For better or worse, there are many discussions regarding numbers in the Bible and about the Bible, from the obvious numbers that any reader can read on its surface to the supposed hidden numbers that someone with secret knowledge must reveal to you. A lot of terms, for better or worse, which may not be understood, are thrown around the issue of numbers and the Bible. The issue itself is confusing, as well as the jargon.
Geometric Jargon.
First I will attempt to give definitions of some of these words used often, as well as a few others less commonly used. There may be some differing opinions on how they are used, and how they should be used.
- Alpha-Gematria = possibly a term coined by Leo Tavares for his method of explaining the scriptures by coded significance of the words, using the alphanumeric properties of the Hebrew and Greek languages.
- Arithmancy = a form of divination involving numbers.
- Bible numerics = the theory that there are in the Bible mysterious and marvelous numerical patterns which establish the correctness of the text and proves the divine authority of Holy Scripture, especially related to the work of Ivan Panin on the Greek New Testament.[i]
- Gematria = a cabalistic method of explaining the scriptures by means of the cryptographic or coded significance of the words.
- Kabbalah = specifically, a form of Jewish mysticism marked by belief in creation through emanation and the use of a cipher method of interpreting scripture; or, more generically, an esoteric doctrine or mysterious art; a traditional, esoteric, occult, or secret matter.
- Number-ology = a coined word, apparently by G. John Rov (Gary Rovarino), to try to distinguish his view of biblical words and numbers from numerology or gematria.[ii]
- Number symbolism (or, Bible numbers) = the use of symbolic numbers in the Bible and the study of the meaning of those symbols. This is a different and open (not hidden) unlike the various attempts to find secret codes[iii].
- Numerics = the field of numerical study, though applied in various ways when applied to the study of numbers related to the Bible (see “Bible numerics”).
- Numerology = the study of the meanings of numbers and their supposed influence on human life; or, in reference to the Bible, the study of hidden numbers and their supposed influence on the interpretation of scripture. This term is very often connected to the occult.[iv]
Significant People.
David Bay (“Ivan Panin: Russia’s Gift to Christianity”).
“Don’t just read your Bible – Count It!”
“You and I have to go to numerics in Greek when we wish to prove the correctness of a passage…The amazing design of numeric features or facts discovered in the structure of the Greek text used by Wescott and Hort definitely settles the question concerning the correct reading of the last verse in the Bible. The numerical facts prove that they are right in ending the New Testament with the word ‘saints.’ (Mathematics Prove Holy Scriptures, Karl Sabiers, latest reprint 1969, pp.91-94)
“We are so amazed by the effectiveness of Bible Numerics in proving, or disproving, all textual question that we can only marvel that every Christian college and university does not include a full line of study on this subject. Certainly, no one has stepped forward to challenge Panin’s conclusions, either Christian or secular.”
Chuck Missler (“Preface,” Cosmic Codes: Hidden Messages from the Edge of Eternity).
“There are actually many types of hidden codes in the Bible, and the recently controversial equidistant letter sequences are but one of them. There are those who are irrepressibly enthusiastic about the equidistant letter sequences in the Bible. There are others who dismiss these incidences as simply statistical oddities that will occur in any extensive corpus of text. And there are some who even regard the pursuit of these codes as having a sinister portent.
“However, very few of the popular treatments of this intriguing subject evidence any background in cryptology, with is precisely the science at issue. Having spent a 30-year career in both military and civilian pursuits in advanced communication and information science technologies — including deeply classified ventures in the intelligence field — and, also, having more than three decades in serious Biblical studies, I felt that a broader approach to the subject of hidden messages was appropriate.
“Are there really hidden messages in the Bible? If so, why?
“We will, of course, also explore the controversial equidistant letter sequences, their potential significance, and their latent dangers. And yet the most astonishing codes are of the kind for which you do not need a computer.
“We will explore some remarkable discoveries about the alphabets used in the Biblical texts and the microcodes which reveal some surprising aspects hidden behind the text itself.”
The late Ivan Panin (See “Bible numerics”).
Brandon Peterson (Sealed By the King, page 207).
“So what about these men, Moses and Elijah, do we discover in the numerics of the KJB?
“To begin, as you might expect, they are sevened. It is concealed to those who quickly search their names without careful attention…”
Gail Riplinger (New Age Bible Versions, page 150).
“Acrostic algebra reveals the ashy residue on which the NIV and NASV rest. When you shake down the ‘Lite’ versions like the New American Standard Version (NASV) and the New International Version (NIV), you find some heresies which are common to both (like their common letters ‘N’ and ‘V’, as shown in Step 2.)” …
“When the portions of the true text of the Authorized Version (AV) are removed from these other versions, the sheep’s clothing comes off the hand of the wolf’s skin spells—SIN. (Steps 4 & 5)”[v]
Step 1: (NASV - NIV) - AV = X
Step 2: (NASV - NIV) - AV = X
Step 3: (ASI + NV) - AV = X
Step 4: ASI + NV - AV = X
Step 5: SIN = X
[Note: I have used strike-through, not knowing how to create a slash-through as in New Age Versions.]
Gary Rovarino (Concealed from Christians for the Glory of God, page 3).
“The secrets that God keeps are matters of divine revelation and require a prophet to reveal them. To understand the issue of God’s authoritative Bible we do not need historians, manuscript experts, textual critics, or linguistic scholars but we do need the voice of a prophet. The word of God is this prophetic voice, and God will use it alone to reveal glorious secrets to you or to conceal costly secrets from you.”
Leo Tavares (Geometric Exegesis).
