How Many Times is the Word ציון - Tzion written in the Ta"Nach (Torah Nevi"im Ketuvim)?
For starters, the word ציון is not written at all in the Torah (in the surface-level text).
The word ציון (including Prefix letters) is written in Nevi"im & Ketuvim 161 times.
The word ציון (without any prefix letters) is written in Nevi"im & Ketuvim 108 times.
The word בציון is written in Nevi"im & Ketuvim 28 times.
The word לציון is written in Nevi"im & Ketuvim 13 times.
The word מציון is written in Nevi"im & Ketuvim 7 times.
Lets Go Deeper
Concerning the Total amount of times ציון is written - 161
The number 161 is very significant and should be familiar to those who have a background on Kabbalah, as this is the Gematria (numerical value) of the Milui of the highest level of the Shefa from Hashem that corresponds to Hashem's Name of א-ה-י-ה that is written as אלף-הי-יוד-הי known as שם קס"א - The Name of 161.
Concerning the Total amount of times just the word ציון is written - 108
The number 108 is the Gematria of the word קח, beckoning us to Take! To take what, you may ask? To take the 'חסדי ה. This is a subject all in its own, that will be explained in another place.
The first time the word ציון is written, is in Sam 2. 5:7
וַיִּלְכֹּד דָּוִד אֵת מְצֻדַת צִיּוֹן הִיא עִיר דָּוִד:
"And David conquered the stronghold of Zion which is the city of David."
The different Gematriot (calculations of numerical values) of the words ציון היא עיר דוד , hold many secrets!*
(these secrets will be elaborated in another section).
Concerning the Total amount of times בציון is written - 28
The number 28 is the Gematria of the word כח,which strengthens us!
There is a profound secret that is found in the verse - posuk of Yeshiyahu 28:16.
לָכֵ֗ן כֹּ֚ה אָמַר֙ אֲ-דֹ-נָ֣-י יֱ-הֹ-וִ֔-ה הִנְנִ֛י יִסַּ֥ד בְּצִיּ֖וֹן אָ֑בֶן אֶ֣בֶן בֹּ֜חַן פִּנַּ֚ת יִקְרַת֙ מוּסָ֣ד מוּסָּ֔ד הַמַּֽאֲמִ֖ין לֹ֥א יָחִֽישׁ
"Therefore, so has the L-rd G-d said: "Behold, I have laid as a foundation a stone in Zion, a fortress stone, a costly cornerstone, a foundation well founded; the believer shall not hasten it”
The word יסד is a hint to the sefira of יסוד - Yesod, that is connected to what the aspect of ציון is.*
(these secrets will be elaborated in another section).
Concerning the Total amount of times לציון is written - 7
The number 7 is the Gematria of many important matters and concepts!
Now see the verse - posuk of Yeshiyahu 51:16
.וָֽאָשִׂ֚ים דְּבָרַי֙ בְּפִ֔יךָ וּבְצֵ֥ל יָדִ֖י כִּסִּיתִ֑יךָ לִנְטֹ֚עַ שָׁמַ֙יִם֙ וְלִיסֹ֣ד אָ֔רֶץ וְלֵאמֹ֥ר לְצִיּ֖וֹן עַמִּי־אָֽתָּה:
And I (Hashem) placed My words into your mouth, and with the shadow of My hand I covered you, to plant the heavens and to found the earth and to say to Zion "you are My people.”!
From here you see that we are Tzion!
From the next verses that conclude this chapter, and from the beginning of the chapter that follows, there continues many more secrets.*
(these secrets will be elaborated in another section).
Concerning the Total amount of times מציון is written - 13
The number 13 is the Gematria of the word אחד,which means "One"! It is the unifying factor that Hashem uses to bind the children of Isreal, the holy land of Israel, the Shabbat, and Hashem, into the aspect of complete oneness!
Now see the verse - posuk, the first time it is written, is the famous posuk Yeshiyahu 2:3,
.וְהָֽלְכ֞וּ עַמִּ֣ים רַבִּ֗ים וְאָֽמְרוּ֙ לְכ֣וּ וְנַֽעֲלֶ֣ה אֶל־הַר־יְ-הֹ-וָ֗-ה אֶל־בֵּית֙ אֱ-לֹ-הֵ֣-י יַֽעֲקֹ֔ב וְיֹרֵ֙נוּ֙ מִדְּרָכָ֔יו וְנֵֽלְכָ֖ה בְּאֹֽרְחֹתָ֑יו כִּ֚י מִצִּיּוֹן֙ תֵּצֵ֣א תוֹרָ֔ה וּדְבַר־יְ-הֹ-וָ֖-ה מִירֽוּשָׁלִָֽם
"And many peoples shall go, and they shall say, "Come, let us go up to the L-rd's mount, to the house of the G-d
of Jacob, and let Him teach us of His ways, and we will go in His paths," for out of Zion shall the Torah come forth, and the word of the L-rd from Jerusalem.”
