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Rightly Dividing Bible Numbers
Vol. I
Bro. John Dillinger
Rightly Dividing Bible Numbers
Volume One
Dedication
This book is dedicated first and foremost to my Lord. There is no doubt that without him I would be a lost soul with no hope or home.
Secondly, I want to dedicate this book to my wife and children. There is no greater thing that I could ask for, no greater honor, than being the husband of my wife, Mindy, and the father of my children, Evan, Kailey, Landon, and Sawyer.
Finally, I want to dedicate this book to the Young Adults Sunday School Class at Holy Hills Baptist Church in Dyersburg, TN. I appreciate all of you!
Now, someone wake up Mark and Jeff, tell Rusty and Hunter to quit arguing, and tell Mindy and the Phillips girls that we have no more time to wait, it is time to study!
Bro. John Dillinger
Numerology Rightly Divided
Rightly Dividing Bible Numbers
Volume One
Introduction
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 2Tim 2:15
This is the only verse of scripture in the Word of God that commands the Christian to study and rightly divide the Word. In Joshua we're told to meditate upon it. In the Psalms we're told that our delight will be in it, but here Paul tells the young preacher, Timothy, to study the Word to show himself approved unto God.
Paul then tells Timothy something of extreme importance. Something that is left out of the majority of modern theology and study altogether, and that is how to rightly divide the Word of Truth. The fact is that God has divided His Word and expects us to know how to divide it as well. You may ask, "how am I supposed to know how to divide the Bible?" The answer is there in front of you, STUDY!
First of all, the Bible has been divided into testaments; the Old Testament, and the New Testament. From there, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, It is divided into books, which were written by different authors throughout different centuries with different backgrounds, but with the same inspiration. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 2 Tim 3:16
The books then, are divided (also by direction of the Holy Spirit) into chapters and verses. Now I know what the modern scholar says, "the chapter and verse markings were added at a later date than the originals, therefore, they cannot be inspired." Now that is sensible for the senseless, but Jesus himself divided the book of Psalms. “…as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee.”
Truly, this verse is very disruptive to the Bible corrector's opinion that the King James Bible is not the inspired Word of God and that the chapter and verse markings are also not inspired. He responds by asserting, "In order to believe that the chapter and verse markings are inspired, one would have to believe in double inspiration!" I wonder, do the modern critics of the Bible believe that the copy of the Ten Commandments that Moses gave to the children of Israel, was inspired since he had destroyed the originals? Or were the only inspired tablets, the originals that were broken on the foot of the mountain? I believe the second copy was just as inspired as the first, and that, my friend, IS double inspiration!
The fact is that numerology proves that the chapter and verse markings are inspired. Now, I do not take any credit for any originality within the pages of this work. But, I will tell you that the Holy Spirit has revealed to me during the course of this study, two important rules to studying numerology that are not found in any of the books or studies that I have read. Now, these may not be new to you, because the same Spirit through the same book, shows us both what he wants us to see, but I have not seen it through any of the authors that I used in my study of numbers (i.e. Bullinger, Vallowe, Ruckman, etc.)
Question: Why do some people say that 5 is the number for grace, and some say it is the number for death?
The answer to that question is very simple. If the Word is to be rightly divided, then the numbers should be also! There are two simple rules that apply, that I will introduce to you before we see what each number stands for. The first rule is that most numbers have a plural application, or what we will call a DUAL MEANING. Secondly many numbers also have a CORRELATING NUMBER, or a number that keeps showing up in reference to another number.
I do not claim to be an expert on numerology, nor do I know all that there is to know about the dual meanings or the correlating numbers. What I do know, is that the Lord has showed me some things that I believe some folks that are a lot smarter than me are going to be able use to unlock some truths that will aid us in knowing the deeper things of God’s Word.
Section A.
The Proof is in the Pudding!
