PALANQUIN

PALANQUIN

“Behold his bed, which is Solomon’s; threescore valiant men are about it, of the valiant of Israel. They all hold swords, being expert in war: every one hath his sword upon his thigh because of fear in the night” one of her friends whispers into her ears in verses 7-8 of Chapter 3 in the Song of Songs. The bridegroom comes from the wilderness but in his palanquin guarded by sixty mighty men of Israel who handle the sword and are expert in war. The bridegroom after undergoing the wilderness experience is now honoured and glorified with the royal palanquin, which is exclusively accessible to the bride. The unworthy bride is made worthy to approach the palanquin for seeing and communing with her beloved. She can remove the curtain of the palanquin and commune with him. It is a personal communion between the bridegroom and the bride and none else, even the mighty men of Israel, can overhear their conversation. Dear bride of Christ, you can too see the palanquin of your Beloved, carrying His presence which is exclusively accessible to you as you seek His presence with all your heart and soul. After undergoing His wilderness experiences on the earth, the resurrected and glorified Christ was given the kingly paraphernalia like “a royal robe with a girdle” (Rev 1:13), “many kingly crowns” (Rev 19:12), a name inscribed on His thigh as the “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” (Rev. 19:16). You can have easy access to the secret place of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Nobody on this earth or in the heaven or even the Devil has the right to stand in the way of your reaching His presence. Whenever you seek His presence with all your heart and soul, the blessed Holy Spirit, the traveling Palanquin, reveals the presence of Christ to you. You may be lonely or in a place surrounded by your enemies or on sickbed or in a place of great sufferings or persecutions. Yet the traveling Palanquin carrying the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords comes to you. There is no hard rocky place, which cannot be penetrated by the Holy Spirit Who reveals Christ to us.

Sixty mighty men of Israel who handle the Sword and are expert in war guard the Palanquin. The presence of Christ is secured by the two edged Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. These mighty men of the war who are experts in war and who handle the Sword of the Spirit are certain servants of God. These servants of God, mighty men, fight the false prophets, false teachers and anti-Christs with the Word of God, in order to secure the honour and glory due to His Name. These servants of God interpret the Word of God rightly from its two sides, and secure the Word of God against the false doctrines. The presence of Christ is interwoven with the Word of God. Any adulteration of the holy Word of God would eclipse the glory of Christ proportionately to the extent of such adulteration. These servants of God who are of the Body of Christ enable the disheartened bride to find Him by their teaching and prophetic ministries.

Sixty mighty men surround the Palanquin in three circular rows. It is a body ministry with oneness of mind. Interpretation of those in the first row is to be confirmed by the second and third rows. A thief or a false prophet may not be able to break the cordon of this strong three layers’ ring. Every man has his sword upon his thigh. This means everybody charged with the duty of watching and securing the Palanquin has a specific function to perform. For example, one man has a certain revelation from some Scripture portions. Another man has a certain other revelation from some other Scripture portions. But all of them are required to watch over the security of His Word. They are not hundred in number but sixty in number. This means that a majority of the Spirit-filled mighty men fight the false doctrines. They will never allow the thief to adulterate the Word. They will never compromise the Word for any personal experience or a revelation outside the Word. These days, the Word is interpreted from its one edge only like the Devil quoted the Scriptures from one angle to tempt Jesus in the wilderness.

Every man has his sword upon his thigh because of fear in the night. Every man has a firm grip over his sword even in times of darkness that creates fear in the mind of the wandering bride. The bride is wading her way through the spiritual darkness caused by frustration and fear because she has taken her eyes off her Beloved, the Sun of Righteousness Who is up above all the mountains. The cloud of ignorance of the Word may cover the Sun of Righteousness from her view. In times of such darkness, the guardians of the Word help her in catching a glimpse of the Palanquin. Oh, how we need fellowship with the saints in times of darkness causing fear in our heart!

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