Meaning Of Biblical Numbers

Thirty-Two (lamed-beth)
Covenant
The number thirty-two in Hebrew was written with the letters lamed (authority) and beth (house or household). The
Hebrew word formed by these two letters is leb, which means “heart.” Another word for heart is lebab (“heart of the
father”).
Thirty-two is the number of Covenant. Covenants reveal the heart of the father and bring about a Father-Son
relationship.
The 32 nd time the name Noah appears in the Bible is in Gen. 9:8, 9,
8 Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying, 9 Now, behold, I Myself do establish My
covenant with you, and with your descendants after you.
Hebrew scholar, Alan Newton, tells me that this literally reads, “I will arise My covenant in you.” The word
“covenant” appears 5 times in Numbers and 27 times in Deuteronomy for a total of 32.
The 32 nd time the name Abram appears in the Bible is in Gen. 14:19. It is the blessing of Melchizedek in conjunction
with the bread and wine, which is a sign of the covenant, as we read in Matt. 26:28,
28 For this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.
Melchizedek is, of course, a type of Jesus Christ, who came as High Priest after the Order of Melchizedek (Heb.
7:17). Thus, when He instituted communion just before His death on the cross, it was according to the pattern set forth by
Melchizedek.
The 32 nd time the name Abraham appears in the Bible is found in Gen. 20:17,
17 And Abraham prayed to God; and God healed Abimelech and his wife and his maids, so that they bore
children.
This may seem more akin to the number 31, “offspring,” and indeed, Ed Vallowe miscounted and made this mistake
in his book, Biblical Mathematics. (He apparently overlooked Gen. 17:23, where “Abraham’s house” was mentioned.)
But this does have to do with covenant in that it foreshadows the time when God’s covenant will bring forth many sons
among all the nations. The Sons of God are only possible by means of a covenant with God.
The first covenant was made with Noah, his sons, and “every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth” (Gen.
9:16). Thus, there is a tight connection between 31 (“offspring”) and 32 (“covenant”).
The 32 nd time that Isaac’s name is used is in Gen. 25:28. It is the story of how Esau despised his birthright and sold it
to Jacob for a bowl of soup. The birthright determined who would be the inheritor of the covenant with Abraham and
Isaac.
The 32 nd time that Jacob’s name is used is in Gen. 28:18, where Jacob pours oil on the rock that had been his pillow at
Bethel. He then makes a conditional covenant with God for divine protection in return for service.
The 32 nd time that Jerusalem is mentioned is in 2 Sam. 15:29, where David told Zadok and Abiathar to return to
Jerusalem with the Ark of the Covenant.
In the New Testament, Mark 8:27 is the 32 nd time Jesus’ name is used in his Gospel, and Jesus’ name is not
mentioned again until the next chapter. In that passage, Peter makes his great confession of faith that Jesus was the Son of
the Living God. Because they finally knew by revelation who He was, Jesus then explained to them the purpose of the
Messiah—to establish the New Covenant by means of His death and resurrection (vs. 31). It was, after all, a blood
covenant, for we read in Hebrews 9 that He entered the Most Holy Place as High Priest, carrying not the blood of goats,
but of His own blood (9:12). “And for this reason He is the mediator of a New Covenant” (Heb. 9:13).
Finally, in Acts 10:17 we find the 32 nd time that Peter’s name is mentioned in the book of Acts. He had just had his
great vision of the unclean animals being let down out of heaven by a sheet with the command to “kill and eat.” While
Peter contemplated its meaning, a knock came on the door, and then the meaning was clear: God’s covenant was being
28