When We Total These Values
When we add all these four values (108 + 28 + 7 + 13) the Total = 156, which is the Gematria of the word ציון itself!
CHECK YOUR MATH!
So far we have calculated the total amount of times the word ציון is written in the Navi'm and Ketuvim as being 156 times, however I originally stated that it i written 161 times. What happened to the other 5 times? How and where are these written? Concerning these, it is written in:
מלכים א ט, כו - Kings. 1. 9:26
וָאֳנִ֡י עָשָׂה֩ הַמֶּ֨לֶךְ שְׁלֹמֹ֜ה בְּעֶצְיֽוֹן־גֶּ֨בֶר אֲשֶׁ֧ר אֶת־אֵל֛וֹת עַל־שְׂפַ֥ת יַם־ס֖וּף בְּאֶ֥רֶץ אֱדֽוֹם
"King Solomon made a ship in Etzion Geber, which is beside Eloth on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom."
מלכים א כב, מט- Kings. 1. 22:49
יְהוֹשָׁפָ֡ט עָשָׂה֩ (כתיב עָשָׂר֩) אֳנִיּ֨וֹת תַּרְשִׁ֜ישׁ לָלֶ֧כֶת אוֹפִ֛ירָה לַזָּהָ֖ב וְלֹ֣א הָלָ֑ךְ כִּֽי־נִשְׁבְּר֥וּ (כתיב נִשְׁבְּרֻ֥ה) אֳנִיּ֖וֹת בְּעֶצְי֥וֹן גָּֽבֶר
"Jehoshaphat made ships of Tarshish to go to Ophir for gold; but he did not go, since the ships were broken at Ezion-Geber."
מלאכים ב כג, יז- Kings.2. 23:17
וַיֹּ֕אמֶר מָה הַצִּיּ֣וּן הַלָּ֔ז אֲשֶׁ֖ר אֲנִ֣י רֹאֶ֑ה וַיֹּאמְר֨וּ אֵלָ֜יו אַנְשֵׁ֣י הָעִ֗יר הַקֶּ֚בֶר אִישׁ־הָֽאֱלֹהִים֙ אֲשֶׁר־בָּ֣א מִֽיהוּדָ֔ה וַיִּקְרָ֗א אֶת־הַדְּבָרִ֚ים הָאֵ֙לֶּה֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר עָשִֹ֔יתָ עַ֖ל הַמִּזְבַּ֥ח בֵּֽית־אֵֽל
"And he said, "What is this marker that I see?" And the people of the city said to him, "The grave of the man of God who came from Judah and called out these things that you did on the altar of Bethel."
זכריה א, יד- Zech. 1:14
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֗י הַמַּלְאָךְ֙ הַדֹּבֵ֣ר בִּ֔י קְרָ֣א לֵאמֹ֔ר כֹּ֥ה אָמַ֖ר יְהֹוָ֣ה צְבָא֑וֹת קִנֵּ֧אתִי לִירֽוּשָׁלִַ֛ם וּלְצִיּ֖וֹן קִנְאָ֥ה גְדוֹלָֽה
"And the angel who was speaking to me said to me, "Proclaim, saying: 'So said the Lord of Hosts, I am jealous for Jerusalem, and for Zion-great jealousy."
תהלים כ, ג- Psalms. 20:3
יִשְׁלַ֣ח עֶזְרְךָ֣ מִקֹּ֑דֶשׁ וּ֜מִצִּיּ֗וֹן יִסְעָדֶֽךָּ
"May He send your aid from His sanctuary, and may He support you from Zion."
Lets add the additional prefixes!
When we add up the additional prefixes of these 5 words [72 + 72 + 5 + 36 + 46 = 231]
The Word ציון -Zion is found in the Bible Code just once with a skip of 156 !
This is a big hint and secret to the 231 Gates plus more!
The Midrash states that at the beginning of creation, “Israel rose in thought.” The name Israel thus alludes to the fact that creation took place through these 231 gates. the 231 gates are hinted at in the name “Israel”. In Hebrew, Israel is spelled ישראל - Yisrael. These letters can also spell out יש-ראל YeSh RLA, which literally means “there are 231,” for the numerical value of the three letters ראל Reish, Lamed, and Aleph equal 231. This figure is formed by drawing a circle and writing the Aleph Bet around the circumference of the circle. If one now joined the Aleph and Gimmel with a line, and then with the Dalet, and so on with all the letters, you would have a total of 231 lines. The 231 lines connecting the 22 letters are called the “231 gates.” This means simply that the gateway of creation is through the combination of letters which represent Divine powers.
