Meaning of Numbers: The Number 26
The Hebrew word adam is translated, in the King James, as both "man" (meaning humans in general, see verse 26 of Genesis 1) and the proper name of the first human (Adam, see 2:19). This original language word is spelled using the first, fourth and thirteenth letters of the Hebrew alphabet, the Gematria values of which add up to the number 45. The word translated as Eve, spelled with the eighth, sixth and fifth letters, have a combined value of 19.
Scripture states that God made Eve from a rib He took (subtracted from) Adam (Genesis 2:21 - 23). If we subtract the value of Eve's name (19) from Adam's (45), we get 26 (The Universal History of Numbers, figure 20.25).
Verse 26 of Genesis 1 is also noteworthy as it is the first time the Godhead's intention to create beings patterned after themselves is revealed.
And God said, "Let Us make man (adam) in Our image, after Our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the fowl of heaven . . ."
Adam represents the first generation of humans living on the earth. Generation twenty-six is represented by Moses, who through the power of God led the children of Israel out of Egypt (Genesis 6:16, 18, 20).
Appearances of Number Twenty-Six
The Hebrew consonants י (Yod), ה (He), ו (Vav) and ה (He) spell YHWH. This special word, used in the manuscripts of the Old Testament, is known as the Tetragrammaton (shown here left to right, as Hebrew is written right to left). The Gematria values of the letters (10, 5, 6, 5), when added together, equal 26 (Universal History of Numbers, figure 20.23).
One reason YHWH is important is that it reveals the eternal nature of God's existence. It does so because the letters of the word encapsulate the three tenses of the Hebrew verb "to be." These tenses are "He was," "He is" and "He shall be" (ibid. page 254).
The English word "Baasha" is recorded in 26 verses in the King James Bible. Baasha is the name of the Kingdom of Israel's third ruler after the united Israelite kingdom split in 930 B.C. He gained the throne by murdering King Nadab in 908 B.C. Baasha's bloody 22-year reign, in which he murdered all those of royal blood, was finally ended by God.
The English word "Ezra" is recorded 26 times in the King James Bible. Ezra, who wrote a Biblical book of the same name, was a priest who helped lead Jewish captives from Persia back to Judah. He was also instrumental in collecting and canonizing the writings that would become the Old Testament.
Number 26 and Shem
Shem, who was 98 years old when he and his two brothers entered Noah's Ark, lived a righteous life. God selected him, and not Japheth his older brother, or Ham, who was younger, to be in Jesus' physical lineage (Luke 3:36).
Genesis 10 is known as the Table of Nations chapter, as it delineates some of the descendants of Noah's sons. It lists, for example, three generations of patriarchs that sprang from Ham (Genesis 10:6 - 8, 13 - 18). Japheth has two generations recorded (verses 2 - 4). Shem, however, has five generations listed which produced 26 patriarchal names in the chapter (verses 21 - 29).
The English word "Hebrew" is found 26 times in the King James translation. The first person called a Hebrew is Abraham.
And there came one who had escaped. And he told Abram (Abraham) the Hebrew, for he lived in the plains of Mamre the Amorite . . . (Genesis 14:13, HBFV).
The word "Hebrew" is believed to be derived from Eber, the great-grandson of flood survive Shem. Eber lived from 2246 to 1843 B.C.
More Info on Biblical Meaning of 26
26 is the product of 2 x 13, both of which are prime numbers.
In the Old Testament, the Biblical chapters of Genesis 4, 50, Exodus 20, Numbers 8, Deuteronomy 7, 27, Joshua 7, 2Samuel 20, 2Kings 21, 1Chronicles 5, Job 3, Psalm 44, 136, Ecclesiastes 2, Isaiah 3, 49, Jeremiah 9, 33, Ezekiel 28, 30 and 41 contain 26 verses in the King James translation.
In the New Testament, the chapters John 17, Acts 1, 3, Galatians 5, 2Timothy 2 and James 2 have 26 verses in the KJV.
Book 26 of most modern Biblical translations is the prophetic writing of Ezekiel which contains 48 chapters and 1,273 verses in the King James.
The word "God," if we use simple Gematria values for the letters of the English alphabet (A = 1, B = 2, etc.) adds to 26. Names such as Leah, Jacob's wife who produced six of his sons, and Obed, the grandfather of King David, also equal twenty-six using this method.
John the Baptist, in 26 A.D., begins his ministry early in the year. He baptizes, in the fall of the same year, Jesus of Nazareth. The Lord's ministry begins a few days after this momentous event! Christ, before the end of the year, chooses at least five of his apostles. They are John, Andrew, Peter, Philip and Nathanael (John 1).
Jesus' ministry likely started not only on the Day of Atonement in 26 A.D. but also the start of a Biblical Jubilee year (Luke 4:18 - 19). The Jubilee, which takes place every fiftieth year, was meant to be a time when liberty and freedom was declared throughout Israel (Leviticus 25:10, 39 - 40). The Jubilee which started in 26 A.D. ran to September 29 in 27 A.D.