The Biblical Overview of The Plan of God, Part 8D

The Great White Throne Judgment: When All Israel Shall Be Saved-That God May Be All In All

[Study Aired October 12, 2025]

Here is how we concluded our last study:

“We will pause this study at this point and we will see exactly when “all Israel [after the flesh] shall be saved”. No, I am not saying I will give you a date. What I am saying is that the scriptures do give us the exact time line in which “the fulness of the Gentiles comes in and all Israel shall be saved”.

Rom 11:25 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
Rom 11:26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:

“We will cover that timeline in our next study.” (End Quote)

Continuing our study on the overview of the plan of God, the scriptures revealing exactly when all physical Israel will be saved are in Ezekiel 16. We will read just the most pertinent verses:

Eze 16:2 Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations,

This 16^th chapter of Ezekiel is addressed to Jerusalem, the capital city of Israel, and after the split in the reign of Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, Jerusalem was the capital of Judah, and Samaria became the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel. Nevertheless, Jerusalem was originally the capital of  the united kingdom of all twelve tribes, and this is what the Lord has to say to His physical nation about the results of their sins and when they will all be reconciled to Him:

Eze 16:17 Thou hast also taken thy fair jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given thee, and madest to thyself images of men [false doctrines of men], and didst commit whoredom with them,

Eze 16:20 Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them [your false doctrines] to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter,

Eze 16:33 They give gifts to all whores: but thou givest thy gifts to all thy lovers, and hirest them, that they may come unto thee on every side for thy whoredom.

Isaiah 2:1-5 and Micah 4:1-7 speak of “the last days.”

Isa 2:2  And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.

Mic 4:1  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.

Our Babylonian upbringing teaches us that these “last days” refers to the time of peace which the earth will experience during the thousand-year reign of Christ. Isaiah 11 speaks of this same time of peace when the beasts of the earth will all be subdued and at peace with each other:

Isa 11:6  The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.
Isa 11:7  And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
Isa 11:8  And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den.
Isa 11:9  They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shallbe full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.

Peter informs us that this present time is “the last days” when all of this is taking place within those in whom “judgment is first beginning” (1Pe 4:17):

Act 2:16  But this [giving of the holy spirit] is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;
Act 2:17  And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
Act 2:18  And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:
Act 2:19  And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke:
Act 2:20  The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:
Act 2:21  And it shall come to pass [“in the last days”], that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

When will this phrase “the last days” be applicable to physical “Jerusalem which now is and is in bondage with her children” (Gal 4:25-26)? When will physical Israel be judged for all of her sins? When are these “last days” of Isaiah 2, Micah 4 and Ezekiel 16 applicable to physical “Judah and Jerusalem?” Let’s read when the scriptures tell us this will happen so we will know exactly when “all Israel [which is in bondage with her children] shall be saved.”  This is the Lord’s own words in answer to the question of when Israel which has rejected her own Savior will be saved:

Eze 16:37  Behold, therefore I will gather all thy lovers, with whom thou hast taken pleasure, and all them that thou hast loved, with all them that thou hast hated; I will even gather them round about against thee, and will discover thy nakedness unto them, that they may see all thy nakedness.
Eze 16:38  And I will judge thee, as women that break wedlock and shed blood are judged; and I will give thee blood in fury and jealousy.
Eze 16:39  And I will also give thee into their hand, and they shall throw down thine eminent place, and shall break down thy high places: they shall strip thee also of thy clothes, and shall take thy fair jewels, and leave thee naked and bare.
Eze 16:40  They shall also bring up a company against thee, and they shall stone thee with stones, and thrust thee through with their swords.
Eze 16:41  And they shall burn thine houses with fire, and execute judgments upon thee in the sight of many women: and I will cause thee to cease from playing the harlot, and thou also shalt give no hire any more.
Eze 16:42  So will I make my fury toward thee to rest, and my jealousy shall depart from thee, and I will be quiet, and will be no more angry.

This is all verified in much fewer words in Revelation 17:

Rev 17:16  And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.

Ezekiel does not give us an exact date, but he does give us the exact timeline of when “all Israel shall be saved” and reconciled to God. This is exactly “when” that will happen:

Eze 16:53 When I shall bring again their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her daughters, and the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, then will I bring again the captivity of thy captives in the midst of them:
Eze 16:54 That thou mayest bear thine own shame, and mayest be confounded in all that thou hast done, in that thou art a comfort unto them.
Eze 16:55 When thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters, shall return to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall return to their former estate, then thou and thy daughters shall return to your former estate.

When do these verses here in Ezekiel 16 tell us that Jerusalem and Samaria are “returned to their former estate?” The scriptural answer to that question is… “When Sodom and her daughters, shall return to their former estate.” It is only in the lake of fire, which begins doing its purifying work, that ‘Sodom and her daughters will return to their former estate.’ It is only after the “little season” of rebellion which follows the thousand-year reign of Christ and His elect with a rod of iron over the kingdoms of this earth that Sodom and “all Israel shall be saved.”

Where is the phrase ‘a thousand years’ in any of these prophecies concerning Israel and Jerusalem? Of course the answer is that it is not there. Rather, here is what we are told takes place during that symbolic “thousand years.”

Rev 2:26 And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
Rev 2:27 And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.

This is the outcome of and the very purpose for that thousand-year reign:

Rev 20:7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
Rev 20:8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
Rev 20:9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. [The nations in the four quarters of the earth]

The death of the spiritual “old man’, the rebellious carnal mind, is the outcome, the ‘telos’ and the final product, of the lake of fire which will follow the thousand-year reign and the last great day. The last great day signifies the “little season” of rebellion which follows the thousand years and precipitates the great white throne judgment/lake of fire/second death.

This now is the product of the lake of fire as it is revealed to us in Isaiah 30:

Isa 30:20 And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction [“saved, yet so as by fire”, (1Co 3:16)], yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers:
Isa 30:21 And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.
Isa 30:22 Ye shall defile also the covering of thy graven images of silver, and the ornament of thy molten images of gold: thou shalt cast them away as a menstruous cloth; thou shalt say unto it, Get thee hence.

“Eyes that see [and] ears [that] hear” are both the fruit of the repentance and obedience which are the result of the lake of fire which follows the thousand-year reign, signified by the feast of tabernacles, and the last great day, signifying the “little season” of rebellion and destruction which immediately follows the thousand-year reign. Repentance and obedience do not precede rebellion against ‘the camp of the saints.’ Repentance and obedience always follow the judgment which we bequeath to ourselves as the fruit of our rebellious carnal minds. Still many Christians believe that the prophecy of Isaiah 30 refers to the thousand-year reign.

Continuing in Isaiah 30:

Isa 30:23 Then shall he give the rain of thy seed, that thou shalt sow the ground withal; and bread of the increase of the earth, and it shall be fat and plenteous: in that day shall thy cattle feed in large pastures.
Isa 30:24 The oxen likewise and the young asses that ear the ground shall eat clean provender, which hath been winnowed with the shovel and with the fan.
Isa 30:25 And there shall be upon every high mountain, and upon every high hill, rivers and streams of waters in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall [Rev 20:7-9].
Isa 30:26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the stroke of their wound.
Isa 30:27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire:
Isa 30:28 And his breath, as an overflowing stream, shall reach to the midst of the neck, to sift the nations with the sieve of vanity: and there shall be a bridle in the jaws of the people, causing them to err.
Isa 30:29 Ye shall have a song, as in the night when a holy solemnity is kept; and gladness of heart, as when one goeth with a pipe to come into the mountain of the LORD, to the mighty One of Israel.
Isa 30:30 And the LORD shall cause his glorious voice to be heard, and shall shew the lighting down of his arm, with the indignation of his anger, and with the flame of a devouring fire, with scattering, and tempest, and hailstones.
Isa 30:31 For through the voice of the LORD shall the Assyrian [The great whore] be beaten down, which smote with a rod.
Isa 30:32 And in every place where the grounded staff shall pass, which the LORD shall lay upon him, it shall be with tabrets and harps: and in battles of shaking will he fight with it.
Isa 30:33 For Tophet [Also called ‘Gehenna’ and ‘the lake of fire’] is ordained of old; yea, for the king it is prepared; he hath made it deep and large: the pile thereof is fire and much wood; the breath of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it. [vs 25 and Rev 20:7-9]

The words of this prophecy have a pre-thousand year and a post-thousand year application where Christ is at war with His enemies. They have no application to that time when the Lord is ruling the kingdoms of this world with a rod of iron. Don’t allow words like “rain… ground… earth… cattle… oxen… and pastures” lead you to believe that these words have no spiritual application to the time of our present judgment or to the great white throne/lake of fire/second death judgment. “The invisible things of God are understood by the things that are made” (Rom 1:20). “Tophet” signifies “the [spiritual] lake of fire”, and the “wood” that kindles the flames of Tophet signifies the rebellious carnal minds of mankind. “The breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone” signifies His fiery Word. “Fire and much wood” is just as much a spiritual term signifying the destruction of all flesh, as the “rain… the ground… the earth… the cattle… the oxen… and the pastures” which are the spiritual fruit of that “fire and much wood”. The spiritual flames of spiritual Tophet signify the Word of God coming out of the mouths of God’s elect as Isaiah informs us:

Isa 33:14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? Who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?
Isa 33:15 He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil [These are “the firstfruits unto God and the Lamb” (Rev 14:4), whose functions in the plan of God are symbolized by all of these holy days.]

These words summarize the “one event” of judgment which all men of all time must experience, “every man in his own order.”

1Co 15:22  For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
1Co 15:23  But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.

1Co 3:13 Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.
1Co 3:14 If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
1Co 3:15 If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

“Every man… shall be saved… by fire”. That is what we have just read. The fire that saves those who must be condemned to the lake of fire, is the very same fire, the same fiery words of God, which save God’s elect at this time:

Jer 5:14  Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.

The apostle Peter plainly tells us:

1Pe 4:12 Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:

1Pe 4:17 For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?

We have already answered Peter’s rhetorical question. Death and the grave, and all that are in them, are cast into the lake of fire to face the same fiery trials of 1 Peter 4:12, but in resurrected spiritual bodies. Judgment “begins at the house of God”, but our judgment is just that. It is the beginning of the judgment of all men in the great white throne judgment/ lake of fire/ second death:

Ecc 9:2 All things come alike to all: there is one event to the righteous, and to the wicked; to the good and to the clean, and to the unclean; to him that sacrificeth, and to him that sacrificeth not: as is the good, so is the sinner; and he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath.

1Co 15:44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.

Rev 20:14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
Rev 20:15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life [All who were not in the first resurrection, (Rev 20:6)] was cast into the lake of fire [“second death”, Those who are in the second group who die to their carnal mind after those who are the first to do so, (1Co 15:31, Gal 2:20)].

This all serves to demonstrate that many of the prophecies we have been told refer to the time of the thousand-year reign of Christ and His elect over the kingdoms of this world, are found to be much more applicable to the kingdom of God within us at this time, and to the time when we will, as the lake of fire, show all men of all time the same mercy which we have been given by our Lord. “The gifts and calling of God are without repentance” does not prove that God’s calling of physical Israel requires that physical Israel must rule the nations of this world during the thousand-year reign. All the promises to Abraham have been spiritually supplanted by “the Israel of God” which places no value on physical pedigree:

Joh 4:21  Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.
Joh 4:22  Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the [true spiritual] Jews [Rom 2:28-29].
Joh 4:23  But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
Joh 4:24  God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

Rom 2:28  For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
Rom 2:29  But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

As we have seen, the gifts and calling of physical Israel will be fulfilled “when the fulness of the Gentiles is come in and when Sodom… and Samaria return to their former estate” (Eze 16:55, Rom 11:25-26).

Eze 16:55  When thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters, shall return to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall return to their former estate, then thou and thy daughters shall return to your former estate.

Rom 11:25  For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
Rom 11:26  And so [then shall] all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:

Now notice a principle which is revealed in the verses which immediately follow the declaration that “the gifts and calling of God are without repentance”:

Rom 11:29 For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.
Rom 11:30 For as ye [Gentile Romans – Rom 1:13] in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
Rom 11:31 Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.
Rom 11:32 For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

Being “a ‘Jew’… being ‘Israel’… being ‘Abraham’s seed’ has now become a matter of having a spiritual relationship with God through Christ and that relationship is no longer tethered nor attached to a physical pedigree. Let’s read what the holy spirit says on this matter once  more:

Rom 2:28 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
Rom 2:29 But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

Gal 3:29 And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Gal 4:28  Now we [Gentile Galatians], brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.

So it will be spiritual Jews, spiritual Israelites, repentant sinners taken from every nation on earth who will be used by God to show mercy to the physical Israelites through whose unbelief we have believed and have been shown mercy. The truth is that Romans 11:30-31 is addressed to Gentile Romans who “have obtained mercy through their [physical Israel’s]  unbelief.”

Rom 1:13 Now I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you, (but was let hitherto,) that I might have some fruit among you also, even as among other Gentiles.

It will be through us, through spiritual Israel, that the “all in all” goal of the plan of God for all men will be accomplished, even as all of the holy days of the three seasons of the year are also being fulfilled in and through “Christ and Christ in [us]” (Col 1:27):

Eph 1:18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance [which is] in the saints,
Eph 1:19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
Eph 1:20 Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
Eph 1:21 Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world [G165: ‘aion’, age], but also in that which is to come:
Eph 1:22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
Eph 1:23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

“The church which is His body [is], the fulness of Him that fills all in all.” It is a rare person who is even given to understand that this is so, because Christ’s “inheritance [is] in the saints”. (Eph 1:18)

It is even fewer who realize that this “all in all” is also typified for us outside of the seven festivals of the three seasons of the year. The goal of the plan of God, God being all in all, is outside the scope of this earthly vessel of clay. Therefore it is represented, not in a day which follows seven sevens of weeks, but in a year which follows seven sevens of years which we are given in the Old Testament law of the year of the jubilee:

Lev 25:9 Then shalt thou cause the trumpet of the jubile to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month, in the day of atonement shall ye make the trumpet sound throughout all your land.
Lev 25:10 And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a jubile unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family.

You will notice that the trumpet of the jubilee is sounded on the day of atonement, the day when the scapegoat was offered for the iniquities of Israel. We will stop here for today, and next week we will see what was to take place in the year of the jubilee, and we will find, as we have already pointed out, that even this goal of the plan of God for all men is accomplished through “the church which is His body… the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints”.

[Click here to go to the next chapter.]

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The Biblical Overview of the Plan of God, Part 6

The Day of Atonement:  Who Does God Accept as an Atonement for the Sins of the People?

[Study Aired September 14, 2025]

We have come to the Day of Atonement, the fifth step in the overview of the plan of God, which plan is outlined for us in the annual holy day festivals which He gave to ancient Israel.

Col 2:16  Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:
Col 2:17  Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.

These festivals are the types and shadows of the various steps that must be taken by all men of all time. They are divided up into three seasons, which tells us that there is a process of  judgment taking place in our walk as well as a progression in the completion of God’s plan for the salvation of all men:

Deu 16:16 Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the LORD empty:

2Ch 8:13 Even after a certain rate every day, offering according to the commandment of Moses, on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts, three times in the year, even in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles.

