God's Ways

The object of this article is to show that God has revealed from His Word what He is about to do regarding Israel and the nations, and to encourage believers who are going through trials while awaiting the promised return of our Lord Jesus Christ for His own. "He made known His ways unto Moses, His acts unto the children of Israel." Psa. 103:7.
We believe that it has been for a specific reason that God has used certain numbers over and over again in regard to His governmental ways with His people down through the ages. As all numbers used in this way in Scripture have a special significance, it seems necessary for the purpose of this article to point out first the meaning of some of them as plainly seen from their usage in the Word of God.
The number one: Supremacy, exclusiveness: one Jehovah, one God and Father, one Holy Spirit, one body, and one faith.
The number two: Distinctness, adequate testimony: relation to the two days of God's grace.
The number three: Divine fullness, completeness: perfectness in testimony, millennial blessing.
The number four: Completeness in that which is created or ordained of God: four winds, four living creatures, four horsemen, etc.
The number five: Human weakness in its appreciation of obligation: five wise and five foolish virgins in Matt. 25.
The number six: Incompleteness, imperfection, (one short of perfection): six steps to Solomon's throne, the number of the imperial beast of Rev. 13 is 666, etc.
The number seven: Spiritual completeness, generally in good but occasionally in evil. The compound of 3 and 4. Seven creation days, hence seven days per week. Every seventh year the land of Israel was to rest. 7 times 7 years brought in the jubilee, the fiftieth year, the times of the restoration of the inheritance. The number 7 appears many times in the Revelation Forgiveness was to be 70 times 7 times (Matt. 18:22). Israel's captivity was seventy years. Daniel's seventy weeks, etc.
The number eight: A new departure outside of, but connected with creation-order: resurrection of Christ, going beyond what God established as Jeroboam did. (1 Kings 12:32, 33.)
The number ten: Complete ground of human responsibility.
The number twelve: Completeness in administration in what is set forth or displayed man-ward: twelve tribes, twelve apostles.
The number forty: 4 times 10. Complete probation to bring to light good or evil. Moses had three times of testing of forty years each, as well as two periods of forty days each on the mount of God. (See Acts 7:23, 30, 36, 42.) Twelve spies searched the land forty days (Num. 13). Because of Israel's unbelief in God's power and promises, and having tempted Him ten times, they were tested for forty years in the wilderness.