Issue 1531 – Precious – August 21, 2024
My late father was a man of many interests, including lapidary work and rockhounding. He and my mother made many types of jewelry and other crafts.
One of their creations is this wire-wrapped garnet gem tree on a stone base. They made them in a variety of sizes with many semi-precious stones.
These little gem trees resemble bonsai but need no maintenance other than an occasional dusting. You can have quite an extensive garden by varying the tree’s shape, the type of wire used, and the gemstones you pick.
I have always been fascinated by rocks, stones, and minerals, as well as the arts and crafts created from them. The Bible references a wide range of precious and precious stones and minerals.
One of the more intriguing passages is found in the book of the Revelation of Jesus the Christ. John the Revelator describes the New Jerusalem.
And the one who spoke with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia. Its length and width and height are equal. He also measured its wall, 144 cubits by human measurement, which is also an angel’s measurement. The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, like clear glass. The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. Revelation 21:15-21
Each of the stones listed is considered a semi-precious gem. Between them all, they can be found in every color of the rainbow. Each of them has a translucent form; they are not fully transparent but let light through.
According to one source I read, “In the past century, scientists have discovered that gems can be classified as either anisotropic or isotropic, and only recently they have found that cross-polarized light can be used to identify whether a gem is anisotropic or isotropic. Anisotropic stones produce a colorful array when viewed in crossed-polarized light (similar to “pure” light), reflecting all the colors of the rainbow, whereas isotropic stones lose all of their color and appear black.”
All twelve stones in the foundation wall of the New Jerusalem are anisotropic. Is that why they are mentioned here? I can only speculate.
What I do find notable is a thought it brings to mind. God uses relatively ordinary stones to create this beautiful foundation. He doesn’t use diamonds, rubies, and other stones that we might expect.
Similarly, God takes ordinary, broken people and calls them to Him. He builds his temple out of them and brings out the beauty that might not otherwise be seen.
Regardless of how the world views us, God has plans to accomplish something beautiful through us.
How marvelous is that?
I can hardly wait to see the inherent beauty the Lord has built into each one of His children.
Until next time, may your faith produce fruit.
Be blessed
Hallelu Yah / Praise God
Kevin
Gleanings From The Word
Experience an extraordinary God in ordinary life.
Soli Deo Gloria (For the glory of God alone)
Never let the enemy tell you that you are worthless or insignificant. Your value in God’s eyes is so great that it was worth dying for. You are a blessing to the world. You are so precious to God that his plan for heaven will not be complete without you.
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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are from the English Standard Version (ESV)
© K.F. “Kevin” Corbin 2024 – Used by permission – All rights reserved.