The Apocalypse in Ezekiel.

EZEKIEL prophesies that the Dry Tree of Israel, which now bears no fruit, shall be made to flourish in the mountain of the heights of Israel; where it shall shoot forth boughs, and bear fruit; and that under its branching foliage shall dwell all fowl of every wing (Ch. 17:22-24).

He tells us concerning that epoch, that the kingdom of Israel shall be given to a man of low station whose right it is; that he shall be a Plant of Renown; that he shall be a David; that he shall be Prince, or High Priest, of Israel for an Aion; that he shall be immortal; that the Holy Land shall be as the Garden of Eden, or Paradise; that the twelve tribes of Israel shall be a united nation, and form one kingdom in the land; that a magnificent temple shall be built in Jerusalem differing from that of Solomon; that the Dead Sea shall be healed, and become as productive of fish as the Mediterranean; and that from the time of the establishment of these things, the old name of the city shall be abolished - that it shall no longer be Jeru, "they shall see," shalaim, "peace"; but, Yahweh-shammah, HE WHO SHALL BE IS THERE (ch. 21:26, 27; 34:29, 23; 37:25, 22; 36:35; 47:8-10; 48:35).

Eureka 1.1.5.

1 Now it came to pass in the 30th year, in the 4th month, in the 5th day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar [Golus by the Nahar Kevar], that the heavens [Shomayim] were opened, and I saw visions of God [mar'ot Elohim].

àHe is a young member of a priestly family, and presumably one of those who were an exception to the prevalent temper of the land, in pleasing God by his faith and obedience. At this time and place, he is appointed a prophet to the house of Israel. The process of his appointment begins with his seeing something, as was frequently the case in the calling of the prophets. What he saw he describes elaborately.

Seasons 2.54

4 And I looked, and, behold [hinei], a whirlwind [ruach se'arah] [a stormy wind (RV)] came out of the north [tzafon] [north being for darkness - the emergent from the grave], a great cloud [anan gadol], and a fire infolding itself, and a brightness [flashing fire, with brilliant light] was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber, out of the midst of the fire [something gleaming, shining out of the midst of the eish].

Out of the Darkness - Ezk 1: 4

" Out of the north"

The word translated north does not per se mean north in the geographical sense, literally it signifies darkness, and consequently the dark quarter of the earth in contradistinction to the sunny south.

Daniel and his fellows descend into the depths of the earth, or " darkness" they rise up out of this darkness, i.e., out of the grave.

The whirlwind has brought up out of the grave the cloud of witnesses referred to by the Apostle in his letter to the Hebrews 11: 12 and which are more fully described in symbol by Ezekiel.

The Temple of Ezekiel's prophecy 5.6.11

àThe fire described by Ezekiel represented the spirit of God in its cherubic relations, for as the fire flashed its lightning so they moved to and fro. It also represented the glory, or brightness, of the Messiah as He will appear upon His throne.

Elpis Israel 1.3.

Out of the North (Gog the Latter Day Assyrian)...to the truth seeker... see how prophecy is consistent

Amber

àThis is not amber as we know it: all authorities agree upon that. What it is, is not positively known, but most agree that it is electrum- a mixture of gold and silver, which was much used and highly prized in ancient times, and which has greater brilliance and beauty than either gold or silver alone. The Hebrew word is "chashmal," of which a Bible dictionary says-

"Supposed by Gesenius and most to be a brilliant amalgam of gold and silver."

And International Standard Bible Encyclopedia says-

"Thothmes III is represented as standing in his chariot of electrum."

This is very fitting. Gold and silver combined are more glorious than either alone. A refined golden Faith, tried and perfected in the fire, is very glorious. But it is not glorious enough for salvation. It must be combined with silver, for silver is Ransom and Redemption.

Silver is the original word wherever we read "money" in the Old Testament. Literally translated, therefore, we have-

"The atonement silver" (Ex. 30:16).

"The redemption silver" (Num. 3:49).

"The trespass silver, the sin silver" (2 Kgs. 12:16).

Every male Israelite gave Moses a shekel of silver as a ransom for his life, and this silver was made into the foundation sockets of the Tabernacle. The brilliant electrum glory of the Cherubim was a combination of Christ's atonement and men's faith.

***

Fire as the colour of amber

As Ezekiel contemplated the whirlwind he saw:

A great cloud, with fire infolding itself (or flashing continually, margin) and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber, out of the

midst of the fire. (Chap. 1. 4.)

