Bosom of the Father

This icon is taken from Revelation 4 and 5, part of the revelation of John the Beloved: 

“And behold, a throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne.   3 And He who sat there was like a jasper and a sardius stone in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like an emerald. 4 Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and on the thrones I saw twenty-four elders (priests) sitting, clothed in white robes; and they had crowns of gold on their heads…. And in the midst of the throne, and around the throne, were four living creatures full of eyes in front and in back. 7 The first living creature was like a lion, the second living creature was like a calf, the third living creature had a face like a man, and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle. 8 The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within… 9 Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying:11 “You are worthy, O Lord,To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.”…And I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a scroll written inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals…… 5 But one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and [b]to loose its seven seals.” 6 And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been slain….7 Then He came and took the scroll out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne.” 

Features of this Icon:

1. As we see in the passage above, this scene is from a room that St John calls the throne room. 

2. We see the four incorporeal creatures around the throne and carrying the throne. These creatures have no body, but have six wings and are full of eyes. The Church fathers meditate and interpret that each of the four creatures intercedes for a group on earth. One has the face of a man and he intercedes for the human race. The one with the face of a lion intercedes for wild animals. The face of a calf intercedes for the cattle. The face of the eagle intercedes for the birds (https://www.stmark.com.au/who-are-the-four-living-creatures/). The Coptic Church commemorates these four incorporeal creatures on the 8th of Hatour/November 17th. 

3. We then see the twenty-four presbyters, twelve on each side. We also see in their hands golden censers and they offer incense in front of the Trinity at all times. These are the prayers of the saints that are offered at all times. We believe these are our prayers that are raised up to God at all times. This is one of the main reasons we use incense in the Orthodox Church. We also see crowns in front of them showing that they laid their crowns before the throne as mentioned in the passage above. St. Ambrose says, “we shouldn’t think of the thrones and sit on them in a materialistic way; for it is only to express the highness of their dignity.” Various reasons have been suggested why they should be described as 24 in number. They are the 12 tribes doubled, to signify the union of the Gentile with the Jewish Church. They are the two sets of 12, to represent the two Testaments. They are the 12 Patriarchs co-joined with the 12 apostles. The 24 elders represent the complete Church of God in the past and in the future. As for the white robes, Ibn-el-Assal says that these robes point to their splendor, their glory, their righteousness, and their holiness. The white robes are also the garments of the priests. Crowns of gold on their heads denote that state of dignity and glory to which God had advanced them. The 24 presbyters cannot endure this view until they stand up; take off their crowns, cast them at the Lord’s feet and kneel in front of Him for His greatness, His holiness, His love and His care. By taking off their crowns they acknowledge the infinite supremacy of God, and that they have derived their being and their blessings from Him alone. The view is repeated not once or twice or one thousand or two thousand times, but it remains the same forever. The Coptic Church commemorates the 24 priests on the 24th of Hatour/ December 3rd. 

4. We see the seven archangels at the bottom of the icon. As we say in the doxology of the heavenly, “Seven archangels praising as they stand before the Pantocrator serving the hidden Mystery.” These seven are Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Suriel, Sedakiel, Sarathiel, and Ananiel.