======================================================================== WRITINGS OF MAX I REICH by Max I. Reich ======================================================================== A collection of theological writings, sermons, and essays by Max I. Reich, compiled for study and devotional reading. Chapters: 29 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ TABLE OF CONTENTS ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. 00.00. Reich, Max I. - Library 2. 01.00.1. The Glories Of Christ In The Epistle To The Hebrews 3. 01.00.5. Preface 4. 01.01. The Eternal Son of God 5. 01.02. The Perfect Son of Man 6. 01.03. His House - His Rest - His Word 7. 01.04. His Heavenly Priesthood 8. 01.05. "Let Us Press On" 9. 01.06. A Priest Forever 10. 01.07. The Mediator of a Better Covenant 11. 01.08. One Sacrifice for Sins Forever 12. 01.09. A New And Living Way 13. 01.10. A Cloud Of Witnesses 14. 01.11. Helps To Holiness 15. 01.12. Within The Veil . . . Without The Camp 16. 02.00.1. THE MESSIANIC HOPE OF ISRAEL 17. 02.00.2 Copyright Information 18. 02.00.3. Table of Contents 19. 02.00.4. Forward 20. 02.01. The Messianic Hope 21. 02.02. The Hope Raised 22. 02.03. The Hope Revived 23. 02.04. The Hope Re-Affirmed 24. 02.05. The Hope Interpreted 25. 02.06. The Hope Scheduled 26. 02.07. The Hope Misunderstood 27. 02.08. The Messiah in the Psalms 28. 02.09. The Atonement in the Religion . . . 29. 02.10. The Future Salvation of Israel ======================================================================== CHAPTER 1: 00.00. REICH, MAX I. - LIBRARY ======================================================================== Reich, Max I. - Library Reich, Max I. - The Glories Of Christ In The Epistle To The Hebrews Reich, Max I. - The Messionic Hope of Israel ======================================================================== CHAPTER 2: 01.00.1. THE GLORIES OF CHRIST IN THE EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS ======================================================================== The Glories Of Christ In The Epistle To The Hebrews by Max I. Reich, D. D. ***** This module is brought to you by www.DoctorDaveT.com For more eSword modules that are conservative evangelical Bible believing Christ honoring make sure you stop by www.DoctorDaveT.com! We have hundreds of modules easily organized by topics, like these: Old Testament Exposition (topic modules) New Testament Exposition (topic modules) Doctrinal Theology (topic modules) Commentary Modules Dictionary Modules and a whole lot more! Please visit www.DoctorDaveT.com! Dave ======================================================================== CHAPTER 3: 01.00.5. PREFACE ======================================================================== Preface For many years Dr. Max I. Reich was on the staff of the Extension Department of Moody Bible Institute; and in later years, a member of the faculty. Those who learned to love him through his Bible teaching ministry will rejoice to have in print this series of lessons from his pen, making known “The Glories of Christ in the Epistle to the Hebrews.” As one of God’s chosen people, Israel, who loved the Lord Jesus as his Messiah, Dr. Reich could appreciate in a very real sense the Lord God’s message to His ancient people concerning His only begotten and well-beloved Son. By faith he beheld the glories of Christ in a measure not experienced by all who love the Lord. And now, even as he beholds His glory in the heavenly sanctuary, the testimony of his godly life and the Bible lessons which he has left continue to bear witness to the personal, moral, and official glories of Jesus, the Son of God, through whom the Father has spoken to the world. Dr. Reich’s manuscript has been reproduced in its original form, except for the added special assignments for study, the examination questions, and such material as was required in adapting these lessons for use as a correspondence course. May God richly bless this study of that One, by whom He hath in these last days spoken unto us. William Culbertson President, Moody Bible Institute NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM Instructions to Students How to Study 1. Get ready for study. a. Try to find a quiet spot free from distractions and noise. It’s much easier to concentrate on your studies if you are free from distractions. When this is not possible, then do the best you can. b. Have a pencil with you for regular use. Underline or mark important words or passages. You’ll notice that the textbook has important words or sentences underlined, in heavy type, or in italics. c. If possible keep a dictionary on the table where you are studying. Use it to clarify the meaning of words you do not understand. 2. Pray for God’s help. You need God’s help in order to understand what you study in the Bible and in your textbook. Before you begin each unit, bow your head in prayer and ask Him for help. 3. Study the Scripture portions at the beginning of each unit. The psalmist tells us: “The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple” (Psa 119:130). The Bible, God’s written Word, is a “lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path” (Psa 119:105). Consequently, the study of the Bible itself is vital. Each unit in this course is headed with a Scripture portion. You should study all of these until they become a part of your thinking. Here is a useful way to study these Scripture portions: a. Read the Bible passage as if you were reading it for the first time in your life. Read each sentence thoughtfully in order to understand precisely what it says. b. Study the thought relations of each sentence in the Scripture portion. Ask yourself these questions: - Why was each sentence written? - How does it fit into the whole passage? - Why was the portion written in the order given? Make a note of interesting or puzzling relationships that you may discover. c. Determine how this passage fits in its context. Do this by applying steps a and b (above) to the chapter or chapters in the Bible of which the Scripture portion is a part. d. Now relate the Scripture portion to the subject to be studied. Look at the title of the lesson you are to study. Ask yourself this question: - How does this Scripture portion amplify the lesson title? - Outline important thoughts in the Scripture portion that are related to the title of the lesson. - Meditate on the passage (that is, turn it over in your mind) until you understand it and until its richness has gripped your life. e. Finally, apply the Scripture portion to yourself. What has the passage taught you about the glories of Christ? How can you apply the principles, teaching, and pulse of the Scripture portion to your life and ministry? 4. Read the lesson in this textbook. You may find it helpful to read quickly in order to see the lesson as a whole. 5. Think through what you have read by using the outline or headings used to develop the lesson. 6. Read the lesson again. As you read, look up each Scripture reference listed. Study the lesson until you grasp the entire presentation. 7. Meditate on the lesson and its meaning and implications for your life. Relate the lesson to the Scripture portions that you have already studied. Determine what the teaching of this lesson should mean in your daily life. Begin now to apply these principles to yourself. 8. Now turn to the exam for this lesson and see how well you know the answers. Don’t write out the exam yet. Check it over to see what you still need to study. Now look for these answers in the lesson assigned or in your Bible. Glance through the lesson to help you find the answers to the questions that you cannot answer. Decide what the answers are and fix them firmly in your mind. It may help you to write out all of these answers on a separate sheet before you take the exam. 9. Check-up time. Have you studied the assigned Scripture and the corresponding lesson in this textbook? Can you answer the exam questions? Then you are ready to take the exam for the lesson. 10. We recommend the King James, or Authorized, Version of our English Bible. A suggested list of books for optional, additional reading and reference is included at the end. NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM How Long Should It Take? You are the best judge of how much time to allow for each lesson. Students vary in their speed in studying. In study by the correspondence method each individual student can plan his studies so that he can proceed at his own rate of speed. We recommend that you plan to complete one lesson each week or every two weeks. It is best to study regularly and to send in your exams at regular intervals. If you send in an exam each week, you will complete this course in three months. ======================================================================== CHAPTER 4: 01.01. THE ETERNAL SON OF GOD ======================================================================== The Eternal Son of God Heb 1:1-14 BOOK ONE THE PERSONAL GLORY OF CHRIST CHAPTER ONE “Unto the Son he [God the Father] saith, Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever” (Heb 1:8; cf. Psa 45:6). The Scriptures testify of One whom Christians confess as Lord. Even the Books known as the Old Testament, mirror-like, reflect His glory when they are beheld with “open face.” There are certain parts of the Word of God which seem like a constellation of stars of first magnitude. This is true of the opening chapter of the fourth Gospel, the first chapter of the Epistle to the Colossians, and particularly the Epistle to the Hebrews. At the very beginning of this epistle we are brought into a light which is above the brightness of the noonday sun; it blinds the eye with its splendor. No wonder the name of the author is hidden from view. Moses experienced this brightness when the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle on the day of its dedication and, therefore, he was excluded from the sanctuary he had reared (Exo 40:35). It was an indication that the Mosaic order would one day be eclipsed by the brighter glory, the glory of which it was but a shadow and sign. “God . . . hath . . . spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high” (Heb 1:1-3). In the Greek language, the thought expressed is that in His person the Son is essentially the brightness, or effulgence, of the glory of God. What this wonderful Being is in Himself is the ground of the infinite worth of all that He became and did. Back of the acquired and official glories of the Christ is His personal glory as the Son, not only as the Creator and Upholder of the universe, but as the very effulgence of the glory of the Godhead in absolute and timeless existence. He never became this as in Heb 1:4, where, in reference to His humanity, the Greek word meaning “being made” or “having become” is used. He became flesh (John 1:14), but He always was the outshining of the Godhead’s majesty in His essential being, and that before His incarnation. So the writer of the fourth Gospel, who also hides his identity in the presence of the incarnate Word, speaks of His glory as the only begotten Son who is (subsists) in the bosom of the Father. As such, the Gospel writer has declared Him in His incarnation (John 1:14; John 1:18), using in the Greek the word signifying that He, and none other, could tell out the bosom secrets of God. Truly we are in the presence of a glory which our finite capacity cannot be expected to grasp. But we can behold what is beyond our comprehension; we can worship. Silence, when face to face with the overwhelming majesty of the inscrutable, may be more fitting than words. Before we can rightly appreciate what our Lord became, we must hold fast in our souls what He is in His essential being. This is where Arius, an early church dignitary, erred so grievously. The gap between infinite God and finite man was left unbridged by reducing our Lord to a limited being, higher than man but still less than God. Before the soul’s vision was projected a demigod, which would have paganized the Church’s concept of her Lord. God is essentially Father and Son, even as the sun in the sky does not exist without its outshining light. The sunlight is of the same nature as that of the sun. The two are absolutely one and the same. So is the oneness of the Father and the Son. The one is inconceivable without the other. It is to be noted that the Church started with Christ as the object of divine adoration. She did not arrive at this lofty view of Christ when the apostles were no longer present to watch over her, and when Greek theological speculations had overlaid the original simplicity of her faith. So James, in what may be the earliest New Testament document, names himself a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, whom he calls the Lord of glory (Jas 1:1; Jas 2:1). No man can serve two masters. To a monotheistic Jew like James it was not incompatible to unite the name of his Lord; with that of God as the object of service. From the very beginning believers knew that in Him the invisible God had broken forth into visibility in the form of human life. Thus it was that the dying Stephen breathed the usual language of an Israelite departing this life, “Into thy hand I commend my spirit: Thou hast redeemed me, O Jehovah, thou God of truth” (Psa 31:5). Stephen, testifying that Jesus is Lord, addressed this prayer to Christ, adapting it in these words, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (Acts 7:59). As has often been pointed out, the first heresies which the early Church had to combat were not those which dimmed the Godhead glory of Christ, but those which cast doubt on the reality of His manhood when here in humiliation. John’s Gospel and his epistles were written to check this dangerous denial of the incarnation-that the all-creating Word had actually become flesh-and to show that the denial of the fact that Jesus Christ had come in the flesh originated in the “spirit of antichrist” (John 1:14; 1Jn 4:2-3). So we will hold fast the ancient confession of our Lord’s absolute deity and true humanity-“very God of very God, and very man of very man.” “Immanuel . . . God With Us” The entire Epistle to the Hebrews emphasizes this all-important, twofold truth that Jesus was “Immanuel . . . God with us”; and the two opening chapters are devoted entirely to this subject. Heb 1:1-14 speaks of His deity; Heb 2:1-18, of His humanity. They are the foundation pillars upon which the whole superstructure of the epistle rests. As the eternal, virgin-born Son of God, He lived without sin, wrought miracles, offered Himself the just for the unjust and rose from the dead. As the perfect Son of Man, He became our sympathetic Saviour; indeed, He had to become man in order to die. And as the God-Man He is our Great High Priest. This is the message of the Epistle to the Hebrews. In it we behold the personal glory of the eternal Son of God shining forth in the moral glory of the perfect Son of Man, whose official glories are seen in the work He came to do, and will continue to do, throughout the endless ages for His redeemed children. The Occasion for the Epistle The Hebrew Christians, to whom the epistle was addressed, were suffering bitter persecution from the Christ-rejecting Jews; and were, therefore, in danger of returning to Judaism (See Heb 10:26-39; Heb 12:3-17; Heb 13:3; Heb 13:13; cf. Heb 2:1-4; Heb 5:11-14, Heb 6:1-20; Heb 12:25-29). Because the Temple in Jerusalem had not been destroyed when the epistle was written, the priests who rejected Christ still continued the Levitical sacrifices, as Heb 10:11 plainly states: “And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.” The same thought of a continuing ritual at that time is expressed in Heb 13:10-11. In A. D. 70 all this outward form of Levitical worship was swept away, for the Temple was destroyed; but before that event it was particularly difficult for the Hebrew Christian to endure suffering at the hands of his fellow countrymen, who accused him of being disloyal to Moses and the nation of Israel. Therefore, the Epistle to the Hebrews was written for a threefold purpose: 1. To prove that Christ is superior to Judaism 2. To warn against apostasy 3. To encourage the fainthearted to “go on” with Christ The “Chief Point” of the Epistle The Levitical worship centered around the priesthood, of which the high priest was the chief personage. Moreover, Aaron was Israel’s first and, in a sense, greatest high priest. To prove that Christ is superior to the very best that Judaism had to offer, the Holy Spirit develops in detail the chief point of the argument that Christ is superior to Aaron, summarizing it briefly in Heb 8:1 : “Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest [as the one described in the preceding chapters], who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens. With this central theme in mind, read the epistle through, making a list of the ways in which Christ is referred to as “better than” the personages and the things of Judaism. This will give you a good outline view of the book. For example, every devout Hebrew valued these gifts from God: the messages of the prophets; the ministry of angels; the life and service of Moses, Joshua, and Aaron; and the ritual associated with the Tabernacle and Temple, in charge of the Levitical priests. The Holy Spirit takes these personages and sacred things of Judaism, and shows how the Lord Jesus Christ is superior to them all. Accordingly: - In Heb 1:1-14 and Heb 1:1-18 He is presented as better than prophets and angels; - In Heb 3:1-19 and Heb 4:1-16, better than Moses and Joshua; - In Heb 4:14-16, Heb 5:1-14, Heb 6:1-20, Heb 7:1-28, Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18, better than Aaron and all the Levitical priesthood. - As the Great High Priest (Heb 4:14)-and no other priest is called “great” in the Bible He ministers in a better tabernacle, under a better covenant, established upon better promises, because He offered a better sacrifice and assures His blood-bought children of a better hope of a better resurrection in a better country, even that “city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Heb 11:10). After you have read through the epistle, making your own list of these better things of Christ, read it again, writing down the first, second, and third references to Christ as the High Priest. You will find that, having laid the foundation pillars to the superstructure in Heb 1:1-14 and Heb 2:1-18, the Holy Spirit brings this section to its climax in Heb 2:17-18; for the Son of God who is also Son of Man is worthy to be “a merciful and faithful high priest.” In Heb 3:1-6 the Holy Spirit speaks of Him as “the Apostle and High Priest of our confession,” proving that He is superior to Moses. Then He pauses for a long parenthesis, in Heb 3:7-19, Heb 4:1-13, before continuing and developing the chief point of the epistle in Heb 4:14-16, Heb 5:1-14, Heb 6:1-20, Heb 7:1-28, Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18. From Heb 10:19-39, Heb 11:1-40, Heb 12:1-29, Heb 13:1-25 you will observe that the doctrinal message of the heart of the book is applied to the Christian life of every day. Turn now to the table of contents, and fix in your mind the broad outline of the epistle as indicated there. You may express it in different words, but what do you find in this, a good, logical division of the book? Is it not a marvelous panorama of the person and work of our blessed Lord? The personal glory of the eternal Son of God shone on earth in the moral glory of the sinless Son of Man, whose official glories are manifest before men, angels and demons in our Prophet, Priest and King. Dare we who are called by His name fail to seek above all else, to glorify Him in our earthly testimony, as we are exhorted to do in the closing chapters of this epistle? Throughout the book there are frequent parenthetical sections, in which the Holy Spirit faithfully warns the Hebrew Christians of the dangers of apostasy, exhorts them to go on with Christ, and encourages them to keep looking unto Jesus, with whom they will spend eternity in a better country. These parentheses are priceless in themselves. If you have done the assigned reading thus far, you are ready now to go back to chapter 1 for a more careful study of the personal glory of the eternal Son of God. The Son of God Is Better Than the Prophets Heb 1:1-3 There is nothing nobler in all literature than Heb 1:1-3. God spoke in the ages before Christianity by the prophets. It was a fragmentary and piecemeal revelation. Now His self-revelation is in a Son, whose personal dignity eclipses the prophets, and in whom we have the final and complete and abiding Word of God. The fact that God spoke in the Son is beyond all contradiction the greatest event in history. As the final Heir of all things, the Son is the Goal of history; as the brightness of the divine glory and the very expression of the divine substance: - He was before all history; as the Creator of the worlds (or ages), - He is the Originator of history; as the One who upholds all things by the word of His power,- He operates in all history; and as the One who by Himself made purification for sin and has seated Himself at the right hand of the Majesty on high, - He has become the Center of history. Christianity is thus superior to Judaism. The message of the prophets is surpassed by that of the Son. They were many, succeeding one another. Who can speak after the Son? They stood for different aspects of the mind of God, each contributing only a fragment of truth; He is the Truth itself. They felt and confessed their sinfulness; He could ask, “Which of you convinceth [or, ‘convicteth’] me of sin?” (John 8:46). The Spirit came occasionally on them, but abides in His sevenfold office on Him. The Word came to them; they did not possess it. He is the Word. They had to examine their own predictions and seek for their meaning; in the Son “are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col 2:3). They were not the light; they merely bore witness to it; He is the true Light (John 1:9), which will yet illuminate the universe. Look again at Heb 1:1-2 : God . . . Hath . . . Spoken “in time past” “unto the fathers” “by the prophets” “at sundry times and in divers manners” Through the written Word (John 1:1-14) “in these last days” “unto us” “by his Son” “once for all” (10:10) Through the living Word (Rev 19:13) - “At sundry times” God spoke of old time-a little here, a little there. - “In divers manners” His voice was heard of old-by vision, dream, fire, earthquake, flood and tempest; by law, prophecy, history, poem, psalm and parable; through angel, lawgiver, judge, poet, shepherd and king; in the burning bush and in the pillar of cloud and fire. But now He has spoken completely and finally in the Son whose glory is the light of heaven. How could even a bitterly persecuted Hebrew Christian in the days of the apostles think of compromising his testimony for such a Saviour? How could an enlightened, yet unregenerated, Hebrew turn away from his Messiah and Lord of glory? As you read once more Heb 1:2-3, note the number of descriptive terms suggested concerning the Son of God. What an array of glories! 1. The Heir of all things 2. The Creator 3. The brightness of the glory of God 4. The express image of His person 5. The God of providence (cf. Col 1:11) 6. The Lamb of Calvary 7. The Great High Priest-ever living, interceding Be sure to memorize this sevenfold description of the fullness and glory of the Son of God, either in the language of Scripture or in your own words. Do you have a single need that such a Lord cannot supply? The Son of God Is Better Than the Angels Heb 1:4-14 The constellation of seven stars of first magnitude of Heb 1:2-3 is followed by another constellation of seven luminaries; for the Holy Spirit quotes seven passages from the Psalms which cover our Lord’s entire pathway from the past eternity to His present session at God’s right hand, yea, even unto the future eternity. Thus His glories, personal, moral and official, pass before us. This wonderful Being, Son in His deity, yet Man in His incarnation, is seen in the highest place in heaven, above angelic hosts, principalities and powers in heavenly places, above cherubim and seraphim, above Michael or Gabriel, above the created sphere, and that as the Sin-purger and as the One in whom humanity, originally made lower than angels, is seen higher than they, on the very throne of Deity. And when, as “the first-begotten” from the dead, God brings Him again into the world, He will command all His angelic hosts, and “ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands” to worship Him (Rev 5:11-12). Even the Christ-rejecting Jews accepted the Old Testament as the Word of God; therefore, when their own Psalms, to say nothing of other portions, described “beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow” (1Pe 1:11), only a stubborn apostate could turn his back upon the true Messiah. But look again at these seven quotations from the Psalms, used here to prove Christ’s superiority to angels; and once more make your own list of them, together with the references from the Psalms. Read also Luk 24:44 for the risen Lord’s own statement that the Psalms spoke of Him (cf. Luk 24:27). Take time to read the entire Psalm from which each of these passages is quoted. Perhaps such an outline as the following will help you see the wonders of these seven quotations: THIS NEEDS REPAIRED * The Greek translation of the Old Testament used by Christ when He was on I earth. All of the Old Testament quotations in Hebrews are taken from this version. If you will use any good marginal reference Bible to locate other New Testament passages where these verses are quoted, you will receive added blessing. For example, our Lord applied Psa 110:1 to Himself when talking to the Pharisees (Mat 22:41-46). What a welcome the risen and ascended Lord must have received from the heavenly hosts as the Father greeted Him with these words, “Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool” (Heb 1:13)! Again, in his sermon at Antioch in Pisidia, Paul said that Psa 2:7 was a prophecy of Christ (Acts 13:33); and the same passage is used again in Heb 5:5 to describe the Lord Jesus. A study of the Messianic Psalms from which these passages are quoted will also yield rich rewards. Attention is called here to the context of only one of these quotations, Psa 102:23-27. In Psa 102:23 the Son said of His Father words that were prophetic of His death: “He weakened my strength in the way; he shortened my days.” Then He prayed in language that may well have been uttered in Gethsemane many centuries later: “O my God, take me not away in the midst of my days” (Psa 102:24). And to this cry of agony, planned from all eternity, written in the Psalm, and voiced by the suffering Saviour, the Father’s reassuring promise of resurrection for His eternal Son was spoken, first in the Psalm, then quoted in Heb 1:10-12 : “Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth . . . thou remainest . . . thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.” We stand amazed in the presence of such a Saviour-and such a Book! In these seven remarkable prophecies alone, written hundreds of years before they came to pass, the Holy Spirit described the Lord Jesus Christ in: - His divine power and glory, - His work of creation,- His eternal Sonship, - His sinless life, - His vicarious atonement, - His bodily resurrection, - His ascension into heaven to intercede for His redeemed at the right hand of the Father, - His coming again in glory to be worshiped by all His creatures -including the angels - His everlasting throne and kingdom. It is a graphic picture of the personal glory of the Son of God. - He has a better name than that of the angels; - He is God’s Son, to whom the Father “hath . . . given . . . a name which is above every name” (Php 2:9). - He is the Creator; angels are His creatures. - He is Lord and King; angels are His subjects and servants. - He is the One worshiped; the angels are His worshipers. Better than the angels? “Yea, he is altogether lovely” (Song of Solomon 5:16). “Ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands” of the redeemed, and the angels before the throne of God proclaim with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing” (Rev 5:11-12). Psa 2:7, quoted in Heb 1:5; Heb 5:5 (cf. Acts 13:33; Rom 1:4), regards the resurrection of Christ as the manifestation of a prior Sonship, not as the origin of His Sonship (Jamieson-Fausset-Brown). In other words, the Holy Trinity is eternal; the Father declared the Sonship of our Lord in Psa 2:7; centuries later His eternal Sonship was manifested to the world in His virgin birth and throughout His earthly ministry; and in His resurrection He was “declared to be the Son of God with power” (Rom 1:4). “Ministering Spirits . . . for . . . Heirs of Salvation” Heb 1:14 The Epistle to the Hebrews has much to say about the ministry of angels on behalf of the heirs of salvation, God’s blood-bought children. Read carefully the following verses from this book and from related passages of Scripture: 1. God’s messengers (Heb 1:7) “Who maketh his angels spirits [or, ‘his angels winds’]; his ministers a flaming fire” (Psa 104:4). 2. The believers’ ministers (Heb 1:14) The Lord Jesus also, referring to little children, spoke of “their angels” (Mat 18:10; cf. Psa 91:11; Psa 34:7; 1Ki 19:5; Dan 6:22; Acts 5:19; Acts 12:7-10). 3. “An innumerable company of angels” (Heb 12:22; cf. Rev 5:11) 4. Worshipers of the risen Lord at His second coming (Heb 1:6; cf. Mat 25:31) In Heb 2:1-18, where Christ’s perfect humanity is the chief topic, man s position in this life is described as lower than the angels; but in heaven the redeemed of God will share the glory of Christ, higher than that of the angels of God. Not once does the Bible state or imply that human beings will be angels in heaven. Angels are spirit-beings, God’s ministers and ours. They “desire to look into” the story of the cross and the empty tomb (1Pe 1:12); but redeemed sinners, not angels, are entrusted with the proclamation of that glorious message. (For a more complete discussion of Bible truth concerning angels, see the Scofield Reference Bible note on Heb 1:14). Did Paul Write Hebrews? When God is silent, who is man to question? That the human author of the epistle is purposely kept out of sight seems evident; for it is Christ who is the Apostle described here (Heb 3:1), and the Holy Spirit would hold Him only before our view. Yet many Bible students believe that Paul wrote this book; and that, therefore, it bears the full weight of his apostolic authority. Here are some of the reasons for this view: 1. The doctrine is Pauline. 2. The writer had been a prisoner for Christ’s sake (Heb 10:34). 3. He knew Timothy (Heb 13:23). 4. He was in Italy when he wrote this epistle (Heb 13:24). 5. The personal allusions remind us of Paul (Heb 13:22-25). 6. Like all of Paul’s letters, the epistle closes with a reference to the grace of God. 7. The early Church fathers ascribed the epistle to Paul (cf. 2Pe 3:15). 8. There is no substantial evidence that another wrote it; nor is there reason to suppose that Paul was not the human author. Assignment for Exam 1 1. If you have been faithful in your study of this lesson, doing all the suggested reading, you should practically know Hebrews 1 from memory. If not, will you try to learn it? This is not required, but it will more than repay you. 2. In the exam for this lesson, as well as for those to follow, you will be questioned on all the subject matter presented in the textbook, or specially assigned. 3. Be sure to look up and study all Bible references given in each lesson. You will not be required to memorize these unless they are definitely assigned. 4. Remember that you may use the exams as an aid to study. 5. When you have finished your study of this lesson, go to Exam 1, and answer the questions as indicated. CHAPTER ONE EXAM NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM 1. Complete: (10 points) a. The threefold purpose of the inspired writer of the epistle to the Hebrews was (1) ___________________________________________________________________________ (2) ___________________________________________________________________________ (3) ___________________________________________________________________________ b. What is the theme, or “chief point,” of the epistle? ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ c. According to the textbook, what important event in Jewish history had not yet taken place at the time this epistle was written? ______________________________________________________________________________ 2. Fill in the blanks. (10 points) a. The personal glory of Christ has to do with His ______________________________________________________________________________ b. The moral glory of Christ has to do with His ______________________________________________________________________________ c. The official glories of Christ concern His ______________________________________________________________________________ d. The eternal Son of God became the Son of Man in order to ______________________________________________________________________________ e. Therefore, as the God-Man, He is our ______________________________________________________________________________ (Write here Christ’s official title, which summarizes the “chief point” of this epistle). 3. Complete. (20 points) Name five ways by which God spoke in Old Testament times unto the fathers. (1) ___________________________________________________________________________ (2) ___________________________________________________________________________ (3) ___________________________________________________________________________ (4) ___________________________________________________________________________ (5) ___________________________________________________________________________ Name four types of persons by whom He thus spoke. (1) ___________________________________________________________________________ (2) ___________________________________________________________________________ (3) ___________________________________________________________________________ (4) ___________________________________________________________________________ How has God finally spoken? (Heb 1:2) _____________________________________________________________________________ 4. Name the seven terms used in Heb 1:1-3 to describe Christ’s fullness and glory. (7 points) (1) ___________________________________________________________________________ (2) ___________________________________________________________________________ (3) ___________________________________________________________________________ (4) ___________________________________________________________________________ (5) ___________________________________________________________________________ (6) ___________________________________________________________________________ (7) ___________________________________________________________________________ 5. Match the Old Testament prophecy of Christ in column 1 with the corresponding reference (in Hebrews I) to the Person and work of Christ in column 2. Place the letter of the correct prophecy in column 1 in the proper blank in column 2. (10 points) THIS NEEDS REPAIRED 6. Name four ways in which Christ is proved to be superior to angels, as set forth in these Old Testament quotations. (8 points) (1) ___________________________________________________________________________ (2) ___________________________________________________________________________ (3) ___________________________________________________________________________ (4) ___________________________________________________________________________ 7. State briefly the fourfold summary of the teaching of the Epistle to the Hebrews concerning the holy angels. (10 points) a. Heb 1:7 ________________________________________________________________________ b. Heb 1:14 _______________________________________________________________________ c. Heb 12:22 ______________________________________________________________________ d. Heb 1:6 ________________________________________________________________________ e. What did Christ say about angels in Mat 18:10 b? _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ 8. Give five reasons which lead many to believe that Paul was the apostle through whom the Holy Spirit wrote the Epistle to the Hebrews. (10 points) (1) ___________________________________________________________________________ (2) ___________________________________________________________________________ (3) ___________________________________________________________________________ (4) ___________________________________________________________________________ (5) ___________________________________________________________________________ 9. Look up the following Scripture references, and in the blank spaces provided put the correct name. (10 points) a. Acts 9:18-22(1) Who spoke concerning Christ?__________________ b. Acts 7:59(2) Who spoke to Christ?__________________ c. Heb 1:2(3) Who spoke in Christ?__________________ d. Acts 2:25-31(4) Who spoke in prophecy of Christ?__________________ e. Luk 2:11(5) Who spoke to shepherds of Christ?__________________ 10. With your Bible open at Psa 102:23-27, explain briefly what this entire prophecy foretold. (You may use your Bible to find related references.) (5 points) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 5: 01.02. THE PERFECT SON OF MAN ======================================================================== The Perfect Son of Man Heb 2:1-18 BOOK TWO THE MORAL GLORY OF CHRIST CHAPTER TWO “Jesus . . . was made [for a little time] lower than the angels for the suffering of death . . . that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man” (Heb 2:9). Heb 2:1-4 is a parenthetical exhortation based on chapter 1; whereas Heb 2:5-18 continues to prove that the Lord Jesus Christ is superior to angels by showing that, in the age to come, the angels will be subject to the humanity which our Lord took upon Himself when He “was made flesh, and dwelt among us.” The Danger of Neglecting “So Great Salvation” Heb 2:1-4 The very first word of Heb 2:1-18 links that which follows with the description of the personal glory of the Son of God as presented in chapter 1: “Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip [drift away]” (Heb 2:1). The picture here is that of a ship which drifts past the harbor into the storm at sea, or past the moorings into the strong current of the river. The application is plain: the strong current of persecution which the Hebrews of apostolic times faced was a very real source of danger to those who had given only intellectual assent to the gospel of Christ. “The word spoken by angels” (Heb 2:2) was the Law of Moses. (See Acts 7:53; Gal 3:19). Since the transgressor of the law received punishment which he deserved for his disobedience, “how shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation” (Heb 2:2-3)? In this warning we have another of the many striking contrasts of the epistle. The law was great and awe-inspiring; but the gospel of the Son of God is greater by far! 1. It was spoken by the Lord (Heb 2:3). Note Paul’s own insistence here that the gospel was originally proclaimed by the Lord Jesus Himself, and not, as some would have us believe, by Paul or any other apostle. To His Father in heaven our Lord] Jesus said in the days of His flesh, “I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me” (John 17:8). 2. It was confirmed by the apostles (Heb 2:3). 3. It was witnessed to by miracles through the Holy Spirit (Heb 2:4). - God thought it; - The prophets taught it; - The devil fought it; - The Lord wrought it; - The Spirit brought it home to our hearts; Therefore, it is great. To reject God’s grace is a more serious matter than to break His Holy law. The Son of Man Is Better Than the Angels Heb 2:5-18 Continuing the argument that Christ is superior to angels, the Holy Spirit, in Heb 2:5-18, quotes four passages from the Hebrew Old Testament hat prove our Lord’s perfect humanity, as well as His superiority over all the angelic hosts. 1. Christ, not angels-Ruler in the world to come “For unto angels hath he not put in subjection the world [Greek, ‘the inhabited earth’] to come, whereof we speak” (Heb 2:5), When the God of heaven shall set up a kingdom over the inhabited earth (Dan 2:44), it will be administered not by angels but by the Son of Man and “his brethren,” sons of God, brought by Him and with Him to glory. God will never give up His original purpose in the creation of man, now fallen and under sentence of death. He already has a Man in the glory, in every way suited to express the image of God and to bear rule over the works of His hand. He has all things under His feet, according to Psa 8:1-9, though we see not yet all brought into subjection to Him. This is the age of testimony and of faith in that testimony; “the world to come” will be the age of public display. In the meantime, He is “bringing many sons unto glory” to a position higher than that of angels (Heb 2:10). When He reigns, His sons will share His throne. But as they are still in the place of trial and temptation, He who partook of flesh and blood in His earthly life, and who is still Man, though in a glorified condition, having made Himself acquainted when here with the sufferings of His brethren, .succors them and carries them through victoriously. Though they are still in weakness, “he is not ashamed to call them brethren,” because He, the Sanctifier, and they, the sanctified, “are all of one,” that is, one Father, God, even as the cherubim and the mercy seat were all beaten out of one piece of gold. The sanctified are those separated unto God by faith in Christ. Sanctification, in the Bible, is threefold: (1) It is redemptive-the work of the Holy Spirit in setting sinners apart unto salvation, as in 2Th 2:13; (2) It is positiona- with respect to our standing before God, as suggested in Heb 10:10; (3) It is practical-the result of the daily, hourly cleansing by the Word of God, as suggested by our Lord in John 17:17, and by Paul in Eph 5:26. Scripture does not teach, however, the ultimate attainment of sinless perfection for the believer in this life. 2. Christ’s perfect humanity “for the suffering of death . . . for every man” In describing His humanity, the Holy Spirit uses our Lord’s earthly name, “Jesus” (Heb 2:9), which means “Saviour.” It is the name of the lowly Man of Galilee, the more striking when compared with His names of Deity used in chapter 1; and yet “Jesus” contains the word “Jehovah.” It is impossible to separate our Lord’s humanity from His deity! The eternal Son of God became the perfect Son of Man in order to die. The emphasis here upon God’s purpose in the incarnation is marked: “. . . for the suffering of death” (Heb 2:9) “. . . that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man” (Heb 2:9) “. . . [made] perfect through sufferings” (Heb 2:10) “. . . that through death he might destroy [literally, ‘render powerless’] him that had the power of death, that is, the devil” (Heb 2:14) “. . . to make reconciliation [propitiation] for the sins of the people” (Heb 2:17). Because, as the God-Man, He offered one sufficient sacrifice for sins; because He ever liveth to make intercession for His blood-bought sons; because He deals gently with them; therefore, He is qualified to be “a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God” (Heb 2:17). “For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succor them that are tempted” (Heb 2:18). The Son of God did not become an angel-to redeem the fallen angels- when Christ was born in Bethlehem. As Man, He condescended to be made for a little time lower than the angels for the suffering of death. “For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham” (Heb 2:16). Remember that the word “destroy” (Heb 2:14) means “to render powerless,” or “to bring to nought.” It does not mean annihilation (cf. Rev 20:10). The thought of this passage is forcefully expressed in 1Co 15:54-57. But in addition to that, Christ robbed Satan of the power of death, in order that His children might be delivered from the fear of death in this life (Read all of 1Co 15:1-58; 1Th 4:13-18; Php 1:21; Php 1:23; 2Co 5:8). 3. The moral glory of the Son of Man That the eternal God, Creator and Lord, described in chapter 1, should pass by the angels, who are higher than man in power and glory, stooping to become man, opens up the display of new glories, glories which would have been impossible except for this self-emptying-not of His Godhead, but of the form of it when He appeared in the likeness of a servant (Php 2:5-8). These new glories are exhibited by the moral glory of His human life on earth, the record of which is presented in the four Gospels. Outside of these accounts, the Epistle to the Hebrews dwells more fully on this theme than does any other portion of the New Testament. Whatever our Lord touched in His earthly humiliation, He made glorious. Whatever relationships He sustained, He was always Himself in them, though His essential dignity was veiled, except to faith. Thus in His human existence here below a new kind of glory came into evidence. It was the moral glory of the Son of Man on which heaven dwelt lovingly, watching His movements as “a sweet savor of Christ” went up from that life in this world made obnoxious by sin. The Gospels are not the record of what men saw in Jesus, but of what the Father saw in Him. He was the Object of heaven’s observation, heaven opening upon Him, as in the Epistle to the Hebrews the heavens are open to our view that we might see the Man who glorified God here below, now in the place of honor on high. There were only a few who appreciated the “poor” man of Psalm 41-a prophetic picture of the Messiah. He was “a root out of a dry ground,” having “no form nor comeliness.” The masses saw no beauty in Him that they might desire Him (See Isa 53:2). Only those in whom the Father had been secretly at work could say, “We beheld his glory.” Although His deity was concealed under the veil of His humanity, the glory of grace and truth shone forth. His dependent humanity became the vehicle through which the indwelling Father could declare Himself and open His heart to man. As the hidden beauties of light are revealed by a lens through which it may pass, so it was that the obscure and lowly men of Galilee were privileged to see this glory. Thus our Lord in Heb 2:1-18 is seen taking up suffering and giving a new meaning to it. Many and varied were the sufferings of the Son of Man. As the Captain, or Author, of our salvation, He was made “perfect through sufferings” (Heb 2:10). A similar statement is written in Heb 5:8-9 : “. . . Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him.” As Son of God it was His prerogative to command, but as Son of Man He followed a new course of action and learned obedience! It was not that He had to learn to obey as do fallen men. There was no principle of lawlessness in Him, but as the Holy Spirit wrote through Paul, “Christ Jesus . . . became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Php 2:8). What moral glory! In a world where everybody aims at self-exaltation-the nature of the “man of sin”-that One who originally was in the form of God, but took upon Himself the likeness of a bond servant and as found in fashion as a man, humbled Himself, becoming acquainted with human sorrows, trials and temptations. He was made perfect through offerings. He was graduated from that school, so to speak. What a sight to move our hearts! In the second chapter of the epistle we see Him stooping to be made lower than the angels that, as Man, He might be able to take up the problem of the ruin brought into God’s world by the Fall. He wanted to present to His Father a world in which He could once more delight, not one defiled by sin and shadowed by death as that into which He entered. “The world to come” will be very different, even as He willed it. Heb 2:5 says that we speak now of that world. We love to speak of it. Faith walks in the light of it, and overcomes the present because it is sure of the future order, when the once humbled Son of Man, according to the counsels of God, will be in complete control. When He is thus seen, His brethren, of whose flesh and blood He partook, whose path He trod, whose trials He endured, will be in that same glory with Him. He is bringing them into it, educating them for it. Although they are still in the making as unfinished articles even now “he is not ashamed to call them brethren” (Heb 2:11-12; Heb 2:17). He delights to call them His “sons,” His “children” (Heb 2:10; Heb 2:13). He comes into their midst when they assemble in His name to sing the Father’s praise, just as He will lead their praises in the glory by and by (Cf. Mat 18:20; Rev 1:13). Indeed, did not the Lord Jesus manifest unto us the Father’s name (John 17:6)? As they are being exercised in a life of trust, to walk by faith and not by sight, to refuse the visible for the unseen and eternal, He also would go that way, saying, “I will put my trust in him” (Heb 2:13). Thus in His life of trust He was made like unto His brethren. How He glorified this life of poverty, dependent on divine supplies! When He multiplied the loaves and fishes, it was in faith. He did not ask the Father to fill a great storehouse with bread and fish. Five barley loaves and two small fishes in His hands, and no more! Each handing of them to the disciples for them to pass on to the multitude was in faith, believing that there would be still the humble provision which He had placed into the Father’s mighty hands for His benediction. He took them afresh, with each act of giving, out of the Father’s hands. So it was with Elijah and the widow of Zarephath. They had never more than a handful of flour each day, sufficient only for the next meal, till the famine ended. Christ “suffered being tempted.” What a profound mystery! I take it that the very holiness and immaculate purity of the humanity of our Lord caused the suffering. There was no sin in Him to sympathize with the evil suggestion. His holy nature was only pained by it. What agonies He must have suffered thus! The idea of entering into temptation would he loathsome to us also, if we allowed His Spirit to rule in our hearts. But alas! We often secretly delight in the evil which grace delivers us from committing. What moral glory in the silent suffering of Him who shrank from every contact, even in thought, with that which was displeasing to God! 4. Four Old Testament prophecies of the perfect humanity of the Son of Man Now turn again to the four Old Testament prophecies quoted in Heb 2:1-18, in order to prove the perfect humanity of our Lord: Isa 8:18 Psa 16:86:7-8 Psa 22:22 Christ’Isa 8:17 Jesus “. . . a little [time] lower than the angels” Jesus “in the midst” of His brethren Jesus’ trust in His Father-a human experience His identification with His children A careful study of these four prophecies will yield rich reward; for our purpose here we mention only a few highlights as they have to do with our lesson. The inscription of Psa 8:1-9 tells us that David was the human author of this Messianic prophecy. There is doubtless a double reference in Psa 8:3-8 : (1) to the dominion which God gave to Adam, only part of which fallen man retains; (2) primarily a reference to the dominion which is Christ’s, as Heb 2:6-9 abundantly proves. (Cf. also Psa 8:2 with Mat 21:16). Psa 22:1-21 is a graphic prophecy of the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus, quoted freely in the four Gospels (Cf. Psa 22:1 with Mat 27:46; Psa 22:6-8 with Mat 27:39-44; Psa 22:13-17 with the crucifixion scene; Heb 2:18 with Mat 27:35 and related passages). However, verses Psa 22:22-31 of Psa 22:1-22 speak of our Lord’s resurrection and coming kingdom. Seen in its setting, Psa 22:22, our second quotation in Heb 2:1-18, becomes all the more wonderful. Because He became one with His brethren, because He died and lives forevermore-only because of Calvary and the empty tomb-can our Lord sing praise unto His Father in the midst of His brethren! The third quotation, from Isa 8:17, concerning the implicit trust of the Son of Man in His Father in heaven, hardly needs further comment here. As we read on in Hebrews, we find our Lord’s humanity evidenced also by His prayers (Heb 5:7). Trust and prayer go hand in hand; both are human experiences; and both were abundantly manifested in our Lord’s life on earth. The fourth Old Testament passage quoted in Heb 2:1-18 had an immediate, historical reference to the history of Israel, and a major, prophetic application to Christ and His children. Isaiah’s two sons were “for signs and for wonders in Israel” (Isa 8:18); for by the very meaning of their names God was teaching His people some searching lessons. “Maher-shalal-hash-baz” means “haste ye, haste ye to the spoil,” and was prophetic of the captivity; whereas “Shear-jashub” means “a remnant shall return,” and was “a sign” of the return of the faithful remnant to Jerusalem under Zerubbabel, Ezra and Nehemiah (See Isa 8:18; Isa 7:3; Isa 8:1-22). Thus the immediate, historical reference of Isa 8:18 was long ago fulfilled; but, according to Heb 2:13, the chief reference is to Christ in His identification with His redeemed children-the Church, which is His Body, now being formed to the praise of His glory. Can it be said of us who belong to the family of God that we are “for signs”-for a testimony to His grace? We are called to be His witnesses in a godless world. “We See Jesus . . . Crowned With Glory and Honor” Heb 2:9 On Calvary the Lord of glory wore a crown of thorns, the very symbol of the curse, for there were no thorns in Eden. Now, by faith “we see Jesus . . . crowned with glory and honor.” And when we shall see “all things in subjection under his feet,” we shall also see Him crowned with “many crowns” (Rev 19:12). As the “one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1Ti 2:5), He is seated on the right hand of the Father, praying for His brethren, even as He waits for that coming day when all His enemies shall become His footstool. He is the Man Christ Jesus; but He is also the One “for whom are all things, and by whom are all things” (Heb 2:10)-Heir and Creator; for the Son of God of chapter 1 is the Son of Man of chapter 2. And because He is the God-Man, He is our Great High Priest: - “Merciful” (Heb 2:17) - “Faithful” (Heb 2:17) - “Able” (Heb 2:18) Moreover, the service He renders is all-sufficient: 1. He has made propitiation “for the sins of the people” (Heb 2:17). 2. “He is able to succor them that are tempted” (Heb 2:18). Do you see how this passage in Heb 2:17-18 brings to a climax the argument thus far, introducing specifically for the first time the chief point of the epistle? May we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, our Lord, now crowned with glory and honor-all-wise, all-powerful, all-sufficient, full of grace and truth! Then worry and fear will give place to thanksgiving and trust “in the light of His glory and grace.” Assignment for Exam 2 1. Set aside an appointed time each day for Bible reading, prayer and praise. 2. Study the Old Testament references and general content of the four quotations in Heb 2:1-18. 3. Do you see the relationship between Heb 1:1-14 and Heb 2:1-18? 4. When you have made Lesson 2 a part of your very thinking, take Exam 2. CHAPTER TWO NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM 1. In the right-hand margin write “True” or “False” after each of the following statements. (20 points) EXAMPLE: The gospel of the Son of God is greater than the law of Moses.__TRUE__ a. “The world [or age] to come” will be ruled by angels.__________ b. This is the age of public display in God’s program.__________ c. In Christ’s kingdom His sons will share His throne.__________ d. Christ became Man in order to teach man self-improvement.__________ e. Christ gave up His humanity when He returned to heaven.__________ f. It is quite possible to separate the Lord’s humanity from His deity.__________ g. “Jesus” means “Saviour.”__________ h. In order to become Man, Christ was made a little lower than the angels. ______ i. “Bring to nought” means “destroy.”__________ j. “The word spoken by angels” was the law.__________ In your own words, or in scriptural language, list the three statements which follow this question of Heb 2:3 a, emphasizing the greatness of the gospel, “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?” (6 points) (1) ___________________________________________________________________________ (2) ___________________________________________________________________________ (3) ___________________________________________________________________________ In the blank space write the letter of the correct answer, (18 points) EXAMPLE: In the Epistle to the Hebrews there are (a) 13 chapters (b) 6 chapters (c) 20 chapters (d) 10 chapters__________ (1) Heb 2:1-4 speaks of the danger of neglecting (a) Christian duties (b) gifts (c) salvation (d) church loyalty__________ (2) The double reference in Psa 8:4-6 applies to (a) David and Christ (b) Adam and David (c) Christ and Adam (d) Adam and future generations (e) David and future generations__________ 4. .... 5. Show how the following Old Testament prophecies, quoted in Heb 2:1-18, foretold the perfect humanity of the Lord Jesus, enabling Him to become our compassionate Great High Priest. (8 points) a. Psa 8:4-6 _________________________________________________________________ b. Psa 22:22 _________________________________________________________________ c. Isa 8:17 __________________________________________________________________ d. Isa 8:18.r 6. Summarize briefly the threefold teaching of Scripture regarding sanctification as outlined in this lesson. (9 points) a. ________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________ b. ________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________ c. ________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________ 7. Name the two ways in which Heb 2:17-18 prove that our Great High Priest’s ministry is all-sufficient for our needs. (10 points) a. ________________________________________________________________________ b. ________________________________________________________________________ c. What three words used in these verses describe our Lord in His Priestly ministry? (1) _________________________________________________________________ (2) _________________________________________________________________ (3) _________________________________________________________________ 8. Explain the statement in Heb 2:1-18 which tells us that the Author of our salvation was made “perfect through sufferings.” (9 points) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ 9. Select a verse from Heb 2:1-18 and write it out from memory, giving the appropriate reference. (Use the King James Version for memory work in this course.) (10 points) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 6: 01.03. HIS HOUSE - HIS REST - HIS WORD ======================================================================== His House - His Rest - His Word Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13 BOOK THREE THE OFFICIAL GLORIES OF CHRIST CHAPTER THREE “By his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us” (Heb 9:12). “Wherefore he is able also to, save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them” (Heb 7:25). The Apostle and High Priest The ministry of succor from heaven, mentioned at the close of Heb 2:1-18, introduces a new glory of Christ-that of His High Priestly grace, which the epistle develops from this point on through Heb 4:14-16, Heb 5:1-14, Heb 6:1-20, Heb 7:1-28, Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18. It is one of our Lord’s official glories, presented in this book in all its beauty and majesty. He is spoken of as “a great high priest that is passed into the heavens” (Heb 4:14), has entered into heaven (Heb 6:20), is “made higher than the heavens” (Heb 7:26), and is now seated “on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens” (Heb 8:1). Heb 3:1 exhorts the Hebrew Christians to consider Christ Jesus in this merciful and faithful ministry: “Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession.” Here the Holy Spirit addresses believers as “holy brethren” because they are one with the holiness of the Sanctifier. He urges them to consider the Lord Jesus in the twofold character of Apostle and High Priest. - In Heb 1:1-14 He is the Apostle-God’s spokesman to us; for an apostle is “one sent.” - In Heb 2:1-18 He is High Priest-our spokesman with God. We partake of a heavenly calling, sharing in His present heavenly life, even as He when here partook of our earthly condition. And we are to consider His present ministry. His present faithfulness is set before us for our adoring consideration: 1. As Apostle He exercises the ministry of bringing to us God’s Word. 2. As High Priest He takes our burdens and problems to God. A Son Over His Own House-Better Than Moses Heb 3:1-6 In this ministry He eclipses Moses, the greatest figure of the old covenant. Moses was faithful as a servant in all of God’s house, that is, the Jewish Tabernacle. Our Lord is faithful as a Son over His own house (Heb 3:5-6). Moses was in the house; the Son is over the house. “He that built all things is God”; and He intends finally to make the universe, of which He was the Builder, His house. In the meantime, we are His house (Heb 3:6), as seen in type in the Tabernacle in the wilderness. Thus, as Heb 10:21 tells us, we have “an high priest over the house of God,” a spiritual house, not made by hands. (Cf. Eph 2:19-22; 1Pe 2:5). The Hebrews, to whom this epistle was addressed, were familiar with their own Old Testament Scriptures; therefore, they did not need to be reminded that the words of Heb 3:2 were quoted from Num 12:7 : “My servant Moses . . . is faithful in all mine house.” They knew the story of that chapter from the wilderness wanderings. If you are not familiar with it, read it just here to see how God uttered these words of approval concerning Moses when “Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married” (Num 12:1). They had also accused their brother of assuming too much authority, “and the Lord heard it.” Then it was that the Lord God came down in the pillar of cloud, rebuked Miriam and Aaron, commended Moses for his meekness and faithfulness, and smote Miriam with leprosy. Only the sacred office which he held as high priest prevented Aaron from a similar chastisement, for no leper could be a priest in Israel (Lev 21:16-24; Lev 22:1-4). Moses was exceedingly faithful in God’s house. Did he not build the Tabernacle “according to the pattern” which God showed him in the mount (Exo 25:40; Heb 8:5)? Did he not instruct and lead the priests and the people in the God-given worship which foreshadowed the Saviour to come? The Hebrews of apostolic times knew all this. They had every reason to honor and love the memory of Moses. But Christ Jesus was “worthy of more glory than Moses.” He “was faithful to him that appointed him” (Heb 3:2), faithful to the Father in fulfilling the work which He came to earth to accomplish. He was faithful in becoming the all-sufficient Sacrifice for sinners, and He is faithful in His present ministry of intercession for His redeemed. “If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself” (2Ti 2:13). The Jewish Tabernacle-A Type of Christ and His Church When the Holy Spirit, in Heb 3:1-6, referred to Moses’ faithfulness in the Jewish Tabernacle to illustrate our Lord’s greater faithfulness in His house, which is His Church, He was speaking of history familiar to the Hebrew Christians. They knew the story of the Tabernacle in the wilderness, written in Exodus 25-40, as well as the record of the ministry of the priests and Levites in that sanctuary, set forth in Leviticus. And we must know these portions of the Old Testament if we would understand the Epistle to the Hebrews. When we study chapters 8 and 9 of this book, we shall see that the inspired writer has much to say about the Jewish Tabernacle in contrast with “the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man” (Heb 8:2). Therefore, consider the significance of this remarkable, prophetic message-that the Tabernacle is a type of Christ and His Church. The very pieces of furniture were placed in the form of a cross, and each one spoke of the promised Redeemer: 1. In the outer court: The brazen altar before the gate foreshadowed Calvary’s cross, where the blood of the Lamb of God was shed; whereas the brazen laver spoke of Christ, the believer’s Cleanser from the defilement of sin. 2. In the Holy Place: The golden candlestick was a type of Christ, the Light of the world; the table of showbread, of Christ, the Bread of life; the golden altar of incense, of Christ, our Advocate and Intercessor. 