The Stone That Unlocked Everything

For centuries, European scholars stared at Egyptian hieroglyphics in frustration. They could see the symbols carved into temple walls and obelisks — tantalizing fragments of an ancient civilization's wisdom. Some guessed at meanings. Others cataloged the shapes. But the full message remained locked behind an impenetrable code.

Then in 1799, French soldiers digging near the town of Rashid unearthed a slab of black granodiorite — the Rosetta Stone. It bore the same decree written in three scripts: hieroglyphics, Demotic, and Greek. When young Jean-François Champollion finally cracked the code in 1822, those centuries of silent symbols burst into speech. Every inscription in every temple suddenly became readable. The fragments finally made sense.

The writer of Hebrews describes something far more magnificent. "Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers through the prophets." For centuries, the Almighty communicated through burning bushes and still small voices, through visions and poetry, through law and lament. Each revelation was real but partial — like hieroglyphics without a key.

Then God sent His Son. Jesus Christ is not merely another prophet adding one more fragment to the collection. He is the radiance of God's glory, the exact imprint of His nature — the living Word who makes every prior word of God burst into full, glorious clarity. In Him, the whole message finally comes through.