At the time of writing Apocalypse, was "seven spirits of God" interpreted literally or symbolically? Generally, was the symbolic meaning of numbers strongly incorporated in early Christianity?
PURPOSE
There are some strange numbers in Revelation. For example:
- The seven Spirits of God (Rev 4:5);
- Exactly 12,000 are sealed from each of the 12 tribes of Jerusalem (Rev 7:4).
- The blood flows out of the wine press for a distance of 1600 furlongs (Rev 14:20 - YLT).
- The wall of the New Jerusalem is 144 cubits high (Rev 21:17 - NIV).
- The New Jerusalem itself is a square – 12,000 furlongs in length and in width (Rev 21:16 YLT).
The purpose of this article is to show that all numbers in Revelation are symbols. In other words, for example, that God’s Spirit is said to be seven in numbers says something qualitatively about God’s Spirit. In the same way, God’s end-time people are not literally 144,000 in number. That numbers say something qualitatively about the remnant.
Even some of the most learned people do not understand this principle. For example, the NASB converts the 12,000 furlongs into 1500 miles. This destroys the symbolism, which is dangerous, for John has warned, “if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life” (Rev 22:19).
THE NUMBER 4
We read:
“I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth,
holding back the four winds of the earth” (Rev 7:1).
During the 1000 years, “Satan will be released from his prison, and
will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of
the earth” (Rev 20:7-8).
The earth does not literally have 4 corners and there are not literally 4 winds. The number 4 signifies THE WHOLE WORLD.
ALL PEOPLE
The number 4 is often hidden in phrases that use four related words to describe ALL the people of the world. For example, Revelation 5:9 could have read:
“You have … purchased for God with Your blood men from every NATION.”
But it reads:
“You have … purchased for God with Your blood men from every TRIBE
and TONGUE and PEOPLE and NATION.”
The following are further examples:
- “Every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues” (Rev 7:9);
- “Many peoples and nations and tongues and kings” (Rev 10:11);
- “The peoples and tribes and tongues and nations” (Rev 11:9);
- “Every tribe and people and tongue and nation” (Rev 13:7);
- “Every nation and tribe and tongue and people” (Rev 14:6);
- “Peoples and nations and tongues and kings” (Rev 17:15);
These 8 examples use only the following five concepts but in different permutations:
- Nations
- Tribes
- Peoples
- Tongues
• Kings
One word might have sufficed but the fact that all seven of these instances use exactly four words confirms the significance of the number four. And since all seven examples describe all the people of the world indicates that the number four signifies THE WHOLE WORLD.
ALL CREATION
The meaning of the number four can also be seen in that creation is sometimes described as consisting of four parts:
“Worship Him who made the HEAVEN and the EARTH and SEA and springs of
WATERS” (Rev 14:7).
“Every created thing which is in HEAVEN and on the EARTH and UNDER THE
EARTH and on the SEA” (Rev 5:13)
The first four trumpets attack the four elements of creation as
described in Revelation 14:7; the earth, the sea, the waters and the
heavenly bodies (Rev 8:7-12). In other words, they attack the entire
creation.
The same applies to the first four plagues. They also attack the
earth, the sea, the waters and the heavenly bodies (Rev 16:2-8).
CONCLUSIONS
Since the number four symbolizes the whole earth, and since the “four living creatures (are) full of eyes in front and behind” (Rev 4:6), they symbolize awareness of EVERYTHING that happens on earth.
- 1600 is equal to 4x4x100. In other words, it is the superlative form of 4, just like 144,000 (12x12x1000) is the superlative form of 12. Therefore, since the number 4 symbolizes the whole earth, that the blood will flow out of the wine press for a distance of 1600 furlongs (Rev 14:20 YLT) means that it will flow all over the world.
