This blog is a comprehensive breakdown of the sea of glass. I'll be answering why God compared Abraham's seed to sand, it's connection to our lives being a living testimony of God's word, it's link to prophecy, and finally how to grow in the prophetic!
1 Corinthians 13:12 "For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known."
Revelation 4:6 "and before the throne there was as it were a sea of glass, like crystal. And around the throne, on each side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind:"
Breakdown of the Sea of Glass
God promises Abraham to make his children as numerous as the sand on the sea shore:
Genesis 22:17 "...I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore..."
So why is God comparing Abraham's seed to sand? To answer this question we have to understand glass. Before going too far, it's important to note that glass in scripture is also translated to mirror:
1 Corinthians 13:12 "For now we see through a glass..."
The word glass in greek is "esoptron" (g2072) = a mirror. When sand is melted to 3090°F, it is turned into liquid known as glass. During this state you can mold it (like clay!) into any shape and when it hardens it is able to hold it's shape and is reflective. In James 1:23 the word of God is compared to a glass that reflects the contents of a person's heart. So why is God comparing Abraham's seed to sand, is there a hidden message behind this process of turning sand to glass, and how does it all tie into the symbolic comparison of glass to God's word?
From Sand to Glass
God's word is written by the Holy Spirit, through man, and his truths are revealed in their stories. All throughout scripture we read about God's children going through affliction and overcoming as they trust in the Lord, ultimately painting a prophetic picture of the sufferings and sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross for all sin (OT). And after the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we read how our own lives should follow in the same footsteps as Jesus:
Hebrews 12:2 "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God."
Sand needs to go through a heated furnace to be turned into glass, and God does the same thing in the "sand" who is Abraham's seed. God describes his refining process as a furnace of affliction:
Isaiah 48:10 "Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction."
As generations of men and women of God took their journey before us, death was the final affliction they faced. Their lives which testify of God's truth were left as a spiritual landmarkers/ memorials between heaven and earth testifying salvation (man's path into heaven) is only possible though faith in God's word. Each time earth looks up at heaven it must witness just men's testimonies of God who were made perfect through faith in God's word:
Hebrews 12:23 "to the general assembly and church of the firstborn, who are written in Heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,"
A clear example of this is found in Matthew 26:9 where the woman anoints Jesus with the alabaster box. Jesus defends her against the disciples and states, "Verily I say unto you, wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her." Her faith in God's Word, Jesus turned her act of faith into an everlasting testimony before all mankind. A part of her life testified of God's truth and this testimony outlived her carnal life as it's now apart of God's mirror, James 1:23, apart of the sea of glass!
God's Throne, Harps & The Sea of Glass
In Revelation 4:3-10 we get a clear layout of God's throne, in hierarchical order:
Jesus sitting at the throne, Rev. 4:2 (Lightnings, Spirits of God, & thundering's proceeded from the throne, Rev 4:5)
The 24 Elders wearing white clothes, gold crowns & holding harps, Rev. 4:4
The sea of glass (Those that have overcome the beast & didn't take the mark are here holding the harps of God, singing the song of Moses, Rev. 15:2)
How does all this tie the sea of glass into prophecy? We first need to breakdown harps. We see the 24 elders, and Jesus' saints holding harps, and all of this is before the throne of God. Harps represent prophesying, let me explain.
Revelation 19:10 expands on why our testimony is so powerful, it's the spirit of prophecy. Testimonies are prophetic because they testify of God's victory over your life which foreshadows God's Will having victory over all of creation when Christ returns. Psalm 92:3 David says to give thanks and praises to the Lord upon an instrument of 10 strings, the harp and psaltery. The 10 strings represent the 10 commandments God gave mankind in Exodus 31:18. The 10 commandments were called "two tablets of testimony" because God's 10 commandments testify of God's righteousness, a prophetic message of God's law condemning mankind and need of a savior, Jesus Christ to fulfill the whole law through his own righteousness! God wrote the law with his finger, Jeremiah 31:33 God says he'll put the law in our minds and put it in our hearts. In the same way you play an instrument with fingers, is how God speaks through someone or a prophet, he is playing the harp of their heart, the "strings" of the heart! The same thing happens when you testify of God's power in your life!
In Revelation 5:8 there are 24 Elders holding harps. These Elders represent the 24 hours to the day, each elder's harp represents their testimony that God created the hour they were created in. They also testify to God what happens in each hour of the day. Their testimony to the world is that God created their hour, and their testimony to God is what happens in their hour, each day.
Finally, all prophecies glorify God in the same way a harp is played for worship. The sound it makes gives glory to God, and the player is servicing worship. 1 Chronicles 25:3 Jeduthun prophesied with a harp, "to give thanks and to praise the Lord."
Now that you understand harps & prophesying, we need to understand the throne of God. In Revelation 4:5, lightning, thunderings, voices, and the 7 Spirits of God were proceeding from the throne. The way we view the 7 Spirits of God is similar to our view of the Godhead, all equal but described differently to help our understanding.
