66. The Numerical Expression of God (2) : By Grace

This Second study on the Numerical Expression of God takes us from

number 21 through to the number 40.

In this series the notes of Dr. Bullinger include only the following examples:
22, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 40,
It is accompanied by the results of the study of Dr.S.F.Jones from
the number 21 to and including number 39..

The Factorising of Numbers. Beyond the limit of the number 40 above, many numbers can be factorised to give a description of their meaning. Examples of this principle are provided as a help to the Scripture student in Part 3 of this series
Prime Numbers. Because Prime Numbers play such a large part in seeking to understand God’s Numerical Expression, Part 3 of this series contains information concerning their pattern and interpretation..
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Dr. E.W. Bullinger concluded the preface to his book ‘NUMBER IN SCRIPTURE’ with the following words:

It is too much to hope that the present work should be free from defects, which are inseparable from human infirmity. From one point of view it is a subject which must prove disappointing, at any rate to the author, for illustrations are continually being discovered; and yet, from another point of view, it would be blasphemy to suppose that such a work could be complete; for it would assume that the wonders of this mine could be exhausted, and that its treasures could be all explored !
I must, therefore, be content with the setting forth of general principles, and with giving a few examples from God’s Word which illustrate them, leaving others to extend the application of these principles and search out illustrations of them for themselves.
May the result of this contribution to a great subject be to stimulate the labours of Bible Students; to strengthen believers in their most holy faith; and to convince doubters of the divine perfection and inspiration of the Book of Books, to the Praise and Glory of God.

God’ Spiritual Significance of Numbers…..continued

Examples are taken from:
NUMBER IN SCRIPTURE by Dr.E.W.Bullinger
THE BIBLICAL MEANING OF NUMBERS by Dr.S.E.Jones.

21 kaph-aleph These signify giving strength as well as the strength of God’s grace to cover sin during our time of Spiritual growth. When 21 is used in terms of time [as in a 21 year period] it is the number of trouble or distress [tsarah], during which time we are in need of God’s strength. Offered by an open hand. When it is used as a number in itself, it speaks of the end of the distress. Thus, it speaks of the blessing at the end.
Israel entered the land of Canaan after 21 sins were recorded against them in their wilderness wanderings. Yet the Tabernacle had 21 coverings to cover all of Israel’s sins [Exod 23:3,7] So we see God’s provision in the midst of this distress.
Sin is always the cause of distress, because God brings distress in order to teach them the consequences of their sin. Yet 21 is also the number signifying the end of distress. Jacob’s yimes of distress ended after 21 years. At the end of this distress, he went to Bethel and “called upon the name of The Lord.”
Likewise, the 21st time Abram is mentioned is in Genesis 13:3, where he returned to Bethel after being in distress in Egypt. Verse 4 says that there he called upon the name of The Lord“.
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22 being the double of eleven, has the significance of that number in an intensified form, disorganisation and disintegration, especially in connection with The word of God. For the number two is associated with the Second Person of The God head, the Living Word.
22 is associated with the worst of Israel’s kings, Jeroboam and Ahab, each reigning 22 years. 11 we have seen derives its significance by being an addition to Divine Order.[10]. And a subtraction from Divine Rule [12].These afre two of the three ways in which the written Word of God can be corrupted, the third being alteration.
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KAPH-BETH These signify the open palm in the act of giving something to the house or household. It speaks of the Fruitfulness Mandate in Genesis 1:28. “be fruitful and multiply”. 22 is the number of Sonship, or the Sons of Light. This is the first promise of Sonship, which along with the Dominion Mandate, formed the Birthright. This Fruitfulness mandated was later given to Joseph when Jacob said in Gen.49:22, “Joseph is a fruitful bough” [ben, “son”], the builder of God’s household.
In the New Testament, Saul is mentioned precisely 22 times, all in the book of Acts. The reason for this is because he is an example of Sonship. Saul wasconverted and his name changed to Paul. He shows us the way to go from Pentecost to Tabernacles. The 22nd time Paul is mentioned is in Acts 26:14 where he tells King Agrippa of the glorious manner of his conversion:
And when we had fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew dialect, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the gourds.”

