1.04.07. Book 4: Numbers 116-136

116 THE FOUR ANGELS OF THE FOUR CORNERS The son grieved because of many little unprotected things, as well as because of the great and noble who were lashed by bitter winds. He found solace in the vision of the four angels who stand on the four corners of the earth. No smallest leaf on any tree may be shaken by the wind till the word is given by the angel who ascendeth from the East, having the seal of the living God. But the evil one tried to distress him by saying, It is folly to stay thy heart upon a vision of the future. So the son found a declaration of his God made long ago; and on that rock he stood :

Now for the comfortless troubles’ sake of the needy: and because of the deep sighing of the poor, I will up, saith the Lord: and will help every one from him that swelleth against him, and will set him at nought.

117 THE END WILL EXPLAIN ALL THINGS His thoughts said, What of the two wit­nesses to whom was given power to shut heaven, and over waters and to smite the earth? Even they, Thy faithful ones, were overcome when the beast that ascen­deth out of the bottomless pit made war against them. His Father said, After three days and a half the Spirit of Life from God entered into them and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fen upon them which saw them. And they heard a great Voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.

Beware lest thou stay thy thoughts at the beginning of My dealings with any nation or with any soul. The end will explain all things. Till then, great peace have they which love My Law and nothing shall offend them.

118 AT THE END OF THE DAYS His thoughts found relief in a torrent of prayer, Righteous art Thou, 0 Lord, when I plead with Thee: yet let me talk with Thee of Thy judgments: Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper? Up, Lord, disappoint him, cast him down. Break Thou the power of the ungodly and mali­cious; take away his ungodliness. 0 let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end. Make their faces ashamed, 0 Lord, that they may seek Thy name. 0 let the sorrowful sighing of the prisoners come before Thee. Thou seest the oppression that is done upon the earth; Lord, how long wilt Thou look upon this? His Father said, Dost thou think that it hath not grieved Me at My heart? But there is an end. Thou hast not seen to the end. At the end of the days thou shalt understand.

119 IT IS MINE OWN INFIRMITY The thoughts of the son said, The end is far away and trouble is near. And he found himself akin to one who, long ago, had communed with his heart and searched out his spirits; and he said, Will the Lord absent Himself for ever? and will He be no more intreated? Is His mercy clean gone for ever? and is His promise come utterly to an end for evermore? Hath God forgotten to be gracious? and will He shut up His loving kindness in dis­pleasure?

Then he was quiet for a while as braver words flowed over him. And he said, It is mine own infirmity: but I will remember the years of the right hand of the most Highest.

120 THERE SHALL BE AN END But still the son felt like a long shore on which all the waves of pain of all the world were beating. His Father drew near to him and said, There is only one shore long enough for that. Upon My love, that long, long shore, those waves are beating now; but thou canst have fellowship with Me. And I promise thee that there shall be an end; and all tears shall be wiped from off all faces.

121 THE SCALES The son saw a pair of scales. In the one scale was sorrow. In the other was joy. Sometimes the scales hung even. Some­times one out-weighed the other. But as he watched he saw a change pass over the sorrow; it was turned into joy and poured into the scale of joy. And he understood the words, "I have more than an over­weight of joy for all the affliction which has befallen me." For he saw his travails, tears, watchings, strivings increase by just so much the more his shining heap of happiness. With awe and with wonder he also saw that each experience of distress had put into his hand a golden key called Comfort. And as he used this key the innermost rooms of troubled hearts opened to the Comforter. Then the son rejoiced as he thought of the Man of Sorrows, Christ Crucified. How much more surely will His sorrow be turned into joy when the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand, and He shall see of the travail of His soul and shall be satisfied.

122 WITH DESIRE I HAVE DESIRED

Everything in the son felt with him who said, I am not worthy that Thou shouldest come under my roof, and yet he said, 0 when wilt Thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart; for I know that Thy commandment is life everlasting. As his thoughts were occu­pied thus, he found himself on the shore of the sea. And he took a grain of sand from the miles of sand about him and he held it in his hand. Then he knew that his desire for the Presence of his Lord was like a little grain for smallness in compari­son with his Lord’s desire to come under his roof, for that was like the measure of the measureless sands. And as his thoughts followed this great thought, Jesus his Lord answered and said unto him, With desire I have desired.

