Audio Download

  The Spiritual Significance of Numbers:  The Number Six-Part 1

In order to understand what the number six means in biblical terms, it would be best to see its most important connection to the pinnacle of God’s physical creation mankind.

Gen 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

God’s word reveals in Ecclesiastes 3:19 “For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity.”

We see God wants man to have preeminence or dominion over all the creation, but in the next breath we are told that we are just like the beasts and have no preeminence above them. So which is it, and how do we come to the point where we actually have dominion over all flesh as Genesis 1:26 claims we will have?

Rev 13:18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

The word for man in this verse is anth’-ro-pos and refers to mankind, not just any man, but all men and women.

From G435 and ωψ o ps (the countenance; from G3700); manfaced, that is, a human being: – certain, man.

God has told us that if we want wisdom and understanding about mankind we should count the number of the beast which is 6-6-6. By doing so we should come to see how our dominion over all flesh will come by way of a process which is to be understood as having dominion over the spirit realm by bringing our own marred flesh into subjection to Christ by way of the holy spirit which He gives to us.

Jer 18:4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.

So without any further ado, I hope the scriptures will convict those who read this, if they have not already been convicted, that man was created as an incomplete  marred vessel for a glorious purpose. The number six denoted that which is not yet complete, and it has much to say about the process of reaching the ultimate perfection which flesh and blood cannot obtain nor inherit.

1Co 15:50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

Firstly, the number is not just the single number six hundred sixty-six. The original Greek is to be understood as a series of three sixes showing us there is a process to be learned from this 6-6-6 series of the same number:

The number 3 can be shown in God’s word to represent process, especially the process of being judged, which process is always closely tied to the destruction of the flesh.

This article an mp3 audio file will bring out the truth of this matter in God’s word.

Spiritual significance of the number three

The symbolism in the Garden of Eden reveals right from the beginning that all flesh, including Christ’s flesh, is sinful flesh and is tied to the earth. The symbolism in the Garden of Eden will help us establish more clearly the connection between the number 6 and the earth, the church, mankind and Christ himself. Hopefully, we will see the broader sense of its meaning wherever we come across it in the word of God revealing to us both the negative and positive points surrounding the number six.

The next part of this study on the number 6 is taken from Mike Vinson’s article, “After the Counsel of His Own Will, Does Mankind Have Free Will?”

… and is added to help us see the connection the number six has to the earth and everyone including Christ, who was also in an earthen vessel.

The quote from this article can be found in the “After the Counsel of His Own Will” article:

“Few people notice that the tree of the knowledge of good has the same root as the tree of the knowledge of evil. Consequently they are confused as to why Cain’s offering to God was rejected: After all, Cain “brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord” (Gen 4:3).

Few indeed are given eyes to see that it was God Himself who planted the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Fewer still see that both good and evil HAVE THE SAME ROOT.

However, there is much more revealed here in chapter two of Genesis:

Gen 2:9 And OUT OF THE GROUND [dust] made the Lord to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

The truth which seems to be the least understood of all is that even the tree of life is ‘made to grow out of the ground.’ The truth of this simple statement gives the lie to Satan’s “you shall not surely die” untruth (Gen 3:4). Satan convinced the first Adam of a lie which has been ensconced in Adam’s children from the beginning. In effect, what Satan told our parents, and is still telling us today, is ‘you will never surely die.’

Christ tells us: “I am the resurrection and the life…” (Joh 11:25). That is why Christ had to come in the flesh and partake of our earthy, dust composition. “OUT OF THE GROUND made the Lord to grow… the tree of life” (Gen 2:9).

Both trees grow ‘out of the ground’. What this tells us about ourselves is: “that they [mankind] might see that they themselves are beasts” (Ecc 3:18). Paul puts it like this:

1Co 15:46 Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.
1Co 15:47 The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.

Clearly “that which is natural” is not the completed product. “That which is spiritual … the second man… the Lord from heaven” is the completion of the Lord’s creation.

God’s word shows us that the number six is tied to the redemptive process by way of the flesh [THE EARTH].”  (END QUOTE)

Speaking of the church in the wilderness, we read in the book of Jeremiah:

Jer 22:1 Thus saith the LORD; Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and speak there this word,
Jer 22:2 And say, Hear the word of the LORD, O king of Judah, that sittest upon the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people that enter in by these gates:

In the same chapter this statement in verse 29 “the king of Judah… and thy people” are three times referred to as “earth, earth, earth.”

Jer 22:29 O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD.

The holy spirit calls “the king of Judah… and thy people who enter in by these gates… earth, earth, earth.” The fact that the word ‘earth’ is repeated three times reveals to  us that there is a three-step process of judgment for all flesh, including Christ’s flesh which is connected to the ground, to the earth.

For further clarification on this point, please see the following article:

Three days and three nights in the grave

Heb 9:15 For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant. (NIV)

Joh 12:24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

This process of bringing forth much fruit by the seed falling into the ground and dying is another way of saying the hope of glory which is within us and that is experienced day to day as we die daily and go from glory to glory.

Col 1:27  To whom God would make known what [is] the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

1Co 15:31  I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.

2Co 3:18  But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, [even] as by the Spirit of the Lord.

“The riches of the glory of this mystery [which is being] made known… among the Gentiles” is that being the physical seed of Abraham does not complete the Lord’s creation. What does complete the Lord’s creation is “the second man… the Lord from heaven… Christ in you the hope of glory.”

