Quote:
Originally Posted by Drake
Argument from silence?..... Well, let us do have a closer look then.
"Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands" Revelation 1:12
"As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands.... Revelation 1:20
"‘The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands. Revelation 2:1
So John saw seven golden lampstands and mentions it three times as above....... not 5 lampstands and 2 Birdfeeders... not 4 lampstands, 2 Harley choppers, and 1 Ukelele... I am pretty confident that they are identically shaped as lampstands else John would have called our attention to it. Exodus 25 gives a detailed description of the shape and features of the lampstand.
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Are the seven angels who stand before God in Revelation 8:2 "absolutely identical" without any individual distinctiveness? Gabriel said, "I stand before God". If Gabriel has no individual distinction, then why does he have a distinct name? But he has the same form, shape and purpose as Michael. But perhaps not the same function. Perhaps God likes variegation. Look around you!
Are the 12 gates (Rev 21:12, 13), each with the name of a tribe of Israel, absolutely identical, without any individual distinctiveness? They are all gates. Same function. But where does it say they have to be identical?
Why the need for no individual distinctiveness? I think it's pathological. It has its roots in the fall. It's not supported by either the text or common human understanding. But it resonates with a certain cultural predisposition which is why it's predominantly taken root there.