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About Numbered Notation

All steps
  1. The numbers are the notes of a scale
  2. “1=C” tells you where to start
  3. Dots make a note higher or lower
  4. How long each note lasts
  5. 0 means rest
  6. Bar lines and the time signature
  7. Curves: ties and slurs
  8. The words sit under the numbers
  9. Repeat signs and 1. 2. endings
  10. Minor keys: “6=A”
  11. Put it together: a line of a hymn
  12. Check yourself
  13. Try it on a hymn

The numbers are the notes of a scale

Numbered notation (jianpu, 简谱) writes a melody as numbers instead of notes on a staff. You do not need to read music: take one small step at a time and press Play on any example to hear it while each number lights up. Sound only starts when you press Play.

Instead of notes on a staff, each note is a number from 1 to 7. They are the seven steps of the scale you already know: do re mi fa sol la ti. After 7 the scale starts again at 1.

The seven numbers with their names. Press Play and say each name as its number lights up.
Sing along: do re mi fa sol, and back down to do.

If you can sing do re mi, you can already sing every number from 1 to 7. Tap or click any number to hear just that note.

“1=C” tells you where to start

At the top left of the sheet you will see something like 1=C. It means the number 1 (do) is the note C, and every other number counts up from there. 1=G means do is G, so the whole tune sits a little higher. Nothing else changes: the same numbers make the same shape, only higher or lower.

1=C: do is C.
1=G: the same numbers, starting higher.

Not sure where C is? On a piano it is the white key just left of the two black keys. Or ignore the letter and start on any note that is comfortable for your voice: the tune only has to keep its shape. The − and + key buttons on a hymn page shift the key for you.

Dots make a note higher or lower

A dot above a number means one octave higher. A dot below means one octave lower. Two dots mean two octaves. No dot is the middle range, where most of a tune lives. The name stays the same; only the height changes.

The same number at three heights: dot below, no dot, dot above.
A tune that climbs: it starts on a low sol and ends on a high do.

How long each note lasts

Tap your foot at a steady pace: each tap is a beat. A plain number lasts one beat, so you sing a new number on every tap. Dashes, lines and dots change that.

A plain number is one beat

Four numbers, four beats: one number for each tap.

A dash holds the note longer

Each dash adds one beat. The 5 lasts two beats and the 3 lasts four.

A line underneath makes it shorter

One line is half a beat, so two underlined numbers share one beat. (Two lines are a quarter of a beat.)

A dot after makes it half as long again

A dot after a number adds half its length. The first 5 lasts a beat and a half, and the short 3 fills the rest of the second beat.

0 means rest

A 0 is silence for one beat. Keep counting and keep tapping, but do not sing. Dashes after a 0 make the silence longer, just as they hold a note longer.

Sing 1 3 5, stay quiet for one beat, then come back down. Rests light up too, so you can feel the pause.

Bar lines and the time signature

Tall lines cut the music into bars, each holding the same number of beats. The two small numbers at the start, like 4/4 or 3/4, say how many: 4/4 is four beats in every bar, 3/4 is three. The first beat of each bar is the strongest, so lean on it a little. A double line with a thick edge marks the end.

4/4: count 1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4. The first beat of each bar sounds a little louder.
3/4: count 1 2 3, 1 2 3, the lilt of a waltz.

Curves: ties and slurs

A curve over numbers joins them. If it joins two of the same number, it is a tie: sing the note once and hold it for both. If it joins different numbers, it is a slur: sing them all on one syllable, gliding from one to the next.

A tie: the 5 is sung once and held across the bar line, six beats in all.
A slur: “Him” is sung on two notes, 3 then 2.

The words sit under the numbers

Each number gets one syllable, written right underneath it. A short dash after part of a word means the word carries on under the next number. If a number has nothing under it, it belongs to a curve or a dash: keep singing the syllable you are on.

Read left to right, one syllable for each number: Twin-kle, twin-kle, lit-tle star.

Repeat signs and 1. 2. endings

A bar line with two dots, :|, means go back and sing that part again, from the matching |: sign (or from the start if there is none). Sometimes the repeat has two endings. Sing ending 1. the first time; on the repeat, skip it and sing ending 2. instead.

Play it: you hear the 1. ending, the repeat, then the 2. ending. Watch the highlight jump back.

Minor keys: “6=A”

A song in a minor key, which usually sounds more serious or tender, is labeled like 6=A instead of 1=C. It means the number 6 (la) is the home note, here A. The numbers keep their usual names; the tune simply feels at home on 6 and often ends there. 6=A uses the same notes as 1=C.