3. In the Holy of Holies: Above the Ark of the Covenant, for which the mercy seat of pure gold was a covering, God dwelt in the pillar of cloud and fire between the two cherubim of gold. In the Ark were the tables of stone, on which the Ten Commandments were written with the finger of God. Israel had broken that holy law, and the penalty was death; but hiding the broken law from view was the blood-sprinkled mercy seat. Israel’s high Priest, representing his people, could enter the Holy of Holies once a year, on the Day of Atonement, “not without blood,” which he sprinkled on and before the mercy seat for his own sins and the sins of all Israel. By faith in the promised Redeemer he could enter into the very presence of God, and not die. “When the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son” to be “a propitiation,” or mercy seat, “for the remission of sins” (Gal 4:4 Rom 3:25). When Israel’s Great High Priest entered into the true Holy of Holies, even heaven itself, once for all, presenting His own blood for the sins of His people-He had no sin in Him, for which to atone-then He opened the way into the very throne-room of God. And by faith in His finished work on Calvary, every redeemed sinner of every age and of every nation can enter there-and not die! He shall live forever in the presence of the holy God who gave His life a ransom for many. How faithful is the Lord Jesus Christ-faithful to the Father who appointed Him to His Priestly office; faithful to His redeemed, whom He represents at the throne of grace! And still He abideth faithful! While the typical teaching concerning the Tabernacle has to do primarily with the glories of Christ, the Church also is seen in union with Him as “an habitation of God through the Spirit” (Eph 2:19-22). The sanctuary in the wilderness was made of forty-eight boards of acacia wood, covered with gold, set upright in sockets of silver, and held firmly together by gold-covered bars, which were passed through rings of gold. Over this framework the coverings of the tent of the congregation were spread. Those boards, once acacia trees, having been severed from the earth and stripped of their natural beauty, were given a beauty not their own-pure gold. Thus they represent believers in Christ, who were crucified with Him and clothed in the beauty of His righteousness when they became members of His body, which is “the temple of the Holy Spirit” (1Co 3:16; 1Co 6:19). The boards of the Tabernacle rested in sockets of silver, obtained from the redemption money of the children of Israel (Exo 30:11-16). Likewise, believers in the Lord Jesus rest in Him who is the Foundation Stone of the Church, even as they become living stones in that spiritual house that shall abide for all eternity (1Co 3:11; 1Pe 2:5-8). As the forty-eight boards of the Tabernacle were securely fastened together with gold-covered bars, so individual Christians form one body, of which Christ is the Head, eternally united one to another in the bond of faith, eternally secure in Him. The Jewish Tabernacle was very costly; some have estimated its value in millions of dollars. Yet no earthly sum can compare with the price our Lord paid for His Bride when He shed His blood for her on the accursed tree (1Co 6:20; 1Pe 1:18-19). The sons of Aaron, priests, were also prophetic of Christians, believer-priests in the Church, even as Aaron was a type of Christ, our Great High Priest; for it is the believer’s privilege and responsibility to tell the story of the one sufficient sacrifice of the Lamb of God, and to offer the spiritual sacrifice of prayer and praise and fruitfulness in His service (Rom 12:1; Php 4:18; 1Pe 2:9; Rev 1:5-6; Heb 13:15-16). The glory of God in the pillar of cloud and fire dwelt in the Tabernacle, in the midst, of His people, even as the crucified and risen Lord is “in the midst” wherever two or three are gathered together in His name (Mat 18:20; Rev 1:13). These are some of the reasons the Holy Spirit wrote, saying that the Lord Jesus is “worthy of more glory than Moses, who was faithful” in all God’s house. Our Lord’s faithfulness in the household of God cannot he measured! (For a detailed study of the Jewish Tabernacle and its typical significance, see the Bibliography at the back of this text). The Rest of God Heb 3:7-19; Heb 4:1-11 In Heb 3:7-19, Heb 4:1-13 there is a digression that forms one of several parenthetical passages of the epistle, given to warn, exhort and encourage the believer in Christ. God’s rest is the theme of Heb 3:7-19, Heb 4:1-11; His Word is the subject of Heb 4:12-13. Our merciful and faithful High Priest can and will lead us into His rest (Heb 4:14-16), of which His creation rest (Heb 4:3-4) and the Canaan rest (Heb 4:8) were types. In accomplishing this, He uses His Word as a living and powerful instrument (Heb 4:12-13), that is, a means to lead us into His eternal rest. This experience may be realized now by faith, and it will be completely enjoyed by those who trust Him when they are in His presence in heaven forevermore. Unless you are very sure that you know the story of Num 13:1-33 and Num 14:1-45, turn now to those chapters and read them before you continue with this lesson. Then read Psa 95:7-11, written by David some four hundred years later than the events described in Num 13:1-33, Num 14:1-45. Having done that, you will be ready to link the “wherefore” of Heb 3:7 with Heb 3:12 to get the full force of the warning written here. Now read this entire section concerning the rest of God (Heb 3:7-19; Heb 4:1-11), thinking of its subdivisions as follows; or you may prefer your own outline; indeed, because of the repetition for emphasis, it is difficult to make a fixed division of some of these verses. Heb 3:7-11 -The quotation from Psa 95:1-11 Heb 3:12-15 -The warning against apostasy in apostolic times Heb 3:16-19 - The example of Israel’s unbelief in the wilderness Heb 4:1-2 - Further warning and exhortation Heb 4:3-10 - The contrast between God’s rest and: (1) His creation rest and (2) The Canaan rest Heb 4:11 -Yet further exhortation The Israelites under Moses’ leadership were tested in the wilderness. Except for Caleb and Joshua (Heb 3:16 b), all the males who were twenty years of age when they left Egypt (cf. Num 14:29 with Num 1:19-20) failed to enter into the Canaan rest God had for them, because of their unbelief. Likewise, the Hebrew Christians of apostolic times were similarly tested-so also are we tested today. Besides, even Canaan did not prove to be the rest which God has for His people. Rest for Israel in the land was rendered impossible because of their evil behavior there, because of their lack of faith in “the gospel preached . . . unto them” (Heb 4:2) concerning the Saviour to come. Hence the exhortation which God addressed to the children of Israel through David (Heb 4:7; cf. Psa 95:7-11) many years after they had entered into the land, warning them lest they should miss God’s rest through unbelief, as their fathers had done in the wilderness. What God said then to Israel in Canaan in the days of David, the Holy Spirit reiterated to the Hebrew Christians in apostolic times; and He speaks the same words to us today as God’s “voice” of warning, comfort and hope. Now look again at Heb 4:1-16 for the heart of this message concerning the rest of God: 1. God’s creation rest is a type of His rest in Christ. “For we which have believed do enter into that rest, as he hath said, As I have sworn in my wrath, If they shall enter into my rest: Although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works” (Heb 4:3-4; cf. Gen 2:2). Here the Holy Spirit uses God’s seventh-day rest in a finished creation as a type of His rest in the finished work of Christ in redemption. “God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good” (Gen 1:31). Then He rested on the seventh day. He found satisfaction also in His fellowship with man, whom He had made in His own image. But that rest was disturbed by the fall of man; that fellowship was broken by the entrance of sin into the human heart. And God’s love cannot rest in a world full of sin and sorrow and death. Only in the redemptive work of His beloved Son can God rest; only there can His children find rest unto their souls. A finished creation-rest-sin-and God’s eternal rest in a finished redemption-that is the message of this portion of Scripture. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2Co 5:17). 2. God’s rest in Christ is better than Israel’s Canaan rest under Joshua. The word “Jesus” in Heb 4:8 is the Greek for the Hebrew name “Joshua,” and it means “Saviour” or “Deliverer.” Thus Joshua, in delivering his people from the wilderness wanderings, and in leading them into the Promised Land (Heb 4:8), is a type of Christ, whose name is called Jesus because He saves His people from their sins (Mat 1:21) and leads them on to glory. He is Joshua’s Saviour and Deliverer, superior by far to that great leader of God’s chosen people, even as His rest is better than the Canaan rest ever could have been to Israel. 3. God’s rest in Christ “remaineth . . . for the people of God.” The real rest of God, the real rest which He has for His people, is in Christ Jesus. Just as the pillar of cloud and fire rested upon the blood-sprinkled mercy seat, so God finds in Christ a resting place for His glory that will never be disturbed throughout eternity. And He offers it to all who will receive it as the gift of His love. It is described in Heb 4:9-10, the present rest of faith on the part of the believer, which guarantees the future, eternal Sabbath at the end of the temptations, toils and tests of the wilderness journey: “There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.” The thought is that God’s rest, into which He invites us, has not been exhausted or fully realized by any experience in the past. Neither the seventh day after creation nor the land of Canaan had done justice to it; for centuries afterward, in the days of David, God still spoke of “another day” of rest to be enjoyed (Heb 4:8). We are living in a day when it may be a present experience. “Today if ye shall hear his voice, Harden not your hearts” (Heb 3:7; Heb 3:15; Heb 4:7; cf. Psa 95:7-8). “We which have believed do enter into rest” (Heb 4:3), We have the rest of salvation in believing in Christ (Mat 11:28); and we have the rest of consecration under His yoke (Mat 11:29-30). It was Augustine who said, “Lord, Thou hast made us for Thyself; and our hearts are restless till they rest in Thee.” It is not the rest of quietistic passivity; for when God rested on the seventh day, He continued working in the maintenance of creation, in providence and in history. Our Lord, too, rests from His finished work, consummated in His death; but He is blessedly active in His heavenly life as our Intercessor. However, we rest from our own works (Heb 4:10); our restless schemings and plannings and strivings are hushed at last. We can add nothing to the finished work of Christ; it is the free gift of God’s grace (See Eph 2:8-9; Tit 3:5). To be sure, our good works should follow our salvation; but they can never be the means of entrance into the eternal rest of God. “Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after [or ‘into’] the same example of unbelief” (Heb 4:11). The thought of Heb 4:11 is not that believers are to “labor” for that rest, but that they are to give diligence to enter into it by faith, to be sincere in their confession of Christ. To the enlightened, but unregenerated, Hebrew of the early Christian era it was a warning lest he have an intellectual knowledge about Christ, yet fail to rest his soul’s salvation in the finished work of Christ-a warning against apostasy. To the early Hebrew Christian it was an exhortation to yieldedness to the perfect will of God. The inspired writer seems to have been saying: “Israel missed God’s rest in the days of Moses and Joshua and David. Will you miss it also? ‘Today . . . hear his voice . . . Harden not your hearts’!” There is a striking analogy between Israel’s experience in the wilderness and that of the Hebrews in apostolic times. In the days of Moses the nation was delivered from bondage in Egypt; in the Christian era, from bondage to Judaism. Israel left Egypt on the Passover night with high hopes; many Hebrews professed the name of Christ with zeal. But Israel murmured and, because of testings in the wilderness, wanted to return to Egypt (Num 14:4); the enlightened, but unregenerated, Jews of apostolic times were in danger of returning to Judaism, with its Temple worship, for persecution of Christian Jews was bitter and severe. Those Israelites who murmured against God at Kadesh-barnea perished in the wilderness; the Hebrews to whom this epistle was addressed, as well as all men of every age, would be lost if they persisted in unbelief. Thank God! He always has a Moses, a Joshua and a Caleb! They are the true companions of Christ (Heb 3:14) who continue steadfast: a. They learn subjection to the will of God in the wilderness (Heb 3:7-19). b. They have faith in God’s ability to fulfill His promise (Heb 4:3-10). c. They heed the Word of God (Heb 4:12-13). The Word of God Heb 4:12-13 In connection with the solemn warning against the possibility of missing God’s rest, the living, powerful, omniscient Word of God is brought into the discussion: “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do” (Heb 4:12-13). The living Word of God searches us and exposes whatever prevents our present and future entering into God’s purpose for us. That is to say, the Word within us acts like a two-edged sword, sharper than any made by hand. And who can escape its scrutiny? It is, as the word ‘discerner” implies, the supreme critic of the thoughts and intents of the heart. It is God’s “voice,” the safeguard against failure to enter into His rest. It tells us of the Living Word who was made flesh, and dwelt among us (John 1:14). It tells us of Him who said, “Come unto me . . . and I will give you rest” (Mat 11:28). But when we are thus judged by this infallible discerner of the thoughts of our hearts, we are not left with this inward dissection of soul and spirit and of joints and marrow as the final source of help. We are directed to the Great High Priest, the Son of God, who is touched with the feeling of our infirmities (Heb 4:14-16). Therefore, we may “come boldly unto the throne of grace” to “obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Our Great High Priest can carry His people through all the dangers and snares of the wilderness, having gone through them Himself in His sinless human experiences on earth (Our next lesson will be devoted entirely to this blessed truth). Some Personal Questions How much time do you spend each day in meditation on the glory of Christ’s person and the sufficiency of His work? “Consider . . . Christ Jesus” (Heb 3:1). How faithful, how joyful is your Christian testimony in a sin-sick world (Heb 3:6; Heb 3:14)? Is there “in any of you an evil heart of unbelief,” evidenced by worry and anxiety over the providences of God (Heb 3:12)? Has your heart become “hardened through the deceitfulness of sin” (Heb 3:13)? Have you ceased from your own works as a means of salvation? Have you entered by faith into God’s rest in Christ Jesus (Heb 4:9-10)? Do you love the Bible above all other books? Dare you doubt that it is the very Word of God-inspired by His Holy Spirit, infallible, authoritative, God’s voice to you (Heb 4:12-13)? Do you show your love for it by daily, consistent study of its sacred pages? Assignment for Exam 3 1. Note how often the inspired writer refers to God’s rest as: “my rest,” “his rest,” “rest,” “that rest.” 2. Note the frequent use of the contrasting words “unbelief” and “faith.” 3. Can you tell how God preached “the gospel” to Israel in the wilderness, centuries before Christ was born in Bethlehem? (Cf. Gal 3:8.) Remember always that the Old Testament saints were saved by faith in the Saviour to come, even as New Testament saints have been saved by faith in Him who fulfilled the promises of the Old Testament concerning His coming to die for sinners. Here are a few of these prophecies, given before Israel’s failure to enter Canaan under Moses’ leadership: - The virgin birth of Christ (Gen 3:15); - The promise to Abraham that the Redeemer should come through his family (Gen 12:1-3); - Christ promised through the tribe of Judah (Gen 49:10); - Some prophetic types of Christ: the Passover (Exo 12:1-51; 1Co 5:7); - The manna (Exo 16:1-36; John 6:1-71); - The smitten rock (Exo 17:5-7; Isa 53:4; 1Co 10:4; John 7:37-39); - The Tabernacle; the offerings and feasts of the Lord, given in Leviticus. 4. Complete Exam 3. CHAPTER THREE NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM 1. In the right-hand margin write “True” or “False” after each of the following statements. (22 points) a. Christ, as the Apostle, is God’s Spokesman to us.__________ b. The Lord pitched “the true tabernacle.”__________ c. The Tabernacle in the wilderness was pitched by Aaron’s sons.__________ d. Christ, as High Priest, is our Spokesman with God.__________ e. Christ’s ministry for believers ended with His ascension.__________ f. The Jewish Tabernacle was a type of Christ and His Church.__________ g. On the Day of Atonement ashes were sprinkled on the mercy seat.__________ h. Aaron first had to offer a sacrifice for his own sins, then for the people’s.__________ i. The Israelites in the wilderness could not enter into God’s rest because of unbelief.__________ j. The forty years spent in the wilderness were a type of God’s rest.__________ k. Fellowship between God and man has never really been broken.__________ 2. List the articles of furniture in the Tabernacle and outer court according to their position. (12 points) a. Outer court _________________________________________________________________ b. Holy Place __________________________________________________________________ c. Holy of Holies _______________________________________________________________ Match the following items associated with the Tabernacle (column 1) With the antitype (column 2) by placing the correct letter from column 1 in the appropriate blank in column 2. (12 points) Column 1 a. Brazen laver b. Altar of incense c. Boards of acacia wood d. Tablets of stone e. Animal sacrifices f. Golden candlestick Column 2 (1) Light of the World (2) Broken law (3) Believer’s Cleanser from sin (4) Believers in Christ (5) Christ’s intercessory work (6) The Lamb of God 4. In the blank space write the letter of the correct answer. (9 points) (1) In the Hebrew Tabernacle God dwelt in__________ (a) The Holy Place (b) The outer court (c) The altar of incense (d) The pillar of cloud and fire (2) Israel’s high priest entered the Holy of Holies__________ (a) Once a year (b) Once a month (c) Whenever sin was committed (d) Every morning (3) The high priest took with him into the Holy of Holies__________ (a) Nothing (b) An animal to sacrifice (c) A change of raiment (d) Blood 5. In the blank space write the letter of the statement which does not apply. (9 points) (1) (a) Moses was a faithful servant (b) Moses served in Aaron’s house (c) Christ is faithful as the Son (d) Christ serves over His own house __________ (2) (a) God rested the seventh day (b) God rested because He was tired (c) God rested because His work of creation was finished (d) God rested from all His works __________ (3) (a) God’s rest was broken by sin (b) God could not continue His rest until the sin question was settled (c) The Lord Jesus restored God’s rest by His work on the cross (d) God is still unable to rest __________ (4) (a) The Israelites that entered Canaan entered into rest (b) Joshua was a type of the Lord Jesus Christ (c) Jesus said, “Come unto me.. .and I will give you rest” (d) Caleb and Joshua failed to enter into the Canaan rest__________ 6. Name the three ways suggested in this lesson whereby the true companions of Christ continue steadfast. (9 points) a. __________________________________________________________________________ b. __________________________________________________________________________ c. __________________________________________________________________________ 7. The Word of God is His “voice” of warning to us, lest we also miss God’s rest. Write from memory Heb 4:12-13, in which this truth is set forth. (5 points) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ 8. a. Name four occasions when God preached “the gospel” (Heb 4:2) unto Israel in the days of Moses, or prior to that time. (16 points) (1) ___________________________________________________________________________ (2) ___________________________________________________________________________ (3) ___________________________________________________________________________ (4) ___________________________________________________________________________ b. List the four groups of beings or individuals compared with the Son of God in the first four chapters of Hebrews to prove that He is superior to the greatest personages in Judaism-”better than” all His creatures. (1) ___________________________________________________________________________ (2) ___________________________________________________________________________ (3) ___________________________________________________________________________ (4) ___________________________________________________________________________ WHAT DO YOU SAY? 9. State what you are depending on for salvation. (6 points) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 7: 01.04. HIS HEAVENLY PRIESTHOOD ======================================================================== His Heavenly Priesthood Heb 4:14-16; Heb 5:1-10 CHAPTER FOUR Heb 4:14-16 form a climax to the long parenthesis of Heb 3:7-19, Heb 4:1-13, proving that Christ can and will lead those who trust Him into the rest of God; yet these same verses are also an integral part of the “chief point” of the epistle, developed in Heb 4:14-16, Heb 5:1-14, Heb 6:1-20, Heb 7:1-28, Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18. Therefore, they link the introductory portion of the book with the discussion of the main theme in close continuity of thought; for they begin to unfold the person and work of the eternal Son of God (Heb 1:1-14) who became the perfect Son of Man (Heb 2:1-18) in order that He might be “a merciful and faithful high priest . . . the Apostle and High Priest of our profession” (Heb 2:17; Heb 3:1). Indeed, Heb 4:14-16 might be called a synopsis of the entire epistle; every word in them is significant. You will note that there is no break in thought between Heb 4:1-16 and Heb 5:1-14, as indicated by “for,” the first word of Heb 5:1. In Heb 4:14-16 the Holy Spirit tells us that we have a Great High Priest at the throne of grace; then in Heb 5:1-10 He proves that our High Priest fulfills all the qualifications and duties required of a Levitical priest according to the Law of Moses. This proof was vital to the Hebrew Christian, who wanted to be sure that Christ Jesus was the promised Messiah of the Old Testament; and it was needed to warn the enlightened, but unregenerated, Hebrew of apostolic times not to go into apostasy, not to continue in the then empty ritual of Judaism. Remember that the Temple was still standing when this epistle was written, and that it was not easy for a Jew to break with his nation in the ceremonial law which his fathers had observed for fifteen centuries. It took courage born of faith in Christ to face the persecution that was sure to follow such a stand. Before you study carefully this first portion of the heart of the epistle, look again at Heb 4:14-16, Heb 5:1-14, Heb 6:1-20, Heb 7:1-28, Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18 for a bird’s-eye view of the entire argument. In proving that Christ fulfilled the qualifications and duties required of an earthly priest, under the Levitical law, the Holy Spirit mentions the fact that He was “called of God an high priest after the order of Melchizedek” (Heb 5:6; Heb 5:10). But the very reference to this fulfilled prophecy seems to remind the inspired writer that his readers were mere babes in Christ, “dull of hearing,” not able to understand these deeper things of God (Heb 5:11-14). Therefore, he pauses for another long parenthesis, in Heb 5:11-14, Heb 6:1-20, filled with warning against apostasy and the encouragement which assurance of salvation gives. In Heb 6:20 he resumes the discussion of Melchizedek as a type of Christ, which theme is developed fully in Heb 7:1-28. Thus he proves that, in His person, Christ is better than Aaron, superior to Judaism’s first and, in a sense, her greatest high priest. Then in Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18 he proves that, in His ministry, Christ is superior to Aaron. Therefore, He is superior to all the sons of Aaron-Levitical priests-both in His person and in His work. Now omitting the parenthesis of Heb 5:11-14, Heb 6:1-20, think through Heb 4:14-16, Heb 5:1-14, Heb 6:1-20, Heb 7:1-28, Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18 in outline, and remember always how this heart of the Epistle to the Hebrews presents the official glories of Christ, our Great High Priest: 1. His heavenly priesthood, Heb 4:14-16, Heb 5:1-10 2. A King-Priest-better than Aaron in His person, Heb 7:1-28 3. A Great High Priest-better than Aaron in His ministry, Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18. Truly His official glories as presented on these sacred pages are wonderful! May His Holy Spirit take these things of Christ and show them unto us. A Great High Priest at the Throne of Grace Heb 4:14-16 “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” 1. His name-“Jesus the Son of God” (Heb 4:14) For the second time in the epistle our Lord’s name, Jesus, is linked with the very throne of God. Once more we are reminded that the Son described in Heb 1:1-14 is the Man, Christ Jesus, portrayed in Heb 2:1-18. His humanity can never be separated from His deity! 2. His finished work-“passed into the heavens” (Heb 4:14). When the Lord Jesus laid aside His glory-not His deity-to redeem fallen humanity He walked among men on earth (Php 2:5-8). Then, having given His life a ransom for many, having been raised from the dead, He passed through the first heaven which we call the firmament or sky above; through the second heaven, the realm of the stars; and into “the third heaven,” which is called “paradise” by the apostle Paul (2Co 12:2; 2Co 12:4). That is where God’s throne is, where He and His holy angels and His redeemed dwell. Now Satan is “the prince of the power of the air” (Eph 2:2; cf. Eph 6:12); he is “the accuser of our brethren” (Rev 12:10). Something of his power may be conceived by the description of the yet future conflict between Satan and his wicked angels and Michael and his holy angels given in Rev 12:7-9. Therefore, when our Lord passed through the heavens as He ascended into the heaven of heavens, He manifested to angels and demons that He is the Conqueror of Satan and all his hosts. Having finished the work He came to do on earth, He arose from the grave, triumphant over death, Satan’s mightiest weapon. And He ascended into heaven-as a Man, forever triumphant over the prince of the power of the air. As the God-Man, He is exalted above all His creatures; for He is seated on the right hand of the Majesty on high. Therefore, as a Priest, ministering for His redeemed, He has all power. 3. His compassion-“touched with the feeling of our infirmities” (Heb 4:15) - It was Jesus, the Man of Sorrows, who experienced weariness, hunger, thirst, even the shameful death of the cross, - It was Jesus who had nowhere to lay His head. - It was Jesus who was “tempted in all points like as we are”-apart from sin! - It was Jesus-the Man-who was falsely accused, betrayed by His friend, forsaken even by those who loved Him. 4. His holiness-“without sin” (Heb 4:15) It was Jesus, the Son of God, who knew no sin (2Co 5:21), who could not be tempted to sin because He was God, absolutely holy. It was Jesus, the Son of God, of whom the Father could say, at His baptism and at His transfiguration, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mat 3:17; Mat 17:5; and parallel passages). The Son, likewise, could say to His enemies concerning Himself: “I do always those things that please him [the Father] . . . Which of you convinceth me of sin?” (John 8:29; John 8:46). Even the cold, cruel Pilate was compelled to admit, “I find in him no fault at all” (John 18:38). 5. His exalted position-at “the throne of grace” (Heb 4:16) The eternal, holy God is our compassionate Saviour, seated in the place of all power. His judgment throne has become the throne of grace, a mercy seat for all who will believe that He judged the sinner’s guilt at the cross, paying the penalty in His own body on the tree (1Pe 2:24; John 5:24), 6. The inspired exhortation (Heb 4:14; Heb 4:16) -“Let us hold fast our profession.” “Let us therefore come boldly . . .” It is as if the inspired apostle were pleading with his fellow Christians, Hebrews, lest they falter under persecution, lest they fail to claim the mercy and grace freely offered by their Great High Priest. Theirs was verily a time of need. And their Messiah is our Saviour and Lord, “the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever” (Heb 13:8), able and eager to meet our need, whatever it may be (Php 4:19). Heb 9:1-28 and Heb 10:1-39 of this epistle unfold the wonders of the blessed truth here stated briefly-“draw near.” Our Great High Priest has opened the way into the Holy of Holies, even heaven itself; for the veil of the Temple which was rent in twain was a type of “his flesh,” broken for us (Heb 10:20; cf. Mat 27:51; John 14:6). That is why we may go to His throne-room with boldness, unafraid. That is why we love Him. We are children of the King, with access at all times into His presence. We need no earthly priest to intercede for us; our heavenly Priest invites us to draw near. Our prayers are His delight (Pro 15:8). He neither slumbers nor sleeps (Psa 121:4). Jesus, the Son of God, never fails His own! God’s Requirements of a Priest Fulfilled in Christ Heb 5:1-10 Two qualifications and two duties of an earthly, Levitical priest are named in Heb 5:1-4; whereas the proof that Christ, in fulfillment of the type, met all these requirements of God is given in verses Heb 5:5-10. 1. The qualifications of an earthly priest: a. He had to be “taken from among men” (Heb 5:1). No angel could be a priest; a man, a representative of the people, had to hold that sacred office. b. He had to be “called of God” (Heb 5:4). - When Korah, Dathan, Abiram and their accomplices rebelled against Moses, seeking to be priests, the earth swallowed them up (Num 16:1-50). - When Saul intruded into the priest’s office, he lost his kingdom (1Sa 13:1-23). - When Uzziah, king of Judah, committed the same sin, he was smitten with leprosy (2Ch 26:16-21). The Jewish Christians knew the significance of Heb 5:4 : “And no man taketh this honor unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.” God caused Aaron’s rod to bud and blossom overnight to prove his divine call to the priesthood, and to silence all who would rebel against the Lord in aspiring to that office (Num 17:1-13). Moreover, the life that came to Aaron’s dead rod is symbolic of Christ in resurrection, owned of God as High Priest. 2. The duties of an earthly priest: a. He had to offer sacrifices for sins (Heb 5:1). Because the earthly priest was a sinner, he had to shed the blood of the animal sacrifices by faith in the Saviour to come, “first for his own sins, and then for the people’s” (Heb 7:27; Heb 5:3). The “gifts and sacrifices for sins” (Heb 5:1) included the tithes and offerings of the people. b. He had to “have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way” (Heb 5:2), Remembering that he himself was “compassed with infirmity,” the earthly priest had to be compassionate, sympathetic toward his erring brethren. c. He prayed for his people (cf. Luk 1:8-9; Heb 7:25). Although this duty of the priest in Israel is not mentioned in the passage before us, every Hebrew knew that intercession to God on behalf of the people was an important part of the priest’s ministry. As he stood before the golden altar in the Holy Place, his prayers went up with the cloud of incense, as it were, to the very presence of God. Moreover, the high priest, on the Day of Atonement, took the golden censer in his hand when he entered the Holy of Holies to talk with the Lord God, to confess Israel’s sin, and to pray for his people. Thus the cloud of incense, representing his prayers, ascended before the Shekinah Glory above the mercy seat. Intercession for his brethren was a fundamental part of the service of an earthly priest. 3. The qualifications of a Levitical priest fulfilled in Christ: Here the order is reversed: the passage before us first tells us that the earthly priest was taken from among men; then it tells us that he was called of God. But our Lord’s having been called of God is mentioned first (Heb 5:5-6); then His humanity is once more proved (Heb 5:7-9). And why is the order reversed here? Because from all eternity His official glory as “a priest forever” was established in the purpose of God; then, “when the fullness of the time was come” (Gal 4:4), He became Man in order to be a Priest-in order to “be touched with the feeling of our infirmities,” in order to die as a sacrifice for sin, and in order to be able to intercede for His redeemed as One who, from experience, knows their sorrows. a. Christ was “called of God . . . a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek” (Heb 5:5-6; Heb 5:10). “So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest” (Heb 5:5). As a Man He did not seek the priesthood; rather, He shrank from it in Gethsemane. As God, He planned to die for sinners; but as a Man, He “learned . . . obedience by the things which he suffered” (Heb 5:8). From all eternity He had known unbroken fellowship with the Father and with the Holy Spirit; therefore, He shrank from that awful hour when He who knew no sin should be made sin for us (2Co 5:21), when for the first time His Father’s face would have to be turned away from His beloved Son. That is why He cried out on the cross, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Mat 27:46; Mark 15:34). Our Lord “glorified not himself to be made an high priest”; but the Father, who declared the eternal Sonship of the second person of the Holy Trinity centuries before His virgin birth in Bethlehem’s manger, prophesied also that His eternal, only begotten Son should be “a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek” (Heb 5:5-6; cf. Psa 2:7; Psa 110:4). This is the second time in this epistle that Psa 2:7 has been quoted and applied to Christ (cf. Heb 1:5). Although, in the eternal counsels of God, Christ was a Priest forever, He was called to the priesthood, in fulfillment of the prophecy, at His baptism on the ground of His personal holiness. His High Priestly work did not begin until He offered Himself as a sacrifice for sin on Calvary. Therefore, He was not “called” (Heb 5:10), literally, “saluted” or “addressed,” by the Father as High Priest until He had finished His work of redemption, risen from the dead, and ascended to the right hand of the Majesty on high. All heaven must have bowed in worship as the Father saluted the Son in His official glory as “an high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek”-eternal, unchanging, all-powerful! Since the Holy Spirit does not explain how Melchizedek was a type of Christ until chapter 7 is reached, we shall wait till we come to that portion of the epistle to consider this subject in detail. b. Christ was “taken from among men” (Heb 5:7-9). In Heb 2:1-18 the fact is established that Christ’s perfect humanity was prophesied in the Old Testament; in Heb 5:7-9 the proof is based upon His earthly experience. And here we are treading on holy ground. That He was “taken from among men” is proved by the following human experiences of the Man of Sorrows: (1) By His prayers (Heb 5:7) The scene is the Garden of Gethsemane. Some of the words the suffering Saviour uttered there were these: “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt” (Mat 26:39; Mark 14:35-36; Luk 22:42; cf. Psa 40:6-8; Heb 10:5-7). The Holy Spirit gives us a few glimpses of the prayer-life of our Lord. - In Galilee He rose “a great while before day . . . departed into a solitary place, and there prayed” (Mark 1:35). - When the multitudes crowded around Him, He “withdrew himself into the wilderness, and prayed” (Luk 5:16). - Before He chose the Twelve, He spent “all night in prayer to God” (Luk 6:12). - After He had fed the five thousand, He “went up into a mountain apart to pray” (Mat 14:23). - Before Peter’s great confession, the Lord was “alone praying” (Luk 9:18). - “As he prayed” on the mount of transfiguration, “his face did shine as the sun” (Luk 9:29). - When the seventy returned to Him with joy, He uttered one of His few recorded prayers (Luk 10:21). - As He was “praying in a certain place, when he had ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray”; and He gave them the Lord’s Prayer (Luk 11:1). - At the tomb of Lazarus He prayed, and this prayer is recorded (John 11:41-42). - Shortly before the last Passover He uttered another brief, recorded prayer which was answered by “a voice from heaven” (John 12:27-30). - He told Simon Peter that he had prayed for him (Luk 22:32). - His great intercessory prayer is written in John 17:1-26. - In Gethsemane He “kneeled down, and prayed” (Luk 22:41)-“fell on his face, and prayed,” Matthew tells us (Mat 26:39). - And on the cross He prayed for His enemies (Luk 23:34). Since prayer is a human experience, surely the Lord’s prayer-life proves that He was perfect Man. And what an example it is to His “brethren”! (2) By His tears (Heb 5:7) “With strong crying and tears” the Saviour prayed in Gethsemane; His humanity was very real. At the tomb of Lazarus also, and over His beloved Jerusalem He wept (John 11:35; Luk 19:41). Who can know the fullness of His compassionate love? (3) By His trust (Heb 5:7) “In that he feared” might be paraphrased, “In that he had reverential trust” in His Father (cf. Heb 2:13). (4) By His obedience (Heb 5:8) Again we are reminded of such passages as Php 2:5-8 and Heb 10:5-7. Remember what was said in Lesson 2 of this text concerning Christ’s “being made perfect” as the Saviour; and that He was always morally perfect. (5) By His suffering (Heb 5:8) We can never enter fully into the sufferings of our Lord, but we can thank Him for such love. Because of these human experiences our heavenly Priest was qualified for His heavenly ministry on earth. Through the School of suffering and humiliation, for more than thirty-three years, He was learning from personal experience the trials, griefs and temptations of His brethren. He had divested Himself of His glory robe and was clad, like Aaron on the Day of Atonement, in the white linen of His personal purity, in order to make propitiation. And now, having made propitiation, He is a Priest forever after the order of Melchizedek, and has put on His garments of glory and beauty again. He is thus qualified to assure “eternal salvation” to all them who obey Him (Heb 5:9). 4. Christ fulfills the duties of a Levitical priest-“exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think”! (Eph 3:20): a. He offered Himself once for all as a sacrifice for sin (Cf. Heb 5:1 with Heb 5:9; Heb 7:27; Heb 9:12; Heb 9:26; Heb 10:10; Heb 10:12; Heb 10:14; Heb 10:18). b. He deals compassionately with the ignorant and erring. Compare Heb 5:2 with the compassion of Christ, as manifested in His life on earth, as well as in His continuing, gracious ministry for His redeemed. His patience and His faithfulness are without bounds. c. “He ever liveth to make intercession for them . . . that come unto God by him’” (Heb 7:25; cf. Rom 8:34). Remember always that John 17:1-26 is the kind of prayer our Great High Priest is pleading at the throne of grace. Gethsemane Heb 5:7-8 As we consider the glories of Christ portrayed in Heb 4:14-16; Heb 5:1-10, we find ourselves pondering once more the deep mysteries of Heb 5:7. We have seen that it evidently takes us into the Garden of Gethsemane. Here we get one of the few instances which are like a window opened into the inner life of the Lord Jesus. The Scripture record of His earthly experiences is very economical about what passed secretly between His holy soul and the Father. We have the record of the outward circumstances through which His feet went, though even this is not complete. The closing chapter of His crucifixion is the exception; it is the most detailed story in the four Gospels. How precious the glimpse of His unruffled communion with the Father, as recorded in Mat 11:25-26, in an hour of testing; and His prayer-victory in the garden, when His sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling to the ground! (Luk 22:44). He who had overcome the seductions of the tempter in the wilderness by the Sword of the Spirit, wielded by Him who was the exponent of the words He used in the conflict, overcame the terrors which the enemy paraded before Him in the garden. He took the awful cup of wrath our sins helped to fill, though He did not drink it till, forsaken of God, He bore the judgment of the divine holiness against sin on the cross. He prayed to One who was “able to save him from [or, ‘out of] death,” and He was heard “in that he feared.” That deliverance out of death came by His resurrection. He buried in submission and meekness His will in the will of the Father; and having broken the powers of darkness in death, finally emerged in resurrection triumph. As Heb 5:5-10 indicates, the Gethsemane experience, through which Christ passed, was part of the training to which He voluntarily submitted as a preparation for His present High Priestly ministry. Surely a glory more excellent than the pride and pomp and pageantry of this world shone from the weeping and prostrate Lord Jesus then. He expressed it in these words after He had emerged from the prayer-battle, “The cup which my Father hath given me, shall 1 not drink it?” (John 18:11). Never before was the will of God honored and loved as in that hour! Thus in perfect calm He was led from the garden as a lamb brought to the slaughter, and He opened not His mouth in the hands of those who slew Him. Thus He became the Great High Priest who ministers still on behalf of all them that obey Him (Heb 5:9) by accepting His finished work on Calvary; ever living, interceding for His own, He ministers in the true tabernacle (Heb 8:2) in that “city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Heb 11:10). “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb 4:16). Assignment for Exam 4 1. Read prayerfully all the Scripture references given in these pages. 2. Can you name the two qualifications and three duties of an earthly priest, and show how Christ fulfilled these requirements of the Levitical law? 3. Fill in Exam 4. CHAPTER FOUR NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM 1. In the right-hand margin write “True” or “False” after each of the following statements. (16 points) a. As Great High Priest, Christ intercedes for us at God’s right hand.__________ b. As Man of Sorrows, Jesus experienced weariness, hunger and thirst. __________ c. As Son of God, the Lord Jesus was able to sin.__________ d. Christ overcame Satan in the wilderness by using the Word of God.__________ e. Christ’s prayer in Gethsemane was not answered.__________ f. The “cup” which Jesus drank was the bodily suffering which accompanied His death. __________ g. The terrors paraded before Christ in Gethsemane were of no significance. __________ h. It was not really God’s will that His Son should die.__________ In the blank space write the letter of the correct answer, (12 points) (1) We may now approach God (a) With boldness (b) With a sacrifice (c) With an earthly priest to speak for us (d) With great timidity__________ (2) Jesus demonstrated His victory over Satan by (a) Remaining on earth for a time (b) Setting up His kingdom on earth (c) Passing through Satan’s territory as He ascended into heaven (d) Going back to heaven by way of Hades __________ (3) The expression “prince of the power of the air” (Eph 2:2) (a) Is a title of the risen Lord (b) Has to do with Michael the archangel (c) Is a name given to Satan (d) Is a prophetic reference to aerial warfare during the battle of Armageddon __________ The expression, “We have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities,” means that (5 points) (a) Christ cannot sympathize with us, since He is in heaven (b) We have no high priest at all (c) Christ was our High Priest when He lived on earth (d) Christ is now in heaven as our sympathetic High Priest __________ Complete the following statements. (10 points) a. Satan’s mightiest weapon is __________________________________________________ b. “I find no fault in him” was spoken by _________________________________________ c. “The third heaven” is called __________________________________________________ d. The veil of the Temple was a type of Christ’s ____________________________________ 5. Fill in the following outline facts. (10 points) a. Name God’s requirements of an earthly, Levitical priest. (1) His qualifications (a) __________________________________________________________________________ (b) __________________________________________________________________________ (2) His duties (a) __________________________________________________________________________ (b) __________________________________________________________________________ (c) __________________________________________________________________________ b. Show how Christ fulfilled God’s requirements of a priest. (1) His qualifications (a) __________________________________________________________________________ (b) __________________________________________________________________________ (2) His duties (a) __________________________________________________________________________ (b) __________________________________________________________________________ (c) __________________________________________________________________________ 6. Give the five proofs of the perfect humanity of the Lord Jesus, as set forth in Heb 5:7-8 concerning His earthly experience. (10 points) a. __________________________________________________________________________ b. __________________________________________________________________________ c. __________________________________________________________________________ d. __________________________________________________________________________ e. __________________________________________________________________________ 7. Fill in the blanks. a. Name seven occasions when our Lord prayed during His earthly ministry. (10 points) (1) __________________________________________________________________________ (2) __________________________________________________________________________ (3) __________________________________________________________________________ (4) __________________________________________________________________________ (5) __________________________________________________________________________ (6) __________________________________________________________________________ b. According to the record of the four Gospels, on what three occasions did the Lord Jesus weep ? (1) __________________________________________________________________________ (2) __________________________________________________________________________ (3) __________________________________________________________________________ 8. How would you explain these passages? (12 points) a. “Though he was a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; and being made perfect. . .” (Heb 5:8-9). _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ b. “He became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him” (Heb 5:9). _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ 9. Write from memory Heb 4:14-16. (15 points) _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 8: 01.05. "LET US PRESS ON" ======================================================================== "Let Us Press On" Heb 5:11-14; Heb 6:1-20 CHAPTER FIVE “Babes in Christ . . . grow in grace.” “Enlightened,” but unregenerated, souls, beware apostasy! Believers in Christ, rest in eternal security. The long parenthesis of Heb 5:11-14; Heb 6:1-20 might be summarized in the above exhortation, warning and encouragement. Or, to consider it in even more detail, we find here a rebuke, an appeal, a warning and an encouragement. According to this fourfold division, read carefully this often misunderstood portion of the Word of God, together with the related passages listed here: “Ye are dull of hearing . . . babes in Christ” (Heb 5:11-14; cf. 1Co 3:1-3). “Let us go on on unto perfection,” growing in grace (Heb 6:1-3; cf. 2Pe 3:18). “Those . . . once enlightened [but unregenerated”] . . . crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh” (Heb 6:4-8). “But, beloved . . . we [the saved] have . . . an anchor of the sold . . . sure and steadfast” (Heb 6:9-20). There will be no conflicting interpretation of Heb 5:11-14; Heb 6:1-20 by those who remember that, except for Heb 6:4-8, this entire parenthesis was addressed directly, that is, in the second person, to Hebrew Christians, who, though saved and, therefore, eternally secure in Christ, were still spiritual babes; and that Heb 6:4-8 was written in the third person about the “enlightened,” but unregenerated. Accordingly, to the babes in Christ the inspired writer said “Ye . . . beloved,” also classifying himself with them as a fellow Christian by using the terms, “let us” and “we.” Only in Heb 6:4-8 did he refer to the enlightened, but unregenerated, as “those” and “they” who were outside the Church. Note especially, by way of contrast, the significance of Heb 6:9, “But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation.” Because “those” apostates were unsaved, they were in terrible danger; hence the searching warning of Heb 6:4-8. But the danger which prompted this warning could not possibly apply to born-again souls, to whom, in Heb 6:9-20, the Holy Spirit addressed one of the strongest passages in all the Bible concerning the eternal security of the believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit does not contradict Himself! And to say that Heb 6:4-8 teaches that the sinner who has been saved by faith in the finished work of Christ can be lost, is to make God a liar! This very lesson tells us that it is “impossible for God to lie” (Heb 6:18)! (Cf. John 5:24; John 10:27-30) Remember always to consider every portion of the Word of God in its context. To take a passage out of its inspired setting, perverting it to fit into some man-made theory, is to “wrest . . . the scriptures.” This is what “they that are unlearned and unstable . . . do . . . unto their own destruction” (2Pe 3:16). Now read again Heb 5:11-14. The inspired writer had begun to tell the Hebrew Christians of their Great High Priest, even Jesus. When he told them that the risen Lord was saluted by the Father when He ascended into heaven as “an high priest after the order of Melchizedek” (Heb 5:10), he realized that these babes in Christ were not able to understand the deeper truths concerning the person and work of their Great High Priest. That is why he said to them: 1. “Ye are dull of hearing . . . babes in Christ” (Heb 5:11-14; cf. 1Co 3:1-3). Reminding them that they should have grown in grace enough to be teachers (Heb 5:12), he rebuked them for needing to be taught again the first principles of the oracles of God. They lacked spiritual growth, with its accompanying discernment and ability to take in the strong meat of Christian doctrine (Heb 5:14). It was needful to continue to feed them with milk. Does this description not fit the average church member of this twentieth century? Have you ever heard a Christian say, “I can’t understand Hebrews”? Are you a mere babe in Christ? You need not be if you continue diligently to search the Scriptures, if you spend much time in prayer, and if you seek to do God’s will as He makes it known unto you. Then you will become “of full age” (Heb 5:14), ready to heed the exhortation of Heb 6:1-3 : 2. “Let us go on unto perfection,” growing in grace (Heb 6:1-3; cf. 2Pe 3:18). Here the inspired writer, including himself among the Hebrew Christians addressed, exhorted them to go on from infancy and the elementary teaching of Judaism, which the ministry of John the Baptist emphasized, to press on from the childhood of Pentecostal miracles, to the full manhood, or “perfection,” to which the heavenly doctrine of the priesthood of Christ would lead them. Only by such progress in their Christian experience could they leave their spiritual babyhood for mature growth. Little babies are among God’s priceless gifts to man; but nothing is more pathetic than a physically mature person with a child’s mind. Do you see the picture? We are not content to spend our adult days playing with toys; then, spiritually speaking, let us press on to know the Lord in ever increasing measure-the wonders of His person and the efficacy of His work. This is the message of our text. Six fundamentals of Judaism (Heb 6:1-2): As you remember that the Christ-rejecting Jews were still continuing the Temple worship when this epistle was written, the appeal of Heb 6:1-2 will be seen in its true significance; for Judaism was the very system which the Hebrew Christians were being exhorted to forsake for the deeper things of Christ, pressing on to maturity in the faith. They were to forsake the ritual of the shadows and types for the reality. Christ had fulfilled the law, and set aside its ceremonies (Rom 10:4). Therefore, they were to progress from the first principles of the oracles of God unto perfection. And what are the six fundamentals of Judaism named here? a. “Repentance from dead works” (Heb 6:1) For fifteen hundred years the redeemed in Israel had evidenced repentance from dead works by their offerings on the Jewish altar; but now the Lamb of God had offered Himself once for all. To continue to take the lambs and calves and goats and turtle doves and young pigeons to the brazen altar, was to reject Christ’s finished redemption. True repentance will lead the sinner to Calvary! b. “Faith toward God” (Heb 6:1) Abel, Abraham, David, the prophets-all the Old Testament saints had believed in the Saviour to come. Now that the cross and the empty tomb were facts of history, believers in Jesus as Israel’s Messiah were to go on with Him unto perfection. c. “The doctrine of baptisms [or, ‘washings’]” (Heb 6:2). The Greek word used here for “baptisms” is plural, as also in Heb 9:10, where “divers washings” are mentioned. It refers to the ceremonial cleansing of Judaism. But now that Christ had come, the ceremonial washings at the brazen laver were done away! d. The “laying on of hands” (Heb 6:2) The picture here is that of the repentant Israelite who took his burnt-offering and sin-offering to the brazen altar, laid his hand on the head of the victim and confessed his sins (See Lev 1:4; Lev 4:4 and related passages). In this God-given ceremony he was symbolically acknowledging his faith in the Saviour to come, figuratively transferring his sins to his Substitute, believing that “the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity off us all” (Isa 53:6). This ceremony also was done away in Christ. e. “Resurrection of the dead” (Heb 6:2) Judaism taught a bodily resurrection. - Abraham believed in this fundamental doctrine (Heb 11:17-19). - Elijah raised the son of the widow of; Zarephath from the dead (1Ki 17:17-24); - Elisha, the son of the Shunammite woman (2Ki 4:18-37). - David foretold the resurrection of Christ in Psa 16:8-11; compare Acts 2:25-31; Acts 13:35-37. This cardinal truth was one of the “first principles” of Christianity, and every spiritual babe believed in it. Holding to that belief, he was to grow in grace. f. “Eternal judgment” (Heb 6:2) The Old Testament, as well as the New, teaches eternal judgment (Cf. Ecc 12:14; Mat 18:8). This doctrine, therefore, was held by the adherents of both Judaism and Christianity. Proclaiming the gospel of the only Saviour from the wrath to come, the Hebrew Christians were to press on in the faith. “And this will we do, if God permit [or, ‘the Lord willing’]” (Heb 6:3). By the mercy of God, the apostle concludes, we will press on unto perfection, growing in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (2Pe 3:18). 3. “Those . . . once enlightened [but unregenerated] . . . crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh” (Heb 6:4-8). “Those” apostates had been granted special privileges, four of which are mentioned here: a. They were “enlightened” (Heb 6:4). John the Baptist, Christ and the apostles had preached the gospel to them. They were intellectually convinced that Jesus of Nazareth was the Christ of whom Moses and the prophets had written. b. They had “tasted of the heavenly gift, and . . . the good word of God” (Heb 6:4-5). They were not in heathen darkness. They had witnessed the miracles of Christ-the heavenly Gift, only “tasting,” not partaking. They had merely tasted the good Word of God; they had not fed their souls on the Bread of Life; they had not quenched their spiritual thirst with the Living Water. They were not born again. (Cf. John 6:51-66.) c. They “were made partakers of the Holy Spirit” (Heb 6:4). The Greek here means “going along with” the Holy Spirit. It is one thing to be an observer of the miracles wrought by the Spirit of God; it is another to be baptized by the Spirit, forever indwelt by Him. At least some of “those” apostates had doubtless witnessed the miracles on the Day of Pentecost, yet “mocking, said, These men are full of new wine” (Acts 2:13). d. They had “tasted . . . the powers of the world [age] to come” (Heb 6:5). Evidently the miracles of Christ and His apostles, which those apostates had witnessed, will be duplicated in the Millennial Age. The Holy Spirit was not describing backsliders here; for no saved soul, however self-willed and unfruitful in service, could ever “crucify . . . the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.” Only apostates could do that, for they do not love the Lord. Such were Judas Iscariot, those referred to by the Lord Jesus in Mat 7:21-23, and those whose hearts He compared to stony ground (Mat 13:5-6). The Christ-rejecting Pharisees and Sadducees who observed the Lord’s earthly ministry were among the apostates described here. Their nation had often received visitations from heaven: the prophetic witness of John the Baptist, the personal ministry of Christ, the testimony of the Holy Spirit in the marvelous days following the coming of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost! They had been told the blessed consequences of the glorification of the once crucified Messiah in heaven. If, in spite of these credentials of the divine nature of Christianity, they refused their witness and remained unbelieving, what more could God say to them? There was no hope for them. They were crucifying the Son of God afresh. The most convincing evidences possible were offered to them. They professed to have tested them out and found them unworthy of acceptance. Judicial blindness and hardness of heart were the inevitable consequences. It is the scientific law of atrophy in operation in the realm of the spirit. Alas! This is the state of the Jewish nation today, except for a believing remnant; and so it will continue to be until the day when the regenerated remnant will become the nucleus of a new Israel. 4. “But, beloved . . . we [the saved] have . . . an anchor of the soul . . . sure and steadfast” (Heb 6:9-20). The contrast between the description of apostates and the babes in Christ is striking. The latter were born again; for concerning them the inspired writer was “persuaded better things . . . things that accompany salvation” (Heb 6:9). As other Scriptures point out, the things that accompany salvation are: the Spirit of sonship, “whereby we cry, Abba Father”; the crucifying of the flesh with its affections and lusts; and being taught of God to love one another (Rom 8:15; Gal 5:24 1Th 4:9). Not only were these babes in Christ saved, but their righteous God would surely reward their work and labor of love because they had ministered and continued to minister to the saints (Heb 6:10). Then, as if to reassure them of their eternal security, the Holy Spirit exhorted them “to the full assurance of hope unto the end,” bidding them to be diligent-not slothful, exercising faith and patience as their fathers had done of old. Three great sources of encouragement follow this exhortation to assurance of salvation: a. “Two immutable things” (Heb 6:13-18) (1) The divine promise to Abraham (2) The divine oath, confirming the promise On these the faith of Abraham rested. Do you know when God confirmed His Word to the patriarch by His oath? It was after Abraham had obeyed the Lord fully on Mount Moriah, even though he believed his obedience would mean the offering of Isaac on the altar (See Gen 22:15-18). Before Abram had left his native city of Ur of Chaldea, God had promised him a son, through whom the nation should be established which would give to the world the Redeemer (Gen 12:1-3). How long Abram stayed in Haran, on the way to Canaan, we are not told; but he was seventy-five years old when he left Haran; one-hundred, when Isaac was born (Gen 12:4; Gen 21:5). Again some years passed before he was tested at Mount Moriah. More than twenty-five years had passed since God’s promise had been given. In Isaac all the hope of fulfillment of that promise rested; yet Abraham was obedient to God, believing that He was able to raise Isaac up, “even from the dead” (Heb 11:17-19). Then it was that the Lord confirmed I lis promise by His oath: “Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed [Greek, ‘mediated’] with an oath; that by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we may have a strong consolation [encouragement], who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us” (Heb 6:17-18). Now “the heirs of the promise” of the Saviour to come through Isaac’s line are all who have “the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all”- Jews and Gentiles-who love the Lord Jesus. (See Rom 4:16). “Christ hath redeemed us . . . that the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith” (Gal 3:13-14). And to “the heirs of promise”, God’s infallible Word confirmed by His oath guarantees eternal security-“a strong consolation,” immutable, authoritative, and divine. b. A refuge in Christ (Heb 6:18) The Hebrew manslayer had a city of refuge to which he could flee for safety (Num 35:1-34; Jos 20:7-8). Likewise, the Hebrew Christian, owning his nation’s guilt, flees to the refuge provided in Christ, whose death was “by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God,” who on the cross prayed, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Acts 2:23; Luk 23:34). There was no refuge provided for the intentional murderer-only for the unwitting manslayer. In that light divine mercy regards the Jewish people. If you are not familiar with the record concerning the cities of refuge read Num 35:1-34, noting especially Num 35:25, where the manslayer was told that he should abide in the city of refuge “unto the death of the high priest.” Likewise, the sinner saved by God’s grace is safe from the enemy of the souls of men as long as his Great High Priest shall live, even forevermore! (Heb 7:25; Rev 1:18) c. The Forerunner inside the veil of the heavenly sanctuary (Heb 6:19-20) Christ, in entering the glory, carried the anchor of our souls in with Him, and fastened it securely to the blood-stained mercy seat. “. . . which [hope] we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchizedec” (Heb 6:19-20). In these wonderful words the Holy Spirit returns to the discussion from which He digressed to rebuke, exhort, warn and encourage in this long parenthesis of Heb 5:11-14, Heb 6:1-20. The Christian’s assurance of eternal security rests in the Lord Jesus, the Great High Priest, who alone can guarantee a refuge and an anchor of the soul. The word “forerunner” is a nautical term, suggesting to the early Christians a light vessel, which crossed the sandbars that often cut of the Greek harbors from the sea, took the anchor of the larger ship, and dropped it safely in the harbor. What, then, if the storm did rage? The vessel was anchored in the harbor; and as soon as the full tide came in the sandbars could be safely crossed. Christ is the believer’s Forerunner; heaven is his harbor; linked with Him who is the pledge of entrance into heaven itself, the believer is eternally secure from all the storms of the wilderness journey. And when the full tide of blessing is realized in the glory, the sinner saved by grace will behold his Forerunner, his eternal, unchanging Great High Priest, throughout the endless ages. When Christ poured out His holy soul as an offering for sin; “the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom” (Mat 27:51). That was no work of man; God did it-“from the top to the bottom.” The veil was a type of “his flesh,” torn and bruised for all who would accept His atonement for sin (Heb 10:20). The veil of the Temple had warned a guilty people not to approach a holy God until a full atonement had been made; the rent veil invited them to draw near unto Him-by faith in their Forerunner “within the veil,” at the Father’s right hand. There He, “a priest forever after the order of Melchizedec,” continues His Priestly work of intercession for His redeemed, continues His Priestly ministry of bearing gently with the ignorant and erring. His blood is a sufficient sacrifice; His prayers avail; His compassion never faileth; for He is the eternal Son of God who became Man, that He might be “a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God.” The anchor of the ship is cast without the vessel. Even so, the believer’s eternal security depends, not on his own feelings, not on his own works, but on the “anchor of his soul,” the Lord Jesus. What more could the child of God ask? Therefore, let us press on, growing in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Let us not be content to be babes in spiritual discernment. We shall grow in grace only as we allow His Holy Spirit to teach us to understand His Priestly person and work, remembering that we are eternally secure in His finished redemption. Assignment for Exam 5 1. Be sure to review your earlier lessons from time to time. Can you remember? a. The occasion for the Epistle to the Hebrews? b. The general content of seven Old Testament prophecies of the eternal Son of God quoted in Heb 1:1-14? c. The four Old Testament prophecies of the perfect humanity of the Son of Man quoted in Heb 2:1-18? d. In what ways the Jewish Tabernacle was a type of Christ and His church? 2. Why was the long parenthesis of Heb 5:11-14; Heb 6:1-20 necessary? 3. Complete Exam 5. CHAPTER FIVE NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM 1. In the blank space write the letter of the correct answer. (40 points) (1) Heb 5:11-14 is speaking of (a) The elderly believers (b) The unsaved (c) Christians lacking spiritual growth (d) The believers’ small children__________ (2) The exhortation, “Let us go on unto perfection” (Heb 6:1), means (a) Mature growth in Christ (b) Perfect animal sacrifice (c) A faultless life (d) Perfect knowledge of the law__________ (3) To “wrest. . .the. . .scriptures” (2Pe 3:16) is to (a) Tear leaves from our Bibles (b) Refuse to believe the Scripture (c) Take a passage out of its setting to prove a theory (d) Argue the authorship of the book__________ (4) The “city of refuge” (Num 35:1-34) was (a) A refuge for intentional manslayers (b) The place to hide from justice (c) The home of the high priest (d) A place of safety for someone who accidentally killed a person__________ (5) The “city of refuge” is a type of (a) The Church (b) Christ (c) heaven (d) Jerusalem __________ 2. In the right-hand margin write “True” or “False” after each of the following statements. (20 points) a. Christians on a spiritual milk diet are skillful in the Word of God. __________ b. When Christ died, the ceremonial washings were to be discontinued. _________ c. Upon His ascension to the Father, Christ was “saluted” as “an high priest after the order of Melchizedec.”__________ d. “If God permit” (Heb 6:3) implies that God might not be willing for the Hebrew Christians to leave Judaism.__________ e. The believers were to proclaim Jesus as the Saviour from wrath to come.