Inner Oars and Ivory Benches

Neville's Inner Vision

What Ezekiel calls thine oars of Bashan and benches of ivory are not ships or furniture; they are images born of your present state of consciousness. The oaks of Bashan, strong and enduring, are the beliefs you claim as your foundation—the ideas you use to move yourself through life. The benches, wrought of ivory and drawn from distant isles, symbolize cherished appearances, status, and the sense that security comes from outer signs. When you trust these signs, you travel on a sea of need, guided by pride and the impulse to impress. Yet the I AM within you—your eternal awareness—can revise this image. You are not dependent on oars or benches; you are the awareness that imagines them. By assuming a new state—'I AM rich in mind; I dwell in abundance now'—you shift the ship's motive power from fear to grace and from lack to fullness. The Ezekiel passage invites you to awaken from the dream that outward wealth defines you, and to awaken to inner abundance that reshapes your world through your revised consciousness.