THE NUMBER 12
The number 12 appears more than a hundred times in the Scriptures and consistently represents the people of God. For example:
12 IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
Since Jacob became the father of the twelve patriarchs (Acts 7:8), Israel consisted of twelve tribes (Gen 35:22; 49:28). The lists of the tribes in the Old Testament differ, but there are always 12 in the list. Since the number 12 was regarded as important, there were:
- Twelve spies of Israel (Deut 1:23),
- Twelve stones of the Jordan River (Josh 4:2-9),
- Twelve cities of the Levites (Josh 21:40),
- Twelve governors for Solomon (1 Kings 4:7),
- Twelve bronze oxen held up the bronze sea in Solomon’s temple (1 Kings 7:44; 2 Chr 4:2-4; Jer 52:20),
- Twelve lions in front of Solomon’s throne (1 Kings 10:18-20; 2 Chr 9:17-19),
- Elijah’s twelve stones (1 Kings 18:31), and the
- Twenty-four courses of priests, each with twelve trained musicians (1 Chr 25:1-31).
12 IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
Similarly, Jesus chose exactly 12 disciples; not 11 or 13.
Judas fell away, leaving only 11 disciples, but Revelation still refers to “the twelve apostles of the Lamb” (Rev 21:14).
12 IN REVELATION
The number 12 also symbolizes God’s people also in Revelation. For example:
The pure woman has a crown of “twelve stars” (Rev 12:1). She first
gave birth to Christ (Rev 12:5) but, after Christ ascended to heaven
(Rev 12:5), she also had other “children” (Rev 12:17). She, therefore,
represents God’s people both before and after Christ. For a further
discussion, see - Who are the woman, the dragon, and the child?
“The New Jerusalem,” which is another symbol for “the bride, the
wife of the Lamb” (Rev 21:9-10), has 12 gates with the names of the 12
tribes of Israel written on them (Rev 21:12), meaning that only
Israelites may enter. But it also has 12 foundations with the names of
the 12 apostles written on them (Rev 21:14), meaning that this city is
built on the foundation of the message of the New Testament.
In the original language, the height of the walls of the city is
144 = 12 x 12 cubits (Rev 21:17 YLT).
There are 24 elders in Revelation (e.g., Rev 4:4) and 24 is equal
to 12 + 12; similar to the 24 names written on the New Jerusalem.
In conclusion, in both the Old and New Testaments, the number 12 symbolizes God’s people.
THE 144,000 JEWS
Since the number 144,000 is equal to 12x12x1000, it is derived from the number 12. Since 12 symbolizes God’s people, the number 144,000 symbolizes something more specific about God’s people.
Another article (See – Who are the 144000?) shows that the 12,000 from each of the 12 tribes of Israel (144,000 in total) are using Old Testament military language as a symbol. In other words, the doubling of 12 (12x12) in the number 144,000 symbolizes the perfection of the end-time remnant of God’s people; prepared for spiritual battle.
"No lie was found in their mouth; they are blameless" (Rev 14:5).
They "have not been defiled with women, for they have kept themselves
chaste" (Rev 14:4), meaning that they were not defiled by Babylon, the
mother of harlots, or by her harlot daughters (Rev 17:5). They will be
pure in their worship of God and Christ.
THE WALL
The other symbol in Revelation that includes the number 144 is the wall of the New Jerusalem, which “was 144 cubits thick” (Rev 21:17; NIV or YLT). In ancient times, the wall of a city was the most important defense for the people of that city. Both this huge wall and the 144,000 sons of Israel in Revelation 7 use military strength as a symbol. The 144,000 Israelites symbolize that God’s end-time army will not surrender. They will be willing to die for their testimony (Rev 12:11). The huge wall of the New Jerusalem symbolizes the spiritual strength of God’s eternal people: Never again will anybody be able to tempt them to sin.
THE 24 ELDERS
Since the number 24 is equal to 12 + 12, the root number for the 24 elders (e.g., Rev 4:4) is 12. And since the number 12 symbolizes the PEOPLE OF GOD, the 24 symbolizes some aspect of God’s people.
