356. The Seven Seals

“And I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals.” Rev. 5:1.

What else could this scroll be than the church? The inward laws are written in our hearts and minds, and the outward laws have been our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ. This scroll is sealed with seven seals and can only be opened or looked into by the slain Lamb of God, who has seven horns and seven eyes. These seven horns and seven eyes are the seven Spirits of God that are sent out into all the earth. Verse 6.

Think! Seven Spirits of God are sent out into all the earth. It is amazing to think that there are seven spirits within this one Spirit of God.

Read from Isaiah 11:1: “There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots. The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.”

When the Spirit of the Lord leads us through life and this Spirit rests upon us, we will soon receive the Spirit of wisdom and understanding. This was the apostle Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians, “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him.” Eph. 1:15-17.

The Spirit of counsel and might is sent out into all the earth. Good counsel provides great strength, but evil counsel tears down. “The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the people of no effect. The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations.” Psalm 33:10-11.

So David went up by the Ascent of the Mount of Olives, and wept as he went up; and he had his head covered and went barefoot. And all the people who were with him covered their heads and went up, weeping as they went up. 2 Sam. 15:30.

Then someone told David, saying, “Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.” And David said, “O Lord, I pray, turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness!”

Now it happened when David had come to the top of the mountain, where he worshipped God—there was Hushai the Archite coming to meet him with his robe torn and dust on his head.

David said to him, “If you go on with me, then you will become a burden to me. But if you return to the city, and say to Absalom, ‘I will be your servant, O king; as I was your father’s servant previously, so I will now also be your servant,’ then you may defeat the counsel of Ahithophel for me.”

Later, when Absalom came into a dangerous situation, he consulted with Ahithophel. 2 Sam. 16:20. Absalom and the elders of Israel were pleased with Ahithophel’s counsel, although it was evil advice for David.

So Absalom sought counsel from Hushai, who gave him the advice, “The counsel that Ahithophel has given is not good at this time.” 2 Sam. 17:7. Then Hushai gave the advice that saved David’s life. Verses 14-16. This counsel was from the Lord. Verse 14. It was God who defeated Ahithophel’s counsel.

“Now when Ahithophel saw that his advice was not followed, he saddled a donkey, and arose and went home to his city. Then he put his household in order, and hanged himself . . . .” 2 Sam. 17:23.

From this we can see that the Spirit of counsel and might is sent out into all the earth, but that not everyone is able to grasp this good Spirit. Most people receive evil counsel because they themselves are evil. Evil spirits give evil counsel. The evil spirits will often go so far as to cause an individual to put their house in order and take their own life, just as Ahithophel did.

We live in difficult times where good counsel could work miracles. Today Ahithophel’s advice is being followed blindly, while Hushai’s voice and counsel are being silenced as something dangerous.

Those who desire the best for people should fear God and love Him, so that they can receive His good counsel and the strength to carry it out.

The Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord are sent out into the whole earth.

How many people possess the knowledge of the Lord? Most people know nothing about God. There are some who think they know something, yet they have never known anything as they ought to know it.

The Spirit that gives knowledge of the Lord is a progressive spirit, because it gives revelations. It leads to the way through the veil, His flesh. It teaches us to discern between good and evil. It is not a stagnant spirit; rather it quickens us to life. And it is not a spirit on the verge of being extinguished. It is very much alive and life-giving.

It gives fear of the Lord, because it is the Spirit of the Lord. It leads us into intimate fellowship with the Father and the Son and reveals His secret counsels for His servants, the prophets.

The Spirit of the fear of the Lord is the opposite of impudent spirits and lying spirits. This Spirit of the Lord gives us a reverence for everything that is holy, pure, and honorable. It gives us a fear to act against God and our conscience and produces an adverse reaction to all that is unholy. It gives God the honor He is due and the authorities the honor they are due.

To understand the depths of these seven Spirits of God, we can see how great a degree of godly fear we must exercise. Likewise, we can now understand how securely sealed these secrets are. Only the slaughtered Lamb of God can break the seals of the scroll and look into it. The scroll encompasses the entire work of salvation, the seven Spirits of God’s work of salvation, in the One Jesus Christ.

The Lamb came and took the scroll out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne; “The four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.” Rev. 5:8.

“And they sang a new song, saying: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; for You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth.’”

No one can learn the new song except the hundred and forty-four thousand who were redeemed from the earth. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These were redeemed from among men, being the first fruits to God, the Lamb’s wife, the bride. Rev. 14.

One flesh! Matt. 19:5. One flesh! Eph. 5:31. One crucified flesh! Gal. 5:24. This is the Bride!!! A great mystery! Sealed with seven seals!!