The seven Spirits of the God are Wisdom, Understanding, Counsel, Might, Knowledge, Fear of the Lord (Isaiah 11:2, a prophetic description of the spirits Jesus would be filled with, the Holy Ghost), and Prophecy (Revelation 19:10, "...the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.") God sends these different facets to his spirit out to do his will, in the same way he sends his word out (the Father sending the Son!), Isaiah 55:11 "so shall My word be that goeth forth out of My mouth: It shall not return unto Me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it."
Job 28:26 & Job 36:32 Describes the process God has for sending out lighting. He first makes a decree that directs where lighting should strike, then commands the lightning to his it's mark. After the lighting hit's mark, it responds back to God with "here we are". Powerful huh! The process God has in place to create lightning is the same path his word takes, it's sent out & completes it's task. Job 37 2-5 Compares God's voice that is heard to thunder!
God's word starts in heaven, goes out from his throne, through the sea of glass (and to those who are listening), then manifests throughout the earth, Jer 51:16 "When he uttereth his voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens; and he causeth the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth: he maketh lightnings with rain, and bringeth forth the wind out of his treasures."
This is what's happening at God's throne, his Word & spirits of the Holy Spirit make up the voices that are sent out to fulfill his will throughout Heaven and Earth.
Heaven's sea of glass reveals the truth of God's word to all who look through it. God's word speaks of the future, past, present, and reveals all things. All of these things are available for a viewer to see, but it's often hard to understand because you're seeing into the spiritual world.
This is why interpretations are so important. God's mirror isn't selective on who can look through it, Balaam used his access to the sea of glass for financial gain (which is divination, Numbers 22:7). The salve girl who was delivered had a spirit of divination, using this access to gain increase, Acts 16:16. There are more examples but I just want to make the point clear, looking through the sea of glass isn't limited to only us in Christ, and the bible testifies of this. That is why we can't overhype the gifts, they are not salvation!
Matthew 7:22-23 "22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."
Getting Closer to the Sea of Glass
Growing in the gift of prophecy starts by understanding the sea of glass. Joseph had the gift of prophecy and we can track his journey throughout scripture to gain more wisdom on the sea of glass. God showed Joseph the end of his calling, in Genesis 37:9 Joseph receives a dream where he sees the sun and stars bowing down to him. Israel and his older brothers (Who are more aged in prophecy) immediately receive the interpretation, "his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth? 11 And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying."
(Notice the difference between Israel's reaction to the interpretation vs his brothers. Israel was the aged prophet, reserving judgment, but Joseph's brothers reacted carnally, envying him. Growing in prophesy is more than just prophesying, it requires just as much patience to wait for God's judgment to be revealed. Knowing what's coming is half the battle, you need to wait for God to give the next steps! Carnal interpretations and quick judgments kill prophetic growth.)
Later in Genesis 40, Joseph who was in prison at the time accurately interpreted the baker & butler's dreams, prophesying what was going to happen to them in the next three days (Note how Joseph was in prison during the biggest growth of his spiritual gift. Trials and tribulations brings growth to gifts, I must decrease for him to increase! Complaining sends the destroyer after you, so watch your mouth).
And ultimately, Joseph receives interpretation of Pharaoh's dream and is given the next steps from God, Genesis 41:35 "let them gather all the food of those good years that come, and lay up corn under the hand of Pharaoh, and let them keep food in the cities." There is no "I think" or "I feel" when receiving the next steps from God. In the same way the interpretation and prophetic word was supernaturally given, God's next steps will also be given.
For you to get God's interpretation AND direction, you must abstain from your own. If you want to grow in interpretation, abstain from your own interpretation in all areas of life... JUDGE NOT LEAST YE BE JUDGED... Isaiah 11:3 "He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes,
or decide by what he hears with his ears;"
Refraction in Sea of Glass
In the same way water refracts light and inverses images, the sea of glass in heaven refracts the vision, dreams, and words in heaven as they pass through into the natural! Things that are farther away from the water are flipped, but things that are closer to the water and the viewer's vision come right back around the way you'd expect to read it. This is because the farther you are from the sea of glass, the farther ahead in time the the prophetic word, vision is received. This is why many babies in the gift of prophesy experience a lot of rapture dreams, you're far from the sea of glass. The closer you get to the sea of glass, the more near the prophetic words are. Getting closer to the sea of glass "flips" the prophetic image to give you a more complete timeline of the future.
In Heaven the future is the present, but on Earth Heaven is in the future. Heaven is looking down at us and they're seeing the past. Both heaven and earth are going along eachother's timelines awaiting the return of Christ. If you go far back enough in time you'll hit God manifesting His light into the world, and if you go far forward enough into the future you'll see God manifesting his light into the world as Jesus' return!
Learn how to wage Prophetic Warfare and change your future!