Isaiah 6:2-3 Above it stood the seraphim: each one had six wings; with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet… Canon Cheyne's answer in the "Polychrome Bible" is almost as grotesque as it is uncanny, — "mythical beings, adopted instinctively by Isaiah from the folklore of Judah"! On no other ground, apparently, than a disputed etymology, he sees in them only mythical, treasure guarding, serpent-like spirits, erect, gigantic, connected in some inexplicable way with the snake worship of Egypt! Wiser, more consonant with the facts as related by the seer himself, and in stricter accord with the genius of the Hebrew religion and temple service, is the suggestion of the late Professor Maurice, that they represent, not slimy, treasure-loving, serpentine worldliness, but "those Divine energies and affections of which the zeal, devotion, and sympathy of man are counterparts." This is the only place in the Bible whore they are mentioned. Their Hebrew name stands for burning radiancy, and in its adjective form may apply to "fiery" serpents, or "glowing" angelic appearances, or kinsmen "burning" dead bodies, or iconoclastic kings who destroy objects of idolatry by "fire." Though the visual shapes of these heavenly powers were symbolical, they clearly are not merely symbols, but "living intelligent creatures, who perform acts of unceasing worship," and were actual agencies in conveying the prophetic inspiration to the receptive soul of the prophet. (F. Sessions.) Parallel Verses KJV: Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. |
    |