晨興聖言-經歷、享受並彰顯基督(四)(W42-3)

第四十二週.週三

W42-d3-ch

晨興餧養

啟十1 『我又看見另一位大力的天使,從天降下,披著雲彩,頭上有虹,臉面像日頭,兩腳像火柱。』

   四3  『那位坐著的,顯出來的樣子好像碧玉和紅寶石,又有虹圍著寶座,顯出來的樣子好像綠寶石。』

從〔啟示錄十章一至十一節〕,我們可以清楚看見基督要來據有全地。在這章裏,基督是『另一位大力的天使』,如在七章二節,八章三節,十八章一節者。…這異象暗示,在第七號之前,基督仍是在來地上的途中。

十章一節又說,基督『披著雲彩』。此時祂不是駕著雲,如在十四章十四節,馬太二十四章三十節,二十六章六十四節者。駕著雲是公開的來,披著雲彩是隱密的來。這指明即使到了第六號之後,就是大災難的中期,基督還是隱密的來臨;直到…地上的眾支派都要看見祂。〔啟一7。〕…甚至在第六碗,眾軍聚攏在哈米吉頓的時候,基督仍發出警告說,祂來要像賊一樣。(十六15。)…藉此我們看見,一般所說基督要在大災難之前來臨,是不正確的。(啟示錄生命讀經,三六○至三六一頁。)

信息選讀

在〔啟示錄十章〕這個異象裏,基督的『頭上有虹』。這裏的虹指明基督在審判地並來據有地時,信守神與挪亞關於地所立的約。(創九8~17。)…虹是神與人並活物立約的記號,說明祂不會再用洪水滅絕他們。(8~17。)在〔啟示錄〕中,神要審判地和其上一切的居民。彩虹圍著祂的寶座,〔四3,〕表徵神是立約的神,是信實的神,在祂審判地時,要遵守祂所立的約,不再用洪水審判人,也不再將全人類滅絕,乃要保留一些人,成為新地上的列國榮耀祂。(二一24,26。)這彩虹指明神在祂對人類的行政管治上是信實的。在〔四〕章裏,神要對人類施行審判,但在執行審判時,祂仍記念與挪亞所立的約。祂是審判的神,也是守約的神。

這虹『顯出來的樣子好像綠寶石』。綠寶石是草綠色的,表徵地上的生命。這指明神在地上施行審判時,仍要記念祂的約,並保留一些生命在地上,如創世記九章十一節所指明的。綠寶石是一種堅硬的寶石;那題醒神遵守祂約的,是堅定不移的。這個堅定的題醒,圍繞著寶座。

啟示錄四章五節告訴我們:『有閃電、聲音、雷轟,從寶座中發出。』這一切都表徵神審判中的忿怒。在書信中,從施恩的寶座出來神的憐憫和恩典,給一切藉著基督贖罪的血親近神的人。但在這裏,從審判的寶座有閃電、聲音、雷轟發出來,作為向罪惡世界的警告。在啟示錄裏,神執行了一切審判之後,神的寶座就成為永遠生命供應的寶座,從那裏流出來一道生命水的河,有生命樹長在其中。所有今天來到神施恩的寶座,有分於神的憐憫和恩典的信徒,將會享受從神寶座出來的生命河與生命樹,作他們生命的供應,直到永遠;但那些要受神審判的寶座所審判的不信者,就與神那永遠寶座所發出來的永遠享受,無分無關。(啟示錄生命讀經,三六一、二五六至二五八頁。)

參讀:啟示錄生命讀經,第十七篇。

WEEK 42 — DAY 3


Morning Nourishment

Rev. 10:1 And I saw another strong Angel coming down out of heaven, clothed with a cloud; and the rainbow was upon His head, and His face was like the sun, and His feet like pillars of fire.

       4:3 And He who was sitting was like a jasper stone and a sardius in appearance, and there was a rainbow around the throne like an emerald in appearance.

In Revelation 10:1-11 we have a clear vision of Christ coming to take possession of the earth. In this chapter Christ is “another strong Angel,” like the One in 7:2; 8:3; and 18:1. This vision is a hint that, before the seventh trumpet, Christ is still on His way to earth.

Revelation 10:1 also says that Christ is “clothed with a cloud.” He is not yet on the cloud, as in 14:14 and in Matthew 24:30; 26:64. To be on the cloud is to come openly, whereas to be clothed with a cloud is to come secretly. This indicates that even after the sixth trumpet, which will be in the midst of the great tribulation, Christ will still be coming secretly, not openly, until He will be seen by all the tribes of the earth [Rev. 1:7]…Even at the time of the sixth bowl, during the gathering at Armageddon, Christ will give the warning that He is coming as a thief (16:15)…By this we see that the general teaching that Christ will come before the great tribulation is inaccurate. (Life-study of Revelation, p. 296)

Today’s Reading

In this vision Christ has a rainbow upon His head. Here the rainbow indicates that Christ in His judgment upon the earth and in His coming to take possession of it will keep the covenant that God made with Noah concerning the earth (Gen. 9:8-17). The rainbow is a sign of God’s covenant with man and all living creatures that He will not destroy them again with a flood (vv. 8-17). The book of Revelation shows that God will judge the earth with all its inhabitants. The rainbow around His throne [4:3] signifies that God is the covenanting God, the faithful God, who will keep His covenant while executing His judgment upon the earth. He will not judge mankind again with a flood nor destroy all mankind, but will keep a part of mankind to be the nations of the new earth for His glory (21:24, 26). This rainbow indicates that God is faithful in His administration toward mankind. In chapter 4 God is about to judge mankind, but in exercising His judgment, He will remember His covenant with Noah. He is the judging God, and He is also the covenant-keeping God.

This rainbow around God’s throne is like an emerald in appearance. An emerald is a precious stone whose grass-green color signifies the lives on earth. This indicates that as God is executing His judgment upon the earth, He will remember His covenant and will spare some of the lives on earth, as indicated in Genesis 9:11. An emerald, being a precious stone, is solid. God’s reminder to keep His covenant is solid. There is this solid reminder around the throne.

In Revelation 4:5 we are told that “out of the throne come forth lightnings and voices and thunders.” All of these signify God’s wrath in His judgment. In the Epistles, out of the throne of grace come the mercy and grace of God for anyone who approaches Him through the redeeming blood of Christ. But here, out of the throne of judgment come forth lightnings, voices, and thunders as warnings to the sinful world. In the book of Revelation, after all of God’s judgments have been executed, the throne of God will be the throne of eternal life supply, out of which will proceed the river of water of life with the tree of life growing in it. All the believers who are participating in God’s mercy and grace today by approaching God’s throne of grace will enjoy the river of life and the tree of life out of God’s throne as their life supply for eternity, while the unbelievers, who will be judged by God’s throne of judgment, will have no share in the eternal
enjoyment issuing out of God’s eternal throne. (Life-study of Revelation, pp. 296-297, 208-209)

Further Reading: Life-study of Revelation, msg. 17

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