Meaning of Numbers: The Number 21
The English phrases "twenty and one" and "one and twenty," both used for the number 21, appears only four times in the King James Bible. The phrase "one and twentieth" to designate 21 also occurs only four times in the Bible.
Three of the occurrences of "twenty and one" or "one and twenty" are related to Judah's King Zedekiah. He began his reign when he was twenty-one years old (2Kings 24:18, 2Chronicles 36:11, Jeremiah 52:1). His ruled, the last of any of Judah's kings, ran from 597 to 586 B.C.
Zedekiah was twenty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. (2Kings 24:18, KJV).
The fourth recording of these two phrases for 21 is in reference to the number of days the angel Gabriel had to fight demonic powers until Michael came to help him!
Then said he (Gabriel) unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.
But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia. (Daniel 10:12 - 13, KJV).
Two of the four verses that use "one and twentieth" for 21 are in reference to one of God's annual Holy (Feast) days. God, in the book of Exodus, uses the number to designate the last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. This is a high Holy Day where no servile work is to be performed.
And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt . . .
In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even. (Exodus 12:17 - 18, KJV).
The second occurrence of "one and twentieth" is used to refer to the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles. The prophet Haggai, on this day, receives a message from the Lord to convey to the people.
In the seventh month, in the one and twentieth day of the month, came the word of the Lord by the prophet Haggai, saying,
Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah. . . Who is left among you that saw this house (Jerusalem's temple) in her first glory? and how do ye see it now? is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing? (Haggai 2:1 - 3, KJV).
Part of the meaning of number 21 is that it can represent great wickedness of rebellion and sin. After the children of Israel left Egyptian bondage, they had twenty-one major rebellious events as they wandered the wilderness.
13, which symbolizes depravity and sinfulness, and 21 are closely related. What twenty-one symbolizes is an outgrowth of thirteen. Adding thirteen (sinfulness) and eight (symbolizing a new beginning) gives us twenty-one or a number that represents beginning a new level or effort that is sinful and disobedient against God.
Appearances of Number Twenty-One
On the last day of God's seven-day spring festival, day 21 of the month of Nisan, the Eternal carried out his last judgment against the Egyptians. He drowned Pharaoh and his entire army in the Red Sea as they were pursuing the Israelites in order to make them slaves again.
The last day of God's annual Fall Feast of Tabernacles, which occurs every year on the twenty-first day of the seventh Hebrew month, pictures the end of Christ's 1,000-year reign on earth. At the end of this period, the devil will also be loosed out of his spiritual prison for a short time.
Satan's first task after being freed from prison is to lead people, once again, into war and rebellion against all that is Holy. He will only get so far, however, as God will execute His judgment against the Satanic forces by consuming them in fire (Revelation 20:10).
The books of 1Kings and 2Kings make 21 references to the sins of Jeroboam (the first king of the Northern Tribes of Israel after their split with Judah). These references were used to show how Israel continued to disobey God even though he gave them plenty of time to repent.
Verse 21 of Revelation 21 reveals some interesting facts involving the New Jerusalem God will create in the new future.
And the twelve gates (of New Jerusalem) were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass (Revelation 21:21, HBFV).
Parables and Twenty-One
Chronologically, the 21st parable Jesus gave during his ministry is the parable of the hidden treasure in a field. He gave it between October 28 A.D. and early 29 A.D. The gospel of Matthew is the only one to record this parable.
"Again, the kingdom of heaven is compared to treasure hidden in a field; which when a man finds, he conceals, and for the joy of finding it, goes and sells everything that he has, and buys that field." (Matthew 13:44).
Number 21 and Sin
In 2Timothy the apostle Paul writes of 21 sins which show the exceeding wickedness of self and sin. He begins chapter 3 with a warning, "But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will . . ." (2Timothy 3:1 - 2). He then proceeds to list the sins humans will indulge in.
1) Selfishly love themselves.
2) Love money.
3) Brag quite a bit.
4) Be proud of themselves.
5) Blaspheme.
6) Disregard and disobey their parents.
7) Will not be thankful for what they have.
8) Reject being holy.
9) Will not have natural affection.
10) Will be uncompromising.
11) Falsely accuse others.
12) Lack any self-control.
13) Will be fierce.
14) Hate anyone who does good.
15) Betray others.
16) Will act hardheaded.
17) Will have exalted, selfish views.
18) Lovers of pleasure.
19) Reject loving God.
20) Will seem, superficially, to be Godly.
21) Deny God's power.
