1Ki 21:17-29  “For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground” – Part 2

[Study Aired June 30, 2022]

For we must die, and are as water spilled on the ground, and with no way to be redeemed except through Christ’s blood that was spilled on the earth, which can sanctify the body of Christ as it represents His Words which are Life, or a seed, that brings death to our old man (Eph 1:7, Joh 17:17, Joh 12:24).

Eph 1:7  In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace; 

Joh 17:17  Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. 

Joh 12:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. [-to believe is to do the work- Joh 8:31]

The water of the word that washes us (Eph 5:26-27) proceeds from the vine Jesus Christ, who is the Word (Joh 1:1), and He is the reason we can be sanctified and cleansed of our old Adamic nature “with the washing of water by the word (wine – blood [Mat 26:28])”

Eph 5:26  That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 
Eph 5:27  That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. 

Mat 26:28  For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

If we hear that word and are convicted by that word and act upon that word, proving all things and holding fast to that which is good (1Th 5:21), then we will be saved through that process of judgment in which we continue until our last breath (Joh 8:31-32) symbolized by the words “O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD” of Jeremiah 22:29. With God’s words being sanctified within us, we can then in turn sanctify each other with those words and play a part in saving one another in this life as we fill up what is behind of the afflictions of Christ “for his body’s sake, which is the church” (Col 1:24, Eph 5:30).

1Th 5:21  Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 

Jer 22:29  O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD. 

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: 

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

“We must needs die”, just as “we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God” (Act 14:22), and the life of Elijah the Tishbite typifies for us what is expected of God’s elect who are dying daily and learning to patiently possess our souls (Jas 5:10, Luk 21:19) as we are led by God’s spirit (Rom 8:14-16).

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

Jas 5:10  Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. 

Luk 21:19  In your patience possess ye your souls.

Rom 8:14  For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. 
Rom 8:15  For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. 
Rom 8:16  The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:

We can only say ‘our yes is yes’ and ‘our no is no’ of Matthew 5:37 if we are being obedient to the commandments of God.  So, when God tells Elijah “go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, which is in Samaria“, he does so and does not make any excuse as to why he cannot; excuses , “What if the king doesn’t like what I have to say?” God tells us in situations of duress “take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak” (Mat 8:21-22 ,  Mat 10:19).

Mat 5:37  But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. 

Mat 8:21  And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. 
Mat 8:22  But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.

Mat 10:19  But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak.

Each of the wise and foolish virgins are “bidden to the wedding” (Mat 22:3) but it is only those who are given to receive the counsel “buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed” (Rev 3:18) who have those garments washed or sanctified by the blood of the lamb who is the author and finisher of that “more precious than of gold” process of having our faith tried in fire in this life through God’s judgments that are upon His house (Rev 19:7, Heb 12:2, 1Pe 1:7, 1Pe 4:12, 1Pe 4:17, Jas 1:2-4). Satan did exactly what God required of him.  The point is that a prophet going where he is supposed to go, as Elijah did, is not a conclusive event that shows that the vessel is one of honor or dishonor, any more than Judas who kept following Christ when others had already denied him (Joh 6:67).

Mat 22:3  And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come. 

Rev 19:7  Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. 

Heb 12:2  Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

1Pe 1:7  That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: 

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

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

Jas 1:2  My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; 
Jas 1:3  Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. 
Jas 1:4  But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

The reason I’m bringing up this subject of ‘tried faith’ in this story is because we can easily read about the faithful prophets of old and not realize the life and death situations God put them in was for our sakes, showing us that we are “more than conquerors through him that loved us” (1Co 10:11, Rom 8:37). These stories of the faithful prophets are typical examples of the faith of Jesus Christ that we have today, which tell us nothing can separate us “from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom 8:38-39).

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. 

We need to look at these situations of the prophets and all the examples of faith in Hebrews 11:1-40, and remember these things were written for our sakes to encourage us and to remind us that nothing can separate us from the love of God as we are given the ability to endure the trials of this life with the very faith of Jesus Christ and the love of God that is shed abroad in our hearts (Rom 5:5). That God-given faith gives us the power we need to be obedient even as we deny ourselves every day and follow Christ by carrying our cross, which is how we deny ourselves and ultimately overcome by enduring to the end (Luk 22:32, Gal 2:20, 2Ti 1:7, Heb 5:8, Mat 16:24, Mat 24:13).