Here is the link to our study on the spiritual significance of the number three:

Numbers in Scripture – Three, The Process of Spiritual Completion

The first festival was in the Spring and was called the Passover. The Passover signified the offering of the Lamb of God for our sins. Passover is immediately followed by the days of unleavened bread. Leaven in this case signifies the sin in our lives, which sins we are to immediately begin putting out of our lives. On the day after the sabbath during the seven days of unleavened bread, a wave sheaf of the barley harvest was offered as the first of the firstfruits to God. This first firstfruit wave sheaf typified “Christ, our Passover” (1Co 5:7) as the first of the firstfruits to God and as the covering for our sins.

1Co 5:7 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 15:20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.

We also saw in our last study that this wave sheaf of the barley harvest was not the only “firstfruits unto God” (Jas 1:18).

Fifty days after the sabbath during the days of unleavened bread there was to be another firstfruit wave offering of the Summer wheat harvest. This wave offering of the Summer wheat harvest was to be the firstfruits of Christ’s labors at Passover. Here is what we are told of this second firstfruit harvest:

Exo 34:22 And thou shalt observe the feast of weeks, of the firstfruits of wheat harvest, and the feast of ingathering at the year’s end.

Here is the New Testament fulfillment of this second firstfruit harvest:

Jas 1:18 Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

So we see that there are two separate firstfruits, and these two firstfruits are separated the first from the second by 50 days/ We saw that Christ died on the passover, was raised up from the dead and ascended up to His Father on the same day that the wave sheaf of the firstfruits of the Spring barley harvest was offered up to God.

This is what we are told in Leviticus, of that first fruit harvest in more detail:

Lev 23:16 Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the LORD.
Lev 23:17 Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the LORD.
Lev 23:18 And ye shall offer with the bread seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one young bullock, and two rams: they shall be for a burnt offering unto the LORD, with their meat offering, and their drink offerings, even an offering made by fire, of sweet savour unto the LORD.
Lev 23:19 Then ye shall sacrifice one kid of the goats for a sin offering, and two lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace offerings.
Lev 23:20 And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the first fruits for a wave offering before the LORD, with the two lambs: they shall be holy to the LORD  for the priest.

“They shall be holy to the Lord for the priest” refers to this promise in the New Testament:

Rev 5:8  And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

It is the Lord’s firstfruit elect who this second firstfruit harvest at Pentecost symbolizes:

Rev 14:4 These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the first fruits unto God and to the Lamb.

This second ‘firstfruit’ harvest is “the firstfruits… unto the Lamb”, and it is used of “the Lamb” in the same way as He was used by His Father as God’s firstfruit of the Spring harvest:

Joh 17:18 As thou [the Father] hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.

Joh 20:21 Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.

Christ was sent by His Father to be the firstfruits of them that slept and to atone for the sins of all mankind of all time:

Joh 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. [Be atoned for by the sacrifice of Himself]

1Jn 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

“Not for ours only” proves beyond any doubt that we are “a kind of firstfruits”, and if we are indeed called “a kind of firstfruits” by being in the first resurrection, then there must also be a later harvest which is not called ‘firstfruits’:

Jas 1:18 Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

1Co 15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
1Co 15:23 But every man in his own order: Christ the [first] firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming [the second, Summer, pentecost first fruits “for the priests”].
1Co 15:24 Then cometh the [harvest at the] end [of the year], when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. [The last of which is death]

1Co 15:26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

If we cannot say “we [are] a kind of firstfruits of His creatures” and if we cannot say we are priests who are the first fruits who are “holy unto the Lord”, then we are denying who we are, and Christ will deny us.

Luk 12:8 Also I say unto you, Whosoever shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God:
Luk 12:9 But he that denieth me before men shall be denied before the angels of God.

Just who are we if indeed we are given to say that “we [are] a kind of firstfruits of His creatures?” This is who Christ Himself tells us we are:

Act 22:8 And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said unto me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest.

It is Christ who tells us that those whom Saul of Tarsus was persecuting are “Jesus of Nazareth”, and it is the Truth of that statement, and the depths of the Truth of that statement as it relates to us, the Lord’s firstfruits, that we are looking at in this study on the Day of Atonement.

In our last study we read the verses in Exodus and Leviticus which make clear that all of the sacrifices typify Christ, who came and died to make an atonement for the sins of all men. We saw that as the Christ of Christ, whom He “sent into the world as [His Father] sent [Him] into the world”, we, too, are sacrificed for the sins of the world and are being sacrificed daily for the salvation of mankind, and we are to die daily for the salvation of all mankind just as Christ was afflicted and died for the salvation of all mankind:

2Co 1:6 And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation.

We see that the Old and the New Testaments both bear witness to the fact that the sacrifice of the Lord’s goat, that is Christ, is lacking something to effectuate the salvation of mankind and that the sins of all men are placed upon “that which is lacking”, the “living sacrifice” just as much as they are placed upon the Lord’s goat, who had to physically die for our sins.

Lev 16:8 And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat.
Lev 16:9 And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD’S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering.
Lev 16:10 But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, [with Christ, “the Lord’s goat”] and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.

Lev 16:20  And when he hath made an end of reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat:
Lev 16:21  And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness:
Lev 16:22  And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness.

How does the scapegoat, who is “presented alive before the Lord to make an atonement with… the Lord’s goat”, accomplish that atonement? Here is how that is done:

Gal 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

Does the New Testament truly teach that there is something that is lacking in the afflictions of Christ for the sins of all men? Indeed it does:

Col 1:24 Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind [lacking] of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

The apostle Paul is labeled a false prophet by some who cannot accept that his epistles were inspired by God, but for us that is not an issue, and we believe that when he tells us he is “fill[ing] up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in [his] flesh for His body’s sake, which is the church” that he is also telling us to “follow [him] as [he is] follow[ing] Christ.”

1Co 11:1 Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.

Paul is not speaking exclusively of himself. He wants us all to think of ourselves as the scapegoat which is “presented alive before the Lord, to make an atonement with [Christ]”.

Lev 16:10 But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, [with Christ, “the Lord’s goat”] and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.

Lev 16:22  And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness.

Knowing who we are, and understanding that our afflictions are as much a part of the atonement for the sins of the world as are Christ’s, explains what the day of atonement coming at the end of the Summer, in the Fall of the year, symbolizes. Ten days after the feast of trumpets, which we demonstrated in an earlier study symbolizes the judgments and wars that take place in the lives of Christ’s summer firstfruits, comes the Day of Atonement which shows us that we are those who are used with Christ to atone for the sins of the world. It is of utmost significance that we notice that the scapegoat, which bears the sins of the people “with the Lord’s goat” is sacrificed as “a living sacrifice” and is “let go into the wilderness” on the day of atonement:

We are now continuing to demonstrate what it is that makes an atonement for sins:

Lev 14:19 And the priest shall offer the sin offering, and make an atonement for him that is to be cleansed from his uncleanness; and afterward he shall kill the burnt offering:
Lev 14:20 And the priest shall offer the burnt offering and the meat offering upon the altar: and the priest shall make an atonement for him, and he shall be clean.

The sin offering, the burnt offering and the meat offering are all to “make an atonement for him…” Who is all these offerings?

1Co 5:7 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:

Again, who is Christ? Who “makes an atonement for him?”

Act 22:8 And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said unto me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutes.

Now consider what we are told we are to do along with our Savior:

Heb 13:10 We have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle.
Heb 13:11 For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp.
Heb 13:12 Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate.
Heb 13:13 Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.

The holy spirit admonishes us… “Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing His reproach.“ The apostle Paul, who encourages us to “follow me as I follow Christ,” has just instructed us how we go about “going forth unto Him… bearing His reproach.”

Col 1:24 Now, am I rejoicing in the sufferings on your behalf, and am filling up the things that lack of the tribulations of the Christ, in my flesh, in behalf of his body, which is the assembly, (REV)

It was Christ’s sufferings which were on our behalf, and here we have the apostle telling us that his (Apostle Paul’s) sufferings were also for the same purpose, and we are to follow him as he follows Christ.

1Co 11:1 Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ,

The apostle Peter also admonishes us to follow in Christ’s footsteps:

1Pe 2:21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:

Those words are read and preached by most churches, but not one in a million would dare to agree with the apostle that you or I following in Christ’s steps “fill up what is behind of [Christ’s] afflictions”, or that our following in His footsteps means that our “affliction… is for your… salvation.” Not one in a million would think that he could “save a soul from death.”

2Co 1:6 And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation.

Jas 5:20 Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.

The bodies of the beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the priest for sin, were “burned without the camp”, and we are told that our sufferings are “on your behalf”, and we are admonished “Let us go forth unto Him without the camp, bearing His reproach.” Truly “as He is, so are we in this world”, and truly we are to “follow in His steps [and] fill up in [our] bodies what is behind of His afflictions for His body’s sake, which is the church” (Col 1:24):

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

1Jn 4:17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.

The day of atonement is the day which symbolizes those who “make an atonement, and bear the sins of the people along with Christ our passover sacrifice. Those who are sent by our heavenly Father to “make an atonement for, [and] bear the sins of the people” are Christ and His Christ, as typified by the two goats as a sin offering:

Lev 16:20 And when he hath made an end of reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar [which are all types of Christ], he shall bring the live goat [the Christ of Christ]:
Lev 16:21 And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness:
Lev 16:22 And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited [death, “the wages of sin” Rom 6:23]: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness [dying daily].

Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death [Dying daily]; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

That being the case, this day of atonement signifies the function of those who bear the sins of the people and make an atonement for them with Christ. This is actually what we, the firstfruits of Christ, are repeatedly told to do:

Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

1Co 15:31 I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.

Gal 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

Col 1:24 Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

Jas 1:18 Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

Earlier in Leviticus 16 we are told that both goats, the Lord’s goat and the scapegoat, are sin offerings “to make an atonement with him”.

Lev 16:5 And he [Aaron, the high priest] shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering.
Lev 16:6 And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house.
Lev 16:7 And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
Lev 16:8 And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat.
Lev 16:9 And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD’S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering.
Lev 16:10 But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.

In Heb 13:13 we are told: “Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach“. It was recently pointed out that Simon of Cyrene, who was “compelled… to bear [Christ’s] cross… without the camp”, was a New Testament type of this scapegoat who is also compelled to “bear His reproach, [and] make an atonement with [Christ]”. Indeed, that is exactly what this day of atonement typifies:

Lev 23:27 Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
Lev 23:28 And ye shall do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the LORD your God.
Lev 23:29 For whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people.
Lev 23:30 And whatsoever soul it be that doeth any work in that same day, the same soul will I destroy from among his people.
Lev 23:31 Ye shall do no manner of work: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
Lev 23:32 It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your souls [“For His body’s sake which is the church”, Col 1:24]: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath.

Mat 27:32 And as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name: him they compelled to bear his cross.

No one volunteers to die with Christ. “No man can come to [Christ] except the Father… drag him” to do so:

Joh 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw [Greek: drag] him: and I will raise him up at the last day.

All holy days are sabbaths simply because we have no choice and no room to glory in any of the work God is doing to work out His plan and His purpose. It is all of Him, and there is nothing we bring to the table. That is the meaning of… “whatsoever soul it be that doeth any work in that same day, the same soul will I destroy from among his people.”

1Co 1:29 That no flesh should glory in his presence.

What this tells us is that every step in the plan of God in the life of every man or woman is a work which He is working in the very order in which it is laid out in the holy days. The passover lamb is the same as “the goat upon which the Lord’s lot fell.” However, the atonement for the sins of all men is not made without both of these goats. The scapegoat is absolutely essential “to make an atonement with him”, meaning with “the Lord’s goat.”

So the truth is that Israel, by God’s design, is not cleansed by the blood of the first goat alone. It requires the work of both of these goats “to make an atonement” for the sins of the people. Are we actually told that we are to consider ourselves to be part of the sin offering which is made for the sins of the people? Let’s read it again:

Heb 13:12 Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate.
Heb 13:13 Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.

Let us also notice once more that “bearing His reproach” is exactly what the scapegoat, the Old Testament type of “our Lord’s Christ” did:

Lev 16:20 And when he hath made an end of reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat:
Lev 16:21 And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness:
Lev 16:22 And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness.

“The hand of a fit man” refers to Christ Himself, living within His own elect who are symbolized by the goat whose body is offered as “a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God.” As His elect, we are all, at this very moment, being “sent away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness” that is this world. The “land not inhabited” is the symbol of our death of the cross.

Jer 6:8 Be thou instructed, O Jerusalem, lest my soul depart from thee; lest I make thee desolate, a land not inhabited.

Eze 26:20 When I shall bring thee down with them that descend into the pit, with the people of old time, and shall set thee in the low parts of the earth, in places desolate of old, with them that go down to the pit, that thou be not inhabited; and I shall set glory in the land of the living;

That death of the cross is being borne by both Christ and His Christ as an atonement for the sins of the people.

Joh 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

Joh 20:21 Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.

Gal 6:14 But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.

1Jn 4:17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.

When we lay down our lives as an atoning sacrifice for our brother who has sinned against both us and against his Creator, with Christ in us, we have fulfilled the day of atonement just as Christ Himself fulfilled the passover as the first of the firstfruits. That is the spiritual significance of this “day of atonement.” This is not easy to do, and simply acknowledging the spiritual significance of the Day of Atonement will cause us to be hated of all men. We have been given mercy from our heavenly Father through those who have done the same for us. If we appreciate the mercy we have been shown, then we will not be demanding retribution from God upon our enemies, inward or outward. It is this “forgiveness… from the heart” which proves us to be fit to be a nation of kings and priests who will be capable and worthy of judging this world and then later judging angels.

This is the joy that is set before those who are represented by the day of atonement:

1Co 6:2 Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
1Co 6:3 Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?

Rev 1:6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Rev 2:25 But that which ye have already hold fast till I come.
Rev 2:26 And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
Rev 2:27 And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.

Rev 5:10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

The “saints”, “us”, and “we” in all of these verses are the elect who identify themselves as the four beasts and the four and twenty elders who are around the throne of God and who are called “overcome[rs]” in Revelation 2-3.

Rev 5:8 And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
Rev 5:9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
Rev 5:10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

That is what is meant by:

Psa 107:2  Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;

These are the firstfruit harvest of the feast of Pentecost. These are the atonement of the day of atonement. These are those who are called and chosen and who remain faithful to the end:

Mat 10:21 And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death.
Mat 10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

This scapegoat is as much a part of the sin offering for Israel and is “the Lord’s goat” and is “presented before the Lord to make an atonement with Him”, with Christ. What we are being told is that we are to drink of the cup of Christ, and we are to be baptized with His baptism as a living sacrifice to fill up what is lacking of the afflictions of the Christ:

Mar 10:38  But Jesus said unto them, Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?
Mar 10:39 And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized:

Col 1:24 Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

While being the firstfruits of the wheat at Pentecost is the greatest honor that can be bestowed upon any man, it is not an honor that is desired or attained except by very few indeed. This is just how popular this calling is which we have been given:

Mat 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
Mat 7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

Mat 22:14 For many are called, but few are chosen.

Being called and chosen is not all that is required of those who are given to be in that blessed and holy first resurrection. There is one more gift which must be given to all who are granted to be in that “blessed and holy… first resurrection”, and that final gift is the tried faith which will “endure to the end.”

Mat 10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

“Endureth to the end” means that those who are in that blessed and holy first resurrection are faithful to the very end, as we read in these verses:

Joh 8:31  Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue [Greek: abide – “to the end”] in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;

Rev 17:14 These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful [“to the end”].

