16 May 2023 Anno Domini, the Anglican Orthodox Communion Worldwide
“And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: 13I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. 14And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud: 15And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth. 17And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant, which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth.” (Genesis 9:12-17; all scripture quoted is from the King James Version)
From the early days of my youth, I have been fascinated with clouds. As a boy of five or six, I would lie among the sage brush looking up at the clouds and their multi-form images – mostly of knights on white horses, and maidens in trailing dresses. The clouds were always moving, and I wondered where they might find rest. My fascination was only enhanced when, as a military pilot, I could view the clouds from the top side.
We should remember that it was a Pillar of Cloud that led Israel in the Wilderness journey and would rest over the Tabernacle to signify the Presence therein of God Almighty. It was a cloud that engulfed the Lord Jesus Christ, Moses, and Elijah on a mountain in the north of Galilee (perhaps Mt. Hermon); but when it lifted, there was only Jesus who remained thus signifying that our Lord was the fulfillment of the Law (Moses) and the Prophets (Elijah) of the Old Testament scriptures. (Matthew 17).
Remember, too, that it was a cloud that received Christ at His ascension and, we are told, He shall return to us in like manner at the last day. (Acts 1:9). We have that promise of God just as much as that given to Noah after the Flood. That promise to Noah, and to us, was symbolized by the beauty of a Rainbow in the cloud. All that God does is done in beauty. The rainbow most often appears following showers or storms. It calls us to remembrance of the covenant God made with Noah and all Creation that He would never again destroy the whole earth with an over-flowing flood of waters. In a sense, the new world of Noah was baptized just as surely as were the Children of Israel in the Red Sea crossing. That first baptism of the whole earth was of water – the second shall be of intense heat (fire) – so great that the elements themselves shall be dissolved.
The Covenants and Promises of God all originate with Him and are never initiated by man or any other of His Creation.
The Rainbow is used symbolically to depict the very glory of God as in Ezekiel – “As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake.” Ezekiel 1:28 (see also Rev 10:1)
There are a few notable characteristics of the Rainbow of God should be observed:
The Rainbow is composed of seven colors that represent the Creative Power of the Lord God. When combined in one bean, those seven colors become spotlessly white. Seven represents the beauty of God in worship and Creation – seven colors, seven notes in music, seven days of Creation, seven candlesticks, etc. It is the number of perfection.
The Rainbow is observed on high, not among the level of common man. It is observed in, or near, a cloud in the sky.
The Rainbow appears after a time of darkness in storm or rain but follows in its beauty of light and promise.
The rainbow is created by both water and sunlight – two elements essential for life, but also representative of the Sun of Righteousness and the Water of Life.
The cunning of man can devise no such Rainbow as that of God. Perhaps unwittingly, the world has chosen to represent its rebellion against God with what they falsely term a rainbow of six colors. There is in reality no such thing as a six-colored rainbow in the sky. It is a man-made device created by the wicked imaginations of men. The so-called ‘rainbow coalition’ is nothing more than the serpent’s crafty mockery of the Covenant of Almighty God to all Creation. Satan has a counterfeit for every characteristic of God. It is God who gives Life. It is the perversions of the false covenant of man that promotes the destruction of life and biblical marriage. A word to the wise is sufficient – take your choice!