Luk 22:32  But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.

Gal 2:20  I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: [Col 1:27] and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. 

2Ti 1:7  For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. 

Heb 5:8  Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; 

Mat 16:24  Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. 

Mat 24:13  But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

1Ki 21:17  And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 
1Ki 21:18  Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, which is in Samaria: behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it.
1Ki 21:19  And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession? And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the LORD, In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine.

Elijah gets his marching orders from “the LORD“, and as mentioned, he goes straightway to go do the work of the Lord (Mat 4:20, Heb 11:8, Rom 8:14).

Mat 4:20  And they straightway left their nets, and followed him. 

Heb 11:8  By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. 

Rom 8:14  For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. 

We are God’s workmanship, and Elijah’s meeting “Ahab king of Israel, which is in Samaria, in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it” is symbolic of where God meets our old man of sin who must be confronted straightway by the prophet for the death of Christ, for which we are guilty, symbolized in this story by the life of Naboth that was taken. The dogs licking the blood of a dead man is symbolic of our returning to our own vomit, our own blood, or words, which are not words of life that can sanctify the earth like the words or Christ but are rather consumed by the beast that we are, to give nourishment to the beast. To clearly witness to that point, both Naboth’s and Ahab’s blood are mentioned as being spilled on the ground and licked up by dogs to remind us that flesh and blood does not inherit the kingdom of God (1Co 15:50) and only Christ can redeem us with His blood (Pro 26:11, Mat 7:6).

Pro 26:11  As a dog returneth to his vomit, so a fool returneth to his folly.

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

The prophet Elijah does not shun to declare the whole gospel (Act 20:27) in type and shadow to Ahab with these words that paint a gruesome story of what is going to befall Ahab: “And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession? And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the LORD, In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine.“

Act 20:27  For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God. 

1Ki 21:20  And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I have found thee: because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the LORD.

We all “sell ourselves” or “deny Christ” when we “work evil in the sight of the LORD“, and the good that we would we don’t do, but the evil that we don’t want to do that’s what we do (Rom 7:14-17), and if Christ’s spirit is within us, we will overcome this struggle in our heavens, because the Son of man sets us free from sin so we can be free indeed (Joh 8:36). This freedom does not happen all at once, and is a dying daily process that brings us to learn of God’s faithfulness to finish what He has started in His workmanship through Jesus Christ (Heb 12:2, Eph 2:10). Elijah is the enemy of Ahab just as the spirit of God is against the flesh, and the flesh against the spirit (Gal 5:17), and what we sow in that flesh we will reap and be found out: “Hast thou found me, O mine enemy?” (Gal 6:7)

Rom 7:14  For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. 
Rom 7:15  For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. 
Rom 7:16  If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. 
Rom 7:17  Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 

Joh 8:36  If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. [ultimately freed from this double-minded man of Romans 7:13-17 on the third day (Luk 13:32)]

Heb 12:2  Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

Eph 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. 

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 [Rom 7:14-17].

Gal 6:7  Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap [Rom 9:19-21].

1Ki 21:21  Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take away thy posterity, and will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, 
1Ki 21:22  And will make thine house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, for the provocation wherewith thou hast provoked me to anger, and made Israel to sin. 
1Ki 21:23  And of Jezebel also spake the LORD, saying, The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel. 
1Ki 21:24  Him that dieth of Ahab in the city the dogs shall eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat. 
1Ki 21:25  But there was none like unto Ahab, which did sell himself to work wickedness in the sight of the LORD, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up. 
1Ki 21:26  And he did very abominably in following idols, according to all things as did the Amorites, whom the LORD cast out before the children of Israel. 

The evil that God is going to bring upon Ahab is to take away from him his “posterity”^H310, a symbol for us of God taking away our talent and giving it to someone else (Mat 25:28-29). In the physical sense, it represents everything that is ‘behind’ Ahab, everything that has been established in his life including “him that is shut up and left in Israel“, meaning in type and shadow the things he has bound on earth and in heaven are all being destroyed, the whole root and branch, because that ‘posterity’ represents what our old man builds and develops in this life, our many wonderful works with no acknowledgement of God’s sovereignty over it all (Mal 4:1).

