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Seven

Bridgeway Bible Dictionary

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Concordances
Nave Topical Bible
• Seven
Thompson Chain Reference
• Uncertainties, Seven
• Seven
• Sayings of Christ, Seven Last
•   (only first 3 shown)
Treasury of Biblical Knowledge
• Seven Times, Literally
• Seven Days with Mother
• Literal Seven Times
Dictionaries
American Church Dictionary
• Words On the Cross, the Seven
American Tract Society
• Seven
Bridgeway Bible Dictionary
• Seven
Chabad Knowledge Base
• Noahide Laws, the Seven
Easton's Bible Dictionary
• Seven
Fausset Bible Dictionary
• Seven
Holman Bible Dictionary
• Seven, Seventh
• Seven Words From the Cross
• Seven Churches of Asia
Hastings' BibleDictionary
• Seven
• Churches, Seven
• Angels of the Seven Churches
Hastings' NT Dictionary
• Seven, the
• Seven, Seventy
• Seven Words, the
•   (only first 3 shown)
Dictionary of Early Christian Biography
• Ancyra, Seven Martyrs of
King James Dictionary
• Seven
Morrish Bible Dictionary
• Stars, Seven
• Seven Stars
• Seven Churches
•   (only first 3 shown)
1910 New Catholic Dictionary
• Sisters of the Holy Cross and of the Seven Dolors
• Sins, Seven Deadly
• Seven-Branched Candlestick
•   (only first 3 shown)
People's Bible Dictionary
• Seven
Smith Bible Dictionary
• Seven
Vines' Expository Dictionary
• Seven Times
• Seven
Wilson's Bible Types
• Seven
Webster Dictionary
• Seven-Up
• Seven-Thirties
• Seven-Shooter
•   (only first 3 shown)
Watson's Theological Dictionary
• Seven
Encyclopedias
1911 Encyclopedia Britannica
• Seven Champions of Christendom
• Seven Days' Battle
• Seven Weeks' War
•   (only first 3 shown)
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
• Angels of the Seven Churches
• Churches, Seven
• Princes, the Seven
•   (only first 3 shown)
Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia
• Seven
McClintock and Strong's Bible Encyclopedia
• Ancyra, the Seven Virgins of
• Ephesus, Seven Sleepers of
• Seven
•   (only first 3 shown)
The Nuttall Encyclopedia
• City of the Seven Hills
• Seven Champions of Christendom
• Seven Deadly Sins
•   (only first 3 shown)
The Catholic Encyclopedia
• Alexander, name of seven men
• Feasts of the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• Seven Deacons
•   (only first 3 shown)
The Jewish Encyclopedia
• Ages of Man in Jewish Literature, the Seven
• Lamp, the Seven-Branched
• Middot: the Seven, of Hillel
•   (only first 3 shown)
Lexicons
• ܫܒ݂ܰܥ
• ἑξήκοντα
• ἑπτά
• ἑπτάκις
•   (only first 3 shown)
• אַרְבָּעִים
• כִּימָה
• עֶשְׂרִים
•   (only first 3 shown)

One obvious feature of the Bible is the frequent occurrence of the number ‘seven’. The number seems to have been used to indicate one complete unit – fulness, completion, perfection (e.g. Genesis 2:2).

This unit of seven features prominently in the organization of Israel’s religious and community life. One day in seven was a holy day of rest, and this weekly unit provided the framework for various religious festivals (Exodus 20:8-11; Leviticus 23:5-6; Leviticus 23:15; Leviticus 23:34; see SABBATH). The details of many of Israel’s rituals were based on a unit of seven (Leviticus 4:6; Leviticus 8:33; Leviticus 13:4; Leviticus 14:7-8; Leviticus 14:51; Leviticus 23:18). Every seventh year was a year of rest for the land and release for debtors (Leviticus 25:1-4; Deuteronomy 15:1-2; see SABBATICAL YEAR). The symbolic ‘seven’ gave to ordinary events a special religious significance (Joshua 6:4).

The expression ‘seven times’ seems to have been used as a figure of speech to indicate fulness or finality (Genesis 4:15; Genesis 4:24, Leviticus 26:18; Leviticus 26:21; 1 Kings 18:43-44; 2 Kings 5:10; Psalms 12:6; Psalms 119:164; Isaiah 30:26; Daniel 3:19; Matthew 18:21-22; cf. Luke 8:2; Luke 11:26; Luke 20:29). A similar symbolic usage of the number ‘seven’ is common in the book of Revelation (Revelation 1:20; Revelation 4:5; Revelation 5:1; Revelation 5:6; Revelation 8:2; Revelation 10:3; Revelation 12:3; Revelation 13:1; Revelation 15:1).