Fire " is bright like the colour of amber." According to Parkhurst,

" the Septuagint renders the term hash-mal translated amber in the A.V. by the word electron*, a word used by the ancients to describe a mixed metal of gold and silver, celebrated for its beautiful lustre, and when exposed to the fire grows more shiningly bright."

This definition is exactly in harmony with the result which will come from the process through which the saints are to pass into glory, and is aptly descriptive of the community symbolized by the colour of the flashing fire cloud which Ezekiel saw.

They are a community who have come through the fire, and have been tested as gold and silver are tested. How vital is this for a saint to understand. For instance, the disciples are exhorted by the Apostle to build upon the foundation laid by Jesus Christ not wood, hay, or

stubble, but " gold, silver and precious stones " (1 Cor. 3: 10-16). Thus we read that:

A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in baskets (or filagree work) of silver. (Prov. xxv. 11, R.V.)

Again it is written :

I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned. (Matt. 12: 36, 37.)

*See also Liddell and Scott. The name " electron " is related to "shining" = "splendour".

So also the Apostle writes of the fire which shall try every man :

Let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.

For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver,

precious stones, wood, hay, stubble ;

Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day

shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire ;

and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort

it is. If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon,

he shall receive a reward. (1 Cor. 3. 10-15.)

Job must have understood the meaning of such a figure:

He knoweth the way that I take ; when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. (Job. 23. 10.)

Contemplating the cherubim, Ezekiel sees this electron fire burning brightly, as it has ever done throughout the ages where faith and works exist. The flash of Electron shone forth in the reply of Micaiah when Zedekiah smote him upon the cheek (2 Chron. 18. 22-24). Here were golden faith and words of silver.

It shone forth with great brilliance when Daniel refused on pain of death to obey the edict of King Darius (Dan. vi.) and in a host of others of whom only specimens are noted in various parts of the Scripture, and more fully indicated in Paul's letter to the Hebrews.

The light of Electron still shines in those who refuse to take the sword because the Lord has forbidden them so to do (Matt. 26. 51, 52 ; John 18. 36), and with more or less brilliance in those who practically observe the precepts of Christ.

In each and every case the good works of these glorify their Father in heaven (Matt. v. 14-16), causing men to take note of His word of truth, and seize upon the only means of escape from the frightful destiny of the wicked, when the brazen-hoofed cherubim " destroys the oppressor," and " sweeps away the refuge of lies " (Isa. 28. 17).

The Temple of Ezekiel's prophecy 5.6.11

5 Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness [demut] of four living creatures [Chayos]. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man [demut adam].

In the Common Version these four are styled "beasts." The word in the original is zoa, and signifies simply living ones. In Ezek. i. 5, they are styled chaiyoth, rendered in the E.V. "living creatures." They are symbols representative of what is to be, not of what is yet manifested. That which is to be manifested exists, but the form of manifestation does not.

That which exists is the all-pervading spirit radiant from the Divine Substance; but the spirit-forms, which do not exist, are the dead saints. These must be raised, and then transformed into spirit-bodies, instinct with life and power omnipotent; a transformation which in all its elements is aggregately represented by these

"four living ones full of eyes before and behind."

The Spirit of the Deity, then, is the great reservoir of power out of which they are born or developed.

"That which hath been born out of spirit is spirit."

These are the words of Jesus to Nicodemus. The glorified saints, glorified after resurrection, are therefore spirit multitudinously manifested, and isaggeloi, equal to angels. In his "Visions of Elohim," Ezekiel beheld this manifestation of the saints out of spirit in symbolic representation.

He tells us that he was looking in a northerly direction, and in the distance behold

"a whirlwind, A GREAT CLOUD, and a fire came out of the North."

This was the Spirit in tempestuous and destructive operation. But to show that it was not free spirit, but embodied spirit, he goes on to say, that out of the midst of the fire issued forth

"the likeness of four living creatures."

He then describes their appearance, and afterwards remarks concerning their movements, that they were identical with those of the spirit; for "they went," saith he,

"every one straight forward: whither the spirit was to go, they went";

and of this going, John says, it was "into all the earth."

They went with the Seven Spirits of the Deity, for they will be the seven spirits embodied. Hence the terms applied to the seven spirits by John, are applied to the four by Ezekiel, who says they were like burning coals of fire and like lamps; and that out of the fire, that is, from them went forth lightning; and that they ran and returned as a flash of lightning.

