Prophetic Counting
When Joseph interprets the cup bearer and baker’s dreams he reveals an important clue: Each time God speaks a number that number is a reference to time. Since the Bible is God’s word to us, all counts within the pages of the Bible are references to time. This article explains.
Background
Many times Jesus spoke in public he used parables. He revealed later that the reason he spoke this way was to veil his message from everyone except those who should understand. In private the disciples were taught by Jesus just as we are when we read and pray though the Bible.
The pattern exists to this day with many of the more important points veiled in prophetic language. Understanding what the Bible says still requires private consultations with God himself in order to understand what he means. In the case of the Bible those keys to unlocking his meaning are usually simply buried within the Bible’s own pages. Once such key is given in Genesis when Joseph interprets the cup bearer and baker’s dreams.
Notice something rather profound with Joseph’s interpretation. The three branches are symbolic for three days. One branch per day. Stated generally:
One item per unit time.
Joseph goes on to interpret a second dream and demonstrates the same principle.
Here again three items, in this case three baskets become three units of time, in this case three days.
New Testament Confirmation
The same principle can be seen again in the New Testament when Jesus uses currency within the same structure. Though the general principle includes counts of money, Jesus’ New Testament example reinforces the principle:
In this parable the rate of pay for the laborers is "a denarius a day" or one unit currency per unit time. This simply reinforces the principle of 1 count of anything mapping to 1 unit of time but it does pique our attention to look for other currency references. The best example is the Samaritan’s wages to the innkeeper though the principle applies across the Bible.
An interesting side note to this principle is that certain taxes were paid at the rate of 1/2 unit currency per person and so either the person count or the currency count (or both) could be applied to individual days.
General Application
As the Bible itself is God’s word to mankind, it is our collective dream, these examples suggest that every count given within the pages are references to time.
This is the principle that is required to fully understand the chronology implied at the time of Ezra and the Second Temple. Both Daniel and Jeremiah explain that the period of the exile between the fall of Jerusalem to Babylon and the return of a remnant will be 70 years. (Jer 25:11-12)(Dan 9:2) Yet when we read the account in Ezra of the his return to dedicate the temple we find no specific date references. Instead we find references to animal counts. The following is the best example:
Here we see Ezra’s animal sacrifice activities and he is revealing the year of those actions through the counts of animals he uses. These counts are indicating the 96 years since the loss of sovereignty to Babylon and the 77 years since the loss of the city. Confirmation is found by adding 70 years, the number in exile to the year of Ezra’s return.(Ezra 7:8-9)
Census Counts
Perhaps the most impressive confirmation of this principle rests in the main census counts conducted by Moses. Here we have some of the largest numbers recorded in the Bible’s pages. These counts also appear to be references to time.
The best way to see the significance of these census counts is to compare the total against the number of days in 3500 years. In both cases the result is the same:
| Tribe | Count |
|---|---|
| Judah | 74,600 |
| Issachar | 54,400 |
| Zebulun | 57,400 |
| Reuben | 46,500 |
| Simeon | 59,300 |
| Gad | 45,650 |
| Ephraim | 40,500 |
| Manasseh | 32,200 |
| Benjamin | 35,400 |
| Dan | 62,700 |
| Asher | 41,500 |
| Naphtali | 53,400 |
| Levites, Gershon | 7,500 |
| Levites, Kohath | 8,300 |
| Levites, Merari | 6,200 |
| Reuben | 43,730 |
| Simeon | 22,200 |
| Gad | 40,500 |
| Judah | 76,500 |
| Issachar | 64,300 |
| Zebulun | 60,500 |
| Manasseh | 52,700 |
| Ephraim | 32,500 |
| Benjamin | 45,600 |
| Dan | 64,400 |
| Asher | 53,400 |
| Naphtali | 45,400 |
| Levites | 23,000 |
| Plague on | 24,000 |
| Korah’s Rebellion: 252 * 5 = | 1260 |
| Korah’s Rebellion recorded again: | 1260 |
| Total: | 1,276,800 |
| Days in a Jubilee, 50 years: | 18,240 |
| Number of Jubilees: | * 70 = |
| Total days in 70 Jubilees: | 1,276,800 |
The odds that these are simply the same by random chance is one part in the total, since this is the error, or 1 in over 1.2 million. This chart is the subject of an interactive tool that allows adjustments based on textual issues found in these census. See Moses’ Census Report to play with these numbers more and view them as date references.
The census counts from Numbers are indicating that the story of the people who left Egypt and entered Canaan has something to do with 3500 years.
The day-for-a-year time line is counting down to the 3500th anniversary to the very day from the Exodus from Egypt. The two are working to the same end.
Comments
From a logical perspective a generality like this is rather amazing. Does every reference to any count of anything indicate time? As one who has puzzled over nearly every such count I can say that my belief is that all counts really do work this way. Though I don’t know exactly when every such count applies in the overall time line, I don’t doubt that with enough study all such counts will be found.
Each time God speaks a number it is a reference to time.