Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.
Psalm 133:12
The Great Seal of the United States of America employs traditional symbols of heraldry to tell the story of the foundation and the hopes of the fledgling nation. The origins and meanings of the symbols are explained, for the most part, in the official document (PDF format) supplied by the U.S. State Department . Additional details are found on John D. MacArthur's excellent site GreatSeal.com .
The Great Seal is used to seal 2,000 to 3,000 documents each year. It identifies the authority and ensures the authenticity of the documents sealed by the United States Government. As such, it provides an apt analogy of the Bible Wheel as God's Divine Seal of Approval on the structure of the Bible, the fundamental founding document of the Christian Faith.
The Great Seal was designed to explicitly acknowledge God's hand in the foundation of the United States, as stated in the official description (page 12) of the reverse side of the Seal:
The pyramid signifies strength and duration: The eye over it and the motto, Annuit Coeptis (He [God] has favored our undertakings), allude to the many interventions of Providence in favor of the American cause. The date underneath is that of the Declaration of Independence and the words under it, Novus Ordo Seclorum (A new order of the ages), signify the beginning of the new American era in 1776.
The "many interventions of Providence" include the integration of the numbers, mottos, and geometric forms of the Great Seal with God's design of the Holy Bible and His intent for the new nation. Regardless of the theological variations amongst the founding fathers, every signer of the Declaration of Independence , to a man, placed his life and sacred honor in the hands of Divine Providence, as recorded in the last sentence of that great document:
And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm Reliance on the Protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.
The online article Religion and the Founding of America provided by the Library of Congress provides more insight into the true Christian character of the members of the early Congress:
The Continental-Confederation Congress, a legislative body that governed the United States from 1774 to 1789, contained an extraordinary number of deeply religious men. The amount of energy that Congress invested in encouraging the practice of religion in the new nation exceeded that expended by any subsequent American national government. Although the Articles of Confederation did not officially authorize Congress to concern itself with religion, the citizenry did not object to such activities. This lack of objection suggests that both the legislators and the public considered it appropriate for the national government to promote a nondenominational, nonpolemical Christianity.
Congress appointed chaplains for itself and the armed forces, sponsored the publication of a Bible, imposed Christian morality on the armed forces, and granted public lands to promote Christianity among the Indians. National days of thanksgiving and of "humiliation, fasting, and prayer" were proclaimed by Congress at least twice a year throughout the war.
These are the men used of God to found this nation. Three of them were also commissioned by the newly formed Continental Congress to design the Great Seal. Before they adjourned on July 4, 1776, Congress passed this resolution:
Resolved, that Dr. Franklin, Mr. J. Adams and Mr. Jefferson, be a committee, to bring in a device for a seal for the United States of America.
Truly, the Lord's hand was on the foundation of this great country, this City on a Hill, this Beacon of Light, Life, and Liberty to all the peoples of the world! America is the Land of the Free because of the freedom wrought by Christ, our Eternal Light. May His Light shine on us forevermore!
A Radiant Constellation of Thirteen Stars
The beautiful mystery of God's hidden hand on the foundation of America, the design of the Great Seal, and the structure of the Bible manifests most clearly in the Number 13. Seven features of the Great Seal are based on this number which, in natural terms, alludes to nothing more than the original thirteen colonies. If God had no hand in these events, the number of colonies would be nothing but a mere accident of history and there would be no meaning to be found in it. It is here that the glory of God shines with great clarity, leaving little doubt about His involvement in the birth of the nation.
The biblical meaning of the Number 13 has been rigorously established by God in the reiterative structure of the Shema, the first and greatest commandment given in Deuteronomy 6:4 (cf. The Unity Holograph and Shield of the Blessed Trinity). The root ideas are Love and Unity, as seen in this fundamental pair of alphanumeric identities:
One
Echad
|
|
|
= 13 = |
Love
Ahavah
|
|
|
The Bible calls Love "the perfect bond of unity" (Colossians 3:14, NASB). The digits One and Three reiterate the idea of the One Triune God, Who is represented by the Eye in the Triangle above the unfinished pyramid. The Triangle is an ancient Christian symbol for the Trinity, and the Eye denotes God's omniscience. It is called the "Eye of Providence" in the official State Departments description of the Seal. The relation between the Three members of the Godhead is the root ontological source of Love in the Universe. These ideas find their ultimate expression in the greatest declaration of the nature of Love ever written, the thirteen verses of I Corinthians Thirteen, where the thirteenth verses is itself explicitly built on a pattern of One and Three.
All of this was historically illustrated in the foundation of the United States when thirteen colonies united to form one nation under God. This means that the premier biblical number of Unity - the Number 13 - was historically manifested and inextricably stamped on the foundation of the USA, and has been propogated all over the planet via the ONE dollar bill. A similar work was accomplished when Israel manifested the meaning of the Number 430 in the history of their years in Egypt. In both cases, God designed History and Scripture in accordance with the alphanumeric values of fundamental Greek and Hebrew words (cf. Introduction to the Gematria Reference to learn about the numeric values of words).
Yet this is but the beginning. The idea of composite unity is exemplified in the Twelve Disciples surrounding Christ and the Twelve Tribes of Israel united in God. This is geometrically expressed in the hexagonal Star Number, commonly known as the Star of David, which appears in the constellation of 13 Stars above the eagle's head. Numbers of the form figure prominently in both the Creation and the Logos Holographs. It also relates to the name "Israel" that God gave to Jacob, with its numerical weight of 541 which is the Tenth Hexagonal Star Number, so that the numerical value of the name Israel forms a Star of David!
There are seven features of the Great Seal based on the Number 13:
Patterns of 13 in the Great Seal |
The Number 13 as Star of David |
- 13 Stars in the constellation above the eagle's head. The constellation forms a Star of David.
- 13 Stripes in the eagle's shield made of 6 red and 7 white stripes.
- 13 Arrows by the eagle's left talon.
- 13 Leaves on the Olive branch in the eagle's right talon.
- 13 Letters in E Pluribus Unum. The letter counts of 1, 8, and 4 spell Echad (One).
- 13 Letters in Annuit Coeptis divided into 6 Letters and 7 Letters.
- 13 Levels in the unfinished pyramid.
|
|
The official description of the constellation above the eagle's head specifies the number but not the pattern of the stars. MacArthur notes that the pattern violates the traditional laws of heraldry which forbid heraldic stars from being placed in a pattern, and in a personal communication indicated he knew of no historical explanation for the use of the hexagonal Star Number formation. All that is known is that it was used in the original seal made in 1782, and every seal thereafter. It would seem that the the Star pattern is another manifestation of the hidden hand of Divine Providence guiding the foundation and development of the USA.
In his article Thirteen Arrows on GreatSeal.com, under the heading "The Power of Unity", MacArthur comments:
Infinitely stronger than a single rod, the unbreakable nature of aligned rods means that the bundle of arrows also symbolizes the power of unity – the attitude needed to successfully protect and defend one's nation, and if necessary, wage war to do so.
He then cites the moral of Aesop's Fable "The Bundle of Sticks", which is "In Unity is Strength." Given its inextricable integration with both Scripture and American History, it remains a mystery how triskaidekaphobia (fear of the Number 13) ever found root in America.
E Pluribus Unum
(Echad, One) in the USA Motto |
E |
1 |
(Aleph) |
P L U R I B U S |
8 |
(Chet) |
U N U M |
4 |
(Dalet) |
The Latin phrase written on the banner held in the eagle's beak means "Out of Many, One" refering to the union of 13 States to form one nation under God. The source of of this phrase is explained on page 8 of the State Department's official document :
The motto E Pluribus Unum, emblazoned across the scroll and clenched in the eagle's beak, expresses the union of the 13 States. Recent scholarship has pointed out the probable source of this motto: Gentlemen's Magazine, published in London from 1732 to 1922, was widely read by the educated in the American Colonies. Its title page carried that same motto and it is quite possible that it influenced the creators of the seal.
The thirteen letters of E Pluribus Unum are divided into three words consisting of 1, 8, and 4 letters, resepectively. These numbers correspond to the letters Aleph, Chet, and Dalet, spelling the word (Echad, One), which is the basis of the Unity Holograph. Clearly, no human could have contrived such a coincidence - the phrase is standard Latin that was in use before the seal was even conceived. We have a threefold integration of 1) the meaning of the phrase with 2) the number of letters and 3) the division of those letters into words. And all this is found in the Great Seal that commemorates the union of thirteen colonies as one nation under God. Nothing but the infinite Wisdom of God could have caused so many lines - biblical, linguistic, geometric, symbolic, and historical - to converge with such grace and simplicity.
1776 and the Eye of God
The reverse side of the Great Seal is officially described (page 8) as follows:
The reverse, sometimes referred to as the spiritual side of the seal, contains the 13-step pyramid with the year 1776 in Roman numerals on the base. At the summit of the pyramid is the Eye of Providence in a triangle surrounded by a Glory (rays of light) and above it appears the motto Annuit Coeptis. Along the lower circumference of the design appear the words Novus Ordo Seclorum, heralding the beginning of the new American era in 1776.