Conclusion

The spiritual significance of the day of atonement is the death of Christ and His Christ, “to make an atonement with Him.” Its spiritual significance is also demonstrated by the atonement which the Lord is working by the sacrifice of the Lord’s goat and the scapegoat:

Lev 16:9 And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD’S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering.
Lev 16:10 But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.

What is not revealed in the offering of these two goats, one of which is called “a scapegoat”, is the fact that this scapegoat, as “an atonement with [Christ],” has the same spiritual significance as the day of atonement:

Lev 23:28 And ye shall do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the LORD your God.

So the day of atonement symbolizes that part of our lives which we give to Christ and His Christ as a “living sacrifice”:

Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice [for an atonement], holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

There was much more to being an atonement than simply dying for the sins of God’s people. Christ and the apostle Paul reveal why the day of one’s death is better than the day of his birth (Ecc 7:1). This is why it is better to die to our old man than to live to our old man, and this is the fruit of the day of atonement, the afflicting of our souls:

Joh 12:24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.
Joh 12:25 He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.

2Co 1:6 And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation.

Atonement brings forth “much fruit” both for the “living sacrifice” whose afflictions produce life in others, as well as the life that is produced within that “corn of wheat.” Those who are signified by the day of atonement will also be the atoning firstfruits of the first resurrection. It is they who will rule this world first and then judge angels. We are already enjoying the blessing of that first resurrection in down payment form:

Rom 6:3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
Rom 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

1Co 6:2 Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
1Co 6:3 Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?

It is the day of atonement and the giving up of this life which will give us access to that “blessed and holy… first resurrection.” It is only those who are in that resurrection who will then live and reign with Christ as the kings and priests who will judge this world “a thousand years,” to be followed by the judging of angels in the lake of fire.

Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection [“The resurrection of life” from the first death, Joh 5:29]: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

That thousand-year reign will be the subject of our next study, which will cover the spiritual meaning of the feast of tabernacles and then the last great day, the last two steps in the plan of God for the salvation of all and the fulfilling of God’s plan of becoming “all in all.” Outwardly and dispensationally, we will see what the scriptures reveal about how God will raise up from the grave all who have ever died, and how He will halt the constant influx of new “corruptible… flesh and blood” in the form of millions of babies being born every day. We will see how the aions will come to an end and God will, through Christ and His first fruit harvest, at last be “all in all”.

1Co 15:26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.
1Co 15:27 For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him.
1Co 15:28 And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.

Eph 1:22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
Eph 1:23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

[The link to the next session in this series is here]

The Book of Nahum Chapter 1:1-15

[Aired February 22, 2025]

The term “That Great City Nineveh” features twelve times in the Minor Prophets, obviously directly with Jonah’s dramatic entry and grumpy exit; three times in Nahum, and once in Zephaniah, and so, the unintentional flow-on from studying Jonah to Nahum seems appropriate. The Book of Micah is rightly positioned between Jonah and Nahum, warning of Israel’s coming destruction – for the keen spiritual eye’s observation, a grand finalé inventing today with Zionism’s inevitable destruction (Rev 17:15-16).

The broad view of this study is that Nineveh, like our experiences in Gentile Christianity, unwittingly had no option in obeying God but by their own strength. “That Great City, Nineveh” within us, as much as we were terrified by the delusional ever-lasting burning in a lake of fire by Satan’s rotisserie, most frustratingly, never gave us solace through spiritually changed hearts – we just kept on chanting that we were saved; our conscience accusing others as we excused ourselves.

Consequently, the Lord, in his great mercy, warns us seemingly endlessly of our slothfulness in not pursuing him wholeheartedly. Our Lord’s warnings in Nahum incessantly repeated all through scripture, glazed the Babylonian’s eyes in our foreheads most drearily – the topic calmly flatlined, but not so, the Bride’s ravished incites.

Significations:

Nam 1:1  The burden of Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite [H512 = God the ensnarer]. 

The book of the vision Nahum experiences is the voice and subsequent burden of God’s word he hears and sees, similar to what John saw and heard in Revelations upon seeing the seven golden candlesticks (Rev 1:9-20).

The ‘burden of the Lord’ and the ‘burden of the word’ are one and the same. Israel’s ‘burden’ stems from centuries of God’s word going unheeded, continuing for an additional 2,000 years within Gentile Christianity. Without the holy spirit, consistently adhering to their Lord’s word was nearly impossible, leading to an immense ‘burden’ and the inevitability of ‘forgetting’ his testaments.

Psa 38:4  For mine iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me. 

Mal 1:1  The burden of the word of the LORD to Israel by Malachi.

Zec 9:1  The burden of the word of the LORD in the land of Hadrach, and Damascus shall be the rest thereof: when the eyes of man, as of all the tribes of Israel, shall be toward the LORD.

Jer 23:32  Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the LORD, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the LORD.
Jer 23:33  And when this people, or the prophet, or a priest, shall ask thee, saying, What is the burden of the LORD? thou shalt then say unto them, What burden? I will even forsake you, saith the LORD.

(Isa 49:14  But Zion said, The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me.
Isa 49:15  Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.)

Continuing,

Jer 23:34  And as for the prophet, and the priest, and the people, that shall say, The burden of the LORD, I will even punish that man and his house.
Jer 23:35  Thus shall ye say every one to his neighbour, and every one to his brother, What hath the LORD answered? and, What hath the LORD spoken? 
Jer 23:36  And the burden of the LORD shall ye mention no more: for every man’s word shall be his burden; for ye have perverted the words of the living God, of the LORD of hosts our God.
Jer 23:37  Thus shalt thou say to the prophet, What hath the LORD answered thee? and, What hath the LORD spoken?
Jer 23:38  But since ye say, The burden of the LORD; therefore thus saith the LORD; Because ye say this word, The burden of the LORD, and I have sent unto you, saying, Ye shall not say, The burden of the LORD;
Jer 23:39  Therefore, behold, I, even I, will utterly forget you, and I will forsake you, and the city that I gave you and your fathers, and cast you out of my presence:
Jer 23:40  And I will bring an everlasting reproach upon you, and a perpetual shame, which shall not be forgotten. 

‘Nineveh’s burden’ is the Bride’s joyful burden upon her, seeing that she was that ‘Great City Nineveh’, emblematic of the Great Whore (Rev 17:1-18). Ironically, before becoming the Bride, she was a regular woman in Israel blessed with keeping her Lord’s oracles, nonetheless chosen by God to be his wife, innately full of artifices typified by the meaning of Nahum, the Elkoshite’s (H512) name – “the ensnarer”.

Ecc 7:26  And I find more bitter than death the woman, whose heart is snares and nets, and her hands as bands: whoso pleaseth God shall escape from her; but the sinner shall be taken by her. 

Pro 29:6  In the sin of an evil man there is a snare; but the righteous sings and rejoices.

Num 32:21  And will go all of you armed over Jordan before the LORD, until he hath driven out his enemies from before him,
Num 32:22  And the land be subdued before the LORD: then afterward ye shall return, and be guiltless before the LORD, and before Israel; and this land shall be your possession before the LORD.
Num 32:23  But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out.

Jer 17:23  But they did not obey, nor bowed down their ear, but made their neck stiff, so that they might not hear nor receive instruction.

Like any husband who delights in his wife, Christ detests her devotion to unnecessary external incitements.

Exo 34:14  For you must not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.

God’s Wrath Against Nineveh

The Lord’s words and expressions in Nahum are widely understood, even by the most oblivious Babylonian, despite the spiritually hidden nuances in the plain meanings of names, so there is no excuse. He says,

Nam 1:2  God is jealous, and the LORD revengeth; the LORD revengeth, and is furious; the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies. 
Nam 1:3  The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds [mankind] are the dust of his feet. 
Nam 1:4  He rebuketh the sea [mankind], and maketh it dry, and drieth up all the rivers: Bashan [‘baw-shawn’ = fruitful; east of the Jordan, likely the cities of the plain, Sodom and Gormorrah] languisheth, and Carmel, and the flower of Lebanon languisheth. 

The Jordan flowed through the heart of Israel and symbolically represented God’s word, just as the Euphrates symbolised Babylon’s confusing ideologies that they regarded as wisdom.

Rev 16:12  And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.

The Euphrates River, which flowed through the heart of Babylon, is symbolically regarded by the enslaved Israelites as a much lighter burden, even described as delicious. Babylon’s lifestyle and ideologies dry up, making way for the Elect of God, the Kings of the East under Christ’s headship in the One Thousand Year rule under the rod of iron. In the meantime, today, Babylonian Christianity sits as a Queen; in not knowing her burden of Christ’s word, she languishes.

Rev 18:7  How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.

Nam 1:5  The mountains quake at him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein. 

The verse in Nah 1:5 directly relates to the Lake of Fire, where the ‘burden of the Lord’ is reignited upon all mankind since Adam, not in the First Resurrection. This burden is a blazing furnace of his fiery word that produces fine gold in every man, first in his Bride daily, today, and the remainder of the world in the Lake of Fire on the Eighth Day.

Rev 14:9  And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
Rev 14:10  The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: 
Rev 14:11  And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
Rev 14:12  Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

Nam 1:6  Who can stand before his indignation? and who can abide in the fierceness of his anger? his fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him. 

The only person who is given to stand before Christ’s indignation and fierce wrath upon his ‘old man’ is the Body of Christ, his Bride.

Eph 5:24  Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.
Eph 5:25  Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
Eph 5:26  That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
Eph 5:27  That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

Nam 1:7  The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him. 
Nam 1:8  But with an overrunning flood he will make an utter end of the place thereof, and darkness shall pursue his enemies. 

Even the Five unwise, sleepy-eyed virgins can easily see the signified meanings of whirlwinds, storms, clouds, dust, sea, rivers, mountains, Bashan, Carmel and Lebanon, but when the fire is mentioned, suddenly, he remembers his oil sufficiency. His heart beats faster, and wide-eyed, he thrashes about in the dark, too late to buy more—trouble and darkness refuse to reveal his enemies. Knowing the story of Lazarus and the rich man, he now faces an “overrunning flood” of fire—the Lake of Fire.  Meanwhile, the Five Wise Virgins have long been subject to their Lord’s fierce wrath against the old man and relish the fire smelting her rocks within, discarding the inferior metals and dross typified by the works of the Old Covenant.

Num 31:22  Only the gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, and lead—
Num 31:23  everything that can withstand the fire—must be put through the fire, and it will be clean. But it must still be purified with the water of purification. And everything that cannot withstand the fire must pass through the water.
Num 31:24  On the seventh day you are to wash your clothes, and you will be clean. After that you may enter the camp.”

Psa 69:13  But as for me, my prayer is unto thee, O LORD, in an acceptable time: O God, in the multitude of thy mercy hear me, in the truth of thy salvation.
Psa 69:14  Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink: let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of the deep waters.
Psa 69:15  Let not the waterflood overflow me, neither let the deep swallow me up, and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me.

Hag 2:7  I will shake all the nations, and they will come with all their treasures, and I will fill this house with glory, says the LORD of Hosts.
Hag 2:8  The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine, declares the LORD of Hosts.

Nam 1:9  What do ye imagine against the LORD? he will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time. 
Nam 1:10  For while they be folden together as thorns, and while they are drunken as drunkards, they shall be devoured as stubble fully dry. 
Nah 1:11  There is one come out of thee, that imagineth evil against the LORD, a wicked counsellor. 

Being “folden together as thorns” is the mishmash of Babylonian confused thinking that is excellent for initiating a fire. Our former Gentile Christian beliefs are that there is only one resurrection and “affliction shall not rise up a second time”; it is the belief that this is the only day of salvation — they are all drunk on their false doctrines that in their time and order, those convictions will burn fiercely. However, the Lord is not a vindictive God; he is a loving Father who has mercy on his Elect, the proud “one” who is first to experience His wrath and loving chastisements before becoming the new “one” in Christ when pervading peace will remain forever.

Mal 4:1  For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
Mal 4:2  But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.

There is a consummation to transforming the Bride where her perfection is ending and people will no longer say, ‘Know ye the Lord.’

Nam 1:12  Thus saith the LORD; Though they be quiet, and likewise many, yet thus shall they be cut down, when he shall pass through. Though I have afflicted thee, I will afflict thee no more. 
Nam 1:13  For now will I break his yoke from off thee, and will burst thy bonds in sunder. 
Nam 1:14  And the LORD hath given a commandment concerning thee, that no more of thy name be sown: out of the house of thy gods will I cut off the graven image and the molten image: I will make thy grave; for thou art vile. 

Jer 31:33  But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.
Jer 31:34  And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

Nam 1:15  Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace! O Judah, keep thy solemn feasts [Atonement], perform thy vows: for the wicked shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off. 

The first mention of a ‘solemn feast’ in scripture is in Leviticus 23:36, the Last Great Day of the Feast of Tabernacles, which represents the Eighth Day of Creation, the Resurrection to Judgement—the Lake of Fire.

Lev 23:36  Seven days [The Feast of Booths, or Tabernacles] ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: on the eighth day shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: it is a solemn assembly; and ye shall do no servile work therein.

There will certainly be no work of self-righteousness by anyone in the Lake of Fire; indeed, it will be a solemn assembly as it will burn like an oven. Everyone will tremble at the Lord’s word and want to hide in rocks and caves in the mountains and find no hiding place since His word is now pervasive.

Isa 52:7  How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!
Isa 52:8  Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the LORD shall bring again Zion.
Isa 52:9  Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem: for the LORD hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem.
Isa 52:10  The LORD hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.
Isa 52:11  Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence, touch no unclean thing; go ye out of the midst of her; be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the LORD.
Isa 52:12  For ye shall not go out with haste, nor go by flight: for the LORD will go before you; and the God of Israel will be your rereward.

Lord, hasten the day.

“Journey Through the Kingdom to God’s Throne” – Part 5

Beyond the Veil: Entering the Most Holy Place

[Study Aired Dec 3, 2024]

In our progressive journey through God’s spiritual temple, we now approach its innermost sanctuary – the Most Holy Place. “In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:22). This truth transforms our understanding from mere physical description to spiritual reality, “For the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life” (2 Corinthians 3:6). God reveals His truth directly: “With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the LORD shall he behold” (Numbers 12:8). This reference to speaking “mouth to mouth” and beholding the “similitude of the LORD” indicates that God reveals spiritual truth clearly and directly to those He chooses, not through parables or unclear visions, but through direct spiritual understanding and revelation of the parables and visions. “And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables” (Mark 4:11).

The Most Holy Place lay behind a thick veil in the temple, representing the ultimate place of God’s presence. However, this physical arrangement served as a pattern revealing spiritual truth, which “serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things” (Hebrews 8:5), Understanding this spiritual reality requires divine illumination, as Paul explains “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6). As we approach this most sacred space, we must first understand what separated man from God’s presence – the veil itself.

The Veil: Barrier and Access

The veil itself holds profound spiritual significance. God specified its construction precisely: “And thou shalt make a vail of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen of cunning work: with cherubims shall it be made” (Exodus 26:31). Each element carries spiritual meaning that Scripture reveals to us.

