Rev 8:8-9 Part 2 – The Second Trumpet; a Burning Mountain Cast into the Sea

[Study Aired July 14, 2024]

We ended our last study with a review of the first of the two types of ‘the sea’ and the woman who sits on many waters. The first type with which we ended our last study was Babylon of whom we are told:

Jer 51:12  Set up the standard upon the walls of Babylon, make the watch strong, set up the watchmen, prepare the ambushes: for the LORD hath both devised and done that which he spake against the inhabitants of Babylon.
Jer 51:13  O thou that dwellest upon many waters, abundant in treasures, thine end is come, and the measure of thy covetousness.

The second type of the woman who sits on many waters and rules the whole world is Tyre:

Eze 27:3  And say unto Tyrus, O thou that art situate at the entry of the sea, which art a merchant of the people for many isles, Thus saith the Lord GOD; O Tyrus, thou hast said, I am of perfect beauty.

These are the same two cities who are used to typify our rebellious, proud, carnal-minded old man who exalts himself above the heavens in Isaiah 14 concerning the king of Babylon and Ezekiel 28 concerning the prince of Tyre.

Tyre is the second great type of that beastly organization of men, dominated by a great harlot, which “deceives the whole world, [while] thinking they do God a service.” Where is Tyre situated?

Eze 27:3  And say unto Tyrus, O thou that art situate at the entry of the sea, which art a merchant of the people for many isles, Thus saith the Lord GOD; O Tyrus, thou hast said, I am of perfect beauty.
Eze 27:4  Thy borders are in the midst of the seas, thy builders have perfected thy beauty.
Eze 27:5  They have made all thy ship boards of fir trees of Senir: they have taken cedars from Lebanon to make masts for thee.

How does God deal with the king of Tyre?

Eze 28:18  Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.

This is the same “fire” we read of in Revelation 8:8:

Rev 8:8  And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;

It is this very prophecy which declares the destruction of Tyre and her influence over the whole world.

In its negative application ‘fire’ refers to civil unrest and disobedience and rebellion as in this prophecy by Jotham, the only surviving son of Gideon, also called Jerubbaal:

Jdg 9:16  Now therefore, if ye have done truly and sincerely, in that ye have made Abimelech king, and if ye have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have done unto him according to the deserving of his hands;
Jdg 9:17  (For my father fought for you, and adventured his life far, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian:
Jdg 9:18  And ye are risen up against my father’s house this day, and have slain his sons, threescore and ten persons, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his maidservant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother;)
Jdg 9:19  If ye then have dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, then rejoice ye in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you:
Jdg 9:20  But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the men of Shechem, and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech.
Jdg 9:21  And Jotham ran away, and fled, and went to Beer, and dwelt there, for fear of Abimelech his brother.

The Lord’s ‘fire’ in this case was every man’s hand against his brother concerning Abimelech and his followers in Shechem.

Jdg 9:22  When Abimelech had reigned three years over Israel,
Jdg 9:23  Then God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech:
Jdg 9:24  That the cruelty done to the threescore and ten sons of Jerubbaal might come, and their blood be laid upon Abimelech their brother, which slew them; and upon the men of Shechem, which aided him in the killing of his brethren.
Jdg 9:25  And the men of Shechem set liers in wait for him in the top of the mountains, and they robbed all that came along that way by them: and it was told Abimelech.

We will skip ahead to the conclusion of Abimelech’s treachery:

Jdg 9:52  And Abimelech came unto the tower, and fought against it, and went hard unto the door of the tower to burn it with fire.
Jdg 9:53  And a certain woman cast a piece of a millstone upon Abimelech’s head, and all to brake his skull.
Jdg 9:54  Then he called hastily unto the young man his armourbearer, and said unto him, Draw thy sword, and slay me, that men say not of me, A woman slew him. And his young man thrust him through, and he died.
Jdg 9:55  And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they departed every man unto his place.
Jdg 9:56  Thus God rendered the wickedness of Abimelech, which he did unto his father, in slaying his seventy brethren:
Jdg 9:57  And all the evil of the men of Shechem did God render upon their heads: and upon them came the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal.

All this civil unrest and destruction is called ‘fire’ in the prophecy of Jotham the son of Gideon. Both Tyre and Babylon were destroyed by this same way:

Isaiah 14 concerns the king of Babylon signifying the great harlot who rules the whole earth with her false doctrines. This is where ‘Babylon The Great’ of Revelation 17 and 18 derives the force of that prophecy:

Isa 14:5  The LORD hath broken the staff of the wicked, and the sceptre of the rulers.
Isa 14:6  He [the king of Babylon] who smote the people in wrath with a continual stroke, he that ruled the nations in anger, is persecuted, and none hindereth.

Isa 14:13  For thou [the king of Bablon] hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
Isa 14:14  I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
Isa 14:15  Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.
Isa 14:16  They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms;

The exact same message is conveyed to  us in the form of “the prince of Tyre” in:

Eze 28:6  Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thou hast set thine heart as the heart of God;
Eze 28:7  Behold, therefore I will bring strangers upon thee, the terrible of the nations: and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of thy wisdom, and they shall defile thy brightness.
Eze 28:8  They shall bring thee down to the pit, and thou shalt die the deaths of them that are slain in the midst of the seas.

Where was Tyre located? It was situated on the same ‘sea’ that enriched Babylon. That “sea” symbolizes all mankind upon whom the lying religions of mankind prey and from whom the churches of this world become rich by means of all the “ships” of Babylon and Tyre which ply the waters of the “sea” and trade their smooth deceitful wares there in the isles of the sea.

Eze 27:8  The inhabitants of Zidon and Arvad were thy mariners: thy wise men, O Tyrus, that were in thee, were thy pilots.
Eze 27:9  The ancients of Gebal and the wise men thereof were in thee thy calkers: all the ships of the sea with their mariners were in thee to occupy thy merchandise.

It is all the lies of Babylon that keep the riches “of the people of many isles” pouring into Tyre and Babylon. Tyre was an island city at the east end of the Mediterranean Sea, and Babylon literally and historically sat astride the great Euphrates River, and it was upon those waters that the wealth of all the nations kept pouring into Babylon. The same was true of Tyre, which was an Island nation just off the coast of Palestine. The holy spirit has seen fit to reveal to us all that these waters signify “peoples and multitudes, and nations, and tongues” who have been deceived and seduced by the merchants of Babylon and Tyre and with the merchandise of those merchants which they sell to those among whom they sail their ships with all their seductive wares.

Rev 17:15  And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

That is the “sea” within each of us. It symbolizes the corruptible flesh which we all are by birth. That is the sea into which this great burning mountain is cast. None of us ever asked to be that sea or to have that burning mountain cast into our flesh to cause us so much excruciating pain. That is why we are told it was “cast into the sea.” The false doctrine of mankind’s “free will” is only one of the items of merchandise that is sold by the “mariners which are in Tyre to occupy [Hebrew: sweeten] thy merchandise.”

Eze 27:9  The ancients of Gebal and the wise men thereof were in thee thy calkers: all the ships of the sea with their mariners were in thee to occupy thy merchandise.

No one yet has ever freely chosen to “believe a lie and be damned.” Yet when God sends us His “strong delusion” we are incapable of resisting:

2Th 2:11  And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
2Th 2:12  That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

We have all lived lives of condemnation, believing all the lies of Babylon, “until the time appointed of the Father.”

Gal 4:1  Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all;
Gal 4:2  But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.
Gal 4:3  Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:

Our next question is:

What does “the sea became as blood” mean?

If we have seen that the ‘sea’ is our flesh and our flesh cannot please God in and of itself, and if we have already seen that the drinking of the wine is the acknowledging of our crucifying of our Lord and His sacrifice and His death for our sins, then we will easily understand that the ‘sea’ within us is the very same flesh with which we are all born and with which we all have crucified our Lord even as we proclaim that we are above doing such a thing. Yet Christ said “Divide it among yourselves… it is shed for your sins.”

Luk 22:17  And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves:
Luk 22:18  For I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come.
Luk 22:19  And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake [it], and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.
Luk 22:20  Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.

We are not above doing such a thing, rather it is within our flesh to do just that. It is only as we acknowledge that we all have drunk of the wine of Christ’s blood in the New Testament that we are granted to look behind ourselves to see that it was our own “sea [which] becomes as blood.”

Understanding that it is our own ‘sea becoming as blood’ does not convert us overnight. After Peter had spent three and a half years with our Lord, after Peter had healed the sick and cast our demons, our Lord still said this to Peter in the very night of His apprehension by the Jews.

Luk 22:31  And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:
Luk 22:32  But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.
Luk 22:33  And he said unto him, Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to death.

So the sea does not become blood until we are given to acknowledge that blood is the blood of our Lord that we caused to be shed by our sins. That is what “the sea became as blood” means, and until that Truth has been lived as Peter lived it, that sea is not yet become blood and we have not yet “Kept the things which are written therein” (Rev 1:3).

Our next question is:

What does “And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died,” mean?

If we are given to remember that the sea is “the waters of the great deep” before the spirit begins to move upon us, and that “great deep” is simply our flesh with all of its “giants in the land” full of cities which are occupied by giants of which we are told “kill every thing that breatheth,” then we should have no problem understanding that is not accomplished except through the process of judgment upon those “enemies in the land” which are the very same things as “creatures which are in the sea and have life.”

Deu 20:16  But of the cities of these people, which the LORD thy God doth give thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth:

Israel certainly did not do this overnight. In fact this is what we are told they did, and this is what happens within us as we “keep the things which are written therein;”

Exo 23:29  I will not drive them out from before thee in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee.
Exo 23:30  By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.

This is repeated in Deuteronomy.

Deu 7:21  Thou shalt not be affrighted at them: for the LORD thy God is among you, a mighty God and terrible.
Deu 7:22  And the LORD thy God will put out those nations before thee by little and little: thou mayest not consume them at once, lest the beasts of the field increase upon thee.
Deu 7:23  But the LORD thy God shall deliver them unto thee, and shall destroy them with a mighty destruction, until they be destroyed.
Deu 7:24  And he shall deliver their kings into thine hand, and thou shalt destroy their name from under heaven: there shall no man be able to stand before thee, until thou have destroyed them.

In the end, all sin will be destroyed, but it will not be done all at once. It will only be done but by little and little, by third and by third.

Eze 5:1  And thou, son of man, take thee a sharp knife, take thee a barber’s razor, and cause [it] to pass upon thine head and upon thy beard: then take thee balances to weigh, and divide the [hair].
Eze 5:2  Thou shalt burn with fire a third part in the midst of the city, when the days of the siege are fulfilled: and thou shalt take a third part, and smite about it with a knife: and a third part thou shalt scatter in the wind; and I will draw out a sword after them.
Eze 5:3  Thou shalt also take thereof a few in number, and bind them in thy skirts.

Eze 5:4  Then take of them again, and cast them into the midst of the fire, and burn them in the fire; for thereof shall a fire come forth into all the house of Israel.
Eze 5:5  Thus saith the Lord GOD; This is Jerusalem: I have set it in the midst of the nations and countries that are round about her.
Eze 5:6  And she hath changed my judgments into wickedness more than the nations, and my statutes more than the countries that [are] round about her: for they have refused my judgments and my statutes, they have not walked in them.
Eze 5:7  Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye multiplied more than the nations that are round about you, and have not walked in my statutes, neither have kept my judgments, neither have done according to the judgments of the nations that are round about you;
Eze 5:8  Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, am against thee, and will execute judgments in the midst of thee in the sight of the nations.
Eze 5:9  And I will do in thee that which I have not done, and whereunto I will not do any more the like, because of all thine abominations.

“Thereof shall a fire come forth into all the house of Israel” is said of those who are “few in number” and who are first “cast into the midst of the fire.” It is from verses such as this that the apostle Peter knew this:

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 4:13  But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.

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?
1Pe 4:18  And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?

Judgment must first begin at us. Judgment is not all at once, but it is little by little. It is by thirds because the spiritual significance of the number three throughout scripture, as these verses demonstrate is, not the number itself or the fraction itself, but it is the process of judgment that we are to keep of the things written therein:

Rev 8:8  And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;
Rev 8:9  And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.

“The third part of the creatures that were in the sea and had life died,” is telling us that judgment is a process which must first begin at us, the house of God.

What is the spiritual significance of …

The third part of the ships were destroyed?

We have already seen that Babylon and Tyre are both situated on the sea. We have been told that “every shipmaster and all the company in ships… were made rich… by reason of her costliness.” It is obvious that her wealth depends upon her location and her proximity to and her mastery of the sea. Let’s look again at what we are told of the ships of the sea in Revelation 18. These are the same ships that we are reading about here in Revelation 8:9.

Rev 18:17  For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,
Rev 18:18  And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city!
Rev 18:19  And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.

Eze 27:8  The inhabitants of Zidon and Arvad were thy mariners: thy wise men, O Tyrus, that were in thee, were thy pilots.
Eze 27:9  The ancients of Gebal and the wise men thereof were in thee thy calkers: all the ships of the sea with their mariners were in thee to occupy thy merchandise.

The Hebrew word translated ‘occupy’ here in Eze 27:9 is ‘areb’, and it means ‘to sweeten.’ The wise men of this world’s religions “were in thee to sweeten your merchandise.”

The destruction of the third part of the ships of our sea is merely Biblical language expressing the little by little, one third by one third, process of destroying all the idols of our heart, which has begun as these symbolic seven trumpets sound as we keep the things that are written therein.

Summary

We have covered in this study the six different symbols within this second trumpet. We are reminded that these six symbols are one and all things we are to read, hear and keep within our own earth and our own heaven (Rev 1:3). They are in order:

1) A great mountain. We have seen that this “great mountain” begins to destroy the kingdom of the great image of the beast within us, which is struck on the feet of that image by a stone which is cut out of the mountain without hands and destroys the great image and replaces it and becomes a great mountain that fills the whole earth.
2) This ‘mountain’ is burning with ‘fire.’ We have seen that this mountain is burning with fire because it is in the process of destroying the mountain of the kingdom of our old man who is dying daily and being “transformed” by the devouring flame which is the mighty Word of God. We saw that as the mountain or kingdom of the image of the beast decreases, and is being burned with fire,  the mountain of God within us increases till it destroys the kingdom of the beast and becomes a mountain that fills the whole earth.
3) This ‘mountain’ burning with ‘fire’ is cast into the ‘sea.’ We saw that the sea, from Genesis to Revelation, is the symbol of our flesh, and that it is into our flesh that the word of God is cast and begins, “by little by and by little”, by “third” and by “third” to kill and destroy all that is in our sea. We saw that our sea is dominated by the two great types of Babylon and Tyre, which make merchandise of us until we come to see them for the liars and cruel, heartless harlots they are.
4) This casting of the burning mountain into our sea causes the ‘sea’ to “become as blood.” The beginning of this little by little process causes our sea to become as blood. We saw that our sea becomes blood as we become aware of our own hand in the shedding of the blood of Christ in the New Testament, and the fact that we all drink of the cup that was His blood in the New Testament. We have seen that it was shed by us and it was given for our own sins. It is not some strange blood of some strange beast, and it certainly is not the blood of fish, but it is Christ’s blood which turns our sea to blood.
5) When the ‘sea’ “becomes as blood” this causes “a third part of the creatures which were living in the sea to die.” We have seen that the creatures in our sea which must die, are the weaknesses of our flesh along with the false doctrines of Babylon which prey upon the unstable waves of our weak flesh, and the natural desire of our flesh to want to hear only smooth and comforting words. We despise the words of judgment which are these fiery words of our Lord. “By little and by little”, and one third by one third these lying creatures that are in our sea and have life begin to die.
6) Finally the third part of the ships that were in the sea were destroyed when this mountain burning with fire is cast into the sea. We saw all the verses of Ezekiel and Revelation that demonstrate that these ships symbolize those who have made merchandise of us with their smooth sounding false doctrines and their lies. This again, we have seen, is but another way of telling us that the lies we have bought into, while we were in Babylon, and all who sold us on those lies must be destroyed by little and by little, by third and by third.

In our next study, Lord willing, we will see what is the spiritual significance of the third trumpet which we are commanded to read, hear and keep within our lives.

Rev 8:10  And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters;
Rev 8:11  And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.

Book of Obadiah – Oba 1:4  Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle

[Study Aired December 27, 2023]

Obadiah 1:4  Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the LORD.

Here are the Hebrew words used in Obadiah 1:1, and where there is a root word, it is included in bold below

Oba 1:4  Though^H518 thou exalt^{H1361 (H8686 Hiphil)} thyself as the eagle,^H5404 and though^H518 thou set^{H7760 (H8800 Qal)} thy nest^H7064 among^H996 the stars,^H3556 thence^{H4480 H8033} will I bring thee down,^{H3381(H8686 Hiphil)} saith^{H5002 (H8803 Qal)} the LORD.^H3068

H518 – Eem, if, no, not, if…if, whether…or, whether…or…or, when, whenever, since, but rather, a primitive particle

H1361 – Gabahh, (Hiphil) to make high, exalt, a primitive root

H5404 – Nesher, eagle, vulture, griffon-vulture, from an unused root meaning to lacerate

H518 – see above

H7760 – Soom, (Qal) to put, set, lay, put or lay upon, lay (violent) hands on, set, direct, direct toward, extend, ordain, establish, found, appoint, constitute, make, determine, fix, station, set in place, plant, make for, transform into, fashion, work, bring to pass, give, a primitive root

H7064 – Kane, nest, cells/rooms (like nests in Noah’s ark), contracted from a primitive root H7077, Qanan, to make a nest, be nested

H996 – Bane, between, among, in the midst of (with other preps), from between, properly, the constructive form of an otherwise unused noun from a primitive root 

H995, Bene, to discern, understand, consider, perceive, know, observe, mark, give heed to, distinguish, have discernment, insight, understanding, be discerning, intelligent, discreet, cause to understand, give understanding, teach, show oneself discerning/attentive, consider diligently, instruct, prudent, regard

H3556 – Kowkab, star, of messiah, brothers, youth, numerous progeny, personification, God’s omniscience, from an unused root to be high or rounded, a helmet

H4480 – Min, from, out of, on account of, off, on the side of, since, above, than, so that not, more than, some of, after (of time), from…even to, both…and, either…or, too much for, through, because, from H4482, Mane, musical chord, a stringed instrument from an unused root to apportion

H8033 – Shahm, there, thither, from there, thence, then, a primitive particle

H3381 – Yarad, (Hiphil) to bring/send/take/let down, lay prostrate, a primitive root

H5002 – Nehoom, (Qal) utterance, declaration, revelation, from a primitive root H5001, Na’am, to prophesy, utter a prophecy, speak as prophet, say (Used once in OT)

H3068 – Yehovah, Jehovah = the existing one, the proper name of the one true God, unpronounced except with the vowel pointings of 0136 from a primitive root H1961, Hayah, to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out, occur, take place, come about, come into being, become, arise, appear, come, become, become like, be instituted, be established, be in existence, abide, remain, continue, stand, lie, be in, be at, be situated, accompany, be with, occur, come to pass, be done, be brought about, be done, be finished, be gone

Here is a version of this verse using root words where possible. This is an exercise in translating the verse to agree with the sum of God’s word (Psa 119:160 – CLV) and accord with the Truth, using the keys to the kingdom principle.

Oba 1:4 Since (you) be exalted as an eagle, since (you) determine to make a nest (there), consider diligently God’s omniscience from there. (You) will be brought down/laid prostrate declares Yehovah.

We are instructed to come down from the high and lofty places, knowing that the Lord is the one who not only made the high mountains, but is making every mountain low in his time, which is comforting to know.

Son 4:8  Come (depart) with me from out of Lebanon, my spouse, with me from out of Lebanon: look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Hermon, from the lions’ dens, from out of the mountains of the leopards.

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.
Isa 40:4  Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:

Rev 16:20  And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found

The old man impatiently builds his nest (abode) in the lofty places and exalts himself as the eagle. Here are two verses used to describe a lofty place: an eagle’s nest among the stars, and the mountains of leopards:

Obadiah 1:4  Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle^[H5404], and though thou set thy nest among the stars

Son 4:8  Come with me from Lebanon, my spouse, with me from Lebanon: look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Hermon, from the lions’ dens, from the mountains of the leopards^[H5246].

Here is a closer look at these two words:

[1] Eagle [H5404]
[2] Leopard [H5246]

[1] Eagle [H5404]
H5404

נֶשֶׁר
nesher
neh’-sher

From an unused root meaning to lacerate; the eagle (or other large bird of prey): – eagle.

“Lacerate” means to make deep cuts in the flesh or skin. Figuratively it means to criticise forcefully or severely. As with all words in scripture, it has both a positive application, and a negative application. The word Eagle [H5404] is first used in Exodus

Exo 19:4  Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles’ wings, and brought you unto myself.
Exo 19:5  Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:
Exo 19:6  And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation.

When the old man determines in his heart to exalt himself and make his nest among the Eagles (the high and lofty places) that is when the flesh is “lacerated”. Instead, the new man waits for the Lord, and then he is lifted up with wings as eagles.

Isa 40:31  But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Psa 37:9  For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth.

What is it we are “waiting” for?

Isa 59:8  The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.
Isa 59:9  Therefore is judgment far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: we wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness.

It is encouraging to see that we are privileged to be given this “light / judgement” in this age, for the time is come that judgement must begin at the house of God:

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?

It is this judgment that “lacerates” the flesh of the old man and brings him down from the dangerous places. Our husband Christ calls His bride from the high places in a daily process of judgment all for the purpose of humbling us,  for it is the meek that will inherit the earth. These lacerations and fiery trials are the catalyst for our humility.

Psa 37:11  But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

The new man is meek and humble. We are instructed to be humble as a little child.

Mat 18:4  Whosoever therefore shall humble [G5013] himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

G5013
ταπεινόω
tapeinoō
to bring low, humble (self). From G5011 of low degree, lowly.

This is the sacrifice Christ requires of us. He is no longer interested in the sacrifice of burnt offerings, instead he asks us to walk humbly

Mic 6:6  Wherewith shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old?
Mic 6:7  Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
Mic 6:8  He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

We cannot become humble in and of ourselves. It is only achieved by the filtration of living waters, as found in the spiritual application of the word Leopard. 

