The Meaning of the Number Three in Scripture—Part 10

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit

Introduction and Review

This is the tenth part of a series that examines the number three and how it categorizes themes in Scripture. The previous lesson studied Enoch, Moses, and Elijah and their mysterious departures, along with Noah, Daniel, and Job and their righteousness, and their association with this number. (Links to all articles in this series are listed at the end of this installment.)

This lesson will explore the lives of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph, and how the number three highlights certain elements associated with it.

The Ancient Near Eastern Treaty of Kadesh

Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob

Three major Old Testament Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, are significant to this lesson's themes. They relate predominantly to God's covenant promise to Abraham.

In the Ancient Near East, there were three types of covenants. These arrangements were not changeable contracts but spiritually backed, eternal agreements that God and the entire spirit realm honored. The first was a "Parity Treaty," an agreement between two equals. Understanding this type of arrangement is an important consideration when reflecting on what Christ did for us.

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bond servant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

— Philippians 2:5-11

The second type of covenant was known as a "Suzerain Vassal" treaty, as described in Merriam-Webster's Dictionary:

" ... a powerful region or people controls the foreign policy and international relations of a tributary vassal state while allowing the subservient nation internal autonomy."

These types of covenants included curses and blessings for the breaking or keeping of the agreement. Think Deuteronomy.

A third type, known as a "Royal Grant" treaty, is explained in detail on Wikipedia.

... the "royal grant" was similar to the Biblical covenants where God, the superior party, binds Himself to be the beneficiary as an inferior party with no set conditions imposed upon him. In this type of "royal grant" covenant, a king or other person in authority rewards a loyal subject by granting him an office, land, exemption from taxes, or similar. Such covenants are also referred to as covenants of promise or unconditional covenants. The covenants God made with (1) Noah (Genesis 9:8 - 17), (2) Abraham (Genesis 15:18), and (3) David (2 Samuel 7; 23:5) fit this pattern. In each of these cases, it is God alone who binds himself by a solemn oath to keep the covenant.

The Abrahamic covenant promised him three things.

To make him a great nation
Give his descendants land
A promise of a seed

A "one and only son" is the implication of that seed that will begin an innumerable proliferation of descendants and eventually produce the Messiah, which was solidified by three sets of three sacrifices.

“Bring Me a

three-year-old heifer, a
three-year-old female goat, a
three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon

— Genesis 15:9

If you include the birds, you may notice five things mentioned that tie us to the idea that this unquestionably true covenant will come to pass by God's grace alone. In those very terms, the next event records that God alone passes through the pieces and parts as Abraham becomes incapacitated by falling into a deep sleep.

Just before Isaac's conception, three people/divine beings visit Abraham. One of these three is speculated to be God Himself.

Then the Lord appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground.
— Genesis 18:1-3

Another verse showing how three relate to God is found in Deuteronomy, where God instructs His children just before entering the promised land and at the renewal of His covenant, as God's name is delivered three times.

... what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul.
— Deuteronomy 10:12

Genesis 17 is an example for us.

I will confirm my covenant as a perpetual covenant between you and me. It will extend to your descendants after you throughout their generations. I will be your God and the God of your descendants after you.

— Genesis 17:7

The promise is reiterated to Isaac as God renews it in him.

Then the Lord appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land of which I shall tell you. Dwell in this land, and I will be with you and bless you; for to you and your descendants I give all these lands, and I will perform the oath which I swore to Abraham your father. And I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven; I will give to your descendants all these lands; and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; because Abraham obeyed My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.”
— Genesis 26:2-5

Jacob, the third to receive the promise, continues the promise's heritage when God appears to him in a dream; again, we can read the language of resurrection.

“I am the Lord God of Abraham, your father, and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. Also, your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.”
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!”
Then Jacob rose early in the morning.
— Genesis 28:13-18

Christ fulfills all three types of covenants. He was God's equal (Parity) who humbled himself and became one of us, submitting in perfect obedience as a man to a sovereign (Suzerain—Vassal) and being given a Royal Grant that He extends to all.

Abraham is considered the father of the Jewish people and is in a covenantal or special relationship with God. The religious rulers claimed their entitlement by virtue of Abraham. John the Baptist confronted those who believed their tickets were punched because they were born as his descendants. They neglected the main point of God's relationship with Abraham and his descendants, and that was faith, the only way to obtain this right standing with God, which would come through God's one and only Son.

... he believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.
— Genesis 15:5
But when he (John the Baptist) saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore, bear fruit worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.
— Matthew 3:7-9

Abraham and Isaac illustrate this point of faith in the salvation God provides and in God's resurrection.

Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!”

And he said, “Here I am.”

Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”

So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off ... Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. And Abraham called the name of the place, The-Lord-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided ... So Abraham returned to his young men, and they rose and went together.
— Genesis 22:1-4

What third-day experience did Abraham see afar off that involved the riding of a donkey, wood for a sacrifice, and a sacrificial substitution?

By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,” concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.
— Hebrews 11:17-19

Abraham's faith paved the way for the Son of God to come and die so that we might be resurrected.

The covenant God made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob would become the foundation from which God would honor His end of the agreement He had made with His people. Sometimes, they were spared only because of it.

Jacob is here arguing with Laban about Laban's lost idols.

Jacob: Third Patriarch

Chapter 29 of Genesis opens with Jacob's journey to the East to hide from his angry brother and seek a bride among his mother's relatives. He happens upon a well in a field and three flocks of sheep lying by it. The following verse ties us to a rolled-away stone and to a resurrected one who came to seek a bride, leaving His heavenly home to find her.

And he looked, and saw a well in the field; and behold, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks.
Now all the flocks would be gathered there, and they would roll the stone from the well’s mouth, water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place on the well’s mouth.
— Genesis 29:2-3

Jacob then discusses with the men at this well that he knows his uncle Laban, and they identify Rachael, Jacob's future bride, on her way to water their sheep.

Now all the flocks would be gathered there, and they would roll the stone from the well’s mouth, water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place on the well’s mouth ...

... Then he said, “Look, it is still high day; it is not time for the cattle to be gathered together. Water the sheep, and go and feed them.”
But they said, “We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together, and they have rolled the stone from the well’s mouth; then we water the sheep.”
Now, while he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. And it came to pass when Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of Laban, his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban, his mother’s brother, that Jacob went near and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of Laban, his mother’s brother.
— Genesis 29:3,7-10

The Expositor's Bible Commentary observes that this must have been a heavy stone that could not be moved single-handedly. But Jacob, seeing his bride, does just that. Could this picture the power of God's love toward us?

This account mentions the "rolled stone" three times. In the New Testament, the rolled stone was something God did alone, as illustrated through Jacob. Notice the stone could not be moved until all the flocks were gathered. The following verse puts this in the context of a messianic prophecy.

Gather the people,
Sanctify the congregation,
Assemble the elders,
Gather the children and nursing babes;
Let the bridegroom go out from his chamber,
And the bride from her dressing room.

— Joel 2:16

Jacob eventually gets his bride, Rachael, and ends up with her sister, Leah, by trickery. Leah begins bearing children first. The third son, Levi, is the first to be numbered. It was the tribe of Levi that was given the spiritual responsibility for the priesthood.

After all of the childbearing and serving, Jacob takes all that he has acquired and heads back home, not without conflict. Laban tries to trick Jacob out of some of the wealth in terms of livestock.

And Laban said, “Oh, that it was according to your word!” So he removed that day the male goats that were speckled and spotted, all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had some white in it, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and gave them into the hand of his sons. Then he put three days’ journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks.

— Genesis 30:34-36

More resurrection language follows in chapter 31 of Genesis, when Jacob has a dream, and the Angel of the Lord speaks to him.

“And it happened, at the time when the flocks conceived, that I lifted my eyes and saw in a dream, and behold, the rams which leaped upon the flocks were

streaked,
speckled,
and gray-spotted.

Then the Angel of God spoke to me in a dream, saying, ‘Jacob.’ And I said, ‘Here I am.’ And He said, ‘Lift your eyes now and see, all the rams which leap on the flocks are

streaked,
speckled,
and gray-spotted;

for I have seen all that Laban is doing to you. I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar and where you made a vow to Me. Now arise, get out of this land, and return to the land of your family.” Then Jacob rose and set his sons and his wives on camels (an animal associated with resurrection). And he carried away all his livestock and all his possessions which he had gained, his acquired livestock which he had gained in Padan Aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan.

— Genesis 31:10-13,17-18

This scene is also reminiscent of a New Testament conversation with resurrection connotations.

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also ... ”
— John 14:1-3
For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore, comfort one another with these words.
— I Thessalonians 4:16-18

There is even a Passover included in these resurrection accounts. Jacob sneaks off with His family.

So he fled with all that he had. He arose and passed over the river and headed toward the mountains of Gilead. And Laban was told on the third day that Jacob had fled. Then he took his brethren with him and pursued him for seven days’ journey, and he overtook him in the mountains of Gilead.
— Genesis 31:22-23

The developing pattern here is similar to what will be seen in Exodus when, three days into their exit, Pharaoh and his army hotly pursue the children of Israel. In the New Testament, what Christ accomplished on the cross and the three days before being resurrected is very similar, including the whole work being a covert operation.