Most people do not understand this last statement, because they do not know the Hebrew language. The word for God is El, which is spelled alef and lamed. Alef is an ox, a symbol of strength. Lamed means an ox goad, a symbol of authority over the ox. El thus means the strong authority. So when Jesus told Saul that it was hard for him to kick against the goads, He meant that Sail was fighting God himself, the strong Authority, the Sovereign One.
Thus when Saul was forced to recognise the sovereignty of Jesus Christ, he was converted and ultimately began to go by the name Paul. Paul means “little,” and it contrasted with what was said about his ancestor, King Saul, who was tall and stood head and shoulders above everyone else [1Samuel 10:23]. When Saul became little in his own eyes, he stood taller in the eyes of God.
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23 kaph-gimel. This signifies the open palm in the act of lifting up——in this case,lifting up from death. This is the number of death and resurrection-life. In Romans 1:28-32 there are 23 things that are “worthy of death.”:

Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness[1] evil[2]greed[3] and depravity[4]. They are full of envy[5], murder[6], strife[7], deceit[8] and malice[9]. They are gossips[10], slanderers[11], God-haters[12], insolent[13], arrogant[14] and boastful[15]; they invent ways of doing evil[16]; they disobey their parents[17]; they are senseless[18], faithless[19], heartless[20], ruthless[21]. Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things[22] but also approve of those who practice them[23].

The 23rd time Noah is mentioned is in Genesis 7:23:

Every living thing on the face of the earth was wiped out; men and animals and the creatures that move along the ground and the birds of the air were wiped from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark.
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24 Being a multiple of twelve, expresses in a higher form the same signification. It is the number associated with the heavenly government and worship, of which the earthly form in Israel was only a copy. We are told that both Moses and David ordered all things connected with the Tabernacle and Temple worship by direct revelation from God, and as a copy of things in the heavens….Heb 8:5, 1Chron 8:12,19. And the sevenfold phrase in Exodus 11 “as the Lord commanded Moses” witnesses to the Divine ordering of all.
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Kaph-daleth signifies the open palm in the act of opening a door, signifying an open hand showing and offering to us the door of priesthood and access into the Sanctuary of God. 24 is the number of Priesthood.
In 1Chron 24:1-18, where David divided the priesthood into 24 courses, we find another natural division. The 24 courses are composed of 16 men of the family of Eleazar and 8 of the family of Ithamar [1Chron 34:4]. The number 16 speaks of Love, while the number 4 speaks of New Beginnings. The number 24 then, which signifies priesthood, cannot be understood apart from the context of a new beginning of Spiritual rebirth and love as the foundation of their character.
It is interesting that the 24th time that the name of Jesus is mentioned in the book of John, in John 3:3, it says:
Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is generated from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
This is about a new beginning in one’s life, and it connects the number 8 with the priesthood [24].
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25 being the square of 5, expresses the essence of the signification of 5
i.e. GRACE, if used alone or occurring as a factor in larger numbers.
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Kaph-hey Kaph is an open palm, at the act of giving, Hey means inspiration, or the breath of God, and generally has to do with The Holy Spirit. Thus 25 has to do with laying on of hands to bless people with The Holy Spirit..
25 is the number of blessing. It is five squared, 5 the number of GRACE. Blessing being based upon the idea of GRACE
The 25th time that Isaac’s name is mentioned is in Genesis 25:11, where we read:
And it came about after the death of Abraham, that God BLESSED his son Isaac; and Isaac lived by Beer-lahai-roi.
The 25th time that Jacob’s name is mentioned is in Genesis 28:1:
So Isaac called Jacob and BLESSED him and charged him, and said to him: “You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan”
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26 kaph-vav. These signify an open hand with a nail. The Power of Salvation is pictured by Jesus’ hand being nailed to the cross.
This is the number signifying the Power of Salvation. The Hebrew word translated “Salvation” is Yeshua, which is Jesus’ Hebrew name. Thus the Power of Salvation is also the Power of Yeshua, Likewise, the Hebrew name of Yahweh [YHVH] caries a numeric value of 26. [Y=10, H=5, V=6, H=5]
The 26th time that Joshua’s name is mentioned is in Deuteronomy 34:9:
Now Joshua the son of Nun was filled with the Spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him; and the sons of Israel listened to him and did as The Lord had commanded Moses.
The 26th time Paul is mentioned is in Acts 16:18, where Paul casts out the spirit of divination [“python”] as a demonstration of the Power of Salvation [Jesus].
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27 Being the cube of three expresses the essence of the signification of 3, i.e. that which is solid, real, substantial, complete and entire.
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Kaph-zayin signifies the open palm in the ministry of Spiritual warfare. 27 is the number of the Ministry of Salvation and naturally follows 26, which is the Power of Salvation. We must first receive the Power of Salvation in order to do the work of the Ministry of Salvation. Thus 27 pictures the weapons of our warfare, which are given to us to accomplish the Ministry of Salvation. 2Cor 10:3, 4:says:
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.
Our ministry is to present the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The numeric value of “the gospel is the power of God” [Rom 1:16] is 27x100. The essence of the gospel is about believing that Jesus is The Son of God. So in 1John 4:15, “Jesus is The Son of God” has a numeric value of 27x111. Likewise, in Mark 3:11, “Thou art The Son of God” has a numeric value of 27x111. In Matthew 1:23, we read, “Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son,” which carries a numeric value of 27x111.
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28 is a multiple, and therefore has the significance of seven. Being also the product of 4x7 it partakes of the significance of 4. 7 represents Spiritual Perfection, whilst 4 relates to that which is created. Thus 28 signifies God’s perfect creation. For the full significance of the number 7, see Dr. Bullinger’s book: ‘Number in Scripture’ pages 158 to 195.
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Kaph-chet signifies the open palm covering the inner chamber of the heart. Since the number 27 indicates the Ministry of Salvation, what then comes after this ministry and a persons acceptance of Christ but, the Leading of The Spirit ?

