Part 17 (2/2)

The Day is approaching when G.o.d will render the hosts of Truth victorious, and He will purge the whole earth in such wise that within the compa.s.s of His knowledge not a single soul shall remain unless he truly believeth in G.o.d, wors.h.i.+ppeth none other G.o.d but Him, boweth down by day and by night in His adoration, and is reckoned among such as are well a.s.sured.

Say, G.o.d indeed is the Sovereign Truth, Who is manifestly Supreme over His servants; He is the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting.

”G.o.d testifieth that there is none other G.o.d but Him. His ...”

G.o.d testifieth that there is none other G.o.d but Him. His are the kingdoms in the heavens and on the earth and all that is between them. He is exalted above the comprehension of all things, and is inscrutable to the mind of every created being; none shall be able to fathom the oneness of His Being or to unravel the nature of His Existence. No peer or likeness, no similitude or equal can ever be joined with Him. Yield ye praise then unto Him and glorify Him and bear ye witness to the sanct.i.ty and oneness of His Being and magnify His might and majesty with wondrous glorification. This will enable you to gain admittance into the all-highest Paradise. Would that ye had firm faith in the revelation of the signs of G.o.d.

This is the divinely-inscribed Book. This is the outspread Tablet. Say, this indeed is the Frequented Fane, the sweet-scented Leaf, the Tree of divine Revelation, the surging Ocean, the Utterance which lay concealed, the Light above every light... Indeed every light is generated by G.o.d through the power of His behest. He of a truth is the Light in the kingdom of heaven and earth and whatever is between them. Through the radiance of His light G.o.d imparteth illumination to your hearts and maketh firm your steps, that perchance ye may yield praise unto Him.

Say, this of a certainty is the Garden of Repose, the loftiest Point of adoration, the Tree beyond which there is no pa.s.sing, the blessed Lote-Tree, the Most Mighty Sign, the most beauteous Countenance and the most comely Face.

”From the beginning that hath no beginning all men have ...”

From the beginning that hath no beginning all men have bowed in adoration before Him Whom G.o.d shall make manifest and will continue to do so until the end that hath no end. How strange then that at the time of His appearance ye should pay homage by day and night unto that which the Point of the Bayan hath enjoined upon you and yet fail to wors.h.i.+p Him Whom G.o.d shall make manifest.

”Consecrate Thou, O my G.o.d, the whole of this Tree ...”

Consecrate Thou, O my G.o.d, the whole of this Tree unto Him, that from it may be revealed all the fruits created by G.o.d within it for Him through Whom G.o.d hath willed to reveal all that He pleaseth. By Thy glory! I have not wished that this Tree should ever bear any branch, leaf, or fruit that would fail to bow down before Him, on the day of His Revelation, or refuse to laud Thee through Him, as beseemeth the glory of His all-glorious Revelation, and the sublimity of His most sublime Concealment. And shouldst Thou behold, O my G.o.d, any branch, leaf, or fruit upon Me that hath failed to bow down before Him, on the day of His Revelation, cut it off, O My G.o.d, from that Tree, for it is not of Me, nor shall it return unto Me.

”He-glorified be His mention-resembleth the sun. ...”

He-glorified be His mention-resembleth the sun. Were unnumbered mirrors to be placed before it, each would, according to its capacity, reflect the splendour of that sun, and were none to be placed before it, it would still continue to rise and set, and the mirrors alone would be veiled from its light. I, verily, have not fallen short of My duty to admonish that people, and to devise means whereby they may turn towards G.o.d, their Lord, and believe in G.o.d, their Creator. If, on the day of His Revelation, all that are on earth bear Him allegiance, Mine inmost being will rejoice, inasmuch as all will have attained the summit of their existence, and will have been brought face to face with their Beloved, and will have recognized, to the fullest extent attainable in the world of being, the splendour of Him Who is the Desire of their hearts. If not, My soul will indeed be saddened. I truly have nurtured all things for this purpose.

How, then, can anyone be veiled from Him? For this have I called upon G.o.d, and will continue to call upon Him. He, verily, is nigh, ready to answer.

”The glory of Him Whom G.o.d shall make manifest is ...”

The glory of Him Whom G.o.d shall make manifest is immeasurably above every other glory, and His majesty is far above every other majesty. His beauty excelleth every other embodiment of beauty, and His grandeur immensely exceedeth every other manifestation of grandeur. Every light paleth before the radiance of His light, and every other exponent of mercy falleth short before the tokens of His mercy. Every other perfection is as naught in face of His consummate perfection, and every other display of might is as nothing before His absolute might. His names are superior to all other names. His good-pleasure taketh precedence over any other expression of good-pleasure. His pre-eminent exaltation is far above the reach of every other symbol of exaltation. The splendour of His appearance far surpa.s.seth that of any other appearance. His divine concealment is far more profound than any other concealment. His loftiness is immeasurably above every other loftiness. His gracious favour is unequalled by any other evidence of favour. His power transcendeth every power. His sovereignty is invincible in the face of every other sovereignty. His celestial dominion is exalted far above every other dominion. His knowledge pervadeth all created things, and His consummate power extendeth over all beings.

”All men have proceeded from G.o.d and unto Him shall ...”

<script>