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I am still burdened about the pillar. Based upon the principle that nearly everything in the book of Genesis is a seed that is developed in the following books of the Bible, we come to 1 Kings 7:13-22, a strong portion in the Word regarding the pillars. In Jacob's calling, Jacob's being transformed was mainly related to this matter of the pillar. After his dream at Bethel, Jacob set up a pillar (Gen. 28:18). When he returned to Bethel, he also set up a pillar (Gen. 35:14). When Jacob set up the pillar the first time, he said, "This stone which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house" (Gen. 28:22). This indicates that the pillar was not only the pillar, but also that it would become Bethel, the house of God. In 1 Kings we have the first mention of the temple. Prior to that, there was the tabernacle, but no temple. The most striking feature of the exterior of the temple was the two pillars. In 1 Kings chapter seven we have a detailed picture of these pillars. I am burdened that, having considered the seed of the pillar in Genesis, we now look into the development of this seed in the following books of the Old Testament. Later, we shall consider the consummation of this seed in the New Testament.
The pillars of the temple were built by Solomon through Hiram, "a worker in brass" who was "filled with wisdom, and understanding, and skill to work all works in brass" (1 Kings 7:14). Much of what is found in the Old Testament, such as the tabernacle and the temple, is a shadow, a type. We need to know the fulfillment of all these types. Solomon was a type of Christ, and Hiram was a type of the gifted person in the New Testament. Undoubtedly, the Apostle Paul was a gifted person; he was the New Testament Hiram. Ephesians 4:11 and 12 say, "And He gave some apostles, and some prophets, and some evangelists, and some shepherds and teachers, for the perfecting of the saints." The gifted persons are given by the Head to the Body to perfect the saints. That the pillars were not built by Solomon directly but by Solomon through Hiram indicates that today Christ does not build up the pillars directly but through the gifted persons. Thus, we must submit to the hands of the gifted persons, just as the brass was subject to the skilled and gifted hands of Hiram.
According to 1 Kings 7:15, Hiram "fashioned two pillars" (Heb.). In the Bible, the number two is the number of testimony. These two pillars stood in front of the temple as a testimony. The thought concerning the pillar in the book of Genesis is that of testimony. After Jacob had arranged a settlement with Laban, he "took a stone, and set it up for a pillar" (31:45), and this pillar was a testimony (Gen. 31:51-52). Undoubtedly, when Jacob set up the pillar in chapter twenty-eight, his concept was also that of a testimony. Under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, he said that this testimony would be the house of God. The temple in the Old Testament certainly was a testimony to God. The principle is the same with respect to the church today. According to 1 Timothy 3:15, the house of God, which is the church, is the pillar. This means that the church as a whole stands on earth to testify God to the universe. Therefore, the two pillars in front of the temple in the Old Testament were a strong testimony of God's building.
Now we come to a crucial point — the two pillars were made of brass (1 Kings 7:15). In Genesis the pillar is a pillar of stone, but in 1 Kings 7 the pillars are pillars of brass. A stone indicates transformation. Although we are clay, we can be transformed into stone. But what does brass signify? It signifies God's judgment. For example, the altar at the entrance of the tabernacle was covered with brass indicating God's judgment (Exo. 27:1-2; Num. 16:38-40). The laver was also made of brass (Exo. 30:18). Furthermore, the serpent of brass put on a pole (Num. 21:8-9) also testified of Christ's being judged by God on our behalf (John 3:14). Therefore, in typology, brass always signifies God's judgment. That the two pillars were made of brass clearly indicates that if we would be a pillar, we must realize that we are those under God's judgment. We should not only be under God's judgment, but also under our own judgment. Like Paul in Galatians 2:20, we must say, "I have been crucified. I have been crucified because I am not good for anything in God's economy. I am only qualified for death." Many brothers are intelligent and capable and many sisters are quite nice. Nevertheless, we must recognize that actually we are not good at all. We are not even worth a penny. We are only good for death. To say, "I have been put aside, condemned, and put to death," is a type of self-judgment. What is your judgment regarding yourself? You must answer, "My judgment of myself is that I am good for nothing and that I have been crucified."