... we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
— I Corinthians 2:7-8

Paul goes on to talk about the Spirit for the remainder of that particular chapter. Relatedly, Chapter 31 of Genesis uses the phrase "between me and thee" in reference to God's witness to a covenant. An interesting note concerning this scene is that Laban calls upon the God of Abraham, Nahor, and their father. God is mentioned three times in that account. Jacob swore by the fear of his father, Isaac.

Now therefore, come, let us make a covenant, you and I, and let it be a witness between you and me.”
So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar. Then Jacob said to his brethren, "Gather stones.” And they took stones and made a heap, and they ate there on the heap. Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha, but Jacob called it Galeed. And Laban said, “This heap is a witness between you and me this day.” Therefore, its name was called Galeed, also Mizpah, because he said, “May the Lord watch between you and me when we are absent one from another. If you afflict my daughters, or if you take other wives besides my daughters, although no man is with us—see, God is witness between you and me!”
Then Laban said to Jacob, “Here is this heap and here is this pillar, which I have placed between you and me. This heap is a witness, and this pillar is a witness, that I will not pass beyond this heap to you, and you will not pass beyond this heap and this pillar to me, for harm. The God of Abraham, the God of Nahor, and the God of their father judge between us.” And Jacob swore by the Fear of his father, Isaac. Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain and called his brethren to eat bread. And they ate bread and stayed all night on the mountain. And early in the morning, Laban arose, kissed his sons and daughters, and blessed them. Then Laban departed and returned to his place.
— Genesis 31:44-55

We see that a covenant between these two parties allowed Jacob to go free with his family; it was a deal that required a sacrifice. They likely ate unleavened bread.

When Jacob meets up with Esau, he divides his family into four companies according to the women with whom he had children. Thirty camels are one of the gifts he sends to appease and greet his possibly angry brother. Jacob gives instructions as to the order of the progression of the companies. He stays behind the third company. He stands between all and Rachael, his desired bride.

And he arose that night and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven sons, and crossed over the ford of Jabbok.
— Genesis 32:22

He wrestles with God and prevails.

And as he passed over Penuel, the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh.
— Genesis 32
And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him. And very early in the morning, the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulcher at the rising of the sun.
And they said among themselves, “Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?” But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away—for it was very large. And entering the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a long white robe sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed.
But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him.
— Mark 16:1-6

Chapter 33, verses 1-5, continues with resurrection language.

And Jacob lifted up his eyes ... and he passed over ... and he lifted up his eyes.

James Tissot's illustration of Jacob's daughter Dinah being seized by the prince of Shechem

A Third Day Resurrection Accomplishment at Shechem

A dramatic accomplishment of Christ's resurrection emerges in Genesis chapter 34 with Shechem, the prince of Shechem, "taking" Dinah.

The narrative begins at the end of Genesis 33.

Then Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, when he came from Padan Aram; and he pitched his tent before the city.

— Genesis 33:18

The pattern in Scripture follows that parking up next to an evil city, though seemingly advantageous at the time, never turned out well in the end. We saw this with Lot in the Sodom and Gomorrah event, which uses very similar language to express that it wasn't just somewhere around there that they pitched. It was very near. We see that Lot ends up in the city, and what happens there is not good.

This pattern may invite another question, as it concerns the Garden experience. Why were Adam and Eve hanging out near or next to the tree they were instructed not to eat from, and conversing with a beast of the field?

In this case, immediately after Jacob announces he will pitch his tent, we see his daughter Dinah go hang out with the girls of the city, and the unspeakable happens.

Now Dinah, the daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land. And when Shechem, the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her and lay with her, and violated her.
— Genesis 34:1

After Dinah's defilement, Shechem wants to marry her. Therefore, he keeps her in his possession while he and his father go to Jacob to strike up a deal for her. Shechem and his father also propose that they enter into a covenant and become a united group through the exchange of daughters in marriage. Jacob's response is reminiscent of the garden event. While the serpent propositions his wife, Adam remains silent.

And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah, his daughter. Now his sons were with his livestock in the field; so Jacob held his peace until they came.
— Genesis 34:5

This whole proposal reveals a contrast in cultures. While Shechem and his father behave as if this event of taking Dinah is normal, Jacob's sons are appalled and livid.