But though Ezekiel introduces them as four living ones and four wheels in ch. i. 5,16, in referring to them in ch. x. 15, he speaks of them as one, saying, "this is hachaiyah, THE LIVING ONE." In other words, the individuals of whom this Spirit manifestation is composed are, in the aggregate, what the voice issuing from their midst proclaims without intermission day and night, namely, the thrice or superlatively holy YAHWEH, the Omnipotent Deity, who was, and who is, and who is coming (Apoc. iv. 8).

These are the ONE BODY, nearly all the atoms of which are now in death, "sleeping in the dust." But, speaking of them as they are now in reference to its future, the Spirit styles them "My DEAD BODY, and says "they shall arise," and, in view of the resurrection, exclaims,

"Awake and sing, ye that dwell in the dust."

When they come forth from the dust they are no longer the Spirit's Dead Body, but they become the Spirit's Living One, and can then say,

"I am the First and the Last, and the Living One: and I was dead, and behold I am living for the Aions of the Aions, the Amen."

Jesus is the visible Head of these. Without Him the Living One would be incomplete (Isa. xxvi. 19; Apoc. i. 18).

Eureka 4.4.0.

They are the chariot wheels of the Spirit, full of eyes, and a burning fire -- (Dan. 7:9,l0; Apoc. 14:10,11,3,4; 2 Thess. 1:7,8; Ezek. 1:18).

The Four Chariots in motion are the called, and faithful, and chosen," in company with the Kings of kings, in actual conflict with the nations of the earth - Apoc. 17:14; and are seen in chap. 19:14, as "the armies in the heaven" following the Word of God upon white horses, who smites the nations with the sword of his mouth, and rules them with a rod of iron. They are the war-chariots of the Spirit in the conflict of "the great day of God the universal Ruler." They invade the north and the south, and then make their expeditions into all other parts of the earth.

Eureka 1.1.5.e

9 Their wings [kenafayim] were joined one to another; they turned not when they went; they went every one straight forward [face forward].

The Interrelation of Four Epochs

The probable signification of this is that the work of each period is joined unto, or connected with, the others.

This is illustrated by the deliverance of Noah and his family, thereby connecting the work of righteousness in one epoch with the next, God never leaving himself without witnesses (Acts xiv. 17). The wings, therefore, of each symbol are joined.

Under the firmament their wings were straight, the one toward the other; every one had two, which covered on this side, and everyone had two, which covered on that side, their bodies. (Verse 23.) The word yeshar translated " straight" occurs some one hundred and fifty-four times in the Old Testament, howsoever pointed in the text, and nearly always in the sense of right, Tightness, upright, righteous.

The signification of the word in this case may be taken to mean that the wings are straight in this sense. Those represented by the " eyes " of the wings are in a straight, or righteous, position, i.e., in the way of righteousness.

Similarly the living creature is said to have " a straight foot." Since a calf's foot is round and cannot be straight in the ordinary sense of the word, this straightness must be understood in the sense in which the wings are straight. Under the symbol of a calf's foot the " saints " have an important function to perform, but the saints will never fulfil that function unless they walk in a straight way.

The Temple of Ezekiel's prophecy 5.6.9.

"The Kings," then, are the sanctified ones, "the called and chosen and faithful," of whom Christ Jesus is the Imperial Chief, and therefore styled, "KING of kings" (Apoc. 17:14; 19:16; 1 Tim. 6:15). They are the same, who, at the outset of their arduous, glorious, and ultimately victorious, career, sing the new song in which, addressing the Great Captain of their redemption who leads them to glory (Heb. 2:10), they say, "thou hast made us for our Deity kings and priests; and we shall reign as kings (basileusomen) upon the earth" (Ch. 5:10).

They begin their career under this sixth vial, and "turn not" from "the way," he hothos, (Ezek. 1:9,12,17) opened to them by the drying up of the Buphratean Power, until they have taken the Great City Babylon; and possessed themselves of all its thrones (Apoc. 20:4; 11:15; Dan. 7:9,18,27). The consummation of their "way" will be, that "the kingdoms of the world become our Lord's and his Christ's; and he shall reign king (basileusei) for the Aions of the Aions".

Whither the Spirit is to go they go, and they turn not when they go. These kings go their way, every one straight forward; for "their feet are straight feet," and consequently there is no deviousness in their way. "They accompany the Lamb whithersoever he goeth;" and his purpose is not crooked. His way is into the midst of the Great City, where, after the example of Cyrus, his prototype in the capture of Babylon, and the deliverance of the Jews, he hurls the Papal Belshatzar from his throne, and seizes upon his dominion for himself.

