wen es interessiert: hier ein Beitrag von Prof. Dr. Scott Hahn, einem der wohl größten zeitgenössischen katholischen Theologen, über die Zahl 7 in der Bibel:
It is no accident that God “hallowed” the seventh day (Gen 2:2). The Hebrew word for the number seven, sheva, evokes a wealth of intended meaning. Sheva is the root of the word saba, which means “fullness and completion.” The earth was full and creation complete on the seventh day. At the other end of the Bible, in the Book of Revelation, we find an abundance of sevens signifying the end of the world—history come to its completion, in the fullness of time (see, for example, Rev 15:1).
But the word sheva has a still-closer kinship with another word: shava. Shava is the verb for swearing a covenant oath. Its literal meaning is “to seven oneself.” The verb for swearing a covenant is built upon the number seven. Why is it binding for human beings to “seven” themselves? Because that is what God did at the dawn of creation.
By blessing the seventh day, God swore a covenant to His world. He is not just proprietor of creation. He is not just master to a race of slaves. He is Father to a family. If God had stopped on the sixth day, we would be His creatures, slaves, and private property. But He went on and blessed the seventh day, and took a rest, and invited humankind into that rest. That action represents the covenant relationship that He established with his creation. And what is a covenant? A family bond, a sacred family bond.
—I hope you enjoyed this excerpt from my book, “Swear to God.”