By Water & Blood

Part II: Introduction

Having thus shown and established the supernatural design in the use of number, both in the works of God and in the Word of God, we now come to the spiritual significance of the numbers themselves. We propose to take them in order, and to give under each not merely lists of passages or things, but first to define and explain the significance of the number, and then to illustrate its meaning, and show its teaching, as applied to its use, to numbers of things that are mentioned, the numbers of occurrences of words and things, the numbers of words used for a thing, and the numbers formed by the letters of the words themselves. This last is called by the ancients Gematria. This is the use of the letters of the alphabet instead of figures. Arabic numerals being a comparatively modern invention were not, of course, known to, and could not have been used by, the more ancient nations. The Hebrews and Greeks, therefore, used their alphabets as follows:—

THE HEBREW ALPHABET

consists of 22 (2 x 11) letters, so the 5 finals were added to make up three series of 9, or 27 in all:

Aleph א	= 1		Yod י	= 10		Koph ק	= 100
Beth ב	= 2		Kaph כ	= 20		Resh ר	= 200
Gimel ג	= 3		Lamed ל	= 30		Shin ש	= 300
Daleth ד	= 4		Mem מ	= 40		Tau ת	= 400
He ה	= 5		Nun נ	= 50		Final Kaph ך	= 500
Vau ו	= 6		Samech ס	= 60		Final Mem ם	= 600
Zayin ז	= 7		Ayin ע	= 70		Final Nun ן	= 700
Cheth ח	= 8		Pe פ	= 80		Final Pe ף	= 800
Teth ט	= 9		Tsaddi צ	= 90		Final Tsaddi ץ	= 900

THE GREEK ALPHABET

The Greek letters were 24, and the required number, 27, was made up by using the final "ς" or ς (called Stigma) for 6, and adding two arbitrary symbols called respectively Koppa, for 90, and Sampsi, for 900.

Alpha α	=1		Iota ι	= 10		Rho ρ	= 100
Beta β	= 2		Kappa κ	= 20		Sigma σ	= 200
Gamma γ	= 3		Lambda λ	= 30		Tau τ	= 300
Delta δ	= 4		Mu μ	= 40		Upsilon υ	= 400
Epsilon ε	= 5		Nu ν	= 50		Phi φ	= 500
Stigma ς*	= 6		Xi ξ	=60		Chi χ	= 600
Zeta ζ	= 7		Omicron ο	= 70		Psi ψ	= 700
Eta η	= 8		Pi π	= 80		Omega ω	= 800
Theta θ	= 9		Koppa	= 90		Sampsi	= 900

* This letter ς (called Stigma) is used for the number 6. Why this letter and number should be thus associated we cannot tell, except that both are intimately connected with the ancient Egyptian "mysteries." The three letters SSS (in Greek ΣΣΣ) were the symbol of Isis, which is thus connected with 666. Indeed the expression of this number, Χξς, consists of the initial and final letters of the word Xριστος (Christos), Christ, viz., X and ς, with the symbol of the serpent between them, X—ξ—ς.