“For only Og, King of Bashan, remained of the remnant of the giants; behold, his bedstead was a bedstead of iron; is it not in Rabbath of the children of Ammon? Nine cubits was the length thereof, and four cubits the breadth of it, after the Cubit of a man.” -Deuteronomy 3:11.

Additional readings: Deuteronomy 3:1-13, John 3, Psalms 8; 9.

The forty years of wandering in the wilderness were about over, and the children of Israel had come into the east-Jordan country. They had to conquer this country before they could enter the land of Canaan. Sihon, King of the Amorites, was slain and his country taken. Then they went up to Bashan, where its giant king Og with his forces came out to meet them. Og and his army were slain and his land was given to the half tribe of Manasseh. This story is told us in the Bible to teach a deep lesson.

The land of background extended from the border of Gilead on the south to Mount Hermon on the North. It was noted for its fine pasture lands and for its cattle, and the half tribe of Manasseh which settled there grew rich in flocks and in cattle.

It is well known that the Journey of the children of Israel from Egypt to Canaan describes the spiritual journey of the regenerating man from a natural to a spiritual state of life. The land of Canaan, the Promised Land, represents in the happy spiritual life in which the spiritual plane of the mind is opened and one lives in knowledge of the Lord and of the truths concerning His kingdom. But man has a natural mind as well as a spiritual, and the east-Jordan country stands for the life which belongs to this natural plane of the mind.

By means of the natural mind we learn about the world, develop the sciences and arts, and make the forces of nature serve us. The natural plane of the mind and the natural plane of life must of necessity be developed first in us. Without this we could not live in the world. One may, if he chooses, live wholly on the plane of the natural without any thought of the Lord or of His kingdom, but this should not be. The natural mind and the natural plane of Life are an important part of everyone, but in order for them to be fruitful and happy the spiritual must enter into them and gift them with a new quality.

Before regeneration the natural mind looks to itself and not to the Lord and refers everything to the natural reason. Its altars of hewn stone blaze with sacrifices offered to human reason, and its temples are filled with incense burned in the worship of self derived intelligence. The natural mind says, “By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom; for I am prudent; and I have removed the bounds of my people.” Proud and defiant, it acknowledges no strength, no wisdom but that which belongs to the natural reason. Such is the purely natural man. By his own power he will solve the problems of the world.

Today there is much emphasis placed on natural goodness and we need to know what this natural really is. For the writings of the church state: “It is to be known that they who do good from natural goodness only, and not from religion at the same time, are not accepted after death.” And this is so because, in merely natural goodness, which is not formed through the truths of faith, there is no plane into which Heaven can inflow. We are born into this natural state. At first the whole plane of the natural is ruled by the love of self - Og, the giant king of Bashan. All natural good is thus defiled by thoughts of self and whatever is done, whether it be the acquisition of knowledge, the establishment of just rules for political and social conduct, the endowment of charities or even of churches, these are all done for the sake of self-esteem and self-advantage. And thought the good that the merely natural man does may, to outward appearance, look exactly like the good which spiritual man does, inwardly it is of an entirely different character, for it is divorced from God, the source of all genuine good. So the children of Israel could not immediately cross the Jordan and enter the Holy Land. First Og, the love of self, had to be overcome. The destruction of Og denotes the overthrow of self and the enthronement of the Lord.

For the Lord says to us, as he said to Nicodemus: “Marvel not that I said unto thee, ye must be born again.” There is a regenerated rationalism, a rationalism which comes from having one's rational mind formed according to the truth of revelation, and this higher rationalism, like regenerated science, is in possession of every rational deduction from scientific premises but it connects those deductions with God and uses them to confirm faith in the Lord and in the things of His kingdom.

The land of Bashan bordered on the land of Canaan. The natural mind and the whole plane of the natural is a rich land abounding in the things of natural good and charity, and when it is infilled by the spiritual, it has a new quality given to it by the spiritual.

In this story in the word, Og’s iron bedstead Is mentioned. Why? It is because a bed stands for Doctrine. as one supports his body on a bed, finding rest and Repose in it, so the mind find support in the doctrine it adopts, and in it finds mental rest and repose. Og’s bedstead stands for the false doctrines and maxims which the selfish man uses to support his selfish views of life, the false and evil theories which his natural reason invents and on which he reposes with confidence.

Og’s Bedstead was of iron, not of gold, silver, or brass. A golden bedstead would be the symbol of doctrines founded on love to the Lord; one of silver, doctrines founded on the love of Truths to his word; and one of brass, doctrines from the word accepted in simple trusting obedience. But the iron bedstead represents the hard, inflexible natural laws. If one is intemperate, he will inevitably suffer. If one is manifestly selfish, he will make enemies rather than friends. So far you may go, and no farther. You must not be openly evil or your business will suffer. These are not the laws of love but the iron laws which by force hold the evil in check.

