Places, symbols & numbers
The Bible speaks in places you can find on a map, images you can picture, and numbers that recur with meaning. Here is a plain guide to the key ones — where they are, what they mean, and the Scripture that gives them weight.
81 entries · each with its Scripture · King James Version
Places of the Bible
From Eden to Patmos — the towns, rivers, and mountains where the story of Scripture unfolded.
Antioch
Where believers were first called Christians
The launchpad of the early missionary church.
Babylon
The city of exile and worldly pride
The empire that carried Israel into exile — and the Bible's symbol of a world set against God.
Bethany
The village of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus
The home where Jesus was welcomed, and where he raised the dead.
Bethel
House of God
Where Jacob dreamed of a ladder to heaven and met God.
Bethlehem
The city of David, birthplace of Jesus
A small town whose name means house of bread — where the Bread of Life was born.
Canaan
The promised land
The land flowing with milk and honey, promised to Abraham's offspring.
Capernaum
Jesus' base of ministry in Galilee
The lakeside town Jesus made his own city.
Corinth
A bustling city and church to which Paul wrote
The wayward church that received the great chapter on love.
Damascus
The city near which Saul met the risen Christ
The road where a persecutor became an apostle.
Egypt
The land of slavery and deliverance
The house of bondage from which God delivered his people — the great picture of salvation.
Ephesus
A major city and influential early church
The thriving church warned not to lose its first love.
Galilee
The northern region of Jesus' ministry
The lakeside country where Jesus called his disciples and did most of his work.
Gethsemane
The garden of Jesus' agony
The olive garden where Jesus prayed, not my will, but thine, be done.
Golgotha (Calvary)
The place of the skull, where Jesus was crucified
The hill outside Jerusalem where the cross stood.
Hebron
The city of the patriarchs and David's first capital
Where Abraham settled and David first reigned.
Jericho
The city whose walls fell down
The fortress city taken not by siege but by trumpets and faith.
Jerusalem
The holy city, city of the great King
The city at the centre of the Bible's story — of David, the temple, the cross, and the new creation.
Mount Ararat
Where Noah's ark came to rest after the flood
The mountains where the ark rested and the world began again.
Mount Carmel
Where Elijah faced the prophets of Baal
The mountain where fire fell from heaven and Israel turned back to God.
Mount Moriah
Where Abraham offered Isaac, later the temple mount
The mountain of Abraham's test — and God's provision.
Mount Nebo
Where Moses saw the promised land before he died
The peak from which Moses glimpsed the land he could not enter.
Mount Sinai
The mountain of the Law
Where God descended in fire and gave Israel the Ten Commandments.
Nazareth
The hometown of Jesus in Galilee
The obscure village where Jesus grew up — can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?
Nineveh
The great enemy city that repented at Jonah's preaching
The city whose repentance revealed the wideness of God's mercy.
Patmos
The island of Revelation
Where the exiled apostle John saw the unveiling of Jesus Christ.
Samaria
The region between Judea and Galilee, home of the Samaritans
The place Jesus 'must needs' pass through — crossing every barrier.
Shiloh
Israel's early worship centre, where Samuel heard God
Where the tabernacle stood and God called the boy Samuel.
The Euphrates
One of the great rivers flowing from Eden
A river of Eden and a boundary of the promised land.
The Garden of Eden
The paradise of the beginning
The garden of delight where humanity walked with God — and the paradise lost.
The Jordan River
The river of crossing and baptism
Where Israel entered the promised land and where Jesus was baptized.
The Mount of Olives
The ridge east of Jerusalem
Where Jesus wept over the city, taught of the end, and ascended to heaven.
The Pool of Bethesda
Where Jesus healed a man who had waited 38 years
The pool where Jesus healed a long-suffering man with a word.
The Red Sea
Where God parted the waters to save Israel
The sea God split so his trapped people could cross on dry ground.
The Tabernacle
The portable tent of worship in the wilderness
The tent where God dwelt among his travelling people.
The Temple
The house of God in Jerusalem, centre of Israel's worship
The dwelling place of God's name — pointing to a greater temple.
The Upper Room
Where the Last Supper was shared and the Spirit came
The room of the Last Supper and the birth of the church.
The Wilderness
The desert of testing and dependence
Where God shaped his people, provided daily bread, and met them face to face.
Zion
The mountain of God, the city of God
The hill of Jerusalem that became a name for the whole dwelling place of God.
Symbols of the Bible
The rainbow, the lamb, the vine, living water — the images Scripture uses to reveal God.
