Matthew 4:1-25 Jesus’ Temptation and the Beginning of His Ministry

[Study Aired March 17, 2025]

Introduction

Today’s study is about the temptation that Jesus went through before the start of His ministry. It also includes the teaching work he undertook, the places he preached, and the subject he preached. The chapter concludes with His calling of disciples, Peter and Andrew, James and John and the miracles He wrought in the lives of the people and the resulting crowd that His ministry attracted.

The Temptation of Jesus

Mat 4:1  Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. 
Mat 4:2  And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred. 

Jesus being led up of the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil indicates that the temptation by the devil we go through in this life is part of the grand design of the Lord. If we are to become overcomers, then it means that we need to have victory over the devil who operates through our flesh. The fact that Jesus had to go to the wilderness to be tempted by the devil implies that the devil operates best in an environment where there is the absence of the truth of the word of the Lord. It also means that our victory over the devil is through knowing the truth of the word of the Lord. As we are aware, Jesus is the word of the Lord, and therefore there was no way that Jesus could have been defeated by the devil.

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

1Co 15:57  But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (the word of God). 

The number forty represents our trials. Jesus fasting for forty days and forty nights is to show us that we must deny ourselves or die daily if we are to overcome the onslaught of the devil. 

Mat 16:24  Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
Mat 16:25  For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.
Mat 16:26 For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

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

Jesus feeling hungry after the fast is to show us that it is our point of weakness which serves as the pedestal for the devil to attack us. However, it is in our point of weakness that we are made strong. 

2Co 12:9  And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 
2Co 12:10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

The question that comes to mind is that “Should we fast even as our Lord Jesus fasted?” To answer this question, I will refer to part of what Brother Mike posted on the website about fasting.

The last time chronologically that fasting is mentioned in the New Testament is in Acts 27. Paul is in the process of being delivered to Caesar, and the Lord has brought Paul and all on the ship with him to death’s door. All “276 souls,” have endured being tormented by the perception of being hopelessly lost at sea in the mist of a terrible storm:

Act 27:19 And the third day we cast out with our own hands the tackling of the ship.
Act 27:20 And when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken away.

How many days?

Act 27:33 And while the day was coming on, Paul besought them all to take meat, saying, This day is the fourteenth day that ye have tarried and continued fasting, having taken nothing.
Act 27:34 Wherefore I pray you to take some meat: for this is for your health: for there shall not an hair fall from the head of any of you.
Act 27:35 And when he had thus spoken, he took bread, and gave thanks to God in presence of them all: and when he had broken it, he began to eat.
Act 27:36 Then were they all of good cheer, and they also took some meat.
Act 27:37 And we were in all in the ship two hundred threescore and sixteen souls.

Under such dire circumstances, why would Paul tell these people to “be of good cheer?”

Act 27:22 And now I exhort you to be of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man’s life among you, but of the ship.
Act 27:23 For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve,
Act 27:24 Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee.
Act 27:25 Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me.

“All hope that we should be saved had been taken away.” All on board were fasting. I seriously doubt that their reason was ‘to be seen of men.’ Their very hope of life was taken away. They were ‘afflicting their souls’ and denying their flesh. To these lost souls, their “bridegroom had been taken away from them.” Just as with the disciples of Christ, the outward circumstances seemed to be clear. Three and one half years of casting out demons, healing the sick and feeding thousands were all for nothing. Where was their Savior right now? “All hope that we should be saved was taken away.” This is the time to afflict one’s soul:

Luk 5:35 But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days.

We might think that Paul’s faith was not being tried through all of this. How little do we understand the pulls of the flesh upon the Son of God Himself:

Mat 27:46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

It seemed at that moment, even to our Savior Himself, that His ‘bridegroom had been taken away.’ Would the apostle Paul have had more faith than our Lord? No, Paul was given the assurance by the angel because he needed that assurance to stand up under the circumstances that seemed to all 276 people on board that ship, that “all hope that we should be saved was then taken away.” This is the experience not just of our Lord. Neither is this experience just for His apostles, like the apostle Paul. This experience of having “all hope that we should be saved… taken away” is common to all of God’s elect. It is a time for “afflicting our souls.” But let us never forget this Truth:

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

The Words of Christ concerning ‘fasting’ and ‘afflicting your soul’ are as spiritual as any words of scripture. So what, in the final analysis, is the fast that God wants of us all? How would He have us to spiritually ‘afflict our souls?’ How spiritually should we ‘deny ourselves… and die daily’ to the things of the flesh?

Isa 58:4 Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high.
Isa 58:5 Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the LORD?
Isa 58:6 Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?
Isa 58:7 Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?
Isa 58:8 Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the LORD shall be thy rereward.

There it is. “This is the fast that I have chosen…” This is the fast that God really wants. This is “a day for a man to afflict his soul.” This is the ‘fast’ that God would prefer for either David or for us. And what is this spiritual fasting and affliction of the soul?

“... This is the fast that I have chosen. To loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke! … To deal bread to the hungry… bring the poor that are cast out into your house… when you see the naked, you cover him… and hide not yourself from your own flesh.”

Mat 4:3  And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. 
Mat 4:4  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. 

Here in verse 3 the devil is called the tempter. This name refers to the role the devil plays in tempting us to sin against the Lord. In Isaiah 54:16, the devil also plays the role of blowing the coals in the fire. That is to say that he is the one whom the Lord uses to judge us as we can see from the story of Job.

Isa 54:16  Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy. 
Isa 54:17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD. 

This temptation of Jesus Christ is parallel to the temptation in the garden of Eden. In the case of Adam and Eve, they failed woefully because they did not do what the Lord told them to do – that is, they were not to eat of the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden.  

Gen 3:2  And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 
Gen 3:3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 

In the case of Jesus Christ, His victory was in focusing on what God has commanded. His response to the devil that man shall not eat by bread alone but by every word that comes out of the mouth of God means that our focus should be on fulfilling every word of the Lord. This temptation of Jesus by the devil highlights the lust of the flesh – turning stones to bread to satisfy the flesh. Spiritually, turning stones to bread is seeing the Lord’s people (stones) as opportunity to physical riches. The churches of this world have emphasized the Levitical priesthood, which is of the Law of Moses, to enrich themselves at the expense of the Lord’s children.

1Pe 2:5  Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. 

Jer 2:26  As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets,

Jer 5:31  The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?

Mat 4:5  Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, 
Mat 4:6  And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. 
Mat 4:7  Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. 

This temptation has to do with the pride of life. The desire to have people come to worship, minister to us and attracting attention to ourselves by what we do is a temptation that has plagued many of the Lord’s people. Here the devil quoted the scripture to substantiate his request for the Lord to yield to this temptation. In response, the Lord also quoted the scripture to counter the devil. In this instance, if Jesus leapt without God’s word, He would be tempting God.  The churches of this world is filled with many who are tempting God by their advertisement about crusades and church services that promised the people of their miraculous healing and financial breakthrough. Their motive pertains to the pride of life. Initially, at the beginning of the church, the disciples performed signs and wonders to attest to the resurrection power of the Lord Jesus. However, over time the Lord cut back on signs and wonders. Statements made by Paul in leaving Trophimus in Miletus sick, and telling Timothy to drink wine which would help alleviate his stomach troubles are all to show us that serving the Lord is not about signs and wonders. Of course, the Lord raising us from the dead and making us His sons and daughters is the greatest miracle that can happen to us.

2Ti 4:20  Erastus abode at Corinth: but Trophimus have I left at Miletum sick.

1Ti 5:23  Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach’s sake and thine often infirmities.      

Mat 4:8  Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; 
Mat 4:9  And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. 
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. 

This temptation pertains to the lust of the eyes. That is, what we see and want. What the Lord is demonstrating to us is that we should focus on serving the Lord alone and not to be distracted by the glamor of leadership in this world which has the footprint of the devil. As the Lord told us, our kingdom does not belong to this world.  

Joh 18:36  Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence. 

As indicated earlier, the temptation of Jesus is similar to what happened to Adam and Eve. The temptation consists of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life as shown in the following:

Gen 3:6  And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. 

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 pride 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 forever. 

The angels coming to minister to Christ is the same as our brothers and sisters who come to minister to us at our point of need.

Heb 1:13  But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool? 
Heb 1:14 Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?

Jesus Begins His Ministry

Mat 4:12  Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee; 
Mat 4:13  And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim: 

The arrest of John the Baptist initiated the ministry of Jesus because it signaled the end of John’s role as the forerunner and the beginning of Jesus’ own public ministry. John the Baptist said concerning Christ “He must increase, but I must decrease.” The arrest of John commenced the fading light of his ministry and the simultaneous rise of the Lord Jesus Christ, our daystar.

Joh 3:30  He must increase, but I must decrease. 
Joh 3:31 He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all. 

Galilee was the boyhood home of Jesus Christ. It was historically known among the Jews as “Galilee of the Gentiles.” Galilee had such a mixed population that Solomon could award unashamedly to Hiram, king of Tyre, twenty of its cities in payment for timber from Lebanon.

1Ki 9:11  (Now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar trees and fir trees, and with gold, according to all his desire,) that then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee. 

After conquest by the king of Assyria, Galilee was repopulated by a colony of heathen immigrants. For this reason many Jews despised the Galileans. Nazareth was part of Galilee. No wonder Nathaniel asked contemptuously, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” All the disciples of Jesus, with the exception of Judas Iscariot, came from Galilee. It was in Cana of Galilee that He performed His first miracle. Capernaum in Galilee became the headquarters of His ministry. 

2Ki 15:29  In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, and took Ijon, and Abelbethmaachah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and carried them captive to Assyria. 

2Ki 17:24  And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava, and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof. 

Mat 4:14  That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, 
Mat 4:15  The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; 
Mat 4:16  The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up. 
Mat 4:17  From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.  

It was when we were in darkness that Jesus came into our lives to give us hope. The first step in our deliverance is repentance from sin. That is why Jesus reiterated the message of John the Baptist about repentance from our sins because the kingdom of heaven is at hand. This process of establishing the kingdom of heaven within starts with repentance from sin. It is through repentance that times of refreshing come to us from the presence of the Lord. 

Act 3:19  Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;

Act 17:30 And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent:

Jesus Calls the First Disciples

Mat 4:18  And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. 
Mat 4:19  And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. 
Mat 4:20  And they straightway left their nets, and followed him. 
Mat 4:21  And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them. 
Mat 4:22  And they immediately left the ship and their father, and followed him. 

Here Jesus called the first four of the disciples to become His followers – Peter, Andrew, James and John. The fact that they were four suggests that the whole of the Lord’s elect are chosen through the same means. In other words, we were minding our own business when Jesus came on the scene and caused us to follow Him. Although our conversion may seem like something that happened on the spur of the moment, we know that we were marked for salvation even before the foundation of the world.

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.  

Here in these verses, we are shown our role as the Lord’s elect in this age. In following our Lord Jesus Christ, we shall become fishers of men, just as Peter and Andrew were casting their net into the sea when the Lord called them to become fishers of men. The fact that they were two (Peter and Andrew) suggests that as witnesses of Christ, we are called to become fishers of men. The calling of the two sons of Zebedee, James and John, came at a time when they were mending their nets. Our call is also to mend the nets. That means to correct the wrong doctrines and emphasize the truth which is able to set us free. This is because the church system has fallen away in apostasy, and our role is to speak the truth (mend the net) irrespective of the opposition. As we can see, it was because of the truth that John found himself at the isle of Patmos.

Rev 1:9  I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. 

3Jn 1:9  I wrote unto the church: but Diotrephes, who loveth to have the preeminence among them, receiveth us not. 
3Jn 1:10 Wherefore, if I come, I will remember his deeds which he doeth, prating against us with malicious words: and not content therewith, neither doth he himself receive the brethren, and forbiddeth them that would, and casteth them out of the church. 

Jesus Ministers to Great Crowds

Mat 4:23  And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people. 
Mat 4:24  And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatick, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them. 
Mat 4:25 And there followed him great multitudes of people from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and from Judaea, and from beyond Jordan. 

It is worth noting that Jesus’ ministry drew a significant following because of the miracles that He performed. He, however, did not commit Himself to them because He knew what was in man. 

Joh 2:23  Now when he was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did. 
Joh 2:24  But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men, 
Joh 2:25 And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man. 

To the great multitude that followed Jesus, He spoke in parables because it is not given to them to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. 

Mat 13:10  And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 
Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 
Mat 13:12  For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. 
Mat 13:13 Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.

Thanks be to the Lord for opening our eyes to see and our ears to hear the mysteries of the kingdom. Amen!

Rev 12:14-17 – Part 1 – The Earth Helped the Woman

[Study Aired Dec 27, 2024]

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.
Rev 12:15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
Rev 12:16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.
Rev 12:17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

All the symbols of scripture are taken from previous verses. The two witnesses are explained in Zechariah 4 as those who speak “the Word of the Lord” according to Zec 4:6. The ‘woman’ of this chapter, and the 17^th and 18^th chapters signifies the harlot of Isa 1:21.

Zec 4:3  And two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.
Zec 4:4  So I answered and spake to the angel that talked with me, saying, What are these, my lord?
Zec 4:5  Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
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.

Isa 1:2  Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.
Isa 1:3  The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master’s crib: butIsrael doth not know,my [apostate] people doth not consider.
Isa 1:4  Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward.

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

If we hope to understand the meaning of this “signified” revealing of Jesus Christ within us, and if we have any hope of understanding how we are to “keep the things written therein”, then we must always go back to the Old Testament to discover what the “two wings of a great eagle… a flood… [and] the earth opened it mouth ” means.

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

When we do that then we will discover that it was the same ‘woman’ in the Old Testament, who was “carried into the wilderness” upon these same ‘eagle’s wings’ that were used here in the New Testament to “fly Israel into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished… [and kept safe] from the face of the serpent” even as she continues to rebel against her own Savior:

Exo 19:3  And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel;
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.

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;

Hos 11:1  When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.
Hos 11:2  As they called them,so they went from them: they sacrificed unto Baalim, and burned incense to graven images.

We will also discover there in that Old Testament story of the Lord’s sad relationship with His own people when He delivered them from the bondage of Egypt what is meant by “the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman”, and we will see how “the earth opened up her mouth and swallowed up the flood…”

Finally, if we want to be “instructed unto the kingdom of heaven”, we will also have to use “things old”, things in the Old Testament, to determine who are those who “keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ”.

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.
Rev 12:15  And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
Rev 12:16  And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.
Rev 12:17  And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

Here is where “the wings of an eagle” are first mentioned in scripture. It is while Israel, the Lord’s own people are “in the wilderness”, at Mount Sinai, at the giving of the law of Moses to Israel.

Exo 19:3  And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel;
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.

But where is Israel when God is telling them these words? Like this woman who brings forth this man child, Israel is “in the wilderness”, at the base of Mount Sinai, just before Israel turns her back on God and makes the golden calf whom she then claims as her God who brought her up out of Egypt. They are yet to rebel against Him ten times.

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;

Israel herself, is rebelling against the Lord even as He is in the process of delivering her from her own bondage. Yet this is how the Lord provided for Israel while they were “the church [“the woman”] in the wilderness”:

Exo 16:4  Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no.

Israel, the ‘woman’ who brought forth the man child, rebelled against the Lord even as He nourished her with symbolic “bread from heaven”. But it wasn’t “the True Bread From Heaven”:

Joh 6:31  Our fathers did eat manna in the desert; as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat.
Joh 6:32  Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven.
Joh 6:33  For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world.

The law of Moses signifies the manna which was “not that [True] Bread From Heaven”. The law of Moses signifies the “land of milk and honey” which is for carnal babes in Christ who cannot yet receive the ‘strong meat’ which is “the True Bread From Heaven”. The law of Moses signifies the basic principles of the doctrine of Christ which will retard out spiritual growth if we do not go beyond those basic principles:

Heb 6:1  Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,
Heb 6:2  Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.
Heb 6:3  And this will we do, if God permit.

This ‘woman’ who brings forth this mature ‘man child’, is taken into the wilderness on “two wings of a great eagle”. The only other place in scripture where a ‘woman’ is taken into the wilderness “on eagles’ wings” is:

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 [in the wilderness].

Why isn’t this ‘woman’ caught up unto the Lord and to His throne with the man child that comes out of her? The reason this ‘woman’ is taken into the wilderness where she has a place prepared of God is given us is these verses:

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;

Hos 11:1  When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.
Hos 11:2  As they called them, so they went from them: they sacrificed unto Baalim, and burned incense to graven images.

Isa 1:2  Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.
Isa 1:3  The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master’s crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider
Isa 1:4  Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward.

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

“The woman” who brought forth “a man child” is “Jerusalem which now is and is in bondage with her children”:

Gal 4:21  Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law?
Gal 4:22  For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman.
Gal 4:23  But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise.
Gal 4:24  Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar.
Gal 4:25  For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children.
Gal 4:26  But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.

If we are “in Christ” then we are at this very moment “seated with Christ in the heavens”:

Eph 2:5  Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Eph 2:6  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

If we are “in Christ Jesus” then we are the “man child” who was “caught up to God and His throne”, even while being “the remnant of her seed who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ”:

Rev 12:17  And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

In our next study we will see how the scriptures reveal that the “manchild” is both in heaven and at the same time is on this earth as “the remnant of her seed which keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ”.