What are some of the evil and false maxims which form Og’s bedstead? Have you never heard that “enlightened self-interest will lead to a just economic life,” or that “honesty is the best policy,” or that “men are naturally good and it is only adverse external conditions which cause crime,” or that “the commandments and the Golden Rule are beautiful but they cannot be kept in the business world,” or that “self-preservation is the first law of nature?” These maxims built into a Doctrine or whatever a selfish man believes. They are the bedstead of iron which the evil man uses to support his selfishness.

In the Word measurements and numbers signify quality. Og’s bedstead was nine cubits long and four cubits wide. In a good sense the number nine stands for what is full and complete and respect to truth and the number four, full conjunction with what is good. But in the case of this wicked giant they are used in the opposite sense, to denote complete and absolute falsity and evil in the maxims of the selfish man.

It is said of the final disposal of Og’s iron bedstead, “Is it not in Rabbath of the children of Ammon?” There is no other place to which this bedstead could have been carried. Ammon stands for the falsification of truths. The false doctrine represented by Og’s bedstead belongs in the hells where truth is falsified. The Spiritual man has no use for this bedstead, for when he shuns evil and has become regenerate, he has no use for the falsities which support the body of his selfish spirit. For then these doctrines and maxims are removed even from his natural mind and cast back into the hells where they originated and from which they were injected into his mind.

After Og was slain, half the tribe of Manasseh took over the land. After regeneration, the Lord turns over this whole pasture land of our spiritual Bashan to those heavenly principles which find food and culture there, and by which the world is blessed and the prophecy of the Psalmist is fulfilled: “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.”

We live in a humanistic and materialistic time and it is hard for us to escape the influence of the false maxims which so many about us have accepted as the only practical laws for life in this world. The prophet Micah prays: “Feed thy people with thy rod, the flock of thine heritage, which dwell solitarily in the wood, in the midst of Carmel; let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, as in the days of old.”

567. REVELATION: CHAPTER 13

1. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on its horns ten jewels, ¹ and on its heads a blasphemous name.

2. Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, whose feet were like those of a bear, and its mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave it its power, its throne, and great authority.

3. And I saw one of its heads appearing as though fatally wounded, and its mortal injury was healed. And all the earth went marveling after the beast.

4. Then they worshiped the dragon which gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like the beast? Who can fight against it?"

5. And it was given a mouth speaking great and blasphemous things, and it was given authority to do so for forty-two months.

6. Then it opened its mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, and against His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven.

7. It was granted it to make war with the saints and overcome them. And it was given authority over every tribe, tongue, and nation.

8. All who dwell on the earth will worship it, all whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

9. If anyone has an ear, let him hear.

10. Anyone who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; anyone who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.

11. Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and it had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.

12. And it exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose mortal injury was healed.

13. It also performs great signs, so as to even make fire come down from heaven to earth in the sight of men,

14. and to lead astray those who dwell on the earth, because of the signs which it was granted to do in the presence of the beast, telling those dwelling upon the earth to make an image of the beast that was injured by the sword and lived.

15. It was also granted it to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast might speak and cause whoever does not worship the image of the beast to be killed.

16. And it causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive from it a mark on their right hand and on their foreheads,

17. so that no one can buy or sell if he does not have the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of its name.

18. Here is wisdom: let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and its number is 666.

THE SPIRITUAL MEANING

The Contents of the Whole Chapter

The dragon continues to be the subject in this chapter, which describes the doctrine and faith meant by the dragon. The character of that doctrine and faith among the laity, and then its character among the clergy. The beast rising up out of the sea describes the doctrine and faith among the laity (verses 1-10), and the beast coming up out of the earth the doctrine and faith among the clergy (verses 11-17).

Lastly it describes the clergy's falsification of the Word's truth (verse 18).

The Contents of the Individual Verses:

THE EXPOSITION

13:1

And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea. This symbolizes the laity in the Protestant Reformed churches who are caught up in the doctrine and faith of the dragon regarding God and salvation.

The nature and character of the faith of the dragon may be seen in no. 537. The same faith continues to be the subject in this chapter, and the beast here that John saw rising up out of the sea means that faith among the laity, whereas the beast from the earth, described in verse 11, means that faith among the clergy.

That the dragon continues to be the subject here is apparent from the following statements in this chapter: that the dragon gave to the beast rising up out of the sea its power, its throne, and great authority (verse 2); that they worshiped the dragon which gave authority to the beast (verse 4); and, concerning the beast coming up out of the earth, that it spoke like a dragon (verse 11); and that it exercised all the authority of the first beast in the presence of the dragon (verse 12).

The laity are the people meant by the beast from the sea, and the clergy those meant by the beast from the earth, because the sea symbolizes the outer aspect of the church, and the land its inner aspect (no. 398 and elsewhere); and the laity are concerned with the external elements of the church's doctrine, while the clergy are concerned with its internal elements. That is why the beast from the earth is later called a false prophet. ³

That they are people in the Protestant Reformed churches is because the Protestant Reformed are the subject to the end of chapter 16, while Roman Catholics are the subject in chapters 17, 18. Then the subject after that is the Last Judgment and finally the New Church.

[2] These people were seen as beasts because the dragon is a beast, and because a beast in the Word symbolizes a person in respect to his affections - harmless and useful beasts a person in respect to good affections, and harmful and useless ones a person in respect to evil affections. People of the church are in general called sheep, therefore, and a company of them a flock, and one who teaches is called a shepherd.

That is also why the Word in respect to its power, affection, understanding and wisdom is described above in chapter four by four living creatures - a lion, a calf, an eagle and a human being - and an understanding of the Word by horses in chapter six.

The reason is that in the spiritual world a person's affections look at a distance like animals, as we have often said before; and regarded in themselves, animals are no more than embodiments of natural affections, while people are embodiments not only of natural affections, but also at the same time of spiritual affections.

[3] That animals mean people in respect to their affections can be seen from the following passages:

You... will cause to fall a kindly rain. You will confirm Your inheritance... The beast, Your congregation, ⁴ shall dwell in it. (Psalms 68:9-10)

...every wild beast of the forest is Mine, the beasts on a thousand mountains. I know every bird of the mountains; the beast of My fields is with Me. (Psalms 50:10-11)

...Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon... ...its height was exalted... All the birds of the heavens made their nests in its boughs, and under its branches all the beasts of the field brought forth their young, and in its shade all great nations made their home. (Ezekiel 31:3-6, cf. 31:10, 31:13, Daniel 4:10-16)

In that day I will make a covenant for them with the beast of the field, and with the bird of the heavens... And I will betroth you to Me forever. (Hosea 2:18-19)

Rejoice and be glad! ...Do not be afraid, you beasts of My fields, for the habitations of the wilderness have become grassy meadows. (Joel 2:21-23)

In that day there shall be a great tumult... Judah... will fight against Jerusalem... And such also shall be the plague on the horse, the mule, the camel, and the donkey, and every beast... And it shall come to pass that the remnant... shall go up (to Jerusalem). (Zechariah 14:13-16)

Birds shall abominate him, and every beast of the earth shall disdain him. (Isaiah 18:6)

...you, son of man..., "Say to every winged bird and to every beast of the field, '...Gather together... to My sacrifice... on the mountains of Israel... (Thus) I will set My glory among the nations.'" (Ezekiel 39:17-21)

(Jehovah) gathers the outcasts of Israel... Every beast of My fields, come... (Isaiah 56:8-9)

(Jehovah) will destroy Assyria... There shall lie down in her midst every wild beast of the nation, both the desert owl and the screech owl in her pomegranates... (Zephaniah 2:13-14)

(The sheep) were scattered without a shepherd, and they became food for every wild beast of the field... (Ezekiel 34:5, cf. 34:8)

I will cast you out on the face of the field, and cause to dwell on you every bird of the heavens. And with you I will satiate the wild beasts of the whole earth. (Ezekiel 32:4; see also 5:17; 29:5; 33:27; 39:4, Jeremiah 15:3; 16:4; 19:7; 27:5-6)

An enemy reproaches Jehovah... Do not deliver the life of (the) turtledove to the beast! (Psalms 74:18-19)

"I saw in... vision... four... beasts coming up from the sea... The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings... ...a second, like a bear... ...(a third) like a leopard... ...and a fourth..., dreadful... (Daniel 7:2-7)

...the Spirit drove (Jesus) out into the wilderness. And He was... with the beasts; and the angels ministered to Him. (Mark 1:12-13)

[4] He was not with beasts, but with devils, who are here meant by beasts.

So also in other places where beasts and wild beasts are mentioned, such as Isaiah 35:9; 43:20; Jeremiah 12:4, 8-10; Ezekiel 8:10; 34:23, 25, 28; 38:18-20; Hosea 4:2-3; 13:8; Exodus 23:28-30; Leviticus 26:6; Deuteronomy 7:22; 32:24. Beasts in these places symbolize people in respect to their affections.

[5] Man and beast mentioned together in the following passages symbolize a person in respect to his spiritual affection and in respect to his natural affection: Jeremiah 7:20; 21:6; 27:5; 31:27; 32:43; 33:10-12; 36:29; 50:3; Psalms 36:6; Numbers 18:15.

All the animals that were sacrificed symbolized good affections. So, too, animals that were eaten. And the converse animals that were not to be eaten (Leviticus 20:25-26).

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