Shining faces

Occasionally, we encounter shining faces in the scriptures. I wrote in my previous post that the Hebrew word for face is synonymous with presence. "Paneh Yahweh" (face Yahweh) is often translated into "before the Lord". A shining face therefore signifies the glory of God or being illuminated by his presence. This is what several Old Testament authors seek.

Make thy face to shine upon thy servant; and teach me thy statutes. (Psalm 119:135)

1 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth.
2 Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh stir up thy strength, and come and save us.
3 Turn us again, O God, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved. (Psalm 80)

24 The Lord bless thee, and keep thee:
25 The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
26 The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. (Numbers 6)

The latter is the well-known blessing of Aaron. I have mentioned before that an event during Jesus' visit to the Nephites is a realization of that blessing.

And it came to pass that Jesus blessed them as they did pray unto him; and his countenance did smile upon them, and the light of his countenance did shine upon them, and behold they were as white as the countenance and also the garments of Jesus; and behold the whiteness thereof did exceed all the whiteness, yea, even there could be nothing upon earth so white as the whiteness thereof. (3 Nephi 19:25)

After Jesus' countenance shines upon the Nephite disciples, they start shining like him.

And when Jesus had spoken these words he came again unto his disciples; and behold they did pray steadfastly, without ceasing, unto him; and he did smile upon them again; and behold they were white, even as Jesus. (3 Nephi 19:30)

Apparently, those who are enwrapped in the glory of God can start shining too. We see the same with Nephi-3 and his brother Lehi in Helaman 5:

And it came to pass that he turned him about, and behold, he saw through the cloud of darkness the faces of Nephi and Lehi; and behold, they did shine exceedingly, even as the faces of angels. And he beheld that they did lift their eyes to heaven; and they were in the attitude as if talking or lifting their voices to some being whom they beheld. (Helaman 5:36)

Another well-known example is Moses after talking with God on Mount Sinai and receiving the commandments. He comes down and his face is shining (see Exodus 34:29-30), even though he is unaware of it himself. Surely, God's face shone on him as they talked face to face in the chapter before (Exodus 33:11). Now, Moses emulates God as his face shines before Israel. This is similar to the outstretched hand that Lord Wilmore recently wrote about, where a prophet emulates God to deliver His message. 

In an interesting parallel, Abinadi's face also shone when he quoted the 10 commandments.

Now it came to pass after Abinadi had spoken these words that the people of king Noah durst not lay their hands on him, for the Spirit of the Lord was upon him; and his face shone with exceeding luster, even as Moses’ did while in the mount of Sinai, while speaking with the Lord. (Mosiah 13:5)

Mormon emphasizes that parallel as he compares Abinadi with Moses. In both cases the 10 commandments were given. Perhaps the lesson is that God's glory is found in his commandments? At least it fits well with Psalm 119:135 quoted above ("make thy face to shine upon thy servant; and teach me thy statutes"). Another thing worth noting is that according to Jewish sages, the events in Exodus 34 happened on the Day of Atonement. According to the Zohar, it is the day "when all faces shine". This is the one day when the high priest could enter into the Holy of Holies, right into the presence and glory of God, to reconnect the people with God, to reconnect heaven and earth.

The prayer to the Lord to shine his face upon us, is a plea to be enwrapped in his glory, but can lead to us radiating that glory ourselves for others to see.

Parallels between 3 Nephi 19 and the Gospels -- Part 2

In part 1, we looked at several parallels between 3 Nephi 19 and the Gospels. The connections are undeniable, but this part will be more speculative as I will try to discuss what this all might mean. As mentioned, the learning points are perhaps found in the differences and the major difference is how the disciples respond to the Savior's invitation to watch and pray. 

In Gethsemane, the disciples ironically failed to follow Jesus' instructions while he literally paid the price for their sins. They did the exact opposite of what he commanded and fell asleep instead of staying awake. As a consequence, they were gently rebuked for not even being able to "watch one hour".