Nevertheless, we are told that this time we spend in rebellion against our own husband and as a part of a great harlot worshipping a golden calf is all an integral part of God “bringing us to Himself”:

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 [in the wilderness].

Rev 12, 13, 14 and 15 all chronicle us as those who are being judged for our unfaithfulness in this present time leading up to the pouring out of God’s wrath upon our own unrighteousnesses, and this is what we are told twice about all of these things revealed in these chapters.

Rev 13:8  And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him [the beast and the dragon], whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
Rev 13:9  If any man have an ear, let him hear.
Rev 13:10  He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.

“All that dwell upon the earth shall worship the beast”, is followed by “Here is the patience and faith of the saints”. We will encounter this same apparent contradiction in the 14^th chapter where we will again be told that those who worship the beast will be tormented day and night and “the smoke of their torment ascends up for ever and ever”, immediately followed by the same apparent contradiction we read in chapter 12:

Rev 14:11  And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
Rev 14:12  Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

To get the full impact of these counterintuitive verses let’s read them in their full context:

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

The few who are given eyes that see and ears that hear the mysteries of the kingdom of God will acknowledge that “fire [and brimstone] shall try every man’s works of what sort they are”:

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 brimstone, Rev 14:10]; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.
1Co 3:14  If any man’s work [in “this present time”, Rom 8:18] abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
1Co 3:15  If any man’s work [in “this present time”] shall be burned , he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

It is enduring these trials and tribulations and enduring the pouring out of God’s wrath on all of our ungodlinesses, in “this present time” (Rom 8:18) which “is the patience and faith of the saints” (Rev 13:10). “Blessed are they that read, and hear, and keep the things written therein, for the time is at hand…” to keep all these sections of scripture. It must be so because, after all, exactly how many men receive the mark of the beast?

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:

How could we have missed seeing this plain statement except we were blinded by the One who came to blind all who claim that they do see?

Joh 9:39  And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
Joh 9:40  And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?
Joh 9:41  Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say,We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

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.

The natural man reads this verse here in Rev 12 and concludes that this woman is at variance with the dragon. After all we are told that she “is nourished… from the face of the serpent.” But does “nourished… from the face of the serpent” mean that the woman is at odds with the doctrine of the serpent? Absolutely not! Israel worshipped a golden calf even as the Lord was dragging her out of Egypt. If the woman were really at odds with the doctrine of the serpent, then she too would have been caught up to God and to His throne with the man child she brought forth. Instead we see her, just as we see Israel at the time of her exodus from Egypt, fleeing into the wilderness, all the while seeking the destruction of God’s typical “man child”, Moses.

Exo 17:4  And Moses cried unto the LORD, saying, What shall I do unto this people? they be almost ready to stone me.

Israel, the type of the “woman [who] brought forth a man child”, is to be found “in the wilderness… nourished… from the face of the serpent”, yet wanting to “return to Egypt”, and siding with the adversary against their God and His messenger, Moses. That is the spiritual state of this “woman” who has “flown into the wilderness where she is nourished… from the face of the serpent”. It is only our lack of knowledge of the scriptures which keeps us from getting the point that is being made.

Again, how are we told she was taken there?

Exo 19:3  And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel;
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.

If this verse were not here along with Rev 12:14, we would not know that God considers our time in the wilderness to be given to us by the agency of “the wings of a great eagle”, an unclean bird. The very fact that this statement is given to Israel at the base of Mount Sinai, “which answers to Jerusalem which now is and is in bondage with her children”, tells us that God considers our time in the wilderness as well as our time in Babylon, as an integral part of His “bringing us to Himself”.

Here is what the holy spirit has inspired to be written concerning this woman at Mount Sinai, in the book of Galatians:

Gal 4:21  Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law?
Gal 4:22  For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman.
Gal 4:23  But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise.
Gal 4:24  Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar.
Gal 4:25  For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children.
Gal 4:26  But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.
Gal 4:27  For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband.
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 [“Jersalem which now is and is in bondage with her children”] 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 [Gentile Galatians] are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.

“The desolate has many more children than she which has a husband”? How is that possible? That is definitely not a natural statement. The natural man sees the words “born after… the freewoman” and just naturally thinks of Sarah’s natural children in physical Jerusalem. But as is always the case, the things of the spirit are hidden and counterintuitive to the natural man. So we are told that life comes only through death, sight comes only through blindness, peace comes only through sending a sword, and Sarah’s natural children have become “Jerusalem which now is and is in bondage with her children”, while Hagar and her Gentile children, are now brought near to God by the cross of Christ. These words here in Gal 4 are seen and read, but they are not perceived by the natural man because:

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

So it is with this “woman… in the wilderness.” Only those who are given the gift of “comparing spiritual things with spiritual” will understand how Sarah’s physical seed has become “the [spiritual] children of the bondmaid”, while the Gentiles who accept Christ, even if they are physical Galatians or the physical seed of Hagar, have now become “the children of the freewoman… through the faith of Christ”.

Gal 2:16  Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

Php 3:9  And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

Because this is so easily missed, for those who are given to see this, here it is again:

Gal 4:28  Now we, brethren [Gentile Galatians], 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 [physical Jerusalem, and physical Jews]: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman [Gentiles who are in Christ].
Gal 4:31  So then, brethren, we [Gentiles in Christ] are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.

Notice, it was both Pharaoh and Israel who wanted Moses dead. Nevertheless, Pharaoh, the agent of the serpent with a serpent upon his head in all the sculptures and coffins of the Pharaohs, sought to destroy the “seed of the woman [who was] the mother of all living”.

Gen 3:20  And Adam called his wife’s name Eve; because she was the mother of all living.

We have seen that being “nourished for a time, and times and half a time” is the same as “forty and two months, or one thousand two hundred and sixty days”. They are all the same symbol of both the time we are witnessed to by God’s elect while we are yet of our father the devil, as well as the time we spend as God’s witnesses to those who are still “the seed of the serpent”. Here we are as those who are being witnessed to by God’s “two witnesses”:

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.

And here we are first as unconverted ‘Gentiles’, and later as God’s two witnesses to the woman in the wilderness, also know as “that great city wherein our Lord was crucified”.

Rev 11:2  But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.
Rev 11:3  And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred [and] threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.

Rev 11:7  And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.
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.

Rev 12:15  And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.

Here in Exo 14 is the Old Testament type of this “woman [who] brought forth a man child” and who is then pursued by the serpent who “casts out of his mouth water as a flood… that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood”. Here in Exo 14 we also see how both this woman and the serpent feel about Moses, who in this case is the symbol of “the remnant of her seed who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ”:

Exo 14:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Exo 14:2  Speak unto the children of Israel, that they turn and encamp before Pihahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, over against Baalzephon: before it shall ye encamp by the sea.
Exo 14:3  For Pharaoh will say of the children of Israel, They [are] entangled in the land, the wilderness hath shut them in.
Exo 14:4  And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, that he shall follow after them; and I will be honoured upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host; that the Egyptians may know that I am the LORD. And they did so.
Exo 14:5  And it was told the king of Egypt that the people fled: and the heart of Pharaoh and of his servants was turned against the people, and they said, Why have we done this, that we have let Israel go from serving us?
Exo 14:6  And he made ready his chariot, and took his people with him:
Exo 14:7  And he took six hundred chosen chariots, and all the chariots of Egypt, and captains over every one of them.
Exo 14:8  And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued after the children of Israel: and the children of Israel went out with an high hand.
Exo 14:9  But the Egyptians pursued after them, all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, and his horsemen, and his army, and overtook them encamping by the sea, beside Pihahiroth, before Baalzephon.
Exo 14:10  And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the LORD.
Exo 14:11  And they said unto Moses, Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt?
Exo 14:12  Is not this the word that we did tell thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness.

Israel, the shadow of the woman in the wilderness, is on board with Pharaoh in seeking to destroy God’s elect who “keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ”. In a very real sense, “the serpent was wroth [‘along with the woman’ as well as] with her seed”.

We will pause our study at this point and in our next study we will seek to understand the spiritual significance of the flood which the dragon cast out of His mouth by which he hoped to carry away the woman and the remnant of her seed.

Numbers 33:1-56  Recounting Israel’s Journey in the Wilderness

[Study Aired December 25, 2023]

Introduction

We are going to look at the journey of the Israelites from Egypt up to the land of Moab, where they were camping and getting ready to cross over the Jordan to engage the people of Jericho. Today’s study shows us our life as we leave the world (Egypt) and become part of Babylon, until the Lord starts preparing us to leave Babylon behind to possess our land, which is our bodies. This study highlights the spiritual significance of the names of various locations and how they apply to our walk in the past, present and the future. What we need to understand is that we all go through the same experience in this wilderness of life, although the details are different for each individual. This is what the scriptures tell us about this common experience we all go through:

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. 
Ecc 9:3  This is an evil among all things that are done under the sun, that there is one event unto all: yea, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead. 
Ecc 9:4  For to him that is joined to all the living there is hope: for a living dog is better than a dead lion. 
Ecc 9:5  For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not anything, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.

These verses show us that we all go through the experience of evil resulting in our spiritual death until we are joined to all the living (Ecc 9:4). 

Ecc 1:13  And I gave my heart to seek and to investigate by wisdom concerning all which is done under the heavens. It is an evil task God has given to the sons of men, to be afflicted by it.

The living here is Christ, and it is when we are joined to all (not partially) of Christ that we are given hope of the joy that is set before us. It is in this sense that a living dog is better than a dead lion. That is to say that being in Christ is what makes us a living being, and that in Christ, even though we are the least among men (living dogs), we are far better than the princes of this world (dead lion) who are spiritually dead. 

In Ecclesiastes 9:5, we are shown that it is the living who are aware that they shall die. That is to say that it is those who are in Christ who are aware that they have to die to their flesh through the evil experience the Lord has given them. This is the experience of those who are in Christ:

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.
Psa 107:7  And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation. 
Psa 107:8  Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! 
Psa 107:9  For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.

As we go through Israel’s journey in the wilderness, as recounted in chapter 33, we are being shown what has happened to us in our journey in this life with the Lord and His mercies toward us. Our response to the Lord’s mercies is to offer our lives as living sacrifices to Him, which is our spiritual worship.

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.

The Command by the Lord to Record the Journeys of Israel

Num 33:1  These are the journeys of the children of Israel, which went forth out of the land of Egypt with their armies under the hand of Moses and Aaron. 
Num 33:2  And Moses wrote their goings out according to their journeys by the commandment of the LORD: and these are their journeys according to their goings out.
Num 33:3  And they departed from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month; on the morrow after the passover the children of Israel went out with an high hand in the sight of all the Egyptians. 
Num 33:4  For the Egyptians buried all their firstborn, which the LORD had smitten among them: upon their gods also the LORD executed judgments. 
Num 33:5  And the children of Israel removed from Rameses, and pitched in Succoth.

What is instructive about these verses is that it was at the command of the Lord that Moses decided to write down the journeys undertaken by the people of Israel in the wilderness. Why would the Lord ask Moses to record Israel’s journey from one station to another in the wilderness? It was because the Lord wanted us to understand how He had led us through this life in the past so that we can have confidence in Him that what He starts, He is able to bring to completion. That is why when the Lord appeared before Apostle John, the first thing He did was to show Him how He had led him in the past.

Rev 1:10  I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, 
Rev 1:11  Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea. 
Rev 1:12  And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; 
Rev 1:13  And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. 

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

Our journey with the Lord started in Rameses in verse 3. Rameses was in Egypt and therefore represents our life when we did not know Christ. We were just like the people of the world in all that we did. Rameses means ‘out of’ or ‘from.’ It was from or out of the world that the Lord called us to come to Him.

Eph 2:1  And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
Eph 2:2  Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 
Eph 2:3  Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. 
Eph 2:4  But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 
Eph 2:5  Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 
Eph 2:6  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: 
Eph 2:7  That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 
Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9  Not of works, lest any man should boast.

In verse 3, it was on the fifteenth day of the first month that the Israelites left Rameses (Egypt). The number fifteen signifies being given a new life in Christ as shown in the following verses:

Isa 38:4  Then came the word of the LORD to Isaiah, saying, 
Isa 38:5  Go, and say to Hezekiah, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will add unto thy days fifteen years. 
Isa 38:6  And I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria: and I will defend this city.

This means that it was when the Lord gave us a new life in Christ that we started our exit from Egypt. Leaving Egypt was possible because the Lord had dealt a blow to the firstborn of the Egyptians as they bury their firstborns in verse 4. The firstborns of the Egyptians represent our old man or our flesh to which the Lord had dealt a deadly wound and therefore could not influence our exit from the world (Egypt).

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.

In verse 5, the people of Israel left Rameses and came to Succoth which means ‘booths’ and is part of the land of Egypt. The word “booths” means tents. This implies that one of the first things we learned as we started our exit from the world is to walk by faith just like Abraham. Walking by faith is signified by living in tents as we look for the city which has foundations whose builder and maker is God. This was what happened to Abraham. 

Heb 11:8  By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. 
Heb 11:9  By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:
Heb 11:10  For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

A Summary of Our Journey in this wilderness of life

Num 33:6  And they departed from Succoth, and pitched in Etham, which is in the edge of the wilderness. 
Num 33:7  And they removed from Etham, and turned again unto Pihahiroth, which is before Baalzephon: and they pitched before Migdol. 
Num 33:8  And they departed from before Pihahiroth, and passed through the midst of the sea into the wilderness, and went three days’ journey in the wilderness of Etham, and pitched in Marah.

From Succoth, the people of Israel came to Etham which means ‘with them’ or their ‘plowshares’ which are creative tools that benefit mankind. Etham was part of Egypt. At this stage in our walk, the Lord has given us the tools we need (the word of God) to leave the world. From Etham, the Israelites went to Pihahiroth which means a place where sedge grows. Sedge is a grass-like plant that grows in wet ground. As we are aware, all mankind is like grass. As His elect, we are like sedge that grows in a place where there is water in the ground, which is the word of the Lord. In other words, at this point of our walk with Christ, we have received little water from the earth. That is, we have started to hear very little of the truth of the word of the Lord from our brothers and sisters from Babylon (earth) to start our growth as we leave Egypt or the world completely. Pihahiroth faces Baalzephon which means ‘Lord of the north.’ This is to say that everything happening to us is under the supervision of our Lord Jesus Christ. In other words, everything is going according to the purpose of His counsel. Specifically, the people of Israel settled at Migdol, which was a fortified city on the Egyptian border and can be regarded as part of Pihahiroth. Migdol means ‘tower’ and therefore this is to show us that we have come to trust in the Lord as our tower of refuge as we were just about to exit the world (Egypt).

Isa 25:4 But you are a tower of refuge to the poor, O LORD, a tower of refuge to the needy in distress. You are a refuge from the storm and a shelter from the heat. For the oppressive acts of ruthless people are like a storm beating against a wall, or like the relentless heat of the desert. (NLT)

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

From Pihahiroth, the people of Israel passed through the sea into the wilderness of Etham and after three days, they ended up at Marah which means ‘bitter water.’ Passing through the sea means that we are helped by our flesh during this early walk with the Lord just as Abraham was helped by his father Terah (flesh) when the Lord appeared to him for the first time.

Act 7:2  And he said, Brethren and fathers, hearken: The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran,
Act 7:3  and said unto him, Get thee out of thy land, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall show thee. 
Act 7:4  Then came he out of the land of the Chaldaeans, and dwelt in Haran: and from thence, when his father was dead, God removed him into this land, wherein ye now dwell:

Gen 11:31  And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his son’s son, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram’s wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there.

Isa 60:5  Then thou shalt see and be radiant, and thy heart shall thrill and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be turned unto thee, the wealth of the nations shall come unto thee.

The people of Israel journeyed three days from the wilderness of Etham to Marah. Marah means ‘bitter’ (water). This signifies that the judgment of our old man or flesh as part of the process of becoming spiritually mature involves being given bitter water, that is, false doctrines, thus giving the Lord the occasion to come and judge us. 

Num 33:9  And they removed from Marah, and came unto Elim: and in Elim were twelve fountains of water, and threescore and ten palm trees; and they pitched there. 
Num 33:10  And they removed from Elim, and encamped by the Red sea.

These verses are to point to us our destination (where we are supposed to end up) in this wilderness of life. 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.

Encamping by the Red Sea in verse 10 signifies that we are in the world but not of the world. That means we are part of this world just like others, but we are not to follow the world’s standards. 

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.

Our lives in Babylon

Num 33:11  And they removed from the Red sea, and encamped in the wilderness of Sin.
Num 33:12  And they took their journey out of the wilderness of Sin, and encamped in Dophkah.
Num 33:13  And they departed from Dophkah, and encamped in Alush.

