Tonight I light the seventh candle with my Jewish brothers and sisters. I have learned that seven is one of the most important ‘power numbers’ in Judaism. It represents … among other things … ‘blessing’. The Bible contains all kinds of references to things in groups of seven.
The first candle is for the first verse of the Torah which is seven words long. (Genesis 1:1). The second candle is for the Sabbath’s observation on the seventh day. (Genesis 2:2; Exodus 20:10). The third candle is for the seven laws of Noah. (Talmud). The fourth candle is for the seven dreams of pharaoh. (Genesis 41). The fifth candle is for the seven days of unleavened bread. (Exodus 12:15). The sixth candle is for the regeneration of the land which is to lie fallow one in seven years. (Exodus 23:11).The seventh candle is for the seven times Jericho was circled on the seventh day that led to its promised fall. (Joshua 6:15).
Praise be to God ... and ‘Mazal’! (Hebrew for luck which has a numeric value of … 77).