[2] Leopard [H5246]
H5246 
נָמֵר
nâmêr
naw-mare’

From an unused root meaning properly to filtrate, that is, be limpid (crystal clear/transparent/glass like). Thus to spot or stain as if by dripping; a leopard (from its stripes): – leopard.

Compare H5247 and H5249 (both meaning clear water). 

“Filtration” is defined as a physical separation process that separates solid matter and fluid from a mixture. The word Leopard [H5246] is first used in SoS 4:8 and appears only six times in the Old Testament. Here is the word in Hosea:

Hos 13:4  Yet I am the LORD thy God from the land of Egypt, and thou shalt know no god but me: for there is no saviour beside me.
Hos 13:5  I did know thee in the wilderness, in the land of great drought.
Hos 13:6  According to their pasture, so were they filled; they were filled, and their heart was exalted; therefore have they forgotten me.
Hos 13:7  Therefore I will be unto them as a lion: as a leopard by the way will I observe them:

When Christ drags us to Himself, He is in command and control of the process, and He “will work His work” using His “living waters”

Hab 1:5  Behold ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvellously: for I will work a work in your days, which ye will not believe, though it be told you.

Hab 1:8  Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat.

Zec 14:8  And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be.

The living waters going out from Jerusalem represent the word of God, which is going to fill the world as the oceans are filled with water (Hab 2:14). These living waters of (Hab 2:14) are contrasted with the wine of the harlot churches of this world which have caused spiritual drunkenness and nakedness:

Hab 2:14  For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.
Hab 2:15  Woe unto him that giveth his neighbour drink, that puttest thy bottle to him, and makest him drunken also, that thou mayest look on their nakedness!

The former [H6931 old] sea that needs to be washed and filtered is what gives the old man his strength. It is all the false doctrines that have been propagated throughout the history of mankind and are what we wrestle with in our heavens.

Conclusion

Spiritual Principle: There is a spiritual application to every word of the bible, allowing us to be washed with the word (washed with the sum of the “living waters” as it renews us daily)

Isa 40:31  But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Zec 13:1-9  “In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David”

[Study Aired August 24, 2023]

The exact expression “in that day” is used twenty times in the book of Zechariah (KJV) and the ‘day’ it is speaking of is the day of the Lord, the day when judgment comes upon us. Knowing that judgment has come upon the house of God first (1Pe 4:17) tells us that every single one of those twenty verses has an inward application for God’s elect today (Mat 4:4). There is also a dispensational application which will unfold during the thousand-year reign and ultimately in the great white throne judgment for the rest of the world. 

It is because of what God has and will accomplish in the lives of His children in this life that they will then be able to minister to the rest of the world in the ages to come, showing the same mercy that God has shown unto His kind of first fruits in this life (Rom 11:30-32). 

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.

It is the joyous burden of the word of the Lord that we are given to bear today, the suffering we go through for our obedience to God’s commandments that will make it possible for us to serve the world in the next age, to the glory of God (2Ti 2:12).

2Ti 2:12  If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us:

What we have to do today is believe and acknowledge these verses (1Pe 5:8-11, Php 1:6, Rom 11:30-32), which tell us that we are going through a process which can only be accomplished by the faith of Christ within us making it possible for us to believe, which is what it means to do the work of God (Joh 6:28-29). As God’s believing children we have to have that faith of Christ tried within us (1Pe 1:7) in order to become disciples indeed, and that is what the lifelong process of abiding and continuing in God’s word (Joh 8:31-32) by the grace through faith gift of God (Eph 2:8) will do for us in day of the Lord, or “in that day“.

1Pe 5:8  Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: [Luk 22:31]
1Pe 5:9  Whom resist stedfast in the faith, [Luk 22:32] knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. 
1Pe 5:10  But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.
1Pe 5:11  To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Php 1:6  Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it [Php 2:12-13] until the day of Jesus Christ: [first resurrection]

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

Here are the three times we will see this expression “in that day” used in chapter thirteen of Zechariah, all centered around the judgment that will take place in the world “in that day” and the resulting effect this judgment will have on society, which will not produce the conversion that will happen in God’s elect who are being judged today, “in that day” (1Pe 4:17).

Zec 13:1  In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness.

Zec 13:2  And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.

Zec 13:4  And it shall come to pass in that day, that the prophets shall be ashamed every one of his vision, when he hath prophesied; neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive: 

Here are the verses for this study:

Zec 13:1  In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness. 
Zec 13:2  And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.
Zec 13:3  And it shall come to pass, that when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, Thou shalt not live; for thou speakest lies in the name of the LORD: and his father and his mother that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesieth. 
Zec 13:4  And it shall come to pass in that day, that the prophets shall be ashamed every one of his vision, when he hath prophesied; neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive: 
Zec 13:5  But he shall say, I am no prophet, I am an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth. 
Zec 13:6  And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. 
Zec 13:7  Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones. 
Zec 13:8  And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. 
Zec 13:9  And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God. 

——

Zec 13:1  In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness. 
Zec 13:2  And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.

The “house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem” is part of those four groups that represent the whole of humanity, which we looked at in our last study found in Zechariah 12:12-13.

Zec 12:12  And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart;
Zec 12:13  The family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart; the family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart;

The “fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness” are the words of God which will be used to reveal the sins of the world and take away the uncleanness of the world [wood, hay and stubble at first] via the body of Christ where the manifest knowledge of Christ will be made known through the church (Eph 3:10). 

Eph 3:10  To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,

The church will have within them the fountain or rivers of living waters that are flowing forth to accomplish God’s purpose for the nations (Rev 22:1-2).

Rev 22:1  And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. [Rev 3:12, Rev 3:21, Rev 22:3, Rev 14:3, Rev 16:17]

Rev 22:2  In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. [Rev 13:11-18]

Rev 13:11  And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.
Rev 13:12  And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. [Rev 22:2] 
Rev 13:13  And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
Rev 13:14  And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.
Rev 13:15  And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.
Rev 13:16  And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: 
Rev 13:17  And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. 
Rev 13:18  Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

The sanctification process (Joh 17:17) the elect go through in this life is the time that we receive those “living waters” as we’re washed by the word of God in which we labor (Joh 7:38, Heb 10:22, Eph 5:26, Rev 19:7-8). 

Joh 7:38  He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

Heb 10:22  Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.

Eph 5:26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,

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. 

Rev 19:8  And to her was granted [Eph 2:8] that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

The house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem represent the religious world of Babylon today more than any other category of those four mentioned in (Zec 12:12-13), and it is in Babylon, where we learn that every unclean bird  (Rev 18:2-3) representing false doctrines that are the idols in the land [the land representing our bodies] of humanity, that they will have this happen to them: “And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.

Rev 18:2  And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. 
Rev 18:3  For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.

Ridding all the religious temples of mankind of “the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird” is like ‘the sweeping of the house clean’ in this parable of Christ in Matthew 12:43-44, and then when Satan is loosed for a season at the end of the symbolic period of time known as the thousand year reign (Rev 20:7-8), “Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation” (Mat 12:45). 

The “seven other spirits more wicked than himself” represents the complete bondage the world will come under via the god of this world, who will once again dominate the hearts and minds of society (Rev 13:12) to accomplish what God has ordained to happen at the end of the thousand-year reign (Rev 20:7-8, Eph 1:11). 

Rev 20:7  And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 
Rev 20:8  And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.

The contrast is drawn in God’s word between God’s elect, who are granted to overcome Satan, and the world that cannot make war with the beast in (Rev 12:7-11, Rev 13:4). Satan is overcome by the blood of the lamb, the very same blood or words [fountains of living water that are given] that fill the world during the thousand-year reign (Hab 2:14) of Christ and His saints but is rejected by humanity (Jer 17:13).

Rev 12:7  And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, 
Rev 12:8  And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.
Rev 12:9  And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
Rev 12:10  And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. 
Rev 12:11  And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.
Rev 12:12  Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

Jer 17:13  O LORD, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the LORD, the fountain of living waters.

Zec 13:3  And it shall come to pass, that when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, Thou shalt not live; for thou speakest lies in the name of the LORD: and his father and his mother that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesieth. 

If we are not begotten of God or born again (Joh  1:10-13, Joh 3:1-4) and try to “yet prophesy” in our flesh, the consequence of such actions will bring forth lies bringing about spiritual death. This verse shows us how an unconverted mind cannot leave his or her father and mother and be joined unto the Lord unless he dies (Joh 12:24), which is what must happen if we are to be born again and go on to become heirs of the kingdom of God (Joh 3:5-7, Eph 5:30-32, Gal 4:1-5). 

Joh 1:13  Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. [which is the same as saying John 3:3; the opposite of this verse (Joh 1:13) would be “And it shall come to pass, that when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, Thou shalt not live“ you shall not be born again but shall die spiritually.]

Joh 3:3  Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Eph 5:30  For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. 
Eph 5:31  For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh.
Eph 5:32  This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church.

Gal 4:1  Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all;
Gal 4:2  But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father. 
Gal 4:3  Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world: 
Gal 4:4  But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
Gal 4:5  To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.

It’s “his father and his mother that begat him” who “shall thrust him through when he prophesieth” expressing what happens to the world during the thousand-year reign when they reject the true mother, Jerusalem above, the mother of us all [the church] (Gal 4:26) and Jesus Christ, our Father, by trying to enter into Babylon again, like Nicodemus eluded to when he asked Christ “can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb [Babylon a second time], and be born?” to which Christ replied “Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again“; by coming out of Babylon not by trying to conform to it again. Christ is the only one who can stop this carnal tendency to try to reform God’s words, and the only way that can happen is to be “born again” (Joh 3:4-7, Rom 12:1-2).

Joh 3:4  Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?
Joh 3:5  Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 
Joh 3:6  That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
Joh 3:7  Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Zec 13:4  And it shall come to pass in that day, that the prophets shall be ashamed every one of his vision, when he hath prophesied; neither shall they wear a rough^H8181 garment to deceive:
Zec 13:5  But he shall say, I am no prophet, I am an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth. 
Zec 13:6  And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. 

The “then he shall answer” part of this verse (Zec 13:6) is when the Lord and His Christ (Rev 11:15) begin to answer the world who He is and who the body of Christ is, and what prompts this question of the world “And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands?” is a parable revealing the world does not understand the communion of the saints described in 1 Corinthians 10:16 which is connected to the wounds in Christ’s body and the lives of the elect who have filled “up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church” (Col 1:24, Eph 5:30).

1Co 10:16  The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? 

Eph 5:30  For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. 
Eph 5:31  For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh [“this is a great mystery” hidden from the world].

The world, like ourselves in our appointed time, will be ashamed of the interpretation we had of Christ expressed as “his vision, when he hath prophesied.” It is by God’s grace Christ begins to show us His wounds to our yet doubting hearts (Joh 20:27) which need to come to understand the extent of His love for us and how utterly lacking in faith we are until Christ prays for us to have it given to us of the Father (Luk 22:32, Jas 1:17). This relationship with the world during the symbolic time period of a thousand years brings about the healing of that first beast, but it is not intended to convert the nations and give them the enduring faith of Christ, which is granted first to the elect as a kind of first fruits (Joh 20:27, 1Co 10:16, Jas 1:18).

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

Jas 1:17  Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. 
Jas 1:18  Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth [Joh 1:13], that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

Although the world “shall say, I am no prophet, I am an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth” and will not wear a “rough^H8181 garment” which represents the garment of Babylon that has fallen, the leprous adamic covering of their hearts will still not be converted, which is evidenced by the question “What are these wounds in thine hands?“.

H8181  śê‛âr / śa‛ar

– BDB:
hair
hair (of animals, man)
hair (of garment made of hair)

– Origin: from H8175 in the sense of dishevelling
– Strong’s: (The second form used in Isa_7:20); from H8175 in the sense of dishevelling;
hair (as if tossed or bristling): – hair (-y) X rough.  Total KJV Occurrences: 28 

hair, 22
 Lev_13:3; Lev_13:4; Lev_13:10; Lev_13:20; Lev_13:25; Lev_13:26; Lev_13:30; Lev_13:31; Lev_13:32; Lev_13:36; Lev_13:37; Lev_14:8; Lev_14:9; Num_6:5; Num_6:18; Jdg_16:22; 2Sa_14:26; Ezr_9:3; Son_4:1; Son_6:5; Isa_7:20; Eze_16:7 

hairs, 1
Lev_13:21

hairy, 3
Gen_25:25;  2Ki_1:8 ; Psa_68:21 

rough, 1
Zec_13:4

Deu 4:28  And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.

Rev 9:20  And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: 
Rev 9:21  Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.

The world at that time will say “I am an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth“, which is an acknowledgement at this point that they are yet carnal beasts who have been taking care of Christ’s other fold (Joh 10:16), and have not been the shepherds who had been taking care of Christ’s little flock, His remnant (Rom 11:5, Mat 22:14), who are in this age being saved by grace through faith (Luk 12:32, Eph 2:8). God’s elect are called out of “the house of my friends” (Psa 88:18) in order to be partakers of His sufferings in this age (1Co 10:16, Col 1:24). 

Joh 10:16  And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.

Luk 12:32  Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 

Psa 88:18  Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness.

Zec 13:7  Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones. 

On one hand, this verse is a prophecy of the time when Christ was on the earth and all the disciples forsook Him (Mar 14:50), “smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered.” This verse also applies to Christ and His body who Satan comes up against at the end of the time of their rulership on earth (Rev 20:4-5). They will then witness Satan, who is God’s sword (Psa 17:13), come up against them and against humanity who will be compelled by Satan’s influence to come up against the camp of the saints “Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts.” That attempt at smiting the chief shepherd, Jesus Christ, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords will fail (1Pe 5:4, Rev 19:16) and cause the world to be scattered or put “apart” as we saw in last week’s verses (Zec 12:12-14) which spoke of the great white throne judgment, or lake of fire, that will follow this event of the world coming up against the camp of the saints. This verse can also be applied to the judgment that comes upon the ‘shepherds of Babylon’ who are being judged: “Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts.” This is the ‘other fold’ that will be brought into the Truth in God’s perfect time (Joh 10:7-18). Great and small will be judged as we are told, “and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones” (2Ch 36:18), referring to the judgment coming upon all the world in the second resurrection. God demonstrates by these events and prophesies that He alone forms the light and darkness, making peace and creating evil, “I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things. ” (Isa 45:7).

2Ch 36:18  And all the vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king, and of his princes; all these he brought to Babylon.

Joh 10:16  And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.

Zec 13:8  And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. 
Zec 13:9  And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God. 

How God will “turn mine hand upon the little ones” of (Zec 13:7) will be accomplished by the elect in the great white throne judgment and that process of working with humanity, judging them with a rod of iron during the thousand-year reign, is also represented by the thought that God will “bring the third part through the fire” (1Co 6:3).

1Co 6:3  Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?

God’s remnant will have had “two parts therein shall be cut off and die” within us by the work of Christ, our hope of glory within today (Col 1:27), Who leads us to repentance as we are baptized into Christ’s death, dying daily (1Co 15:31), “and will refine them as silver is refined” (Rom 2:4). He is the true witness [2] in our heavens causing us to decrease (Rev 3:14), so that the third part can go on to perfection the third day by having our faith tried as gold is tried “and will try them as gold is tried” (Luk 13:32, Rev 3:18). There will be a refining process as well during the reign of Christ and His saints, but again no conversion. Our brothers in the world will suffer in a typical manner as those who are mentioned in the book of Hebrews (Heb 11:35), striving to attain to a better resurrection; ‘better’ in the sense that they will receive fewer stripes (1Pe 5:9, Luk 12:47-49).

Heb 11:35  Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection:

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.

Luk 12:47  And that servant, which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.
Luk 12:48  But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.
Luk 12:49  I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled?

God’s words of eternal life will be tried first in the body of Christ (1Pe 1:7) who will then be a fountain of life to this dying world during the thousand-year reign, and a fountain of life as well during the great white throne judgment. The statement, “In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David” – is something that happens “in that day” for every man in his appointed order (1Co 15:23-26). The one event that is common to all men is judgment which comes by hearing the word of God that has to be tried (Rom 10:17). God’s elect are blessed to have that word tried first as a kind of first fruits (1Pe 4:12), who will anticipate the rest of God’s creation being saved “yet so as by fire“, meaning the word will convict the heart of mankind [hearts will be softened (Eze 36:26)] in the great white throne judgment because it will no longer be just a baptism of water, but a baptism of spirit as well that will save the world “yet so as by fire” (1Co 15:22, 1Co 3:14-15, Joh 3:5).

Joh 3:5  Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

Zec 13:9 (b) …they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.

Numbers 14:1-45  The Reaction of the People of Israel to the Bad Report Sent by the Spies

[Study Aired July 31, 2023]

Num 14:1  And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. 
Num 14:2  And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! 
Num 14:3  And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?
Num 14:4  And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.
Num 14:5  Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel. 
Num 14:6  And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes: 
Num 14:7  And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. 
Num 14:8  If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. 
Num 14:9  Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not. 
Num 14:10  But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel. 
Num 14:11  And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them? 
Num 14:12  I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they. 
Num 14:13  And Moses said unto the LORD, Then the Egyptians shall hear it, (for thou broughtest up this people in thy might from among them;) 
Num 14:14  And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land: for they have heard that thou LORD art among this people, that thou LORD art seen face to face, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and that thou goest before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night. 
Num 14:15  Now if thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of thee will speak, saying, 
Num 14:16  Because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them, therefore he hath slain them in the wilderness. 
Num 14:17  And now, I beseech thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying, 
Num 14:18  The LORD is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation. 
Num 14:19  Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.
Num 14:20  And the LORD said, I have pardoned according to thy word: 
Num 14:21  But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD. 
Num 14:22  Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; 
Num 14:23  Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it: 
Num 14:24  But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.
Num 14:25  (Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwelt in the valley.) To morrow turn you, and get you into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea. 
Num 14:26  And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, 
Num 14:27  How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me. 
Num 14:28  Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the LORD, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you: 
Num 14:29  Your carcases shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against me,
Num 14:30  Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.
Num 14:31  But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised. 
Num 14:32  But as for you, your carcases, they shall fall in this wilderness. 
Num 14:33  And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcases be wasted in the wilderness. 
Num 14:34  After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise. 
Num 14:35  I the LORD have said, I will surely do it unto all this evil congregation, that are gathered together against me: in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die. 
Num 14:36  And the men, which Moses sent to search the land, who returned, and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up a slander upon the land, 
Num 14:37  Even those men that did bring up the evil report upon the land, died by the plague before the LORD. 
Num 14:38  But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of the men that went to search the land, lived still.
Num 14:39  And Moses told these sayings unto all the children of Israel: and the people mourned greatly. 
Num 14:40  And they rose up early in the morning, and gat them up into the top of the mountain, saying, Lo, we be here, and will go up unto the place which the LORD hath promised: for we have sinned. 
Num 14:41  And Moses said, Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of the LORD? but it shall not prosper. 
Num 14:42  Go not up, for the LORD is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies. 
Num 14:43  For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword: because ye are turned away from the LORD, therefore the LORD will not be with you. 
Num 14:44  But they presumed to go up unto the hill top: nevertheless the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and Moses, departed not out of the camp. 
Num 14:45  Then the Amalekites came down, and the Canaanites which dwelt in that hill, and smote them, and discomfited them, even unto Hormah. 

Introduction

Today’s study is about what happened to the people of Israel after they received a bad report from those who went to spy out the land. In Babylon, where we are dominated by the flesh, we cannot see how we can overcome the flesh, especially when we see ourselves being defeated over and over again by the giants of our land – the flesh. The reaction of the people of Israel to the bad news by their leaders (the spies sent, with the exception of Caleb and Joshua) is exactly what is happening in every generation to the physical churches of this world (Babylon) to which we belonged at a certain stage in our walk with Christ. This chapter is summarized by the following statement by Peter:

2Pe 2:1  But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them [Bad report about the land], and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
2Pe 2:2  And many shall follow their pernicious ways [the reaction of the people to bad report]; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of [the fact that it is through faith we shall overcome shall be spoken against].

Num 14:1  And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. 
Num 14:2  And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! 
Num 14:3  And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?
Num 14:4  And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.

The reaction of the people of Israel as they received a bad report from the spies sent by Moses was very unfortunate. It was as if they had lost hope that the Lord would bring them to the land of promise. This was the bad report they received from the spies except for Caleb and Joshua:

Num 13:27  And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. 
Num 13:28  Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there.
Num 13:29  The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan. 

Num 13:31  But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.
Num 13:32  And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.
Num 13:33  And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.

As indicated in the previous study, it is in Babylon that we come to see that there is no way we can defeat the beast within our land or the flesh. Instead of putting our faith in the Lord to drive the enemies out of our land, we come to think it is through our own effort that we can possess our bodies. This is the result of the false teachings we receive in Babylon which cause us to think we have our own will to make our own decisions. We end up being worse off.

2Pe 2:18  For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, 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.

The reaction of the people of Israel that it would have been better for them to die in Egypt than die in the wilderness caused them to desire leaders to return them to Egypt. As we are aware, what we desire is what drives our actions. No wonder we heap upon ourselves teachers who would remind us of the world’s (Egypt) tradition and wisdom, and therefore we end up dying spiritually in the wilderness of this life. 

2Ti 4:3  For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 
2Ti 4:4  And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

Num 14:5  Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel. 
Num 14:6  And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes: 

Moses, Aaron, Caleb and Joshua were four in number. Being four of them means they represent the whole of the elect of every generation. Moses and Aaron falling down on their faces with Caleb and Joshua renting their clothes signify the frustration we go through while we were in Babylon when we come to realize that the churches of this world are taking us nowhere in our quest to know Christ and that their teachings are rather taking us back to the world (Egypt).  That is what causes our departure from Babylon.

Isa 9:16  For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed.

Jer 29:8  For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Let not your prophets and your diviners, that be in the midst of you, deceive you, neither hearken to your dreams which ye cause to be dreamed. 
Jer 29:9  For they prophesy falsely unto you in my name: I have not sent them, saith the LORD. 

Num 14:7  And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. 
Num 14:8  If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey.
Num 14:9  Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not. 