It starts and ends on 6 (la), the home note. Listen to the darker colour.

Put it together: a line of a hymn

This is the first line of hymn 8, “Praise God, from whom all blessings flow”, written in numbered notation. Try the slow tempo first, and sing the words as each number lights up.

1=G in 4/4. Three silent beats, then “Praise” on beat 4. The dots under 7, 6 and 5 mean those notes dip one octave lower.

Check yourself

Four quick questions, with no score and no pressure. Tap an answer to see right away why it is right or wrong. You can always try another answer.

Tap the number that is held the longest.

Tap the 5 that is one octave higher than the first 5.

What does a 0 mean?

Under 1=G, which note is the number 1?

Try it on a hymn

You opened this from a hymn that has a Numbered view, so you can try it right now.

  1. Look at the top left of the sheet: the key, such as 1=D, and the time signature, such as 3/4.
  2. Find the first number and sing it. Then follow the numbers from left to right with the words underneath, one syllable for each number. Press Play in the player to hear the recording while you follow.
  3. Letters above the numbers (C, G7) are chords for a guitarist or pianist. Ignore them while you learn the tune.
  4. To be guided, open the Learn tab and press Play. Under Display, set Learn notation to Numbered (or choose Numbered on the Lead Sheet tab first). For hymns that have numbered lines, each line of numbers scrolls into view in time with the recording while a bouncing ball follows the words; other hymns show the piano notation there. The Speed menu slows it down.

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Christ is God’s centrality

Experience of Christ As God’s Centrality and Universality

English495
1
Christ is God’s centrality
And His universality;
He is God’s delight and joy
Throughout all eternity.
2
He’s th’ embodiment of God,
In Him all God’s fullness dwells;
His unique supremacy
And His Godhead none excels.
3
All God’s purpose is for Him,
That He might be all in all;
All the things in heav’n and earth
With Himself are made withal.
4
All creation is for Christ,
Everything was made by Him;
’Tis by Him all things subsist,
He’s the hub and He’s the rim.
5
In redemption He is all,
All through Him is reconciled;
By His blood all things with God
Now in peace are domiciled.
6
He the great beginning is,
And the Church’s living Head;
He her life and content too,
And the firstborn from the dead.
7
In God’s Kingdom He’s the King,
All the pow’r to Him is giv’n;
In His glory He shall rule
Over all in earth and heav’n.
8
In new heaven and new earth
Center of all things He’ll be,
For the Godhead and for man
Throughout all eternity.
9
God intends in everything
Christ should have preeminence,
And that such a Christ of all
We should now experience.

Copyright Living Stream Ministry. Used by permission.

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Un Hermano

Dec 9, 2025

B. Christ as the Centrality and
Universality of God’s Economy
----------------------------------------

In the Minor Prophets Christ as the centrality and universality of God’s economy is emphatically unveiled. In the Minor Prophets (not counting Zechariah, which reveals other aspects of Christ) this unveiling, this revelation concerning Christ, has sixteen points. We will now briefly consider these points according to the sequence of the facts.

1. In His Eternal Origin

We have pointed out that Micah 5:2c says that Christ’s “goings forth are from ancient times, / From the days of eternity. ” This refers to Christ’s eternal origin.

2. In His Human Birth in Bethlehem

Micah 5:2a says that from Bethlehem would come forth the One who would be the Ruler in Israel. This is the only verse in the entire Old Testament which tells us that Christ was to be born in Bethlehem.

3. In His First Coming as the Messenger of God

Malachi 3:1-3 reveals that in His first coming Christ came as the Messenger of God. As God’s Messenger, He brought people God’s word, God’s message. This word, this message, is actually Christ Himself. We may say that He is the letter sent by God to us.

4. In His Union with Israel as the Son of God Loved by God and Called Out of Egypt by God

Hosea 11:1 says, “When Israel was a child, I loved him, / And out of Egypt I called My son. ” This speaks of Christ in His union with Israel as the Son of God loved by God and called out of Egypt by God. The fulfillment of this prophecy is in Matthew 2 . Not long after Christ was born, while He was still in His babyhood, Herod tried to kill Him. But according to the word of an angel, Joseph took Jesus and His mother and departed into Egypt and remained there “until the death of Herod, in order that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet might be fulfilled, saying, ‘Out of Egypt I called My Son’” (v. 15).

5. In His Death and Resurrection for the Salvation of God to Sinners

A further aspect of Christ is typified by the prophet Jonah. Jonah was swallowed by a great fish and was vomited out of it for the spreading of God’s salvation to the Gentile Ninevites (Jonah 1:17 ; 2:10). This is a type of Christ in His death and resurrection for the salvation of God to sinners, even to the Gentiles (Matt. 12:39-41).

