Numerical Reckonings

Last night, I stumbled upon a mind-boggling revelation known as Benford's law. I found myself totally intrigued by the hidden pattern it unveiled in the world of numbers. I had no idea!

Now, I am NOT a numbers girl. Very simple math used to give me great anxiety. I am thankful I have a calculator on my phone and at my desk. My sister Karen on the other hand is a Math Professor at a university in California, and if she was not teaching this morning, I might have given her a call and asked her about her thoughts on this topic, but let's back up.

Frank Benford's discovery from 1938 exposed a fascinating tendency for the digit 1 to take the lead, while the larger digits followed in a predictable sequence, in almost everything!

Benford's law is a rule that says when you look at a bunch of numbers from various sources, like populations of cities or numbers in financial reports, you will often find that the first digit of these numbers is more likely to be 1 than any other digit.

For example, in a lot of cases, numbers will start with 1 about 30% of the time, and they'll start with 9 only about 5% of the time. This pattern isn't just a coincidence; it happens in lots of different types of data.

People have found this law helpful for catching things that might be wrong with data, like mistakes or even fraud. It's basically a way to check if numbers seem to be following a typical pattern or if something might be off. So, it's a useful tool for making sure that numbers are being reported honestly and accurately.

This is no coincidence, friend.

While Benford's law is a mathematical concept and has no explicit connection to Christian teachings, it represents even more divine order and structure in the world around us.

In the Bible, there are instances of measurements and instructions for building structures, such as the dimensions of the Ark of the Covenant or the specifications for the construction of the Tabernacle.

There are also many instances of the numbers 7 and 12. Numbers hold symbolic significance, representing completeness and divine order.

We just filmed an episode on Women in the Word and one of the comments was about Jesus feeding the thousands. The Bible records two separate accounts of Jesus miraculously feeding large crowds.

The first account, (found in Matthew 14, Mark 6, Luke 9, and John 6) describes Jesus feeding a crowd of 5,000 men, not counting women and children, with five loaves of bread and two fish. After everyone had eaten their fill, the disciples collected twelve baskets of leftovers.

The second account, found in Matthew 15 and Mark 8, shows us Jesus feeding a crowd of 4,000 men, besides women and children, with seven loaves of bread and a few fish. Following the meal, seven baskets of leftover food were gathered.

Both accounts depict Jesus miraculously multiplying a small amount of food to feed a large multitude, demonstrating his divine power and compassion for those in need. But here is where it gets even more interesting and something Heidi brought up on-set:

In the account of Jesus feeding the 5,000 men, not counting women and children, the crowd primarily consisted of Jewish people.

In the account of Jesus feeding the 4,000 men, not counting women and children, the crowd would have been mostly Gentiles.

When the food was picked up from the crowd of Jewish people, they collected twelve baskets of leftovers.

When the food was picked up from the crowd of Gentiles, they collected seven baskets of leftovers.

Those two numbers, 7 and 12, represent completeness and, in this case, indicates that Jesus wants to save everyone, not just the Jewish people.

Numbers still make my head hurt but I can also respect the fact that there are amazing and wonderful things to be discovered in numbers, Benford's Law is just one of them.

"I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well." Psalm 139:14 ESV

Such a beautiful expression of gratitude and praise for the marvelous creation of human beings by God. He created numbers and numbering, and He created us to discover these and other great hidden gems. It's all His plan!

You could say numbers really highlights the intricate and intentional design that reflects our Creator's Divine handiwork.

Hopefully in heaven numbers will make much more sense to me 🙂

by Jeanette Stark - Thursday, October 26, 2023