123 HIS FATHER PROMISED The son said to his Father, Father, wilt Thou strengthen me to live through this day? His Father promised to strengthen him and took his fears away. The son asked for peace; his Father promised to garrison his heart with peace. The son asked that he might rejoice in his Lord, whatever happened to distress him. And his Father promised that too. Then the son asked that nothing should come between him and his Lord. And he was persuaded that neither things present, nor things to come shall be able to separate him from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

124 A GRACIOUS RAIN The son said, I should be stedfast and victorious; but the house of my soul is not always so with Thee. His Father said, Though thy house be not always so with Me, yet I have made with thee an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure. Though thy feelings may be changeful as the changeful form of clouds on a windy day, yet I, thy God, am stedfast for ever. And with a quickened gratitude the son said, Thou, 0 God, sentest a gracious rain upon Thine inheritance and refreshedst it when it was weary.

125 PICTURES The thoughts of the son ran thus: My hopes painted beautiful pictures, but they are fading one by one.

Then his Father spoke to him: Thy hopes painted pictures? Destroy all those pictures. To watch them slowly fading is weakening to the soul. Dare then to destroy them. Thou canst if thou wilt.

Thou must if thou wouldest be My warrior­-son. I will give thee other pictures instead of those thy hopes painted. Look up, 0 thou son of My love.

Then the son looked up, and he saw a Cross raised high against the sunlight, then a darkness that might be felt. And he heard, as it were, an echo of a voice, "Father, glorify Thy name"; and a Voice that answered, "I have both glori­fied it and will glorify it again." And he knew that strength and beauty were in the Sanctuary and would presently pour forth. Calvary was not the end of that day’s story. And his heart stayed itself upon this assur­ance: He shall choose our inheritance for us-no fading picture that, but the excel­lency of Jacob whom He loved.

126 BETTER THAN AT THY BEGINNINGS The son said, Forgive me, my Father, but sometimes I wonder if even in the Other Life there will be that for which my heart longeth. His Father said, In My Presence is ful­ness of joy; can fulness be less than full? At My right hand there are pleasures for evermore; can pleasures be less than delight? Dear child of My love, trust My love, Would I leave one longing unsatisfied? Thou dost not know thy Father if thou thinkest that I would. Thou shalt be satisfied with the plenteousness of My House; I will give thee to drink of My pleasures as out of a river. Dost thou think that nothing could ever be as beauti­ful as once it was? Turn thine eyes from thy beautiful beginnings-I will do better unto thee than at thy beginnings.

127 LOVE IS FIRE The Father said to the son, Tell Me, My child, thy heart’s desire. The son said, My heart’s desire is to be like my Lord, who, having loved His own, loved them unto the end. The Father said, But love is fire, con­suming fire. Dost thou ask for fire? The son thought of some who had not shrunk back from fire. Their way had become a fiery way. Few would under­stand; many would blame as they walked in that way. It looked an impossible way. But his Father was surprised that he used so faithless a word: Am I not the God of the Impossible? Dare to believe for the Impossible. Very soon it will be said, They walked in the midst of the stones of fire more than conquerors. They sang as it were a new song.

128 WAIT THY TO-MORROW The son thought of a hope that had utterly perished. It was as withered grass. As he thought of it he seemed to see an old man climbing a mountain. His eyes were not dimmed, but they were wistful. His hope had utterly perished. It was as withered grass. For the Lord had said unto Moses, Behold thou shalt sleep with thy fathers. And Moses went up from the plains unto the mountain. And the Lord shewed him the land where he fain would be; and He said, I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither. So Moses the servant of the Lord died there.

Then the son saw a page turned in the Book of Eternity, and the man was in the land where he had hoped to be. Of the myriads in Paradise he and one other were chosen to meet their Lord in that land. And behold there talked with Him two men, which were Moses and Elijah; who appeared in glory, and spake of His departure which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.

"If thou couldest ask him," said a voice in the ear of the son, "whether, had the choice been given, he would have chosen to be there on that earlier day, or with his Lord on this later day, what dost thou think he would say?" And the son knew.

Then the Voice that was dearest of all voices to the son spoke to him in words not to be repeated, for they were for him alone; but he knew that always the Father holdeth in loving remembrance that which the child in grief called withered. And what Love holdeth, Love quickeneth, And what Love withdraweth, Love multi­plieth. The child shall meet his perished hope in bud and blossom to-morrow. And his Father said, Wait thy to-morrow, My child.