Mal 4:1  For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

H310
‘achar 
posterity  
akh-ar’

From H309; properly the hind part; generally used as an adverb or conjugation, after (in various senses): – after (that, -ward), again, at, away from, back (from, -side), behind, beside, by, follow (after, -ing), forasmuch, from, hereafter, hinder end, + out (over) live, + persecute, posterity, pursuing, remnant, seeing, since, thence [-forth], when, with.

Total KJV occurrences: 714

Mat 25:28  Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. 
Mat 25:29  For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.

Notice that the curse which comes upon Ahab and Jezebel is spoken of as being against the wall, and by the wall of Jezreel^H3157. This wall of Jezreel, in the negative sense, is a symbol of the idols of our heart, and the word means “God will sow“, telling us that God is the one who is sovereign over this whole process of light and dark and good and evil (Isa 45:7) about which we are learning in this story of Ahab and Jezebel. He created us to be a marred vessel in the Potter’s hand that is either redeemed in this life or the next, which reminds us of 2 Samuel 14:14 and Romans 9:22-23.

Jezreel – H3157 
yizr
e‛ê’l 
yiz-reh-ale’

From H2232 and H410; God will sow; Jizreel, the name of two places in Palestine and of two Israelites: – Jezreel.

Total KJV occurrences: 36

H410  
‘êl  
ale

Shortened from H352; strength; as adjective mighty; especially the Almighty (but used also of any deity): – God (god), X goodly, X great, idol, might (-y one), power, strong. Compare names in “-el.”

Total KJV occurrences: 242

Isa 45:7  I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things. 

2Sa 14:14  For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither doth God respect any person: yet doth he devise means, that his banished be not expelled from him.

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: [“yet doth he devise means, that his banished be not expelled from him“]
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,

For further contrast, Ahab is compared to his proteges telling him that he is no better, and in fact is worse, than them: “like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat (1Ki 14:1-12), and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah (1Ki 15:33-34, 1Ki 16:1-4), for the provocation wherewith thou hast provoked me to anger, and made Israel to sin“. Even as Ahab is digesting these strong rebukes from the prophet, he is further told “And of Jezebel also spake the LORD, saying, The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel.“

1Ki 14:10  Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone. 
1Ki 14:11  Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat: for the LORD hath spoken it. 

1Ki 16:2  Forasmuch as I exalted thee out of the dust, and made thee prince over my people Israel; and thou hast walked in the way of Jeroboam, and hast made my people Israel to sin, to provoke me to anger with their sins; 
1Ki 16:3  Behold, I will take away the posterity of Baasha, and the posterity of his house; and will make thy house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

Jezebel is the wife of Ahab, and therefore they are one, and she represents his spiritual state of mind which is corrupt like hers, and therefore he is pronounced with the same fate: “Him that dieth of Ahab in the city the dogs shall eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat.” Again, it is not just Ahab who is going to die but all those who are connected to him, and the death, although physical, is represented to us in the terms used to show us that those to whom we are joined in our folly and our disobedience are devoured by dogs, which is a symbol of spiritual depravity (Tit 1:12). The fowls of the air show the dream-is-one principle in that it is speaking of the same point. “The field” is the world, and the fowls represent the evil spirits which are going to destroy those connected to Ahab in the world (Deu 28:15, Deu 28:26).

Deu 28:15  But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee: 

Deu 28:26  And thy carcase shall be meat unto all fowls of the air, and unto the beasts of the earth, and no man shall fray them away.

The casting “out before the children of Israel” of “the Amorites” is typical language that says these same words of Christ: “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed” as He delivers us from every abominable idol of our hearts, the most persistent one being that we don’t see that these words of God are speaking of the chief of sinners, who we are (1Ti 1:15), along with Jezebel who represents our inability without Christ to be seduced by Babylon out of which God alone can drag us. “But there was none like unto Ahab, which did sell himself to work wickedness in the sight of the LORD, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up.” It is when God brings us to see our hopeless and helpless situation as a result of the fullness of the sins of the “Amorites” being fulfilled in our life that we are then delivered from ourselves (Gen 15:16).