1Co 15:46  Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.
1Co 15:47  The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.

Flesh and blood must be put off and replaced by a new creation which is formed in the weakness of the first creation by way of a process (number 3) of the destruction of the flesh (number 6) stated as such in this verse in Ecclesiastes.

Ecc 1:13 I applied my heart to inquiring and exploring by wisdom concerning all that is done under the heavens: it is an experience of evil Elohim has given to the sons of humanity to humble them by it. (CLV)

Again, in Ecclesiastes 3:19 we are reminded that this experience of evil, and the accompanying wisdom and process of being judged, is connected to mankind and can be derived by understanding the symbol 6-6-6.

Ecc 3:19 For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity.

All things in the flesh, by God’s estimation, ‘shortly come to pass’ seeing our life is but a vapor in His sight.

Jas 4:14  Whereas ye know not what [shall be] on the morrow. For what [is] your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.

We live by every word of God, and the primary way to look at all scripture is in the inward application or the present application of that word inwardly within each of our own lives. Then we can gain a greater appreciation for the sum of God’s signified word on the subject of the number six.

Rev 1:1  The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:

Mat 4:4  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

The earth is cursed from the Garden of Eden

The scriptures demonstrate that man is a beast, connected to the earth and redeemed out of it by Christ who started the redemptive process by being that preeminent seed of Adam to die and redeem us by His death, and all of this is declared from the foundation of the world.

Heb 4:3  For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

Rom 5:10  For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

Col  1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

Christ had to be in beastly Adamic flesh in order to reconcile us to our Father, but Christ goes on to tell us that unless He is resurrected, we will remain in our sinful fleshly condition and not be able to receive the comforter, which will finish this process of redemption by entering into our flesh to work a process which finds its fullness or perfection in the resurrection (the third day).

Joh 16:7  Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

Luk 13:32  And he said unto them, Go and say to that fox, Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I am perfected.

This is “the hope of glory”, and 6 cannot go on to completion, which is the symbolic meaning of the number 7, unless there is a perfecting agent within us, namely Jesus Christ. Christ within us is the hope of glory, not the fullness of that glory but the hope of it which will eventually save all men by giving us dominion over all the beasts of the earth within us.

Col 1:27  To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

1Co 15:22  For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.

1Ti 4:10  For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.

1Jn 2:2  And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

Gen 1:26  And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

The earth is cursed from the beginning of the creation; it is marred in the hand of the potter and shapened in iniquity. The number six is not seven and not complete, but not completely without hope either. As the story progresses for mankind, God uses the temple itself as a shadow of the great hope of glory which is Christ in the temple, which temple we are.

The number six comes up in this regard among many other shadows in God’s holy temple, and these shadows are showing us the process through which flesh must go in order to be justified and glorified by God.

Rom 8:30  Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.

I have emboldened every verb in Romans 8:30. Every verb in that verse is in the Greek aorist tense which signifies a process which is not yet complete.

One example of this being used is the eleven curtains in the temple of God. The curtains represent our flesh, and a few scriptures to confirm this point can be found at:

Heb 10:25  By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;

Mat 27:51  And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and [that] the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

The curtain, which symbolizes flesh, is rent in two, and the number two symbolizes the witness of Christ within us Who makes a way for us to enter into the holy of holies by destroying the old man, the sinful nature and everything which separates us from God.

Rom 5:10  For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

This study below shows more clearly the spiritual significance of the eleven curtains in the tabernacle. The number 11 spiritually signifies the ruin and death of the flesh. It is through that death that we have the hope of life.  5+6=11. Here is the link to the study on…

The Number Eleven

There is a temporary tabernacle which precedes a more permanent temple, but do not think that even the temple is not to be vigilantly purged and purified.

Exo 26:7  And thou shalt make curtains of goats’ hair to be a covering upon the tabernacle: eleven curtains shalt thou make.

Heb 9:22  And almost all things are by the law purged with blood [death]; and without shedding of blood is no remission.
Heb 9:23  It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves [must be purified] with better sacrifices than these.

Eleven curtains covered the temporary tabernacle. This tabernacle first received the tables of the first covenant “for the lawless” (1Ti 1:9). It endured the trials of the wilderness and the lawless days of the judges. It was covered with eleven curtains.

Deu 1:2 There are eleven days journey from Horeb by the way of mount Seir unto Kadeshbarnea.

Twelve days would have taken Israel right into the promised land. Eleven is one day short of twelve, and therefore Israel at this point is not well founded. Korah and his 250 famous men of renown have yet to raise their ugly heads.

We can also note that the Num 6 + 5 = 11 and shows that the number eleven carries with it the mark of the beast 6 and 5 for grace and faith, which is how all men will be saved and brought to the foundation of Jesus Christ, who is represented by the number twelve. Here is the link to our last study on the spiritual significance of the number 5: https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/the-spiritual-significance-of-numbers-number-5/

The last two kings of Israel reigned for eleven years and did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. Again, God is showing us that as long as we are in earthen vessels, we will not be considered complete.

The porch of the temple is also eleven cubits, and we will need to be perfected until this verse is fulfilled outwardly.

Rev 21:22 And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.

Christ and The Body of Christ can be Connected to the Number Six

We will pause our study at this point, and in our next study we will learn how the number six is connected to the body of Christ.