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Question
Is it known among Christian Bible scholars what is represented by the 5 loaves, the 7 loaves, 12 baskets of fragments left (and saved)? thank you
Randall,
It's always interesting to me when people extrapolate things to points like this.
I have heard and read that the 5 loaves represents the change in times (OT to NT), the 7 loaves points to Jesus (Omega), the 2 fishes represents the two covenants, and the 12 baskets represents the tribes/apostles or the moving from the tribes to the apostles (OT to NT).
From a very young age I was taught that the Bible was written for people to understand what God's will is. And I know there are some hard sayings and difficult passages in the Bible. However, in my opinion trying to figure out meanings of numbers and items within the account of a specific event is stretching things a bit far.
If this was in Daniel, Ezekiel or Revelation, then I think theres a good reason to try to find a meaning. In Luke 15 there were 100 sheep with 1 lost, 10 coins with 1 lost and 2 brothers. Do these number really have any more meaning than to indicate the idea of something valuable lost?
The 5/7 loaves, 2 fishes and 12 baskets might really only represent the fact that there wasn't much food there with the 5,000 or 4,000 and that Jesus did in fact do a miracle to feed those people. Maybe the 12 baskets left over was just enough so that the 12 apostles could each have some food for their future journeys.
Hope this helps
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LEBoyd
Expertise
I am available to answer questions on most subjects dealing with the Old and New Testaments. I have more than 30 years of detailed study in both Testaments. Additionally, I have studied the many facets of evolution, including a detailed study of Darwin's Origin of the Species. I am a fundamentalist, in that I believe that all Scripture is inspired, or God-breathed, (II Tim. 3:16). I believe that there are no contradictions in the Bible, and that the Bible is complete in telling us our purpose on earth, how to gain salvation and how we should live to obtain salvation. I believe in sin, Satan, heaven, hell, choice-immersion, grace as the free-gift of God and that one can fall from grace. I am a 'layman' in that I taught myself Hebrew (in the English alphabet) and Greek (in the Greek alphabet).
Experience
I have taught many adult classes on the Scriptures on many different subjects over the last 25 years. I have also debated many people (several at once) over subjects such as evolution, original sin, the Diety of Jesus, whether Jesus was perfect by choice, and so-called Biblical contradictions.
Education/Credentials
I am a layman, so I come as a self-trained "expert". I can provide copies of sermanets, classes and emails where I have debated Scripture with others.
I do have a BBA and an MBA from a Top-10 MBA School. I also have several NASD/SEC licenses.
Awards and Honors
In Bibilical areas, I have scored the highest score, or in the top 10, with other adults in an all day annual test on specific Bible books. Some of these books were Luke, Revelation, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronmy, Joshua, Judges, II Kings, and others. Currently, I am teaching an indepth study on the book of Judges.
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