Is David special? (Nov 23)
Bible study yesterday. Matthew Chapter 1, the often-ignored list of names.
Names that identify inherence of God’s promise through ancestral links to Jesus from key people. Some with stories of significance to the big picture story of the Bible. Restoring relationship with God.
Quite an inclusive list. Love is for all equally, irrespective of gender, gentile or Jew, and those with imperfect lifestyle.
In Matthew’s list…
My Name: David —— My Number: 14
I’m not referring to my birthday! This number is significant in OT Hebrew langauge and times. I have commented on the completeness of 7 before and multiples of 7 have symbolic significance. (Daniel 9:24-27)
English has 5 vowels. NT Greek has two additional vowels representing the two different sounds made by long and short versions of ‘o’ and ‘e’ in different words.
The original Hebrew alphabet consisted only of consonants. No vowels, just three indicative vowel letters known as matres lectionis. The name David has two vowels, so only three letters remain for the historical David. (דוד)
That’s where the numbers kick in, relating to letter position in their Hebrew alphabet. Gematria is a Jewish interpretive method.
We do stranger things with deep learning for artificial intelligence today. Making numberical equivalents to text, pictures and sound, to make connections and new models of relationship. These generate ‘creative’ new approaches.
Numerical ‘David.’ The first Hebrew letter Aleph (א) equals 1, Dalet (ד), the fourth letter, equals 4, and Vav(ו) the sixth letter equals 6.
The 3 letters of David in Hebrew are: דוד
ד (dalet) + ו (vav) + ד (dalet)
4 + 6 + 4 = 14.
There are other links to 14 in scripture. For example, David is also the fourteenth name listed in the genealogy.
All coincidental? This number is too repeated in different details and deliberately used to convey meaning.
Matthew is writing to link king David to Jesus. The lists do differ in detail between gospels. Matthew wrote for a Jewish audience for their time and understanding. Context is key.
Take TEXT out of CONTEXT and you are left with a CON.
Always more to learn…