The blue represents heaven and God’s throne, as seen when Moses and the elders “saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness” (Exodus 24:10). This heavenly connection is reinforced in Ezekiel’s vision: “And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone” (Ezekiel 1:26), and further shown when “there appeared over them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of the likeness of a throne” (Ezekiel 10:1). God Himself linked blue to heavenly mindedness when He commanded Israel: “bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue: And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart” (Numbers 15:38-39). These fringes with blue ribbands represented divine authority, as demonstrated when people sought healing by touching the fringe of Christ’s garment (Matthew 14:36), recognizing the heavenly power of Him who “is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens” (Hebrews 8:1).

The purple speaks of royalty, as seen when Mordecai went out from the king’s presence “in royal apparel of blue and white, and with a great crown of gold, and with a garment of fine linen and purple” (Esther 8:15). This royal meaning is confirmed when the soldiers mocked Christ’s kingship by putting “on him a purple robe” (John 19:2), unknowingly declaring the truth that He is indeed the one “ordained to be a King” (2 Chronicles 11:22), who has now “on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS” (Revelation 19:16).

The scarlet carries dual spiritual meaning – representing both the flesh with its sins and the blood sacrifice that cleanses sin. The negative meaning is shown when God states “though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool” (Isaiah 1:18). Yet this same scarlet also points to blood and purifying sacrifice, as demonstrated in the cleansing of leprosy: “And the priest shall command to take for him that is to be cleansed two birds alive and clean, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop” (Leviticus 14:4). This dual nature of scarlet – representing both sin and its cleansing – shows how Christ takes our sins upon Himself to purify us, for He “was made sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). This truth is further revealed in the veil of the temple, which contained scarlet and represented Christ’s flesh: “By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh” (Hebrews 10:20). Through His sacrifice, “without shedding of blood is no remission” (Hebrews 9:22), our scarlet sins are made white as snow. The rending of the temple veil at Christ’s death demonstrated that through Him, this meeting place with God is now accessible to all believers in their proper order: “And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom” (Matthew 27:51). The rending came from above, showing God’s action in providing access through Christ’s sacrifice, for “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.” (1 Corinthians 15:22-23)

The fine twined linen represents righteousness, as directly stated in Revelation: “And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints” (Revelation 19:8). This righteousness must be pure and without mixture, as pictured in the priests’ garments: “And thou shalt embroider the coat of fine linen” (Exodus 28:39), for they must be holy as “he that is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners” (Hebrews 7:26).

The cherubim woven into the veil remind us of those who first guarded the way to God’s presence in Eden: “So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life” (Genesis 3:24). Their presence on the veil shows that access to God’s presence requires meeting His holy requirements, now fulfilled in Christ who is “made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption” (1 Corinthians 1:30).

Before Christ’s death, the veil restricted access to God’s presence. Only the high priest could enter, and that just once yearly, “the Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing” (Hebrews 9:8). God commanded Moses: “Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not” (Leviticus 16:2). Even this limited access required extensive preparation, for “thus shall Aaron come into the holy place: with a young bullock for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering” (Leviticus 16:3).

This limitation served a spiritual purpose, teaching the impossibility of approaching God through human effort or righteousness. “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6). The yearly repetition of sacrifices demonstrated their inadequacy, for “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” (Hebrews 10:3-4). The high priest’s need to offer sacrifices for himself before entering showed human imperfection, which contrasts with the true sacrifice, “ For such an high priest became us, … Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people’s” (Hebrews 7:26- 27).

The restrictions and repeated sacrifices pointed to humanity’s sinful condition, for “by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin” (Romans 3:20). The very presence of the veil declared that “your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear” (Isaiah 59:2). This separation required a perfect mediator, for “there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5). While the veil marked the boundary between holy and most holy, what lay beyond it would reveal the ultimate purpose of God’s dwelling place.

The Most Holy Place: God’s Dwelling

The Most Holy Place formed a perfect cube – twenty cubits in each dimension (1 Kings 6:20), matching the pattern of the heavenly city John saw: “And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth… the length and the breadth and the height of it are equal” (Revelation 21:16). This perfect symmetry speaks to the perfection of God’s presence and the complete provision in Christ. As Paul declares, “For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him” (Colossians 2:9-10). “What agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people” (2 Corinthians 6:16). This indwelling fulfills God’s eternal purpose: “Being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:20-22).

Within stood the ark of God’s covenant with the mercy seat of pure gold placed above it. The mercy seat with its cherubim was fashioned as one piece: “And thou shalt make a mercy seat of pure gold… And thou shalt make two cherubims of gold, of beaten work shalt thou make them, in the two ends of the mercy seat… even of the mercy seat shall ye make the cherubims on the two ends thereof” (Exodus 25:17-19). God also commanded “And thou shalt put the mercy seat above upon the ark; and in the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee” (Exodus 25:21).

The ark contained three items as Scripture records: “Wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant” (Hebrews 9:4). Each item testified of Christ: The tables of the covenant served as a schoolmaster to bring us to Christ: “Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith” (Galatians 3:24). While “the law was given by Moses, grace and truth came by Jesus Christ” (John 1:17), showing that Christ brings us beyond the shadow to fulfill “the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2). The golden pot of manna pointed to Christ as the true bread, for He declared “I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger” (John 6:35). Aaron’s rod that budded, which God used to confirm His chosen priesthood (Numbers 17:5,8), pointed to Christ’s resurrection which confirmed His eternal priesthood, for He is “made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life” (Hebrews 7:16) and is “declared to be the Son of God with power… by the resurrection from the dead” (Romans 1:4).

Above the ark, God established His meeting place: “And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims” (Exodus 25:22). This communion required blood atonement: “And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat eastward; and before the mercy seat shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times” (Leviticus 16:14).

The cherubim on the mercy seat, with faces looking toward it (Exodus 25:20), present a striking contrast to Eden’s cherubim. In Eden, they guarded “the way of the tree of life” (Genesis 3:24), blocking access to life after sin entered, for God said, “lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever” (Genesis 3:22). While those cherubim with flaming sword kept man from the tree of life, these cherubim on the mercy seat face toward the place of atonement where blood would provide access to life through Christ, who declares “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). This shows how God’s mercy meets His holiness through blood sacrifice, restoring access to life, for “Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life” (Revelation 22:14). As the Word reveals, God “hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins” (Romans 3:25).

This mercy seat, where atonement was made through blood, foreshadowed Christ’s sacrifice. The very word ‘propitiation’ (hilasterion – Strong’s G2435) used in Romans 3:25 is the same word used for ‘mercy seat’ in Hebrews 9:5: “And over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercyseat [hilasterion].” This same Greek word was used in the Septuagint to translate God’s instructions about the mercy seat in Exodus 25:17: “And thou shalt make a mercy seat [hilasterion] of pure gold” and in Leviticus 16:2: “for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat [hilasterion].” “For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself” (Colossians 1:19-20). “And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement” (Romans 5:11). Thus Christ became our mercy seat, the place where God’s justice and mercy meet, for “He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:2).

Just as the high priest entered with blood once yearly, Christ entered the true holy place: “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” (Hebrews 9:12). Unlike the repeated sacrifices of animals, His one offering perfects forever: “For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified” (Hebrews 10:14). Yet all these patterns and shadows find their fulfillment in One who would provide permanent access to God’s presence.

Christ: Our Access to the Holiest

Christ’s death transformed our approach to God. “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh” (Hebrews 10:19-20). “But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. 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” (Hebrews 7:24-25). This access comes not through our worthiness but through His sacrifice.

The word “boldness” (parrhesia in Greek) means freedom of speech or confidence. This contrasts sharply with the Old Testament high priest’s fearful approach once yearly. Through Christ, we have continuous access with confidence: “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).

Yet this boldness must be balanced with reverence. The high priest’s careful preparation – washing, special garments, blood sacrifice – teaches us to approach God’s presence with holy fear while trusting Christ’s provision. As Isaiah experienced: “In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple… Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts” (Isaiah 6:1,5). As scripture warns, “Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: For our God is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:28-29). With such privileged access granted, we must understand how to walk worthy of this calling.

Spiritual Reality: Living in His Presence

Understanding these patterns transforms our spiritual experience. The Most Holy Place represents the deepest communion with God available to believers through Christ. Paul reveals this mystery as “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27). Peter adds to this, “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light” (1 Peter 2:9). The physical holy of holies pictured what we now experience spiritually – God dwelling in us through His Spirit.

This indwelling makes us God’s temple: “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16). The progression from outer court to holy place to most holy place reveals stages of spiritual experience as we “are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Corinthians 3:18).

These Old Testament patterns find fulfillment through Christ. As Paul declares, “For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us” (2 Corinthians 1:20). We press into deeper communion, as David expressed, “I will go unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy” (Psalm 43:4), experiencing what John described: “That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ” (1 John 1:3).

Just as the high priest brought blood into the Most Holy Place, we must always approach through Christ’s blood: “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus” (Hebrews 10:19). This blood gives us standing before God, for Christ “by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us” (Hebrews 9:12).

The mercy seat’s position above the law teaches us that just as “my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8-9), His mercy through Christ transcends the law’s limitations. This indwelling transforms us as His spirit works within, for He declared “I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them” (Ezekiel 36:27). Yet this present experience is but a foretaste of the glory to be revealed.

 Practical Application

Understanding these patterns should transform our daily walk. Like the high priest maintaining the incense altar before the veil, we must persist in prayer: “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). As he needed proper garments, we must “put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness” (Ephesians 4:24).

The high priest’s careful approach teaches us to examine ourselves: “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” (2 Corinthians 13:5). “Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully” (Psalm 24:3-4). Yet this examination rests on Christ’s work, not our perfection, for “by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8).

The progression aligns perfectly with Christ’s requirement that we “must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). This preparation flows not from our own strength but through His enabling power, for “it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13).

We maintain this communion first through regular prayer and meditation on God’s Word, for David declared “O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day” (Psalm 119:97). This meditation transforms our minds as we “receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls” (James 1:21).

Walking in obedience to revealed truth must follow, for Jesus taught “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). This obedience flows from love, not legalism, as “the love of Christ constraineth us” (2 Corinthians 5:14). When we fail, quick confession restores fellowship, for “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

Essential to this walk is maintaining the Spirit’s filling, as Paul commands “be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18). This filling produces fruit, for “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance” (Galatians 5:22-23).

Above all, we must live in conscious dependence on Christ, acknowledging “without me ye can do nothing” (John 15:5). This dependence manifests in moment-by-moment yielding to His lordship, for “ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).

Future Glory

While we now experience God’s presence spiritually, we anticipate even fuller communion. Paul describes our current state: “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known” (1 Corinthians 13:12). This present partial knowledge gives way to complete understanding, for “when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away” (1 Corinthians 13:10). “For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself” (Philippians 3:20-21).

John’s vision reveals this future reality where physical patterns give way to direct presence: “And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it” (Revelation 21:22). In this new Jerusalem, “the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God” (Revelation 21:3). The types and shadows dissolve in the perfect reality they foreshadowed.

This hope purifies us: “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure” (1 John 3:2-3).

The promise of seeing Him face to face surpasses even the high priest’s annual entry into the Most Holy Place. For while he entered with fear and ritual preparation, we shall enter with joy, for “in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Psalm 16:11). As David anticipated, “As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness” (Psalm 17:15).

This glory exceeds our current comprehension, for “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). Yet through His Spirit, we receive glimpses that kindle our anticipation, “For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God” (Romans 8:19).

Conclusion

The Most Holy Place reveals profound truths about accessing God’s presence through Christ. These patterns find fulfillment as we live in continuous communion with God, transformed by His presence. As Paul declares, “Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty” (2 Corinthians 3:17).

Let us therefore press into this spiritual reality, remembering that “the kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:20-21). Through Christ, we have unlimited access to God’s presence, not just as duty but as delight. May we live daily in this most holy place, being transformed into His image as we behold His glory.

Next Study

Next week, we’ll explore the throne above the Mercy Seat, where God declared, “I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims” (Exodus 25:22). Join us as we discover how this divine presence manifested in the Old Testament patterns reveals our current privilege of communion with God. We’ll examine how Christ, “the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person” (Hebrews 1:3), now grants us access to the very throne of God.

The Book of Romans, Part 20 – God’s Love

[Study Aired November 28, 2023]

Rom 8:31 What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
Rom 8:32 He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?
Rom 8:33 Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.
Rom 8:34 Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. 
Rom 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 
Rom 8:36 As it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 
Rom 8:37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. 
Rom 8:38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 
Rom 8:39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

In our last study of Romans 8:19-30, the focal point was the transformation from suffering, which is orchestrated by God, to glorification.  The study emphasized the truth that the hardships experienced as believers are not aimless; rather, they are integral components of God’s plan of salvation. The redemptive narrative unfolds as God, in His great wisdom, transforms the groans of creation and the trials of His children into instruments of glory. 

Rom 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. 

Romans 8:28 serves as a beacon, assuring that all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose, showcasing the transformation of suffering into glory. As believers, we find encouragement in knowing that our present struggles, intricately woven into God’s grand plan, are not in vain but rather a pivotal part leading to the manifestation of His glory within us, becoming a source of hope that anchors our faith amid life’s challenges.

 In Romans 8:31-39, we continue the journey through the writings of the Apostle Paul that resonate with a triumphant declaration of God’s unwavering love and the unshakable security found in our relationship with Him. These verses represent a peak of certainty and confidence, urging us to think about how deeply God cares for us and the unwavering connection He forms with His children. As we explore this passage, we’ll discover a divine proclamation that transcends the challenges of life, offering a greater understanding of the inseparable connection between God’s love and our ultimate triumph over any adversary. 

Rom 8:31 What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
Rom 8:32 He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?
Rom 8:33 Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.

Within the verses of Romans 8:31-33, a resounding declaration of God’s unwavering love and the triumphant victory secured through Christ’s sacrifice echoes. The opening statement in verse 31 boldly asserts the unquestionable nature of God’s support for believers. This affirmation transcends words, representing a profound truth anchored in the unchanging character of God. The reassurance is clear: if God is for us, no force can stand against us.

In verses 32-33, the focus shifts to the immeasurable gift of Christ’s sacrifice. He did not withhold His own Son but delivered Him up for the redemption of mankind. The imagery emphasizes the completeness and effectiveness of Christ’s atonement, leading to a triumphant victory over sin and death.

These verses show a love so profound that God willingly sacrificed the most precious, His Son, for our sake. The rhetorical question in verse 33 underscores the divine justification of the elect, highlighting that no accusation or charge can stand against those who are in Christ.

Psalm 118:6 The LORD is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?

1 John 4:16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love, and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.

John 3:16 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.

Romans 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

In the above  verses, we find encouragement in the thoroughness of God’s plan for our redemption. The profound love revealed through Christ’s sacrifice ensures an unwavering victory, providing us with a justification that exceeds any worldly accusation. These truths serve as foundational pillars, instilling in us enduring confidence in God’s unwavering love and the triumphant sacrifice of Christ on our behalf.

When we look closely at Romans 8:34, a deep revelation comes to light. The verse declares:

Rom 8:34 Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.

This declaration corresponds with Old Testament types and shadow. In the Old Testament, the sacrificial system symbolized the temporary covering of sins, foreshadowing the ultimate atonement accomplished by Christ’s death. Leviticus 16:11-14 provides a glimpse of this typology, depicting the high priest’s actions on the Day of Atonement.

Leviticus 16:11-14 And Aaron shall bring the bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and shall make an atonement for himself, and for his house, and shall kill the bullock of the sin offering which is for himself: And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the veil: And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not: And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat eastward; and before the mercy seat shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times.

