Recently I was reading a Bible study on faith which described
David, not the king of Israel with all his flaws but rather the young shepherd
boy with complete faith in his God, choosing 5 smooth stones from the creek
bed. He was preparing to go up and meet
the Philistine giant Goliath in battle, armed only with his sling and 5 smooth
stones. The study pointed out that
Goliath had four brothers, and that David had chosen a stone for each of the
giants. David had faith that God would not
only deliver Goliath into his hands, but Goliath’s four brothers as well.
I wondered after reading this what the significance of
the 5 smooth stones was? What other
instances are there of “5” specifically being included in a Bible text. The Bible, both Old and New Testaments, is
filled with number references. As I
read, I am always asking myself “what purpose did the Holy Spirit have in
inspiring the writer to include this specific information in the text?” Numbers have symbolic significance in the
Bible. For instance, the number seven is
the number of perfection or completion. Most
writings on the “numerology of the Bible” discuss the number 5 as being
symbolic of Grace. A few examples are
given, but I disagree with the conclusion.
I feel that the intentional use of the number 5 in a text is symbolic of
Faith, and many times it seems, the basis or starting point for Faith. Following, I have gathered some examples from
the Bible of the use of “5”, and what I feel it signifies or symbolizes.
The first 5 books of the Old Testament, the Torah, are
the foundation for the rest of the scripture writings. They provide the basis of Faith in a coming
Redeemer of this fallen world, of a Messiah to fulfill the Law, and of a coming
King for the nations.
Abram and Sarai became Abraham and Sarah when God changed
not just their name, but
also their role and their destiny. The 5th letter in the Hebrew
alphabet is Hey, the equivalent of
our letter “H”, and is the numerical value of 5 in Hebrew. God added the letter Hey to each of their names to change them. Both Abraham and Sarah’s stories revolve
around the concept of Faith: their joint
lack of faith in God’s pronouncement that they would have a son which led to
Hagar giving birth to Ishmael, and Abraham’s act of faith in preparing to offer
up his only son Isaac as a sacrifice to God.
The instructions God gave Moses on building the Tabernacle
and performing sacrifices are filled with references to the number 5. There were 5 original Priests, Aaron and his
four sons. The curtain at the entrance to
the Tabernacle was held up by 5 posts, and 5 crossbars on each side of the
Tabernacle held up the walls. There were 5 types of offerings that were to be
made. There were 5 types of animals
allowed to be used in the sacrificial offerings. There
were 5 ingredients in the anointing oil to be used in the tabernacle. The Tabernacle and the sacrificial system
were the means by which God was able to once again dwell with mankind, and
provided a way for sins to be forgiven.
By faith, Moses and the children of Israel built the Tabernacle and made
the sacrificial offerings required, so that God would be their God.
Daniel interpreted the dreams of the king and prophesied
of the 5 coming kingdoms. The 5th
kingdom was described by Daniel as the “everlasting kingdom” of God. This 5th kingdom described is the basis
of the Faith that we have of a coming kingdom of the Lord, of which we will be
a part.
The New Testament includes the miracle of the 5 loaves
and the two fish for the feeding of the 5 thousand. Five loaves of barley fed 5 thousand men,
with twelve baskets of left overs gathered afterwards. The loaves were a starting point for Faith
building of the disciples, and for the 5 thousand men and their families who
were fed.
There is the story of the ten virgins waiting for the
arrival of the Bridegroom at nighttime, 5 are foolish and 5 are wise the Bible
says. The 5 foolish went to meet the
Bridegroom, but took only their lamps.
The 5 wise virgins took their lamps and oil in vessels. Oil is typically symbolic of the Holy Spirit
in the Bible. When the Bridegroom
arrived, the 5 wise virgins trimmed their lamps with the supply of oil they
brought and went to meet Him. The 5
foolish virgins, whose lamps were running out of oil, had to go buy more oil
and missed the Bridegroom’s return. The 5
wise virgins displayed Faith that the Bridegroom would return soon, and
therefore were prepared and continually watching so that they would not be left
behind. What a great parable for these
end times we now live in!
Similarly, there is the story of the servants and the
talents. When the Master left for a
period of time on a journey to a far country, He gave talents (a unit of
measure of something valuable) to his servants to manage. The first servant was given 5 talents and was
able to gain another 5 talents, doubling his portion received. The Master returned and told him “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have
been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter
into the joy of your lord.” The
servant’s Faith in his Master and the Master’s eventual return resulted in his being
found faithful and rewarded by the Master.
The book of Revelation
contains references to the number 5. There
are messages to the Angels of the seven churches, and the 5th
message is to the Angel of the church in Sardis. This message describes the church as by
reputation being alive, but is dead because the Lord knows their works. The churches works were not found complete
before God. As James writes “Faith
without works is dead.” This serves as a
reminder that Faith is key in the Christ-follower’s life, but without works, it
is dead. When the seven seals are
opened, most of them involve a rider on a horse who brings some sort of
calamity or destruction. However, the 5th
seal is opened and John sees the souls of the saints who ask “How long Lord
until you judge?” They are told to rest
a little while longer until after the Tribulation is complete. These saints had Faith in the Lord, and were
slaughtered because of their Faith. In
the end, their Faith is confirmed.
Now faith is the reality
of what is hoped for, the proof of what is not seen. Heb. 11:1
For we walk by faith, not by sight… 2 Cor.
5:7
For you are saved by grace
through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift. Eph. 2:8
I have fought the good
fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 2 Timothy 4:7
