Verse 31 speaks of the base and the shaft of the lampstand. The base is for stability, and the shaft is for strength. The four Gospels reveal that the Lord Jesus was always stable and strong. He always had a stable base, and no matter what situation He encountered, He stood as a strong shaft.
Now we come to an aspect of the lampstand which is difficult to understand. Verse 31 says of the lampstand, “Its cups, its knobs and its blossoming buds shall be from it.” What are these cups, and why are they on the branches and the shaft? The expression “blossoming buds” actually means blossoms, although “blossoming buds” is the literal translation of the Hebrew. What is the significance of these blossoms? When I was young, I had great difficulty understanding this matter. I thought that on each branch there was a knob over the cup and a blossom over the knob. Actually, the cup, the knob, and the blossoming bud are all parts of one flower, one blossom.
A flower, an almond flower for example, has several layers. The bottom layer may be green, like a green leaf. The proper word to describe this bottom layer is calyx. The word knob in verse 31 denotes the calyx of a flower, the outer leafy green layer of a flower. The calyx contains the blossoming bud. The top of the flower, the blossoming bud, is actually the flower itself. In verse 31 the word cup is used to describe the whole flower, including the calyx and the blossoming bud. Thus, the cup is equal to the complete flower. This cup comprises the calyx at the bottom and the buds at the top. When the buds blossom, a flower is produced.
In the lampstand the cup is shaped like an almond blossom, an almond flower. Here the almond flower is called a cup. Almonds blossom early in the spring, before other trees. Every little almond flower is a cup. At the bottom of the cup there is a leafy green part called the calyx, which forms a container to hold the blossoming buds. Eventually these buds become flowers.
The cups shaped like almond blossoms signify the resurrection life blossoming. According to Numbers 17:8, Aaron’s rod budded and brought forth almonds. This is a picture of resurrection life coming out of death. Aaron’s rod was a dead stick, but through resurrection it brought forth almonds. Hence, almond blossoms signify the blossoming of resurrection life.
We have pointed out that an almond tree blossoms early in the spring. Thus, the almond blossom signifies the firstfruit of resurrection.
Jeremiah 1:11 and 12 say, “Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree. Then said the Lord unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it.” In Hebrew the words almond and hasten are from the same root. This root word means to watch over, to be alert. The spiritual significance of this is very meaningful. Resurrection implies to watch, to be alert, to hasten. Resurrection hastens matters. According to Jeremiah 1:12, the Lord’s intention was to hasten His word to perform it; that is, He would hasten to fulfill His word.
We have pointed out that Christ’s being the light of life is altogether a matter of divinity. Now we see that it is also a matter wholly in resurrection. Without resurrection life, there cannot be any light. Christ can be the light of life only in His divinity and in resurrection. Hence, divinity and resurrection are the prerequisites for Christ to be the light of life. In principle, the same is true of us in our experience. We cannot shine by our natural life, by our humanity. If we would shine forth the light of life, we must have divinity and we must be in resurrection. Resurrection is the basis for the shining of the divine light.