From the viewpoint of the elect, we must have the faith that the Lord, who has called and chosen us, will drag us along to possess our bodies. That is to say, to have victory over the flesh. If we do not have confidence that He who has called us is capable of completing what He has started in us, then we would end up behaving like the people of Israel. Inasmuch as we understand that in possessing our bodies, we are dealing with a formidable force which is the beast within us, we can see from the eyes of faith that the people of the land are bread to us and that their defense is departed from them. Being bread for us and their defenses departed is the same as the saying that the beast within has been made to be taken and destroyed by the Lord on behalf of the elect.

2Pe 2:12  But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption; 

1Jn 5:4  For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. 
1Jn 5:5  Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God [through faith]? 

Num 14:10  But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel. 
Num 14:11  And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them? 
Num 14:12  I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they. 
Num 14:13  And Moses said unto the LORD, Then the Egyptians shall hear it, (for thou broughtest up this people in thy might from among them;) 
Num 14:14  And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land: for they have heard that thou LORD art among this people, that thou LORD art seen face to face, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and that thou goest before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night. 
Num 14:15  Now if thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of thee will speak, saying,
Num 14:16  Because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them, therefore he hath slain them in the wilderness. 
Num 14:17  And now, I beseech thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying, 
Num 14:18  The LORD is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.
Num 14:19  Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.
Num 14:20  And the LORD said, I have pardoned according to thy word: 

The fact that the people of Israel wanted to stone Moses, Aaron, Caleb and Joshua means that our message will not be received by the churches of this world. To them, we are spiritually dead. 

Rev 11:8  And their [the elect] dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

Just when the people wanted to stone them, the Lord of glory intervened by appearing in the tabernacle of the congregation. Our realization of the apostasy of the churches of this world and the need to leave Babylon is facilitated by the hatred of the message we carry – to the point of wanting to kill us. Our exit from Babylon is heralded by the appearing of the Lord of glory in our temple to come and judge us (destroy the giants of our land) so we can possess our bodies. 

Mal 3:1  Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts. 
Mal 3:2  But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap:
Mal 3:3  And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.

As we are aware, the words of the Lord are written for our admonition of whom the ends of the world have come. When the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation and addressed Moses regarding the fact that He wanted to destroy the people of Israel and make a great nation out of Moses (verses 11-12), Moses responded that the Lord should show mercy to the people. The Lord was actually using this episode to demonstrate to us the role of the elect in the lake of fire, which is for us to show mercy to all humanity even as we have received mercy from Him.

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.

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.

Num 14:21  But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD. 
Num 14:22  Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; 
Num 14:23  Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it: 
Num 14:24  But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.
Num 14:25  (Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwelt in the valley.) To morrow turn you, and get you into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea. 

The Lord affirming in verse 21 that all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord means that the salvation of all humanity is as sure as the rising of the sun every day. All humanity will have dominion over the flesh at the set time of the Lord. However, in this age, it is the elect who, through faith, are being given dominion over the flesh. This is affirmed in verse 24 when the Lord mentioned Caleb, who symbolized the elect, as the one to possess the land, which is his body, because he had a different spirit. Being of different spirit means we walk by faith and not by sight.

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. 

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.

In verse 22, the Lord said that the people of Israel had tempted Him ten times and had not hearkened to His voice.  The negative application of ten times refers to the period when we are tried and found wanting. In this case, their trials show clearly that the people of Israel were not ready to hearken to the voice of the Lord. This implies that in Babylon, it is impossible to obey the Lord. 

Gen 31:41  Thus have I been twenty years in thy house; I served thee fourteen years for thy two daughters, and six years for thy cattle: and thou hast changed my wages ten times.

Job 19:3  These ten times have ye reproached me: ye are not ashamed that ye make yourselves strange to me.

As a result of our disobedience to the Lord while we were in Babylon, we become worse off as we are dominated more by the flesh, which is symbolized by the people of Israel being instructed by the Lord to turn away from the promised land toward the Red Sea (verse 25). Therefore, we end up becoming spiritually dead in this wilderness of life (verse 23). 

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.

Num 14:26  And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, 
Num 14:27  How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me.
Num 14:28  Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the LORD, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you: 
Num 14:29  Your carcases shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against me,
Num 14:30  Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.

Our carcass falling in the wilderness means that we become spiritually dead while we walk through this life of wilderness. This is the same as casting us into outer darkness. However, if we are called and chosen, then the Lord will cause us to be delivered from Babylon and give us the grace to possess the land or become overcomers.

Mat 22:13  Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Mat 25:30  And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Verses 26 -30 also suggest that as long as we are in Babylon, there is no way we can become overcomers. As the Psalmist said, as long as we are by the rivers of Babylon, we cannot sing the Lord’s song in a strange land. It is only the elect, symbolized in verse 30 by Caleb and Joshua, who are destined to overcome the flesh or possess the land.

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?

Num 14:31  But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised. 
Num 14:32  But as for you, your carcases, they shall fall in this wilderness. 
Num 14:33  And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcases be wasted in the wilderness. 
Num 14:34  After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise. 
Num 14:35  I the LORD have said, I will surely do it unto all this evil congregation, that are gathered together against me: in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die. 

These verses show us that as we die to the old man through the judgment of the Lord. The new man after the image of Christ is born who is destined to possess the land.

Rom 6:6  Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

Eph 4:22  That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;

Eph 4:24  And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

Col 3:10  And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:

Num 14:36  And the men, which Moses sent to search the land, who returned, and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up a slander upon the land, 
Num 14:37  Even those men that did bring up the evil report upon the land, died by the plague before the LORD. 
Num 14:38  But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of the men that went to search the land, lived still.
Num 14:39  And Moses told these sayings unto all the children of Israel: and the people mourned greatly.

As stated in verse 37, those who brought an evil report of the land ended up dying by plague before the Lord. When we come to assess our flesh as being unconquerable, that is, bringing an evil report of the land, we end up becoming spiritually dead by the design of the Lord. When we abandon our faith in Christ that we are well able to overcome the flesh through Christ and begin to walk by sight, we forsake the great salvation that the Lord has provided for us. However, if we are called and chosen before the foundation of the world, symbolized by Caleb and Joshua in verse 38, then we shall surely come to the realization that the Lord is able to bring us to our safe haven. 

2Co 5:7  For we walk by faith, not by sight:

All those who as a result of fear turned back from going to war with Gideon against the Midianites symbolize those who say that the flesh is unconquerable, and therefore they are not going to be part of the victory parade or the marriage supper. They also represent those who bowed down on their knees to drink water. Bowing down your knees to drink water means you are not testing the spirit to see if it is of the Lord. That is, we accept the fact that the beast of our flesh is not conquerable. 

Rev 13:4  And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

Jdg 7:2  And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me. 
Jdg 7:3  Now therefore go to, proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart early from mount Gilead. And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten thousand.
Jdg 7:4  And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people are yet too many; bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there: and it shall be, that of whom I say unto thee, This shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee; and of whomsoever I say unto thee, This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go. 
Jdg 7:5  So he brought down the people unto the water: and the LORD said unto Gideon, Every one that lappeth of the water with his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself; likewise every one that boweth down upon his knees to drink.
Jdg 7:6  And the number of them that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, were three hundred men: but all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water. 
Jdg 7:7  And the LORD said unto Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thine hand: and let all the other people go every man unto his place. 

Num 14:40  And they rose up early in the morning, and gat them up into the top of the mountain, saying, Lo, we be here, and will go up unto the place which the LORD hath promised: for we have sinned. 
Num 14:41  And Moses said, Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of the LORD? but it shall not prosper. 
Num 14:42  Go not up, for the LORD is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies. 
Num 14:43  For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword: because ye are turned away from the LORD, therefore the LORD will not be with you. 
Num 14:44  But they presumed to go up unto the hill top: nevertheless the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and Moses, departed not out of the camp. 
Num 14:45  Then the Amalekites came down, and the Canaanites which dwelt in that hill, and smote them, and discomfited them, even unto Hormah. 

These verses show us that when we transgress the commandments of the Lord, whatever we do shall not prosper. In other words, when we are dominated by the flesh, there is no way that we can have victory over the flesh or the beast within. There are several examples in the word of the Lord that bring this truth to light. For example, when the children of Eli continued to sin against the Lord, the people of Israel were easily defeated by the Philistines. 

1Sa 3:11  And the LORD said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle.
1Sa 3:12  In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house: when I begin, I will also make an end. 
1Sa 3:13  For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not. 
1Sa 3:14  And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever.

1Sa 4:10  And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man into his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.
1Sa 4:11  And the ark of God was taken; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain.

The ark being taken means that the little knowledge we know about Christ is taken away, and we end up being worse off, that is, we become spiritually dead. These things were written for our admonition so that we do not lust after evil things but stay focused on Christ knowing that we, His elect, are the ones upon whom the ends of the world are come.

1Co 10:1  Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
1Co 10:2  And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; 
1Co 10:3  And did all eat the same spiritual meat; 
1Co 10:4  And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. 
1Co 10:5  But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness. 
1Co 10:6  Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted. 

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.

May the Lord be merciful to us to continue to abide in Him as we wait for His coming. Amen!!

The Book of Joshua – Part 15, Chapters 14–15

This also, knowing the time, that it is already time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we believed (Rom 13:11).

[Study Aired June 10, 2023]

Chapters 13 and 14 concluded with documentation of scores of kings and their cities, mostly utterly devastated and burnt. The Lord saw fit to leave substantial numbers of the enemy in the Promised Land for the Elect’s sake to realize that our spiritual enemies likewise will have remnants of thorns in our flesh until the First Resurrection. 

The Lord’s people glorify in His righteous creation of the new Adam, knowing that while in these bodies of sinful flesh, our spiritual enemies, like blackberry briars, will never entirely be conquered.

In the last study, I indulged in the exhausting task of listing all the kings and their cities and the meaning of their names. I concluded that greater spiritual understanding for the individual would result in his ‘working with his own hands’ so that he could ‘eat’ (2Th 3:10). Likewise, in subsequent chapters, I’ll leave that demanding task for the individual Saint’s discoveries.

The Inheritance West of the Jordan

Jos 14:1 And these are they of the sons of Israel who inherited in the land of Canaan, whom Eleazar [el-aw-zawr’] the priest and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the sons of Israel, gave out for inheritance to them. 
Jos 14:2 Their inheritance was by lot, as Jehovah commanded by the hand of Moses, for the nine tribes, and for the half tribe. 
Jos 14:3 For Moses had given the inheritance of two tribes and a half tribe on the other side Jordan. But to the Levites he gave no inheritance among them. 
Jos 14:4 For the sons of Joseph were two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim. And they gave no part to the Levites in the land, except cities to live in, with their suburbs [common land] for their cattle and for their substance.
Jos 14:5 As Jehovah commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel did, and they divided the land.

Caleb’s Request and Inheritance

Jos 14:6 Then the sons of Judah came to Joshua in Gilgal. And Caleb, the son of Jephunneh [yef-oon-neh’] the Kenizzite [ken-iz-zee’], said to him, You know the thing that Jehovah said to Moses the man of God in Kadesh-barnea [kaw-dashe’ bar-nay’-ah] regarding you and me. 
Jos 14:7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of Jehovah sent me from Kadesh-barnea [kaw-dashe’ bar-nay’-ah] to spy out the land. And I brought him word again as it was in my heart.
Jos 14:8  But my brothers that went up with me made the heart of the people melt; yet I fully followed Jehovah my God.
Jos 14:9 And Moses swore on that day, saying, Surely the land on which your feet have trodden shall be your inheritance, and your sons’ forever because you have fully followed Jehovah my God. 
Jos 14:10 And now, behold, Jehovah has kept me alive these forty-five years as He said, even since Jehovah spoke this word to Moses, while Israel wandered in the wilderness. And now, lo, I am eighty-five years old today.
Jos 14:11 As yet I am as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me. As my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out and to come in.
Jos 14:12 And now give me this mountain of which Jehovah spoke on that day. For you heard in that day how the giants were there, and that the cities were great and fortified. If Jehovah will be with me, then I will be able to drive them out, as Jehovah said.
Jos 14:13 And Joshua blessed him, and gave Hebron to Caleb the son of Jephunneh [yef-oon-neh’] for an inheritance. 
Jos 14:14 And Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb, the son of Jephunneh [yef-oon-neh’] the Kenizzite [ken-iz-zee’], to this day, because he fully followed Jehovah, the God of Israel.
Jos 14:15 And the name of Hebron before was Kirjath-arba [keer-yath’ ar-bah’]; that one was a great man among the giants. And the land had rest from war.

The Allotment for Judah

Jos 15:1 This then was the lot of the tribe of the sons of Judah by their families: to the border of Edom, the wilderness of Zin [tseen] southward, in the extreme south.
Jos 15:2 And their south border was from the end of the Salt Sea, from the bay that looks southward.
Jos 15:3 And it went out southward to the ascent of Akrabbim [mah-al-ay’ ak-rab-beem’], and passed on to Zin [tseen], and went up on the south of Kadesh-barnea [kaw-dashe’ bar-nay’-ah], and went on to Hezron [khets-rone’], and went up toward Adar [ad-dawr’], and turned toward Karkaa [kar-kah’],
Jos 15:4 and passed on to Azmon [ats-mone’], and went out by the torrent of Egypt. And the boundary line was at the Sea. This shall be your south border. 
Jos 15:5 And the east border, the Salt Sea to the end of Jordan, and their border in the north quarter was from the bay of the sea at the uttermost part of Jordan. 
Jos 15:6 And the border went up to Beth-hoglah [bayth chog-law’], and passed along by the north of Beth-arabah [bayth haw-ar-aw-baw]. And the border went up to the stone of Bohan [bo’han] the son of Reuben; 
Jos 15:7 And the border went up toward Debir [deb-eer’] from the valley of Achor [aw-kore’], and so northward, looking toward Gilgal, before the going up to Adummim [ad-oom-meem’], which is on the south side of the river. And the border passed toward the waters of En-shemesh [ane sheh’-mesh], and its boundary was at En-rogel [ane ro-gale’].
Jos 15:8 And the border went up by the valley of the son of Hinnom [hin-nome’] to the south side of the Jebusite. It is Jerusalem. And the border went up to the top of the mountain that lies before the valley of Hinnom [hin-nome’]  westward, at the end of the Valley of the Giants northward.
Jos 15:9 And the border was drawn from the top of the hill to the fountain of the water of Nephtoah [nef-to’-akh], and went out to the cities of mount Ephron [ef-rone’]. And the border was drawn to Baalah [bah-al-aw’]; it is Kirjath-jearim [keer-yath’ yeh-aw-reem’]. 
Jos 15:10 And the border went around from Baalah [bah-al-aw’]westward to Mount Seir [say-eer’], and passed along to the side of mount Jearim [yeh-aw-reem’]; it is Chesalon [kes-aw-lone’], on the north side, and went down to Bethshemesh [bayth sheh’-mesh], and passed on to Timnah [tim-naw’].
Jos 15:11 And the border went to the side of Ekron northward, and the border was drawn to Shikkeron [shik-ker-one’] and passed along to Mount Baalah [bah-al-aw’], and went out to Jabneel [yab-neh-ale’]. And the boundary line was at the Sea.
Jos 15:12 And the west border was to the Great Sea, and the coast. This is the border of the sons of Judah all around according to their families.
Jos 15:13 And he gave a part among the sons of Judah to Caleb the son of Jephunneh [yef-oon-neh’], according to the command of Jehovah to Joshua, even the city of Arba [ar-bah’. 1. the father of Anak and the greatest of the giants (Anakim)] the father of Anak [aw-nawk’]; it is Hebron. 
Jos 15:14 And Caleb drove out from there the three sons of Anak [aw-nawk’], Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai, the sons of Anak [aw-nawk’].
Jos 15:15 And he went up from there to those who lived in Debir [deb-eer’]. And the name of Debir [deb-eer’] before was Kirjath-sepher [keer-yath’ san-naw’].
Jos 15:16 And Caleb said, He who smites Kirjath-sepher [keer-yath’ san-naw’], and takes it, I will give my daughter Achsah [ak-saw’] to him for a wife.
Jos 15:17 And Othniel [oth-nee-ale’] the son of Kenaz [ken-az’], the brother of Caleb, took it. And he gave him Achsah [ak-saw’] his daughter for a wife.
Jos 15:18 And it happened as she came, she moved him to ask a field from her father. And she dismounted from the ass. And Caleb said to her, What do you desire?
Jos 15:19 She answered, Give me a blessing, for you have given me a south land. Give me also springs of water. And he gave her the upper springs and the lower springs. 
Jos 15:20 This is the inheritance of the tribe of the sons of Judah according to their families. 
Jos 15:21 And the furthest cities of the tribe of the sons of Judah toward the coast of Edom southward were Kabzeel, and Eder, and Jagur, 
Jos 15:22 and Kinah [kee-naw’], and Dimonah [dee-mo-naw’], and Adadah [ad-aw-daw’], 
Jos 15:23 and Kedesh [keh’-desh], and Hazor [khaw-tsore’], and Ithnan [yith-nawn’], 
Jos 15:24 Ziph [zeef], and Telem [teh’-lem], and Bealoth [beh-aw-loth’], 
Jos 15:25 and Hazor [khaw-tsore’], Hadattah, and Kerioth-Hezron [khets-rone’], which is Hazor [khaw-tsore’], 
Jos 15:26 Amam [am-awm’], and Shema [shem-aw’], and Moladah [mo-law-daw’],
Jos 15:27 and Hazar-gaddah [khats-ar’gad-daw’], and Heshmon [klesh-mone’], and Beth-palet [bayth peh’-let],
Jos 15:28 and Hazar-shual [khats-ar’ shoo-awl’], and Beer-sheba [be-ayr’ sheh’-bah], and Bizjothjah [biz-yo-the-yaw’],
Jos 15:29 Baalah [bah-al-aw’], and Iim [ee-yeem’], and Azem, [eh’-tsem]
Jos 15:30 and Eltolad [el-to-lad’], and Chesil [kes-eel’], and Hormah [khor-maw’],
Jos 15:31 and Ziklag [tsik-lag’], and Madmannah [mad-man-naw’], and Sansannah [san-san-naw’],
Jos 15:32 and Lebaoth [leb-aw-oth’], and Shilhim [shil-kheem’], and Ain [ah’-yin], and Rimmon [rim-mone’]. All the cities are twenty-nine, with their villages. 
Jos 15:33 In the low country were Eshtaol [esh-taw-ole’], and Zoreah [tsor-aw’], and Ashnah [ash-naw’],
Jos 15:34 and Zanoah [zaw-no’-akh], and En-gannim [ane gan-neem’], Tappuah [tap-poo’-akh], and Enam [ay-nah’-yim],
Jos 15:35 Jarmuth [yar-mooth’], and Adullam [ad-ool-lawm’], Socoh [so-ko’], and Azekah [az-ay-kaw’],
Jos 15:36 and Sharaim [shah-ar-ah’-yim], and Adithaim [ad-ool-lawm’], and Gederah [ghed-ay-ro-thah’-yim], and Gederothaim [ghed-ay-ro-thah’-yim]; fourteen cities with their villages;
Jos 15:37 Zenan [tsen-awn’], and Hadashah [khad-aw-shaw’], and Migdal-gad [migdal-gawd’],
Jos 15:38 and Dilean [dil-awn’], and Mizpeh [mits-peh’], and Joktheel [yok-theh-ale’],
Jos 15:39 Lachish [law-keesh’], and Bozkath [bots-cath’], and Eglon [eg-lawn’],
Jos 15:40 and Cabbon [kab-bone’], and Lahmam [lakh-maws’], and Kithlish [kith-leesh’],
Jos 15:41 and Gederoth [ghed-ay-rohth’], Beth-dagon [bayth-daw-gohn’], and Naamah [nah-am-aw’], and Makkedah [mak-kay-daw’]; sixteen cities with their villages; 
Jos 15:42 Libnah [lib-naw’], and Ether [eh’ther], and Ashan [aw-shawn’],
Jos 15:43 and Jiphtah [yif-tawkh’], and Ashnah [ash-naw’], and Nezib [nets-eeb’],
Jos 15:44 and Keilah [keh-ee-law’], and Achzib [ak-zeeb’], and Mareshah [mar-ay-shaw’]; nine cities and their villages; 
Jos 15:45 Ekron [ek-rone’] with its town and its villages; 
Jos 15:46 from Ekron [ek-rone’]  even to the Sea, all that were at hand by Ashdod, [ash-dode’] and their villages; 
Jos 15:47 Ashdod [ash-dode’] with its towns and its villages; Gaza [ az-zaw’] with its towns and its villages, to the river of Egypt, and the Great Sea, and its coast. 
Jos 15:48 And in the mountains, Shamir [shaw-meer’], and Jattir [yat-teer’], and Socoh[so-ko’],
Jos 15:49 and Dannah, and Kirjath-sannah (which is Debir [deb-eer’]);
Jos 15:50 and Anab [an-awb’], and Eshtemoh [esh-tem-o’-ah], and Anim [aw-neem’],
Jos 15:51 and Goshen [go’-shen], and Holon [kho-lone’], and Giloh [ghee-lo’]; eleven cities and their villages; 
Jos 15:52 Arab [ar-awb’], and Dumah [doo-maw’], and Eshean, [esh-awn’]
Jos 15:53 and Janum [yaw-neem’], and Beth-tappuah [tap-poo’-akh], and Aphekah [af-ay-kaw’],
Jos 15:54 and Humtah [khoom-taw’], and Kirjath-arba [keer-yath’ ar-bah’]; it is Hebron; and Zior [tsee-ore’]; nine cities and their villages; 
Jos 15:55 Maon [maw-ohn’], Carmel, and Ziph [zeef], and Juttah [yoo-taw’],
Jos 15:56 and Jezreel [yiz-reh-ale’], and Jokdeam [yok-deh-awm’], and Zanoah [zaw-no’-akh],
Jos 15:57 Cain, Gibeah, and Timnah [tim-naw’]; ten cities and their villages; 
Jos 15:58 Halhul [khal-khool’], Beth-zur [bayth tsoor’], and Gedor [ghed-ore’],
Jos 15:59 and Maarath [mah-ar-awth’], and Beth-anoth [bayth an-oth’], and Eltekon [el-te-kone’]; six cities and their villages; 
Jos 15:60 Kirjath-baal [keer-yath’ bah’-al]; it is Kirjath-jearim [keer-yath’ yeh-aw-reem’]; and Rabbah [rab-baw’]; two cities and their villages.
Jos 15:61 In the wilderness, Beth-arabah [bayth haw-ar-aw-baw], Middin [mid-deen’], and Secacah [sek-aw-kaw’],
Jos 15:62 and Nibshan [nib-shawn’], and the city of Salt, and En-gedi [ane geh’-dee]; six cities and their villages. 
Jos 15:63 As for the Jebusites [yeb-oo-see’], the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the sons of Judah could not drive them out. But the Jebusites [ yeb-oo-see’] live with the sons of Judah at Jerusalem to this day. 

The Inheritance West of the Jordan

Jos 14:1 And these are they of the sons of Israel who inherited in the land of Canaan, whom Eleazar [el-aw-zawr’] the priest and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the sons of Israel, gave out for inheritance to them. 
Jos 14:2 Their inheritance was by lot, as Jehovah commanded by the hand of Moses, for the nine tribes, and for the half tribe. 

The casting of “lots” spiritually is regularly done by the Lord’s people every time they pray, asking for His will to be done; it is by total submission to our Lord’s will that He becomes our inheritance and we, His. He does all things after the counsel of His own will (Eph 1:11). 

1Jn 5:14 And this is the confidence that we have toward Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 
1Jn 5:15 And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him. 

We know the Lord’s will and show a gross lack of faith and spiritual ignorance if we consider casting lots to decide a matter. With that in mind, Israel was yet learning to trust the Lord and know his will. Faith and the Lord’s spirit hadn’t come to these children, and their wide-eyed learning and frequent failures are for our benefit. 

Jos 14:3 For Moses had given the inheritance of two tribes and a half tribe on the other side Jordan. But to the Levites he gave no inheritance among them. 
Jos 14:4 For the sons of Joseph were two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim. And they gave no part to the Levites in the land, except cities to live in, with their suburbs [common land] for their cattle and for their substance.

Manasseh is one tribe split in two, each half taking possession of their inheritance, one on the East of Jordan in the North and the other adjacent West of the Jordan River.

Please see the map: https://christiananswers.net/dictionary/images/Map_of_12_tribes_of_Israel-large.png

The map of the Promised Land is a pictorial of us in our transition to becoming Christs. The beautiful snow capped Mt. Hermon in the far north, separate from Israel’s inheritance, depicts our Lord’s white hair and headship above us, the land. Jerusalem is our heart in the center of our land that becomes a harlot and is recreated spiritually as the heavenly Jerusalem. From Mt. Hermon runs the word of God, healing and feeding the land in the form of the Jordan River. As the Jordan runs south, it drains into the already dead salt sea made dead from Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities of the once rich plain burnt with sulphur, its residue creating salt. The Dead Sea flowed out at its southern end at Zoar, mostly only in spring floods and dissipated into its self-made desert marshes. Today, the Dead Sea is shrinking alarmingly by a meter a year. The imagery depicts our sinful body purified by salt yet never being eliminated, preserving old Israel as a memorial and today for our lessening depravity (All of Ezekiel 47). 

Eze 47:11 But the miry places thereof and the marishes thereof shall not be healed; they shall be given to salt.

Much later, the Northern tribes, including Ephraim and Manasseh, were taken captive by the Assyrians and following, Judah was captured by Babylon.

Jos 14:5 As Jehovah commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel did, and they divided the land.

Caleb’s Request and Inheritance

Jos 14:6 Then the sons of Judah came to Joshua in Gilgal. And Caleb, the son of Jephunneh [yef-oon-neh’] the Kenizzite [ken-iz-zee’], said to him, You know the thing that Jehovah said to Moses the man of God in Kadesh-barnea [kaw-dashe’ bar-nay’-ah] regarding you and me. 
Jos 14:7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of Jehovah sent me from Kadesh-barnea [kaw-dashe’ bar-nay’-ah] to spy out the land. And I brought him word again as it was in my heart. 
Jos 14:8 But my brothers that went up with me made the heart of the people melt; yet I fully followed Jehovah my God.

We remember that many spies accompanying Joshua and Caleb, doing reconnaissance in the Promised Land, returned with fearful reports of unchallengeable giants.

Num 13:28 Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there. 
Num 13:29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan. 
Num 13:30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it. 
Num 13:31 But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. 
Num 13:32 And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.
Num 13:33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight. 

Those fearful spies are typical of the Lord’s people, understandably spiritually inexperienced in their journey to becoming Christs. It is only after many trials of our faith that we become spiritual Calebs confident that the Lord will go before us regardless of how dire our circumstances.

Jos 14:9 And Moses swore on that day, saying, Surely the land on which your feet have trodden shall be your inheritance, and your sons’ forever because you have fully followed Jehovah my God. 
Jos 14:10 And now, behold, Jehovah has kept me alive these forty-five years as He said, even since Jehovah spoke this word to Moses, while Israel wandered in the wilderness. And now, lo, I am eighty-five years old today. 
Jos 14:11 As yet I am as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me. As my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out and to come in. 

Caleb, whose name means “dog”, is, as are most dogs, truly faithful to that term; he stood loyal to the Lord for all his turbulent yet richly fruitful forty years of leadership with Joshua. So, too, are we required to trust with our entire hearts in the Lord.

Jer 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. 
Jer 29:12 Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. 
Jer 29:13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. 

Jos 14:12 And now give me this mountain of which Jehovah spoke on that day. For you heard in that day how the giants were there, and that the cities were great and fortified. If Jehovah will be with me, then I will be able to drive them out, as Jehovah said.

We are learning that our giants are bread for us, and their cities are dung hills to fertilize our increasing delight in our Lord, our mountain, the Shulamite-like kisses of His word. Some folk may think I overplay the Shulamite’s pearl of revelation that her Lord’s kisses are better than wine (Son 1:2). If we fall into that category, we are no different from old Israel’s dismissiveness of her Lord’s desire for her. Since we claim to be the spiritual Shulamite, let’s be like Caleb and passionately and respectfully claim our gift, Christ, our mountain.

Joh 4:21 Jesus said to her, Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you shall neither worship the Father in this mountain nor yet at Jerusalem. 
Joh 4:22 You worship what you do not know, we know what we worship, for salvation is of [symbolised by] the Jews [through Christ, a transitory Jew]. 
Joh 4:23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such to worship Him.
Joh 4:24 God is a spirit, and they who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth. 

Rev 3:9 Behold, I give out of those of the synagogue of Satan, those saying themselves to be Jews and are not, but lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you.

Jos 14:13 And Joshua blessed him, and gave Hebron [meaning, ‘association, company, band] to Caleb the son of Jephunneh [yef-oon-neh’ – meaning, He will be facing] for an inheritance. 

In keeping with the Shulamite’s embrace with her Lord, she ‘will be facing’ him enthusiastically, eye-to-eye; she is a company of two armies representing Israel’s current army status in transition to the Bride of Christ today. The Body of Christ is the reality of that reflection because we are given to ‘fully follow Christ’ and be a great destructive force among our giants by His strength.

Jos 14:14 And Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb, the son of Jephunneh [yef-oon-neh’] the Kenizzite [ken-iz-zee’], to this day, because he fully followed Jehovah, the God of Israel. 
Jos 14:15 And the name of Hebron before was Kirjath-arba [keer-yath’ ar-bah’. H7004 – 1. the father of Anak and the greatest of the giants (Anakim)]; that one was a great man among the giants. And the land had rest from war. 

When we stop hiding from our Lord and communicate with Him face to face as Jacob did, our limping walk humbles us as we learn to trust God for all our needs, particularly our spiritual development and trials in the heat of the day.

Gen 32:30 And Jacob called the name of the place Face of God [Peniel]; for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. 
Gen 32:31 And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he limped upon his thigh. 
Gen 32:32 Therefore the sons of Israel do not eat of the sinew of the thigh, which is on the hip-socket, until this day, because He touched Jacob’s hip-socket, the sinew of the thigh. 

Much later, the stripling youth, David, met Goliath face to face, representing Christ’s inward valour not to be confused with our outward puniness. 

As with Study 14 of Joshua, many of the following verses document the boundaries of each tribe’s inheritance and studying in detail the meaning of each name could be revealing yet incredibly intensive; as such, I’ve chosen to leave much of the research up to the individual.

The Allotment for Judah

Jos 15:1 This then was the lot of the tribe of the sons of Judah by their families: to the border of Edom, the wilderness of Zin [tseen] southward, in the extreme south. 
Jos 15:2 And their south border was from the end of the Salt Sea, from the bay that looks southward. 
Jos 15:3 And it went out southward to the ascent of Akrabbim [mah-al-ay’ ak-rab-beem’], and passed on to Zin [tseen], and went up on the south of Kadesh-barnea [kaw-dashe’ bar-nay’-ah], and went on to Hezron [khets-rone’], and went up toward Adar [ad-dawr’], and turned toward Karkaa [kar-kah’], 
Jos 15:4 and passed on to Azmon [ats-mone’], and went out by the torrent of Egypt. And the boundary line was at the Sea. This shall be your south border. 
Jos 15:5 And the east border, the Salt Sea to the end of Jordan, and their border in the north quarter was from the bay of the sea at the uttermost part of Jordan. 
Jos 15:6 And the border went up to Beth-hoglah [bayth chog-law’], and passed along by the north of Beth-arabah [bayth haw-ar-aw-baw]. And the border went up to the stone of Bohan [bo’han] the son of Reuben; 
Jos 15:7 And the border went up toward Debir [deb-eer’] from the valley of Achor [aw-kore’], and so northward, looking toward Gilgal, before the going up to Adummim [ad-oom-meem’], which is on the south side of the river. And the border passed toward the waters of En-shemesh [ane sheh’-mesh], and its boundary was at En-rogel [ane ro-gale’].
Jos 15:8 And the border went up by the valley of the son of Hinnom [hin-nome’] to the south side of the Jebusite. It is Jerusalem. And the border went up to the top of the mountain that lies before the valley of Hinnom [hin-nome’]  westward, at the end of the Valley of the Giants northward. 
Jos 15:9 And the border was drawn from the top of the hill to the fountain of the water of Nephtoah [nef-to’-akh], and went out to the cities of mount Ephron [ef-rone’]. And the border was drawn to Baalah [bah-al-aw’]; it is Kirjath-jearim [keer-yath’ yeh-aw-reem’]. 
Jos 15:10 And the border went around from Baalah [bah-al-aw’]westward to Mount Seir [say-eer’], and passed along to the side of mount Jearim [yeh-aw-reem’]; it is Chesalon [kes-aw-lone’], on the north side, and went down to Bethshemesh [bayth sheh’-mesh], and passed on to Timnah [tim-naw’].
Jos 15:11 And the border went to the side of Ekron northward, and the border was drawn to Shikkeron [shik-ker-one’] and passed along to Mount Baalah [bah-al-aw’], and went out to Jabneel [yab-neh-ale’]. And the boundary line was at the Sea. 
Jos 15:12 And the west border was to the Great Sea, and the coast. This is the border of the sons of Judah all around according to their families. 
Jos 15:13 And he gave a part among the sons of Judah to Caleb the son of Jephunneh [yef-oon-neh’], according to the command of Jehovah to Joshua, even the city of Arba [ar-bah’. 1. the father of Anak and the greatest of the giants (Anakim)] the father of Anak [aw-nawk’]; it is Hebron. 
Jos 15:14 And Caleb drove out from there the three sons of Anak [aw-nawk’], Sheshai [shay-shah’-ee], and Ahiman [akh-ee-man’], and Talmai [tal-mah’-ee], the sons of Anak [aw-nawk’]. 
Jos 15:15 And he went up from there to those who lived in Debir [deb-eer’]. And the name of Debir [deb-eer’] before was Kirjath-sepher [keer-yath’ san-naw’]. 
Jos 15:16 And Caleb said, He who smites Kirjath-sepher [keer-yath’ san-naw’], and takes it, I will give my daughter Achsah [ak-saw’. Achsah = ankle chain or anklet H5913 – 1. (Piel) to shake bangles, rattle, tinkle ] to him for a wife. 
Jos 15:17 And Othniel [oth-nee-ale’. Othniel = lion of God] the son of Kenaz [ken-az’. Kenaz = hunter], the brother of Caleb, took it. And he gave him Achsah [ak-saw’] his daughter for a wife. 

Caleb’s daughter must have been of some notable beauty for his broad belief that she would be the desire of most men. She being their prize, galvanized their lion-like valour to be outstanding in battle. 

It is particularly common for young women to highlight their most attractive attributes to gain male attention. We don’t know Achsah’s ( ak-saw’) righteousness, yet we can only guess that she was noble since she was Caleb’s daughter. Nonetheless, since Caleb is a type of Christ, his daughter would equate with the church which Israel and we were, and who went astray. Achsah (ak-saw’) classically represents the prophecy of Israel’s confinement to harlotry. 

Isa 1:21 How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers. 

Isa 3:16 Moreover the LORD saith, Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with stretched forth necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing as they go, and making a tinkling with their feet: 
Isa 3:17 Therefore the Lord will smite with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion, and the LORD will discover their secret parts. 
Isa 3:18 In that day the Lord will take away the bravery of their tinkling ornaments about their feet, and their cauls, and their round tires like the moon, 
Isa 3:19 The chains, and the bracelets, and the mufflers,
Isa 3:20 The bonnets, and the ornaments of the legs, and the headbands, and the tablets, and the earrings, 
Isa 3:21 The rings, and nose jewels, 
Isa 3:22 The changeable suits of apparel, and the mantles, and the wimples, and the crisping pins, 
Isa 3:23 The glasses, and the fine linen, and the hoods, and the vails. 
Isa 3:24 And it shall come to pass, that instead of sweet smell there shall be stink; and instead of a girdle a rent; and instead of well set hair baldness; and instead of a stomacher a girding of sackcloth; and burning instead of beauty.
Isa 3:25 Thy men shall fall by the sword, and thy mighty in the war. 
Isa 3:26 And her gates shall lament and mourn; and she being desolate shall sit upon the ground. 

Following is Achsah’s (ak-saw’) lavish request that soundly establishes her as broader Israel, represented by the priestly tribe of Judah and subsequent treachery. She didn’t modestly ask for her needs; she knew her request would establish her future forever. She has springs of allegorical living water gushing upon fertile and productive land. Her dual meaning is Babylon the Great, and her nominal 46,000 Christian denominations ruling the laity to this day in spiritual and financial slavery.

Jer 2:11 Has a nation changed their gods who are yet no gods? But My people have changed their Glory for that which does not profit. 
Jer 2:12 Be amazed, O heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid; be completely desolated, says Jehovah. 
Jer 2:13 For My people have committed two evils; they have forsaken Me, the Fountain of living waters, to hew out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.
Jer 2:14 Is Israel a servant? Or is he a servant of the house? Why has he become a prey? [a prey to herself and to treacherous Judah ruling the laity] 
Jer 2:15 The young lions roared against him; they gave their voice. And they made his land a waste; his cities are burned without inhabitant.

The “young lions”, the children of Israel with the tinkling anklets of a harlot, certainly gave their voice in the streets of that great city and are today being burned spiritually and metaphorically, physically and soon, maybe literally.

The irony is that Achsah (ak-saw’) also represents the Lord’s bride and she intimately knows him as her pearl of great price and gladly asks for her inheritance’s incredible richness, rightfully hers from before the foundations of the Earth.

Jos 15:18 And it happened as she came, she moved him to ask a field from her father. And she dismounted from the ass. And Caleb said to her, What do you desire? 
Jos 15:19 She answered, Give me a blessing, for you have given me a south land [Judah next to Edom]. Give me also springs of water. And he gave her the upper springs and the lower springs. 

A stream fed by an upper and lower spring is a guaranteed water supply. Achsah’s alighting from her ass symbolizes us dismounting from the power of our self-righteousness and resting in the Lord’s never-ending spring-fed stream of His truth. The imagery closely resembles the Lord’s river flowing out of the heavenly Jerusalem.

Zec 14:8 And it shall be in that day, living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them shall go toward the eastern sea, and half of them toward the western sea. In summer and in winter it shall be. 
Zec 14:9 And Jehovah shall be King over all the Earth; in that day there shall be one Jehovah, and His name shall be one. 
Zec 14:10 All the land shall be turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem. And it shall rise and dwell in its place, from Benjamin’s Gate to the place of the First Gate; to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananeel to the King’s winepresses.

Rev 22:1 And he showed me a pure river of Water of Life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. 
Rev 22:2 In the midst of its street, and of the river, from here and from there, was the Tree of Life, which bore twelve fruits, each yielding its fruit according to one month. And the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
Rev 22:3 And every curse will no longer be; but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His servants will serve Him. 
Rev 22:4 And they will see His face, and His name will be in their foreheads. 
Rev 22:5 And there will be no night there. And they need no lamp, or light of the sun; for the Lord God gives them light. And they will reign forever and ever.

The lands Achsah (ak-saw’) requested are for Judah, immediately south of Jerusalem.

Jos 15:20 This is the inheritance of the tribe of the sons of Judah according to their families. 
Jos 15:21 And the furthest cities of the tribe of the sons of Judah toward the coast of Edom southward were Kabzeel, and Eder, and Jagur, 
Jos 15:22 and Kinah [kee-naw’], and Dimonah [dee-mo-naw’], and Adadah [ad-aw-daw’], 
Jos 15:23 and Kedesh [keh’-desh], and Hazor [khaw-tsore’], and Ithnan [yith-nawn’], 
Jos 15:24 Ziph [zeef], and Telem [teh’-lem], and Bealoth [beh-aw-loth’], 
Jos 15:25 and Hazor [khaw-tsore’], Hadattah, and Kerioth-Hezron [khets-rone’], which is Hazor [khaw-tsore’],
Jos 15:26 Amam [am-awm’], and Shema [shem-aw’], and Moladah [mo-law-daw’],
Jos 15:27 and Hazar-gaddah [khats-ar’gad-daw’], and Heshmon [klesh-mone’], and Beth-palet [bayth peh’-let], 
Jos 15:28 and Hazar-shual [khats-ar’ shoo-awl’], and Beer-sheba [be-ayr’ sheh’-bah], and Bizjothjah [biz-yo-the-yaw’], 
Jos 15:29 Baalah [bah-al-aw’], and Iim [ee-yeem’], and Azem, [eh’-tsem] 
Jos 15:30 and Eltolad [el-to-lad’], and Chesil [kes-eel’], and Hormah [khor-maw’], 
Jos 15:31 and Ziklag [tsik-lag’], and Madmannah [mad-man-naw’], and Sansannah [san-san-naw’], 
Jos 15:32 and Lebaoth [leb-aw-oth’], and Shilhim [shil-kheem’], and Ain [ah’-yin], and Rimmon [rim-mone’]. All the cities are twenty-nine, with their villages. 
Jos 15:33 In the low country were Eshtaol [esh-taw-ole’], and Zoreah [tsor-aw’], and Ashnah [ash-naw’], 
Jos 15:34 and Zanoah [zaw-no’-akh], and En-gannim [ane gan-neem’], Tappuah [tap-poo’-akh], and Enam [ay-nah’-yim], 
Jos 15:35 Jarmuth [yar-mooth’], and Adullam [ad-ool-lawm’], Socoh [so-ko’], and Azekah [az-ay-kaw’], 
Jos 15:36 and Sharaim [shah-ar-ah’-yim], and Adithaim [ad-ool-lawm’], and Gederah [ghed-ay-ro-thah’-yim], and Gederothaim [ghed-ay-ro-thah’-yim]; fourteen cities with their villages;
Jos 15:37 Zenan [tsen-awn’], and Hadashah [khad-aw-shaw’], and Migdal-gad [migdal-gawd’], 
Jos 15:38 and Dilean [dil-awn’], and Mizpeh [mits-peh’], and Joktheel [yok-theh-ale’], 
Jos 15:39 Lachish [law-keesh’], and Bozkath [bots-cath’], and Eglon [eg-lawn’], 
Jos 15:40 and Cabbon [kab-bone’], and Lahmam [lakh-maws’], and Kithlish [kith-leesh’], 
Jos 15:41 and Gederoth [ghed-ay-rohth’], Beth-dagon [bayth-daw-gohn’], and Naamah [nah-am-aw’], and Makkedah [mak-kay-daw’]; sixteen cities with their villages; 
Jos 15:42 Libnah [lib-naw’], and Ether [eh’ther], and Ashan [aw-shawn’], 
Jos 15:43 and Jiphtah [yif-tawkh’], and Ashnah [ash-naw’], and Nezib [nets-eeb’], 
Jos 15:44 and Keilah [keh-ee-law’], and Achzib [ak-zeeb’], and Mareshah [mar-ay-shaw’]; nine cities and their villages; 
Jos 15:45 Ekron [ek-rone’] with its town and its villages; 
Jos 15:46 from Ekron [ek-rone’]  even to the Sea, all that were at hand by Ashdod, [ash-dode’] and their villages; 
Jos 15:47 Ashdod [ash-dode’] with its towns and its villages; Gaza [ az-zaw’] with its towns and its villages, to the river of Egypt, and the Great Sea, and its coast. 
Jos 15:48 And in the mountains, Shamir [shaw-meer’], and Jattir [yat-teer’], and Socoh[so-ko’] , 
Jos 15:49 and Dannah, and Kirjath-sannah (which is Debir [deb-eer’]); 
Jos 15:50 and Anab [an-awb’], and Eshtemoh [esh-tem-o’-ah], and Anim [aw-neem’], 
Jos 15:51 and Goshen [go’-shen], and Holon [kho-lone’], and Giloh [ghee-lo’]; eleven cities and their villages; 
Jos 15:52 Arab [ar-awb’], and Dumah [doo-maw’], and Eshean, [esh-awn’] 
Jos 15:53 and Janum [yaw-neem’], and Beth-tappuah [tap-poo’-akh], and Aphekah [af-ay-kaw’], 
Jos 15:54 and Humtah [khoom-taw’], and Kirjath-arba [keer-yath’ ar-bah’]; it is Hebron; and Zior [tsee-ore’]; nine cities and their villages; 
Jos 15:55 Maon [maw-ohn’], Carmel, and Ziph [zeef], and Juttah [yoo-taw’], 
Jos 15:56 and Jezreel [yiz-reh-ale’], and Jokdeam [yok-deh-awm’], and Zanoah [zaw-no’-akh], 
Jos 15:57 Cain, Gibeah, and Timnah [tim-naw’]; ten cities and their villages; 
Jos 15:58 Halhul [khal-khool’], Beth-zur [bayth tsoor’], and Gedor [ghed-ore’], 
Jos 15:59 and Maarath [mah-ar-awth’], and Beth-anoth [bayth an-oth’], and Eltekon [el-te-kone’]; six cities and their villages; 
Jos 15:60 Kirjath-baal [keer-yath’ bah’-al]; it is Kirjath-jearim [keer-yath’ yeh-aw-reem’]; and Rabbah [rab-baw’]; two cities and their villages. 
Jos 15:61 In the wilderness, Beth-arabah [bayth haw-ar-aw-baw], Middin [mid-deen’], and Secacah [sek-aw-kaw’], 
Jos 15:62 and Nibshan [nib-shawn’], and the city of Salt, and En-gedi [ane geh’-dee]; six cities and their villages. 
Jos 15:63 As for the Jebusites [yeb-oo-see’], the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the sons of Judah could not drive them out. But the Jebusites [ yeb-oo-see’] live with the sons of Judah at Jerusalem to this day.

