“And I was caught up into the third heaven, and heard things impossible to utter.”
There is much symmetry in the way in which our Bible begins and closes—
The Bible begins with the history of physical man, while as yet his higher nature (eternal in its true essence) lay dormant and unmanifested within him. It is here we see those powers which man shares with the animal at their highest—courage, patience, and a certain fierce battling for himself and his family; while the longer years he lived were partly owing to the physical being supreme. Here, too, we see the rise of the intellectual powers (as distinct from the moral) in the works and inventions of that old race.
In the last book, we have the true history of the psyche. Put from you the idea that John’s revelation is one of mere future events; a prophecy in the sense of foretelling things to come. It is rather the inner history of the human ego in his second and third states, that is, as soul and spirit.
It is a wonderful picture of life, and of that of all either in one state or another. It begins after the introductory part of the messages to the churches, and to understand it, we must have two leading ideas in our mind—
The two threads are these—we have here the perfect man, and we have the imperfect, and the history of these two runs side by side. The perfect man is represented in many ways and under many titles, all of which titles have their deep meaning, and show different sides of a perfect character. Although all these are supposed to refer to the Christ whom John knew—and indeed are true of him—yet they must not be limited in that way, for they refer to the type; to that perfect being which was from eternity and shall be to eternity, and who is, therefore, spoken of as the First and the Last. We, indeed, are as yet only a little way on that road which leads to perfect manifestation, but we came from the Complete One, and we shall return to Him—if He has all wisdom—the seven spirits of God—it is only as head of the race; such wisdom is the birthright of all and shall be theirs when the set time is at hand.
We have, then, in this book, the human soul in all stages of development compared and contrasted with one who has gone through such discipline and has come forth—perfect Man and perfect Son of God.
The soul begins his conscious history, generally, in this way—If he believes in God, it is as a being of infinite power who lives apart from his creation—on a throne—and whose attributes are represented by thunder and lightning, while all nature bows down before him in passive awe. This is the time when courage, power, and all physical qualities are his ideal.
And, behold, a throne was set in Heaven, and one sat on the throne. And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices. And four-and-twenty elders and four living creatures were round about the throne, and they rest not day nor night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come. Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power, for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure, they are and were created.
—Rev. iv., 2—11
The next stage in his life may be this—He begins to feel pressing on him the awful mysteries of his being; life is a closed book to him, the eternal “Why” begins to rise within him and, at the same time, he feels unable and unworthy to open the book.
Then he is happy if he learns to believe that there is one who has both the power and the will to reveal these mysteries to him. One, not a being apart from himself, but who is only a little further on in the way of experience—one, who is both the Lion and the Lamb; who unites all the strength of the divine with the beauty of self-sacrifice.
And I saw a book sealed with seven seals. And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth was able to open the book, neither to look thereon. I beheld and, lo, in the midst of the throne stood a Lamb as it had been slain. And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.
—Chap. v., 1—7
This true, perfect man breaks the first seal, and the soul becomes conscious of new powers. Strong in faith, in the greatness of humanity, he goes forth conquering, and to conquer.
When the Lamb opened one of the seals, I saw, and behold a white horse, and he that sat on him had a bow and a crown, and he went forth conquering and to conquer.
—Chap. v., 1—2
Another seal is broken—his experience widens, but this time, it is not the triumphant march of the conquerer, but the cry of defeat; while he learns through loss and through conflict, through the wounds of sin and the loss of self-esteem how to conquer in a truer way.
When he had opened the second seal, there went out another horse that was red—power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth.
—Rev. vi., 3 and 4
A third seal is broken—he learns that there is no distinction between the earthly and the heavenly—the corn and the wine are as sacred as the angel’s words or the sound of the heavenly trumpets; he learns something of the unity of life.
When he had opened the third seal, I beheld a black horse, and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. And I heard a voice say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny, and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.
—Chap. vi., 5 and 6
The fourth seal shows us how, through the loss of whatever may have been as dear to him as life itself, he is led on to a higher plane, the plane of self-sacrifice.
When he had opened the fourth seal, I looked, and behold a pale horse, and his name that sat on him was Death and Hell followed with him. And power was given them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.
—Chap. vi., 7 and 8
The fifth seal shows him in that phase of experience when there presses on him a sense of injustice because the righteous seem to suffer and the wicked to prosper. “How long, O Lord, before thou wilt avenge thy saints?”
When he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God—and they cried with a loud voice saying, How long, O Lord, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood? And it was said unto them that they should rest for a little season.
—Chap. vi., 9—11
The sixth seal shows the soul’s dread of death and of what lies beyond it.
When he had opened the sixth seal, there was a great earthquake; the sun became black, and the moon became as blood; the stars of heaven fell and the heaven departed, and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. And all men hid in the dens and the rocks of the mountains, and said, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of his wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand?
—Chap. vi., 12—17
And so he is led on until—at the seventh seal, there is silence in heaven—that is, his mind is calmly poised on the great foundation truths, and he can wait for joy or sorrow, conflict or peace, with sure and steadfast faith that all is well forever and for all.
And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.
—Chap. viii., i
The seven trumpets carry on this history of the man on a more spiritual plane; like an artist who becomes a sculptor, he has learnt much that will help him, but he must apply it in different ways, for soul-battles are not fought once and for all, but have to be re-fought on a different battleground and with new weapons. For is it not true in our life that the old doubts and difficulties which we thought dead rise again in greater strength, and must be met and conquered in the new spirit that has been born within us.
The seven vials show the history of those who have more struggle, more apparent discord to overcome; such as are led through fire rather than through green valleys. Yet all will finally sing the same triumphant song of victory over what has been out of harmony with their divine nature—the victory of life over death, of holiness over sin, the dissolving of all that is not truly spiritual, and the manifestation of the new man with the new name.
The vision of the throne is now of the throne of God and the Lamb, that is, God and Man made one forever.
“I AWOKE!” Conditions of Life on the other Side, David Stott, London, 1895
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