Eureka 16.1.1.

10 As for the likeness of their faces [ demut of their panim], they four had the face of a man [an adam], and the face of a lion [aryeh], on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox [shor] on the left side; they four also had the face of an eagle [nesher].

The Jewish and Gentile Loaves are almost complete; and little remains, but for the High Priest after the order of Melchizedec to come, and make a Pentecostian wave-offering of them before the Father on the mountain of his holiness. When this is accomplished, a company of undefiled ones will have been developed, all of them like himself - Firstfruits, in whose mouth exists no guile, being faultless before the throne of God.

Thus qualified and thus prepared, the honour and glory are conferred upon them of being "the attendants upon the Lamb whithersoever he goes". And here it must be remembered, that the Lamb is a symbol 'having Seven Horns and Seven Eyes, which are the Seven Spirits of the Deity sent forth into all the earth" - the symbol of almighty and omniscient power, which goes in aid of the operations of the 144,000.

In judgment being given to Jesus and his Brethren, "the Saints of the Most High" (Dan. 12:22) almighty power is given to them to execute it. In ch 14:13, this power is styled "the Spirit". Whithersoever the Spirit goes in all the earth to "execute the judgments written," they are ho ako/outhountes, the attendants upon him, as soldiers attend upon the Commander-in-Chief.

The Spirit energizing the 144,000 makes them almighty. Whither the Spirit is to go in taking the kingdom and dominion and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, they go; and turn not when they go: and when they go the noise of their wings is like the noise of great waters, as the Voice of the Almighty, the voice of speech, as the noise of a host (Ezek. 1:12,20-24; Dan. 7:27).

The mission of the Spirit is not confined to Europe; but extends "to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people;" to all of whom judgment is to go forth, that they may be taught to "Fear the Deity, and to give glory to Him". No power but that of the Spirit in terrible judicial manifestation can do this.

"When the judgments of Yahweh are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness".

This is the only argument man can comprehend. The world attributes mild measures to weakness and fear; and so long as it thinks principles and precepts cannot be enforced it treats them only with contempt: for

"let favour be showed to the wicked yet will he not learn righteousness".

Hence, the necessity of the Divine arrangement which gives omnipotence to the righteous, and sends them forth to subdue all things to the will of Him who makes them invincible (Isa. 26:9,10).

Eureka 14.5.

'it went up and down among the living creatures'

We are immediately reminded of the angels of God going up and down upon the Christ-ladder that Jacob saw (Gen. 28:12; Jn. 1:51). Here is communication between heaven and earth, another aspect of the work of the Living Creatures. The Cherubim are the Zadok priesthood, the communication and mediation between God and man. The Spirit of God is in constant living motion among and within them-continuous direction and guidance and energizing.

àThe wings of the Ezekiel Cherubim, and the Man-like Similitudes of Daniel and John, in speaking, sounded forth as the roar of mighty waters. This was when they were in progress, advancing in body and wings their brazen-footed battalions against the Fourth Beast, or the apocalyptic Beast and False Prophet, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, -- the former utterly consumed in the furnace, or "lake of fire burning with brimstone," and the kings of the earth, and their armies slain with the sword of the resurrected and Glorified Mystic Man.

Eureka 1.5.11.

Lamps of Fire

In the midst of the living creatures was as the appearance of lamps, it went up and down among the living creatures ; and the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth

lightning. (See verse 13.)

The same feature appears in the Apocalypse in a somewhat different phase. John speaks of

"seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God."

In John's days the testimony of the Spirit took the form of a sevenfold Apocalyptic scroll, written within and without, thus covering the period from receiving the Apocalypse up to the second appearing of Christ.

[ A scroll written within and without may be taken to mean writing in relation to those within the antitypical altar court and those outside]

Ezekiel's lamps of fire had a wider range portraying the light of the Spirit of God from the beginning, yet the two symbols are one in their interlocking scope. The Spirit of God is one, not seven. But the operations thereof may be figuratively divided into seven phases or pillars upon which wisdom builds her house (Prov. ix. 1).

" Out of the fire went forth lightning."

In the corresponding figure in the Apocalypse " lightnings accompanied with thunderings and voices " are said to proceed out of the throne (Chap. iv. 5). Thus, figuratively,the fire comes out of the throne because of that which is determined to be done in connection with the throne. Just as Jesus was the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world in the purpose of the Father long before His offering on the cross, so all things done in

relation to the throne are said to come out of it, because they are the result of the Father's determination to establish it.

