ACC ~ Revelation 15 v5 - 6

THE ANGELS HAVE NATURES GIVEN OVER TO THE GOOD. OECUMENIUS: In the holy Scriptures it is customary to call the tent constructed in the desert by Bezalel, the architect of the things made at that time, the “tent of witness” because it was the tent of the testimonies and ordinances of God. There was in it the ark of the covenant, the mercy seat, the table, the altars either for incense or for fruit offerings, the lampstand and whatever else God commanded holy Moses to provide, saying, “According to all that I show you on the mountain you shall make for me.”Therefore, in view of the image of the ancient tabernacle he has called also the supercelestial temple, which is always a “tent of witness.” From there, it says, “the seven angels came out.” Why was it necessary that the heavenly ministers of God be seen coming out from there rather than from the heavenly temple? They had in their hands, it says, seven plagues that they were going to release against the earth. For at the time of the consummation there will be many signs on the earth of which also Christ made mention in the Gospels when he was teaching about the end. That the angels are clothed in a pure, bright stone is indicative of their rank, purity and brightness, and that they possess a nature wholly given to the good, since they have put on Christ. For the Lord is called “stone” by the divine Scriptures. For example, Isaiah said, “Behold, I am laying for the foundations of Zion a costly and select stone,” and the prophet said, “The stone which the builders rejected, he has become the head of the corner.” The all-wise Paul also exhorts us to put on this stone, saying, “Put on our stone, Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh to gratify its desires.” And whoever is enclothed with this [stone] is free from every desire destructive of the soul. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 15.5-16.1.

THE CHURCH WILL BE MADE WHITE BY THE GLORY OF GOD. PRIMASIUS: The hidden secrets of the testimonies foretold concerning Christ and the church are now revealed. [The seven angels with the seven plagues] are the church against which a hostile portion rebelled through unending treacheries. Therefore it says that plagues come out, either for the defense of the saints in whom the Lord Christ earlier had suffered abuse, as he said to Paul, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” or, as James noted, the time of judgment begins with the household of God. To be sure, persons will be scourged in a twofold manner, so that the just God might punish their sins, as in the case of Pharaoh, or that he might test their virtues by a greater trial, as in the case of Job. And therefore we read concerning him, “The Lord has tested me, as gold that passes through fire; I have kept his ways, and I have not departed from the commandments of his lips.” The number of the angels and the plagues prefigures the universal extent of the consummation, as it says often in Leviticus, “I will smite you with seven plagues.”“They are clothed in pure white linen.” Mortification is often indicated by a linen garment. If, then, the blameless judgments of God are recognized in that which is white, the sense is aptly applied also to these pure linen garments, so that those who are mortified are made snow-white by this whiteness, when they behold the glory of God at the revelation of his judgments. “They were girded with golden girdles.” Scripture teaches that gold signifies wisdom, as it says, “Receive wisdom as gold.” And it is rightly around the breast, where according to the law the priest is often commanded to wear the logium, that is, what is intellectual, so that his mind is well aware of divine things and does not despise them but rather praises the divine judgments and by the brightness of the gold on him also urges others to praise them unhesitatingly. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 15.5-6.

THE ANGELS ARE PURE IN NATURE. ANDREW OF CAESAREA: The seer says that a “tent” was in heaven, and it was according to the likeness of this tent that God commanded Moses to build the tabernacle below. He says that from this temple angels proceeded out, dressed in “pure linen” or, as some copies have it, in a “pure stone.” Their dress indicates the purity of their natures and the proximity that they have to Christ, the Cornerstone, and the brightness of their virtue. The phrase “girded with golden girdles” refers to the power and the purity and the honor of their nature and to the freedom they have in their works of service. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 15.5-6.

BEAUTIFUL IN THEIR VIRTUES. BEDE: This vision corresponds to the hymn. For in order that the Lord might be adored by all nations, the temple of the mysteries of God, once enclosed in the walls of one city, now begins to be opened spiritually to the whole world. “Out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven plagues.” This is what Mark spoke about, “And they went forth and preached everywhere.”They are “robed in a pure white stone,” for as the apostle says, “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” Christ himself is the elect chief Cornerstone. Or, if one should understand the singular [stone] to represent a plural, the stone signifies the various beauties of the virtues. Another rendering has “white linen.” This would indicate the mortification of the flesh that our teachers endure. It says, “I pommel my body and subdue it to servitude, lest after preaching to others, I myself should be disqualified.” “Their breasts were girded with golden girdles.” Whoever desires to preach mighty things, let him not only mortify the body but also bind his breast with the gold of wisdom. Or, to bind the breast with golden girdles is to bind every movement of our changeable thoughts by the chain of love alone. EXPLANATION OF THE APOCALYPSE 15.5-6.

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