It was a fast day of Asarah B’Tevet. Many you mentioned that I posted this too late for them to fast. I encourage you to under the leadership of Holy Spirit to choose a day to fast. (see my previous Face Book post.)
The number 10 has to do with God’s perfect Order. How God carries out His timelines. How God carries out His perfect plans and purposes. Ten is all about the Kingdom. In fact the first mention of Kingdom in the Bible is in Genesis 10:10. When God uses the number 10 it is all about the Kingdom of God is coming.
In rabbinic thought, 10 relates to an integrated system: a full set of individual parts combined to make up a communal whole, typifying holiness and the resting place of the Shekhinah, THE PRESENCE OF GOD.
In the Bible, the number 10 is used 242 times. The designation “10th” is used 79 times. Ten is also viewed as a complete and perfect number, as is 3, 7 and 12. It is made up of 4, the number of the physical creation, and 6, the number of man. As such, 10 signifies testimony, law, responsibility and the completeness of order.
In Genesis 1 we find the phrase “God said” 10 times, which is a testimony of His creative power. God gave the 10 Commandments to man. Ten therefore represents man’s responsibility to keep the commandments. A tithe is a 10th of our earnings and is a testimony of our faith in the Lord.
The last great world-ruling kingdom of man under Satan is symbolized prophetically by the 10 toes of Daniel 2 and the 10 horns of Revelation 13 and 17.
Appearances of the number ten
Ten generations of man lived on the earth before the flood waters came and swept away all those who were disobedient. Noah, the tenth generation, was 600 years when he and seven other family members entered the ark.
The number 10 is a very significant number in the Bible. The word eser (עֶשֶׂר) is almost identical in Hebrew spelling to osher (עֹ֫שֶׁר) meaning wealth, which gives this word a strong link to the tithe, the tenth part that is dedicated to God.
The original meaning of the word is thought by some to be gathering, collection or union.
It is considered the number of divine perfection. Much in Scripture and Jewish tradition also suggests the meaning of eser to be completion and perhaps order, law and responsibility.
Consider, for instance, the following:
- 10 things were created on the first day of creation, and ten things were created on the sixth and final day of creation.
- 10 generations passed from Adam to Noah and ten generations from Noah to Abraham.
- 10 plagues went forth in Egypt before God freed the Hebrews from their enslavement.
- 10 commandments were given by God on Sinai. (Exodus 20:1–17)
- On the 10th of the first month, the Passover lamb was selected. (Exodus 12:3)
- 10 times 10 silver sockets formed the foundation of the Tabernacle. (Exodus 38:27)
- The 10th (tithe) is holy to the Lord.
- 10 days of Awe or Repentance fall between Rosh Hashanah (the Festival of Trumpets on Tishri 1) and the holiest day of the year on Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement on Tishri 10). During this period, we seek forgiveness for our sins from God and man, as well as wisdom as to how we might lead better lives.
- 10 toes in Daniel 2 and 10 horns in Revelation 13 and 17 symbolize the final ruling kingdom of man.
- Daniel and his three friends were 10 times better than the magicians and astrologers (Daniel 1:20).
- 10 men are necessary to form a quorum for Jewish group prayer and worship, indicating a communal whole. In Hebrew this is called a minyan and it comes from the Hebrew root maneh (מנה), meaning to count or to number.
- 10 assembled Jews creates a unity called Knesset Yisrael (Congregation of Israel), and 10 are required to be present when something is to be publicly witnessed. This gathering of 10 is called a tzibbur. Perhaps that is part of the reason why the evil report of the 10 spies, who failed to see God’s power and provision, held more weight than the report of Joshua and Caleb:
“And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, ‘The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature.’” (Numbers 13:32)
- 10 lepers cried out to Yeshua (Jesus) for healing, and He sent them to the priests in order that they could be declared clean.
“As He was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met Him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, ‘Yeshua, Master, have pity on us!’ When He saw them, He said, ‘Go, show yourselves to the priests.’ And as they went, they were cleansed.” (Luke 17:12–14)
Finally, and my favorite, In John, Yeshua, King Jesus underlined the pattern of ten found in the Bible by progressively making 10 “I Am” declarations:
- I am the Bread of Life (6:35, 48);
- I am the Bread that came down from heaven (6:41);
- I am the Living Bread (6:51);
- I am the Light of the world (8:12);
- I am One that bears witness of Myself (8:18);
- Before Abraham was, I am (8:58);
- I am the Door of the sheep (10:7, 9);
- I am the Good Shepherd (10:14);
- I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life (14:6); and
- I am the True Vine (15:1, 5).
May you be divinely aware in the Biblical Month of Tevet and the month the world celebrates the birth of our Messiah, King Jesus, He is the Great I Am. Shalom
Wellspring Israel 