1Ti 1:15  This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.

Gen 15:16  But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.

1Ki 21:27  And it came to pass, when Ahab heard those words, that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly.
1Ki 21:28  And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 
1Ki 21:29  Seest thou how Ahab humbleth himself before me? because he humbleth himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days: but in his son’s days will I bring the evil upon his house.

Although God did postpone the evil that would come upon Ahab’s house due to his repentant heart, the “posterity” of Ahab that God said he would take away from him was inevitable, and so God’s judgments were temporarily withheld and then unleashed as prophesied “in his son’s days” did God “bring the evil upon his house”, similar to king Solomon whose curse was visited in the generation after him with his son king Rehoboam (Deu 5:9, 1Ki 11:11-12). In both kings’ lives, Ahab and Solomon, there was an abuse of power and an entitled spirit that had little and no regard for the commandments of God as they sowed to their flesh. The end result of that disobedience is always the same and is written for our sakes (1Co 10:11) to help us learn that God is a just God who tells us what we sow we will reap. He is the one who orchestrates all of it at the appointed time (Gal 6:7).

The reason God delays these punishments at certain times is to remind us that when one member of the body of Christ sins, we are all affected by that behavior, and “visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me” is an old covenant expression of telling us that sin can have long-term consequences for all those who commit sin, and for those who are in the midst of the leaven that can leaven the whole lump (Gal 5:9, 1Co 5:13, Heb 12:15).

Deu 5:9  Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, 

Gal 6:7  Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 
Gal 6:8  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. 

Gal 5:9  A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. 

1Co 5:13  But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person. 

Heb 12:15  Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;

In the end, the prophetic words of Elijah come to pass as we will read in the last chapter of first Kings, where we learn of how Ahab died in battle, this telling us again that God is a just God who judges us for our sins (1Ki 22:38). It would seem very pointless to be reading these stories if we were not given to understand that we are looking at events that reflect the one event that is common unto all man, each man in his order, and that being the judgment of God (Ecc 3:9). That judgment and the blessing it will ultimately bring upon all the world, is the salvation of all which leads us back to our title “For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground” in order to become that means-to-an-end body of Christ that God will use to save the rest of the world “that his banished be not expelled from him” (Oba 1:21).

2Sa 14:14  For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither doth God respect any person: [Rom 9:19-21] yet doth he devise means [Oba 1:21], that his banished be not expelled from him. 

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

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Isa 62:7-12 – The Redeemed of The Lord… You Shall Be Called

[Study Aired July 12, 2020]

Isa 62:7  And give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.
Isa 62:8  The LORD hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength, Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat for thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured:
Isa 62:9  But they that have gathered it shall eat it, and praise the LORD; and they that have brought it together shall drink it in the courts of my holiness.
Isa 62:10  Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people.
Isa 62:11  Behold, the LORD hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.
Isa 62:12  And they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of the LORD: and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.

Before reading the first verse of our study today, we must include verse 6 to give us the context for the admonition we are given in verse 7.

Isa 62:6  I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence,

There it is… “Ye that make mention of the Lord.” That is who we are. It is those who “fear the Lord [and] speak often one to another”:

Mal 3:16  Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.
Mal 3:17  And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.
Mal 3:18  Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.

Those who “speak … one to another and fear the Lord” here in Malachi 3 are the “watchmen upon the walls of Jerusalem” of Isaiah 62:7. The Lord is calling us His “watchmen”. As such we, His body, are commanded, “Keep not silence… give Him no rest [give the Lord no rest], till He establish, and till He make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.”

Isa 62:7  And give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.

If you and I are speaking to one another out of the fear of the Lord, as Malachi 3 reveals, we are not going to be gossiping about how carnal our other brothers in the body are. We will not be complaining about how badly our brothers in Babylon are behaving. If we fear the Lord, we will be speaking to one another about the Lord’s sovereignty over all good and evil. We will be expressing our gratitude for how the Lord is showing us what abominations are within us and how we are so very blessed to be dying daily to our old man and not becoming weary in well doing.  We will first speak of how we ourselves are struggling to keep Jerusalem within us pure and guard against every attempt of the adversary to breach the walls of Jerusalem within us. Then the Lord will grant us to also guard against the abominations of false doctrines which are also constantly assaulting the walls of our corporate “Jerusalem above, the mother of us all”.

