luni-solar calendar of the 360-day year, 35 years equals 12,600 days."

The flood narrative was constructed in order to include the usage of commonly used numbers such as seven and forty. There are repeated reference to events occurring in seven days (Gen. 7:4, 10; 8:10, 12) and seven pairs of clean animals (Gen. 7:2-3). The floodwaters are said to have come for forty days and forty nights.

In this narrative, it is possible that some words were deliberately used in multiples of seven in the flood pericope (Gen. 6:9-917). For example, God converses seven times with Noah. The Hebrew word for "flesh" appears fourteen times (7 x 2), "water" is mentioned twenty one times, and "Noah" is mentioned thirty-five times. However, it is not easy to distinguish here between authorial intention and coincidence.

The usage of forty years as a timespan (and as a shorthand for a generation) is common across a number of biblical texts. For example, 1 Chronicles 5:30-36 lists twelve generations separating the Exodus from the construction of the Temple of Solomon. If each generation were to last forty years, that would be the equivalent of four hundred and eighty years separating the Exodus from the construction of Solomon's Temple. Unsurprisingly, 1 Kings 6:1 directly dates the construction of Solomon's temple four hundred and eighty years after the Exodus. Scholars have in turn concluded that this dating relies on the numerological representation of the length of a generation. Other examples are commonly found across biblical texts. The Israelites wandered in the wilderness for forty years before reaching the promised land. Moses' life proceeded through three stages of forty years. Both David and Solomon reigned over Israel for forty years. In similar manner, Jesus wandered in the wilderness for forty days.

The Books of Chronicles uses large numbers for literary and creative purposes in order to convey meanings regarding relations between God and monarchs. This text gives the number of men in the armies of seven Judean kings: Rehoboam, Abijah, Asa, Jehoshaphat, Amaziah, Uzziah, and Ahaz.

The army of Jehoshaphat consisted of five units, all of which had a number of men either approximating to the nearest hundred thousand or ending in 80,000 (e.g. 280,000 and 180,000). The total number of soldiers in all these units numbered 1,160,000 men. This value appears to be exactly twice the size of the army of Jehoshaphat's father Asa, which is given as 580,000 while also equal to the total number of men in the armies of Jehoshaphat's three predecessors combined: the 180,000 men of Rehoboam, the 400,000 men of Abijah, and the 580,000 men of Asa. Jehoshaphat is conveyed in the biblical texts as one of the righteous kings of Judah, and thus his army was made to vastly exceeded and in fact sum the armies of several of his predecessors to represent the divine favour he had for his righteousness. In addition, the army of Asa is numbered at 580,000 men is the exact sum of the armies of his own two predecessors: The 180,000 of Rehoboam and the 400,000 of Abijah.