Meaning of Numbers: The Number 20
The English word "twenty" for the number 20 appears 294 times in 262 King James Bible verses. 282 of these occurrences appear in the Old Testament while 12 of them appear in the New. It is recorded the most in 2Chronicles and Ezekiel (35 times each) followed by both the book of Numbers and 1Chronicles (31 each). The book of Revelation uses twenty the most (7 times) in the New Testament.
The word "twentieth" for 20th appears 36 times in 34 verses. It is recorded the most in 1Chronicles (10 times) followed by Haggai (5) and 2Kings (4).
The number 20, which is one more than nineteen, is twice ten. It can convey a meaning of a complete or perfect waiting period.
Jacob works for a relative named Laban for 14 years in order to have the right to marry his daughter Rachel whom he dearly loved. He then works another six years for Laban in order to build up his wealth. God then commands the patriarch, after working 20 years total for his relative, to leave and travel back to the land of Canaan.
And the Lord said to Jacob, "Return to the land of your fathers, and to your kindred, and I will be with you." (Genesis 31:3, HBFV).
The children of Israel, for 20 years, waited to be freed of Jabin, king of Canaan, who oppressed them. God's response was to raise up Deborah and Barak, who freed the people from bondage (Judges 4 - 5).
The Philistines, in the days of Samuel the prophet, battled and overcame Israel, taking the Ark of the Covenant back to their land. The Ark brought such calamities on the Philistines that after seven months they gave it back to the Israelites. It ended up in the city of Kirjath-jearim that is several miles west of Jerusalem. Israel had to wait at least twenty years (1Samuel 5 - 7) before the Ark would be moved again.
Appearances of the Number Twenty
Surprisingly, both the Kingdom of Israel (northern ten tribes) and the Kingdom of Judah had 20 rulers before each was conquered and taken out of the land! Israel's kings, after the united kingdom split in 930 B.C., started with Jeroboam I and ended with Hoshea in 723. Judah's line of rulers started with Solomon's son Rehoboam and ended with Zedekiah in 586 B.C.
Of the twenty sovereigns over the Kingdom of Judah, 19 were men and one, Athaliah, was a woman.
The Kingdom of Israel's 20 rulers produced ten ruling dynasties! The longest was begun by Jehu who ruled Israel from 841 - 814 B.C. He was followed by Jehoahaz, Jehoash, Jeroboam II and Zechariah. The reign of Zechariah lasted for only six months in 753 B.C. as he was assassinated by Shallum who replaced him as king.
In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zachariah the son of Jeroboam reigned over Israel in Samaria, six months. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord as his fathers had done . . .
And Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him. And he struck him before the people, and killed him, and reigned in his place. (2Kings 15:8 - 10).
Judah's King Ahaz ruled over God's people for twenty years, from 735 to 715 B.C. He is generally considered one of the wicked sovereigns over the Kingdom of Judah.
In the Old Testament, the Biblical chapters of Genesis 12, 23, 33, Leviticus 10, Deuteronomy 8, 17, 20, 30, Judges 14, 15, 2Kings 7, 16, 22, 24, 2Chronicles 21, Nehemiah 2, Job 11, Psalm 9, 49, 66, 72, 77, 147, Ecclesiastes 5, 10, Isaiah 32, Ezekiel 42, Joel 1, Micah 7, Habakkuk 2 and Zephaniah 3 contain 20 verses in the King James Bible.
In the New Testament, the chapters Matthew 28, Mark 16, 1Corinthians 6, 1Thessalonians 2, 1Timothy 1, Hebrews 6, James 5, Revelation 1 and 14 have 20 verses in the KJV.
Jerusalem's Temple and Twenty
According to Josephus, the number 20 played a significant role in Solomon's building of Jerusalem's temple.
"They erected its entire body, quite up to the roof, of white stone. Its height was sixty cubits, and its length was the same, and its breadth twenty . . . As to the porch, they built it before the temple. Its length was twenty cubits, and it was so ordered that it might agree with the breadth of the house . . .
"Solomon also built round about the temple thirty small rooms (side chambers), which might include the whole edifice, by their closeness one to another . . . Every one of these rooms had five cubits in breadth, and the same in length, but in height twenty . . .
"Now when Solomon had divided the temple into two parts, he made the inner house of twenty cubits [every way], to be the most secret chamber . . .
"He also laid the floor of the temple with plates of gold; and he added doors to the gate of the temple, agreeable to the measure of the height of the wall, but in breadth twenty cubits, and on them he glued gold plates.
"He also made a brazen altar, whose length was twenty cubits, and its breadth the same, and its height ten, for the burnt-offerings." (Antiquities of the Jews, Book 8, Chapter 3).