The 28th time Noah’s name is mentioned is in Gen.8:15, where God told him to “go out of the ark”. In leaving, he was following the leading of The Spirit.
The 28th time Israel’s name is mentioned is in Gen.48:13, where Joseph took his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh to be blessed by Jacob. In this, he was led by The Spirit. The 28th time Paul’s name is mentioned is in Acts 16:25, where Paul and Silas were singing praises to God in prison. An earthquake struck, which opened the doors and loosened their chains. The prison warden was about to kill himself, because he thought that the prisoners had escaped, but Paul was led by The Spitit and remained in the prison to lead the man and his family to Christ.
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29 is the combination of twenty, the number of expectation with fulfillment, and nine, the number of righteous judgement
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Kaph-teth This letter combination can signify the works [kaph] of the Serpent [teth], but in this case the teth has more to do with the idea of surrounding or encircling. The Serpent was often pictured as eating its tail to form a circle.
Twenty-nine is the number of departure. This being the last number of the series of 20s, it depicts a change from the covering of one’s house into something new Also, because the number nine has to do with the judgement of The Holy Spirit, the baptism of fire, it is preparatory to the number 30, which is about dedication to rulership. [consider the expectation of judgement in the light of the following examples]
The 29th time the name of Abram is used [Gen.14:12], he is departing from the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah.
The 29th time the name of Jacob is used [Gen.28:7], it says that he had left his parents and had gone to Padan-aram
The 29th time Jesus’ name is mentioned in the book of Matthew [8:34], the people were requesting that He depart from their coasts after He had healed the demoniac
It is worth noting that there were 87 years [3 x 29] between the Universal Flood and the division of the Earth land mass in the days of Jared
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30 being 3x10, denotes in a higher degree the perfection of Divine Order, as marking the right moment. Christ was thirty years of age at the commencement of His ministry [Luke 3:23] Both Joseph [Gen.41:46] and David [2Sam.5:4] were thirty years of age when their office began.
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Lamed which is a symbol of an ox goad or staff. Thus it was a symbol of authority, leadership of rulership. 30 is the number of dedication for rulership. It was the age which God established as the age of rulership for priests [Num.4:23]. Both Joseph and David complied.
The length of each curtain over the Tabernacle of Moses was thirty cubits [Ex.36:15]. The curtains are the covering of God over the Tabernacle and signify God’s rulership and covering over the true Temple, which is The Church.
The 30th time that Jacob’s name appears is found in Gen.28:10, where he went from Beer-sheba to Haran. In the next verses [before his name appears again in verse 16],
We read that God appeared to him in a dream at Bethel and confirmed the covenant with him. He was given authority or rulership in all directions, and even the purpose of rulership is given in verse 14: “in you and in your descendents shall all the families of the earth be blessed.”
31 The Hebrew expression of this is la, El, the name of God, and its signification as a number or factor would be Deity.
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lamed-aleph Authority with strength or first. It is the gematria of El, the Hebrew word for God. El literally means: “the strong [or primary] authority.” Thirty-one is the number associated with offspring in the Bible, because the “son” in the house is the heir with the authority of the birthright.
The 31st time the name of Noah appears in the Bible is found in Gen.9:1:
And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth”.
In the New Testament, the 31st time Jesus’ name appears in Matthew is in 9:4, where it speaks of Him as “the Son of Man,” The 31st time Luke uses His name is in 8:28, where He is called “Jesus, the Son of The Most High.”
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32 lamed-beth Authority with House of Household. The Hebrew word formed by these two letters is leb, which means “heart”. 32 is the number of Covenant. Covenants reveal the heart of The Father and bring about a Father-Son relationship.
The 32nd time the name Noah appears in the Bible is in Genesis 9:8,9.
Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him saying, “Now, behold, I Myself do establish my covenant with you, and with your descendents after you.”
Referring to this statement, God also includes “every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth” [Gen 9:16]. Thus there is a tight connection between 31 [“offspring”] and 32 [“covenant”].
The 32nd time Jerusalem is mentioned is in 2Sam.15:29, where David told Zadok and Abiathar to return to Jerusalem with the Ark of the Covenant.
Finally in Acts 10:17 we find the 32nd time that Peter’s name is mentioned in the book of Acts, he had just had his great vision of the unclean animals being let down out of heaven by a sheet with the command to “kill and eat.” While Peter contemplated its meaning, a knock came on the door, and then the meaning was clear; God’s covenant was being given freely to non-Jews, and Peter then went to the house of Cornelius with the Gospel.
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33 lamed-gimel ‘authority’ and ‘camel’ [or to lift up]. 33 is the number of a sign——that is, the confirming evidence establishing a prophetic word. The prophetic word itself is authoritative [lamed] and the confirming sign upholds it [gimel], presents it, and establishes the prophetic word by the double witness. The 33rd time Noah is mentioned is in Gen.9:17, which speaks of the rainbow which was God’s promise to Noah and to all flesh:
And God said to Noah, “This [rainbow] is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth”
The 33rd time Paul’s name is mentioned is in Acts 17:2, where he is seen explaining the Old Testament signs that proved Jesus to be The Messiah.
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34 lamed-daleth lamed ‘authority’ and daleth ‘a door’. It has to do with the authority to walk through the door or to enter a house. One may lawfully enter after one has identified oneself. 34 is the number of identification.In Gen. 9:18 we find Noah mentioned for the 34th time in connection with his sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth:
Now the sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem and Ham and Japheth; and Ham was the father of Canaan.
These names identify Noah’s sons.