All the same, there is a sense in which lightning comes out of the midst of that which is represented by the symbols. Speaking of the two witnesses which stand before the Lord of the earth, we read :

If any man desireth to hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies : and if any man shall desire to hurt them, he must in this manner be killed. These have the power to shut the heaven, that it rain not during the days of their prophecy : and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to smite the earth with every plague, as often as they shall desire. (Apoc. xi 5, 6, R.V.)

Now, the Father is very jealous of injury done to His children, saying :

" Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm " (i Chron. xvi. 22) and " He

that toucheth you toucheth the apple of His eye " (Zech. 11. 8).

So even now during the absence of Jesus Christ, and during the time when the saints are exhorted to address their prayers to the Father to whom belongeth vengeance, He will not leave His children unavenged, their prayers may cause lightning to proceed as it were

from " the midst of the living creatures" as it will certainly proceed from the throne (Jerusalem) when the Lord is established there.

The Temple of Ezekiel's prophecy 5.6.9.

16 The appearance of the wheels [Ofanim] and their work [making] was like unto the colour of a beryl [tarshish]: and they four had one likeness [demut]: and their appearance and their work [making] was as it were a wheel [Ofan] in the middle of [within] a wheel [Ofan].

THE WHEEL SYMBOL

àIn one important particular' the visions of Ezekiel differ from those of John, viz., the appearance of wheels. The wheel symbol, like that of the wing symbol, does not indicate that the living creatures move by the rotation of wheels. Thus we read :

When they went, they went upon their four sides: they turned not when they went. (Ezekiel 1: 11)

Also from the tenth chapter it will be seen that the cherubim is represented as standing over the threshold of the house when the command was given to the man clothed in linen to "go in between the whirling wheels "

(vv. 2-6, R.V.).

Ezekiel states, " the Spirit of Life was in the wheels" Chap. I. 20. (See margin, A.V.)

Now, the gift of eternal life is to be bestowed upon the children of God after the resurrection, thus we read :

And this is the will of Him that sent me, that everyone which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life ; and I will raise him up at the last day. (John vi. 40.)

For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them ; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will. (ibid. v. 21.)

Because wings do not convey the idea of eternal life, some other figure was selected to depict this all important feature. A wheel which is circular in form is pre-eminently suitable, because a circle is an unending line, thus fittingly representing eternity. Further, we read :

They four had one likeness : and their appearance and their work was as it were a wheel in the midst of a wheel. (Chap. 1. verse 16.)

" A wheel in the midst of a wheel " seems an appropriate figure not only of eternal life, but of the source thereof, even of Him who only hath immortality underived (1 Tim. vi. 16) and of those who have received immortality from Him. The wheel within the wheel thus symbolises immortality—eternal life derived from " the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God" to whom be

"honour and glory for ever and ever " (1 Tim. 1. 17 ; John v. 26).

The Temple of Ezekiel's prophecy 5.6.10.

18 As for their rings [ rims], they were so high that they were dreadful; and their rings were full of eyes round about [rims were mele'ot einayim saviv ] them four [the four of them].

As for their rings

The word translated rings has a wider signification than " rings " or " felloes " of the R.V. and is used to signify something round, as the back of an animal, which connotes surface and capacity. Pointed differently it has been translated " vault." It is translated "back" in Chapter X. verse 12. Coupled with the statement that these " rings " were full of eyes the word must

denote something in connection with a corporate body of living ones, or saints in glory.

Thus the word may be taken to signify depth, capacity, fulness, which is in harmony with the statement, the rings were " high." The word translated high is used relatively to indicate the elevation of the heaven above the earth.

Ezekiel sees this community " lifted up " or exalted, who, aforetime, were not " known of God " (Gal. iv. 9). Since the saints comprise the cherub in which He dwells, or upon which He rides, they stand in a higher relation to the Father than others who are afar off. Ezekiel also sees them " lifted up," or raised from mortality to immortality.

The Temple of Ezekiel's prophecy 5.6.10.

5.6.10. Dreadful rings

The statement that the " rings " were " dreadful " in appearance may be understood in two senses. First, the dreadful possibilities associated with a communication from the eternal one, in the sense which caused Jacob after seeing a vision of angels to say , " How dreadful

is this place " (Gen. 28. 16, 17). A sense of awe seems always to come upon those who have been thus enlightened, unless like Baalam they wish to serve themselves rather than God.