Jebusites – yeb-oo-see’ H2983 meaning descendants of Jebus 1. descendants of the 3rd son of Canaan who lived in or around the site of Jebus, the early name for Jerusalem. Origin – H2982 Definition: Jebus = threshing place. H947 –  1. to tread down, reject, trample down  a. (Qal) 1. to tread down, trample (of warriors) 2. of rejection (fig.) b. (Polel) 1. to tread down (in bad sense) 2. to desecrate.

It seems that Judah, being some of the very last to receive a land of residency, had grown weary of years of fighting and routing the land of their enemy. The Jebusites were mere men, as were all of Israel’s enemies. Since the Lord’s power to drive out Israel’s enemies was guaranteed trustworthy, why couldn’t these Jebusites not be cleansed from polluting Judah’s land?

Since the Jebusite’s name means “threshing place”, the Lord left these people in the very spiritual heart of Israel as a thorn in their flesh and a reminder for us to constantly seek the Lord’s direction on every issue.

Nebuchadnezzar desecrated and trampled Jerusalem outwardly, and Judah was carried to Babylon. The Lord’s people were commissioned to go into Babylon for us today to spiritually “come out of her”.

Mat 17:19 Then the disciples came to Jesus apart, and said, Why could we not cast him out? 
Mat 17:20 And Jesus said to them, Because of your unbelief. For truly I say to you, If you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you shall say to this mountain, Move from here to there. And it shall move. And nothing shall be impossible to you. 
Mat 17:21 However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting. 

Jer 51:44 And I will punish Bel [Bel = lord 1. a chief Babylonian deity 1. supreme male divinity of the Phoenicians or Canaanites 2. a Reubenite 3. the son of Jehiel and grandfather of Saul] in Babylon, and I will bring forth out of his mouth that which he hath swallowed up: and the nations shall not flow together any more unto him: yea, the wall of Babylon shall fall. 
Jer 51:45 My people, go ye out of the midst of her, and deliver ye every man his soul from the fierce anger of the LORD. 

Rev 18:4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. 
Rev 18:5 For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. 

Rev 19:1 And after these things I heard a great sound of a numerous crowd in Heaven, saying, Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and honor and the power to the Lord our God! 

The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob – Part 3

[Study Aired March 27, 2023]

Today, as part of our study of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, we shall look at the life of Isaac to help us grow in our knowledge of Christ. As we indicated in the previous study, the birth of Isaac symbolizes the coming of Christ into our lives. Our lives follow the same pattern as Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Although the details of our lives are different, our relationship with the Lord follows the same pattern. As we go through the experience of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob with Joseph being part of Jacob’s experience, we come to realize that these three men do not represent three separate individuals, but three aspects of one complete person in his relationship with the Lord.

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

Isaac’s life depicts the rest we have in Christ. His father Abraham had amassed all the wealth for him to enjoy. At the point when he needed to get married, his father Abraham took the initiative to get him a wife (Rebekah) who was very beautiful. Isaac did not fight any battles. For example, on two occasions when his servants dug a well, the inhabitants of the land claimed the wells, but Isaac did not contend with them. What this means is that the coming of Christ in our lives is the beginning of our rest in Him.

Heb 4:9  There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.
Heb 4:10  For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. 
Heb 4:11  Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.

In our study today, we shall therefore take a critical look at certain aspects of Isaac’s life and what they teach us about our walk with Christ. 

Knowing God Through Isaac

Our Exit from Babylon – the Coming of Christ in our lives.

The birth of Isaac marks the coming of Christ into our lives which results in our exit from Babylon where the truth of the word of the Lord has been adulterated by false doctrines emanating from human traditions and wisdom. In this new life in Christ, our eyes are opened and our ears begin to hear the truth of the word of the Lord. This is demonstrated by the fact that Isaac dug again the wells his father Abraham dug which had been filled with earth by the Philistines. The Philistines here represent Babylon. The earth here symbolizes all the false doctrines which include human wisdom and traditions. What this means is that the gold and silver of the word of the Lord have been turned into images of men. As a result of the earth filling the well, spring water was not coming out. During our time in Babylon, we experienced significant famine of the word of the Lord which was caused by the Lord to facilitate our exit from Babylon.

Gen 26:15  For all the wells which his father’s servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth.
Gen 26:16  And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we. 
Gen 26:17  And Isaac departed thence, and pitched his tent in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. 
Gen 26:18  And Isaac digged again the wells of water, which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham: and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them.

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

The Offering of Isaac – The Death and Resurrection of Christ 

Gen 22:2  And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of. 

Gen 22:6  And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. 
Gen 22:7  And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?
Gen 22:8  And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.

Heb 11:17  By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son,
Heb 11:18  Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called:
Heb 11:19  Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.

From a spiritual perspective, the offering of Isaac by Abraham typifies how God, our Father, offered His beloved son, Jesus Christ, for us. During the journey to Mount Moriah, Isaac carried the wood to be used for the burnt offering of himself. This shows how Jesus carried the cross through Jerusalem for His crucifixion. Incidentally, Mount Moriah later became Jerusalem.  Even though in the case of Isaac, he was not sacrificed, it was as if he had died and came back to life after that experience. So, the whole experience of Abraham preparing to offer Isaac is to foretell of the coming Messiah’s (Jesus) death and resurrection. As Abraham told Isaac his son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering, and that lamb is Christ. In another perspective, we, like Isaac, represent the scapegoat with Jesus being the other goat that was offered as sacrifice for our sins. If we are to fulfill God’s purpose, therefore, we must be like Isaac as we offer our lives as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable unto God which is our reasonable service.

Lev 16:7  And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
Lev 16:8  And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat. 
Lev 16:9  And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD’S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering. 
Lev 16:10  But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness. 

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. 

Ishmael’s mocking of Isaac – Babylon persecuting the church

Gen 21:8  And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned. 
Gen 21:9  And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking. 
Gen 21:10  Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac. 

The birth of Isaac did not stir up any trouble. It was rather his growth that brought about controversy. As we can see, Ishmael was found mocking Isaac. In Galatians 4:29, we are given to know that this mocking is the same as persecution. Ishmael represents Babylon, which is in bondage with her children. Babylon is characterized by the persecution of the church of the firstborn (the elect) as our Lord made it clear as follows:

Luk 11:49  Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute:
Luk 11:50  That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation; 
Luk 11:51  From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.

Gal 4:28  Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.
Gal 4:29  But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now. 
Gal 4:30  Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.
Gal 4:31  So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.

As Paul indicated, Hagar represents Jerusalem which is in bondage with her children. That is Babylon, which symbolizes the physical churches of this world.  The elect represents Jerusalem, which is above, that is destined to inherit the promise.

Heb 6:12  That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

Isaac, the inheritor of Abraham’s Inheritance – Learning to Rest in the Lord

Gen 25:5  And Abraham gave all that he had unto Isaac. 
Gen 25:6  But unto the sons of the concubines, which Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts, and sent them away from Isaac his son, while he yet lived, eastward, unto the east country. 

Isaac becoming the inheritor of Abraham’s possessions is a type of Christ who has been appointed heir of all things, and if we are found in Him, then we are also destined for the inheritance just like Isaac.

Heb 1:1  God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 
Heb 1:2  Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; 
Heb 1:3  Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; 

What we need to understand is that Abraham did all the work to amass the wealth for Isaac. Just as God the Father did all the work for our Lord Jesus Christ, we are also privileged to have Jesus doing all the work as we rest in Him.

Joh 14:10  Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. 

Heb 4:9  There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. 
Heb 4:10  For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. 
Heb 4:11  Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. 

The Famine in the Land

Gen 26:1  And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar.
Gen 26:2  And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of:

Gen 26:6  And Isaac dwelt in Gerar: 
Gen 26:7  And the men of the place asked him of his wife; and he said, She is my sister: for he feared to say, She is my wife; lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah; because she was fair to look upon. 
Gen 26:8  And it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out at a window, and saw, and, behold, Isaac was sporting with Rebekah his wife. 
Gen 26:9  And Abimelech called Isaac, and said, Behold, of a surety she is thy wife: and how saidst thou, She is my sister? And Isaac said unto him, Because I said, Lest I die for her.

As we can see, the Lord had to warn Isaac from going back to Egypt. Whenever we are starved of the word of the Lord (famine), there is the tendency to become worldly (Going to Egypt). It is during times of famine of the word of the Lord that our weaknesses are exposed by the Lord.

In the case of Isaac, his inability to believe that the Lord will surely protect him from any harm or danger became obvious as he lied about Rebekah being his wife. As we know from the word of the Lord, the church is where we are fed with the word of the Lord. Anytime we are starved of the word of the Lord, our relationship with the church suffers as the deep union with the church (wife relationship) is sacrificed for a superficial relationship (sister relationship) as we see Isaac saying that Rebekah was his sister instead of being his wife.

These periods of famine are common during the early part of our walk after we have left Babylon to become part of the heavenly Jerusalem. We were not prepared to lay down our lives for the wife of Christ, the church just as Isaac refused to lay down his life for Rebekah when he went to Gerar. However, as we mature spiritually, we are able to lay down our lives for the church irrespective of the circumstance we find ourselves in even as our Lord Jesus Christ laid down His life for the church. 

1Jn 3:16  Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 

Isaac Prospered – We are to grow in spiritual insight.

Gen 26:12  Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the LORD blessed him. 
Gen 26:13  And the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great: 
Gen 26:14  For he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds, and great store of servants: and the Philistines envied him.

The physical prosperity of Isaac refers to our growth in spiritual riches as our eyes are opened and our ears hear the mysteries of the kingdom of God. As Christ comes to us, we begin our spiritual growth (riches in Christ) as our Lord cleanses us of all that offends and enlightens our understanding to know Him better. This is what Paul and Peter had to say about our spiritual blessing:

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:

2Pe 1:3  According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
2Pe 1:4  Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

As we grow in spiritual riches, we are envied by all men, just as the Philistines became envious of Isaac’s prosperity. This envy is what drives our being hated by Jerusalem which is in bondage with her children, resulting in us being dead in the streets of the great city – which represents spiritually, Sodom and Egypt where our Lord Jesus was crucified.

Rev 11:8  And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. 

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

This strife or hatred is exemplified on two occasions when Isaac’s servants dug a well, and there was contention. This means that it is as we search the scriptures and we become enlightened by the truth of the word that we are hated by the world.

Gen 26:19  And Isaac’s servants digged in the valley, and found there a well of springing water. 
Gen 26:20  And the herdmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac’s herdmen, saying, The water is ours: and he called the name of the well Esek; because they strove with him. 
Gen 26:21  And they digged another well, and strove for that also: and he called the name of it Sitnah.

Isaac’s Marriage – Our Marriage to Christ

The scriptures did not go into as many details about the life of Isaac as it did with Abraham and Jacob. However, when it came to Isaac’s marriage, a whole chapter was devoted to it. This is because the marriage of Isaac is significant, and it represents the church’s marriage union with Christ. From this marriage chapter we can glean a lot of spiritual truth and what is required of God’s bride.

Gen 24:3  And I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: 
Gen 24:4  But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac.

Gen 24:8  And if the woman will not be willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath: only bring not my son thither again.

Gen 24:15  And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder. 
Gen 24:16  And the damsel was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and she went down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up. 
Gen 24:17  And the servant ran to meet her, and said, Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water of thy pitcher. 
Gen 24:18  And she said, Drink, my lord: and she hasted, and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and gave him drink. 
Gen 24:19  And when she had done giving him drink, she said, I will draw water for thy camels also, until they have done drinking.
Gen 24:20  And she hasted, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again unto the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels.

There are several truths we can glean from this marriage chapter of Genesis. The country Abraham had left spiritually signifies Babylon where we worship another Jesus. It is from Babylon that Christ came to pick us as his bride. It also means that we cannot marry just any person. We must marry from our kindred – our fellow elect. When Abraham’s servant asked if the potential bride to Isaac refuses to come to Canaan, Abraham told him that in that case, the marriage must be called off. If we want to become the bride of Christ, then we must be prepared to leave Babylon.

Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

Abraham’s servant went with ten camels. In the Bible camels are used to represent one’s wealth or possession. What this means is that God has made available enough resources for His bride to be joined to her husband Christ. As stated by Peter, God has given us everything we need for life and godliness through His great and precious promises that we might be partakers of His divine nature. 

Gen 24:10  And the servant took ten camels of the camels of his master, and departed; for all the goods of his master were in his hand: and he arose, and went to Mesopotamia, unto the city of Nahor. 

Gen 12:16  And he entreated Abram well for her sake: and he had sheep, and oxen, and he asses, and menservants, and maidservants, and she asses, and camels.

Gen 24:35  And the LORD hath blessed my master greatly; and he is become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses.

2Pe 1:3  According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
2Pe 1:4  Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. 

In order to identify the bride, Abraham’s servant set a criterion. The requirement is that the potential bride must give him water to drink and also quench the thirst of the ten camels. As we are aware, water signifies the word of God. Thus, we must be able to feed God’s people with the word of God first. In addition, Rebecca voluntarily offered to fetch water for the camels. The similarity between camels and human beings is that they are all beasts.  Thus, Rebecca giving water first to Abraham’s servant and later fetching water for the camels signifies that the preaching of the word of God is first to the elect, and then later, through the bride, the word of God will be preached to all humanity. 

Gen 24:11  And he made his camels to kneel down without the city by a well of water at the time of the evening, even the time that women go out to draw water. 
Gen 24:12  And he said, O LORD God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham. 
Gen 24:13  Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water: 
Gen 24:14  And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master. 

Ecc 3:18  I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts.

Camels drink a lot of water – about 20 gallons of water a day. Thus, giving water to the ten camels means fetching about 200 gallons of water.  That is a huge task to undertake.  It takes someone who has compassion or is merciful to the camels to execute such a task voluntarily. What we are being taught here is that the salvation of the world is impossible looking at it from a human perspective. However, with God all things are possible. Secondly, it takes someone who cares for the beast, just like Rebecca to have compassion or to show mercy to the camels. We, who have received mercy from God are therefore required to be merciful to the whole of humanity in the fullness of time. Thirdly, our service in the house of God as we feed our brothers and sisters with the word of the Lord must be voluntary and without charging for our services. As we can see, Rebecca fed the camels voluntarily and without cost. 

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. 

Mat 10:8  Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give. 

One key characteristic which we need to pay attention to regarding Rebekah, who represents the elect, is the fact that, although she had never seen Isaac, she was willing to go to him to become his wife. Our husband, the Lord Jesus, is so pleased when we believe in Him even though we have not seen Him. This is what He told Thomas who was looking for something tangible:

Joh 20:28  And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. 
Joh 20:29  Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed. 

That is why as we mature spiritually, signs and wonders become a rare experience. This does not mean that the Lord will not miraculously intervene in our circumstance when the need arises. He will always come to our aid but what we are to avoid is looking for the spectacular to convince us that the Lord is with us. As we can see, as the church matured, signs and wonders became a rare occurrence. We are therefore warned by the Lord about deception which will abound as a result of signs and wonders as we are getting closer to the end of this age.

2Th 2:9  Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, 
2Th 2:10  And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

Another key characteristic of Rebekah who symbolizes the bride of Christ was her submission when she saw Isaac and realized who he was. Immediately when Rebekah saw Isaac, she put on her vail and covered herself. 

Gen 24:64  And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel. 
Gen 24:65  For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a vail, and covered herself. 

The putting on of the vail symbolizes Rebekah’s submission to Isaac, just as the bride of Christ (Rebekah) must submit to her husband, Christ (Isaac). 

1Co 11:3  But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God. 
1Co 11:4  Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head, 
1Co 11:5  but every wife who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, since it is the same as if her head were shaven.

Our submission must therefore be complete – we must submit to our Lord Jesus Christ in everything. 

Eph 5:24  Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.

Through the life of Isaac, we get to know about the marriage feast of the lamb. 

Gen 24:63  And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, the camels were coming. 
Gen 24:64  And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel. 
Gen 24:65  For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a vail, and covered herself.
Gen 24:66  And the servant told Isaac all things that he had done. 
Gen 24:67  And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.

We can see how both Isaac and Rebekah were eager to meet each other. Our Lord Jesus Christ is so eager to be united with His bride, the church. It is when we meet face to face that perfection shall come!!

Rev 19:6  And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. 
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.
Rev 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. 
Rev 19:9  And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God. 

1Co 13:9  For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. 
1Co 13:10  But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. 
1Co 13:11  When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 
1Co 13:12  For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. 

Ooh, what a great joy that will be when we see our Lord face to face!! Amen!!

[Study Aired August 11, 2022]

To give a brief recap of the players in this section of kings, it will be helpful to recall that King Ahaziah had no sons (2Ki 1:17), so Ahab’s other son Jehoram (who is also called Joram (2Ki 8:16) reigned as the next king of Israel. He is one of the key figures in this study.

If you recall, Rehoboam was the king of all of Judah and Israel who caused the split (by the Lord’s hand) from Judah. He was the son of Solomon who became an idolatrous king, yet for David’s sake, God did not take the kingdom from him (1Ki 11:11-13) but rather from Solomon’s son Rehoboam.

Rehoboam added a heavier yoke on the people (1Ki 12:8-11), “so Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day” (1Ki 12:19), thus the split that occurred.

Now let’s be reminded of who Jeroboam the son of Nebat is (1Ki 11:28-40, 1Ki 12:26-33), as he is mentioned often throughout these chapters of the second book of Kings.

1Ki 11:28  And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph.
1Ki 11:29  And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field: 
1Ki 11:30  And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces: 
1Ki 11:31  And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee:

1Ki 12:15  Wherefore the king [Rehoboam] hearkened not unto the people; for the cause was from the LORD, that he might perform his saying, which the LORD spake by Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

1Ki 12:19  So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day. 
1Ki 12:20  And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only.

1Ki 12:26  And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David:
1Ki 12:27  If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.
1Ki 12:28  Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
1Ki 12:29  And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan.
1Ki 12:30  And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.
1Ki 12:31  And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi.
1Ki 12:32  And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made. 
1Ki 12:33  So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.

It’s also important to remember that Moab was Lot’s firstborn son from his firstborn daughter, and that the Moabites were allowed a possession in the land up until the time of David when they became David’s servants, bringing tribute to the king (Deu 2:9, 2Sa 8:2).

Deu 2:9  And the LORD said unto me, Distress not the Moabites, neither contend with them in battle: for I will not give thee of their land for a possession; because I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a possession.

2Sa 8:2  And he [David] smote Moab, and measured them with a line, casting them down to the ground; even with two lines measured he to put to death, and with one full line to keep alive. And so the Moabites became David’s servants, and brought gifts. 

In this part of the books of kings we are looking at today, it is roughly two years that have passed since Ahab died in battle against the king of Syria.

1Ki 22:40  So Ahab slept with his fathers; and Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead. 

1Ki 22:51  Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned two years over Israel.

2Ki 1:17  So he [Ahaziah] died according to the word of the LORD which Elijah had spoken [2Ki 1:1-4]. And Jehoram reigned in his stead in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah; because he [Ahaziah] had no son.

With this backdrop, here are our first verses:

2Ki 3:1  Now Jehoram the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned twelve years. 
2Ki 3:2  And he wrought evil in the sight of the LORD; but not like his father, and like his mother: for he put away the image of Baal that his father had made. 
2Ki 3:3  Nevertheless he cleaved unto the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

There is going to be an alliance in war with Jehoram, Jehoshaphat, and the king of Edom (1Ki 22:47), against Moab, shown to us with Jehoram the son of Ahab who began to reign over Israel in Samaria the capital “the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned twelve years“. These numbers are significant in that they reveal something about this alliance that is going to be forged through the judgment of Moab that represents our flesh. The “eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah” represents that judgment (1+8=9) and the twelve years of reigning is the foundation that is forged through that judgment which becomes very detailed in the verses that will follow.

Jehoram represents more of the yet carnal Christian (1Co 3:1) who continues to do “evil in the sight of the LORD” but not as dramatically as “his father, and like his mother”  which we know represents a stage of growth for Jehoram (Mat 19:5) who now “put away the image of Baal that his father had made” which we begin to do when we come out of Babylon the mother of harlots and denounce our fleshly and sensual way of worshiping represented by “the image of Baal that his father had made” (2Co 6:17, Jas 3:15, Jud 1:18-19). So Jehoram cleaved to the Lord in one area of his life “Nevertheless he cleaved unto the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat” which does remind us that overcoming sin is a process, which this story of these three kings is going to bring out for us.

2Co 6:17  Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, 

Jas 3:15  This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. 

Jud 1:18  How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts. 
Jud 1:19  These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit.

2Ki 3:4  And Mesha king of Moab was a sheepmaster, and rendered unto the king of Israel an hundred thousand lambs, and an hundred thousand rams, with the wool. 

Mesha^H4338 the king of Moab’s name, means ‘safety’ and typifies the court of the temple, Babylon, where our flesh represented by “hundred thousand lambs, and an hundred thousand rams, with the wool” is not going through a process of judgment but rather being preserved like the Israelites in the wilderness by “sheepmasters”, not unlike Moses who was “the shepherd of his flock” (Isa 63:11) to the people of Israel in the wilderness, which typifies the churches of Babylon today that are in a spiritual wilderness (Deu 29:5, Psa 84:10).

