Shevat שבט
One verse of Zechariah names the month. Every other שבט in the Tanakh is a tribe, a staff or a ruler's sceptre.
- Found in the Torah
- 746,355
- Chance alone: 754,192
- Skips 2 to 152,424
- Found in the Tanakh
- 9,937,659
- Chance alone: 10,003,455
- Skips 2 to 598,520
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Zechariah 1:7 is the one and only verse that uses this word for a month: the four and twentieth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Shebat. There are 63 bare cases of the three letters, and in nearly all the rest it is a stick. A שבט is a rod of discipline in Proverbs, a shepherd's staff in Psalm 23:4, a sceptre in Genesis 49:10, and, because a tribe has a staff at its head, a tribe. It is the ordinary word for one of the twelve. The month's name comes from Babylonian and is a separate word that happens to look the same. So a reader looking for the month, in these letters, is looking for one verse in sixty-three.
- As a whole word
- 63
- First, with any prefix
- Genesis 49:10
The measurement
Skip 2 first falls in בשיבה טובה, in a good old age, Genesis 15:15, and the second in the same phrase at Genesis 25:8. Across the Torah the count is 746,355 against 754,192.3 by chance. The month, the rod and the tribe share that one figure.
| At every skip | Torah | Tanakh |
|---|---|---|
| Found | 746,355 | 9,937,659 |
| Chance alone | 754,192 | 10,003,455 |
| P (≥ found) | 1.00 | 1.00 |
| Shortest skip | 2 | 2 |
| Longest skip | 152,027 | 598,411 |
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 49,037 against 48,659 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 15:15
וְאַתָּ֛ה תָּב֥וֹא אֶל־אֲבֹתֶ֖יךָ בְּשָׁל֑וֹם תִּקָּבֵ֖ר בְּשֵׂיבָ֥ה טוֹבָֽה׃
But thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age.
Shortest skip 2, forward from Genesis 25:8
וַיִּגְוַ֨ע וַיָּ֧מָת אַבְרָהָ֛ם בְּשֵׂיבָ֥ה טוֹבָ֖ה זָקֵ֣ן וְשָׂבֵ֑עַ וַיֵּאָ֖סֶף אֶל־עַמָּֽיו׃
And Abraham expired, and died in a good old age, an old man, and full of years; and was gathered to his people.
Short skip 50, forward from Leviticus 16:15
… אֶל־מִבֵּ֖ית לַפָּרֹ֑כֶת וְעָשָׂ֣ה אֶת־דָּמ֗וֹ כַּאֲשֶׁ֤ר עָשָׂה֙ לְדַ֣ם הַפָּ֔ר וְהִזָּ֥ה …
Then shall he kill the goat of the sin-offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the veil, and do with his blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the ark-cover, and before the ark-cover.
וְכִפֶּ֣ר עַל־הַקֹּ֗דֶשׁ מִטֻּמְאֹת֙ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וּמִפִּשְׁעֵיהֶ֖ם לְכָל־חַטֹּאתָ֑ם וְכֵ֤ן יַעֲשֶׂה֙ לְאֹ֣הֶל מוֹעֵ֔ד הַשֹּׁכֵ֣ן אִתָּ֔ם בְּת֖וֹךְ טֻמְאֹתָֽם׃
And he shall make atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleannesses of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions, even all their sins; and so shall he do for the tent of meeting, that dwelleth with them in the midst of their uncleannesses.
Middle skip 500, forward from Exodus 22:8
… אֲשֶׁ֤ר יַרְשִׁיעֻן֙ אֱ־לֹהִ֔ים יְשַׁלֵּ֥ם שְׁנַ֖יִם לְרֵעֵֽהוּ׃
For every matter of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, whereof one saith: 'This is it,' the cause of both parties shall come before God; he whom God shall condemn shall pay double unto his neighbour.
וְחָרָ֣ה אַפִּ֔י וְהָרַגְתִּ֥י אֶתְכֶ֖ם בֶּחָ֑רֶב וְהָי֤וּ נְשֵׁיכֶם֙ אַלְמָנ֔וֹת וּבְנֵיכֶ֖ם יְתֹמִֽים׃
My wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.
לֹ֥א תַטֶּ֛ה מִשְׁפַּ֥ט אֶבְיֹנְךָ֖ בְּרִיבֽוֹ׃
Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause.
Wide skip 5,000, forward from Numbers 1:2
שְׂא֗וּ אֶת־רֹאשׁ֙ כָּל־עֲדַ֣ת בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֖ם לְבֵ֣ית אֲבֹתָ֑ם בְּמִסְפַּ֣ר שֵׁמ֔וֹת כָּל־זָכָ֖ר לְגֻלְגְּלֹתָֽם׃
’Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male, by their polls;
בְּמִסְפַּר֙ כָּל־זָכָ֔ר מִבֶּן־חֹ֖דֶשׁ וָמָ֑עְלָה שְׁמֹנַ֤ת אֲלָפִים֙ וְשֵׁ֣שׁ מֵא֔וֹת שֹׁמְרֵ֖י מִשְׁמֶ֥רֶת הַקֹּֽדֶשׁ׃
according to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, eight thousand and six hundred, keepers of the charge of the sanctuary.
