Musing – Truth comes in Forties

 Hebraic Musing – Truth comes in Forties   

(Hebraic Insight #2, originally published Oct.7, 2010)

You may have noticed many references in your bible to ’40 days’ and ’40 years’.  The word ‘forty’ is mentioned 157 times in the NIV.  Why is ‘Forty’ so prevalent and mentioned so often?

‘Truth’ in Hebrew is symbolized by ‘water’ – cleansing, flowing, clean, pure, etc.  And ‘truth’ is revealed as we go through periods of trials, probations, and testings.   The Hebrew letter Mem is a symbol of ‘water’ and therefore represents or symbolizes ‘truth’.   The Hebrew letter Mem has two forms.  The normal Mem is written  m which is open at the bottom, therefore represents ‘truth revealed’ AND its numerical value is 40.

In Hebrew each letter has a numerical value; and letters also serve as numbers by which one counts, etc.

Where is ‘forty’ mentioned in the bible, and how does each use of ‘forty’ represent truth revealed by trials, probations, testings, etc.?

Why is 40 days a significant time period?

1^st mention! – God told Noah… “I will cause it to rain on the earth forty days and forty nights,” Genesis7:4 NKJV  Thus the first ‘cleansing’ was dramatically revealed – using WATER!!!

Do you see the revealing of truth through trials, probation, and testing in these example passages?

·      Gen. 25:20…Isaac was forty years old… Gen 26:34…When Esau was forty years old…  

·      Joshua 14:7  I (Caleb) was forty years old when Moses … sent me … to explore the land…

·      Exod. 16:35 The Israelites ate manna forty years; …  

·      Num. 13:25  At the end of forty days they (12 Spies or Explorers) returned from exploring the land. 

A concordance search will find even more references to ‘forty’, each with a revelation – Moses, Goliath, Elijah, Ezekiel, etc.   

And, in the Renewed Covenant we find:

• Jesus was empowered for his public ministry of miracles by a 40-day experience in the wilderness.

• The disciples were transformed when Jesus spent 40 days with them after His resurrection.”

In the introduction to The Purpose-Driven Life, Rick Warren explains the scriptural basis for the 40 Days of Purpose Campaign:

“The Bible is clear that God considers 40 days to be a spiritually significant time period.  Whenever God wanted to change someone's perspective and prepare them for His purposes, He often took 40 days:

• Noah’s life was transformed by 40 days of rain.

• Moses’ life was transformed by 40 days on Mount Sinai.

• David's life was transformed by Goliath's 40 days of challenging Israel.

• Elijah was transformed when his strength lasted 40 days on a supernatural meal God provided.

• The entire city of Nineveh was transformed when God gave it 40 days to change.

May we never read or hear the word forty again without reflecting on the Hebraic Insight of the meaning of Mem - Water bringing cleansing, trials, testings and ‘revealed truth’.

Points to ponder

What might happen to us if we were to fast 40 days?!?!

Could we use some cleansing by trials to reveal truths?

Thank you, Holy Spirit, for revealing truths.

Yosef   a.k.a.  Joe Brusherd                          July 16, 2024
Author: “Hebraic Insights – Messages exploring the Hebrew roots of our faith”
“Biblical Marriage (by Yosef)”    Weekly “Hebraic Musings” at   InsightsByYosef.blogspot.com