The journey of the Israelites up to this point summarizes the path the Lord takes us through to become His sons. The rest of the verses show us the details of our journey. From the Red Sea, the Israelites came to the wilderness of Sin. Sin means ‘thorn.’ They came out of the wilderness of Sin and came to Dophkah which means ‘knocking’, and then they settled in Alush which signifies “I will knead bread.” The settlement in these three stations – wilderness of Sin (thorn), Dophkah and Alush – signifies that when we left the world (Egypt) we came to the physical churches of this world (Babylon) where what we hear causes us to focus on the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches, thus, choking the word of the Lord from being effective in our lives. We end up using our strength (knocking) to serve the Lord instead of letting the Lord do His work in us (resting in Him). We therefore become worse off and end up kneading our own bread, that is, having our own gospel instead of Christ’s words. 

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.

Num 33:14  And they removed from Alush, and encamped at Rephidim, where was no water for the people to drink.
Num 33:15  And they departed from Rephidim, and pitched in the wilderness of Sinai.
Num 33:16  And they removed from the desert of Sinai, and pitched at Kibrothhattaavah.
Num 33:17  And they departed from Kibrothhattaavah, and encamped at Hazeroth.
Num 33:18  And they departed from Hazeroth, and pitched in Rithmah.
Num 33:19  And they departed from Rithmah, and pitched at Rimmonparez.

From Alush, they encamped at Raphidim, which means ‘resting place’ where there was no water for the people to drink. From Raphidim they came to the wilderness of Sinai which means ‘thorny.’ The next four stops after Sinai were Kibrothhattaavah (Graves of lust), Hazeroth (Settlement), Rithmah (an area of open uncultivated land) and Rimmonparez (pomegranate of the breach). What these locations mean is that in Babylon, we think we have a resting place (Raphidim) but we do not know that the truth of the word of the Lord has eluded us. This is because what we hear are false doctrines (thorny) which rather energizes the lust of the flesh within. As a result, we become spiritually dead due to lust of the flesh (the meaning of graves of lust). We therefore settle down in Babylon in an uncultivated place with no defenses as we become the prey of the enemy. We therefore bear fruits of the evil one who is our father.

Eze 2:6  And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.

Num 33:20  And they departed from Rimmonparez, and pitched in Libnah.
Num 33:21  And they removed from Libnah, and pitched at Rissah. 
Num 33:22  And they journeyed from Rissah, and pitched in Kehelathah.
Num 33:23  And they went from Kehelathah, and pitched in mount Shapher.
Num 33:24  And they removed from mount Shapher, and encamped in Haradah.
Num 33:25  And they removed from Haradah, and pitched in Makheloth.
Num 33:26  And they removed from Makheloth, and encamped at Tahath.
Num 33:27  And they departed from Tahath, and pitched at Tarah.

From Rimmonperez, the Israelites came to Libnah (out of) and then to Rissah (Ruin). The next six stations that the Israelites encamped were Kehelathah (Assembly), Shapher (Beauty), Haradah (Fear), Makheloth (Place of assembly), Tahath (Station) and Tarah (Delay). Out of the fruits we produce in Babylon, we end up in ruin. We consider our assembly a beauty, but we do not know that we are poor, wretched and miserable. We do not have the fear of the Lord in our place of assembly, and because of our position or station, both the former and the latter rain (the truth of the word of the Lord) are held or delayed from us.

Rev 3:17  Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: 

1Ki 8:35  When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee; if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou afflictest them:

Num 33:28  And they removed from Tarah, and pitched in Mithcah.
Num 33:29  And they went from Mithcah, and pitched in Hashmonah.
Num 33:30  And they departed from Hashmonah, and encamped at Moseroth.
Num 33:31  And they departed from Moseroth, and pitched in Benejaakan.
Num 33:32  And they removed from Benejaakan, and encamped at Horhagidgad.
Num 33:33  And they went from Horhagidgad, and pitched in Jotbathah.
Num 33:34  And they removed from Jotbathah, and encamped at Ebronah.
Num 33:35  And they departed from Ebronah, and encamped at Eziongaber.
Num 33:36  And they removed from Eziongaber, and pitched in the wilderness of Zin, which is Kadesh. 
Num 33:37  And they removed from Kadesh, and pitched in mount Hor, in the edge of the land of Edom.
Num 33:38  And Aaron the priest went up into mount Hor at the commandment of the LORD, and died there, in the fortieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the first day of the fifth month. 
Num 33:39  And Aaron was an hundred and twenty and three years old when he died in mount Hor. 

From Tarah the people of Israel went to Mithcah (Sweetness), departed to Hashmonah (Fatness) and finally came to Moseroth (Bonds). What these locations suggest is that when we follow after the sweetness and fatness of this world, we end up being in bondage to this world. That was what happened to us in Babylon. The subsequent six stations in which the Israelites dwelt were Benejaakan (Sons of twisting), Horhagidgad (Cavern of Gidgad), Jotbathah (Pleasantness), Ebronah (Passage), Eziongaber (Backbone of a man) and Kadesh (Holy). Being sons of twisting the word of the Lord while we were in Babylon, we ended up hiding in our caverns (false doctrines) thinking we were in a pleasant place. We did not know that this broad passage or way is the way to destroying our very spiritual foundation (our backbone).  

Psa 11:3  If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?

In spite of our failures, the Lord uses this experience of evil to teach us holiness later as we come to Kadesh. From Kadesh the Israelites came to Mount Hor. Hor means ‘mountain.’ This implies that as far as we were concerned when we were in Babylon, holiness had become a mountain which we cannot climb.  It is instructive to note that Aaron the High Priest died on Mount Hor. Aaron’s death on Mount Hor signifies the death of our Lord Jesus Christ to make holiness accessible to us.

2Co 5:21  For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Num 33:40  And king Arad the Canaanite, which dwelt in the south in the land of Canaan, heard of the coming of the children of Israel.
Num 33:41  And they departed from mount Hor, and pitched in Zalmonah.
Num 33:42  And they departed from Zalmonah, and pitched in Punon.
Num 33:43  And they departed from Punon, and pitched in Oboth. 
Num 33:44  And they departed from Oboth, and pitched in Ijeabarim, in the border of Moab.
Num 33:45  And they departed from Iim, and pitched in Dibongad.
Num 33:46  And they removed from Dibongad, and encamped in Almondiblathaim.
Num 33:47  And they removed from Almondiblathaim, and pitched in the mountains of Abarim, before Nebo.
Num 33:48  And they departed from the mountains of Abarim, and pitched in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho. 
Num 33:49  And they pitched by Jordan, from Bethjesimoth even unto Abelshittim in the plains of Moab.

In verse 40, King Arad of Canaan heard of the coming of the Israelites. This implies that even when we were in Babylon, our flesh can sense that its time is short. From Mount Hor, the Israelites pitched in Zalmonah which means ‘shady.’ They then moved to Punon (Darkness) and ended at Oboth (Waterskins). Our inability to walk in holiness as we came to Kadesh implies that the devil has shaded (blocked) us from seeing the light of Christ. Over time, we are plunged into darkness as our vessels (waterskins) lack water or the word of the Lord in Babylon. From Oboth we came Ije-abarim (Ruins of Abarim) where our relationship with Christ was ruined.  

Amo 8:11  Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD:
Amo 8:12  And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.

We end up being like our father, the devil, as we continue our walk with Christ and find ourselves in the land of Moab (of his father). 

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.

The Israelites then moved from Iim (from) to Dibongad or Dibon (wasting away). From (Iim) our father, the devil, we waste away during our time in Babylon. As we continue our journey, we come to Almondiblathaim which means ‘concealing the two cakes.’ The cakes here represent the word of the Lord, and the number two means a witness. The concealing of the two cakes means that we are not given to know the principle that where two or three words of the Lord say the same thing, we have a witness and that what is being said is established.

2Co 13:1  This is the third time I am coming to you. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established

From Almondiblathaim we proceed to Abarim (Regions beyond) facing Nebo (prophet of a Babylonian deity). Because we are not given to know the principles the Lord has given us in His words to guide us, we end up going beyond (Abarim – regions beyond) what is written, and in the process, we come to serve another Jesus (Nebo) without knowing it. 

2Co 11:4  For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.

Our final journey takes us from Bethjesimoth (from or out of) to Abel Shittim (Meadows of acacias). Meadows refers to pastures. What is instructive about Acacias is that it has about 160 species of trees and shrubs. This implies that out of serving another Jesus, we finally end up as sheep grazing from many different pastures (meadows of acacias) as we take in 200 million false doctrines in the land of Moab (Babylon). 

Rev 9:16  And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand (200 million false doctrines): and I heard the number of them.

The Need to Drive out the Inhabitants of Canaan

Num 33:50  And the LORD spake unto Moses in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho, saying, 
Num 33:51  Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye are passed over Jordan into the land of Canaan; 
Num 33:52  Then ye shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their pictures, and destroy all their molten images, and quite pluck down all their high places: 
Num 33:53  And ye shall dispossess the inhabitants of the land, and dwell therein: for I have given you the land to possess it.
Num 33:54  And ye shall divide the land by lot for an inheritance among your families: and to the more ye shall give the more inheritance, and to the fewer ye shall give the less inheritance: every man’s inheritance shall be in the place where his lot falleth; according to the tribes of your fathers ye shall inherit. 
Num 33:55  But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell.
Num 33:56  Moreover it shall come to pass, that I shall do unto you, as I thought to do unto them.

In verses 50–52, we are commanded by the Lord to ensure that our old man or our flesh, represented by the inhabitants of Canaan, is totally destroyed, or put to death in our lives. The fact is, we cannot do it in our strength. In verse 53, the Lord told Moses that because He has given them the land, they shall dispossess the inhabitants. This is to tell us that it is Christ who through us shall destroy the old man or the flesh within us. It is not the work of man. The Lord who has started this destruction of our old man or flesh shall see to its completion. However, we need to be patient as He does His work within us.

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

Heb 10:36  For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.
Heb 10:37  For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. 
Heb 10:38  Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
Heb 10:39  But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

In verse 54, the land was to be divided among the families for an inheritance by lot. The lot here signifies that everything that we do to possess our inheritance is the work of the Lord. All we have to do is to believe that He is able to drag us to the finish line!!

Pro 16:33  The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD.

Joh 6:28  Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” 
Joh 6:29  Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”

Verses 55 and 56 show us the consequences of not completely destroying the inhabitants of Canaan. The inhabitants of Canaan shall become pricks in our eyes and thorns in our sides. Pricks here in verse 55 are the same as thorns. What we are therefore being told is that if the old man or the flesh within us is not completely destroyed, it shall become a thorn in our lives. To understand a thorn in our lives, let’s take a look at what Jesus said about the parable of the Sower where some of the seeds fell on thorns:

Mat 13:3  And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow;

Mat 13:7  And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them:  

Mat 13:22  He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.

The thorn in our eyes and on our sides if we do not destroy our old man or the flesh is that we shall focus on the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches. These shall choke the word of the Lord sown in our hearts and mind from bearing fruits in our lives. In other words, we shall become worse off.

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 (through the thorns in our eyes and on our sides), 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.

May the Lord continue to be merciful to us as He destroys our old man or our flesh. Amen!!

The Book of Joshua – Part 5: Circumcision and Moses’s Laws Becoming Personified – Joshua 5:1-15

[Study Aired March 18, 2023]

The reproductive members of all male beasts of the field are protected by an outer sheath that keeps them moist and free from damage for composed employment for their female counterparts. It is not so for the human male member. The Lord certainly required his pudenda to be hidden with protective clothing and from involuntary inconvenience.

God designed physical masculinity to represent His spiritual headship. 

God’s stunning detail of every part of creation is for the man, who represents Christ. To fulfill the Lord’s plan, the man had to have the capacity to reproduce. The physiology of the primary instruments of his reproduction was specifically designed to distinguish his authority and beautifully complement the mystery of his female’s spiritual ascension.

Mar 4:11  And he said unto them, Unto you is given the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all things are done in parables: (Rom 11; 16:25; 1Cor 2:7; Eph 3:4)

God, who is spirit, is neither male nor female, neither  was the Word before He became Jesus. Yet, at creation, he made practically all organic things to be either male or female.

Mar 10:6 But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. 

Speaking of the resurrection:

Mar 12:25 For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but they are as the angels in Heaven.

Masculinity and femininity are first recognised by their outward appearance but gender is assured by their genitalia. 

God gloriously highlighted His supreme headship by creating a replica of His perfect image, naming Him His Son. Having come from His creator, the Son is subordinate to His Creator, without genitalia denoting His Sonship.

1Co 11:3 But I would have you know that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.

By the Lord’s design from the outset, mankind, represented by Adam and Eve, partially abdicated man’s headship through Eve’s unwitting rulership over Adam. They effectively stated that they didn’t want their Lord to be their head and that the man and the woman would co-rule their life together, yet with a greater bias towards Eve’s influence on everything, particularly over Adam.

Rom 1:25  For they [all of mankind] changed the truth of God into a lie, and they worshiped and served the created thing more than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. 
Rom 1:26  For this cause, God gave them up to dishonorable affections. For even their women changed the natural use into that which is against nature.

The phenomenal way women have changed their natural use that nature dictates is patently obvious in her being against the headship of men, particularly her husband. Everywhere in nature, except for arthropods (spiders), and a few other anomalies, the male rules females. Christ deliberately created that order as “ensamples” for mostly His Elect to juxtapose the natural against the spiritual. It is only by Satan’s influence on mankind that our females tenaciously resist the order of headship, and our males limply acquiesce.

Male headship is verified by every male being fully functional as a male and for the nation of Israel, ratified in the covenant by circumcision. A man’s damaged pudenda symbolically feminises him. He is excluded from the assembly if:

Deu 23:1 He that is wounded in the stones, or hath his privy member cut off, shall not enter into the congregation of the LORD. 

Everyone is familiar with the physiology of circumcision. We shall see that the Lord will deeply etch His covenant with Israel a second time since Moses through circumcision.

Initially, there is no better way in Israel than circumcision. It highlights that headship by physically reminding every male several times a day of his God-given headship, pointing to his authority in his family and church governance under Christ.

The New Generation Circumcised

Jos 5:1 And it came to pass, when all the kings of the Amorites, which were on the side of Jordan westward, and all the kings of the Canaanites, which were by the sea, heard that the LORD had dried up the waters of Jordan from before the children of Israel, until we were passed over, that their heart melted, neither was there spirit in them any more, because of the children of Israel.
Jos 5:2 At that time the LORD said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time. 
Jos 5:3 And Joshua made him sharp knives, and circumcised the children of Israel at the hill of the foreskins. 
Jos 5:4 And this is the cause why Joshua did circumcise: All the people that came out of Egypt, that were males, even all the men of war, died in the wilderness by the way, after they came out of Egypt.
Jos 5:5 Now all the people that came out were circumcised: but all the people that were born in the wilderness by the way as they came forth out of Egypt, them they had not circumcised. 
Jos 5:6 For the children of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, till all the people that were men of war, which came out of Egypt, were consumed, because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD: unto whom the LORD sware that he would not shew them the land, which the LORD sware unto their fathers that he would give us, a land that floweth with milk and honey. 
Jos 5:7 And their children, whom he raised up in their stead, them Joshua circumcised: for they were uncircumcised, because they had not circumcised them by the way. 
Jos 5:8 And it came to pass, when they had done circumcising all the people, that they abode in their places in the camp, till they were whole. 
Jos 5:9 And the LORD said unto Joshua, This day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Wherefore the name of the place is called Gilgal unto this day. 

First Passover in Canaan

Jos 5:10 And the children of Israel encamped in Gilgal, and kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the month at even in the plains of Jericho. 
Jos 5:11 And they did eat of the old corn of the land on the morrow after the passover, unleavened cakes, and parched corn in the selfsame day. 
Jos 5:12 And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year. 

The Commander of the Lord’s Army

Jos 5:13 And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries?
Jos 5:14 And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant? 
Jos 5:15 And the captain of the LORD’S host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so. 

The Study’s Body:

Jos 5:1 And it came to pass, when all the kings of the Amorites, which were on the side of Jordan westward, and all the kings of the Canaanites, which were by the sea, heard that the LORD had dried up the waters of Jordan from before the children of Israel, until we were passed over, that their heart melted, neither was there spirit in them any more, because of the children of Israel. 

In these apparent end times of the maturing of the Bride of Christ, she is essentially well-versed in her awareness of her enemies within, not that she is self-satisfied with her diligence in routing her land of the Amorites and Canaanites. She knows those Amorites and Canaanites are like blackberry roots, briars that, even after a good fire, sucker up afresh. Especially since the Amorites in the West of their Promised Land, clear across to the Canaanites on the Mediterranean Sea, represent a saturation of filth against the word of God. 

Her inward Amorites and the origin of their abbreviated name means H559 – to proudly and loudly boast of one’s (self) righteousness. It reminds her of her once being the two-fold child of hell.

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

Her inward Canaanites and the origin of their abbreviated name for her, spiritually, denote them as H3667 – merchants and traders in the word of God. 

Those two landholding enemies combined highlight the overwhelming magnitude of her formally corrupt mind that needs to be humbled daily.

She is fully aware that she is a symbolic close relative of Ham and his progeny, whose name means H3665 – to be humbled, subdued, brought down, and into subjection ~ and that is a massive lesson her sister in the Promised Land is about to physically learn. Her power, she will learn, is in her Lord’s strength to kill the enemies within with the Lord’s physical sword. No wonder her enemy’s hearts melted!