Isa 63:11  Then he remembered the days of old, Moses, and his people, saying, Where is he that brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd of his flock? where is he that put his holy Spirit within him? 

Deu 29:5  And I have led you forty years in the wilderness: your clothes are not waxen old upon you, and thy shoe is not waxen old upon thy foot. 

Psa 84:10  For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.

H4338 mêysha‛may-shaw’  A variation for H4337; safety; Mesha, a Moabite: – Mesha.

2Ki 3:5  But it came to pass, when Ahab was dead, that the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.

Rebellion will often manifest when there is a void of leadership as stated with these words of Paul (Act 20:29-31), and that is what we are being told here with the death of Ahab, the king of Moab can now rebel against the king of Israel with this perception in mind.

Act 20:29  For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. 
Act 20:30  Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. 
Act 20:31  Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears [1Co 9:27].

2Ki 3:6  And king Jehoram went out of Samaria the same time, and numbered all Israel.
2Ki 3:7  And he went and sent to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, saying, The king of Moab hath rebelled against me: wilt thou go with me against Moab to battle? And he said, I will go up: I am as thou art, my people as thy people, and my horses as thy horses. 
2Ki 3:8  And he said, Which way shall we go up? And he answered, The way through the wilderness of Edom.

Jehoram did not have enough resources within “all Israel” [Israel representing our flesh and all the world where there is none righteous (Rom 3:10)] to do battle against Moab, and so God mercifully led him to make alliance with “Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, saying, The king of Moab hath rebelled against me: wilt thou go with me against Moab to battle? And he said, I will go up.” Jehoshaphat who is a type of our Lord, the Lion of the tribe of Judah who changes not (Mal 3:6), also changes not in his desire to do battle against the enemy as our head (Psa 7:11, Eph 4:26, Rom 12:21) with the same words expressed earlier in this battle with Jehoshaphat against Ramothgilead (1Ki 22:4) “I will go up: I am as thou art, my people as thy people, and my horses as thy horses.” Samaria represents an earlier relationship with Christ in our walk (Joh 8:31-32, Mat 15:32) but not one that is strong enough by itself to do battle against Moab, unless we are granted to continue to abide in the truth which will set us free, which is what this alliance that “all Israel” representing the world will one day do through Christ, represented by “Jehoshaphat the king of Judah” (1Co 15:22).

1Ki 22:4  And he said unto Jehoshaphat, Wilt thou go with me to battle to Ramothgilead? And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses. 

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

Mat 15:32  Then Jesus called his disciples unto him, and said, I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with me now three days, and have nothing to eat: and I will not send them away fasting, lest they faint in the way.

When Jehoshaphat was asked: “Which way shall we go up?”, Jehoram replied: “Through the wilderness of Edom” because Edom, who is Esau’s descendants (Gen 25:30), was also David’s servant (2Sa 8:14). Edom represents those parts of our life that we have dominion over and not the other way around, which is what Edom being David’s servants represents.

2Ki 3:9  So the king of Israel went, and the king of Judah, and the king of Edom: and they fetched a compass of seven days’ journey: and there was no water for the host, and for the cattle that followed them.

This seven days’ journey with these three kings represents a famine of the word that is going to, in the positive view, make the cattle which represent the beasts that we are be brought to their wits’ end for thirst of water, which typifies thirst for knowledge of God’s word (Hos 4:6).

Hos 4:6  My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.

2Ki 3:10  And the king of Israel said, Alas! that the LORD hath called these three kings together, to deliver them into the hand of Moab!

Jehoram is at his wits’ end and despairing for life, typifying the process of judgment symbolized by three kings, who bring us to a place where we see our lack of faith. Paul expresses this idea in these verses which express how God brings us to our wits’ end, so that we cry out to Him and are delivered as Christ was also delivered (2Co 1:9-10, 1Ti 4:10, Heb 5:7)

2Co 1:9  But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead: 
2Co 1:10  Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us;

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

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

2Ki 3:11  But Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the LORD, that we may enquire of the LORD by him? And one of the king of Israel’s servants answered and said, Here is Elisha the son of Shaphat, which poured water on the hands of Elijah.

Christ is always that after-thought to the first man Adam, and it is only in our distress that we finally cry out when the Lord brings us to our wits’ end and delivers us (Psa 107:4-6).

Psa 107:4  They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no city to dwell in. 
Psa 107:5  Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. 
Psa 107:6  Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses.

It is “one of the king of Israel’s servants^H5650“, a bondservant, who recognizes the answer to this question, “Is there not here a prophet of the LORD, that we may enquire of the LORD by him?” This is telling us that when we labor in the word of God and study to show ourselves approved by seeking the Lord with all our hearts, like a bondservant (Php 2:12-13), we will find the Lord and save both ourselves and those who hear us (Jer 29:13, 1Ti 4:16). Here, we point others to the relationship we have in the body of Christ that washes the bride with the word (Eph 5:26, Rev 19:7) and is typified by Elisha who pours “water on the hands of Elijah“. Christ’s hands are doing the work in us, and so Elisha, who represents the servant-church, is pouring the water on Elijah who typifies Christ and reminds us again that “without me [Christ] ye can do nothing” (Joh 12:26, Joh 15:5, Joh 14:20).

1Ti 4:16  Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.

Joh 12:26  If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.

2Ki 3:12  And Jehoshaphat said, The word of the LORD is with him. So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him.

These three kings represent the process of judgment that is over God’s elect that brings us to come to know the Lord in each other, symbolized by Elisha who is a type of the elect who they’re going to see.

2Ki 3:13  And Elisha said unto the king of Israel, What have I to do with thee? get thee to the prophets of thy father, and to the prophets of thy mother. And the king of Israel said unto him, Nay: for the LORD hath called these three kings together, to deliver them into the hand of Moab.

Elisha knows the king of Israel and tells him to go back to your gods “the prophets of thy mother” and asks why are you inquiring of me while you’re not living lives that are consistent with what God requires (Luk 6:46). Jehoram says, “No, this is of the Lord. We are being delivered into the hand of Moab to be killed, and there is no way out, so we are asking you with humbled and contrite hearts to give us the Godly advice that we need” (Isa 57:15).

Luk 6:46  And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?

Isa 57:15  For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

2Ki 3:14  And Elisha said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee.

This is symbolic language from Elisha telling us the only reason God will listen to us for anything is because we are accepted in the Lord (Eph 1:6-9), symbolized by “Jehoshaphat the king of Judah“.

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: 

2Ki 3:15  But now bring me a minstrel. And it came to pass, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the LORD came upon him.

Music and prophecy are seen being spoken of together in scripture, and it is in these “courts of the LORD’S house” that we are truly “refreshed” and “well” (1Sa 16:23). So we ought to enter into the courts of our Lord with the sacrifice of thanksgiving and praise on our lips continually (1Sa 10:5, Eph 5:18-19, Col 3:16, 1Sa 16:23, 1Ch 25:2-3, Psa 100:4, Psa 116:19, Heb 13:15).

1Sa 16:23  And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.

Psa 100:4  Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. 

Psa 116:19  In the courts of the LORD’S house, in the midst of thee, O Jerusalem. Praise ye the LORD. 

Heb 13:15  By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.

2Ki 3:16  And he said, Thus saith the LORD, Make this valley full of ditches. 
2Ki 3:17  For thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, that ye may drink, both ye, and your cattle, and your beasts.

The valley being filled with ditches is symbolic of our laboring in the word and digging a deep foundation which happens best when we are humbled and made low, symbolized by the valley (Luk 6:48). God says the spirit that He gives us will well up within us when we search for him with all our hearts (Jer 29:13, Rev 7:17, Joh 7:38, 1Ti 4:14, Heb 2:3).

Luk 6:48  He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.

Jer 29:13  And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. 

Rev 7:17  For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne [Eph 2:6] shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. 

Joh 7:38  He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

1Ti 4:14  Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery [1Co 9:25].

Heb 2:3  How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;

2Ki 3:18  And this is but a light thing in the sight of the LORD: he will deliver the Moabites also into your hand. 
2Ki 3:19  And ye shall smite every fenced city, and every choice city, and shall fell every good tree, and stop all wells of water, and mar every good piece of land with stones.

The context of this statement “this is but a light thing in the sight of the LORD: he will deliver the Moabites also into your hand” should greatly encourage us as it reveals that those who are in God’s hand cannot be separated from Him (Joh 10:28) by way of our flesh “the Moabites“, and that God’s elect will learn of His deliverance over the sinful nature within us through Christ (Joh 8:36).

Joh 10:28  And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

Joh 8:36  If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

Our deliverance from our carnal nature is a process that takes time, but God promises that it will be accomplished by grace through faith (Eph 2:8). That process of overcoming requires that, through Christ working in us both to will and to do of God’s good pleasure (Php 2:12-13), “Ye shall smite every fenced city, and every choice city, and shall fell every good tree, and stop all wells of water, and mar every good piece of land with stones.“

What is wrong with these things mentioned, the “fenced city, and every choice city, and shall fell every good tree, and stop all wells of water, and mar every good piece of land with stones“, is that they represent our own righteousness, our many wonderful works that we don’t give God the credit for until we are chastened by the Lord and received by Him in love (Heb 12:6). Like these choices and good things mentioned, we are also “eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage” with no thought to the impending judgment that is soon to come and does come to God’s elect (Mat 24:38, 1Pe 4:17). Dispensationally, this smiting of all the fenced cities and choice cities and everything else mentioned will happen to all the world that will be judged in the great white throne judgment when it will be their time to say to God ‘haven’t we done many wonderful works’ (Rev 20:11, Mat 7:22). So God tells Noah, who represents God’s elect, to move with fear to the building up of the ark that represents the body of Christ, the church today that is built through His judgments happening in our earth today so we can learn of His righteousness (Heb 11:7, Isa 26:9).

2Ki 3:20  And it came to pass in the morning, when the meat offering was offered, that, behold, there came water by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water. 
2Ki 3:21  And when all the Moabites heard that the kings were come up to fight against them, they gathered all that were able to put on armour, and upward, and stood in the border.

This next section of Kings describes for us how easily God can seek an occasion against our flesh. The “meat offering“^H4503 that was being made in the morning represents our desire to please God first in the morning (Mat 6:33), but as with all offerings they mean nothing to God if they are not given with a humble and contrite heart, which is where the Lord abides (Isa 57:15, Isa 66:2, Jas 4:6).

Isa 57:15  For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit [Eph 2:6], to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

Isa 66:2  For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.

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

God must be the one who chooses where we go and how we lay down our life and when we say “nevertheless your will be done”, we are presenting our lives a living sacrifice that is going to “a place which the LORD your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there”. That is why we must be led by the holy spirit and commit all our ways unto God so He can direct our paths to His glory and for His name’s sake (Deu 12:11, Psa 51:16-17, Rom 8:14-15, Isa 61:1, 2Co 3:17).

Deu 12:11  Then there shall be a place which the LORD your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the LORD: 

Psa 51:16  For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering. 
Psa 51:17  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

[a broken and contrite heart will “bring all that I command you” as opposed to Saul who represents our flesh trying to please God by our own reasoning and not through obedience  (1Sa 15:14, 1Sa 15:22).]

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. 

Isa 61:1  The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;

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

It was after the meat offering that “there came water by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water”. Judgment was going to come by way of Edom but only after a seed died, represented by the meat offering that represents Christ (Joh 12:24, Isa 26:9). “And when all the Moabites heard that the kings were come up to fight against them, they gathered all that were able to put on armour, and upward^H4605 , and stood in the border^H1366” tells us that the flesh, represented by “Moabites“, has its negative version of putting on the whole armour of Ephesians 6:11 and Satan is given to gather “all that were able to put on armour” (Joe 3:2, Rev 16:13-14, Isa 63:17, Rom 9:20). The words “and upward, and stood in the border” describe when and where the spiritual battle is taking place that we are fighting (Eph 6:12), and it is at the door of our maturing hearts and minds where this persistent war is happening (Gal 5:17, Gen 4:7).

Rev 16:13  And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 
Rev 16:14  For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. 

2Ki 3:22  And they rose up early in the morning, and the sun shone upon the water, and the Moabites saw the water on the other side as red as blood: 
2Ki 3:23  And they said, This is blood: the kings are surely slain, and they have smitten one another: now therefore, Moab, to the spoil. 

In this section of the story we see the specific way in which God deceived the Moabites into a battle they were not going to win. It was when the Moabites were “on the other side” that they saw and interpreted those waters as being the blood of kings who they believed were slain, believing they had “smitten one another:” and as such could go up to the spoil – “now therefore, Moab, to the spoil.”

This “red as blood water” symbolizes the blood of Christ for these three kings who were near it and alive and ready to make war which is what we can do when we are cleansed by the blood of Christ by being baptized into His death (Rom 6:3). That baptism makes us alive in Christ and is an ongoing process of judgment symbolized by three kings (Gal 2:20).

Rom 6:3  Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

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

As for those “on the other side” this ‘red as blood’ view of the water symbolizes their view of the process of judgment being as the odor of death which is how they perceived the three kings to be at this point (2Co 2:15-16). This misinterpretation of the water led to their defeat, and the lesson for us is to ask God to help us to continue to correctly interpret the judgment that is upon those kings within us which is how we are to interpret the signs of the times, the wars and rumors of wars within (Mat 16:2-4).

2Co 2:15  For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: 
2Co 2:16  To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things? 

Mat 16:2  He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red.
Mat 16:3  And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?
Mat 16:4  A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed.

2Ki 3:24  And when they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose up and smote the Moabites, so that they fled before them: but they went forward smiting the Moabites, even in their country. 
2Ki 3:25  And they beat down the cities, and on every good piece of land cast every man his stone, and filled it; and they stopped all the wells of water, and felled all the good trees: only in Kirharaseth left they the stones thereof; howbeit the slingers went about it, and smote it. 

We must persist in the battle against our old man and die daily and fight a good fight of faith (Rom 12:21, 1Ti 6:12), forgetting what is behind us and “reaching forth unto those things which are before” pressing “toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Php 3:13-14). That is the primary message being stated here “And when they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose up and smote the Moabites, so that they fled before them: but they went forward smiting the Moabites, even in their country.“

This passage, “And they beat down the cities, and on every good piece of land cast every man his stone, and filled it; and they stopped all the wells of water, and felled all the good trees”, is the fulfillment of Elisha’s prophecy noted in 2 Kings 3:18-19 and is shown to them to be a light thing in the sight of the LORD to deliver these kings. In other words, the battle is the Lord’s all along (1Sa 17:47), the tearing down of the old self-righteous old man within us symbolized by these cities, and wells of water and good trees, just as the building up of the new man, the new Jerusalem is also of the Lord, so whether we live or die we do so unto the Lord (Psa 127:1, Rev 3:12, Rev 21:2, Rom 14:8.

1Sa 17:47  And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD’S, and he will give you into our hands. 

Rev 3:12  Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name. 

Rev 21:2  And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 

Rom 14:8  For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.

Then the last section of the verse says, “only in Kirharaseth^H7025 left they the stones thereof; howbeit the slingers went about it, and smote it”.

According to BDB and Strong, Kirharaseth is one of the two chief strongholds of Moab, and also means ‘wall of potsherds’ or ‘fortress of earthenware’. This is telling because it symbolizes the marred vessel that must be destroyed and made anew by the Potter’s hand (Jer 18:3-4), and this is done by the word of God that breaks that first vessel of dishonor by “the slingers” who represent those who bring the word of God to us that destroys our fleshly foundations (Lev 20:2).  Slingers make us think of king David slinging a stone into the giant’s head, those giants that will be bread for us (1Sa 17:24, 1Sa 17:48-49,  Num 14:9).

Jer 18:3  Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. 
Jer 18:4  And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. 

Lev 20:2  Again, thou shalt say to the children of Israel, Whosoever he be of the children of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn in Israel, that giveth any of his seed unto Molech; he shall surely be put to death: the people of the land shall stone him with stones. 

1Sa 17:24  And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid. 

1Sa 17:48  And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine.
1Sa 17:49  And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine.

Num 14:9  Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; [rebellion is connected to fear that we won’t overcome the giants in our land, which God tells us we will] for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not.

2Ki 3:26  And when the king of Moab saw that the battle was too sore for him, he took with him seven hundred men that drew swords, to break through even unto the king of Edom: but they could not.

Satan knows “that he hath but a short time” (Rev 12:12) and so does the king of Moab who symbolizes our flesh that is not going to win regardless of this complete assault symbolized by “seven hundred men that drew swords, to break through even unto the king of Edom” because Christ is greater than he who is in the world (1Jn 4:4). Therefore the battle will be “too sore for him“, and we will be more than conquerors through Christ over all that is in the world within us.

Rev 12:12  Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them [Rom 8:9]. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

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.

Despite Satan’s greatest attempts to deceive the very elect, the world will learn “but they could not” (1Jn 2:16, Mat 24:24, Act 4:27, Mat 10:28-30). Our life in Christ is one of overcoming and enduring to the end and is always to be put into the right perspective as to who is winning this battle within us, which is what these three kings teach us representing that process of judgment that leads to perfection and a victory  that is given by the Lord who tells us, “And this is but a light thing in the sight of the LORD: he will deliver the Moabites also into your hand.”

1Jn 2:16  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. 

Mat 24:24  For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

Act 4:27  For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together, 

Mat 10:28  And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Mat 10:29  Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.
Mat 10:30  But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

2Ki 3:27  Then he took his eldest son that should have reigned in his stead, and offered him for a burnt offering upon the wall. And there was great indignation against Israel: and they departed from him, and returned to their own land.

This horrible event symbolizes the same action of ‘offering our children on the fire’, which is what we do when we teach our children false doctrine and say that knowing the way of the heathen cultures around us is fine to embrace. Fire can represent doctrine both positively and negatively (Eze 16:21, Jer 10:2, 2Ki 17:17, Jer 5:14, Rev 13:13).

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

negative: Rev 13:13  And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,

Rev 13:14  And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. 

The world does have “great indignation against Israel“, the Israel of God who are hated by all men for his name’s sake (Gal 6:16, Mat 10:22).

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

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.

Finally, brethren, stand on God’s word as Christ did when he was tempted of the devil, and pray for each other that we can endure that process of being tempted of the devil and overcome him, so that he will depart from us (Mat 4:10-11) “and they departed from him, and returned to their own land“.

Mat 4:10  Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
Mat 4:11  Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

Exo 15:1-27  Thou hast Guided them in thy Strength unto thy Holy Habitation

[Study Aired June 27, 2022]

Exo 15:1  Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.
Exo 15:2  The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
Exo 15:3  The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name.
Exo 15:4  Pharaoh’s chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea: his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red sea.
Exo 15:5  The depths have covered them: they sank into the bottom as a stone. 
Exo 15:6  Thy right hand, O LORD, is become glorious in power: thy right hand, O LORD, hath dashed in pieces the enemy. 
Exo 15:7  And in the greatness of thine excellency thou hast overthrown them that rose up against thee: thou sentest forth thy wrath, which consumed them as stubble. 
Exo 15:8  And with the blast of thy nostrils the waters were gathered together, the floods stood upright as an heap, and the depths were congealed in the heart of the sea. 
Exo 15:9  The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; my lust shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them. 
Exo 15:10  Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them: they sank as lead in the mighty waters.
Exo 15:11  Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders? 
Exo 15:12  Thou stretchedst out thy right hand, the earth swallowed them. 
Exo 15:13  Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed: thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation. 
Exo 15:14  The people shall hear, and be afraid: sorrow shall take hold on the inhabitants of Palestina. 
Exo 15:15  Then the dukes of Edom shall be amazed; the mighty men of Moab, trembling shall take hold upon them; all the inhabitants of Canaan shall melt away. 
Exo 15:16  Fear and dread shall fall upon them; by the greatness of thine arm they shall be as still as a stone; till thy people pass over, O LORD, till the people pass over, which thou hast purchased. 
Exo 15:17  Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance, in the place, O LORD, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in, in the Sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have established.
Exo 15:18  The LORD shall reign for ever and ever. 
Exo 15:19  For the horse of Pharaoh went in with his chariots and with his horsemen into the sea, and the LORD brought again the waters of the sea upon them; but the children of Israel went on dry land in the midst of the sea. 
Exo 15:20  And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances. 
Exo 15:21  And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. 
Exo 15:22  So Moses brought Israel from the Red sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water. 
Exo 15:23  And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah. 
Exo 15:24  And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? 
Exo 15:25  And he cried unto the LORD; and the LORD shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them, 
Exo 15:26  And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee. 
Exo 15:27  And they came to Elim, where were twelve wells of water, and threescore and ten palm trees: and they encamped there by the waters. 

This chapter deals with the song of Moses. The Lord’s miraculous deliverance is always followed spontaneously by our praise and worship. Moses and the people of Israel could not help but worship the Lord by singing to the Lord a new song. This song of Moses is actually the song of the Lamb of God – Jesus Christ!!

Psa 96:1  O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth. 
Psa 96:2  Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day. 
Psa 96:3  Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people. 
Psa 96:4  For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods.

When the Israelites were in the promised land and were oppressed by King Jabin of Canaan and Sisera, the captain of his army, the Lord raised up Deborah and Barak to defeat them. Immediately after the great victory, Deborah and Barak worshiped the Lord with this song of praise (Song of Moses):

Jdg 5:1  Then sang Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam on that day, saying, 
Jdg 5:2  Praise ye the LORD for the avenging of Israel, when the people willingly offered themselves. 
Jdg 5:3  Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes; I, even I, will sing unto the LORD; I will sing praise to the LORD God of Israel. 
Jdg 5:4  LORD, when thou wentest out of Seir, when thou marchedst out of the field of Edom, the earth trembled, and the heavens dropped, the clouds also dropped water. 
Jdg 5:5  The mountains melted from before the LORD, even that Sinai from before the LORD God of Israel. 

Incidentally, after we have overcome the flesh after the Lord’s judgment of our old man or the beast, we shall sing this song of Moses on that day!!

Rev 15:2  And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God. 
Rev 15:3  And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. 
Rev 15:4  Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.

Exo 15:1  Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.
Exo 15:2  The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
Exo 15:3  The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name.
Exo 15:4  Pharaoh’s chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea: his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red sea. 
Exo 15:5  The depths have covered them: they sank into the bottom as a stone. 

