In the Book of Genesis, Elohim changes the name of Sarah and her husband Abraham from Sarai and Abram, and this gives the gematria of their names a different value. Sarai 213 became Sarah 208 (-5) and Abram 243 became Abraham 248 (+5). Not coincidentally each name is concordent to a span of time; with 208 weeks being exactly 4 years and 248 days being 9 anomalistic months. In each verse where the name change occurs, the value of the justification for the name change equals that of the name; Abraham (248) = המון גוים נתתיך ‘of many nations I have made you‘ (Genesis 17:5).
‘Then Elohim said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, not call her the name Sarai, for Sarah the name. I will bless her, and indeed I will give you a son by her. Then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.” ” –Genesis 17:15-16.
שָׂרַ֣י Sarai 213, שָׂרָ֖ה Sarah 208,
(Not included in this verse: הָגָ֖ר – ‘Hagar’ 208; יִצְחָ֑ק – ‘Isaac’ 208; ישראל Israel 244).
213 Sarai + 31 Shall come = 244.
30 And she shall be + 89 of Nations + 100 Kings + 160 of people – 135 from her = 244.
Shall be her name 48 + of people 160 = 208.
247 And I will bless + 30 She shall be + 89 of Nations = 366 (days in a leap year).
We see Abraham’s value of 248 first pop up in Genesis 1:4 with הָא֖וֹר + הַחֹֽשֶׁךְ = ‘the Light’ + ‘the darkness’ = 248, but also the value of Israel 244 is made through calculations in Genesis 1:2-3 from א֑וֹר Light 207 + וחשך and darkness 37 = 244.
248 reoccurs in 1 Kings 6:7 with שְׁלֵמָ֥ה + מַסָּ֖ע = ‘made ready’ + ‘at the quarry’ = 248:
The house, while it was being built,was built of stone made ready at the quarry, and there was neither hammer nor axe nor any irontool heard in the house while it was being built.
The sum of the names of Abraham, Isaac and Israel = 700. This sum is first seen in Genesis 1:1
1 בראשית 220 ברא 203 אלהים 86 את השמים 98 ואת הארץ 296׃
220 In the Beginning + 86 Elohim + 98 Heavens + 296 Earth = 700.
The word for ‘days’ יָמִ֖ים = 100 so 7 x 100 = the Seven Days of Creation, therefore when the scribe refers to the God of ‘Abraham, Isaac and Israel’ he is specifically revering the God of Creation by his numerical art.
Likewise to the mandean justification of the name of Abraham, we see the same occurring in Genesis 32:28 for the name of Israel (244):
שָׂרִ֧יתָ You have struggled = 217
אֱלֹהִ֛ים God = 86
אֲנָשִׁ֖ים Men = 104
(217 – 86) + (217 – 104) = 244.
Essentially then, the scribe is referencing different names in order to get the right numerical value for the calculations he is setting out.
When it comes to names in the bible then, we must always be a little suspicious of the text. The Hebrew people most likely learned the practice of gematria from the Mesopotamians[1], and mandean style calculations with names are extremely common in the Tanakh (Old Testament).
[1] Stephen J. Lieberman: ‘A Mesopotamian Background for the So-Called Aggadic ‘Measures’ of Biblical Hermeneutics?’ https://www.jstor.org/stable/23508256
Note – all values are calculated with Paleohebrew gematria, which is almost the same as Standard
except that the shin = 3 and the tav = 4. For a discussion about Paleohebrew gematria used with the Greek script and the New Testament please click this link…
