“And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne, a book, written within and without, sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel, proclaiming with a loud voice: ‘Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof?’ And no man was able, neither in heaven, nor on earth, nor under the earth, to open the book, nor to look on it. And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open the book, nor to see it. And one of the ancients said to me: ‘Weep not; behold the lion of the tribe of Juda, the root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.’”
St. John then sees a book in the right hand of God, with writing within and without. The book has many meanings, the first being that it is the full depth of Sacred Scripture, which is impenetrable to the reader that does not know the love of Christ: “To you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven: but to them it is not given” (Matthew 13:11). The outside of the book then, is to read it plainly, but to read the words on the inside is to find how each verse relates to love, letting it resonate in your heart: “And he said to me: ‘Son of man, eat all that thou shat find: eat this book…’ And I did eat it: and it was sweet as honey in my mouth” (Ezechiel 3:1-3). It can also refer to the mind of God, which is only revealed in the person of Jesus Christ: “Not that any man hath seen the Father; but he who is of God, he hath seen the Father” (John 6:46), and thus what is written within can refer to the affections of the heart, the outside the works one is commanded to do, all of which are oriented to the love of God and neighbor: “He that loveth his brother, abideth in the light, and there is no scandal in him” (1 John 2:10). The third meaning is that the book is your life, the tale of your heart, which is read in one sense by those that see what you do, but only Jesus knows your heart as you go through life: “I am the Lord who search the heart” (Jeremias 17:10). Thus, in all these senses, there are seven seals, indicating mysteries of the greatest importance, because the depths of the Scriptures are hidden from the cursory hearer: “The kingdom is like unto a treasure hidden in a field” (Matthew 13:44) and the seals must be opened by one possessing the Heart of Christ and the gifts of the Holy Spirit; the mind of God is unveiled in the person of Christ through His incarnation, birth, hidden life, public ministry, passion and death, resurrection, and ascension: “No man hath seen God at any time: the only begotten Son who is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him” (John 1:18); and your heart is sealed away behind what was contrary to love in your life, and can only be truly opened in the presence of beautiful love: “Trust in him, all ye congregation of the people: pour out your hearts before him. God is our helper for ever” (Psalm 61:9). An angel then asks who can open the book, having a true interpretation of the depths of Scripture, unveil the mind of God, and hold your heart with the love you need? Many have sought by natural reason the truth of God, but without the light of faith, their understanding was warped and twisted: “They have not known nor understood: they walk on in darkness” (Psalm 81:5), many outside the Church attempt to know God through the Scriptures, but without the proper interpretation in the Catholic Church, they go astray: “And many false prophets shall rise, and shall seduce many” (Matthew 24:11), and no one on earth can know your heart with Christ’s depth and give it the perfect love that it requires: “When I had a little passed by them, I found him whom my soul loveth” (Canticle 3:4). Because God Himself unveiled the message to Ezekiel: “And I looked, and behold, a hand was sent to me, wherein was a book rolled up: and he spread it before me, and it was written within and without” (Ezechiel 2:9), God Himself must unveil these things, and where the Father is hidden, the person of Jesus Christ in His humanity is worthy; He is Wisdom and Love, and can open the seals behind which love and wisdom are hidden. Saints, men, demons, none of these can give you the perfect love that you need or the wisdom the human mind naturally desires, but only the person of Jesus can be the perfect Spouse of your soul: “Being rooted and founded in love, you may be able to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth, and length, and height, and depth: to know also the love of Christ, which surpasseth all knowledge, that you may be filled unto all the fulness of God” (Ephesians 3:17-19). St. John then weeps, seeing that no one can access these places, no saint is worthy of the beauty of your heart, no one knows the mind of God, and to be without this love and wisdom is to be truly desolate: “With desolation is all the land made desolate; because there is none that considereth in the heart” (Jeremias 12:11). An ancient, which some consider to be St. Matthew, though it can also mean the Scriptures in general, which can seem overwhelming and difficult, but always point to the victory of Christ; this ancient consoles him, for in the passion of Christ, the Holy of Holies was opened: “And behold the veil of the temple was rent in two from the top even to the bottom” (Matthew 27:51), the presence, heart, and mind of God being open to all, rather than just to one once a year: “But into the second, the high priest alone, once a year: not without blood, which he offereth for his own, and the people’s ignorance” (Hebrews 9:7). This is all done in the person of Christ, the Messiah, the King of Love, who was prophesied as a lion of Judah: “Juda is a lion’s welp: to the prey, my son, thou art gone up: resting thou hast crouched as a lion, and as a lioness, who shall rouse him? The sceptre shall not be taken away from Juda, nor a ruler from his thigh, till he come that is to be sent, and he shall be the expectation of nations” (Genesis 49:9-10), and the root of David: “And there shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse, and a flower rise up out of his root” (Isaias 11:1). This royal lion captured all those lost to sin for Himself, and so too let Him capture your heart, Theophila, be love’s prey, and let Him open the book of your heart and open the book of His own Heart to you, for He has triumphed over sin and death, and all this that you two may be intertwined in love: “His left hand is under my head, and his right hand shall embrace me” (Canticle 2:6).