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Chapter 69
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Tablet of God -- the revealed word of God by the Independent Prophet and Dependent/Lesser Prophets.
1)
The Tablet of God, revealed by Baha'u'llah, the Independent Prophet.
O King of Berlin! Give ear unto the Voice calling from this manifest
Temple: Verily, there is none other God but Me, the Everlasting, the
Peerless, the Ancient of Days. Take heed lest pride debar thee from
recognizing the Dayspring of Divine Revelation, lest earthly desires
shut thee out, as by a veil, from the Lord of the Throne above and of
the earth below. Thus counselleth thee the Pen of the Most High. He,
verily, is the Most Gracious, the All-Bountiful. Do thou remember the
one whose power transcended thy power (Napoleon III), and whose station
excelled thy station. Where is he? Whither are gone the things he
possessed? Take warning, and be not of them that are fast asleep. He it
was who cast the Tablet of God behind him, when We made known unto him
what the hosts of tyranny had caused Us to suffer. Wherefore, disgrace
assailed him from all sides, and he went down to dust in great loss.
Think deeply, O King, concerning him, and concerning them who, like
unto thee, have conquered cities and ruled over men. The All-Merciful
brought them down from their palaces to their graves. Be warned, be of
them who reflect... O banks of the Rhine! We have seen you covered with
gore, inasmuch as the swords of retribution were drawn against you; and
you shall have another turn. And We hear the lamentations of Berlin,
though she be today in conspicuous glory.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Proclamation of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 39
2)
The Tablet of God, revealed by Baha'u'llah, the Independent Prophet.
O concourse of patriarchs! He Whom ye were promised in the Tablets is
come. Fear God, and follow not the vain imaginings of the
superstitious. Lay aside the things ye possess, and take fast hold of
the Tablet of God by His sovereign power. Better is this for you than
all your possessions. Unto this testifieth every understanding heart,
and every man of insight. Pride ye yourselves on My Name and yet shut
yourselves out as by a veil from Me? This indeed is a strange thing!
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Proclamation of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 92
3)
In passage below from Gleanings CXXIX:
"concealed within the Holy Veil" -- refers to the realm of pre-existence of the Dependent Prophets, similar to the pre-existence of the Holy Imams.
"His chosen ones" -- the Dependent Prophets of Baha'u'llah.
"Go forth with the Tablet of God" -- teachings revealed by the Dependent Prophet of Baha'u'llah.
"Warn, then, those that have joined partners with Him" --
warn those who reject the Dependent Prophet as the Face of God
(similar, for example, to those who rejected Imam Ali as the Face of
God in the era of Muhammad).
"I am come from the Throne of glory" -- reference to her/his station as a Prophet (Dependent) of God.
"And bear you an announcement from God" -- the declaration of the Dependent Prophet.
"Weigh it with the just Balance that ye possess, the Balance of the testimony of the Prophets and Messengers of God" -- judge their testimony with the same standards you use for Prophets and Messengers of God, as they are.
"And render your works vain, and be numbered with the infidels" -- reference to believers who after serving the faith reject a Dependent Prophet, and thereby render their works vain.
There lay concealed within the Holy Veil, and prepared for the service of God, a company of His chosen ones
who shall be manifested unto men, who shall aid His Cause, who shall be
afraid of no one, though the entire human race rise up and war against
them. These are the ones who, before the gaze of the dwellers on earth
and the denizens of heaven, shall arise and, shouting aloud, acclaim
the name of the Almighty, and summon the children of men to the path of
God, the All-Glorious, the All-Praised. Walk thou in their way,
and let no one dismay thee. Be of them whom the tumult of the world,
however much it may agitate them in the path of their Creator, can
never sadden, whose purpose the blame of the blamer will never defeat.
Go forth with the Tablet of God and His signs,
and rejoin them that have believed in Me, and announce unto them
tidings of Our most holy Paradise. Warn, then, those that have joined partners with Him. Say: I am come to you, O people, from the Throne of glory, and bear you an announcement from God, the Most Powerful, the Most Exalted, the Most Great. In mine hand I carry the testimony of God, your Lord and the Lord of your sires of old. Weigh it with the just Balance
that ye possess, the Balance of the testimony of the Prophets and
Messengers of God. If ye find it to be established in truth, if ye
believe it to be of God, beware, then, lest ye cavil at it, and render
your works vain, and be numbered with the infidels.