6. In His Being the Desire of All the Nations

In Haggai 2:7 we see that Christ is the Desire of all the nations. Even though the nations do not know Christ, they still desire to have Christ. All the nations desire to have peace and a good life, but the situation in the world is the opposite of this. Christ is peace; Christ is also the good life. For the nations to desire these things means that they actually desire Christ. He is the Desire of all the nations.

7. In Elijah’s Being Sent before Him to Prepare the Way for His Coming Back

Elijah will be sent before Christ to prepare the way for His coming back (Mal. 4:5-6 ; 3:1a ; Rev. 11:3-4).

8. In His Being Sent by God the Second Time with His Overcomers

“There cause Your mighty ones to descend, / O Jehovah! ” (Joel 3:11b). This reveals that Christ will be sent by God the second time with His overcomers. Today Christ is making overcomers, those who will be with Him in His coming back. When Christ comes back, He will come with His overcomers to fight against AntiChrist.

In the universe there are two sources: God and Satan. God is embodied in Christ, and Satan will eventually be embodied in AntiChrist. Both Christ and AntiChrist will have an army. In His coming back Christ will descend with His army, composed of the mighty ones, the overcomers. This indicates that at the time of His coming back, Christ and His army will defeat AntiChrist and his army.

9. In His Arising as the Sun of Righteousness with Healing in His Wings

As we have seen, according to Malachi 4:2 Christ will arise as the Sun of righteousness with healing in His wings.

10. In His Going Forth as the Dawn and Coming as the Rain, as the Latter Rain Which Waters the Earth

Hosea 6:3b says, “His going forth is as sure as the dawn, / And He will come to us as the rain, / As the latter rain which waters the earth. ” In 10:12 we are told that Christ will come and rain righteousness upon us. Christ’s going forth has not stopped. He is still going forth as the dawn. Also He will come as the rain, even as the latter rain. How much Christ is to us! He is the dawn, the rain, and the latter rain.

11. In His Second Coming as the Angel of the Covenant, Whom Israel Desires

“The Angel of the covenant, whom you desire, behold, He will come, says Jehovah of hosts” (Mal. 3:1b). This speaks of Christ in His second coming as the Angel of the covenant, whom Israel desires. The covenant of which He is the Angel is the new covenant.

12. In His Coming as the Mighty One with His Overcomers to Defeat AntiChrist and His Army

In Joel 3:11 Christ is unveiled in His coming as the mighty One with His overcomers to defeat AntiChrist and his army.

13. In His Judgment of the Nations

Christ is also unveiled in His judgment of the nations—the judgment of the living (Joel 3:2a , 12 , 14 ; Matt. 25:31-46 ; Acts 10:42 ; 17:31).

14. In His Dwelling in the Holy Mountain of Zion within Jerusalem to Reign among Israel

Joel 3 unveils Christ in His dwelling in the holy mountain of Zion within Jerusalem to reign among Israel to be their God, their shelter, and their stronghold (vv. 16-17 , 21b).

15. In His Reigning in Zion as David Their King, as Ruler in Israel, in the Millennium

David was a type of Christ as the King. In the Minor Prophets Christ is unveiled in His reigning in Zion as Israel’s King, the Ruler in Israel, in the millennium (Micah 4:7b ; 5:2b ; Hosea 3:5a ; Zeph. 3:15b ; Rev. 20:4 , 6).

16. In His Shepherding of Israel, Becoming Great and Being Their Peace

Finally, Christ is unveiled in His shepherding of Israel, becoming great and being their peace (Micah 5:4-5). In the millennium Christ will be not only the King and the Ruler but also the Shepherd.

Life-study of Hosea

Message 1 (LSM)

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Toyin Diyan

London, United Kingdom

May 16, 2021

Lord Jesus we love you! You are God's centre and universe. Be ours also. Be everything and all things to us. Amen.

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Thanh Le

San Francisco, California, United States

May 17, 2020

God intends in everything Christ should have preeminence and that such a Christ we should now experience. Christ must have first place in our church life, in our family life, in our personal life. We should say together with Paul: For to me, to live is Christ.

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Christopher Condon

Romford, London, United Kingdom

Feb 1, 2020

Mozart was massively talented by the Lord. I think the Triune God is so happy when we sing this hymn to Him. Lord, as our Joshua, lead us into the enjoyment and experience of You as the reality of the good land.

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