~ A place to find answers to gnawing spiritual questions ~
Question: My question is on the seven spirits of God. I find several references but not much definition. Can you elaborated on what they are?Answer: The seven Spirits of God is a reference to the Holy Spirit who proceeds from the Father and the Son to the believer (John 7:37-39; 15:16, 26). He is the Son's gift to enable believers to experience genuine spirituality through the multiple ministries and work of the Spirit symbolized here in the number seven which is a clear allusion to the seven-fold ministries of the Spirit mentioned in Isaiah 11:2-5.
Verse 5: Before the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God. In the Old Testament, a lampstand with seven lamps was used to illuminate the table in the holy place with the bread of the Presence on it (Exodus 26:33-35, 25:37, 40:22-25; Numbers 4:7, 8:2; 2 Chronicles 13:11; Hebrews 9:2).
The lamps use oil which is a symbol of the Holy Spirit (Numbers 4:9; 1 Samuel 16:13). There is a similar picture in Zechariah 4:2, which has a lampstand with seven lights on it, and there are seven channels which feed the lights. On either side are two olive trees that supply the oil for the lights.
In response to the question what are these, the Lord answers: "Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit." In verse 10, the seven lamps are said to be "...the eyes of the LORD, which range throughout the earth." The seven spirits are also mentioned in Revelation 1:4, 3:1, 5:6.
Seven is the term for completeness. There is a seven-fold description of the Spirit of Christ in Isaiah 11:1-4. Proverbs 20:27 states that "The lamp of the LORD searches the spirit of a man; it searches out his inmost being." The Holy Spirit illuminates the things of God (indicated by the articles on the table, Exodus 31:8) and makes them real to us. "The Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you" (John 16:15), and especially he reveals Jesus to us, who is the real bread that comes from heaven (John 6:41, 58).
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