4495.“到第三天”表甚至持续到结束。这从“第三天”的含义清楚可知，“第三天”是指从开始到结束的完整事物（参看2788节），因而也表连续事物。那些视圣言的历史为纯粹的世俗历史，之所以神圣仅仅是因为它们出现在圣卷中的人，几乎难以相信“第三天”具有这样的的含义。但是，前面的解释已说明，不仅圣言的历史本身包含并未显现在文字中的属灵和属天事物在里面，而且一切话，甚至一切数字也是如此。蒙主的神性怜悯，这一真相在预言部分看得更加清楚，因为字义中的预言部分不像历史部分那样把心思与一系列事件联系得那么紧密。但是，凡认真研究圣言内在内容的人必能逐渐看出，数字“三”，以及数字“七”、“十二”含有更深层的秘密在里面。如果这些数字含有如此充分的含义，那么可知，出现在圣言中的其它一切数字也含有某种更深层次的东西，因为圣言处处是神圣的。
有时，当与天使交谈时，看似所写的数字就出现在我眼前，仿佛在大白天的一张纸上；我意识到他们正在谈论的属灵实体逐渐变成这样的数字。我从这个经历还得知，圣言中所提到的一切数字都含有某种奥秘在里面。这一点从以下经文很明显地看出来：
他又量了圣耶路撒冷的城墙，按着人的尺寸，就是天使的尺寸，共有一百四十四肘。（启示录21:17）
别处：
凡有聪明的，可以算计兽的数目，因为这是人的数目。他的数目是六百六十六。（启示录13:18）
显然，首先提到的数字，即“144”是12乘12的结果；数字“666”则包含3或6；但从数字“12”（参看577，2089，2129e，2130e，3272，3858，3913节）和数字“3”（720，901，1825，2788，4010节）的神圣可以看出，它们包含何等神圣的事物在里面。
数字“三”因表示甚至直到结束的完整事物，因而表示一段时期，无论这个时期是长还是短，故在代表教会中被接受，并且每当需要传达这种含义时就会被用到。这个数字以同样的方式用在圣言中，而圣言中的每个细节都具有一个属灵含义，这从下面的例子可以看出来：
他们必走三天的路程，为要祭祀。（出埃及记3:18；5:3）
到第三天要预备好了，因为第三天耶和华要降临在西乃山上。（出埃及记19:11，15-16，18）
所剩下的祭肉，要留到第三天。（利未记7:16-18；19:6-7）
在第三天和第七天，要把这除污秽的水洒在不洁净的人身上。（民数记19:11-22）
凡摸了战争中被杀的，第三日、第七日，都要洁净自己。（民数记31:19-25）
约书亚吩咐百姓三日之内过这约旦河。（约书亚记1:11；3:2）
耶和华三次呼唤撒母耳，撒母耳三次跑到以利那里，第三次以利才明白是耶和华呼唤撒母耳。（撒母耳记上3:1-8）
约拿单叫大卫藏在田野，直到第三日晚上。明日，就是第三日，约拿单打发人到大卫那里，透露他父亲的意思。约拿单要向磐石旁边射三箭；这事以后，大卫在约拿单面前俯伏在地，拜了三拜。（撒母耳记上20:5，12，19，20，35，36，41）
有三样灾给大卫选择：这地有七年的饥荒；他在敌人面前被追赶三个月；这地有三日的瘟疫。（撒母耳记下24:11-13）
罗波安对求从他父亲的重轭得轻松的以色列的会众说：他们要离去三天再来；他们在第三日来见罗波安；他们遵着王所说你们第三日再来见我的命令，第三日来见罗波安。（列王记上12:5，9，12）
以利亚三次伏在寡妇的孩子身上。（列王记上17:21）
以利亚吩咐百姓第三次倒水在燔祭上和柴上，他们就倒第三次。（列王记上18:34）
约拿在鲸鱼腹中三日三夜。（约拿书1:17；马太福音12:40）
主论到说，有人栽了一个葡萄园，三次打发仆人去，后来打发他的儿子去。（马可福音12:2，4-6；路加福音20:12-13）
祂论到彼得说，他要三次不认祂。（马太福音26:34；约翰福音13:38）
祂三次对彼得说，你爱我吗？（约翰福音21:15-17）
从这些，以及圣言中许多其它经文可以看出，数字“3”含有某个奥秘在里面，因此这个数字在古代众教会当中作为一个有意义的符号而被采用。显然，它表示教会和教会事物的一个完整时期，无论这个时期是长还是短；因此，它还表示完整的事物，以及甚至持续到结束的事物，这一点明显可见于何西阿书：
过两天耶和华必使我们苏醒，第三天祂必使我们兴起，我们就在祂面前得以存活。（何西阿书6:2）
Potts(1905-1910) 4495
4495. And it came to pass on the third day. That this signifies what is continuous even to the end, is evident from the signification of the "third day," as being what is complete from beginning to end (see n. 2788), thus also what is continuous. That this is the signification of the "third day," can scarcely be believed by those who regard the historicals of the Word as mere worldly histories, holy merely because they are in the sacred volume. But that not only the historicals of the Word themselves enfold within them spiritual and heavenly things which are not apparent in the letter, but that so also do all the words, and even all the numbers, has been shown in the preceding explications; that such is really the case will of the Lord's Divine mercy become still more evident in the prophetic parts, which do not keep the mind so closely engaged with the succession of statements in the sense of the letter as do the historical parts. But that the number "three," also the number "seven," and the number "twelve," enfold deep secrets within them, must be evident to everyone who examines the Word in regard to its interiors; and if these numbers are so full of significance, it follows that there must be something deeply hidden in all the other numbers that occur in the Word, for the Word is holy throughout. [2] Sometimes when speaking with angels, as it were written numbers appeared before my eyes like those seen on paper in bright day, and I perceived that the very things they were speaking of fell into such numbers; and from this experience I learned that every number mentioned in the Word holds within it some mystery, as is very evident from the following passages:
He measured the wall of the Holy Jerusalem a hundred and forty-four cubits, which is the measure of a man, that is, of an angel (Rev. 21:17). He that hath intelligence let him compute the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is six hundred and sixty six (Rev. 13:18). That the number first mentioned-"144"-results from the multiplication of twelve into itself, and that the number "666" is a product of three and six, is manifest, but what holy thing they enfold within them may appear from the holiness of the number "twelve" (see n. 577, 2089, 2129, 2130, 3272, 3858, 3913), and of the number "three" (n. 720, 901, 1825, 2788, 4010). [3] This latter number-"three"-being significative of what is complete even to the end, thus of one period, great or small, was received in the representative church, and was employed whenever such a thing was signified; and also in the Word (in which all things have a signification both in general and in particular) as may be seen from the following instances:
That they should go three days' journey and should sacrifice (Exod. 3:18; 5:3). That they should be ready against the third day, because on the third day Jehovah would come down upon Mount Sinai (Exod. 19:11, 15-16, 18). That nothing should be left of the flesh of the sacrifice until the third day (Lev. 7:16-18; 19:6-7). That the water of separation should be sprinkled upon the unclean on the third day and on the seventh day (Num. 19:11-22). That they who touched one slain in war should be purified on the third day and on the seventh day (Num. 31:19-25). That Joshua commanded the people to pass over Jordan within three days (Josh. 1:11; 3:2). That Jehovah called Samuel three times, and Samuel ran to Eli three times, and Eli understood the third time that Jehovah had called Samuel (1 Sam. 3:1-8). That Jonathan said to David that he should hide himself in the field unto the third day at even, and that Jonathan sent to him on the third morrow, and revealed the disposition of his father; and that Jonathan then shot three arrows at the side of the stone; and that after this David bowed himself three times to the earth before Jonathan (1 Sam. 20:5, 12, 19,20, 35,36, 41). That three things were offered to David to chose from: that there should come seven years of famine, that he should flee three months before his enemies, or that there should be three days' pestilence in the land (2 Sam. 24:11-13). That Rehoboam said to the congregation of Israel who sought to be relieved from the yoke of his father, that they should go away three days, and come again; and that they came to Rehoboam the third day, as the King bade, saying, Come to me again the third day (1 Kings 12:5, 12). That Elijah stretched himself upon the widow's son three times (1 Kings 17:21). That Elijah told the people to pour water upon the burnt-offering and the wood the third time, and they did it the third time (1 Kings 18:34). That Jonah was in the belly of the whale three days and three nights (Jonah 1:17; Matt. 12:40). That the Lord spoke of a man who planted a vineyard and sent his servants three times, and afterwards his son (Mark 12:2, 4-6; Luke 20:12-13). That He said of Peter that he should deny Him thrice (Matt. 26:34; John 13:38). That He said to Peter three times, Lovest thou Me? (John 21:15-17). From these and many other places in the Word it may be seen that there was some mystery in the number "three," and that therefore this number was received among the significatives in the ancient churches. That it signifies an entire period of the church and of the things in the church, whether great or small, is manifest; and that it consequently signifies what is complete and also continuous to the end, is very plain in Hosea:
Jehovah will vivify us after two days; on the third day He will raise us up, and we shall live before Him (Hos. 6:2).
Elliott(1983-1999) 4495
4495. 'It happened on the third day' means that which is continuous even to the end. This is clear from the meaning of 'the third day' as that which is complete from beginning to end, dealt with in 2788, and so also as that which is continuous. People who suppose that the historical events described in the Word are no more than the facts of earthly history and are holy only because they appear in a sacred book are scarcely able to believe that 'the third day' has that meaning. But, as shown in preceding explanations, it is not only the actual historical narratives that include spiritual and celestial things which are not plainly visible in the letter, but also every word and every number too. The truth of this will in the Lord's Divine mercy be seen far more clearly in the prophetical sections which in the sense of the letter do not hold the mind to the sequence of events in the way that the historical sections do. But anyone who looks carefully into the interior contents of the Word comes to see that the number three, like the number seven, and also the number twelve, holds some arcanum. And if these numbers hold such it follows that every other number in the Word holds the same, for the Word is holy in every part.
[2] Sometimes, when I have been talking to angels, I have seen in front of me what looked like numbers written, as if on a sheet of paper, in broad daylight, and I have realized that the spiritual entities about which the angels spoke pass into numbers like these. From this experience I have also been given to know that each number in the Word contains some arcanum. This may be seen plainly from the following in John,
He measured the wall of the holy Jerusalem, a hundred and forty-four cubits, which is the measure of a man, that is, of an angel. Rev 21:17.
And elsewhere,
Let him who has intelligence reckon the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, that is, its number is six hundred and sixty-six. Rev 13:18.
It is evident that the first of these numbers, namely a hundred and forty-four, is the product of twelve times twelve, and that the number six hundred and sixty-six is a product of that involving three or six; but what degree of holiness is implied by them may be seen from the holiness associated with the number twelve, concerning which number see 577, 2089, 2129 (end), 2130 (end), 3272, 3858, 3913; and concerning the holiness associated with the number three, 720, 901, 1825, 2788, 4010.
[3] Because the number three meant that which is complete even to the end, and so an entire period, whether long or short, it was therefore adopted in the representative Church and used whenever such a meaning needed to be conveyed. It is also used in the same way in the Word, in which every detail carries a spiritual meaning, as may be seen from the following places:
They were to go a three days' journey and to offer sacrifice. Exod 3:18; 5:3.
They were to be ready on the third day, for on the third day Jehovah would come down onto Mount Sinai. Exod 19:11, 15, 16, 18.
Nothing from the flesh of a sacrifice was to be left until the third day. Lev 7:16-18; 19:6, 7.
The water of separation was to be sprinkled over the unclean person on the third day and on the seventh day. Num 19:11-end.
Those who touched one killed in war were to be cleansed on the third day and on the seventh day. Num 31:19-25.
[4] Joshua commanded the people that within three days they would be crossing the Jordan. Josh 1:11; 3:2.
Jehovah called Samuel three times, and three times Samuel ran to Eli and the third time Eli understood that Jehovah was calling Samuel. 1 Sam 3:1-8.
Jonathan told David to hide in the field until the third evening. And Jonathan sent to him on the third day from then, and revealed his father's intention. Jonathan at that point fired three arrows to the side of the stone. And after that David bowed down to the ground three times before Jonathan. Sam 20:5, 12, 19, 20, 35, 36, 41.
Three things were set before David, of which he was to choose one - either the coming of famine for seven years, or his fleeing before his enemies for three months, or the existence of pestilence in the land for three days. 2 Sam 24:11- 13.
[5] Rehoboam told the assembly of Israel which asked for relief from his father's yoke that they should go away for three days and then return And they came to Rehoboam on the third day, as the king said, Return to me on the third day. 1 Kings 12:5, 12.
Elijah stretched himself over the widow's son three times. 1 Kings 17:21. Elijah told them to pour water over the burnt offering and the wood a third time and they did so a third time. 1 Kings 18:34. Jonah was in the stomach of the monster for three days and three nights Jonah 1:17; Matt. 12:40. The Lord talked of someone who planted a vineyard and sent servants three times, and after that his son. Mark 12:2, 4-6, Luke 20:12, 13. Of Peter, He said that he was to deny Him three times. Matt. 36:34, John 13:38. He said to Peter three times, Do you love Me? John 21:15-17.
[6] From these and many other places in the Word it becomes clear that the number three holds an arcanum within it, and that for this reason this number was adopted within the ancient Churches as a meaningful sign. It is evident that it means the entire period of a Church and of things within a Church, whether long or short, and therefore that which is complete and also that which is continuous even to the end, as is plain in Hosea,
Jehovah will revive us after two days, on the third day He will raise us up, and we shall live before Him. Hosea 6:2.
Latin(1748-1756) 4495
4495. `Factum in die tertio': quod significet continuum usque ad finem, constat a significatione `diei tertii' quod sit completum a principio ad finem, de qua n. 2788, ita (o)quoque continuum; quod `dies tertius' id significet, vix credere possunt illi qui putant historica Verbi solum historica mundana esse, et modo sancta quia in codice sacro sunt; sed quod non solum ipsa historica Verbi involvant (t)spiritualia et caelestia quae non exstant in littera, sed etiam omnes voces, et praeterea omnes numeri, in explicationibus quae praecedunt: ostensum est; quod ita (t)se res habeat, ex Divina Domini Misericordia: constabit adhuc melius {1} in propheticis, quae non ita mentem in sensu litterae quoad seriem tenent prout historica: at quod numerus {2} ternarius {3}, sicut etiam numerus septenarius, (o)ut et numerus duodenarius, (o)arcana involvant, nulli non qui Verbum (x)quoad interior: ejus scrutatur, constare potest; et si in illis numeris, sequitur quod etiam in reliquis numeris qui in Verbo, arcanum sit, {4} nam Verbum ubivis sanctum est; quandoque cum locutus (o)sum cum angelis, visi {5} sunt numeri quasi scripti ante oculos, sicut qui in carta in claro die et perceptum quod ipsae res, de quibus locuti sunt in tales numero cadant, a qua experientia etiam {6} scire datum (o)est quod unusquisque numerus in {7} Verbo aliquod arcanum contineat; hoc manifeste videri {8} potest ab his apud Johannem, Mensus est murum sanctae Hierosolymae centum quadraginta quatuor cubitorum, quae est mensura hominis, hoc est, angeli, Apoc. xxi 17:et alibi, Qui habet intelligentiam, computato numerum bestiae, numerus enim hominis est, nempe numerus ejus est sexcenta sexaginta sex, xiii 18;
quod prior numerus, nempe centum quadraginta quatuor sit ex duodecim in se multiplicatis et quod numerus sexcenta sexaginta sex sit ex numero ternario (o)et seno, patet; quid `sancti autem' involvant, constare potest ex sancto numeri duodecim, de quo {9} videatur n. 577, 2089, 2129 f., 2130 f., 3272, 3858, 3913, et de sancto numeri ternarii, n. 720, 901, 1825, 2788, 4010; [3] hic numerus, `nempe' ternarius, quia significabat {10} completum usque ad finem, ita unam periodum magnam vel parvam, ideo in Ecclesia repraesentativa receptus est, et adhibebatur quoties tale significaretur, (o)etiam in Verbo in quo omnia et singula significant, ut constare potest ab his locis {11;
(m)Quod irent iter trium dierum et sacrificarent, Exod. iii 18: v 3:
quod parati essent ad (t)diem tertium, quia die tertio descenderet Jehovah super montem Sinai, Exod. xix 11, 15, 16, 18:
quod de carne sacrificii nihil relinqueretur ad diem tertium, Lev. vii 16-18; xix 6, 7:
quod super immundum spargeretur aqua separationis die tertio et die septimo, Num. xix 11 ad fin.:
et quod qui tetigerunt occisum in bello, mundarentur die tertio et die septimo, Num. xxxi 19-25(n):
[4] quod Joshua mandaverit populo ut intra tres dies transirent Jordanem, Jos. i 11; iii 2:
quod Jehovah ter vocaverit Samuelem, et ter Samuel cucurrerit ad Eli, et quod tertia vice intellexerit Eli quod Jehovah vocaret Samuelem, 1 Sam. iii 1-8:
quod Jonathan diceret ad Davidem, quod occultaret se in agro ad vesperam tertiam; (o)et quod Jonathan mitteret ad illum crastino tertio, et revelaret animum patris sui: et quod Jonathan tunc ad latus lapidis jacularetur tres sagittas: et quod post illud David se incurvaverit tribus vicibus ad terram coram Jonathane, 1 Sam. xx 5, 12, 19, 20, 35, 36, 41:
quod tria proposita sint Davidi, ut ex illis unum eligeret, vel quod ventura fames septem annis, vel tribus mensibus fugiturus pro hostibus, vel futura tribus diebus pestis in terra, 2 Sam. xxiv 11-13 [5] quod Rehabeam diceret ad coetum Israelis, qui petebant ut allevarentur a jugo patris ejus, quod abirent tres dies et reverterentur; et quod venerint ad Rehabeamum die tertio, sicut dixit rex, Revertimini ad me die tertio, 1 Reg. xii 5, 12:
quod Elias se mensus super filium viduae tribus vicibus, 1 Reg. xvii 21:
quod Elias dixerit, ut funderent aquam super holocaustum et ligna tertia vice, et tertia vice fecerunt, 1 Reg. xviii 34 quod Jonas fuerit in ventre ceti tribus diebus et tribus noctibus, Jon. ii 1 [A.V. i 17]; Matth. xii (x)40:
quod Dominus locutus de homine qui plantavit vineam, quod miserit tribus vicibus servos, et postea filium, Marc. xii 2, 4-6; Luc. xx 12, 13 quod de Petro, quod ter abnegaturus Ipsum, Matth. xxvi 34; Joh.xiii 38:
quod dixerit ad Petrum tribus vicibus, Amasne Me? Joh. xxi 15-17. [6] Ex his {12} et pluribus aliis in Verbo constare potest quod in numera ternario fuerit arcanum, et quod numerus ille {13} inde inter significativa {14} in Ecclesiis antiquis receptus sit; quod significet integram periodum Ecclesiae ac rerum in Ecclesia, ita magnam vel parvam, patet, proinde completum et quoque continuum usque ad finem; ut manifeste apud Hosheam, Jehovah vivificabit nos post biduum, in {15} die tertio eriget {16} nos, et vivemus coram Ipso, vi 2. @1 clarius$ @2 i dies tertius et in genere$ @3 i arcanum involvat$ @4 arcana (after etiam) sint (after Verbo)$ @5 i mihi$ @6 etiam cadant, inde quoque ut ab experientia viva$ @7 i qui$ @8 constare$ @9 quod numerus 12 et numerus 3 significant, de sancto numeri 12$ @10 significat$ @11 sicut$ @12 i omnibus$ @13 is numerus$ @14 repraesentativa$ @15 et i$ @16 egerit I$