__________ f. The writer to the Hebrews states that Pharisees and Sadducees were among those referred to in Heb 6:4-6 __________ g. Heb 6:4-6 describes the condition of the Jewish nation today. __________ 3. Which two of the following statements are true? Place the two correct letters in the blanks. (10 points) a. The phrase, “two immutable things” (Heb 6:18), refers to God’s promise and His oath. b. When God first promised Abraham a son, He confirmed this promise by His oath. c. Abraham feared that God had forgotten His promise when he was asked to offer up Isaac.d. God promised that the Redeemer would come through Abraham. __________ __________ 4. With a word or phrase complete the following. (10 points) a. The Hebrew manslayer remained in the city of refuge as long as the high priest _________________________________________________________________________ b. A small boat that safely anchored a ship in the harbor was called _________________________________________________________________________ c. The “anchor of the soul” is both “___________” and “_____________” 5. a. State in a few words how the following fundamentals of Judaism have been fulfilled in Christ. (20 points for a and b) (1) “Repentance from dead works _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ (2) “The doctrine of baptisms” _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ (3) “The laying on of hands” _________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________ b. Name the four special privileges which the apostates were guilty of rejecting. (1) _________________________________________________________________________ (2) _________________________________________________________________________ (3) _________________________________________________________________________ (4) _________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 9: 01.06. A PRIEST FOREVER ======================================================================== "A Priest Forever” Heb 7:1-28 CHAPTER SIX The Official Glories of Christ The Epistle to the Hebrews, more than any other part of the New Testament, unfolds in wonderful detail the glories which flow from the Christhood of our Lord. The term “Christ” is an official title and speaks of Him as the Anointed Man. In the Old Testament we meet with a threefold personal type of the “Messiah,” a word of which the name “Christ” is the equivalent. There was the term meaning “the anointed prophet,” another meaning “the anointed king,” and yet another meaning “the anointed priest.” No king could be a priest also under the old economy, but the prophetic Scriptures pointed to One who would “a priest upon his throne” (Zec 6:13). In Psa 110:1-7 the oath of God establishes the Messiah as “a priest forever after the order of Melchizedec” who united kingship and priesthood in one. As Christ, our Lord undertakes to establish the will of God in a revolted world. He has become invested with all authority in heaven and on earth to bring a disordered universe into the divine harmony. He will not rest till He can hand back to God the Father all that of which the enemy has deprived Him, that God may be all in all throughout eternity. Thus the program of the Christ is cosmic in its scope. But in accomplishing this task many intermediate stages have to be gone through before the goal is reached. When He asks for it (Psa 2:8), the nations will become His inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth His possession. He has not asked yet. He is waiting for His fellow heirs, for His “brethren,” as the second chapter of Hebrews call them. They enjoy the blessing of His being the Christ in the meantime. - He has purged their sins (Heb 1:3); - He has become the Apostle of God’s salvation to them (Heb 1:2; Heb 3:1); - He is the High Priest of their confession (Heb 3:1); - He succors them when tempted (Heb 2:18); - He is touched with the feeling of their infirmities (Heb 4:15); - He ever lives to make intercession for them (Heb 7:25); - He is the Captain of their salvation, and is leading them unto glory (Heb 2:10); - He is their Forerunner within the veil (Heb 6:20); - He is their great Shepherd through the blood of the everlasting covenant (Heb 13:20); He is the One who, as Author and Finisher of the course of faith, at God’s right hand now inspires them, as they look to Him, to run the race set before them (Heb 12:1-2). These are some of His official glories which are the realities that faith appropriates while we wait for the further stage of His great plan to reconcile both heaven and earth unto Himself and bring into subjection the things under the earth (Col 1:1-29; Php 2:1-30) till the last enemy, death, has also been destroyed. “A Priest Forever After the Order of Melchizedec” Psa 110:4; Heb 7:1-28 We might regard the seventh chapter of Hebrews as a sermon on Psa 110:4, where we read of the divine oath which constituted the earth-rejected Jesus, now at God’s right hand, “a priest forever after the order of Melchizedec.” This sermon falls into three logical divisions; and the theme is again divided into three topics: 1. Introduction-Melchizedec, a type of Christ (Heb 7:1-3) 2. Theme-Christ’s priesthood is superior to Aaron’s (Heb 7:4-21): a. In the order of His priesthood (Heb 7:4-14) The Melchizedec order is greater than the Aaronic order. b. In the eternity of His priesthood (Heb 7:15-19) Christ’s priesthood is unchangeable, eternal; whereas the Aaronic priesthood was continually changing because of the death of the priests. c. In the divine oath (Heb 7:20-21) Christ’s priesthood was inaugurated by the divine oath to One whom God had made the Partner of His throne; Aaron was made a pries without an oath (Heb 7:20-21). 3. Conclusion-The character of our Great High Priest and His intercession at the throne of grace (Heb 7:22-28) Melchizedec-A Type of Christ Heb 7:1-3 Melchizedec is mentioned in only three places in Scripture: Gen 14:17-20 is the historical record; Psa 110:4 states the prophetic type; Hebrews explains the meaning of the prophecy. Turn now to Gen 14:1-24, and read the story of the man, Melchizedec. Abram was returning from the battle, in which he had delivered among others, Lot and the king of Sodom, when Melchizedec, king of Salem and priest of God Most High, met the patriarch. Three acts of this king-priest are mentioned: 1. He “brought forth bread and wine.” It is evident that Melchizedec’s priesthood was based on sacrifice that foreshadowed the Saviour to come. What blessed truths he must have discussed with Abram concerning the suffering of the promised Redeemer! Surely they looked down the centuries, by faith, to see the broken body and shed blood of the Lamb of Calvary! 2. He blessed Abram, giving God the glory for the patriarch’s victory. 3. He received tithes of the spoils of the battle from Abram. Before you leave the Genesis record, read on to the end of this chapter. The king of Sodom was so grateful to Abram for deliverance that he offered to let the patriarch keep the spoils of the battle; but Abram refused, trusting God for his reward. Evidently the Lord was pleased with this choice (See Gen 15:1). In explaining the two Old Testament passages where Melchizedec is mentioned, the Holy Spirit, in Heb 7:1-3, reviews the story, adding also the following significant facts: 4. The name “Melchizedec” means “King of righteousness.” 5. “Salem” means “peace”; therefore, Melchizedec was “King of peace.” “Salem” was the ancient name for “Jerusalem,” meaning “city of peace,” or “habitation of peace.” 6. Melchizedec has no recorded genealogy. From Genesis to Revelation the Bible exalts the Lord Jesus Christ as the King of righteousness and King of peace. In Him ‘Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other” (Psa 85:10). - Only His loved ones know Him now as the Just One (Acts 7:52) and “justifier of him which believeth” in Him (Rom 3:26). - Only the redeemed know Him now as the “God of peace” (Rom 15:33). But in that coming day of His glorious reign on earth He will be universally acknowledged as “THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS” and “Prince of Peace” (Jer 23:6; Isa 9:6). Genesis, a book which emphasizes the importance of family records, omits Melchizedec’s genealogical credentials; whereas later, in the Aaronic priesthood, the records of the Levitical priests were of vital importance (See Ezr 2:61-63). The Holy Spirit’s omission of this genealogy is explained in Heb 7:3, in that Melchizedec was “made like unto the Son of God,” our Great High Priest, “who abideth a priest forever.” In other words, the very omission of Melchizedec’s genealogy makes him a type of the eternal Lord Jesus, who has “neither beginning of days nor end of life.” Christ’s Priesthood Is Superior to Aaron’s The conclusion is logical, convincing and unmistakable: the priesthood of Christ is better than that of Aaron; and the Levitical, or Aaronic, priesthood was the very heart of Judaism, the best the old economy had to offer. 1. In the order of His priesthood Christ is superior to Aaron (Heb 7:4-14) Melchizedec was greater than Abram: a. Because he received tithes from Abram. b. Because he blessed Abram. “And without all contradiction the less is blessed of the better” (Heb 7:7). Therefore, Melchizedec was greater than Abram’s great-grandson, Levi; and better than Levi’s great-grandson, Aaron-and all their descendants, Levitical priests. Since Christ is “a priest forever after the order of Melchizedec”-not after the order of Aaron-He is superior to all the Levitical priests, Aaron’s lineal descendants. It is a forceful argument, used here to exhort the Hebrew Christians to forsake the then empty ritual of Judaism, and to press on with Christ, who had fulfilled all the Law of Moses and set aside its ceremonies. Furthermore, Christ came, not from the tribe of Levi, as did Aaron; but “our Lord sprang out of Juda” (Heb 7:14); therefore, He is both King and Priest-King of righteousness, King of peace, and our: Great High Priest forever! 2. In the eternity of His priesthood Christ is superior to Aaron (Heb 7:15-19). Aaron died; his sons died; therefore, the Levitical priests were ever learning, ever being replaced by their sons (cf. Heb 7:23); but Christ is a Priest with “the power of an endless [Greek, ‘indissoluble’] life” (Heb 7:16; cf. Heb 7:24). “For ever” He is our undying Priest with “an unchangeable priesthood.” Again, in Heb 7:18-19, the Holy Spirit reiterates the fact that the Law of Moses, including the Levitical priesthood, had been disannulled, that is, set aside, with the “bringing in . . . of a better hope” in Christ, through whom “we draw nigh unto God . . . The law made nothing perfect.” It was but “a shadow of good things to come” (Heb 10:1). 3. Because of the divine oath, with which He was constituted a Priest forever, Christ is superior to Aaron (Heb 7:20-21). Aaron and his sons were made priests “without an oath”; not so the Lord Jesus. All of the immutability of the sworn statement of the unchanging God gives unquestioned authority and boundless power to our Heavenly Priest! The Matchless Person of Our Great High Priest Heb 7:22-28 The closing section of this explanation of Psa 110:4 describes the character of our High Priest: “For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins [Christ had no sin in Him], and then for the people’s: for this he did once, when he offered up himself. For the law maketh men high priests, which have infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since [after] the law, maketh the Son, who is consecrated for evermore” (Heb 7:26-28). The substance of the Antitype far exceeds the shadow of the type here, in this word-picture of our blessed Lord. His Intercession at the Throne of Grace This ever living Priest is our constant Intercessor; we draw near unto God by Him (cf. Acts 4:12). Hence He saves us to the uttermost, that is, to the full and final rest of God. Now you may ask, Is the Melchizedec priesthood of our Lord a present ministry? Or is it millennial in its character? Is it for all believers, or for Israel only? It appears that according to the Epistle to the Hebrews, faith lives in the light of “the world [or ‘age’] to come,” and anticipates its spiritual blessings. Thus we have already, spiritually, come to Mount Zion, the metropolis of the millennial earth (Heb 12:22-24). This era is one of faith in the unseen. The coming day will be one of display of what faith lays hold of now. So in the summing up found in Heb 8:1 we read, “We have such an high priest,” the kind of priest of whom Melchizedec was a type. We who have been spiritually “translated . . . into the kingdom of his dear son” (Col 1:13) need not wait till the millennial consummation and display of this kingdom, in which our Lord will function in His royal and Great High Priestly character as King of righteousness and King of peace. We are in the enjoyment of both ministrations now. His rule is a Priestly rule. And it was to “Abram the Hebrew”-a name first mentioned in Gen 14:13 -the pilgrim from another country, and a stranger in the land, that Melchizedec brought forth bread and wine out of Salem, a beautiful figure of those who receive the benefit of our Lord’s present ministry. Abram was thus helped to refuse the offer of the King of Sodom to enrich himself with the Babylonish spoil taken in battle. Those who feast on heavenly bread and wine are superior to the lure of this world. But is the Melchizedec priesthood for all believers, or for Israel only. In writing to Hebrew Christians, the Holy Spirit referred to the Lord Jesus as their Great High Priest; whereas in addressing Gentile believers, many of whom did not know the ceremonies and teachings of Judaism, He spoke of Him as the “one mediator between God and men” (1Ti 2:5), “an advocate with the Father” (1Jn 2:1). The terms carry the same meaning, in that Christ is the Representative in the court of heaven for the redeemed sinner, whether Jew or Gentile. And He will never lose a case! As Intercessor, He pleads the cause of His own, even as He answered the heart-cry of Job for a “daysman,” a Mediator between God and men (Job 9:33). Like Jacob’s ladder, He touches the very throne room of heaven, as well as the humble experiences of His redeemed. (Cf. John 1:51.) In the place of all power, at the right hand of God (Mark 16:19; Rom 8:34; Col 3:1), the crucified and risen Lord takes our part when Satan, “the accuser of our brethren,” accuses us “before our God day and night” (Rev 12:10). Again, as Aaron ministered on behalf of his people, he wore Israel, upon his shoulders, the place of strength. At the same time he wore over his heart the breastplate with its twelve precious stones, also engraved with the names of the twelve tribes. Thus, symbolically, he bore his people on his shoulders and in the place of affection before the God who answers prayer. Likewise, our Great High Priest, even our Intercessor, knows His own sheep by name as He represents them at the throne of grace (John 10:3; John 10:14; John 10:27). And what is the nature of His prayer? John 17:1-26 gives the answer. Another Chapter of Contrasts To recapitulate, look again at this seventh chapter of Hebrews, which proves beyond all controversy that the person of our Great High Priest is more excellent by far than that of Aaron and all his sons. As you get the overall picture, you see a continued contrast between Judaism and Christianity: Under the Levitical priesthood there was imperfection (Heb 7:11; Heb 7:19); in Christ we find perfection (Heb 7:19; Heb 7:25; Heb 7:28). After fifteen hundred years of Judaism, there was “further need” of a heavenly Priest-a need fully met in Christ (Heb 7:11). “The priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law” (Heb 7:12); “Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth” (Rom 10:4). “For there is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before” and “a bringing in of a better hope” (Heb 7:18-19). - Aaron was a priest only, from the tribe of Levi; Christ is King-Priest, from the tribe of Judah, King of righteousness, King of peace, and a Priest forever. - Aaron was made priest without an oath; Christ, with the divine oath. - Aaron ministered under the old covenant of the Law of Moses; Christ is “the surety of a better covenant” the new covenant in His blood (Heb 7:22). - The Levitical priests were many, ever learning, continually dying; Christ is alive for evermore, all-wise, unchangeable. . - Aaron and his sons were sinners, needing to offer sacrifices for themselves (Heb 7:27); Christ “knew no sin” (2Co 5:21); He is absolutely holy (Heb 7:26-28), “altogether lovely” (Song of Solomon 5:16). - Aaron and his sons had to offer the “daily” sacrifice (Heb 7:27), year after year for fifteen centuries; Christ offered one sufficient sacrifice once for all (Heb 7:27). Could the Hebrew Christian ask for more? Can you? What though the nation persecuted the Jewish believer for loving the Lord Jesus? What though you may suffer affliction for His sake? He is at the throne of grace, able and waiting to meet your every need, even as He has always met the needs of His own-“according to his riches in glory” (Php 4:19). 1. If you have not already formed the habit of setting aside an appointed time each day, preferably in the morning hours, for Bible reading and prayer, by all means do it at once. In addition to your study of this lesson take time for prayer and praise for the truth it holds. “Consider . . . Christ Jesus”-the wonders of His person and the power of His work on your behalf. Seek first the Giver-not His gifts-if you would experience the unfailing joy of unbroken fellowship with “such an high priest.” 2. How is Melchizedec a type of Christ? 3. Why is Christ’s priesthood superior to Aaron’s? CHAPTER SIX NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM 1. In the blank space write the letter of the correct answer. (32 points) (1) Melchizedec’s genealogy is not recorded in the Bible because he (a) Was not an actual person (b) Was a type of the Son of God (c) Was not important enough (d) Did not worship the true God __________ (2) Heb 7:17 teaches that (a) The priesthood of Aaron was superior to Melchizedec’s (b) Christ’s priesthood is after the order of Aaron’s (c) Aaron’s priesthood is after the order of Melchizedec’s (d) Christ’s priesthood is after the order of Melchizedec s (e) Melchizedec’s priesthood is better than Christ’s __________ (3) The intercessory work of Christ in heaven is (a) For Israel only (b) For all believers in the Lord Jesus (c) For the millennial age only (d) For the unsaved (4) The forceful comparison of Christ’s priesthood with the Aaronic priesthood was for the purpose of (a) Exhorting the Hebrew Christians to take Christ along with the Judaistic rituals (b) Declaring that the ceremonies of the Temple worship had always been meaningless (c) Exhorting the Hebrew Christians to forsake the empty ritual of Judaism and press on with Christ (d) Proving that the Temple offerings were not of divine institution __________ 2. In the right-hand margin write “True” or “False” after each of the following statements. (10 points) a. Christ is superior to all Levitical priests. __________ b. Christ’s priesthood ended with His ascension. __________ c. The Levitical priesthood was to continue forever. __________ d. Christ came from the tribe of Judah. __________ e. Aaron and his sons were confirmed as priests by an oath. __________ f. There were Old Testament priests who came from the tribe of Judah._________ g. Christ’s priesthood is unchangeable. __________ h. The kings of Israel were sometimes eligible for priestly office. __________ i. Christ fulfilled the law of Moses and brought in a better hope. __________ Read Psa 110:1-7, Heb 7:1-28 and Gen 14:1-24 and then state which of the following facts are true. (10 points) a. The name “Melchizedec” means “king of righteousness.”__________ b. Melchizedec was king of Sodom. __________ c. Abraham gave Melchizedec bread and wine. __________ d. The king of Sodom helped make Abraham rich. __________ e. Melchizedec received tithes from Abraham. __________ 4. From your study of this lesson give briefly the three main proofs that Christ’s priesthood is superior to Aaron’s. (3 points) a. ______________________________________________________________________ Heb 7:4-14 b. _____________________________________________________________________ Heb 7:15-19 c. _____________________________________________________________________ Heb 7:20-21 5. a. State briefly what the onyx stones which the high priest wore on his shoulders typified. (10 points) ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ b. State also what the high priest’s breastplate illustrated. (10 points) ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ 6. In column 1 name five aspects of the Levitical priesthood, and in column 2 the corresponding contrast to be seen in Christ. (20 points) Column 1 Column 2 a. ____________ ______________ b. ____________ ______________ c. ____________ ______________ d. ____________ ______________ e. ____________ ______________ 7. Match each reference in column 1 with the statement in column 2 by placing the correct letter from column 1 in the proper blank in column 2.(5 points) Column 1Column 2 a. Heb 2:10(1) Ever lives to make intercession__________ b. Heb 3:1(2) Captain of our salvation__________ c. Heb 1:3(3) Has purged our sins__________ d. Heb 4:15(4) Touched with the feeling of our infirmities__________ e. Heb 7:25(5) The High Priest of our profession [confession]__________ f. Heb 6:20 ======================================================================== CHAPTER 10: 01.07. THE MEDIATOR OF A BETTER COVENANT ======================================================================== “The Mediator of a Better Covenant” Heb 8:1-13 CHAPTER SEVEN “We Have Such an High Priest” Heb 8:1 “Now of the things which we have spoken [or, ‘Now to sum up what we are saying’] this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens.” “Such an high priest” as the One described in the first seven chapters of this epistle is seated in the place of all power, ministering on behalf of His own (Cf. Heb 8:1 with Psa 110:1; Heb 1:3; Heb 1:13; Heb 10:12; Heb 12:2). Jesus, the Son of God, an ever living High Priest, an Anchor of the soul, the Forerunner within the veil, the Surety of a better covenant-“we have such an high priest”! - He is “holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens.” - He is better than the prophets, better than the angels, Moses, Joshua, Aaron and all the Levitical priests. - He has made propitiation for sin (Heb 2:17); - He is able to sympathize with and succor His tempted brethren in the wilderness (Heb 2:18); - He ever lives to intercede for them (Heb 7:25). In these first seven chapters the Holy Spirit has spared no words in emphasizing the glory of the person of Christ-more excellent than that of any personage of Judaism. From Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18, continuing the proof that He is better than Aaron. He lays emphasis upon the superior ministry of our heavenly Priest, a ministry more excellent than that of any earthly priest. Chapter 8 not only speaks of Him as “a minister of . . . the true tabernacle . . . the mediator of a better covenant” than that of the Law of Moses, under which Aaron served; but it also unfolds the terms of that new covenant. Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18 bring the entire argument to a climax, dwelling at length upon Christ’s more excellent, eternally sufficient sacrifice for sins. Since the mighty God and altogether lovely One portrayed in chapters 1-7 is our Great High Priest-the inspired writer might have added surely no persecution, however bitter, should keep the Hebrew Christian from bearing faithful witness to “such an high priest”! In the light of His glory and grace it seems unthinkable that any Christian-Jew or Gentile-in any generation could allow the things of this world, the joys or the sorrows, to rob the crucified and risen Lord Jesus of first place in the heart and life. “A More Excellent Ministry” in “The True Tabernacle” Heb 8:2-6. z 1. “A minister of . . . the true tabernacle” This One who “sat down on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty on high” is “a minister of the sanctuary [or, ‘holy things’], and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, not man” (Heb 8:2). The Jewish Tabernacle in the wilderness was earthly, a sanctuary of this world (Heb 9:1), pitched by man; the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, is heavenly, the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands (Heb 9:11). God’s “house,” over which Moses was a faithful servant (Heb 3:2), was an “example [copy] and shadow of heavenly things” (Heb 8:5); the more perfect tabernacle is the reality, of which the shadow, or type, spoke (Heb 8:5; Heb 9:11; Heb 9:23-24). The Jewish Tabernacle was very beautiful and very costly, made according to the pattern which God showed to Moses in the mount (Heb 8:5; cf. Exo 25:40); but it perished many centuries ago. The true tabernacle is eternal, imperishable. 2. Christ’s continuing ministry In this heavenly sanctuary the Lord Jesus ever liveth to continue His Priestly work which He began at Calvary. “For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer” (Heb 8:3). In fulfillment of all the Old Testament types, Christ offered Himself as the one sufficient sacrifice - “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). But what are the “gifts” which He now presents to the Father in His intercessory work? As a Priest, He must “have somewhat also to offer.” Are these gifts not the willing expression of service, thanksgiving and praise from the hearts and lives of His brethren? (See Rom 12:1; Php 4:18; Heb 13:15-16; 1Pe 2:9; Rev 1:6) He takes our prayers, our praise and our service; burns up all the dross in them, all the sins of pride and self-will; and presents them without flaw to the Father. “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of lips giving thanks to his name. But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased” (Heb 13:15-16), 3. Christ’s heavenly ministry Further emphasis on the heavenly character of Christ’s ministry is seen in the reference in verse 4 to the higher order of His priesthood: “For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing there are priests [Levitical priests] that offer gifts according to the law.” Here, as in Heb 7:1-28, we are reminded that Christ did not come through the Levitical order. Therefore, if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all. That is, He would not intrude into the Aaronic priesthood, as did those who thus disobeyed the Law of Moses (See Lesson 4 of this course). The Lord Jesus fulfilled every jot and tittle of the law! His priesthood guarantees a heavenly ministry, after the order of Melchizedec, not after the order of Aaron. The Mediator of the New Covenant Heb 8:6-13 The new covenant is first mentioned in Heb 7:22 where our High Priest is spoken of as the “surety of a better testament” than the one made through Moses. In Heb 8:6-13 this thought is amplified. Our Lord, we are told, hath “obtained a more excellent ministry” than that of the priests before Him, “by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises” (Heb 8:6). This authoritative statement is based on Jer 31:31-34, which is here quoted in full. Turn now to that prophecy and read it carefully; then read the quotation of it in Heb 8:8-12. 1. The old covenant of the Law of Moses The Jews of apostolic times who were continuing the forms and ceremonies of Judaism were rejecting the finished work of the crucified and risen Lord Jesus. Likewise, many” professing” Christians today are legalists, that is, they limit the grace of God, seeking to add their own paltry deeds to the atoning work of Christ as the means of salvation. But what does God say in Heb 8:7-8? “For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second. For finding fault with them [the Israelites], he said, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, That I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah” (Heb 8:7-8; cf. Jer 31:31). Morally God’s law is eternally holy and just; therefore, it was “not faultless” only in the sense that it could not save the sinner. But God did not intend the Law of Moses as the means of salvation; “it was added because of transgressions, till the seed [Christ] should come” (Gal 3:19), It was given “that sin by the commandment sin might become exceeding sinful” (Rom 7:13), that is, to show fallen man the exceeding sinfulness of his sin. “The law was our schoolmaster [or, ‘tutor’] to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith”! (Gal 3:24). God had been dealing with Israel in grace before the law was given (Exo 19:4). He “took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt” (Heb 8:9). He promised to make of them “a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation” if they would obey His voice (Exo 19:5-6). But even before Moses came down from Sinai with the tables of stone, the people were dancing, naked, around a golden calf, calling it the god who had led them out of Egypt! (See Exo 32:1-35) Israel broke God’s holy law in every detail, even as God said, “They continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not” (Heb 8:9). “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). Jew and Gentile-all have sinned. The best that the law could do-all God ever meant for it to do-was to reveal to man his utter failure to obey God’s holy law and his need of a Saviour. A mirror reflects the grime and dust on your face, but it cannot wash your face. In like manner God refers to His righteous law as a mirror that reveals to man his need of cleansing from sin by the precious blood of Christ (See Jas 1:22-25). “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost” (Tit 3:5). The Spirit of God is not referring here to the good works and the life separated from the world that should follow regeneration. He does not fail to emphasize the importance of the Christian’s manifesting his faith by his works-before God, men, angels and demons. The pages of the New Testament are literally filled with admonition and exhortation on this vital matter-from the lips of our Lord, as well as from His apostles. But when the Holy Spirit, in the passage before us, contrasts the old and the new covenants, He is speaking of the Law of Moses as “our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ,” who fulfilled the old covenant and replaced it by the new. 2. The new covenant in Christ Jesus From all eternity God planned to make a new covenant with His people, one which would be sealed with the blood of His only begotten Son. By faith in that promised Redeemer the Old Testament saints were saved. Then some six hundred years before Christ was born in Bethlehem, the Holy Spirit inspired Jeremiah to write the prophecy concerning the new covenant which God had promised (Jer 31:31-34). Still later the Lord Jesus, at the last Passover with His disciples, said plainly, “This cup is the new testament [covenant] in my blood” (Luk 22:20, R. V.; cf. 1Co 11:25). And now, in Heb 8:8-12, the same Holy Spirit reiterates His prophecy, spoken through Jeremiah and fulfilled in Christ. When Jeremiah wrote this message, existing conditions made it seem impossible of fulfillment, humanly speaking. The ten northern tribes had been taken into the Assyrian captivity, and Jeremiah was predicting the Babylonian captivity. A reunited Israel, enjoying the blessing of the new covenant, seemed improbable, from man’s view. But the prophet had a living faith in his living Lord, who had said, “I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah” (Heb 8:8). Now you may ask, Is not the new covenant, spoken of by Jeremiah, for Israel only? According to the letter, yes! But in 2Co 3:6 the apostle says that he and his associates were made “able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit.” The spirit of the new covenant is for Gentiles also. In that same chapter Paul shows that the new covenant is heart-work (2Co 3:2-3), gives life (2Co 3:6) abides and exceeds in glory (2Co 3:7; 2Co 3:9-11), establishes us in righteousness (2Co 3:9), and brings us face to face with the glory of the Lord without a veil between (2Co 3:13-18). When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, his countenance shone with the reflected glory of God so much that he had to put a veil over his face before Israel could talk with him (2Co 3:13; cf. Exo 34:33). It was to this circumstance that Paul referred when he compared this experience in Israel’s history with the heart-condition of the Christ-rejecting Jews of apostolic days, adding further: “. . until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ. But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart. Nevertheless when it [or, ‘the heart’] shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away . . . But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2Co 3:14-18). 3. The terms of the new covenant There are no “if’s” in the new covenant, no “thou shalts”; but there is a chain of divine “I will’s.” - The old covenant was conditional, dependent upon Israel’s obedience to God’s “Thou shalt.” - The new covenant is unconditional, guaranteed by God’s “I will.” “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord” (Heb 8:10), After what days? After centuries of unbelief; after utter failure to measure up to the standards of righteousness and holiness demanded by the law, alter the demonstration of the bankruptcy of fallen human: nature, then grace steps in. It is so now in our personal experience. It will be so in the experience of Israel when God shall “build again the: tabernacle of David, which is fallen down” (Acts 15:16; cf. Heb 8:8). “As it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: for this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins” (Rom 11:26-27). According to the letter, Heb 8:8 looks forward to the Millennium, when this promise of Rom 11:26-27 will be fulfilled, when Israel, as a nation, will be restored to Palestine under the reign of her Messiah. But this covenant is based upon the Father’s “everlasting covenant” (Heb 13:20), made with His only begotten Son, and sealed with the blood of Jesus (See Lesson 12 of this course concerning Heb 13:20). And into the blessings of this “everlasting covenant” Jews and Gentiles of all ages enter by faith when they accept Christ whose finished work on Calvary’s cross is the only atonement for sin. And what are the terms of the new covenant? Four unconditional promises of God: a. “I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts” (Heb 8:10), The law thus becomes a part of the very being of the born-again soul. The understanding approves of it; the will loves it. Perception and inclination thus go hand in hand. The Law of Moses was “the ministration of death” because the penalty had to be executed by a holy God upon a disobedient people. This “ministration of death” was “engraven on stones” (2Co 3:7), But to believers in the Lord Jesus Paul wrote, “Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men . . . not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshly tables of the heart” (2Co 3:2-3). This is the merciful work of God, accomplished on the basis of the new covenant in Christ Jesus. b. “And I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people” (Heb 8:10). The Lord is our God and we are His people. This mutual possession is a spring of infinite delight. God gives Himself to us and we give ourselves to Him. God takes pleasure in us and we find pleasure in God-all because we are “accepted in the beloved” Son of the Father (Eph 1:6). c. “And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: For all shall know me, from the least to the greatest” (Heb 8:11), We know God immediately. That is the force of the words, “All shall know me.” The word “know” means conscious knowledge. God desires to be known in the soul of man. That is the objective of the gospel. The law left God behind the vail “in the thick darkness” (2Ch 6:1). But in Christianity the heavens are open-the vail is rent-and we are with God in the light of His perfect revelation in His Son. No longer does sinful man need an earthly priest to represent him before the righteous God, teaching him through ritual and ceremonies to know Him; for the heavenly Priest reveals Himself to the humblest “who come unto God by him” (Heb 7:25). d. “For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more” (Heb 8:12). Our past is blotted out. The first is mentioned last, the foundation on which all else rests-our sins and iniquities God remembers no more. The past cannot lay its hand upon the present and say, “Thou belongest to me.” In the Greek there is a double negative here, “never remember any more.” Thus is the heart set at rest in the presence of God. The Holy Spirit uses several figures to reassure us of full forgiveness of sin. He tells us that “as far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us” (Psa 103:12). Again, He says, “I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins” (Isa 44:22). And to Him the prophet spoke, by faith: “Thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back” (Isa 38:17); and yet again, “Thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea” (Mic 7:19). If the Lord did all of that for us, yet remembered our sins, we might be distressed, realizing how black they are, how ashamed we should be to have Him remember such gross iniquities. But thank God! He has promised to remember them no more forever! (Heb 8:12; Heb 10:17) That is grace-unmerited, immeasurable and divine. 4. The new covenant annulled the old. “In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away” (Heb 8:13). In these concluding words of contrast between the two covenants the inspired writer is saying, as it were: “Hebrew Christian, leave the forms and ceremonies of the Law of Moses, and be occupied wholly with Christ, who fulfilled the law and set it aside. Like a worn and cast-off garment, Judaism has served its God-given purpose, is becoming old and waxeth aged, and is nigh unto vanishing away. Since the Law of Moses has been fulfilled by the Lord Jesus-for sinful man; since ‘Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth’ (Rom 10:4); why continue to try in vain to be saved by the deeds of the law? ‘Grace and truth came by Jesus Christ’ (John 1:17). ‘Let us go on unto perfection’ (Heb 6:1) by the power of His indwelling Holy Spirit.” Some Bible students believe that the Epistle to the Hebrews was written only about four or five years before the Roman general, Titus, in A.D. 70, destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem. Without doubt God permitted the Temple worship to be swept away because He had annulled, set aside forever, all the ceremonies of the old covenant. But here, in Heb 8:1-13, the inspired writer was beseeching his fellow Hebrew Christians to launch out in faith, trusting the unfailing promises of God in the Lord Jesus Christ, even while others were continuing the Temple worship. And to Christians of every generation, whether Jew or Gentile, the Holy Spirit is saying through this profound, yet clear, epistle: Why stay at Mt. Sinai? Look away to Mount Calvary! Come out from among the Christ-rejecting world; your Great High Priest has saved you by His grace; He continues to minister for you in the true tabernacle at “the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens,” as the Mediator of the new covenant, sealed with His own blood. To know Him is to love Him; and to love Him is to follow Him, even unto death. Assignment for Exam 7 1. Be able to express in your own words the fourfold promise of the new covenant; or, if you prefer, you may memorize the verses (Heb 8:10-12). 2. As you let the truth of this chapter grip your soul, remember also the words of the Lord Jesus, “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15)-not in order to be saved, but because you are saved by faith through His redeeming grace. CHAPTER SEVEN NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM 1. In the blank space write the letter of the correct answer. (24 points) (1) “The true tabernacle’’ (a) Was built of costly materials (b) Was not made with hands (c) Was made by Moses (d) Has long since perished __________ (2) As Minister of “the true tabernacle,” Christ presents to God (a) Our own efforts for salvation (b) Our praise, prayers and service as believers (c) Animal sacrifices (d) Our faults and failings __________ (3) The new covenant is (a) a ministration of death (b) written on tables of stone (c) based on the law of Moses (d) written on the heart __________ 2. In the right-hand margin write “True” or “False” after each of the following statements. (20 points) a. God meant the Law of Moses to be a means of salvation. __________ b. Israel broke God’s law in every detail. __________ c. Jeremiah was inspired to prophesy of a new covenant. __________ d. Jesus announced that the new covenant was established by His shed blood. ____ e. The law was given to show fallen man how sinful he is. __________ f. The new covenant offers blessing to both Jew and Gentile. __________ g. In Rom 11:1-36 Christ is called the Deliverer. __________ h. The old covenant has fulfilled its purpose. __________ i. The new covenant will eventually grow old and vanish away. __________ j. The old covenant was annulled by the new. __________ 3. What were the threefold duties of a priest, fulfilled by Christ? (6 points) a. _______________________________________________________________ Heb 2:17 b. _______________________________________________________________ Heb 2:18 c. _______________________________________________________________ Heb 7:25 4. Name five scriptural figures of speech which reassure us of God’s full forgiveness when we receive His Son as Saviour. (15 points) (a) __________________________________________________________________________ (b) __________________________________________________________________________ (c) __________________________________________________________________________ (d) __________________________________________________________________________ (e) __________________________________________________________________________ 5. Fill in the blanks below with the appropriate word or phrase from the following list. (15 points) Entersconditional Faithburden Veilglory Millennium returns a. The old covenant was ________________________________________________________ b. When unbelieving Jews read Moses, a __________________________________________ is upon their hearts. c. According to the letter of the law, Heb 8:8-12 looks forward to the ______________ d. The veil is removed from the unbelieving heart when Christ _______________________ e. Both Jews and Gentiles may enter into blessings of the everlasting covenant by ________ _____________________________________________________________________________ 6. Match each reference in column 1 with the appropriate statement in column 2 by placing the correct letter from column 1 in the proper blank in column 2. (15 points). You may use your Bible. Column 1Column 2 a. Jas 1:23(1) The law is compared to a schoolmaster __________ b. Gal 3:19(2) The law is likened to a mirror__________ c. 2Co 3:6(3) The law reveals the sinfulness of sin__________ d. Rom 10:13(4) The letter of the law kills, but the Spirit gives life__________ e. Gal 3:24(5) The ceremonial law was in effect only until Christ finished His redemptive work__________ 7. a. Give the reference of your favorite verse in Hebrews 8. (5 points) _____________________________________________________________________________ b. Explain briefly why this is your favorite verse. _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 11: 01.08. ONE SACRIFICE FOR SINS FOREVER ======================================================================== “One Sacrifice for Sins Forever” Heb 9:1-28; Heb 10:1-18 CHAPTER EIGHT In Heb 9:1-28; Heb 10:1-18 the Holy Spirit concludes the doctrinal portion of the epistle with the irrefutable proof that Christ’s “one sacrifice for sins for ever” is not only superior to all the Levitical sacrifices offered on Jewish altars, but that it is the only perfect sacrifice, by which eternal redemption is given to all who will accept it. Thus the very heart of the epistle is unfolded: our Lord’s one, sufficient sacrifice is the final and complete fulfillment of all the types set forth in the animal sacrifices under the Law of Moses. Not only so, but having offered Himself once for all on the cross, He is ministering still in the heavenly sanctuary, of which the Jewish Tabernacle was but a shadow of good things to come (Heb 10:1). He is the Mediator of a better covenant, sealed with His own blood. His service in the more perfect tabernacle is efficacious because it is the ministry of the spotless Lamb of Calvary and all-powerful King-Priest. In this weighty argument the epistle reaches its climax; for without controversy Christianity is better than Judaism because the redemptive work of the sinless Christ is superior by far to the best that Judaism could offer. Surely the honest seeker after truth in apostolic times must have been convinced, from this profound argument, that Jesus of Nazareth is Israel’s promised Messiah, as well as the only Saviour of the world. And to every generation the Epistle to the Hebrews speaks, saying that “Jesus Christ [is] the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever” (Heb 13:8). The succeeding lessons will show that, in the closing chapters of the epistle, from Heb 10:19-39, Heb 11:1-40, Heb 12:1-29, Heb 13:1-25, the Holy Spirit deals with the practical application of the doctrine set forth in Heb 1:1-14, Heb 2:1-18, Heb 3:1-19, Heb 4:1-16, Heb 5:1-14, Heb 6:1-20, Heb 7:1-28, Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18. This He does by adding yet further warning to the enlightened but unregenerated concerning the danger of apostasy; and by continuing to exhort and encourage the Hebrew Christians to press on with Christ, even though faithfulness to Him would involve bitter persecution. Now read prayerfully all of Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18 several times without pausing to analyze its parts. This will give you the message as a whole. After one or two readings, you will doubtless observe that this section of the epistle falls logically into four subdivisions-all related to the sacrifice of Christ. You may prefer your own outline; but for our purpose here, let us call these topics: 1. The Jewish Tabernacle-a type of the heavenly sanctuary (Heb 9:1-10) 2. The superiority of the sacrifice of Christ (Heb 9:11-23) 3. The threefold appearing of Christ (Heb 9:24-28) 4. The perfection of the sacrifice of Christ (Heb 10:1-18) (Do not attempt to complete this lesson in too short a time. The Scripture it covers is worthy of a veritable lifetime of study-yea, all eternity! Get it in your heart, and its blessing will abide with you forever). The Jewish Tabernacle-A Type of the Heavenly Sanctuary Heb 9:1-10 Turn to Lesson 3 of this course, and review the section entitled “The Jewish Tabernacle-a Type of Christ and His Church”; and be sure you remember the contrast, emphasized in Lesson 7, between the earthly sanctuary and the true tabernacle. The importance of the Jewish Tabernacle as a type of the heavenly sanctuary is seen, not only in the emphasis given to this truth in the Epistle to the Hebrews, especially in Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18, but also in the fact that about half of the Book of Exodus is devoted to a detailed description of that earthly sanctuary-not once, but twice. Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Moses wrote the minute details concerning the pattern of the Tabernacle, which God showed him in the mount (Exo 25:1-40, Exo 26:1-37, Exo 27:1-21; Exo 30:1-38). Then he described at length the finished “tent of the congregation,” filled with the glory of God and overshadowed with the pillar of cloud by day and fire by night (Exo 35:1-35, Exo 36:1-38, Exo 37:1-29, Exo 38:1-31, Exo 39:1-43, Exo 40:1-38). The Holy Spirit’s most complete interpretation of the type recorded in the passage before us, written here in order to explain the meaning of Calvary’s cross. This is fundamental. In other words, the Spirit of God is emphasizing a few of the details concerning the Jewish Tabernacle and its ritual, not for the sake of the historical record, interesting as that is, but to show forth in type the sufficiency and perfection of the one sacrifice for sins forever of the spotless Lamb of God. Therefore, through the ancient Tabernacle, the Holy Spirit is speaking to New Testament saints in sign-language, showing that “the way into the holiest” was not opened under the old covenant of the law (Heb 9:8), because of the inferiority of the sacrifices then offered. But because of His redemptive work on the accursed tree, our Lord forever opened) the way into heaven itself for all who will receive the gift of His salvation (Heb 10:19-22). The Tabernacle in the wilderness was a divine provision for a pilgrim people, whereas the Temple in the land prefigured millennial conditions. Because the Christian in this Church Age is journeying from Egypt to Canaan, as it were, from the Christ-rejecting world to that “city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Heb 11:10), the Holy Spirit uses the Tabernacle, not the Temple, to illustrate the message of the Epistle to the Hebrews. 1. The typical significance of the articles in the earthly sanctuary (Heb 9:1-5) “Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary. For there was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is called the sanctuary. And after the second vail, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all” (Heb 9:1-3). The different articles of furniture in the Jewish Tabernacle foreshadowed the manifold glories of Christ, which we have seen unfolded from the very beginning of this epistle: - His personal glory as Son of God, in the Godhead; - His moral glory in His lowly humanity, in which He learned obedience by the things which He suffered-from Bethlehem’s manger to Calvary’s cross; - His official glory as Prophet, Priest and King. Remember that the personal glory of the Lord Jesus underlies all His other glories-what He did, what He became and what God has conferred upon Him, exalting Him who emptied Himself of His eternal glory and humbled Himself to become the Saviour of men. a. “The candlestick” typifies Christ, the Light of His redeemed, of the heavenly city, and of the world. It was the only light in the Holy Place, even as the Shekinah Glory was the only light in the Holy of Holies. The Lord Jesus is the only true Light for the pilgrim pathway, and “the Lamb is the light” of heaven (Rev 21:23). b. “The table and the shewbread” represent the One in whom God and His priests find food, even Jesus, the Bread of Life. c. “A golden censer [or ‘altar of incense’]” speaks to us of Christ, our Intercessor, within the vail. It is to the altar-not the censer-that the Holy Spirit refers here; indeed, the Greek word is different from the one used for “censer” in Rev 8:3; Rev 8:5. And, including this reference to the golden altar, mention is made in Heb 9:2-5 of all the pieces of furniture in the Tabernacle (Of course, in the outer court were the brazen altar and laver). Critics of God’s Word who have, not carefully examined the text, or even the English translation, have called this a discrepancy-that the Holy of Holies is referred to as “having a golden altar of incense” (Heb 9:3-4, R. V.), whereas the altar stood before the vail in the Holy Place, the vail separating the two rooms of the sanctuary. Such critics have failed to observe that the inspired record does not say that the golden altar was “in” the Holy of Holies, whereas verse 4 does speak of the Holy Place, “wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the showbread.” Neither do such careless readers seem to know that the golden altar “by the oracle” of Solomon’s Temple (1Ki 6:22); and the oracle of the Temple was the equivalent of the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle. Because the golden altar belonged to the very presence of God-and the Shekinah Glory dwelt above the mercy seat in the Holiest of all-the verses before us (Heb 9:3-4) refer to that room, which was the symbol of heaven itself, as “having the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant.” Now the Lord God had told Moses to place the altar without the vail, in order that it might be accessible for the daily offering of incense which ascended unto God with the prayers of the priests. (Cf. Luk 1:9-10). Then on the Day of Atonement the high priest took into the Holy of Holies the golden “censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small . . . that the cloud of incense may cover the mercy seat . . . that he die not” (Lev 16:12-13). But that was the privilege and responsibility of the high priest only, just once a year. God knew the need for prayer on behalf of His wayward people every day in the year; and “the way into the holiest” was closed! The vail separated Aaron’s sons from the Shekinah Glory as they ministered in the Holy Place. And the other Israelites could not even enter the Holy Place! Sin separated man from God’s presence. Not until a full atonement for sin was made on Calvary was “the vail of the temple rent in twain from the top to the bottom” (Mat 27:51). Meanwhile, the God of all grace made provision for His believing children to show their faith in the promised Redeemer by offering their animal sacrifices. To quote another, they were saved “on a credit basis,” as it were. Although God told Moses to place the altar without the vail, He commanded it to be put near unto it-near to His very presence. It “belonged” in the throne-room! Then when the vail was rent, the fragrance of the sweet incense entered into the Most Holy Place, even as, in the fulfillment of the type, the priceless value of the blood of Christ and the fragrance from His finished obedience were fully appreciated in heaven the moment He had completed His appointed course of vicarious suffering on earth. Our Intercessor is in the true Holy of Holies. The sweet incense of His prayers to the Father on behalf of His blood-bought children is being offered day and night-without ceasing. The golden altar and the throne of God are inseparably linked together. Why are we so slow to draw near? Our Great High Priest is there, inviting us to come boldly unto the throne of grace. d. “The ark of the covenant” overlaid with gold within and without represents Christ, the one Mediator between God and men, the One who will be the center of a universe of bliss. e. “The manna” in the golden pot was a memorial of Christ in the lowly grace of His earthly ministry, as portrayed by the four evangelists. As the Bread of Life which came down from heaven, He satisfies the souls of men (See Exo 16:1-36; Num 11:7-9; John 6:26-63). f. “Aaron’s rod that budded” symbolizes Christ’s priesthood in the power of resurrection life. (Remember the story of Num 16:1-50, Num 17:1-13 and what was said concerning it in Lesson 4 of this course, under the topic, “God’s requirements of a priest fulfilled in Christ”). g. “The tables of the covenant”-unbroken-tell us of Christ as the One in whom both God, represented by the first table, and man, of whom the second table speaks, find the satisfying answer to every longing of the heart. Sinful man has broken the law of the Lord, but God sees the repentant sinner identified with Christ, who fulfilled the law in man’s stead. Therefore, between the tables of the covenant and the Shekinah Glory was the blood-sprinkled mercy seat. For the child of God, His judgment throne has become a throne of grace! h. “Cherubim of glory shadowing the mercy seat [Greek, ‘the propitiatory’]” and the mercy seat itself were fashioned from one piece of pure gold, and formed the covering for the Ark of the Covenant. Between the cherubim, resting upon the mercy seat was the pillar of cloud and fire. Thus, in type, Christ Jesus was foreshadowed as “the propitiation for our sins” (1Jn 2:2; cf. Rom 3:25), the throne of the Shekinah, the ground on which the glory of God and the blessing of the universe are eternally established. And, as Heb 3:1-19 and Heb 4:1-16 have made clear, in the Son of God the Father finds rest which shall never again be disturbed-rest freely offered as a gift to men. The cherubim at the Garden of Eden (Gen 3:24), the cherubim of gold upon the mercy seat, and the “living creatures” of Rev 4:6-11, believed to be identical with the cherubim, “seem to have to do with the vindication of the holiness of God as outraged by sin” (Scofield Reference Bible, footnote on Eze 1:5). Accordingly, because they were looking down upon the blood-sprinkled mercy seat (Exo 25:20), Aaron, the sinner, could stand before the Shekinah Glory in the Most Holy Place-and not die. That sprinkled blood manifested Aaron’s faith in the Saviour to come as the propitiation for his sins and the sins of his people, whom he represented before the holy God. And by faith in the shed blood of that promised Saviour, who came to earth nearly two thousand years ago, every repentant sinner of all the ages shall stand before Him in glory-and not die! “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life” (John 3:36). Concerning all these articles that belonged to the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies of the Jewish Tabernacle, the inspired writer adds, “. . . of which [things] we cannot now speak particularly [or, ‘in detail’]” (Heb 9:5). And thus we are brought back to the fundamental truth with which we started: These material things had perished long before this epistle was written, and the Holy Spirit is concerned with them here only as they speak of the glories of the Lord Jesus Christ. 2. “The way into the holiest” closed! (Heb 9:6-10) Amplifying the fact, well known to every devout Hebrew, that the vail of the Tabernacle closed the way into the Holy of Holies, the inspired writer explains further: “Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God” (Heb 9:6). That is, the priests kept the seven lamps of the golden candlesticks burning “from the evening unto the morning before the Lord continually” (Lev 24:3). Each Sabbath Day they placed twelve loaves on frankincense-covered shewbread upon the gold-covered table which, after seven days, became food for the priests, to be eaten in the Holy Place. And they made intercession for the people before the golden altar, their prayers, mingled with the sweet incense, ascending unto God. Briefly, these were the continual services of the priests in the Holy Place. “But into the second [or, the Holy of Holies] went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offereth for himself, and for the errors [Greek, ‘ignorances,’ that is, ‘sins of ignorance’] of the people: the Holy Spirit this signifying, that the way into the [most] holiest of all was not yet been made manifest, while the first tabernacle was yet standing” (Heb 9:7-8). “Once every year,” of course, refers to the great Day of Atonement. Thus the Holy Spirit interprets the significance of the vail of the Tabernacle. It was as though the Lord were saying to His sinning people: “Stand back! Do not draw near to the Lord of Glory! ‘Your iniquities have separated between you and your God’ (Isa 59:2). Wait until the blood of the Lamb of Calvary is shed. Then the vail will be rent, and there will be nothing between you and your Saviour.” But until Christ died, the way into the holiest was closed. On penalty of death no one dared enter there, except the high priest, on the Day of Atonement, as the representative of his people. And he entered “not without blood.” Explaining yet further the typical significance of the Jewish Tabernacle, the Holy Spirit continues: “. . . which was a figure for the time then present; in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience; which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed until the time of reformation [or, ‘setting things right’]” (Heb 9:9-10). The contrast between the purifying of the flesh through the Levitical ceremonies and the cleansing of the conscience by the blood of Christ is developed further in the verses which follow. Do you see why the Epistle to the Hebrews must have spoken eloquently to the Jewish Christian who had just come out from Judaism? For fifteen centuries his fathers had observed the Levitical law. He himself was steeped in it. To see how the Lord Jesus fulfilled the types and shadows, must have caused him to experience the joy of the two believers who, having walked with the risen Lord to Emmaus, “Said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures” (Luk 24:32). 3. The Day of Atonement-“a shadow of good things to come” You will miss the real significance of Heb 9:1-28; Heb 10:1-18 unless you study this heart of the epistle in connection with Lev 16:1-34 and Lev 23:1-44. Turn to Lev 16:1-34 for a detailed account of God’s express command concerning the ritual of the Day of Atonement; then compare Lev 16:29 with Lev 23:27 for the time of the annual observance of that day; and read all of Lev 23:1-44 to find the place which the Day of Atonement held among the other Feasts of the Lord. You will note that it was the sixth of these seven feasts, observed on the tenth day of the seventh month (Lev 16:29; Lev 23:27). God had told Moses that the month “Abib” (April) should be “the beginning of months” to Israel (Exo 12:2; Exo 13:4; Lev 23:5). Therefore, the Day of Atonement was observed in the month which we call October, the seventh from “Abib.” a. “A remembrance . . . of sins every year” (Heb 10:3) That the inspired writer has in mind the Day of Atonement in Heb 9:1-28; Heb 10:1-18 is evident, for that was the only day in the year when Aaron could enter the Holy of Holies (cf. Lev 16:2; Lev 16:34); and that act of Aaron typified the very heart of the message of this epistle-our Lord’s entrance into heaven itself to minister there, after He had “obtained eternal redemption for us” (Heb 9:12). Moreover, four times in this portion of the epistle the inspired writer speaks of the “year by year” remembrance of sins by the observance of this special day (Heb 9:7; Heb 9:25; Heb 10:1; Heb 10:3). And why does the Holy Spirit prompt the writer to single out the Day of Atonement for the contrast between the Levitical sacrifices and our Lord’s death on Calvary? The answer is significant: the very best ministry which Aaron could render for Israel was accomplished on the Day of Atonement; and yet it could not compare with the finished work of Christ! Since our Lord’s one sufficient sacrifice is far superior to that offered by Israel’s first high priest on the greatest day in the year, the logical conclusion is that it is eternally better than anything Aaron or, succeeding high priests of the Levitical order could do on every other day of lesser importance. b. “Atonement”-a covering for sins The word “atonement” is not a literal translation of the Hebrew term, which means “covering”; but in “atonement” we have the expression of “a purely theological concept.” The actual meaning of the term is that the Lord “covered” or “passed over” the sins of the Old Testament saints because their faith rested in the vicarious offering of the promised Redeemer. This truth is clearly expressed in Rom 3:24-26 : “. . . being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God . . . that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” Then “when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth his Son . . . to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself” (Gal 4:4; Heb 9:26). Note particularly the force of the two contrasting expressions: “the passing over of sins done aforetime,” that is, before Christ died, and “to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” In other words, a full atonement for sin could not be made until the spotless Lamb of God paid the penalty for the guilty sinner; but because of “the forbearance of God,” he honored the faith of those who believed His promise concerning the Saviour to come. Day after day, year after year, century after century, for fifteen hundred years, the daily sacrifice was offered; but on the Day of Atonement all the sins of Israel, including sins of ignorance, as well as known sins hitherto unconfessed throughout the year, were “covered” by the ministry of the high priest. That is the reason it was a day of mourning for sin, a day of affliction of soul (Lev 16:29; Lev 16:31; Lev 23:27; Lev 23:29; Lev 23:32). But it was also a day of rest, typical of the believer’s rest in a finished redemption (Lev 16:29; Lev 23:28; Lev 23:30; Lev 23:32). Dare anyone question the superiority of Christ’s sacrifice once for all over the annual sacrifice of an ever changing priesthood? How much better to have “eternal redemption” (Heb 9:11-12) than “a remembrance . . . of sins every year” for fifteen centuries! c. The ritual of the Day of Atonement Volumes have been written on the typical teaching of the God-given ceremonies of the Day of Atonement; but to summarize these lessons briefly, read once more Lev 16:1-34, jotting down the chief fact, or facts, of each verse. Do not attempt a formal outline; but, verse by verse, fix in your mind what God told Moses about this sacred ritual. After you have done this, compare your notes with the following summary: (1) “Not at all times,” but “once a year” Aaron could enter the Holy of Holies (Heb 9:2; Heb 9:3-4). (2) For himself and for his own household Aaron brought “his bullock of the sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering” (Heb 9:3; Heb 9:6; Heb 9:11). (3) For “the congregation of the children of Israel” he brought “two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering” (Heb 9:5). (4) Aaron took off his garments “for glory and for beauty” (Exo 28:2), bathed his flesh in water, and put on the holy garments of white linen (Heb 9:4). (5) He presented the two goats before the Lord at the door of the Tabernacle, casting lots to see which should be slain as a sin offering, and which should be led away into the wilderness “unto a solitary land” (Heb 9:7-10; Heb 9:20-22). (6) Aaron took the golden “censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small . . . within the vail . . . that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat . . . that he die not” (Heb 9:12-13). (7) He made atonement for himself and his household first, sprinkling the blood of the bullock with his finger on and before the mercy seven times (Heb 9:11; Heb 9:14). (8) Then he made atonement for the congregation, sprinkling the blood of the slain goat with his finger on and before the mercy seat “as he did with the blood of the bullock” (Heb 9:15). (9) Atonement was made for all the Tabernacle, “to hallow it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel” (Heb 9:16; Heb 9:18-19). (10) No man, that is, no other priest, could be in the Tabernacle when Aaron rendered all this service (Heb 9:17). (11) Then he presented to the Lord the live goat, called the scapegoat; placed both his hands upon the animal’s head; confessed all the sins of all Israel, figuratively putting them upon the head of the goat and sent him away into a land not inhabited (Heb 9:20-22). (12) After this he laid aside his holy garments, put on his beautiful garments again, and went out from the Tabernacle unto the people (Heb 9:23-24). (13) He offered the two burnt offerings as “a sweet savor unto the Lord” (Heb 9:24; cf. Lev 1:2-17). (14) He burned the fat of the sin offering upon the altar (Heb 9:25); but the remainder of “the bodies of those beasts,” which were slain as thy sin offering, he “burned without the camp” (Heb 9:27; cf. Heb 13:11-12). (15) He who led the scapegoat away into the wilderness washed his flesh in water, and “afterward” returned into the camp (Heb 9:26). (16) Upon the death of Aaron, this ritual was to be observed by his oldest, living son, who was to become the next high priest; then by his son’s son, throughout succeeding generations (v.32-34). 