The number 400 symbolizes a long period of trials, oppression, or preparation before divine intervention and deliverance.
In Genesis 15:13, God predicts that Abraham's descendants will be strangers and slaves in a foreign land for 400 years, referring to the Israelites' stay and bondage in Egypt before the great deliverance. This prophecy marks one of the most central periods in biblical history—a time of suffering and preparation that culminates in God's mighty liberation under Moses. Abraham also paid 400 shekels of silver to Ephron the Hittite for the cave of Machpelah as a burial place for Sarah (Gen 23:15–16), which underscores the number's connection to important covenant and transition moments in biblical history. The number 400 corresponds to the numerical value (gematria) of the Hebrew letter Tav (ת), which is the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Tav therefore symbolizes completion, wholeness, and the end of a cycle. In early Hebrew script, Tav was written as a cross mark or X sign, which in Jewish tradition is understood as a mark or seal. The 400 years mentioned in Genesis 15:13 are traditionally counted from Isaac's birth to the Exodus from Egypt. In Exodus 12:40, the stay in Egypt is given as 430 years, and rabbinic tradition explains the difference by including various starting points for the calculation. The Cave of Machpelah in Hebron, purchased for 400 shekels of silver, is considered the first piece of land legally acquired by the patriarchs in the land of Canaan. The site became the burial place for Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob, and Leah, and is today known as the Ibrahimi Mosque/Tomb of the Patriarchs.*