Moses משה
An Egyptian princess gives him a Hebrew-sounding name. Three common letters, and the laboratory's own benchmark: 18,714,168 sequences.
- Found in the Torah
- 18,714,168
- Chance alone: 18,004,106
- Skips 2 to 152,424
- Found in the Tanakh
- 242,683,900
- Chance alone: 245,204,516
- Skips 2 to 598,520
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Pharaoh's daughter names him, and she explains it: because I drew him out of the water, Exodus 2:10. It is a strange thing for an Egyptian to do in Hebrew, and the verb's form does not quite fit either, since the name means one who draws out. He has no other name in the Tanakh. The word stands 729 times bare, a great many of them in the phrase and the Lord spoke unto Moses, and only in Deuteronomy does he recede to a speaker's first person, with 37 uses. Numbers 12:3 calls him very meek, above all the men on the face of the earth. Read backward, his three letters spell השם, the Name, and since the search below runs in both directions, every one of those is counted here too.
- As a whole word
- 729
- First, with any prefix
- Exodus 2:10
The measurement
This is the figure the laboratory is tested on: a search of these letters at every skip must return 18,714,168, exactly. The Torah's figure runs 3.9 percent high and the Tanakh's 1 percent low. His name stands mostly in the Torah as a word, and none of that reaches a count made of single letters. At skip 2 the letters are already there in Genesis 2:12, long before he is born.
| At every skip | Torah | Tanakh |
|---|---|---|
| Found | 18,714,168 | 242,683,900 |
| Chance alone | 18,004,106 | 245,204,516 |
| P (≥ found) | below 10⁻³⁰⁰ | 1.00 |
| Shortest skip | 2 | 2 |
| Longest skip | 152,377 | 598,447 |
Counted forward and backward on the written text, with final letters treated as ordinary ones. At the laboratory's opening setting, skips 2 to 5,000, the Torah gives 1,169,380 against 1,161,588 by chance. How these figures are made.
The sequences, letter by letter
Each letter is shown in the verse it happens to stand in, nothing more. Tap one to read it in the Tanakh, with the rest of the sequence marked.
In the Torah
Shortest skip 2, forward from Genesis 2:12
וּֽזֲהַ֛ב הָאָ֥רֶץ הַהִ֖וא ט֑וֹב שָׁ֥ם הַבְּדֹ֖לַח וְאֶ֥בֶן הַשֹּֽׁהַם׃
and the gold of that land is good; there is bdellium and the onyx stone.
וְשֵֽׁם־הַנָּהָ֥ר הַשֵּׁנִ֖י גִּיח֑וֹן ה֣וּא הַסּוֹבֵ֔ב אֵ֖ת כָּל־אֶ֥רֶץ כּֽוּשׁ׃
And the name of the second river is Gihon; the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Cush.
Shortest skip 2, forward from Genesis 4:8
וַיֹּ֥אמֶר קַ֖יִן אֶל־הֶ֣בֶל אָחִ֑יו וַֽיְהִי֙ בִּהְיוֹתָ֣ם בַּשָּׂדֶ֔ה וַיָּ֥קָם קַ֛יִן אֶל־הֶ֥בֶל אָחִ֖יו וַיַּהַרְגֵֽהוּ׃
And Cain spoke unto Abel his brother. And it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.
Short skip 50, forward from Genesis 1:9
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֱ־לֹהִ֗ים יִקָּו֨וּ הַמַּ֜יִם מִתַּ֤חַת הַשָּׁמַ֨יִם֙ אֶל־מָק֣וֹם אֶחָ֔ד וְתֵרָאֶ֖ה הַיַּבָּשָׁ֑ה וַֽיְהִי־כֵֽן׃
And God said: ‘Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear.’ And it was so.
וַיִּקְרָ֨א אֱ־לֹהִ֤ים לַיַּבָּשָׁה֙ אֶ֔רֶץ וּלְמִקְוֵ֥ה הַמַּ֖יִם קָרָ֣א יַמִּ֑ים וַיַּ֥רְא אֱ־לֹהִ֖ים כִּי־טֽוֹב׃
And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters called He Seas; and God saw that it was good.
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֱ־לֹהִ֗ים תַּֽדְשֵׁ֤א הָאָ֨רֶץ֙ דֶּ֔שֶׁא עֵ֚שֶׂב מַזְרִ֣יעַ זֶ֔רַע …
And God said: ‘Let the earth put forth grass, herb yielding seed, and fruit-tree bearing fruit after its kind, wherein is the seed thereof, upon the earth.’ And it was so.
Middle skip 500, forward from Genesis 1:24
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֱ־לֹהִ֗ים תּוֹצֵ֨א הָאָ֜רֶץ נֶ֤פֶשׁ חַיָּה֙ לְמִינָ֔הּ בְּהֵמָ֥ה וָרֶ֛מֶשׂ וְחַֽיְתוֹ־אֶ֖רֶץ לְמִינָ֑הּ וַֽיְהִי־כֵֽן׃
And God said: ‘Let the earth bring forth the living creature after its kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after its kind.’ And it was so.
וַיַּ֤רְא אֱ־לֹהִים֙ אֶת־כָּל־אֲשֶׁ֣ר עָשָׂ֔ה וְהִנֵּה־ט֖וֹב מְאֹ֑ד וַֽיְהִי־עֶ֥רֶב וַֽיְהִי־בֹ֖קֶר י֥וֹם הַשִּׁשִּֽׁי׃
And God saw every thing that He had made, and, behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
וְנָהָרּ֙ יֹצֵ֣א מֵעֵ֔דֶן לְהַשְׁק֖וֹת אֶת־הַגָּ֑ן וּמִשָּׁם֙ יִפָּרֵ֔ד וְהָיָ֖ה לְאַרְבָּעָ֥ה רָאשִֽׁים׃
And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became four heads.
Wide skip 5,000, forward from Exodus 1:19
וַתֹּאמַ֤רְןָ הַֽמְיַלְּדֹת֙ אֶל־פַּרְעֹ֔ה כִּ֣י לֹ֧א כַנָּשִׁ֛ים הַמִּצְרִיֹּ֖ת הָֽעִבְרִיֹּ֑ת כִּֽי־חָי֣וֹת הֵ֔נָּה בְּטֶ֨רֶם תָּב֧וֹא אֲלֵהֶ֛ן הַמְיַלֶּ֖דֶת וְיָלָֽדוּ׃
And the midwives said unto Pharaoh: ‘Because the Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian women; for they are lively, and are delivered ere the midwife come unto them.’
וַיְצַ֥ו פַּרְעֹ֖ה בַּיּ֣וֹם הַה֑וּא אֶת־הַנֹּגְשִׂ֣ים בָּעָ֔ם וְאֶת־שֹׁטְרָ֖יו לֵאמֹֽר׃
And the same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying:
… יוֹצֵ֣א הַמָּ֑יְמָה וְאָמַרְתָּ֣ אֵלָ֗יו כֹּ֚ה אָמַ֣ר יְקוָ֔ק שַׁלַּ֥ח עַמִּ֖י …
And the LORD said unto Moses: ‘Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh; lo, he cometh forth to the water; and say unto him: Thus saith the LORD: Let My people go, that they may serve Me.
Outside the Torah
Shortest skip 2, forward from Joshua 4:3
… מִמַּצַּב֙ רַגְלֵ֣י הַכֹּהֲנִ֔ים הָכִ֖ין שְׁתֵּים־עֶשְׂרֵ֣ה אֲבָנִ֑ים וְהַעֲבַרְתֶּ֤ם אוֹתָם֙ עִמָּכֶ֔ם …
and command ye them, saying: Take you hence out of the midst of the Jordan, out of the place where the priests’ feet stood, twelve stones made ready, and carry them over with you, and lay them down in the lodging-place, where ye shall lodge this night.’
Middle skip 500, forward from Judges 1:35
וַיּ֤וֹאֶל הָֽאֱמֹרִי֙ לָשֶׁ֣בֶת בְּהַר־חֶ֔רֶס בְּאַיָּל֖וֹן וּבְשַֽׁעַלְבִ֑ים וַתִּכְבַּד֙ יַ֣ד בֵּית־יוֹסֵ֔ף וַיִּהְי֖וּ לָמַֽס׃
But the Amorites were resolved to dwell in Harheres, in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim; yet the hand of the house of Joseph prevailed, so that they became tributary.
… הֶאֱרִ֤יכוּ יָמִים֙ אַחֲרֵ֣י יְהוֹשׁ֔וּעַ אֲשֶׁ֣ר רָא֗וּ אֵ֣ת כָּל־מַעֲשֵׂ֤ה יְקוָק֙ …
And the people served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great work of the LORD, that He had wrought for Israel.
בְּכֹ֣ל אֲשֶׁ֣ר יָצְא֗וּ יַד־יְקוָק֙ הָיְתָה־בָּ֣ם לְרָעָ֔ה כַּֽאֲשֶׁר֙ דִּבֶּ֣ר יְקוָ֔ק וְכַאֲשֶׁ֛ר נִשְׁבַּ֥ע יְקוָ֖ק לָהֶ֑ם וַיֵּ֥צֶר לָהֶ֖ם מְאֹֽד׃
Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the LORD was against them for evil, as the LORD had spoken, and as the LORD had sworn unto them; and they were sore distressed.
By skip range, shuffled texts and book
| Skips, Torah | Found | Chance alone |
|---|---|---|
| 2 to 10 | 2,098 | 2,126 |
| 11 to 100 | 21,328 | 21,254 |
| 101 to 1,000 | 212,368 | 211,848 |
| 1,001 to 5,000 | 933,586 | 926,359 |
| 5,001 to 152,424 | 17,544,788 | 16,842,519 |
Shuffled Torahs
The Torah's own count at skips 2 to 1,000 is 235,794. Each family below rebuilt the text 100 times (seed 5787). What each family keeps.
| Control family | Runs at or above 235,794 | Median run | Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Letter shuffle | 8/100 | 235,231 | 234,119 to 236,990 |
| Words within each verse | 41/100 | 235,679 | 234,443 to 236,992 |
Where the sequences start
| Torah | Found | Chance alone |
|---|---|---|
| Genesis | 4,281,449 | 4,610,669 |
| Exodus | 4,139,605 | 3,752,071 |
| Leviticus | 2,632,382 | 2,645,544 |
| Numbers | 4,430,143 | 3,752,898 |
| Deuteronomy | 3,230,589 | 3,242,924 |
| Tanakh | Found | Chance alone |
|---|---|---|
| Torah | 64,853,333 | 62,446,093 |
| Prophets | 111,267,567 | 113,438,445 |
| Writings | 66,563,000 | 69,319,978 |
Run this search yourself
Change the skips, set משה beside another word, and run the controls on your own question.
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