4. The typical significance of this ritual Even if you have never before studied the meaning of the Day of Atonement, doubtless you have already let the Holy Spirit interpret its message-in the light of the teaching of the Epistle to the Hebrews. If so, for you the following conclusions, in which we shall refer to the foregoing paragraphs by their corresponding numerals, will be merely a summary for emphasis and review: (1) “Once every year” Aaron entered the Holy of Holies to make an atonement for his own sins and for the sins of his people; “once for all” the sinless Christ entered into heaven itself, “having obtained eternal redemption for us.” (2) (3) (13) (14) For the wonderful, typical lessons connected with the offerings, read Lev 1:1-17, Lev 2:1-16, Lev 3:1-17, Lev 4:1-35, Lev 5:1-19, Lev 6:1-30, Lev 7:1-38; and see the Bibliography at the back of this text. The subject is too lengthy to present here, except to say that Christ is our Burnt offering, “a sweet savor unto the Lord”; and He is our Sin offering, bearing our iniquities “in his own body on the tree” (1Pe 2:24); “without the camp” of Israel as a nation, outside the gate of Jerusalem (Heb 13:11-12). (4) Before Aaron ministered on behalf of Israel on the Day of Atonement, he took off his beautiful garments-the golden crown; the breastplate; the ephod; and the robe of blue, embroidered at the hem with pomegranates between little bells of gold (see Exo 28:1-43). These garments “for glory and for beauty” he laid aside; and put on, instead, the pure white linen clothes. When our Lord left “the ivory palaces” (Psa 45:8) to become our Great High Priest, He laid aside His garments “for glory and for beauty”-His robes of glory, not His deity-and took “the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men” (Php 2:7). During His earthly ministry He wore the white linen garments of His personal purity. Even His own people, Israel, saw in Him no beauty that they should desire Him (cf. Isa 53:2), because He was the lowly Man of Galilee. (5) (11) (15) The slain goat speaks to us of Christ’s vicarious death; the scapegoat, of His substitutionary work in taking our sins far away, “unto a land not inhabited.” That land is the grave. “The Lord hath laid on him [Jesus] the iniquity of us all” (Isa 53:6). The Lord Jesus bore our sins away, and will remember them no more forever (Heb 8:12)! (6) Earlier in this lesson we saw that Aaron’s taking the golden censer and the sweet incense into the Holy of Holies was a picture of Christ’s intercessory work for His redeemed at the throne of grace. (7) Aaron had to make atonement first for his own sins; Christ had no sin for which to atone (cf. Heb 7:26-27). (1) (8) Aaron went into the Holy of Holies once a year with the blood of the animal sacrifices; whereas “Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption” (Heb 9:12-14; Heb 9:19-25; Heb 10:4; Heb 10:11-12; Heb 10:14; Heb 10:19; Heb 12:24). (9) “It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these” (Heb 9:23). (10) No man, that is, no other priest, could be in the Tabernacle when Aaron ministered for his people on the Day of Atonement. Even so the risen Lord Jesus is our only Representative in the true Holy of Holies. None other is worthy or able to be our Great High Priest. Thus a ground for the Roman Catholic priesthood is swept away. It is both man-made and unscriptural. Indeed, it is an attempted mixture of Judaism and paganism. (12) Before Aaron returned unto the people, he laid aside his white linen clothes, and once more put on his garments “for glory and for beauty.” When our Lord returns in power and great glory (Mat 25:31) Israel and all the world shall “see the king in his beauty” (Isa 33:17) clothed with all majesty and honor and power and glory which He had with the Father “before the world was” (John 17:5; cf. Isa 28:5). In that coming day His ancient people shall look upon Him “whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son” (Zec 12:10; cf. Rev 1:7). It will be a day of national mourning for the sin of rejecting their Messiah and Lord, but their mourning will be turned into joy as their “Deliverer . . . shall turn away all ungodliness from Jacob” (Rom 11:26). (16) The Levitical priesthood was ever changing because of the death of the priests; our Great High Priest ever liveth. His is an eternal unchanging priesthood (cf. Heb 7:23-25). As you remember that the Day of Atonement was the sixth of the seven Feasts of the Lord, observed every year by Israel (Lev 23:1-44), the typical significance seems all the more remarkable. The Feast of the Passover was prophetic of “Christ our passover . . . sacrificed for us” (Exo 12:1-51; 1Co 5:7). - The Feast of Unleavened Bread speaks of the believer’s fellowship with Christ, the Bread of Life. -The Feast of the Firstfruits, observed three days after the Passover, found its fulfillment in the resurrection of Christ on the third day after His death. He is “the firstfruits of them that slept” (1Co 15:20; 1Co 15:23). - The Feast of Pentecost was prophetic of the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-47), when the Holy Spirit came in power. “Pentecost” means “fiftieth”; and it was not by chance that the descent of the Holy Spirit came fifty days after our Lord’s resurrection. The fulfillment of the types set forth in these first four Feasts of the Lord is now history; and students of the prophetic Scriptures believe the remaining three will be literally fulfilled when, at the Feast of Trumpets, as it were, Israel is regathered to her own land of Palestine; when her Great High Priest comes out of the true tabernacle, even the Holiest of all, on that yet future Day of Atonement, wearing His garments “for glory and for beauty”; then to establish His millennial kingdom, of which the Feast of Tabernacles was a type (For a careful study of the Feasts of the Lord, see the Bibliography of this text). The Superiority of the Sacrifice of Christ Heb 9:11-23. r 1. The blood of Christ is superior to the blood of goats and calves (Heb 9:11-12). On the Day of Atonement, as on every other day of the year, the physically perfect, animal sacrifice was the very best which the Levitical priests could offer at the brazen altar of the Jewish Tabernacle. “But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.” (Heb 9:11-12). What a contrast! The blood of the sinless Son of God is so far superior to that of goats and calves that there is no need to argue the point! Thus the cross of Jesus continues to hold the central place in the heart of the Epistle to the Hebrews, even as it does in all the Word of God. Twelve times in Heb 9:1-28 and three times in Heb 10:1-39 the “blood” of the sacrifice is mentioned, to say nothing of numerous other references to the finished work of Christ. In this continued contrast between the shed blood of the animals slain on Jewish altars and the one, sufficient sacrifice of the Lord Jesus, the Holy Spirit is proving that His vicarious atonement on Calvary fulfilled all of these Old Testament types, which foreshadowed His unspeakable gift (2Co 9:15). Lev 17:11 illustrate this truth: “For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.” In other words, not even the sinless life of the Lord Jesus, not the perfect example, could save fallen humanity. The Lamb of God had die to make atonement for the guilty sinner. 2. The cleansing of the conscience is better than the cleansing of the flesh (Heb 9:13-14). Heb 9:12-14 refer not only to the annual Day of Atonement, but also to the daily cleansing from the defilement of sin, as commanded by God in the ordinance of the red heifer. Turn to Num 19:1-22, and read what the Holy Spirit records there concerning this ceremony, in which “the ashes of the heifer” were “kept for the congregation of the children of Israel for a water of separation . . . a purification for sin” (Num 19:9). According to this God-given ritual, three things were needed for cleansing-the blood, the ashes and the water. - The blood was presented to God. - The ashes speak of the sacrifice as having been “finished.” - The water represents the application of the truth of the atonement, in the power of the Spirit, to the defiled conscience, just as elsewhere in the Scriptures water is used as a symbol of the Word of God and of the Spirit of God (See John 3:5; John 4:13-14; John 7:37-39; John 13:3-10; Eph 5:26, Rev 22:17). In the ordinance of the red heifer the water of purifying, mingled with the ashes of the sacrifice, bringing it into remembrance, was sprinkled on the Israelite defiled in the wilderness. And though the sacrificial system under the first covenant could not produce any other than an external “purifying of the flesh” (Heb 9:13), it pointed to the cleansing o the conscience through the perfect offering of Christ. Therefore, God, on the ground of that, not on the basis of the insufficient shadows of it, was justified in forgiving His people under the old covenant. (Cf. Rom 3:24-26). “For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (Heb 9:13-14). And what is the Lord’s purpose for us now in all of this? That we may manifest our new life in Christ Jesus by serving the living God. Let us never forget that we are to bear witness by our lives to the love and power of our crucified and risen Lord. 3. The animal sacrifices pointed on to Christ’s sacrifice (Heb 9:15-17). In Heb 9:15-17 we find yet further emphasis upon the truth already presented in this ninth chapter-that the value of the work of Christ was appreciated and applied by divine grace in anticipation of its accomplishment in the fullness of time; but that, until it was wrought out on the cross, the way into the Holiest remained barred. The vail remained unrent. The worshipers, though forgiven, could not go beyond the outer court of the Jewish Tabernacle; they did not have immediate, continuous access to the throne of grace. The Greek word used here for “testament” signifies both “covenant” and “testament.” Christ is “the mediator of the new covenant,” as Heb 8:1-13 clearly proves; and His “testament” became “of force” (Heb 9:17) at the time of His death. Meanwhile, He honored the faith of the Old Testament saints who believed in His promised redemption. Heb 9:16-17 remind us that, even in civil life, a man’s will cannot be probated until after his death. Likewise, when our Lord gave His life a ransom for many, His shed blood availed for the guilt of repentant sinners of all ages-both before and after Calvary. The price was paid in full for our eternal inheritance (Heb 9:15), not with “silver and gold . . . but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1Pe 1:18-19; 1Co 6:20). “Jesus paid it all!” Have you noted the three eternal verities in these verses? They are “eternal redemption” (Heb 9:12), “the eternal Spirit” (Heb 9:14), and our “eternal inheritance” (Heb 9:15). 4. The threefold application of the blood was set forth in type (Heb 9:18-23). “Wherefore neither the first covenant was dedicated without blood” (Heb 9:18). The sprinkling of the blood under the old covenant was a witness the fact that disobedience of God’s law demanded death. The cross of the Lord Jesus is central still! a. The blood applied is the ground of the covenant between God and man. By “covenant,” here translated “testament,” is meant God’s disposition. The new covenant reveals God’s disposition of pure mercy and grace to us. b. The blood applied removes defilement. It was sprinkled on the Book of the Law-God’s Word; on all the people of Israel; on the Tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry (Heb 9:19-21). “Almost all things are by the law purged with blood . . . It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these” (Heb 9:22-23). In this ritual performed by Moses, guilt, properly speaking, may not have been in question, though there may have been defilement. You will remember that hyssop (Heb 9:19) was the plant with which God told His people to apply the blood on the door posts and lintel of their houses in Egypt on the night of the first Passover-another shadow of the cross. (See Exo 12:22). But why should “the heavenly things” need to be “purified [cleansed]” (Heb 9:23)? Evidently because Lucifer’s sin began in heaven. The Lord Jesus said to the seventy disciples, “I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven” (Luk 10:18; cf. Isa 14:12-17; Eze 28:12-19). The fall of the angels and of the human race has defiled both heaven and earth. And if God is to take pleasure in His world again and fill it with His glory, it must be purified. That is why we read in the Scriptures of “a new heaven and a new earth” (Cf. Heb 12:26-27; 2Pe 3:10-12; Rev 21:1). c. The blood applied gives remission of sin. “And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission” (Heb 9:22). In these words, which look back to the old covenant and forward to the new, we have the positive removal of the sense of guilt from the conscience. “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ . . . And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement” (Rom 5:1; Rom 5:11). The Threefold Appearing of Christ Heb 9:24-28 In the light of the unsearchable riches already presented in chapter 9, read verses Heb 9:24-28 prayerfully-with praise and thanksgiving for such a Saviour. He hath appeared “to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself” (Heb 9:26); and now “unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation” (Heb 9:28). 1. Christ hath appeared “to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” “Once in the end [or, ‘consummation’] of the world” (Heb 9:26), God was manifested in the flesh to become the Saviour of men. It was not necessary for Him to “offer himself often,” as Israel’s earthly high priest entered “into the holy place every year with blood of others” (Heb 9:25). Because of the perfection of the sacrifice, once for all was enough for the Son of God to die. Else “then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world” (Heb 9:26), Moreover, Israel’s earthly priest took into the Holy of Holies “blood of others”; whereas our Great High Priest presented “his own blood” (Heb 9:12) before the throne of God. He always had the right, on His own account, to enter heaven; but as our Representative, He entered that true Holy of Holies “not without blood.” The Lord God had waited thousands of years for the incarnation of the Son of God. The ages, each in succession, had demonstrated the utter failure and ruin of fallen man. Last of all, when God came to earth in the person of His Son, He was hated without a cause. Man spat upon Him, and at the point of a spear cast Him out of the world which He had made. Then grace triumphantly rose above the shame and wickedness of it all and the work was accomplished which will finally put sin out of that part of God’s universe which Satan has defiled. Sin is still here, active in the world; yea, in our own flesh, even though we have been redeemed; But faith rejoices that the sin question was forever settled at the cross, to the glory of God, and when the work of the sinless Saviour, who was “made . . . sin for us” (2Co 5:21)-when that word has been fully applied, God will have a sinless world at last. Then He will be “all in all” forever and ever (1Co 15:28). Amen, hallelujah! 2. Christ now appears “in the presence of God for us.” Our Lord “is not entered into a holy place made with hands, which are figures of the true; but into heaven itself” (Heb 9:24), On the Day of Atonement the high priest took the incense and the blood of the bullock into the Holiest for the priestly house, which foreshadowed the heavenly people of God, in distinction from the congregation, which represented the earthly people. Of the heavenly people the “us” speaks. Even as He was on the cross vicariously, enduring the wrath which we deserved, so also He is now in heaven representatively. We are still on earth, but we are represented in heaven. (Cf. John 17:9; Heb 7:25.) With Satan, “the accuser of our brethren,” walking about, “seeking whom he may devour” (Rev 12:10; 1Pe 5:8; cf. Job 1:7; Job 2:2), how dependent we are upon our “advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous”! (1Jn 2:1). 3. Christ “shall appear the second time . . . unto them that look [wait] for him.” Since the present intercession of the Lord Jesus is being made on behalf of His redeemed, as the Scripture passages listed above and parallel references indicate, what about the nation of Israel, God’s earthly people? The third appearing evidently refers to them. “Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many”-as the true scapegoat. And “to them that look for him” He shall appear “the second time without sin unto salvation.” The congregation on the Day of Atonement had to wait for the return of the high priest before they knew of the removal of their transgressions, sin and iniquity. So while we know that our Representative is in heaven, Israel is still waiting for “salvation.” Notice the change from “us” in Heb 9:24 to “them” in Heb 9:28. The present heavenly people, the priestly company, need not wait until the second advent for the assurance of salvation. They know it by the witness of the Spirit to them now. But Israel must wait for the day when, as they look in penitence and faith on the One whom they have pierced, the healing and cleansing fountain will be opened to them at last (See Zec 12:10; Zec 13:1). He came to them the first time, and they received Him not (John 1:11). He will come to them the second time, and they will exclaim, “Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord” (Psa 118:26; Mat 23:39; cf. Isa 25:9; Isa 33:2). It is also true that, when the Lord calls His Church home to heaven at the rapture, we shall experience “salvation” in the fullest measure, which includes “the redemption of our body” (Rom 8:23; cf. 1Th 4:13-18; 1Co 15:51-58; Php 3:20-21; 1Pe 1:7; 1Jn 3:2). That is the “blessed hope” of the child of God, which makes all “the suffering of this present time . . . not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Tit 2:13; Rom 8:18; cf. 2Co 4:17-18). Now comparing the glorious promise of Heb 9:28 with the certainty of impending judgment upon the ungodly, as stated in Heb 9:27, we thank our Great High Priest anew that, because of His one sufficient sacrifice, we shall not come “into condemnation [judgment]” (John 5:24), Our sins have been judged at the cross! Therefore, “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” for all who reject the Lord Jesus, “so Christ also” died for the sinner’s guilt and bore the judgment “in his own body on the tree” (Heb 9:27-28; 1Pe 2:24). The Perfection of the Sacrifice of Christ Heb 10:1-18 In Heb 10:1-18 the doctrine of the epistle reaches its climax. It deserves the closest scrutiny. 1. The Levitical sacrifices-“a shadow of good things to come” in Christ (Heb 10:1-4). “For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.” 2. The will of God-the source of all blessing (Heb 10:5-9) “Wherefore when he [Christ] cometh into the world, he saith [to the Father], Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, But a body hast thou prepared for me; In whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hadst no pleasure: Then said I, Lo, I come (In the volume of the book it is written of me,) To do thy will, O God” (Heb 10:5-7, R. V.; cf. Psa 40:6-8). The verses which follow this quotation from Psa 40:6-8 explain and amplify the words of the psalmist, who in this case was David. They show how, in Christ, the types of the old covenant are not only fulfilled but are transcended. Therefore, “He taketh away the first [sacrifices under the old covenant], that he may establish the second [that is, Calvary’s cross]” (Heb 10:9). Now there were four kinds of offerings under the Law of Moses, each of which represented some special view of Christ’s person and work, and each of which is included in Psa 40:6-8, quoted in the passage before us. These four were: the burnt offering; the meal offering; the peace, or prosperity, offering; and the offerings in which sin and trespasses were dealt with (See Lev 1:1-17, Lev 2:1-16, Lev 3:1-17, Lev 4:1-35, Lev 5:1-19, Lev 6:1-30, Lev 7:1-38). Every sacrifice under the law was like a, promissory note-as another expresses it-“countersigned by the pre-incarnate Christ.” And “when the fullness of the time” arrived (Gal 4:4), He came and settled all in full. God had no pleasure in the blood of bulls and goats; but they pointed to Him, in whom His glory has been secured-to Him who is the Man of His pleasure and the resting place of His heart’s satisfaction. We see in Christ the One who was here in the form of a servant, to do the will of God in a world where fallen man asserts his own will-yet to be completely expressed in “the man of sin . . . the lawless one,” fallen Adam fully developed (See 2Th 2:8-10). “But a body hast thou prepared for me.” Because God cannot die, such a body had to be prepared, that He might lay down His life on Calvary, and at the same time be eternal God! That is why He was born of the virgin. And that holy body, prepared for His suffering and death, was offered on the altar of absolute surrender to the will of the Father (Cf. Mat 26:39 and parallel passages). Another lesson of deep significance from Psa 40:5-6 has been drawn from the words, “mine ears hast thou opened [or, ‘pierced’].” According to the Law of Moses, the servant in Israel who loved his master so much that he refused to accept his freedom in the sabbatic, or seventh, year had his ears pierced to indicate that he wanted to be the willing bondslave of his master as long as he lived (See Exo 21:5-6.) As applied to the Lord Jesus, this suggests the blessed truth that He voluntarily chose to become the faithful Servant of the Lord, even unto the death of the cross (Php 2:5-8). As such, He is portrayed in the four Gospels, and especially in Mark, the key verse of which is, “For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). Yet another interpretation of the “opened” ear is that it speaks to us of our Lord’s hearing and obeying the will of His Father. In any case, the “body” of the Man, Christ Jesus, was necessary for the obedience which the text mentions. Moreover, these words of the Son of God, spoken to the Father long before Christ was born in Bethlehem, give us a glimpse of the eternal counsels of the Godhead. They remind us of similar conversations between the Father and the Son, quoted from the Jewish Old Testament in the first two chapters of this epistle. And they prove the deity of Christ, as well as the verbal inspiration of the Holy Scriptures. 3. The work of Christ-the means of securing the will of God (Heb 10:10-14) It is by the will of God, which our Lord obeyed completely in His earthly ministry, that “we are sanctified,” that is, constituted a priestly people, set apart for priestly service, “through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all . . . For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified” (Heb 10:10; Heb 10:14). And what does the word “perfected” mean? It signifies that the set apart ones have been made “perfect, as pertaining to the conscience” (Heb 9:9)-not in personal perfection, but with a perfectly satisfied conscience knowing that sin has been completely put away. Instead of beholding our sins, God sees the preciousness of the sacrifice which has blotteth them out. “There is no more offering for sin” needed now (Heb 10:18). The One who has offered “one sacrifice for sins for ever” has in perpetuity “sat down on the right hand of God” (Heb 10:12). Well has it been expressed, “A glorified Christ in heaven and a purged conscience on earth are moral correlatives in the economy of grace.” As justification by blood in Romans is our title to stand before the throne of God in peace, knowing that no charge can be brought against us, so sanctification by blood in Hebrews is our title to enter into the heavenly sanctuary as worshiping priests. - The first is a court term; - The second refers to the sanctuary. Remember that Heb 10:11 specifically states that the Temple had not been destroyed when this epistle was written; and that, therefore, the Hebrew Christian needed the courage born of faith in the Lord Jesus to withdraw from the ancient ritual of Judaism. The Levitical priests were; still offering the daily sacrifices “which can never take away sins.” “But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God; from henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool” (Heb 10:12-13). The work of the sons of Aaron was never done. There was not even a chair in the Jewish Tabernacle, in which they might rest. And in their spiritual blindness, they were still standing, offering the Levitical sacrifices, even after our Lord had made atonement for sin and cried out on the cross, “It is finished!” After He arose from the dead, ascended into heaven, and sat down, they were standing still, turning their backs upon “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2Co 4:6). Day after day, year after year, century after century, for fifteen centuries, they offered the lambs and calves and goats and turtledoves and young pigeons. Once for all our Lord offered Himself, the only perfect sacrifice for sin, the one, sufficient sacrifice-in accordance with the will of God. As you turn the pages of this epistle, you will find that at least seven times words meaning “once for all” are used by the Spirit of God to emphasize the finality of Calvary (See Heb 7:27; Heb 9:12; Heb 9:26; Heb 9:28; Heb 10:10; Heb 10:12; Heb 10:14). And here we see the seventh of ten quotations from, or direct references to, Psa 110:1-7, which reveals our Great High Priest seated in the place of all power, at the right hand of God, waiting for the day when every knee shall bow before Him, and every tongue confess that “Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Php 2:9-11; Heb 1:13; Heb 5:6; Heb 5:10; Heb 6:20; Heb 7:17; Heb 7:21; Heb 10:12-13; Heb 1:3; Heb 8:1; Heb 12:2). This Messianic Psalm, written by David a thousand years before Christ was born, portrays our King-Priest, who will yet be acknowledged by all His creatures as King of kings, and Lord of lords-the “priest upon his throne” (cf. 1Ti 6:15; Rev 19:16; Zec 6:13). 4. The witness of the Holy Spirit-the secret of our assurance (Heb 10:15-17) “Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before, This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.” Already, in Heb 8:1-13, the inspired writer quoted at length from this prophecy of Jeremiah (Jer 31:31-34), in order to show that the new covenant sealed with the blood of Christ had replaced the old. And here, in Heb 10:16-17, he quotes again enough of this same prophecy to reassure us that our Great High Priest will remember our sins and iniquities no more forever! This gives assurance of salvation in words spoken by the Holy Spirit Himself (Heb 10:15). And He is, therefore, the final, irrefutable witness that “Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth” (Rom 10:4). “There is no more offering for sin” (Heb 10:18). The verses which follow this marvelous climax of the epistle tell us that the way into the Holiest is forever open-“by the blood of Jesus”; that the rent vail of the Temple was a type of “his flesh,” broken for us on the cross; that the repentant sinner no longer need be afraid to enter into the throne room of His glory; for He is there, inviting His redeemed to draw near! But that is our next lesson. Not Judaism-But Christ! The old hymn expresses the truth of this, the heart of the Epistle to the Hebrews, in these familiar words: “Not all the blood of beasts On Jewish altars slain Could give the guilty conscience peace, Or wash away the stain; But Christ, the heavenly Lamb, Takes all our sins away- A sacrifice of nobler name And richer blood than they.” Thus the blessed work of our Lord has opened the way into the innermost of the divine sanctuary for every purged worshiper. The twilight of Judaism has vanished in the splendor of the unveiled glory of the glorified Messiah, whom the opened heavens reveal at the right hand of God in all the perfection of His sacrifice. Oh, that the apprehension of the work of Christ may lead us to the appreciation and adoration of the person of Christ-what He is, not only to us as ruined sinners, but to the Father! Then we shall know something of priestly exercise Godward; we shall enter into His thoughts concerning the One who is the Son of His bosom, the Man of His counsels, and the resting place of His pleasure. In the Gospel, Christ is presented to us in worship, we present Christ to God. Thus God gives us the atoning blood upon the altar (Lev 17:11), but “the priest shall present the blood, and sprinkle the blood round about the altar” (Lev 1:5). That was for God’s eye; He estimates the value of that holy life sacrificially laid down. In our approaches to God, do we talk to Him only about our failures and defeats, our shortcomings and unfulfilled desires? Let us not fail, as priests, to speak to God of Him who has glorified the Father on earth, has finished the work given Him to do, and is now in the glory, in order that in His glorified humanity He may apply the power of His redemption, and stand at last at the head of an emancipated universe, the foundation for which He laid in His humiliation on the cross. Assignment for Exam 8 1. Review your previous lessons. 2. Again you are urged to take enough time in the preparation of this lesson for the truth it presents to flood your soul with adoration for the Christ of Calvary. And take much time to praise Him for opening the “way into the holiest of all.” CHAPTER EIGHT NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM 1. In the right-hand margin write “True” or “False” after each of the following statements. (10 points) a. On the Day of Atonement there was in Israel a remembrance of sins__________ year by year. b. The veil of the Temple was not rent until a full atonement had been__________made for sin. c. The high priest entered the Holy of Holies every day to sprinkle blood on the mercy seat. __________ d. Christ “sat down on the right hand of God” (Heb 10:12) because Hisredemptive work was finished. __________ e. The children of Israel showed their faith in the promised Redeemer by offering animal sacrifices.__________ 2. In the blank space write the letter of the correct answer. (24 points) (1) The blood sprinkled on the mercy seat by the high priest represented (a) Our sacrificial gifts to God (b) God’s future punishment for disobedience (c) Christ’s blood that was to be shed at Calvary (d) The future repentance of Israel __________ (2) The Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle was a type of (a) The Temple sanctuary at Jerusalem (b) The believer’s place of prayer (c) The Christian’s “mountain-top” experience (d) The dwelling place of God in glory__________ (3) The Ark of the Covenant typified (a) The ark of Noah (b) The ark of Moses (c) Christ, the one Mediator between God and men (d) The cross of Christ __________ (4) The blood-sprinkled mercy seat covering the law speaks of the truth that (a) The believer in Christ can obey God’s law perfectly (b) God’s judgment throne has become for the believer a throne of grace (c) God does not expect the believer to try to keep the Ten Commandments (d) it is possible for the believer not to break the law of God if he is careful _______ (5) Aaron’s rod that budded typified (a) The fragrance of Christ’s life (b) a fruitful Christian life (c) Aaron’s obedient life (d) Christ’s priesthood in resurrection power __________ (6) The cherubim overshadowing the mercy seat seem to speak of (a) The sheltering wings of God (b) ministering spirits for the believer in Christ (c) The dangers of idolatry (d) The vindication of the holiness of God __________ Match each reference in column 1 with the statement in column 2 by placing the correct letter from column 1 in the proper blank in column 2. (15 points) Column 1Column 2 a. Heb 9:13-14(1) The death of Christ was necessary to make His testament [or, covenant] effective __________ b. Heb 9:19-22 a(2) Christ’s blood is superior to that of bulls and goats __________ c. Heb 9:15-17(3) Application of the blood cleanses from defilement__________ d. Heb 9:11-12(4) The blood is essential for the remission of sins__________ e. Heb 9:24(5) The cleansing of the conscience is better than the cleansing of the flesh__________ f. Heb 9:22 b 4. With your Bible open at Heb 9:11-28; Heb 10:1-14 locate the chapter and verse containing each of the truths expressed below. Write the correct Scripture reference in the blank space. (15 points) a. Christ has appeared once to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. __________ b. Christ was once offered to bear our sins. __________ c. Christ, by His own blood, entered once into the Holy Place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.__________ d. Christians are sanctified [set apart for priestly service] once for all because Christ offered Himself in sacrifice for sin__________ 5. On the Day of Atonement there was an elaborate ritual to be fulfilled in Christ. State briefly what the following parts of that ritual typified. (15 points) a. The slain goat ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ b. Aaron’s glorious garments removed ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ c. Bodies of the sin-offering burned outside the camp ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ d. The scapegoat ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ e. The golden censer and the sweet incense ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ 6. Name the topics of the four divisions into which this portion of Hebrews logically falls. (8 points) a. ______________________________________________________________ Heb 9:1-10 b. _____________________________________________________________ Heb 9:11-23 c. _____________________________________________________________ Heb 9:24-28 d. _____________________________________________________________ Heb 10:1-18 r 7. What are the three appearings of Christ mentioned in this portion of the epistle? (9 points) a. ___________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ b. ___________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ c. ___________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ 8. State briefly one truth in this lesson which has been a blessing to you. (4 points) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 12: 01.09. A NEW AND LIVING WAY ======================================================================== A New And Living Way” Heb 10:19-39 BOOK FOUR THE RISEN CHRIST GLORIFIED IN THE BELIEVER CHAPTER NINE “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus . . . let us draw near . . . let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus” (Heb 10:19; Heb 10:22; Heb 12:1-2). “Boldness to Enter . . . by the Blood of Jesus” Heb 10:19-22. The Doctrine Of Hebrews Concluded, We Have Now The practical implications of it, beginning with Heb 10:19, where we are told that, in the light of the abiding results of the one sacrifice offered by our Lord, we have boldness to enter into the Holiest by His blood, and are therefore exhorted to “draw near.” This is the climax to which all the previous chapters lead us. The new and living way brings us beyond the outer court into “the holy place” of “the true tabernacle,” where “the true worshippers,” of whom our Lord spoke to the woman of Samaria, worship “with a true heart” (John 4:23; Heb 10:22). This is heart worship, and not the mere externalia of ritual or man-made liturgies. The way is both “new and living.” The sacrifice of Christ is ever “new.” It will never grow old, or our adoring view of it become stale, throughout eternity. We shall forever discover new glories and wonders in it. The amazing word selected by the Holy Spirit for the Greek of this word translated “new” is used only here in the entire New Testament. It literally means “newly slaughtered,” or “freshly slain,” and therefore suggests the astounding fact that God the Father regards the offering of our Lord Jesus of Himself “without spot to God” as having only just now been accomplished. What blessed significance this immediately attaches to 1Jn 1:9; Rev 1:5; and similar passages! The way is also “living.” Christ is the propitiation in the heavenly sanctuary-the Living One who became dead, and behold, is alive for evermore! (Rev 1:17-18). He is as a Lamb newly slain though in the midst of the throne. Think once more of the Jewish Tabernacle and the outer court, with the six pieces of furniture placed, by the command of God, in the form of a cross. Directly before the brazen altar was the gate, or entrance into the outer court. From there the priests walked, by the way of the cross as it were, through the door into the Holy Place. But the vail closed “the way into the holiest” until Christ died. Then when the vail of the Temple was rent in twain, the way was opened into the very presence of the Shekinah Glory. Do you see the picture? Our Lord Jesus, by the blood of His cross, is the Way into the presence of the Triune God. He is the gate and the door (John 10:7). His flesh, broken on Calvary, is the rent vail. He is the only Way to eternal life, even as He said to the eleven disciples in His farewell discourse, “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). “Christ is the gateway whereby a poor sinner comes to God, the doorway whereby a saint enters into the sanctuary, the vail rent whereby we approach the presence of God and have boldness to stand before Him” - Samuel Ridout The Rent Veil Heb 10:20 The vail is rent, but it is not removed. The humanity of our Lord on which “the vail, that is to say, his flesh,” speaks, remains, living in the power of an endless life. It is through this holy vail that we enter in. We shall never dispense with Him, though we have been in glory ten thousand years. He is the Man Christ Jesus at the throne of grace. In Exo 26:31-32 the vail is described. It was made of blue, purple scarlet and fine twined linen, with cherubims woven into it. It was hung with golden hooks upon four pillars of shittim, or acacia, wood overlaid: with gold; and the pillars stood upon four sockets of silver (See Exo 26:31-33; Exo 36:35-36). - Blue is the color of heaven; - Purple, the color of royalty; - Scarlet speaks of suffering; - Fine linen sets forth purity. May not the four Gospels where the Holy One was set forth in this fourfold character, be represented by the four pillars, from which the holy vail was suspended? With what reverential awe we should ever contemplate it! The door of the Tabernacle and the gate of the outer court were also made of blue, purple, scarlet and fine twined linen; for, as we have seen, the gate, the door and the vail foreshadowed the same Lord (See Exo 26:36-37; Exo 36:37-38; Exo 38:18). The Levitical priests who were ministering in the Holy Place of the Temple, still rejecting Christ, even as He committed His spirit unto the Father as the true Lamb of God-in that moment the Levitical priests must have been struck with awe and fright as they saw the vail of the Temple being rent in twain from the top to the bottom by the hand of God (Mat 27:51). Yet their hearts were so hardened that they refused to accept the truth which this miracle taught-that from henceforth the earthly priesthood was forever done away, and that every believer in Christ has immediate, unbroken access into the true Holy of Holies, even heaven itself, “by the blood of Jesus.” In their blindness the priests of Judaism continued to offer animal sacrifices and burn incense until God permitted this empty mockery to be swept away by the destruction of the Temple, A. D. 70. But they could not close “the way into the holiest of all.” No man could undo the finished work of Christ! Therefore, to the Hebrew Christians of his day the inspired writer was saying: “Stand back no longer! Come boldly unto the throne of grace! Draw near to your Great High Priest, the Man in the glory, who is waiting to hear your cry and plead your cause. You no longer need an earthly priest. Your Representative at the throne of grace has all power in heaven and on earth (Mat 28:18).” “Let Us Draw Near . . . Let Us Hold Fast . . . Let Us Consider One Another” Heb 10:22-25 The threefold exhortation which follows is the logical conclusion of all that the rent vail implies: “Let us draw near . . . let us hold fast the profession of our faith . . . let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works.” It is an exhortation to faith, hope and love. 1. “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience: and our body washed with pure water” (Heb 10:22). We may draw near with boldness, not as strangers and slaves, but in the liberty of sons. There is not a quiver of uncertainty, for we may have full assurance of faith. Such is the result of apprehending the infinite value of the sacrifice of Christ, which has made the entire system of the first-covenant sacrifices obsolete and unnecessary. The heart sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water, evidently refers to Lev 8:1-36, to the consecration of the sons of Aaron to the priesthood. Thus we have our title to draw near in the blood, securing our standing. The water sets forth the death of Christ applied to our state, cleansing us morally and making us meet for spiritual worship. The conscience is cleansed by blood; the body, that is, self, is cleansed by water. Both flowed from our Lord’s pierced side after His death. The Levitical priests were washed by Moses once, at the time of their consecration to their sacred office (Lev 8:6). That act, which was never repeated, speaks of the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit by the new birth in the heart of the believer-priest. That transaction is made once for all. But on the wilderness journey from Egypt to Canaan, as it were, the; believer-priest becomes defiled by sin. Therefore, as Aaron and his sons had to wash their hands and feet at the brazen laver before they could minister in the Tabernacle, even so the believer in Christ must let God cleanse his hands for service and his feet for the pilgrim walk by “the washing of water by the word” (Eph 5:26). Thus the Holy Spirit applies the Word of God to the defiled believer (John 4:13-14; John 7:37-39 ; Rev 22:17). “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1Jn 1:9). 2. “Let us hold fast the profession of our without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised)” (Heb 10:23), Nothing must be allowed to dim the brightness of our hope, that is, of our outlook, however difficult the present. We are going on to “the day,” with its morning without clouds. 3. “Let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works; not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another; and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching” (Heb 10:24-25). After the upward look through the opened heavens and the forward look toward the golden morning, we have a third exhortation, to consider one another. First, in this epistle, we are directed to see our glorious High Priest in heaven, to be taken up with Him, to consider His perfections. And now having done this, as the Holy Spirit has taught us of our blessed Lord, we can rightly consider our fellow believers, not to discover their faults, but to draw forth their love and activities inspired by love. If there be this love, we shall seek one another’s company, hence the exhortation concerning the gathering together of the people of God. We are not to forsake our brethren in their assembling together, as the manner of some is. No wonder the two disciples on the way to Emmaus were sad and perplexed when they had turned their backs upon their brethren in Jerusalem! When their hearts had been made to burn within them through the ministry of the Word of Christ, when their eyes had been opened to see Him and know Him, while they were seated with Him at their own table, how quickly they hurried back to their brethren! And what a contribution they made as they related their experience of the restoring grace of the Great Shepherd! Then it was that they found Him again “in the midst” of His beloved disciples (Luk 24:36). When we see our brethren as Christ’s own (John 13:1), we shall value them as our own also (Acts 4:23). An isolated Christian will wither in his spiritual life; but when Christ fills the horizon of our souls, we cannot help longing to share with our brethren what we have found in Him. The assembly of the saints, that is, those separated from the world unto God, as the apostle Paul calls the local gatherings of the Lord’s people (1Co 14:1-40), is the nearest thing to heaven on earth. There the Lord is verily in the midst. There He shows us His hands and side and feet, the tokens of His sufferings on the cross. There He breathes on us His own resurrection life in the Spirit. There He commissions us to go forth in His name to carry His peace into a world of trouble and distress (See John 20:1-31). It is indeed a dangerous thing for any believer to forsake the assembly of His brethren. When we are thus gathered together with our spiritual kindred, ministry will flow freely. Knowing that the end of all things is at hand, that the day is approaching when Christ will assert His rights, we shall daily exhort one another to be awake and alert. We shall beseech our fellow Christians to be in detachment from the things which will come into judgment, and to be attached to those things which will be in triumph in that coming day, much as the world may despise or neglect them now. Then our Lord’s return will not take us unawares. Another Warning About the Danger of Apostasy Heb 10:26-31 In Heb 10:26-31 we have another searching warning about the danger to which one who forsakes the company of the brethren is exposed. It might end in his becoming an apostate, which in the Epistle to the Hebrews means leaving Christ for Judaism. It is a sinning willfully to reject the perfect sacrifice of Christ for the fulfilled and worn-out types of the first covenant, which God has set aside. For the Hebrew of apostolic days it meant continuing to offer the animal sacrifices; but God says, “There remaineth no more sacrifice for sins” now (Heb 10:26). So there is nothing for the apostate but the “certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries” (Heb 10:27). Jewish apostates, before being readmitted into the synagogue, had to deny openly that Jesus was the Son of God. They had to say that He deserved to die, and that the miracles which He wrought were not of the Spirit. They had to pronounce “anathema,” that is, a curse, upon His name-not that those who have been laid hold of by grace will go that far, but to forsake the assembly of the saints is the first step in the road that ends in apostasy unless grace intervenes. And how can grace avail where grace is despised? According to the parable of the dragnet (Mat 13:47-50), all kinds of fish are caught in the net of the kingdom of heaven, both good and bad. Not all in the “net” are accepted for the “vessels.” The good only, the fish that have fins and scales, are thus taken. The rest are thrown away, (Cf. Lev 11:9-12) True believers have “fins” that enable them to go against the current, and “scales” which enable them to be in the world but not of it. There is a blessed “but” in Heb 10:32, as there is in Heb 6:9, which shows that even then there were two classes who had been enlightened, as there are two classes in professing Christendom today-those who live by faith and those who draw back to perdition. Remember that the Holy Spirit, in Heb 10:26-31, is writing to Christians about “the adversaries,” enemies of the cross of Christ (Heb 10:27). In the paragraph which follows (Heb 10:32-39); He addresses born-again souls in words of assurance like unto those of Heb 6:9-20. A real child of God cannot tread underfoot the Son of God and count His precious blood of the new covenant “an unholy thing [Greek, ‘a common thing’].” He cannot do “despite unto the Spirit of grace” (Heb 10:29). The apostate who pronounces “anathema” upon our blessed Lord, the unbeliever who will not accept Christ as Saviour, does that! Since the Israelite who broke the Law of Moses was stoned to death, at the mouth of two or three witnesses (Deu 17:6), how much sorer punishment does the rebellious apostate deserve! He has been enlightened, yet still repudiates the Holy One of God! The Hebrew Christians were familiar with their Old Testament Scriptures; they knew the meaning of the two quotations from the Word of the Lord, with which this paragraph closes: “To me belongeth vengeance, and recompense” (Deu 32:35). “The Lord shall judge his people” (Deu 32:36). Then to this the Spirit of God adds the further warning, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Heb 10:31)-unregenerated! The faithfulness with which the Holy Spirit reveals the danger and the consequence of apostasy may be seen in the following summary: Seven steps in the downward course of evil, according to Hebrews: 1. Neglecting “so great salvation” (Heb 2:3) If we do not want the heaven-sent fire to go out on the altar, we must day by day put fresh wood and sacrifices on it. Our prayers, intercessions, confessions, adorations and surrender mean nothing less than this-we do not want the fire on the altar of our hearts to go out. 2. Hardening the heart (Heb 3:8) How soon the heart loses its tenderness; the conscience, its sensitiveness; the spirit, its God-awareness! This process will lead to open sin unless divinely arrested. 3. Corrupting the grace of God (Heb 6:4-8) The heart that receives grace in vain is like the soil often rained upon! but yielding only thorns and thistles. 4. Doing despite to grace (Heb 10:29) This means quenching the warnings and rebukes of the Spirit of grace drowning His still, small voice by the noises of this world. 5. Drawing back (Heb 10:38) “Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.” 6. Selling our birthright (Heb 12:16) Like profane Esau, many make this fatal choice. 7. Openly rejecting Christ (Heb 12:25) While one who is truly born again may through unwatchfulness give place to the flesh, stray far away and “become like them that go down into the pit” (Psa 28:1), yet be recovered through mercy; it also remains true that one may for a season appear to have the earmarks of a true disciple, yet in the end give evidence, like Simon Magus in Acts 8:9-24 that the heart has never been right with God, and that he is still “in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.” Truly, “the Lord knoweth them that are his” (2Ti 2:19; cf. Num 16:5). But we can know that they are His only when they who are called by His name depart from iniquity (2Ti 2:19). “The Just Shall Live by Faith” Heb 10:32-39 Comforting and reassuring are the words of encouragement in the closing paragraph of this chapter (Heb 10:32-39). And again the Spirit of God quotes from the Old Testament the famous statement in Hab 2:4, “The just shall live by faith” (cf. Rom 1:17; Gal 3:11). Indeed, this encouragement is continued to the end of the epistle; and the quotation from Habakkuk introduces the great faith chapter of the Bible. Concerning this passage the Jewish Talmud in the section Gemartt Makkot says that David condenses the six hundred and thirteen commandments of Moses into eleven (Psa 15:1-5); Isaiah, into six (Isa 33:15); Micah, into three (Mic 6:8); and Habakkuk, into one (Hab 2:4). The Hebrews are thus encouraged to walk by faith and not by sight, lest they be lured back to Judaism by the magnificence of the still-standing Temple and its services. There was a deeper satisfaction in the despised upper room where Christians assembled than in the ancient externalia which had found their fulfillment in Christ. Three powerful reasons for continuance in the life of faith are given here: 1. The memory of the sufferings of the past (Heb 10:32-36) When they first believed, they were divinely “illuminated.” It was a coming out of the shadows into noonday splendor. Then they had “endured a great fight of afflictions,” taking the spoiling of their goods joyfully. This proved their being truly of the elect of God. 2. The inspiration of the glory of the future (Heb 10:36-39) “The promise” is about to be fulfilled, “For yet a very little while, and He that shall come will come, and will not tarry” (Heb 10:37). In Hab 2:3, from which these words are quoted, we read, “For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.” The Spirit, who surely knows His own Word, changes the “it” of Habakkuk to “he” in Hebrews; for the vision of Habakkuk speaks of the person of the Coming One, the Lord Jesus Christ. 3. The danger of perdition (Heb 10:38 b) The choice is either to live by faith and go on with Christ, or to draw back. And “if any man draw back,” God has “no pleasure in him.” The end of that way is “perdition,” but the end of believing is “the saving of the soul.” “Great Recompense of Reward” Heb 10:36 “A great fight of afflictions . . . a gazingstock . . . reproaches and afflictions . . . companions of them that were so used . . . ye had compassion of me in my bonds [for Christ’s sake], and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods”-these verses tell something the persecution which the Hebrew Christians had suffered for their Lord. To them, as to us today, the inspired writer is saying: What does it matter if we do become a gazingstock before the Christ rejecting world because of our testimony for the Lord who loved and gave Himself for us? He is faithful that promised (Heb 10:23) to lead His sons unto glory (Heb 2:10). What if we do lose all earthly things for His sake? In Him we have “a better and an enduring substance” (Heb 10:34). “Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise” (Heb 10:35-36). At the judgment seat of Christ the rewards will be bestowed upon those who have been faithful in service for Him (1Co 3:11-14; Rom 14:10; 2Co 5:10). Meanwhile, there is need of patience, faith, hope and love for the pilgrim walk. The justified sons of God live now by faith, and they shall live eternally because of that God-given faith. But read further in the record of Habakkuk’s vision, and what do you find? “Great recompense of reward!” For in that coming “day” (Heb 10:25) when “he that shall come will come” (Heb 10:37), God’s suffering, saints will “receive the promise” (Heb 10:36)-above all they could ask or think. These are Habakkuk’s own words describing that day, written by inspiration of the Spirit of God: “The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea” (Hab 2:14). Assignment for Exam 9 1. Spend much time before the throne of grace praising God for your Great High Priest and the opened way into His presence. Ask your Father in heaven, in the name of the Son, for an ever increasing measure of faith, hope, love and patience, to which you are exhorted in this chapter. 2. Endeavor to witness before unbelievers of the danger of apostasy: “Yet a little while,” and the opportunity for witnessing will be past. CHAPTER NINE NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM 1. In the blank space write the letter of the correct answer. (20 points) 1) Heb 1:1-14, Heb 2:1-18, Heb 3:1-19, Heb 4:1-16, Heb 5:1-14, Heb 6:1-20, Heb 7:1-28, Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18 has to do principally with 100 (a) Worship (b) Practicec) Warning (d) Doctrine __________ (2) The climax of Hebrews, beginning with Heb 10:19, introduces the part of the epistle which has to do mainly with (a) Warning (b) Worship (c) Practice (d) Doctrine __________ (3) By rending the veil of the Temple, God was making known the truth that (a) He was forever done with Israel (b) The earthly priesthood was done away (c) The nation would be rent asunder for crucifying Christ (d) The human race had forfeited its last chance of salvation __________ (4) At the judgment seat of Christ (a) Rewards will be given for those who have worked hardest for the good of humanity (b) Christians who do not have anything worthwhile to offer Christ will be cast out of heaven (c) Rewards will be given to believers in Christ for faithfulness (d) True believers will not have to appear before the judgment seat of Christ __________ (5) The Hebrew Christians had (a) Suffered no persecution for their faith (b) Taken joyfully the loss of their possessions (c) Bitterly lamented the spoiling of their goods (d) Failed to assist others who were persecuted __________ 2. In the right-hand margin write “True” or “False” after each of the following statements. (20 points) a. The Jews were still offering animal sacrifices when the Epistle to the Hebrews was written. __________ b. The glorified Lord is still Man as well as God. __________ c. God permitted the destruction of the Jewish Temple in A.D. 70.__________ d. Heb 10:37 refers to the second coming of Christ. __________ e. Human mediators between God and man still have a definite part in worship. __________ f. The “adversaries” who are to be devoured are enemies of the cross.__________ g. The Old Testament quotation at the close of Hebrews 10 introduces the great faith chapter of the Bible.__________ h. Assembling for fellowship is not important for true Christians.__________ i. God’s grace is too rich and free to allow any to perish.__________ j. Perdition awaits those who do not believe to the saving of the soul. __________ Name the seven steps in the downward course of evil, as set forth in the Epistle to the Hebrews. (21 points) (a) __________________________________________________________________________ (b) __________________________________________________________________________ (c) __________________________________________________________________________ (d) __________________________________________________________________________ (e) __________________________________________________________________________ (f) __________________________________________________________________________ (g) __________________________________________________________________________ The exhortation “let us” occurs three times in Hebrews 10. In the blank lines write these three exhortations. (9 points) a. An exhortation to faith ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ b. An exhortation to hope ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ c. An exhortation to love ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ a. What colors were in the veil of the Tabernacle and what did they typify? (18 points) (1) __________typified ________________________________________________ (2) __________typified ________________________________________________ (3) __________typified ________________________________________________ (4) Fine linen typified ________________________________________________ b. In what significant form were the various pieces of furniture placed in the Tabernacle ? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ c. What are we to learn from the rending of the veil of the Temple ? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Give the Scripture references in which these words occur: “The just [or ‘righteous,’] shall live by faith.” (12 points) (a) __________________________________________________________________________ (b) __________________________________________________________________________ (c) __________________________________________________________________________ (d) __________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 13: 01.10. A CLOUD OF WITNESSES ======================================================================== “A Cloud Of Witnesses” Heb 11:1-40; Heb 12:1-3 CHAPTER TEN Faith-The Title Deeds To Unseen Realities Heb 11:1-3 From Heb 11:1-40; Heb 12:1-3 we have an amplification of the great word from Habakkuk, “The just shall live by faith.” We are told that “faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence [or, ‘conviction’] of things not seen.” The word “substance” has the same meaning as the word “assurance.” However, according to fresh light which has been shed on Greek as spoken during the period when the New Testament was written, this term, which is variously translated “substance,” “essence” or “assurance,” was at that time used to mean “title deeds.” Therefore, what Heb 11:1 declares is that he who has faith has the title deeds to unseen realities in his hand. The passage is not so much a definition of faith as a description of its effects. It brings us into the light of the now invisible and coming world. - We give up the visible, therefore, because we are under the influence of the invisible. - We give up the present, because we have the title deeds to that which is to come. Following this statement concerning the work of faith in the heart of the believer, the Holy Spirit encourages the persecuted Hebrew Christians by reminding them of the faith of their fathers, the Old Testament saints, called here “the elders” (Heb 11:2). Four times in this chapter it is written that God hath borne witness to the faith of these men and women who believed His Word (Heb 11:2; Heb 11:4-5; Heb 11:39), They are a veritable “cloud of witnesses” (Heb 12:1), to which our Lord Himself is added as the chief Example of faith (Heb 12:2), as well as the Author and Finisher of faith. Heartened by their testimony, “looking unto Jesus,” the suffering, troubled saints are exhorted to run the Christian race; laying aside the weight of besetting sin as they press on toward that “city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Heb 11:10). Not all of the Old Testament heroes and heroines of faith are named in this roll of honor; “for time would fail me,” the inspired apostle writes, to mention all of them. But enough are called by name to encourage believers throughout the Christian era to follow their example, walking in the path of faith (Heb 11:4-7), even as they learn the patience of faith (Heb 11:8-22), and realize something of the power of faith (Heb 11:23-40), bestowed by Him who, in His earthly ministry, was and is and ever shall be the perfect Pattern of faith (Heb 12:2). “Consider him” the apostle adds, “lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds” (Heb 12:3). He is the One by whom “the worlds [or, ‘ages’] were framed”; and He is the Creator (Heb 11:3; cf. John 1:3; John 1:10; Col 1:16-17; Heb 1:2-3). By faith we understand these eternal truths, believing that the “things which are seen were not made of things which do appear” (Heb 11:3). There is no room for speculation in that statement; and the infallible Holy Spirit wrote it! Thus, in the lesson before us, the Spirit of God covers the long ages of time-from the past eternity to the cross, resurrection, ascension and present ministry of Jesus, the Creator, ever living Lord and Great High Priest of His redeemed. Not only so, but He looks forward to the future eternity, when the children of faith shall dwell with the Triune God in that “better . . . heavenly . . . country” (Heb 11:16 cf. Heb 11:10; Heb 11:14; Heb 11:26; Heb 11:35; Heb 11:40). Only God-given faith can lay hold of these things. The Path of Faith Heb 11:4-7. r 1. “By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain” (Heb 11:4). We have in Abel’s sacrifice the basis of happy relations with God for a fallen creature. Through the “more excellent sacrifice . . . he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts.” The Lord Jesus called him “righteous Abel” (Mat 23:35). This man of faith brought both the burnt offering and the meal offering-in type, a full Christ, His blessed life, so fragrant to heaven and His sacrificial death. It is His “blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel” (Heb 12:24). This is the second time in this epistle that Abel is said to speak to us, by his act of faith, concerning “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world” (John 1:29). Cain brought only that which spoke of the life of Jesus. He ignored that which set forth His death for our acceptance. Alas! Twentieth century apostasy goes “in the way of Cain” (Jude 1:11), and the Spirit pronounces woe upon such unbelief. 2. “By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death” (Heb 11:5-6). Having given Abel as an example of justification by faith, the Holy Spirit, in beautiful order, writes of Enoch who chose God as his traveling companion in an ever darkening world, ripening for judgment. Moreover, Enoch’s walk with God led him on to his translation to heaven without dying. In this he becomes a type of the saved who will be living when the Lord Jesus comes to take unto Himself His Bride, even His blood-bought Church (Cf. 1Th 4:13-18; 1Co 15:51-57; Tit 2:13 and parallel passages). Many centuries before Jesus was born in Bethlehem, Enoch preached- by faith-about the second coming of Christ to judge the wicked (Jude 1:14-15). Doubtless many refused to heed the warning of Enoch, the great-grandfather of Noah; for “before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God” (Heb 11:5). “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Heb 11:6). 