Number
22
Service to God, and the judgment that follows that service.
If I were to sum up its general, overall meaning based on these Scriptures, I would say it represents service to God and the results or consequences that come along with that service. Often it reveals a judgment, in most of those cases death, which generally occurs to the enemies of the faithful or to unfaithful servants in the Old Testament. This reminds me of Jacob’s (James’) statement, “Let not many of you be teachers, my brothers, knowing that we will receive heavier judgment” (Jacob 3:1), and Paul, who said, “…but I beat my body and bring it into submission, lest by any means, after I have preached to others, I myself should be disqualified” (1 Corinthians 9:27).
It is akin to Belshazzar taking the temple vessels and toasting other gods, then being weighed in the balance and found wanting (Daniel 5).
There is also the loosely associated meaning of the tav (ת / 𐤕) in the Hebrew alphabet, which is the last and 22nd letter. It is said to look like a cross (albeit a crooked one when looking at the Paleo-Hebrew alphabet). I’m not sure I would hang my reputation on that, but I’m not closed off to the idea as it might have merit.
22
| Number | Passage | How it is used |
|---|---|---|
| 22 | Judges 10:3 | Jair judged Israel for 22 years. |
| 22 | 1 Kings 14:20 | Jeroboam reigned for 22 years. |
| 22 | 1 Kings 16:29 | Ahab reigned for 22 years. |
| 22 | 2 Kings 8:26 | Ahaziah was 22 years old when he became king. |
| 22 | 2 Kings 21:19; 2 Chronicles 33:21 | Amon was 22 years old when he became king. |
| 22 | 1 Chronicles 12:28 | 22 captains from Zadok’s ancestral household joined David. |
These include both wicked kings and other leaders. Jair’s 22 years, for example, are reported without a condemnation attached to that number.
220 and 2,200
| Number | Passage | How it is used |
|---|---|---|
| 220 | 1 Chronicles 15:6 | Asaiah and 220 relatives, descendants of Merari, assembled to bring up the ark. |
| 220 | Ezra 8:20 | 220 temple servants, appointed to assist the Levites, joined Ezra’s returning company. |
| 2,200 | Nehemiah 7:71 | Family heads contributed 2,200 minas of silver to the work. |
These occurrences concern service to God and contributions toward restoration.
22,000
| Number | Passage | How it is used |
|---|---|---|
| 22,000 | Numbers 3:39 | The recorded total of male Levites aged one month and older. |
| 22,000 | Judges 7:3 | The fearful soldiers who left Gideon’s army, leaving 10,000. |
| 22,000 | Judges 20:21 | The Israelites killed by Benjamin on the first day of battle. |
| 22,000 | 2 Samuel 8:5; 1 Chronicles 18:5 | The Arameans killed by David’s forces—parallel accounts of the same event. |
| 22,000 | 1 Kings 8:63; 2 Chronicles 7:5 | The cattle Solomon sacrificed at the temple’s dedication—also parallel accounts. |
Here the contexts include separation from an army, death in battle, consecrated service, and sacrificial worship.
The 22nd assignments
There are also two explicit 22nd assignments:
- 1 Chronicles 24:17: the 22nd priestly division went to Gamul.
- 1 Chronicles 25:29: the 22nd division of musicians went to Giddalti.
A translation detail
2 Chronicles 22:2 gives Ahaziah’s age as 22 in many modern translations, but 42 in the KJV and the traditional Hebrew text. In the WOTA Bible the verse reads forty-two. His age is 22 in 2 Kings 8:26.