If you think that you are qualified to be a pillar, then you are already disqualified. Let me relate something concerning Brother Nee's practice relating to the appointment of elders. Brother Nee said that no one who was ambitious to be an elder should ever be an elder. Therefore, many of us in mainland China said, "Don't think that you can be an elder and do not be ambitious to be an elder. If you are ambitious to be an elder, you can never be one." When I first came to Shanghai in 1933, I met a certain brother. I later discovered that he was very ambitious to be an elder. Brother Nee told me that just because this brother was so ambitious to be an elder he was not qualified to be an elder. Whoever is ambitious to be an elder is disqualified from being one. More or less, as some brothers can testify, we have practiced this during these years in the United States. A few among us have hunted for eldership. They have even moved from place to place seeking an opportunity to be an elder. After realizing that the eldership in a particular locality had been filled up, they moved to another locality where there were many openings. However, those openings could only be filled by those who had no ambition to be elders. Once we discover that a brother is ambitious to be an elder, he will be fully disqualified for eternity. The reason for this is that such a brother is not a person under God's judgment. We all must say, "I am not qualified. I am poor, sinful, fallen, and corrupt." Moreover, we must say, "Lord, I am so fallen, sinful, and corrupt. How could I bear the responsibility of the eldership? I am not qualified for this." This is the experience of brass. To justify ourselves and to qualify ourselves is to be through with the brass. Those who experience brass are those who are constantly under judgment.
During the early years in China, I sometimes wondered why Brother Nee was so strict in this matter. Eventually, I learned that whoever was ambitious to be a leader in any aspect of the church life became a problem. There was not one exception to this. However, all those who became a true profit to the building of the church were those who did not think of themselves as being qualified for leadership. Rather, they always said, "I am not qualified. I am too poor. My disposition is not suitable, and I am still too much in my natural life. I do not consider myself to be good." To say this is not only to be under God's judgment, but also under self-judgment. What is your evaluation of yourself? Do not say, "No one else is good except me." Whenever you say this, you are finished, and the Lord would never put His seal upon this evaluation of yourself. We all must have the realization that we are fallen, corrupt, and no good. We all must feel that in us, that is, in our flesh, there is nothing good (Rom. 7:18). We should say, "I am worthy of nothing but death. How could the brothers think that I should be one of the elders? I am terrified of this possibility." I do not speak this in vain. In the past years some have said, "Why was Brother So-and-so appointed to be an elder and I was not?" He was appointed instead of you because you feel that you are qualified. Your self-approval disqualifies you. The Lord will never choose anyone who considers himself to be qualified. If you think that you are qualified, then you have nothing to do with brass. Instead, you are self-made gold. The experience of brass is that we are always under God's judgment and under our own self-judgment. We all must apply this word to ourselves, saying, "Lord, have mercy upon me, for in me there is nothing good." This is the reason that we have been crucified. If we think there is something good in us, we are liars.
In Galatians 2:20 Paul said, "It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me." We may also apply his word in 1 Corinthians 15:10, which says, "But by the grace of God I am what I am; and His grace unto me was not in vain, but I labored more abundantly than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me." In Galatians 2:20, Paul said, "No longer I who live, but Christ" and in 1 Corinthians 15:10, he said, "Not I, but the grace of God." Paul seemed to be saying, "Whatever I am, I am by the grace of God. By myself, I am nothing. By myself, I could never be an apostle or a minister of God's living word. I labored more than the others, but it was not I who labored — it was the grace of God." This is the experience of brass.