In the meantime, some of her thirteen-year-old heart no doubt melted for what was to happen as they, too, learned to understand authority through headship.

Jos 5:2 At that time the LORD said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time. 
Jos 5:3 And Joshua made him sharp knives, and circumcised the children of Israel at the hill of the foreskins. 

The sharp knives for the Bride spiritually represent her Lord’s word that cuts off the flesh of the covering from the seat of her Shulamite-like arousal, exposing his kisses and wine of truth. 

For the Israelites, this is the second witness to circumcision that they could only see as enforcement of recognition for their covenant relationship with their Lord. For the Bride of Christ’s hindsight reflections, she is ecstatic for the revelation that the old flesh of her sisters from Mt Sinai is a symbolic “hill of foreskins”. Her Lord’s glory is revealed in the New Covenant, not excised with hands by a sharp stone but a spiritually sharp sword of His word. She unashamedly doesn’t half-step into devoting herself to his love.

Son 1:2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth: for thy love is better than wine. 
Son 1:3 Because of the savour of thy good ointments [understanding His word] thy name is as ointment poured forth, therefore do the virgins love thee. 
Son 1:4 Draw me, we will run after thee: the king hath brought me into his chambers: we will be glad and rejoice in thee, we will remember thy love more than wine: the upright love thee.

Jos 5:4 And this is the cause why Joshua did circumcise: All the people that came out of Egypt, that were males, even all the men of war, died in the wilderness by the way, after they came out of Egypt.

The Bride of Christ is the “men of war” who are leaving behind her hill of foreskins of her enemies within, lying dead in her wilderness of sin by her daily refinement of putting on her Lord’s clean white linen. Joshua and the priests, who represent the Bride who came out of Egypt, were all circumcised, yet, the ones born along the way were not circumcised, and the Commandments of Moses needed to be ratified in the symbol of circumcision. 

Jos 5:5  Now all the people that came out were circumcised: but all the people that were born in the wilderness by the way as they came forth out of Egypt, them they had not circumcised.

The second witness of the Israelites’ circumcision represents the then-coming Lord’s spiritual circumcision of our hearts. It is one of many instances of the elder serving the younger. The ‘young’ Israelites were not yet circumcised. Those who died in the wilderness were circumcised and broke their covenant with the Lord. The younger males of thirteen years and above, who were understandably not valiant to self-circumcise, were circumcised by more professional hands. For young and old alike, the “token” of bloody circumcision must have been indelibly etched in their minds as it was in Zipporah’s mind upon circumcising her son. However, as with childbirth and the Covenant, the remembrance soon disappears. (Exo 4:19-26; Gen 17:21-27)

The wonders the Lord is about to do to Israel and on Israel’s behalf will be bloody as they effectively circumcise all the heathen from their land by death. Again, it depicts the elder serving the younger. Just as the firstborn of Egypt died, those younger Israelites born free of Egypt began life afresh in the Covenant agreed in their flesh.

Exo 4:25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me. 
Exo 4:26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision. 

Gen 17:24 And Abraham was ninety years old and nine, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 
Gen 17:25 And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 

Today, the Elect of God are bloody before Christ, their husband. They are circumcised spiritually, not by their hands, but by their spiritual Zipporah, the Church, as they live by the sharp circumcision of Christ’s word.

Almost daily, etched in our hearts are these glorious spiritually bloody verses,

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

Jos 5:6  For the children of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, till all the people that were men of war, which came out of Egypt, were consumed, because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD: unto whom the LORD sware that he would not shew them the land, which the LORD sware unto their fathers that he would give us, a land that floweth with milk and honey. 

Gen 17:11 And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you. 

Psa 44:3 For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them: but thy [the Lord’s] right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favour unto them.

Gen 17:14 And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant. 

For any in the Body of Christ who refuse to be spiritually circumcised, he, like those physically circumcised who died in the wilderness, has denied the Lord’s covenant ‘betwixt’ Christ and him. They have effectively said that they will eat their own bread and drink their own water by their own sword and strength, as their forefathers in the wilderness strove to do for forty years. We do it whenever we fail to ask the Lord for his strength to resist the Devil. (James 4:6-10)

Jos 5:7 And their children, whom he raised up in their stead, them Joshua circumcised: for they were uncircumcised, because they had not circumcised them by the way. 
Jos 5:8 And it came to pass, when they had done circumcising all the people, that they abode in their places in the camp, till they were whole. 

It is the Bride of Christ who is raised up in their stead whom Christ has spiritually circumcised. If we identify as that young woman, we begin with uncircumcised hearts since we are born in the wilderness and are now circumcised. We abide in the Body of Christ until we are healed and made whole in Him, particularly in the First Resurrection.

Jos 5:9 And the LORD said unto Joshua, This day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you. Wherefore the name of the place is called Gilgal [meaning, a wheel rolling] unto this day. 

Our Lord has wheeled away our disgrace for trying to save ourselves by our former gods from Egypt. Upon the beginning of the first Passover in Canaan, that figurative wheel within wheels of the Lord’s word conveyed today by the Lord’s Elect cannot be stopped until all is fulfilled through the one event coming to all of mankind. That wheeled roller-coaster ride of one event began with Abraham’s circumcision and is about to get more bloody and violent in Israel. Thankfully, by being given to look back spiritually on Israel, we will be the first to finish that “one event” (Ecc 9:1-6). We learn to welcome dying gracefully by the power and might of our Lord as we are being made whole by our spiritual circumcision.

Col 2:6 Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 
Col 2:7 rooted and built up in Him, and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. 
Col 2:8 Beware lest anyone rob you through philosophy and vain deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the elements of the world, and not according to Christ.
Col 2:9 For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. 
Col 2:10 And you are complete in Him, who is the Head of all principality and power,
Col 2:11 in whom also you are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ, 
Col 2:12 buried with Him in baptism [having our sins burned out by his fiery word], in whom also you were raised through the faith of the working of God, raising Him from the dead. 
Col 2:13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 
Col 2:14 blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and has taken it out of the way, nailing it to the cross. 
Col 2:15 Having stripped rulers and authorities, He made a show of them publicly, triumphing over them in it. 

The Lord’s word is merciless against our old man, yet, he knows our frailty as we tremble for what happened to our old man ground by the wheels of sin in Israel. As such, we learn discretion by becoming his word as he is the word ~ as he is, so are we by his word, wheels within wheels.

In the one-thousand year reign by Christ and His Christs, they will rule the “fitches” of humanity with a rod of iron. That will not be a time of judgment, and not a soul will have his heart changed to be aroused by His word. Change will begin when the smoking flax bursts into flame, beginning with Gog and Magog surrounding the camp of the Saints and death and resurrection, sending them over to the beginning of their fiery end, spiritually circumcised in the Lake of Fire. 

Isa 28:26 For his God doth instruct him to discretion, and doth teach him. 
Isa 28:27  For the fitches [black cummin] are not threshed with a threshing instrument, neither is a cart wheel turned about upon the cummin; but the fitches are beaten out with a staff, and the cummin with a rod. 
Isa 28:28 Bread corn is bruised; because he will not ever be threshing it, nor break it with the wheel of his cart, nor bruise it with his horsemen. 
Isa 28:29 This also cometh forth from the LORD of hosts, which is wonderful in counsel, and excellent in working. 

Mat 12:20 A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.

For now, Israel will unwittingly continue the legacy of their forefathers and contemptuously attempt in frustration to fulfil all of the handwritten ordinances and fail. Our gracious Lord is painfully aware of our frailty and has made known to his Elect an assured end when we pursue him with our entire heat.

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. 
Jer 29:14 And I will be found of you, saith the LORD: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the LORD; and I will bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive. 

The wheels of the plan of God are beginning to turn much faster, with the very first Passover being kept in Cannan. This was a young, newly circumcised Israel eating the remnants of their forefathers, grizzling and groanings represented by the “old corn” (wheat) made into unleavened cakes and new beginnings.

Jos 5:10 And the children of Israel encamped in Gilgal, and kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the month at even in the plains of Jericho. 
Jos 5:11 And they did eat of the old corn of the land on the morrow after the passover, unleavened cakes, and parched corn in the selfsame day. 
Jos 5:12 And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year. 

The Lord was gradually teaching Israel to trust in him. The six-day miracle of manna was now gone and replaced by the incredible natural richness of Cannan. We fed on the old corn of Babylonian Christianity aroused by her, the Great Whore, the mother of harlots, for six days (= six thousand years) on milk and honey.

The pictorial spirituality for us is that Christ is our manna, our bread from heaven, whose words we keep; he is the strong meat nourishing our circumcised hearts before inheriting Him, our promised land. 

Joh 14:23  Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode [G3438: mone, dwelling place, residence] with him.

The root of this word is G3306, and it is similar to ‘meno’:

G3306
μένω
menō
men’-o

A primary verb; to stay (in a given place, state, relation or expectancy): – abide, continue, dwell, endure, be present, remain, stand, tarry (for), X thine own.

The word appears 118 times and is always translated in some form of ‘abide’. If Christ and His Father ‘abide within us’, then this will be given to us, within and without.

Our Babylonian Christian brothers and sisters initially fed us, as does Israel in the wilderness. They ploughed in the heat of the day as the elder served the much later, younger heir.

Isa 61:5 And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers.

Israel, under Joshua, and for our benefit and spiritual mimicking, was beginning the painful process of growing up into full-grown perdition (utter destruction).

Jos 5:13 And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? 

The man Joshua is certainly one bold warrior to march up to a no doubt powerful-looking opponent holding his sword drawn. It is precisely how we challenge our enemies within; with the intrinsic fiery sword of our Lord’s word.

Is the thing we are about to do for the Lord or against him?

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.

Mat 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations [primarily within], baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

In spiritual terms, it means baptising our heresies with fire and circumcising our old man of our lustful flesh.

Mat 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. 

Jos 5:14 And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant? 

Of course, the host’s captain for us is Christ, who has come into our hearts as we enthusiastically hear what He has to say.

Jos 5:15 And the captain of the LORD’S host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so. 

Israel is about to commence their first Passover in the Promised Land. Our walk in the flesh, in shoes made by us from animal hide, represents our sweaty walk of workmanship. The Lord’s command for Joshua to remove his shoes unknowingly to him will be amplified by the new symbols of washing one another’s feet on the night of Passover before Christ’s death and Christ himself becoming the holy land.

The long and torturous saga of evil flesh and its God-given spiritual correlations are still in their infancy upon crossing the Jordan. The ‘holy land’ on which Moses stood, and now Joshua, along with circumcision, stone memorials, war, harlotry, evil passions and mankind’s sexuality, all temporarily point to their spiritual counterparts. Their highly variable physical applications titillate our lusts, yet, much to the distant future unwitting consternation of all but Christ’s Bride, none but her are ever given to entirely overcome the flesh. Even the most outstanding physical marriages, along with their physical desires, will be dust in the Kingdom since there is neither male nor female in Christ and the Father.

Gal 3:23 But before faith came, we were kept in ward under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. 
Gal 3:24 So that the law is become our tutor to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 
Gal 3:25 But now that faith is come, we are no longer under a tutor. 
Gal 3:26 For ye are all sons of God, through faith, in Christ Jesus.
Gal 3:27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ did put on Christ.
Gal 3:28 There can be neither Jew nor Greek, there can be neither bond nor free, there can be no male and female; for ye all are one man in Christ Jesus. 
Gal 3:29  And if ye are Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, heirs according to promise. 

The Israelites’ feet stepping into the physical holy land heralds the coming of over three thousand years of feet running to mischief and uncircumcised hearts firmly establishing the Great Whore. 

The Bride of Christ is the priests of Abraham’s seed, and her circumcision of the flesh and every other symbol that points to its spiritual counterpart is fast disappearing. Her circumcised heart is what makes her Husband and she blissfully one spirit.

For the Bride of Christ, her Husband is her inheritance, and he is the promised holy land in which she stands with beautiful feet. 

Son 7:1 How beautiful are thy feet with shoes, O prince’s daughter! the joints of thy thighs are like jewels, the work of the hands of a cunning workman. 

He makes her shoes for his glory and is beautifully represented by the Shulamite, whose name means “the perfect, or the peaceful”. Her shoes, he made, are worn in his presence since together, they are the holy ground on which they stand.

Next week, Lord willing, “The Fall of Jericho”.

[Study Aired September 12, 2022]

Exo 23:1  Thou shalt not raise a false report: put not thine hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness. 
Exo 23:2  Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgment:
Exo 23:3  Neither shalt thou countenance a poor man in his cause.
Exo 23:4  If thou meet thine enemy’s ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.
Exo 23:5  If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him.
Exo 23:6  Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause.
Exo 23:7  Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked.
Exo 23:8  And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.
Exo 23:9  Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.
Exo 23:10  And six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits thereof:
Exo 23:11  But the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still; that the poor of thy people may eat: and what they leave the beasts of the field shall eat. In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and with thy oliveyard.
Exo 23:12  Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.
Exo 23:13  And in all things that I have said unto you be circumspect: and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.
Exo 23:14  Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year.
Exo 23:15  Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:)
Exo 23:16  And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.
Exo 23:17  Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord GOD.
Exo 23:18  Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning.
Exo 23:19  The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the LORD thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk.

The first part of this chapter continues to deal with the laws of Moses pertaining to justice and mercy. It also focuses on the rules regarding the sabbath and the three feasts of the Jews.

Exo 23:1  Thou shalt not raise a false report: put not thine hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.

Raising a false report is being a propagator of false doctrines. In other words, we are not to be ambassadors of preaching another Jesus as we see our brothers and sisters do in Babylon.

2Co 11:4  For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.

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.

Being a witness or preacher of these false doctrines means putting our hand with the wicked. This means that we become partners with the wicked and are therefore ensnared by our own works.

Psa 9:16  The LORD is known by the judgment which he executeth: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Higgaion. Selah.

The wicked are also referred to as workers of iniquity as shown below:

Psa 28:3  Draw me not away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, which speak peace to their neighbours, but mischief is in their hearts.

They speak peace to their neighbors, meaning they come in the name of the Lord, but their hearts are ruled by the beast, the chief of mischief.

Exo 23:2  Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgment:

A simpler version of verse 2 reads as follows:

Exo 23:2  You shall not fall in with the many to do evil, nor shall you bear witness in a lawsuit, siding with the many, so as to pervert justice, (ESV)

The people of Israel in the wilderness represent multitudes and therefore, verse 2 refers to the people of Israel.

Deu 1:10  The LORD your God hath multiplied you, and, behold, ye are this day as the stars of heaven for multitude.

1Ki 4:20  Judah and Israel were many, as the sand which is by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking, and making merry.

As we are aware, the people of Israel in the wilderness represent Babylon which is in bondage with her children. Verse 2 therefore means that we are not to be part of Babylon. That is why we are admonished to come out of her so that we do not partake of her evil or sins.

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.

Here in verse 2, siding with the many means bearing false witness or perverting justice.

Pro 12:17  He that speaketh truth sheweth forth righteousness: but a false witness deceit.

Pro 14:5  A faithful witness will not lie: but a false witness will utter lies.

Exo 23:3  Neither shalt thou countenance a poor man in his cause. 

We are admonished not to be partial to a poor man in his lawsuit. In this case, a poor man is cast in a negative context, and it refers to anyone who is spiritually bankrupt or devoid of the truth. Being partial to a poor man in his lawsuit is the same as pursuing their course or being partakers of their sins. Verse 3 is therefore another way of saying that we should not be part of those who do not serve the Lord, but rather their own appetites.

Rom 16:17  I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them.
Rom 16:18  For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.
Rom 16:19  For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil. (ESV)

Exo 23:4  If thou meet thine enemy’s ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again. 
Exo 23:5  If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him.

The enemy here is the devil. The enemy’s ox or ass are those who have been taken captive by the devil or are carnal. An ass lying under his burden in verse 5 means those who are weighed down by sin. We are admonished by the Lord to help them, but we must not have company with them.

2Ti 2:25  In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; 
2Ti 2:26  And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will. 

2Th 3:14  And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed. 
2Th 3:15  Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.

Exo 23:6  Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause. 

In a positive sense, the poor here represent the elect.

Pro 28:11  A rich man is wise in his own eyes, but a poor man who has understanding will find him out.

Psa 70:5  But I am poor and needy; hasten to me, O God! You are my help and my deliverer; O LORD, do not delay!

The word “wrest” (Exo 23:6) refers to twisting, or turning aside, or perverting judgment or justice. Verse 6 therefore means we should not pervert justice due to the poor. Spiritually, this verse refers to us not to disregard or turn aside the Lord’s judgment of the elect. As we are aware, it is through the Lord’s judgment of our old man that results in our obedience. Ignoring or turning aside His judgment is therefore iniquity.

Eze 16:49  Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.

Exo 23:7  Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked.

We are to rid ourselves completely of false doctrines. The innocent and the righteous refer to the elect. This verse therefore suggests that the elect die spiritually through false doctrines. The wicked here refers to those who propagate false doctrines. These will be required to give an account to the Lord. These false doctrines, together with their propagators, have a form of godliness but they deny the power of Christ. Apostle Paul admonished us to turn away from these false doctrines together with their propagators.