If we assume that the cubit, also called the royal or sacred cubit, Solomon used was 20.4 inches (51.8 centimeters) long, then 20 cubits is equal to 34 feet (10.36 meters).
Solomon's Worthless Gift
Solomon spent seven years building the house of God in Jerusalem and another 13 building his own home for a total number of 20 years.
After Solomon built the temple and his home, he wanted to thank Hiram, King of Tyre, for not only supplying the raw materials for his projects but also for allowing him to use his skilled craftsmen. He showed his appreciation to Hiram by giving him 20 cities in the land of Galilee (1Kings 9:10 - 11). Hiram, however, was displeased at the gift to say the least.
And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him. And they did not please him. Therefore he said, "What cities are these which you have given me, my brother?" (1Kings 9:12 - 13, HBFV).
Hiram thought the cities were good for nothing and ultimately returned them to Solomon (2Chronicles 8:2).
Number 20 and Sleep
The Scriptures record at least 20 separate messages conveyed while a person is sleeping. God, through a dream, warned Abimelech not to go near Abraham's wife (verse 3 of Genesis 20). Jacob dreams of a ladder to heaven (28:12) and is told in a second one to leave his employer (31:10).
Jacob's employer Laban is warned, in a dream, to leave the patriarch alone (Genesis 31:24). Joseph dreamt his brothers bowed before him (Genesis 37:5) then dreamt his parents would do the same (verse 9). A butler and a baker, in an Egyptian prison, dream what their fates will be (Genesis 40).
The Egyptian Pharaoh is informed two different times, while he is sleeping, about the country's food stores over the next fourteen years (Genesis 41). A person in the Midianite army dreams of Gideon conquered his people (Judges 7).
King Solomon, while sleeping, is offered by God anything he wants (1Kings 3:5). Babylon's king has it revealed to him all the world empires to exist until Christ's return (Daniel 2:3) and his punishment for being so vain (Daniel 4). Daniel is also told while he sleeps about four great world empires (Daniel 7).
Only five dreams are mentioned in the New Testament. Three of them occur to Joseph, Jesus' stepfather, regarding the birth of Christ and protecting the young child from Herod the Great's wrath. The Parthian Magi are informed by a dream to not visit Herod on their travel home (Matthew 2:12) and Pilate's wife receives a troubling dream warning that her husband should not do anything to harm Jesus (Matthew 27:19).
Devil Ends Tempting Jesus
Jesus' temptation by Satan the devil for 40 days and 40 nights began on September 11 in 26 A.D. It finally ended on Sunday October 20. When it completed an exhausted Christ was ministered to by angels sent from God.
And He was there in the wilderness for forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild animals; and afterwards angels ministered to Him. (Mark 1;13, see also Matthew 4:11).
More Info on Biblical Meaning of 20
The tenth generation of humans, starting with Adam, is represented in the Bible by Noah. The twentieth generation is Abraham.
The number 20 is the product of two consecutive positive integers 4 and 5. It is also the product of 2 x 2 (or 2 squared) x 5. Both 2 and 5 are primes.
In Gematria, the number 20 is represented by the 11th Hebrew letter called Kof. In the Greek alphabet it is represented by the letter Kappa.
At the time of King David, only those Levities who were 20 years old or older were eligible to do God's work.
These were the sons of Levi after the house of their fathers; even the chief of the fathers, as they were counted by number of names by their polls, that did the work for the service of the house of the Lord, from the age of twenty years and upward (1Chronicles 23:24, KJV).
Exodus 20 delineates God giving the Ten Commandments to the children of Israel. This chapter in the Bible is reference twice by the Gospel of Mark (Mark 7:10 and 10:19), six times by Matthew (Matthew 5:21, 27, 33, 15:4, 19:18 - 19, 22:39) and once by Luke (Luke 18:20).
Abraham was able to negotiate with God (Jesus Christ in the flesh) that if twenty righteous people were found in Sodom and Gomorrah the cities would be spared destruction.
And he said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord: Peradventure there shall be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for twenty's sake (Genesis 18:31, KJV).
The Greek word Isaak, Strong's Concordance #G2464, appears 20 times in 18 New Testament Greek verses. It is translated as the name "Isaac" in the King James. Isaac, the only son of Abraham and Sarah, was the "son of promise" who was born after God healed Sarah. Jesus stated that he, along with father Abraham and son Jacob, would be in God's kingdom.
And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac (Issak), and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 8:11, KJV).
Samson was the twelfth Judge over ancient Israel. Scripture states that he served for 20 years.
Then his (Samson's) brethren and all the house of his father came down, and took him, and brought him up, and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the buryingplace of Manoah his father. And he judged Israel twenty years (Judges 16:31).
The book of Hebrews uses over 20 different names and titles for Jesus Christ.