3. “By faith Noah . . . prepared an ark to the saving of his house” (Heb 11:7). Noah, “a preacher of righteousness” (2Pe 2:5), by building the ark to save his family from the waters of judgment, became a type of Christ, who is Himself a Refuge from judgment for His house; because our Lord passed through the baptism of death unto resurrection ground. By his testimony Noah “condemned the world,” who would not heed the warning sent by God. Abel-Enoch-Noah-on the path of faith, speak to us particularly of salvation by faith, a holy walk with God, and a testimony before the Christ-rejecting world of impending judgment upon the ungodly. The Patience of Faith Heb 11:8-22 By faith the patriarchs believed the promise of God concerning the Saviour to come. Most of the Book of Genesis is devoted to the record concerning the five children of God whose faith is mentioned in Heb 11:8-22 -Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph. Again, in this faith chapter no reference is made to their failures-and they were many; neither is this the story of their achievements. But their faith in the promises of God, the patience of faith-this is the lesson which the Holy Spirit emphasizes here (Note how often faith in God’s “promise” is mentioned in this chapter). God began a new order in Abraham. He had purged the world by judgment; but it again became corrupt, falling into idolatry, with its resultant moral degradation (Cf. Romans 1). Therefore, separation by the call of God became the responsibility of the believer; and Abraham became the typically heavenly man, a pilgrim and a stranger, even in the Land of Promise. In Gen 14:13 he is called “the Hebrew,” which the Septuagint Version translates by perates, meaning the passenger. All the children of Abraham’s faith are thus Hebrews, that is, passers-on to another country. It was faith in God’s promise that the Redeemer should come through his family that led Abraham to leave an advanced, though idolatrous civilization in Ur of Chaldea and go out, “not knowing whither he went” (Heb 11:8; cf. Gen 12:1-3; Jos 24:2). It was faith that claimed the Land of Promise as his inheritance, even though he lived in tents with Isaac and Jacob the remainder of his life. The only portion in Canaan, to which he had an earthly title deed, was the field with the cave of Machpelah-a place to bury his dead (See Gen 23:1-20). His hope was fixed upon that “city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Heb 11:10). For more than twenty-five years Abraham and Sarah had waited for the promised son and heir. “Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran” (Gen 12:4). How long he had stayed in Haran, following God’s call, we are not told. But he was “an hundred years old when Isaac was born” (Gen 21:5); and Sarah was ninety (Gen 17:17). With the birth of this son of promise God turned Sarah’s laughter of unbelief into the laughter of joy, for “Isaac” means “laughter” (Cf. Gen 18:10-15; Gen 17:19). In spite of her lapse, she did judge “him faithful who had promised” (Heb 11:11). And through Isaac came the Hebrew nation, which gave to the world the Saviour. “These all”-Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, as well as Abel, Enoch, Noah and all the “elders”-“died in faith, not having received the promises” (Heb 11:13). That is, they did not live to see Christ in His earthly ministry; but they saw Him by faith, acknowledged that they were strangers in a God-dishonoring world, pilgrims journeying to that “better . . . heavenly” country (Heb 11:13-16). The patriarchs could have returned to Chaldea (Heb 11:15), rather than live in tents in a strange land; but because they desired a heavenly habitation, God was “not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city” (Heb 11:16). Throughout this entire portion of Heb 11:1-40 the story of the faith of Abraham is interwoven with that of Sarah, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph. The heavenly calling is set forth in the family which Abraham founded, and the principle of election runs through divine dealings with it. Ishmael was cast out; Esau was left out; Manasseh was crossed out; for God will have “no flesh . . . glory in his presence” (1Co 1:29). The truth of death and resurrection is also emphasized. Faith must reckon with the God who quickens and raises the dead. Isaac must be laid on the altar. - Jacob must have his strength taken out of him at Peniel before he can become Israel. - Joseph must know the pit and the dungeon before his early dreams can be fulfilled. And our God still disciplines and trains His elect in this strange way. When the Lord Jesus was on earth, He said to the unbelieving Jews, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad” (John 8:56). Surely in the trial of the patriarch’s faith when he “offered up his only begotten son” of promise on Mount Moriah (Heb 11:17). God was teaching both Abraham and Isaac of His well-beloved and only begotten Son who was to be offered on Mount Calvary as the true Lamb of God. The faith of Abraham in the Lord’s power to raise Isaac up “even from the dead” (Heb 11:19) pointed on to the bodily resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And Isaac’s obedience to his father foreshadowed our Lord’s perfect obedience to the will of His Father in heaven, even unto “the death of the cross” (Php 2:8). Without doubt God must have been teaching Abraham and Isaac of “the day of Christ.” No wonder “Abraham rejoiced . . . and was glad”! Yet such obedience required faith; and it is that faith which God honors in Heb 11:1-40. The Genesis record tells us that Isaac had sought to give the covenant-blessing to Esau; but by faith he refused to take it away from Jacob, after God showed him that the Saviour should come through Jacob’s family. It was “concerning things to come” (Heb 11:20) he exercised faith (cf. Gen 27:1-46, Gen 8:1-22). Someone has said that the picture we get of Jacob in Heb 11:21 portrays the aged patriarch dying, blessing, worshiping, leaning-by faith in the God of his fathers. And it was Joseph’s faith in God’s promise to Abraham (Gen 15:13-14; Gen 50:24) that He would lead Israel out of Egypt into Canaan which prompted him to give “commandment concerning his bones” (Heb 11:22; Gen 50:25; Exo 13:19; Jos 24:32). Joseph, the ruler of Egypt might have been buried in one of the costly tombs of the country; but his faith he cast his lot with the people of God. The Power of Faith Heb 11:23-40. r 1. By faith the parents of Moses “were not afraid of the king’s commandment” (Heb 11:23). How did Moses come to have faith that the despised Hebrews were “the people of God,” that to suffer affliction with them was better than the pleasures of sin? We must credit his parents for this, and God gives them an honorable mention as examples of faith. Thus we see that there must have been a believing remnant among the Hebrews, however hidden and small. Their very names, indeed, indicate this fact (Exo 6:20), “Amram,” the name of the father of Moses, means “the people are high”; and “Jochebed,” his mother’s name, means “The Lord is exalted.” Only faith on the part of his grandparents could have named them thus. And so it was that Moses was born into an atmosphere of deep piety, which left its impression on him, an influence which the glory and wisdom of Egypt could not wipe out. It has been well said by another that the parents of Moses had faith for him till, through grace, he had faith for himself. So godly parents may commit their children to the Lord and instill into their minds the principles of truth, trusting that grace will keep them from the snares of this present evil world till the hour of their own definite decision to his disciples of the Lord Jesus. Moses’ parents saw that their child was “goodly,” that is, “beautiful” (Heb 11:23); “exceeding fair,” or “fair unto God” (Acts 7:20). And because of their faith, the wicked Pharaoh’s own daughter saved the very child of the despised Hebrews who was to be used of the Lord to thwart the evil designs of her father, the king of Egypt. 2. By faith Moses proved the power of God (Heb 11:24-29). The energy of faith is seen in him, witnessed to in this God-given summary of his life: a. He gave up his title to royal dignities (Heb 11:24). b. He chose the company of the people of God (Heb 11:25). c. He changed his valuations (Heb 11:26). d. He forsook Egypt (Heb 11:21). e. He kept the Passover (Heb 11:28). The Hebrews kept the Passover as a matter of command. But the faith of Moses secured the preservation of the whole people, and inspired them with faith to go through the Red Sea (cf. Heb 11:28-29). We also find that through his ministry the tribes of the Hebrews, in bondage in Egypt, became a nation solemnly married to the Lord God. They had begun as a nation under the shelter of the blood of the Lamb when they forsook Egypt. And when God ratified His covenant with them at Mount Sinai and Moses read to them from “the book of the covenant,” he “took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words” (Exo 24:7-8; cf. Heb 9:18-22). It was by faith that Moses identified himself with a despised slave people after he had achieved renown in Egypt. Not only was he the adopted son of Pharaoh’s daughter; but Josephus, the Jewish historian, tells us that he was a consummate military leader, having been instructed in all the wisdom of Egypt, and that he was mighty in his words and works (cf. Acts 7:22). The Israelites were “the people of God” to him (Heb 11:25). They certainly did not look like the people of God. They had neither altar nor temple, prophet nor priest. They had forgotten the very name of the God of their fathers (Exo 3:13), having become idolaters like their Egyptian masters (Eze 20:4-8). But faith saw their divine election and calling. Faith saw their future. Faith apprehended that the covenants, the glory, the giving of the law, the promises, the fathers, belonged to them. Faith foresaw that of Israel, according to the flesh, the Christ would also come, who is over all, God most blessed forever! (Rom 9:4-5) Time would fail us to speak of all the lessons set before us in such words as: choosing “to suffer affliction with the people of God,” brevity of the “pleasures of sin . . . the reproach of Christ . . . recompense of the reward . . . seeing him who is invisible.” The book of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy tell us of the experiences these words recall concerning Moses, the man of faith. But one thing we would ask ourselves here: How could Moses consider “the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt,” when he lived fifteen hundred years before Jesus was born in Bethlehem? There is but one answer: Moses “saw the day of Christ” as Abraham did-by far And Moses “wrote of me,” the Lord Jesus said (John 5:46; cf. Luk 24:27; Luk 24:44). In the Passover, the Red Sea deliverance, the manna, the smitten rock, the brazen serpent, the cities of refuge; in Gen 3:15; Gen 12:1-3; Gen 49:10; Num 24:15-19; Deu 18:15-18; in all the Pentateuch in more ways than we can count, Moses wrote of the Christ, for whom he chose the reproach of Egypt because his faith was fixed upon Him, whom having not seen he loved (Cf. 1Co 10:1-11; 1Pe 1:8). Few men have known the power of faith in God as Moses did. 3. “By faith the walls of Jericho fell down . . . by faith . . . Rahab perished not” (Heb 11:30-31). The opening chapters of the Book of Joshua tell the story of God’s miracle-working power; but in the verses before us His Holy Spirit honors the faith of those for whom He wrought. By faith Joshua and the children of Israel did what the world would call foolishness, marching around the walls of Jericho, blowing rams’ horns; but they obeyed God. That is faith in action. By faith Rahab turned from idolatry to the Lord (Jos 2:9-11), subjecting herself to the stigma of being called a traitor to her own people, and claimed deliverance for herself and her family. Not only was she saved, but three times in the New Testament she is honored for her faith (Mat 1:5-6; Heb 11:31; Jas 2:25). And she became the mother of Boaz, through whose family Christ “according to the flesh” was born in Bethlehem (Mat 1:5; cf. Ruth 4:21-22; Rom 1:3). 4. By faith a great multitude removed “mountains”; by faith other: endured affliction, even martyrdom (Heb 11:32-40). A long list of men and women of faith now follows, taking us on into the days of Maccabees. They are divided into two groups. First those are listed who had faith to let God perform miracles through their service: Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets. By faith they “subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. Women received their dead raised to life again” (Heb 11:32-35). We marvel at these old-time heroes and heroines of faith. But let us read on and consider another aspect of belief in God’s Word. There were “others,” who did not exhibit anything sensational or perform wonders, but they accepted apparent failure and defeat “through faith.” They were “tortured [or, ‘beaten to death’], not accepting their deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection” (Heb 11:35). “And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; (Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise” (Heb 11:36-39). Does it not seem that the faith that can go down into disaster and death is of a higher quality than the faith that can remove mountains? It would seem so, as the perfect Pattern and Object of our trust in God exhibited faith of this category. (See Heb 12:2-3). Many Old Testament stories are recalled by this record of the unnamed men and women of faith. We are reminded of Daniel who “stopped the mouths of lions”; of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who “quenched the power of fire”; of the widow of Zarephath, whose son Elijah raised from the dead; and of the son of the Shunammite woman, whom Elisha restored to life. Tradition tells us that Jeremiah and Isaiah were “sawn asunder.” These and very many more examples of faith explain why the inspired writer introduced this great multitude by asking, “And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me if to tell of . . .” them all (Heb 11:32)! Since the grace of God was sufficient to sustain them in such bitter trials, surely it was sufficient for the Hebrew Christians of apostolic days-was, is and will be sufficient for the believer of all ages. For the second time in this chapter the thought expressed in verse is written: “And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise” (cf. Heb 11:13). They saw their Messiah only by faith, not by sight; for He had not come into the world when they died, “God having provided [or, ‘foreseen’] some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect” (Heb 11:40). God foresaw what their faith claimed, the redeeming work of our crucified and risen Lord Jesus. The Old Testament saints could not be made perfect as pertaining to the conscience until Christ died, forever settling the sin question; but the moment the vail of the Temple was rent in twain, all the efficacy of His finished work was put to their account. Therefore, Heb 12:23 assures us that, when this epistle was written, they had been “made perfect.” While they lived, they were “just men,” that is, justified by faith in the Saviour to come; now that He had paid the penalty for their sins, they were justified men “made perfect.” Have you noted the better things of this faith chapter-“a more excellent sacrifice . . . a better country, that is an heavenly . . . greater riches . . . a better resurrection . . . some better thing” (Heb 11:4; Heb 11:16; Heb 11:26; Heb 11:35; Heb 11:40)? Encouragement indeed for every trial of human experience. “So Great a Cloud of Witnesses” Heb 12:1 The great “cloud of witnesses” Heb 12:1 refers, of course, to the men and women of faith, about whom we have been reading in Heb 11:1-40. Are they to be regarded only as former witnesses to the faithfulness of God, or do they also watch us and rejoice in our progress? We know how godly men have differed on this subject. The writer of these lines is inclined to accept the view of Dr. Handley C. G. Moule expressed in his Messages from the Epistle to the Hebrews, that these “witnesses” are “spectators, watchers, not merely testifiers. The context seems to decide something positively for this explanation.” Running the Race-“Looking Unto Jesus” Heb 12:1-2 “Wherefore let us also, seeing also we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight [or, ‘encumbrance’], and the sin which doth so easily beset us [or, ‘doth closely cling to us’; or, ‘is admired of many’], and let us run with patience [or, ‘steadfastness’] the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus.” We are called to run our race in the light of our Lord’s present glory. This race calls for perseverance and patience, for every ounce of devotion, and for our concentration on it as the one thing we do (Php 3:13). Hence everything in our life which is superfluous must be stripped off. 1. This is a relay race. It is no ordinary foot race like the one in 1Co 9:24, where only one gets the prize. 2. No one is crowned yet. 3. The prizes will not be awarded till the last man has finished the race. 4. The number of runners who have reached the goal is continually growing. These are “the great cloud of witnesses,” waiting for the race to be finished, that they may get their rewards. The whole idea is that of a relay race. One man starts, carrying the flag and runs till he puts it into the hands of the next man of his team in front of him, and so on. As the race continues, the increasing numbers who have made their run cheer the newcomers. No matter how brilliantly they may have run, they cannot win until the last man of their side has come home. Pansanias, the ancient Greek writer, describes such a race with a lighted torch. He calls it the lampadedromia. The team that first brought the lighted torch home was the winner. While running they had to watch lest the torch go out, as well as to strive to get in first. So one generation of believers has to pass on the torch of testimony to a succeeding generation. Every individual believer is a necessary link in the chain. Woe to him if he stumbles and drops the torch! Not only does he endanger his own well-being, but he imperils the success of the cause with which he is identified. How apt was this illustration when this epistle was written! The unbelieving brethren of the Hebrew Christians were mustering for the conflict with Rome. Because the believers could not join the national cause, they were branded as traitors; whereas in reality they were upholding the precious torch of the faith of Abraham, of the prophets and of the saints of old. To hearten them, the Holy Spirit exhorts them to keep “looking unto Jesus,” to “consider him” who is the perfect Example of faith. Jesus-The Perfect Pattern of Faith Heb 12:2 “Jesus, the author [or, ‘captain’] and finisher of our faith” Heb 11:1-40 is the story of the men and women who risked and dared everything because they believed in the reality of God and the certain of His rule. They lived and died to bring in His supremacy, but theirs was only a fragmentary life of faith at the best. Jesus is the Prince and the Perfecter of faith. He went into the shame and ignominy of the cross; and on Him our eyes are now fixed, for He has gathered up in Himself every aspect of faith. In our English translation of this passage the word “our” is in italics and, therefore, was not in the Greek language. Accordingly, the Lord Jesus is the Author and Perfecter “of faith.” He always had perfect faith. “For the joy that was set before him,” our Lord endured the cross, despising the shame. Most people see only the tragedy of Calvary. But there was triumph also. We need to take notice how our Lord spoke of it. In what spirit did He approach His final sufferings? When the Greeks came to the feast and heard about Him, desiring to meet Him, He said that they had come in an hour when the Son of Man would be glorified-glorified in what looked like His deepest humiliation (John 12:23). Whatever He touched He has made glorious. How glorious the manger in which they laid Him! How He has dignified poverty, toil, reproach! His was a voluntary and a glad poverty. And at the end He glorified His cross, the most shameful thing the world then knew. He began speaking of His cross very early in His ministry. He was not taken by surprise by it. He meant to go through what was written concerning Him, “that it might be fulfilled.” The cross was something predetermined in the divine plan. He did not feel that He had lost His way. The cross led to the appointed goal. The future gain of His shameful death swallowed up the present pain. When He stood before Pilate, it was the idealist who stood before the realist. Watch Him, the unperturbed Christ! “What is truth?” asked Pilate, rather cynically. He just could not understand that strange Man! He had met a King whose kingdom was not of this world, but in the realm of the unseen, One who would not use material force to establish His royal claims. Pilate did not even know the alphabet of the language which Jesus spoke. To our Lord the distant was near; the invisible, objectively real; the spiritual, solid and substantial. And so He was Master of the situation then as always. What was the secret? What enabled Him to endure the cross? The passage under consideration links together three items: endurance, contempt of the shame, joy of conquest. 1. “Jesus . . . endured the cross.” It was by faith that our Lord endured the cross. In the deepest darkness, where not one ray of comfort shone, He trusted in God. It was thus He accomplished His greatest victory. “By weakness and defeat He won the meed and crown, Trod all our foes beneath His feet By being trodden down.” To many, life is unendurable. Our divine Lord came into our life and knew it and endured it at its worst. Even such a famous optimist as Walt Whitman wrote during the Civil War, “I am thoroughly frightened of life.” His universe was going to pieces. Many felt that way during the First World War, and again during the greater horrors of the second. But faith reckons with One who saw the worst, and saw beyond it. - He never wavered in the hope of the ultimate supremacy of divine good over its opposite. - He did not fly from the ills of life. - He did not refuse the cup of life because of its bitterness. - He did refuse the cup of wine mingled with gall, kindly offered to act as an opiate. - He would taste the death of the cross with full consciousness. Thus He teaches His people not to repudiate life but to endure it. 2. Our Lord despised the shame of the cross. He endured the cross, despising the shame-not that He despised or belittled the cross. He measured the awful depths of “the cup” which He had to drink. But He steadfastly set His face toward all that the drinking of that awful cup meant. The vision He had on the cross, as given in Psa 22:1-21, was before Him in that solemn hour. He believed would yet see of “the travail of his soul, and be satisfied” (Isa 53:11). What was the shame in comparison with that! The suffering Saviour was sensitive to the shame associated with cross. “I may tell [count] all my bones: they look and stare upon me. They part my garments among them,” He said in Psa 22:17-18. He felt the indecency of it all; but He belittled the shame, without being callous to it. When He hung in nakedness upon the accursed tree, that cross became more than a thing of shame. It became a transfigured cross. Ever since that day, it has been the symbol of sublime and unconquerable faith. All the glories of the Christian life assemble there. No wonder the apostle Paul, living in a time when the idea of the cross was held in repugnance, exclaimed, “God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Gal 6:14)! The cross teaches us to rise above our environment. It reminds us that the only thing to be ashamed of is sin, ignominy of character, the defacing of the image of God; that the only real poverty is that of being bereft of faith, hope, love, God. A prison may become a palace to a believer; as to a swinish man a palace becomes a pigsty. The man is more than environment. 3. “For the joy that was set before him” the Lord Jesus went the cross. When our Lord cried, “It is finished” (John 19:30), He tasted the joy of a completed life task. It was a shout of triumphant joy. The character of God had been vindicated before angels, men and demons. The Father had been revealed. Every chamber of His heart was opened up to view. The strength of hell was broken. Come what may now, the final supremacy of God in the universe was made absolutely sure. Moreover, who can measure our Lord’s joy in the thought of being restored to the presence of the Father which He had experienced “before the world was” (John 17:5), yea, from all eternity? And there was the joy of being glorified in His Bride, whom He was leading unto glory (Heb 2:10), the joy of having His redeemed of all ages with Him in heaven throughout eternity. Now we are to look unto Jesus and learn His secret. The invisible world is watching us, whether we let the lower appetites clog us, or, whether we rise above them in the victory of faith, of which the cross of Christ was the perfect expression. The Glorified Christ Four times the heavens are opened to view in Hebrews to show us the glorified Christ there (cf. Psa 110:1): 1. As the Son- “God with us” (Heb 1:1-3) In the opening verses of the epistle, we see Him as the Son in whom God has given the complete revelation, who at the beginning created the worlds, and has finally made, by Himself, purification for sins (Cf. Isa 7:14; Mat 1:23; John 1:14). 2. As our Great High Priest (Heb 8:1-2) By Him we draw near to God. 3. In all the perfection of His sacrifice (Heb 10:12-13) Never will He need to offer another! From henceforth He is waiting to have every hostile force subdued under His feet. 4. The Man Christ Jesus in glory (Heb 12:2) Here He is seen seated at God’s right hand, even as, because of His divine glory, He sat down (Heb 1:3), having in His human life perfectly glorified God in maintaining faith and dependence every step of the way. He not only wears the High Priestly mitre; not only is He crowned with royal honor and glory; but on His brow the victor’s wreath has also been placed. We are to look away unto Him, to be encouraged to run the race set before us also. “Consider Him” “Consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds” (Heb 12:3). This is the second time the child of God is urged, in this epistle, to “consider” the Lord Jesus (cf. Heb 3:1) who, from His incarnation to the cross, walked the path of faith-as a Man, trusting utterly His Father in heaven. (Cf. Heb 2:13). As the persecuted Hebrew Christians kept looking unto Jesus, they were strengthened for the race set before them. And as we today consider Him in all the perfection and glory of His person and work, we too shall “run, and not be weary”; we shall “walk, and not faint” (Isa 40:31). Assignment for Exam 10 1. Memorize Heb 12:1-2. 2. Remember the Old Testament illustrations in Heb 11:1-40 foreshadowed the cross of Christ: a. Abel’s “more excellent sacrifice” (Heb 11:4) b. Abraham’s act of faith, whereby he “offered up his only begotten son” of promise (Heb 11:17) c. The Passover in Egypt (Heb 11:28) If you are not familiar with these stories, read them prayerfully. You will find them in Gen 4:1-26, Gen 22:1-24; Gen 22:1-24; Exo 12:1-51 (cf. 1Co 5:7). 3. Remember the prophetic lesson concerning the resurrection God’s only begotten Son (Heb 11:19); and the faith of “the elders” of Israel “a better resurrection” (Heb 11:35)-better, of course, than the resurrection the wicked (Rev 20:11-15). 4. Allow the Holy Spirit to make the message of Heb 12:1-3 a living, abiding experience in your life. CHAPTER TEN NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM 1. In the right-hand margin write “True” or “False” after each of the following statements. (10 points) a. The author of your textbook believes that the phrase, “cloud of witnesses” (Heb 12:1), refers to heavenly spectators. __________ b. Abraham had faith that God would raise Isaac from the dead. __________ c. The race mentioned in Heb 12:1 may be likened to a relay race. __________ d. The runner receives his crown as soon as he has finished this race. __________ e. The Lord Jesus said that Abraham rejoiced to see His day and was glad. ______ f. “The promise” (Heb 11:39) made to the Old Testament believers was that the Messiah was coming. __________ g. Moses refused the “pleasures of sin” because he did not want to bring reproach upon Pharaoh’s daughter. __________ h. Moses wrote of Christ in many different ways. __________ i. Cain’s sacrifice was more acceptable to God than Abel’s. __________ j. Enoch preached concerning the second coming of Christ. __________ 2. In the blank space write the letter of the correct answer. (12 points) (1) The elders referred to in Heb 11:2 were (a) Leaders in the Jerusalem church (b) Old Testament believers in the promised Redeemer (c) Tribal heads of families in Old Testament times (d) Members of the Sanhedrin __________ (2) In New Testament times the word translated “substance” (Heb 11:1) meant “title deeds.” It refers to (a) The burying place purchased by Abraham when Sarah died (b) The land of Goshen which Joseph gave to his brethren in Egypt (c) The property inherited by the Old Testament believers when they conquered Canaan (d) The unseen realities which are ours to claim by faith __________ (3) The Old Testament patriarchs (a) were unable to return to Chaldea (b) were saved by faith in the promised Redeemer (c) received the promises before they died (d) found the “city which hath foundations” in the land of Canaan __________ 3. How do the following illustrate dying to self and being cast entirely upon God, who raises the dead? (10 points) a. Isaac ______________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ b. Jacob _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ c. Joseph _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ d. (1) Name one other person mentioned in Hebrews 11 who had to learn this truth. _____________________________________________________________________________ (2) Explain briefly in what way he was brought to an end of himself and to entire dependence on God. _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ e. Do we still have to learn this lesson in our day?__________ 4. Outline the fivefold way in which Moses proved the power of God, as summarized in the textbook from Heb 11:24-29. (10 points) (a) __________________________________________________________________________ (b) __________________________________________________________________________ (c) __________________________________________________________________________ (d) __________________________________________________________________________ (e) __________________________________________________________________________ 5. Match each name in column 1 with the correct exercise of faith listed in column 2 by placing the correct letter, from column 1 in the proper blank in column 2. (20 points). Column 1Column 2 a. Joseph(1) Prepared an ark to the saving of his house b. Amram and(2) Received the spies with peace Jochebed(3) Was translated that he should not see death c. Noah(4) Left Ur of Chaldea at God’s call, not knowing whither he went. d. Jacob(5) Became the mother of Isaac when she was ninety years old e. David(6) Gave commandment concerning his bones f. Rahab(7) Blessed both the sons of Joseph g. Jephthah(8) Were not afraid of the king’s commandment h. Isaac(9) Blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come i. Enoch(10) Passed through the Red Sea as by dry land j. Abraham k. Samuel l. Israel m. Sarah 6. State five ways in which Moses wrote of Christ. (10 points) (a) __________________________________________________________________________ (b) __________________________________________________________________________ (c) __________________________________________________________________________ (d) __________________________________________________________________________ (e) __________________________________________________________________________ 7. Answer each of the following with a New Testament reference only. Do not take these verses from Hebrews 11. (16 points) a. Where are we told that Christ’s sacrifice is better than Abel’s? __________ b. Where do we read that Enoch prophesied of Christ’s second coming? ________ c. Where is Noah called “a preacher of righteousness”? __________ d. Where is Abel called “righteous Abel”? __________ 8. In your own words explain briefly what you understand by the following statements. (12 points) a. Jesus . . . endured the cross. ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ b. Our Lord despised the shame of the cross. ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ c. “For the joy that was set before him” Jesus went to the cross. ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 14: 01.11. HELPS TO HOLINESS ======================================================================== Helps To Holiness Heb 12:1-29 CHAPTER ELEVEN Heb 12:1-17 might be called “Helps to Holiness,” for this section presents reasons for seeking a closer walk with the Lord on the pathway of faith. Only our Triune God is absolutely holy in His very nature; but because He has redeemed us with His own precious blood, He has sanctified us, that is, set us apart from the Christ-rejecting world unto Himself. God does not promise that we shall be sinless in this life; yet because we are set apart by His grace, He says to us, “Sin shall not have dominion over you” (Rom 6:14). He knows that a veritable warfare is being waged in us, a struggle between the old nature inherited from Adam and the new nature received by faith in Christ Jesus (Cf. Rom 6:1-23, Rom 7:1-25). But thank God, there is the eighth chapter of Romans! And as we live in the power of its message, led by the Holy Spirit, allowing Him to control our motives, our thoughts and deeds, we shall be more and more “conformed to the image” of the Son of God (Rom 8:29), even during this earthly pilgrimage. Then “when he shall appear,” whose we are, and whom we serve, “we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is” (1Jn 3:2; cf. Acts 27:23). In that coming day, when we have our resurrection bodies, we shall bear no trace of sin! But meanwhile, as long as we are pilgrims and strangers in the world, journeying to that better country which is our eternal home, “we wrestle . . . against . . . the rulers of the darkness of this world” (Eph 6:12), even Satan and all his hosts, hence the Holy Spirit’s exhortation and admonition in Heb 12:1-17 for our instruction as we walk by faith. (For a more detailed consideration of New Testament teaching on sanctification, see comments on verse 14, topic 5 of this section, “The danger of missing the blessing.”) The early Hebrew Christians experienced the fiery darts or the enemy of their souls; and to them, as unto us today, the Spirit of God is saying these much needed words of exhortation. Andrew Bonar has expressed the message in this terse statement, “There is no short-cut to holiness! And what are the five helps to holiness in the passage before us? We have an attraction-a crowned Christ. We have an encouragement-a great cloud of witnesses. We have an urgent necessity-our besetting sins. We have a help-the chastening dealings of God, our Father. And finally, we have a danger-the possibility of missing God’s best. Let us examine these, one by one. 1. The great attraction-Christ in glory (Heb 12:2; Heb 12:14) Our Lord draws us like a mighty magnet. Here the question does not have to do with our running a race in order to escape hell; it is our giving up earthly things for heavenly values. In our last lesson we saw a little glimpse of what it meant for the Lord Jesus to endure the cross, despising the shame-“for the joy that was set before him.” Although He was always pleasurable to heaven, He met with constant “contradiction of sinners against himself” during His earthly ministry. His death is presented in chapter 10 as that of a sin-removing offering but in Heb 12:2-3 it is seen as a pattern to us of faith in suffering; for as a Man, He put His trust in His Father (cf. Heb 2:13). In the first, He was alone; for “by himself [he] purged our sins.” In the seconds we are to be in company with Him, even as the apostle Paul said, “I am crucified with Christ . . . if we suffer, we shall also reign with him” (Gal 2:20; 2Ti 2:12). That is why the inspired writer bade the early-Hebrew Christians to “consider him” for comfort and encouragement in the face of persecution. Then he added, “Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin” (Heb 12:4). In other words, those addressed in this epistle had not laid down their lives as martyrs for Christ. James, the brother of John, had; Stephen had; so had a host of others. But those then living were to remember that they had not died for their faith. And as they kept on looking unto Jesus, seated at the right hand of the throne of God, in the place of all power, they would be heartened for the race set before them, their eyes upon the goal. 2. The heavenly spectators (Heb 12:1) It is a sobering and vet stimulating thought that past generations are vitally interested in our demeanor. They are concerned that we, “upon whom the ends of the world [age] are come” (1Co 10:11), be found worthy to be in the succession of the men of faith who have gone before. 3. The sin which so easily besets us (Heb 12:1) We are haunted and hunted by the propensities to evil to which in times past we have yielded. We need to flee them. The thought of being so beset is an incentive to run in the race, laying aside every impediment. The runner in the Greek games did not wear a flowing robe to retard his speed; neither does any contestant for the prize today wear an overcoat and boots. Yet how many of us try to run the Christian race, at the same time carrying the weight of worry, fear, worldly-mindedness, unbelief? In the words of another, Is the thing with which we are occupied “a weight, or is it a wing”? 4. The discipline of the Father (Heb 12:5-11). Our heavenly Father wants us to become partakers of His holiness, and puts us through a course of discipline with that end in view. His Son, our Saviour, is our Pattern of faith through suffering; but now we part company. Never did He need the chastening of the Father! “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered” (Heb 5:8)-not that He had to learn to obey. There was no spirit of lawlessness in Him. As Son, it was His to command, but “obedience” in suffering became His lot when He voluntarily took upon Himself the form of a bond servant (Php 2:5-8). Therefore, while we walk with Him, praying with Paul that we may know “the fellowship of his sufferings” (Php 3:10), we are not in His company when the chastening of the Father is upon us in order to correct us and bring us back into the way of obedience. Our Lord knew the contradiction of sinners, but never of sin, except in others. We do have to strive against sin, and the discipline or chastening of the Father helps us in this. That is why the Holy Spirit reminds the suffering Hebrew Christians of “the exhortation” which they had “forgotten,” although it was written in their own Old Testament, with which they were familiar: “My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth” (Heb 12:5-6; cf. Pro 3:11-12). Seven times in Heb 12:5-11 the word “chastening” is used. In the Greek language it carries with it the thought of “child-training” and “correction.” shows that the life of the disciple of Christ is one of being at school. Now Tit 2:11-12 tells us that “the grace of God that bringeth salvation” is our teacher. But though the teaching is gracious, it is often accompanied by the rod of correction, because of our slowness of apprehension and our fleshly tendencies. And thus chastening becomes the practical application of the cross to our self-life. By submitting to it we may effectually crucify “the flesh with the affections and lusts” (Gal 5:24), that we who are really Christ’s may be marked off from the rest of men, recognized as the children of God. Even though the child-training, through which our heavenly Father allows us to pass, seems severe, we are not to despise it, or be discouraged under it (Heb 12:5); but we are to be exercised by it (Heb 12:11). For the Father’s chastening is a sign of love (Heb 12:6); it is an evidence of our being genuine sons, not bastards (Heb 12:7-9); and it has our eventual profiting in view that we may be ever increasingly partakers of our Father’s holiness! (Heb 12:10-11) Furthermore, our earthly fathers have chastened us, “and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?” (Heb 12:9). Our earthly fathers have sometime made mistakes; our heavenly Father never! Now “no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby” (Heb 12:11). The exhortation which follows in Heb 12:12-13 is an exhortation to patience, perseverance and singleness of purpose on the pathway of faith. 5. The danger of missing the blessing (Heb 12:14-17). Without this practical holiness, which we are to pursue, along with peace with all men (Heb 12:14), no one can have the beatific vision. An unholy man, if placed in the presence of the glory of the heavenly Man, would be blinded by His dazzling brightness. Saul of Tarsus found the glory of the risen Lord Jesus “above the brightness of the [noonday] sun”; so that having beheld Him, Saul was sightless for three days (Acts 9:3; Acts 9:9; Acts 22:6; Acts 22:11; Acts 26:13; cf. Heb 12:14). We should inquire here two things: What is this holiness. without which no man shall see the Lord? And who is meant here by “the Lord”? Answering the last of these questions first, we note the obvious fact that the Lord Jesus Himself cannot be meant; for Rev 1:7 tells us that, when He comes with clouds, “every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him”-men who are certainly not possessors of the holiness here enjoined. They will see Him as the righteous Judge, not as their lasting portion and God, which is meant here. Further, we are told in Rev 22:3-4, that “his servants shall serve him; and they shall see his face,” which is undoubtedly a reference to God the Father, who now, according to 1Ti 6:16, dwelleth “light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can [now] see.” Next, concerning the nature of this “holiness” of Heb 12:14, it should be noted that the Greek word used here is different from the one in Heb 12:10, where the intrinsic holiness of God, as one of His attributes, is in view. The word here in Heb 12:14 means literally “a process of purifying,” as in 1Jn 3:3. Furthermore, the Greek for “follow” is the same word used by Paul in Acts 22:4, “I persecuted this way unto the death,” and in Php 3:14, “I press toward the mark.” So that this holiness is something which we are commanded to seek diligently. Now, in the New Testament we find holiness, or sanctification, spoken of in three different aspects, as we saw in Lesson 2 of this course. There is first of all the redemptive phase, referred to in 2Th 2:13, as “the sanctification [or, ‘setting apart’] of the Spirit” by conviction of sin, unto salvation. Then in Heb 10:10 we see that sanctification is also a work of the blood or body of Christ, setting us apart positionally unto God once for all. Finally, there is the sanctification effected by “the washing of water by the word,” mentioned in Eph 5:26 and John 17:17 -the Christian’s practical and progressive growth in cleansing “his way,” resulting from “taking heed thereto” according to God’s Word (Psa 119:9). Of these three phases of sanctification, it is apparent at once that only the last named can be pursued by us, and so only the last is in view here in Heb 12:14. But it should be remembered that the last definitely presupposes the existence of the other two. To express it very simply, “No man shall see the Lord” (Heb 12:14) without the new nature received by the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit (2Co 5:17). This holiness, or sanctification-set-apart state-God gives to all who believe in His Son as the only Saviour. “Christ Jesus is . . . made unto us . . . sanctification” (1Co 1:30). And because of His great love for us, we should want to pursue holiness, to follow after it, in order to be well-pleasing unto Him, as well as to bear faithful witness to His grace before a godless world. It is to accomplish this in us that the Father chastens us “for our profit,” and bids us “follow after peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord” (Heb 12:14). In the closing words of this first part of Heb 12:1-29, the Holy Spirit sounds a threefold warning: (1) “lest any man fail of the [or ‘falleth back from’] the grace of God,” that is, an apostate; (2) “lest any root of bitterness, springing up” among the believers, trouble them, “and thereby many be defiled” (cf. Deu 29:18); (3) “Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright” (Heb 12:15-16). For God’s Word concerning fornication among professing Christians, read 1Co 5:1-13. And remember that the Greek word used here for “profane” does not mean blasphemy, but rather it describes the man who has no thought for God. Esau was such a man. Jacob, with all his faults, was one of whom it could be said that God loved him, because he was a God-seeker. The face of God was his mystic quest (Psa 24:6), and he did finally see Him “face to face” at Peniel. He became an “Israel” then, “a prince with God,” as he clung to the One who had mastered him (Gen 32:24-31). Though Esau was of Abraham, through Isaac, he shut himself out from what was then God’s best-to be in the line of the Messianic genealogy. “For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears” (Heb 12:17). Remember that the Scripture does not say here that Esau could not be saved by faith in the promised Redeemer. As long as he lived, salvation by God’s grace could have been received by him. But Heb 12:17 does tell us that he was seeking the blessing which he had despised; and that his father, Isaac, would not change his mind and take it away from Jacob. Had God not intended that Jacob should be the one through whom the Christ should come-not that he deserved it, but because he did love God? Esau was seeking the blessing, not the Lord. Judaism and Christianity Contrasted Heb 12:18-29 As a means of yet further encouragement to the suffering Hebrew Christians, and as a further exhortation to holy living, the inspired writer reminds them once more of the superiority of Christianity to Judaism, linking Heb 12:1-17, which we have been considering, with Heb 12:18-29 by the significant word “for” (Heb 12:18). He compares the seven visible, fear-inspiring signs of the old covenant (Heb 12:18-21) with eight blessed features or personages of the new covenant (Heb 12:22-24). And what a contrast! Then he closes the chapter with another warning to the enlightened, but unregenerated, concerning the terrible consequence of apostasy (Heb 12:25-29). Observe that the inspired writer reminded the Jewish believers of their heritage in Christ by saying, “For ye are not come unto” Mount Sinai (Heb 12:18), “but ye are come unto Mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem” (Heb 12:22). In other words, they were no longer under the Law of Moses, but were under grace (Rom 6:14; cf. John 1:17). Therefore, the Spirit of God urged them to separate themselves completely from the ceremonies of Judaism for the better things of Christ. But let us look more carefully at the contrast before us. 1. The seven outward and visible signs of the old covenant (Heb 12:18-21): a. The mount that might be touched b. The fire c. The blackness d. The darkness e. The tempest f. The trumpet g. The voice of words, that is, the Ten Commandments “. . . which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more: (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart: And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake)” (Heb 12:19-21). Read Exodus 19 for this story of the giving of the law. Then compare the fear and trembling of Israel with the peace and assurance which the voice of our Lord gives to our hearts as we hear Him say, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Mat 11:28). Over against the seven old-covenant characteristics, we have the eight features and personages of God’s present order, the inward and spiritual realities of the more glorious covenant. They call for the closest scrutiny for they are “the things above,” on which we are to set our hearts and minds (Col 3:2). 2. Eight features or personages of the new covenant (Heb 12:22-24). a. “Mount Sion” b. “The city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem” C. “Innumerable company of angels . . . the general assembly” d. “The church of the firstborn which are written in heaven” e. “God the Judge of all” f. “The spirits of just men made perfect” g. “Jesus the mediator of the new covenant” h. “The blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel” This inspired summary of our “spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ” (Eph 1:3) encourages us to press on in the Christian race, our eyes upon the goal. And as we meditate upon each of these eight blessings (listed here, we marvel anew at the grace of God. (1) “Ye are come unto Mount Sion” God’s purposes of grace for Israel, as a nation, are associated with the literal Mount Sion; for when Christ reigns on earth, Jerusalem will be the metropolis of the world. Although the millennial restoration of His chosen people is still future, the Holy Spirit, in Heb 12:22, was reassuring the Jewish Christians that, by faith in the Lord Jesus, they had already “come unto Mount Sion”-the place of blessing through the grace of God in Christ Jesus. In the verses which follow, He goes on to explain that they were members of the Bride of Christ, “the church of the firstborn,” that theirs was a heavenly calling. Therefore, “Mount Sion” in the passage before us expresses to Hebrew believers a moral and spiritual thought. It speaks of God’s eternal rest in Christ, who is God’s resource when everything committed to man has broken down. Sion does not appear in history till all was failure in Israel. Priesthood had disgraced itself in the house of Eli (1Sa 2:1-36, 1Sa 3:1-21, 1Sa 4:1-22). The glory had departed, and never returned to the Tabernacle which Moses had fashioned, and which was afterwards set up in Shiloh (Jos 18:1). The sons of Samuel walked not in their father’s steps, and the people clamored for a king like the kings of the nations. But Saul’s regime ended as a bitter disappointment, and he and his sons fell on the mountains of Gilboa (1Sa 13:1-23). The Philistines became masters of the land and gave it their name, “Palestine,” meaning “the land of the Philistines.” “Then” we are told, when things were as black as black could be, “the Lord awaked as one out of sleep,” and “chose . . . the mount Zion which he loved” (Psa 78:65-70). First, David had completed the conquest of the land by winning Zion, the last stronghold of the Jebusites, and had made it both the political and religious center of a united Israel (2Sa 5:6-12). Then God selected Zion as His earthly center. Grace-sovereign, triumphant grace-is thus set forth in Zion (Cf. Gal 4:26). And in the risen Christ, raised to power and glory after the seeming disaster of the cross, God has found, and we find, a resting place. Zion speaks of the supremacy of grace when man’s ruin has been fully demonstrated. That is what we have come to-the reign of sovereign grace. (2) “The city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem” All the saints of every age will find their eternal home in the city which God has prepared for them. Abraham looked for it, and in the light of it was a stranger and a pilgrim here. For God’s description of the heavenly Jerusalem, read the last two chapters of Revelation. (3) “Innumerable company of angels . . . the general assembly” Our unseen friends and helpers are the executives of the divine providence toward the heirs of salvation (Heb 1:14). In our first lesson of this series we saw that this “innumerable company of angels” is referred to in Rev 5:11 as “ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands.” (4) “The church of the firstborn which are written in heaven” This is the called-out, believing company which is the Bride of Christ. The Greek word for “firstborn” is in the plural. The redeemed of this Church Age are, as James tells us, “a kind of firstfruits of his creatures,” samples of the great millennial ingathering, which will be the harvest. The names are already registered in heaven. They may be still on earth, but their names are written in heaven, as those for whom grace has made reservation before their arrival. (5) “God the Judge of all” This reference is in immediate connection with the preceding; for the Church of the firstborn (ones) is in direct contrast with Esau, who threw away the privilege of the firstborn, and failed to obtain it afterwards, in spite of his tears. But Jacob, who cherished what Esau despised, had to come under the disciplinary ways of God. All of God’s true sons are thus dealt with. As Father, He judges their ways and reaches His end concerning them by methods often humiliating and painful to the flesh (See also 1Pe 1:17). (6) “The spirits of just men made perfect” It is not that they come to us in dark séances. We are united to them in the mystic fellowship that binds all “the saints in light” in one unbroken family, some on earth, others in Paradise. The holy union of the redeemed in Christ is not interrupted by death. (7) “Jesus the mediator of a new covenant” The Greek word for “new” here means “fresh.” The new covenant, sealed with the “precious blood of Christ” (1Pe 1:19), will never lose its freshness. We shall never cease to wonder at it and adore. (8) “The blood of sprinkling that speaketh better things than that of Abel” The sprinkled blood is mentioned last as the basis of all our blessings. It is the blood of the new covenant. It is “precious blood.” It will never lose its value. It is to us the abiding token of the love of God, who, in the person of His Son, bore “our sins in his own body on the tree” (1Pe 2:24). A Warning-“Refuse Not Him That Speaketh” Heb 12:25-29 And now we seem to come back to the beginning of the epistle. In the opening words of chapter 1 we are told that God hath spoken in His Son. In Heb 2:1-4 we are warned against neglecting “so great salvation,” which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord. There is no escape for those who are guilty of this neglect. And here at the end of the epistle we read, “See that ye refuse not him that speaketh.” He spoke on earth, but He is still speaking, and that “from heaven” (Heb 12:25). He is still speaking in grace because He speaks from off the blood-sprinkled mercy seat. But the hour is not far distant when He will speak in judgment. When He descended on Mount Sinai, He shook the earth as He spoke in holiness. His present voice is one of loving entreaty and of wooing tenderness. But when He speaks in judgment, He will shake both earth and heaven. Whatever can be shaken will then be removed. The mystery of the divine passivity will then be ended. Only those things which cannot be shaken will remain. Into this realm of the permanent we are already brought; for we receive a “kingdom which cannot be shaken” (Heb 12:27). We are anchored in the eternal and the unchanging (Heb 12:26-28). This should not make us careless, the inspired writer is saying to the persecuted Hebrew Christians. On the contrary, because our “spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ” are so far superior to the things of Judaism, let us press on toward the heavenly Jerusalem, looking unto Jesus. To those suffering saints, as to us today, the word of exhortation is searching: “Wherefore, we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace [or, ‘thankfulness’], whereby we may offer serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear” (Heb 12:28). The closing verse of the chapter sounds a final warning to any enlightened souls who might still “refuse . . . him that speaketh” in love in the person of the Son of God. Such would do well to remember that the God of Mount Sinai, who spoke there in fire, is the same holy God who must judge sin. “Our God,” who hath spoken in grace by His Son, will one day speak in judgment upon the ungodly, and as the righteous Judge, He is a “consuming fire.” Assignment for Exam 11 1. Memorize the quotation from Proverbs as it is recorded in Heb 12:5-6. Memorize also Heb 12:11. 2. Remember that legalists today would take us back to Mount Sinai, whereas we must realize the wonders of Eph 2:8-9, at the same time heeding the challenge of Eph 2:10, and appropriating the helps to holiness of Heb 12:1-17. “Liberty is not license.” CHAPTER ELEVEN NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM 1. In the right-hand margin write “True” or “False” after each of the following statements. (20 points) a. In Heb 12:2-3 the Lord Jesus is presented to the believer as a pattern of faith in suffering. __________ b. In His earthly life Christ endured the “contradiction of sinners” against Him.__________ c. Worry is consistent with faith. __________ d. A warfare is being waged in the Christian between the old nature and the new nature. __________ e. We may be conformed to the image of Christ by yielding to the Holy Spirit.__________ f. God’s Word says that sin shall not have dominion over us. __________ g. We are to “run with patience” the race which is set before us in order to be sure we are saved.__________ h. Heb 12:4 speaks of some who had laid down their lives as martyrs for Christ.__________ i. Believers are to lay aside the weights which hinder their progress in the Christian race.__________ In the blank space write the letter of the correct answer. (16 points) (1) Esau is referred to as a “profane person” because (a) He hated his brother (b) He blasphemed God (c) He had no thought for God (d) He had no respect for his father __________ (2) Heb 12:17 describes Esau as a man who (a) Could never repent (b) Could never be saved (c) Sought God later (d) Was interested only in the blessing, not in the Lord __________ (3) Mt. Zion is (a) Characterized by fire, blackness, darkness and tempest (b) Prominent in the Bible in the time of the conquest of Canaan by Joshua (c) A mountain near Shiloh where the Tabernacle was pitched by David (d) Intended to illustrate the supremacy of sovereign grace __________ What does “holiness” mean in each of the following expressions? (6 points) a. “Partakers of his holiness” (Heb 12:10) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ b. “Follow after. . .holiness [or, ‘sanctification’]” (Heb 12:14) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ 4. In the Bible, holiness, or sanctification, is mentioned in a threefold way. Define each of these in a word or phrase, and give one Scripture reference for each. You may use your Bible. (9 points) DefinitionBible Reference a. ___________________________________________________________ _________________________________________ b. ___________________________________________________________ _________________________________________ c. ___________________________________________________________ _________________________________________ 5. Name the five “helps to holiness” in Heb 12:1-17, as given in your textbook. (10 points) (a) __________________________________________________________________________ (b) __________________________________________________________________________ (c) __________________________________________________________________________ (d) __________________________________________________________________________ (e) __________________________________________________________________________ 6. In the right-hand margin write “old” or “new” according to the covenant to which each of the following belongs. (10 points) a. Mount Zion__________ b. Hosts of angels__________ c. Sound of trumpet__________ d. The Ten Commandments__________ e. God the Judge of all__________ f. The mount that might be touched__________ g. The blood of sprinkling that speaketh better things than that of Abel__________ h. The fire__________ i. Jesus, the Mediator__________ j. Heavenly Jerusalem__________ 7. Complete the following statements concerning the warning of Heb 12:25-29. (9 points) a. God hath spoken __________________________________________________ b. He now speaks ____________________________________________________ c. He will speak ______________________________________________________ 8. Tell in your own words what chastening should mean to a child of God. (10 points) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ 9. In view of suffering in the Christian life, what do these words mean to you ? (10 points) “Jesus . . . is set down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb 12:2). ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 15: 01.12. WITHIN THE VEIL . . . WITHOUT THE CAMP ======================================================================== “Within The Veil . . . Without The Camp” Heb 13:1-25 CHAPTER TWELVE The closing chapter of this epistle called the early Hebrew Christians to complete separation from Judaism. Although their Christ-rejecting nation was still continuing the outward ceremonies of the Levitical order, those who loved the Lord Jesus were exhorted to “go forth . . . unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach” (Heb 13:13). By faith in His one sufficient sacrifice, they had a “hope . . . an anchor of the soul . . . within the vail,” even in heaven itself (Heb 6:19-20). With their eyes fixed upon their Forerunner and Great High Priest, they were to press on in the Christian race, whatever the cost! “Within the vail . . . without the camp”-this should be the abiding experience of every blood-bought child of God. To the Jewish believer it means that the vail of the Temple has been rent in twain, forever setting aside the Levitical order, forever opening “the way into the holiest of all.” To Jew or Gentile in Christ it means that he is seated with Him in the heavenlies (Eph 1:3), that he has immediate and constant access to the throne of grace for every time of need. And to Jew or Gentile it sounds the call to complete separation from the God-dishonoring, Christ-rejecting, Spirit-resisting world system. It is God’s call to us today, beseeching us to reflect the glory of the risen Lord in a world of sin, that lost souls may behold, by faith, the Christ whose personal, moral and official glories shine from the pages of this inspired epistle. With such an incentive, with Christ as our Goal, with heaven as our eternal home, we should “count it all joy” when we suffer affliction on our earthly pilgrimage for His name’s sake (See Jas 1:1-12; cf. Heb 12:11; Rom 5:3-5; Rom 8:18; 2Co 4:17-18; 1Pe 4:12-13). Heb 12:1-29 closes with the forceful appeal to the persecuted Jewish Christians for patient endurance and thankful service to God, in view of their part in the eternal, imperishable kingdom that cannot be shaken in that yet future day of judgment upon the ungodly. Heb 13:1-25 enlarges upon the characteristics of this immovable kingdom. Six Features of the Kingdom Which Cannot Be Moved Heb 13:1-6 The final statement in Heb 12:1-29 refers to our God as a consuming fire. Now in Heb 13:1-6 we have the things which the holy fire of the divine abhorrence of evil will not consume. They are six in number: 1. Brotherly love (Heb 13:1) “Let brotherly love continue” (Heb 13:1). Do not let the heaven-kindled fire on the altar of your hearts go down. “Ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another” (1Th 4:9), because the love of God is shed abroad in the heart of a true believer by the Holy Spirit (Rom 5:5); so that there is an upflow and there is an outflow of that love-up to God, its source, and out to His children. 2. Generosity (Heb 13:2) It may be that the brother is a stranger. We are not, therefore, to exclude him from our hospitality. Perhaps angels will thus be entertained, as Abraham, Gideon and Manoah found (Gen 18:1-33; Jdg 6:11-24; Jdg 13:2-23). But we may always be sure that, when the children of God are welcomed into a house, their invisible angel-attendants enter too. 3. Sympathy (Heb 13:3) We are to feel that the bonds which bind our brothers who are suffering for their testimony to Christ are our bonds. Are we not members one of another? We suffer in our brethren and with them. Are they being led as sheep to the slaughter? We, says the apostle in Rom 8:36, are thus being dealt with. These are the sufferings often attached to the believer’s testimony in a hostile world. But there are also adversities common to all; that are “in the body.” As we are still thus confined in the limitation of our clay tabernacle, we are to feel sympathy with others equally exercised, groaning in our mortal bodies with a groaning and still unredeemed creation (Rom 8:18-25). 4. Chastity (Heb 13:4) Stern is the denunciation of any infraction of the laws of purity, whether in or outside wedlock. God will surely judge it. Impurity brings a film over the inner eye, and deteriorates those who are guilty of it. Besides, there is the awful prospect of meeting the divine anger in the life to come. 5. Contentment (Heb 13:5) “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me. (Cf. Psa 118:6). The exhortation to be content with such things as we have is much needed in our time. We are tempted to be like the world, never satisfied, but continually clamoring for more. The great “I will never leave thee” promise, first uttered to Jacob at Bethel (Gen 28:15), is repeated here for the comfort of the one who finds God to be enough for him. The pilgrim of faith will never be forsaken! These words have been paraphrased, “I will never let go thy hand, nor fail to provide for thee.” (Cf. Deu 31:6; Jos 1:9). 6. Fearlessness (Heb 13:6) The divine presence makes us bold. “We may boldly say, The Lord is my helper . . . I will not fear.” David said, “What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee” (Psa 56:3). That is good. But Isaiah said, “I will trust, and not be afraid” (Isa 12:2). That is better still! Why should we travel to heaven third class, when we might travel first? These six features belong to the kingdom which cannot be shaken. Our Attitude Toward Spiritual Guides Heb 13:7; Heb 13:17 In Heb 13:7 and Heb 13:17 we have exhortations bearing on our attitude toward spiritual guides. Those who have finished their course are to be remembered (Heb 13:7). The example of their faith and the truth they ministered must not be forgotten. Those who are over us in the Lord now are to be submitted unto (Heb 13:17); for they watch for our souls, “as they that give account.” If they are true undershepherds, they want to present Church “as a chaste virgin to Christ” (2Co 11:2). “Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation [or, ‘manner of life’]” (Heb 13:7). “Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: [or, ‘groaning’]: for that is unprofitable for you” (Heb 13:17). Occupation With the Unchanging Christ-The Safeguard Against False Doctrine Heb 13:8-9 In connection with these exhortations, we are told that occupation with the unchanging Christ will prevent our being carried about with divers and strange doctrines (Heb 13:8-9). Christ suffices. He is “the same yesterday and to-day and for ever [or, ‘unto the ages’].” When He is before us as our only Object, our hearts are established with grace. “Meats” profit nothing. By the word “meats,” the writer evidently means religion of externalia, an attempt to serve the living God with dead works. As Col 2:20-23 states, we have died with Christ to these “rudiments of the world,” which are “not in any honour [value] to the satisfying of the flesh.” The Call to Complete Separation from Judaism Heb 13:10-16 Instead of these unprofitable “meats,” “we have an altar” (Heb 13:10). Like the altar of Israel’s pilgrim fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, our altar speaks of acceptance, worship, communion and testimony. - In Heb 13:10 we have the peace offering altar; - In Heb 13:11-12, the sin offering outside the camp; - In Heb 13:15, the golden altar of incense. 