37 and 73

Session 14 – God’s Grand Design Seminar

Numeric patterns appear throughout the Greek text of the New Testament, frequently featuring the prime numbers 37 and 73. What do these numbers represent?

Download accompanying notes:

37 in the Old Testament 37 in the New Testament Jesus’ new commandment Mark 10:43-45 Revelation 1:17-18 The New Covenant

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Transcript of “37 and 73” (Session 14)

Genesis 1:1 in Hebrew has seven words. Seven is a prime number.

There are seven letters in these two words (words three and four), and seven letters in these two words (four and five).

There is a middle word and three words to the right, and three words to the left. This word (second word) has three letters, and this word (sixth word) has three letters. Three is a prime number.

The numeric value of all the words is 2701, which is 37 x 73. 37 and 73 are prime numbers. 3 and 7, and 37 and 73 show up frequently in the underlying numeric patterns in the Bible, both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament ... in the Hebrew text and in the Greek.

Examples ... the Hebrew word for “the only Son” is “ha'yachid”. The numeric value of these letters: total 37. Jesus is God’s Son. John 3:16 says that “God gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.’

Isaiah chapter 9 verse 6 has a prophecy of Jesus, “For to us a child is born, a son is given, and the government will rest on His shoulders and His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

In Hebrew, “Ki yeled yilad lanu ben nitan lanu va-tihi ha'misrah al shichmo vayikra shemo Peleh, Yoetz, El Gibor, Aviad, Sar Shalom.”

This verse in Hebrew has exactly 66 letters. There are 66 chapters in Isaiah. 66 books in the Bible. What is interesting about this verse? The first two words (well we would say two, but in the original Hebrew they are joined), “Ki yeled”, has a value of 74, which is 2 x 37. And the last word (again it is two words for us, but really it is joined in the original Hebrew), “Sar Shalom” – “Prince of Peace” – has a numeric value of 500 plus 376, a total of 876, which is 73 x 12. So we see the numbers 37 and 73 bracketing this significant verse.

But the word I want to focus on here is this word – “Peleh” – the first title for Jesus. It means Wonderful. “Peleh” (PEH LAMED ALEF). The numeric value of this word is 111. PEH is 80 ... LAMED 30 ... ALEF 1. And 111 is 37 x 3.

Of course, I am giving you a few notable examples. There are patterns in the numeric values of words and verses; in the number of words and the number of letters in words and phrases, in whole passages and in chapters and books of the Bible. These things could not have happened by chance.

Genesis 1:1 through to Genesis 2:3, is the account of the seven days of creation. There are exactly 1813 letters in the full Hebrew passage. And 1813 is 7 x 7 x 37. (See dowloadable pdf for more examples of “37 in the Old Testament”)

Now to the Greek of the New Testament.

Bearing in mind that Genesis 1:1 in Hebrew has a numeric value of 2701, which is 37 x 73, it is interesting to note that the Greek word “osaftos” has a numeric value in that one word of 2701, which is 37 x 73, and “osaftos” means “likewise, in the same way”.

The word for Jesus in Greek “Iesous” has a numeric value of 888, which is 37 x 3 x 8.

The word “Christos” (Christ – the Anointed One), has a value of 1480 which is 37 x 40.

“Iesous Christos” has a total value of 2368, which is 37 x 8 x 8.

“Theotitos” – the one occurrence of a Greek word meaning “the Godhead, or the Deity”, which occurs in Colossians chapter 2 verse 9, has a numeric value of 962, which is 37 x 26.

I believe that 37 points to Jesus as the Word of God – as the Living Word. Interesting then that the word for “Scripture” in Greek is “Gramma”, which has a numeric value of 185, which is 37 x 5.

The word for “Epistle (or letter)” – as in the short books in the New Testament – is “Epistoli”, which has a numeric value of 703. 703 is divisible by 37.

The phrase, “according to the Scriptures”, which we find in 1 Corinthians 15:33 (just to name one example), is “Kata tas graphas”. The numeric value of this phrase is 1628, which is 37 x 22 x 2.

The phrase “the blood of Jesus”, which we find in 1 John chapter 1:7 – “to eima Iesou” – has a numeric value of 1110, which is 37 x 30.

At the Last Supper, before Jesus went to the cross, He gave us a new commandment – that we “love one another” (John 13: 34). This is the commandment that sums up all the Law. In John chapter 15 verses 12-14, Jesus says, “This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command.” In the Greek, that is exactly 37 words. (see downloadable pdf “Jesus’ new commandment”)

In verse 17 of John chapter 15, Jesus repeats the commandment, “This I command you, that you love one another.” In Greek, “Tavta entellomei imin, ina agapatei alilous”. There are exactly 37 letters in that phrase. And within it, “that you love one another” – “ina agapatei alilous” – has a numeric value of 1221, which is divisible by 37.

