Be of sin the double cure,
Safe from wrath and make me pure
Not the labor of my hands
Can fulfill Thy law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,
Could my tears forever flow,
All for sin could not atone;
Thou must save, and Thou alone.
Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to Thy cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress;
Helpless, look to Thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Savior, or I die.
While I draw this fleeting breath,
When mine eyes shall close in death,
When I rise to worlds unknown,
See Thee on Thy judgment throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee.
(Lyrics from: http://library.timelesstruths.org/music/Rock_of_Ages/)
STONE OF DESTINY
And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep. Genesis 28:11
And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. Genesis 28:18
In the book of Genesis, Jacob finds a stone in the desert and uses it to rest his head. The stone, currently known as the Stone of Destiny, Jacob’s Pillow, or the Stone of Scone, revealed an amazing dream to him about a ladder reaching up to heaven. Jacob carried this stone with him and learned that the Stone of Destiny would witness the coronation of every ruler of God’s people until the return of the Lord.
Nobody knew where this stone was until it turned up in Great Britain and was supposedly present even during the coronation of none other than Queen Elizabeth II. Also known as the Coronation Stone, it is a block of sandstone kept in an old abbey in Scone, Scotland.
Scottish legend says the Stone of Destiny originally belonged to Jacob. The stone served as the pillow where Jacob rested his head and had his dream about a ladder leading to heaven. The stone left the Holy Land and went to Egypt, Sicily, and Spain before it was taken to Ireland in the 700s and used for coronations there until the Scots stole it from them during a raid. The stone arrived in the village of Scone around 840.
For centuries, several Scottish monarchs used the Stone of Scone as part of their coronation ceremonies. In 1296, Edward I invaded Scotland and took the stone to London. Edward I built a special coronation chair to encase the stone, and placed it in Westminster Abbey as a symbol that the monarchy would rule both England and Scotland, but historians debate this “Westminster Stone’s” authenticity as Jacob’s Stone of Destiny.
After the crowning of James I of Scotland as monarch occurred on the Stone of Scone, some believed that the prophecy regarding Scottish rule had finally happened. The Scottish weren’t finished with the stone yet. In 1950, Scottish nationalists stole the stone from Westminster Abbey. The British government recovered it but eventually gave in and officially returned the Stone of Scone to Scotland in 1996.
Of course, as with all things of this nature, some people believe the stone is a fraud and not at all associated with Jacob. Nevertheless, the stone is sacred to the Scots and Brits who have used it to crown their kings and queens and therefore must have some extraordinary power associated with it.
WHITE STONE OF REVELATION
• Bible •
He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it. Revelation 2:17
• Cayce Readings •
A white stone is mentioned eleven times in ten documents.
My Life Reading told me that the crystal or any white stone carried on my body would be a helpful influence . . . I began carrying a small, clear, hexagonal crystal of quartz, which, since it is a crystal and is descriptively ‘white’ or crystal, I have assumed is specifically what the reading prescribed.
This stone has given me a great deal of pleasure . . . it incites a pleasant nostalgia . . .
2285-1, Report #4
Source was asked to interpret the biblical passage from Revelation:
Q: Please interpret the 2nd Chapter, 17th verse of Revelation. “To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.”
A: In giving the interpretation of this particular portion of the Revelation . . . the references—or all—refer to the physical body as the pattern, there is that as may be said to be the literal and the spiritual and the metaphysical interpretation of almost all portions of the Scripture, and especially of the Revelation as given by John.
. . . Each entity, each soul, is known,—in all the experiences through its activities—as a name to designate it from another. It is not only then a material convenience, but it implies—as has been given, unless it is for material gain—a definite period in the evolution of the experience of the entity in the material plane.”
281-31
. . . any white stone, has a helpful influence—if carried about the body . . .
2285-1
In stones—the whiter, the more crystal the better.
1775-1
As to stones, the blue or white stone should be as a lavaliere about the body. This is the better form of vibration for the entity, keeping a temperament gentler and more open.
2683-1
Based on these Life Readings, it would be easy to say that the white stone mentioned in Revelation in the Bible was a crystal, but I believe it was something else. Mentioned three times by name in Revelation, the white stone may be something other than crystal, perhaps something as sacred as the manna itself.
One thought is that in ancient times, the Romans used to award white stones with their names inscribed on them to the winners of athletic games. Perhaps Revelation’s white stone was yet another example of the early church’s attempt to speak to ordinary people in a language they could understand regarding the rewards that awaited them through Christ.