1. The peace offering altar (Heb 13:10) The peace offering speaks to us of fellowship with God through our Lord Jesus. As the Levitical priests fed upon portions of this offering (Lev 7:11-21), likewise, as believer-priests, we feed our souls upon Him who is our peace (Eph 2:14). Thus we have fellowship with the Father, who finds complete satisfaction in His Son, our Saviour. It has been pointed out that the reference to “meats” (Heb 13:9) led the inspired writer on to compare the food of the Levitical priests with the fulfillment of the type in Christ (John Owen). As we have seen throughout this epistle, because of the Christian’s pilgrim-character in the earth, the Jewish Tabernacle, not the Temple, is used to show how Judaism was but “a shadow of good things to come” in Christ Jesus (Heb 10:1). So it is that here, in Heb 13:10, we read, “We have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle.” In other words, the priests who continued the Temple worship, rejecting Christ, had “no right to eat” at the altar where the Lord Jesus, our Peace offering, provides food for His believer-priests. The Jewish system had no altar after Christ was crucified. It had lost the typical altar, and refused the fulfillment in the antitype. But our altar remains. 2. The sin offering “without the camp” (Heb 13:11-12) “For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary [that is, ‘the Holy of Holies’] by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp” (Heb 13:11). This refers, of course, to the ritual of the Day of Atonement (Lev 16:27). “Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate [of Jerusalem]” (Heb 13:12). On Calvary, outside the city walls, our sinless Saviour bore all the reproach of the painful and shameful death of the cross. (Cf. Gal 3:13). He “who knew no sin” was “made sin for us; that we might become the righteousness of God in him” (2Co 5:21). - Without the camp of Israel’s pitched tents the sin offering was burned. - Without the camp of unbelieving Jewry our Lord suffered and died for His own. “Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach” (Heb 13:13). Thus the inspired writer urged his fellow Hebrew Christians to withdraw completely from the empty mockery that Judaism had become, from the hypocritical religious leaders of that system, which had served its God-given purpose, and had been set aside by Him. Thus the inspired writer exhorts Jews and Gentiles who love the Lord Jesus to come out from among Christ-denying- religious systems, out from among those of the godless world order, bearing His reproach who bore our reproach and shame on the accursed tree. So, though we are homeless, we are happy, sure of the city of God yet to come. Even the Christ-rejecting nation of Israel was soon to see the Roman legions destroy Jerusalem, with its Temple. On earth we who love the Lord have not a “continuing city, but we seek one to come” (Heb 13:14). Abraham looked for that “city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Heb 11:10). It is the heavenly Jerusalem of Heb 12:22 - where our Lord dwells with all His holy angels and His redeemed of all the ages. Therefore, in separating himself from the ungodly, the believer in the Lord Jesus loses nothing valuable or abiding, yet gains everything blessed and eternal. This truth leads to praise, as the words of our text go on to show. 3. The golden altar of incense (Heb 13:15) “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased” (Heb 13:15-16). Outside the camp, sharing the reproach of Christ’s rejection, as believer-priests, we offer the sacrifice of praise to God, and the sacrifices of doing good to man. Our risen Lord leads us in this praise to the Father (Heb 2:12). What an honor to be permitted to be identified with Him who suffered without the gate, and who ever lives before the throne of God! Angels were never called to such dignity, to be the companions of a rejected Christ in the via dolorosa, to carry their cross after Him! No wonder they will not have the nearness to Christ in glory which will be the portion of the followers of the Lamb! (See Revelation 5) Conclusion of the Epistle 1. The apostle’s request for prayer (Heb 13:18-19). “Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly. But I beseech you the rather to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner.” 2. The doxology (Heb 13:20-21) The epistle closes with one of the greatest doxologies found in Scripture. “The God of peace” is invoked, a title the apostle Paul loves to give to God in other epistles. The resurrection of the Great Shepherd of the sheep proves how great and how real His victory and the resulting peace. Death has met its Conqueror. Sin has been blotted out. An everlasting covenant has been secured in His blood. Can He not perfect us in every good work to do His will? The power that raised Christ from the dead now works in us. If He brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, is there any demand His power cannot fulfill? Will He who has resurrected the Shepherd forsake the sheep? Once more, before closing, the writer mentions the precious name of Jesus, the Messiah, and exclaims, “To whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.” The “Amen” is both God’s and ours. We say, “Let it be so!” He declares, “It shall be so.” Christ is the Good Shepherd, who gave His life for the sheep (John 10:11). He is the Great Shepherd, “brought again from the dead,” who ever lives to intercede and care for His sheep (Heb 13:20). And He is the Chief Shepherd who will one day appear to give unto His faithful under-shepherds “a crown of glory that fadeth not away” (1Pe 5:4). It was not by accident that the holy men of old who compiled the book of Psalms arranged Psa 22:1-31, Psa 23:1-6, and Psa 24:1-10 in the very order which foretold this shepherd-work of our Lord. F. B. Meyer called these the Psalms of the cross, the crook and the crown. Read them; meditate upon them; thank God for them; for they give us a prophetic portrait of our Prophet, Priest and King. It is significant that the Holy Spirit mentions Christ as the Great Shepherd of the sheep in Heb 13:20 -the only reference in the epistle to His bodily resurrection, except in Heb 1:6; for in raising the Son from the dead, the Father kept His part of “the eternal covenant” which He had made with His only begotten Son. As our Priest, the Lord Jesus had offered Himself as the one perfect sacrifice for sin; that was His part of the covenant with His Father. And in His resurrection that everlasting covenant was consummated. The work of redeeming the lost was finished! And on the basis of that covenant, sealed with the precious blood of Jesus, the vilest of sinners can stand before the holy, Triune God-unashamed, unafraid, clothed in beauty not his own, throughout the endless ages! This is the new covenant, on the basis of which Israel’s God “will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down” (Acts 15:16 -cf. Heb 8:8-12; Jer 31:31-34). It is the new covenant, of which Christ spoke when He gave His disciples the Lord’s Supper, by which to remember His death till He comes to take His own unto Himself. Then they will not need a “remembrance” of Him; they will be with Him, beholding His face that is the light of heaven! It is a reaffirmation of God’s unconditional covenant with Abraham (Rom 9:4), into the spiritual blessings of which Gentiles enter by faith. It has been said that, in this doxology, we have a summary in retrospect of the entire epistle; and that this reference to our Lord’s resurrection is the connecting link between His Priestly sacrifice and His Priestly intercession (Jamieson-Fausset-Brown). 3. Personal exhortation and greetings (Heb 13:22-24) Reminding his readers that he had written only a “few words” unto them-only thirteen chapters in our Bible-the inspired apostle adds a final exhortation to heed the message of the epistle. The news that Timothy was at liberty would be welcome; the writer himself was already free from his bonds for Christ’s sake. And writing from Italy, doubtless to the Hebrew Christians in the Holy Land-where the Temple was-the writer sent greetings from one group of believers to the other. 4. The benediction (Heb 13:25) If the personal words of Heb 13:18-19; Heb 13:22-24 remind us of Paul, the benediction assuredly does. In fact, the apostle closed every one of his letters with some reference to the “grace” of God, which seems to have been “the token” that he was the human author (2Th 3:17). No other inspired writer used this token until after Paul was martyred. “Grace be with you all, Amen.” Recapitulation-Hebrews: The Transfiguration of Judaism The faith of Israel is not abolished; it is transfigured. - In James, the law is not abrogated; it becomes the law of liberty. - In I Peter the theocracy is not wound up; the Christian society is a royal priesthood. - In Hebrews the entire service of the Jewish sanctuary becomes the symbol of the real in the heavens, now opened up in Christ. - In Revelation we see how the kingdom of God, which was begun in Israel, is consummated in the Church. The persons addressed The Epistle to the Hebrews was written without doubt to the Jewish Christian community in the Holy Land. There is no evidence of any Gentile believers among them. The persons addressed had long been converts, having received the gospel from those who had personally known the Lord. Because they had been bereft of their leaders, they were in danger of returning to the attractive outward forms of Judaism, as expressed in the Temple still standing (See Josephus, Antiquities, XX. 9, No. 1). The book of Hebrews was written from Italy, not Rome, most likely from one of the communities of Jewish Christians associated with the mother church in Jerusalem. Hebrews contains two sections: 1. Instruction (Heb 1:1-14, Heb 2:1-18, Heb 3:1-19, Heb 4:1-16, Heb 5:1-14, Heb 6:1-20, Heb 7:1-28, Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18. Exhortations of a practical nature (Heb 10:19-39, Heb 11:1-40, Heb 12:1-29, Heb 13:1-25) Heb 13:e last four verses might be called an appendix of an epistolary character.- Summary of the doctrine (Heb 1:1-14, Heb 2:1-18, Heb 3:1-19, Heb 4:1-16, Heb 5:1-14, Heb 6:1-20, Heb 7:1-28, Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18): 1. The Messiah and prophets and angels (Heb 1:1-14, Heb 2:1-28) As Son He is above both prophets and angels in His essential, divine glory. But in His incarnation He was “made a little [or, ‘for a little while’] lower than the angels for the suffering of death.” This, however, entitled Him to become Saviour. a. Heb 1:1-14 shows that the writer regarded Jesus as the supreme manifestation of the Lord God Himself. Hence to neglect His salvation was a graver sin than to transgress the Law of Moses which had been given by angels (Heb 2:1-4). b.Heb 2:5 takes up the subject of the humiliation of this glorious Being, essentially higher than angels. Psalm 8 is quoted to show that the perfect world, for which we are looking, is to be put under the feet of One who has been lower than the angels. Jesus is such an One. 2. Jesus and the greatest personalities in Jewish history: Moses and Joshua (Heb 3:103:1-4:13) a. Jesus and Moses (chap. 3) b. Jesus and Joshua (chap. 4) Each of these sections, like the foregoing, gives first a didactic statement, then a solemn warning. The warning is this: as disobedience to Moses shut Israel out of the Promised Land by the space of forty years, so unbelief in Jesus shuts man out from the rest of God. And though Joshua led Israel into Canaan; Psa 95:11 shows that he could not bring the people into the true rest of God. Only Jesus, the Messiah, could do that. Hence we are charged to hold fast our confession. 3. Jesus and the Aaronic priesthood (4:14-10:18) This section, like the two previous sections, also falls into two parts. a. The person of Jesus and Aaron contrasted, as having to do with the qualifications of a priest b. The efficacy of the two ministries contrasted In chapter 5 we see wherein the Aaronic and the Messianic priesthoods resemble each other. Then, after a long parenthesis about the lack of spiritual ripeness on the part of his readers (5:11-6:20), the apostle proceeds to show wherein the priesthood of the Messiah is superior to that of Aaron (7:1-28). Psa 110:4 is quoted to show that the Messiah is there addressed as Priest after the order of Melchizedec, founded on the oath of God, and endued with eternal permanency. Christ’s sacrifice is of abiding value, and the One who was offered in it has a spotlessness which differentiates Him from the sons of Aaron. 4. The Messiah and the New Covenant (8:1-10:18) Here we get the very core of the teaching of the epistle. The Messiah has a higher ministry than either Moses or Aaron, as He is the Mediator of a better covenant, based on a better sacrifice, offered in a better sanctuary, that is a heavenly. This entitles us to enter the very Holiest with boldness (literally, with citizen rights of free speech, in contrast with the servility of slaves) through the blood of Jesus. To apostatize from this privilege is a sin for which there is no sacrifice, as it is a trampling under foot the very sacrifice which alone can put away sin (10:26-31). Application of the doctrine (10:19-13:25) In view of the fact that the Hebrews still clung to the externalia of Judaism, 11:1-12:3 is a valuable line of exhortation. The ancient worthies let go the seen, in order to lay hold on the unseen and eternal. This is the very essence of faith. Verse 1 is the text of this section. In chapter 12 the inspired writer adds to the duty of faith that of patience or endurance. The example of Jesus as the One who endured the cross is to inspire us to run with patience our race. In chapter 13 the apostle adds another duty, self-renunciation. He calls to his readers to make a complete break with their Jewish past, to go unto the Lord Jesus without the camp, bearing His reproach. It was this he had been leading up to in all the epistle. He wanted to prevent a wholesale reversion to Judaism. Attachment to Jewish ceremonialism had stunted the spiritual life of the Jewish Christians. The war with Rome was impending, and they would be placed in an embarrassing position, between their patriotism on the one hand and their faith on the other. Hegesippus records that, after Paul’s last visit to Jerusalem, Jewish Christians were excluded from the Temple, with the exception of James. This greatly discouraged them. Besides, they had confidently hoped for the conversion of their brethren, an event that seemed farther off than ever. Hence they were tempted to continue in the ceremonies of Judaism. The Epistle to the Hebrews must be read in the light of these thoughts, if one is to appreciate its message. Hebrews-the Epistle of the Opened Heavens (cf. Psa 110:4): 1. Hebrews shows us the One in whom God has given His last, complete and final revelation (Heb 1:1-3; Heb 1:13). 2. It shows us the High Priest greater than Aaron (Heb 8:1-2). 3. It shows us the One whose perfect sacrifice has abolished every other and has perfected forever His people (Heb 10:12-13). 4. It shows us the Author and Finisher of faith on the throne (Heb 12:2). Assignment for Exam 12 1. Review the entire course. 2. God calls us to a separated life. He will repay our devotion “exceeding abundantly” above all that we could ask or think. “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.” Bibliography For the student who wants to do further study in connection with The Glories of Christ in the Epistle to the Hebrews, the books listed below are particularly valuable. They are not required for the completion of this course. English, E. Schuyler. Studies in the Epistle to the Hebrews Ironside, H. A. Studies in the Epistle to the Hebrews Ironside, H. A. Levitical Offerings C. H. M. Notes on the Book of Leviticus Newell, William R. Hebrews-Verse by Verse Pettingill, William L. Simple Studies in Hebrews Ridout, Samuel. Lectures on the Epistle to the Hebrews Ridout, Samuel. Lectures on the Tabernacle Thomas, W. H. Griffith. Let Us Go On Wuest, Kenneth S. Hebrews in the Greek New Testament CHAPTER TWELVE NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM 1 Name the six features of the kingdom which cannot be moved, as presented in Heb 12:28; Heb 13:1-6. (10 points) (a) __________________________________________ (b) __________________________________________ (c) __________________________________________ (d) __________________________________________ (e) __________________________________________ (f) __________________________________________ 2. In the right-hand margin write “True” or “False” after each of the following statements. (18 points) a. The Jewish Temple is used to illustrate the truth that Judaism was but “a shadow of good things to come” in Christ. __________ b. The Jewish system had no meaningful altar after Christ was crucified. ________ c. Heb 13:11-12 refers to the ritual of the Day of Atonement.__________ d. Hebrew Christians were urged to separate themselves from Judaism completely.__________ e. We who love the Lord have no abiding city on earth__________ f. Generosity is not particularly a Christian trait.__________ 3. In the blank space write the letter of the correct answer. (12 points) (1) The persons addressed in this epistle were (a) Unbelieving Jews (b) Gentile believers (c) Jewish Christians (d) No particular group __________ (2) The new covenant (a) Is a minor theme in this epistle (b) Was instituted by Moses (c) Was based on the Aaronic priesthood (d) Entitles us to enter “the holiest of all” __________ (3) Our best safeguard against false doctrine is (a) Christian fellowship (b) occupation with the unchanging Christ (c) special attention to external rites of religious worship (d) The writings of the Church fathers __________ 4. In the blank space write the number of the verse in Hebrews 13 which gives the following admonitions and warnings. (10 points) a. The safeguard against false doctrine b. The instruction to remember the spiritual guides who had finished their course c. The call to bear Christ’s reproach without the camp d. The admonition to avoid serving God with dead works e. The injunction to do good to our fellow men __________ 5. In a few words give the meaning of the following. (15 points) a. The peace-offering altar (13:10) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ b. The sin offering “without the camp” (13:11,12) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ c. The golden altar of incense (13:15) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ 6. Complete the following statements concerning Christ, the Shepherd. (10 points) a. As the Good Shepherd, He ____________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ b. As the Great Shepherd, He ____________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ c. As the Chief Shepherd, He ____________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ d. The Psalms which foretell Christ as the Shepherd are _____________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ e. F. B. Meyer called these the Psalms of the _______________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ 7. With your open Bible, tell in your own words how the following verses speak of Christ in this “Epistle of the Opened Heavens.” (16 points) a. Heb 1:1-3; Heb 1:13 ___________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ b. Heb 8:1-2 ______________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ c. Heb 10:12; Heb 10:13.r 8. Answer in a few words. (9 points) a. Which of the practical admonitions in this chapter has spoken most clearly to your own heart ? ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ b. What do you intend to do to apply it to your own life? ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ c. State one truth from Hebrews 13 which has made the Lord Jesus Christ more precious to you. ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 16: 02.00.1. THE MESSIANIC HOPE OF ISRAEL ======================================================================== THE MESSIANIC HOPE OF ISRAEL Studies in Messianic Prophecy by Max I. Reich 1940 Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company Grand Rapids, Michigan ======================================================================== CHAPTER 17: 02.00.2 COPYRIGHT INFORMATION ======================================================================== This book was originally copyrighted in 1940, published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, Michigan. It has now lapsed into Public Domain. A review of both the Stanford and Rutgers University copyright databases on 12/31/2009 did not find any copyright for this book. ======================================================================== CHAPTER 18: 02.00.3. TABLE OF CONTENTS ======================================================================== CONTENTS 01. The Messianic Hope of Israel 1. The Messianic Hope of Israel 2. The Growth of the Messianic Hope 3. The Pre-incarnate CHRIST a. His Proclamation in Israel b. The People of the Messianic Hope c. His Foreshadowing in Israel d. His Manifestations in Israel 4. History in the Light of the Messianic Hope 5. The Divine-Human MESSIAH 02. The Hope Raised 1. The Proto-evangelium 2. The Noah Prophecy 3. The Abrahamic Promise 4. The Shiloh Prophecy 03. The Hope Revived 1. The Prophet Like unto Moses 2. The Star and Sceptre from Jacob 04. The Hope Re-Affirmed 05. The Hope Interpreted 1. The Witness of Hosea 2. The Witness of Joel 3. The Witness of Amos 4. The Witness of Jonah 5. The Witness of Micah 6. The Witness of Habakkuk 7. The Witness of Isaiah a. Isaiah’s Early Ministry b. Isaiah’s Apologia pro Vita Sua c. MESSIAH the Sanctuary and Support of the Remnant d. The Messianic Quest e. The New Order f. The Ideal Servant g. Summary of the Servant Songs h. The Book of Consolation i. The Sure Mercies of David j. The Jubilee Proclaimed 8. The Witness of Jeremiah a. Jeremiah and JESUS b. The New Covenant 9. The Witness of Ezekiel 06. The Hope Scheduled 1. The Witness of Daniel a. The Seventy "Weeks" or Sabbatical Years b. The Jewish War 2. The Witness of Haggai 3. The Witness of Zechariah 4. The Witness of Malachi 07. The Hope Misunderstood 08. The MESSIAH in the Psalms 1. The Introduction to the Psalms 2. The First Man and The Second 3. The Psalm of the Inner Life of JESUS 4. The Psalm of the Cross 5. The Priest - King at GOD’s Right Hand 6. Summary of the Messianic Hope in the Psalms 09. The Atonement in the Religion of the Old Testament 10. The Future Salvation of Israel ======================================================================== CHAPTER 19: 02.00.4. FORWARD ======================================================================== FOREWORD These studies in messianic prophecy were first given as class lectures at a minister’s post-graduate course at the Moody Bible Institute, Chicago, Ill. The deep interest evinced in the subject by the earnest students there assembled has emboldened me to offer these studies to a wider audience. The subject is, I feel, timely. For a long time rationalistic scholarship has put the Old Testament aside as a trustworthy revelation. The Graf-Wellhausen theory particularly has made many doubt the veracity of the ancient Scriptures. But the turn of the tide has come. The views of that school have been found untenable. The so-called "settled conclusions" of higher criticism have become unsettled, and scholars are re-establishing the earlier faith in the Old Testament; the writings of Moses and the prophets, as the divine Word in literature. Once again we see that one face, which, far from vanishing, stands out in its majesty and beauty from the ancient pages. Messianic prophecy is coming into its own again. The truth of Christianity rests on the dependableness of the Old Testament. The GOD who in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, is the same who in times past spoke of His Son by divers manners and in sundry places unto the fathers by the prophets. For He was ever the theme which GOD delighted to dwell on. As the delights of the creative Wisdom of GOD - even before its incarnation, were with the sons of men: "Rejoining in the habitable part of his earth; and my delights were with the sons of men" (Pro 8:31), so GOD delighted to speak beforehand of Him; the glories of His person, human and divine, and the work for GOD’s glory and man’s happiness, He would in the fullness of time come to accomplish: "Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me" (Psa 40:7). The traditional veil of prejudice still hides from the eye of the Jew, be he never so pious and intelligent, the glory of the LORD in the Old Testament: "But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same veil untaken away in the reading of the Old Testament; which veil is done away in Christ. But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the veil is upon their heart. Nevertheless when it shall turn to the LORD, the veil shall be taken away" (2Co 3:14-16). But the hour is not far distant when the lonely and hungry heart of Israel will turn to the LORD; and then will the darkening veil of unbelief be taken away, and the vision of Messiah’s glory in the ancient Scriptures become the witness of a new-born and sanctified Israel to the ends of the earth. May these unpretentious pages be used by the LORD to hasten that day! Max I. Reich ======================================================================== CHAPTER 20: 02.01. THE MESSIANIC HOPE ======================================================================== Chapter 1 The Messianic Hope Messianic prophecy is that view of the future which connects the eventual blessing of our suffering world with a Person in whom the ideal Prophet, Priest and King, the three offices with which the name "MESSIAH," i.e., "anointed," in ancient Israel, is connected, will be realized. The word CHRIST means the same as MESSIAH, being derived from the Greek "Christos," the one on whom the anointing has been poured. The Christian confession is that "JESUS is the CHRIST" - i.e., that He is the fulfillment of the messianic hope of Israel, the anointed prophet, priest and king, a fulfillment which goes even beyond the terms in which the hope was first expressed. But while the hopes of the ancient people of GOD were wrapped up with the appearing of a Person, history, as recorded in the sacred writings of Israel, reveals a messianic purpose running through the ages, gradually unfolding and expanding, until He came who is the solution and key to past history, as He is the Hope of that which is still unborn. Messianic prophecy is of the very web and woof of the history of Israel, as well as the theme of its illuminated seers. Messianic predictions synchronized with the frequent crises in that history. You cannot understand the predictions if you detach them from their historical context. So we must allow to the Jews the right to include the so-called historical books of their holy Book with the prophets. They divided the Scriptures into Law, Prophets and Devotional Writings, calling them T’nach - combining the initial letters of the three words, Torah, Nebiim, Chetubim, a division endorsed by our LORD: "And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me" (Luk 24:44). The Book of Joshua in this way begins the prophetical part of Scripture. It is history written with the perspective which messianic prophecy sets before us (The historical writings are called Rishonim or "earlier prophets"; the prophetical writings, per se, Acharonim, or "later prophets"). To ancient Israel, history was more than a sequence of events, moving, as the heathen philosophers imagined, in vast cycles, coming back again and again to where it began. Long before Herodotus, the so-called "father of history," the Hebrews interpreted it spiritually. They saw a divine plan and program in history, a divine goal toward which it moves. They called this "The Day of Jehovah," the day of His vindication and triumph; of judgment on the evil now infesting mankind, and the establishment of righteousness and truth in supremacy. The idea is found everywhere in the Old Testament, though the term seems to have been first used by the prophet Joel. Along with this hope of JEHOVAH’s revelation in glorious power, there was the vision of the coming Man. The prophets compared the spiritual Zion to a travailing woman about to bring forth a man-child. In Rev 12:1-17, the idea is transferred to the New Testament. The idea Israel becomes the mother of the MESSIAH. And this Man brings about in the visions of the prophets the divine good in which history culminates. It is this prophetic expectation which distinguishes Israel from other nations of antiquity. Israel had a Hope. The apostle rightly spoke of the non-Jewish world as the Gentiles which have "no hope." Hence pessimism and despair settled down on the ancient civilization. On the other hand, no Hebrew prophet ever gave up hope, however dark and dismal the present, and threatening the immediate future might seem. The ultimate future was lit up with the glory of the Messianic reign. The predictive element found in the Old Testament is a striking phenomenon in religious history. It was peculiar to Israel. Not that the foretelling the future was the one thing that marked the prophets. The prophets were the divinely appointed guardians of true religion, especially when the priests, who were the official representatives of institutional religion, had failed to function according to their priestly vocation. Moreover the prophets were the incarnate conscience of the nation when the kings who reigned over them were tempted to adopt the lower idea of kingship prevalent among their pagan neighbors, proved to be a mere caricature of the divine ideal of a king. Prophecy in Israel had an ethical content. The prophets not merely spoke of the future, but interpreted the past and thus afforded guidance for the present. In this way the prophets Samuel, Gad and Nathan wrote history: "Now the acts of David the king, first and last, behold, they are written in the book of Samuel the seer, and in the book of Nathan the prophet, and in the book of Gad the seer" (1Ch 29:29). We cannot rightly discern our duty in the present, unless we lay to heart the lessons of the past from which it has sprung. The prophets of Israel were totally unlike the sooth-sayers or mantis among the pagans. Balaam, whom the king of Moab hired to curse Israel, but who was overpowered by the SPIRIT of the GOD of Israel, confessed to this difference when he exclaimed, "Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel" (Num 23:23). For the divine Law strictly forbade all such practices: "There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee" (Deu 18:10-12). "Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God . . . A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones: their blood shall be upon them" (Lev 19:31; Lev 20:27). The heathen prognosticators were in the service of the unclean spirits which acted in and through the whole system of idolatry. The heathen mantis had to force on the condition in which inspiration was obtainable. They often made use of intoxicants to produce a state of exhilaration and frenzy that laid them open to impressions from the gods. Thus St. Chrysostom spoke of them: "This is the peculiarity of the mantis: to be beside oneself, to suffer constraint, to be struck, to be stretched, to be dragged like a madman. The prophet, however, is not so, but he speaks everything with calm understanding, and with sound self-possession, and knowing what he proclaims, so that before the result we can from these things distinguish between the mantis and the prophet." (Homily xxix to the Corinthians). (2) The Growth of the Messianic Hope The Old Testament does not merely contain prophecies. It is from first to last a prophecy. It enshrines the progressive revelation of a wonderful hope. Many of its writers lived in days of confusion and disaster. But they express the unquenchable certainty that the sovereign will of GOD would finally triumph. The Psalms, particularly, are full of this triumph of faith. Their last note is: "Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD" (Psa 150:6). This is a prayer begotten of a sure and certain hope. The nation of Israel was chosen to be the trustee of the divine self-revelation, culminating in the MESSIAH. The first eleven chapters of Genesis, which cover a longer period than the rest of the Bible, Old and New Testaments put together, give the reason for the call of Abraham and the choice of his seed. They speak of a two-fold fall of man, the one in the garden of Eden, and the one after the Flood, the fall into idolatry. The Bible has for its preface the story of the creative week culminating in the Sabbath. The preface is also the index, for the History of the unfolding purposes of redeeming love is a story of seven periods. The new creation is foreshadowed by the old. And at every crisis and turning point Messianic prophecy spoke to man. a. From the Fall to the Flood. The messianic prophecy speaks of the Seed of the Woman who should with pierced heel crush the head of the Serpent. b. From the covenant with Noah to the tower of Babel. A new prophecy! GOD would become par excellance "The God of Shem" and would tabernacle with him. Japheth with all his political aggrandizement would have to go to the tent of Shem to find the true GOD. This is a foreshadowing of the Incarnation, by which the Word became flesh and tabernacled among men. c. From the tower of Babel to the call of Abram. Mankind had become a scattered family and divided into rival nationalities. The promise to Abram was that in his seed would the nations be blessed, which includes the hope of mutual reconciliation and peace. It is thus the promise of a warless world. d. From Abram to the oppression in Egypt. Jacob, the last of the three elected patriarchs, the root of the olive tree of promise and privilege, on his deathbed announced the coming of Shiloh out of Judah, the royal tribe, and that the obedience of the people would be to Him. Thus was the Abrahamic promise clarified and amplified. e. The Exodus. The divine intervention through the prophetic personality of Moses covered a period of forty years. As the Mediator-prophet was about to pass away, he left behind the promise of another Mediator-Prophet, like unto himself, to whom the people would have to hearken, or forfeit their share in the commonwealth of Israel. The closing words of Deuteronomy, believed (by some - certainly a minority) to have been added by Ezra, as prophecy was about to die out in Israel, confess that up to that date, a Moses-like prophet had not yet arisen. The hope points to the CHRIST, greater than His prophetic predecessors. f. The Monarchy. When at last the conquest of the land was completed by David, and Zion became the metropolis of a united kingdom, the prophet Nathan was commissioned to reveal the great Messianic pronouncement, that the house of David would not pass till the One who would be David’s LORD, as well as son, had appeared, whose kingdom would never be abrogated. When the monarchy established by David was about to be broken up, and the coming exile began to cast its shadow over Israel and Judah, the golden age of Messianic prophecy broke forth. The features of the Coming One were more and more clearly delineated. The place and the manner of His birth, the official, as well as personal glories. g. The Exile and the Restoration. All the prophets of this period, Daniel, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi, predict the very time of Messiah’s coming. It would be during the lifetime of the second temple, and His presence in the rebuilt temple would impart to it a greater glory than Solomon’s temple contained. (3) The Pre-Incarnate CHRIST The story of JESUS the MESSIAH does not begin with the birth at Bethlehem. According to the prologue to the fourth evangelist the Incarnation of the Divine Word was the climax and not the commencement of the Revelation of the invisible GOD in Him. He was in the beginning with GOD, the only-begotten in His bosom, the object of His ineffable delight. By Him were all things created, and without Him was not anything made that was made. He delights being with the sons of men, His life was the light of men. An illumination of intellect, conscience and spirit proceeded from Him as from their central sun. When in the fullness of time the Word became flesh and pitched His tent among men, it was in the tents of Shem that His glory shone. He came "unto his own," to the vineyard of His own planting in the world His hands had made and which knew Him not. And alas! His own also refused Him - they "received him not." (John 1:11) He was a homeless stranger here. Let us dwell upon that expression "His own." Israel was that in a very special sense. Israel was the nation which He had redeemed and trained for many centuries. He had been their Leader and Commander from Egypt down the avenues of time. It is true that His earthly descent was from the stock of Abraham, that Israel was the mother that had brought Him forth. We must say more than that if we would grasp the truth concerning Israel’s MESSIAH. Israel was as much His product as He was the product of Israel. As He is both the Root and Offspring of David, so He is the Origin and Child of His nation. But for Him there would have been no Israel, as He declared through the prophet: "I am the Lord, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, your King" (Isa 43:15). Before His advent there had existed a threefold relationship between Israel and the MESSIAH. In Israel His coming has been heralded. In Israel His coming cast shadows before. In Israel the Coming One was already the Present One. He was the unseen Presence in the Midst. Israel was the sphere of His activities and manifestations. These three faces are the great theme of the Scriptures of the Old Testament. a. His Proclamation in Israel The Scriptures held as sacred by the Jews show how carefully the coming of the Messiah was prepared for. The Messianic idea is the central topic of the various parts of the Old Testament. It was more than a dead formula handed down by tradition. It was no magical secret imported to the initiated. There was a distinct growth in the unfolding of the Messianic Hope. The glories and perfections of His Person were unfolded from age to age. The opening chapters of Genesis describe the frustration through sin of the divine ideal concerning man, so that he was thrust out of the garden of innocence into a thorny wilderness to enter a life of terrific conflict with the powers of evil, symbolized by the serpent. But before starting on this age-long conflict he was assured of final victory through the mysterious Seed of the woman who should, though suffering the piercing of His heel, bruise the serpent’s head. b. The People of the Messianic Hope After the emerging of rival nationalities with their confusion of tongues and their corruption through idolatry and Satanic worship, GOD called out a lonely pilgrim for a better country, that is, an heavenly, in order that he might become the father of the people of the Messianic hope. Abram the Hebrew was the rock out of which that people was hewn. To him was divulged the secret which was never quite lost by his descendants, that through his Seed something wonderful would one day come to all mankind, even through the One whom his grandson Jacob, when on his deathbed, called the "Shiloh," to whom the Gentile nations would yield obedience; recovering their lost unity, and the unspeakable blessing of a just government and a warless world under His leadership. The later prophecies of Moses and of Balaam confirm the previous hints of this glorious Personality who was to arise in Israel. And lest we should conclude that these hints were realized in David, we find that this very king looked to One whom he called, "LORD," and whom he saw sitting at GOD’s right hand, invested with royal and priestly dignity, the greater than David, for whose sake David was chosen in his day. After the breakup of the monarchy into the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, and the rapid decline of their national greatness, a succession of prophets were raised up who added many new features to the conception of the MESSIAH and to the nature of His kingdom. Thus Joel, by many scholars regarded as the oldest of the prophetic line after the division of the tribes into two kingdoms, foresaw the age of the MESSIAH, calling it "the Day of the LORD," and that it would be characterized as the time of the outpouring of the SPIRIT. We know that afterwards John the Baptist designated the bestowal of the baptism of the HOLY SPIRIT as a Messianic function. Amos, as the time when the fallen tabernacle of David would be raised up again. Hosea, as the time when the rival kingdoms of Judah and Israel would be reunited, after their return to the LORD and to David their king. The nearer the Exile approached the clearer became the portrait of the MESSIAH. Micah announces His birthplace; Isaiah, the miracle of His virgin birth. In the later letter of comfort to the exiles of Judah, whose sufferings among the Gentiles were revealed to him at his inaugural vision, he portrays the character of the ideal Servant of the LORD, His sufferings and travail, and the glories that should follow. The prophet Jeremiah, sitting among the ruins of the old covenant dispensation, foretold the coming of the new and better covenant, while Ezekiel describes the process of this spiritual renewing, for the Israel of the New birth alone can "see the Kingdom of God," Then to the prophet Daniel was revealed by the angel Gabriel the very time when MESSIAH the prince would be manifested to Israel, and making an end of sins, bring in everlasting righteousness. Thus from Abraham till the coming of the MESSIAH, a period of some two thousand years, the image of the coming One was progressively unveiled. His Face shone out more and more clearly from the pages of the Holy Book of the Old Testament congregation of the LORD. The very conception of GOD encouraged in Israel by her illuminated prophets must also be classed under the head of Messianic prophecy. For while on the one hand One was spoken of as to come who, though human, would be possessed of Divine names and attributes, such as the royal Babe of Isaiah nine, on the other hand GOD was conceived of as under decidedly anthropomorphic imagery. The nation was not permitted to make an image of the LORD, and yet how human is His mental image as projected by the prophets! He possesses every human affection. He puts forth effort like a man. He feels pain. "He is a Warrior, sharing His people’s battles," to quote from G.A. Smith: "He is a Mother travailing in pangs for Israel’s new birth. In all their afflictions He was afflicted, in His love and in His pity He redeemed them. He is man’s fellow-sufferer and acquainted with his woes." G.A.S. proceeds: "These are real Old Testament prophecies of the incarnation; GOD manifest in the flesh, entering our moral welfare, in our weakness, at our side, tempted in all points as we are, making the shame of our sin and the misery of our estrangement from GOD His burden, and at the last, as Peter says: bearing ’our sins in his own body on the tree.’" (1Pe 2:24) c. His Foreshadowing in Israel It is an interesting and profitable study to trace out the way in which the first disciples, the apostles, and the church they founded, read the sacred writings of Israel. It is clear that they saw the MESSIAH not only in the ancient prophecies, but also in the history of the people of Israel and in the institutions which had been set up in the midst of the chosen people. The Epistle to the Hebrews, the oldest apologia for the Christian faith, is full of this line of teaching. And it does not stand alone among the early documents of the new covenant faith. The apostle Paul declared that the ancient ritual of the Jewish people was nothing but a shadow cast before-hand by CHRIST, the true Substance who was about to come: "Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ" (Col 2:17). He calls the first man Adam, the figure of another Adam who was to come: "For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ" (Rom 5:17). He declares that the rock of which the pilgrim hosts in the wilderness drank was CHRIST, even as another apostle, the writer of the fourth Gospel, saw in the tabernacle and in the temple a prefiguring of the flesh which the Divine Logos had taken into union with Himself. The pre-rabbinic religion of Israel was a shadow-picture of the MESSIAH. Again, if Personality is the key to history, how significant is the divinely recorded history of the Old Testament! What a noble succession of personal types of the coming One presents itself before our eyes! (1) Adam, head of a fallen race; CHRIST, HEAD of a redeemed race. (Rom 5:12-21). "For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive" (1Co 15:21-22). (2) Melchizedek, priest of Salem; CHRIST the eternal PRIEST of a heavenly character. "For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him" (Heb 7:1). "The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek" (Psa 110:4). (3) Isaac, the only-begotten son, born by an act of divine power, contrary to nature, offered as a burnt-offering, and typically raised from the dead; the Only Begotten of the FATHER, whose birth was a miraculous event, laid on the altar of absolute surrender, obedient unto death, but now highly exalted, far above all heavens. (4) Joseph, rejected by and separated from his brethren, in the seat of power among Gentiles; CHRIST rejected by and for a season separated from His Brethren according to the flesh, the exalted One in the Gentile Church. (5) Moses, Mediator of the covenant of works; CHRIST, the mediator of the better covenant of Grace (Heb 3:1-6). (6) David, suffering and reigning; CHRIST, the Man of Sorrows, raised up on high a PRINCE and a SAVIOUR: "And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. And I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the LORD have spoken it" (Eze 34:23-24). (7) Solomon, the Temple-Builder; behold, a greater than Solomon is here who is building a greater and an indestructible Temple. (Psa 72:1-20) "The queen of the south shall rise up in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here" (Mat 12:42). (8) Jonah, passing through a symbolic death and resurrection, preaching repentance to the Gentiles; CHRIST actually dead and risen, sending the Message of repentance and forgiveness to all nations: "But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth" (Mat 12:39-40). And what shall we say of the outward institutions of Israel? What a rich study awaits us here! Does not the remarkable institution of the Sabbath after a week of toil prefigure the rest which only One can offer? Does not the Passover speak of redemption through the blood of the LAMB of GOD? "Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even CHRIST our Passover is sacrificed for us" (1Co 5:7) "For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken" (John 19:36). How significant the lifting up of the brazen serpent in the light of the Saviour’s own interpretation? (Num 21:4-9). "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:14-16). How can we contemplate the majestic altar ritual of the ancient sanctuary without seeing something of the greater offering of Him who through the eternal SPIRIT offered Himself without spot to GOD? How think of the Jubilee without seeing in it a picture of what He has planned for the weary children of men? The High Priest, in his official raiment of glory and beauty, points to Him who, as crowned with glory and honor in the heavenly sanctuary, exercises a higher Priesthood. Bold indeed are the words of the apostle Paul when he declares emphatically that the entire history of Israel was typical, and written for our admonition upon whom the ends of the ages have come (1Co 10:11). d. His Manifestations in Israel When our LORD pointed to the ancient Scriptures of Israel, commending them to our careful study, He affirmed that they testified of Him. These words imply far more than is usually deduced from them. It is generally conceded that the Old Testament contains Messianic Prophecies and Messianic foreshadowings. But I hold that the words of the LORD teach that they also record the works and the manifestations of the MESSIAH in Israel before He came in the fullness of time in the flesh. Every now and then there appears in the history of the patriarchs and after, at some great crisis in the history of the chosen people, a mysterious Man who is yet more than Man. Suddenly we meet with Him without introduction or subsequent explanation. And His disappearances are as mysterious as His appearances. He bears various names: The Angel of the LORD; the angel of His Presence; the Angel of the Covenant; the Angel in whom is the Lord’s Name. He not only acts in the name of the LORD, He is frequently addressed as LORD, as well as called LORD. Divine adoration and reverence are offered unto Him and He receives them. He appears to Abraham, the father of the chosen family (Genesis 18). He shows Himself to Hagar, Abraham’s fugitive hand-maid who called Him LORD, the GOD that seeth me (Gen 16:7-13). He prevents the ultimate sacrifice of Isaac (Gen 22:11-13). He wrestles with Jacob through the night watches, and of Him Jacob declared: "I have seen God fac/to face" (Gen 32:30). The dying Jacob invokes the benediction of "the Angel which redeemed me from all evil" on his grandchildren (Gen 48:16). Moses hears His voice out of the burning bush, where He calls Himself the GOD of Abraham, the GOD of Isaac, and the GOD of Jacob (Exo 3:2-6). His presence was in the cloud that led Israel out of Egypt through the Red Sea and through the wilderness to the promised land (Exo 14:19; Exo 23:20-23). After their fall into image-worship, in connection with the golden calf, the LORD threatens to withdraw and instead sends an inferi--or angel to be their leader (Exo 33:1-33). But in answer to the prayer of Moses: "If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence," (Exo 33:15) He places Himself again at the head of the host. Joshua hands over the command to Him and falls in worship at His feet (Jos 5:1-15). He appears to the wife of Manoah and says His name is "Secret", or "Wonderful" (Jdg 13:3-23). He appears to Gideon and commissions him to deliver Israel (Jdg 6:1-40). David saw Him at the threshing floor of Ornah the Jebusite, the site of the future temple (1Ch 21:1-30). Isaiah and Ezekiel saw Him in glory attired on the throne in the heavenly world. The latter declared His appearance was like unto a son of Man. The prophet Zechariah has a vision of Him as Jerusalem’s Intercessor, while Daniel saw Him receiving an everlasting dominion from the Ancient of Days, declaring that He is the unseen champion of the chosen people. Malachi, the last of the prophets, before the silence of four hundred years of prophetic revelation fell upon Israel, says this mysterious Angel, Israel’s unseen and ever present Guardian, would suddenly appear in that very Temple which the returned exiles had built on the site of the former house. For was He not ever the Angel of Jehovah’s Presence, the SAVIOUR, who in His love and kindness had redeemed Israel, and had borne the people and sustained them since the days of old: "For he said, Surely they are my people, children that will not lie: so he was their Saviour. In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old" (Isa 63:8-9). - the same Angel whom Zechariah calls LORD and who is yet the One sent by the LORD? (Zec 1:8; Zec 1:10-13; Zec 2:8-11; Zec 3:1-10; Zec 6:12-13; Zec 6:15). JESUS is that Angel in His incarnate life. (4) History in the Light of the Messianic Hope We have seen that the MESSIAH was prophetically proclaimed in Israel, typically foreshadowed, and spiritually manifested. One more point remains to be elucidated. The MESSIAH was called for by every great crisis in history, both of humanity and of that nation chosen out of humanity to be the light of humanity. (a) Beginning at the very beginning, the first crisis was the loss of primeval innocence, the awakening to the grim tragedy of existence, the mystery of suffering, the sense of sin, the shadow of death. Then out of the depths of the divine compassion came the Proto-evangelium, the Hope of ultimate deliverance through the sufferings of the Seed of the Woman. (b) After the flood came a second fall of man, into idolatry. When he knew GOD he would not retain Him in his knowledge. This made the call of Abram to be the father of a family of faith obligatory. This faith rested on the Promise concerning the Seed through whom the nations would be blessed, by their recovering the lost knowledge of GOD, and also in that divine knowledge their lost harmony. (c) There was a third crisis when the new-born nation, created by a redemptive act of GOD, divinely taught and led, found itself on the borders of the promised land, about to be bereft of the great prophetic personality through whom its redemption and education had been mediated. Then was revealed the purpose of GOD to send a prophet like unto Moses, a new Mediator, a new Interpreter, a new Deliverer. (d) When after many vicissitudes Israel had at last achieved national unity under a king, and was actually in possession of the territory promised to Abraham, the prophet Nathan announced the Messianic destiny of the Davidic dynasty. The history of his house would culminate in the MESSIAH, as the history of humanity in the Woman’s conquering seed. Subsequent prophets, who lived in a very different time to that of David, who witnessed the break up of all national hopes, the ruin of throne and temple, the dismemberment and exile of the nation, echo the covenant made with David. It was the anchor of their souls in a dark and stormy day. Thus Amos, Hosea, Micah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel. (e) The post exilic prophets rather cherished the image of the Suffering Servant, first spoken of by Isaiah. The post exilic Zechariah is full of references to this sublime concept, the noblest of all the noble utterances of inspired prophecy. The sufferings of the nation had brought the spirituality sensitive among the people into sympathy with the ideal of suffering and its redemptive consequences, as being nearer the heart of things than that of a political Messiah, setting up Israel in material prosperity. (f) After the Exile came the holy experiment to create a godly nation, righteous in the Law and separated to the LORD, with its inevitable disillusionment in view of the fact of the obstinate sinfulness of human nature. This, coupled with the bitter struggle with Hellenistic paganism, its philosophy, and its lower ethical standards, turned the eyes of the saints in Israel to the appearing of the Son of Man out of Heaven. He alone could end the beast rule which had oppressed Israel, He alone could establish the kingdom of Heaven in which their aspirations for righteousness could be satisfied. (g) Finally, when matters had become acute, when the Roman power had succeeded that of Syria, and its hand lay heavy on the little nation, and the time had come for the temple with its sacrifices and priestly ritual to be destroyed, and for Jerusalem to cease to be the capital of a Jewish nation, and the land of Palestine to be its national home. He came Who is the bruiser of the serpent; the harmonizer of the divided nations; the final and complete Interpreter of GOD; the true KING of humanity; the Priest whose oblation consists in Himself; the Son of Man, who is the LORD from Heaven; Very Light of Very Light, Very GOD of Very GOD; the outshining of His glory and the express image of His substance. "God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us" - and is still speaking unto us - "by his Son" (Heb 1:1-2); to whom be glory and dominion forevermore! (5) The Divine MESSIAH While the Old Testament puts in the foreground the essential Unity of the Divine Being, it does not teach the unity implied in the modern Jewish doctrine of philosophic monotheism. The unity of the Godhead is too rich in content for that. That the MESSIAH is to be regarded as GOD must be held, in the light of Old Testament revelation, in conjunction with the fact that He bears divine names, shares divine attributes, and performs divine functions. In other words, the coming of MESSIAH is the coming of the LORD also. For an example, see Zec 2:10 : "Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the LORD." and "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass" (Zec 9:9). The writers of the New Testament constantly appeal to the Old Testament for proof of the super-human glory of the CHRIST. The Epistle to the Hebrews cites a number of such passages in Heb 1:1-14 in which the MESSIAH is seen as having "a more excellent name" (Heb 1:4) than the angels who are higher than man, even that of "Son." This shows that the title "Son" is found in Psa 2:1-12 as belonging to the Anointed KING of the end-time, implies His supra-angelic dignity, One who shares the very nature of GOD. And this "Son" is addressed as both "GOD" and "LORD" (Heb 1:8, quoting Psa 45:6-7; and Heb 1:10, quoting Psa 102:25). The Old Testament passage, which more than any other is used in the New to buttress the witness of the Apostles to the supra-human exaltation of JESUS, in Psa 110:1-7. In this then followed the example of the MASTER Himself, who confuted His critics by deducing from this psalm the truth of a heavenly MESSIAH, more than David’s Son, even his divine LORD, rather than the earthly potentate whom they were expecting (see Mat 22:41-45). The MESSIAH transcends, according to the interpretation given on highest authority, the idea of a mere political and military leader. He is One to whom even David paid religious veneration, calling Him "LORD." The history of Israel as recorded in the Old Testament bears witness to the expectation of a world-Saviour, combined with the revelation of the glory of the LORD. Thus we have the great "Shiloh" prophecy in Gen 49:10 coupled with Psa 72:11; the prophecy of the One born in David’s city, whose goings forth have been from eternity and who shall be great "unto the ends of the earth" (Mic 5:1-4); Balaam’s vision of the One who will sway His sceptre over all nations (Num 24:17-19); Isaiah, of his Kingdom which has no limits (Isa 9:6) who bears the five fold name: "Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace," while the name "Immanuel (God with us)," given to the wonder-child of Isa 7:1-25 seems to be an echo of the great Messianic prophecy of Balaam (Num 23:21). "The LORD his God is with him, and the shout of a King is among them," All through the Old Testament runs the expression, "He comes!" It was this which gave the forward look to the pious Jew. The LORD is coming to judge and to redeem (Psa 98:9); and One like a Son of Man, who is also "Ancient of days," comes in the clouds of Heaven to administer an indestructible Kingdom (Dan 7:13-14; Dan 7:22) of whom another passage declares that "the clouds are the dust of His feet." (Nah 1:3) Sometimes there is before the eyes the Man, who bears the names of Stone, Shepherd, Lion, Prophet like unto Moses, Seed of the Woman, Seed of Abraham, Seed of David, Martyr-Servant, Priest-King, Branch, Son of Man, etc. At other times the LORD Himself fills the entire horizon of the seer. Two stars of first magnitude, appearing distinct, shining in the Heaven of Israel’s hope of the future - till finally the two stars are seen blended in one glorious luminary, in the Divine human personality of our LORD, "the LORD our Righteousness," as the prophet Jeremiah saluted Him (Jer 23:6). Professor F. Godet rightly says: "The idea of the divinity of the MESSIAH is the soul of the entire Old Testament. There was in the whole of the Old Testament from the patriarchal theophanies down to the latest prophetic visions, a constant current towards the Incarnation as the goal of all these revelations. The appearance of the MESSIAH presents itself more and more clearly to the view of the prophets as the perfect Theophany, the final coming of the LORD." (Commentary on Luke, English text, Vol. II, page 257) ~ end of chapter 1 ~ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 21: 02.02. THE HOPE RAISED ======================================================================== Chapter 2 THE HOPE RAISED We will have to turn to the Book of Genesis to find the hidden source in history of the ever brightening Hope which illuminated the often dark record of Israel’s story. The Book of Genesis covers a longer period of time than all the Scriptures put together. And its story emphasizes four distinct prophecies concerning One who was to come: the prophecy made by the LORD GOD Himself (Gen 3:1-24); the prophecy of Noah (Gen 9:1-29); the prophecy made to Abram and his family (Gen 12:1-20 and Gen 22:1-24), and the death-bed prophecy of Jacob, the last of the three roots of the people from whom the earthly progenitors of the Coming One have sprung (Gen 49:1-33). (1) The Proto-Evangelium - The Gospel of the Gates of Eden The first theophany (or divine self-revelation in visibility) occurred after the Fall of Man when to his undoing he became, as the LORD GOD said: "The man is become as one of us," (Gen 3:22) that is, his own master. Then the LORD GOD began His redeeming search. Grace took the initiative, as it always has done. In the plaintive cry: "Where art thou?" (Gen 3:9) we hear the mother call of divine love. And this theophany was but the first of many more, culminating in the Incarnation, "God was manifest in the flesh" (1Ti 3:16). Full of mystery, yet rich in content, are the words pronounced on the serpent, the creature which camouflaged the approach of the world of evil towards man. The curse pronounced on the serpent does not fall on man, though the ground, his material environment, is affected by it. But in the heart of the judgment on the personification of evil gleams the hope of redemption for man. GOD will not give up His original plan in man’s creation. The very woman beguiled by the serpent, would bring forth the One who should bring the reign of sin and death to an end. May we not see in the cryptic term "the seed of the woman" an intimation of a Virgin-birth? The Redeemer must be Man, and in manhood win out in the conflict with evil where man has been worsted. But He must be free from the taint generations of sinful seed entails. Hence the necessity of the miraculous divine intervention in the origin and birth of the Emancipator of a fallen race. But this deliverance would cost Him the bruising of His heel. Both the sufferings and the triumphs of the MESSIAH are thus sketched forth in the first prophecy of Holy Scripture, the root from which the widely branched tree of Messianic prophecy has grown. The first intimation of the Coming One connects Him with the human race, its representative and Redeemer. Hence the new name which Adam gave to his wife after hearing this prophecy: Chava, (Zoe in the Greek Septuagint), that is, she would be "the mother of all living" (Gen 3:20), the mystical mother of Him who calls Himself Ho Zon, the Living One, and the spiritual mother of all those who would obtain through faith "life in His Name," prefiguring the "Jerusalem which is above... which is the mother of us all." (Gal 4:26) And it is noteworthy that Adam’s faith in the coming Deliverer was accompanied by the LORD GOD covering man’s nakedness: "Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them" (Gen 3:21). Is not the atonement prefigured in this? The word used for clothed is the same employed for atonement in the Hebrew. Our nakedness and sinfulness is not seen when covered by the virtue and value of the atoning sacrifice thus prefigured. Lamech, the tenth from Adam restricts the fulfillment of the promise to a certain part of the human race, to that of Noah. Noah, the father of Shem, was looked for at his very birth as the one who would bring in the looked-for comfort: "And he called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD hath cursed" (Gen 5:29); and while this was a premature expectation, it nevertheless remained true that Noah was chosen to be the direct ancestor of the Comforter to come, while an initial fulfillment was made in the everlasting covenant established with Noah and his descendants after the flood. (2) The Noahic Prophecy In Gen 9:1-29, the light of prophecy breaks through the gloom of human ignorance: "And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren. And he said: Blessed be the LORD God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant. God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant" (Gen 9:25-27). This remarkable pronouncement is the first recorded prophecy of Holy Scripture by human lips (the proto-evangelium was a prophecy uttered by the divine mouth directly), and speaks of the LORD GOD of Shem. It is the first time that GOD identifies Himself with a particular man. The children of Ham and not Japheth were the first civilizers and masters of the world. The cradle of culture stood in Egypt, Phoenicia and Babylon. The day when the sons of Japheth would come to the front was much later. The "enlargement" promised to Japheth did not begin till the Persian Cyrus began his conquering career which started the political and militaristic hegemony of the Aryan race till our day. Then centuries after came the fulfillment of the prophecy concerning Shem, that the LORD GOD would be his GOD in a special sense. He did indeed choose the tents of Shem from His abode and the conquering Japheth must needs go to the tents of Shem to find the true GOD. The words: "Blessed be the LORD God of Shem" (Gen 9:26) indicate that Shem would be pre-eminent in being the bearer of the Divine Name. The very word Shem, i.e., Name, points to that. By the "Name" is meant the self-revelation of GOD in history, as well as in creation and providence. Not military and political glory, but to be the bearer of spiritual values for the good of others would be the mission of Shem. (3) The Abrahamic Promise The descendants of Noah soon corrupted themselves. The first chapter of the Epistle to the Romans describes the second fall of man after the Flood, as Rom 5:12 goes back to that in the Garden of Eden: "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned." Idolatry supplanted the knowledge of the true GOD. The tower of Babel was meant to be an outward sign of man’s apostasy, to "make us a name," (Gen 11:4) said the Babel builders. Their names have perished, for man’s pretentious self-advertisings must always end thus. Then GOD did a new thing. He called Abram. He separated one man unto Himself and made him the depositary of Promise. The era of Promise, properly speaking began thus and looks on to the time when all nations shall have found their fullest blessing in Him who is Abraham’s Seed, of whom Isaac was a type. The story of Abram begins in the closing