Lexical Summary
esrim: twenty, twentieth, 20
Original Word:עֶשְׂרִים
Part of Speech:Noun
Transliteration:`esriym
Pronunciation:eh-sreem
Phonetic Spelling:(es-reem')
KJV: (six-)score, twenty(-ieth)
NASB:twenty, twentieth, 20
Word Origin:[fromH6235 (עֶשֶׂר עֲשָׂרָה - ten)]
1. twenty
2. (ordinal) twentieth
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
twenty, twentyieth
Fromeser; twenty; also (ordinal) twentieth -- (six-)score, twenty(-ieth).
see HEBREWeser
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originfrom the same as
eserDefinitiontwenty
NASB Translation1,222* (1), 120* (4), 120,000* (5), 122* (2), 123* (2), 127* (3), 128* (4), 2,322* (1), 20 (2), 20,000* (9), 20,200* (1), 20,800* (1), 22,000* (7), 22,034* (1), 22,200* (1), 22,273* (1), 22,600* (1), 220* (2), 223* (2), 23,000* (1), 24* (1), 24,000* (15), 25,000* (16), 25,100* (1), 26,000* (2), 27,000* (1), 28* (1), 28,600* (1), 29* (2), 3,023* (1), 320* (2), 323* (1), 324* (1), 328* (1), 6,720* (2), 621* (2), 623* (1), 628* (1), 721* (1), 725* (1), 822* (1), 928* (1), twentieth (9), twenty (111), twenty-eight* (4), twenty-fifth* (3), twenty-first* (4), twenty-five* (22), twenty-four* (3), twenty-fourth* (9), twenty-nine* (6), twenty-one* (4), twenty-second* (2), twenty-seven* (1), twenty-seventh* (6), twenty-sixth* (1), twenty-third* (7), twenty-three* (6), twenty-two* (9).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
315 (a) (ancient plural of Prä
BAS i. 376; Late Hebrew = Biblical Hebrew; Arabic
; Assyrian
ešrâ; Sabean Hom
Chrest. 48; Ethiopic
Aramaic ,
; Nabataean ); —
as cardinal: without other number:
usually followed by singular noun (especially , , , etc.)Genesis 31:38;1 Samuel 14:14;Exodus 38:18 64t., + 20,0001 Chronicles 18:4 7t. +Ezekiel 45:1 (reading , see ).
followed by plural noun2 Samuel 3:20;Exodus 36:23,24,25 4t.
followed by singular noun collective1 Kings 5:3.
plural noun precedesGenesis 32:15 (twice in verse);Genesis 32:16; 2Chronicles 3:3 6t.
noun omittedGenesis 18:31 (twice in verse) (),1 Kings 6:2 6t., as predicateExodus 27:10 (twice in verse);Exodus 27:11 (twice in verse) + 4 t.
+Zechariah 5:12.
+ other number:
with units, usually 20 + (with ) unit + singular nounJudges 10:2,3;1 Kings 14:20 58t. (including 20 1* 1000, etc., 27 t.); noun omittedJoshua 15:32 2t. predicate; less often unit + 20 #NAME?Genesis 11:24;Exodus 38:24;Numbers 8:24 (all P) + 27 t.; unit + 20 +Ezekiel 40:21;Exodus 26:2;Exodus 36:9 (both P).
20#NAME?Numbers 7:8 (twice in verse) (P),1 Chronicles 2:22 3t. Chronicles
plural noun + 20 #NAME?Joshua 19:30 (twice in verse);1 Chronicles 12:29 (van d. H. v.1 Chronicles 12:28).
c. hundreds, 20 usually following; followed by singular noun1 Kings 9:14;Genesis 6:3;Deuteronomy 31:2 7t.; noun omitted 2 Chronicles 3:4;Ezra 2:32 =Nehemiah 7:35; 20100(noun omitted)Numbers 7:86.
plural noun + 100 201 Chronicles 15:5,6; — compare further .
as ordinal:
20alone,in the twentieth year1 Kings 15:9 4t.; noun omittedNumbers 10:11 3t.
20#NAME?Ezekiel 29:17;Ezekiel 40:1.
ns. + 20 #NAME?Haggai 1:15; 2Chronicles 7:10 +; ns. + unit + 20Exodus 12:8; 20#NAME?1 Kings 16:10, etc. — See references below .
Topical Lexicon
OverviewThe term עֶשְׂרִים (ʿeśrîm, “twenty”) functions throughout the Hebrew Scriptures as an ordinal or cardinal marker, but its frequent placement in covenantal, military, architectural, and narrative settings gives it theological and practical weight that surpasses mere enumeration. Approximately three hundred fifteen occurrences span Torah, Prophets, and Writings, weaving the idea of reaching fullness, maturity, and measured expectation into the canonical storyline.
Twenty as the Age of Covenant Accountability
• Military census: “From twenty years old and up, all who can serve in Israel’s army” (Numbers 1:3). The Lord’s command establishes twenty as the threshold of adult responsibility for national defense, repeated in the wilderness censuses (Numbers 1–4; 26).
• Participation in festival offerings: “Everyone twenty years of age or older is to give an offering to the LORD” (Exodus 30:14). The half-shekel atonement money signaled personal identification with the covenant community.
• Accountability in the wilderness judgment: those numbered “twenty years old or more” perished because of unbelief (Numbers 14:29), underscoring that twenty marks the line where moral culpability attaches to national rebellion.
Twenty and Levitical Service
• Initial service age: prior to the exile, Levites commenced tabernacle duties at thirty (Numbers 4:3). In David’s reforms this shifted: “From the age of twenty years and upward, according to their duties in their divisions” (1 Chronicles 23:24–27). Opening the sacred workforce at twenty parallels the military muster and illustrates a broadened stewardship for younger adults when the kingdom matured.
• Post-exilic practice:Ezra 3:8 mirrors David’s precedent, setting the temple-building workforce “from twenty years old and above,” testifying to continuity of worship norms after captivity.
Twenty in Sanctuary Contributions and Redemption Values
• Monetary equivalents: one gerah equals a twentieth of a shekel (Exodus 30:13), fixing twenty as a subdivision in the weights-and-measures system.
• Votive valuations:Leviticus 27:5 assigns different redemption prices for persons “from five to twenty years,” revealing graded worth intended to equalize worship participation among socioeconomic classes.
Twenty in Architectural Dimensions of Sacred Space
• Tabernacle and Temple measures:
– Holy Place length and width—twenty cubits (Exodus 26:16-23).
– Solomon’s Temple: “The nave in front of the inner sanctuary was twenty cubits long” (1 Kings 6:17).
– Porch and storerooms often repeat the twenty-cubit span (Ezekiel 41:2; 41:4; 41:13).
This symmetry conveys structural completeness while accommodating the ark, lampstands, and priestly ministry.
Twenty in Patriarchal and Historical Timelines
• Jacob’s labor: “For twenty years I have been in your household… your ewes and female goats have not miscarried” (Genesis 31:38-41). The double decade frames both trial and prosperity, resolved by divine intervention.
• Samson’s judgeship: “He judged Israel twenty years” (Judges 15:20; 16:31), depicting a period of deliverance ended by personal compromise.
• Oppression cycles: Jabin’s iron chariots oppressed Israel “forcefully for twenty years” (Judges 4:3), highlighting the Lord’s patience before raising Deborah and Barak.
• Inter-tribal silence: the ark remained at Kiriath-jearim “for twenty years, and all the house of Israel lamented after the LORD” (1 Samuel 7:2), revealing a divinely timed season of repentance preceding Samuel’s revival.
Twenty in Monetary Transactions
• Joseph sold for “twenty shekels of silver” (Genesis 37:28); later redemption imagery inZechariah 11 and the Gospels is heightened by this earlier benchmark.
• Hiram’s payment: Solomon gives “twenty towns in Galilee” (1 Kings 9:11), showing twenty as a block measurement in diplomatic exchange.
• Ezekiel’s prophetic sign-act counts twenty shekels of bread (Ezekiel 4:10), emphasizing scarcity under judgment.
Twenty in Prophetic and Poetic Literature
•Isaiah 7:8 counts “within sixty-five years,” mathematically three sets of twenty-plus, underlining assured but delayed judgment.
•Amos 5:3 uses a remnant ratio: “A city that marches out a thousand will have a hundred left, and one that marches out a hundred will have ten left,” each step shrinking by a factor of ten until only twenty remain out of two hundred, spotlighting covenant curses.
Theological Reflections
1. Maturity with dependence: Twenty marks capability for warfare and worship yet still requires divine leadership (Numbers 1;Exodus 30).
2. Completeness with expectation: Two tens indicate a fullness that anticipates further advance—whether moving from wilderness to Canaan or from temple blueprint to glory.
3. Judgment tempered by mercy: Twenty-year spans often bracket discipline followed by deliverance, illustrating the Lord’s longsuffering (Judges 4:3;1 Samuel 7:2).
4. Pattern of doubled witness: Repetition of twenty across legal, liturgical, and narrative domains confirms the harmony of God’s revelation.
Ministry Application
• Discipleship: Just as twenty signaled readiness for active service, churches can view late adolescence and early adulthood as a strategic window for mobilizing believers into ministry, missions, and leadership training.
• Stewardship: The half-shekel ordinance teaches proportional giving and collective responsibility; modern congregations may draw principles for equitable financial participation.
• Spiritual architecture: The twenty-cubit dimensions embody order and beauty; local assemblies should likewise design worship spaces and liturgies that reflect divine symmetry and holiness.
• Patient leadership: Many biblical “twenty-year” waits encourage pastors and parents to trust God’s timing in cycles of discipline and restoration.
In Scripture, עֶשְׂרִים is far more than a numeral; it is a thread tying together maturity, measurement, and mercy, inviting God’s people to count their days wisely (Psalm 90:12) and to serve with the readiness that twenty symbolizes.
Forms and Transliterations
בְּעֶשְׂרִ֣ים בְּעֶשְׂרִ֤ים בְּעֶשְׂרִ֥ים בְּעֶשְׂרִ֧ים בעשרים הָֽעֶשְׂרִ֗ים הָֽעֶשְׂרִֽים׃ הָעֶשְׂרִֽים׃ העשרים העשרים׃ וְעֶשְׂרִ֑ים וְעֶשְׂרִ֔ים וְעֶשְׂרִ֖ים וְעֶשְׂרִ֛ים וְעֶשְׂרִ֣ים וְעֶשְׂרִ֣ים ׀ וְעֶשְׂרִ֤ים וְעֶשְׂרִ֥ים וְעֶשְׂרִ֧ים וְעֶשְׂרִ֨ים וְעֶשְׂרִֽים׃ וְעֶשְׂרִים֙ וְעֶשְׂרִים֮ ועשרים ועשרים׃ כְּעֶשְׂרִ֣ים כְּעֶשְׂרִ֥ים כעשרים לְעֶשְׂרִים֙ לעשרים עֶשְׂרִ֑ים עֶשְׂרִ֔ים עֶשְׂרִ֖ים עֶשְׂרִ֗ים עֶשְׂרִ֛ים עֶשְׂרִ֣ים עֶשְׂרִ֤ים עֶשְׂרִ֥ים עֶשְׂרִ֧ים עֶשְׂרִ֨ים עֶשְׂרִֽים־ עֶשְׂרִֽים׃ עֶשְׂרִים֙ עֶשְׂרִים֩ עשרים עשרים־ עשרים׃ ‘eś·rîm ‘eś·rîm- ‘eśrîm ‘eśrîm- bə‘eśrîm bə·‘eś·rîm beesRim esRim hā‘eśrîm hā·‘eś·rîm HaesRim kə‘eśrîm kə·‘eś·rîm keesRim lə‘eśrîm lə·‘eś·rîm leesRim veesRim wə‘eśrîm wə·‘eś·rîm
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