In America, the disciples not only prayed as Jesus instructed, but they prayed "without ceasing" and were "filled with desire" (3 Nephi 19:24). As a consequence they were blessed.

Fulfillment of the Priestly/Aaronic blessing

Speaking of parallels. By taking a closer look at the blessing that the disciples received in 3 Nephi 19, we notice similarities to a passage in Numbers in the Old Testament. In the Book of Numbers, there are lots of instructions concerning the tabernacle. Aaron and his sons had a special role as high priests in the tabernacle and later in the temple. In Numbers 6, they were instructed to give a special blessing to the people of Israel.

23 Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them,

24 The Lord bless thee, and keep thee:

25 The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:

26 The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.

27 And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel; and I will bless them.

In 3 Nephi 19, when Jesus had prayed to the Father, he returned to his disciples and found them still praying. Verse 25 describes what happened next

And it came to pass that Jesus blessed them as they did pray unto him; and his countenance did smile upon them, and the light of his countenance did shine upon them, and behold they were as white as the countenance and also the garments of Jesus; and behold the whiteness thereof did exceed all the whiteness, yea, even there could be nothing upon earth so white as the whiteness thereof.

It seems at this moment, that Jesus as the High Priest after the order of Melchizedek fulfilled the Aaronic blessing on his disciples. I have seen several Bible commentators suggest that the traditional Christian belief of the holy trinity is hidden in the threefold repetition of "the Lord" in Numbers 6. I think that is a stretch, but regardless we see the repetition of three again, as also manifest in the number of times Jesus prayed and interacted with his disciples both in 3 Nephi 19 and in Gethsemane.

The impact of the Holy Ghost

In part 1, I quoted the last two verses of 3 Nephi 19, which indicated that faith made the difference. We do observe in the Gospels that Jesus rebukes the Apostles several times for their lack of faith ("O, ye of little faith"). Still it may seem puzzling that the Apostles in the New World had so much more faith than the Apostles in the Old World. 1 Nephi 12:9 even teaches that the Apostles in the New World will be judged by the Apostles in the Old World. How to reconcile this apparent discrepancy?

We should realize that despite the parallel events, the circumstances were different. As the disciples in the Old World followed Jesus in his mortal ministry, the disciples in the New World saw him descend from heaven in his glory. The major difference, however, and perhaps the main takeaway from all this, is the difference made by the Holy Ghost. In John 16:7, before the intercessory prayer, Jesus told his disciples

Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

This is a bold statement. It was expedient for the disciples that Jesus left, because then the Holy Ghost would come. This did not happen until about 50 days later at the feast of Pentecost. Consequently, as the disciples were asked to watch and pray in Gethsemane, they had not yet received the Holy Ghost. In 3 Nephi 19, however, the disciples in America experienced a Pentecostal event of sorts as they received the Holy Ghost right before the events discussed in this series.

9 And they did pray for that which they most desired; and they desired that the Holy Ghost should be given unto them...

13 And it came to pass when they were all baptized and had come up out of the water, the Holy Ghost did fall upon them, and they were filled with the Holy Ghost and with fire.

14 And behold, they were encircled about as if it were by fire; and it came down from heaven, and the multitude did witness it, and did bear record; and angels did come down out of heaven and did minister unto them.

Realizing that the two sets of Apostles were at different stages in their conversion process, we should not judge Peter and the others too harshly. Rather, we should realize and learn about the importance of the Holy Ghost. The transformation of Peter and the other Apostles after the day of Pentecost is evident. They boldly testify of Christ under persecution and work great miracles. It is truly a gift to be "most desired". 

What 3 Nephi 19 is teaching us with its parallels to the Gospel, is that the Holy Ghost also helps and inspires us to watch and pray unceasingly. This, in turn, prepares us for marvellous blessings as promised to the people of Israel of old.