It is indeed the sign of God that hath been sent down through the power
of truth, through which the validity of His Cause hath been
demonstrated unto His creatures, and the ensigns of purity lifted up
betwixt earth and heaven.
-- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, CXXIX, p. 280
4)
1.33
Say: O people! This is the Hand of God, which hath ever been above your
own hands, could ye but understand. Within its grasp We have ordained
all the good of the heavens and the earth, such that no good shall be
made manifest but that it proceedeth therefrom. Thus have We made it
the source and treasury of all good both aforetime and hereafter. Say:
The rivers of divine wisdom and utterance which flowed through the
Tablets of God are joined to this Most Great Ocean, could ye but
perceive it, and whatever hath been set forth in His Books hath
attained its final consummation in this most exalted Word -- a Word
shining above the horizon of the Will of the All-Glorious in this
Revelation which hath filled with delight all things seen and unseen.
1.34
Erelong shall God draw forth, out of the bosom of power, the hands of
ascendancy and might, and shall raise up a people who will arise to win
victory for this Youth and who will purge mankind from the defilement
of the outcast and the ungodly. These hands will gird up their loins to
champion the Faith of God, and will, in My name the Self-Subsistent,
the Mighty, subdue the peoples and kindreds of the earth. They will
enter the cities and will inspire with fear the hearts of all their
inhabitants. Such are the evidences of the might of God; how fearful,
how vehement is His might, and how justly doth He wield it! He, verily,
ruleth and transcendeth all who are in the heavens and on the earth,
and revealeth what He desireth according to a prescribed measure.
1.35
Should any one of them be called upon to confront all the hosts of
creation, he would assuredly prevail through the ascendancy of My Will.
This, verily, is a proof of My power, though My creatures comprehend it
not. This, verily, is a sign of My sovereignty, though My subjects
understand it not. This, verily, is a token of My command, though My
servants perceive it not. This, verily, is an evidence of Mine
ascendancy, though none amongst the people is truly thankful for it,
save those whose eyes God hath illumined with the light of His
knowledge, whose hearts He hath made the repository of His Revelation,
and upon whose shoulders He hath placed the weight of His Cause. These
shall inhale the fragrances of the All-Merciful from the garment of His
Name, and shall rejoice at all times in the signs and verses of their
Lord. As for those who disbelieve in God, and join partners with Him,
they shall indeed incur His wrath, shall be cast into the Fire, and
shall be made to dwell, fearful and dismayed, in its depths. Thus do We
expound Our verses, and make plain the truth with clear proofs, that
perchance the people may reflect upon the signs of their Lord.
-- Baha'u'llah, Surih of the Temple, The Summons of the Lord of Hosts, p. 19
5)
LXXIV. Every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God is endowed
with such potency as can instill new life into every human frame, if ye
be of them that comprehend this truth. All the wondrous works ye behold
in this world have been manifested through the operation of His supreme
and most exalted Will, His wondrous and inflexible Purpose. Through the
mere revelation of the word "Fashioner," issuing forth from His lips
and proclaiming His attribute to mankind, such power is released as can
generate, through successive ages, all the manifold arts which the
hands of man can produce. This, verily, is a certain truth. No sooner
is this resplendent word uttered, than its animating energies, stirring
within all created things, give birth to the means and instruments
whereby such arts can be produced and perfected. All the wondrous
achievements ye now witness are the direct consequences of the
Revelation of this Name. In the days to come, ye will, verily, behold
things of which ye have never heard before. Thus hath it been decreed
in the Tablets of God, and none can comprehend it except them whose
sight is sharp. In like manner, the moment the word expressing My
attribute "The Omniscient" issueth forth from My mouth, every created
thing will, according to its capacity and limitations, be invested with
the power to unfold the knowledge of the most marvelous sciences, and
will be empowered to manifest them in the course of time at the bidding
of Him Who is the Almighty, the All-Knowing. Know thou of a certainty
that the Revelation of every other Name is accompanied by a similar
manifestation of Divine power. Every single letter proceeding out of
the mouth of God is indeed a mother letter, and every word uttered by
Him Who is the Well Spring of Divine Revelation is a mother word, and
His Tablet a Mother Tablet. Well is it with them that apprehend this
truth.
-- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 141
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