Transitioning to the New Testament, the book of Hebrews illuminates the fulfillment of this Old Testament shadow in Christ’s continuing work. Hebrews 9:24-28 draws a parallel between the earthly sanctuary and Christ’s heavenly ministry, highlighting the once-and-for-all sacrifice that negates condemnation for believers.

Hebrews 9:24-28 For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us: Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others; For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world (kosmos): but now once in the end of the world (aion) hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So, Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

These verses together unveil a comprehensive narrative of Christ’s plan of salvation, bridging the Old and New Testaments to illustrate the truth declared in Romans 8:34. The truth declared is the fulfillment of the Old Testament sacrificial system through Christ’s atonement. This signifies that as believers we are justified and free from condemnation through the once-and-for-all sacrifice of Jesus, as detailed in Hebrews 9:24-28. Christ has set the example for us to follow.

Rom 8:1-2 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

1Jn 2:1-6 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.

Rom 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 
Rom 8:36 As it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 
Rom 8:37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

In Romans 8:35-37, Paul poses a series of rhetorical questions to emphasize the unbreakable nature of the bond between believers and the love of Christ. He presents a comprehensive list of adversities, ranging from tribulation and distress to persecution by the sword. Through this list, Paul paints a vivid picture of the challenges that believers will encounter. The implied answer to each question is a resounding “no,” suggesting that none of these hardships has the power to separate us from the enduring love of God in Christ.

Paul draws on a broader perspective of mankind’s suffering, acknowledging that believers will face a spectrum of trials. By employing the imagery of being “killed all day long” and “accounted as sheep for the slaughter,” Paul references the shared experience of enduring challenges, quoting Old Testament themes. Yet, amidst these adversities, he proclaims believers as “more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” This triumphant declaration reinforces the idea that, in Christ, believers not only endure hardships but emerge victorious over them, guided and empowered by the unwavering love of God.

Psalm 44:22 Yet for Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.

The verse from Psalm 44:22 supports the idea of enduring suffering for God’s sake. Romans 8:37 then strongly confirms Paul’s message that, with the strength of Christ’s love, the elect rise above and conquer the many challenges they encounter.

Rom 8:38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Rom 8:39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

In these verses, Paul expresses his unwavering conviction that nothing—be it death, life, angels, rulers, present circumstances, future uncertainties, height, depth, or any other element of creation—can sever the bond between believers and God’s love in Christ Jesus. This list serves as a powerful reminder that, according to Paul’s persuasion, there exists an inseparable connection between believers and the unfailing love of God.

Psalm 139:8-10 If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.

Isaiah 43:2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.

Ephesians 1:21-22 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church.

Colossians 1:16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.

In this study of Romans 8:31-39, we examined the Apostle Paul’s powerful message about God’s unwavering love and the unshakeable security it brings to us as believers. We looked back at our previous study of Romans 8:19-30, where we learned how God transforms suffering to glory.

Romans 8:31-39 prepares us to think about the vastness of God’s love and the unbreakable connection between believers and God. In verses 31-33, Paul boldly declared God’s unwavering love and the victory won through Christ’s sacrifice. The Old and New Testaments vividly illustrate God’s boundless love and the completeness of Christ’s sacrifice.

Romans 8:34, uncovered the profound revelation of Christ as the ultimate high priest. By connecting Old Testament types and shadows with New Testament fulfillment, we gained insight into the depth of Christ’s plan of salvation for everyone the Father has given him.

Joh 6:35-40 And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. But I said unto you, That ye also have seen me, and believe not. All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.

In Romans 8:35-37, Paul utilizes rhetorical questions to depict the challenges that we will encounter. Other supporting verses, notably Isaiah 53:7, underscore the theme of enduring suffering for God’s sake, affirming that believers triumph through the love of Christ.

Isa 53:7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

Finally, in Romans 8:38-39, Paul assured us that nothing could separate us from God’s love. The verses from Psalms, Isaiah, Ephesians, and Colossians highlighted the all-encompassing nature of God’s love, prevailing over every aspect of our lives.

In conclusion, our study of Romans 8:31-39 reveals a profound understanding of the mankind’s, firstly the elect’s, secure position in God’s unwavering love. This message echoes with the assurance that present trials or future uncertainties cannot separate us from the enduring love of God in Christ Jesus.

Psalm 91:14-16 Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honour him. With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation.

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

John 10:28-29 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.

The Book of Romans, Part 11 – We Have Hope Through Tribulation

[Study Aired September 5, 2023]

Rom 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
Rom 5:2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 
Rom 5:3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 
Rom 5:4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope: 
Rom 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. 
Rom 5:6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
Rom 5:7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.
Rom 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Rom 5:9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. 
Rom 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. 
Rom 5:11 And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.

To understand Romans 5:1-2 in the context of the first four chapters of Romans, it’s essential to recognize the progression the Apostle Paul builds in this letter. Let’s break down these verses considering the preceding chapters:

Romans 1-4: In the preceding chapters, Paul has been establishing the foundational principles of salvation and righteousness through faith. He explains that all have sinned (Rom 3:23) and fallen short of God’s glory but are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus (Rom 3:24). He emphasizes that righteousness comes not through works of the law but through faith in Jesus (Rom 3:28).

Rom 3:21-28  But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 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; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.

In Romans 4, Paul uses the example of Abraham to illustrate the concept of justification by faith. He points out that Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness (Rom 4:3), and this justification was not based on works but on faith (Rom 4:5). Abraham’s faith in God’s promise foreshadowed the faith that would be placed in Christ for salvation.

Rom 4:1-5 What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found? For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.

Now, with this context in mind, let’s look at Romans 5:1-2:

Rom 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 
Rom 5:2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Considering Paul’s foundational teachings in the preceding chapters, this verse signifies that faith leads to our righteous declaration (justification) before God. This justification brings about reconciliation with God and, as a result, peace. Prior to faith, mankind existed in a state of separation from God, marked by sin – a condition the law, serving as our guide, revealed to us (Gal 3:24). Through faith, we are harmoniously reunited with God, erasing the enmity that once existed, ultimately resulting in peace. This peace finds its source and foundation “through our Lord Jesus Christ” because His sacrificial act on the cross is what underpins both our justification and reconciliation, as explained in Romans 3:25.

Gal 3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 

Rom 3:26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. 

Romans 5:2: “By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”

Here, Paul continues to emphasize the role of Jesus Christ in our salvation. He explains that it is through Jesus Christ that we have access to “this grace”. Our faith opens the door to God’s forgiveness. This grace allows us to “stand” in a state of righteousness before God, firmly rooted in His favor and acceptance.

This access to grace leads to rejoicing in hope. As Paul established in Romans 4, just as Abraham hoped in God’s promise, we also hope in the glory of God. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we gain access to God’s grace, and we stand in this grace with confidence. This echoes the Old Testament’s emphasis on the importance of grace, such as in the Psalms where we find, “But he gives us more grace” (Psa 84:11, Jas 4:6).

Psa 84:11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. 

Jas 4:6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

In summary, Romans 5:1-2 builds upon the foundation laid in the previous chapters by explaining that through faith we are justified, reconciled to God and have access to God. This faith fills us with the hope of future glory, allowing us to stand in a state of righteousness and rejoice in our relationship with God.

Rom 5:3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 
Rom 5:4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:

In our journey, we can find joy, especially in difficult times, knowing that trials produce patience, which leads to experience and ultimately hope. This idea of finding purpose in trials is found in the Old Testament, as in the story of Joseph in Genesis, where his trials led to his exaltation and the saving of many lives.

Gen 50:20 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.

The following verses emphasize that going through tribulations or trials will develop patience in us, and this patience leads to spiritual growth and maturity.

Psa 37:7-9 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass. Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil. For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.

Psa 40:1 I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.

Jas 1:2-4 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

2Co 1:3-4 Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.

The above verses teach us to rely on God’s strength and faithfulness during times of tribulation, ultimately leading to a deeper relationship with Him.

Rom 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. 

Our hope in Christ is sure and will not disappoint us, because the Holy Spirit, which is given to believers, fills our hearts with the love of God. This aligns with the Old Testament’s promise of the Holy Spirit, as seen in Ezekiel 36:26-27.

Eze 36:26-27 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

Rom 5:6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
Rom 5:7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. 
Rom 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

These verses emphasize the incredible love of God. Christ’s sacrifice on the cross occurred when we were still sinners and had no ability to save ourselves. This echoes the concept of God’s unfailing love found throughout the Old Testament, such as in Psalm 136.

Psa 136:1 O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 136:2 O give thanks unto the God of gods: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 136:3 O give thanks to the Lord of lords: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 136:4 To him who alone doeth great wonders: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 136:5 To him that by wisdom made the heavens: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 136:6 To him that stretched out the earth above the waters: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 136:7 To him that made great lights: for his mercy endureth for ever: 
Psa 136:8 The sun to rule by day: for his mercy endureth for ever: 
Psa 136:9 The moon and stars to rule by night: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 136:10 To him that smote Egypt in their firstborn: for his mercy endureth for ever: 
Psa 136:11 And brought out Israel from among them: for his mercy endureth for ever: 
Psa 136:12 With a strong hand, and with a stretched out arm: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 136:13 To him which divided the Red sea into parts: for his mercy endureth for ever: 
Psa 136:14 And made Israel to pass through the midst of it: for his mercy endureth for ever: 
Psa 136:15 But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red sea: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 136:16 To him which led his people through the wilderness: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 136:17 To him which smote great kings: for his mercy endureth for ever: 
Psa 136:18 And slew famous kings: for his mercy endureth for ever: 
Psa 136:19 Sihon king of the Amorites: for his mercy endureth for ever: 
Psa 136:20 And Og the king of Bashan: for his mercy endureth for ever: 
Psa 136:21 And gave their land for an heritage: for his mercy endureth for ever: 
Psa 136:22 Even an heritage unto Israel his servant: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 136:23 Who remembered us in our low estate: for his mercy endureth for ever: 
Psa 136:24 And hath redeemed us from our enemies: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 136:25 Who giveth food to all flesh: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 136:26 O give thanks unto the God of heaven: for his mercy endureth for ever.

This Psalms reveals the process we all go through to enter the kingdom of God. We were Pharaoh, the great kings, and the famous kings. 

Rom 5:9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. 
Rom 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. 

Through Christ’s sacrifice, we are justified and saved from God’s wrath to come in the lake of fire. This reconciliation through the death and life of Christ reflects the Old Testament’s teachings on reconciliation, as seen in Isaiah 53:5-6.

Isa 53:5-6 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Rom 5:11 And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.

Through Jesus Christ, we find joy and have received peace, atonement and the reconciliation between God and mankind. This concept of atonement for sins is rooted in the Old Testament, particularly in the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16).

Lev 16:11 And Aaron shall bring the bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and shall make an atonement for himself, and for his house, and shall kill the bullock of the sin offering which is for himself.

This verse states the importance of the high priest’s atonement on behalf of himself and his family.

Lev 16:15 Then shall he (Aaron) kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the vail, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat.

This verse describes the people’s sin offering.

Lev 16:16 And he shall make an atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins: and so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation, that remaineth among them in the midst of their uncleanness.

This verse underscores the comprehensive nature of the atonement, covering both the holy place and the tabernacle itself, symbolizing the cleansing of the sanctuary from the people’s sins.

Lev 16:30 For on that day shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before the Lord.

Leviticus 16:30 serves as a clear declaration of the Day of Atonement’s purpose. The priest’s actions on that day are aimed at cleansing the people so they may stand before the Lord free from the stain of their sins. This verse underscores the meticulous process of atonement, highlighting the central role of the priest in facilitating purification.

In a similar vein, the order and significance of salvation are elaborated upon in 1 Corinthians 15:20-28. The resurrection of Christ is pivotal, as He is the first to rise from the dead, marking the beginning of a sequence in which all who belong to Him will be made alive. This process follows a particular order, starting with Christ as the firstfruits and continuing with those who are His when He returns. Ultimately, this culminates in the defeat of death itself.

1Co 15:20-28 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. 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. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him. And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.

This journey toward salvation, however, is far from effortless. It demands a significant price, the death of our old man. Faith becomes the sole means of achieving salvation, as relying on adherence to the law is insufficient. While the law has its role in educating us about sin, it isn’t the ultimate path to salvation.

The process is challenging, marked by tribulation and the filling of what remains of Christ’s afflictions. Perseverance until the end is the key, leading to the eventual enjoyment of the fruits of our labor. Through this journey, we move beyond the constraints of the law, having God to become the overarching and all-encompassing presence in our lives.

Rom 5:3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 
Rom 5:4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope: 
Rom 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. 

Act 14:22 Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.

Col 1:24 Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church: 

Joh 8:31-32 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

Here are our verses for our next study:

Rom 5:12 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:
Rom 5:13 (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. 
Rom 5:14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. 
Rom 5:15 But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. 
Rom 5:16 And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification.
Rom 5:17 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 5:18 Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. 
Rom 5:19 For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. 
Rom 5:20 Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: 
Rom 5:21 That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.

[Study Aired at Indianapolis, IN Conference September 27, 2020]

The answer to the above question is, “Yes, we do,” and as with all the other offerings, this offering is also Christ, but not in the sense of the burnt, meat, peace and sin offerings. Christ Himself is all the first four of the five offerings, and in and through Christ we also offer ourselves up with Him as a sweet-smelling savor offering to the Father:

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

Gal 2:20  I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

2Co 2:15  For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish:

If Christ died for our sins, which He certainly did, why is Paul exhorting us to present our bodies a sweet savor living sacrifice to be crucified with Christ?

Here is the answer to that question:

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

In what church at any time have you ever heard a sermon on “that which is behind, [that which is lacking] of the afflictions of Christ”? I am 73 years old and have been in the ‘Bible belt’ of the U.S. most of my life, and I have never heard such a sermon in any of the many churches I have attended over the years.

Why does Paul exhort us to “present [our] bodies a living sacrifice? He does so to “fill up what is lacking of the afflictions of Christ.” However, notice why and for whom Paul is filling up in his body those afflictions of Christ which are lacking. He tells us he is doing this “for His body’s sake which is the church.”

Knowing this adds great spiritual weight to these words Christ uttered when He appeared to His disciples in a locked room “the same day” in which He was resurrected from the dead. His appearance with the wounds of His crucifixion scared his disciples to death, so He calmed their fears with these incredibly profound words:

Joh 20:19  Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.
Joh 20:20  And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord.
Joh 20:21 Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. 

Exactly what had the Father sent Christ to do? The scriptures are very clear what the Father had given Christ to accomplish, and “as [His] Father sent [Him] even so [He] has sent us”:

Joh 3:17  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 

How was Christ to accomplish that goal? That question is answered in equally clear words:

Col 1:22  In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:

Heb 2:14  Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;

So, Christ is still in the process, through us, of accomplishing the mission His Father gave Him to accomplish, which is “that the world through Him might be saved”. There is one thing, as we will see, which a spotless, sinless Savior needs for us to be capable of accomplishing that mission to fill up what is behind of His afflictions.