This "Higher thought, desire, or will" of Hashem, is termed as רצון העליון - Ratzon Ha'Elyon.
How much do we need to add to make ציון equal to 231 ?
The answer to this question is "The Secret" - הסוד, which is the gematria of 75. This is "The Secret from Har Tzion - Mount. Zion - הסוד מהר ציון ! It is understanding what the secret is, that will allow us to tap into and activate the aspect of the Divine Powers of the 231 Gates!
Now see that the gematria of the words הסוד מהר ציון equal 476 ! Keep This number in mind as you continue reading below!
ציון - Zion is actually found over 20,000 times encoded in the Torah, but only just 1 time with the ELS (Equal Letter Skip) of 156 .
These are the Torah Passages Where ציון - Tzion - Zion is found in the Bible/Torah Codes
ויקרא כו, מג
וְהָאָ֩רֶץ֩ תֵּֽעָזֵ֨ב מֵהֶ֜ם וְתִ֣רֶץ אֶת־שַׁבְּתֹתֶ֗יהָ בָּהְשַׁמָּה֙ מֵהֶ֔ם וְהֵ֖ם יִרְצ֣וּ אֶת־עֲוֹנָ֑ם יַ֣עַן וּבְיַ֔עַן בְּמִשְׁפָּטַ֣י מָאָ֔סוּ וְאֶת־חֻקֹּתַ֖י גָּֽעֲלָ֥ה נַפְשָֽׁם
Lev. 26:43
"[For] the Land will be bereft of them, appeasing its sabbaticals when it had been desolate of them, and they will have been repaid (to gain appeasement) for their iniquity. This was all in retribution for their having despised My ordinances and in retribution for their having rejected My statutes."
ויקרא כו, מה
וְזָֽכַרְתִּ֥י לָהֶ֖ם בְּרִ֣ית רִֽאשֹׁנִ֑ים אֲשֶׁ֣ר הוֹצֵֽאתִי־אֹתָם֩ מֵאֶ֨רֶץ מִצְרַ֜יִם לְעֵינֵ֣י הַגּוֹיִ֗ם לִֽהְי֥וֹת לָהֶ֛ם לֵֽאלֹהִ֖ים אֲנִ֥י יְהֹוָֽה
"I will remember for them the covenant [made with] the ancestors, whom I took out from the land of Egypt before the eyes of the nations, to be a God to them. I am the Lord."
ויקרא כז, ג
ְוהָיָ֤ה עֶרְכְּךָ֙ הַזָּכָ֔ר מִבֶּן֙ עֶשְׂרִ֣ים שָׁנָ֔ה וְעַ֖ד בֶּן־שִׁשִּׁ֣ים שָׁנָ֑ה וְהָיָ֣ה עֶרְכְּךָ֗ חֲמִשִּׁ֛ים שֶׁ֥קֶל כֶּ֖סֶף בְּשֶׁ֥קֶל הַקֹּֽדֶשׁ
"And it was - the [fixed] value of a male shall be as follows: From twenty years old until sixty years old, the value is fifty silver shekels, according to the holy shekel".
ויקרא כז, ו
ְוְאִ֣ם מִבֶּן־חֹ֗דֶשׁ וְעַד֙ בֶּן־חָמֵ֣שׁ שָׁנִ֔ים וְהָיָ֤ה עֶרְכְּךָ֙ הַזָּכָ֔ר חֲמִשָּׁ֥ה שְׁקָלִ֖ים כָּ֑סֶף וְלַנְּקֵבָ֣ה עֶרְכְּךָ֔ שְׁל֥שֶׁת שְׁקָלִ֖ים כָּֽסֶף
"And if [the person is] from (the age of) one month old until five years old, the value of a male shall be five silver shekels, while the value of a female shall be three silver shekels".
Lets Focus on the words that God Chose!
God chose the 4 Hebrew words -יִרְצ֣וּ לְעֵינֵ֣י וְהָיָ֤ה מבֶּן
The Gematria (numerical value of theses words in total equal 594. This is the same as the word צִדְקַ֤ת
This word is found in the verse - posuk of Devorim -Deut.33: 21,
וַיַּ֤רְא רֵאשִׁית֙ ל֔וֹ כִּי־שָׁ֛ם חֶלְקַ֥ת מְחֹקֵ֖ק סָפ֑וּן וַיֵּ֨תֵא֙ רָ֣אשֵׁי עָ֔ם צִדְקַ֤ת יְהֹוָה֙ עָשָׂ֔ה וּמִשְׁפָּטָ֖יו עִם־יִשְׂרָאֵֽל
:
"He saw the first portion for himself, because there, the portion of the lawgiver is hidden. And he came at the head of the people; he did what is righteous for the Lord, and what is lawful with Israel."
