The number 500 has no prominent or well-established symbolic meaning in biblical tradition, but appears in concrete contexts related to measurement and testimony.
Unlike numbers such as 7, 12, 40 or 70, which carry deep symbolic resonance in the Bible, 500 appears rarely and without clear symbolic weight. Nevertheless, it occurs in some notable contexts. In Ezekiel's temple vision, the outer temple area measures 500 units on each of its four sides (Ezek 42:15–20), emphasizing perfection and symmetry in the holy space, but this is more an architectural measurement than a symbolic number. In the New Testament, Paul writes that the risen Jesus appeared to over 500 brothers at once (1 Cor 15:6), yet here too the number serves as concrete testimony to the historicity of the resurrection rather than as a symbolic expression. Nor does 500 play any prominent role in gematria, further confirming the number's modest symbolic profile within the biblical tradition. In the basic Hebrew gematria system, the letter ת (tav) has the value of 400, and there is no standard letter for 500. However, in the extended system (gematria gadol), the five sofit letters (final letter forms) are used for values 500–900. The letter ך (kaf sofit) represents 500 in this system. The sofit system is secondary and plays a minor role in traditional biblical numerology. In Ezek 42:15–20, the outer boundaries of the temple area are measured as 500 cubits (or rods, depending on translation) on each side, forming a perfect square. This emphasizes the ordered and symmetrical character of the sanctuary as an idealized divine space, set apart from the profane. Paul's reference to the 500 witnesses in 1 Cor 15:6 is considered by many scholars as one of the earliest and most concrete testimonies to Jesus' resurrection. Paul adds that most of these witnesses are still alive, implying that readers themselves could verify the claim.*