Jesus' clothing and the temple

Learning about ancient temple practice and theology, I tend to view things through that lens these days. I wrote previously about the veil and its symbolism. The veil in the first temple was woven from four different colors representing the four elements, which the visible world was thought to consist of. It concealed the glory of God and represented matter, the visible creation. The vestment of the high priest was made of the exact same fabric and represented incarnation. Even though they look differently today, some may notice the similarities that exist between the veil and sacred clothing.

Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, the high priest entered through the veil into the holy of holies. Before he did that, he took off his vestment and changed to a special white linen garment that was only to be worn in the holy of holies. This was the clothing of angels. He did not wear the colored vestment anymore representing incarnation, because he passed into the eternal realms. In the first temple period, the high priest who did all this was also king, representing the Messiah.

Considering all this, I find striking parallels to Jesus' transition through the veil on his "Day of Atonement". The letter to the Hebrews argues that Jesus was a true high priest after the order of Melchizedek, the first priest-king in the ancient temple tradition. In the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 27, we see evidence of that.

35 And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots.
36 And sitting down they watched him there;
37 And set up over his head his accusation written, THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

Jesus, the king and high priest was about to complete the atonement. He was stripped of his garment, just like the high priest in the temple took off the vestment. The greek word used here in Matthew is 'himation' meaning an outer garment. Jesus had a name or title written over his head. Similarly, the high priest in the temple wore a golden seal on his forehead with the sacred name written on it.

Some verses later, we read

50 Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.
51 And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent

Here is the transition. Jesus leaves the mortal world and the veil rends to let him through into the holy of holies. Even though his body is lifeless at this point, it will soon come to life again in the first case of a glorious resurrection beyond the veil. To prepare his body for that, Joseph from Arimathæa takes his body and wraps it in fine linen.

59 And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth

The greek word here is 'sindoni'. This is fine bleached linen, comparable to the garment that the high priest in the temple wore inside the holy of holies on the Day of Atonement. The clothing-temple symbolism doesn't end there. In her book, "Temple Theology", Margaret Barker explains

Most remarkable of all is the description found in 2 Enoch, where Enoch the high priest figure has ascended through the heavens to stand before the throne. The Lord summons Michael to remove Enoch's earthly clothing - the symbol of his mortal body - and to dress him in the garments of glory - the symbol of the resurrection body.

When Jesus appears to the Nephites after his resurrection and ascension into heaven, we read

And it came to pass, as they understood they cast their eyes up again towards heaven; and behold, they saw a Man descending out of heaven; and he was clothed in a white robe; and he came down and stood in the midst of them; and the eyes of the whole multitude were turned upon him, and they durst not open their mouths, even one to another, and wist not what it meant, for they thought it was an angel that had appeared unto them. (3 Nephi 11:8)

This white robe reminds us of the garment of glory that Enoch received that represented the resurrection, especially a few chapters later when his garments are described as shiny white.

And it came to pass that Jesus blessed them as they did pray unto him; and his countenance did smile upon them, and the light of his countenance did shine upon them, and behold they were as white as the countenance and also the garments of Jesus; and behold the whiteness thereof did exceed all the whiteness, yea, even there could be nothing upon earth so white as the whiteness thereof. (3 Nephi 19:25)

"There could be nothing upon the earth so white" indicates a heavenly condition beyond the veil. Both the countenance and garments of Jesus had this whiteness and it infected the disciples that he "smiled upon". I just learned from this blog that this verse in fact was the fulfillment of the so-called priestly blessing ("birkat kohanim") that we read in Numbers 6:23-27

23 Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them,
24 The Lord bless thee, and keep thee:
25 The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
26 The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.
27 And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel; and I will bless them.

This was to be done by the sons of Aaron, the priests in the tabernacle/temple. In 3 Nephi, Jesus was now the priest-king who had passed through the veil, resurrected and dressed in the white garment of glory. He came to his people to give them this blessing and His name, the name that high priests in the temple traditionally had worn. Figuratively, his disciples became temple priests too and were allowed to enter with Jesus into the holy of holies.