verses of Gen 11:1-32. What preceded, and the time covered is greater than the entire period of inspired history, is introduction, to show why the choice and call and discipline of Abram was necessary. It is the story of the two falls of man. But now a new stage is reached in the unfolding of the Messianic Hope. The prophecy concerning the Seed of the Woman, becomes the promise of the Seed of Abraham. The promise that Abraham and Sarah should become the ancestors of kings, looks on to David and his royal line culminating in David’s Messianic Son, and the promise that His seed should secure the blessing of all nations, points to a Mediator-Priest, beneath whose benediction the restless and competitive nations would find the solution of their age-long problems at last. The history of redemption properly begins with the appearing of the LORD of Glory to Abram: "And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran" (Acts 7:2). The goal is the re-appearing of the glory and the earth being filled with it as the waters cover the sea. The call of Abram was the first step towards this. GOD’s separating Abram and confining Himself to his family as the centre of His interests was intended to bring about the blessing of all nations. Election has for its ultimate not so much the good of the elect, as that of the non-elect, through the agency of the elect. And for this the elect, like Abraham, have had to go through a severe process of suffering and discipline in order to be vessels meet for the divine use. (4) The Shiloh Prophecy The patriarchal age closed with the passing of Jacob. He and his clan had migrated to Egypt by the invitation of Joseph. But ere the curtain falls the voice of prophecy is heard once more, confirming the Messianic Promise and developing its implications. Jacob must have pondered deeply the truths of which he, as the one to whom "the birth-right" belonged by divine decree, was the custodian, and what he had held in trust for all mankind. He foresaw that the Messianic family would develop into twelve tribes. Their having been transplanted into Egypt did not mean the canceling of GOD’s choice of Shem. But it was a necessary interlude. They were less likely to be amalgamated with their non-Semitic environment there. But which of the sons of Jacob would be the head of the chosen line whose end would be that mysterious Being who would be the representative of both GOD and Man in one personality according to the Proto-evangelium? Divine choices are never blind and arbitrary. Rueben forfeited his birth-right. He had committed infamy. Simeon and Levi had been confederates in wickedness and cruelty. Joseph had received a double portion in his two sons. But Judah, who had so nobly volunteered to be surety for Benjamin, thus exhibiting the spirit of the One who was willing to become our Surety in death, was elevated to the primacy as the royal tribe: "Now the sons of Rueben the firstborn of Israel, (for he was the firstborn; but, forasmuch as he defiled his father’s bed, his birthright was given unto the sons of Joseph the son of Israel: and the genealogy is not to be reckoned after the birthright. For Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the chief ruler; but the birthright was Joseph’s)" (1Ch 5:1-2). The Gentile peoples, at war with each other ever since their speech was confused at the tower of Babel, would gather to "Shiloh," a Son of Judah, and render Him obedience: "The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be" (Gen 49:10). The sceptre would not depart from Judah till Shiloh’s appearing. GOD would not allow his tribal distinction to be wiped out, as has happened to his brethren. The Word Shebet means both tribe and sceptre. The star of Judah would continue to shine till it would lose itself in the more glorious light of Shiloh, his noblest Son. And what does "Shiloh" mean? It might mean either the sent One; the Peace-bringer; or He whose right it is. Probably the last is the true meaning. We get an echo of it in Eze 21:27, where we read: "I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it: and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him." The nations will not know rest till He takes the government into His own hands. The indestructibility of the Jewish people, the homeless, scattered and suffering children of Judah, is the miracle of history. The northern kingdom of Israel has disappeared from sight. But Jacob would have been a false prophet if the Assyrian had swallowed up Jerusalem as he had Samaria. If Nebuchadnezzar, Antiochus Epiphanes, Vespesian and Titus, the Spanish Inquisition and the modern Anti-Semitic atrocities had succeeded in wiping out Judah also as a distinct people, then would the Messianic Hope have proven a superstition. But the Word of our GOD must stand for ever and human counsels come to nought. The ancient Synagogue did not fail to perceive the Messianic significance of the divine oracle concerning Shiloh, from the lips of the dying Jacob. Thus the Targum of Onkelos has it: "Until the Messiah come, whose is the Kingdom." The Targum of pseudo-Jonathon: "Till the King, the Messiah shall come." The Babylonian Talmud "What is Messiah’s Name? His Name is Shiloh, for it is written, ’Until Shiloh come’." And with these interpretations agree Bereshith Rabba, Kimchi, Aben Ezra, Rashi and other Rabbis of note, such as the famous Rabbi Solomon Yitzrachi. NOTE: Hengstenberg points out that the name Shelomo (Solomon) comes from the same root as Shiloh, and denotes "a man of rest," corresponding to the "Prince of peace" in Isa 9:6, like the German Friedrich - Frederick, that is, "rich in peace," the peaceful one. Elliott says: "We cannot fail to recognize an allusion to Shiloh in those passages of the prophets in which the Messiah is described as the author of rest and peace (Isa 9:6-7; Mic 4:1-4; Isa 2:2-4; Zec 9:10, and many other passages). ~ end of chapter 2 ~ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 22: 02.03. THE HOPE REVIVED ======================================================================== Chapter 3 THE HOPE REVIVED The story of Moses not only explains the nationality of Israel, but is also the revival of the Hope of which that nation is the custodian. The choicest measure which the patriarchs passed on to their posterity was the Messianic expectation which would be fulfilled among them. But the period of alternate prosperity and adversity in Egypt was fatal to the Hope which is the very reason for which the people sprung from Abraham existed. The Hebrews gradually degenerated in Egypt. But for the bitter oppression which followed the period of prosperity while Joseph and his services to Egypt were still remembered, they would have become thoroughly Egyptianized and ceased to function messianically. Eze 20:1-49 tells us that when the GOD of their fathers lifted up His hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, the people had become idolatrous. They were polluted with all the abominations of Egypt, famous for its pantheism which saw in every object a manifestation of GOD and thus to be adored. In the delirium of idolatrous fascination the Hebrews had quite forgotten the very Name of the GOD of their fathers: "And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, the God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?" (Exo 3:13). Their sacred past had become dim and hazy. Their present offered no testimony to the LORD. Their future was devoid of the element of hope. But there must have been a remnant, however small and insignificant. There has always been a remnant in Israel, or else the people would have perished like Sodom and Gomorrah: "Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah" (Isa 1:9). There is such a remnant "at this present time" (Rom 11:5). Let the critics of the Jews, please bear this in mind. The existence of such a remnant made a revival always possible, even in the darkest day. There was never lacking seed for a new harvest, left over from the bad harvests of the past, "There shall be an handful of corn in the earth upon the top of the mountains; the fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon: and they of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth" (Psa 72:16). How do we know that there was such a remnant among the degraded Hebrews in Egypt? By some of the names that were given to the children born in that dismal day. The name of the father of Moses was Amram. His parents gave him that name, which means: "the people is high," because they believed in the destiny of Israel. They did not develop an inferiority complex on account of the shame put upon them by the Egyptians. Israel had a future. The Seed of the Woman and of Abraham, the dispenser of universal salvation and of peace, would arise from this people. Hold your heads up, ye downtrodden slaves! And so the name of the mother of Moses: Jochebed. That means: "JEHOVAH is exalted." Then not Ra or Isis, or the innumerable gods of Egypt, including not only sun, moon and stars, but also cats, dogs, beetles, in whose honor marvellous temples had been erected, were to be worshipped. JEHOVAH had not temple, or altar, or prophet, or priest in Egypt. But in due time He would execute judgment against all the gods of Egypt, as He afterwards declared to Pharaoh. So the grandparents of Moses had faith in the ultimate victory of the GOD of Israel. Into such an atmosphere of faith in a dark day Moses was born, miraculously preserved alive that he might be the type and earnest as a Mediator-prophet, of One greater yet. And little did the King of Egypt dream that he was actually educating the future champion of the people he meant to destroy. But GOD always makes his enemy look ridiculous. Pharaoh was but the unconscious instrument of Satan who hated the people out of whom his conqueror was to arise: "And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child" (Rev 12:13). He has always had a special grudge against the national mother of the MESSIAH. The personality of Moses towers aloft above all others. As a prophet he had unique relations with the LORD: "And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream. My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house. With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches: and the similitude of the Lord shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?" (Num 12:6-8) And he became the mediator through whom GOD effected redemption for His oppressed people. "By faith" he had identified himself when their fortunes were at the lowest. To sight they must have been most unattractive, but to faith they were GOD’s elect vessel for the bringing in of salvation. GOD was preparing them to be the channels of salvation to the world, as our LORD said at the well of Sychar: "Salvation is of the Jews." (John 4:22) And again "by faith" Moses celebrated the first Passover. The people observed the rite of the sprinkling of the blood of the lamb. But Moses did it by faith in the greater Passover in the precious blood of the LAMB of GOD, without blemish and without spot. For GOD "made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel" (Psa 103:7). They saw His mighty doings, but Moses had spiritual insight into His counsels. He foresaw the MESSIAH as Mediator-prophet of Israel in the end-time, to lead them out of the bondage to sin into the fullness of the blessing of His glorious realm of divine good. Hence "the song of Moses... and the song of the Lamb" are properly linked together in Rev 15:3. (1) The Prophet Like Unto Moses It was as Moses was about to leave the flock which he had tended so wisely and patiently those forty years, knowing that the people would feel bereaved, that he left behind the wonderful promise concerning another prophet, resembling him, who would be the Mediator between them and Israel. As is recorded: "The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken; According to all that thou desiredst of the Lord thy God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God, neither let me see this great fire any more, that I die not. And the Lord said unto me. They have well spoken that which they have spoken. I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him" (Deu 18:15-19). At Sinai, where GOD spoke directly from Heaven to the people, they could not endure to hear that awful voice. The people asked for a mediator, and GOD granted them their request: "And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die" (Exo 20:19) and "And it came to pass, when ye heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness, (for the mountain did burn with fire,) that ye came near unto me, even all the heads of your tribes, and your elders; And ye said, Behold, the Lord our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth. Now therefore why should we die? for this great fire will consume us: if we hear the voice of the Lord our God any more, then we shall die" (Deu 5:23-25). Moses predicted that a similar mediator would be granted in the future. It would be a solemn matter to reject His word. The apostle Peter, quoting this prophecy in Acts 3:1-26, applies the warning as involving excision from the people of GOD, from Israel. This terrible judgment has indeed befallen the unbelieving Jewish people. They are like branches cut off from their own olive-tree. They are no longer "the Israel of God." The attempt has been made to weaken the Messianic application of the prophecy by referring it to a succession of prophetic men who would be divine spokesmen to their generation. But the singular is retained throughout in the prediction. Moses clearly had one special prophetic personality, who would be like unto himself. Moses, we know, was the one chosen mediator of the Torah; the builder of the tabernacle of witness, and by whose ministry the LORD became "King in Jeshurun" (Deu 33:4-5). Among the successors in the prophetic ministry none were like unto Moses. In the postscript to Deuteronomy, believed (by some) to have been added by Ezra, as the spirit of prophecy was about to pass from Israel, it is definitely stated, that a Moses-like prophet had not arisen in Israel: "And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face" (Deu 34:10). The early Christians made much of the parting words of Moses concerning this great prophet to come. Peter, commenting in Acts said, "For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people. Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days" (Acts 3:22-24), where this prophet is distinguished from all others since the days of Samuel. Read the words of Stephen when before the Sanhedrin, declaring that JESUS was that predicted prophet: "To whom our fathers would not obey, but thrust him from them, and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt" (Acts 7:39). So we read the testimony of the young convert Philip to Nathaniel: "And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see" (John 1:46), the confession of the woman of Sychar: "The woman saith unto him, I know that Messiah cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things" (John 4:25), and finally our Lord’s own use of the prophecy under consideration: "He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak" (John 12:48-49). Reading the prophecy in its connection we find it stands in contrast to the eight ways in which the world of darkness speaks to man. GOD speaks to man by and in a Man. Thus we have two voices out of the invisible world in Deu 18:9-22. From the beginning GOD meant to speak to man (John 1:1). He spoke to man in the days of his primeval innocence. Again He spoke after man fell. But in the meantime man lends his ear to the whisperings of the serpent, the slanderer of GOD to man, and man has believed his lies, as sweet as honey, but conveying deadly poison to the soul. Now GOD has spoken in a Man, His Son in manhood: "A Prophet . . . of thy brethren" - as Heb 2:17 tells us: "in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his brethren." We have no need to turn to the mediums of the world of darkness, survivals of pagan delusions. The light of Heaven shines for us in the face of JESUS CHRIST, the One Mediator between GOD and Man. (2) The Star and Sceptre From Jacob We cannot leave the period when Moses was the Mediator of the Old Covenant without noticing prophecy given under very different circumstances than those already considered, by a Gentile, to whom it was permitted to look into the future of the people of divine choice, and their history in connection with the MESSIAH. The deliverance of Israel out of Egypt was more than an historical event. It had religious significance. It placed Israel in opposition to the pagan world from henceforth. What will be most likely the course and the end of this conflict? The prophecy of Balaam in Num 24:1-25 gives the answer. Balaam’s oracles fall into four groups and in them the future development of the spiritual kingdom of GOD first established in Israel is foreseen (See Num 23:7-10; Num 23:18-24; Num 24:3-9; Num 24:15-24). With his spiritual eyes divinely opened Balaam saw a Star come out of Jacob and a Sceptre arise from Israel. This gentile prophet saw Israel finally victorious over the world of pagan nations, Moab, Edom, Amalek, Assur, Eber, the maritime power of Chittim, the last of the gentile conquerors, the Roman empire, come with the range of his vision. "Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion." (Num 24:19) He has the last word. "when God doeth this" (Num 24:23). Not by the sword but by the Word will this Ruler win out. This is an echo of the Shiloh prophecy. The obedience of the peoples to Shiloh is a willing surrender. His methods are peaceable, as His name implies. And it is also an anticipation of the visions of Daniel, which expand this oracle of Balaam. The goal of history is the supplanting of the beast-Kingdom by that of the Son of Man from Heaven (Dan 7:1-28). There is a remarkable combination of the earthly and the heavenly natures of the Coming One in Balaam’s vision. He saw in Him One who would be both Star and Sceptre. Our LORD clearly refers to this prophecy when He says of Himself: "I am the root and offspring of David, and the bright and Morning Star" (Rev 22:16). The language used by Balaam was that concerning earthly things, but the intention was to show the heavenly and spiritual nature of the Kingdom of GOD administered by the Divine-Human CHRIST. ~ end of chapter 3 ~ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 23: 02.04. THE HOPE RE-AFFIRMED ======================================================================== Chapter 4 THE HOPE RE-AFFIRMED The Books of Joshua, Judges and first Samuel, while they do not add much to the elucidation of the Messianic hope, are nevertheless important links in the chain of events which run on till the appearing of the MESSIAH. Joshua records the conquest of the land by the miraculous aid given to Israel, GOD using His redeemed people as the executors of the judgment on the corrupt Canaanites, their cup of iniquity having become full, in spite of the warning which the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah had given. Judges records the failure of the tribes in executing this judgment to the full, which led to their degeneration eventually. As Delitzsch said: "The course of the true seed of the woman went at that time through the mire of great waters." Judah practically lost the leadership which was given to him by a divine oracle in the beginning of the Book: "And the LORD said, Judah shall go up: behold, I have delivered the land into his hand" (Jdg 1:2). And the end of the Book gives a terrible picture of unspeakable corruption in Judah, with Bethlehem as the centre (Jdg 17:1-13, Jdg 18:1-31, Jdg 19:1-30, Jdg 20:1-48, Jdg 21:1-25). We are told that in those days there was "no king in Israel." Anarchy prevailed. "Every man did that which was right in his own eyes" (Jdg 21:25). However, a remnant was preserved. Hence the Book of Ruth, which takes you to the very Bethlehem whose shameful record had just been told. And in the Book of Ruth, one hundred years before David, we see how divine providence prepared for the needed King, out of whose loins, in the fullness of time, the Messianic KING was to arise. A further step towards the ultimate fulfillment of the Messianic hope, centered in the Divine-Human King, was the preparation of the one who was qualified to anoint the King out of whose house, according to the flesh, the Hope of Israel was to spring. The first Book of Samuel gives us the record of this divine preparation. We read of the lonely exercises of Hannah, at a time when priesthood in the house of Eli had utterly failed. Out of those exercises Samuel was born, and dedicated to the LORD to serve in the sanctuary. The song of Hannah looks beyond the time then present to the end-time when "He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail. The adversaries of the LORD shall be shaken to pieces; out of Heaven shall he thunder upon them: the LORD shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed" (1Sa 2:9-10). The ministry of Samuel ushered in a new era, that of monarchy in Israel. He was a descendant of the ill-fated Korah whom the pit swallowed up for his rebellion, and whose descendants, spared in mercy, became the doorkeepers of the sanctuary. And that was indeed Samuel’s first occupation: "And Samuel lay until the morning, and opened the doors of the house of the LORD. And Samuel feared to shew Eli the vision" (1Sa 3:15). But as his mother had prophesied: "He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s, and he hath set the world upon them" (1Sa 2:8), so the child Samuel became the spokesman of the Word of the LORD which had become rare in Israel, the restorer of a backslidden people to allegiance to the LORD, and the instrument for introducing the Messianic house of David. Samuel was the spiritual father of David, who as the man after GOD’s own heart, upon whom Samuel had poured the holy chrism, typified, as well as predicted, the One whose appearing meant the moving of the longed for Kingdom of GOD. We see constantly in sacred history that as in creation darkness preceded light, so GOD’s beginnings of a new era are often preceded by false moves on the part of man, ending in disappointment. Thus Cain, the firstborn of Adam, was hailed as the promised one by Eve: "And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD" (Gen 4:1). Thus Abraham hoped that Ishmael might live before the LORD as the long expected seed. Thus the misrule of Saul came before the reign of David, the man after GOD’s own heart, and the true King had to reach his throne by the way of suffering and renunciation. David completed the conquest of the land when he became the possessor of Zion, the Jebusite stronghold which had defied Israel since the days of Joshua. And there he set up the religious, as well as the political centre of the nation. The long neglected ark of the covenant was brought out of obscurity and placed in a suited tabernacle in the court of his palace. David’s enthusiasm in the execution of this concern marks him as the man who knew the desires of the heart of GOD and was determined to gratify them. It was when David "sat in his house, and the Lord had given him rest round about from all his enemies" (2Sa 7:1), that the thought arose in his heart to build a temple for the ark of GOD. It would seem David had Deu 12:10-11 before him, where the setting up of a central sanctuary, the place where the LORD would put His name, is connected with the fact that He had given rest to His people from war. Doubtless David felt that time had come and that therefore it was his royal duty to build such a House. The prophet Nathan, to whom David had confided his concern, gave his endorsement at once. But that night the word of the LORD commanded him: "And Nathan said to the king, Go, do all that is in thine heart; for the LORD is with thee. And it came to pass that night, that the word of the LORD came unto Nathan, saying, Go and tell my servant David, Thus saith the LORD, Shalt thou build me an house for me to dwell in?" (2Sa 7:3-5). Howbeit, the LORD told David by the lips of Nathan that He would build David an house, and the One should proceed out of his loins who would be the divinely approved temple-builder and that His kingdom would be established forever by the LORD: "And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever" (2Sa 7:12-13). Now we must not limit this prediction, as Jewish commentators do, to Solomon, who did indeed build the temple. That temple was of temporal duration, but the temple which Nathan spoke of in the spirit of prophecy is connected with a kingdom of endless duration. When the kingdom which Solomon reigned over came to an end in the days of Jeremiah, the temple was destroyed also. The heart of the prophecy is that the Kingdom of the house of David is inseparably linked with the Kingdom of GOD. So in Psa 89:1-52, based on the Nathan prophecy, the words "forever" are made synonymous with "the days of Heaven" (Psa 89:29). "Then went King David in and sat before the Lord" (2Sa 7:18). The effect on him was to produce adoring worship. He was overwhelmed by the grace revealed to him in the everlasting covenant with his house. That he saw the messianic significance of the communication made to him by the mouth of Nathan is clear from his "last words" recorded in 2Sa 23:1-5. He there looked beyond Solomon or any other descendant to One whose coming shall be "as the light of the morning, when the sun riseth; even a morning without clouds, as the tender grass springing out of the earth by clear shining after rain. Although my house be not so with God," was the confession of the founder of the dynasty, which he foresaw would eventually fail as Saul’s house, and Eli’s house had failed before him, "yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things, and sure: for this is all my salvation, and all my desire, although he make it not to grow." These words were not just a pious wit of David’s. He said of them: "The Spirit of the Lord spake by me, and his word was in my tongue." (2Sa 23:2) It was a further unfolding of the Nathan prophecy, confirming it and connecting its fulfillment with the MESSIAH of David’s royal seed of whom the LORD had said: "I will be his Father, and he shall be my Son" (2Sa 7:14). So David sings of Him in Psa 2:1-12 as the Anointed of the LORD, the Son whom he has begotten, and as the One who saves those who put their trust in Him. ~ end of chapter 4 ~ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 24: 02.05. THE HOPE INTERPRETED ======================================================================== Chapter 5 THE HOPE INTERPRETED It is in the ministry of "the writing prophets" that we find the fullest interpretation of the Messianic Hope. They drew upon the original promise of the seed of the Woman, mankind’s champion and deliverer from the mischief wrought by the serpent and the unconditional and everlasting covenant made with Abraham and David. These are the hidden springs of that mighty stream of Messianic prophecy in the writings of the anointed men who were Israel’s watchmen during the closing centuries of her national independence. And it is the prophet Isaiah who occupies the place of pre-eminence as the proclaimer and unfolder of the glories of the One to come. (1) The Witness of Hosea Following the order in which the writing prophets are placed in the canon, we begin with the prophet who accompanied the northern Kingdom of Israel to its grave, and who was permitted to see the resurrection of the nation in the latter days. What must have lain as a heavy burden on his heart was the fact that the covenant nation was divided into two rival kingdoms. He dated his prophecy therefore both in the days of the Kings of the house of David, as well as in that of Jeroboam II, under which the northern Kingdom enjoyed its brightest and most prosperous period, just on the eve of its tragic downfall: "The word of the LORD that came unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel" (Hos 1:1). His prophecy is divided into four parts, running parallel with each other, covering the same period, and ending with a glory vision of the Messianic age. - Hos 1:1-11 forms a complete prophecy, from the downfall of Israel to the final re-gathering. - Hos 2:1-23, from the divorce of Israel as an unfaithful wife, to the re-marriage. - Hos 3:1-5, the "many days" of Israel’s being nationally set aside, till their conversion to the MESSIAH, whom they will seek in the latter days. - Then the fourth section, the largest, from Hos 5:1-15 and Hos 14:1-9, Israel’s backsliding in detail, till the final recovery, when the divine discipline has accomplished its end. The first vision of the future in the Book of Hosea was that of the re-union of the divided nation, when they shall "appoint themselves one Head," (Hos 1:11) and will under His leadership come out of the land of their exile. That is to say, they will choose the One whom the LORD has already chosen for them. They will at last ratify the divine selection. The other prophets were also concerned along this line. Thus Ezekiel: "And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all. Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things; nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwelling places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their GOD. And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them" (Eze 37:22-24). GOD is still waiting for Israel to fall into line with Him respecting the One in and under whom alone unity and harmony is possible, whether for that nation or for His new-covenant people. Hos 3:1-5 presents a new feature. The tribulated nation will be finally betrothed to Him whom it has sinned against. The LORD speaks of Himself as Israel’s true husband. He has never ceased to love her, and that in her deepest shame. Surely it is the heart of the heavenly Bridegroom of souls who speaks in Hos 3:1-5! Hos 3:1-5, brief as it is, composed of only five sentences, covers the entire period of Israel’s long exile till the kingdom of the MESSIAH. He is the true David. Till they turn to Him, they will be without King, prince and religious status in a state of suspense. The false gods may have been abandoned, but the true is not yet known. But there is a blessed "afterward." In the latter days the people will seek the LORD their GOD and David their King. In the loss of the MESSIAH, they lost the GOD of their fathers also. In recovering Him, they will find GOD also. Hos 6:1-11 is very suggestive. It begins with the spiritual as well as national revival of Israel. Then we see how this revival will be brought about. The MESSIAH will be apprehended, both in His outward appearing, as bringing in a new day, and by His inward and spiritual appearing, like the rain from Heaven, by the coming of His SPIRIT to indwell the heart that loves Him. It is a wonderful Messianic picture! The Coming One is spoken of as One whose coming had been long prepared for as a new morning for humanity as well as for Israel. And that He would also come to man as the rain comes from Heaven to refresh and fertilize the parched garden unto GOD. Thus we see the two stages of the Lord’s appearing: His personal and outward coming, which introduced a new day for the world in history; and His spiritual and inward coming, which changes men. In the first He came to be with men, Immanuel, "God with us." In the second He comes to be in men. In the first He did a mighty work for man. In the second He came to apply the benefits of that work to men. These two comings are DIFFERENT and yet SIMILAR: a. They have the same heavenly origin. The light comes from above, and the rain descends from the sky also. It is not by man’s contrivance. The morning and the rain are entirely by the gift of grace of GOD. b. Both are expressions of the universality and impartiality of the divine goodness. The sun shines on evil and good alike. The rain descends on the fields of the thankful and unthankful. "That ye may be the children of your Father which is in Heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust" (Mat 5:45). c. Both sun and rain are gentle and silent in their operations. The thunder and lightning may precede the rain, but the rain itself is a gentle touch. So CHRIST came outwardly, all Heaven was moved, but on earth, it was a lone star that guided seekers to CHRIST. So also the SPIRIT comes. We must find CHRIST within. d. Both come without money and without price. And no day has less, because millions of others share the same. "A whole sun for me!" So CHRIST is abundantly able to save and satisfy. He went to Heaven in a cloud, and then that cloud broke in a shower of blessings on the disciples ten days after. CHRIST thus came back in the clouds of Heaven, only in this sense, spiritually. e. Both have the same end in view, the transformation of death into life; of winter into summer. The morning sun makes a tremendous change, and the rain transforms nature into loveliness. Light and Life are the results of sunshine and rain. a. The sun comes with a wonderful breadth. The rain comes in drops. So CHRIST has reconciled the world by His first coming, but He must quicken the individual soul by His personal approach in the SPIRIT. He comes to each individual in an individual way. As on the day of the SPIRIT’s coming every man heard the message told out in his own language, so the SPIRIT speaks to every man in a way he can understand. b. Then again, the morning is sure, but the rain has its own seasons. So with the visitations of the SPIRIT. Woe to him who neglects them when they come! The fourth section of Hosea makes sad reading; it is a detailed recital, like a succession of sobs, of the moral and religious decadence of Israel, though sovereign mercy will triumph in the end. But in the midst of it we have one more illuminating Messianic reference: "When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt" (Hos 11:1). That the MESSIAH is seen in this statement, the New Testament tells in Mat 2:15. He is seen as One who had identified Himself with the nation in grace, and who loves their history over again in His own person. Before passing from this, we note that Scripture, like man, is tripartite. It has an outer, or letter-meaning. This is the historical sense. "Modernists" seldom get beyond this. There is an inner, or prophetical sense; this is the soul of Scripture. There is also an inmost or spiritual sense. In Hos 11:1, the letter meaning refers to the deliverance of Israel out of Egypt. The prophetical, as given in Mat 2:15, refers to the MESSIAH. The spiritual, or mystical sense, refers to an "Egypt" in which many are in spiritual bondage, and out of which the LORD would redeem them: "And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our LORD was crucified" (Rev 11:8). So, of old, the LORD brought them out (Exo 12:51). Israel went out (Exo 12:41); and Egypt thrust them out (Exo 12:33). Through the death and resurrection of CHRIST, we are brought out. Through reckoning ourselves as having died unto sin, baptized into His death, we go out. But in the divine dealings with us, all kinds of difficulties frequently arise, by which we are thrust out. The Witness of Joel By many scholars Joel is regarded as the oldest of the writing prophets, and thus the first to use the term "the day of the LORD," so often taken up in the prophetic literature. The MESSIAH is not introduced in person, but in a wonderfully tender way His SPIRIT speaks in this prophecy. Thus who but the MESSIAH could speak in Joe 1:6-7, "For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion. He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree; he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white." Speaking of "my land," "my vine," "my fig-tree", do we not hear His intercession in Joe 1:19?: "O LORD, to thee will I cry!" Is this not the sympathetic identification of MESSIAH with the woes of His people? Again in Joe 2:1-32, we read: "And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit" (Joe 2:28-29). In John 1:1-51, the One who is there spoken of as the sin-bearing LAMB of GOD, is also the baptizer in the SPIRIT, by virtue of His being "Son of GOD." Beautiful is the way in which Joel refers to Mount Zion as the resource of GOD’s tribulated people. Zion speaks of the resources of grace established in a risen CHRIST. Christians, according to Heb 12:1-29, have come to Mount Zion. They are in the good of the Kingdom of GOD. Seven times does Joel bring in Zion as GOD’s resource, when the utter failure of man is made evident, as historically Zion does not appear in Scripture till everything established by GOD and committed to human responsibility had broken down; Priesthood in the house of Eli; the prophet in the evil sons of Samuel; the monarchy in the hands of Saul; the ark in captivity, and then hidden away in Kirjath-jearim, neglected and forgotten, etc. Then Zion became the center of the national and religious life of Israel. So CHRIST, risen from the dead, is the guarantee that all that GOD has purposed for His own glory and man’s good, will be eternally established. Joel says: "And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call" (Joe 2:32). The passage is applied to our LORD in Rom 10:13. "Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month." (Joe 2:23). The Witness of Amos Though Amos ministered during the prosperous days of Uzziah in Judah and the second Jeroboam in Israel, he clearly perceived the rottenness underneath the outward magnificence which would sooner or later break out and bring about the ruin of the two houses of Israel. GOD would shake them as with an earthquake. However, he saw that a remnant would be preserved: "Thus saith the LORD; As the shepherd taketh out of the mouth of the lion two legs, or a piece of an ear; so shall the children of Israel be taken out that dwell in Samaria in the corner of a bed, and in Damascus in a couch" (Amo 3:12) (Amo 5:3-14). Israel’s Shepherd would "deliver" them. And who can this Shepherd be but the One who says: "I am the good Shepherd?" (John 10:11) Again there is a distinct personal type of the MESSIAH as the Intercessor in Amo 7:2-9. The Prophets of Israel were no mere lookers on from a distance. The SPIRIT of CHRIST was in them, and formed in them Christ-like feelings about the situations revealed to them prophetically. But there is more. Amos saw that beyond the judgments there would be a glorious revival to the fallen tabernacle of David (Amo 9:9-15). Surely that revival could only be fulfilled in the risen CHRIST! In Him the destinies of the house of David find their goal. Here again the spirit of prophecy harks back to the original charter made with David in II Samuel: "And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever" (Amo 7:16). Even though the tree were hewn down and only a stump remained, yet out of it shall yet spring the lowly rod on which the seven-fold Spirit could rest: "And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD" (Isa 11:1-2). Hence the ancient synagogue called the MESSIAH Bar-Naphlim, that is: He who springs from the fallen family of David. The Witness of Jonah Passing over the brief prophecy of Obadiah, with its veiled reference to the MESSIAH in Saviours who will "go up on Mount Zion," under the leadership of the Jehovah-Saviour, for "the kingdom shall be the Lord’s" (Obadiah 1:21), we come to the book of the prophet Jonah. Perhaps no book in the Old Testament has been the target of the attacks of the enemies of revealed truth more than this. Yet its testimony to the MESSIAH is clear. We know how our LORD made use of Jonah’s "three days and three nights" in the deep as typical of His own experience "in the heart of the earth" (Mat 12:40) before resurrection. As Jonah was typically resurrected on "the third day," so our LORD in actuality. No doubt Jonah’s three days in the belly of the whale are intended to remind us of the fact that Israel, the runaway prophet-nation, has been swallowed up in the sea of the Gentiles, though miraculously preserved. Israel will yet learn that the MESSIAH has entered into their sorrows, which they have brought on themselves, for He shared them with them in sympathetic grace. Thus like they, He also was delivered to the Gentiles, beaten, spat upon, scourged and crucified by them, though He sank down into deeper sorrows, when He who knew no sin, was made sin for us. But He was heard from the horns of the unicorns and brought up out of the depths, where the waterfloods overflowed Him. And in His resurrection He, who in His cross was a sign spoken against: "And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against" (Luk 2:34), is now GOD’s great sign of salvation to penitents, as Jonah was to the Ninevites, and a sign to the Jews, because the grace they spurned, now goes out into the Gentile world: "But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here" (Mat 12:39-41). (5) The Witness of Micah SECTION I. Mic 1:1-16, Mic 2:1-13 In these chapters where GOD is seen coming out of His place to deal in judgment with the sins of His people, One is spoken of as the Breaker of their bonds, the remover of obstacles, the One who will make a way for them through all opposing forces, who is their anointed king and yet also the LORD at the head of them, in His twofold glory, human and divine: "The breaker is come up before them: they have broken up, and have passed through the gate, and are gone out by it: and their king shall pass before them, and the LORD on the head of them" (Mic 2:13), the Leader of a regenerated and reunited Israel. SECTION II. Mic 3:1-12, Mic 4:1-13, Mic 5:1-15 Here Micah becomes typical of CHRIST, for who else could use such language as is found in Mic 3:1-12 : "But truly I am full of power by the spirit of the LORD, and of judgment, and of might, to declare unto Jacob his transgression, and to Israel his sin" (Mic 3:8)? He is seen in contrast to the hireling priests and prophets, and the judges who accept bribes. For their sake Zion will become a heap of ruins. But the prophet looks beyond the desolations of Zion to her latter day glory: "But in the last days it shall come to pass that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it. And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken it" (Mic 4:1-4). It is a glorious vision of the Messianic age, that divine event toward which the whole creation moves, though it still seems so far off in this our day of disturbance and distress. Then abruptly the prophet brings in the Person who will usher in that latter day blessing both for Israel and the nations. The JUDGE of Israel, the One who fills Heaven with delight, smitten on the cheek! And yet "This man shall be the peace" (Mic 5:5) and "great unto the ends of the earth." (Mic 5:4) In between, in the second verse, comes a parenthetical prophecy of the birth of this majestic being. In His divine glory "from everlasting," (Mic 5:2) born into conditions of poverty in Bethlehem, the ancestral village of the family from which David sprung. Zion is desolate. It has no palace for her King, and so GOD reverts to Bethlehem, "little among the thousands of Judah," (Mic 5:2) to make a new start for the house of David. And yet, saith the LORD, He shall come forth unto Me! Not yet will Israel say: "Unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given." (Isa 9:6) Heaven alone recognizes the significance of this advent in His lowly birth. In the meantime Israel is given up till the pangs of travail seize upon her (Mic 5:3). "The time of Jacob’s trouble," (Jer 30:7) Israel’s "Peniel" of midnight distress, issuing in millennial day, which they will enter, broken and beaten into the dust, but divinely blessed. Then will Israel’s saved remnant be a heavenly dew among the nations and as a lion in kingly majesty: "And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people as a dew from the LORD, as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men. And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles in the midst of many people as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep: who, if he go through, both treadeth down, and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. Thine hand shall be lifted up upon thine adversaries, and all thine enemies shall be cut off" (Mic 5:7-9). SECTION III. Mic 6:1-16, Mic 7:1-20 Again the spirit of CHRIST is expressed in the prophet taking the burden of the people’s condition upon himself. In fact in chapter Mic 7:6 we get the very words our LORD used with reference to Himself, as the One whose presence in Israel separates His loves and those who reject Him: "For the son dishonoureth the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in law against her mother in law; a man’s enemies are the men of his own house." But the end is full of comfort. The Abrahamic covenant, culminating in his Messianic Seed, will never be cancelled. The Messianic salvation is sure. (6) The Witness of Habakkuk The prophecy of three chapters is in Hab 1:1-17, Hab 2:1-20 a dialogue between the prophet and the LORD. He voices his perplexities, as he finds himself in a world where the powers of darkness and of brute force seem to triumph over righteousness and truth. Babylon was the expression of the kingdom of evil hostile to the Kingdom of GOD, but the principle goes beyond the local background and coloring out of which the prophecy sprung. It is for our day also. It is clear that Habakkuk has an apocalyptic and eschatological outlook. And as the name of the prophet means "one embraced," he reminds us of "the disciple whom Jesus loved" and who "leaned on his breast," (John 21:20) and from thence reviewed the procession of events in the last hour. - Hab 1:1-17 speaks of the apparent triumph of the kingdoms of "this present evil world." (Gal 1:4) - Hab 2:1-20 of the Parousia of the MESSIAH, a vision sure to be fulfilled, though long delayed. Heb 10:37 shows that the early church saw CHRIST in that passage in Habakkuk: "For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry." The end is that "the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea." (Hab 2:14) This passage is found in beautiful connections in 2Co 4:6 : "The knowledge of the glory of God" is found "in the face of Jesus Christ", and illuminates our hearts. No wonder that Hab 3:1-19, which celebrates in a psalm the Parousia of JESUS in the end-time, to vindicate His holiness and establish His rights, ends with one of the most sublime expressions of confidence in GOD in a dark day, illustrating the doctrine learned by Habakkuk when on the watchtower, that "the just shall live by his faith" (Hab 2:4) Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The LORD God is my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds’ feet, and he will make me to walk upon mine high places" (Hab 3:17-19). He obtains "hinds’ feet" which enable him to leap beyond the confusion and distress of the present into the blessedness of the age to come. (7) The Witness of Isaiah It is in the sixty-six chapters of the book of the prophet Isaiah that we find the richest and sublimest unfoldings of the Messianic hope. As we are told in John 12:41, Isaiah "saw his glory," both in humiliation and exaltation, "and spake of him." We may divide the book into seven parts, Isa 1:1-31 being introductory. (a) Isaiah’s Early Ministry - Isa 2:1-22, Isa 3:1-26, Isa 4:1-6. The MESSIAH is not directly introduced, but there is a veiled reference to Him in Isa 4:1-6 : "In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel" (Isa 4:2). Speaking of the desolating judgments which would come upon Jerusalem, the prophet sees a time when a spared remnant would see and appreciate the beauty and glory of the Branch of the LORD and the excellency and comeliness of the fruit of the earth. Thus in the language of symbolism is the MESSIAH presented in His twofold glories, human and divine. "The branch of the LORD" speaks of His being the Son of GOD. "The fruit of the earth" as Israel’s and Mankind’s representative. As it has been said: "He is GOD presented to man; and He is Man presented to GOD." In this passage Isaiah anticipates the conversion of Israel, for first, as is still the case, "when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him." (Isa 53:2) "He shall grow up before him as a tender plant, as a root out of dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness" (Isa 53:2). But the veil of unbelief and prejudice will drop from the Jewish heart and the glory of the MESSIAH will then be apprehended. (b) Isaiah’s Apologia pro Vita Sua - Isa 6:1-13. This chapter clearly antedates the preceding messages, as it gives us the story of how Isaiah became a prophet. He had kept it a secret until forced to explain why he pronounced the six woes which are found in Isa 2:1-22, Isa 3:1-26, Isa 4:1-6, Isa 5:1-30. Before he ever uttered a single "woe" on others he had to pronounce "woe" on himself and then experience the cleansing by altar fire. What he "saw" was a vision of the MESSIAH in His pre-incarnate glory - "in the form of God" (Php 2:6) - a glory which He had with the Father before the world was, and which He has now re-entered as Man (John 17:1-26). He learned from the vision and the adoration of the seraphim that it is the deep and settled purpose of GOD to exalt the CHRIST high over all; to fill the earth with His glory; and, that which led to his personal dedication for service, to accomplish the end with the help of sanctified men who have offered themselves for this work. (c) The MESSIAH, the Sanctuary and Support of the Remnant - Isa 5:1-30, Isa 6:1-13, Isa 7:1-25, Isa 8:1-22. The account of Isaiah’s conversion, sanctification and commission comes in parenthetically in a larger section of great beauty and significance. They set forth man’s ruin and GOD’s reserve. The Virgin-born of the house of David is GOD’s reserve in a day of utter ruin, which has been graphically shown in Isa 5:1-30 and Isa 6:1-13. In Isa 5:1-30 man is seen thoroughly bankrupt in the light of privilege and responsibility. GOD has done everything possible for him and he has brought forth nothing but wild grapes. Isa 6:1-13 is a deeper test. Man is seen altogether unfit for the divine presence. He cannot stand in the light of His glory. Isa 7:1-25 brings in GOD’s reserve in grace. "Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel" (Isa 7:14). It is the primeval promise concerning the Seed of the Woman connected with the house of David. Isa 8:1-22. But GOD’s man is rejected: "Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem" (Isa 8:13-14). Nevertheless He becomes a Sanctuary to those who sanctify Him as LORD in their hearts: "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear." (1Pe 3:15) and see Rev 5:1-14. The "testimony" will be committed unto such (Isa 8:16) as they patiently wait for the day when the rejected CHRIST will have His rights: "And I will wait upon the LORD, that hideth his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him" (Isa 8:17). They will have divine light in the midst of darkness: "And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead? To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them" (Isa 8:19-20). They share His rejection: "For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren. Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee. And again, I will put my trust in him. And again. Behold I and the children which God hath given me" (Heb 2:10-13), and are being conducted as sons into the glory where the rejected MESSIAH is now. (d) The Messianic Quest - Isa 9:1-21, Isa 10:1-34, Isa 11:1-16, Isa 12:1-6, Isa 13:1-22, Isa 14:1-32, Isa 15:1-9, Isa 16:1-14, Isa 17:1-14, Isa 18:1-7, Isa 19:1-25, Isa 20:1-6, Isa 21:1-17, Isa 22:1-25, Isa 23:1-18, Isa 24:1-23, Isa 25:1-12, Isa 26:1-21, Isa 27:1-13, Isa 28:1-29, Isa 29:1-24, Isa 30:1-33, Isa 31:1-9. These chapters cover the greater part of the first section in the book of Isaiah. Their background is the Assyrian invasion in the eighth century and the disturbed condition of the land resulting therefrom. But again and again the prophet turns aside to feast his eyes on the picture of One revealed to him, who would, as far as he then knew, arise after the troubles of his times. His faith leaped over the intervening centuries and living in the light of His advent. In Isa 9:1-2, we have the Galilean ministry of the LORD. We read of "Galilee of the nations" (Isa 9:1), a remarkable statement! It did not become this till our Lord’s time, many Greek mercenaries and Roman colonists having settled there. In Isa 9:3 Israel is a rejoicing nation once more because the rejected MESSIAH is seen by faith and appropriated. It is the Millennial Israel, greatly enlarged, celebrating the feast of Tabernacles. But that day will be ushered in by judgments: "For thou hast broken the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, as in the day of Midian. For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire" (Isa 9:4-5). In Isa 9:6 we have patient Israel keeping Christmas, celebrating the birth of the Christ-Child. Five names belong to this blessed Babe: (1) "Wonderful" (see Jdg 13:18 Note: same word in Hebrew as "secret" - it means a miracle); (2) "Counsellor" - He never needs to ask advice; (3) "Mighty GOD"; (4) "Everlasting FATHER," or Father of a new age - He will make all things new! (5) "Prince of Peace," whose kingdom will grow until, not only the uttermost parts of the earth (Psa 2:1-12), but Heaven and earth (Mat 28:18) and the entire universe, including those "under the earth" (that is, in the infernal regions) will own His supremacy (Php 2:10-11). Isa 11:1-16 is a ravishingly beautiful vision of the MESSIAH and His spiritual kingdom, the effects of which will reach as far as the renovation of nature and the restoration of Eden. It begins with the house of David reduced to the smallness and poverty of its beginnings. But it shall renew its youth in the Messianic rod out of the roots of the tree which had been ruthlessly felled. On this unsightly branch the sevenfold SPIRIT of the LORD rests. The word "Netzer," translated "Branch," is the root from which we get "Nazareth" and "Nazarene." This passage is quoted in Rom 15:10, and is there stamped as having its fulfillment in our LORD. While there is a distinct reference to "the rod of his mouth, and... the breath of his lips" of Isa 11:4 in 2Th 2:8 and Rev 1:16; Rev 19:15, the sevenfold anointing on His head being alluded to in Rev 1:4; Rev 4:5; Rev 5:6. Isa 28:1-29, Isa 29:1-24, Isa 30:1-33, Isa 31:1-9. After the apocalyptic imagery of Isa 24:1-23, Isa 25:1-12, Isa 26:1-21, Isa 27:1-13 we find ourselves again in the midst of the historical events of the 8th century B.C. And imbedded in them is the re-assuring prophecy concerning the Precious Corner Stone (Isa 28:16) and the delightful description of ideal Man who is "a hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land" (Isa 32:2). The conditions prevailing in the land made the prophet long for such a corner stone, stedfast in the midst of disturbances and for such a Rock in the shadow of which men might find security and shelter. Messianic Prophecy was ever the divine answer to the desires He Himself had created in the human heart. The sure foundation on which faith can build safely amidst all uncertainties, is the echo of the earlier Immanuel prophecy. "God with us" became the slogan of the believing remnant, and it was with this assurance the proud Assyrian was defied. See Psa 46:1-11, written with those exercises as occasion, "The Immanuel Psalm," as we gather from Psa 46:7-11, a psalm which will obtain a new and deeper meaning when the hard-pressed remnant of Israel of the end-time will learn to shout "Immanuel" in the midst of their tribulations. Then will they discover the precious corner stone, divinely laid in Zion long ago, for such a time as that. (e) The New Order - Isa 32:1-20, Isa 33:1-24, Isa 34:1-17, Isa 35:1-10. Then will they learn the mystery of Godliness. GOD manifest in the flesh, the Man who has divine attributes and prerogatives. "God is our refuge and strength" (Psa 46:1) - a Man shall be all this to His defenseless people, as it was a Man who wrestled with their ancestor till the break of day, yet declared by the patriarch to have been GOD, whom he had seen face to face. They will then behold "The King in his beauty" (Isa 33:17), the same King whom Micah saw smitten on the cheek (Mic 5:1); not some failing representative in past history of the royal line of David, not even good King Hezekiah, but the super human "King" of Psa 45:1-17, who is "fairer than the children of men," to whom the words of adoration are addressed: "Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever" (Psa 45:1-6). It is in Isa 40:1-31, Isa 41:1-29, Isa 42:1-25, Isa 43:1-28, Isa 44:1-28, Isa 45:1-25, Isa 46:1-13 that the Messianic prophecy reaches its highest heights and plumbs its deepest depths. The Introduction of Isa 40:1-31 is majestic beyond all words. It links on directly with the last chapter of prophetic visions (Isa 35:1-10). Isa 36:1-22, Isa 37:1-38, Isa 38:1-22, Isa 39:1-8 are historical and divide between the three visions of judgment, ending with glory visions in the first part, and the three visions of peace ending with a warning of judgment, in the latter. Isa 40:1-31 takes up the broken thread of Isa 35:1-10. The "Highway to Holiness" becomes the cast up way in the wilderness for the return of the glory into Israel’s long desolate house. And the revelation of the glory of the LORD will be that of a Shepherd carrying the lambs in His bosom. (f) The Ideal Servant - Isa 42:1-25, Isa 43:1-28, Isa 44:1-28, Isa 45:1-25, Isa 46:1-13, Isa 47:1-15, Isa 48:1-22, Isa 49:1-26, Isa 50:1-11, Isa 51:1-23, Isa 52:1-15, Isa 53:1-12. Isa 40:1-31, Isa 41:1-29, Isa 42:1-25, Isa 43:1-28, Isa 44:1-28, Isa 45:1-25, Isa 46:1-13 are an epitome of the New Testament, beginning with the ministry of John the Baptist, the forerunner of the MESSIAH, and ending with a preview of the new heavens and the new earth. The central chapter is the core of the New Testament, The unveiling of the Cross. In Isa 42:1-25, Isa 43:1-28, Isa 44:1-28, Isa 45:1-25, Isa 46:1-13, Isa 47:1-15, Isa 48:1-22, Isa 49:1-26, Isa 50:1-11, Isa 51:1-23, Isa 52:1-15, Isa 53:1-12 the great theme is the Ideal Servant of the LORD. When Israel failed there still remained an indestructible seed which preserved the continuity of her best life. This holy seed alone realizes the spiritual vocation of Israel and is the true Israel. But this remnant is feeble and limited in every direction. It needs a leader, a Centre, one from whom it can derive inspiration and who can command its activities. And so in four songs this individual "Servant" is spoken of, the representative of Israel, and called by the name of Israel, to whom the genius of Israel comes to expression and the life of Israel to flower and fruit. These four songs are found in (1) Isa 42:1-25, (2) Isa 49:1-26, (3) Isa 50:1-11, (4) Isa 52:13-15, Isa 53:1-12. It is a transcendent personality who comes to view there, distinguished from Israel (Isa 49:5-6) and rejected by that nation, whose true personification He is, fulfilling her God-given destiny on earth. In Isa 42:1-25 the ideal Servant is presented. In Isa 59:1-21 the ideal is realized. In chapter 1 the nation of Israel rejects Him. Isa 52:13-15, Isa 53:1-12 show how penitent Israel will finally receive the ideal, moved to jealousy by "the fullness of the Gentiles" (Rom 11:25) whose light and salvation the rejected "Servant" has become. Twenty times we read of the Servant of JEHOVAH in Isa 48:8-22, Isa 49:1-26, Isa 50:1-11, Isa 51:1-23, Isa 52:1-15, Isa 53:1-12. After that the term disappears. Another, the "Servants" takes its place some ten times. After the Cross of Isa 53:1-12 the one Servant works through the many servants who are progressively changed into His image. Historically this is being fulfilled, during the long period of Jewish unbelief, in a new and larger and universal Israel. Israel’s still unfulfilled prophecy of world-wide service has become the conscience of Christianity. And will not this, when the Church wakes up to her proper calling, provoke Israel to jealousy at last (Rom 11:11)? * * The ideal Servant presented in Isaiah 11 to 66, unites in Himself the threefold concept of the word "MESSIAH," the three divinely appointed functions in Israel to which the idea of "MESSIAH" (or "ANOINTED") was attached, those of Prophet, Priest and King. In Isa 42:1-25, the Servant is the Prophet who publishes salvation and establishes judgment, that is true religion, in the world. In Isa 53:1-12, He is the Priest who offers the perfect sacrifice and who intends to sprinkle many nation. In Isa 49:7-9 and Isa 52:13-15, He is the King to whom the Kings of the earth will yet render homage in the day of His power. (g) Summary of the "Servant" Songs The Songs refer clearly to a Person distinguished from Israel whom He represents. See Isa 49:1, Isa 49:5-6. If Israel be the Servant, who is the "He," and who are the "we"? "Surely, He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows," etc. (Isa 53:4) 1. The vocation of the Servant. The words: "I have put my Spirit upon Him" (Isa 42:1), mark Him out as the Anointed (i.e. Messiah). He brings forth judgment (i.e. the true religion) to the Gentiles. See also Isa 49:6 : "He is the Salvation (of GOD) unto the end of the earth." Thus He establishes a universal (i.e. a world-wide) religion. 2. His character. In spite of His exalted calling, He is subdued, humble, and of extreme gentleness (Isa 42:2-3). 