THE WONDERFUL NUMBERER

This is a little jewel. You will hardly find this mentioned anywhere, aside from a single phrase in the

margin of the KJV Bible. For over thirty years, the only source of information the present author has ever

found for this is a brief statement in F.C. Gilbert's book, Practical Lessons for the Church of Today, pp.

606-608, published by the Review in 1902. Elder Gilbert was a converted Jew and knew Hebrew very well.

Here is his entire comment. You will value this:

The F.C. Gilbert statement-"From the text of Daniel 8:13, it appears that there were three persons

connected with that vision. As to who these three persons were, the margin of the verse makes it a little

more clear. We can receive still further clearness from a more literal translation of the text. Here is a literal

translation of the first part of the thirteenth verse:

"And I heard a holy one speaking, and a holy one said to Palmoni, who was the speaker, How long

shall be the vision,' etc.

"In the margin of the text where the words, 'that certain saint which spake' are found, these words are

written: 'The numberer of secrets, or the wonderful numberer' (Hebrew: Palmoni).

"We find then in verse 13: the speaker, called the wonderful numberer; the holy one, and Daniel. These

were the three persons in the vision. Now the more literal translation of the text makes plain that the

speaker was the one called Palmoni; for the Hebrew reads as follows: La-pal-moni, Ham-da-bar unto

Palmoni, the speaker.

"The Hebrew word, Palmoni, is a contracted word. It contains the elements of two Hebrew words. One

is, Pele, and the other is Ma-na. The Hebrew word, Pele, means wonderful. See Isaiah 9:6. The word,

Mana, means numbered. See Daniel 5:25-26. So this contracted Hebrew word, Palmoni, literally means

wonderful numberer. This Wonderful Numberer is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. See Isaiah 9:6.

"So one person in the vision, recorded in Daniel 8:13, was the Lord Jesus; the second person,

represented by the holy one, was the angel Gabriel. See Daniel 8:16, and compare with Luke 1:19. The

third person was Daniel, the prophet. There was something about this vision which Daniel could not

understand. So the angel Gabriel asked the Lord Jesus a question for the benefit of Daniel, that the desire of

Daniel might be made clear. Instead of the Lord Jesus turning to the angel Gabriel and giving him the

answer, the prophet Daniel says that the speaker turned to him, to Daniel, and gave the answer direct to

him. Here is what the prophet says:

" 'And He [that is, Palmoni, the Wonderful Numberer, Christ] said to me,' etc. Daniel 8:14.

"So Christ turned His attention directly to the prophet, and gave the answer to him personally."-F.C.

Gilbert, Practical Lessons for the Church of Today, pp. 606-608,

This is a most thrilling discovery. Here are key points to remember:

• So urgent that Christ gave it-The great truth about the 2300 days was so crucially important that

Christ Himself told it to Daniel. We know of no other time in the book of Daniel that Christ appeared and

spoke to the prophet (with the exception of 12:7-13).

• The Master Counter of numbers presents the longest time span-Christ is here called by the

unique name, "The Wonderful Numberer." Why this strange name? obviously, to call attention to the fact

that the 2300-day prophecy was of the highest importance. Only Christ Himself could present it. He alone,

the Master of all numbers, able to count the stars, was able to provide Daniel with a time span that was

greater than a third of the total time that mankind has been in this world of sin!

• An extremely important question-Daniel, in his perplexity, didn't know what to ask. Because

Daniel might not have asked it, Gabriel asked the question Daniel was thinking. He did this because the

answer was so important. The visitors from heaven did not dare wait for Daniel to think of the question; it

had to be asked for him.

• An answer so important it was given directly to Daniel-Although he had not asked the question,

Christ turned directly to Daniel and gave him the answer, He did it to imprint this keystone time span on

Daniel's mind. It would also arouse the prophet to search the Scriptures and pray for further guidance; later,

in Daniel 9, Gabriel returned and gave the prophet the starting date for this remarkable time span.

The central point of the book-How wonderful is this new insight! What a glorious, pivotal truth is the

2300-day prophecy! Bible scholars tell us it is the central point in the book of Daniel. Resulting from

careful examination of the passage, our denomination arose with a last-day message to the world:

Obedience to the law of God by enabling faith in Jesus Christ is necessary; for the investigative judgment is

soon to close and human probation will forever end.

Thank God for all His precious gifts to us. Let us not lose one of them! Do not let the critics steal any

of them from your heart.

Some critics declare that Daniel 8:14 is meaningless; others say it applies to a third-rate Syrian king.

But that passage was so important that none other than Michael our Prince gave it to us!

Vance Ferrell (A Biblical Defense Defending our Historic Beliefs about the Sanctuary in Daniel and Hebrews)