In view of the majesty of the Father when in His exceeding kindness and graciousness (Eph. 11. 7, 9) He makes known the truth to His creatures, respect and fear may well be generated even if conjoined with love and gratitude. Gratitude because of the promise of eternal life and an inheritance in His kingdom ; fear lest they should fail of its attainment.

The Temple of Ezekiel's prophecy 5.6.10.

They are "full of eyes before and behind;" or, as Ezekiel says, "their whole basar, flesh, even their backs, and their hand, and their wings, and the wheels, were full of eyes round about." An eye is the symbol of intelligence; and when a multitude of eyes are aggregated together, each eye indicates a particular or individual intelligence.

Ezekiel informs us that the eyes were in flesh which was full of them. Each eye, then, was a flesh-intelligence; and, as the four had each a human face and hand, and were endowed with the faculty of speech, the intelligence was that of a man. Hence, each eye is representative of a man; and as the four sing, "Thou hast redeemed us," each eye is symbolical of a saint. The eyes are "a great multitude which no man can number;" yet they are symbolized by four, by 144,000, by a city lying four-square, and 144 cubits -- that is, these numbers are symbolical of the saints; first, in relation to their encampment; second to their nationality; third, to their municipality; and fourth to their corporation limit.

Eureka 4.4.0

19 And when the living creatures [ Chayos] went, the wheels went by them [Ofanim went beside them]: and when the living creatures [Chayos] were lifted up from the earth [ha'aretz], the wheels [Ofanim] were lifted up.

These four living ones and the four wheels are "THE CHARIOT OF THE CHERUBIM." They are the chariot in which the Deity rides forth to battle against the enemies of the house of David, and upon which he sits enthroned over Israel. This appears from 2 Sam. xxii. 11, and Psa. lxxx. 1. In the former place, Yahweh is said to ride upon a cherub; and in the latter, to inhabit the cherubim.

The etymology of the word is regarded as obscure. In view of this, I would suggest that we may take the root charav, as having been the same with kharav, to waste, to destroy, from which comes, kherev, a sword.

This derivation is suggested by the text where kheruvim, or cherubim, first occurs in the scriptures; as, "Yahweh Elohim placed at the east of the garden of Eden the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned itself to guard the way of the tree of the lives." By rendering wav, by even, instead of "and," it would make the flaming sword expletive of the cherubim; as, "the cherubim, even the flaming sword" -- the flame containing the cherubic power, as Ezekiel's "whirlwind, great clouds, and fire," did the four living ones he saw.

Eureka 4.4.0.

20 Whithersoever the spirit [Ruach] was to go, they went, thither was their spirit [Ruach] to go; and the wheels [Ofanim] were lifted up over against them: for the spirit [Ruach] of the living creature [HaChayah] was in the wheels [Ofanim].

Unity of the Spirit

Jesus now walks with the Spirit; for "whithersoever the Spirit goeth" he, as the pre-eminent of the Cherubim, also goes (Ezek. i. 12,20). Hence, as this obtains with respect to him, it will also with them; for it is written, that the redeemed from among men "follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth," which is equivalent to walking with the Spirit -- in material and personal union with him.

But they shall walk with him "in white robes." Those who walk with the Spirit must be "worthy." The "few" in Sardis are declared to be such -- "they are worthy," saith the Spirit. Their robes must be of moral and material whiteness. Their character being pure and unstained, their nature must be made to correspond. In the present state, the saints are invested with holy garments, termed "their garments" in the writings before us.

Having "put on Christ" by faith in the kingdom and name, and by immersion, he is for them a robe of righteousness; and by walking in him according to the truth received and obeyed, and so yielding the fruit of the Spirit, they "keep themselves unspotted from the world," which is as a garment of "fine linen, clean and white," which symbolizes the righteous actions of the saints (Apoc. xix. 8).

These premises constitute the basis of their exaltation to holy spirit nature. This is "white," or pure. It is the incorruptible and deathless body, undefiled by the affections and lusts of our present nature, "in which dwells no good thing." Hence, then, he that walks with the Spirit in white robes is a righteous, incorruptible, and deathless man.

Eureka 3.1.1.

Whithersoever the [Ruach] was to go, they went

àThe labours of the Saints are world-wide. Mankind has no conception of them. They are labours whereby "every island shall flee away, and the mountains shall not be found" (Apoc. 16:20). These are the islands and mountains of the political earth - the kingdoms and empires of the world. All these are to become the kingdoms of the Eternal Spirit, and of his Anointed Body consisting of Jesus and his Brethren (ch. 11:15).