3. His personal appearance. He looked unattractive. Men turned from Him. Appearances were against Him. Yet His innocence was evident. There was neither deceit nor violence in Him. He suffered not for His own sins. "He was wounded for our transgressions." (Isa 53:5) Another proof that He is the Messiah is that kings and princes fall down before Him. Many nations are sprinkled from their impurity by His priestly ministry (compare Isa 49:6-7 with Isa 52:15). The suffering Servant is led like a lamb to the slaughter and cut off out of the land of the living. A malefactor’s grave is prepared for Him, though finally He is laid in a rich man’s tomb. He pours forth His soul unto death, He makes Himself an offering for others’ sins. But in resurrection He sees an abundant "seed"; He divides the spoil with the strong, and the pleasure of Jehovah prospers in His hand. It is in resurrection that He accomplishes the great Messianic program committed to Him. Isa 52:13-15, Isa 53:1-12 The unveiling of the Cross. Every New Testament writer, except James and Jude, applies it to our Lord. Its five strophes have three verses each and give in their opening words the key note. Thus: (1) "Behold my Servant shall deal... be exalted and extolled, and be very high" . . . (Isa 52:13) His certain exaltation. (2) "Who hath believed? . . . (Isa 53:1) Israel’s unbelief. (3) "Surely He hath borne our griefs" . . . (Isa 53:4) The vicarious nature of His sufferings. (4) "He was oppressed . . . yet He opened not His mouth." (Isa 53:7) The power of His silent submission. (5) "It pleased the Lord to bruise Him." (Isa 53:10) The divine purpose to vindicate and glorify Him. The poem ends as it began with the counsels of GOD to exalt the rejected Messiah. The Man of Divine Selection The four "Servant" songs bring before us the Man whom GOD has chosen. They thus give us the very heart of Messianic prophecy, for "the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy." (Rev 19:10) The prophetic Word points out the Man of GOD’s purpose, and the kind of Man who will finally rule in GOD’s universe, people it with a generation after His own order. We see Him as presented to GOD for His approval and selection, and we see Him too as presented to us for our approval and selection. For thirty years He lived in obscurity and abject poverty. Then at His baptism, under the opened heavens, GOD made a public declaration of His irrevocable choice: "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased." (Mat 3:17) Then also was His holy humanity anointed by the Dove-like SPIRIT. It was an application of both Psa 2:1-12 and Isa 42:1-25. But it was a critical moment for the world. If GOD publicly declared His choice, would men join in it? Alas! Man’s choice and GOD’s are not always the same. The fleshly mind has another kind of man in view, and he will yet come into view having many forerunners, the Antichrist, the super-man, the contrast to the God-Man. No wonder his number is three times six (Rev 13:1-18). Man’s proper number is five. Everything about him is in fives: five senses, five fingers, five toes, etc. Seven is the number of divine perfection. Six is the effort of fallen man to exalt himself above the level of the human, but he cannot reach up to perfection by self-exaltation. The flesh in true saints has often chosen the wrong man. Thus Abraham pleaded for Ishmael; Isaac would have blessed profane Esau; Joseph would have prevented Ephraim from obtaining the priority; Samuel looked at the outward appearance of the stalwart sons of Jesse, when forgotten David was the man after GOD’s heart. Israel was always rejecting GOD’s Man for the moment, as Stephen pointed out in his Apologia (Acts 7:1-60). Finally they shouted: "Not this Man, but Barabbas!" (John 18:40) And later on they will put themselves under the protection of "the Beast," to their unspeakable sorrow. One came in His Father’s name and they received Him not, another will come in his own name, and him they will receive. So in Isaiah: "When we shall see Him . . . no beauty!" (Isa 53:2) Yet the One "disallowed... of men" is "chosen of GOD" (1Pe 2:4-5). Finally penitent Israel will ratify GOD’s choice. (h) The Book of Consolation. Chapters 40-66. It is evident that the ministry of Isaiah had three generations in mind. (1) His own times (chapters 1-35); (2) the generations of the Exile (Isa 40:1-31, Isa 41:1-29, Isa 42:1-25, Isa 43:1-28, Isa 44:1-28, Isa 45:1-25, Isa 46:1-13, Isa 47:1-15, Isa 48:1-22); (3) The generation living in Israel’s darkest hour, at the time of the end, just before the dawn of her brightest day (Isa 40:1-31, Isa 41:1-29, Isa 42:1-25, Isa 43:1-28, Isa 44:1-28, Isa 45:1-25, Isa 46:1-13, Isa 47:1-15, Isa 48:1-22, Isa 49:1-26, Isa 50:1-11, Isa 51:1-23, Isa 52:1-15, Isa 53:1-12, Isa 54:1-17, Isa 55:1-13, Isa 56:1-12, Isa 57:1-21, Isa 58:1-14, Isa 59:1-21, Isa 60:1-22, Isa 61:1-11, Isa 62:1-12, Isa 63:1-19, Isa 64:1-12, Isa 65:1-25, Isa 66:1-24). Isaiah knew from the beginning that his generation would reject his ministry (Isa 6:1-13). In the chapters beginning with Isa 40:1-31, his spirit is projected into the future. He beholds the long-drawn exile and the closing agony before divine deliverance. They are in three groups of nine chapters each, in which the threefold controversy with Israel is taken up and settled. (1) Isa 40:1-31, Isa 41:1-29, Isa 42:1-25, Isa 43:1-28, Isa 44:1-28, Isa 45:1-25, Isa 46:1-13, Isa 47:1-15, Isa 48:1-22 : How Israel is delivered from idolatry. (2) Isa 49:1-26, Isa 50:1-11, Isa 51:1-23, Isa 52:1-15, Isa 53:1-12, Isa 54:1-17, Isa 55:1-13, Isa 56:1-12, Isa 57:1-21 : How Israel is at last won over to recognize the MESSIAH. (3) Isa 58:1-14, Isa 59:1-21, Isa 60:1-22, Isa 61:1-11, Isa 62:1-12, Isa 63:1-19, Isa 64:1-12, Isa 65:1-25, Isa 66:1-24 : Israel’s final deliverance from "Judaism" and self-righteousness, in order to take up her world-wide witness to spiritual religion. (i) The Sure Mercies of David. Isa 54:1-17, Isa 55:1-13, Isa 56:1-12, Isa 57:1-21, Isa 58:1-14, Isa 59:1-21, Isa 60:1-22, Isa 61:1-11, Isa 62:1-12, Isa 63:1-19, Isa 64:1-12, Isa 65:1-25, Isa 66:1-24. In Isa 54:1-17 we have the glory of the New Jerusalem and in Isa 55:1-13 we have Messiah’s appeal to the Gentile world. As Isa 53:1-12 is the story of His atoning sacrifice, the foundation of all good; Isa 54:1-17, the application of His redeeming work to the new and spiritual Israel; Isa 55:1-13 gives us the overflow of the blessing to the Gentiles. "Ho! Everyone that thirsteth . . ." (Isa 55:1) There is "water," "wine," "milk" and "bread" to satisfy the needs of the ends of the earth. We hear the testimony to the risen Christ in Isa 55:3 : "Incline your ear and come unto me: hear and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David." (Isa 55:3) That the early Church saw the resurrection of the MESSIAH in these words is clear from Acts 13:32-34. If the Messianic representative of the house of David be "cut off out of the land of the living," (Isa 53:8) how could the covenant with that house (2Sa 7:1-29) be fulfilled, except the slain MESSIAH be raised again? David’s name is in the beginning and at the end of the New Testament (Mat 1:1; Rev 22:16). And it is part of Paul’s gospel that JESUS CHRIST of the seed of David was raised from the dead (2Ti 2:8). It is in resurrection that the Davidic covenant, which embraces the Kingdom of GOD over all nations, is fulfilled, as Peter argued on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:25-36). And it is He, the risen MESSIAH, who according to Jer 30:9, is called "David," whom GOD has given as the Witness, Leader and of the peoples. This is an echo of the ancient "Shiloh"-prophecy: "Unto Him shall the gathering of the people be." (Gen 49:10) Israel cannot exhaust the mercies sworn to David. Hence redeemed Israel is addressed in Isa 55:5 : "Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee, because of the Lord thy GOD, and for the Holy One of Israel, for He hath glorified thee." (Isa 55:5) To spread the blessings of the everlasting covenant made with the house of David will be the Millennial ministry of regenerated Israel. Israel will then be "glorified" by the glory-presence of the MESSIAH in her midst. (j) The Jubilee Proclaimed As the jubilee trumpet was sounded after the expiration of the Day of Atonement, the High Priest having resumed his garments of glory and beauty, so after the passion of the cross, the PRIEST-MESSIAH resumed His glory (John 17:1-26) and the glad tidings of the jubilee could then be proclaimed. This lies at the heart of Isa 60:1-22, Isa 61:1-11, Isa 62:1-12 of this portion of Isaiah’s prophecy. In Isa 59:1-21 we have Israel’s day of Atonement and national repentance. We can almost hear the High-Priest confessing the "transgressions," "sins," and "iniquities" of the people (Isa 59:12-13). Then, after the penitential wail, a new day dawns for the people. Our Lord found His message and ministry in Isa 61:1-11, and openly declared that He was the fulfillment of those inspired words, in His inaugural sermon at Nazareth (Luk 4:1-44). Orthodox Judaism had become mere "Biblicism," the letter of the Book had become central and all-sufficing, the living GOD was not known. Christianity, on the other hand, is pre-eminently the religion of a Person, but a religion with the Book which testifies of Him. It is very significant, that our LORD "closed the Book... and sat down. And the eyes of all them... were fastened upon Him," (Luk 4:20) while He said: "This day is this Scripture fulfilled in your ears." (Luk 4:21) The Book is not the end, but a means to the end, and that end is the Divine-Human CHRIST. We hear three voices in Isa 61:1-11. In Isa 61:1-3 the Anointed Man Himself speaks. He presents Himself as Prophet and Evangelist, as Physician and Saviour of souls. He not only announces spiritual good, He bestows it. He binds up broken hearts. That is a peculiarly divine prerogative. "The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart, and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit" (Psa 34:18) and again: "He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds. He telleth the number of the stars, and calleth them all by their names. Great is the Lord, and of great power: His understanding is infinite" (Psa 147:3-5) and again: Majesty and meekness are combined here. The architect of the skies is the surgeon of human souls. And thus we find in the great Messianic pronouncement of Isa 61:1-11 how Deity and humanity unite in the Anointed man. The second voice is that of the SPIRIT through the prophet (Isa 61:4-9). The salvation bestowed by the MESSIAH is described. His people become "priests" and are "the seed which the Lord hath blessed." Finally, the redeemed themselves speak (Isa 61:10-11). The joy and gratitude of the new Israel of the end-time (or of the church drawn now from all nations to form one believing family) is expressed. It is adorned with bridal beauty and clothed in a righteousness not her own. It becomes a garden where the fruit of the SPIRIT is brought forth. It joys in GOD through the MESSIAH in whom it has obtained the reconciliation. The spiritual blessing of the year of Jubilee, "the acceptable year of the Lord," (Isa 61:2) are already imparted, as the fruit of the Atonement, wherever faith welcomes the divine approach in grace, while awaiting a still wider diffusion in that phase of the kingdom of GOD in which all things shall be subdued under the feet of our Lord. (8) The Witness of Jeremiah In some respects Jeremiah is the greatest of the post-Mosaic prophets, as he prepared a remnant for the Exile, making the return from it possible. In his personal experiences he was strangely JESUS-like, a type of Him in an Old Testament setting. He endured a long martyrdom because of his obedience to the heavenly vision. His book is made up to a considerable extent of extracts from the diary of his inner life; the phases of his secret history with GOD; his misgivings and sinkings of heart; his doubts and problems. But it was thus he became an iron wall and a brazen pillar against which priests, princes and people dashed themselves in vain for over forty years. Jeremiah is pre-eminently the prophet of the spirit of the new covenant, but he has also his own special contribution to make to the unfolding of the Messianic Hope. There are two outstanding utterances which claim our attention. At the time when things were rapidly nearing the end, after the deportation of King Jehoiachin and the accompanying scattering of the people (Jer 23:3), Jeremiah was permitted to look beyond the dismal present and the still more terrifying future, to behold the arising of that righteous Branch of David in whose days a reunited Israel would be "saved." "And this is the name whereby He shall be called: the LORD our Righteousness" (Jer 23:1-6). This consolatory prediction is repeated in chapter Jer 33:14-16 during Jeremiah’s imprisonment, at the instigation of the princes of Judah in the tenth year of Zedekiah. Again he calls the MESSIAH the Zemach Tzaddik - the righteous Branch; and again he names Him JEHOVAH Tzidkeun, a name which the new and regenerated Jerusalem of the end time will have put upon her, as a bride takes on the name of her husband on her wedding day. In that day will Israel renounce her own righteousness and glory in no other righteousness except that which is in CHRIST. Thus is the MESSIAH considered as the Mediator of Salvation and righteousness - righteousness to enable sinful man to stand before GOD, and salvation to deliver him from the fear and oppression of the enemy. See Rom 10:9-10 : "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the LORD JESUS and shalt believe in thine heart that God has raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." Thus is "the good thing" (Jer 33:14) which GOD has promised, "performed," even today to every penitent believer, while the nation of Israel is still at odds with GOD concerning this matter (See Rom 10:1-4) and must perforce wait for its fulfillment. (a) Jeremiah and JESUS Though six centuries separate between Jeremiah and JESUS, the times in which they lived and labored were in many aspects alike. Both lived in the shadow of an impending catastrophe - the fall of Jerusalem. The temple as well as the throne were doomed in the days of Jeremiah, and the Jewish religion as established in glory in Jerusalem, was about to pass away in the days of JESUS. In both instances true religion was buried under a crust of formalism and empty talk. It is remarkable that the common people, when JESUS was here, saw points of resemblance between Him and Jeremiah (Mat 16:14). Both were men of the country, and the beauties of nature had a powerful appeal to them. Both had the background of a distinguished ancestry and the advantage of having been reared in a pious home. Both were early conscious of their high destiny. JESUS saw it at the age of twelve. So in Jer 1:17, the word "lad" means a boy of twelve years. And both refused matrimony (Jer 16:2). Both had to face the same crisis in their public life. Jeremiah stood in the temple and called it "a den of thieves," as JESUS did afterwards (Jer 7:11 and Mat 21:13). Both were known for their tears, as their patriotic heart broke over the misfortunes of the people they loved in spite of their sins. When our LORD partook of the farewell meal with His disciples, the shadow of Jeremiah fell on the occasion (compare Jer 31:31 with Luk 22:20). But in one thing they were miles apart. Our LORD was sweet to the end. Jeremiah broke down (Jer 18:21-23). Never a murmuring word escaped the lips of JESUS. He said: "the cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?" (John 18:11) But Jeremiah, like our LORD, intensely lonely on the human side, had an intimate fellowship with GOD, which was his compensation amidst the heart-breaking experiences that made up his public life. (b) The New Covenant It is to the book of Jeremiah we owe the term which is characteristic of Christianity, i.e., "New Covenant." Hence our LORD is spoken of as "the Mediator" of this new covenant (or testament) (Heb 9:1-28). According to the letter of Jer 31:1-40 the New covenant belongs to Judah and Israel. But according to the SPIRIT it belongs to Gentiles also (See 2Co 3:6). "After those days," (Jer 31:33) says Jeremiah. This is more than a point in chronology. It is a moral thought. After Israel’s long unbelief; breaking the Law; persecuting the prophets; betraying the MESSIAH and delivering Him over to the Gentiles, who by the hands of lawless men crucified Him; after the long and futile effort to establish a righteousness of their own; the new covenant. When human failure and bankruptcy is fully demonstrated, Grace. "Not according to the [old] covenant." (Jer 31:32) The old turned around the words "thou shalt." The new turns around GOD’s "I will." The new covenant has three engagements: (1) The Law in both heart and mind, really a new birth, a new nature. (2) They shall all know Me (know Me in themselves, J. N. Darby), i.e. conscious knowledge. (3) Sins no more remembered. The conscience purged. How? See Heb 10:1-39. In "the world to come," Israel will have the Law written in their hearts. This is celebrated in Psa 119:1-176, the language of the new Israel under the new covenant. We, today, have CHRIST written on our hearts. Then will "the righteousness of the Law" be fulfilled in us (Rom 8:4) And that righteous requirement is "love" (see Rom 13:9-10). Then also we shall have a firsthand knowledge of GOD, for "every one that loveth is born of GOD, and knoweth GOD" (1Jn 4:7). And knowing by the witness of the SPIRIT that our sins and our iniquities GOD will remember no more, we have boldness to enter into the holiest of all (Heb 10:17-19). (9) The Witness of Ezekiel Ezekiel was one of the early captives when King Jehoiachin and the flower of the country were dragged away to Babylonia. Five years after he was called to the prophetic office. As he sat among the captives of Judah by the banks of Chebar, entering into their feelings, their mute despair, unable to find suitable words to express their discouragement, the heavens opened over him and he saw how the Shekinah, supported by the heavenly cherubim, had gone into exile with the exiled people, and was actually hovering over their camp, though they knew it not. He saw the majesty of the GOD of Israel, in human form, in the amber glory, on the throne. And he heard himself addressed, when prostrated in the presence of the glory, with the same name by which he had designated JEHOVAH on the throne: "Son of Man." (Eze 2:1) The Man in Heaven and the stricken man in the dust, had affinity; for is not man made in the image of GOD? Out of the opened heavens Ezekiel got his commission. He ate the roll which was handed down to him, sweet to the palate, but bitter when digested. And out of the glory he heard that though the exiles were deprived of the temple and the externalia of religion, JEHOVAH Himself would be their sanctuary in every place in which they might find themselves, scattered, broken and disjointed captives of war under the chastenings of the government of GOD. The MESSIAH was seen by him as a bright jewel of hope and consolation against the dark background of his times. (a) In contrast to the evil shepherds of Israel, He would be the one good Shepherd. His name is "My Servant David"; He bears the name "David" because in Him the hopes of the house of David are realized (Eze 34:23-24) and through Him will JEHOVAH negotiate "a covenant of peace" (Eze 34:25, Eze 37:26)with them. This hoped for sprout of David’s felled tree, is also called "a plant of renown" (Eze 34:29), who will invest Israel with glory and splendor again. (b) The title "my Servant David" occurs again in chapter Eze 37:24. In Him and under Him shall the divided nation become harmonized again. In His hands the two sticks of Judah and Joseph shall grow together into one stick. (c) Beautiful is the Messianic parable of Eze 17:1-24. The tender twig which JEHOVAH plucks from the cedar of the house of David, doomed to be cut down in judgment, and which is planted on the mountain of Israel, becomes a goodly cedar, beneath whose shelter "all fowl of every wing" (Eze 17:23) will find a home. Jehoiachin, the proud top of the cedar, is carried away to Babylon (Eze 17:3-4); Zedekiah, the vine, which pined for the waters of the Nile, the river of Egypt, is uprooted and withers away. But the tender one of his young twigs (Eze 17:22) , reminding us of Isa 11:1; Isa 53:2 will re-establish the dignity of the fallen dynasty of David. (d) In Eze 21:25-27, the last king of Judah is addressed as a profane, wicked prince, whose day is come, whose iniquity will have an end. The diadem will fall from his head. But after the overturnings comes One whose right it is to wear the royal crown dashed from the unworthy head of Zedekiah. And indeed, the universe will join the chorus: "Crown Him, Crown Him, LORD of all!" "He... whose right it is," (Eze 21:27) are words which are wrapped up in the Hebrew "Shiloh," and are thus an echo of the ancient prophecy concerning the MESSIAH (Gen 49:1-33), GOD’s resource in the face of the breakdown of everything committed in responsibility to man, whether as prophet, priest or king. ~ end of chapter 5 ~ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 25: 02.06. THE HOPE SCHEDULED ======================================================================== Chapter 6 THE HOPE SCHEDULED THE EXILE cut a deep notch in the history of the covenant-people. To the mass it was an unexplainable mystery, but to an exercised remnant a discipline and an education. To the prophets raised up from this time too, the exile appeared as a necessary prelude to the re-establishment of a holy community in the city and land of their fathers. And it is clear they expected the MESSIAH to appear during the life-time of the restored Jerusalem and of the new order set up by the exiles who had returned from Babylon. The prophets we have in mind are Daniel, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi, and we will now briefly consider their testimony to the time of the appearing of the expected One. (1) The Witness of Daniel (a) The Seventy "Weeks" or Sabbatical Years. Dan 9:1-27. If in the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of the world-empires under the figure of a colossal image of a man, the coming of the universal Kingdom of GOD takes place after the destruction of Gentile military imperialism (Dan 2:1-49); and if in Dan 7:1-28 the Son of Man coming in the clouds of Heaven, ends the rule of the beast-empires; then in Dan 9:1-27, we see a messianic appearing previous to this glorious display of power. It was the angel Gabriel, who afterwards announced the birth of the MESSIAH to His virgin-mother, who imparted to Daniel His coming to suffer before His appearing in kingly majesty. "Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy." (Dan 9:24) These seventy weeks (or sabbatic years) are then subdivided as follows: "Know therefore and understand that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the MESSIAH the Prince shall be seven weeks and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times." (Dan 9:25) Here are sixty-nine weeks of years - broken up into seven and sixty-two. Why that? Because from Nehemiah to Malachi, who closes the Old Testament canon, were forty-nine years. Then came the long silence of sixty-two weeks of years - which ran out on the very day our LORD was presented to Jerusalem and officially announced as MESSIAH, according to the prophecy of Zec 9:1-17. Sixty-nine weeks of years after Nehemiah was commanded to set up again the walls of Jerusalem the scheduled arrival of the MESSIAH took place. (Mat 21:1-46). One more "week" remains, and during that week a terrible tragedy took place. "After threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself." (Dan 9:26) It was only a few days after the triumphal entry on Palm Sunday, that our LORD was hounded to His death. And the result? "The people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined." (Dan 9:26) (b) The Jewish War This war is not yet ended. The longest and most cruel war in history, the war with the people guilty of Messiah’s death. The reason that this war is still going on is because the Jewish people have not yet accepted the divinely offered terms of peace. They will remain, till then, wanderers among the nations. Again a long gap, before the final seventieth week. GOD does not count time when Israel is outside of her inheritance. But returned in unbelief, they will put themselves under the protection of the prince whose people destroyed city and sanctuary in A.D. 70 - the last representative of the Roman Empire, under which our LORD was crucified. "He shall confirm [or make strong] the covenant with many for one week." (Dan 9:27) Will he confirm and strengthen the Mandate given by the League of Nations to make it possible for the Jewish people to re-establish their ancient homeland in Palestine? We know it has lapsed in execution. Howbeit, he will prove a treacherous friend. "In the midst of the week," (Dan 9:27) he will break his covenant with the Jews and put a stop to the temple ritual with its daily sacrifice. And that will be the end. The treacherous "prince," known in Rev 13:1-18 as "the Beast," will want to set up his image in the temple as an object of adoration, and put the worship of the true GOD under an interdict. But that will be the hour when the heavens will open and the LORD will be revealed in flaming fire to vindicate the rights of GOD. We have seen from Dan 9:25-26 that Messiah’s being "cut off" results in "war," "desolations," and the destruction of both city and sanctuary. We know that this took place at A.D. 70. Ever since then the Jewish people have been captives of war among all nations. Their seasons of prosperity have always been rudely interrupted by fresh outbreaks of anti-Jewish animosity. They have no security of tenure anywhere. But in Dan 9:27 they are seen worshipping in Jerusalem in a sanctuary. But alas! they will still be in unbelief. There is a long gap between the temple destroyed in Dan 9:26, and the building of another temple and the resumption of sacrifices in Dan 9:27. The calling out of the Gentiles fills that gap. See Rom 11:25 : When "the fulness of the Gentiles" has been brought in, then will the REDEEMER come again to Zion and turn away ungodliness from Jacob. The treading down of Jerusalem will be ended then. Her warfare is accomplished at last. (Isa 40:2). (2) The Witness of Haggai The restoration from Babylon was a necessity for the fulfillment of the purposes of GOD. The little flock that gathered in weakness, in poverty and reproach, amidst the ruins of their ancient home, and set up an House for JEHOVAH’s Name, built better than they knew. There had to be a Home into which in the fulness of time the blessed Babe of Bethlehem could be welcomed. And as it was under a Joshua that the people of Israel first took possession of the land, so now, it was under another Joshua - the High Priest, that they made a fresh start, and that as a congregation devoted to JEHOVAH, and not as an independent state. The priest-prophet Haggai delivered four addresses. It would appear that his prophetic ministry was committed to him in his old age, and it brought about a revival of religious fervor among the discouraged people, who had enthusiastically laid the foundation of the temple, but allowed themselves to be intimidated by their enemies and so had put off the work of completing the temple. The messages of Haggai proved electric, and the people began with fresh zeal to finish the work of temple building (Ezr 5:1-2; Ezr 6:14). It is in his second and fourth messages that Haggai brings in the Messianic expectation. He predicted that the hopes of the people for glory would be connected with the second temple, so insignificant in comparison with the first. So Hag 2:6-9 predicts the shaking of Heaven and earth, and of all nations, and that the Desire of all nations would come and the house would be filled with glory. The shaking of all nations would result in their awakening to the recognition of spiritual values - and the poverty stricken appearance of the latter house would give place to a glory which Solomon’s temple never knew. "And in this place will I give peace, saith the LORD of hosts." (Hag 2:9) "The Desire of all nations shall come," (Hag 2:7) proclaimed Haggai. In the Hebrew the word for "desire" is in the plural, which gives the value of the superlative to the idea conveyed. The reference is undoubtedly to CHRIST. What the nations only hope for and seek after, blindly groping after it, finds its true goal in Him. Whether it be a warless world, based on justice and fair dealing among all nations and races; a government which does not oppress, but seeks the weal of all classes alike; a fair opportunity for every man, so that there shall be no underprivileged classes any more; He alone can bring about such a social, economic and political order. Neither legislation, education, science or philosophy can give to the weary nations the desire of their hearts. The malady lies too deep to be healed thus. The CHRIST is the One who alone can bind up the wounds of this distracted world. Haggai closes with one more message (Hag 2:21-23), which, in its brevity, is an epitome of the Apocalypse. Zerubbabel, the royal prince of the house of David, is addressed. He is clearly regarded as a figure of the MESSIAH, for the promise could only be fulfilled in Him. It speaks of a day of universal shaking, when kingdoms and armies shall be overthrown. In that day GOD will put honor upon the One whom He has selected as the Man of His counsels, to fulfill all His pleasure. He will come into His rights then. He is now at GOD’s right hand biding His time. His day is about to dawn. The shakings and overturnings of our times may be the prelude to the Day of CHRIST! "I... will make thee as a signet: for I have chosen thee, saith the LORD of Hosts." (Hag 2:23) Grace here reverses the sentence passed upon Jeconiah (Jer 22:24). It looks beyond Zerubbabel to his son and anti-type - the MESSIAH. He is the express Image of the Substance of the Father (Heb 1:3), His "signet" in His Manhood. And all who belong to Him whom He calls "His own," are stamped with this signet (1Co 15:49). Thus CHRIST is the true Zerubbabel, as He is the true David (Eze 37:24). (3) The Witness of Zechariah Zechariah, Haggai’s younger colleague, has a peculiarly rich testimony to bear to both the sufferings and glories of the MESSIAH. His book divides itself into two main parts. Zec 1:1-21, Zec 2:1-13, Zec 3:1-10, Zec 4:1-14, Zec 5:1-11, Zec 6:1-15 : The prophetic visions here partake of an apocalyptic nature. Zec 7:1-14, Zec 8:1-23, Zec 9:1-17, Zec 10:1-12, Zec 11:1-17, Zec 12:1-14, Zec 13:1-9, Zec 14:1-21, contain more direct utterances. The entire book has for its background, Zec 1:1-21, Zec 2:1-13, Zec 3:1-10, Zec 4:1-14, Zec 5:1-11, Zec 6:1-15, Zec 7:1-14, Zec 8:1-23Zec 7:1-14, Zec 8:1-23, the Persian era; Zec 9:1-17, Zec 10:1-12, the Grecian era; Zec 6:1-15 the Roman era; Zec 12:1-14, Zec 13:1-9, Zec 14:1-21 take us to the time of the end. In the first group of visions (Zec 1:1-21, Zec 2:1-13, Zec 3:1-10, Zec 4:1-14, Zec 5:1-11, Zec 6:1-15), the MESSIAH stands forth as "the Branch" (Zec 3:8; Zec 6:12). He is the one GOD falls back upon in the face of the failure of Israel. Out of the dead and barren condition of Judaism springs this fruitful Branch. But He is also the Foundation and Top-Stone (Zec 3:9; Zec 4:7). GOD works from CHRIST and to CHRIST. All the counsels of GOD centre in Him. The second group of prophecies (Zec 7:1-14, Zec 8:1-23, Zec 9:1-17, Zec 10:1-12, Zec 11:1-17, Zec 12:1-14, Zec 13:1-9, Zec 14:1-21) bring before us in a wonderful way the ministry of the MESSIAH as recorded in the Gospel according to Matthew. He is seen as the true Shepherd (Zec 11:7, Zec 11:10-11). The flock is exploited by false and hireling shepherds. The poor of the flock, however, who waited upon GOD, recognized the One who was the shepherd to be hearkened to. In Zec 9:1-17 we have the official presentation of the MESSIAH to Jerusalem on the day called: "Palm Sunday." All the four evangelists give space to it. It was the beginning of the Passion week. The Jerusalem rebuilt by the remnant returned from exile would witness this royal entry. He would come as king of Peace, not riding on a war-house, but on a peaceable ass. As Professor F. Delitzsch has pointed out, the language of Zec 9:9 implies that "the royal glory rises upon the dark ground of suffering. The coming King is Tsadik and Nosha, a righteous one whom GOD has helped out of tribulation and struggle to salvation and victory; hence He is also called ani, that is, bowed, pressed down through sorrow. We still see Him as the Sufferer. His lowliness is not yet transformed into pure and full glory. Therefore He does not come loftily on a noble steed or in a grand coach of state like the kings of this world, but upon a peaceful animal; not upon one belonging to another, but upon a colt which has never been ridden (compare Mat 21:2), for He is a King of humble mind, of tender heart, and whose final object is peace" (Zec 9:10). However, in Zec 11:12-13, He is valued the price of a slave (Exo 21:32)! It is the story of His base betrayal. Deep were His sorrows, but deeper still awaited Him! In Zec 13:5-6, we see Him wounded in the house of His friends, those for whose sake He had been a bondman (see verse 6). But the One who was wounded in the house of His friends, was also smitten by the sword of JEHOVAH. He was JEHOVAH’s Shepherd and the Man, His Fellow (Zec 13:7). He is thus very GOD of very GOD, and very Man of very Man. During the night of His betrayal our LORD claimed to be the One spoken of here (Mat 26:30-31). The sword of JEHOVAH is His judicial stroke (see Jer 47:6-7). It speaks of GOD’s action when He died. At the hand of man CHRIST suffered for righteousness. But being "made sin" for us He Himself "knew no sin," (2Co 5:21) He made expiation for sin. He was made to feel all that sin is, all that sin deserves, in the sight of a holy, sin-hating GOD. Psa 69:1-36 speaks of the first; Psa 22:1-31, of the second. JEHOVAH says of Him, when in His deepest humiliation: "My Fellow." The SPIRIT addressing Him in Psa 45:1-17 and Heb 1:1-14 speaks of "Thy fellows." He took their place with all its consequences that they might share His place with all its consequences. In Zec 12:1-14 we see Israel’s final conversion. In that day they will recognize that in piercing JESUS they pierced the very heart of JEHOVAH - as He says: "They shall look upon Me (i.e. JEHOVAH) whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for Him, as one mourneth for an only son, and shall be in bitterness for Him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn." (Zec 12:10) Then will Israel experience a threefold cleansing. (1) The sight of the wounds of JESUS will purge the conscience. The Blood of JESUS has made expiation. (2) The fountain there opened for sin and uncleanness cleanses the walk and the state by the washing of water by the Word (Zec 13:1). (3) But there is besides the fire-baptism (Zec 13:9). We need the discipline which helps us to practically turn from the things which we have judged. The Father chastens us to make us partakers of His holiness (Heb 12:1-29). For there is but one way of salvation and sanctification, for this age and for that which is to come, for Jew or Gentile, i.e. through repentance and faith, apprehending the atoning sacrifice, and experiencing the power of the Word and Spirit, and submitting to the disciplinary dealings of the guiding and chastening hand of GOD. Recapitulation a. The Man among the myrtles (Zec 1:1-21) Though Israel may be like a valley of myrtles, signifying a depressed condition, the theophanic Angel (the MESSIAH) is in the midst of the myrtles in the valley. The hosts of the LORD are at His disposal. He is the Intercessor on behalf of the tribulated people, for Israel, and now for the church, for she too is often in the valley of depression. b. JEHOVAH’s Servant, the Branch (Zec 3:8) This is an echo of Isa 4:2. When He is brought forth Truth will be despised no more. Israel’s land will have been atoned for (Zec 3:10). Universal peace and brotherhood will prevail; conditions of Eden-like fertility will return. c. The Stone with the seven eyes upon it (Zec 3:9) If the prophecy concerning the Branch looks on to the future. when MESSIAH will be revealed in glory, the Stone-prophecy has a present application. The Stone has already been laid as a divine foundation (see 1Pe 2:7). And the preciousness of this Stone attaches to all who build upon it. It is an immovable foundation. The floods cannot overthrow it. The gates of hell will never prevail against it, nor upon that divinely built on it. And that Stone is sovereign. It has seven eyes, the eyes of divine omniscience. The MESSIAH has all authority in Heaven and on earth (see Zec 4:10). All power is in His hands, and the fulness of the Godhead dwelleth in Him bodily. d. The first coming of the MESSIAH (Zec 9:1-17, Zec 10:1-12) These chapters fill up the gap prophetically between the Testaments, as they cover the period of the Grecian and Syrian domination over Jerusalem. Thus Zec 9:1-10 give us the victorious inroads of the armies of Alexander the Great, by which the coast line of Palestine was subjugated. But he was not allowed to tamper with the city and the temple of Jerusalem. The reason for this is given in Zec 9:9. The MESSIAH will have to enter that city. Between Zec 9:9-10 runs the Christian dispensation. The prophetical forecast of Jewish history in the days of the Maccabees is resumed in Zec 9:13-17. e. The Betrayal (Zec 11:12-13) "A goodly price!" was given for Him! f. His crucifixion (Zec 13:5-6) "He shall say": It is MESSIAH speaking (Zec 13:6) , the true Prophet (Deu 18:1-22), the One who was here in bondsman’s form from His youth (Zec 13:5). Being rejected He became a Husbandman - a "Sower" (Mat 13:1-58), a Vine-dresser (Luk 13:1-35), and wounded in the house He had come to serve in love. g. Smitten of GOD (Zec 13:7) JEHOVAH bruised Him (Isa 53:10). GOD brought Him into the dust of death (Psa 22:15). These are more than martyr sufferings. h. His glorious Coming again (Zec 14:1-5) When Jerusalem will suffer her last and worst siege. "All nations" against the Jewish people! i. Standing on Olivet (Zec 14:4-5) The very spot from which He ascended. j. Israel’s recognition of Him (Zec 12:10) k. His universal reign (Zec 14:9) l. His royal Priesthood (Zec 6:13) (4) The Witness of Malachi We come now to the close of the prophetic period in Israel. The anointed seer, speaking directly from the mouth of JEHOVAH, saying: "Thus saith the Lord," (Mal 1:4, Mal 1:13) is about to be displaced by the learned scribe and doctor of the law, whose authority consisted in their being in harmony with the recognized rabbis who had preceded them. But before the living voice of prophecy is silenced by dead tradition, a messenger utters the divine Word once more. The anonymous prophet (for Malachi means: "My messenger," and is clearly an appellation and not a name) evidently appeared during the absence of Nehemiah in Persia, before his return. The abuses which he dealt with are the same denounced in this book. It is the last prophetic communication to Israel and is of the nature of a dialogue between JEHOVAH and the people who had so sadly degenerated. See Mal 1:2, Mal 1:6-7; Mal 2:14, Mal 2:17; Mal 3:7-8, Mal 3:13. Judges and the two books of Samuel contemplate the failure of the nation. First and Second Kings, and First and Second Chronicles, the failure of the kingdom; but Ezra, Nehemiah, and Malachi, witness against the community of restored exiles. The sevenfold "wherein?" of the people (Mal 1:2, Mal 1:6-7; Mal 2:14, Mal 2:17; Mal 3:7-8, Mal 3:13* - this last is "what") is answered by a fourfold indictment. (a) Their religion was profane (Mal 1:7-10) (b) Their morality was corrupt. They practiced sorcery, committed adultery, were given to perjury, oppressed the weaker (Mal 3:5). (c) Their social relations were in utter confusion. Intermarriage with heathens was rife (Mal 2:11). (d) They robbed GOD in not paying the income tax in the form of "tithes" (Mal 3:8). The priests were guilty of profaning the temple, so that GOD could take no pleasure in them. He refused to accept a meat-offering at their hands (Mal 1:10). But they were told that there would be a calling out of a new people of GOD from among the Gentiles: "For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering: for my name shall be great among the heathen, saith the LORD of hosts" (Mal 1:11). The prophet uses the present tense - it is the prophetic vision of the future as already present. And while the thought-forms (incense and meat-offering) are borrowed from the ritual of the Jewish temple, the spiritual message is that the Kingdom of GOD would be taken from the covenant-people and be found among the Gentiles, as has come to pass. Jerusalem has ceased to be GOD’s religious center, as our LORD pointed out to the woman of Samaria (John 4:23) as about to happen. Thus is the present dispensation clearly foretold in this book. The Angel of the Covenant Before the close of Malachi a very wonderful Messianic promise shines out in celestial splendor. "Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in (or for whom ye long): behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts" (Mal 3:1). The messenger (or angel) who prepares the way of JEHOVAH is explained as a second Elijah (Mal 4:5). "Suddenly," i.e.. immediately following him, the herald, the LORD Himself (Hebrew Ha-Adon, proprietor of the temple) will come. He is also called Malach Ha-Berith, i.e. the angel of the Covenant. It is the same Angel-Presence that connected Himself with the patriarchs and was with their descendants throughout their history. He would once again appear. JEHOVAH is in this Angel. He is called "the Angel of His Presence" (or Face). The word "covenant" links Him with "the Servant" of Isa 42:6; Isa 49:8, where the servant of JEHOVAH is made L’berith Am, i.e. a "covenant of the people." He is the Messianic Mediator of the new and everlasting covenant of grace. The Elijah-like ministry of John, calling to repentance, prepared His way, Israel having broken the old covenant; and so He comes to establish the new and better covenant, established on grace and not on human merit, and ratified in His Blood. The Son of Righteousness But for Israel fierce judgments are appointed before the terms of the new covenant can be made good (Mal 4:1). Out of this fiery oven a new and purified nation will emerge. In fact, it will only be a remnant which will be the nucleus of a holy people of GOD. Those who in Malachi’s day feared the LORD and spake often one to another of Him, were despised by the mass (Mal 3:16-18). They were but a remnant of the remnant escaped from Babylon. But they will be as precious jewels to the LORD in the day of His public manifestation. The Sun of Righteousness will arise upon them with heavenly healing (Mal 4:2). They have loved His appearing during the long night of His absence. His coming will bring in everlasting day. Thus does Old Testament prophecy close. The prophets were shining stars, but the MESSIAH is the Sun. The whole Old Testament is waiting for the sunrise. The key to the entire Scriptures of Israel is the word: Yovah, i.e. He comes! ~ end of chapter 6 ~ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 26: 02.07. THE HOPE MISUNDERSTOOD ======================================================================== Chapter 7 THE HOPE MISUNDERSTOOD WHEN our LORD was here the Messianic hope had become a subject of speculation and the extraordinary disturbance in the mind of the populace, which the astonishing teaching and miracles of our LORD provoked, were caused by the conflicting ideas about the MESSIAH which had arisen during the so-called "silent centuries" between the Testaments. The fourth Gospel from John 7:1-53, John 8:1-59, John 9:1-41, John 10:1-42 records the confusion in the thoughts of the people. These chapters explain why the last and greatest divine self-revelation to Israel met with rejection on the part of the mass. The leaders of Jewry felt that JESUS was an irritant, which had to be got rid of at any cost. The Talmud, which though written centuries after the beginning of an era, yet mirrors the confusion in the minds of Jews in the times of JESUS about the Messianic hope. Some thought that He would make His appearance in Rome; others that Babylon would see His advent first; again others that He would be born in Zion, basing their assertion on Psa 87:5. The sublime delineation of the suffering Servant of JEHOVAH of the book of Isaiah, and of the smitten Shepherd, the Man, JEHOVAH’s Fellow, of Zechariah, had receded into the background, and a military leader supplanted it. The four centuries between the Testaments were very important in the development of events that had the coming of the MESSIAH as their terminus. For the Jews it was a time when they attempted the noble experiment of being a holy community devoted entirely to the service of JEHOVAH, even though they failed in realizing their ideal. Then they had to enter into the life and death struggle with Hellenism. It was an heroic conflict, as the books of the Maccabees record, and Judaism was almost strangled to death by it, but the after history of the kingdom of GOD would have pursued a very different course if the candle lit in Jerusalem had been put out by Hellenistic culture and paganism. The idea of the MESSIAH underwent a disastrous change in the process. The outstanding characteristic of the MESSIAH then cherished was no longer the Prophet and the Priest, but that of a Man, a Hero, a Soldier. At least that was the Palestinian concept to the more or less Hellenized Jews who had taken root in Egypt, and to whom we owe indeed the Septuagint, and the writings of Philo: the MESSIAH was dissolved into an allegory, an idea, into anything but a reality. The Book of Wisdom, which is tinctured with Alexandrian philosophy, while it has in it much that is beautiful and worthy of praise, reveals the tendency to bring into agreement the revelation of the Old Testament with the pantheistic philosophy of Greece. It teaches the eternity of matter, that creation is but the re-forming of the material already existing in a state of chaotic shapelessness; that the human soul preexisted before birth into its earthy course; the Platonic antithesis between matter and spirit; that matter is inherently evil: that the body is the prison-house of the soul, and not a potential temple for the indwelling. The divine Sophia (or Wisdom) is not as Pro 8:1-36 teaches the Creator and Friend of man, antedating the universe, really the MESSIAH, the Logos (or Word) that was with GOD and was GOD, according to the prologue of the fourth Gospel, but only a pantheistic speculation, the universal life-force, which has no personal existence of its own. The book of Ecclesiasticus with its lofty ethics is nevertheless the print of Sadducean rationalism. It offers no consolation in the hour of death, as it has no hope for an after life. There are neither angels or spirits, only two beings: GOD and Man. But the MESSIAH is ignored. It has no place for Him. Hence the Sadducean hostility to the preaching of the doctrine of the resurrection of JESUS in the early chapters of the Acts. The other apocryphal books, the Fourth book of the Maccabees and the Sibylline Oracles, are far removed from the prophetic concepts of the MESSIAH. He was to them a phantom, an abstraction. Instead of a divine redemption, mediated by the One whose Name is "The LORD our Righteousness," (Jer 23:6) self-redemption is taught. We are delivered solely by our own virtues and achievements. However, other voices were also heard. There was "the book of Enoch!" True religion in it is not a mere matter of ceremonial externalia, but of mercy, purity, love, and truth in the inward parts. The book of Enoch harks back to the sublime figure of the Son of Man coming in the clouds of Heaven, delineated in Dan 7:1-28. He is "the Elect," "the Anointed," and "the Son of GOD." He is even called "the Son of Woman," and "The Light of the Gentiles," the Comforter and Healer of the wounded in heart. He is also the Judge before whose throne both men and fallen angels must stand. Mention might also be made of "the Psalter of Solomon," consisting of eighteen spiritual poems, written in the face of the harsh treatment inflicted on the Jews by Pompeii, after Jerusalem had of its own accord opened its gates. The writer seeks comfort in the hoped for MESSIAH who would take up the cause of His afflicted saints. Once upon a time this poetical work was much valued by Christians, and was the only specimen of Jewish apocalyptic literature, added as an appendix to the New Testament in the Codex Alexandrinus. The Targums The Targums are ancient paraphrases on the Hebrew text of the Scriptures and are very revealing as to the ideas current among the Jews when Christianity arose. We can see from them, amidst some illuminating views, much that is very puerile. Thus while the "Servant" passages in Isa 42:1-25, Isa 43:1-28, Isa 44:1-28, Isa 45:1-25, Isa 46:1-13, Isa 47:1-15, Isa 48:1-22, Isa 49:1-26, Isa 50:1-11, Isa 51:1-23, Isa 52:1-15,Isa 53:1-12 are referred to the MESSIAH, the sufferings of the Servant are applied to the Jewish people. The MESSIAH remains only as a victorious Warrior. Hence we cannot wonder that the people, goaded into rebellion by Roman injustice, flocked to the standard of Bar Cochba, as before they were ready to espouse Theudas and Judas of Galilee. Uninspired Jewish thought never could have evolved the idea of the MESSIAH set forth in JESUS of Nazareth. The pious remnant found in Mal 3:16, and reappearing in Luk 1:1-80 and Luk 2:1-52, alone cherished the deeply spiritual hopes founded on the ancient prophecies. And this hidden remnant proved to be the secret source of that blessed movement, called Christianity, in which the best of Judaism comes into blossom and fruit. ~ end of chapter 7 ~ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 27: 02.08. THE MESSIAH IN THE PSALMS ======================================================================== Chapter 8 THE MESSIAH IN THE PSALMS THE Psalms are the response of the inner Israel, the remnant loyal to JEHOVAH and His prophets, to the divine revelation, whether in Creation, History, Law or Prophecy. And as the history of the chosen people culminates in the MESSIAH as its divine goal; and as the prophetic word has for its objective the One who is to accomplish the purposes of GOD for the deliverance of man from the thralldom of evil; this Hope would naturally have a prominent place in the Psalms. And so we shall find that the Psalms are shot through and through with the expectation of the Coming One. The inner Israel whose language we hear in the Psalms was a people with a threefold quest. There was the mystical quest for the vision of the Face of GOD (Psa 27:4). There was the ethical quest for righteousness (Psa 15:1-5 and Psa 24:1-10). There was besides the Messianic quest: the cry for a Man, of whom Israel would be the mother, who should bring in the triumph of truth and righteousness and fill the earth with the glory of GOD (Psa 1:1). These longings, unsatisfied from century to century, are told out in the Psalms and are in themselves prophecies of our LORD, who is the Divine answer to the need of the human soul, as the light is adapted to the eye and the soundwaves in the ether to the ear. In Him we see the FATHER. The glory of GOD shines in His face. (John 14:8-9; 2Co 4:6). He is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. We are made the righteousness of GOD in Him (Rom 10:4; 2Co 5:21). He is the man in whom GOD can rest, and in whom we can rest in undisturbed repose (Mat 11:27-30). The Messianic Hope celebrated in the Psalms is a diamond with many facets. He is not only prophetically foretold and spiritually longed for, He is also typically foreshadowed in the sufferings of the "Chassid," the ideal righteous man in the psalms, and already mystically experienced, for the spiritual experiences recorded in the psalms were foretastes of the blessings dispensed in the day of the MESSIAH, whose SPIRIT wrought in the psalmist, before His appearing in the flesh. (1) The Introduction to the Psalms Psa 1:1-6 and Psa 2:1-12, which originally formed one psalm in the Hebrew, are the introduction to the entire collection of psalms, and give us the history of the MESSIAH from His earthly experiences till He comes in manifested glory to enter into His kingdom rights. If Psa 1:1-6 describes the blessedness of the man who measures up to the Law of JEHOVAH, He alone fulfilled the contents of this psalm as "made under the Law." (Gal 4:4) The keynote of His human life was: "That the Scripture might be fulfilled." (John 19:28) Thus in His present heavenly life He has become "the Tree of Life which is in the midst of the Paradise of God" (Psa 1:3). Then after a glance at the world and the saints in it (Psa 1:4-6), we have in Psa 2:1-3, the world’s antagonism to Him, which began to be fulfilled at His crucifixion (see Acts 4:24-28) and which still casts its shadow on the world, and which will culminate in the open apostasy of Christendom and the joint-worship by Jew and Gentile apostates of "the Man of Sin,"(2Th 2:3) the glorification of the principle of human self-deification, fallen Adam fully developed. In Psa 2:2-6 we have heaven’s view of this antagonism to the Anointed King, the One whom He calls His Son. Psa 2:7-9 declare the new dispensation, when the long silence of GOD will be broken in judgment, while Psa 2:10-12 press home the present responsibility of man in the light of these coming events. (2) The First Man and the Second One of the outstanding features of the Messianic doctrine of the Psalms is the repeated contrast between two types of man, the first man who fell and the second Man who overcame. This contrast between Adam and CHRIST, the rejected man and the Man of JEHOVAH’s choice, is very striking. Thus Psa 90:1-17 and Psa 91:1-16 which open the fourth book of Psalms bring before us first, the tragic story of the defeated man, who is under sentence of death in Psa 90:1-17 and the glad tidings of the triumphant Man, the MESSIAH, in Psa 91:1-16. Psa 91:1-16 gives us the human rights of One, originally in the form of GOD (Php 2:1-30), which He surrendered in His obedience unto death. As GOD He "made Himself of no reputation (emptied Himself)" (Php 2:7) ; as man "He humbled Himself." (Php 2:8) He gave up His human rights, the experience of Psa 91:1-16, when He stooped to the shame of the Cross. As every human being is a reproduction of the defeated "first man," he repeats his history of failure and ruin. But "the Second Man" has taken up in His Manhood the cause of "His brethren," to whom He was in His incarnation made like in all things, except sin, and has glorified GOD in the scene of their failure. He goes into death for them; but, as Psa 91:1-16 shows in the final passage, He is vindicated and rewarded in resurrection. (3) The Psalm of the Inner Life of JESUS as a Man on Earth Psa 16:1-11 shows us the ideal life lived by the MESSIAH as an answer to the challenge of the preceding psalm. (See also Rev 5:2) "Who is worthy?" The answer is, the slain LAMB. Psa 15:1-5 calls for the man who shall never be moved. Psa 16:1-11, for One who lives His life joyously, calmly, and unmoved, even though threatened with death. It is the inner life of the Man CHRIST JESUS. Neither poverty, rejection, loneliness, nor death could move Him. Psa 16:1 : DEPENDENCE - Filial dependence. JEHOVAH His only asylum. The opening clause reveals the "Michtam," or golden secret, of the psalm. It is the secret of contentment though bereft of outward good. Psa 16:2 : HAPPINESS - JEHOVAH His only good. His fountain of happiness. This is the Old Testament forecast of the Kenosis (Php 2:1-30). The LORD of glory takes the place of a man, of a servant, obedient and dependent every step of the way. Psa 16:3 : COMPANIONSHIP - After thus describing the world of heavenly harmony and blessedness, the true country of the soul, the world of the beatitudes, he turns to earth. And what does he find there? The saints. They are all His delight. (See John 13:1) Psa 16:4 : APOSTATES - The apostates are contrasted with the saints. The saints are a poor people. Psa 16:5 : HOLY POVERTY - The Psalmist will not hear of any other GOD. Why not? Because you cannot offer him anything better. He lives the Levite life of holy poverty (Num 18:20; Deu 10:9). Psa 16:6 : PARADISE - "The measuring lines have fallen to him in a delightful district, viz., in the fellowship with GOD which is so rich in enjoyment; this most blessed domain of love has become his paradisaic possession." (Prof. F. Delitzsch). Psa 16:7 : COUNSEL - GOD has counselled him thus to choose the good part, not the ephemeral and unsubstantial things of earth. Abraham had GOD for his adviser, and was thus kept out of the foolish speculations of his nephew Lot. Psa 16:8 : PRACTICE OF THE PRESENCE - The practice of the presence of GOD. 1Th 5:23. Heart, glory (soul), flesh. Psa 16:9-10 : HOPE IN DEATH - Such a life triumphs over death. GOD is trusted for the life to come as for this present life. In the days of the psalmist it was easy to trust GOD for the life that now is, and difficult to have faith for the life beyond the veil. Now it is the very opposite. Psa 16:10 : THE HOPE NEGATIVELY PRESENTED - NOT sheol. NOT corruption. Psa 16:11 : GOD’S RIGHT HAND - The positive side of the hope of the resurrection life. Life, joy, pleasure, and that for evermore, in Thy presence, that is to say, in the beholding of Thy face, and in Thy right hand. That hand has pleasures for ever more, and is never empty through giving. Acts 2:1-47 and Acts 13:1-52 point out the fact that David did not fully realize all that the psalmist hoped for. The psalm was fulfilled in JESUS. (4) The Psalm of the Cross Psa 22:1-31 is an inspired photograph and prophecy of our Lord’s saddest hours. But glory as well as gloom are found there. It begins with a shriek of anguish; goes on to a cry for help, full of trust, and ends with thanksgiving and the vision of the world-wide kingdom of GOD, resulting from the sufferings of the One whose language is here heard. He believes that the story of His woes will provide a gospel to generations yet unborn. The piety of this psalm is that of the meek and silent LAMB of GOD. He meets the accumulated griefs, mental, physical, and spiritual, of that hour without murmuring or reproaching the causers of His pain. He looks beyond them to GOD, who brought Him into the dust of death, even though human hands crucified Him - dogs without shame and conscience; bulls of Bashan, without feeling, staring at Him in His nakedness. They cast dice over His garments. They laugh Him to scorn. But He looks to JEHOVAH. At first all is dark. He is alone with GOD, personally sinless, but as One "made... sin for us." (2Co 5:21) He justifies the holiness that smites Him in that hour. Psa 22:21 is the turning point. He looks to be vindicated in resurrection. Then He will declare the Father’s name to His brethren. This He did by means of Mary Magdalene (John 20:1-31) and when He came into the midst of their assembling themselves together, and sang the Father’s praises, having proclaimed peace unto them. The godly remnant of Israel will come into view in the latter days; then the great millennial congregation; then "all the ends of the world." (Psa 22:27) In the meantime "a seed shall serve him," (Psa 22:30) a people born out of His death, and marked by His features. John 12:32 is the New Testament epitome of this psalm. (5) The Priest-King at GOD’s Right Hand No psalm is oftener quoted in the New Testament than Psa 110:1-7. Our LORD used it to prove that MESSIAH, while human, is also superhuman and heavenly (Mat 22:42-43). The entire Epistle to the Hebrews is a commentary on this psalm. Perhaps the historical occasion for the psalm was the taking of the ark by David to Zion. It meant that JEHOVAH’s throne was now once more in the midst of Israel. David would, as king, sit at the right hand of GOD. But David looks beyond to One greater, whom he calls "my Lord." (Psa 110:1) He lays his crown at the feet of a more glorious King, who is priest as well as king, which no earthly king could ever be under the old covenant. The Structure of the Psalm The psalm is divided into seven stanzas. In these the majestic name of JEHOVAH occurs three times (Psa 110:1-2, Psa 110:4). The subject is the spiritual interpretation of history. It begins with the session of the MESSIAH at GOD’s right hand and ends with "the day of the LORD," when His enemies are made His footstool. (The Christian dispensation comes between these two events). Psa 110:1 The humanity shares the Deity-glory. All things must become the "footstool" of the divine-human CHRIST. Psa 110:2 As Zion will be His earthly metropolis, so there is a spiritual Zion now (see Heb 12:22). Pentecost was the first installment of the fulfillment of this verse. "The rod of thy strength" is "the rod of his mouth" (Isa 11:4). Psa 110:3 The King’s spiritual army. They are all volunteers, not mercenaries or conscripts. They are priest-warriors. Their uniform is holiness. A youthful army - being constantly replenished by fresh recruits. They are as bright as the sparkling dew. Psa 110:4 CHRIST is GOD’s last word. Our Melchizedek was before Aaron and lives on after him. And as Abraham paid the typical Melchizedek tithes, so must the children of Abraham recognize the greatness of this priest (see Heb 5:1-11). Psa 110:5-6 The day of wrath will end the day of grace. Psa 110:7 A review over the past. His humiliation led to His exaltation. He has brought His glory out of the depths. (6) Summary of the Messianic Hope in the Psalms 1. We see Him in connection with His sufferings and death. 2. We behold Him at the right hand of GOD. 3. We celebrate before-hand His coming in manifested glory to reign over a renovated earth. 4. We catch glimpses of His inner life in the days of His flesh. 5. We trace unfoldings of the mystery of His Person, both human and divine. ~ end of chapter 8 ~ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 28: 02.09. THE ATONEMENT IN THE RELIGION . . . ======================================================================== Chapter 9 THE ATONEMENT IN THE RELIGION OF THE OLD TESTAMENT THE heart of the spiritual message of the sacred Scriptures of Israel, i.e. the Old Testament, is that divine love is sacrificial in its nature. The prophet Isaiah speaks of JEHOVAH as One who in all our afflictions is Himself afflicted (Isa 63:9). His love is a suffering love bearing on its heart the sufferings of man. He is sensitive to human pain; He is no mere glorified Buddha in the sky, passively looking down from His sublime elevation on the distressed conditions below, while Himself outside of it. Isa 53:1-12 is felt universally to be the highest peak of Old Testament prophecy. It speaks of One arising out of Israel in whom this sacrificial principle, embedded deep in the love of GOD, would be expressed. And this incarnation of the vicarious love of GOD would bring healing and redemption to others, those who come to it in penitence and faith. We know that the ancient Synagogue saw the MESSIAH in this chapter, whatever modern Jews might say about it. For some one thousand and five hundred years Israel offered daily sacrifices unto JEHOVAH. These pointed to the coming of One who would fulfill their intention. They were not an end in themselves, but a means to an end. This is clearly the message of Psa 40:1-17, where we hear the language of One of whom it had been written "in the volume of the Book," (Psa 40:7) that the will of GOD would be accomplished by Him, and that this would mean the ending up of the sacrificial types which had preceded Him. And so the prophet Daniel also, speaking of the cutting off in death of MESSIAH, connects His work with the finishing of transgression, the making an end of sin, the making reconciliation for iniquity and the bringing in of everlasting righteousness (Dan 9:24-26). The outward sacrifices never accomplished these results. They were more of the nature of promissory notes looking to the future for the fulfillment of the promise. As we study the ancient sacrifices we find that they are divided into two groups. The first being of the nature of "sweet savor" offerings, the second have to do with GOD’s judgment on sin. These two groups are again subdivided. The "sweet-savor" offerings into burnt-offerings, meat (or "meal") offerings, and peace-offerings. The second into sin-offerings and trespass-offerings. The sin-offerings had reference to sin as being chiefly against GOD, and provocative of His holy horror, elsewhere called "the wrath of God." The second, added to this the injury done to man, for which reparation was due. I believe it a mistaken view that the sacrificial system of ancient Israel was merely ritual. The sacrifices had an ethical content, and were profoundly educational. Alas! they frequently degenerated from this ideal into mere external performances. Then GOD expressed His repudiation of them. See 1Sa 15:23; Isa 1:11; Amo 5:21-24; Pro 15:8, etc. They were a positive offence to GOD if taken by themselves and apart from the state of the offerer. The doctrine of the remnant also stands out very prominently in the Old Testament. The entire history of Israel illustrates the truth that the mass was blessed through the piety, the service, and the suffering of the godly remnant. Thus Isa 1:9 shows that Israel escaped the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah because JEHOVAH found "a very small remnant" in her midst. This remnant was despised by the apostate mass. Yet did this remnant take the blame and shame of their people’s condition on itself, confessing their sins as its own. (Read Dan 9:1-27, Ezr 9:1-15, Neh 9:1-38) The penitence of the godly remnant was vicarious in its character. Did not Moses express this spirit when he offered himself to be blotted out of GOD’s book, when he went to "make an atonement," after the setting up of the golden calf? See Exo 32:30-32. Israel often owed her very continuance to the sacrificial service of her noblest sons. The SPIRIT of CHRIST was in them (1Pe 1:11) and made them not only heralds, but, in some degree, types of the coming One. The MESSIAH, as the Anointed of JEHOVAH, bore a threefold mark in the Old Testament - prophetic, royal and priestly. JESUS, according to the record in the New Testament, bore those marks. (1) Prophet. His word was with authority. It dropped like the manna from Heaven, like refreshing rain from the clouds. Never man spake like this man. The woman of Sychar said to him: "Sir, I perceive thou art a Prophet," (John 4:19) after He had revealed her secret life to her by His word. (2) King. Though His Kingly rights were denied Him, and though "Immanuel" had nowhere to lay His head in "Immanuel’s land," He ever acted as a King, in a Kingly way. He was truly Master of every situation. He was never baffled or put off His balance. He was always in victory. He overcame the world. Sickness, demon power, stormy waves, an unbroken ass’ colt, yea, death itself, obeyed His royal command. (3) Priest. His final act was to die on the altar of the cross. It was His being a willing sacrifice that transfigured the tree of the curse and shame into glory. "His decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem" (Luk 9:31) was His greatest accomplishment. It was the fulfillment of Isa 53:1-12, to lay in death the foundation of His own exaltation, and of the salvation of His people Israel, and of the nations, whose kings shall shut their mouths before Him in the day of His power. ~ end of chapter 9 ~ ======================================================================== CHAPTER 29: 02.10. THE FUTURE SALVATION OF ISRAEL ======================================================================== Chapter 10 THE FUTURE SALVATION OF ISRAEL In Isa 62:11 we find a remarkable passage: "Behold, the LORD hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh." The ends of the world where the people of Israel are now found scattered, far from their home, are thus called upon to make the exiled children of Zion among them acquainted with their coming salvation. Then the end of the world must have already experienced this salvation in order to be in a position to make it known to the daughter of Zion, who is still waiting for it, so that she too might get the benefit of that salvation which has brought blessing to the uttermost parts of the earth. And this remarkable fact is also the subject of prophecy in the book of Isaiah. In Isa 49:1-26 the MESSIAH is heard addressing the Gentile world: "Listen, O isles unto Me, and hearken ye peoples from far: the Lord called Me from the womb: from the bowels of My mother hath He made mention of My name." This refers to His mysterious birth as the Seed of the Woman, the Virgin-born. "And He hath made My mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of His hand hath He hid Me: and made Me a polished shaft: in His quiver hath He hid Me." This refers to the thirty silent years of His preparation for His public ministry. "And said unto me, Thou art My Servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified." (Isa 49:1-3) He bears the name "Israel," because He is all that Israel should have been but never was. The genius of Israel is personified in the MESSIAH. "But I said, I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nought and vanity, yet surely the justice due to me is with the Lord, and my recompense with my GOD." (Isa 49:4) This refers to the fact that MESSIAH was rejected by His generation. He had spent Himself on Israel in vain. "He came unto His own and His own received Him not." (John 1:11) But now comes a remarkable turn of affairs. "Now saith the Lord that formed me from the womb to be His Servant, to bring Jacob again to Him and that Israel be gathered unto Him . . . yea, He saith, It is too light a thing that thou shouldest be My Servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a Light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my Salvation to the end of the earth." (Isa 49:5-6) And so it has come to pass. The salvation refused by the Jewish people has gone out and is still going forth to the Gentiles. The river of blessing has found new river beds for its beneficent flow in the erstwhile heathen world, transforming desert wastes into fruitful gardens. And the end is not yet; for devoted Gentile disciples of the MESSIAH who was born of a Jewish mother; raised in a Jewish home; who never repudiated His Jewish brethren, though denied by them; bewailing with tears the doom that was to fall on Jerusalem; are today carrying His message to China, India, Japan, Korea, Siam, Africa, and the islands of the sea; and multitudes are being lifted into newness of life, out of shame and corruption, by faith in His blessed Name. But what about the children of Zion? GOD has not forgotten them, but has given commandment to the end of the world to restore to them their long lost treasures, to say: "Behold, thy Salvation cometh!" (Isa 62:11) How does it come? In the person of Him of whom GOD has said: "Behold, My Servant whom I uphold, Mine elect in whom My soul delighteth; I have put My SPIRIT upon Him; He shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause His voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed shall He not break, and the smoking flax shall He not quench; He will bring forth justice in truth. He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till He have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for His law" (Isa 42:1-4). All that had been predicted before of the Seed of the Woman, the Seed of Abraham, the Son of David, is realized in this Messianic Servant of GOD. The Aramaic Targum reads Isa 42:1 : thus: "Behold, my Servant, the MESSIAH." (Isa 42:1) He is the Mediator of this great salvation, first to the end of the world and then to the daughter of Zion, in the fulness of time, when her warfare is accomplished, and her national sin is pardoned at last. ~ end of book ~ ======================================================================== Source: https://sermonindex.net/books/writings-of-max-i-reich/ ========================================================================