A close friend of mine is absolutely obsessed with the so-called Rule of Three. He finds meaning in triplicates of just about anything, and while it might be apophenia, it might also have some relevance. In my own life as well as my study, I have seen evidence to suggest that things that happen in triplicate mean something, and so I'll attempt to address them here.
Many instances in life follow the Rule of Three. I teach my students to do all their laboratory exercises in triplicate because it takes three to do a standard deviation. Only at that point does it become statistically significant. Stools need at least three legs in order to stand. Triangles are one of the most stable and efficient arrangements. In fact, I'll talk about those in another post later. We eat three meals, award three levels of medals at the Olympics, etc. Some of these seem to be coincidental, but that might be due to the fact that we do not know the origin of those observances, many of which come from scripture.
Many instances in scripture likewise seem to follow the Rule of Three. There are three members of the Godhead- God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Ghost. The Tabernacle and later the temple were in three segments: the outer court, inner court and Holy of Holies. Encampments around the temple involved groups of three tribes. Jesus rose from the dead on the third day. Peter denied Christ three times. The combined House of Israel had three kings: Saul, David, and Solomon. Scripture tells us that "where two or three are gathered in my name, I will be in the midst of them" and that "in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established". Noah even sent forth the bird three times looking for land. Elijah had the priests of Baal douse the altar thrice with water. Israel celebrated three mandatory feasts every year. It seems to be significant.
From my studies in the LDS Institute of Religion, I learned some of the significance of numbers in scripture. You see, Three represents Completion. This is why 7-7-7 (Seven being the number of perfection) is the sign of God because it is three sevens, or complete perfection. Likewise, 6-6-6 (six representing deception) is a sign of the devil, because it is complete deception (not six hundred sixty six as many people assume).
This begs the question of what three as completion actually means for us. As I have thought about these scriptural references (which started late Saturday night), I have noticed a trend. The first instance seems to be problematic. The second seems to be preparatory and the third seems to be successful. Look at a few examples. When the devil attempts to thwart the plan of God he firsts in the garden and convinces Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit, secondly, he goes after Jesus while he's fasting. The third attempt is ongoing now and ultimately will fail. Adam and Eve had three named first sons- Abel, Cain, and Seth. When Cain kills Abel, Seth, from whom most of us descend, becomes the successful expansion of their family. Noah sends forth the bird looking for land. First it comes back as it left; secondly it brings back a branch, and finally it does not return. Even the kings follow this rule. Saul brought them together, but David ultimately proved unprepared to follow God, and it was Solomon who finally built the temple.
From the examples about which I was able to think, the number three seems to be significant. I am hoping that in my life the rule of three proves to follow the same patter. I have plenty of reason to hope for it, and if it proves to be that way, you'll certainly hear about it later. Until that time, consider that important things do seem to come in threes.
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