2Ti 3:5  Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
2Ti 3:6  For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, 
2Ti 3:7  Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. 
2Ti 3:8  Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. 
2Ti 3:9  But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was.

These false doctrines creep into our heavens or temples and make us captives of the flesh. In 1 Timothy 3:6, the silly women refer to Babylon or Jerusalem which is in bondage with her children. It is these false doctrines which have enslaved Babylon, as she is led away by diverse lusts resulting in being burdened with sin.

Exo 23:8  And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous.

According to the sum of the Lord’s words, we know that all we have received in this life, both physically and spiritually, are gifts from the Lord.

Ecc 3:13  And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labour, it is the gift of God.

Ecc 5:19  Every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour; this is the gift of God.

Eze 46:16  Thus saith the Lord GOD; If the prince give a gift unto any of his sons, the inheritance thereof shall be his sons’; it shall be their possession by inheritance.

Psa 119:160  The sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous rules endures forever. (ESV)

One of the key characteristics of children is that they love gifts!! I remember when my children were kids, whenever I came home in the evening from the office, they were eagerly waiting expectantly for their gift. As we know, we understand spiritual things by the things that are made.

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

According to Strong’s Dictionary, the word “gift” used here means reward. One of the hallmarks of our carnal walk in Babylon is the desire to receive reward from the Lord in this life. It is the quest for immediate reward for our service to the Lord here on earth that we are admonished not to pursue in verse 8. This is because our quest to be rewarded here on earth will cause us to be blinded from reaching for the ultimate goal of being part of the first resurrection. This pursuit of the physical reward here on earth will also cause our words to be perverted as indicated in verse 8. In other words, we will end up becoming propagators of false doctrines.

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. 

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, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. 
2Pe 2:2  And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. 
2Pe 2:3  And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.

Exo 23:9  Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.

The question is, “What does a stranger signify spiritually?” The following verses show us what a stranger signifies:

Heb 11:8  By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. 
Heb 11:9  By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: 
Heb 11:10  For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.
Heb 11:11  Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised. 
Heb 11:12  Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable. 
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.

The verses above show us that the elect is a stranger in this world. We are therefore to make sure that we do not oppress or vex the members of the church of the firstborn as we are all strangers in this world. To oppress means to keep under subjection and hardship, especially the unjust exercise of authority. As the body of Christ, none of us must exercise unjust authority over one another since we are all strangers in this world and children of God. The whole church system of this world is characterized by pastors keeping under subjection the people of God. This is what the Lord Jesus has to say about that subjection:

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

Paul, Peter and Solomon also said the following regarding this matter:

2Co 1:24  Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand.

1Pe 5:3  Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.

Ecc 8:9  All this have I seen, and applied my heart unto every work that is done under the sun: there is a time wherein one man ruleth over another to his own hurt.

To vex means to make someone feel annoyed, frustrated or worried. When our message focuses on what we are required to do without bringing forth the enabling power of the Lord to assist us to do what He wants, we become frustrated or worried since we see that we do not have the capacity to do what is required. Our time in Babylon was characterized by frustration because we thought that everything depended on us. One of the verses which has been abused is that of working our salvation with fear and trembling in Philippians 2:12. We were always mentioning this without knowing that it is the Lord who does the work in the next verse.

Php 2:12  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 
Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

Exo 23:10  And six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits thereof:

The number six refers to mankind. The six years we are to sow in the land signifies the period of our lives here on earth as we sow either to the flesh or to the spirit. Whatever we sow, we shall reap a harvest. If we sow to the flesh, we shall reap corruption. On the other hand, if we sow to the spirit, we shall harvest eternal life.

Gal 6:8  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
Gal 6:9  And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
Gal 6:10  As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

Exo 23:11  But the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still; that the poor of thy people may eat: and what they leave the beasts of the field shall eat. In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and with thy oliveyard.
Exo 23:12  Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.

The seventh-year rest refers to the period of our walk with Christ where we cease from our own strivings and come to rest in the Lord to do His work in us. We, the elect, are the ox or ass or the stranger that will be refreshed through rest given to us by the Lord.

Heb 4:3  For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.
Heb 4:4  For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works. 
Heb 4:5  And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest. 
Heb 4:6  Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief: 

Heb 4:8  For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day.
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.

Externally, our lives here on earth are characterized by six days. On the seventh day when we inherit the purchased possession, we shall fully rest in the Lord in the next age.

Exo 23:13  And in all things that I have said unto you be circumspect: and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.

We are admonished here to be circumspect not to be propagators of false doctrine. This verse is another way of saying the following:

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.

Exo 23:14  Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year.

A feast is generally a celebration characterized by eating and drinking sumptuously. This means that keeping a feast spirituality has to do with periods in our lives where our heavens are opened to understand or feast on the Lord’s words. Keeping a feast three times in a year in verse 14 is significant. The number three symbolizes the process of spiritual maturity through judgment. What this means is that through the Lord’s judgment of our old man, our understanding becomes enlightened, and it is through this judgment that we become spiritually mature.

These feasts become possible through what every joint supplies.

Est 9:22  As the days wherein the Jews rested from their enemies, and the month which was turned unto them from sorrow to joy, and from mourning into a good day: that they should make them days of feasting and joy, and of sending portions one to another, and gifts to the poor.

The sending of portions one to another is what every joint supplies.

Eph 4:11  And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 
Eph 4:12  For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
Eph 4:13  Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
Eph 4:14  That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 
Eph 4:15  But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 
Eph 4:16  From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

Exo 23:15  Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:)

Passover is perhaps the most important of Jewish festivals in the Old Testament. On the evening before the fifteenth day of the first month in the Jewish calendar, Israelites were to sacrifice a lamb and place its blood above their doorposts as a sign that the angel of judgment passed over them when they were in Egypt, sparing their lives. After the Egyptians had received judgment through the death of their firstborn, they admonished Israel to leave immediately. In preparation for this exodus, the people were to make bread without leaven, for it had no time to rise. They were to eat their meal in haste knowing that the following day would be the day of their deliverance. As a memorial, the Feast of Unleavened bread continued to be practiced.

The people of Israel were required to eat unleavened bread for seven days during the feast of unleavened bread. The seven days refer to the period of our lives where we have come to know the truth of the word of the Lord from falsehood and from the letter of the word.

1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:
1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Exo 23:16  And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.

This feast of harvest, typically called the feast of weeks or the feast of ingathering, celebrates the culmination of the Exodus at Mount Sinai. The Feast of Weeks occurs seven weeks and one day following Passover, thus the Greek term Pentecost, meaning “the 50th (day)” following the historical account in Exodus 19:1-3 of Israel’s arrival at Sinai fifty days after the Passover.  The Feast of Weeks included giving grain offerings to God and included a “holy convocation” and a day of rest.

Num 28:26  Also in the day of the firstfruits, when ye bring a new meat offering unto the LORD, after your weeks be out, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work:

The “holy convocation” is a call to holiness or declaration of holiness which is reminiscent of the assembly at the foot of Sinai wherein God called His people to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. During the festival, grain offerings were given as freewill offerings to God in gratitude for redeeming His people and calling them to holiness.

Exo 19:3  And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel; 
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. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.

The Lord descended upon Sinai at Pentecost, in Exodus 19, in the form of fire and smoke to call the people to holiness. In the same way, the Holy Spirit was sent upon the Church at Pentecost in Acts 2, offering the apostles and all who would follow, the enabling grace to respond to His call to holiness.

Exo 19:18  And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly.

As indicated, a feast represents a time where our heavens are opened to know the Lord exponentially. Regarding the feast of ingathering, our understanding is enlightened to know more about the Lord’s judgment and how it enables us to walk in holiness. The judgment we are all facing now is part of the process of making us holy.

Mat 13:21  Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

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

During this period, we begin to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice to the Lord by living a life of Christ’s righteousness.

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 23:17  Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord GOD. 

This verse means it is only when we become spiritually mature through the Lord’s judgment of our old man (the meaning of the number three) that we shall appear before the Lord just before the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ.

1Co 15:52  In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 
1Co 15:53  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

Exo 23:18  Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning. 

We are warned here in verse 18 not to continue to use leavened bread. In other words, we should not sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth. If we continue to do that, we shall be cast out into outer darkness.

Heb 10:26  For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, 
Heb 10:27  But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. 

Mat 8:12  But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out 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.

In verse 18, we are required not to let the fat of our sacrifice remain until the morning.

Lev 16:25  And the fat of the sin offering shall he burn upon the altar.

Lev 17:6  And the priest shall sprinkle the blood upon the altar of the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and burn the fat for a sweet savour unto the LORD.

The fat here represents all that is within us that must be burnt out of us in order to offer to the Lord a sacrifice pleasing to Him. Retaining the fat of our sacrifice until the morning means not being able to offer our bodies as living sacrifices to the Lord when He comes!! In this case, we shall suffer loss.

Exo 23:19  The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the LORD thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk.

“Thou shall not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk” means that we cannot be offered as a living sacrifice pleasing to the Lord while we are still spiritually immature.

May the Lord grant us the grace to mature in Him through His judgment of our old man. Amen!!

[Study Aired August 1, 2022]

Exo 19:1  In the third month, when the children of Israel were gone forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of Sinai. 
Exo 19:2  For they were departed from Rephidim, and were come to the desert of Sinai, and had pitched in the wilderness; and there Israel camped before the mount. 
Exo 19:3  And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel; 
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. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel. 
Exo 19:7  And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before their faces all these words which the LORD commanded him. 
Exo 19:8  And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD. 
Exo 19:9  And the LORD said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever. And Moses told the words of the people unto the LORD. 
Exo 19:10  And the LORD said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them to day and to morrow, and let them wash their clothes, 
Exo 19:11  And be ready against the third day: for the third day the LORD will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai. 
Exo 19:12  And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about, saying, Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it: whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death: 
Exo 19:13  There shall not an hand touch it, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live: when the trumpet soundeth long, they shall come up to the mount. 
Exo 19:14  And Moses went down from the mount unto the people, and sanctified the people; and they washed their clothes. 
Exo 19:15  And he said unto the people, Be ready against the third day: come not at your wives. 
Exo 19:16  And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled. 
Exo 19:17  And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount. 
Exo 19:18  And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly. 
Exo 19:19  And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice. 
Exo 19:20  And the LORD came down upon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount: and the LORD called Moses up to the top of the mount; and Moses went up. 
Exo 19:21  And the LORD said unto Moses, Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish. 
Exo 19:22  And let the priests also, which come near to the LORD, sanctify themselves, lest the LORD break forth upon them. 
Exo 19:23  And Moses said unto the LORD, The people cannot come up to mount Sinai: for thou chargedst us, saying, Set bounds about the mount, and sanctify it. 
Exo 19:24  And the LORD said unto him, Away, get thee down, and thou shalt come up, thou, and Aaron with thee: but let not the priests and the people break through to come up unto the LORD, lest he break forth upon them. 
Exo 19:25  So Moses went down unto the people, and spake unto them. 

Exodus chapter 19 is about the preparation needed to meet the Lord as the people of Israel encamped near Mount Sinai. Our walk in Christ here on this earth is exemplified by the journey taken by the people of Israel when they left Egypt. They experienced hunger at a certain point in their journey, and later they also were without water. These are all part of the process the Lord takes us through to become mature sons. This process of maturity through judgment is symbolized by three days. 

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.

Today’s study reveals what is required of us in order to meet the Lord. Internally, meeting the Lord means the Lord coming to us to judge us. This happens when we come to see that we are the beast!! That is when the Lord comes with His brightness to destroy the wicked one within us so that we learn righteousness.

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

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.

Outwardly, meeting the Lord will occur when the kingdoms of this world become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ. That is when the purchased possession shall be redeemed.

Eph 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 
Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

Exo 19:1  In the third month, when the children of Israel were gone forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of Sinai. 
Exo 19:2  For they were departed from Rephidim, and were come to the desert of Sinai, and had pitched in the wilderness; and there Israel camped before the mount.

It was in the third month that the people of Israel reached Mount Sinai after departing from Egypt. The number three means the process of spiritual completion or maturity through judgment.  The coming of the people of Israel to Mount Sinai was for the express purpose of meeting the Lord. Thus, our spiritual perfection will occur when we meet the Lord at the turn of a new age. As our Lord is, so are we. The Lord Jesus Christ was perfected when He resurrected from the dead. The first resurrection will result in the perfection of the saints.

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. 

Rev 1:7  Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. 

Inwardly, our meeting of the Lord at Mount Sinai is when He comes with His judgment to destroy the old man or the flesh.

Exo 19:3  And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel; 
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.

It is when our eyes of understanding are enlightened, and our ears hear the words of the Lord, which is symbolized by Moses meeting the Lord on the mountain, that we begin to see how the Lord has been with us all along as He carried us on eagles’ wings to Himself. Eagles are very powerful birds that have great strength and are very caring parents. They protect their young with a high nest. Both parents bring food to the eaglets and teach them to fly. If an eaglet struggles in flight, a parent will swoop under the young bird and carry them, so they don’t fall.

Here in verse 4, the Lord compared His strength and power and His caring to that of an eagle. We may feel frail, powerless and not cared for in this life, but the good news is that our Lord’s strength and power is what is carrying us in this life to Himself – not ourselves. Are you weary? Are you weak and frail? Are you going through health or financial challenges that there is no end in sight? Receive the strength and power of the Lord in the name of Jesus!! May the Lord help you to lift up your eyes from your circumstances and look up to the hills, from whence comes your help!! He will bear you on eagles’ wings and bring you to Himself, Amen!

Psa 121:1  A Song of degrees. I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. 
Psa 121:2  My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth. 
Psa 121:3  He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber. 
Psa 121:4  Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. 

Isa 40:26  Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth. 
Isa 40:27  Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the LORD, and my judgment is passed over from my God? 
Isa 40:28  Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. 
Isa 40:29  He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. 
Isa 40:30  Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: 
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.

Who are those who wait upon the Lord? They are those who have come to realize that of themselves they can do nothing and therefore focus on the mercies of the Lord. They are the ones the Lord will carry on eagles’ wings. That is when we can run and not be weary, walk and not faint!!

Psa 123:2  Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God, until that he have mercy upon us.

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. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.

Being called and chosen is what qualifies us to become a peculiar treasure of the Lord above all people. How do we know that we are His peculiar treasure? When our eyes see and our ears hear, then we are blessed to be part of His peculiar treasure. The tribulation we all go through is all part of the process of possessing the kingdom of God or becoming part of His peculiar treasure. Being His peculiar treasure is the same as being a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Our obedience will have to be complete to possess the kingdom of God. This is not the work of man. It is the work of God, and we have confidence that He who has started with us, will see to its completion!!

1Pe 2:9  But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: 
1Pe 2:10  Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. 

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

Exo 19:7  And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before their faces all these words which the LORD commanded him. 
Exo 19:8  And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD.

When we start our walk with the Lord, we think we can obey the Lord by our own strength. This is all because of the false doctrine of us possessing our own will in our heavens. The Israelites also taught that to obey is within their means and so they unanimously told Moses that they will do all that the Lord commands. Let’s see what the Lord think about this assertion:

Deu 5:27  Go thou near, and hear all that the LORD our God shall say: and speak thou unto us all that the LORD our God shall speak unto thee; and we will hear it, and do it.
Deu 5:28  And the LORD heard the voice of your words, when ye spake unto me; and the LORD said unto me, I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken unto thee: they have well said all that they have spoken.
Deu 5:29  O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever!

As we can see, in the eyes of the Lord, we do not have what it takes to obey Him. Our hardened hearts must be softened by His judgments before we can obey His voice.

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

Psa 119:67  Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.

Exo 19:9  And the LORD said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee forever. And Moses told the words of the people unto the LORD. 

His coming to us in a thick cloud means Jesus coming to us is through His elect who are symbolized by the thick cloud of witnesses. In this dispensation, it is through us, His elect, that the Lord speaks to His people since we are Jesus whom the world is persecuting.

Heb 12:1  Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

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; 

Act 9:4  And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? 
Act 9:5  And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.

Exo 19:10  And the LORD said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them to day and to morrow, and let them wash their clothes,
Exo 19:11  And be ready against the third day: for the third day the LORD will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai.

As we have indicated in previous studies, Moses represents Christ. It is the Lord who comes to us with the spirit of His mouth (His words) to sanctify us with His judgments. Sanctification means to be cleansed or purified. Jesus Christ is our sanctification.

1Co 1:30  But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:

The whole process of being sanctified takes a symbolic three days. The first two days indicated here in verse 10 as today and tomorrow refer to our sanctification through judgment while we live in this tent of flesh. The third day is when we are perfected as we meet Christ face to face just as the Israelites were being sanctified to meet Christ on Mount Sinai on the third day. 

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

2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: 

Washing our clothes in verse 10 is the same as making them white in the blood of the Lamb, which means being sanctified through Christ.

Rev 7:13  And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? 
Rev 7:14  And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Rev 7:15  Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. 

Rev 22:14  Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates.

As indicated, it is on the third day that we shall be perfected as we meet the Lord. This is what Paul said about this:

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.

Exo 19:12  And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about, saying, Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it: whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death: 
Exo 19:13  There shall not an hand touch it, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live: when the trumpet soundeth long, they shall come up to the mount. 