URIM AND THUMMIM
Urim and Thummim refer to the unique stones or stone tablets placed behind or attached to the breastplate that the high priests used to communicate with God. Urim is usually translated to mean “lights” and Thummim, derived from a Hebrew word meaning “innocence,” is translated to mean “perfections.” Urim and Thummim as “lights and perfections” or “revelation and truth” refer to the light and illumination that is experienced when there is a clear connection to the profound wisdom of God. The Bible has several references to this concept:
• Bible •
And thou shalt put in the breastplate of judgment the Urim and the Thummim; and they shall be upon Aaron’s heart, when he goeth in before the Lord: and Aaron shall bear the judgment of the children of Israel upon his heart before the Lord continually. Exodus 28:30
And he put the breastplate upon him: also he put in the breastplate the Urim and the Thummim. Leviticus 8:8
And of Levi he said, Let thy Thummim and thy Urim be with thy holy one, whom thou didst prove at Massah, and with whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah; Deuteronomy 33:8
In the following two passages, we see that Urim and Thummim are only to be used by a priest:
And the Tirshatha said unto them, that they should not eat of the most holy things, till there stood up a priest with Urim and with Thummim. Ezra 2:63
And the Tirshatha said unto them, that they should not eat of the most holy things, till there stood up a priest with Urim and Thummim. Nehemiah 7:65
There are some references to Urim only:
And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall ask counsel for him after the
judgment of Urim before the Lord: at his word shall they go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he, and all the children of Israel with him, even all the congregation. Numbers 27:21
To reinforce the fact that only priests could interpret messages, the Urim withheld answers from King Saul:
And when Saul enquired of the Lord, the Lord answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets. 1 Samuel 28:6
• Cayce Readings •
Urim is mentioned forty-six times in forty-two documents.
Thummim is mentioned thirty-seven times in thirty-three documents.
After the publication of the Edgar Cayce Guide to Gemstones, I continued my study of the Cayce material. I later discovered that Urim and Thummim were featured prominently in the Cayce readings, and that discovery was one of the reasons I felt inspired to write this book.
In a reading that Cayce gave for himself, he asked the Source to clarify some things about psychic ability:
Q: What other glands in the body, if any, besides the Leydigan, pineal, and glands of reproduction, are directly connected with psychic ability?
A: . . . Hence these may be termed that the pineal and the Leydig are the seat of the soul of an entity.
As to the activities of physical reproduction, much of the activity of the Leydig makes for that as of embryonic in its activity, or of sterility in its activity. So we have those channels. These are not the psychic forces, please understand! They are the channels through which the activities have their impulse! though the manifestations may be in sight, in sound, or in speech, in vision, in writing, in dreams, in Urim or Thummim, or in any. For these represent the Urim and Thummim in their essence, or in any of the responding forces in a body . . .
294-142
In the previous reading, the Source speaks of the Creator’s communication through dreams or Urim and Thummim. The Bible states the same idea. Source reiterates that these are tools to access and receive higher levels of psychic or divine information.
In another reading, a woman asked Cayce how to communicate best with God:
Q: Is there any likelihood at the present time of developing a machine, based on the action of the electromagnetic cell, which may assist in securing direct communication as done by Aaron and Moses—and many others—with the Urim and Thummim?
A: Find in the self that as Hatshepsut put to self, in knowing who should be chosen—yet the trouble arose. Do not make the same mistake, that the vibration is the force—but that which impels same from the Creative Force. Such machines are claimed to be made. Some do, some do not create the right vibration. Too oft does there enter in those personalities of those seeking. Then, in self find the way to aid, and call again on Ra-Ta (294)—and on Hatshepsut—they are as Urim and Thummim, a channel only.
355-1
In the last section, the Source seems to imply that Urim and Thummim are tools, just as Cayce himself (294) was a channel used to receive divine information.
The next reading further substantiates Cayce’s use of the term by showing that information obtained from Urim and Thummim or dreams is more valuable than insights received in other ways:
Q: Can the entity’s psychic faculties be expressed or developed through numerology?
A: . . . Hence intuitive force is the better, for in this there may come more the union of the spirit of truth with Creative Energy; thus the answers may be shown thee, whether in Urim, in Thummim, in dream, in numbers . . .
261-15
Cayce describes how tools such as Urim and Thummim should be used to gain clarity and direction in life. A woman asked for guidance during her reading and learned this would take place through a divine connection and acknowledgment of the Creator using Urim and Thummim:
Q: Please explain and interpret the urge which I have to engage in some constructive activity, yet cannot quite grasp the proper method or direction or procedure?
A: . . . As He has spoken through prophet, through sage, through Urim, through Thummim, through dream, through vision, since man has been in materiality or in matter, so may the spirit of truth still give expression to those that seek His face, and to find expression of same among their fellow man.