These verses attest to the fact that the death of the old man, or the beast within, is all the work of the Lord. They are also to assure us that despite the situation in which we find ourselves in this life, if we are called and chosen, then victory will surely be ours. The Lord triumphing gloriously is to let us know that the Lord’s work on our old man is done in a superb fashion.

Psa 107:15  Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! 

The horse and the rider refer to the old man, or the flesh or the beast within. The horse and the rider being thrown into the sea means that the Lord uses the flesh and its works to destroy our flesh. In other words, our own wickedness will correct us.

Jer 51:21  And with thee will I break in pieces the horse and his rider; and with thee will I break in pieces the chariot and his rider;

Jer 2:19  Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.

The destruction of this unsurmountable enemy (our old man) makes the Lord a man of war indeed!! The description of the Lord as a man of war refers to His might and the arsenals at His disposal to deal with our flesh.

Isa 42:13  The LORD shall go forth as a mighty man, he shall stir up jealousy like a man of war: he shall cry, yea, roar; he shall prevail against his enemies.

In verse 2, we come to know the Lord as our strength and song. Being our strength means that we do not have any strength of our own to do anything. This is what it means:

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

The Lord being our song means that He is our object of worship. All our worship is directed towards Him.

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; 

As we have indicated in an earlier series, Pharaoh, his chariots and his army constitute our old man, or the flesh within us. Sinking to the bottom as a stone in verse 5 is to let us know about the gradual process the Lord takes to dismantle our old man. The death of the old man is a process that takes a lifetime. Jesus told us that His perfection came on the third day, which means it was after resurrection that He was perfected. Our perfection is also to be achieved in the first resurrection if the Lord wills!!

Luk 13:32  And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to day and to morrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.

Exo 15:6  Thy right hand, O LORD, is become glorious in power: thy right hand, O LORD, hath dashed in pieces the enemy. 
Exo 15:7  And in the greatness of thine excellency thou hast overthrown them that rose up against thee: thou sentest forth thy wrath, which consumed them as stubble. 
Exo 15:8  And with the blast of thy nostrils the waters were gathered together, the floods stood upright as an heap, and the depths were congealed in the heart of the sea. 
Exo 15:9  The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; my lust shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them. 
Exo 15:10  Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them: they sank as lead in the mighty waters.

These verses focus on the arsenal at the Lord’s disposal to destroy our old man. The weapons identified here are Lord’s right hand, his greatness, his wrath, the blast of his nostrils, his wind and the sea. In the Lord’s right hand are pleasures for evermore. The pleasures relate to His mercies, lovingkindness, protection, grace, etc.

Psa 16:11  Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

Psa 89:13  Thou hast a mighty arm: strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand.

Psa 17:7  Shew thy marvellous lovingkindness, O thou that savest by thy right hand them which put their trust in thee from those that rise up against them.

Psa 18:35  Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy right hand hath holden me up, and thy gentleness hath made me great.

His greatness relates to the fact that it is through Him that everything consists!! Thus, nothing is impossible!!

Col 1:17  And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

Act 17:28  For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.

Although human wrath worketh wickedness, our Lord’s wrath brings us to salvation. His wrath brings us trouble, but it is all part of the process of bringing us to our desired haven.

2Ch 29:8  Wherefore the wrath of the LORD was upon Judah and Jerusalem, and he hath delivered them to trouble, to astonishment, and to hissing, as ye see with your eyes. 

Psa 107:25  For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof. 
Psa 107:26  They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble. 
Psa 107:27  They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end. 
Psa 107:28  Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. 
Psa 107:29  He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.
Psa 107:30  Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven.

The blast of His nostrils is His breath, which is the Spirit of promise. This is the Spirit which empowered the disciples and is empowering us through the baptism of the Holy Spirit to do the work of God.

Act 1:8  But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. 

Act 1:5  For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. 

His wind is all the spiritual resources at the Lord’s disposal. This includes both good and evil spirits.

Rev 7:1  And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.

As we have indicated earlier, the sea represents the flesh and its works. The Lord uses our fleshly works to correct us.

Jer 2:19  Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.

Exo 15:11  Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders? 
Exo 15:12  Thou stretchedst out thy right hand, the earth swallowed them. 

Here we are looking at the incomparability of our Lord. His might and attributes are beyond description. Words cannot be uttered to describe Him completely!!

Psa 86:8  Among the gods there is none like unto thee, O Lord; neither are there any works like unto thy works.

One of His attributes described here is that He is fearful in praises. Our praises are our worship. As we revere or worship our Lord, He does wonders on our behalf. Our worship includes the fruit of the lips in singing His praise but it is principally about how we offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to the Lord.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Exo 15:13  Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed: thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation. 

Our walk with Christ in this world of wilderness is for the purpose of providing the Lord a habitation in our hearts and mind for the Lord to reign in our lives. What we must note here is that it is the Lord’s strength which usurps the old man, or the beast, from the throne of our hearts to make a way for the Lord to come and sit on His throne in our hearts and minds.

Heb 8:1  Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;

Exo 15:14  The people shall hear, and be afraid: sorrow shall take hold on the inhabitants of Palestina.
Exo 15:15  Then the dukes of Edom shall be amazed; the mighty men of Moab, trembling shall take hold upon them; all the inhabitants of Canaan shall melt away.
Exo 15:16  Fear and dread shall fall upon them; by the greatness of thine arm they shall be as still as a stone; till thy people pass over, O LORD, till the people pass over, which thou hast purchased.

The inhabitants of Palestina, the dukes of Edom and the mighty men of Moab, are all describing the old man within each one of us, who must be driven out of our land (bodies) in order for us to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to the Lord. As the Lord starts His work of judging us, which results in the gradual destruction of the old man, it becomes obvious to the old man that his days are numbered in our lives, and therefore, we are gripped with fear and dread because we think that if we lose our lives, then we are doomed. Saul found himself in the same situation with David when David defeated Goliath. The women of Israel started singing that Saul had slain his thousands and David, his ten thousands. Saul was filled with fear and dread as he realized that David would ascend the throne at his expense. Saul represents our old man, and David signifies the new man who is after the image of Christ.

1Sa 18:6  And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of musick.
1Sa 18:7  And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands. 
1Sa 18:8  And Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom? 
1Sa 18:9  And Saul eyed David from that day and forward.

Exo 15:17  Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance, in the place, O LORD, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in, in the Sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have established.
Exo 15:18  The LORD shall reign for ever and ever. 
Exo 15:19  For the horse of Pharaoh went in with his chariots and with his horsemen into the sea, and the LORD brought again the waters of the sea upon them; but the children of Israel went on dry land in the midst of the sea. 

These verses imply that the destruction of the old man, or the flesh within us (Pharaoh, his chariots and army), is a prerequisite to being planted by the Lord in the mountain of His inheritance. The mountain of His inheritance is the same as the Lord’s sanctuary, which is our bodies – hearts and mind. The Lord will ascend the throne of our hearts and mind after usurping the old man and reign forever!!

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.

Exo 15:20  And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances.
Exo 15:21  And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.

Miriam here represents the church of the firstborn or the elect, which is Christ’s body. All the women going after Miriam with timbrels and with dances is to let us know that all the various assemblies of the church of the elect worldwide must worship the Lord for His wonderful works to the children of men. As we have said earlier, our spiritual form of worship to the Lord is to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to the Lord!!

Psa 107:31  Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! 
Psa 107:32  Let them exalt him also in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders. 
Psa 107:33  He turneth rivers into a wilderness, and the watersprings into dry ground; 
Psa 107:34  A fruitful land into barrenness, for the wickedness of them that dwell therein. 
Psa 107:35  He turneth the wilderness into a standing water, and dry ground into watersprings. 
Psa 107:36  And there he maketh the hungry to dwell, that they may prepare a city for habitation; 

Exo 15:22  So Moses brought Israel from the Red sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water.

The Red Sea experience is to let us know as we come out of Babylon that our efforts do not play a role in our salvation. Everything is of the Lord, and all we need to do is to depend on Him through faith as He begins to deal with our enemy (the old man within). The Lord wants us to know our real situation after leaving Babylon as He brings us to Shur where there was no water. The name Shur means wall and so the lack of water of the word of the Lord is like a wall that prevents us from getting access to the word of the Lord. Throughout our stay in Babylon, we did not have access to the word of the Lord which is able to give us an inheritance. This is what our situation was as we leave Babylon:

1Sa 3:1  Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the LORD in the presence of Eli. And the word of the LORD was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision. (ESV)

Amo 8:11  “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord GOD, “when I will send a famine on the land— not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD.

Surprisingly, the famine of the word of the Lord is all part of the Lord’s judgment of our old man. The three days the Israelites spent in the wilderness of Shur without water is to let us know that the judgment of famine is all part of the process of our spiritual maturity.

Eze 14:21  “For thus says the Lord GOD: How much more when I send upon Jerusalem my four disastrous acts of judgment, sword, famine, wild beasts, and pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast!

Exo 15:23  And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah. 
Exo 15:24  And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? 
Exo 15:25  And he cried unto the LORD; and the LORD shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them, 

Again, immediately after our exit from Babylon (Egypt), the Lord wants us to know that during our sojourn in Babylon, what we taught was the truth of the word of the Lord was a polluted word of the Lord, which makes it difficult for us to assimilate. In other words, what we were drinking was bitter water (polluted word of the Lord) making it impossible for us to drink. As we cried to the Lord in our desperation, He heard us and showed us a tree. This tree is Christ, who represents the tree of life. The tree here also symbolizes the elect as shown in the following verses:

Psa 1:1  Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 
Psa 1:2  but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. 
Psa 1:3  He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.  

Psa 52:8  But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever.

Psa 92:12  The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.

It is when the elect is cast into the water that we are enlightened to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of God. The casting of the tree into the water is the same as the stirring of the water which causes our eyes to see and our ears to hear. This tree is the same as the angel, or the elect, who came to stir up the pool called Bethesda in Jerusalem, and whoever was first (the firstfruit) to enter the stirred water got healed of his sickness (sin).

Joh 5:2  Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches. 
Joh 5:3  In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water. 
Joh 5:4  For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had. 

The elect’s experience of being enlightened by the word of the Lord is described in the scriptures as the word being sweet in our mouth when we receive it. That was the experience of the Israelites as they drank water with a tree in it.

Eze 3:1  Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel. 
Eze 3:2  So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll.
Eze 3:3  And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. 

Exo 15:26  And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee. 

The Israelites were made aware right at the very beginning of their journey in the wilderness that if they obey the Lord, then the Lord will not put the diseases the Egyptians experienced on them. This is the same as telling a child learning how to walk that he should not fall down and that if he falls, he will be punished. In saying this, the Lord wants us (the Israelites) to come to see that we cannot, of ourselves, obey the Lord’s commandments. Our failure to obey the Lord also accomplishes the purpose of giving Him the opportunity that He is seeking to come to judge us, since it is through judgment that we learn obedience. The statement, “I am the Lord that healeth thee” is to make us aware that it is the Lord that heals us of our disobedience.

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.
Rom 7:18  For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. 
Rom 7:19  For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. 
Rom 7:20  Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 
Rom 7:21  I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. 
Rom 7:22  For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
Rom 7:23  But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 
Rom 7:24  O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 
Rom 7:25  I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

Exo 15:27  And they came to Elim, where were twelve wells of water, and threescore and ten palm trees: and they encamped there by the waters.

This verse is to point to us our destination (where we are supposed to end up) in this wilderness of the world. Our final destination, after going through the famine of the word of the Lord and drinking polluted water in the churches of Babylon, is the church of the firstborn, signified by Elim, which was an oasis of seventy palm trees and twelve springs of water. The number seventy is seven multiplied by ten (70=7×10). The number seven signifies completeness, and the number ten means the fullness of the flesh. Thus, the seventy palm trees represent the assembly of the complete number of the elect who recognize the fullness of their flesh and are being delivered through the Lord’s judgment. The number twelve is the number of Christ, and so the twelve wells signify the whole counsel of the word of Christ. In other words, the church of the elect is where we have the pillar and ground of the truth!! That is where we are to encamp in this life.

Heb 12:22  But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, 
Heb 12:23  To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 
Heb 12:24  And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel. 
Heb 12:25  See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven: 

1Ti 3:15  But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. 

May the Lord help us so that we do not refuse Him Who speaks to us through what every joint supplies!! Amen!!

Exo 7:1-25 For the Magicians of Egypt Cast Down Their Every Man his Rod, and They Became Serpents

[Study Aired April 25, 2022]

Exo 7:1  And the LORD said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet. 
Exo 7:2  Thou shalt speak all that I command thee: and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he send the children of Israel out of his land. 
Exo 7:3  And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt. 
Exo 7:4  But Pharaoh shall not hearken unto you, that I may lay my hand upon Egypt, and bring forth mine armies, and my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments. 
Exo 7:5  And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch forth mine hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them. 
Exo 7:6  And Moses and Aaron did as the LORD commanded them, so did they. 
Exo 7:7  And Moses was fourscore years old, and Aaron fourscore and three years old, when they spake unto Pharaoh. 
Exo 7:8  And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, 
Exo 7:9  When Pharaoh shall speak unto you, saying, Shew a miracle for you: then thou shalt say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and cast it before Pharaoh, and it shall become a serpent. 
Exo 7:10  And Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and they did so as the LORD had commanded: and Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh, and before his servants, and it became a serpent. 
Exo 7:11  Then Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers: now the magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments. 
Exo 7:12  For they cast down every man his rod, and they became serpents: but Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods. 
Exo 7:13  And he hardened Pharaoh’s heart, that he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said. 
Exo 7:14  And the LORD said unto Moses, Pharaoh’s heart is hardened, he refuseth to let the people go. 
Exo 7:15  Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water; and thou shalt stand by the river’s brink against he come; and the rod which was turned to a serpent shalt thou take in thine hand. 
Exo 7:16  And thou shalt say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath sent me unto thee, saying, Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness: and, behold, hitherto thou wouldest not hear. 
Exo 7:17  Thus saith the LORD, In this thou shalt know that I am the LORD: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood. 
Exo 7:18  And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall lothe to drink of the water of the river. 
Exo 7:19  And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood; and that there may be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone. 
Exo 7:20  And Moses and Aaron did so, as the LORD commanded; and he lifted up the rod, and smote the waters that were in the river, in the sight of Pharaoh, and in the sight of his servants; and all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood. 
Exo 7:21  And the fish that was in the river died; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of the water of the river; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt. 
Exo 7:22  And the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments: and Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them; as the LORD had said. 
Exo 7:23  And Pharaoh turned and went into his house, neither did he set his heart to this also. 
Exo 7:24  And all the Egyptians digged round about the river for water to drink; for they could not drink of the water of the river. 
Exo 7:25  And seven days were fulfilled, after that the LORD had smitten the river.

A key lesson that the Lord takes us through as we walk with Him is for us to learn to depend wholly on Him and not on ourselves. The Lord, therefore, brings us to this point of realizing that all our abilities count nothing in His presence and what counts is to have the faith of Jesus to depend on Him. When we come to this point, then we have found rest in Him.

Joh 5:30  I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.

Joh 14:10  Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.

The Lord’s encounter with Moses in the preceding chapters is to make Moses realize that he can do nothing concerning the Lord’s plan of salvation. Moses learned through his failures that indeed he did not have what it takes to bring the Lord’s people out of bondage. It was all the work of the Lord. Once Moses had learned this lesson, he was ready to confront Pharaoh for the release of the people of God. That is when we see the strong or mighty hand of the Lord in dealing with the beast or the old man signified by Pharoah.

Exo 3:19 And I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not by a mighty hand.
Exo 3:20  And I will stretch out my hand, and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go.

This chapter deals with the strong hand of the Lord in dealing with Pharaoh who signifies the old man or the beast within.

Exo 7:1  And the LORD said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet. 

We are told here that Moses shall be a God to Aaron. What this means is that through us (Moses), salvation shall come to all our brothers and sisters in Babylon and all of humanity, including the Old Testament prophets signified by Aaron.

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.

Heb 11:39  And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:
Heb 11:40  God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.

In another perspective, Moses represents our Lord Jesus Christ, who is God to us, and Aaron stands for the elect. We are the mouthpiece or prophet of our Lord.

2Co 5:20  Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.

Exo 7:2  Thou shalt speak all that I command thee: and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he send the children of Israel out of his land.
Exo 7:3  And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt.

We are reminded here to observe all that the Lord is telling us through His words. We may not see any significant progress regarding the death of the beast within, but we are assured that the Lord’s strong hand, signifying his signs and wonders, is putting the beast within or the old man to death while we walk in this world (land of Egypt). We sometimes get discouraged or frustrated when the old man rears its head in our lives, but here the Lord is telling us that He is the author of all that happens to the beast and its ultimate demise. The Lord is also telling us that the reason the old man’s death is not a one-time event is that it affords the Lord the occasion to confirm to us this great salvation of the Lord through the multiplication of His signs and wonders in our situation. This has the effect of strengthening our faith in Him.

Heb 2:3  How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;
Heb 2:4  God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?

Rom 9:17 For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.
Rom 9:18  Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.

Exo 7:4  But Pharaoh shall not hearken unto you, that I may lay my hand upon Egypt, and bring forth mine armies, and my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments.
Exo 7:5  And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch forth mine hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them.

In verse 4, the Lord was talking to Moses about His strong hand of great judgments to bring forth His armies. This is to let us know that enlisting in the great armies of the Lord entails going through His strong hand of great judgment.

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.

As we shall see later, Pharoah or the beast within could resist the Lord’s word, but he could not resist the Lord’s hand of judgment.

Exo 7:6  And Moses and Aaron did as the LORD commanded them, so did they.
Exo 7:7  And Moses was fourscore years old, and Aaron fourscore and three years old, when they spake unto Pharaoh.

Our call is a call of obedience. If we profess that we love the Lord, then, we must express this love through obedience of His word for our own benefit.

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

In verse 7, we are told that Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron was three years older, when they spoke to Pharaoh. According to the scriptures, being eighty years and over is regarded as an old age where one’s natural strength had failed. So, the mention of Moses and Aaron’s age is to let us know that they had realized that they cannot execute the Lord’s agenda in their “failed natural strength” and cannot discern between what is good and evil or taste what we eat or drink. This means that Moses and Aaron were basically blind and needed help. That is when they found rest in depending on the Lord to do what He had purposed. We all need to be “eighty or over” spiritually to find rest in the Lord.

2Sa 19:32  Now Barzillai was a very aged man, even fourscore years old [eighty]: and he had provided the king of sustenance while he lay at Mahanaim; for he was a very great man.

2Sa 19:35  I am this day fourscore years old [eighty]: and can I discern between good and evil? can thy servant taste what I eat or what I drink? can I hear any more the voice of singing men and singing women? wherefore then should thy servant be yet a burden unto my lord the king?

Jdg 3:30  So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest fourscore years.

Heb 4:9  There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.
Heb 4:10  For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.
Heb 4:11  Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.

Exo 7:9  When Pharaoh shall speak unto you, saying, Shew a miracle for you: then thou shalt say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and cast it before Pharaoh, and it shall become a serpent.
Exo 7:10  And Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and they did so as the LORD had commanded: and Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh, and before his servants, and it became a serpent.

As we have indicated, Pharaoh represents the old man or the flesh. One key characteristic of the flesh is that it puts more premium on signs and wonders or miracles than spiritual reality. It is therefore no wonder that Pharaoh would require a miracle from Moses and Aaron. Jesus, knowing the flesh, made the following statement about how we cherish signs and wonders when we are dominated by the flesh:

Mat 16:4  A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed.

1Co 1:22  For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:
1Co 1:23  But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness;

Knowing this, the evil one always comes to deceive us with signs and wonders.

2Th 2:9  Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
2Th 2:10  And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

As we indicated in prior studies, the rod that Aaron held is Christ. To cast to the ground means to destroy as used in the following:

2Sa 8:2  And he smote Moab, and measured them with a line, casting them down to the ground; even with two lines measured he to put to death, and with one full line to keep alive. And so the Moabites became David’s servants, and brought gifts.

Thus, Aaron casting down the rod is the same as showing how the flesh of Christ was destroyed, resulting in a resurrected Christ who is able to save us. This is the fiery serpent who is able to save us.

Num 21:8  And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
Num 21:9  And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.

This means that the serpent resulting from the rod being cast by Aaron is the resurrected Christ who is able to save us as we look up to Him. However, to those who are not given to know Christ in this life, this serpent, who is the resurrected Christ, rather darkens their understanding. As we shall see in verse 13, Pharaoh, representing the flesh, became hardened by the rod of Moses turning into a serpent.

Exo 7:11  Then Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers: now the magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments.
Exo 7:12  For they cast down every man his rod, and they became serpents: but Aaron’s rod swallowed up their rods.
Exo 7:13  And he hardened Pharaoh’s heart, that he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said.

The wise men and the sorcerers, collectively called the magicians of Egypt, represent the leaders in Babylon. They also represent what Paul calls the disputers of this world.

1Co 1:20  Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
1Co 1:21  For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

The casting down of the rod of these magicians of Egypt and the turning of their rods into serpents before Moses and Aaron is to let us know that all that is in the world and in Babylon is under the spell of the devil who is represented here as a serpent.

Joh 8:44  Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

Just as Christ stands for the word of God or truth, the devil or Satan or the serpent is synonymous with deception or lies (man’s wisdom). The rods of the magicians therefore represent lies. As indicated, the serpent from the rod of Aaron stands for Christ who is the truth. Aaron’s rod swallowing up the rods of the magicians of the Egyptians means that where the truth of the word of the Lord is, lies are expelled. Another way of saying this is that where there is light, darkness is expelled.

Joh 14:6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Joh 1:4  In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
Joh 1:5 And the light [Truth] shineth in darkness [Lies]; and the darkness [Lies] comprehended it not.

The hardening of Pharaoh’s heart in verse 13 is the same as saying that in the camp of the Egyptians or Babylon, the light of Christ is a cloud and darkness to them.

Exo 14:19  And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them:
Exo 14:20 And it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was a cloud and darkness to them, but it gave light by night to these: so that the one came not near the other all the night.

1Co 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
1Co 1:19 For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.