And the sons of Jacob came in from the field when they heard it; and the men were grieved and very angry, because he had done a disgraceful thing in Israel by lying with Jacob’s daughter, a thing which ought not to be done.
— Genesis 34:7

They, however, pretend to agree on one condition.

If you will become as we are, if every male of you is circumcised, then we will give our daughters to you, and we will take your daughters to us; and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people.
— Genesis 34:15

Shechem and Hamor, his father, returned to the city, informing the men of the deal to unite the tribes. They rehearsed the benefits they would gain from the union, and all agreed. What happens next is shocking.

Now it came to pass on the third day, when they were in pain, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, each took his sword and came boldly upon the city and killed all the males And they killed Hamor and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah from Shechem’s house, and went out. The sons of Jacob came upon the slain and plundered the city because their sister had been defiled. They took their sheep, their oxen, and their donkeys, what was in the city and what was in the field, and all their wealth
— Genesis 34:25-29

On the third day, they rescued their sister, took vengeance on her enemies, and plundered the city. This image shows what the resurrection of Christ did for us. He brought us out of our captivity, defeated our enemies, and took the spoils of the enemy.

“When He ascended on high,
He led captivity captive,
And gave gifts to men.

— Ephesians 4:7

Joseph listens to the dreams of the butler and baker

Joseph, the Butler, the Baker, and Three Days

In the prior section, Joseph was thrown into a pit by his envious brothers, like Jeremiah. It represented a death, and, as far as Jacob understood, as his other sons implied, Joseph was dead. Jacob said the following.

A wild beast has devoured him. Without doubt, Joseph is torn to pieces.” Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth on his waist, and mourned for his son many days.

— Genesis 37:33-34

We also see a substitution death, much as we did with Abraham.

... took Joseph's coat, and killed a kid of the goats, and dipped the coat in the blood.
— Genesis 37:31

Joseph, too, experiences a sort of resurrection.

... so the brothers pulled Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver. Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt ... And Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him down there. The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master, the Egyptian. And his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand. So Joseph found favor in his sight and served him. Then he made him overseer of his house, and all that he had he put under his authority. So it was, from the time that he had made him overseer of his house and all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had in the house and in the field. Thus, he left all that he had in Joseph’s hand, and he did not know what he had except for the bread which he ate.
— Genesis 37:28

While Joseph was in his exalted position, he was falsely accused of attempted rape and thrown in prison, where he maintained his resurrected status.

But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and He gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners who were in the prison; whatever they did there, it was his doing. The keeper of the prison did not look into anything that was under Joseph’s authority, because the Lord was with him; and whatever he did, the Lord made it prosper.
— Genesis 39:21-23

While in prison, two men, a baker (think bread) and a butler (think wine) (altogether, think the Lord's supper), had dreams that included the number three. Note also that the story centers around three men in prison.

Then the chief butler told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, “Behold, in my dream a vine was before me, and in the vine were three branches; it was as though it budded, its blossoms shot forth, and its clusters brought forth ripe grapes. Then Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand; and I took the grapes and pressed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand.”
And Joseph said to him, “This is the interpretation of it: The three branches are three days. Now, within three days, Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your place, and you will put Pharaoh’s cup in his hand according to the former manner, when you were his butler.
— Genesis 40:9-13

Notice that the word " three is used three times in this passage as it concerns the butler.

When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said to Joseph, “I also was in my dream, and there were three white baskets on my head. In the uppermost basket were all kinds of baked goods for Pharaoh, and the birds ate them out of the basket on my head.”
So Joseph answered and said, “This is the interpretation of it: The three baskets are three days. Within three days Pharaoh will lift off your head from you and hang you on a tree; and the birds will eat your flesh from you.”
— Genesis 40:16-19

This account includes four threes. Four is the number of the physical sphere represented by the bread, a symbol of flesh subject to this natural realm's limitations.

He (God) remembered that they were but flesh,
A breath that passes away and does not come again.

— Psalm 78:39

The wine represented by the butler symbolizes the spirit.

... do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit.
— Ephesians 5:18

With this conclusion, we can also see the second resurrection of Joseph.

Now it came to pass on the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, that he made a feast for all his servants; and he lifted up the head of the chief butler and of the chief baker among his servants. Then he restored the chief butler to his butlership again, and he placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand. But he hanged (talah - crucified) (on a tree vs.19) the chief baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them.
— Genesis 40:20-22

This scene foreshadows a second resurrection.

Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,

And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.
— John 5:28-29

This dream also foreshadows what Christ has done for us.

... who Himself bore our sins in His own body (flesh), the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for
righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.
— 1 Peter 2:24

The blood rose with Him and was offered on our behalf in the heavenly Temple.