Contrary to what is taught in the churches, Christ did not become a sin offering by being nailed to the cross. He was “made sin” by being “made of a woman, made under the law, made flesh” which flesh is itself “corruption” and which “cannot inherit the kingdom of God”:

Joh 1:14  And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

Gal 4:4  But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, [“made sin” 2Co 5:21]

2Co 5:21  For the man who knew no sin was made sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. (ACV)

Flesh is sinful “corruption”, and Christ was given of His Father to be “made sin” by being “made flesh”, but it was not given Him to “know sin”, as it is given to us as “His body which is the church”. Though we are all “shapen in iniquity, and conceived in sin” (Psa 51:5), Christ still identifies with us to the extent that He says we are Him:

Mat 25:40  And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

Christ even calls us “Jesus of Nazareth”:

Act 22:8  And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said unto me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest. 

Therefore it is by living His life of dying daily within each of us, that Christ fulfills the trespass offering, even though He Himself “knew no sin” (2Co 5:21).

This is such an important and integral part of the plan of God that there is only one “living sacrifice” of all the sacrifices mentioned in the Old Testament. That one “living sacrifice” is given to “bear the sins of the people with Him”. The Lord has seen fit to give us just one “living sacrifice” in all of the offerings which are listed in the law of Moses, and that one “living sacrifice… with the Lord’s goat… bears upon him all the iniquities of the children of Israel”:

Lev 16:21  And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness:
Lev 16:22  And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness.

It is also “for His body’s sake which is the church” that the scapegoat is offered as a living sacrifice:

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:  

Christ’s body is called ‘the church’, and ‘the church’ is also known as “the temple of God”:

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1Co 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

In Leviticus 16 Christ is called “the Lord’s goat”, and it is He who is physically crucified as a sin offering for the sins of the people, while we, the scapegoat are offered as a living sacrifice “before the Lord to make an atonement with [Christ, filling up what is behind of His afflictions] and [we are] let… go for a scapegoat into the wilderness”:

Lev 16:9  And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD’S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering.
Lev 16:10  But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.

The scapegoat, along with “the Lord’s goat”, bears the sins of the congregation, and the scapegoat is offered along with Christ, “filling up what is behind of His afflictions” on the day of atonement to atone for the sins of the people:

Lev 16:10  But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.

At “this present time”, the blood of Christ is not cleansing the court that is outside the tabernacle or the temple. At this present time, it is only being applied to “His body which is the church. That is the meaning of:

Lev 16:15  Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering [Christ our head], that is for the people, and bring his blood within the vail, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat:
Lev 16:16  And he shall make an atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins: and so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation, that remaineth among them in the midst of their uncleanness.
Lev 16:17  And there shall be no man in the tabernacle of the congregation when he goeth in to make an atonement in the holy place, until he come out, and have made an atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the congregation of Israel.
Lev 16:18  And he shall go out unto the altar that is before the LORD, and make an atonement for it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and of the blood of the [Lord’s] goat, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about.
Lev 16:19  And he shall sprinkle of the blood upon it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it, and hallow it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel.
Lev 16:20  And when he hath made an end of reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar, [After the death and resurrection of Christ and His Christ] he shall bring the live goat:
Lev 16:21  And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness:
Lev 16:22  And the [scape] goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness.

Lev 16:29  And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you:

That is why we are told in the book of Hebrews:

Heb 13:10  We [the living sacrifice, the scapegoat] have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle.

This is the reason John, in the book of Revelation, tells us:

Rev 11:1  And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.

Rev 11:2  But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.

We are the temple of God, and we are the living scapegoat sacrifice. All of this is what Paul is telling us when He says:

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

Then Paul tells us that is what he himself has done in following his own admonition to us, but this time he is inspired to reveal to us the fact that Christ’s afflictions can only be filled up through us, and he tells us what is the significance of us offering our bodies as a living sacrifice to God.

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church: 

What we are being told is that we are this scapegoat, which is the only sacrifice which is “presented alive before the Lord”. What we are also being told is that this “living sacrifice” is not offered until after the tabernacle and the altar have been reconciled to God:

Lev 16:20  And when he hath made an end of reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat:

Rom 11:15  For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead?

2Co 5:19  To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

We are plainly told that we “are the temple of God” and we are very clearly told that in “this present time” (Rom 8:18) we have an altar at which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat, because the Lord has given them all to be ‘carried about with different and strange doctrines and with meats which have not profited them that have been occupied with those strange doctrines’.

Heb 13:9  Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein.
Heb 13:10  We have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle.
Heb 13:11  For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp.
Heb 13:12  Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate.

It is only Aaron, an Old Testament type of Christ, our high priest, and His sons who are permitted to eat before the golden altar in the holy place within the tabernacle/temple.

Lev 6:16  And the remainder thereof shall Aaron and his sons eat: with unleavened bread shall it be eaten in the holy place; in the court of the tabernacle of the congregation they shall eat it.

Being the scapegoat, who “with the Lord’s goat” makes an atonement for the people”, we are in the very next verse encouraged to be that “living sacrifice… going unto Him without the camp, with the Lord’s goat…” bearing His reproach, “upon [us]… bearing all the iniquities of the people”:

Heb 13:13  Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.

Lev 16:22  And the [scape] goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness.

I hope this helps you to see how we have a trespass offering. It is through the mystery which has been hidden from the ages and from generations… Christ in you the hope of glory, that we are given through Him to become a trespass offering as a scape goat savior, and to fill up Him who fills all in all:

Oba 1:21  And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD’S.

Eph 1:22  And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
Eph 1:23  Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. 

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

Col 1:26  Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
Col 1:27  To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
Col 1:28  Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus:

It is through “Christ in you the hope of glory” that we are this scapegoat, sin offering on behalf of “Him who knew no sin”.

Psa 84:1 To the chief Musician upon Gittith, A Psalm for the sons of Korah. How amiable are thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts!
Psa 84:2 My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.
Psa 84:3 Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God.
Psa 84:4 Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee. Selah.
Psa 84:5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them.
Psa 84:6 Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools.
Psa 84:7 They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.
Psa 84:8 O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer: give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah.
Psa 84:9 Behold, O God our shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed.
Psa 84:10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.
Psa 84:11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
Psa 84:12 O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.

I recently heard a story about a young boy who told his father that he loved the fish he was eating, to which his father replied somewhat jokingly “is that why you caught the fish and killed it and are now eating it?” “You love the taste of the fish and what it provides for you?”, the father went on to gently explain to his son.

This is somewhat akin to Christ saying these words to His disciples:

Joh 6:26 Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.

The man who told this story used it as a backdrop to explain that real love gives of our own life to others as we invest ourselves in them, not for what we can get out of the relationship, but for what we can give to the other person. He went on to say that we are blessed to give our life to others because with that investment comes the rich reward of coming to know that other person and seeing that part of your life manifest in theirs, and I would add and their life in you.

This thought conveniently follows the pattern of the very next verse in:

Joh 6:27 Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed.

The story teller went on to explain that, like this child, we have a misconstrued understanding of what love is, even when we first find the love of our life, that person who fills our emotional needs and provides many things for us (as Babylon does), as we do for them, and this is what he deemed “fish love” referring back to the young boy who loved fish for what it could do for him.

From a physical perspective, I thought how aptly that story makes clear how much higher our Father’s love is for us, and how it was and is manifest through the life of Christ that was given to us. His actions of investing His life in us would ultimately lead to our being able to have their Life manifest within us, so that we in turn could become fishers of men who would go out and be as He was and is in this earth (1Jn 4:17), loving to fish, but not fishing for love. The only way that will happen is to have that first self-centered nature burnt out of us by filling up what is behind of the afflictions of Christ, that is what will give us great reason to rejoice and again I say rejoice.

Joh 3:16 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.

Joh 15:7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.

Col 1:24 Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

Php 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.

God does not need our love and praise, and He is not fishing for it, and he knows how blessed we will be if we grow in that nature and mind of His, so He gives us His only begotten son and establishes a means for us to be reconciled to Him through Christ. It is with the mind of Christ that we can praise and love our Father and cry out like the lively stones that we become through him (Rom 5:10, Joh 15:9, Luk 19:40, 1Pe 2:5).

That same bridge that Christ is for us unto the Father is what we are becoming through Christ for the rest of the world.

1Ti 2:5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
1Ti 2:6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

Eph 5:30 For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones.

Col 1:24 Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

God also uses humanity’s (our) most base carnal instincts to accomplish His purpose of reconciling us to Him, and Christ is that fish who is captured and killed and eaten so we can have true life, which is demonstrated in these parables found in John 6:56, John 21:9-12 and John 12:24.

God does fish for us (Joh 4:23), however, from our carnal perspective, we think He is fishing for our love, when in truth the catch and the calling, the line, the hook and the sinker so to speak have all been predestined by our Father (Joh 21:6).

When we know and believe this, we also believe that all of the casting that did not catch any fish were equally working according to the counsel of God’s will, as was the moment when the fish were caught with a cast on the “right side of the ship”, which symbolizes the power of God that gives the increase at the appointed time (Eph 1:11, 1Co 3:16).

Joh 21:9 As soon then as they were come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid thereon, and bread.
Joh 21:10 Jesus saith unto them, Bring of the fish which ye have now caught.
Joh 21:11 Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land full of great fishes, an hundred and fifty and three: and for all there were so many, yet was not the net broken.
Joh 21:12 Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine. And none of the disciples durst ask him, Who art thou? knowing that it was the Lord.

In time, and only by the grace and faith of Christ, do we as God’s children come to learn and understand the true love of God as we’re fed by our Lord the fish and bread He prepares in John 21:9, which represents the fleshly trials that this life presents through all our interactions that are fiery by design (he prepares them). Like the hot coals that are needed to cook that fish and bread, this occurs so it can be nourishing to our souls that are maturing in Him as we go through the consuming fire that purifies His words within us (Heb 5:8<, Rom 5:6-8, Heb 12:29, 1Pe 1:7).

It is important to note that it is fish and bread, and that they work together because the bread is tried on the fire like the word of God, and it is needed to strengthen our hearts (Luk 22:19, Psa 104:15) as we come up against the multitudes in this life who will be against us, the many fish of the sea, the whole world whom Christ has promised would be against us (Mat 10:22).

It is God’s love being shed abroad in our hearts (Rom 5:5) that makes it possible for us to love our enemies and love the world while they are yet sinners whom we now love as God loves us and loved us (Rom 5:8). It is God’s love which enables us to fill up what is behind of the afflictions of Christ as we present ourselves a living sacrifice (Rom 12:1) who are blessed to learn that it is more blessed to give than to receive, and that to be a lamb for the slaughter, as our Lord was, is a great blessing as it will provide the food which this world needs and is unknowingly starving for (Isa 53:7, Rom 8:36, Act 20:35, Isa 3:1, Hos 4:6).

I recently saw a video that was heart wrenching to watch, but I can see now how the Lord had me watch this to remember that we are not laying down our lives for ourselves only, as I’m sure we know. At first that is all we can see and understand because of all the wounds that we need to have healed in our own broken down prodigal experiences, but ultimately this experience of evil that we experience (is, was and will be) comes to be better understood through the healing and strength we receive in the inn which represents the body of Christ, the church, in the parable of the Samaritan (Luk 10:34-35, Col 1:24).

Eventually our perception of what has happened becomes something that is not for ourselves but for the lives of others who will come after us, and for each of us who have come into the midst of the garden of paradise today where we “now rejoice” in ‘My suffering for you’ and see that the conclusion of that parable Christ was teaching cannot be reached until we are all the different characters represented in it. That is the narrow road which enables us to become a neighbourly neighbour or good Samaritan as we call it (Eph 2:4-6, Rev 2:7).

The story I watched was simple: the child was on a talk show and his mother was one of many single mothers on the stage who were trying to raise their children without a father. Consequently the children had all sorts of disciplinarian issues that they were going to set straight right in front of the entire world on national television by having a man dressed as a sergeant come out and give some hard advice to the children who were going to go to some kind of children’s’ boot camp. I began to think “why am I watching this?”, and then remembered the title of the short video was about ‘a heart warming experience’, so I trusted that it was going to end well, which it did.

The Lord gave that one particular little boy, who was being drilled by the sergeant, to answer to his question that had the whole audience cheering. He said to the troubled child who would have to spend the next four months with him unless he changed his tune “do you want me to be your father for the next four months son?” to which the scared little child said, “yes, sir, I would like that” to the surprise of the sergeant who then asked “why do you want that, son?”, (and this is the part that is heart-wrenching for us as God’s children who have the spirit of God, which is the spirit that is typified in Elijah who wants to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the children to the fathers (Mal 4:6)) to which he replied “I have no father”.

That is why we are here today, that is why we write emails and do studies and phone each other and build each other up, because this world needs and wants to be loved by a real father, a strong father who will be there for them. After that little lad said what he said, the sergeant bent down and gave him a big hug and walked off the stage with him. It was amazing how the producers had the tables turned on them by a little child, and it makes me think of Christ’s words in Matthew 19:14. God made a way for this little one to say what he had to say, and He is going to make a way for us as the bride of Christ to let the stones cry out, so that reconciliation and healing can begin to take place in the land of all the fathers and children and mothers and daughters (Luk 19:40). Of course we know that age (being older) is not what we are talking about here because we can be hundred years old from the point that we die and be raised as a babe in Christ who has yet to grow into a mature son who must come through judgment (Oba 1:21).

When Christ said “If these should hold their peace”, it reminds me of last week’s title “Keep not thou silence, O God: hold not thy peace^H2790, and be not still, O God”. In other words, it is going to happen and the gates of hell will not prevail against God’s purpose for the church (Mat 16:18).

This week’s study will hopefully have the Lord directing our hearts to see why it is that we are to become as little children (Mat 18:3) who trust God as our strong Abba Father who we want to turn to, even as we give up our life and lose everything so that we can gain eternal life (Mat 16:25).

The verses we are about to study reminded me of how we are adopted children of God, grafted into His family, unlike Christ who was the only begotten of the Father (Joh 1:14) who never had to have his heart turned to His Father or His Father turned to Him, in the sense that Christ could not and would not rebel and never did anything against His Father because He had the spirit without measure and was learning obedience by the things which He suffered in His sinful flesh, which never manifested as an act of sinning even through the most severe and diverse temptations. He truly cleaved to His Father and is our example of how we ought to cleave unto Him as our refuge (Joh 17:5, Joh 3:34, Heb 5:8, Heb 4:15, Deu 13:4, Deu 4:4).

Usually when physical parents adopt children they take their time, and they plan, and they have to consider many details to know for sure that this is a right and loving decision for the child they are hoping to graft into their life. However, God’s love is manifest in that process while we were yet sinners and he had already determined instantly that we would be His children that He would love; and so we read:

1Jn 3:1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.

We are called to be fishers of men, to love fish who we will graft into the body as God grafted us in, and ultimately, with the mind of Christ, we will not fish for love for selfish motives (Mat 23:15) but rather love to fish.

Mat 23:15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.

When someone loves you with the love that God loves us, and your heart has been prepared to receive that love, you cannot help but want to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the children to the father (Mal 4:6), and that’s a good thing and the starting point that God is using within those in the body of Christ who have many fathers and sons being reconciled today in the spirit, so that we can be the fishers of men who will be used to reconcile the rest of the world in His perfect time (Mat 4:19).

Psa 84:1 To the chief Musician upon Gittith, A Psalm for the sons of Korah. How amiable are thy tabernaclesH4908, O LORD of hosts!

“How amiable are all thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts”?