To understand why the Israelites were forbidden to go up the Mount and to touch the border of it except Moses, we need to know what the people of Israel represent and what Moses represents in these verses. On a negative note, the people of Israel represent Babylon, the mother of harlots. Moses on a positive note stands for the elect. It is the elect that have access to the Mountain of God or the presence of the Lord. Our brothers and sisters in Babylon are forbidden to go up the mountain of God or even to touch it. The reason they cannot come before the Lord or touch anything Holy is that they have been carried away by false doctrines, thus making them unable to eat at the altar.

Heb 13:9  Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein. 
Heb 13:10  We have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle.

The attempt by our brothers and sisters in Babylon to come to the Lord, signified by the Israelites trying to come up the Mount, or touch it is met with death. This mountain of God represents the Lord’s dwelling which is our body. To come up the mountain or to touch the mountain is to touch us and therefore Christ who is the word. To Moses (the elect), the experience of meeting the Lord brings him to know the Lord through His words. To our brothers and sisters in Babylon, the experience of meeting the Lord (His words) brings darkness which brings them into spiritual death.

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.

Exo 19:14  And Moses went down from the mount unto the people, and sanctified the people; and they washed their clothes. 
Exo 19:15  And he said unto the people, Be ready against the third day: come not at your wives.

As we indicated earlier, Moses coming down to sanctify the people is Christ coming to us with His judgment to teach us righteousness as we wait for our perfection on the third day. In the twinkle of an eye, we shall be raised incorruptible from the dead. 

1Co 15:52  In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1Co 15:53  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 
1Co 15:54  So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

In verse 15, we are told that as part of sanctification, the people of Israel must not come at their wives. This is another way of saying that if we are to be sanctified, then we must leave Babylon, symbolized by wives. In other words, we must have no union with Babylon.

1Co 6:16  What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh. 
1Co 6:17  But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. 

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.

Pro 7:10  And, behold, there met him a woman with the attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart. 

Pro 7:17  I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. 

Pro 7:18  Come, let us take our fill of love until the morning: let us solace ourselves with loves. 

Pro 7:21  With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she forced him. 
Pro 7:22  He goeth after her straightway, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks; 
Pro 7:23  Till a dart strike through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that it is for his life.

Exo 19:16  And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled. 
Exo 19:17  And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount.

Outwardly, the third day is when we redeem the purchased possession. That is when we shall be raised incorruptible.

1Co 15:42  So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption:
1Co 15:43  It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: 
1Co 15:44  It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.

Here is what Apostle John has to say about this:

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

Inwardly, meeting the Lord is when He comes with His judgments to destroy all that is within us that resists Christ from establishing His kingdom within us. As we are aware, thunder and lightning are all indications of His judgment of our old man or the beast within.

Exo 19:18  And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly. 

Smoke is an indication of burning by fire. As the scriptures say, every man’s work shall be burnt. However, in this age, it is the elect that are being judged. All that is hay, stubble and wood shall be burned out of our lives when the Lord comes to us. As indicated, Mount Sinai represents figuratively the habitation of God which is our body. In order for Christ to come and live in His temple, it must be cleansed, and the smoke is an indication of the burning that is going on in our lives as we are being judged.

1Co 3:11  For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 
1Co 3:12  Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; 
1Co 3:13  Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. 
1Co 3:14  If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. 
1Co 3:15  If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. 
1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

Exo 19:19  And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice. 
Exo 19:20  And the LORD came down upon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount: and the LORD called Moses up to the top of the mount; and Moses went up. 

When the Lord comes to us with His judgment, one significant result is that we end up hearing the voice of the Shepherd clearly as we come to understand more of the mysteries of the kingdom of God. This is what it means when the Israelites heard the voice of the trumpet sound louder and louder. As we are aware, the voice of the trumpet is the voice of Christ or His words.

Rev 1:10  I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet,
Rev 1:11  Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.

Outwardly, when we meet Him face to face we shall know Him fully.

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.

Exo 19:21  And the LORD said unto Moses, Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish. 
Exo 19:22  And let the priests also, which come near to the LORD, sanctify themselves, lest the LORD break forth upon them. 
Exo 19:23  And Moses said unto the LORD, The people cannot come up to mount Sinai: for thou chargedst us, saying, Set bounds about the mount, and sanctify it. 
Exo 19:24  And the LORD said unto him, Away, get thee down, and thou shalt come up, thou, and Aaron with thee: but let not the priests and the people break through to come up unto the LORD, lest he break forth upon them. 
Exo 19:25  So Moses went down unto the people, and spake unto them.

As we have observed earlier, the camp of the Israelites represents Babylon while Moses and Aaron represent the elect. This is made clear when the word of the Lord in Hebrews compared the camp of Babylon to that of the general assembly of the firstborn as follows:

Heb 12:18  For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest,
Heb 12:19  And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more: 
Heb 12:20  (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart: 
Heb 12:21  And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:) 
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:

We thank the Lord for delivering us from Babylon and bringing us to the church of the firstborn. May He grant us the grace to know Him more as we go through the fiery trials marked out for us. Amen!!

Exo 5:1-23 Let My People go, that They may Hold a Feast unto Me in the Wilderness

[Study Aired April 11, 2022]

Exo 5:1  And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness. 
Exo 5:2  And Pharaoh said, Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go. 
Exo 5:3  And they said, The God of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days’ journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the LORD our God; lest he fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword. 
Exo 5:4  And the king of Egypt said unto them, Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, let the people from their works? get you unto your burdens. 
Exo 5:5  And Pharaoh said, Behold, the people of the land now are many, and ye make them rest from their burdens. 
Exo 5:6  And Pharaoh commanded the same day the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying, 
Exo 5:7  Ye shall no more give the people straw to make brick, as heretofore: let them go and gather straw for themselves. 
Exo 5:8  And the tale of the bricks, which they did make heretofore, ye shall lay upon them; ye shall not diminish ought thereof: for they be idle; therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to our God. 
Exo 5:9  Let there more work be laid upon the men, that they may labour therein; and let them not regard vain words. 
Exo 5:10  And the taskmasters of the people went out, and their officers, and they spake to the people, saying, Thus saith Pharaoh, I will not give you straw. 
Exo 5:11  Go ye, get you straw where ye can find it: yet not ought of your work shall be diminished. 
Exo 5:12  So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble instead of straw. 
Exo 5:13  And the taskmasters hasted them, saying, Fulfil your works, your daily tasks, as when there was straw. 
Exo 5:14  And the officers of the children of Israel, which Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and demanded, Wherefore have ye not fulfilled your task in making brick both yesterday and to day, as heretofore? 
Exo 5:15  Then the officers of the children of Israel came and cried unto Pharaoh, saying, Wherefore dealest thou thus with thy servants? 
Exo 5:16  There is no straw given unto thy servants, and they say to us, Make brick: and, behold, thy servants are beaten; but the fault is in thine own people. 
Exo 5:17  But he said, Ye are idle, ye are idle: therefore ye say, Let us go and do sacrifice to the LORD. 
Exo 5:18  Go therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you, yet shall ye deliver the tale of bricks. 
Exo 5:19  And the officers of the children of Israel did see that they were in evil case, after it was said, Ye shall not minish ought from your bricks of your daily task. 
Exo 5:20  And they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from Pharaoh: 
Exo 5:21  And they said unto them, The LORD look upon you, and judge; because ye have made our savour to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to slay us. 
Exo 5:22  And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Lord, wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people? why is it that thou hast sent me? 
Exo 5:23  For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people; neither hast thou delivered thy people at all. 

This chapter deals with the first encounter of Moses and Aaron with Pharaoh and the consequence of this encounter. It shows us our initial struggles with the man of sin or the old man in our lives and what happens to us as a result. The chapter also shows us how we are marred in the hands of our Lord, the potter.

Jer 18:1  The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
Jer 18:2  Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words.
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.

Exo 5:1  And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness. 

In this verse, an important title of God is mentioned: Jehovah, God of Israel. Jehovah is the unique self-existing one. He is the one who was, who is, and who will be. Only of Him can the verb “to be” be applied in an absolute sense. The title given to the Lord in this verse is the God of Israel. The title “the God of Israel” indicates that God is the God of a transformed people. Jacob was the name of a natural man, but when he was transformed, he became Israel. Israel, according to Strong, means “He will rule as God”. This name implies victory and kingship. In other words, the transformed people are victors and are also kings. Just imagine the situation that Israel endured in Egypt and the Lord calling them as a transformed people who will become victors over the flesh (Pharaoh) and will reign as kings with Christ. It is beyond comprehension!!

Rom 4:17  (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.

The same principle applies to the way our Lord sees us today!! In the eyes of the Lord, we are victors and kings!! However, if our eyes are set on our spiritual condition, we may regard ourselves as being pitiful just like the Israelites in Egypt. Let’s not be short-sighted and limited in our vision by our present situation or predicament.

God does not regard you as one still in bondage under Pharaoh. Do you dare believe that you are such an Israelite, such a victor and king? Believe the word of the Lord, and if God says that you are an Israelite, then you are an Israelite, whether you feel this way about yourself or not.

When the Lord comes to us with His brightness, which is His words, that is when we begin to confront the beast or the old man within us, symbolized by Pharaoh. Here, Moses and Aaron told Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go to hold a feast to the Lord in the wilderness. The word ‘feast’ also means to celebrate. It is during celebrations that we offer sacrifices and thanks to the Lord. So, what we are being told here is that in order to celebrate our Lord in this world (wilderness), or to offer a pleasing offering and sacrifice to the Lord, we must overcome or not be under the influence of the flesh or the old man within. Celebration also has to do with eating and drinking. As we are aware, eating and drinking has to do with the word of the Lord. This means that our understanding of the word of the Lord and the power to do according to word of the Lord increases as the power of the beast within diminishes as a result of the Lord’s judgment of the beast.

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 5:2  And Pharaoh said, Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go. 

What Pharaoh is saying in this verse is to let us know the nature of the beast within. That is, the beast or the old man resists or opposes Christ. This is the antichrist spoken of in the scriptures. Once we are under the dominion of the beast or the old man, then we become deceivers.

1Jn 2:18  Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.

1Jn 2:22  Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.

1Jn 4:3  And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

2Jn 1:7  For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.

Exo 5:3  And they said, The God of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days’ journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the LORD our God; lest he fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword.

Our exit from Egypt is to be accompanied by a three-day journey into the wilderness where we can offer sacrifices to the Lord. The wilderness here is the world. Our walk with Christ starts after leaving Egypt, and the three-day journey refers to all we go through in this life (desert or wilderness) as part of the spiritual maturity process destined for us. This spiritual maturity is accomplished through judgment. It is when we are maturing that we are able to 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.

In verse 3 above, we are also told that Pharaoh’s refusal to let the people go on this three-day journey means that the Lord will visit the people with pestilence or with the sword. There are therefore two categories of people – those who through the mighty acts of the Lord are able to break free from the shackles of Pharaoh (the old man) to offer a living sacrifice to the Lord in this life, and those who are not able to break free from Pharaoh’s dominion. Those who are able to break free from Pharaoh’s dominion are the elect, and those who are not able to do so represent Babylon and the people of the world. As we are aware, pestilence and the sword are part of the Lord’s four sore judgments. Those who break free from Pharaoh’s grip go through a three-day journey which means that they mature through judgment. Those who are not able to do so and remain under Pharaoh’s rule will also be judged through pestilence or the sword in the fullness of time.

Eze 14:21  For thus saith the Lord GOD; How much more when I send my four sore judgments upon Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the noisome beast, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast?

Exo 5:4  And the king of Egypt said unto them, Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, let the people from their works? get you unto your burdens.
Exo 5:5  And Pharaoh said, Behold, the people of the land now are many, and ye make them rest from their burdens.

On a positive note, what the king of Egypt said about Moses and Aaron making the people of Israel rest from their burdens is true. It is only when we are free from the dominion of the beast within that we are free from the burden of sin. That is when we find rest. Without dealing with the source of sin in our lives (the old man), all our effort to stop sinning will be in vain.

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 7:23  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.

In other words, getting rest in the Lord is through the process of the death of our old man. With the old man still alive in us, finding rest becomes an illusion. The objective of the old man is to keep us busy with our own works, but Moses, representing Christ, has come into our lives so that we might have rest!!

Mat 11:28  Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 
Mat 11:29  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 
Mat 11:30  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Exo 5:6  And Pharaoh commanded the same day the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying, 
Exo 5:7  Ye shall no more give the people straw to make brick, as heretofore: let them go and gather straw for themselves. 
Exo 5:8  And the tale of the bricks, which they did make heretofore, ye shall lay upon them; ye shall not diminish ought thereof: for they be idle; therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to our God. 
Exo 5:9  Let there more work be laid upon the men, that they may labour therein; and let them not regard vain words.

It is when we desire to free ourselves of the influence of the beast within that we come to see how powerless we are before the beast. We become worse off, and in the process, we lose hope of becoming free from the beast’s influence. This is all the work of the Lord so that we do not think we have something to offer our Lord regarding His plan of deliverance (salvation) for us.

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.

In verse 9, Pharaoh did not want God’s people to regard vain words. These “vain words” however, were actually the word of God. The same is true today. Those who are dominated by the beast within (the people of the world and our brothers and sisters in Babylon) regard what we are learning of the word of the Lord as being nothing more than vain words. What we are doing in our gatherings may be idle in the eyes of worldly people including Babylon, but what they are doing is vanity in the eyes of the Lord. Egypt (the world) is filled with busyness. Everyone still under bondage in Egypt is very busy.

Exo 5:10  And the taskmasters of the people went out, and their officers, and they spake to the people, saying, Thus saith Pharaoh, I will not give you straw. 
Exo 5:11  Go ye, get you straw where ye can find it: yet not ought of your work shall be diminished. 
Exo 5:12  So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble instead of straw.

The Egyptians, under the instructions of their king, increased the burden of the Israelites by asking them to get straw themselves as input to their daily work. The taskmasters here represent the beast or the old man within us from whose influence we desire to free ourselves. Verse 12 says that the Israelites were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather straw. The straw here represents our works or deeds which do not please the Lord. These must be burnt with unquenchable fire.

Luk 3:17  Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and will gather the wheat into his garner; but the chaff he will burn with fire unquenchable.

Straw also symbolizes us, as we are blown by every wind of doctrine in this world before our Lord comes to us to deliver us from the old man.

Job 21:18  They are as stubble before the wind, and as chaff that the storm carrieth away.

Psa 1:4  The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.

Exo 5:13  And the taskmasters hasted them, saying, Fulfil your works, your daily tasks, as when there was straw. 
Exo 5:14  And the officers of the children of Israel, which Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and demanded, Wherefore have ye not fulfilled your task in making brick both yesterday and to day, as heretofore? 

At a certain point of our walk with the Lord, we are basically held captive by sin as the beast within or the old man (taskmasters) dominates us in fulfilling the things of the flesh. The prophet Joel spoke about our condition under the control of the beast within as follows:

Joe 1:2  Hear this, ye old men, and give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land. Hath this been in your days, or even in the days of your fathers? 
Joe 1:3  Tell ye your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children another generation. 
Joe 1:4  That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten. 
Joe 1:5  Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the new wine; for it is cut off from your mouth. 
Joe 1:6  For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion. 
Joe 1:7  He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white.

Exo 5:15  Then the officers of the children of Israel came and cried unto Pharaoh, saying, Wherefore dealest thou thus with thy servants? 
Exo 5:16  There is no straw given unto thy servants, and they say to us, Make brick: and, behold, thy servants are beaten; but the fault is in thine own people.

Pharaoh, or the taskmasters, can externally be likened to our leaders in Babylon. We must remember that Egypt can also represent Babylon. Our leaders themselves do not have the keys to the kingdom of heaven during our time in Babylon, but they require us to live a life that pleases the Lord. The burden they put on us is heavy because trying to please God with our effort or strength is such an onerous task that brings frustration. Our Lord Jesus talked about this as follows:

Mat 23:1  Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,
Mat 23:2  Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat:
Mat 23:3  All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not. 
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 23:13  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.

Exo 5:17  But he said, Ye are idle, ye are idle: therefore ye say, Let us go and do sacrifice to the LORD.

Our natural or worldly mentality powered by the beast within, or the flesh, is that anything in which we do not exert our energies we should regard as laziness or being idle. Right from the very onset of our walk with Christ, we were admonished that we are responsible for our actions and that we are supposed to work out our own salvation. This mentality was the basis of our walk while in Egypt and later in Babylon. It is therefore, no surprise that Pharaoh, representing the beast or the old man, should reprimand the Israelites (the elect) that they are idle and do not want to work. However, the truth about the words of the Lord is that He does everything for us. All we need to do is believe, and even this belief is of Christ. Therefore, we bring nothing to the table of our salvation!! All is of the Lord. To the natural man, this is laziness or idleness!!

Isa 59:16  And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him (us); and his righteousness, it sustained him (us).

Rom 9:16  So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.

Exo 14:13  And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever. 
Exo 14:14  The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.

Joh 6:28  Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might 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.

