How to Interpret Dreams and Visions Perry Stone

BIBLICAL SYMBOLISM AND PATTERNS In the principles of biblical interpretation there is what is termed the “law of first mention.” This hermeneutical principle states that when an object, number, color, or symbol is first mentioned in Scripture, then that sets the pattern for that object, number, color, or symbol throughout the Bible. Let’s begin with certain biblical numbers. The number four appears in Genesis when God created the sun, moon, and stars on the fourth day (Gen. 1:16–19). Afterward, it is mentioned when Moses wrote that there were four rivers that encompassed the Garden of Eden (Gen. 2:10). We later discover there are four directions on the earth: north, south, east, and west. Thus, from the onset of Scripture, the number four is an earthly number. Four Gospels reveal the earthly ministry of Jesus. The four living creatures around the throne reveal the four mighty powers on the earth: the ox, the mightiest of the four-footed domestic animals; the eagle, the king among the fowls of the air; the lion, the king of the beast; and man, who was given dominion over all creation. Man was created on the sixth day, and the number six has always been considered in biblical numbers as the number of man or mankind. When David fought Goliath, the giant was six cubits tall (1 Sam. 17:4). The Hebrew children were commanded to bow to the image in Babylon when six different types of instruments were played in unison (Dan. 3:5, KJV ). The future