In typology and in figure, the two brass pillars in 1 Kings 7 tell us that we must be under God's judgment as well as under our own self-judgment. We must judge ourselves as being nothing and as being only qualified to be crucified. I say this not only to the brothers, but also to the sisters. None of us is good for anything. We must consider ourselves as those under God's judgment. If an elder is not under God's judgment, he cannot be a good elder, and if a leading sister is not under God's judgment, she cannot be a proper leading sister. I fully realize and can testify that in order to minister the Word of God, I must always be under self-judgment. While I may spend only a short time praying positively for the meeting, I may spend a long time in self-judgment, judging myself as being poor, unworthy, fleshly, and natural. Sometimes, I even sigh and groan, saying, "O Lord, when will the time come that I can minister Your word apart from my flesh?" Do not think that as I stand here ministering to you, I am so good. No, I am too poor. As long as we are in the natural life and in the old creation, we are pitiful. We must serve under God's judgment and minister under our own realization of God's judgment. I am one who has already been judged. My natural being, my flesh, and myself have all been judged by God, and I am still under this judgment. If we have this realization, then we become brass.
Although the brass shines, it has no glory. With the shining of gold, on the contrary, there is glory. The shining of brass signifies that we are under God's judgment. If an elder shines like brass, then he is an elder who has been and who still is under God's judgment. He is not the golden lampstand standing for God's glory; he is the brass pillar standing for God's judgment. Do you intend to be a pillar or a leader among the children of God? If you do, then you must be under God's judgment. I hope that the Holy Spirit will speak this to you. In the temple of God there is no pride, no self-boasting. In the temple of God, the pillars are of brass. Those who bear the burden are judged beings. All the elders are brothers who have been and who are still under God's judgment. Furthermore, this judgment is fully realized by themselves. They recognize that they are under God's judgment because they are sinful, fallen, and corrupted, because there is nothing good in them, and because they are not qualified for anything in God's economy. I could repeat this word again and again and again. Do you know why there is so much fighting in Christianity? It is because there is no brass. There is no judgment by God. Rather, all the "pillars" there are wooden columns. The more responsibility you bear in the proper church life, the more you must realize that you are under God's judgment. You are just brass under the judgment of God. Do not release yourself from this judgment even for a moment. Instead, you must remain under the realization of God's judgment and stay with the brass.
The pillars were "eighteen cubits high apiece" (1 Kings 7:15). As we shall see, the circumference of each pillar was twelve cubits. Eighteen cubits is half of three units of twelve cubits. In other words, eighteen is half of three complete units. The three units signify the very Triune God who has been dispensed into us. If we would be pillars, we must firstly judge ourselves and then be filled, saturated, and permeated with the Triune God. As I was wondering why each pillar was a half of three complete units, the Lord said, "Stupid man, have you not given several messages saying that the standing boards in the tabernacle were each one and a half cubits wide? Didn't you say that no board could stand by itself, but that it had to stand with another? Don't you see that it is the same with the pillars? Just as the two boards standing together made three complete cubits, so the two pillars make three complete units." Then I said, "Now I understand, Lord."
If you would be a pillar, you must be filled, saturated, and permeated with the Triune God. However, no matter how much you have been filled with God, you are still only a part. At most, you are one half. You can never have God completely. The very God who is in you is also in your brother. Because you are not a full unit, you need others to complete you. All the spiritual giants think that they can be complete individu- alistically. But the Bible reveals that everyone is only a half. The standing boards in the tabernacle were a half (Exo. 26:15-16), and each of the pillars in the temple is a half.
When they hear this, some may say, "Brother Lee is allegorizing the Bible." If I am allegorizing, then I have the ground to allegorize. Why does the Bible not say that the pillars were seventeen or nineteen cubits high? Would it be possible to allegorize if the pillars were this height? No, it would be impossible. But, as I was seeking the Lord, He showed me that in this section of the Word twelve is the complete unit and eighteen is one and a half units. This indicates that although we might be filled with the Triune God, God will never wholly commit Himself to us individually. No matter how much of God we gain, we are not the whole; we are only a part. We need one another. I need you, and you need me. The Lord always sent out His disciples two by two (Mark 6:7; Luke 10:1; Acts 13:2). I am not the number thirty-six. At most, I am the number eighteen. No matter how tall you are, you must realize that you are only eighteen cubits and that you need others. Do not say, "I am perfect and complete. You all need me, but I don't need you." It is foolish to say this. At most, we can be only eighteen cubits. Some sisters dream about being filled with God. But no matter how much they are filled with Him, they could never be more than half a unit. They need others.