Eze 9:1  He cried also in mine ears with a loud voice, saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand.
Eze 9:2  And, behold, six men came from the way of the higher gate, which lieth toward the north, and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer’s inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brasen altar.
Eze 9:3  And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed with linen, which had the writer’s inkhorn by his side;
Eze 9:4  And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof.
Eze 9:5  And to the others he said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity:
Eze 9:6  Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.
Eze 9:7  And he said unto them, Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain: go ye forth. And they went forth, and slew in the city.
Eze 9:8  And it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left, that I fell upon my face, and cried, and said, Ah Lord GOD! wilt thou destroy all the residue of Israel in thy pouring out of thy fury upon Jerusalem?
Eze 9:9  Then said he unto me, The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood, and the city full of perverseness: for they say, The LORD hath forsaken the earth, and the LORD seeth not.
Eze 9:10  And as for me also, mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, but I will recompense their way upon their head.
Eze 9:11  And, behold, the man clothed with linen, which had the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter, saying, I have done as thou hast commanded me.

The Lord’s elect are the ones who have been given “charge over the city”. That is our commission as the Lord’s “watchmen upon [the] walls [of] Jerusalem”. Why would we as His watchmen be told, “Give Him no rest till He make Jerusalem a praise in the earth?” Christ Himself answers that question for us in His parable about the importunate widow who is seeking vengeance against her adversary in the kingdom of God, which is within us.

This parable explains why we are told to “Give [the Lord] no rest, till He establish, till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth”:

Luk 18:1  And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
Luk 18:2  Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:
Luk 18:3  And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.
Luk 18:4  And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;
Luk 18:5  Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.
Luk 18:6  And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.
Luk 18:7  And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
Luk 18:8  I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?

This parable is a perfect example of how the Lord uses people and things, which seem to be totally unfit to be a figure or a type of heavenly matters, to make a spiritual point. The point being made is clearly stated: “That men ought always to pray.” This unrelenting ‘widow’ typifies us as ‘watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem’. Jerusalem is where the Lord’s throne is located within us, and this judge typifies our heavenly Father who will avenge us of the offences of our old man against the new man within us.

Where else do we see the Lord’s elect seeking vengeance against their enemies?

Rev 6:9  And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
Rev 6:10  And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
Rev 6:11  And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.

Notice where the Lord’s watchmen are located: “I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem…” A ‘wall’ symbolizes protection against our enemies. Here is what Nabal’s servants told Abigail about David’s men:

1Sa 25:14  But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master; and he railed on them.
1Sa 25:15  But the men were very good unto us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we any thing, as long as we were conversant with them, when we were in the fields:
1Sa 25:16  They were a wall unto us [They protected us] both by night and day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep.
1Sa 25:17  Now therefore know and consider what thou wilt do; for evil is determined against our master, and against all his household: for he is such a son of Belial, that a man cannot speak to him.

There is a lot of talk about walls these days. There is a secular proverb which has a Biblical foundation. It says, “Good fences make for good neighbors.” The scriptures bear out that proverb because we are told there is a great wall around the Lord’s Jerusalem. Christ and His words and His doctrines are that wall, and He does not let anything that is defiled into His “Jerusalem”:

Rev 21:9  And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife.
Rev 21:10  And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
Rev 21:11  Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;
Rev 21:12  And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:

This angel who is showing us “the bride, the Lamb’s wife” is just another symbol of the “watchmen upon the walls of Jerusalem who give the Lord no rest till He establishes and makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth.” These pleading watchmen are also symbolized by the importunate widow who will give the judge no rest until she is avenged of her enemies. The judge she is constantly importuning is a type of the Lord. The importunate widow in type is the same as the earnest ‘souls under the altar’ who are also importuning the Lord to be revenged of their enemies. This angel who shows us “the bride the Lamb’s wife” is the very same angel who shows us “the great whore who rules over the kings of the earth”.

Rev 17:1  And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
Rev 17:2  With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
Rev 17:3  So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.

The revelation of this great whore here in Revelation 17 is just another way of showing us “the image of jealousy” of Ezekiel 8:5 and “the abominations committed in Jerusalem” of Ezekiel 9:4. These all “are types of us”:

1Co 10:6 Now these things became types of us, for us not to be lusters after evil things (CLV)

This wall upon which the Lord’s watchmen stand is the Lord Himself and His words within us. We are told He is the same as His own Words:

Joh 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

Those who know Christ and His Father have the words of Christ within them, and in that sense they, too, are Christ, as He Himself tells us:

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

Paul confirms that Christ considers us to be Himself in:

Act 22:7  And I fell unto the ground, and heard a voice saying unto me, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?
Act 22:8  And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said unto me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest.

This means that if Christ is our protective ‘wall’ and we are Him, then we, too, are that ‘wall’ upon which we are His watchmen who give Him no rest until He establishes us and makes us a praise for Him in this earth.

It is the same message repeatedly written. We are those who are symbolized by the watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem. We are symbolized by David’s wall of protective men. We are symbolized by the avengers of Ezekiel 9, by the importunate widow seeking to be avenged of her enemies, and by the importunate souls under the altar, seeking to be avenged of their enemies. We are on the walls of Jerusalem importuning the Lord to help us fight the spiritual warfare which is even now being waged over the Lord’s Jerusalem, and we are not to give Him rest until He has established us and made us a praise in the earth of our old man.

If we are given to overcome the enemies of the kingdom of God within us, showing no pity to our enemies within, then in time we will be granted to wear a crown of life at the “resurrection to life” ruling with our Lord for a thousand years, bringing peace to this world for the first time in its history. We will then, one last time, experience what it is like to be rejected by those to whom we have given so much, all by the Lord’s design. That last rejection will give Him the occasion He is seeking to completely extinguish His clay vessel prototype and finish His work of making all mankind into His own image.

Joh 5:27  And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man.
Joh 5:28  Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
Joh 5:29  And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.

Rev 20:4  And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Rev 20:5  But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Rev 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

That is the glory which awaits those watchmen whom the Lord has placed upon the walls of His Jerusalem to importune Him to bring them to that place of being established and made a praise in the earth. When the Lord accomplishes this in us there will be no doubt who worked it all:

1Ch 16:28  Give unto the LORD, ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength.
1Ch 16:29  Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come before him: worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.

1Co 1:26  For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:
1Co 1:27  But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;
1Co 1:28  And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:
1Co 1:29  That no flesh should glory in his presence.
1Co 1:30  But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:
1Co 1:31  That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

Truly “we are His workmanship” (Eph 2:10):

Isa 62:8  The LORD hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength, Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat for thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured:
Isa 62:9  But they that have gathered it shall eat it, and praise the LORD; and they that have brought it together shall drink it in the courts of my holiness.

“I will no longer give your corn to be meat for your enemies” is the same as telling us that when our efforts are “meat for [our] enemies” it was really the Lord who gives us up as food for our adversaries. This is what Christ meant when He gave the dust, which we are, to be for the nourishment of the adversary:

Gen 3:14  And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:
Gen 3:15  And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

Verse 15 explains what is meant by “dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life”. Eating what we have gathered and drinking what we have brought is another way of saying that we are given to be the serpent’s food. When we are finally given to “bruise [the head of the serpent]” that is when the Lord “will no more give [our] corn to be meat for [our] adversaries [and He will no longer give our adversaries to] drink [our] wine”. It is all accomplished by the Lord Himself, and by Him making us to know and Him making us to do what the Lord tells us to do. Until that preordained time His word, which is our “corn”, will continue to be taken from us and eaten by our enemies in Babylon.

Mat 13:18  Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower.
Mat 13:19  When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.

It was Christ who brought the good news of the kingdom of God… “the word of the kingdom”. His words and His doctrines are the things to which Isaiah refers when he tells us we will eat what we have gathered and drink “in the courts of His holiness” what we have brought together. It is His doctrine, as well as the doctrine of John the Baptist, which teaches us that John the Baptist fulfilled these words:

Isa 40:1  Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.
Isa 40:2  Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD’S hand double for all her sins.
Isa 40:3  The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Take note that it is the Lord’s elect who also “receive of the Lord’s hand double for all [their] sins”. This is how John applied these words to himself:

Joh 1:19  And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou?
Joh 1:20  And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ.
Joh 1:21  And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No.
Joh 1:22  Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?
Joh 1:23  He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias [Isa 40:3].

Notice again how the preceding two verses refer to “My people”.

Isa 40:1  Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.
Isa 40:2  Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD’S hand double for all her sins.
Isa 40:3  The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Jerusalem is called “My people”, and we have demonstrated the “The New Jerusalem… the bride, the Lamb’s wife” is another type and shadow of us as the Lord’s body, which is the church (Col 1:24-27). These are some of the most comforting words of scripture, and they are addressed to us as the Lord’s chosen elect.

These words in Isaiah 62 are very similar to the words of Isa 40:1-3:

Isa 62:10  Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people.
Isa 62:11  Behold, the LORD hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.

Verse 11 is also repeated in Isaiah 40:

Isa 40:10  Behold, the Lord GOD will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.

The Lord’s words will never pass away (Mat 24:35). That means they are applicable in every generation (Mat 24:32-34).

Mat 24:32  Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:
Mat 24:33  So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.
Mat 24:34  Verily I say unto you, This generation [the generation reading these words verse 15] shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
Mat 24:35  Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.

Mat 24:15  When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand)

This is all confirmation of the New Testament doctrine that those in Christ, whether Jew or Gentile, are the true “seed of Abraham”:

Gal 3:28  There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
Gal 3:29  And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

An essential part of the “is, was and will be…  shall never pass away” words of Christ are those words which place before us the order in which every word of God will be fulfilled. Our Lord is a God of order:

1Co 14:40  Let all things be done decently and in order.

This is repeated in the very next chapter:

1Co 15:22  For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
1Co 15:23  But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.
1Co 15:24  Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.
1Co 15:25  For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.
1Co 15:26  The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

That is His order, and it will be kept. Christ is first of the firstfruits, “afterwards they that are Christ’s firstfruits, and then comes the [final harvest at] the end” of the year.

All of these glorious promises must be fulfilled in that very order, which means these great and glorious promises will be fulfilled first in the Lord’s Christ, His firstfruits, who will then be used as the channel of the Lord’s mercies upon all the rest of mankind.

Rom 11:30 For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
Rom 11:31 Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.
Rom 11:32 For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

That is why:

Isa 62:12  And they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of the LORD: and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.

This is confirmed by the holy spirit in the New Testament in the parable of the workers in the Lord’s vineyard:

Mat 20:1  For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard.
Mat 20:2  And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard.
Mat 20:3  And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace,
Mat 20:4  And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way.
Mat 20:5  Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise.
Mat 20:6  And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle?
Mat 20:7  They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive.
Mat 20:8  So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first.
Mat 20:9  And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny.
Mat 20:10  But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny.
Mat 20:11  And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house,
Mat 20:12  Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day.
Mat 20:13  But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny?
Mat 20:14  Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee.
Mat 20:15  Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good?
Mat 20:16  So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.

The Lord’s order is reiterated in these words:

Eph 1:3  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
Eph 1:4  According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
Eph 1:5  Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
Eph 1:6  To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
Eph 1:7  In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
Eph 1:8  Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;
Eph 1:9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
Eph 1:10  That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:
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:
Eph 1:12  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.

“The mystery of His will” (vs 9 above) includes the order in which that ‘will’ is being carried out. That is why we are told there will be a thousand-year reign with Christ by those who are given to have a part in the “blessed and holy… first resurrection”:

Rev 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Rev 20:5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

That is our study for today. Next week we will begin chapter 63:

Isa 63:1 Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save.
Isa 63:2 Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat?
Isa 63:3 I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment.
Isa 63:4 For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come.
Isa 63:5 And I looked, and there was none to help; and I wondered that there was none to uphold: therefore mine own arm brought salvation unto me; and my fury, it upheld me.
Isa 63:6 And I will tread down the people in mine anger, and make them drunk in my fury, and I will bring down their strength to the earth.