“I showed how the Standard Greek value of ‘TEMPLE’ (from Matthew 12:5) yields the G-base of the Genesis 1:1 Triangle and forms a Star that accommodates Snowflake 373. This now leads to another hidden identity I uncovered in this very same Greek word, which is this: The Ordinal Greek value of ‘TEMPLE’ (Matthew 12:5) = 64. Why is this significant? Because the 64th Triangle is the precise Triangle that accommodates the Star of 925!”
These (above) are just a few promoters of “biblical” numerology, and there exists lots of other “Bible-code” talk in addition to the numerology. The following are samples of titles out on the World Wide Web which sound esoteric and Gnostic.[vi]
- God Code: Unlocking Divine Messages Hidden in the Bible, by Timothy P. Smith (2018)
- Discovering Hidden Meanings in Biblical Texts: Unearthing Deeper Significance in the Scriptures for Your Spiritual Journey, by Kaleb F Weaver (2024)
- Bible Unlocked: Hidden Meanings Revealed, by Kristina Kaine (2019)
- Beyond the Words: Unraveling the Hidden Meanings of the Bible, by Ryan Santosh Joseph (2023)
There is a wide range of beliefs among the proponents of “biblical numerology.” We supporters of the King James Bible have been “blessed” with an inordinate amount of them – but among these numerology folks are also users and promoters of modern Bibles. Bay and Missler follow the late Ivan Panin, who used numeric methods to try to establish the “correct” Greek text of the New Testament. The range of folks leads from the more circumspect (like Brandon Peterson, who seems primarily interested in supporting the King James Bible) to Gary Rovarino (who seems to now be identifying himself as a modern-day prophet). Nevertheless, there will be no good to come from bogus biblical beliefs. They will not lead to a deeper spiritual journey, but rather into a fog of confusion and unbelief. “Bible codes are contradictory to the doctrine of sufficiency of Scripture” (Creation.com).
Serious Problems.
- Builds on sinking human sand rather than solid biblical rock.
- Coaxes the curious toward confusion, and even heresy.
- Connects to a condition of apophenia, the tendency to perceive meaningful connections between unrelated things. The human mind can invent perceived connections – including numerical connections – in practically everything, even where there are none.[vii]
- Exalts hidden-knowledge “experts” over simple Bible teachers, and advances subjugation to “Messianic” masters, shrewd swindlers, and Gnostic gurus (many cultic in their leadership) without whom you cannot know the “secret meaning” of the Bible.
- Feeds pridefulness and egotism with its magnetism to “secret knowledge.”
- Opens the floodgates of susceptibility to odd and errant Bible interpretations.
- Overthrows the “faith” of some, when they realize they have had the wool pulled over their eyes.
- Promotes the contrived and/or deceptive use and explanation of numerical patterns.
Conclusion.
Beware of false prophets. Watch for weird witnesses. Do not be deceived. Partake of the good food our Lord has put on the shelf for all to receive.
“The attempt to find mysterious numerical patterns and values in sentences, words, and phrases which have a plain and obvious meaning, whether the meaning is sublime or trite or trivial, whether it is found in the Bible, or in a masterpiece of secular literature, or in the commonplaces of ordinary life, is to say the least a tremendous waste of time and effort; and, what is far more important, resting as it does on principles that are demonstrably false, it may lead to serious and disastrous consequences. A man who rests his faith in the inerrancy of the Bible on Bible Numerics is trusting in a broken reed, which if he leans on it will go into his hand and pierce it.”[viii]
[i] Also,
Karl George Sabiers used “Bible Numerics” as the title of his book that
supposedly “proves” the inspiration of the Bible by finding numeric codes in
the Hebrew and Greek texts of the Bible. He also wrote Astounding New
Discoveries: Thousands of Amazing Facts Discovered Beneath the Very Surface
of the Bible Text. Sabiers studied the work of Panin. He was also connected
with Aimee Semple McPherson.
[ii]
On page 141 of his book, Gary Rovarino says “number-ology” means “words about
numbers” and that this is “God’s word” and “righteous.” On page 142, he calls
the superstitious use of numbers “numerology,” and says it is evil. Concealed
from Christians for the Glory of God: the 1611 KJV, the King James Bible
Authorized Version, G. John Rov, Lulu Publishing, 2019, pp. 141-142.
[iii]
Some books of this sort include: Number in Scripture: Its Supernatural Design
and Spiritual Significance, by Ethelbert William Bullinger; That Ye May Marvel, Or,
The Significance of Bible Numbers, by George Elliott Jones. While it is
possible that some studies of number symbolism can get carried away with
speculation, such studies are nevertheless subject to universal inspection by
Bible believers (that is, such studies do not hinge on secret
knowledge).
[iv]
Some distinguish “biblical numerology” or “Christian numerology” as the study
of numbers in the Bible to find meaning outside of the numerical value of the
actual number being used. It is best for real Bible students to steer clear of
the word numerology.
[v] I
am a critic of both the NASB and the NIV as defective Bibles, but this
so-called “acrostic algebra” of Gail Riplinger is pure unadulterated nonsense! Notice also that the correct and common initials of the New American
Standard Bible are NASB, which Riplinger uses most of the time in her book. However, she
pulls a rabbit out of the hat – identifies it as the NASV – when she gets ready
to perform her amazing acrostic algebra reduction trick. It is unbelievable
that she or anyone else would take this seriously!
[vi] Possessing
secret knowledge that most people do not have.
[vii]
This can become a conspiratorial condition.
[viii]
Bible Numerics: an Examination of the Theory that there is in the Bible a Mysterious
and Marvelous Numerical Pattern which Establishes the Correctness of the Text
and Proves the Divine Authority of Holy Scripture, Oswald Thompson Allis,
Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Company, 1944.