Now we come to the circumference of the pillars. First Kings 7:15 says, "A line of twelve cubits did compass either of them about." As far as language is concerned, the composition of this verse is very peculiar. Instead of speaking of the circumference, it says that a "line of twelve cubits" encompassed the pillars. Even this rendering is not an exact, literal translation; it is somewhat of an interpretation. One version says, "a circumference of twelve cubits." This rendering is simple and I prefer it. Nevertheless, the Bible has no waste of words, and we must consider the meaning of the actual composition of this verse. It means to use a thread as a line to measure around the pillars. The purpose of this is to impress us with the completion and perfection of our being mingled with God in His eternal administration. The number seven, which signifies perfection and completion in God's move in this age, is composed of four plus three. This is a matter of addition. But the number twelve, which is composed of four times three, is a matter of multiplication, indicating that the creature is mingled with the Triune God and that this mingling must be complete and perfect in God's eternal administration. The pillars are not square, rectangular, or triangular; they are round, circular, signifying that their perfection is eternal.
As we put together the brass, the height of eighteen cubits, and the circumference of twelve cubits, we see that in order to be a pillar we must be under God's judgment and that we must be fully, thoroughly, and completely saturated with God. We must be brass and we must be twelve cubits around. Nevertheless, no matter how completely we have been mingled with God, we are still only a half; we need another half. If any elder is like this, he will certainly be an outstanding elder. If any leading sister is like this, she will be a most excellent sister. This kind of person certainly can bear the responsibility.
Our problem is that we do not condemn ourselves. Rather, we vindicate, justify, approve, and excuse ourselves. Often we say, "That is not my mistake; it is Brother So-and-so's mistake. I am always careful. I am not wrong." This is self-vindication. After we vindicate ourselves, we proceed to justify and approve ourselves. We do not need to be tested, for we have already approved ourselves. In our eyes, there is no problem with ourselves. Sometimes, however, we are caught in a mistake. Then we excuse ourselves, perhaps by saying, "I made that mistake because the meeting was so long and I was tired." How often we make exits for ourselves! We have four big exits: self-vindication, self-justification, self-approval, and self-excuse. Even when we are caught in a mistake, we still excuse ourselves. For example, a sister may say, "I type poorly because the others have the best typewriters and the worst typewriter is allotted to me." In the past, I have had a lot of self-vindication, self-justification, self-approval, and self-excuse.
Very rarely does a husband or wife at the beginning of an argument, say, "I'm sorry. This is my mistake. Please forgive me." Rather, the wife says, "Do you know why I was so strong with my husband? It was because he is always late. Throughout our whole marriage, his lateness has troubled me." Then the husband will say, "My wife never sympathizes with me. I am busy and have a great deal of work to do. When I am overworked like this, how can I help being late?" This is self-vindication, self-justification, self-approval, and self-excuse. If we would daily crucify these four things, there would be no fighting whatever in our homes.
It is inadequate for us simply to be the number four. We must be number seven — four plus the Triune God. This, however, is still the initial stage, not the consummation, which is the number twelve. In order to be the number twelve, we must be filled, saturated, and mingled with God. When we are fully saturated and mingled with God, we are adequate for God's eternal administration. Nevertheless, as we have pointed out, even after we have become the number twelve, we are still only eighteen cubits in height. We are only half a unit. If we were all like this, there would be no problems. Instead of fighting with others, we would condemn ourselves, saying, "Lord, I need You. I have been crucified, and Christ lives in me. It is not I, but the grace of God that is with me." This is the brass, the judgment, and the twelve cubits, the mingling of God with man. Since we are, at most, only a half, we need others for God's economy and administration. If you pray over these points, you will see that this is the pillar that can bear the responsibility in the house of God.
On the top of each of the pillars was a capital five cubits in height (1 Kings 7:16). The capitals were the top coverings of the pillars. The fact that each capital was five cubits in height and not six or seven cubits is significant. As we have pointed out several times, in the Bible the number five denotes responsibility. Consider your hand: the four fingers and the thumb are for bearing responsibility. If we had just four fingers, we could not bear responsibility in a proper way. The number four signifies the creature, and the number one signifies the unique God. When the unique God is added to human beings, our number becomes five.
For example, the ten commandments were written in groups of five on two tables of stone, and the ten virgins were divided into five wise ones and five foolish ones. Therefore, the two capitals five cubits in height indicate the bearing of responsibility. If you say that this is my allegorization, I would reply that I have the ground to allegorize, for we are not told that the capitals are four and a half or six cubits in height, but that they are five cubits in height. The combined height of the two capitals totals ten cubits. The number ten signifies fullness in responsibility. Both the ten commandments and the ten virgins indicate fullness. Therefore, in the Bible the number ten reveals fullness of human responsibility toward God. Our ten fingers for working and ten toes for moving and walking indicate this.
First Kings 7:17 speaks of "nets of checkerwork, and wreaths of chainwork, for the capitals which were upon the top of the pillars; seven for the one capital, and seven for the other capital" (Heb.). To what do the nets of checkerwork and wreaths of chainwork refer? After consulting many versions, I discovered that the checkerwork resembles a trellis, a frame with small square holes that bears a vine. Furthermore, the word "work" in this verse implies a design. Hence, checkerwork is a checker design and chainwork a chain design. As we shall see, this checker design is for the growth of the lilies. This trellis is the setting for the lilies. In a sense, it is a net to hold the lilies. The chainwork is like a wreath encompassing the outside of the capital. Hence, upon the capitals are nets of checkerwork and wreaths of chainwork.
What does all this signify? We have seen that the number five, the height of the capitals, denotes responsibility, and that two times five means fullness of responsibility. But why are there also on these capitals nets of checkerwork and wreaths of chainwork? While I was burdened to understand this, the Lord showed me that this is the intermixed and complicated situation. The burden and responsibility borne by the pillars in the family, in the church, and in the ministry is always in a complicated and intermixed situation. We may often like to straighten out these situations, but we cannot do it. If you straighten out one complication, there will be three others to take its place. If you attempt to make one matter clear, the situation will become even more unclear. The more you try to make it understandable, the more it will be misunderstood. Do not say, "Last night Brother So-and-so was unhappy with his wife." If you talk like this, you will be involved. The more we try to explain ourselves, the more misunderstanding there will be, and this misunderstanding will multiply. Through many years of experience, I have learned that the best way to avoid misunderstanding is to say as little as possible. Sometimes, you should not even say the words, "Praise the Lord," to your wife. If you do this, she may say, "Why are you so spiritual? Don't you realize that your praising condemns me? When you praise the Lord, you are saying that you are spiritual and that I am carnal." The church life is a checkerwork surrounded by a chain, and the eldership is a most intricate trellis with the strongest chain.
I know of a certain dear one who holds the concept that wherever he is, those around him should be like angels. They should all be very spiritual, going to bed early and rising early in the morning to pray-read the Word. If everyone would be heavenly, then this dear one would be happy. But there is no place on earth like the one envisioned by this dear one. In many homes, some stay up late talking and then sleep until late in the morning. Upon waking, some may complain that it was too cold with the window open all night, and others may complain that it was so stuffy that they felt like they were suffocating.
Every situation faced by the church members is a checkerwork, a trellis encircled by a crown of pins and thorns. I have a large family and I am also in a large church. I have many children and grandchildren and many dear brothers and sisters. Wherever I am, in Taipei or in Anaheim, I cannot escape the checkerwork and chainwork. In a sense, Anaheim is wonderful, but it is full of checkerwork and chains. Even the angels know that I am constantly in an intermixed and complicated situation. My children and all the problems brought to me by the brothers and sisters in the churches create more checkerwork for me. It is our destiny to be in this situation. We must not only bear the responsibility in this intermixed and complicated situation, but also live in the midst of it.
