10222. A shekel of twenty gerahs. That this signifies all things of good, is evident from the signification of “twenty,” as likewise being all things, and the remains of good, as also what is holy. (That it denotes all things and hence what is full, see n. 9641; also the remains of good, n. 2280; and what is holy, n. 4759, 7842, 7903.) For when said of the Lord, “twenty” signifies what is His own, which is what is Holy itself (n. 4176); which shows why a shekel contained twenty gerahs or oboli, and why it is called a “shekel of holiness” in this and other passages (as Leviticus 27:3; Numbers 3:47, 50; 7:13, (Numbers 7:13) 19, 25, 31, 37, 49, 55, 61, 67, 73; 18:16). That the shekel was a weight both of silver and of gold, see Genesis 24:22; Exodus 38:24; Ezekiel 4:10; 45:12.

9641. And thou shalt make the planks for the Habitation twenty. That this signifies good which supports heaven in every way and completely, is evident from the signification of “the planks of the Habitation,” as being the good which supports heaven (see n. 9634); and from the signification of “twenty,” as being what is full, thus in every way and completely. That “twenty” has this signification, is because numbers formed by multiplication have the same signification as the simple numbers from which they have been multiplied (n. 5291, 5335, 5708, 7973); thus the number “twenty” signifies the same as “ten,” and “two,” from the multiplication of which it arises. (That “ten” denotes what is full, and all, see n. 3107, 4638; and in like manner “two,” n. 9103, 9166)