The news media are filled today with reports of tomorrow’s “special date” of 07/07/07.
Women are scheduling Caesarean births on this “lucky day.”
High-rolling gamblers have special plans for “lucky seven” payoffs.
The number of weddings scheduled for tomorrow is triple the normal number for a Saturday in July – the date supposedly will bring good favor on a marriage.
What is the believer, who believes in Providence rather than “luck,” to think about this convergence of the sevens?
We turned to the book Biblical Numerology by Dr. John Davis, in which the former president of Grace College & Seminary discusses the use of numbers in the Bible. Here are just few excerpts from the book, which is available at http://www.bmhbooks.com/.
“It is the view of this writer that the only number used symbolically in the Scripture to any degree with discernible significance is the number 7. The number seven occurs in one way or another in nearly six hundred passages in the Bible.
“There are a number of reasons for the conclusion that seven constitutes the only significant and meaningful symbolic number in Scripture.
“First, this is the only number which appears to be used symbolically with any consistency in contemporary extra-biblical literature. It should be remembered that the Bible was not written in a cultural or literary vacuum . . . the use of the number 7 symbolically was a common phenomenon among the nations surrounding ancient Israel.
“The biblical writers used the number quite freely in a symbolical manner. In all cases it seems that the idea conveyed is that of ‘completeness.’
“In the Old Testament . . . it is used commonly in historical narratives, e.g. Jacob’s 7 years’ service for Rachel; 7 years of plenty and 7 years of famine; Samson’s 7 day marriage feast; the 7 daughters of Jethro; 7 sons of Jesse; 7 sons of Saul, etc.
“Ritualistically, its use is also common. Compare for example the 7 days of unleavened bread; the 7 days of the Feast of Tabernacles; the 7th year as the sabbatical year; the 7 he-lambs of the Mosaic law; the requirement for Naaman to dip in the Jordan 7 times; the 7 altars, 7 bullocks, and 7 rams of Balak, and more.
“The final class of ‘sevens’ found in the Bible is generally classified as ‘apocalyptic.’ They appear primarily in the Book of Revelation.
“It is generally agreed that the fundamental idea conveyed by the symbolic use of seven is that of “completeness” or “perfection.”
“. . . It should be pointed out that nowhere in Scripture is any number given any specific theological or mystical meaning.
“It is our conclusion that the mystical or symbolical interpretation of numbers has little place in a sound system of hermeneutics.”
So . . . although scripture contains plenty of references to the sevens, it appears unwarranted to attach any special significance, good fortune, or “luck” to a day which happens to be the convergence of a number of sevens in the calendar.