The Cup of Perfection: a study in the number 12 in a Biblical perspective

Since the time I have been capable enough to think and decide for myself, I have been somewhat of a “perfection freak”. In my own weird mind I have associated even numbers to be somewhat good and perfect while avoiding odd numbers. Now, I am not a believer in things such as numerology, as being that would be contradictory to my faith in the Almighty God.

That being said, quite interestingly the Bible has certain numbers that keep repeating themselves with special significance- the numbers 3, 7, 12, and 40 for instance. Three signifying the holy Trinity. After He created the world and everything in it in six days, on the seventh day God rested. Be it the forty days and forty nights rain in the times of Noah, or the forty days of fasting of Jesus before He began His ministry. Numbers with deep spiritual significance.

In my almost twenty-eight of years of life I must have read the whole Bible at least a dozen times (12 again!) but it wasn't until very recently that I found out that the number 12 is indeed one of those important numbers in the Bible that have so much of significance. This Scriptural enlightenment led me do to some research of my own and this blog-post is a result of the research.

It is an interesting fact (at least to me!) as to why I suddenly hung on to the number 12 and its Biblical significance. 12 happens to be the day that I am to get married to the love of my life, but that wasn't the date that we had initially picked for the wedding!! Situations and events turned out in ways that we were (I would use the word) guided to the date 12th. And couple of Sundays back when I was listening to a sermon, where the speaker highlighted the fact that twelve is a number of great significance in the Bible, I started to think...

The number 12 can be found 187 times in the Bible, Revelation alone has 22 mentions of the number. 12 represents God's authority besides signifying perfection. Few of the most popular references of twelve in the Scripture are:

  • Starting from the patriarchal times, Jacob had 12 sons, leading to the 12 tribes of Israel (Genesis 35:22, Genesis 49: 28).
  • The breastplate of the high priest had 12 stones (Exodus 28:21)
  • There was to be 12 loaves of bread at the Tabernacle (Leviticus 24:5).
  • Twelve spies were sent to spy out the Promised Land (Numbers 13:3, Deuteronomy 1:23).
  • The memorial that was built to remind how God had dried up Jordan river so that the Ark of Covenant  and the Israelites  could cross over had 12 stones (Joshua 4:20).
  • Elijah built an alter with 12 stones (1 Kings 18:31,32).
  • Elisha was plowing with 12 oxen when Elijah called him ( 1 Kings 19:19).
  • Nehemiah was appointed to be the governor in the land of Judah for 12 years (Nehemiah 5:14).
  • Jesus was 12 years old when the Scripture records that He first speaks (Luke 2:42,46,47).
  • Jesus chose 12 disciples (Luke 6:13).
  • There were 12 baskets of leftover after Jesus fed 5000 men (and additional women and children) with 5 loaves of bread and 2 small fishes (Luke 9:17).
  • Twelve thousand from each of the 12 tribes of Israel  will receive salvation  during the end time's Great Tribulation (Revelation 7:4)
  • Revelation 21 has references of 12 gates, 12 angels, names of 12 tribes of Israel written on them, 12 foundations, names of the 12 apostles, 12 gates- each one being a pearl (Revelation 21:12,14,21).
  • The "tree of life" mentioned in Revelation 22:2, which bears 12 fruits, one for each month.

The 12 stones in the breastplate of the Jewish high priest
And these are just a few most highlighted references of twelve from the Bible. I could barely touch a few, but it is sufficient to say that God prescribed this number to have meaning and purpose of completeness and perfection in whichever situation or person it was placed on. In most of the references there is also a call to be separated, for everyone around to know and see Whom everyone ought to see.

Quite often, we in our educated and well developed minds try to plan a lot. But these references from the Bible, from the pages of history (and also what is to come) is just a reminder that we would ultimately end up where we are called to be. We might try to be ignorant to His general call of perfection, but if we are chosen are we going to run away like Jonah or are we like the great king David going to come to Him- broken yet completely willing ?!

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