The Number 10
Spiritual Significance
God uses the number 10 in connection with completeness.
The number 10 can be found very frequently throughout the Bible, but it is often found as a factor when other numbers of spiritual significance are featured. For example, the 2,300 (23 x 10 x 10) days of Daniel 8:14 are a reference to the first part of the Great Tribulation. The number being featured here is 23, which God uses to point to judgment (see Number Study on 23). However, there are times when the number 10 is used by itself and in those cases, if it has spiritual significance, we find it used in connection with completeness.
Cattle on 1,000 Hills
God says that every beast of the forest is His, as well as the cattle upon 1,000 hills:
"For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills." (Psalm 50:10)
The number 1,000 is 10 x 10 x 10. Is God saying that only the cattle upon a particular grouping of 1,000 hills are His? No, He's indicating that the cattle on every hill, or the completeness of hills, are His.
Vines & Silverlings
God speaks of 1,000 vines and 1,000 silverlings.
"And it shall come to pass in that day, that every place shall be, where there were a thousand vines at a thousand silverlings, it shall even be for briers and thorns." (Isaiah 7:23)
This verse is not talking about a literal 1,000 vines and silver coins. The point of the verse is that where all the vines and money were would be turned into briers and thorns.
Numbering of Angels
We also read about the numbering of the angels:
"And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousand of thousands"(Revelation 5:11)
We can clearly see that this is not a literal number in view here. God is using this language to indicate that all of the angels, or the completeness of angels, are present.
His Covenant Forever
God's covenant is commanded to 1,000 generations:
"He hath remembered his covenant for ever, the word which he commanded to a thousand generations." (Psalm 105:8)
The first half of this verse shows us that God is not speaking about a literal 1,000 generations; He's referring to all generations. We find similar language in Deuteronomy 7:9:
"Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations"
The Ten Virgins
In Matthew chapter 25 we read about the kingdom of God being represented by 10 virgins:
"Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom." (Matthew 25:1)
When we study this parable we discover that five of the virgins represent the true believers and five represent the unsaved who think they are saved. In other words, the ten virgins, as a whole, typify the earthly representation of God's people. They represent the completeness of professing Christians, both the truly saved and those who think they are saved but are not.