Another example is Jerusalem, or the “City of Salem”. Salem occurs in Gen.14:18 in connection with Melchizedek. The 34th time that either Salem or Jerusalem appears in Scripture, is found in 2Sam. 16:3:
Then king David said:”And where is your master’s son? And Ziba said to the king, “Behold he is staying in Jerusalem,” for he said, “To-day the House of Israel will restore the kingdom of my father to me”.
On the surface this verse deals with the identification of Jerusalem in answer to the question: ‘Where is your master’s son?’ But there is an underlying question revealed here. Ziba was a servant of Mephibosheth, who was of the House of king Saul. Mephibosheth was hoping that civil war between David and Absalom would weaken the House of David and allow Saul’s family to regain the throne of Israel.
Thus we see that the 34th time Salem or Jerusalem is mentioned has more to do with identity of the true king than with the naming of a son as such.

The 34th time that Paul is mentioned is found in Acts 17:4. It has to do with the people who believed Paul, who had identified Jesus as The Christ. Verses 3 and 4 read:
“This Jesus whom I am proclaiming to you is The Christ.” And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, along with a great multitude of the God-fearing Greeks and a number of the leading women
Here Paul identifies Jesus as The Christ at the synagogue of Thessalonica.
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35 lamed-hey lamed [authority] and hey, which is the end of a word, meaning ‘what comes from.’ The number itself then, indicates “what comes from authority”.When there is an unresolved dispute among men, a ruling is necessary from a higher authority. And so 35 is the number of vindication
The 35th time Abram appears is in Gen.14:23 where he tells the king of Sodom that he will not take so much as a shoelace of the spoils of war, “lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich’.” Abram was concerned that the king of Sodom would vindicate the wickedness of the city essentially by bribing Abram.

