Biblical Meaning of Number 1
In the Bible, one is the number of God himself: "The LORD our God is one LORD" (Deuteronomy 6:4), the first and the last, before whom nothing is counted.
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What does the number 1 mean in the Bible?
One stands for what cannot be divided and for what comes first. Israel's central confession, the Shema, is a statement about oneness: "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD" (Deuteronomy 6:4). God calls himself "the first, and… the last; and beside me there is no God" (Isaiah 44:6), and the New Testament keeps the same shape: "One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all" (Ephesians 4:5-6).
One is also the number of union. Man and wife "shall be one flesh" (Genesis 2:24), and Jesus says, "I and my Father are one" (John 10:30).
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Where one appears in the Bible
| Verse | What it says |
|---|---|
| Deuteronomy 6:4 | "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD": the Shema, still prayed morning and evening. |
| Genesis 1:5 | The first day of creation is, in the Hebrew, "day one" (yom echad), not "the first day". |
| Genesis 2:24 | A man shall cleave unto his wife, "and they shall be one flesh." |
| Isaiah 44:6 | "I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God." |
| John 10:30 | "I and my Father are one." |
| Ephesians 4:4-6 | "One body, and one Spirit… One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all." |
| Revelation 1:8 | "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending": alpha is also the Greek numeral one. |
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The prophetic meaning of 1
E. W. Bullinger, whose Number in Scripture (1894) is the source of most "prophetic" number meanings, wrote that as a cardinal number one denotes unity and as an ordinal it denotes primacy. Prophetic readers use it for beginnings and for first place: the question one asks is what, or who, comes first, and Jesus' answer is "seek ye first the kingdom of God" (Matthew 6:33).
Scripture never turns one into a lucky number or a code; its oneness is a confession about God.
One in Hebrew and Greek letters
In Hebrew the numeral one is the letter aleph (א), whose name means ox; in Greek it is alpha (α). Aleph is silent, and it opens the first word of the Ten Commandments, anokhi, "I am the LORD thy God" (Exodus 20:2).
The hidden lore of one
The Torah does not begin with aleph. Its first word, bereshit, "In the beginning", starts with bet, the second letter, and a midrash in Genesis Rabbah (1:10) tells how aleph complained and was promised the first word of the Law given at Sinai instead.
One is the only number that changes nothing when it multiplies: the old writers took that as a picture of a God who is not added to or divided by anything he makes.
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Sources and editorial method
Research and editorial references used for this page include:
- BibleGateway: Deuteronomy 6:4 (KJV) - The passage quoted on this page, in the King James Version.
- BibleGateway: Genesis 1:5 (KJV) - The passage quoted on this page, in the King James Version.
- BibleGateway: Genesis 2:24 (KJV) - The passage quoted on this page, in the King James Version.
- BibleGateway: Isaiah 44:6 (KJV) - The passage quoted on this page, in the King James Version.
- E. W. Bullinger, Number in Scripture (London, 1894), Internet Archive - The source of the "prophetic" meanings: one unity, two difference, three divine perfection, four creation, five grace, six man, seven spiritual perfection, eight resurrection, nine finality or judgment, ten ordinal perfection, eleven disorder, twelve governmental perfection.
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version. The "prophetic" meanings are E. W. Bullinger's (Number in Scripture, 1894), named as his reading rather than as definitions the Bible gives; the Hebrew and Greek numerals are the standard letter values, and the later Jewish and Christian lore is given with its source.
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Common questions
What does the number 1 mean in the Bible?
Unity and primacy. The Bible's great confession is "The LORD our God is one LORD" (Deuteronomy 6:4), and God is "the first, and… the last" (Isaiah 44:6).
What is the prophetic meaning of the number 1?
Bullinger (1894) read one as unity as a cardinal number and primacy as an ordinal. Prophetic readers use it for new beginnings and for putting first things first (Matthew 6:33).
What is the Hebrew letter for 1?
Aleph (א), whose name means ox. It is silent, and it opens the Ten Commandments: anokhi, "I am the LORD thy God" (Exodus 20:2).
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