Exo 5:18  Go therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you, yet shall ye deliver the tale of bricks.
Exo 5:19  And the officers of the children of Israel did see that they were in evil case, after it was said, Ye shall not minish ought from your bricks of your daily task.

Instead of letting Israel go, Pharaoh actually increased their labor with rigor by commanding that they be given no more straw. This is the same with our experience. When the Lord is about to rescue us from the world, the evil one is allowed to take away our “straw”, that is, he deprives us of the supply from the world. This forces us to work with more rigor to make a living and may become a trap to take us away from the Lord. The Lord’s salvation is to rescue us out of our busyness in this world and to bring us into ‘idleness’ (our gathering together and what every joint supplies). Many people today are too busy caring for the things of this life such that they have no time to feast with the Lord. We need to be delivered from this busyness in order to have more time for “idleness”.

Our living and our existence depend on the provision from the heavenly source, not on the supply from the world. We need this vision to be our guiding principle as we exercise our faith that He is able to take care of all our needs!! Moses was a man of great faith to lead two million people out of Egypt into the wilderness, where there was no earthly supply for their human existence. May the Lord help us, to walk by faith and not by sight!!

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

Exo 5:20  And they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from Pharaoh:
Exo 5:21  And they said unto them, The LORD look upon you, and judge; because ye have made our savour to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to slay us.

Moses and Aaron signify the elect and Israel under bondage in Egypt, and Egypt here represents Babylon. Our brothers and sisters in Babylon think that we are dead spiritually and that the message of salvation through judgment is not what they are hoping for but a doomsday message that puts a sword in the hand of their enemies to slay them. This is all of the Lord as their eyes have not been opened, and their ears are dull of hearing.

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 13:13  Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.
Mat 13:14  And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:
Mat 13:15  For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

Exo 5:22  And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Lord, wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people? why is it that thou hast sent me?
Exo 5:23  For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people; neither hast thou delivered thy people at all.

Verses 22 and 23 indicate that Moses was bothered and discouraged. Moses even asked the Lord why He had sent him. Furthermore, Moses said to the Lord, “Neither hast thou delivered thy people at all.” Many of us have had similar experiences. The more we think we are getting closer to the Lord through the enlightenment of His words, the more we go through certain circumstances of suffering that discourage us. This caused us to become troubled and discouraged just like Moses. Do not think, however, that increased suffering is a negative sign. Our suffering is a sign that God is in the process of delivering us from our enemy within – the old man or the beast.

Php 1:12  But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel; 

2Co 1:8  For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself.
2Co 1:9  Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. 
2Co 1:10  He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again. 

2Co 4:16  So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 
2Co 4:17  For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 
2Co 4:18  as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

Exo 3:1–22 I Will Turn Aside and See This Great Sight

[Study Aired March 21, 2022]

Exo 3:1  Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. 
Exo 3:2  And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. 
Exo 3:3  And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. 
Exo 3:4  And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. 
Exo 3:5  And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. 
Exo 3:6  Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. 
Exo 3:7  And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; 
Exo 3:8  And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 
Exo 3:9  Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. 
Exo 3:10  Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt. 
Exo 3:11  And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt? 
Exo 3:12  And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain. 
Exo 3:13  And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? 
Exo 3:14  And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. 
Exo 3:15  And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations. 
Exo 3:16  Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say unto them, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared unto me, saying, I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt: 
Exo 3:17  And I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt unto the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, unto a land flowing with milk and honey. 
Exo 3:18  And they shall hearken to thy voice: and thou shalt come, thou and the elders of Israel, unto the king of Egypt, and ye shall say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath met with us: and now let us go, we beseech thee, three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God. 
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. 
Exo 3:21  And I will give this people favour in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty: 
Exo 3:22  But every woman shall borrow of her neighbour, and of her that sojourneth in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters; and ye shall spoil the Egyptians.

This chapter deals with the coming of the Lord to Moses. In other words, Moses’ encounter with Christ. Up to this time in Moses’ life, he knew he had been called by the Lord and was doing the work of the Lord by his own strength. He had not encountered Jesus yet. Moses’ scenario is just like us. We left Egypt and came to the wilderness thinking we were serving the Lord by helping the flock, when in fact, we’ve ended up in Babylon (the church in the wilderness) and were becoming worse off. If we are called and chosen, then our Lord would come to us with the brightness of His coming to start the process of destroying the beast within.

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

As we are aware, what Moses went through is typical of us as elect. The disciples also had the same encounter. The time that Jesus called them to become His disciples was the time they left Egypt or the world. However, when Jesus was physically with them, they thought they were serving the Lord, when in fact, they were unconverted. It was later after Christ was resurrected that they had an encounter with Christ. This is what Peter had to say about his experience on the day of Pentecost:

Act 2:19  And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke: 
Act 2:20  The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come: 
Act 2:21  And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

It is after our sun had been turned to darkness and the moon to blood that Christ comes to us. His coming is the time when, if we call on the name of the Lord, we are saved. Let’s now look at Moses’ encounter when Christ came to him as follows:

Exo 3:1  Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. 

Here, Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, represents the Lord whose flock Moses was taking care of. As we know, the land of Midian where Moses fled after leaving Egypt, was part of the desert. A key characteristic of a desert is the scarcity of water, which makes it impossible for plants to grow. The fact that Moses was keeping the flock in the desert, therefore, suggests that Moses, together with the flock, symbolizes Babylon where there is lack of the word of the Lord. So, after leaving Egypt, we automatically end up in Babylon.

1Sa 3:1  And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision.

Moses, being a symbol of the elect, had been called and chosen before the foundations of the world. Being called and chosen, it is a matter of time before the Lord comes with His brightness, which is His words, to destroy that which holds us from offering our lives as living sacrifice to the Lord. In the fullness of time, Moses led the flock to the backside^H310 of the desert. The word “backside” has frequently been used in King James to mean “after” or “behind”. However, it is also used in other ways such as “to turn away from” in Numbers 14:43.

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^H310 the LORD, therefore the LORD will not be with you.

Thus, Moses leading the flock to the backside of the desert can mean Moses ‘turning away from’ the desert. It is when Moses turned away from the desert situation of the lack of the word of Christ that he came to the mountain of God or had an encounter with the Lord who comes with His words to brighten our path. In other words, it is when we begin to turn away from Babylon, representing the desert and its doctrines, that Christ comes to us!! This mountain of God, which is called Horeb, is the same as the New Jerusalem or the church of the first born. So, we turn away from the desert (Babylon) to enter Jerusalem which is above. This mountain of God is also spiritually the same as Mount Zion.

Isa 10:12  Wherefore it shall come to pass, that when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.

It is interesting that Horeb, the mountain of God, means “desolate”. The word of the Lord describes the elect as desolate. This is all to confirm that the mountain of God here represents the assembly of the Lord’s elect.

Gal 4:27  For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband.

Exo 3:2  And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. 
Exo 3:3  And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. 

The Lord coming to us, His elect, is through judgment or the fire of the word of the Lord. The bush here represents the elect as follows:

Deu 33:16  And for the precious things of the earth and fulness thereof, and for the good will of him that dwelt in the bush: let the blessing come upon the head of Joseph, and upon the top of the head of him that was separated from his brethren.

Thus, the statement that the Lord appeared unto Moses in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush is to let us know that this coming of Christ to the elect is all within us. In the fullness of time, the Lord will appear for the whole world to see. However, in this dispensation, the Lord’s coming is within us just as the kingdom of the Lord is within us.

Luk 17:20  And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: 
Luk 17:21  Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you. 
Luk 17:22  And he said unto the disciples, The days will come, when ye shall desire to see one of the days of the Son of man, and ye shall not see it.

What Moses saw caught his attention. Indeed, the Lord knows what will catch our attention. He saw the bush burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. The question is, “What does this mean?” As indicated, the bush represents the elect and the bush burning is to let us know of the judgment of the elect. In spite of what the elect go through by way of judgment, we rather become stronger and are not consumed by our fiery trials. This is exemplified by what happened to the Israelites while in Egypt. Even as their burden became heavier, they became stronger and more fruitful.

Exo 1:12  But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were grieved because of the children of Israel.

This is what Paul had to say about the bush burning but not being consumed:

2Co 6:4  But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses, 
2Co 6:5  In stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings; 
2Co 6:6  By pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned, 
2Co 6:7  By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, 
2Co 6:8  By honour and dishonour, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true; 
2Co 6:9  As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed; 
2Co 6:10  As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things. 

Our Lord Jesus Christ’s experience here on earth caps it all. He was like a bush burning but was not consumed.

Heb 5:5  So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee. 
Heb 5:6  As he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. 
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; 
Heb 5:8  Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; 
Heb 5:9  And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him; 

Now the question is, “What did Jesus, together with the people of God, see that kept them going in spite of the trouble they went through?” This is the very question on the mind of Moses that caused him to turn aside to see this great sight – why the bush is burning and yet not being consumed. The answer is very simple. It is because they have all seen the reward!! This is what Paul had to say about our High Priest Jesus:

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

Jesus saw the reward, and it served as a driving force to go against all the odds in this life to please God!! The reward is what is motivating all of us and preparing us to go through the fire knowing that we shall not be consumed!! Moses, like us, also wanted to know why the bush burns and yet was not consumed. However, many have seen the bush burning and not being consumed but were/are not enthused about it and therefore do not turn aside to see this great sight!! We, the elect, are the ones who, like Moses, are turning aside to see this great sight!! I remember Mike being questioned by someone about why he is so concerned with the first resurrection. This simply means that the fellow has not turned aside to see the reward!!

Exo 3:4  And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
Exo 3:5  And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.

It is when we turn aside to understand the word of the Lord regarding how all the elect before us went through all kinds of tribulations, but they were not consumed, that Christ comes to us with His brightness. That is when we hear a voice within us calling us by our name. Let’s now pay attention to the name Moses. It means to ‘draw out’. As we are aware, Moses also represents the law. It is when the law has run its full course that it draws out of us what we really are in the flesh.

Gal 3:23  But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. 
Gal 3:24  Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 
Gal 3:25  But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.

The fact that Moses was told not to draw near because the place where he was standing was holy ground is to make Moses aware that his way of life was not pleasing to the Lord. This means that the law has drawn out of Moses his unworthiness before the Lord and that Moses is required to change his way of walking before the Lord, which is signified by the Lord telling Moses to put off his shoes from his feet. The Lord also told Abraham after several years that the Lord appeared to him that he should walk before the Lord and be blameless. This implies that Abraham’s life at that time was not pleasing to the Lord.

Gen 17:1  And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. 

Exo 3:6  Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. 

In this encounter with Moses, the Lord introduced Himself as the God of Moses’ fathers – Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This introduction is to let Moses know that he is dealing with a God who is able to raise him up from his spiritually dead state.

Luk 20:37  Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. 
Luk 20:38  For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him. 

Moses hiding his face signifies that he became aware of his sins which separates us from the Lord.

Isa 59:2  But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.

It is when the Lord comes to us with the brightness of His words that we become aware of our iniquities, and we come to see clearly the man of sin sitting in our temple claiming that he is God. This is what happened to Isaiah when the Lord came to Him.

Isa 6:1  In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple.

Isa 6:5  And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” 

2Th 2:3  Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; 
2Th 2:4  Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. 

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

Exo 3:7  And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; 
Exo 3:8  And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 
Exo 3:9  Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. 

The Lord’s coming to us is the result of us groaning under the burden of sin because of our taskmaster, the old man or the flesh. If we are called and chosen, then he will hear our cry in this life and come to us with His deliverance. As stated here in verse 8, the deliverance of the Lord at the hands of the Egyptian is to bring them out of Egypt to possess a good land. The land here is our bodies, and the Egyptians, the Canaanites, the Hittites the Amorites and the Jebusites are all different aspects of the beast or the old man within which are dealt with at various phases of our lives. Thus, our salvation is a process which lasts a lifetime. It is not something that we attain at the beginning of our walk as our brothers and sisters in Babylon made us believe during our sojourn there. It is rather at the end of the road that salvation becomes ours.

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

1Co 9:24  Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. 
1Co 9:25  Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. 
1Co 9:26  So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. 
1Co 9:27  But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified. 

Exo 3:10  Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt. 
Exo 3:11  And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?
Exo 3:12  And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain. 

When we come to realize our unworthiness in the Lord’s presence, we do not think that the Lord can ever use us. This was what happened to Moses. The same thing happened to both Isaiah and Jeremiah when the Lord called them. These three present a witness to us that indeed the Lord is a God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. That is, the Lord is able to raise us up from our dead situation to use us for His cause.

Isa 6:5  And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” 
Isa 6:6  Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. 
Isa 6:7  And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” 
Isa 6:8  And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.”
Isa 6:9  And he said, “Go, and say to this people: “‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’

Jer 1:4  Now the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 
Jer 1:5  “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” 
Jer 1:6  Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth.” 
Jer 1:7  But the LORD said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a youth’; for to all to whom I send you, you shall go, and whatever I command you, you shall speak.

The reason why the Lord is able to use us in spite of our shortfalls is that it is the Lord that does the work. It does not depend on us. We are only vessels through which the Lord does the work. This is what verse 12 seems to suggest as the Lord told Moses that He would be with him. In Jeremiah’s encounter with the Lord, he was also told that the Lord would be with Him. The Lord being with us is the same as Him doing the work!!

Jer 1:8  Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the LORD.” 

Php 2:13  for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. 

1Co 12:6  And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. 

In verse 12, Moses was told that as a sign of the Lord sending Him, when the Lord delivers them from Egypt, they shall serve the Lord in mountain Horeb. As indicated earlier, the mountain here represents the New Jerusalem. We are only able to serve the Lord acceptably when we are in the company of the saints.

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: 
Heb 12:26  Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. 
Heb 12:27  And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. 
Heb 12:28  Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:

Exo 3:13  And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? 
Exo 3:14  And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. 
Exo 3:15  And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.

When Moses requested to know the name of the Lord, he was told that ”I AM THAT I AM”.  ‘I AM’ implies self-sufficiency, self-existence and immediate presence. What this means is that the Lord’s existence and actions are not dependent on anybody or anything. In other words, the Lord’s plans are not contingent upon any circumstance or anyone else.  He is sufficient in Himself to accomplish whatever He decides to do. It is another way of saying that with God, all things are possible. He promises that He will be what He will be; that is, He will be the eternally constant God. He stands, ever-present and unchangeable, completely sufficient in Himself, to do what He wills to do and to accomplish what He wills to accomplish.

As we have shown earlier, telling Moses that He is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is to show Moses that He is able to raise the dead to do whatever He wills to do!!

Job 23:13  But he is in one mind, and who can turn him? and what his soul desireth, even that he doeth. 
Job 23:14  For he performeth the thing that is appointed for me: and many such things are with him. 

Rev 1:8  I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. 

Luk 20:37  Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. 
Luk 20:38  For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him. 

Exo 3:16  Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say unto them, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared unto me, saying, I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt: 
Exo 3:17  And I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt unto the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, unto a land flowing with milk and honey. 

All these verses are to assure us that when we pray to the Lord according to His will, He hears us and will surely answer in His time. Right before the nation of Israel came to existence, the Lord had prophesied to Abraham that the Israelites will be in a foreign land for four hundred years before they are delivered. Thus, Israel’s request to be liberated from their taskmasters was right in the center of the Lord’s will!! However, the Lord has set times and seasons for the execution of His will in everybody’s life, and it is only when these set times are fulfilled that we receive answers to our request.

Ecc 3:1  To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: 

Ecc 3:11  He hath made everything beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end. 

1Jn 3:21  Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. 
1Jn 3:22  And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.

In verse 17, we are told that the land they are going to inherit after leaving Egypt is a land flowing with milk and honey. Let’s try to understand what milk and honey stands for. Milk in the scriptures represents the basics of the Lord’s word as shown below:

Isa 28:9  Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. 

1Co 3:2  I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. 

Heb 5:12  For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. 
Heb 5:13  For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. 

1Pe 2:2  As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: 

Honey can also mean the milk of the word of Christ. It only helps us to distinguish between good and evil.

Isa 7:15  Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good. 

On the other hand, honey essentially deals with how we hear the word of the Lord. When the word of the Lord comes to us, it tastes so sweet, but after we start to apply it to our lives, that is when it becomes bitter.

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. 

Rev 10:9  And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey. 
Rev 10:10  And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter. 

So, the Lord delivering the Israelites from Egypt and taking them to the land flowing with milk and honey is to let us know that when we come out of the world, we are to start with the milk of the word of the Lord and must be zealous for the word of the Lord just as human beings search for honey which taste so good in the mouth. However, in reality, in our zeal to know the word of the Lord, we all end up in the church in the wilderness (Babylon) imbibing false doctrines which block us from the milk of the word and the honey taste of the word of the Lord.

Exo 3:18  And they shall hearken to thy voice: and thou shalt come, thou and the elders of Israel, unto the king of Egypt, and ye shall say unto him, The LORD God of the Hebrews hath met with us: and now let us go, we beseech thee, three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God. 

Our exit from Egypt is to be accompanied by a three-day journey into the wilderness where we can offer sacrifice to the Lord. The wilderness here is the world. Our walk with Christ starts after leaving Egypt, and the three-day journey means that all we go through in this life is part of the spiritual maturity process destined for us. This spiritual maturity is accomplished through judgment. It is as we are maturing that we are able to 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 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. 

