Hills of Silver Ruins (1/22)

The way I read the political theology of the Twelve Kingdoms, the Divine Will (天命) is communicated directly to the kirin alone. When the kirin makes the Divine Will known to others through his words or actions, that is the Word of Heaven (天啓).

In Old Testament terms, a kirin is like the prophet Samuel when God tells him to choose a successor to King Saul. "I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king." After rejecting all of Jesse's other sons, Samuel settles on David and God gives him the go-ahead. "So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers" (1 Samuel 16:1-13 NIV).

The private revelation expresses the Divine Will. The public pronouncement reveals the Word of Heaven.