338-3
On August 23, 1925, Cayce consulted the Source for insight about his dreams, and the Source again described how Urim can assist with earthly lessons and knowledge:
. . . Now we find the body and the body-mind, and the desire of knowledge, of enquiring of forces pertaining to elements of development, are separate condition, or should be considered as such (if we) would understand in a material manner the conditions as pertain to vision, dream, or Urim, that would be made beneficial to body’s desiring, wishing, to know these lessons that might be, could be, would or should be, gained from such as dreams.
294-35
Another reading on April 12, 1934 described Cayce’s dream about his deceased mother. Again the Source explained how a spiritual connection from beyond the grave could come through dreams, symbols, or the Urim and Thummim:
Q: Please elucidate upon the experience I had last month in New Mexico when seeing and talking with my mother, in which she materialized a silver dollar.
A: As has been given, either by vision, by prayer, by Urim, by Thummim, by dream, or in the material things, may the vision of those that are in the heart and mind of individuals given through the powers of those in the spirit plane to enter into association, communication, or activity with those that they seek to guide.
294-174
In another reading, the Source scolds a questioner for vanity:
Q: Which elements in particular would be of the greatest value to observe their effects?
A: Elements as related to that thou hast in hand, see? . . . Dost thou hope in thine self to find in two weeks or two months that it took two men, guided by the Father Himself, eighty years to find? (Moses—Aaron—Urim and Thummim?) . . .
440-16
A housewife learned that as a daughter of Levi in a past life, she had experienced a strong connection to the Urim and Thummim:
The entity then was among the daughters of Levi, and those chosen to make the vestment of the priest. And to the entity, because of its own abilities, there was given the preparation of the settings of the breastplate and the putting of the stones theron, and the preparation of the Urim and Thummim for the interpretations of the movements that came upon the high priest in the holy of holies to be given to his people in or from the door of the tabernacle.
987-2
Another questioner had a disturbing dream about his mother:
. . . I swung ma around and threw her face forward against the wall, hurting her face severely. Her face actually hurt or seemed to when she awakened . . .
Well that each individual attempt to correlate those conditions as do appear in vision, or through Urim, and bring same to consciousness, that the physical conditions may be developed and strength may be gained individually, that will assist in giving much to self’s satisfaction (never self-gratification) to self’s development, to self’s abilities to be of service to many . . .
106-8
Cayce described the protective nature of Urim:
. . . This is the presentation of that force that will guide, guard and protect, would the entity but keep in that way in which the forces may be manifest to the physical through Urim or through the visions . . .
900-79
According to Cayce, the divine can pierce through the veil between our physical world and the next through Urim, dreams, or visions. We can use the Creator’s energy to manifest protection and guidance in the physical plane.
Several readings refer to the connection between Urim and the Higher Self or the subconscious mind:
. . . in the mental forces, the subconscious in its development takes hold, as it were, on such subject matter, such data, as it is presented in the sleeping state, and through Urim . . .
900-90
. . . yet the Voice through Urim, through Dream, t
hrough many, will give that information . . .
900-151
In another reading, Cayce described a priestly adornment worn by a woman in her previous life:
. . . The color of the robe was pearl-gray, as would be called now, with selvage woven around the neck, as well as that upon the edge, as over the shoulder and to the bottom portion of same; no bells no pomegranates, but those which are woven in such a manner that into the selvage portion of the bottom was woven the Thummim and Urim. These were as the balance in which judgments were passed by the priest. But these were woven, not placed upon the top of same. Neither were there jewels set in same.
3175-3
More on Urim and Thummim
I’ve done years of research on the breastplate of the high priest and the identity of the Urim and Thummim in the Bible.
My interest ensued after I read the beautiful book The Alchemist by the Brazilian writer Paulo Coelho. In the story, a king befriends a shepherd boy and gives him Urim and Thummim to help him on his path. Having learned how important Urim and Thummim were to the Cayce Readings, I was especially fascinated to find the actual identity of these stones.
I believe the Urim and Thummim were a kind of divine communication tool used for direct communion with the Creator. The question remains, however, whether these were actual stones, tablets, or some other kind of material.
The idea of Urim and Thummim as stones is a prevalent concept in Mormonism. When Joseph Smith received a message from the Angel Moroni, he journeyed to find several gold plates that were buried in the hill named Cumorah in Ontario County, New York. Every year on September 22 from 1823 until 1827, Smith made a pilgrimage to that site. He finally dug up the plates revealing the word of God and took them away.
Smith called the special stones both Urim and Thummim and seer stones, and he used these tools to help transcribe the messages that were recorded on the gold plates to write the Book of Mormon. Witnesses described Smith placing the seer stones in a hat and gazing at them in order to receive their divine messages.
Edgar Cayce's Sacred Stones Page 19