What is the biblical significance of the number seven/7?

Response

Throughout the Bible, God often assigns symbolic significance to ordinary items or concepts. For instance, in Genesis 9:12–16, God designates the rainbow as the symbol of His promise to Noah (and, by extension, to all humanity) that He will not flood the entire earth again. God uses bread to symbolize His presence with His people “And upon the table of shewbread they shall spread a cloth of blue, and put thereon the dishes, and the spoons, and the bowls, and covers to cover withal: and the continual bread shall be thereon:”, (Numbers 4:7); as a representation of the gift of eternal life “And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.”, (John 6:35); and as a symbol of the broken body of Christ, sacrificed for our sins “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.”, (Matthew 26:26). The rainbow and the bread serve as clear symbols in Scripture. Some numbers in the Bible, particularly the number 7, appear to have less obvious meanings attached to them, providing special emphasis in the text at times.

The first mention of the number 7 in the Bible is connected to the creation week in Genesis 1. God spends six days creating the heavens and the earth, and then rests on the seventh day. This establishes the seven-day week as we know it today, observed worldwide. The seventh day was intended to be “set apart” for rest.

For Israel, the Sabbath was a holy day of rest «Keep the sabbath day to sanctify it, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee. », (Deuteronomy 5:12).

Thus, right at the start of the Bible, the number 7 is identified with something being “finished” or “complete.” From then on, that association continues, as 7 is often found in contexts involving completeness or divine perfection. So we see the command for animals to be at least seven days old before being used for sacrifice «Likewise shalt thou do with thine oxen, and with thy sheep: seven days it shall be with his dam; on the eighth day thou shalt give it me. », (Exodus 22:30), the command for leprous Naaman to bathe in the Jordan River seven times to effect complete cleansing «And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean. », (2 Kings 5:10), and the command for Joshua to march around Jericho for seven days (and on the seventh day to make seven circuits) and for seven priests to blow seven trumpets outside the city walls (Joshua 6:3-4). In these instances, 7 signifies a completion of some kind: a divine mandate is fulfilled.

Interestingly, man was created on the sixth day of creation. In some passages of the Bible, the number 6 is associated with mankind. In Revelation “the number of the beast” is called “the number of a man.” That number is 666 «Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.», (Revelation 13:18).

3:18). If God’s number is 7, then man’s is 6. Six always falls short of seven, just like “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” «for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; », (Romans 3:23). Man is not God, just as 6 is not 7.

Series of seven things crop up often in the Bible. For example, we find seven pairs of each clean animal on the ark «Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. », (Genesis 7:2); seven stems on the tabernacle’s lampstand «And thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof: and they shall light the lamps thereof, that they may give light over against it. », (Exodus 25:37); seven qualities of the Messiah in Isaiah 11:2; seven signs in John’s Gospel; seven things the Lord hates in Proverbs 6:16; seven parables in Matthew 13; and seven woes in Matthew 23.

Multiples of 7 also figure into the biblical narrative: the “seventy weeks” prophecy in Daniel 9:24 concerns 490 years (7 times 7 times 10). Jeremiah 29:10 predicted the Babylonian Captivity would last for seventy years (7 times 10). According to Leviticus 25:8, the Year of Jubilee was to begin after the passing of every forty-ninth year (7 times 7).

Sometimes, the symbolism of 7 is a great comfort to us: Jesus is the seven-fold “I AM” in the Gospel of John. Other times, it challenges us: Jesus told Peter to forgive a wrongdoer “seventy times seven” times «Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven. », (Matthew 18:22, NKJV). And then there are passages in which the number 7 is associated with.The judgment of God: the seven bowls of the Great Tribulation, for instance «And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth. », (Revelation 16:1), or God’s warning to Israel in Leviticus 26:18.

Referring to the book of Revelation, the number 7 is mentioned there more than fifty times in various contexts: there are seven letters to seven churches in Asia and seven spirits before God’s throne «John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne; », (Revelation 1:4), seven golden lampstands «And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; », (Revelation 1:12), seven stars in Christ’s right hand «And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. », (Revelation 1:16), seven seals of God’s judgment «And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals. », (Revelation 5:1), seven angels with seven trumpets «And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets. », (Revelation 8:2), etc. Most likely, the number 7 once again symbolizes completeness or totality: the seven churches.

Representing the completeness of the body of Christ, the seven seals on the scroll symbolize the entirety of God’s punishment of a sinful earth, and so forth. Additionally, the book of Revelation itself, with all its sevens, serves as the pinnacle of God’s Word to humanity. Through the book of Revelation, the Word was finalized «For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: », (Revelation 22:18).

Notably, not every occurrence of the number 7 in the Bible holds a profound significance. At times, a 7 is simply a 7, and we should exercise caution in attributing symbolic interpretations to any text, particularly when Scripture does not explicitly clarify such meanings. Nevertheless, there are instances where it appears that God is conveying the concepts of divine completeness, perfection, and wholeness through the utilization of the number 7.