Twelve

I have a several friends who encourage me to blog about the things I learn through work and my different courses.  In response to that request, here is something brief regarding the use of the number twelve in the book of Revelation 20-21.  I hope it is both helpful and enjoyable!:

Revelation is full of “twelves.”  Twelve gates, twelve angels, twelve tribes, the names of the twelve apostles, twelve precious stones,  twelve foundations, twelve pearls, a perfect cube with sides each measuring twelve hundred stadia, the tree of life with twelve kinds of fruit and numerous measurements in multiples of twelve.  The number twelve has significance in other parts of Revelation, representing the twelve tribes of Israel and the twelve apostles.  The multiple of 144 in a sense combines both the Old covenant of the Israelites and the New Covenant with all who accept it.  Where an additional three zeros are added, this can be understood as a great multitude or all believers.

The number twelve shows diversity, completion, and universality.  Rather than just one or two precious stones, there are a variety.  Rather than one way into the city, there are twelve gates.    Rather than one fruit, there are twelve.  An example that comes to mind is South Africa.  Post apartheid, South Africa chose to represent it’s diversity in establishing an official language.  They have eleven national official languages.  (It would perhaps be a perfect example if they had only picked one more language!  However, in census date, researches do include a twelfth category of “other languages” to encapsulate the remaining tribal languages.)

The nature of the city is perfection.  There is no sickness, no death, no pain, no persecution, no sadness.  There is no need for sun or moon because the Lord is the light.  The city is measured, not for reference or question, but to show it’s completion and symmetry.  In short, the symbolic meaning of the dimensions of the cube-shaped city is the splendor and perfection of the New Jerusalem (Ezek. 37:26-28) (Yeatts, 2003: 408). Nothing and nobody unclean can come into the New Jerusalem. Even mud is not going to mar the city, for the streets are gold.

I wonder as well if having twelve options reduced the risk of idolatry or at least misplaced value on the detail. If John’s vision showed one gate to the New Jerusalem on the eastern wall of the city, would some believers not have insisted that gates only be built on the eastern walls of cities and homes?  If one fruit was listed or one jewel, that could be viewed as “God’s fruit” or “God’s jewel.”  By focusing on such trivialities, the readers could easily lose focus on the New Jerusalem, forgetting that it is a testimony to the perfection and beauty and holiness that comes from God’s presence.

When reading, I had the sense of the enormity of John’s task, to find human words to describe a glorious, heavenly vision.  It’s as though John is saying with excitement, “There are all these good things, precious things, beautiful things...but wait, there isn’t just one or two, there are twelve, there are plenty, there is no want, no lack!  It’s the best thing you can imagine, and then multiple that best thing by twelve, and it’s still not even close!”

I'd encourage you to examine Revelation.  Often in the Church, we get caught up in the details of "the rapture" and dates and prediction.  But there is much more in Revelation.  It isn't meant to be a literal, chronological explanation, so be prepared to use your imagination and try to visualize the word pictures John is creating as he records the vision he was given.  I've found a commentary to be hugely helpful as I've read through.  And if you do this study, feel free to email me or comment on this post!  I'd love to hear your thoughts as well.