Ⅵ
Ezekiel 1 says that there is a rainbow as the brightness around the man who is sitting on the throne, signifying the splendor and glory around the Lord on the throne—v. 28; Rev. 4:3:
A
At Noah's time the rainbow in the cloud was a sign of God's faithfulness in keeping His covenant with man and every living creature. signifying that He would never again destroy mankind with a flood—Gen. 9:13.
B
A rainbow can be considered as being produced from three basic colors— red, yellow, and blue: red, the color of fire, refers to God's holiness; yellow, the color of electrum, signifies God's glory; and blue, the color of the sapphire throne, signifies God's righteousness —Psa. 89:14:
１
God's righteousness, holiness, and glory are three divine attributes that keep sinners away from God—Gen. 3:24.
２
However, Christ came, died on the cross to satisfy the requirements of God's righteousness, holiness, and glory, and was resurrected, and He is now our righteousness, holiness, and glory—1 Cor. 1:30.
３
Because we, the believers, are now in Christ, in the sight of God we bear the appearance of Christ as righteousness, holiness, and glory; this is the appearance of a rainbow as a testimony of God's faithfulness in sparing us and saving us, the fallen ones, from His judgment on sinners.
４
In the New Jerusalem, a city whose foundations have the appearance of a rainbow (Rev. 21:19-20), we, the aggregate of the saved ones, will be a rainbow reflecting the brightness of God's righteousness, holiness, and glory and testifying forever that God is righteous and faithful.
５
As portrayed in Ezekiel 1, the Christian life and the church life will consummate in such a rainbow; at that point God's eternal plan will have been accomplished.
Morning Nourishment
Ezek. 1:28 Like the appearance of the rainbow that is in the cloud on a day of rain, such was the appearance of the brightness all around. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of Jehovah…Rev. 4:3 And He who was sitting was like a jasper stone and a sardius in appearance, and there was a rainbow around the throne…
As a result of having a clear sky with the throne and of experiencing a man who has the appearance of electrum and a consuming fire, we will have the appearance of a rainbow [Ezek. 1:28]…A rainbow is the brightness around the man who is sitting on the throne. This brightness signifies the splendor and glory around the Lord on the throne.
In order to understand the significance of the rainbow, we need to remember the rainbow at the time of Noah. A flood had destroyed the whole earth, and only eight people were spared from that judgment. After that, when people saw storm clouds in the sky, they might have been afraid of being destroyed. Therefore, God made a covenant in which He promised never again to destroy all living things by a flood, and He set the rainbow in the cloud as a sign of this covenant…The rainbow, therefore, was a sign of God’s faithfulness and promise not to destroy the fallen human race with a flood. (Life-study of Ezekiel, 2nd ed., pp. 133-134)
Today’s Reading
In the rainbow there are several different colors, but the basic colors are only three—red, yellow, and blue. When these colors are shining and blending, they produce other colors, such as orange, green, and violet. It is very significant that the three primary colors of the rainbow are red, yellow, and blue…The throne looks like a blue sapphire stone; the electrum is yellow; the fire is red. By their shining and refracting, these three colors combine to make a rainbow.Blue signifies the throne. According to Psalm 89:14, the foundation of God's throne is righteousness. This indicates that the blue throne signifies the righteousness of God. Fire signifies the sanctifying, separating, and consuming fire. This means that red here refers to God's holiness. Yellow signifies God's glory in the glowing electrum. Therefore, here we have God’s righteousness, holiness, and glory, signified by the colors blue, red, and yellow.
God’s righteousness, holiness, and glory are three divine attributes that keep sinners away from God…But the Lord Jesus came, died on the cross to satisfy the requirements of God’s righteousness, holiness, and glory, and was resurrected, and He is now our righteousness, sanctification, and redemption (1 Cor. 1:30). He is also now our glory. In ourselves we are short of God’s glory (Rom. 3:23), we are under God’s righteous judgment, and we are kept away by God’s holiness. But now, as believers, we are in Christ, and He has become our righteousness, holiness, and glory. Moreover, because we are in Christ, we even bear Christ as righteousness, holiness, and glory. Because we are in Christ, in the sight of God we look like righteousness, holiness, and glory.
We need to experience Christ in such a way that when others contact us, they can sense righteousness, holiness, and glory. This means that they should be able to sense that we have a clear sky, that we have a throne, and that we are righteous and proper, not careless or loose in any way. We should also have the electrum, glowing, shining, and weighty. Then we will have the appearance of a rainbow, and the angels, the demons, and Satan will be able to see it…As those who were fallen but who have now been saved, we have become a testimony of God’s faithfulness in saving us. Every local church should bear the testimony of such a rainbow.
Even the New Jerusalem has the appearance of a rainbow. The foundation stones of the New Jerusalem are of twelve layers, with each layer being a different color (Rev. 21:19-20). (Life-study of Ezekiel, 2nd ed., pp. 134-135)
Further Reading: Life-study of Ezekiel, msg. 12