Blood
Life poured out, and atonement
Without the shedding of blood is no remission — the cost of forgiveness.
Bread
God's provision and Christ himself
Daily bread, the bread of the Presence, and the Bread of Life.
Fire
God's presence, purity, and refining
The burning bush, the pillar of fire, and the refiner's flame.
Incense
A picture of prayer rising to God
Prayer rising like fragrant smoke before God's throne.
Light
God's presence, truth, and holiness
The first thing God made, and the name Jesus gave himself.
Oil
Anointing, the Spirit, and gladness
The oil that set apart kings and priests, and pictures the Holy Spirit.
Salt
Preservation, flavour, and covenant
Ye are the salt of the earth — the quiet, preserving influence of God's people.
The Altar
The place of sacrifice and worship
Where sacrifice was offered — pointing to the cross.
The Anchor
A picture of steadfast hope
Hope as an anchor of the soul, sure and steadfast.
The Ark of the Covenant
The gold chest that marked God's presence
The holy chest where God met his people.
The Cornerstone
Christ as the foundation that holds everything together
The stone the builders rejected, made the head of the corner.
The Cross
The instrument of death that became the sign of salvation
A symbol of shame turned into the emblem of the world's hope.
The Crown
Royalty, reward, and victory
The crown of thorns and the crown of life — shame exchanged for glory.
The Dove
The Holy Spirit, peace, and new beginnings
The bird that carried the olive leaf, and that descended on Jesus at his baptism.
The Fig Tree
A symbol of Israel, peace, and fruitfulness
Sitting under one's own fig tree — a picture of peace.
The Lamb
The sacrifice that takes away sin
From the Passover to the cross to the throne — the Bible's picture of Christ.
The Lion
Strength, royalty, and the King who conquers
The Lion of the tribe of Judah — and a picture of both Christ and his enemy.
The Manger
The humble feeding-trough where Jesus was laid
A feeding-trough cradle — God entering the world in humility.
The Mustard Seed
Small beginnings with great results
The tiny seed that pictures faith and the kingdom's growth.
The Narrow Gate
The demanding but life-giving way of Christ
The strait gate and narrow way that leads to life.
The Olive Branch
Peace and the renewed earth
The leaf the dove carried back — a sign the storm was over.
The Rainbow
The sign of God's covenant of mercy
The bow God set in the clouds as a promise never again to flood the earth.
The Rock
God's strength, refuge, and faithfulness
A firm foundation in a shifting world — and that Rock was Christ.
The Serpent
A symbol of the tempter — and, lifted up, of healing
From Eden's tempter to the bronze serpent pointing to the cross.
The Shepherd
God's guiding, protecting care
The LORD is my shepherd — the Bible's tenderest picture of God's care.
The Star
The sign that led the wise men to Christ
The light in the east that guided seekers to Jesus.
The Tree of Life
Eternal life in God's presence
The tree at the heart of Eden and of the new creation.
The Vine
Union with Christ and fruitfulness
I am the vine, ye are the branches — the picture of a fruitful, connected life.
The Yoke
A picture of bondage — or of walking with Christ
The easy yoke Jesus offers the weary.
Water
Cleansing, life, and the Spirit
From the waters of creation to the living water Jesus gives.
Wine
A symbol of joy, blessing, and the blood of Christ
Gladness of heart, and the cup of the new covenant.
Numbers of the Bible
Seven, forty, twelve — the numbers that recur through Scripture and what they signify.
The Number 666
The number of the beast in Revelation
The mysterious mark of the beast — and the call to wisdom.
The Number Five
God's grace and provision
The five loaves that fed the multitude.
The Number Forty
Testing, trial, and preparation
The length of a season of testing before a new beginning.
The Number Four
The whole earth and creation
The number of the earth — its four corners and winds.
The Number One
Unity — the oneness of God
The number of God's oneness and undivided devotion.
The Number Seven
Completion and perfection
The number of God's finished work and holy rest.
The Number Seventy
Fullness, mission, and forgiveness
The seventy sent out, and forgiveness without limit.
The Number Ten
Completeness of order and responsibility
The Ten Commandments and human responsibility.
The Number Thousand
Vastness and God's timelessness
A thousand years as a day — God's timelessness and abundance.
The Number Three
Divine fullness and resurrection
Three days in the tomb, and the God who is Father, Son, and Spirit.
The Number Twelve
God's people, governed and complete
Twelve tribes, twelve apostles — the number of God's covenant community.
The Number Two
Witness, partnership, and confirmation
The number of witness and companionship.