Numerical Secrets of the Bible: Rediscovering the Bible Codes

by Casper J. Labuschagne, Casper J. Labuschagne

Were you intrigued, but disappointed by The Bible Code? Labuschagne's book is not the work of an amateur, but was written by one of Europe's leading biblical scholars and deals with one of the most important recent discoveries in the field of biblical study, namely that the books of the Bible are numerical compositions. The biblical writings were not written in an off-hand manner, but were meticulously composed according to compositional techniques in which the counting of words plays a crucial role. It goes without saying that this discovery has far-reaching consequences for our views on the formation and the structure of the text of the Hebrew Bible and of the Greek text of the New Testament. The author introduces the reader to the fascinating world of number symbolism in biblical times, he demonstrates how well-known symbolic numbers, such as 7 and 12, and especially the lesser known holy numbers 17 and 26, which represent the numerical value of the name YHWH, were used to give structure to the text and to deepen its contents. Among other fascinating findings, this study confirms the medieval Jewish tradition that Holy Scripture consists of the name of God set in succession, or interwoven in the fabric of the text.

Genres: Faith

208 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1999

Reviews

[Daniel Stanley · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were some interesting pieces in here, but overall I was underwhelmed. I wish he had presented more concrete data and historical evidence for his method.

[Sonny Perron-Nault · Rating 5 out of 5]

Labuschagne's book is fascinating and opens up very interesting avenues for research in biblical studies. While I do not agree with everything, I find that the author provides ample convincing examples to support his main thesis: that many biblical texts (notably psalms, divine speeches, hymns, etc.) are structured according to the numerical value of certain key words and symbolic numbers (notably 4, 7, and 11). This work has significant implications for theology, particularly in biblical exegesis, form criticism, and textual criticism.

Le Livre de Labuschagne est fascinant et ouvre des pistes de recherche très intéressantes en études bibliques. Sans être d'accord avec tout, je trouve que l'auteur donne amplement d'exemples convaincants pour démontrer sa thèse principale, à savoir que plusieurs textes bibliques (notamment les psaumes, les discours divins, les hymnes, etc.) sont structurés en fonction de la valeur numérique de certains mots clés et chiffres symboliques (notamment 4, 7 et 11). Cet ouvrage a des implications importantes en théologie pour l'éxégèse des textes bibliques, la critique des formes et la critique textuelle.