How many times is seven mentioned in the Bible?
The word seven appears 463 times in the King James Version, in 391 verses. Counting every form (seven, seventh, sevenfold), it appears 589 times in 493 verses across 38 of the 66 books. The World English Bible uses seven 466 times (592 with every form).
Seven in the King James Version and the World English Bible
Each form of seven counted in each translation.
| Form | KJV | WEB |
|---|---|---|
| seven | 463 | 466 |
| seventh | 120 | 125 |
| sevenfold | 6 | 1 |
| Total | 589 | 592 |
Which books mention seven most
Seven appears in 38 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Leviticus has the most (66), then Genesis (61) and Numbers (59).
Also in: Matthew (11), 2 Samuel (9), Esther (9), Mark (9), Job (8), Jeremiah (8), Luke (8), Acts (8), 1 Samuel (7), Zechariah (7), Proverbs (6), Daniel (6), Isaiah (4), Psalms (3), Hebrews (3), Ruth (1), Ecclesiastes (1), Amos (1), Micah (1), Haggai (1), John (1), Romans (1), Jude (1).
First and last mention of seven
And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.
The verse that uses it most is Revelation 1:20, 6 times:
The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.
Where the two translations differ
2 verses match in the KJV but not in the World English Bible, and 5 verses match only in the World English Bible, usually because the other translation chose a different word there.
Amos 5:8: counted in the KJV only
Seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The LORD is his name:
seek him who made the Pleiades and Orion, and turns the shadow of death into the morning, and makes the day dark with night; who calls for the waters of the sea, and pours them out on the surface of the earth, Yahweh is his name,
Revelation 1:13: counted in the KJV only
And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.
And among the lamp stands was one like a son of man, clothed with a robe reaching down to his feet, and with a golden sash around his chest.
Genesis 7:2: counted in the World English Bible only
Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female.
You shall take seven pairs of every clean animal with you, the male and his female. Of the animals that are not clean, take two, the male and his female.
Genesis 7:3: counted in the World English Bible only
Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth.
Also of the birds of the sky, seven and seven, male and female, to keep seed alive on the surface of all the earth.
Verses with seven on our topic pages
16 verses that use seven in the World English Bible are in our topic collections.
Then Peter came and said to him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Until seven times?”
On: Forgiveness, Mercy
Jesus said to him, “I don’t tell you until seven times, but, until seventy times seven.
On: Forgiveness, Mercy
If he sins against you seven times in the day, and seven times returns, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”
On: Revenge, Bitterness
On the seventh day God finished his work which he had done; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had done.
On: Rest
God blessed the seventh day, and made it holy, because he rested in it from all his work of creation which he had done.
On: Rest
“Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your servant, and the alien may be refreshed.
On: Rest
You shall take on the first day the fruit of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before Yahweh your God seven days.
On: Christmas
but the seventh day is a Sabbath to Yahweh your God, in which you shall not do any work, you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your ox, nor your donkey, nor any of your livestock, nor your stranger who is within your gates; that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you.
On: Rest
At the end of every seven years, you shall cancel debts.
On: Debt
Seven times a day, I praise you, because of your righteous ordinances.
On: Gratitude
There are six things which Yahweh hates; yes, seven which are an abomination to him:
On: Gossip
for a righteous man falls seven times, and rises up again; but the wicked are overthrown by calamity.
On: Perseverance
Common questions
How many times is seven in the Old Testament and the New Testament?
In the King James Version, counting every form, 488 of the 589 uses are in the Old Testament and 101 in the New Testament. Seven appears in 38 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Leviticus has the most (66), then Genesis (61) and Numbers (59).
Where is seven first mentioned in the Bible?
The first use in the King James Version is Genesis 2:2: "And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made." The last is Revelation 21:20.
More word counts: forty, twelve, wine, drunk, dragon, unicorn, woman, wisdom, or all 107 words.
Counted by Bible Says About from the full public-domain text of the King James Version (1769 edition) and the World English Bible. Verse text only: headings and psalm titles are left out. A word is a run of letters: a hyphenated name like Beer-sheba counts as two, and an apostrophe stays inside its word (LORD'S is one). Matching ignores capital letters. Data compiled 2026-10-02.