Meaning of Numbers: The Number 27
The English phrases "twenty and seven" and "seven and twenty" used for the number 27 is recorded 5 times in 5 King James Bible verses. It is recorded the most in the book of Esther (3 times) followed by once in the books of Genesis and 1Kings.
The number 27 derives part of its meaning from being the cube of 3.
Sarah, Abraham's wife who name means "princess" or "princess of the multitude," is the only woman in Scripture whose age at death is recorded. She died at the age of 127 (100 + 27, see Genesis 23:1). Abraham, after mourning for his wife, bought a cave in Hebron in which to bury her. Abraham himself would ultimately be laid to rest in the cave (Genesis 25:9), as well as Isaac and his wife Rebekah and Jacob and his wife Leah (49:29 - 32).
The New Testament, in most modern translations like the King James Bible, the NIV and others, contains 27 separate books. The Old Testament, meanwhile, has 39 books making 66 total. The original version of Scripture, however, canonized by Ezra and the Apostle John, had only 49 books (7 x 7, which is perfection squared).
Appearances of Number Twenty-Seven
The Hebrew word kappôreth, Strong's Concordance #H3727, occurs 27 times in 22 Hebrew Old Testament verses. It is found the most in the book of Exodus (18 times) followed by Leviticus (7). The word, which means a lid, is translated as "mercy seat" in the King James.
The mercy seat was the lid or covering over the Ark of the Covenant. On either side of the mercy seat was a cherub whose outstretched wings covered the seat itself (Exodus 25:18 - 21). The Ark resided in the Holy of Holies of Jerusalem's temple. One of the ceremonies carried out by the High Priest, on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), was to sprinkle blood on the mercy seat to symbolize that a sacrifice was required for the forgiveness of sin (see Hebrews 9).
And he (Aaron and future High Priests) shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat (kappôreth) eastward; and before the mercy seat (kappôreth) shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times (Leviticus 16:14, KJV).
Syrian king Benhadad, who did not like King Ahab's rejection of what he told him to do, decided to attack the Kingdom of Israel (1Kings 20:1 - 12). A prophet was then sent to Ahab assuring him of victory over Benhadad.
On the seventh day of battle the Israelites slew 100,000 footmen in the Syrian army (1Kings 20:29). The remnants of the Syrian army then fled to Aphek. After entering Aphek the city's wall fell and killed 27,000 (27 x 1000) of the remaining troops, thus assuring Ahab's victory.
But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city. And there a wall fell upon twenty-seven thousand of those remaining. And Ben-Hadad fled and came into the city, into an inner room (1Kings 20:30, HBFV).
Jesus' First Full Year
Jesus' ministry began in the fall of 26 A.D. when he turned thirty years old. His first few months entailed being baptized then tempted by the devil for 40 days. He made initial contact with some of his disciples and also performed his first miracle by turning water into wine at a Cana wedding (John 2).
27 A.D. begins the first full Roman calendar year of Jesus' ministry. The public becomes aware of his ministry when in April he dramatically tosses out the moneychangers and other thieves from Jerusalem's temple (John 2). He then meets with a member of the Jewish Sanhedrin who admits the nation's religious leaders know he is doing God's will (John 3).
27 A.D. also marks the year when John the Baptist is thrown into prison by Herod Antipas for criticizing his marriage to his half-brother's wife Herodias (Luke 3:19 - 20).
The year will see the Lord revealing he is the Messiah at Pentecost (Luke 4), performing his first miraculous healing (John 4:49 - 53), and spreading the gospel with zeal. He will call several men to follow him as disciples (Mark 1:16 - 20), perform great signs and wonders, and give his famous Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:1 - 8:1, Luke 6:20 - 7:1).
Jesus, this year, will also begin to confront religious leaders over their teachings and practices that do not, in spite of what they believe, reflect God's will.
Number 27 and Israel's Kings
The number 27 is linked to the shortest reign of any King of Israel or Judah. Zimri, in the twenty-seventh year of Judah's King Asa (885 B.C.), murdered King Elah of Israel and assumed the throne (1Kings 16:9 - 10). He then proceeded to murder all the male descendants of Baasha, who had ruled Israel from 908 to 886.
