When the finale first aired, I was a bit disappointed that the nature of the numbers was not explained. I leaned towards thinking that the numbers were attached to the candidates’ fates once it was revealed that their names in the cave had the numbers associated with them. But now, as I have gotten older, I wonder whether the numbers simply meant nothing at all and that Hurley was wrong to think that they were attached to his bad luck at all. (I am talking about there being no in-universe significance to the numbers at all. They meant nothing in the fictional universe. Of course, the writers deliberately added the numbers to particular scenes, etc., but in the context of the show, I don’t think that they meant anything.) I’m curious what other people think about the numbers.