The idea of vindication carries with it some sort of closure, or conclusion. In this sense, the 35th time the name Isaac appears is in Gen. 26:8:
And it came about, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out through a window, and saw, and behold, Isaac was caressing his wife Rebekah.
The context of this verse is that Isaac and Rebekah had gone to the land of the Philistines, and Isaac had told them that Rebekah was his sister. The 35th time that Isaac’s name is used in Genesis, brings this deception to a conclusion. It does not vindicate Isaac, but it does vindicate Abimelech, as the next few verses show.

In the New Testament, the 35th time the name of Jesus is mentioned is in Matt.9:15. The disciples of John had come to Him questioning why they and the Pharisees fasted, but Jesus and His disciples did not fast. Jesus vindicated Himself and His disciples in verses 15-18:
And Jesus said to them: “The attendants of the bridegroom cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. But no one puts a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and a worse tear results. Nor do men put new wine into old wineskins….”.
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36 lamed-vav lamed [authority] and vav [a nail, peg, that which joins, or the conjunction ‘and’] These two letters in themselves do not tell us what is being joined with [or by] the power of Divine authority.. But when we see that 36 is the number associated with His adversaries [or enemies] and how God deals with them, the meaning becomes clearer.

God is the Creator of evil as well as of good [Isaiah 45:6] He uses both for His purposes, for what men call evil is generally the means by which God judges men and nations. So also His sovereignty, God intends to reconcile all of creation back to Himself [Col.1:16-20; 1Cor.15:27-28]. Reconcilliation means to make peace between enemies [Rom 5:10], by means of the cross. Nails [vav] were used to nail Jesus to the cross, and so we might read lamed-vav to mean ‘the authority of the nail,’ which reconciles His enemies back to Himself.

The 36th time Noah is mentioned is in Gen.9:20. It shows how his son Ham became an enemy under a curse.
The 36th time Abraham is mentioned is in 21:4, which says:
Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was 8 days old, as God had commanded him.
The act of circumcision cignifies the cutting away of ‘the flesh’, our great enemy, so that we might walk by the Spirit of God. Gal.5:17 says:
For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.

The 36th time that the name Jesus appears in the book of Luke is in Luke 8:35, when Jesus had healed the demoniac who had been afflicted by ‘Legion’. The local people were gripped with great fear and asked Jesus to leave the town. The adversary was ‘Legion’, the multitude of demons.[gtm]