Paul's ultimate advice to Timothy, after listing all the above sins, is "turn away from all these" (2Timothy 3:5).
Paul's Evangelism
The Apostle Paul's ministry ran for about 35 years, from 33 to 68 A.D. What are the top seven cities or places where he spent the most time? They are Corinth (1 3/4 years), Caesarea (2 1/4), Rome (2 1/4), Arabia (3), Ephesus (3), Tarsus (4) and Syrian Antioch (4 1/2). At just under 21 years total, his visits to these destinations account for about 60% of the time Paul spends during his entire ministry.
People in Scripture
The English name James appears 21 times in 19 verses total in the books of Matthew and Mark. The name refers to both James (the greater) and James (the less), both of which were one of Jesus' twelve disciples.
The Hebrew word adam, Strong's Concordance #H121, is written 21 times in 19 Hebrew Old Testament verses. The word, untranslated in the King James, is the name "Adam" which means "red." It appears the most in the book of Genesis with 18 appearances. Its first use takes place when God asks the first man he created to name all the animals.
And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof (Genesis 2:19, KJV).
The Hebrew zerubbabel, Strong's #H2216, is recorded 21 times in 20 Hebrew Old Testament verses. The word, untranslated in the King James, is the name "Zerubbabel" which means "sown or born in Babylon."
Zerubbabel, the grandson of Judah's King Jehoiachin (1Chronicles 3:17 - 19), led freed Jews living in Babylon back to Jerusalem. As the governor of Judah appointed by Persia's King Cyrus (Ezra 5:13 - 15), he also directed the rebuilding of Jerusalem's altar and temple.
Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, saith the Lord; and be strong, O Joshua, son of Josedech, the high priest; and be strong, all ye people of the land, saith the Lord, and work: for I am with you . . . (Haggai 2:4, KJV).
The Hebrew noomiy, Strong's #H5281, is recorded 21 times in 20 Hebrew Old Testament verses. The word, found only in the book of Ruth, means "pleasant" or "my delight" and is translated as the name "Naomi" in the KJV. Naomi was the mother-in-law of Ruth who helped her raise Obed who would become the grandfather of King David (Ruth 4:14 - 22).
More Info on Biblical Meaning of 21
Out of 27 New Testament books 21 of them are Epistles in the King James Bible.
The book of Judges and the gospel of John each contain 21 chapters. Obadiah, which has only one chapter, has 21 verses as a book.
The book of Hebrews, written by the Apostle Paul, contains materials from twenty-one Old Testament books.
The word "frankincense" occurs twenty-one times in Scripture. Frankincense is one of the many commodities businesses around the world will be unable to sell when their greatest customer, Babylon the Great, is destroyed.
And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more: The merchandise of gold, and silver . . . and cinnamon, and odors, and ointments, and frankincense . . . (Revelation 18:11, 13, KJV).
The tenth generation of humans, starting with Adam, is represented in the Bible by Noah. The twentieth generation is Abraham. This means generation 21 of humans on the earth is represented by Abraham's son Isaac, the child of promise.
There are 73 words and phrases in the Bible's original languages that are recorded only twenty-one times.
21 is the product of 3 x 7, both of which are primes.
21 is considered part of a Fibonacci sequence. A Fibonacci sequence is a special set of integers where each number is the sum of the two that precede it. This sequence is 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233 and so on.
Interestingly, the number 21 is equal to adding the first six digits or 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6.
In the Old Testament, the Biblical chapters of Genesis 15, Exodus 27, Deuteronomy 19, 1Samuel 3, 6, 1Kings 19, 2Kings 11, 12, 20, 1Chronicles 28, 2Chronicles 23, 31, Job 4, 7, 18, Psalm 135, 145, Isaiah 9, 26, 57, 59, Jeremiah 15, 16, 37, Ezekiel 26, 29, Daniel 1, 10, Joel 3, Zechariah 1 and 14 contain 21 verses in the King James translation.
In the New Testament, the chapters Romans 5, 10, 12, 1Corinthians 4, 2Corinthians 5, 12, Galatians 2, Ephesians 3, Philippians 3, 1Timothy 6, 2Peter 1, 1John 4, 5, Revelation 9, 16, 19 and 22 have 21 verses in the KJV.
The last King of Judah, Zedekiah, began his reign when he was only 21 years old (2Kings 24:18). He was placed on the throne as a "puppet" king by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, who in 597 B.C. conquered Jerusalem and took the then-king Jehoiachin as prisoner. Zedekiah's reign lasted eleven years until 586 B.C., when Jerusalem and its beloved temple were leveled and destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar.