Ezekiel 1:1-14 The Living Creatures

[Study Aired January 22, 2024]

Introduction

Before we go into the details of this chapter, let’s take a look at who Ezekiel was. The name Ezekiel means ‘strengthened by God’, and he grew up in Jerusalem where he trained to become a priest in the temple. Unfortunately, he was part of the second group of captives taken together with King Jehoiachin to Babylon. He was the author of the Book of Ezekiel which entails the visions the Lord gave him. The Book of Ezekiel is regarded as one of the five books of the major prophets of the Bible. These five books are Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel and Daniel. 

The first vision that Ezekiel had was about the throne of God which highlighted the four living creatures and whirling wheels. He also had visions regarding the new temple and the restored people of Israel. 

Today’s study focuses on the living creatures Ezekiel saw in the vision from the Lord. 

Ezekiel in Babylon

Eze 1:1  Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.
Eze 1:2  In the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin’s captivity,
Eze 1:3  The word of the LORD came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the LORD was there upon him.

Ezekiel was by the river Chebar in Babylon where many Israelite exiles had settled, when the Lord appeared to him. Chebar means ‘far off’. What this implies is that living by the river Chebar takes us far off from the Lord, since by the rivers of Babylon we cannot worship the Lord. Being among the captives means that we were together with our brothers and sisters in Babylon or the churches of this world before the Lord came to us.

Psa 137:1  By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.
Psa 137:2  We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. 
Psa 137:3  For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion.
Psa 137:4  How shall we sing the LORD’S song in a strange land?

The river of Chebar, or the river of Babylon, represents the false doctrines that we imbibe during our sojourn in the churches of this world before Christ shows up at the door of our heart and mind. These false doctrines make us worse off or take us far away from the Lord (the meaning of Chebar). This is what Apostle Peter has to say about this:

2Pe 2:18  For when they speak great swelling words of vanity [False doctrines], they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error. 
2Pe 2:19  While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage. 
2Pe 2:20  For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 
2Pe 2:21  For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. 
2Pe 2:22  But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

It was during our sojourn in Babylon that the Lord came to open our heavens to start understanding the mysteries of the kingdom of Heaven. The time that this vision of the Lord came to Ezekiel is very significant. We are not told what the thirtieth year refers to. However, we know that the number thirty on a positive note signifies being given the power to reign. We can therefore say that it is when our heavens open and we are given to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of Heaven that we are also given the power to reign over our flesh.

Gen 41:46  And Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh, and went throughout all the land of Egypt.

2Sa 5:4  David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.

The fifth day of the month, or the fifth year of king Jehoiachin’s captivity, implies that our stay in Babylon is all part of the grand design of the Lord to show us His grace through faith. The fact that Ezekiel was part of Jehoiachin’s captivity implies that our bondage, or captivity to the flesh, is only for a period of time. This is because Jehoiachin was released later by the king of Babylon (Christ) to become a king over the kings in Babylon (to reign over the world). In the fullness of time, as we are set free completely from the prison of the flesh (the first resurrection), we are given a change of garment by the Lord, and we shall reign with Him. 

Jer 52:31  And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, in the five and twentieth day of the month, that Evilmerodach king of Babylon in the first year of his reign lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah, and brought him forth out of prison,
Jer 52:32  And spake kindly unto him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon,
Jer 52:33  And changed his prison garments: and he did continually eat bread before him all the days of his life. 
Jer 52:34  And for his diet, there was a continual diet given him of the king of Babylon, every day a portion until the day of his death, all the days of his life.

In verse 3, we are given to know that the word of the Lord came expressly to Ezekiel. Before this time, although Ezekiel was a priest, he did not have an encounter with the word of the Lord. In other words, it is when our heavens are opened that we hear clearly what the Lord is saying to us in the spirit. 

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.

We are also told in verse 3 that the hand of the Lord was upon Ezekiel even during these difficult times in Babylon. That is to say that even when we did not know Him, He was there with us all along and ordering our steps. How much more when we have come to know Him? Surely, He will bring us to an expected end!! The work the Lord has started in us, He will surely bring to completion!! There are times in our lives when we are going through hard times and cannot see the light of day. In the midst of our tribulation, the hand of the Lord is upon us, just as in Ezekiel’s situation in Babylon the Lord was with Him.

Psa 138:7  Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life; you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies, and your right hand delivers me. 
Psa 138:8  The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands. 

Php 1:6  And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

The Whirlwind from the North

Eze 1:4  And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire infolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber, out of the midst of the fire. 

When Christ comes to us, while we are yet sinners and spending our time in Babylon, to show us the mysteries of the kingdom of Heaven, He comes with His judgment. The whirlwind Ezekiel saw is a symbol of the Lord’s judgment as shown in the following verses:

Jer 23:19  Behold, a whirlwind of the LORD is gone forth in fury, even a grievous whirlwind: it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked.

Jer 25:32  Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Behold, evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth.

This is what Brother Mike said in his study of the Book of Revelation about the significance of the north where the whirlwind was coming from. The fact that the tribe of Dan was to be on the north during Israel’s travels and when they settled in the land, tells us of the meaning of the symbolism of ‘the north.’ Dan means ‘judge.’

Gen 49:16 Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel.

Num 2:25 The standard of the camp of Dan shall be on the north side by their armies: and the captain of the children of Dan [shall be] Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.

Apart from the whirlwind, which speaks of our judgment, Ezekiel also saw a great cloud and fire infolding itself. The great cloud represents the cloud of witnesses or the elect who had persevered and won the prize and therefore serve as witnesses to us that the Lord who has begun a good work in our lives will see to its completion.  The fire infolding itself also speaks about our judgment as it is by judgment that we learn righteousness.  One version explains the fire infolding itself to mean fire coming one after another. In some versions, it means fire flashing forth continuously. What is significant is that our judgment is not carried out all at once but comes one after another. If we look back at what we have gone through in this life, it is like the fire flashing forth continuously, that is, being judged continuously just like the three Hebrew young men being in the fire continuously until they were delivered.

Jud 1:14  And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints [the cloud], 
Jud 1:15  To execute judgment upon all [the fire infolding itself], and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him. 

Eze 1:4 And, looking, I saw a storm-wind coming out of the north, a great cloud with flames of fire coming after one another, and a bright light shining round about it and in the heart of it was something coloured like electrum. (BBE) 

Eze 1:4 As I looked, behold, a stormy wind came out of the north, and a great cloud, with brightness around it, and fire flashing forth continually, and in the midst of the fire, as it were gleaming metal. (ESV)

The brightness around the great cloud with fire infolding itself signifies the Lord’s coming to His saints with His words. 

2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

In the middle of the fire was the color amber which many versions of the Bible translate as polished metal. 

