3 is for the Father
736 words long.
Published on 2024-03-03
Completeness
After seven, this number appears most in the Bible. That makes it hard to pin down a single meaning for three. One is to show completeness, but which kind? Five numbers in Scripture each signify a different kind of completeness: 3, 7, 10, 12 and 70.
- Twelve is for sanctified people (like the twelve sons of Jacob and the twelve apostles) or to signify a complete year with its twelve months.
- Ten is for secular people (like our ten fingers, the ten toes of the beastly empire in Daniel or the ten evil kingdoms of Revelation). It may be used to represent the whole of humanity, out of which a few will be chosen, like the parable of the ten virgins.
- Seven is for increasing sequences and indicates their extremity and completion like the seven churches, spirits, seals, trumpets, bowls, and thunders of Revelation. It is usually a sacred, not a secular completeness.
- Seventy combines the secular and the sacred, a product of human (ten) times divine (seven). Jesus uses this meaning when he teaches his disciples to forgive their brothers seventy times seven times.
- Three is for completeness in power, holiness or another divine quality. Three makes us think of the Triune God of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The Trinity in Revelation
Myriad other meanings surround the number three but one speaks loudest, because John uses it to open Revelation, the final book of the Bible:
John,
To the seven churches in the province of Asia:
Grace and peace to you from him
who is, and who was, and who is to come,
and from the seven spirits before his throne,
and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness,
the firstborn from the dead,
and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
To him who loves us
and has freed us from our sins by his blood...
- Revelation 1:4-5, NIV
In this passage, the Holy Spirit is numbered as seven. Deriving a number from this for Jesus is tricky. Counting firstborn from the dead and ruler of kings, you get two, matching his first and second comings. Numbering the Father as existing in present, past and future gives you three, an idea repeated several chapters later:
Each of the four living creatures
had six wings and was covered with eyes all around,
even under its wings.
Day and night they never stop saying:
“ ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,’
who was, and is, and is to come.”
- Revelation 4:8, NIV
The Father and Psalm 3
The chapter "Selah: Stop, Entreat, Listen, Apply, Hear" in Plague, Precept, Prophet, Peace finds many connections between the Father and Psalm 3. Here are a few:
David's enemies are threefold, which stands out by his repetition of the word "many":
O Lord, how many are my foes!
Many are rising against me;
many are saying of my soul,
there is no salvation for him in God.
- Psalm 3:1-2
In Hebrew, the first “many” is a word that means “increase”, but it has as its root the word for “many”. Then to counter the threefold increase of his enemies, David has a threefold reliance on God:
But you, O Lord,
are a shield about me,
my glory,
and the lifter of my head.
- Psalm 3:3, ESV
The most mysterious trio is the threefold repetition of the word Selah, a word of uncertain meaning. It may mean to wait or pause to reflect, a musical interlude. We are often told to wait upon the Lord. To wait three times means to wait for the Father. What are you waiting for - start waiting!
The Father and Creation
Referring to the creation week, on the third day dry ground appeared. God is our dry ground. No seed can grow, no wind can blow, no life can go anywhere without that ground. Ecclesiastes 1:4 says this about no other thing: “the earth remains forever”. Yes, three is the number of God the Father.
List of articles in this section:
