Last Things Later

Read: Daniel 12

What I have said is kept secret and sealed until the time of the end. Daniel 12:9

IN WORD

When the truth is told, mysteries are solved. At least that’s the way it is with human beings, and that’s what we expect from Scripture. But the dynamic doesn’t usually apply to God; His revelation often deepens the mysteries surrounding it. When God speaks, His people learn something. And when we learn from Him, more questions are raised.

The Lord’s word to Daniel is typical of His word to any of us: He reveals Himself and hides Himself. He spells out truth for us, and He seals it up in secrecy. The entire Bible is a revelation of ultimate truth, and yet it leads to more ultimate questions that we cannot have answered until the end of time. The more we know about God, the more we want to know.

Haven’t you seen this principle at work? We are given a clear picture of how sin entered this world, but why God let the serpent roam the Garden remains a mystery to us. We marvel at Israel’s exodus from Egypt, but God gives us no answers about why His chosen people were enslaved for four hundred years to begin with. We have seen the glory of the Son in the Cross that redeems us, but we still haven’t plumbed the depths of its mysteries. Every time God reveals a “what,” we feel compelled to ask a “why.” And the absence of answers drives us deeper into Him.

IN DEED

That’s how God designed His Word. He told Daniel deep mysteries of the Kingdom, but He only whetted the prophet’s appetite. The ultimate end remained sealed; full disclosure would not come for ages.

Why does God operate this way? That itself is a mystery, but we can guess at why: His people seek Him only when their appetites have been whetted. Not before, and not after being satisfied. And God wants to be sought. So He reveals truth and waits. He waits for us to come further in, to dive into the mysteries, to seek the knowledge only He has—until the day the mysteries are revealed.

ADDITIONAL READING: Colossians 2:2-3

We taste Thee, O Thou living bread, and long to feast upon Thee still.

BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX