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KOMENTAR DVANAESTOG POGLAVLJA OTKRIVENJA SVETOG IVANA
COMMENTARY ON THE TWELFTH CHAPTER OF THE REVELATION OF ST. JOHN

1 Ranije smo objasnili da je ono što se najčešće podrazumijeva pod Svetim gradom, Božjim Jeruzalemom koji se spominje u Svetoj knjizi, Zakon Božji. On se uspoređuje sa zaručnicom, a ponekad s Jeruzalemom, te s novim nebesima i zemljom. Tako se u poglavlju 21, u stihovima 1 i 2 Otkrivenja sv. Ivana kaže: “Potom opazih ‘novo nebo i novu zemlju’, jer su iščezli prvo nebo i prva zemlja: mora više nema. I opazih kako ‘Sveti grad’ – Novi Jeruzalem – silazi od Boga s neba, opremljen ‘poput zaručnice koja je okićena’ za svoga muža. Tada čuh jak glas što dolazi od prijestolja kako viče: ‘Evo stana’ Božjeg među ljudima! ‘On će stanovati s njima: oni će biti njegov narod, i on’ sam Bog ‘bit će s njima’”. We have before explained that what is most frequently meant by the Holy City, the Jerusalem of God, which is mentioned in the Holy Book, is the Law of God. It is compared sometimes to a bride, and sometimes to Jerusalem, and again to the new heaven and earth. So in chapter 21, verses 1, 2 and 3 of the Revelation of St. John, it is said: “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God.”
2 Vidite kako je jasno i očevidno da prva nebesa i zemlja označavaju raniji Zakon. Jer kaže se da su prva nebesa i prva zemlja prošli i da više nema mora – tj. da je zemlja mjesto suda i na toj zemlji suda nema mora, što znači da će se učenja i Zakon Božji potpuno proširiti na zemlji i svi će ljudi ući u Stvar Božju, a zemlja će biti posve nastanjena vjernicima; stoga neće biti nikakva mora, jer prebivalište i stan čovjekov jest suho tlo. Drugim riječima, u toj epohi polje toga Zakona postat će polje radosti čovjekove. Takvo tlo je čvrsto; na njemu se ne može okliznuti. Notice how clear and evident it is that the first heaven and earth signify the former Law. For it is said that the first heaven and earth have passed away and there is no more sea—that is to say, that the earth is the place of judgment, and on this earth of judgment there is no sea, meaning that the teachings and the Law of God will entirely spread over the earth, and all men will enter the Cause of God, and the earth will be completely inhabited by believers; therefore, there will be no more sea, for the dwelling place and abode of man is the dry land. In other words, at that epoch the field of that Law will become the pleasure-ground of man. Such earth is solid; the feet do not slip upon it.
3 Zakon Božji također se opisuje kao Sveti grad, Novi Jeruzalem. Jasno je da Novi Jeruzalem koji se spušta s nebesa nije grad od kamena, cementa, opeka, zemlje i drveta. To je Zakon Božji koji se spušta s neba i zove se novim jer jasno je da se Jeruzalem od kamena i zemlje ne spušta s nebesa i da nije obnovljen; ali ono što je obnovljeno jest Zakon Božji. The Law of God is also described as the Holy City, the New Jerusalem. It is evident that the New Jerusalem which descends from heaven is not a city of stone, mortar, bricks, earth and wood. It is the Law of God which descends from heaven and is called new, for it is clear that the Jerusalem which is of stone and earth does not descend from heaven, and that it is not renewed; but that which is renewed is the Law of God.
4 Zakon Božji također se uspoređuje s urešenom zaručnicom koja se pojavljuje s najljepšim ukrasima, kako se kaže u poglavlju 21 Otkrivenja sv. Ivana: “I opazih kako ‘Sveti grad’ – Novi Jeruzalem – silazi od Boga s neba, opremljen ‘poput zaručnice koja je okićena’ za svoga muža.”73 A u poglavlju 12, stih 1, kaže se: “Potom se u nebu pokaza veličanstven znak: Žena obučena u sunce, mjesec pod njezinim nogama, a na glavi joj vijenac od dvanaest zvijezda”. Ta je žena zaručnica. Zakon Božji koji je sišao na Muhameda. Sunce u koje je zaogrnuta i mjesec pod njenim nogama dva su naroda koji su u sjeni Zakona, perzijsko i otomansko kraljevstvo; jer amblem Perzije je sunce, a otomanskog carstva mladi mjesec. Tako su sunce i mjesec amblemi dva kraljevstva koja su u vlasti Zakona Božjeg. Kasnije se kaže: “A na glavi joj vijenac od dvanaest zvijezda.” Tih dvanaest zvijezda predstavlja dvanaest imama, koji su bili promicatelji Muhamedova zakona i odgajatelji ljudi te sjaju poput zvijezda na nebu vodstva. The Law of God is also compared to an adorned bride who appears with most beautiful ornaments, as it has been said in chapter 21 of the Revelation of St. John: “And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.”73 And in chapter 12, verse 1, it is said: “And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars.” This woman is that bride, the Law of God that descended upon Muḥammad. The sun with which she was clothed, and the moon which was under her feet, are the two nations which are under the shadow of that Law, the Persian and Ottoman kingdoms; for the emblem of Persia is the sun, and that of the Ottoman Empire is the crescent moon. Thus the sun and moon are the emblems of two kingdoms which are under the power of the Law of God. Afterward it is said: “upon her head is a crown of twelve stars.” These twelve stars are the twelve Imáms, who were the promoters of the Law of Muḥammad and the educators of the people, shining like stars in the heaven of guidance.
5 Onda se u drugom stihu kaže: “Bila je trudna i vikala je”, što znači da je taj zakon zapao u velike poteškoće i pretrpio velike nevolje i nedaće sve dok se nije rodilo savršeno dijete – tj. nastupajuća Objava, Obećani koji je savršeno dijete othranjeno na grudima ovoga Zakona koji mu je kao majka. Dijete o Kojem je riječ jest Báb, Prvotna točka, Koji se uistinu rodio iz Muhamedova Zakona – tj. Sveta Stvarnost, Koja je dijete i ishod Zakona Božjeg, koji mu je majka, a Kojega je obećala ta religija, nalazi stvarnost u kraljevstvu toga Zakona; ali zbog zmajeva despotizma dijete je poneseno uvis Bogu. Nakon tisuću dvjesto i šezdeset dana zmaj je uništen, a dijete Zakona Božjeg, Obećani, objavio se. Then it is said in the second verse: “and she being with child cried,” meaning that this Law fell into the greatest difficulties and endured great troubles and afflictions until a perfect offspring was produced—that is, the coming Manifestation, the Promised One, Who is the perfect offspring, and Who was reared in the bosom of this Law, which is as its mother. The child Who is referred to is the Báb, the Primal Point, Who was in truth born from the Law of Muḥammad—that is to say, the Holy Reality, Who is the child and outcome of the Law of God, His mother, and Who is promised by that religion, finds a reality in the kingdom of that Law; but because of the despotism of the dragon the child was carried up to God. After twelve hundred and sixty days the dragon was destroyed, and the child of the Law of God, the Promised One, became manifest.
6 Stihovi 3 i 4. “Zatim se pokaza drugi znak u nebu: velik Zmaj plamene boje sa sedam glava i deset rogova. Na glavama mu sedam kruna. Njegov rep pomete trećinu nebeskih zvijezda i surva ih na zemlju.”74 Ti su znakovi aluzija na dinastiju Umayyada koji su dominirali Muhamedovom religijom. Sedam glava i sedam kruna označava sedam zemalja i dominiona nad kojima su Umayyadi imali vlast: to su bili rimski dominion oko Damaska; te perzijski, arapski i egipatski dominioni, zajedno s dominionom Afrike – tj. Tunis, Maroko i Alžir; dominion Andaluzije, koji je sada Španjolska; i dominion Turaka u Transoksaniji. Umayyadi su imali vlast nad tim zemljama. Deset rogova označava imena vladara Umayyada – tj. bez ponavljanja, bilo je deset imena vladara, što znači deset imena zapovjednika i poglavara – prvi je Abú Sufyán a posljednji Marván – no nekoliko ih nosi isto ime. Tako postoje dva Mu’ávíyaa, tri Yazída, dva Valída, i dva Marvána; no kad bi se imena izbrojala bez ponavljanja bilo bi ih deset. Umayyadi, od kojih je prvi bio Abú Sufyán, Amir od Meke i poglavar dinastije Umayyada, a zadnji Marván, uništili su trećinu svetih i pobožnih ljudi Muhamedove loze nalik zvijezdama nebeskim. Verses 3 and 4. “And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth.”74 These signs are an allusion to the dynasty of the Umayyads who dominated the Muḥammadan religion. Seven heads and seven crowns mean seven countries and dominions over which the Umayyads had power: they were the Roman dominion around Damascus; and the Persian, Arabian and Egyptian dominions, together with the dominion of Africa—that is to say, Tunis, Morocco and Algeria; the dominion of Andalusia, which is now Spain; and the dominion of the Turks of Transoxania. The Umayyads had power over these countries. The ten horns mean the names of the Umayyad rulers—that is, without repetition, there were ten names of rulers, meaning ten names of commanders and chiefs—the first is Abú Súfyán and the last Marván—but several of them bear the same name. So there are two Muáviyá, three Yazíd, two Valíd, and two Marván; but if the names were counted without repetition there would be ten. The Umayyads, of whom the first was Abú Súfyán, Amír of Mecca and chief of the dynasty of the Umayyads, and the last was Marván, destroyed the third part of the holy and saintly people of the lineage of Muḥammad who were like the stars of heaven.
7 Stih 4. “Zmaj stade pred Ženu koja je imala roditi, da joj proždre Dijete čim se rodi.”75 Kako smo već ranije objasnili, ta je žena Zakon Božji. Zmaj je stajao blizu žene da bi proždro njezino dijete, a to je dijete obećana Objava, dijete Zakona Muhamedova. Umayyadi su se uvijek željeli dočepati Obećanoga, Koji je trebao doći iz Muhamedove loze, da bi ga uništili; jer jako su se bojali pojave obećane Objave i htjeli su ubiti Muhamedove potomke koji su mogli postati vrlo ugledni. Verse 4. “And the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour the child as soon as it was born.”75 As we have before explained, this woman is the Law of God. The dragon was standing near the woman to devour her child, and this child was the promised Manifestation, the offspring of the Law of Muḥammad. The Umayyads were always waiting to get possession of the Promised One, Who was to come from the line of Muḥammad, to destroy and annihilate Him; for they much feared the appearance of the promised Manifestation, and they sought to kill any of Muḥammad’s descendants who might be highly esteemed.
8 Stih 5. “I ona rodi sina – muškarca – koji će vladati svim narodima željeznim žezlom”. Taj veliki sin jest obećana Objava, rođen iz zakona Božjeg i othranjen na grudima božanskih učenja. Željezno žezlo je simbol moći i snage – to nije mač – i znači da će uz božansku moć i snagu On poput pastira čuvati sve narode zemlje. Taj sin je Báb. Verse 5. “And she brought forth a man child, Who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron.” This great son is the promised Manifestation Who was born of the Law of God and reared in the bosom of the divine teachings. The iron rod is a symbol of power and might—it is not a sword—and means that with divine power and might He will shepherd all the nations of the earth. This son is the Báb.
9 Stih 5. “Njezino Dijete bi doneseno k Bogu i njegovu prijestolju”. To je proročanstvo o Bábu, Koji se uznio u nebesko kraljevstvo do Božjeg prijestolja i do središta njegova Kraljevstva. Zamislite kako to sve savršeno odgovara onome što se dogodilo. Verse 5. “And her child was caught up unto God, and to His throne.” This is a prophecy of the Báb, Who ascended to the heavenly realm, to the Throne of God, and to the center of His Kingdom. Consider how all this corresponds to what happened.
10 Stih 6. “A Žena pobježe u pustinju” – tj. Zakon Božji pobježe u pustinju, što znači u prostranu pustinju Hijáz i na Arapski poluotok. Verse 6. “And the woman fled into the wilderness”—that is to say, the Law of God fled to the wilderness, meaning the vast desert of Ḥijáz, and the Arabian Peninsula.
11 Stih 6. “Gdje joj je Bog pripravio sklonište.”76 Arapski poluotok postao je prebivalište, stan i središte Zakona Božjeg. Verse 6. “Where she had a place prepared of God.”76 The Arabian Peninsula became the abode and dwelling place, and the center of the Law of God.
12 Stih 6. “Da se ondje hrani tisuću dvjesta i šezdeset dana”. Prema terminologiji Svete knjige tih tisuću dvjesto i šezdeset dana označava tisuću dvjesto i šezdeset godina, koliko je Zakon Božji bio uspostavljen u divljini Arabije, u velikoj pustinji: od njega je Obećani došao. Nakon tisuću dvjesto i šezdeset godina taj zakon više neće imati nikakva utjecaja: plodovi toga stabla pojavit će se i doći će do rezultata. Verse 6. “That they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.” In the terminology of the Holy Book these twelve hundred and sixty days mean the twelve hundred and sixty years that the Law of God was set up in the wilderness of Arabia, the great desert: from it the Promised One has come. After twelve hundred and sixty years that Law will have no more influence, for the fruit of that tree will have appeared, and the result will have been produced.
13 Promislite o tome kako proročanstva odgovaraju jedno drugom. U Apokalipsi, pojava Obećenog predviđena je nakon četrdeset i dva mjeseca, a Danijel to iskazuje kao tri i pol vremena, što je također četrdeset i dva mjeseca, a koji daju tisuću dvjesto i šezdeset dana. U još jednom ulomku Ivanova Otkrivenja o tome se jasno govori kao o tisuću dvjesto i šezdeset dana, a u Svetoj je knjizi rečeno da svaki dan predstavlja godinu. Ništa ne može biti jasnije od ove podudarnosti proročanstava. Báb se pojavio u 1260-toj godini Muhamedove Hidžre, što je početak općepriznate ere islama. Nema jasnijih dokaza od onoga u Svetim knjigama za bilo koju Objavu. Za pravednoga podudarnost vremena (doba) koja su predvidjeli jezici Velikih jest krajnji dokaz. Nema drugog mogućeg objašnjenja tih proročanstava. Blagoslovljene bile pravedne duše koje traže istinu. Ali ako nisu pravedni, ljudi napadaju, odbijaju i otvoreno poriču dokaz, poput farizeja koji su, kad se Krist objavio, s velikom nepopustljivošću porekli objašnjenja Kristovo i Njegovih učenika. Skrili su Kristovu Stvar pred neukim ljudima, govoreći, “Ta proročanstva ne dolaze od Isusa, već od Obećanoga Koji će doći kasnije, prema uvjetima koja se spominju u Bibliji”. Neki od tih uvjeta isticali su da On mora imati kraljevstvo, sjediti na Davidovu prijestolju, učiniti da na snagu stupi Zakon Biblije i očitovati takvu pravdu da će se pri istom vrelu okupiti i vuk i janje. Consider how the prophecies correspond to one another. In the Apocalypse, the appearance of the Promised One is appointed after forty-two months, and Daniel expresses it as three times and a half, which is also forty-two months, which are twelve hundred and sixty days. In another passage of John’s Revelation it is clearly spoken of as twelve hundred and sixty days, and in the Holy Book it is said that each day signifies one year. Nothing could be clearer than this agreement of the prophecies with one another. The Báb appeared in the year 1260 of the Hejira of Muḥammad, which is the beginning of the universal era-reckoning of all Islám. There are no clearer proofs than this in the Holy Books for any Manifestation. For him who is just, the agreement of the times indicated by the tongues of the Great Ones is the most conclusive proof. There is no other possible explanation of these prophecies. Blessed are the just souls who seek the truth. But failing justice, the people attack, dispute and openly deny the evidence, like the Pharisees who, at the manifestation of Christ, denied with the greatest obstinacy the explanations of Christ and of His disciples. They obscured Christ’s Cause before the ignorant people, saying, “These prophecies are not of Jesus, but of the Promised One Who shall come later, according to the conditions mentioned in the Bible.” Some of these conditions were that He must have a kingdom, be seated on the throne of David, enforce the Law of the Bible, and manifest such justice that the wolf and the lamb shall gather at the same spring.
14 I tako su spriječili ljude da povjeruju u Krista. And thus they prevented the people from knowing Christ.
15 Napomena: – U ovim posljednjim razgovorima ‘Abdu’l-Bahá želi u novom tumačenju izmiriti apokaliptična proročanstva Židova, kršćana i muslimana, a ne pokazati njihov nadnaravni karakter. O moćima Proroka, Usp. “Znanje Božanskih objava” i “Vizije i komunikacija s duhovima”. Note.—In these last conversations ‘Abdu’l-Bahá wishes to reconcile in a new interpretation the apocalyptic prophecies of the Jews, the Christians and the Muslims, rather than to show their supernatural character. On the powers of the Prophets, cf. “The Knowledge of the Divine Manifestations,” p. 157; and “Visions and Communication with Spirits,” p. 251.