In order to bear the responsibility in this complicated situation, we must live by faith in God. First Kings 7:19 says, "And the capitals that were upon the top of the pillars in the porch were of lily work" (Heb.). The lily signifies a life of faith in God. Firstly, we must condemn ourselves, realizing that we are fallen, incapable, unqualified, and that we are nothing. Then we must live by faith in God, not by what we are or by what we can do. We must be a lily existing by what God is to us, not by what we are (Matt. 6:28, 30). Our living on earth today depends upon Him. How can we possibly bear the responsibility in the intermixed and complicated church life? In ourselves, we are incapable of doing this, but we can do so if we live by faith in God. It is not I, but Christ who lives in me — this is the lily. It is not I who bear the responsibility — it is He who bears it. I live, not by myself, but by Him, and I minister, not by myself, but by Him. If you sisters are mothers in the church life, you must say, "I am not a mother in the church by myself, but by Him." In Song of Songs 2:1 and 2 the seeker says, "I am the lily of the valley." Then the Lord replies, "As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters."
What earthly architect would have designed a brass pillar bearing brass capitals with lily work on the top of them? Humanly speaking, this is not meaningful, but spiritually speaking, it is very significant. On the one hand, we are the condemned and judged brass; on the other hand, we are the living lilies. The brass means, "Not I," and the lily means, "But Christ." Those who are lilies can say, "The life that I now live, I live by the faith of Jesus Christ." By all this we can realize that we are lilies bearing an impossible responsibility in an intermixed and complicated situation full of checkerwork and chainwork. The elders should not say, "Lord, take these complications away." Rather, they should expect more complications. I am quite certain that the more you pray for the complications to be reduced, the more complications there will be. All the checkerwork is the base, the bed, in which the lilies grow.
According to the context, the chainwork, being wreaths, was a form of decoration. But this decoration is filled with complications. When you come to my home, do not expect everything there to be clear and simple. If you stay with me for a while, you will find many complications and complaints. But all this is the beauty of my family, for it is a wreath, a crown. Every elder expects the church life to be clear-cut like a Chinese bean cake where every piece is cut square and neat. They want everything in the church to be accurate and fine. The only place like this is the cemetery. The proper church life, like the church life in Anaheim, is a net of checkerwork and a wreath of chainwork. This is the place where the elders bear the responsibility in full. This cannot be understood simply by studying the passage, but by interpreting this portion of the Word in the light of our experience.
Verse 20 says, "And the capitals upon the two pillars had pomegranates also above, over against the belly which was by the network: and the pomegranates were two hundred in rows round about upon the other capital" (Heb.). Hallelujah for the two hundred pomegranates! Around each capital was a projection, like a belly. Encompassing the projection on each capital were two rows of a hundred pomegranates each. This indicates two times of a hundredfold expression of the riches of life. If you contact these elders who daily bear the responsibility in the intermixed and complicated situation, you will see that they express pomegranates, the riches of life. All the complaints, dissatisfactions, and troubling telephone calls eventually form a projection full of pomegranates. How wonderful this is!
The diameter of each of the capitals is four cubits (1 Kings 7:19). This indicates that the number twelve, the circumference of the pillars, is composed of four times three. While the circumference of the pillar is twelve cubits, the diameter of the capitals is four cubits. This implies that the pillars with their capitals are the number four, that is, the creatures, human beings, but that they are multiplied by the Triune God. Being mingled with the Triune God, they eventually become the number twelve. If you put all this together, you will see that it is very meaningful. It implies that those who judge and condemn themselves and count themselves as nothing will be able to bear the responsibility in full in the midst of a complicated situation because they do not live by themselves but by God. Eventually, they do not express their capability, qualification, intelligence, understanding, and wisdom — they express pomegranates, the riches of life two-hundredfold.
Finally, we are told that the names of these two pillars were Jachin and Boaz (1 Kings 7:21). Jachin means, "He shall establish," and Boaz means, "In it is strength." These two pillars standing on the porch testify that the Lord will establish His building and that genuine strength is in the building. Even today, the building of the church gives this testimony. By the details of the picture in 1 Kings 7, we see how we can be a pillar in the building of God, judging ourselves, living by faith, bearing the responsibility, and expressing the riches of life.