Let the reader figure out for himself the work to be performed in rendering them powerless, and bringing them into absolute Subjection to "the King of the Jews," and he will be enabled to form a faint idea of "the works and labours of the Saints," to be performed before they take rest in the kingdom of the Deity.

These islands and mountains, of which Great Britain, Russia, France, and such like, are examples, are maintained in political existence by vast naval and military power and resources; and the Continental Powers are so constituted, that they can conscript "the last man" for conflict in "the last ditch," before they will yield to temporal and spiritual annihilation.

But the decree has gone forth...They must succumb, and "wait for his law". Their fleets must be surrendered, and their armies routed, slaughtered, and dispersed. Their hearts will be hardened like the heart of Pharaoh.

"Yahweh hath made all things for Himself; yea, even the wicked for the Day of Evil" (Prov. 16:4).

Hence, He hath made the Powers that be for the day of evil, as "vessels of wrath fitted to destruction", in which He will make His power known (Rom. 9:22). Their hardened hearts will cause them to stand and resist, till they are broken to shivers as the vessels of a potter (Apoc. 2:27).

It is Jesus and his brethren who have the glory of giving them this terrific overthrow, in the execution of their judicial labours upon Babylon, and the world-wide worshippers of the Beast and his Image. To reduce these islands and mountains to a submarine level - to overflow them with an unruffled and glassy sea; to make them as "a plain before Zerubbabel, " and to develop "a great mountain thereon that shall fill the whole earth" (Dan. 2:35), these .are the labours of the Saints, which will leave their mark upon the world for a thousand years; nor will they ever be forgotten, as long as the sun and moon shall shine upon the earth.

But their prowess is not exclusively of themselves. "The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do; for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise;" "The Father that dwelleth in me, He doeth the works" (John 5:19; 14:10). Upon this principle "their works" are performed likewise. The Saints can do nothing of themselves; for it is "not by might nor by power," originating from men; "but by My Spirit, saith Yahweh Tz'vaoth". The prowess of the saints is all attributable to the Spirit, which they will have become in being "justified by Spirit" after their appearance at "the tribunal of Christ" - "that which hath been born of spirit is Spirit" (John 3:6).

The antithesis in Zech. 6:6, is between flesh and spirit. The "great mountain," which before Zerubbabel is to "become a plain," is the power of the old Adam, organized and concentrated in the powers represented in Nebuchadnezzar's Image. This is to be broken to pieces, and scattered as chaff, "not by the might and power" of mortal men, however effectively armed and disciplined; but by the Spirit incorporate in the Saints; and energizing the armies of Israel under their command; so that five Israelites, as so many Samsons, may chase a hundred, and a hundred put ten thousand to flight (Lev. 26:8).

...The Spirit goeth with them in aid of their works. Without the Spirit they could do nothing; but aided by the Spirit, there is nothing too difficult f6r them to accomplish. The Spirit is their akolouthos or "attendant", in whatever capacity the circumstances of the situation may require them to act. "He goeth with them," akolouthei met' auton, so that, as Ezekiel saw in his visions of the Elohim, "whither-soever the Spirit was to go, they went" without being turned aside from the execution of their purpose (ch. 1:12,20).

Eureka 14.10.

22 And the likeness of the firmament upon the heads of the living creature was as the colour of the terrible crystal [Ice - RV], stretched forth over their heads above.

Undoubtedly the likeness of a throne v26 with the appearance of a man upon it above refers to the throne which is to be established in Jerusalem, but the occupants of that throne do not sit upon it until the glorified constituents thereof enter into the Temple as related in chapter forty-three.

For the time being they are under the firmament, so to speak, in relation to the heavenly or eternal state into which they enter when elevated to rulership on the throne.

The firmament is said to be like the " terrible crystal," or ice (verse 22, R.V. margin), a clear white substance indicative of righteousness, white being especially the characteristic symbol of the righteousness of the saints (Apoc. VII. 14 ; xix. 8] the head and fountain of which is

Christ Jesus, who

" of God is made unto us wisdom and righteousnesss " (1 Cor. 1. 30 ; Phil. ill. 8, 9]

and through whom the saints are able to work out their own righteousness.

To use a figure, the saints will be " clothed with their own righteousness " when they are accepted at the judgment seat of Christ, just before their marriage with the Lamb (Apoc. xix. 7-9).