Zimri's reign of terror and wanton bloodshed, however, did not last long. The people, after discovering that Zimri had executed Elah, made Omri Israel's new king (1Kings 16:16). After only seven days of rule, Israel trapped Zimri in Tizrah. The murderous king, seeing the city was conquered, set his palace on fire and died within its flames.
Judah's King Azariah, the second longest reign of any king of Judah or Israel at 52 years, co-ruled with his father Amaziah for many years. He began to govern, solely, God's people in year 27 of Israel's King Jeroboam II's rule (2Kings 15:1). He is considered one of the better monarchs over Judah.
More Info on Biblical Meaning of 27
There are 44 words and phrases in the Bible's original languages that are recorded exactly 27 times.
27 is the product of 3 cubed which is a prime number. If we add the two digits, 2 + 7, we get 9 which when also multiplied by 3 gives us 27.
There are 27 bones in a human hand.
The Greek word Hellen, Strong's #G1672, is recorded 27 times in 26 Greek New Testament verses. It is written the most in the book of Acts (10 times) followed by Romans (6) and 1Corinthians (5). The word technically refers to a Greek-speaking person who is not Jewish. In the New Testament this word is synonymous with the term Gentile.
In the Old Testament, a Gentile was considered someone who was not from the stock of Abraham (they were not descendants of Israel's tribes). By the time of the New Testament, however, this definition changed. People were (erroneously) considered Gentiles (Greeks), especially by the Jews, if they were not Jewish even if they descended from the other 10 Israelite tribes!
There is neither Jew nor Greek (Hellen), there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28, KJV).
The Persian Empire, which held sway over millions of people, is arguably the most powerful empire in the ancient world. At its peak, it controlled 2.9 million square miles (7.5 million square kilometers) of land and spanned three continents. It lasted for an astonishing 249 years from 549 to 330 B.C.
The book of Esther, written by the Jewish Queen and Mordecai, underscored Persia's power no less than three times. It mentions in Esther 1:1, 8:9 and 9:30 that the empire ruled over 127 (100 + 27) provinces from "India unto Ethiopia."
Jesus' ministry likely started in a Jubilee year (Luke 4:18 - 19) that ran from the Day of Atonement in 26 A.D. to Atonement in 27. The Jubilee was a time when liberty was declared throughout Israel (Leviticus 25:10, 39 - 40). The next Jubilee year in this cycle begins October 13, 2035 and ends October 1, 2036.
The name Abraham, one of the top ten occurring names in God's word, is recorded in 27 Biblical Books.
The Old Testament phrases 'mercy seat' and 'the candlestick' each number 27 occurrences. The only book that contains exactly twenty-seven chapters is Leviticus.
The Hebrew satan, Strong's #H7854, is written 27 times in 23 Hebrew Old Testament verses. It is found the most in Job (14 times) followed by 1Kings (4). The word, which means an opponent or adversary, is usually translated as "adversary." It is, however, several times translated in the King James as the name "Satan."
But now the Lord my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there is neither adversary (satan) nor evil occurrent (1Kings 5:4, KJV).
And the Lord said unto Satan (satan), Whence comest thou? Then Satan (satan) answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it (Job 1:7, KJV).
The twenty-seventh book found in most modern Bible translations is Daniel.
The book of Leviticus contains 27 chapters in the KJV.
In the Old Testament, the Biblical chapters of Genesis 17, Exodus 15, 18, Leviticus 20, Numbers 6, Joshua 6, 9, 1Samuel 9, 10, 2Samuel 1, 11, 2Kings 3, 5, 1Chronicles 17, 2Chronicles 24, 28, 30, 35, Job 5, Proverbs 4, 7, 27, 29, Jeremiah 13, 17, Ezekiel 3, 7, 24, 43, Daniel 8, 9 and Obadiah 5 contain 27 verses in the King James translation.
In the New Testament, the chapters Matthew 17, John 15, Acts 24, 25, Roman 16, James 1 and Revelation 21 have 27 verses in the KJV.