Traditional Christian Iconography combining the Triangle with symbols of the the Trinity
Note the reference to the "Glory" radiating from the "Eye of Providence." There are many examples of this symbol in Christian Churches, such as the image on the right from Kansas Wesleyan University, or this stained glass window from Brophy College Prep. Oddly, there are many Christians who have lost their historical moorings to such an extent as to assert that the Eye in the Triangle is primarily an occultic symbol that has infected Christian iconography. This is a reversal of proper historic understanding. Occultists are, to a large extent, merely bad (spiritually blind) copiers. They misuse many Christian symbols, just as they misuse Scriptures, because they somehow sense that that is where the true spiritual power lies. The Triangle itself is an ancient Christian symbol of the Trinity, (cf. The Shield of the Blessed Trinity), and the Eye in the Triangle first appeared as a Christian symbol of the Omniscient Trinity no later than the seventeenth century, about a hundred years before it was adopted by occultists. The Eye in the Triangle is simply another reiteration of the interplay of Three and One that marks the Great Seal, the foundation of the United States, and the true doctrine of the Triune God revealed in Christianity.
Eye of Providence from Kansas Wesleyan University
The unfinished pyramid is generally taken as refering to the country as a work-in-progress, overseen by God. This then links to the Hebrew alphabet and the structure of the Wheel. The name of the Sixteenth Letter (Ayin) denotes the Eye (cf. The Eyes of God). It is the basis of the themes of Genesis 16 where the divine title "The God Who Sees" is revealed. It also manifests with perfect clarity in the Book of Zechariah (Spoke 16, Cycle 2) where the Stone with Seven Eyes is revealed and the rebuilding of the Temple of God is prophesied. All of this comes together in the date inscribed at the base of the unfinished pyramid surmounted by the Eye of Providence.
1776 = MDCCLXXVI |
MDC |
CLX |
XVI |
1600 |
160 |
16 |
Each group of three Roman numerals is a multiple of 16, the ordinal value of Ayin (Eye). The triplets are divided between the doubled letters: MDC CLX XVI: This then means that the date 1776 naturally divides into multiples of powers of Ten when written in Roman numerical letters:
1776 = 16 x 100 + 16 x 10 + 16 x 1 = 16 (Eye) x 111 (Aleph)
The Number 111 is the value of the name of the first letter (Aleph), which is literally God's Initial - the first letter of (Elohim, God) - which He designed to reflect His triune nature in 1 = A = Aleph = 111 (if we allow a little mathematipoetic license). This all conspires to declare 1776 as the Eye of God:
1776 = 16 (Eye) x 111 (Aleph) ==> The Eye of God
This then integrates with the Creation Holograph and the first declaration of Vision from God - a metaphoric reference to the Eye of God - in the Bible, Genesis 1:4:
And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
The sum of these words in Hebrew is exactly 1776. It is a very significant portion of the Creation Holograph (cf. The First Day). Is it possible to fail to see the true desitiny of the United States of America as the witness to God's Light in Christ? Her birth is marke by the numbers of His Name and His great Work of Creation!
This association between the Eye, the Number 16, and the Number 1776 has been distributed over the entire planet on the back of the American One Dollar Bill. Obviously, any meaning found here must be attributed to the Mind of God since mere men could never control their destiny sufficiently to integrate the date of a national revolution with the order and meaning of the Hebrew Alphabet as revealed in Scripture!
Light, Life, and Liberty!
Liberty Enlightening the World
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
John 1:1-5
The two numbers 13 and 1776 are profoundly integrated with the Divine Prologue fragment of the Creation Holograph, through the identity:
Sum of John 1:2-5 = 23088 = 13 x 1776
These numbers can be rearranged to reveal the values of the names of (YHVH, The LORD) and (Iesous, Jesus):
Sum of John 1:2-5 = 23088 = 26 (YHVH) x 888 (JESUS)
The integration of these names with the Divine Prologue and the The First Day Holographs is discussed in the Jesus and YHVH article. The two largest factors - 13 and - are both hexagonal Star numbers, which God used as the basis of the Creation Holograph. This means that the Great Seal of the United States of America and the combined alphanumeric structure of Genesis 1 and John 1 conspire to reveal the names of the Creator, the true Founder of America and Author of Scripture, the Lord God Almighty! Praise His Holy Name now and forever!
Rearranging the factors again now integrates these the Number 23088 with the Greek word for Genesis (with the definite article) and the Hebrew word for Jubile (the year of Release). Note the pattern of N x 10N+1 :
Sum of John 1.2-5 = 23088 = 48 (Jubile) x 481 (The Genesis)
The Genesis of the Jubile! Note that the Jubile happened every fifty years, and that this number now marks the number of the United States. Let us pray this be the destiny of the USA. Amen!
Finally, it is also very intriguing that John 1:1 is highly reminescent of the unfinished pyramid, since it forms the trapezoidal basis of the triangular form of Genesis 1.1 (shown here ascending rather than descending to correspond with the Seal):
An image of how this all fits together is given in the full Creation HyperHolograph. There is much more to say, but it must wait until other stones are laid. John 16:12.
|