The number 40 is a very penitential number in the Bible.
Did you know that the number 40 appears 146 times in Sacred Scripture?
Here are just a few examples of its appearance:
- 40 days of rain during the flood of Noah
- 40 years Moses spent wandering in the desert
* 40 years he was a Shepherd
* 40 years he led Israel
- 40 days the spies searched out the Promised Land
- 40 years of wilderness, wandering in the desert, when Israel was disobedient
- 40 days the prophet Elijah spent in the cave waiting on word from God
- 40 days the prophet Ezekiel laid on his side symbolizing the sins of Israel
- 40 days Jonah preached repentance before God would destroy Nineveh
- 40 days Jesus spent in the wilderness in prayer and fasting tempted by Satan after his Baptism
- 40 days Jesus appeared to his disciples between Easter and the Ascension
WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN THESE 40 DAYS OF LENT?