The number 24 could be drawn from the fact that the Old Testament priests were organized into 24 divisions, each of which served consecutively in the temple for a week at a time (1 Chr 24:1-19). In Revelation 5:8, “the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one holding … golden bowls full of incense.” The incense seems to imply that they function as priests. So, associating the elders with the 24 divisions of the Israelite priesthood is certainly possible.
But another article has concluded that the 24 elders are human representatives of God’s people in God’s throne room. Since they sit on thrones, they rule under “Him who sits on the throne” (Rev 4:9). it is more likely that the number 24 arises from a doubling of the number 12, which is the number symbolizing God’s people.
THE NUMBER 7
Seven is the most prominent number in Revelation (e.g., seven churches, seven seals, seven trumpets, seven bowls, seven heads of the beast, etc.). This number is mentioned 56 times in Revelation.
The number seven is derived from the seven days of the week. Similar to the days of the week, many of the sevens in Revelation imply a sequence of events, namely, the second follows after the first—the third after the second, and so forth, with the seventh being the last or the end (e.g., the seven seals). In that respect, the number seven in Revelation is different from the other numbers in Revelation, such as 4, 10, and 12.
The number seven, therefore, has to do with time and should be understood as the completion or perfection of time. Just like the number 4 means EVERYWHERE, the number 7 means ALWAYS.
SEVEN SPIRITS
One of the sevens in Revelation is God’s seven Spirits (Rev 3:1; 4:5; 5:6). This number must be interpreted symbolically. God does not literally have seven Spirits.
For this reason, and due to the connection between the Spirits and the seven lamps in the temple (Rev 4:5) that were ALWAYS burning, the seven Spirits of God can be understood to mean that God’s Spirit is ALWAYS with us.
SEVEN HEADS
Similarly, the seven heads of the beast are the seven phases of the beast, covering all time.
THE NUMBER 2
Similar to the number 4, the number 2 is often hidden in phrases that mention two related things, for example:
- “John, who testified to the WORD OF GOD and to the TESTIMONY OF JESUS CHRIST, even to all that he saw” (Rev 1:1).
- “The WORD OF GOD and … the TESTIMONY OF JESUS” (Rev 1:2);
- “I, John … was on the island called Patmos because of the WORD OF GOD and the TESTIMONY OF JESUS” (Rev 1:9).
- “Those who had been slain because of the WORD OF GOD,
and because of the TESTIMONY which they had maintained” (Rev 6:9).
- “Her children, who keep the COMMANDMENTS OF GOD and ... the TESTIMONY OF JESUS CHRIST” (Rev 12:17);
- “The saints who keep the COMMANDMENTS OF GOD and their FAITH IN JESUS” (Rev 14:12);
- “Those who had been beheaded because of their TESTIMONY OF JESUS CHRIST and … the WORD OF GOD” (Rev 20:4).
These seven verses, therefore, refer to four related concepts:
- The word of God,
- The testimony of Jesus,
- The commandments of God, and
- Faith in Jesus.
These seven verses combine these four concepts differently but always list only two of the four concepts, indicating the significance of the number two. Since these seven verses always describe God’s people, the number 2 symbolizes God’s people. This symbolism is probably based on the Old Testament principle that at least two witnesses are required to confirm evidence (e.g., 2 Cor 13:1; 1 Tim 5:19).
The following are other examples of the number 2:
The two witnesses (Rev 11:3); who also are the two feet of the strong angel (Rev 10:2).
Revelation 13 mentions the dragon, the beast, and the beast from the earth (Rev 13:1-2, 11) but later Revelation identifies the beast from the earth as the “the false prophet” (Rev 16:13; 19:20; 20:10). The beast from the earth has “two horns like a lamb” (Rev 13:11). This implies that it pretends to be a Christian organization. But “he spoke as a dragon” (Rev 13:11). Therefore, it is “the false prophet” (Rev 16:13).