"Grieve not if none be found to accept the crimson wine proffered by Thy snow-white hand and to seize it in the name of Thy Lord, the Most Exalted, the Most High -- He Who hath appeared again in His name, the Most Glorious. Leave this people unto themselves, and repair unto the Tabernacle of majesty and glory, wherein Thou shalt encounter a people whose faces shine as brightly as the sun in its noontide splendour, and who praise and extol their Lord in this Name that hath arisen, in the plenitude of might and power, to assume the throne of independent sovereignty. From their lips Thou shalt hear naught but the strains of My glorification and praise; unto this Thy Lord beareth Me witness. The existence of these people, however, hath remained concealed from the eyes of all who, from everlasting, have been created through the Word of God. Thus have We made plain Our meaning and set forth Our verses, that perchance men may reflect upon the signs and tokens of their Lord."
Comments:
• The metaphor of the “snow-white hand”, we understand is a reference to the Advent of Moses, the instructions He received from God and His subsequent meeting with the Pharaoh demanding the release of the Israelites who were being kept as slaves. Below are some passages from the Torah (the Old Testament) and the Qur’an. Such references by Baha’u’llah towards previous incidents associated with various Manifestations of God remind us of the continuity of the Divine Revelation and our need to ponder and reflect over them so that our faith and certitude will increase with time.
From Exodus 4, King James Bible:
“And Moses answered and said, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor listen to my voice: for they will say, The LORD has not appeared to you. 2 And the LORD said to him, What is that in your hand? And he said, A rod. 3 And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it. 4 And the LORD said to Moses, Put forth your hand, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand: 5 That they may believe that the LORD God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you. 6 And the LORD said furthermore to him, Put now your hand into your bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous as snow. 7 And he said, Put your hand into your bosom again. And he put his hand into his bosom again; and plucked it out of his bosom, and, behold, it was turned again as his other flesh. 8 And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe you, neither listen to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign.”
Since it is reported that Moses had darker complexions, this story brings to one’s attention the power of the Manifestation of God to change His dark hand into snow-white!
From the Qur’an
“Then after them we sent Moses with our signs to Pharaoh and his nobles,
who acted unjustly in their regard. But see what was the end of the corrupt
doers! And Moses said, "O Pharaoh! verily I am an apostle from the Lord of the
Worlds. Nothing but truth is it right for me to speak of God. Now am I come to
you from your Lord with a proof of my mission; send away, therefore, the
children of Israel with me." He said, "If thou comest with a sign, shew it if
thou art a man of truth." So he threw down his rod, and lo! it distinctly became a serpent. Then drew he forth his hand, and lo! it was white to the beholders.”
(The Qur’an, Surih of AL ARAF, Rodwell’s translation)
• It is very touching how Baha’u’llah is being consoled in this paragraph not to “Grieve” if “none” to” be found to accept” His Teachings – Teachings that are beautifully represented as “the crimson wine”. Instead, Baha’u’llah is being encouraged to “Leave this people unto themselves” and to “repair unto the Tabernacle of majesty and glory”. This also provides us, individually and collectively, with some insights in how to handle situations where we don’t find people interested in receiving the Baha’i Teachings. We should also keep in mind that God wouldn’t leave us in a vacuum in such circumstances. He encourages us instead to “repair unto the Tabernacle of majesty and glory” – maybe one implication of this would be for us to take refuge in the Writings and read more about Baha’u’llah – as He says in the Tablet of Ahmad “Remember My days during thy days …”
• This paragraph also brings to our attention the “existence” of certain “people” whose “faces shine as brightly as the sun in its noontide splendour” and “who praise and extol their Lord”, Baha’u’llah, because He “hath arisen, in the plenitude of might and power, to assume the throne of independent sovereignty.” Baha’u’llah tells us that from the lips of these “people” naught can be heard nothing other than “the strains of My glorification and praise..” Furthermore, we are being told in this paragraph that the “existence of these people, however, hath remained concealed from the eyes of all who, from everlasting, have been created through the Word of God.” What an amazing thing to know! Makes you wonder who these special people are and to what degree they are assisting us in this life, whether we know it or not, in our efforts to serve our Lord.