Exo 7:14  And the LORD said unto Moses, Pharaoh’s heart is hardened, he refuseth to let the people go.

The Lord telling Moses that the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart, resulting in his refusal to let the people of Israel go, is to let us know that the old man or the beast within (Pharaoh) is a formidable opposition who would not die without a fight. This old man or the beast within is the great mountain spoken off by the Lord to Zerubbabel that its removal is not by might nor power but by the spirit of the Lord (the word of Christ).

Zec 4:6  Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.
Zec 4:7  Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it.
Zec 4:8  Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
Zec 4:9  The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you [The Lord who starts knows how to finish].

Zechariah chapter 4:7 shows us that it is through the chastening grace that this mountain (old man) becomes a plain (dies).

Exo 7:15  Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water; and thou shalt stand by the river’s brink against he come; and the rod which was turned to a serpent shalt thou take in thine hand.
Exo 7:16  And thou shalt say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath sent me unto thee, saying, Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness: and, behold, hitherto thou wouldest not hear.

Pharaoh going out to the water in the morning is to let us know the water with which our old man or the beast within is familiar. This water is the water of Egypt or Babylon which is the lies or the deception of the devil, which seems like the truth but does not satisfy. As Jesus said, when we are hooked to this water, we continually will go for more lies to cover up initial lies. This is the water that our old man is acquainted with. The old man cannot accept the truth which destroys it. This is the water that we have imbibed in our lives until Christ came to us with His word of Truth.

Joh 4:13  Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again:
Joh 4:14  But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

In verse 15, the Lord commands us to stand at the brink of the river with the rod in hand. As indicated, this rod is Christ. To stand at the brink is to overcome this river of lies with the truth. Thus, it is when Christ comes to us (having the rod in hand) we can overcome this river of lies. That is the time that we are able to withstand the resistance of the beast or the old man within (verse 16).

Exo 7:17  Thus saith the LORD, In this thou shalt know that I am the LORD: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood. 
Exo 7:18  And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall lothe to drink of the water of the river. 
Exo 7:19  And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood; and that there may be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone.

As indicated, this river of the world and Babylon represents the false doctrines in our heavens. The river turning into blood is to show us the true nature of the doctrines we receive in Babylon. It is when the rod is used to smite the waters that it turns into blood. This is another way of saying that it is when Christ comes to us with His words (brightness) that we see that we are all murderers of the Lord and His elect, thinking we are doing God a service.  This does not mean that we physically killed anybody. However, resisting the words of the Lord and that of His elect or hating the Lord and His elect all amount to killing them.

1Jn 3:15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.

Joh 16:2  They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God.
Joh 16:3  And they will do these things because they have not known the Father, nor me.

Luk 11:49  Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute:
Luk 11:50  That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation;
Luk 11:51  From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.

We are first vessels of wood and hay before we become vessels of precious stones. This means that verse 19 saying that blood must be found in both vessels of wood and stone is to confirm the fact that we are guilty of the death of Christ and His elect.

1Co 3:12  Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
1Co 3:13  Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.

Exo 7:20  And Moses and Aaron did so, as the LORD commanded; and he lifted up the rod, and smote the waters that were in the river, in the sight of Pharaoh, and in the sight of his servants; and all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood.
Exo 7:21  And the fish that was in the river died; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of the water of the river; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.

The effect of drinking from this water of blood is that we die, just like fish die in polluted water. Dying, spiritually, means that we are alienated from the life of Christ. Fish symbolize humanity.

Mat 4:19  And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.

Another way of saying that we die from this water of Egypt is that we become worse off than when we even started our walk with Christ.

2Pe 2:17  These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever.
2Pe 2:18  For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, 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.

Exo 7:22  And the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments: and Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them; as the LORD had said.
Exo 7:23  And Pharaoh turned and went into his house, neither did he set his heart to this also.

The magicians of Egypt turning their water into blood by their own enchantment is what hardened Pharaoh’s heart such that he refused to let the people of Israel go. Another way of saying that the magicians of Egypt did the same thing is by saying that the beast does great wonders and deceives them that dwell on the earth by means of miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast.

Rev 13:11  And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.
Rev 13:12  And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
Rev 13:13  And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
Rev 13:14  And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.

Exo 7:24  And all the Egyptians digged round about the river for water to drink; for they could not drink of the water of the river.
Exo 7:25  And seven days were fulfilled, after that the LORD had smitten the river.

The digging around for water is what has created several religious bodies with each digging their own water.

Isa 4:1  And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach.

The fact that it took seven days after the Lord had smitten the river is to let us know that it takes a complete period of time in our walk with Christ to realize our guilt for the death of our Lord Jesus Christ and His prophets.

Exodus 2:1–25 When She saw him that he was a Goodly Child, She hid him Three Months

[Study Aired March 14, 2022]

Exo 2:1  And there went a man of the house of Levi, and took to wife a daughter of Levi. 
Exo 2:2  And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a goodly child, she hid him three months. 
Exo 2:3  And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the river’s brink. 
Exo 2:4  And his sister stood afar off, to wit what would be done to him. 
Exo 2:5  And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river; and her maidens walked along by the river’s side; and when she saw the ark among the flags, she sent her maid to fetch it. 
Exo 2:6  And when she had opened it, she saw the child: and, behold, the babe wept. And she had compassion on him, and said, This is one of the Hebrews’ children. 
Exo 2:7  Then said his sister to Pharaoh’s daughter, Shall I go and call to thee a nurse of the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for thee? 
Exo 2:8  And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, Go. And the maid went and called the child’s mother. 
Exo 2:9  And Pharaoh’s daughter said unto her, Take this child away, and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages. And the woman took the child, and nursed it. 
Exo 2:10  And the child grew, and she brought him unto Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. And she called his name Moses: and she said, Because I drew him out of the water. 
Exo 2:11  And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens: and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren. 
Exo 2:12  And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand. 
Exo 2:13  And when he went out the second day, behold, two men of the Hebrews strove together: and he said to him that did the wrong, Wherefore smitest thou thy fellow? 
Exo 2:14  And he said, Who made thee a prince and a judge over us? intendest thou to kill me, as thou killedst the Egyptian? And Moses feared, and said, Surely this thing is known. 
Exo 2:15  Now when Pharaoh heard this thing, he sought to slay Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh, and dwelt in the land of Midian: and he sat down by a well. 
Exo 2:16  Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters: and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. 
Exo 2:17  And the shepherds came and drove them away: but Moses stood up and helped them, and watered their flock. 
Exo 2:18  And when they came to Reuel their father, he said, How is it that ye are come so soon to day? 
Exo 2:19  And they said, An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and also drew water enough for us, and watered the flock. 
Exo 2:20  And he said unto his daughters, And where is he? why is it that ye have left the man? call him, that he may eat bread. 
Exo 2:21  And Moses was content to dwell with the man: and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter. 
Exo 2:22  And she bare him a son, and he called his name Gershom: for he said, I have been a stranger in a strange land. 
Exo 2:23  And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage. 
Exo 2:24  And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 
Exo 2:25  And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God had respect unto them.

The previous chapter deals with the Israelites undergoing hard labor in Egypt and Pharaoh charging all his people to cast the sons born to the Hebrew women into the river but sparing every daughter born. As we indicated, a son represents the elect, and a daughter signifies the church – the physical churches of this world or Jerusalem which is above, which is the mother of us all. Pharaoh here denotes the devil or the beast within, and Pharaoh’s people here are the false apostles and deceitful workers.

2Co 11:13  For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. 
2Co 11:14  And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. 
2Co 11:15  Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.

Casting every son into the river is the same as deceiving the elect through false doctrines of man’s wisdom. The devil had accomplished this successfully at a certain point in our lives as we filled our heavens with false doctrines and in so doing blocked the glorious gospel of Christ which is able to save us.

2Co 4:3  But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:
2Co 4:4  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

Saving every daughter alive is another way of saying that the physical churches of this world were given two wings of a great eagle, to fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.

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.

Rev 12:14  And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.

It was during this circumstance of the Israelites that Moses was born to a Levite couple as follows:

Exo 2:1  And there went a man of the house of Levi, and took to wife a daughter of Levi. 
Exo 2:2  And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a goodly child, she hid him three months. 

These verses talk about our predestination. It is significant to know that Moses’ birth was accomplished through two Levites. As we are aware, it is through the Levites that there is the priesthood and the work of the tabernacle in the wilderness. If Moses had been born outside the tribe of Levi, Moses would not have been qualified to act as an intermediary between God and the people of Israel. This is all to show us the fact that before the world began, we had been called and chosen just like Moses.

Our backgrounds and all that we have gone through to date, are all the Lord’s design to bring us to an expected end. This should give us the confidence that our Lord oversees our circumstances and will bring to pass that which is written of us according to His books. It is therefore not what we can do, but what the Lord will do for us!! All we must do is believe in Jesus whom our Father has sent!!

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.

Psa 139:13  For thou didst form my inward parts: Thou didst cover me in my mother’s womb.
Psa 139:14  I will give thanks unto thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: Wonderful are thy works; And that my soul knoweth right well.
Psa 139:15  My frame was not hidden from thee, When I was made in secret, And curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. 
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.
Psa 139:17  How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! How great is the sum of them!

Joh 6:28  They said therefore unto him, What must we do, that we may work the works of God?
Joh 6:29  Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

The fact that the parents saw Moses was a goodly child when he was born is all to confirm the called and chosen status of Moses who represents the elect. His parents hiding him for three months is to let us know that even though we are called and chosen, it is through the process of judgment that we become spiritually mature or complete. Hiding Moses for three months also means that our status as the Lord’s elect and the process we go through to become His Christ are all hidden from the world, including the churches of this world. In short, the world would never know us as we are hidden in the Lord’s quiver until that day, when the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ!!

Isa 49:2  and he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me: and he hath made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he kept me close:

Exo 2:3  And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the river’s brink.
Exo 2:4  And his sister stood afar off, to wit what would be done to him.

These verses are to show us how we should walk here on earth as the Lord’s elect. We must live above or insulate ourselves from the river of Egypt which consists of the water of this world and that of the physical churches of this world. The water of this world consists of the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, the pride of life and rudiments of this world. That which is of the physical churches of this world is the false doctrines of man’s wisdom.

1Jn 2:15  Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
1Jn 2:16  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the vainglory of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
1Jn 2:17  And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

Col 2:8  Take heed lest there shall be any one that maketh spoil of you through his philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ:

Heb 13:9  Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein.

Just as the mother of Moses ensured that Moses was kept afloat on the river Nile, the role of the church is to help us all stay above the waters of this world and that of Babylon through what every joint supplies. Verse 4 shows us that Moses’ sister was at hand to give a helping hand so that Moses is not drawn in the river. This is also to emphasize the role of the church in helping us live for Christ. Moses’ sister also represents all the fleshly assistance or provision that the Lord has made available to the elect in this life.

Isa 60:5  Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.

On a positive note, this river represents the word of the Lord. When we are children in Christ or have just started our walk with Christ (represented by Moses being a child), we only float on the surface and are confined to the brink of the water which represents the letter of the word. We are not given to know the spiritual reality of the word of Christ. In that case, Moses’ sister negatively represents Babylon whose role is to confine us to the letter of the word.

2Co 3:6  Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.

Exo 2:5  And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river; and her maidens walked along by the river’s side; and when she saw the ark among the flags, she sent her maid to fetch it.

As indicated in the comments on the previous verses, the river of Egypt has also a positive connotation of being the word of Christ. It is in this river that the daughter of Pharaoh goes down to wash. The daughter of Pharaoh here stands for the New Jerusalem or Jerusalem which is above, which is the mother of us all, and we are cleansed or washed by the river of life. The maidens walking by the river side lets us know that we are called to the lost house of Israel or Babylon to fetch them from floating on the river surface or living at the brink of the river.

Mat 15:24  But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Exo 2:6  And when she had opened it, she saw the child: and, behold, the babe wept. And she had compassion on him, and said, This is one of the Hebrews’ children. 

One of the qualities the Lord is inculcating in us in this life is having compassion for others. This was the quality that enabled the daughter of Pharaoh to make Moses her son. This is what the Lord has to say to us about this:

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.

Exo 2:7  Then said his sister to Pharaoh’s daughter, Shall I go and call to thee a nurse of the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for thee? 
Exo 2:8  And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, Go. And the maid went and called the child’s mother. 

As indicated earlier, on a positive note, Moses’ sister is a symbol of all the fleshly assistance or provision that the Lord has made available to the elect in this life so that we end up in Pharaoh’s house or the New Jerusalem. The same is true of Moses’ mother.

Isa 60:5  Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.

Exo 2:9  And Pharaoh’s daughter said unto her, Take this child away, and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages. And the woman took the child, and nursed it.

Before we end up in the King’s house or in the New Jerusalem, we, the elect, are taken care of by the physical fleshly churches of this world symbolized by Moses’ mother.  A significant fact about this is that this caretaker role of Babylon regarding the elect is not free. The churches receive wages as indicated by Pharaoh’s daughter giving wages to Moses’ mother to take care of Moses. As we know, freely we have received and freely must we give. However, that is not what happens in the churches. Every service offered must be paid for. As the Lord said, they have received their reward already!!

Mat 10:8  Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give. 

Mat 6:1  Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. 
Mat 6:2  Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

Exo 2:10  And the child grew, and she brought him unto Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. And she called his name Moses: and she said, Because I drew him out of the water.

Moses’ life in Egypt is recounted as part of Stephen’s speech when he was brought before the council to answer the false charges brought against him. Thus, to understand these verses, there is the need to put the account by Stephen side by side to this Exodus account as they reveal certain details not found in the Exodus account. This is Stephen’s account:

Act 7:21  And when he was cast out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him up, and nourished him for her own son. 
Act 7:22  And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds.

On a negative note, we grow up in Egypt learning all the wisdom of this world or Egypt and become mighty in words and in deeds thinking we hold our destiny in this life in our own hands. However, we are no match to the devil or the beast within.

On a positive note, we are rescued from the river of Egypt and brought up by Pharaoh’s daughter who signifies the New Jerusalem. Also positive, the wisdom of the Egyptians that we learn is the wisdom the Lord has given us in this world, which is the fear of the Lord. Through this fear of the Lord which becomes our portion through the word of Christ, we become mighty in opposing the works of darkness in our lives.

Pro 9:10  The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.

Exo 2:11  And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens: and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren. 
Exo 2:12  And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand.

Stephen’s account of these verses is as follows:

Act 7:23  And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel. 
Act 7:24  And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian: 
Act 7:25  For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them: but they understood not.

The statement in Exodus chapter 2 verse 11 that it was when Moses had grown that he went out unto his brethren lets us know that it was when Moses was forty years that he visited the Israelites knowing that God had called him to deliver them from the hands of the Egyptians. Moses being forty years was significant because forty in the negative context symbolizes the period in our lives where we manifest the works of the flesh.

1Sa 17:4  And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. 

1Sa 17:16  And the Philistine drew near morning and evening, and presented himself forty days.

Psa 95:10  Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways:

This is all to let us know that even while we were manifesting the works of the flesh, our Lord had penciled us out to be the source of salvation for many. The Egyptian smiting the Hebrew here signifies the old man or the beast’s dominance over us. Moses slaying the Egyptian is another way of saying that one of the heads of the beast within was wounded to death. Hiding the body of the Egyptian in the sand is to let us know the temporariness of the wound meted out to the beast within. This deadly wound heals, and we are back to square one. This narrative is also to make us aware that Moses was relying on his own fleshly strength (signified by forty years) to deal with the beast within and all his efforts were in vain as we shall see the story unfold. However, it is the work of the Lord to deal with the beast within permanently on our behalf. As indicated earlier, all we have to do in this battle against the flesh is to believe in Jesus whom the Father has sent!!

Rev 13:3  And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
Rev 13:4  And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? 

Exo 2:13  And when he went out the second day, behold, two men of the Hebrews strove together: and he said to him that did the wrong, Wherefore smitest thou thy fellow? 
Exo 2:14  And he said, Who made thee a prince and a judge over us? intendest thou to kill me, as thou killedst the Egyptian? And Moses feared, and said, Surely this thing is known. 

These two verses show us the fiery word of the Lord which set into motion our (Moses’) exit from Egypt. Our exit from the world to start serving the Lord is not achieved by our own decision at ease. We all rush to leave because of tribulation and persecution of the word of Christ.

Joh 15:18  If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.
Joh 15:19  If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

The second day that Moses went to visit the Israelites served as a witness to confirm to Him that the Lord had indeed made him a deliverer, that is, prince and a judge over the Israelites as spoken by the Israelite who was striving with his neighbor.

Act 7:27  But he that did his neighbour wrong thrust him away, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us?

This verse affirms to us the reward awaiting us!! Indeed, when this world becomes the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, we shall become rulers with Christ. Later in the lake of fire age, we shall sit on thrones to judge the whole world!!

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

Rev 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.

Exo 2:15  Now when Pharaoh heard this thing, he sought to slay Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh, and dwelt in the land of Midian: and he sat down by a well.

As we indicated, Pharoah here represents the beast within, and Moses signifies the saints or the elect. It is when the deadly wound of the beast (the killing of the Egyptian) is healed that he makes war with the saints to overcome them.

Rev 13:3  And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. 

Rev 13:7  And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.

It is significant to know that Moses fled from Pharaoh and went to the land of Midian. Midian means ‘strife’. Thus, our long, drawn-out war or strife with the beast does not stop when we leave Egypt or the world. Rather, our leaving Egypt signals the intensity of this strife. It is also insightful to know that when Moses went to the land of Midian, he sat down by a well of water. Our refuge in these times of strife is Christ or the word of Christ. That is what will ensure our victory over Pharaoh (the beast)!!

Joh 15:3  Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.

Exo 2:16  Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters: and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock.

This is the second time that a priest is named who is not an Israelite. The first one was in Genesis where Abraham met Melchizedek, and this priest of Midian is the second one. This second priest, who became the father-in-law of Moses, is a witness to us that our Lord’s plan of salvation includes us, the gentile, right from the very onset. It is also to let us know that the Lord will save all humanity as He always starts with few people (the nation of Israel) and through these few people (Israel), extends His salvation to cover all nations.

Eph 2:11  Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands; 
Eph 2:12  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: 
Eph 2:13  But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. 
Eph 2:14  For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;

The seven daughters represent the complete churches of this world. The verse here talks about the role of the church. That is, to draw water to quench the thirst of our father’s flock. As we are aware, the water is the word of Christ and our role is to give the flock the water of the word.

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

Exo 2:17  And the shepherds came and drove them away: but Moses stood up and helped them, and watered their flock. 

These shepherds signify pastors and leaders of the physical churches of this world called Babylon. Instead of helping quench the thirst of the flock with the word of Christ, which is able to save us, they rather prevent the flock from accessing the living water. This is what the Lord Jesus had to say about these shepherds:

Mat 23:4  For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. 
Mat 23:5  But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, 

Mat 23:13  But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.

Again, this is what Peter and Jude had to say about these shepherds:

2Pe 2:17  These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever. 
2Pe 2:18  For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, 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. 

Jud 1:10  But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves. 
Jud 1:11  Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core. 
Jud 1:12  These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; 
Jud 1:13  Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.

Moses symbolizes the elect. After escaping from Egypt or the world, we had so much zeal to help quench the thirst of the churches as we saw Moses help water the flock of the seven daughters and stood up against the shepherds. In this case, our zeal was without knowledge as we had not yet had an encounter with the Lord, just like Moses. In Babylon, we begin to see that these shepherds are not doing the right things and so we stand up against them. In the fullness of time, however, this standing up against these shepherds will facilitate our exit from Babylon.

Rom 10:2  For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. 
Rom 10:3  For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. 
Rom 10:4  For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. 

Exo 2:18  And when they came to Reuel their father, he said, How is it that ye are come so soon to day?
Exo 2:19  And they said, An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and also drew water enough for us, and watered the flock.
Exo 2:20  And he said unto his daughters, And where is he? why is it that ye have left the man? call him, that he may eat bread.

Moses here is described as an Egyptian, as he was likely wearing an Egyptian cloth. This Egyptian cloth is the world’s standard of righteousness based on the law. In another perspective, what these seven daughters, who represent the churches of this world, said about Moses being an Egyptian is to let us know how the churches regard us. They think the Lord’s elect are spiritually dead as being an Egyptian means being of the world.

Rev 11:8  And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

The father of the seven daughters, Reuel, in these verses signifies Christ who is inviting us to come and eat bread, which is His words immediately after leaving Egypt. Unfortunately, because at that stage of our walk we have not had an encounter with the Lord to know His voice, we are not able to decipher between the true word of the Lord and false doctrines of man’s wisdom. In our hunger, we come into the churches of this world imbibing all the false doctrines given to us.

Exo 2:21  And Moses was content to dwell with the man: and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter.
Exo 2:22  And she bare him a son, and he called his name Gershom: for he said, I have been a stranger in a strange land.

On a positive note, as Christ comes to dwell in us, His gift to us is the body of Christ or the church of the first born, which is represented here by Zipporah who was given to Moses as wife. It is through the church that we can give birth to the new man in us who is after the image of Christ. It is the birth of this new man in us that we come to see that indeed, we are strangers here on earth.

Heb 11:13  These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
Heb 11:14  For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country.
Heb 11:15  And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. 
Heb 11:16  But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.

Exo 2:23  And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage.

If we are called and chosen, then in the fullness of time the king of Egypt, signifying one of the horns of the beast within, will be uprooted. However, we continue to be under the dominance of the beast within. This verse is to let us know, therefore, that the death of the old man is a process and during this period of being under the burden of sin, we groan. The good news is that in all of this, our Lord hears our groaning which means He is working out a great deliverance on our behalf.

2Ki 20:5  Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of my people, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the LORD.

Exo 2:24  And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob.
Exo 2:25  And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God had respect unto them.

The Lord hearing their groaning and remembering His covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is another way of saying that because He has chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, we should be holy and without blame, He hears our cry of desperation from bondage to sin.

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.

In verse 25, it is stated that the Lord looked upon the Israelites and had respect for them. A better rendition of this verse is:

Exo 2:25  and because he knew what was happening to his people, he felt sorry for them. (CEV)

Our Lord feels what we go through. To be our High Priest, He experienced all that we were to go through first except sin, so that He can be merciful to us as we strive under the burden of sin.

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.