Now, here are a few key words and phrases that highlight the prime number 73. First, in Hebrew.

Isaiah 52 verse 6 says, “My people shall know My name; therefore in that day I am He who is speaking. Here I am.” The key words “I am He” in Hebrew ... “ani hu” ... have a numeric value of 73.

Psalm 40:16 says, “Let those who love Your salvation say continually, ‘the LORD be magnified.’” “The LORD be magnified” in Hebrew – “Yigdal Adonai” – has a numeric value of 73.

The whole phrase in Hebrew, is “Yomru tamid yigdal Adonai ohavei teshuatecha” – has a numeric value of 1998, which is 999 x 2, which is 37 x 3 x 18.

Psalm 23 in Hebrew, has exactly 219 letters, which is 3 x 73.

In Psalm 24:9, the phrase “... and the King of glory will come in” – in Hebrew is, “ve'yavo Melech ha'kavod”. Note that the word “the glory” (ha'kavod) has a value of 37, while the whole phrase has a value of 146, which is 73 x 2.

Psalm 118 is a Messianic psalm. It speaks prophetically of Jesus. It is the last of the “Hallel psalms” – the praise psalms – that are sung by Jewish people at Passover. In the New Testament, we are told that at the Last Supper they sang a psalm, and then went out to the Garden of Gethsemane (see Mark 14:26), that is the Psalm that they sang ... the last psalm sung by Jesus in His days on earth.

Verse 17 says, “I will not die, but live, and tell of the works of the LORD”. In Hebrew, “Lo amut ki ehiyeh ve'asaper ma'asei Adonai”. The value of this phrase is 1314, which is 73 x 18.

Verse 21 of Psalm 118 says, “I shall give thanks to You, for You have answered me. And You have become my salvation.” In Hebrew, “Otcha ki anitani va'tehili lishua”. The phrase has a total value of 1533, which is 3 x 7 x 73. 3 7 7 3.

It is not as if these are obscure, or barely relevant phrases.

Now for 73 in the Greek of the New Testament ... a few examples. Within the passage 1 John 5:6-10, we read, “This is He who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ ...” In verse 8, “...the witnessing ones are three: the Spirit and the water and the blood, and the three agree in one.” The phrase, “.. . the Spirit and the water and the blood, and the three agree in one ...” in Greek is: “To pnevma ke to uidur ke to eima, ke i tris is to en issin.” The total value of this phrase is 4745, which is 73 x 13 x 5.

John chapters 13 through to 17 are what is often called the “upper room discourse” – the “last supper”, when Jesus spoke to the disciples before He went to Gethsemane and to the cross. And John chapter 17 is Jesus’ High Priestly prayer.

In verse 5, Jesus prays, “Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself.” In Greek, “Ke nin doxason me su pater”. The numeric value of this phrase is 2117, which is divisible by 73.

In verse 8 of John 17, “... and they believed that You sent me”. In Greek, “ke epistevsan oti so me apestilas”. Numeric value 3139, which is divisible by 73.

You have this next example on a downloadable pdf on the website ... Mark chapter 10 verses 43-45 ... Jesus speaking, “(43) ... whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, (44) and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all. (45) For even the Son of man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” Verse 45 in Greek has a total numeric value of 10658, which is 73 x 73 x 2.

Another downloadable pdf on the website ... Revelation 1:17-18, when the apostle John saw the resurrected Jesus and when Jesus spoke to him. The verses say, “He placed His right hand on me saying, ‘Do not be afraid, I am the first and the last, and the Living One; I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death ...’”

This is one of the 37 ocurrences where Jesus uses the words, “ego eimi” (I AM), to announce that He is the promised Messiah. In the Greek, the passage has exactly 37 words. There are 146 letters, which is 73 x 2. And the numeric value of all the letters, all the words, is 20002. Two zero zero zero two, which is 137 x 73 x 2.

There is also a pdf on the website entitled “The New Covenant”. The New Covenant was foretold, in the Old Testament, in chapter 31 of Jeremiah. Jeremiah chapter 31 verses 31 and 32 say, “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, and I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD.

The numeric value of these two verses, in Hebrew, is 10512, which breaks down to 73 x 8 x 18.

The number 18 is significant to Jewish people. The Hebrew letters CHET YUD, which spell “chai”, means “life” in Hebrew, and the two letters have a numeric value of 18.

These verses in Jeremiah about the New Covenant are quoted in the New Testament in the book of Hebrews chapter 8 verses 8 and 9.

In the passage, quoting from Jeremiah, there are exactly 52 words in the Greek, which is 2 x 26. 26 is the numeric value of the word that represents the name of the LORD in Hebrew, YUD HEH VAV HEH.

There are 259 letters in the Greek words in this passage in Hebrews. 259 is 37 x 7. And the numeric value of the Greek is 25662, which is a number divisible by 3 and by 7 and by 26.