Secret of the Hebrew letter Zayin

Transcript of “Secret of the Hebrew letter Zayin”

The seventh letter of the Hebrew alphabet is ZAYIN.

The numeric value of ZAYIN is seven.

The pictogram or symbol behind the shape of the letter ZAYIN is a sceptre. A sceptre is a small staff, held in the hand ... the symbol of authority of a king.

The New Testament has seven different declarations of Jesus as King. First, the wise men from the east arrived in Jerusalem and asked, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews”(Matthew 2:2). The notice on the cross also proclaimed Jesus as “King of the Jews” (Matthew 27:37).

Second, Jesus called Jerusalem, “the city of the Great King” (Matthew 5:35). Jesus is the Great King.

Third, three times, Jesus was declared to be “the King of Israel” (Mark 15:32, John 1:49, John 12:13).

Fourth, Paul wrote to Timothy, and declared Jesus to be “the King eternal, immortal, invisible” (1 Timothy 1:17).

Fifth, in the book of Hebrews, Jesus is declared to be, “according to the order of Melchizedek” ... “a priest forever” (Hebrews 5:5-6) and “King of righteousness and King of peace” (Hebrews 7:1-3).

Sixth, in the book of Revelation, Jesus is presented as “King of the nations” (Revelation 15:3), or “King of the ages”.

And seventh, also in the book of Revelation, Jesus is called by His great title, “King of kings, and Lord of lords” (Revelation 19:16).

In the Old Testament, there are important Scriptures that link this image of a sceptre – this emblem of royalty and of sovereign power – with the Messiah.

First, in Genesis chapter 49, we read the prophecies that Jacob proclaimed over his twelve sons. Over Judah, he declared, “The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes, and to Him shall be the obedience of the peoples.” (Genesis 49:10). Jewish rabbis and Christian theologians accept that the term, “until Shiloh comes” (“Sheelo” in Hebrew) is a promise of the Messiah.

All the world – not just Israel – will bow to this King.

Judah was to be the line from which the kings of Israel would come. Jesus was from the tribe of Judah – a descendant of King David. God promised King David that He would “raise up a descendant after you, who will come forth from you”.

The Hebrew word for “descendant” is “zerah” (ZAYIN RESH AYIN), usually translated “seed”. God said to Abraham that His unconditional promises would flow through “a descendant” – “zerah”. And in the New Testament, in Galatians chapter 3 verse 16, we learn that this “seed” is one person (singular), and that it refers to Jesus.

The first word in the Bible that starts with the letter ZAYIN, is in Genesis chapter 1 verse 11, when God says, “Let the earth sprout plants yielding seed ...” “seed” – “zerah” (ZAYIN RESH AYIN).

Evolutionists theorise how the world came about. But how can they possibly explain the life-force contained in a single seed? We who are born again by the Holy Spirit have been born of “imperishable seed” (1 Peter 1:23), because of our faith in Jesus. Because of Him, we shall never die.

There is another important Scripture in the Old Testament that refers to the sceptre of the King. Psalm 45 is a Messianic Psalm.

The Psalm is “addressed to the King”. Then it reads, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; a sceptre of uprightness is the sceptre of Your Kingdom.”.

We see that this King holds in His hand “the sceptre” of His Kingdom ... a “sceptre of uprightness”. And the Kingship is “forever and ever”. And the King is called “God” (“Elohim” in Hebrew).

The numeric value of the Hebrew letter ZAYIN is 7. Seven is a number that occurs frequently in Scripture, and in such significant ways and in such significant places, that many consider the number to be a “seal” of God in the Bible.

In the creation account, in Genesis chapter 1, the expression “... and God said ...” occurs many times. “And God said” in Hebrew is “Va'yomer Elohim”. The numeric value of “Va'yomer Elohim” is 343, which breaks down to 7 x 7 x 7.

A few more examples ... in Psalm 24 verse 8, we find the question, “Who is the King of Glory?” Our answer: “Jesus is the King of Glory”. “Who is the King of Glory” in Hebrew is, “Mi zeh melech ha'kavod”. The numeric value of the phrase is 189, which is divisible by 7 and by 3.

In Isaiah chapter 2, we twice find the expression, “Ve'nisgav Adonai le'vado be'yom ha'hu” (“And the LORD alone will be exalted in that day”). There are 21 Hebrew letters in the phrase, which is 3 x 7. The numeric value of the phrase is 504, which is divisible by 7 and by 3.

Psalm 118 is a Messianic Psalm. It is about Jesus. In verse 21 we read, “And You have become my salvation”. In Hebrew “Va'tihili l'yeshua”. The numeric value of the phrase is 882, which is divisible by 3 and 7, and again by 3 and 7.

In the New Testament, the Greek for Passover is “Pascha”. Pascha as a Greek word has a numeric value of 882 – the same numeric value as the phrase in Hebrew “You have become my salvation” – 882 is 3 x 7 x 3 x 7 x 2.

At the Jewish feast of Passover, Jesus became the sacrifice for our sins on the cross. He “became my salvation” – and your salvation, if you place your faith in Him. If you have done that, then you have “... peace through Jesus Christ, He is LORD of all” (see Acts 10:36). That phrase in Greek is, “Irinin thia Iesou Christou outos estin panton Kyrios”, which has a total numeric value of 6300, which is divisible by 7 and by 3.

How fitting that the letter ZAYIN represents the sceptre of our King, of Jesus.

How fitting that the numeric value of ZAYIN is 7 ... the very seal of God in Scripture.