What teaching has been difficult for you to understand?

[Alejandro]

To give an example, our Bible has 66 books and we are taught that it is complete, and that the number 6 represents something incomplete or imperfect and is usually linked to the enemies of God (1 Chronicles 20:6; Daniel 3:1; Revelation 13:18).

 

I understand that it is derived from doctrinal issues, "The Truth" is contained in the New World Translation and the books that are outside, lead us to different branches of Christianity.

[Qapla]

Sometimes a number is just a number with no additional meanings ...

 

[Witness1970]

2 hours ago, Alejandro said:

To give an example, our Bible has 66 books and we are taught that it is complete, and that the number 6 represents something incomplete or imperfect and is usually linked to the enemies of God (1 Chronicles 20:6; Daniel 3:1; Revelation 13:18).

 

I understand that it is derived from doctrinal issues, "The Truth" is contained in the New World Translation and the books that are outside, lead us to different branches of Christianity.

I try to always look at things from different angles, but that was one I never thought about.  I am very disappointed in myself.

[Dages]

Maybe we will get 11 new scrolls so we get 77 books in the Bible 

[Tronora]

If we don't separate Samuel, Kings and Chronicles, it is 63 books. And wasn't Jeremiah and Lamentations originally one scroll? That's 62.

 

It would make numerically sence that the Holy book is 60 scrolls (divisible by 12, a "good" number)

 

I don't know. 77 books would make sense

[Beggar for the Spirit]

Hello Alejandro, 

 

You will be glad to know that not all numbers in the Bible or about the Bible are symbolic. In fact, most numbers in the Bible such as how many soldiers there were in a battle or how many people were present when listening to Jesus are just numbers and have no symbolic meaning whatsoever.

 

And the number 66 of Bible books is also not symbolic, the number of Bible books is not even in the Bible, it is just the total number of inspired books. Some might think 66 has meaning since 666 is symbolic in the book of Revelation, but these are 2 completely different numbers and they have nothing to do with each other.

Quote

*** it-2 p. 512 Number, Numeral ***
Six.  

 This number at times represents imperfection. 

 

*** it-2 p. 513 Number, Numeral ***
Forty.  

 In a few instances periods of judgment or punishment seem to be associated with the number 40.

 

HOWEVER, there are some in Christendom who believe in things like “Numerology”  in which they study the numbers in the Bible and give these mystical or symbolic meaning. So they may try to find meaning in every number in the Bible or about the Bible. 

 

Now Jehovah did provide the book of Revelation that we know is full of symbolic meaning, but not just numbers like 666, but many things are symbolic, including water and fire. And when Jehovah does designate a certain number as being symbolic, it is excellent and very helpful in teaching us!  But depending on the context, while at times a number may be figurative, most often a number in the Bible is just a number. So we must be careful not to assign any symbolic value where there is none. 

Edited September 18, 2023 by Beggar for the Spirit

[Alejandro]

Hi Neil

I am really pleased with your comment, the point is to separate the literal number from the number with symbolic value. Thank you.

[Witness1970]

One teaching that I had a problem with early in my studies was the teaching that each of the creative days was 7,000 years long.  My thought was, "Why was Jehovah somehow limited to 7,000 years for those creative days?  When I heard that was no longer taught it was actually a relief.  Now there is the idea that the creative days overlap in some way.  I wonder if that is really a necessary part of the teaching.  I just don't know enough to say much about that.