Q: Why is the number “40” a significant number in the Bible? Did Jesus really fast for 40 days without food and water (Matthew 4:2)? —Jennifer
A: Certain numbers in Scripture appear to have special symbolic meaning. The numeral 3 symbolizes deity and is often associated with God’s mighty acts (Jesus raised on the third day, three crosses on Golgotha, etc.). The number 4 symbolizes completeness (four rivers flowing out of the Garden of Eden, the four corners of the earth, the four seasons). And 6 seems at times to be the number of man, who was created on the sixth day (666 applies to a man who claims deity, but falls short). The number 7 often suggests the idea of divine completeness. There are 12 months in the year, 12 sons of Jacob, and 12 apostles.
The number 40 often signifies a designated time of testing. The Israelites were condemned to wander for 40 years in the wilderness because of their lack of faith; the people of Nineveh fasted for 40 days to express their repentance at the proclamation of Jonah; and Jesus went into the wilderness to be tempted for 40 days and 40 nights.
Luke 4:2 implies that Christ went entirely without eating (“and in those days he ate nothing” NKJV). Unless God supernaturally sustained Him, Jesus would not have been able to go for such a long period of time without water. It is possible that He only drank enough to sustain life.
Click here for an ODJ article that contains additional information about the number 40 in the Bible.
—Dan Vander Lugt
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mike wittmer on September 3, 2013 at 10:09 am
This is very helpful. I don’t know the answer to this, but I wonder why God chose the number 40. I typically think in monthly segments, or 30 days. Why did he pick a time period that is a bit longer than our month? Might it have something to do with the lunar calendar? Just curious.