Atbash אתבש
Atbash — in Hebrew אתבש — a letter substitution: the first letter for the last, the second for the next to last. Read at skips 2–5,000, the Torah holds 42,353 sequences of Atbash, the shortest at skip 2 (Genesis 39:9); chance alone would give about 42,618.
- Found in the Torah
- 42,353
- Chance alone
- 42,618
- P (≥ found)
- 0.90
- Shortest skip
- 2
Skips 2–5,000, both directions, final letters folded, the written text — the laboratory's own defaults.
In the Torah
At skips 2–5,000, אתבש appears 42,353 times in the Torah; chance alone would give about 42,618, so the count is in line with chance.
Its smallest skip in the Torah is 2 — the first at Genesis 39:9, reading forward.
Counting every skip from 2 to 101,616, the Torah holds 449,781 sequences of אתבש, against about 444,075 from chance alone.
- Genesis 9,904
- Exodus 9,078
- Leviticus 7,551
- Numbers 8,314
- Deuteronomy 7,506
The shortest skips
אֵינֶנּוּ גָדוֹל בַּבַּיִת הַזֶּה מִמֶּנִּי וְלֹֽא־חָשַׂךְ מִמֶּנִּי מְאוּמָה כִּי אִם־אוֹתָךְ בַּאֲשֶׁר אַתְּ־אִשְׁתּוֹ וְאֵיךְ אֶֽעֱשֶׂה הָרָעָה הַגְּדֹלָה הַזֹּאת וְחָטָאתִי לֵֽאלֹהִֽים
he is not greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?’
skip 2, width 2 — the matrix is as wide as the skip, so the sequence reads down one column. letter 58,055Open in the laboratory →
וַתְּמַהֵר וַתְּעַר כַּדָּהּ אֶל־הַשֹּׁקֶת וַתָּרָץ עוֹד אֶֽל־הַבְּאֵר לִשְׁאֹב וַתִּשְׁאַב לְכָל־גְּמַלָּֽיו
And she hastened, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again unto the well to draw, and drew for all his camels.
skip 2, width 2 — the matrix is as wide as the skip, so the sequence reads up one column. letter 30,433Open in the laboratory →
וְאִם־מְעַט נִשְׁאַר בַּשָּׁנִים עַד־שְׁנַת הַיֹּבֵל וְחִשַּׁב־לוֹ כְּפִי שָׁנָיו יָשִׁיב אֶת־גְּאֻלָּתֽוֹ
And if there remain but few years unto the year of jubilee, then he shall reckon with him; according unto his years shall he give back the price of his redemption.
skip 2, width 2 — the matrix is as wide as the skip, so the sequence reads up one column. letter 182,161Open in the laboratory →
וַעֲשֵׂה־לִי מַטְעַמִּים כַּאֲשֶׁר אָהַבְתִּי וְהָבִיאָה לִּי וְאֹכֵלָה בַּעֲבוּר תְּבָרֶכְךָ נַפְשִׁי בְּטֶרֶם אָמֽוּת
and make me savoury food, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die.’
skip 3, width 3 — the matrix is as wide as the skip, so the sequence reads down one column. letter 36,425Open in the laboratory →
וַתַּהַר עוֹד לֵאָה וַתֵּלֶד בֵּן־שִׁשִּׁי לְּיַעֲקֹֽב
And Leah conceived again, and bore a sixth son to Jacob.
skip 3, width 3 — the matrix is as wide as the skip, so the sequence reads down one column. letter 42,328Open in the laboratory →
Across the Tanakh
The whole Tanakh holds 134,155 sequences of אתבש at skips 2–5,000, 0.9% above what chance alone gives (about 132,959); at counts this large even that difference has a probability of 0.00053 by chance alone.
- Genesis 9,904
- Exodus 9,078
- Leviticus 7,551
- Numbers 8,314
- Deuteronomy 7,974
- Joshua 3,752
- Judges 4,456
- Samuel 11,169
- Kings 13,015
- Isaiah 5,016
- Jeremiah 8,889
- Ezekiel 9,748
- The Twelve 4,886
- Psalms 5,322
- Proverbs 2,380
- Job 2,781
- Song of Songs 425
- Ruth 690
- Lamentations 546
- Ecclesiastes 1,189
- Esther 1,182
- Daniel 2,271
- Ezra–Nehemiah 3,805
- Chronicles 9,812
Outside the Torah
וְהִשְׁאַרְתִּי בְיִשְׂרָאֵל שִׁבְעַת אֲלָפִים כָּל־הַבִּרְכַּיִם אֲשֶׁר לֹֽא־כָֽרְעוּ לַבַּעַל וְכָל־הַפֶּה אֲשֶׁר לֹֽא־נָשַׁק לֽוֹ
Yet will I leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.’
skip 2, width 2 — the matrix is as wide as the skip, so the sequence reads down one column. letter 519,583Open in the laboratory →
וּבְצֵאתָם אֶל־הֶחָצֵר הַחִיצוֹנָה אֶל־הֶחָצֵר הַחִיצוֹנָה אֶל־הָעָם יִפְשְׁטוּ אֶת־בִּגְדֵיהֶם אֲשֶׁר־הֵמָּה מְשָׁרְתִם בָּם וְהִנִּיחוּ אוֹתָם בְּלִֽשְׁכֹת הַקֹּדֶשׁ וְלָֽבְשׁוּ בְּגָדִים אֲחֵרִים וְלֹֽא־יְקַדְּשׁוּ אֶת־הָעָם בְּבִגְדֵיהֶֽם
And when they go forth into the outer court, even into the outer court to the people, they shall put off their garments wherein they minister, and lay them in the holy chambers, and they shall put on other garments, that they sanctify not the people with their garments.
skip 2, width 2 — the matrix is as wide as the skip, so the sequence reads down one column. letter 794,572Open in the laboratory →
כַּסְפּוֹ לֹא־נָתַן בְּנֶשֶׁךְ וְשֹׁחַד עַל־נָקִי לֹא לָקָח עֹֽשֵׂה־אֵלֶּה לֹא יִמּוֹט לְעוֹלָֽם
He that putteth not out his money on interest, Nor taketh a bribe against the innocent. He that doeth these things shall never be moved.
skip 2, width 2 — the matrix is as wide as the skip, so the sequence reads down one column. letter 863,980Open in the laboratory →
The spelling
אתבש — a Hebrew word: a letter substitution: the first letter for the last, the second for the next to last. Searched as אתבש, 4 letters, with a standard gematria value of 703.
It does not stand as a plain word anywhere in the Tanakh. Every word of the Tanakh in the Word Index →
Questions
Does Atbash appear in the Torah codes?
At skips 2–5,000, אתבש appears 42,353 times in the Torah; chance alone would give about 42,618, so the count is in line with chance.
What is the shortest skip for Atbash in the Torah?
Skip 2, reading forward from Genesis 39:9 — the shortest of 42,353 sequences at skips 2–5,000, where chance alone would give about 42,618.
How is Atbash spelled in Hebrew?
Atbash is spelled אתבש — 4 letters searched, with a standard gematria value of 703.
Is Atbash in the Bible code across the whole Tanakh?
The whole Tanakh holds 134,155 sequences of אתבש at skips 2–5,000, 0.9% above what chance alone gives (about 132,959); at counts this large even that difference has a probability of 0.00053 by chance alone.
Search it yourself
The laboratory runs the same search live in your browser — every sequence, the matrix around it, and the chance figure (about 42,618 here) beside the count.