9228. The fact that 'seven' means a whole period from start to finish, thus what is complete, is clear from a large number of places in the Word, as in Isaiah,
The light of the moon will be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, on the day when Jehovah will bind up the hurt* of His people. Isa. 30:26.
This refers to the salvation of faithful believers and their intelligence and wisdom in the Lord's kingdom. 'The moon' is faith received from the Lord, thus belief in the Lord, and 'the sun' is love derived from the Lord, thus love to the Lord, 30-38, 1521, 1529-1531, 2441, 2495, 3636, 3643, 4060, 4321 (end), 4696, 5377, 7078, 7083, 7171, 8644. 'The light of the sun will be sevenfold, as the light of seven days' means a complete state of intelligence and wisdom because of love to and belief in the Lord.
[2] In Ezekiel,
The inhabitants of the cities of Israel will go out, and they will set alight and burn the weapons, both shield and buckler, together with bow and arrows, and hand-staff, and spear; they will set fire to them for seven years, that they may not bring wood from the field nor cut down any from the forests. And they will cleanse the land in seven months. Ezek. 39:9, 10, 12.
This refers to the destruction of falsity. 'The weapons' that are listed here are falsities used by those who are evil to fight against the Church's truths. 'Setting fire to them for seven years' means complete destruction brought about by the desires of self-love and love of the world. 'In order that they may bring no wood from the field or cut down any from the forests' means when no good at all survives, neither in the internal man nor in the external. 'Cleansing the land in seven months' means the complete restoration of goodness and truth within the Church. It has been shown in very many places that 'weapons' are truths fighting against falsities, and in the contrary sense falsities fighting against truths; that 'bow and arrows' means teachings that present truth, and in the contrary sense teachings that present falsity; that 'hand-staff' means the power of truth, and in the contrary sense the power of falsity; that 'setting alight and burning' means laying waste through the desires of self-love and love of the world; that 'wood from the field' means the Church's forms of interior good, and 'wood from the forests' factual knowledge of goodness and truth; and that 'the land' means the Church. Anyone can see that different things are meant here from those which present themselves in the letter, as when it says that they will burn the weapons, and set them alight for seven years, in order that they may bring no wood from the field or cut down any from the forests. People do indeed know that things of a holy and Divine nature are meant, because the Word is holy and comes from God. But they cannot by any means know which things of a holy and Divine nature are contained in these words unless they know what the meaning is of 'weapons', 'seven years' and 'seven months', 'wood from the field' and 'wood from the forests'. From this it is evident that without knowledge gained from the internal sense those prophetic utterances are completely unintelligible.
[3] In David,
Seven times in the day I praise You over the judgements of Your righteousness. Ps. 119:164.
In the same author,
Repay [our] neighbours sevenfold into their bosom. Ps. 79:12.
'Sevenfold' means completely. The meaning is similar in Moses, where it says that they would be punished sevenfold if they went against commandments and statutes, Lev. 26:18, 21, 24, 28. Anyone who does not know that 'seven' means a whole period from start to finish, and therefore what is complete, will suppose that 'seven weeks' in Daniel means seven lengths of time,
Know and perceive that from the going forth of the Word to restore and to build Jerusalem until the Messiah, the Prince, there will be seven weeks. Dan. 9:25.
But 'seven weeks until the Messiah, the Prince' means what is said of the Lord, namely that He will come in the fullness of time, so that 'seven weeks' means a whole period. From this it is evident that the seven spirits before God's throne, Rev. 1:4, the book sealed with seven seals, Rev. 5:1, and the seven angels holding 'the seven bowls, which are the seven last plagues, Rev. 15:1, 6, 7: 21:9, do not mean seven spirits, seven seals, or seven angels, bowls, and plagues, but all things even to completeness. The statement in 1 Sam. 2:5 that the barren has borne seven in like manner does not mean seven but a great amount, even to a complete amount.
[4] Because 'seven' had this meaning it was stipulated that a priest at his initiation should wear the garments for seven days, Exod. 29:30; that his hands should be filled for seven days,** Exod. 29:35; that the altar should be sanctified for seven days, Exod. 29:37; and that those initiated into the priesthood should not depart from the tent [of meeting] for seven days, Lev. 8:33, 34. So too with the reference to the unclean spirit going out of a person and returning with seven others, Matt. 12:43-45; Luke 11:26; also where it says that if a brother sins seven times in a day and is seven times converted he is to be forgiven, Luke 17:4; and that the heart of Nebuchadnezzar was changed from [that of] a human being and the heart of a beast was given to him while seven times passed by, Dan. 4:15, 25, 32. For the same reasons also Job's friends sat down with him on the earth seven days and seven nights and spoke nothing to him, Job 2:13. Seventy in a similar way means that which is complete, see 6508, as also does a week, 2044, 3845. From all this it now becomes clear that 'the eighth day' means the initial phase of the following state. * lit. break ** i.e. his consecration should continue for seven days