The wings full of eyes, viz., the saints in preparation or the throne, are prospectively related to " the firmament " under the throne, stretching up to it as depicted by the wings " stretching up to " the firmament and throne to which the wings will extend when the work

The of sealing the saints of God is finished.

Meanwhile their eyes are lifted up to this firmament.

The Temple of Ezekiel's prophecy 5.6.9.

THE SAPPHIRE THRONE

We have already seen that above the head of the living creature is a firmament of crystal, indicative of the righteousness of the saints (verse 22). Now above the firmament over their head is the likeness of a throne having the appearance of a " sapphire " stone, and the likeness of the appearance of "a man above upon it " (verse 26). The man upon

the throne must be the same man depicted in symbol in the preceding verses, because he is described as having the same characteristic; viz., of :

The colour of amber (or electron) as the appearance of fire round about within it, from the appearance of his loins even upward, and from the appearance of his loins even downward, I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and it had brightness round about. (Verse 27. Compare with verse 4.)

Even so this man cannot sit upon the "sapphire throne" till the sapphire stage, which is to appear at a certain juncture indicated in the vision. The colour of "sapphire," a pure, clear, cornflower blue, is too well known to require further description. Since we are told that

" the blueness of a wound cleanseth away evil " - Prov. 20: 30),

and that

"the wise shall shine as the brightness of the [blue] firmament" (Dan. 12: 3),

the appearance of a sapphire stone in connection with the throne may be taken to indicate that the multitudinous man symbolized in the vision is sitting upon the throne after being healed of the wounds inflicted upon Him by the ulcer sin and the powers of sin : when it is written :

God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes ; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain : for the former things are

passed away... - Apoc. xxi.)

The healing process comes when the righteousness of saints indicated by the crystal firmament over their heads (verse 22) has been declared and manifested. (Matt. xxv. 34 ; Apoc. xix. 8] Then the brilliancy of their achievements will be revealed.

This healing process is also indicated by a " rainbow " in connection with the throne:

The appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of Yahweh. And when I saw it I fell upon my face. v28.]

The rainbow is a wonderful symbol of deliverance, see the record of the covenant with Noah, and the manifestation of the " rainbow " and its parallel figure described in the tenth chapter of the Apocalypse.

Ezekiel appears to have been overwhelmed by the vision of the glory of the Lord, and falls down upon his face. This is the mental attitude of anyone convinced of the power of the word of life either by the working of miracles or by the operation of the Spirit word, for he falls down in awe and submission to God (Acts x. 25, 26 ; 1 Cor. xiv. 25).

The Temple of Ezekiel's prophecy 5.6.11.

24 And when they went, I heard the noise of their wings [ kol of their kenafayim], like the noise of great waters [ kol of mayim rabbim], as the voice of the Almighty [Kol Shaddai], the voice of speech [tumult], as the noise of an host [machaneh]: when they stood [still], they let down their wings [kenafayim].

This was equivalent to saying that their wings represented "great waters," which represented "Mighty Ones," who gave utterance to their will and purpose, and that there was a multitude of them. These were the waters John heard responsive to the voice issuing from the throne, saying, "Praise our Deity, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, small and great." "I heard," says he, "the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, hallelu Yah, praise ye YAH; for YAHWEH Elohim the Omnipotent reigns.

Let us be glad and rejoice, and give the glory to him; for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready" (xix. 6). This glorious multitude will be the embodiment of the power that is "to execute vengeance upon the nations and punishments upon the peoples; to bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron; to execute upon them the judgment written:" that is to perform all those things I have sketched under the caption of "The Apocalypse Rooted in the Prophets" (Vol. I, Chap. I, sec. i, 4); to set up the kingdom and to establish glory to the Deity in the highest heaven, over the earth peace and goodwill among men.

...they are symbols of a wasting and destroying power. When their wings are expanded they are in lightning operation; when let down, they are standing, and either preparing for action or "resting from their labours."

Eureka 4.4.0

26 And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it.

"Incorruptible and living substance, then, is the Body of the Deity; and as the glorified Jesus is the 'Image of the Invisible Theos,' He must have 'parts' ...

He has form and parts, as well as body, and is the great Archetype, or divine Original, after which all the Elohim, or immortal intelligences, of His universe are modelled and made ...

"Now these suggestions are sustained by 'the likeness of the glory of Yahweh' which appeared to Ezekiel. 'Above the firmament,' says this prophet, 'that was over the heads of the four living ones, was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone; and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it ...

This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of Yahweh'—ch. 1:26-8."

Eureka, vol. I, p. 95-6: