|
The numeral
seven has multiple associations in biblical and talmudic literature, and in
Jewish culture in general. The Hebrew rootword for seven,  (sh-v-�a),
works its way into countless familiar Hebrew expressions and terminologies.
* At the Jewish wedding ceremony
(sheva berakhot), seven blessings, are recited under the
marriage canopy, and repeated for seven evenings;[1]
 *
The Talmud refers to the seven commandments which comprise the universal
moral code as
(sheva mizvot bnei noah), the seven
commandments of the sons of Noah;[2]*
The Talmud refers to the seven commandments which comprise the universal
moral code as
(sheva mizvot bnei noah), the seven
commandments of the sons of Noah;[2]
* The prayer recited
Friday evenings in the synagogue which includes the seven principal blessings
found in the lengthier weekday Amidah prayer is known as
(mei'in sheva);[3]
* The seven species
of produce with which the Land of Israel are blessed are known as (shivat
ha-minim).[4]
 *
The seventh sabbatical
year, during which the land must lie fallow and at the end of which
all debts are remitted, in known both as shemittah and as
(shenat ha-sheva), the seventh year.[5]
Jewish tradition calls
for a seven-day mourning period beginning immediately after the funeral.
This period is known a (shiv'a),
literally seven. We say that a mourner  (yashav
shiv'a), he sat [at home mourning] for seven days; the popular English
usage, "he sat shiva", is based on the Yiddish. According to Jewish
religious law, one observes shiv'a for only (shivat
kerovim), seven relatives: spouse, father, mother, sister, brother,
son and daughter.[6]
The expression
(shiv'a medorei geihinom) refers to the seven stages of hell through
which (according to legend) sinners must pass, suffering a different punishment
in each.[7]
In describing the intense hardship or many troubles someone has been suffering,
one might say in Hebrew that that person has been through (shiv'a
medorei geihinom), the seven stages of hell.
In many Hebrew expressions,
"seven" is used in exaggeration:
 (al
ta'amen bo, ki sheva to'eivot b'libo), "Do not trust [an enemy],
for seven abominations are in his mind"[8];
or,  (Be'sheva
aynayim tabit, v'titbonen el kol ha'nasah bah), "With seven eyes,
look and observe all that is being done..."[9]
|
|
|
|
(shiv'a devarim b'golem, v'shiv'a be-haham), Seven things characterize
a boorish man and seven a wise man..."
(shiv'a devarim mekhusim mi'bnei adam), Seven things are hidden from
man..."
(shiv'a
shemot yesh lo la'yezer hara), The evil inclination has seven names..."
(hu kotev "noah" b'sheva she'giot), He writes the word "Noah"
with seven errors, is a humorous description of a person whose writing is
filled with the grossest of errors.