You know how to make pudding right? You just take a box of mix, and pour in a cup of milk, and stir it up. After about thirty minutes in the fridge, you’ve got a nice bowl of pudding. There’s not a whole lot to it. Now, you can call it what you want to, mousse, chocolate soufflé, or whatever, but it is still pudding. And you can call numerology a coincidence, or a happenstance, or whatever, but the fact is that it is bible truth.
It is simply pudding. God put it together in a way that it is very simple, in some instances, to clearly see that not only should we learn to study the Word, but also to count the Word.
Now, I do not want to belittle the phenomena of biblical numbers by only comparing it to pudding. The fact is, that bible numbers are also like a tightly woven, multi-colored basket, that has been woven by a master craftsman. It has been put together in such a way that the numbers are permanently imbedded into the very fabric of the Authorized King James Bible.(Which happens to be the Perfect Word of God) I make no apologies for my stand on the AV 1611, which is the only Bible that is identified by numbers, because of the fact that things that are different cannot be the same! But that is not the focus of this treatise, so I will beat that drum at another time.
Numbers are very important in the Bible. A whole book is devoted to them. Can you guess the name of that book?
Consider these facts:
*One out of 5 verses in the Bible contains a number.
*Themes or persons are often represented by a number. Rev 13:18
*God has numbered his creation. Isaiah 40:25-26
*God has numbered the stars. Psalm 147:4-5
*God has even numbered the hairs on your head. Matthew 10:30
Three ways that numbers convey truth.
1. By the actual number being used in either the verse itself, or the chapter or verse marking.
2. By the number of times a word or phrase is used.
3. By the numerical value of the word or phrase. This is also called “Gematria by the greeks”
Seven things that will help you know Him.
1. Hear the Word. Rom 10:17
2. Keep the Word. Psalm 119:2
3. Study the Word. 2 Tim 2:15
4. Pray for understanding of the Word. 1 Cor.2:10-13
5. Rightly Divide the Word. 2 Tim. 2:15
6. Memorize the Word. Psalm 199:11-16
7. Count the Word. Rev 13:18
Unity or Solidarity
Let us in this very first chapter establish the teaching that most significant numbers have a dual or plurality of meanings. This is the foundation for rightly dividing bible numbers.
I am convinced that the misunderstanding of this thought is the very reason why there is so much controversy over some of the numbers within the study of numerology.
Now having said that, let’s begin with an apparent contradiction. One, primarily, is the number for Unity. Meaning that the primary, or most used, meaning for the number one is unity.
Definition: Unity is when multiple sources are in one accord. Psalm 133:1
“One accord” isn’t talking about a little Honda automobile, but is talking about having the same purpose. Jesus said that where two or three are gathered together in my name… Two or three individuals here make up one group that is together.
Look at Matthew Ch. 19:5-6 “And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.”
These scriptures speak of two, totally different individuals, becoming one flesh. Notice, they are not AS one flesh, but ARE one flesh! Perfect unity.
There is no doubt that my wife, Mindy, and I are two different individuals. I like coffee, and she hates it. She likes to talk on the telephone, and I do not. I love football (especially if they have hogs on their helmets) she absolutely despises all sports. We’re as different as day and night. But when the Lord looks at our family, with the four children that he has blessed us with, he sees us as one, and the only thing that can break that fellowship is sin. Thank the Lord that sin only affects our fellowship and not our relationship!
Here is some examples of the actual number being used.
“There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.” Ephesians 4:4-6
Earlier we mentioned that not only do most significant numbers have dual meanings, but also have a correlating number. Seven is a number that shows up with the number one quite often.
Here there are recorded seven different ones.
Let’s look at some interesting “ones”
Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning, God…”
Now, God is definitely a complex being, but here in Gen. 1:1 we find him here in one accord.
1John 5:7 “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.”
Look at John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
One can also stand for solidarity. We realize that when God made man, he said, “…Let us make man in our image…”
The fact is that God in one, but, he was alone, even though he was in unity with himself.
Much the same way that Elijah felt in 1 Kings 19 as well as Rom 11:3 when speaking of himself, Elijah said “Lord, they have killed thy prophets, and digged down thine altars; and I am left alone, and they seek my life.”
Elijah wasn’t alone, or one, actually there were four thousand that hadn’t bowed their knee to Baal. But Elijah couldn’t tell because he had no fellowship with them. God wasn’t alone either when he made man, the Angelic creation already existed, but there was not a help meet found for God in the Angels. Adam couldn’t find a help meet in the animal kingdom, and God couldn’t find him a bride in the Angelic kingdom!
Division or Union
It is odd that the number one in the physical world means solidarity, but in the spiritual world, it means unity. The same can be said about the number two.
The number two in the physical world means union, because it takes two to unite anything, but in the spiritual world the number two means division.
The primary meaning of the number two when rightly divided is division. The secondary meaning of the number two then, is union.
One on the best scriptures is Gen 2:22
“And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.”
Here, in this verse, we see an example of the Lord dividing for the purpose of uniting.
God is a dividing God, but he is also a uniting God. It wasn’t good for man to be alone, so he divided and provided.
Look at Gen 2:24 “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.” Here, God’s plan for the family includes division from the parents and union of the bride & groom.
Q. At the beginning of day two, what does God do?
A. He divides!
Gen 1:6 “And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.”
Hey look back even further. The first verse in the Bible speaks of unity Gen 1:1; The second verse speaks of division!
Division speaks of opposition and enmity.
Notice, the first portion of scripture, Gen 1-2, speaks of the creation and gives the idea of unity. The second portion of scripture, Gen. 3-4 speaks of the fall and the failure, and gives the idea of division.
In the second portion, we see the second person, Eve, divided from her husband by sin. So, the first Adam, willing to redeem his bride, becomes sin for her and is divided from God the Father in fellowship. WHOOO!!! THAT WILL PREACH!!!
Does that sound familiar to you? That is just what the last Adam, Jesus Christ, did for all of us second Adams.
God divided Satan’s seed from her seed and puts enmity between them, and also promises the redeemer which is the last Adam or the second man.
If Jesus is the second man, then, “is he a man of division?” I mean, after all, God is love, and he wants us all to get together right? Wrong. “Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division:”Luke 12:51
The number two has some other applications as well. It is a number of contrast.
1. Light and Darkness
2. Good and Evil
3. Righteousness and Sin
4. Life and Death
5. Heaven and Hell
6. Old man and New man
It is also a number for witness or witnessing.
Matt 18:16 “But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.”
1. Two angels witness the Resurrection
2. Two witnesses before the flood.
3. Two witnesses in the wilderness, Moses & Aaron
4. Two witnesses give true report, Joshua & Caleb
5. Two witnesses in the tribulation Enoch & Elijah, or Moses & Elijah, I don’t know, it may be Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid!)
One and two is three. The Godhead is a good representation of how a division can be in unity.
When you look at a triangle, you will notice that however you turn it, you have two points together, and one point is separate.
This is evident in the nature of the Trinity. God is a spirit, the Holy Spirit is a spirit, but Jesus Christ was in the form of a man. Even in the Old Testament, the Lord appeared in the form of a man. See Daniel 3:25
“For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:” Rom 1:20
“Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” Col 2:8-9
The Godhead, speaks of the three in one nature of God. “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.” 1John 5:7
As a matter of fact, there ARE THREE, that bear record in heaven. The baptism of Jesus, in Matthew chapter three, is a perfect example of the FACT that God manifests himself in three different persons. We see the Lord Jesus come straightway up out of the water. We see the Holy Spirit descend on him as a dove. Then we see the Father in Heaven speak “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
Q. Now, how can these three be one? It is because the word one does not mean numerically, but it means harmony. How can a father, mother, and child, be one family? How can a body, soul, and spirit, be one person?
A. The same way that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one!
Three is also a number for completion. Several other things are complete in threes.