This is our prayer, to grow to love those tabernacles who don’t love us back (Mat 5:44, Luk 14:14), because those tabernacles are God’s, and He loves them, and Christ loves them. It’s just that he has not yet actively set his loving work of chastening and scourging them to receive them as sons today (Joh 3:16, Joh 10:16, Rom 9:13, Heb 12:6).

If we are truly to be considered His sons today, we must love those whom we see, which gives evidence that we love God who we don’t see, and demonstrates that His love is being shed abroad in our hearts (1Jn 4:20, Rom 5:5).

If we are God’s “Gittith” (harp) today, then that song that He is playing on our heart strings will be for the sons of Korah^H7141, which word demonstrates the process of ‘three Israelites’ and ‘two Edomites’ – a witness of our flesh that will be destroyed by the combination of the names, just like the fish and the bread we read about earlier on the fiery coals of John 21:9: ‘three Israelites’ and ‘two Edomites’ which equals five (5), which number symbolizes grace and faith.

Psa 84:2 My soul longeth^H3700, yea, even fainteth^H3615 for the courts^H2691 of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.

This longing and fainting “for the courts^H2691 of the LORD” occurs within our heart and our flesh that cries out for the living God. With the mind of Christ, we long to be judged within those courts, to be cleansed by abiding in the word even when that chastening ‘smarts’. We learn not to despise it because we know that it is for our good.

Heb 5:7 Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared;

Psa 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
Psa 139:24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

Rev 11:1 And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.
Rev 11:2 But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.

Pro 3:11 My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction:

This is the longing that Christ spoke of to his disciples to drink within the temple which we are. It is that longing to be with the living God that is going to purify the temple, and that longing is a gift from God that drags us unto Christ who in turn satisfies our thirst and hunger to walk in these courts “in the way everlasting” that is pleasing before our Father.

Mat 26:29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.

1Co 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

Luk 17:21 Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

Joh 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.

Joh 7:37 In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.

Joh 6:68 Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.
Joh 6:69 And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.

Psa 84:3 Yea, the sparrow^H6833 hath found an house, and the swallow^H1866 a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God.

The sparrow which finds its house is the elect who find their rest in the Lord (Heb 4:11), and the swallow likewise witnesses to the fact that in His courts there is a haven where we, she, the church, can “lay her young” at God’s altar which is the cross, “O LORD of hosts^H6635” “and my God”.

The context of Matthew 10:28-32 also bears witness to God’s provision that helps us see why the word “hosts”^H6635 is connected to war and an army, which we are part of (Eph 6:12), and fighting together with God as our helper (Heb 13:6), my King, and my God.

Mat 10:28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Mat 10:29 Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.
Mat 10:30 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
Mat 10:31 Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.
Mat 10:32 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.

What God is doing within his “two sparrows“, which represent the witness of Christ within us today, is of more value than what is happening within the world, the “many sparrows“. Christ does not say that the Father loves these sparrows more than the “many sparrows” (Joh 3:16), but rather is telling us that our experience of being sacrificed at the altar is for them. This section of the parable “and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father” is a reference to the one seed that we are which must die in order to bring forth fruit, which is what God has called us to do for the benefit of all those who will come after us (Joh 12:24, Gal 3:16) and that is why those “two sparrows” that represent Christ in us are more valuable than the “many sparrows” who are yet to be saved and who don’t have Christ in them yet (Rom 8:9).

(Sparrow^H6833 (of this verse) = “bird”(s) in Leviticus 14) speaking of leprosy in the house (our tabernacle of verse 1, our dwelling place) and it being cleansed with the blood of this bird:

Lev 14:48 And if the priest shall come in, and look upon it, and, behold, the plague hath not spread in the house, after the house was plaistered: then the priest shall pronounce the house clean, because the plague is healed.
Lev 14:49 And he shall take to cleanse the house two birds^H6833, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop:
Lev 14:50 And he shall kill the one of the birds^H6833 in an earthen vessel over running water:
Lev 14:51 And he shall take the cedar wood, and the hyssop, and the scarlet, and the living bird^H6833, and dip them in the blood of the slain bird^H6833, and in the running water, and sprinkle the house seven times:
Lev 14:52 And he shall cleanse the house with the blood of the bird^H6833, and with the running water, and with the living bird^H6833, and with the cedar wood, and with the hyssop, and with the scarlet:
Lev 14:53 But he shall let go the living bird^H6833 out of the city into the open fields, and make an atonement for the house: and it shall be clean. (This is what will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the children to the father)

Swallow^H1866 is only used once in this Psalm and once in Proverbs 26:2. Interestingly, that number is related to H1865 which is used in the old testament as “liberty” and “pure” which only confirms that sound pattern of what God is doing with his “two sparrows“. Every sacrifice is made pure with fire, and it’s important to note that the sparrow is a small but significant sacrifice, just as we are the weak of the world, but nevertheless blessed to be the kind of first-fruits who first offer our lives as a living sacrifice (Mar 9:49).

Swallow A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: the same as H1865
H1865 derôr   Total KJV Occurrences: 8
liberty, 7
Lev_25:10; Isa_61:1; Jer_34:8; Jer_34:15; Jer_34:17(2); Eze_46:17
pure, 1
Exo_30:23

This Psalm is really a comfort to our souls, and this verse in particular reminds us that we have been blessed to find refuge in the house of the Lord because God has made a way for us in the wilderness to keep His words through Christ so that they can abide with us in liberty and purity.

Rev 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

Joh 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

Joh 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.

2Co 3:17 Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

Psa 84:4 Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee. Selah.
Psa 84:5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them.
Psa 84:6 Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools.
Psa 84:7 They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.

These verses Psalms 84:4-7 witness to the fruit that comes about as a result of abiding in the (pure/purified) house of God.

Joh 15:7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
Joh 15:8 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
Joh 15:9 As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.
Joh 15:10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.

The fruit of “praising thee” is on our lips with songs of thankgiving.

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.

Psa 95:2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.
Psa 95:3 For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.

We are told that when the Lord is our strength, the one through whom we can endure all things (Php 4:13), that our hearts are set on “the ways” of “the way” (Joh 14:6) and we will find ourselves “passing through the valley of Baca (weeping^H1056) make it a well”, which is a beautiful reminder for God’s elect that our weeping, our sorrow in this life, will be turned to joy (Psa 126:5-6).

God will fill our lives with “the rain” that “filleth the pools^H1293” which symbolize the spirit of God that makes it possible for us, who are blessed to go from “strength to strength” or “glory to glory” (2Co 3:18) appearing in heavenly places before God “in Zion” (Eph 2:6, Eph 4:6) and ultimately coming up on mount Zion to provide living waters for the rest of the world from the “well”^H4599 which is Christ who is the fountain of life, the source of life, the vine (Oba 1:21, Rev 22:2, Joh 15:5).

Pools^H1293 berâkâh Total KJV Occurrences: 69

[64 times mentioned as some form of blessing/blessed]

– Strong’s: From H1288; benediction; by implication prosperity: – blessing liberal pool present

Oba 1:21 And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD’S.

Rev 22:2 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

Psa 84:8 O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer: give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah.
Psa 84:9 Behold, O God our shield^H4043, and look upon the face of thine anointed.

Give ear and behold “O LORD God of hosts” is our prayer and we need to “Selah” [pause] for a moment to consider the magnitude of the promises that have been given to us, and to remember that God is “our shield” and He is looking “upon the face of thine anointed”, those two sparrows that He is working with in this age, as the apple of His eye.

Zec 2:8 For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye.
Zec 2:9 For, behold, I will shake mine hand upon them, and they shall be a spoil to their servants: and ye shall know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me.
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.

Gal 6:16 And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.

We are called unto this blessing to know God and Jesus Christ (Joh 17:3) so that one day we can bless the multitudes with those living waters that will come forth from the fountain of life, or well of life, Jesus Christ and his Christ.

Psa 84:10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.
Psa 84:11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield^H4043: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
Psa 84:12 O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.

“For a day in thy courts” is a reference to the day of the Lord where we are being measured against the measuring rod or plummet, Jesus Christ, so that we can show the house to the house (Rev 11:1, Eze 43:10).

God has called the weak of the world to inherit this greatest inheritance and honour (1Co 1:26) to be in the midst of the true body of Christ, raised in heavenly places together right now. We are blessed to be broken by the Lord so that we have a contrite and broken spirit as the weak of the world, who now want to take the lower seat, and to only be a doorkeeper (Isa 66:2, Luk 14:10).

Luk 15:17 And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!
Luk 15:18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee,
Luk 15:19 And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants.

Luk 17:10 So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.

God is also in the process of making our face like a stone in the positive sense (Isa 50:7, Mal 3:6) – or like a impenetrable shield^H4043 – and it is that quality of changing not and appreciating the day of the Lord that we are experiencing within the house of God that is spoken of in this Psalm as “the LORD will give grace and glory”.

We need to confidently standing fast against the enemies within and without (Heb 10:35, Php 1:28-29) and know that it will be through the chastening and scourging that every son receives that we will be dragged to Christ (Heb 12:6, Joh 6:44) who blesses us so that we can trust in Him even to drink the cup that our flesh could never drink without His life within us making that possible (Mat 20:23, Col 1:27, Mat 19:26).

God will not “withhold from them that walk uprightly”. He will not withhold from accomplishing the process of making it possible for us to drink the cup indeed, and go through a lifetime of pruning (Act 14:22) so we can bring forth much fruit and lay up store, or treasure in heaven, through this life (Mat 6:20). God has called us to be blessed (1Pe 3:9, 1Pe 2:21, 2Th 2:14, Rom 12:14) and again will not “withhold from them that walk uprightly”.

We are blessed today to understand that our commission as the body of Christ is to “turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers” which is something that is going to take a long period of time, but ultimately every heart will be turned to God when He is “all in all”, and that is our hope which we labour and suffer reproach for together.

Gen 12:2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing^H1293: [that word translated “pool” in verse 6]
Gen 12:3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

1Co 15:28 And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.

1Ti 4:10 For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.

1Jn 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

Dear Body,

I wish to understand how the blood of Jesus works in our lives

– How it speaks better things than of Abel
– How it purges our consciences
– How it cleanses us from sin

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. (1 John 1:7 KJV)

Heb 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge yourconscience from dead works to serve the living God?

Heb 12:24 And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

Your brother willing to learn,

M____

Hi M____,

Thank you for your question. What exactly is “the blood of Christ in our lives”?

The very fact that “the blood of Christ… speaks…” is a powerful hint as to what this “blood of Christ” is.

It always helps to know the Biblical definition of the word or phrase under discussion, and in this instance we have the blood of Christ, which works so powerfully in our lives, defined for us by none other than Christ Himself. Once we come to know what ‘the blood of Christ” is, then we will be able to understand how His blood works in our lives to cleanse, sanctify, atone and reconcile us to God.

Here is what Christ defines as His blood which was shed for all of us:

Luk 22:20 Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.

1Co 11:25 After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.

There it is in plain language which anyone can understand. The blood of Christ which works so powerfully in our lives is “the New Testament in my blood”.

Your question gives us the opportunity to come to understand the meaning of the word ‘blood’ in all of these verses, and how the “blood” of Christ is demonstrated by Christ to be in complete contrast to the “blood of Abel”.

To clarify that contrast I will add just a few scriptures which I hope will answer your three questions:

“I wish to understand how the blood of Jesus works in our lives,

– How it speaks better things than of Abel
– How it purges our consciences
– How it cleanes us from sin

Your first question is:

“How it (the blood of Christ) speaks better things than of Abel”

“Abel to Zecharias” are the words which our Lord used to express the things of the Old Testament dispensation. For example:

Luk 11:50 That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation;
Luk 11:51 From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.

So the “things… of Abel” are the things of the Old Testament and the law of Moses, which we are plainly told “[are] not for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient…”

1Ti 1:9 Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers,
1Ti 1:10 For whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine;
1Ti 1:11 According to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust.

So, there it is, “according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God… My blood in the New Testament… speaks better things than of Abel, [because] the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient…”

We are told that those commandments were “carnal commandments” for a carnal nation:

Heb 7:16 Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life.

Those verses are just a couple of the “better things than of Abel”. In Matthew chapters 5-7 every “You have heard it said by them of old… but I say unto you…” is Christ’s blood in the New Testament speaking better things than of Abel.

It is the blood of Christ which He Himself tells us “is My blood in the New Testament”, which Christ is contrasting with “the blood of Abel [and the] things… of Abel” in the Old Testament and in the law of Moses which were “carnal commandment[s]” for a carnal nation.

That should answer your first question, “How it is better than of Abel.”

Your second question was:

“How it purges our conscience”

A ‘purged conscience’ is a ‘clear conscience’. We say, “My conscience is clear” only when we know that we are not guilty of the things of which we are accused by our accusers. Our chief accuser is “the adversary”:

Rev 12:10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.

When we quit glorifying ourselves and the adversary and we start believing “the New Testament in My blood”, the Truth of the scriptures, then our conscience is ‘purged’ because we will then accept the truth of these words of scripture:

Joh 15:5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

Rom 7:17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.

Eph 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will.

Your third question was:

How it [the blood of Christ] cleanses us from sin

This, too, is a powerful work of the spirit, which ‘spirit’ is also defined as “the word”:

Joh 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

When the words of Christ, “[His] blood in the New Testament”, dwell within us, they burn out and purge from within our hearts and minds all the “wood, hay, and stubble” that is there to burn, and in doing so those words, His blood, wash our robes white and cleanse us of our sins:

1Co 3:12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
1Co 3:13 Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.
1Co 3:14 If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
1Co 3:15 If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

The ‘burning’ and the ‘washing’ are one and the same thing in the scriptures because:

Rev 7:14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

There it is. It is the fiery word of God, which is the blood of Christ, which works in us to purge us of our sins “by [His chastening] grace through faith”.

If the blood of Christ is understood by the things that are made, then we need to note that it is the blood which nourishes every cell in the body.

Rom 1:20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

Your brother and fellow servant,

Mike

Hi M____,

I will give my two cents according to the scriptures. It is blood that was decreed by God to make atonement for the soul.

Lev 17:11 for the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar, to make atonement for your souls; for it [is] the blood which maketh atonement for the soul.

So the key there is “atonement”, what it is does and how that works, because that is what blood does. The Hebrew there is:

h3722. כָּפַר ḵâp̱ar

primitive root; to cover (specifically with bitumen); figuratively, to expiate or condone, to placate or cancel

And of course, as revealed in Hebrews, the “blood” of bulls of goats was not possible to actually take away sins. Jesus Christ “shed his blood” for the atonement of our sins, not just for ours but the sins of the whole world, and he takes away our sins via the “atonement” of the blood, and that brings reconciliation, or an easier way to say it – change.

Heb 10:3 But in them (those sacrifices) there is a recollection of sins year by year;
Heb 10:4 for it is impossible for the blood of bulls and of he-goats to be eliminating sins…(CLV) .(Hebrews 10:10 YLT) in the which will, we are having been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once)

Rom 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled (G2644), we shall be saved by his life.
Rom 5:11 And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement (reconciliation – G2643).

G2644 καταλλάσσω – katallassō (kat-al-las’-so)

From G2596 and G236; to change mutually, that is, (figuratively) to compound a difference: – reconcile.

I like Thayer’s Definition — to change, exchange, as coins for others of equivalent value

G2643 καταλλαγή – katallagēn (kat-al-lag-ay’)

From G2644; exchange (figuratively adjustment), that is, restoration to (the divine) favor: – atonement, reconciliation (-ing).

