The Bible is not only the holy Word, but also the divine Word. In this divine Word we have divine revelation. But we must realize that this divine revelation was not given all at once. It took God thousands of years to pass it on in a progressive way. In one year God gave a little part of His divine revelation. Then after a certain time, He came in to give another part. To us, this seems long, but to Him, a thousand years is like one day. God gave His divine revelation progressively, yet it is wholly consistent.
Many Christians are troubled by the book of Revelation because of all the symbols. How could a face have seven eyes? And these seven eyes are on the face of a lamb (Rev. 5:6). Moreover, we are told that the seven eyes are seven lamps of burning fire (Rev. 4:5). Seven eyes are mysterious enough, but in addition we see that these seven eyes are on fire and burning. However, we must realize that nearly all the symbols in the book of Revelation are already mentioned in the Old Testament. We should not attempt to exercise our mind unduly, but come back to the pure Word. There is a rich mine in the Old Testament. If we dig this mine in the right way, we will obtain the proper interpretation.
Zechariah 3:9 also mentions seven eyes: “For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua; upon one stone shall be seven eyes: behold, I will engrave the gravings thereof, saith the Lord of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.” Here the seven eyes are not on the lamb, but on a stone. On the cross God engraved this stone for the remission of sins. Thus He said that He would remove the iniquity of the land in one day. This is redemption. We know that a stone is material for God’s building. But before the Lord can build us up, He must get rid of our iniquity. Therefore, the stone becomes a lamb. This is why the seven eyes on the stone are the seven eyes of the lamb. On the cross God engraved Christ to remove the iniquity of God’s people. This is not only for redemption, but for the building of God. When the Lord Jesus was surrounded by His opposers. He indicated that He Himself is a stone. He said that the stone which the builders rejected would become the head of the corner (Matt. 21:42). This is the “lamb-stone.” He is both the lamb and the stone: the lamb is for our redemption, and the stone is for God’s building. Redemption is for building. So eventually He is the lamb-stone—the lamb-stone with seven eyes.
In the book of Zechariah we also see the lampstand with seven lamps: “And he said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a lampstand all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof....Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts” (Zech. 4:2, 6). It is clear from these verses that the seven lamps are the Spirit of the Lord. Now we see that for God’s building and God’s administrative government, His Spirit is the seven lamps burning with fire.
Before the stone with seven eyes is mentioned in Zechariah, we read of the Branch. “For, behold, I will bring forth my servant the Branch. For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua: upon one stone shall be seven eyes” (Zech. 3:8b-9a). The branch is the stone with seven eyes, which are the seven lamps. A branch is for growing, and a stone is for building. Christ is not only the branch of the Lord (Isa. 4:2), but also the branch of humanity (Isa. 11:1; Jer. 23:5; Zech. 6:12). He is the branching out of God, and He is also the branching out of the proper humanity. His name is the Branch. He is continually branching out God into humanity, and this branching out produces stones for God’s building.
I realize that we simply do not have this concept when we read the Bible. We have a natural concept; therefore, these verses are confusing. Our natural concept only takes the verses that we like. If you are a wife, you get nothing from Zechariah; but when you read, “Husbands, love your wives” (Eph. 5:25), you are encouraged and consider the Bible a wonderful book. This is the only verse that some wives can see. The husbands see another verse in this chapter: “Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands” (Eph. 5:22). This is the favorite verse of some husbands, because the natural concept of the husband is that his wife should submit herself to him. But when they come to the Branch and a stone with seven eyes, they are not interested. In our natural concept we do not have this kind of thing.
We must relinquish our natural concept and pray-read the Word. It was while I was praying over these verses in Zechariah that the Spirit within said that Christ is the branching out of God. He branches out God from eternity into time! Christ branched out God from the third heavens to the earth. He is the real branch! Today we are His branches, and we are branching out Him. One day when I was praying, “O the Branch of the Lord, the Branch of the Lord,” I realized that this was the branching out of God. And this branching out is for God’s building, so He is also a stone. He is both a branch and a stone. When we come to the divine Word, we must forget our mentality and pray-read the Word. Then the Spirit will speak to us. There are many things in the Bible which are new to us, and we must learn how to get into all the parts of this consistent revelation.