I29 BY HIS CROSS AND PASSION The son felt sometimes that human words soared too high for his human heart to follow. And sometimes they skimmed with too light an air over depths which were very deep. But he found himself at home in the Psalms, and he walked up and down there as one who was at home. And the Psalms led him to Him who was poured out like water, and Him he followed as He trod the common roads of life, till at last he was with Him under some olive trees on a hillside, and then on a hill outside a city gate.

Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden. To this garden the son went in the moonlight before dawn, and there his Master met him and called him by his name. So by His Cross and Passion the son was brought into the glory of His Resurrection. And with one who had lost sight of Him for a while, he fell at His feet, saying, My Lord and my God.

130 ART THOU WILLING? The Father said, Art thou willing to be crucified? The son answered, By Thy grace I am willing. His Father said, Art thou willing to let thy Lord choose thy Cross and the nails that shall pierce thy hands and thy feet? The son answered, My Lord shall choose what He will. His Father said, Art thou willing that thy house on earth may be a little emptier so that My House may be the fuller? The son was silent for a while, at last he answered, I am willing.

Then the Father loved the son very dearly.

131 "I THANK THEE FOR THY JOY." His thoughts said, I do not understand how such gladness as this that is given can be when nothing that I expected is happen­ing, and much that I hoped would never happen has been allowed to come. For a while his Father was silent in His love, and the son was silent too. At last he thought he heard these words: It is written of thy dear Lord, "Thy God hath anointed Thee with the Oil of Gladness." With a little of that blessed Oil He hath anointed even thee. And then-and this was a word of wonder to the son-his Father said clearly, I thank thee for thy joy.

132 MY SAPPHIRES The son remembered those who out of weakness were made strong and yet had never seen the walls of Jericho fall down. They had suffered the violence of fire; the fire was not quenched for them. They did not escape the edge of the sword; the sword was sharpened for them. They did not receive their dead raised to life. They did not obtain the promises. His Father said, These all died in faith, not having received the promises. But they saw them afar off, were persuaded of them, and embraced them. Theirs was the blessing of the Unoffended. I could trust them with the Unexplained. Dost thou not know any such to-day? If thou dost, watch carefully and thou shalt see them strengthened to abide the proof. They will not change their colour when the light is dim.

Then the son remembered reading of a sapphire whose colour was so pure that, unlike the ordinary kind, it retained its blue, a heavenly blue, even by candle­light. And his Father said, These of whom I have told thee are My Sapphires.

133 BE COMFORTED ABOUT THY FRIEND The son had a companion in tribulation, and in the Kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ. To this friend some went who multiplied words without knowledge, and they heaped them upon him till he was crushed under their weight; and his joy was like a tree cut down. When the son took this matter to his Father, his Father said, I have many foolish children who darken counsel. They even try to make My words the frame of their opinions. But he who dwelleth in the Secret Place is not long disquieted. Though at first he be overwhelmed, he shall soon learn to say to his soul, "Wherefore hearest thou men’s words? It is a very small thing that I should be judged of man’s judgment. He that judgeth me is the Lord." And though for a little while his joy be like a tree cut down, it will sprout again, and through the scent of water it will bud, and bring forth boughs like a plant. For he is like a tree planted by the rivers of water. Be comforted about thy friend.

134 HE WAS WITHIN THE INNERMOST RING His thoughts said, Some are poor and weak and ill, and they are not kindly tended. I know of others who are at the end of their patience. His Father said, They are My nurslings. And He brought to his mind many tender words: "The Lord thy God will bear thee as a nursling; His left hand is under my head, and His right hand doth embrace me; He comforteth them that are losing patience." No circumstances could be too difficult for Him. He was nearer to the ill than even the limitations and distresses of illness. These like iron rings encircled them. He was within the innermost of those iron rings. And the son took refuge in the prayer, Do Thou for them, 0 God the Lord.

135 A FENCE OF FEATHERS The son felt fenced in. His Father took him to the fence and bid him look; he looked and he did not see a hedge of thorn or a barbed wire entangle­ment; he saw a fence of feathers: "With His feathers shall He make a fence for thee. "

136 I WILL PUT UP WITH THEE The son feared lest those who were fenced in with him might weary, and he said, How can they put up with me? His Father brought to his mind an ancient promise, "I will put up with thee," and He said, I am with them that uphold thy soul; therefore they will not weary. As for Me, My word is pledged: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the house of the Lord. And I will not fail thee nor forsake thee then.