Is God Signaling The World? What Is The Probability He's Not?
I can't overstate enough how "off in the weeds" you can get when trying to read meaning into numbers, but on the other hand, God clearly uses numbers for significant purposes in His Word:
7 days of creation
7 lampstands
7 stars
7 spirits
"666" - the number of antichrist
12 tribes
12 apostles
24 elders
144,000 sealed
153 fish caught
etc
I can understand the guttural reaction many Christians have to speculating on numbers, as I also do, but with caution and prayer, we need to be open to them (as well as open to being wrong when we are challenged with interpreting the scriptures incorrectly). After all, regarding prophecy, the Bible clearly lays out certain numbers that we are to try to decipher and apply with wisdom:
Before anyone disregards the "4s" surrounding last Saturday's blood moon, I would challenge you: on what basis do you disregard it? I have yet to see anyone do this, but it occurs to me that perhaps we could calculate a rough probability surrounding the "4s" and the blood moon and the chance they might randomly align the way they did.
First of all, consider that for several years now Christians from all over the world have been pointing to this third blood moon. It is interesting to me that many thousands of watchers have been saying for a long time now to watch this sign... even the media caught on (Drudge Report, Fox News, CNN, etc) and NASA felt compelled enough to address the concerns over the crazy religious "rumors". Suppose God did want to signal the world... wouldn't one of these blood moons be the perfect event in which to signal us since all eyes were already watching the possible sign?
Now here is my simplified probability calculation. The question is: what is the probability that a Total Lunar Eclipse would occur on the 4th day of the 4th month, where totality would last 4 minutes and 44 seconds, the partial eclipse would end on the 44th minute of the hour, and it would be the 4th shortest lunar eclipse in 4,000 years?
1. 4th day of the month: roughly 30 days in any given month, so 1-in-30 chance
2. 4th month: 12 months in a year, so 1-in-12 chance
3. Lasting 4 minutes: according to Wikipedia, totality can last up to 107 minutes, so 1-in-107 chance
4. And 44 seconds: 60 seconds in a minute, so 1-in-60 chance
5. Partial eclipse ends on 44th minute of the hour: 60 minutes in one hour, so 1-in-60 chance
6. 4th shortest in 4,000 years: according to Wikipedia there are at least two lunar eclipses per year, and as many as five, averaging the two = 3.5; 3.5 x 4,000 = 1-in-14,000 chance
Our final probability:
1/30 x 1/12 x 1/107 x 1/60 x 1/60 x 1/14,000 = 1-in-(1.941408 x 10^12) chance
My probability may be a bit of an oversimplification, but the random chance that last Saturday a blood moon would occur with all the "4s" lining up as they did is just a bit under 1-in-2 trillion.
7 days of creation
7 lampstands
7 stars
7 spirits
"666" - the number of antichrist
12 tribes
12 apostles
24 elders
144,000 sealed
153 fish caught
etc
I can understand the guttural reaction many Christians have to speculating on numbers, as I also do, but with caution and prayer, we need to be open to them (as well as open to being wrong when we are challenged with interpreting the scriptures incorrectly). After all, regarding prophecy, the Bible clearly lays out certain numbers that we are to try to decipher and apply with wisdom:
- Daniels 70 weeks: broken out by 62 weeks of years, 7 weeks of years, and a final 1 week of years
- 1260 days
- 1290 days
- 1335 days
- 2300 "evenings and mornings"
- "666": God's Word says this can be understood with understanding (Revelation 13:18)
Before anyone disregards the "4s" surrounding last Saturday's blood moon, I would challenge you: on what basis do you disregard it? I have yet to see anyone do this, but it occurs to me that perhaps we could calculate a rough probability surrounding the "4s" and the blood moon and the chance they might randomly align the way they did.
First of all, consider that for several years now Christians from all over the world have been pointing to this third blood moon. It is interesting to me that many thousands of watchers have been saying for a long time now to watch this sign... even the media caught on (Drudge Report, Fox News, CNN, etc) and NASA felt compelled enough to address the concerns over the crazy religious "rumors". Suppose God did want to signal the world... wouldn't one of these blood moons be the perfect event in which to signal us since all eyes were already watching the possible sign?
Now here is my simplified probability calculation. The question is: what is the probability that a Total Lunar Eclipse would occur on the 4th day of the 4th month, where totality would last 4 minutes and 44 seconds, the partial eclipse would end on the 44th minute of the hour, and it would be the 4th shortest lunar eclipse in 4,000 years?
1. 4th day of the month: roughly 30 days in any given month, so 1-in-30 chance
2. 4th month: 12 months in a year, so 1-in-12 chance
3. Lasting 4 minutes: according to Wikipedia, totality can last up to 107 minutes, so 1-in-107 chance
4. And 44 seconds: 60 seconds in a minute, so 1-in-60 chance
5. Partial eclipse ends on 44th minute of the hour: 60 minutes in one hour, so 1-in-60 chance
6. 4th shortest in 4,000 years: according to Wikipedia there are at least two lunar eclipses per year, and as many as five, averaging the two = 3.5; 3.5 x 4,000 = 1-in-14,000 chance
Our final probability:
1/30 x 1/12 x 1/107 x 1/60 x 1/60 x 1/14,000 = 1-in-(1.941408 x 10^12) chance
My probability may be a bit of an oversimplification, but the random chance that last Saturday a blood moon would occur with all the "4s" lining up as they did is just a bit under 1-in-2 trillion.
I believe absolutely that all that is happening will work together for good. There are many people who do not believe in Jesus, yet who would not be able to deny that these happenings prove there is something more to this universe, world and life than they thought. God has a unique way of reaching all people and drawing them to Jesus.
ReplyDeleteRevelation 7
ReplyDelete1 After this I saw FOUR angels standing at the FOUR corners of the earth, holding back the FOUR winds of the earth to prevent any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree. 2 Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the land and the sea: 3 “Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.” 4 Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.
hi shelby :) God bless you!
DeleteHey Andre'. God bless you too :)
Deleteall i know is that God is not into "fuzzy math". His numbers add up-every time!!! always highly significant and shining a spotlight on very near future events to validate what is about to be or....already is manifest and progressing.
ReplyDeleteNow about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea, and would have passed them by.
ReplyDeleteMark 6:48
4th Blood moon
God brought my attention to 444 in my life, not sure what it means though. I went to the store one day in Nov. 2013 and my total rang up to 4.44. I left the store and immediately got behind a car with 444 as the last numbers on their license plate. Then i got home and the power had went off and back on and my alarm clock was stopped and flashing 4:44.
ReplyDeleteThat was three 444s in about 30 minutes.
Then another night i had woke up during the night and I was in our game room and i heard a bump on the wall. I thought to myself if I go in the kitchen and the clock is at 4:44 that would be interesting. Well i went to look at the clock on the stove and sure enough it was 4:44 am. The bump on the wall alerted me to it. There's no clock in our gameroom.
444 meaning trial or test would make sense. Still not 100% sure what it means though.
Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD will be a light to me. Micah 7:8
ReplyDeleteShelby - great verse! reminds me of something worship leader Dennis Jernigan would say. He's right. You are too.
ReplyDeleteCould 4 refer to the 4th festival? Maybe the rapture will happen on Pentecost.
ReplyDeletePentecost is the time of the arrival of the Holy Spirit. Perhaps it also marks the day of His departure. Also the churches birthday. (Old covenant and new)
ReplyDeleteWe see through a glass darkly and know in part 1 Cor 13:12
ReplyDelete