Eze 1:4  I saw a windstorm blowing in from the north. Lightning flashed from a huge cloud and lit up the whole sky with a dazzling brightness. The fiery center of the cloud was as shiny as polished metal, (CEV)

A polished metal is one that has been refined resulting in the removal of dirt and all the dross. What the polished metal in the midst of the fire signifies is that our fiery trials remove all that contaminates our walk with Christ so that we can be presented blameless before God.

Col 1:21  And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled
Col 1:22  In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:

Coming to Know The Four Living Creatures

Eze 1:5  Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man.
Eze 1:6  And everyone had four faces, and every one had four wings.

In the midst of the storm, out of great clouds and fire appeared the four living creatures who were likened to man. This implies that these four living creatures represent the elect who were the target of the storm and fire. Being four means that they signify the whole of the elect of every generation. In the Book of Revelation, we are made certain of their identity as the Lord’s elect as follows:

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.

Each of the four living creatures which represent the whole of the Lord’s elect had four faces of a lion, ox, man and an eagle. 

Eze 1:10  As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox on the left side; they four also had the face of an eagle.

Later in the Book of Revelation, each of the four living creatures has a specific face of either a lion, calf, man, or an eagle. 

Rev 4:7  And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.

What we must realize is that Ezekiel was shown these four living creatures to know the end result of the Lord’s judgment of our old man. In other words, the result of the Lord’s judgment is for us, His elect to become like Christ. The four faces of the living creatures show us who the Lord was when He was here on earth and is now working in us to become like Him. In the spirit, it therefore does not matter whether each of the living creatures has four faces or one as we must bear all the four faces of Christ. 

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 number four means the whole of the matter, and therefore the four faces show us the whole of Christ while He was here on earth. The face of a lion shows us the Lord as the lion of the tribe of Judah. The Gospel of Matthew describes the Lord as a lion of the tribe of Judah. Like a lion, the Lord did not turn back from all the trials and tribulations that He encountered in this life. He will not rest until He makes our enemies (our flesh) a footstool, that is, defeat our enemies. What He starts, He is able to bring to completion!!

Rev 5:5  And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.

Pro 30:30  the lion, which is mightiest among beasts and does not turn back before any; 

Isa 31:4  For thus hath the LORD spoken unto me, Like as the lion and the young lion roaring on his prey, when a multitude of shepherds is called forth against him, he will not be afraid of their voice, nor abase himself for the noise of them: so shall the LORD of hosts come down to fight for mount Zion, and for the hill thereof.

Php 1:6  Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

The Lord is also described as an ox. This is especially portrayed in the Gospel according to Mark where the Lord worked tirelessly during His time here on earth. We are given indication of this as Mark uses the expression “and straightway… and immediately.” This implies that as His elect, the Lord is tirelessly working out our salvation.

Pro 14:4  Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox.

Mar 1:10 And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him:

Mar 1:21 And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day he entered into the synagogue, and taught.

Mar 2:8 And immediately when Jesus perceived in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, he said unto them, Why reason ye these things in your hearts?

The living creatures also had the face of a man. The Gospel according to Luke shows us Jesus as a man. That is why at the beginning of the Book of Luke, Luke traced the genealogy of Christ to Adam, the son of God. The Lord Jesus was a man in every way. That is why He represents us as our High Priest since He went through all that we are going through. As a result, we are able to come boldly before Him to receive mercy and grace at our point of need.

Heb 4:14  Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.
Heb 4:15  For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. 
Heb 4:16  Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

The living creatures all had the face of an eagle. The Gospel of John focuses on the revelation of the Lord from a heavenly perspective of an eagle which represents the spiritual realm. In other words, John paid attention to the spiritual aspect of the life of Christ since it is the spirit that gives life. We must therefore focus on having our spiritual understanding enlightened as we seek to know Christ.

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.

As an eagle, the Lord is bearing us, His elect, on His wings as He protects us and leads us in the path of righteousness for His name’s sake. In conclusion, as Christ is, so are we. We therefore must have the faces of a lion, ox, man, and an eagle.

Deu 32:9  For the LORD’S portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.
Deu 32:10  He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness; he led him about, he instructed him, he kept him as the apple of his eye. 
Deu 32:11  As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings:
Deu 32:12  So the LORD alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with him.

It is also instructive to note that the four living creatures have four wings. We know that it is only birds or fowls of the air that have wings. This means that the four living creatures are likened to fowls of the air. We know from the Lord’s teaching that fowls of the air indicate the spiritual realm. What this signifies is that, although the Lord’s elect (living creatures) are men, they live in a spiritual realm. In other words, we have been raised to live in heavenly places with Christ. The fact that the living creatures have four wings signifies that the whole of the elect lives in the spiritual realm. 

Mat 3:16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:

Eph 2:4  But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 
Eph 2:5  Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 
Eph 2:6  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

Eze 1:7  And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf’s foot: and they sparkled like the colour of burnished brass. 
Eze 1:8  And they had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides; and they four had their faces and their wings. 

The feet of the four living creatures being straight means that their walk before the Lord is not crooked. In other words, they are blameless before God. The soles of their feet being like that of a calf is very interesting. The feet of human beings are very soft and are susceptible to being easily pierced by a sharp object. Those of a calf are very hard and are not vulnerable to being hurt easily. What this means is that as His elect, it is not easy to derail our walk before the Lord. This is because the Lord protects our walk before Him. 

Isa 41:10  Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

Psa 34:7  The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.

The feet of the four living creatures sparkling like burnished brass is to remind us of the feet of our Lord Jesus when He appeared to John in the island of Patmos. The burnished brass (copper) signifies the fiery trials we experience in this sinful flesh. Our Lord Jesus was the first to be judged in this life, and as we are following His footsteps here on earth, our feet are being burned in the furnace (judged) so that we shall be blameless before the Lord.

Rev 1:13  And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. 
Rev 1:14  His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; 
Rev 1:15  And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters.

Having the hands of man under their wings in verse 8 shows our dual citizenship. We live in the flesh here on earth, but at the same time, we are seated in heavenly places in the spirit.

Eze 1:9  Their wings were joined one to another; they turned not when they went; they went every one straight forward. 
Eze 1:10  As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox on the left side; they four also had the face of an eagle.
Eze 1:11  Thus were their faces: and their wings were stretched upward; two wings of every one were joined one to another, and two covered their bodies.
Eze 1:12  And they went every one straight forward: whither the spirit was to go, they went; and they turned not when they went.

To understand what is said by their wings being joined one to another, we need to look at the function of the wings as stated in the following verse:

Eze 10:5  And the sound of the cherubims’ wings was heard even to the outer court, as the voice of the Almighty God when he speaketh.

The sound of their wings is the same as the voice of the Lord. This implies that the joining of their wings means that they have one mind and say the same thing. In verse 11, the two wings which are joined one to another therefore means that they speak the same thing as witnesses of Christ.

1Co 1:10  Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.

As indicated, the wings signify the spiritual realm. The two wings protecting the body in verse 11 therefore suggest that in walking in the spirit we do not defile the body or fulfill the desires of the flesh. Our protection in Christ is by walking in the spirit or obeying His words. 

Gal 5:16  This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.
Gal 5:17  For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

The wings of the living creatures stretching upward in verse 11 affirms the fact that the wings of the living creatures signify the spiritual realm as shown in the following verse:

Ecc 3:21  Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?

In verse 9, when the living creatures were moving, they went straight ahead. In verse 11, we are given additional information about this straight-ahead movement. That is, we are shown that they move according to the spirit. This suggests that they are led by the spirit to focus only on the prize of the higher calling. They do not look back to focus on the flesh. In other words, the elect do not remember their past experiences (look back) as they forge ahead through the Holy Spirit to focus on the prize of the Lord’s higher calling.

Php 3:13  Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
Php 3:14  I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

Eze 1:13  As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, and like the appearance of lamps: it went up and down among the living creatures; and the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning.
Eze 1:14  And the living creatures ran and returned as the appearance of a flash of lightning.

The appearance of the living creatures as burning coals of fire with lightning emanating from the fire all signify the judgment of the elect which causes us to become the lamps of the world, giving light to those in the household of faith, first in this life and later to the whole world. 

Mat 5:14  “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 
Mat 5:15  Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
Mat 5:16  In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

The running and returning of the living creatures as the appearance of a flash of lightning in verse 14 is to show us that our struggles (running and returning) in this life are all preparing us to become judges (Flash of lightning) in an age to come.

Rev 20:4  Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.

May the Lord continue to help us to become like Him as we focus on the prize of His higher calling. Amen!!

Exo 21:20-36  Laws Governing Personal Injuries and Restitution

[Study Aired August 22, 2022]

Exo 21:20  “When a man strikes his slave, male or female, with a rod and the slave dies under his hand, he shall be avenged.
Exo 21:21  But if the slave survives a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the slave is his money. 
Exo 21:22  “When men strive together and hit a pregnant woman, so that her children come out, but there is no harm, the one who hit her shall surely be fined, as the woman’s husband shall impose on him, and he shall pay as the judges determine. 
Exo 21:23  But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life, 
Exo 21:24  eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 
Exo 21:25  burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe. 
Exo 21:26  “When a man strikes the eye of his slave, male or female, and destroys it, he shall let the slave go free because of his eye. 
Exo 21:27  If he knocks out the tooth of his slave, male or female, he shall let the slave go free because of his tooth. 
Exo 21:28  “When an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox shall be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten, but the owner of the ox shall not be liable. 
Exo 21:29  But if the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has been warned but has not kept it in, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned, and its owner also shall be put to death.
Exo 21:30  If a ransom is imposed on him, then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is imposed on him.
Exo 21:31  If it gores a man’s son or daughter, he shall be dealt with according to this same rule. 
Exo 21:32  If the ox gores a slave, male or female, the owner shall give to their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned. 
Exo 21:33  “When a man opens a pit, or when a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, 
Exo 21:34  the owner of the pit shall make restoration. He shall give money to its owner, and the dead beast shall be his. 
Exo 21:35  “When one man’s ox butts another’s, so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and share its price, and the dead beast also they shall share.
Exo 21:36  Or if it is known that the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has not kept it in, he shall repay ox for ox, and the dead beast shall be his.

The second part of Exodus chapter 21 continues with the laws of Moses. In this case, the law deals with personal injuries and restitution. As we have indicated in the previous study, the focus of our study is on the spiritual implication of these laws – not the letter which kills.

2Co 3:6  who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

When Jesus met the woman at the well in Samaria, He told her that the time is coming and that the time has come that those who worship the Lord, will serve Him in truth and in spirit. We are the generation that seek the Lord in truth and in spirit.

Joh 4:19  The woman said to him, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. 
Joh 4:20  Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.”
Joh 4:21  Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.
Joh 4:22  You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 
Joh 4:23  But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him.
Joh 4:24  God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

Our study today, therefore, is geared towards understanding the spiritual implication of the laws on personal injuries and restitution. Behind these supposedly carnal laws, the Lord has hidden deep spiritual truths which are only revealed to those called and chosen – the elect. With this in mind, let’s explore what the spirit is saying to the church regarding these laws.

Exo 21:20  “When a man strikes his slave, male or female, with a rod and the slave dies under his hand, he shall be avenged.
Exo 21:21  But if the slave survives a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the slave is his money.

In the previous study we realized that the slave of the master represents us, the elect. The master signifies Christ. Since our Lord has purchased us with His blood, we are His slaves.

Gal 3:13 Christ bought us with His blood and made us free from the Law. In that way, the Law could not punish us. Christ did this by carrying the load and by being punished instead of us. It is written, “Anyone who hangs on a cross is hated and punished.” 
Gal 3:14 Because of the price Christ Jesus paid, the good things that came to Abraham might come to the people who are not Jews. And by putting our trust in Christ, we receive the Holy Spirit He has promised. (NLV)

Rom 1:1  Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God,

In the Bible a rod signifies judgment. This is made clear in the following verses:

Lam 3:1  I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.

1Co 4:21  What will ye? shall I come unto you with a rod, or in love, and in the spirit of meekness?

Pro 10:13  In the lips of him that hath understanding wisdom is found: but a rod is for the back of him that is void of understanding.

Pro 13:24  He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes.

In verse 20 therefore, the man who strikes his slave with the rod is Christ who comes to judge us. However, His judgment does not result in our physical death as this will mean that the Lord is guilty and needs to be punished according to verse 20. We know that the Lord was presented as faultless before God to atone for our sins and therefore was never and will never be found guilty. What verse 20 means is that the Lord’s discipline or correction never leads to our physical death. In using His rod against us, the Lord always makes a way of escape for us to be able to bear his discipline.

1Co 10:13  There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

In verse 21, when the slave survives the discipline of his master, the master is not guilty for the slave belongs to him. What verse 21 implies is that the master has the right to discipline his slave as he belongs to him. Our Lord is our master who owns us and therefore has the right to judge us to conform to His righteousness.

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee. 
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

Exo 21:22  “When men strive together and hit a pregnant woman, so that her children come out, but there is no harm, the one who hit her shall surely be fined, as the woman’s husband shall impose on him, and he shall pay as the judges determine.

When we fight one another, it is the body of Christ that suffers as her children are born prematurely. This means that those who come out of the church are not matured but carnal. The pregnant woman affected here in verse 22 is Jerusalem which is in bondage with her children that come out prematurely. This Jerusalem is Babylon. This is made clear in the following verses as the pregnant woman represents Babylon.

Rev 12:1  And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars: 
Rev 12:2  And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.

Rev 12:5  And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne. 
Rev 12:6  And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.

As shown in verse 22, the one responsible for hurting the pregnant woman needs to be judged by the woman’s husband who is Christ. We have all hurt our brothers and sisters by our false doctrines, etc. and therefore hurt the church when we were in Babylon, and so we deserve to be judged by the Lord.

Jas 4:2  Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.

What we need to know is that when we hurt each other in the body, we are hurting the church. It is insightful to note that the judgment for hurting the church is imposed by the judges. The judges here represent the elect. From another perspective, what we are being told in verse 22 is that in the fullness of time, the elect (judges) will judge Babylon and the rest of the world together with our Lord Jesus who is the husband.

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?

Exo 21:23  But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life, 

When we hate our brothers and sisters, then we are murderers. Hating one another means hating the church. What this means is that we are spiritually causing harm to the church of the Lord. We also cause harm to the church by teaching false doctrines which we all have at a certain period of our walk with Christ. We therefore must pay life for life as stated in verse 23. In other words, we must all die to the old man as we are appointed to death.

1Co 4:9  For I think that God hath set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men.

1Jn 3:14  We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.
1Jn 3:15  Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.

Exo 21:24  eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,
Exo 21:25  burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

As we have indicated in the previous study, Jesus came to raise the bar in terms of the interpretation of the law of Moses. This is what He had to say about an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth:

Mat 5:38  “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 
Mat 5:39  But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 
Mat 5:40  And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 
Mat 5:41  And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.
Mat 5:42  Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.

What these verses mean is that the physical laws have been transformed into spiritual laws by our Lord, the Reformer. Therefore, we are not to resist evil that comes from outside. That is, we are not to worry about evil that comes against us in this life. However, we are to resist evil from within and this is not done by ourselves. Christ in us is the one that resists the devil on our behalf.

Jas 4:7  Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Exo 21:26  “When a man strikes the eye of his slave, male or female, and destroys it, he shall let the slave go free because of his eye.

We know that since Christ purchased all humanity with His blood, all humanity are His slaves. The man in verse 21 is Christ. It is He who has made people blind spiritually by striking them in the eyes. The fact that in such cases the slaves go free means that in this life, those who have been made blind are not being judged by the Lord. It is only the elect who are being judged in this life, that is, they are not free to go as others.

1Pe 4:17  For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?
1Pe 4:18  And “If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” 
1Pe 4:19  Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.

Exo 21:27  If he knocks out the tooth of his slave, male or female, he shall let the slave go free because of his tooth. 

When our teeth are knocked out, we are not able to eat. What this means is that we are not able to assimilate (take in) the word of God. Verse 27 is therefore the same as verse 26 in terms of the effect produced by the actions of striking the eye and knocking out the tooth of a slave. In other words, it is the Lord who causes us not to understand the word of the Lord. For those who are not given to understand the word of the Lord, they are not being judged in this life and therefore are free.

Exo 21:28  “When an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox shall be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten, but the owner of the ox shall not be liable.

An ox is a beast. We know from the word of the Lord that in our carnal state, we are the beast.

Ecc 3:18  I said in my heart with regard to the children of man that God is testing them that they may see that they themselves are but beasts.

Since we are the beast, we are the ones that have gored our brother or sister to death and therefore must be put to death by stoning. A stone can represent the church or the house of God as follows:

Gen 28:22  and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house. And of all that you give me I will give a full tenth to you.”

Being stoned to death therefore means the death of our old man or flesh by what every joint supplies from the body of Christ. In other words, the words of the elect are what kills our old man.

Eph 4:16  From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

As stated in verse 28, while we are being judged, we are not to eat the flesh of the ox who killed a man or woman. Our Lord Jesus’ flesh represents the word of the Lord. That is why we are admonished to eat His flesh.

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.

Joh 6:54  Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. 
Joh 6:55  For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. 
Joh 6:56  He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.

Our flesh, however, represents false doctrines and man’s words of wisdom. The admonition not to eat the flesh of the ox, the murderer in verse 28, therefore means that we should not take in false doctrines or man’s wisdom as we are being judged in this life. Verse 28 also says that the owner of the ox shall not be liable for the murder of the man or woman. That is another way of saying the following:

Rom 9:19  Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will? 
Rom 9:20  Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
Rom 9:21  Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?
Rom 9:22  What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: 
Rom 9:23  And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,

Exo 21:29  But if the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has been warned but has not kept it in, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned, and its owner also shall be put to death.

We are the ox that was accustomed to goring in the past and had been warned by the Lord through His words. However, our Lord had not constrained us at that time because our sins had not run their full course yet. As a result, we are guilty of killing a man or woman and therefore ought to be put to death together with our Master Lord Jesus, our owner. As He is, so are we. He died because of our sins, and so we ought to die also for the church.

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.

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.

Exo 21:30  If a ransom is imposed on him, then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is imposed on him.
Exo 21:31  If it gores a man’s son or daughter, he shall be dealt with according to this same rule.

Jesus paid the ransom for our sins by giving His life for our sakes to purify unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works.

1Pe 1:18  Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;
1Pe 1:19  But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 
1Pe 1:20  Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, 

Tit 2:14  Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. 

Exo 21:32  If the ox gores a slave, male or female, the owner shall give to their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned. 

Again, as a brute beast (ox), the Lord came to our aid and paid the price of thirty shekels of silver for our sake. It is insightful to note that Judas betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver which is about the price the master pays for the goring of a slave by His ox. What this means is that Jesus paid the price for our sins with His own life.

Mat 26:14  Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, 
Mat 26:15  And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. 
Mat 26:16  And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.

It is also worth noting that in addition to the master laying down his life, the ox must be put to death for goring a slave. That is why we are going through fiery trials with the purpose of putting to death our old man or the flesh.

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: 

Exo 21:33  “When a man opens a pit, or when a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it,
Exo 21:34  the owner of the pit shall make restoration. He shall give money to its owner, and the dead beast shall be his.

The pit in verse 33 refers to a snare or trap, and the man who opens the pit without covering it is the enemy – Satan. As indicated in Psalm 40:2, the horrible pit we fall into is the same as the miry clay. The clay here represents the deeds of the flesh, and the adjective miry refers to the uncontrollable nature of the deeds of the flesh when Christ is not formed in our hearts.  At our appointed time, we have all as a beast (ox or donkey) fallen into the snare or the trap of the fowler or the enemy, resulting in our spiritual death. In other words, we had all fallen victim of the uncontrollable deeds of the flesh which lead to death.

Psa 40:2  He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.

Psa 30:9  What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? shall it declare thy truth?

Psa 35:7  For without cause have they hid for me their net in a pit, which without cause they have digged for my soul.

Psa 55:23  But thou, O God, shalt bring them down into the pit of destruction: bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days; but I will trust in thee.

Psa 57:6  They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves. Selah

The pit also stands for the false doctrines we imbibed when we were in Babylon. This is revealed in the following scriptures:

Pro 22:14  The mouth of strange women is a deep pit: he that is abhorred of the LORD shall fall therein.

Pro 23:27  For a whore is a deep ditch; and a strange woman is a narrow pit.

What we need to understand is that even though it is the devil who sets a trap for us to be ensnared into sin, the ultimate responsibility of who dug the pit or trap rests on the Lord as all things are working according to the counsel of His will. That being the case, the Lord being the owner of the pit must make restoration by making payment to the owner of the ox, who is God as stated in verse 34. That is why Jesus had to die to pay for our sins as we fell victims of the deeds of the flesh.

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:

It is interesting to note that the beast which fell into the pit and died is the property of the Lord. It is the same as the earth being without form and void, but the Lord’s spirit hovering over it. He never leaves us alone. Even though we were dead spiritually, because we are His, He is able to bring us out of the snare of the fowler.

Gen 1:2  And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

Psa 124:1  A Song of degrees of David. If it had not been the LORD who was on our side, now may Israel say; 
Psa 124:2  If it had not been the LORD who was on our side, when men rose up against us: 
Psa 124:3  Then they had swallowed us up quick, when their wrath was kindled against us: 
Psa 124:4  Then the waters had overwhelmed us, the stream had gone over our soul: 
Psa 124:5  Then the proud waters had gone over our soul. 
Psa 124:6  Blessed be the LORD, who hath not given us as a prey to their teeth.
Psa 124:7  Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers: the snare is broken, and we are escaped. 
Psa 124:8  Our help is in the name of the LORD, who made heaven and earth.

Exo 21:35  When one man’s ox butts another’s, so that it dies, then they shall sell the live ox and share its price, and the dead beast also they shall share.

At a certain time of our walk with Christ, we ended up killing our brothers and sisters as we strove with them by hating them. We were therefore responsible for the physical death of the prophets the Lord sent, together with the spiritual death of many. Since both oxen belong to the Lord, we are therefore sold as live oxen (slaves) to the Lord. As indicated, in our spiritually dead state, we still belong to the Lord.

Exo 21:36  Or if it is known that the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has not kept it in, he shall repay ox for ox, and the dead beast shall be his.

We are the ox that had been accustomed to goring in the past. The Lord did not constrain us as He wanted our sins to run their full course so that we come to see that we are the worst sinners. In our spiritually poor state, God came to ransom us by repaying ox for ox. That is, He offered Jesus, a type of an ox to die on our behalf.

Heb 9:14  How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
Heb 9:15  And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.

May the Lord continue to show mercy to us as He delivers us from the uncovered pit of the flesh. Amen!!

Hello Mike,

I hope all is well with you and your family. I wanted to ask two questions concerning the scriptures. I was talking to a friend last night and the subject of tithing came up. His brother told him, “if you don’t pay your tithes, then your money is Cursed!” I was shocked to hear that. I pointed out the scriptures to show him where the bible clearly tells us we should not be giving out of a necessity, and tithing is a necessity to most in Babylon.

2Co 9:7 Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver

I was not hesitant to tell him again his brother is being deceived and told him to show these scriptures to his brother and let me know how these scriptures fit in with tithing. (1Co 9:18, Act 20:33-35, etc) He told me he does not believe his money is cursed, and I told him he was right about that because only by believing your money is cursed in your heart, so is he.

Pro 23:7 For as he thinketh in his heart so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.

Many people preach tithing and prosperity. It is nothing more than wolves in sheep’s clothing not sparing the flock. I even heard John Hagee quote a verse telling us that God delights in our prosperity. Here is that verse:

Psa 35:27 Let them shout for joy, and be glad, that favour my righteous cause: yea, let them say continually, Let the LORD be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant.

What was so revealing was that in my e- sword when I put my mouse on the word “Prosperity” the Hebrew word is (Shalom). So God does not delight in how much we can make, but he delights in our PEACE and friendliness. The question my friend asked me was what about when Jesus told them give to Caesar his things and God his things, so he believes this verse is speaking about us tithing.

Mat 22:21 They say unto him, Caesar’s. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.

I just wanted for you to help me understand this scripture and see what it is spiritually telling us so I won’t be teaching on something I do not yet understand completely.
My other question is about the gospel of John chapter 2. Here is what is says.

Joh 2:13:15 And the Jews’ passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew the tables.

What I am getting from this that this temple which was filled with wickedness was just a shadow of what he is doing to his TRUE temple which we are and removing the wickedness within us (1Co 3:16). I was asking myself, “why did Jesus get so angry about a temple which the Father does not dwell in?”

Act 17:24 God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands.

But it is WE who are his dwelling place:

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

In saying that, when I read that he DROVE THEM ALL OUT OF THE TEMPLE which we are, I see they did not just POOF and vanish, but they were driven out little by little. They were removed like a process of how when he comes into our life and removes that man of sin and starts rebuilding his temple in three days, which is the number of process.

Joh 2:19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.
2Th 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.

That is what I’m getting from this since this is written for our admonition to learn of it. Let me know if I’m correct on this question.

Your Brother In Christ,
Y____

Hi Y____,
You have hit the nail on the head concerning both the subject of tithing and why Christ drove the money changers out of the temple.

Tithing was done on the produce of the land and was given to the priest and Levites for the service of the people at the temple. Tithing has no place in the body of Christ, whose mantra is “the Lord loves a cheerful giver”, not a begrudging tither,

2Co 9:6 But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
2Co 9:7 Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

I gave a talk in 2004 called The Types and Shadows of The New Testament. In that talk I showed how all of Christ’s miracles of healing were types and shadows of what He is doing in us spiritually. We are being healed of every disease from the deadly disease of leprosy, to our crippled legs and arms and hands, to being born blind, and being raised from the spiritually dead state in which we come into this world.
So it is with the cleansing of the temple. That whole incident happened to them and it is “written for our admonition upon whom the ends of the ages have come.”

1Co 10:11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

None of this denies that “the fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much”, but it does demonstrate that Christ’s words are spirit and that the holy spirit teaches comparing spiritual things with spiritual.”

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.
1Co 2:13 Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
1Co 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

There was no spiritual body of Christ until after Pentecost, and the only shadow of good things to come was the physical temple, which was shortly destroyed. But Christ was already within us, long before the physical temple came to the ground.

Heb 10:1 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.

Here is the “good thing to come which the tabernacle and the temple of the Old Testament, foreshadowed.

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.

So yes, you are exactly right. The temple Christ cleared of its money changers is a type and a shadow of you and me and all the attempts, of our leaders and of us, to make money of the gospel.
God bless you as you come to know Him and His Son better every day.
Your brother in Christ,
Mike

Audio Links

Introduction

Pro 14:4  Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox.

“Much increase is by the strength of the ox.” An ox is another very powerful animal. In early ancient Israel, the ox was the single most valuable animal one could own. As we learned in studying the horse, God had forbidden Israel to go to Egypt to buy horses, so the ox was the animal used to plow and to turn a mill or to do much of the heavy work that had to be done. To steal a man’s ox was just like stealing his livelihood. It was his most valuable possession, next to his servants and his wife.
The Hebrew word for ‘ox’ is ‘shore,’ Strong’s number H7794. It is translated into the English words ‘bullock, bull, cow, ox, and oxen.’
While the horse is a great powerful, muscular animal associated with warfare, the ox is a great powerful, muscular animal associated with service and production, and increase of wealth. All of these are, of course to be understood in spiritual terms. If there are no horses within, then there are no spiritual battles taking place, and if there is no ox within, then there is no spiritual increase. Both of these mighty beasts represent spiritual zeal to serve our Lord, one in the capacity of spiritual warfare, and the other in the capacity of service, to both God and our fellow man.
We are all given different forms of horses and oxen, but we all have both within, if indeed we are zealous to serve with our Lord, and to do battle for our Lord.
What is the value of an ox

Exo 22:1  If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it, or sell it; he shall restore five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep.
Exo 22:9  For all manner of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, which another challengeth to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whom the judges shall condemn, he shall pay double unto his neighbour.

Note the difference in the penalty for stealing to increase one’s own wealth and for simply finding and keeping that which was lost. Remember this typical story?

A Biblical Example of stealing our brother’s livestock.

King David is God’s Old Testament type of our theft of His lamb, our rebellion and our self righteousness.

2Sa 12:1  And the LORD sent Nathan unto David. And he came unto him, and said unto him, There were two men in one city; the one rich, and the other poor.
2Sa 12:2  The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds:
2Sa 12:3  But the poor man had nothing, save one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished up: and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own meat, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter.
2Sa 12:4  And there came a traveller unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him; but took the poor man’s lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come to him.
2Sa 12:5  And David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan, As the LORD liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die:
2Sa 12:6  And he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.
2Sa 12:7  And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul;
2Sa 12:8  And I gave thee thy master’s house, and thy master’s wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if [ that had been] too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things.
2Sa 12:9  Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife [ to be] thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon.
2Sa 12:10  Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife.
2Sa 12:11  Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun.
2Sa 12:12  For thou didst [ it] secretly: but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.
2Sa 12:13  And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD. And Nathan said unto David, The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die.
2Sa 12:14  Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die.

As with our Savior, the innocent died for the guilty, and the life of the guilty is spared. We have been made master over sin in our lives, we are blessed beyond measure and we still are not satisfied. We are the man who takes from Christ in order to please the people. If you read this story and all you see is Nathan pointing his finger at David, then “Thou art the man”  mean nothing to you and has no significance for you.
How do we kill our neighbor’s ox? How do we steal our neighbor’s ox or his “little ewe lamb?” We are all guilty of doing so when we subscribe to the doctrine of  ‘agreement in the essentials and tolerance in the nonessentials.’ We are thieves and murderers as long as we serve our own flesh, “fear the people,” and remain in Babylon retaining her doctrines. We are less so in direct proportion to our desire to be clean of all spiritual filthiness with no regard for the outward price we may have to pay.

Joh 10:10  The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Luk 6:46  And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
Exo 23:4  If thou meet thine enemy’s ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.

“Thine enemy’s” means your own flesh, enemy. This is not to be taken as a Gentile enemy. If you came across the livestock of your Gentile enemy, not only were you to take possession his livestock, but you were to destroy your Gentile enemy. Under certain circumstances you were to destroy him and “everything that breathes.”  We are not here, being encouraged to “agree on the essentials and tolerate the nonessentials.” Christ did not come to bring peace. He did come to bring a sword, and if we are not willing to use that sword, we are doing nothing less then stealing, killing and destroying our own fellow man to whom we think we are showing love by our tolerance of the filth of this world.
“Ox or sheep or…” The ox is almost always mentioned first. That is because it was the first and most important animal on the farm in ancient Israel. It was what sustained the family.

How we are to view our brother’s ox

Considering how much we depend on our own ox for our own welfare, how are we to treat our brother’s ox? We saw this earlier in Exo 23, regarding our enemies ox.

Deu 22:1  Thou shalt not see thy brother’s ox or his sheep go astray, and hide thyself from them: thou shalt in any case bring them again unto thy brother.
Deu 22:2  And if thy brother be not nigh unto thee, or if thou know him not, then thou shalt bring it unto thine own house, and it shall be with thee until thy brother seek after it, and thou shalt restore it to him again.
Deu 22:3  In like manner shalt thou do with his ass; and so shalt thou do with his raiment; and with all lost thing of thy brother’s, which he hath lost, and thou hast found, shalt thou do likewise: thou mayest not hide thyself.
Deu 22:4  Thou shalt not see thy brother’s ass or his ox fall down by the way, and hide thyself from them: thou shalt surely help him to lift them up again.

Here is the spiritual application of restoring your brother’s ox or his sheep:

1Pe 3:15  But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.

Our oxen, like our horses, and all of our livestock, are actually God’s.

Exo 34:19  All that openeth the matrix is mine; and every firstling among thy cattle, whether ox or sheep, that is male.
Psa 50:10  For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.

When we offer our ox or any offering, it must be offered upon the cross

The altar is the cross of Christ. ‘The cross’ is the death of pride and vanity. Any offering which is not on the cross of Christ, amounts to an offering offered to another god, the god of pride and rebellion.

Lev 17:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Lev 17:2  Speak unto Aaron, and unto his sons, and unto all the children of Israel, and say unto them; This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded, saying,
Lev 17:3  What man soever there be of the house of Israel, that killeth an ox, or lamb, or goat, in the camp, or that killeth it out of the camp,
Lev 17:4  And bringeth it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to offer an offering unto the LORD before the tabernacle of the LORD; blood shall be imputed unto that man; he hath shed blood; and that man shall be cut off from among his people:
Lev 17:5  To the end that the children of Israel may bring their sacrifices, which they offer in the open field, even that they may bring them unto the LORD, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priest, and offer them for peace offerings unto the LORD.
Lev 17:6  And the priest shall sprinkle the blood upon the altar of the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and burn the fat for a sweet savour unto the LORD.
Lev 17:7  And they shall no more offer their sacrifices unto devils, after whom they have gone a whoring. This shall be a statute for ever unto them throughout their generations.

“Devils” are spirits. And when a spirit is tried and found to be a false spirit, it is found to be a lie. It may be “in the camp” or it may be “out of the camp,” both are still in rebellion to the commandment of the Lord. Believing a lie is spiritually “offering a sacrifice to a devil.”

1Jn 4:1  Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
1Jn 4:3  And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.
1Jn 4:4  Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.
1Jn 4:5  They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them.

We have seen that where no spiritul oxen are, the spiritual crib is clean: but much spiritual increase is by the strength of the spiritual ox.
We have seen that this makes the ox the most valuable animal on the farm, and critical for the welfare of all on the farm.
We have seen that the strength of the ox is demonstrated by the strong zeal we have to place obedience to our heavenly Father above the concerns of the things of this temporal world.

Joh 2:16  And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father’s house an house of merchandise.
Joh 2:17  And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.

We have seen  the scriptures reveal that we all steal our brother’s ox, along with his other livestock when we place our desire to please men above our fear of God and our desire to please Him. Nathan tells us that serving our guests at the expense of our poor neighbor’s livestock instead of our own, is “despising the commandment of the Lord.”
This is especially egregious when we stop to realize that all our livestock is really the Lord’s and not ours at all.
Finally we also saw that we cannot come to our Lord with any pretense of bringing something to the table. We come only with a full realization that our righteousnesses are but filthy rags.

Isa 64:6  But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

We saw that if we come before the Lord with our concerns for what others might think, and with the accompanying self righteousness which always comes with a people pleasing spirit, that we are guilty of killing and offering our ox anywhere but upon the cross of Christ. The cross is God’s altar, upon which the beast of ‘self’ must be sacrificed.

Lev 17:7  And they shall no more offer their sacrifices unto devils, after whom they have gone a whoring. This shall be a statute for ever unto them throughout their generations.

Next week we will see a Biblical example of both stealing our brother’s ox and an example of offering our offering anywhere besides “on the altar, the door of the tabernacle.” We will see how doing so amounts to “offering to devils.”

[The next installment of this study can be found here.]

Audio Links

Animals – The Ox, Part 2

Introduction

Pro 14:4  Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox.

Last week we saw the Hebrew word for ox is also translated as bullock, bull, cow or oxen. We also established that the spiritual significance of the ox in scripture is as the symbol of that part of us which God uses to increase our spiritual welfare and wealth. It is that part of our spirit which works tirelessly to get the job done. It was by the strength of the ox that the rich man was able to tear down his old barns and build new ones to house his riches:

Luk 12:15  And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
Luk 12:16  And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully:
Luk 12:17  And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits?
Luk 12:18  And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.
Luk 12:19  And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
Luk 12:20  But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?
Luk 12:21  So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

Yes, even the ox has a negative application in the word of God. When all of our efforts are spent to preserve and provide for the flesh at the exclusion of the things of the spirit, we will soon learn that we have wasted our lives trying to save the very symbol of corruption, the flesh, which cannot be saved.

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

The ox, in its symbolism, very closely parallels the Hebrew word ‘charuts,’ one of the six Hebrew words translated ‘gold.’ Charuts appears six times translated as gold, but it is also translated ‘diligent’ five times. What connection has gold to the ox? Only that the word charuts also has the meaning of diligence.

חרץ / חרוּץ
chârûts
BDB Definition:
1) sharp-pointed, sharp, diligent (adjective)
2) strict decision, decision (noun masculine)
3) trench, moat, ditch (noun masculine)
4) gold (poetical) (noun masculine)
Part of Speech: see above in Definition

A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: passive participle of H2782
Total KJV Occurrences: 19
gold, 6
Pro 3:13-14 (2), Pro 8:10, Pro 8:19, Pro 16:16, Zec 9:3
diligent, 5
Pro 10:3-4 (2), Pro 12:24, Pro 12:27, Pro 21:4-5 (2)
decision, 2
Joe 3:14 (2)
sharp, 2
Job 41:30, Isa 41:15
threshing, 2
Isa 28:27, Amo 1:3
pointed, 1
Job 41:30
wall, 1
Dan 9:25

The symbolism of the ox is that of tireless diligence and service in the things of the spirit. It is “by the strength of the ox” that we fill up our spiritual “cribs” and “by the strength of the ox” that we “buy gold tried in the fire” and “lay up for ourselves treasure in heaven.”

Mat 6:19  Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal [negative application of the ox]:
Mat 6:20  But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
Mat 6:21  For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Rev 3:18  I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and [that] the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.

You can have a clean crib, but you will have no ox. In other words, we can either starve to death or be well fed. We are either poor or we are rich. It all depends upon the presence of the ox within us.

In our last study we saw that we can and do offer the greatest sacrifice possible to give to God. We can and we do offer an ox to God, but if when we offer that offering anywhere other than “the door of the tabernacle,” meaning on the altar at the door of the tabernacle, on the selfless cross of Christ, we are not going to be accepted by God.

This week we will see 1) Why the priest was given certain parts of the sacrifice of an ox, 2) Why the ox is first, both in the order in which the sacrifices are mentioned in scripture and in order of value as that which we offer to our Lord. 3) Finally we will see another graphic Biblical example of how we all steal our own brother’s ox, we all prefer to make our offering to our Lord in the way and in the place we choose, instead of the way and place we have been instructed. It is all written to show us that same stubborn attitude is within the beast within us all.

1Co 10:11  Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.
1Co 10:12  Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.

The priest’s part of an ox which is sacrificed

Deu 18:3  When you sacrifice a bull or sheep, the priests will be given the shoulder, the jaws, and the stomach.

Yes, it was the same for any sacrifice. The priest was given that part which signifies the parts which give us direction and movement, that is our legs, which give us expression, our mouths, and that part which signifies our meditation or rumination, the stomach of a clean beast. These are all given, without hesitation, to Christ, our high priest.

Christ has no use for any service we might give Him which has not been offered in accord with His directives. What this means is that our service to our Lord must be in accord with His Word or it is an offering which was killed somewhere other than the altar (the cross) of our Lord. Any such offerings are offered in rebellion and will not be accepted by our High Priest. We could give the priest the required parts, but if they were not offered on the altar at the door of the tabernacle, then we are guilty of failing to see what is the significance of the shoulder, the jaws and the stomach.

The ox is the first beast mentioned as being good for food

Deu 14:4  These are the beasts which ye shall eat: the ox, the sheep, and the goat,
Deu 14:5  The hart, and the roebuck, and the fallow deer, and the wild goat, and the pygarg [antelope], and the wild ox, and the chamois [gazelle].
Deu 14:6  And every beast that parteth the hoof, and cleaveth the cleft into two claws, and cheweth the cud among the beasts, that ye shall eat.

Any “strong meat” which is fit for food cannot be taken from words which are “above that which is written.” Any “strong meat” which is fit to be consumed for nourishment must have two witnesses as their foundation. Those witnesses will be “things new and old.”

Mat 13:52  Then said he unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man [that is] an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old.

Mat 18:15  Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.
Mat 18:16  But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
Mat 18:17  And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican.
Mat 18:18  Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

The Greek here is “shall have been bound… and shall have been loosed.” It was all written in God’s book before we were ever born:

Psa 139:16  Thine eyes did see mine unformed substance; And in thy book they were all written, Even the days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was none of them. (ASV)

Another example of  both ‘stealing our brother’s ox’ and failing to bring our offering to “the door of the tabernacle.’

1Sa 15:1  Samuel also said unto Saul, The LORD sent me to anoint thee to be king over his people, over Israel: now therefore hearken thou unto the voice of the words of the LORD.
1Sa 15:2  Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt.
1Sa 15:3  Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.
1Sa 15:4  And Saul gathered the people together, and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen, and ten thousand men of Judah.
1Sa 15:5  And Saul came to a city of Amalek, and laid wait in the valley.
1Sa 15:6  And Saul said unto the Kenites, Go, depart, get you down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them: for ye shewed kindness to all the children of Israel, when they came up out of Egypt. So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites.
1Sa 15:7  And Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah until thou comest to Shur, that is over against Egypt.
1Sa 15:8  And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.
1Sa 15:9  But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly.
1Sa 15:10  Then came the word of the LORD unto Samuel, saying,

King Saul in type is not someone else. We are King Saul long before we become King David, “a man after God’s own heart.” We simply cannot bring ourselves to utterly destroy our own flesh. We tell ourselves and we believe that flesh and this physical realm are not sin in and of themselves. After all, it has so many good features. It simply cannot be looked on as sin in and of itself. When we take this attitude, and we reserve parts of our flesh to serve God as we see fit, what is God’s reaction?

1Sa 15:11  It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night.
1Sa 15:12  And when Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning, it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to Carmel, and, behold, he set him up a place, and is gone about, and passed on, and gone down to Gilgal.

Here are a couple other versions of this verse:

(MKJV)  And when Samuel rose up early in the morning to meet Saul, it was told to Samuel, saying, Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a place for himself, and has gone around and passed on and gone down to Gilgal.
(MSG)  He got up early in the morning to confront Saul but was told, “Saul’s gone. He went to Carmel to set up a victory monument in his own honor, and then was headed for Gilgal.” By the time Samuel caught up with him, Saul had just finished an act of worship, having used Amalekite plunder for the burnt offerings sacrificed to GOD.

This is what John refers to as “losing your first love.”

Rev 2:1  Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;
Rev 2:2  I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
Rev 2:3  And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.
Rev 2:4  Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
Rev 2:5  Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

King Saul had “lost his first love” and repented not. What happened next?

1Sa 15:13  And Samuel came to Saul: and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the LORD: I have performed the commandment of the LORD.
1Sa 15:14  And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear? [What are all these false doctrines, I am hearing in my ear, which you equate to “performing the commandment of the Lord?”]
1Sa 15:15  And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.
1Sa 15:16  Then Samuel said unto Saul, Stay, and I will tell thee what the LORD hath said to me this night. And he said unto him, Say on.
1Sa 15:17  And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel?
1Sa 15:18  And the LORD sent thee on a journey, and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed.
1Sa 15:19  Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the LORD, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of the LORD?
1Sa 15:20  And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.
1Sa 15:21  But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God in Gilgal.

King Saul thought like we all think. He thought that doing 50 to 90 percent of what God said was enough. King Saul had bought into “agreement in the essentials and tolerance in the nonessentials.” It was simply not practical to do what God said to do, down to the last detail, when that meant that the people would not like you if you were that much of a fanatic about “living by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” So instead of being a leader, King  Saul became a politician, and a people pleaser, and what was God’s  reaction to His anointed becoming a servant of men?

1Sa 15:22  And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.
1Sa 15:23  For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.
1Sa 15:24  And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD, and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice.
1Sa 15:25  Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD.
1Sa 15:26  And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee: for thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD hath rejected thee from being king over Israel.
1Sa 15:27  And as Samuel turned about to go away, he laid hold upon the skirt of his mantle, and it rent.
1Sa 15:28  And Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou.

This is all a story about the kingdom of God. What do we know about what is that kingdom?

Luk 17:20  And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation:
Luk 17:21  Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

So both of these, the rejected anointed and the “new man,” the “man after God’s own heart,” are both within us all. However, the “old man,” God’s rejected anointed, cannot inherit the kingdom of God.

1Sa 15:29  And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for he is not a man, that he should repent.
1Sa 15:30  Then he said, I have sinned: yet honour me now, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD thy God.
1Sa 15:31  So Samuel turned again after Saul; and Saul worshipped the LORD.
1Sa 15:32  Then said Samuel, Bring ye hither to me Agag the king of the Amalekites. And Agag came unto him delicately. And Agag said, Surely the bitterness of death is past.
1Sa 15:33  And Samuel said, As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.
1Sa 15:34  Then Samuel went to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house to Gibeah of Saul.
1Sa 15:35  And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death: nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul: and the LORD repented that he had made Saul king over Israel.

We all honor ourselves for our self-righteous rebellion against what the natural man sees as the unloving laws and sayings and commandments of God. By following the people instead of leading them according to what the Lord had said, Saul was guilty of stealing the people’s oxen, while thinking he was doing God a service by keeping the oxen of the Amalekites. He was also guilty of failing to bring his offering to the altar of the door of the tabernacle. He preferred to offer his ox to God in the camp, but God would have no part of King Saul’s disobedience to His word.

This admonition in Matthew 18:15 -18 is but one more of “the commandments of the Lord” which have no place in Babylon, within or without. It is much easier to “listen to the people” instead of God, and the people will always convince us that it is simply more loving to ‘agree on the essentials and tolerate the nonessentials.’ It is simply easier to just go along to get along with the people, and it just seems more loving to the natural man to ignore God’s sayings rather than become separated from our brothers by obeying “every word which proceeds out of the mouth of God.”

Mat 4:4  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

What we have learned today is that the ox of scripture is within us, as a tireless servant to increase our spiritual wealth. It never tires in giving to it neighbors or its enemies, of the “love of God.” On the other hand we have seen that we can and do steal our brother’s ox when we fail to undertand what is the love of God, when we fail to “love God and keep His commandments.”

1Jn 5:2  By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
1Jn 5:3  For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

We have seen that when we do anything we do, to keep from losing our friends in this life, instead of doing it to glorify God, we are really killing and offering our sacrifice within or without the camp, both being in rebellion to the commandment of our Lord, and somewhere other than at the altar of God which is “before the door of the tabernacle.”

We have learned that the ox and all clean meats, with the cloven hooves, teach us that we must never speak above that which is written:

1Co 4:6  And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and to Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think [of men] above that which is written, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another.

We have seen that the horse is God’s symbol for the spiritual battle being waged in our heavens, but the ox is the symbol of Christ in us serving our fellow man and our Lord. Both reveal a great, and powerful zeal to serve in our Father’s house:

Joh 2:13  And the Jews’ passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem,
Joh 2:14  And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting:
Joh 2:15  And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew the tables;
Joh 2:16  And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father’s house an house of merchandise.
Joh 2:17  And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.

Christ in us is a bull in a Babylonian china shop, and we are guaranteed to be “hated of all men.”

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.

Next week, Lord willing, we will see that the ‘ox,’ along with three other beasts, is “in the midst of and around the throne of God.” And we will see once again who are these four beasts and why they are four.

Rev 4:6  And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind.
Rev 4:7  And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.

[The next installment of this study can be found here.]