The Seventh Seal
Silence in Heaven
“And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour. And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets.
“And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand. And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.” Rev 8:1-5
Let us look at first at verse one: “And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.”
“Silence in heaven.” This is indeed an intriguing phrase. In fact, the view of heaven for the average person is that it is a peaceful quiet blissful place. On the contrary, so far heaven in Revelation has been portrayed as quite noisy. We have beasts, angels and saints singing, talking and praising God. Then we have seen lots of fire, blood, trumpets, thunder lightenings, earthquakes and all kinds activity.
All this symbolizes the great struggle and labor performed by the disciple as he works thorough the six days or periods toward the creation of the Christ consciousness. Now that consciousness is achieved he deserves a rest. Like God he works six days and has a rest on the seventh.
And “there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.”
His consciousness has worked its way up the six chakras and finally penetrated into the seventh and final one. Each achievement of the opening of a seal in the past was met by a burst of activity, some novel event or something that turned his world upside down.
But this time he is met with the greatest surprise of all – nothing – stillness, quiet, a peace that passes all understanding.
He is perplexed by this great peace and quiet, as if all eternity is standing still and waiting on him. As he basks in the silence, he finds himself merging with the still but powerful Spirit of God and ceases all activity, quiets all thoughts and joins with the one Great Life and inwardly affirms “I and my Father are One.” In great silence he contemplates this the oneness of all life and then he makes a discovery. As if his whole being were a great eye he sees the will of God and understands it as he never did before. This great understanding breaks the silence. Instead of a day of rest he only gets a half hour because no one can see such a great revelation and continue in the silence. He knows now he must become an agent of the will, power and purpose of God while there is still time. He can rest later.
Verse two:
“And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets.”
The will of God reverberates through all seven chakras and all seven layers of consciousness. That the seven basic parts of the disciple that make him what he is now align with the will of God and are each given a trumpet. In other words, each part of himself is awakened (a trumpet awakes) to the fact that it can be an agent in fulfilling the higher will and is now ready to do that will.
Verse 3
“And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.”
The disciple is overwhelmed with a vision of the will, as Jesus was in the garden of Gethsemane. “How am I to fulfill such an overwhelming work and sacrifice?” he asks. Then an angel comes and “strengthens him.” The angel is another Christed one and reminds the disciple to be aware of the prayers of the saints – that they are depending on the will of God being manifest and it can only be manifest among humanity through the free will of the highest of humanity.
All the pleadings and prayers of past ages are now like a burning incense that the pilgrim senses blending with the divine will that must be accomplished.
Verses 4 and 5:
“And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand. And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.”
The disciple feels that the prayers of the saints and the will of God are now one and he must fulfill his destiny. He must seize the day, or seize the will of God and bring it down to earth. He will become transformed and resurrected into a new life.
DK quotes from an ancient record that beautifully words this:
“When communion is established, words are forthwith used, and mantric law assumes its rightful place, provided that the One communicates the words and the three remain in silence.
“When response is recognized as emanating from the three, the One, in silence, listens. The roles are changed. A three-fold word issues from out the triple form. A turning round is caused. The eyes no longer look upon the world of form; they turn within, focus the light, and see, revealed, an inner world of being. With this the Manas stills itself, for eyes and mind are one.
“The heart no longer beats in tune with low desire, nor wastes its love upon the things that group and hide the Real. It beats with rhythm new; it pours its love upon the Real, and Maya fades away. Kama and heart are close allied; love and desire form one whole, one seen at night, the other in the light of day….
“When fire and love and mind submit themselves, sounding the three-fold word, there comes response.
“The One enunciates a word which drowns the triple sound. God speaks. A quivering and a shaking in the form responds. The new stands forth, a man remade; the form rebuilt; the house prepared. The fires unite, and great the light that shines: the three merge with the One and through the blaze a four-fold fire is seen.” Treatise on White Magic, Pages 75-76
For an interpretation of this mystical text go to this link:
The proof that man is the noblest of all creatures is that no other creature has ever denied it. Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742 – 1799)
May 10, 2005
Copyright by J J Dewey
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