1. Time= Past, present, and future.
2. Day= seconds, minutes, and hours.
3. Year= days, weeks, and months.
4. Millenniums= years, decades, and centuries.
5. Matter= solid, liquid, and gas.
6. Kingdoms= animal, vegetable, and mineral.
7. forces of nature= gravitation, light, and electricity.
The divine things of God are also complete in three.
1. God= Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
2. Gospel= death, burial, and resurrection.
3. Man= body, soul, and spirit.
4. Word of God= Old Testament, New Testament, and Jesus Christ.
Jesus is described in three’s:
1. the way, the truth, and the life.
2. he which is, and was, and is to come.
3. Holy, Holy, Holy.
4. Prophet, Priest, and King
Three is also the number of the resurrection.
Resurrection is the third part of the Gospel.
“Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” John 2:19
Jesus rose from the grave after the third day.
There are three recorded resurrections in the Old Testament.
1. The widow of Zaraphath’s son 1Kings 17:21
2. The Shunamite woman’s son 2Kings 4:34
3. The dead man in Elisha’s grave in 2Kings 13:21
There are three recorded resurrections performed by Jesus.
1. The widow’s son in Luke 7
2. Jairus’ daughter in Luke 8
3. Lazarus in John 11
Three resurrections in O.T. + three in N.T. =6 the number of Man, the seventh resurrection is Jesus and makes the way for the 8th(new beginning) resurrection, which is all of us!
Creation or Double Division
The number four is one of my favorite numbers in the study of numerology. Mainly, because as I was studying it in some of the books on numerology that I used in my study, (Valowe, Bullinger, Ruckman, etc.) it was a very boring number. But as I got deeper in the study of the King James Bible itself, (which is the best book you’ll find on numerology, or Christian living, or how to be a better you) the Holy Spirit opened the meaning of the number in a very clear light.
To start, most major studies agree that the number four has to do with the physical creation or the earth.
1. In Gen 1:14-19 the physical creation in completed on the fourth day.
2. In Romans 8(4+4) verses19-22 in dealing with the travailing of the creation for Christ, the creature or creation is used four times.
3. In Ezekial 1 the four creatures that relate to the earth or creation.
4. The earth is divided into four corners.
The secondary meaning for the number four is double division. Four is 2 x 2, which is two divisions. The number two and its multiples will usually have a division application.
Notice that a double division (four part) is made the very first time God divides anything in Genesis 1:4-5 God divides the Light and Darkness, and the Day and Night.
This is further explained in verses 14-18, notice verse fourteen: “And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:” and the verse 18: “And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.”
Notice the double division of day, night, light, and darkness, and also signs, seasons, days, and years.
1Thesselonians 5:5 makes the distinction in the children of day and light, and the children of night and darkness. “Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.” You can be a night person without being in spiritual darkness, but as a general rule, children of light are not children of the night.
What comes out at night? Bats, snakes, spiders, and party girls. Bars and Nightclubs are dark. “For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.”
Four Quarters or Double Division of the Earth
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In Genesis four you see the division of Adam and Eve, which is Cain and Able, divided when Cain kills Abel. And you also see Abel’s blood crying forth from the earth or ground.
Four definitely stands for the earth & double division.
Number Five
Death or Grace?
As I began this study on numerology, I had one goal, to settle once and for all the meaning of the number five. Does it stand for grace or death? The very first time that I had ever heard that numbers in the bible stood for something in particular, was at a bible conference shortly after I was called to preach. A good friend of mine, Dr. Ron Lovins was preaching a message on the law, and when the law pointed him to grace (which is its purpose) he said, the number five stands for grace. I have heard so many times since then, that five stands for grace, yet, I could not find any solid evidence of it myself.
Then, when I started going to bible institute, I was taught that the number five stood for death. As I weighed the evidence, the latter seemed to be more appropriate, but how could so many great men of God be wrong? It was then the Holy Spirit asked a question in my heart: What did the cross bring to you? I thought about this question and I replied, Grace! John 1:17 says “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.” Then, another question was asked: What did the cross bring to Jesus? I thought about it for a second, and several things come to mind: shame, humiliation, pain, but above all other things, it was Death! Phillipians 2:8 says “And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”
It was at that moment, that the Holy Spirit taught me that 1Timothy 2:15 (studying and rightly dividing) applies to every type of bible study, even numerology. The numbers themselves are to be both studied, and rightly divided, to find the appropriate application to the certain context of scripture.
Why then have not other bible scholars been able to reconcile these two thoughts about the number five? The answer is that no other bible scholar that I know of, applies the principles of correlating numbers, and especially that of a duality of meanings. We’ll see that by applying these thoughts, the meaning of the number five is more clearly seen.
First, consider some of these examples of five as grace:
* The 5th time that Noah is mentioned is in Genesis 6:8 “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.”
* The 5th time that Ruth’s name is mentioned is in Ruth 2:2 “And Ruth the Moabitess said…I shall find grace.”
* The 5th time Boaz is mentioned, Ruth asks him “Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said unto him, Why have I found grace in thine eyes,”
* The 5th time that David is mentioned is in 1Samuel 16:22“Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for he hath found favour in my sight.” The definition of grace is unmerited favour. So grace is implied in this verse.
Here are some other reasons why the numerologist says that five stands for grace:
1. There are five letters in the word grace.
2. There were five books of the Law.
3. The ten commandments were divided into two sets of five commandments (5 in relation to God & 5 in relation to man)
4. Five is associated with the tabernacle.
5. There were five offerings on the altar of sacrifice.
a. burnt offering
b. peace offering
c. sin offering
d. trespass offering
e. meat offering
6. There were five women in the genealogy of Jesus.
a. Rahab
b. Ruth
c. Tamar
d. Bathsheba
e. Mary
7. David chose five smooth stones to deliver Israel from Goliath.
The first set of reasons have merit. I believe that the secondary meaning of the number five is grace, but the primary meaning of the number five is definitely death. There is a duality of meanings for the number five.
Let’s look at those seven points in the second set of examples of five as grace.
1. Death also has five letters in it. (for that matter though, so does bible and table!)
2. The Law does not bring grace, it brings death. It’s job is to point you to Grace.
3. The breaking of the Law, or sin, brings death.
4. The first thing in the tabernacle was the altar, which was a 5 X 5 place of death, and was a picture of Hell.
5. The sacrifices…Uh…DEATH!!!
6. All five of these women died because of sin.
7. Five smooth stones. Now let me think what he did, Oh yah, he killed five Giants with them.
Now that some of you are mad, let me reconcile these two thoughts with this most important statement. WHAT IS DEATH TO ONE MAN, MAY BE GRACE TO ANOTHER!
The death of the giant was definitely grace to the Israelites. The death of the lamb, by obeying the law of sacrifices, was the only way the old testament saints could find grace in their particular dispensation. It was grace by death!
The same is true in the dispensation of the grace of God, Our grace came by the death of the Lord Jesus Christ. He paid for our sins on the cross, and suffered our Hell in the grave. Then took his blood to the mercy seat of Heaven, entered in once, and made an atonement for our sins.
Consider these other facts concerning the number five.
1. Genesis 5:5 The first man, Adam, dies.
2. The fifth book of the N.T. is Acts. In Acts5:5 Ananias!
3. In Acts 5:10, which is 5 verses later, Saphira dies!
4. In Romans Five the death and blood is mentioned at least twelve times. Grace is mentioned six times (half) death is primary meaning, grace is the secondary meaning.
5. The fifth rib is recorded as the death blow in 1&2Samuel.
6. David killed Michal’s five sons.
7. Joshua killed five different kings.
8. Paul got five whippings from the Jews for preaching the Gospel, One of the five one was the stoning at Lystra, which was probably the place where he was stoned and caught up to the third Heaven.
Finally, the five wounds that the Lord suffered in his crucifixion, obviously his cross brought us grace, but first He had to suffer death.
Bro. John Dillinger
Associate Pastor
Holy Hills Baptist Church
Dyersburg,Tn