There are several numbers that have meaning in the Bible — seven, three, twelve, forty… Often the way these numbers are used is consistent and provides insight into what is happening. Seven is a number of completion. Three is a number of wholeness and balance, i.e. the Trinity. There are twelve tribes and twelve disciples and that’s not a coincidence.
Forty is a length of time that is often used for testing, repentance, waiting, or trial. Jesus was tempted for forty days (Mark 1:13). When the flood happened (Gen. 6-9), the rain fell for forty days and forty nights. Moses was on the mountain for forty days (Exodus 24:15-18) until God gave him the tablets of the law. The people of Israel wandered in the wilderness for forty years (Numbers 14:33). Jonah’s message to Nineveh was similar to this, “Forty days and Nineveh will be destroyed.” (Jonah 3:4)
The word “quarantine” literally means a period of forty days. We have been in a season that has tested us, for much longer than forty days, but much shorter than forty years. But we have certainly been tested through this past year and its challenges. What lessons have we learned through our season? During the season of Lent, which is forty days, we will look at various episodes of “forty.” What can we learn through these Biblical times of testing and how do they apply to our lives?
Lent is a season of repentance. It’s a time to reflect on our need for Jesus, our need for forgiveness. Let’s reflect together and repent together through these forty days.
Blessings on your forty