1Jn 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
1Jn 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

That word, propitiation, actually means atonement –

ἱλασμός hilasmos (hil-as-mos)

atonement, that is, (concretely) an expiator: – propitiation.

So, to sum it up; the Blood of Jesus is what covers, redeems changes, reconciles, and sanctifies us spiritually.

Rom 3:24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
Rom 3:25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood (the atonement, covering, reconciliation), to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.

I hope that helps,

Shelton

(Sections from Genesis chapters 41 to chapter 43)

The life of Joseph as described in the book of Genesis is our type of spiritual glorification. It is indeed through much tribulation and being sacrificed on the altar that spiritual glorification in the kingdom of God is obtained (Exo 29:36; Act 14:22; Rom 12:1; Heb 13:10; 1Pe 4; Rev 15:8). Within the theme of spiritual glorification we learn through the scriptures that God’s main objective at this time is to bring His elect to be the first to have rulership and dominion over flesh (Rom 6:1-14). This rulership is established in the revelation of who the Christ is and what the purpose and function of this Christ is in God’s plan to eventually bring all this carnal creation to spirit life in Him, even all in the first man Adam (1Co 1:13; 1Co 6:15; 1Co 12:12; 1Co 15:22; Eph 4:10-15; 1Jn 2:20-25). However, rulership in God’s kingdom is focused on totally different aspects than the focus of the carnal mind, and these aspects are what the elect learn to apply firstly in themselves and then to discern with whom they can share it:

Mat 20:25 But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes [Greek: “archōn” = rulers] of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them.
Mat 20:26 But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister;
Mat 20:27 And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant:
Mat 20:28 Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom [Greek: “lutron” = redemption price/and atonement] for many.

In these words of Jesus, we see the elect of God are admonished by Jesus how to value and understand what their rulership entails. Rulership links with servanthood, and this is also how the life of Christ and His life in His elect will be “a ransom for many” and to bring atonement for all (Oba 1:21; Rom 12:1; 1Co 6:2-3; Php 2:6-7; Col 1:24; Rev 20:11-15). In this discussion we will touch on this concept of being “a ransom [or atonement] for many”, as typified in the life of Joseph.

The Paying of a Price

Under the law of Moses God introduced a few spiritual shadows of what a ransom for a soul entails. One example is seen in what is termed the ‘temple tax’:

Exo 30:11 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Exo 30:12 When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom [Hebrew: “kôpher”; Greek (ABP): “lutron= a redemption price and atonement] for his soul unto the LORD, when thou numberest them; that there be no plague among them, when thou numberest them.
Exo 30:13 This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs:) an half shekel shall be the offering of the LORD.
Exo 30:14 Every one that passeth among them that are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering unto the LORD.
Exo 30:15 The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the LORD, to make an atonement [Hebrew: “kâphar” = covering] for your souls.
Exo 30:16 And you shall take the atonement money [Hebrew: “keseph” = silver] of the children of Israel, and shall appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be a memorial to the children of Israel before the LORD, to make an atonement [Hebrew: “kâphar” = covering] for your souls.

In physical terms, the ransom involves the paying of a price in the form of a sum of money or silver (“keseph”) which is required. This is such an important aspect, and we all, like king David, sometimes lose sight of this. God used Satan to tempt king David to number the people without the ransom price being paid, resulting in the death of seventy thousand people through a three day plague (2Sa 24:1-15; 1Ch 21:1-17). When David was presented with the threshingfloor to build and altar for the Lord soon after this horrible event, he knew that to be in God’s service in His temple indeed costs a price (2Ch 3:1):

2 Sa 24:24 And the king said unto Araunah, Nay; but I will surely buy it of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing. So David bought the threshingfloor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver [Hebrew: “keseph” ].

1Ch 21:24 And king David said to Ornan, Nay; but I will verily buy it for the full price: for I will not take that which is thine for the LORD, nor offer burnt offerings without cost.

Joseph paid the price by enduring his trials to be the one whom God has chosen to bring provision to his family and the whole world, and in that way Joseph served faithfully until the end, for our learning. This is all a type of the life of Jesus which is the only life that satisfies the Father, and through the life-given spirit of Christ, God will spiritually reconcile first the elect and then the whole world to Himself (Exo 29:36; Lev 17:11; 1Co 5:7):

1Co 15:45 (BBE) And so it is said, The first man Adam was a living soul. The last Adam is a life-giving spirit.

1Jn 4:10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation [Greek: hilasmos = atonement] for our sins.

1Jn 2:2 And he is the propitiation [Greek: hilasmos = atonement] for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

Christ and His Elect are the True Temple – “the full Price” of God

1Co 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

This ministry of servanthood of the Christ was also symbolized when Jesus was sold for thirty pieces of silver by Judas – the price of a slave under the old covenant (Mat 27:3-5; Zec 11:13; Joh 3:17; 1Jn 2:2):

Exo 21:32 If the ox shall push a manservant or a maidservant; he shall give unto their master thirty shekels of silver [Hebrew: “keseph”], and the ox shall be stoned.

In physical terms, silver is a scarce precious metal with a very high monetary value, and this knowledge helps us to understand that spiritual atonement can only be properly valued if a life is sacrificed (Mat 10:39; 1Co 15:31). Things which are easily obtained have no value for the one who receives it. Because God’s elect know what the enduring of much tribulation and the dying of self is about, they are very selective to whom they give these precious pearls of God in this age (1Co 4:5):

Mat 7:6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.

The connection between the service in the tabernacle (or the temple) and “them that are numbered” in terms of the atonement money or silver is very significant. We need to know who is measured in this age and who is at the altar of God:

Rev 11:1 And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.
Rev 11:2 But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.

We read that the full shekel is made up of twenty gerahs (2 X 10) which is the sum of two half shekels:

Exo 30:13 This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs:) an half shekel shall be the offering of the LORD.

Knowing the number ten spiritually refers to the flesh and the number two spiritually refers to being a witness, we see how both Christ (in the flesh) and His elect (in the flesh) must be crucified before they are dragged and brought together by the Father to form this one spiritual shekel in God’s sanctuary (Dan 9:27; Joh 6:44; Joh 10:30; Joh 17:21-23; Gal 2:20; Eph 5:31-32; Col 1:24; Heb 13:13; 1Pe 2:21; Rev 11:2; Rev 13:5). Jesus also confirms this unity in terms of the temple tax at this occasion in Capernaum:

Mat 17:24 And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said, Doth not your master pay tribute?
Mat 17:25 He saith, Yes. And when he was come into the house, Jesus prevented him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers?
Mat 17:26 Peter saith unto him, Of strangers. Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free.
Mat 17:27 Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee.

This truth of the unified function of Christ and His church, in terms of being a ransom or atonement, is also foreshadowed in the command God gave to Moses about the day of atonement under the law of the holy feasts in physical Israel. Among the animals needed to be sacrificed, the two goats were very interesting in that both were used to bring the one atonement – the Lord’s goat and the scapegoat:

Lev 16:7 And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
Lev 16:8 And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat.

The goat on which the Lord’s lot fell was sacrificed, and the scapegoat was sent into the wilderness, and this typifies how the life of Christ in His elect makes the life of His elect an effectual ransom or atonement (“an atonement with him”):

Lev 16:9 And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD’S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering.
Lev 16:10 But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.

The way Joseph treated his ten brothers testifies to how he valued what he had experienced to be a ransom for them and how they will only appreciate this when their deceitful hearts are first exposed. They had no true “measure” either of themselves or others at this point in time, and could not even “measure” their own brother properly. God willing, in our next discussion we will touch on the role Benjamin played in all of this when Joseph openly favoured him in various ways, even in the sight of these ten brothers.

The covering

Exo 30:16 And you shall take the atonement money [Hebrew: “keseph” = silver] of the children of Israel, and shall appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be a memorial to the children of Israel before the LORD, to make an atonement [Hebrew: “kâphar” = covering] for your souls.

Jas 5:20 Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.

A ransom or atonement in scriptural terms is not a covering for sin in the sense that we can continue and indulge in false doctrines and continue under the dominion of flesh and its sinful pleasures. The atoning life of the Christ serves to reveal the false covering and brings separation with the old – the new cover of Christ destroys that sinful covering of flesh and all its doctrines, lusts and pride physically and spiritually (Gen 6:14; Luk 5:36-37; Mat 5:30; Rom 6:1-6; 2Co 5:1-8; 1Jn 2:15-17):

1Pe 4:1 Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin;
1Pe 4:2 That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.

The life of Joseph exposed the lives of his ten brothers, and now he is in a position to bring the true covering to them after they have gone through their time of judgment. These dealings of Joseph with his ten brothers typify the merciful judgment in the lake of fire where all death, which is deceitful carnality, will be destroyed (Rom 8:6-8):

Rev 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

Our silver is indeed the dross of apostasy

In the Old Testament of the King James version of the Bible, the word “silver” is translated 287 times from the Hebrew word “keseph”, 12 times from its equivalent in Aramaic “kesaph”, and once from the Hebrew word “qeśı̂yṭâh”. This Hebrew word “keseph” appears 19 times in the interaction between Joseph and his brothers (ref: Gen 37:28; Gen 42:25; Gen 42:27-28 (2); Gen 42:35 (2); Gen 43:12 (2); Gen 43:15; Gen 43:18; Gen 43:21-23 (5); Gen 44:1-2 (3); Gen 44:8).

Isa 1:21 How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers.
Isa 1:22 Thy silver is become dross [Hebrew: “sı̂yg”/“sûg” = in a state of apostacy], thy wine mixed with water:
Isa 1:23 Thy princes are rebellious, and companions of thieves: every one loveth gifts, and followeth after rewards: they judge not the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them.

This is how Jesus expressed this type of deceit in the natural heart of those who are convinced they are His and that they function properly in God’s temple:

Mat 7:22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
Mat 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

The first time this word “keseph” appears in this interaction between Joseph and his ten brothers is when they sold him for twenty pieces of silver:

Gen 37:28 Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver [Hebrew: “keseph”]: and they brought Joseph into Egypt.

Seventeen years later they confessed to Joseph that they are “true men” when they could not even recognise him or see their own deceitful hearts:

Gen 42:11 We are all one man’s sons; we are true men, thy servants are no spies.

In its spiritual application “keseph” has therefore a very important and precious function in the heart of mankind and that is to reveal our old self-righteousness and to establish the right covering – the truth and righteousness of Christ (2Co 5:1-9; Joh 1:17). In its positive application, silver indeed brings complete and thorough atonement which is obtained through a cleansing process in our hearts, even as we can receive the truth and the pure words of God:

Psa 12:6 The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.

Atonement is a Strong Desire in God’s Heart

The root word of the Hebrew word “keseph” is kâsaph, which is also translated in the scriptures as having a desire or longing for something (Gen 31:30; Job 14:15; Psa 84:2; Zep 2:1):

H3701 – keseph – From H3700; silver (from its pale color); by implication money: – money, price, silver (-ling).

H3700 – kâsaph – A primitive root; properly to become pale, that is, (by implication) to pine after; also to fear: – [have] desire, be greedy, long, sore. (Source: Strong’s dictionary of Hebrew and Greek words)

During previous discussions we already picked up that certain significant patterns are seen in these interactions between Joseph and his brothers which are repeated several times in the final chapters in Genesis. We read about specific commandments that were given at various stages which were then followed with journeys back and forth between Egypt and Canaan. Then there were also several occasions where the giving of an account was expected. Joseph had a strong desire to see his whole family, and he commanded his nine brothers (Simeon was kept in prison) to go back to Canaan to fetch their younger brother Benjamin:

Gen 42:18 And Joseph said unto them the third day, This do, and live; for I fear God:
Gen 42:19 If ye be true men, let one of your brethren be bound in the house of your prison: go ye, carry corn for the famine of your houses:
Gen 42:20 But bring your youngest brother unto me; so shall your words be verified, and ye shall not die. And they did so.

When God wants our attention and things done, He will use whatever method He needs to cause His creatures to fulfill His purposes (Exo 3:1-12; Hag 1:10-15). In this case, the severe famine and hunger for corn forced Jacob to command his sons to again go back to Egypt to buy more corn for the family:

Gen 43:1 And the famine was sore in the land.
Gen 43:2 And it came to pass, when they had eaten up the corn which they had brought out of Egypt, their father said unto them, Go again, buy us a little food.

Gen 43:11 And their father Israel said unto them, If it must be so now, do this; take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices, and myrrh, nuts, and almonds:
Gen 43:12 And take double money in your hand; and the money that was brought again in the mouth of your sacks, carry it again in your hand; peradventure it was an oversight:

After much hesitation Jacob sends Benjamin with them and to also get Simeon released from prison:

Gen 43:13 Take also your brother, and arise, go again unto the man:
Gen 43:14 And God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may send away your other brother, and Benjamin. If I be bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.
Gen 43:15 And the men took that present, and they took double money in their hand, and Benjamin; and rose up, and went down to Egypt, and stood before Joseph.

This time they were taken to the house of Joseph for a meal, and as yet the brothers were still unable to recognise Joseph:

Gen 43:25 And they made ready the present against Joseph came at noon: for they heard that they should eat bread there.
Gen 43:26 And when Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves to him to the earth.
Gen 43:27 And he asked them of their welfare, and said, Is your father well, the old man of whom ye spake? Is he yet alive?
Gen 43:28 And they answered, Thy servant our father is in good health, he is yet alive. And they bowed down their heads, and made obeisance.

When Joseph saw Benjamin, his heart was filled with a strong desire to reveal himself to his brothers, but Joseph contained himself. The time was not yet ready as Benjamin will be used by Joseph to help the ten brothers accept Joseph’s choices within the next trial in which they will be placed on their return to Canaan:

Gen 43:29 And he lifted up his eyes, and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, and said, Is this your younger brother, of whom ye spake unto me? And he said, God be gracious unto thee, my son.
Gen 43:30 And Joseph made haste; for his bowels [Hebrew: “racham” – our affections] did yearn upon his brother: and he sought where to weep; and he entered into his chamber, and wept there.
Gen 43:31 And he washed his face, and went out, and refrained himself, and said, Set on bread.

Here in this strong desire in Joseph’s heart, we see God’s desire to reveal Him and to be reconciled with all in the Adam. This helps us to appreciate the positive application of money or silver, as it also reveals God’s love and His passion to be spiritually united with all in Adam. God’s wrath and judgment is not forever, and His mercy does reign over judgment when that process of judgment has reached its purpose and full effect (Jas 2:13). Just like the brothers of Joseph were tormented in his presence, so will all of God’s carnal creatures drink of the wrath of God through which their salvation will be obtained:

Rev 14:10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he [the carnal beast in all in the first Adam] shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb.

1Th 5:9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
1Th 5:10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
1Th 5:11 Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.

God willing, we will continue in our next discussion with the positive application of silver in the interaction between Joseph and his brothers.

Detailed studies and emails relating to these foundational themes in Scripture are available on the iswasandwillbe.com website, including these topics and links:

Numbers in Scripture
The Lake of Fire in Genesis
Metals – Precious Metals, Positive-Part 1
Metals – Precious Metals, Positive-Part 2
Metals – Precious Metals, Positive-Part 3
The Biblical Overview of The Plan of God – Part 5