This is a directive for all of us! We need to also do what is righteous in the 'eyes' of Hashem! This word צִדְקַ֤ת is also connected to the root of the words - צדקה - Charity and צדיק - a Righteous person .
This gematria 594 is also the same as the key word that signaled/signals that the time of the redemption has come, the word פָּקַ֨דְתִּי֙, as written in Ex. 3:16
לֵ֣ךְ וְאָֽסַפְתָּ֞ אֶת־זִקְנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל וְאָֽמַרְתָּ֤ אֲלֵהֶם֙ יְהֹוָ֞ה אֱלֹהֵ֤י אֲבֹֽתֵיכֶם֙ נִרְאָ֣ה אֵלַ֔י אֱלֹהֵ֧י אַבְרָהָ֛ם יִצְחָ֥ק וְיַֽעֲקֹ֖ב לֵאמֹ֑ר פָּקֹ֤ד פָּקַ֨דְתִּי֙ אֶתְכֶ֔ם וְאֶת־הֶֽעָשׂ֥וּי לָכֶ֖ם בְּמִצְרָֽיִם
"Go and assemble the elders of Israel, and say to them, 'The Lord God of your forefathers has appeared to me, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, "I have surely remembered you and what is being done to you in Egypt."
Now see the first 2 Hebrew words -יִרְצ֣וּ לְעֵינֵ֣י
The gematria of these 2 Hebrew words equals 476! This is the same gematria of the words (as mentioned above) הסוד מהר ציון (More about this Secret will be explained later).
The words בדעת,-"in/with knowledge" and בחכמתו -"in his wisdom", each also have the gematria of 476.
These 2 words allude to the 2 Sefirot חכמה- "Wisdom" and דעת- "Knowledge".
This is also the same gematria as the word מֽוֹשִׁיעִ֔ים, "the saviors", (spelled with the letter י yud, as written in Nech. 9:27.
וְאַתָּה֙ מִשָּׁמַ֣יִם תִּשְׁמָ֔ע וּכְרַֽחֲמֶ֣יךָ הָֽרַבִּ֔ים תִּתֵּ֚ן לָהֶם֙ מֽוֹשִׁיעִ֔ים וְיֽוֹשִׁיע֖וּם מִיַּ֥ד צָרֵיהֶֽם
“And You heard from heaven, and according to Your abundant mercies, you gave them saviors, who saved them from the hands of their adversaries."
This same word is also written in Ovadya 1:21.
וְעָל֚וּ מֽוֹשִׁעִים֙ בְּהַ֣ר צִיּ֔וֹן לִשְׁפֹּ֖ט אֶת־הַ֣ר עֵשָׂ֑ו וְהָֽיְתָ֥ה לַֽיהֹוָ֖ה הַמְּלוּכָֽה
“And saviors shall ascend Mt. Zion to judge the mountain of Esau, and the Lord shall have the kingdom.”
Now see the last 2 Hebrew words -וְהָיָ֤ה מִבֶּן
The gematria of these 2 Hebrew words equals 118. This is the same gematria as the word יֻקַּח "please take", as written in Gen. 18:4
יֻקַּח־נָ֣א מְעַט־מַ֔יִם וְרַֽחֲצ֖וּ רַגְלֵיכֶ֑ם וְהִשָּֽׁעֲנ֖וּ תַּ֥חַת הָעֵֽץ:
"Please take a little water, and bathe your feet, and recline under the tree." (Many are the secrets contained in this verse that will be explained and elborated on later!)
This word יֻקַּח and the 2 words וְהָיָ֤ה מִבֶּן with the same total gematria of 118, is a hint to Tehilim/Psalms chapter/perek 118/קיח which begins and ends with the famous words: הוֹד֣וּ לַֽיהֹוָ֣ה כִּי־ט֑וֹב כִּ֖י לְעוֹלָ֣ם חַסְדּֽוֹ
"Give thanks to the Lord because He is good, for His kindness is eternal" (Many are the secrets contained in this verse that will be explained and elborated on later!).
The first word of this verse הוֹד֣וּ, is a hint to the 2 Sefirot הוד - "Hod" and כתר - "Keter" (the gematria of the word הוֹד֣וּ is 21, which is the same as the Name of God אהיה, as related to the Sefira of כתר).
The gematria Atbash of these 2 words וְהָיָ֤ה מִבֶּן is 619, with the kolel it is 620 the gematria of כתר (a further hint to the connection to this Sefira).