Finally if we add all the numbers from one to thirty-six, they come to a total of 666, a tripling of man’s number that generally has adversarial implications
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37 lamed-zayin lamed [authority] and zayin [weapon, to cut or pierce]. Our inheritance from God comes from “cutting a covenant”, as the Bible puts it. When God made His covenant with Abraham in Genesis 15:10, He required Abraham to cut the animals in half [except for the birds], Verse 18 reads: “On that day The Lord made [karath, “cut”] a covenant with Abram.”
Thirty-seven is the number of inheritance, which is established by God “cutting a covenant” with us. It is often associated with Jesus Christ the ultimate Inheritor of the earth, but it is also applied to inheritance in general. Further, one’s land inheritance was said to be “divided” among the people. The land was “cut” or “divided” in that sense in order to give each his portion.
Perhaps the most striking example which shows the meaning of this number is the fact that the name Caleb appears precisely 37 times in the Bible. Caleb is best known for inheriting Hebron. When Joshua gave the Israelites their inheritances, we read in Joshua 14:5-14:
As the LORD commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did, and they divided the land. Then the children of Judah came unto Joshua in Gilgal: and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite said unto him, Thou knowest the thing that the LORD said unto Moses the man of God concerning me and thee in Kadesh-barnea. Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh-barnea to espy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was in mine heart. Nevertheless my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the people melt: but I wholly followed the LORD my God. And Moses sware on that day, saying, Surely the land whereon thy feet have trodden shall be thine inheritance, and thy children's for ever, because thou hast wholly followed the LORD my God. And now, behold, the LORD hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the LORD spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old. As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in. Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the LORD spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the LORD will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the LORD said. And Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh Hebron for an inheritance Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite unto this day, because that he wholly followed the LORD God of Israel.
The 37th time Jerusalem is mentioned is in 2Samuel 19:19. David was returning to reclaim his throne, which was his inheritance, after Absalom had usurped the throne for a time:
And there went over a ferry boat to carry over the king’s household , and to do what he thought good…...and Shimei said unto the king ”Let not my Lord impute iniquity unto me, neither do thou remember that which thy servant did perversely the day that the lord my king went out of Jerusalem” …..therefore the king said unto Shimei: “thou shalt not die”. And David said: ”Do not I know that I am this day king over Israel”.
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38 lamed-chet lamed [authority] and chet [inner chamber, including the heart]. Thrity-eight is the number of work or labour. It includes the idea of one’s calling, or life’s work and purpose, for this is the true authority that each one possesses in his heart.
The 38th time that Abram’s name appears is in Gen 15:2.
And Abram said: “O Lord God what wilt thou give me, since I am childless, andc the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus ?”
This has to do with childbearing. Likewise, Eliezer was the head steward or servant in Abram’s household. So this verse is also about the head worker if the heir of God’s promise to Abram were not fulfilled. Furthermore, it has to do with one’s callings for if Sarah were to die childless, Eliezer would receive the calling given to Abram.
Interestingly enough, the 38th time that Abraham’s name appears is in Gen.21:7, and it also deals with bearing children:
And Sarah said, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have born him a son in his old age”.
In these examples we must bear in mind that Abram was a type of believer without The Holy Spirit, while Abraham was a type of Spirit filled believer. The Hebrew word hey that God added to the middle of his name is ‘the breath of God’ and indicates inspiration or revelation. It also has to do with entering into God’s Rest. Without the power of The Holy Spirit, man works hard for the things of life, whereas with The Holy Spirit, man’s work is a “rest work”.
When Abram attempted to do the work of God by his own strength, his work only brought forth Ishmael. But after being empowered by The Holy Spirit [with the name change at the age of 99] he brought forth Isaac.
39 lamed-teth lamed [authority] and teth [serpent]. 39 is the number of infirmity. When Adam and Eve sinned by falling for the temptation of the serpent, they inadvertently gave up their God given authority to the serpent, who subjected them to disease, infirmity, and ultimately to death itself.
Only time that the number 39 appears in Scripture is found in 2Chron.16:12,
And in the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa became diseased in his feet. His disease was severe, yet even in his disease he did not seek the Lord, but the physicians.
The 39th time Israel is mentioned is in Exodus 32:13, where Moses had to intercede for the people for worshipping the golden calf. This was Israel’s infirmity on a national level.
The 39th time that Paul’s name appears is in Acts 17:16, where the apostle saw that Athens was totally given over to idolatry and to pagan philosophers such as the stoics and Epicureans. It is not hard to see in this the spiritual and moral disease of the city.
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40 has long been universally recognised as an important number, both on account of the frequency of its occurrence, and the uniformity of its association with a period of probation, trial and chastisement [not judgement, like the number 9, which stands in connection with the punishment of enemies, but the chastisement of sons, and of a covenant people] It is the product of 5 and 8, and points therefore to the action of grace [5], leading to and ending in revival and renewal [8]. This is certainly the case where 40 relates to a period of evident probation. But where it relates to enlarged dominion, or to renewed or extended rule, then it does so in virtue of its factors 4 and 10, in harmony with their signification.

There are fifteen such periods which appear on the surface of The Scriptures, and which may be thus classified:

40 Years of Probation by Trial. Israel in the wilderness. From crucifixion to 70ad.
40 Years of Probation by Prosperity and Deliverance and Rest. eg. Under Othneil
40 Years of Probation by Prosperity in Enlarged Dominion. eg. David, Solomon
40 Years of Probation by Humiliation and Servitude. eg. Under Philistines, Saul.
40 Tears of Probation by waiting. Moses in Egypt, Moses in Midian.
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Other important examples of God’s use of this number forty are continued in
Part Three of this series...The Numerical Expression of God