How
Jesus, the seven Spirits of God, the menorah and the
festivals are all connected.
The
seven Spirits of God appears in four passages in the
book of Revelation. In Isaiah it is referenced.
Revelation
1:4 -
John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace
be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which
was, and which is to come; and from the seven
Spirits which are before his throne;
Revelation
3:1 - And unto the angel of the
church in Sardis write; These things saith he that
hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars;
I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou
livest, and art dead.
Revelation
4:5 - And out of the throne
proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and
there were seven lamps of fire burning before the
throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.
Revelation
5:6 - And I beheld, and, lo, in the
midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in
the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been
slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are
the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the
earth.
Isaiah 11:2 - The Spirit
of the Lord will rest on him the Spirit of wisdom
and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of
might,
the
Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—
Revelation 3:1 tells us that Jesus holds or
has the seven Spirits then later on Revelation 4:5
tells us there are seven lamps of fire which are the
seven Spirits of God. The seven Spirits / lamps
in heaven are symbolically represented by one
particular object in both the tabernacle and in the
temple. The menorah.
Colossians
2:16-17 tells us that the festivals were fulfilled in
Christ.
“Let no man
therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in
respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the
sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come;
but the body is of Christ.”
There
were seven major religious festivals. Imagine
each of the seven candles or bowls on the menorah lit
sequentially as in the order that the festivals
occur. Each in order. Each fulfillment in
order.
The
first light on the menorah would correlate to Passover
and we know Jesus is the Passover lamb. The second
light would be Unleavened Bread. Jesus’s burial
corresponded with this feast. The prayer of that
feast asks God to bring fruit out of the ground.
The third light would be First Fruits.
First Fruits occurred three days after Passover and
Jesus’s resurrection fulfills the meaning of the
festival. The fourth light would be Pentecost.
It occurred 50 days after First Fruits. Jesus
fulfilled the meaning of the feast by sending the Holy
Spirit. The fifth light would be the Feast of
Trumpets. Next would be the sixth light
correlating to the Day of Atonement.
Finally the seventh light would be the feast of
Tabernacles.
(As a
side note, I imagine that the burning bush might have
served as the model for the menorah with seven flames
shooting up).
All
these things are related. Even the number 7 is
related. It represents completeness and
perfection. In all these things we see God the
Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
YBIC
Bruce
Baber