The Number Eight in the Holy Bible
1. Eight as a New Beginning
His Holiness Pope Shenouda III explains that the eighth day comes after the completion of the seven, expressing the start of a new week and a new covenant and life; therefore the number is associated with the resurrection and the new life given in Christ.
2. Biblical Examples Confirming Eight and Resurrection
The number of recorded resurrections in Scripture is eight: three raised by Christ, two in the New Testament raised by Peter and Paul, and three in the Old Testament (Elijah, Elisha, and the resurrection by touching Elisha’s bones). This count supports eight as a resurrection sign.
3. Baptism, Circumcision and the Eighth Day
Baptism signifies death and resurrection with Christ and a new life; in the Old Testament circumcision was performed on the eighth day as a sign of entering a new covenant with God — thus the connection of eight to sacrament and spiritual birth is clear.
4. Noah and the Ark as a Symbol of the Eight
In the Flood eight souls were saved in the ark; these eight are a sign of deliverance and new life after the destruction of the old world.
5. Historical and Liturgical Places Linked to Eight
Abraham’s genealogy (the eighth as new beginning), Aaron’s priesthood beginning on the eighth day (Leviticus), and the fiftieth-day feasts (fifty equals seven weeks plus one — the eighth week) show eight as an inaugural and liturgical number.
6. Eight, Resurrection as Ending and Opening
The Sabbath (the seventh day) continues until the Resurrection; the Resurrection ends the “seventh day” and opens the “eighth day” — an eternal new life begun by God, not by this earth.
7. Spiritual and Didactic Reflection
The symbol reminds the believer that history does not stop at natural bounds and time; resurrection is the start of a new era for believers. Eight calls to contemplate the new life given by God through grace and sacrament.
Short Conclusion
His Holiness Pope Shenouda III returns us to understanding biblical eights as symbols of salvation, renewal, and beginning by God’s grace, urging recognition that eight is not a mere number but an image of covenant and new life in Christ.
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