וּ֠בָאוּ הַמַּ֨יִם הַמְאָרְרִ֤ים הָאֵ֨לֶּה֙ בְּֽמֵעַ֔יִךְ לַצְבּ֥וֹת בֶּ֖טֶן וְלַנְפִּ֣ל יָרֵ֑ךְ וְאָמְרָ֥ה הָאִשָּׁ֖ה אָמֵ֥ן אָמֵֽן׃
and this water that causeth the curse shall go into thy bowels, and make thy belly to swell, and thy thigh to fall away’; and the woman shall say: ‘Amen, Amen.’
Outside the Torah
Shortest skip 2, forward from Judges 8:32
וַיָּ֛מָת גִּדְע֥וֹן בֶּן־יוֹאָ֖שׁ בְּשֵׂיבָ֣ה טוֹבָ֑ה וַיִּקָּבֵ֗ר בְּקֶ֨בֶר֙ יוֹאָ֣שׁ אָבִ֔יו בְּעָפְרָ֖ה אֲבִ֥י הָֽעֶזְרִֽי׃
And Gideon the son of Joash died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulchre of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.
Middle skip 500, forward from 2 Samuel 24:7
וַיָּבֹ֨אוּ֙ מִבְצַר־צֹ֔ר וְכָל־עָרֵ֥י הַחִוִּ֖י וְהַֽכְּנַעֲנִ֑י וַיֵּֽצְא֛וּ אֶל־נֶ֥גֶב יְהוּדָ֖ה בְּאֵ֥ר שָֽׁבַע׃
and came to the stronghold of Tyre, and to all the cities of the Hivites, and of the Canaanites; and they went out to the south of Judah, at Beer-sheba.
וַיִּתֵּ֨ן יְקוָ֥ק דֶּ֨בֶר֙ בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל מֵהַבֹּ֖קֶר וְעַד־עֵ֣ת מוֹעֵ֑ד וַיָּ֣מָת מִן־הָעָ֗ם מִדָּן֙ וְעַד־בְּאֵ֣ר שֶׁ֔בַע שִׁבְעִ֥ים אֶ֖לֶף אִֽישׁ׃
So the LORD sent a pestilence upon Israel from the morning even to the time appointed; and there died of the people from Dan even to Beer-sheba seventy thousand men.
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֲרַ֨וְנָה֙ אֶל־דָּוִ֔ד יִקַּ֥ח וְיַ֛עַל אֲדֹנִ֥י הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ הַטּ֣וֹב בעינובְּעֵינָ֑יו רְאֵה֙ הַבָּקָ֣ר לָעֹלָ֔ה וְהַמֹּרִגִּ֛ים וּכְלֵ֥י הַבָּקָ֖ר לָעֵצִֽים׃
And Araunah said unto David: ‘Let my lord the king take and offer up what seemeth good unto him; behold the oxen for the burnt-offering, and the threshing-instruments and the furniture of the oxen for the wood.’
By skip range, shuffled texts and book
| Skips, Torah | Found | Chance alone |
|---|---|---|
| 2 to 10 | 80 | 89.1 |
| 11 to 100 | 909 | 890 |
| 101 to 1,000 | 8,931 | 8,874 |
| 1,001 to 5,000 | 39,117 | 38,805 |
| 5,001 to 152,424 | 697,318 | 705,533 |
Shuffled Torahs
The Torah's own count at skips 2 to 1,000 is 9,920. Each family below rebuilt the text 100 times (seed 5787). What each family keeps.
| Control family | Runs at or above 9,920 | Median run | Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Letter shuffle | 23/100 | 9,849 | 9,597 to 10,065 |
| Words within each verse | 33/100 | 9,883 | 9,663 to 10,159 |
Where the sequences start
| Torah | Found | Chance alone |
|---|---|---|
| Genesis | 168,604 | 193,141 |
| Exodus | 164,669 | 157,174 |
| Leviticus | 108,966 | 110,822 |
| Numbers | 172,912 | 157,209 |
| Deuteronomy | 131,204 | 135,846 |
| Tanakh | Found | Chance alone |
|---|---|---|
| Torah | 2,647,283 | 2,547,574 |
| Prophets | 4,531,165 | 4,627,877 |
| Writings | 2,759,211 | 2,828,004 |
Run this search yourself
Change the skips, set שבט beside another word, and run the controls on your own question.
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