As we have explained in previous sessions, the king of Egypt represents the beast within. Our deliverance from this beast, or the old man within, is not accomplished in one day. It is a process. It takes the mighty hand of the Lord to deliver us from the opposition put up by this beast within to relinquish its throne in our lives. As indicated in verse 20, it takes the mighty hand of the Lord to work wonders on our behalf before we are delivered from the beast’s clutches. This is all to let us know that the death of the beast within is not our work. It is the Lord’s work. All we have to do to work the works of the Lord is to believe that what the Lord has started in us, He is able to complete it!!

Joh 6:28  Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might 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. 

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

Exo 3:21  And I will give this people favour in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty: 
Exo 3:22  But every woman shall borrow of her neighbour, and of her that sojourneth in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters; and ye shall spoil the Egyptians. 

The Lord does not facilitate our exit from Egypt without Him providing us with His word, which is represented here as gold and silver. However, after leaving Egypt, we turn the gold and the silver into images of men which are false doctrines. This is clearly demonstrated later in the journey in the wilderness at Mount Sinai when the Israelites used all the gold and silver to make a golden image. In the case of the raiment, which signifies the righteousness of Christ, we end up not submitting to Christ’s righteousness but rather establish our own righteousness (wear our own raiment).

Eze 16:13  Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom.  
Eze 16:14  And thy renown went forth among the heathen for thy beauty: for it was perfect through my comeliness, which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord GOD. 
Eze 16:15  But thou didst trust in thine own beauty, and playedst the harlot because of thy renown, and pouredst out thy fornications on every one that passed by; his it was. 
Eze 16:16  And of thy garments thou didst take, and deckedst thy high places with divers colours, and playedst the harlot thereupon: the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so.
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,

Exo 32:1  And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. 
Exo 32:2  And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me. 
Exo 32:3  And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron. 
Exo 32:4  And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. 

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. 

[Study Aired December 23, 2021]

1Ki 8:1  Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion. 
1Ki 8:2  And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto king Solomon at the feast in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month. 
1Ki 8:3  And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark. 
1Ki 8:4  And they brought up the ark of the LORD, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle, even those did the priests and the Levites bring up. 
1Ki 8:5  And king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel, that were assembled unto him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be told nor numbered for multitude. 
1Ki 8:6  And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD unto his place, into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims. 
1Ki 8:7  For the cherubims spread forth their two wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubims covered the ark and the staves thereof above. 
1Ki 8:8  And they drew out the staves, that the ends of the staves were seen out in the holy place before the oracle, and they were not seen without: and there they are unto this day. 
1Ki 8:9  There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone, which Moses put there at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt. 
1Ki 8:10  And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD, 
1Ki 8:11  So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD. 
1Ki 8:12  Then spake Solomon, The LORD said that he would dwell in the thick darkness. 
1Ki 8:13  I have surely built thee an house to dwell in, a settled place for thee to abide in for ever. 

In the last verse prior to this chapter (1Ki 7:51), we were told regarding the work king Solomon made for the house of the LORD, “So was ended all the work that king Solomon made for the house of the LORD. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated; even the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, did he put among the treasures of the house of the LORD” which ending was just the beginning of what God purposed to do with the temple for the nation of Israel, typifying for us today what the Lord will do for all of His creation that is going to be saved through the church, which will implement the judgments of God in the earth. These judgments will bring forth the fruit of Christ’s righteousness in time (Isa 26:9, Isa 55:11). God’s judgments are in the earth and began to be revealed from the “creation of the world” with the natural physical creation (Rom 1:20) revealing the spiritual plan of God. That plan is progressively moving forward with “many prophets and kings” (Luk 10:24) who desired to see and hear the things that we see but did not, and will not until the holy spirit dwells in them (Joh 6:28-29, Heb 11:6, 1Co 2:12-13, Rom 8:9).

Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness. 

Isa 55:11  So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

Joh 6:28  Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might 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. 

Heb 11:6  But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

1Co 2:12  Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
1Co 2:13  Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

Rom 8:9  But ye are not in the flesh, [“But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God” (1Co 2:14)] but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

This section of Kings shows us in type and shadow how God is going to use the elect to redeem all His creation by bringing them into the knowledge of God’s judgments. That judgment is always done in stages, just as the disciples who were blessed to walk with Christ during his ministry for so many years without having their heavens open so that they could believe and understand what all His teachings meant. That understanding would all begin to change when the holy spirit was given on Pentecost making it possible for the seed of God’s word to not return void through God’s kind of first fruits (Rom 8:22-25, Col 1:20-22, Psa 107:1-15, Joh 2:17-19).

Rom 8:22  For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. 
Rom 8:23  And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
Rom 8:24  For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? 
Rom 8:25  But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. [Like a tree planted by the riverside we don’t see the roots of the tree, but our hope is that our hope of glory within (Col 1:27) is taking deep root within us as the author and finisher of our faith who God is faithfully directing to give us the nourishment that we need to mature in Him (Psa 1:1-3)]

Col 1:20  And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.
Col 1:21  And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled 
Col 1:22  In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:

Psa 107:1  O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. 
Psa 107:2  Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy; 
Psa 107:3  And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south. 
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. 
Psa 107:7  And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation. 
Psa 107:8  Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! 
Psa 107:9  For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness. 
Psa 107:10  Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron; 
Psa 107:11  Because they rebelled against the words of God, and contemned the counsel of the most High: 
Psa 107:12  Therefore he brought down their heart with labour; they fell down, and there was none to help. 
Psa 107:13  Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. 
Psa 107:14  He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, [Psa 23:4] and brake their bands in sunder. 
Psa 107:15  Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!

This section of Kings introduces us to this “city of habitation” of Psalms 107:7, which is represented by the temple of God and the country we seek and the city in that country. It is all saying the same thing regarding that ‘place’ being the house of the Lord, the temple of God, which temple represents the body of Christ where our Father and Christ abide with us in spirit and give us rest and peace that passes all understanding (Heb 11:14, Jas 4:13-15, Joh 14:23, Heb 4:11, Php 4:5-7).

Heb 11:14  For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country.

Jas 4:13  Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: 
Jas 4:14  Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. 
Jas 4:15  For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.

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

Heb 4:11  Let us labour [“continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain” (Jas 4:13)] therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief [to do the works we must believe and it is through doing those works that we enter into God’s rest (Jas 2:20)].

Php 4:5  Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. 
Php 4:6  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 
Php 4:7  And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

1Ki 8:1  Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.

The completion of the temple by Solomon and bringing “in the things which David his father had dedicated; even the silver, and the gold, and the vessels” of 1 Kings 7:51 is typical language that represents the finished work of the body of Christ that will occur in the first resurrection and is being represented by this physical temple’s completion (1Co 3:16). 

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

It is after God’s elect are resurrected that Christ, who is represented by Solomon, assembles “the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem“, which symbolizes all the world coming up to learn of God’s truths via the elect who have already been gathered at this point “from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” (Mat 24:31, Rev 11:15-17). 

Mat 24:31  And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Rev 11:15  And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever. 
Rev 11:16  And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God, 
Rev 11:17  Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned. 

What they bring up to Solomon, who is a type of Christ, is “the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.” The ark of the covenant being brought up represents overcoming Babylon through the communion of the blood of Christ that is now being recognized by a world that has had no stay of bread or water (Zec 9:11-12,  Oba 1:21).

Zec 9:11  As for thee also, by the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water [Isa 3:1].
Zec 9:12  Turn you to the strong hold, [Psa 18:2] ye prisoners of hope: [Col 1:27] even to day do I declare that I will render double unto thee; [judgment]

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

1Ki 8:2  And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto king Solomon at the feast in the month Ethanim^H388, which is the seventh month. 
1Ki 8:3  And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark.
1Ki 8:4  And they brought up the ark of the LORD, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle, even those did the priests and the Levites bring up.

The Israel spoken of in this second verse is typical of the Israel of God who represents the world, the other fold Christ spoke of in John 10:16 who will come up to keep the feast of tabernacles. It is “all the men of Israel” who “assembled themselves unto king Solomon“. They assemble at a place called “the permanent brooks” [Ethanim^H388] which will bring forth the living waters to heal the nations via the Israel of God (Gal 6:16) typified by “the priests and the Levites” (Rom 6:5, Joh 7:38, Rev 22:2).

Rom 6:5  For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

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

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. 

All of this occurs in “the seventh month” reminding us that the completion [7] of the temple, which represents the body of Christ, is now ready to bring forth “the living waters to heal the nations”.

“All the men of Israel assembled themselves” and “all the elders of Israel came” represent “flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great” who the elect will  judge, which is what it means when we “eat the flesh of kings” having been commanded “Come! Gather for the great supper of God [ISV]” found in (Rev 19:17-19).

1Ki 8:5  And king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel, that were assembled unto him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be told nor numbered for multitude. 
1Ki 8:6  And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD unto his place, into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims.

Now the stage is set for these sacrifices to be made from “all the congregation of Israel“, from which congregation the elect are called. It is “before the ark” or before Christ and His body (Rom 12:5) that the world will give an accounting of what they have done in this life (Ecc 11:9, 1Co 6:3), and it is through Christ’s sacrifice, which takes away all the sins of the world, that humanity will be made free by the same advocate who will have already set the elect free (Joh 1:29, 1Jn 2:1, Joh 8:36).

Sacrificing “sheep and oxen, that could not be told nor numbered for multitude” foreshadows the time when all the multitudes of humanity will present their bodies a living sacrifice (Rom 12:1) that has been redeemed by the blood of the lamb (Rev 7:9). That redemption will come about through the process that is explained in the following verses (1Ki 8:6-7) and is accomplished by God’s elect who are being typified in this instance by the priests who “brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD unto his place, into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims.”

We know the end of the thousand-year reign will end in rebellion (Rev 20:8) and so this dedicated and zealous beginning that we’re reading about in Kings represents the ‘anon with joy’ (Mat 13:23) period of the world that ends up in a less than zealous society that has lost sight of the forgiveness that was granted them (2Pe 1:9). This pattern is talked about in The Biblical Overview of the Plan of God – Part 11 by Mike Vinson that discusses the spirit of rebellion of Israel reflected by the diminishing sacrifices offered at that time (during the feast of tabernacles in the seventh month), which is a type of the end of the thousand-year reign of the saints (Num 29:12-34).

That Solomon did not listen to the exact details of these ordinances to do sacrifice in Numbers 1:1-34, as they should have been, is again an admonition for us now in this age, because these things happened unto them for our sakes upon whom the end of the ages have come to admonish us to listen very carefully and not to do the same which we will do until we don’t (1Co 10:11, 2Ti 4:3, Heb 10:25).

Those “wings of the cherubims” represent the saviours who will come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau (Oba 1:21) and who will show mercy through judgment to those “whom the god of this world hath blinded” so they could not believe. God’s fiery judgment in the lake of fire will be executed by those who were first redeemed through a lifetime of judgment in this age (1Pe 4:17, Act 14:22) which will make them “prepared unto every good work” because of the purging process they will have gone through.

Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy. 

Rev 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. 

2Ti 2:21  If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work.

1Ki 8:7  For the cherubims spread forth their two wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubims covered the ark and the staves^H905 thereof above.
1Ki 8:8  And they drew out the staves, that the ends of the staves were seen out in the holy place before the oracle, and they were not seen without: and there they are unto this day. 

These staves^H905 that were used to carry the ark represent God’s elect who are granted to handle the holy things in this life in the prescribed manner God has directed (Heb 13:10). There are two staves which witness [2] that it is Christ in us as our hope of glory in this life (Col 1:27) who makes it possible for us to handle the holy things of the temple, being accepted through him (Eph 1:6). God gives us this power through Christ to bring healing to the nations as the bride of Christ who has an unction to do so (1Jn 2:20, Oba 1:21).

staves  H905 bad
From H909; properly separation; by implication a part of the body, branch of a tree, bar for carrying; figuratively chief of a city; especially (with prepositional prefix) as adverb, apart, only, besides: – alone, apart, bar, besides, branch, by self, of each alike, except, only, part, staff, strength.

Total KJV occurrences: 202

It is the ministry of reconciliation that will cause twain to become one (2Co 5:18, Eph 2:14), a ministry represented by the cherubims who “spread forth their two wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubims covered the ark and the staves^H905 thereof above.” Carrying the ark is a symbol of our bearing each other’s burdens and so fulfilling the law of Christ (Gal 6:2).

Notice that the “ends of the staves were seen out in the holy place before the oracle” and conversely “not seen without: and there they are unto this day“. This ‘being seen’ and ‘not seen’ reminds us of the first commandment of promise given to the elect to have a period of life in Christ before the rest of God’s creation where we are seen and known of God (Gal 4:9) who we now see face to face in earnest (Joh 14:9, 1Jn 4:17). We see him now in each other, symbolized also by the cherubim who face each other. We are hidden in Christ now (Col 3:3), and the world cannot see the hidden work God is doing in His little flock “unto this day” (Rom 11:8). That work is to bring forth much fruit which will remain, both within ourselves as the body of Christ matures and outwardly seeing the fruit develop and mature as the whole world will eventually be saved in time (Zec 4:10, Joh 15:16, 1Ti 4:16).

Our marriage to the Lamb makes us one with Him and happens as a result of our being drawn out of this world toward Christ (Eph 6:2-3, Mar 10:8, Joh 6:44). We are no longer of our father the devil. We honour our Father in heaven and Jerusalem above who is the mother of us all. As such we are being made one with Christ and assured that there is a reward and great incentive being held out for us to encourage us to endure until the end by fighting a good fight of faith (1Ti 6:12). That reward is symbolized by the first commandment with promise which tells us we will live long on the earth (Gal 4:26, Rev 20:6).

Eph 6:2  Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise 
Eph 6:3  That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth. 

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

Rev 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

1Ki 8:9  There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone, which Moses put there at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.

It was at a desolate place [“Horeb^H2722] in our lives when the Lord, represented by Moses, put “the two tables of stone” (the law for the lawless – 1Ti 1:9) in our ark, which ark represents the temple where we are first judged by that law which is likened unto a schoolmaster (Gal 3:24) “that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful” (Rom 7:13). If God is working with us, this law that brings us to see more clearly the law of sin in our members will cause us to cry out from the bondage of sin which we cannot escape unless we become partakers of the new law of liberty found by the life of Christ in us (Gal 6:2) symbolized by this statement:  “when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.” Coming out of Egypt could never happen without Christ having prepared a way (Hos 11:1, 1Jn 4:17, Jer 51:44-45) for us to make this possible. That is the covenant our Father has promised is going to happen to those who are called to overcome in this life (Rom 5:10, Rom 8:37).

Hos 11:1  When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt. 

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

Jer 51:44  And I will punish Bel 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].

Rom 5:10  For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

1Ki 8:10  And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD, 
1Ki 8:11  So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD. 

When the glory of the LORD fills the house of the LORD, the priests “could not stand to minister because of the cloud”. This event symbolizes for us that when we’ve done all, it is Christ who is going to give us the power to stand, and not our flesh, as He is the one who fills the temple “for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD” both to will and to do of our Father’s good pleasure (Php 2:12-13, Mar 13:11).

Php 2:12  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 
Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. 

Mar 13:11  But when they shall lead you, and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditate: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost.

The great cloud of witness represents the body of Christ (Heb 12:1), and the earthly priests that “could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD” represents our flesh, and Adam who cannot stand  (Rev 6:17) but must decrease by coming out of the holy place to have Christ increase and enter in as He does when we are granted to put off our flesh via the plagues of God which chasten us to the end that we might learn to forsake ungodliness and worldly lusts in this life (Rev 15:8, Tit 2:11-12). In other words, it is the new man who enters into the temple represented by “the glory of the LORD” that “had filled the house of the LORD” and the “no man” represents the flesh that cannot enter into this holy place.

Heb 12:1  Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, 

Rev 6:17  For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand? 

Rev 15:8  And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled. 

[“Then after we are chastened and receive of God (Heb 12:6) the new man the great cloud of witness, the body of Christ stands having done all, meaning having been judged which is an ongoing dying daily process, that we’re called to endure until the end of our life (Joh 3:30).“]

1Ki 8:12  Then spake Solomon, The LORD said that he would dwell in the thick darkness. 
1Ki 8:13  I have surely built thee an house to dwell in, a settled place for thee to abide in for ever. 

Solomon, who represents Christ or Christ in us, declares [“Then spake Solomon“] that God will dwell in the “thick darkness” while He abides in those who keep His commandments (Joh 14:20-23). The “thick darkness” is symbolic of where the life of Christ is hidden within us (Col 3:3, Col 1:27) and reminds us that we see through a glass darkly in this life even though we can search out the deep things of God with the spirit of God (1Co 2:10). Our sojourn in this life is a narrow way accompanied with certain victory for the few who God has predestined to overcome by trusting God today “to the praise of his glory” (1Pe 4:18, Mat 7:14, Mat 22:14, Eph 1:12). The house God is building for us today is established through judgment which is taking place in “thick darkness“^H6205 where we stumble (Jer 13:16, Job 22:13, Pro 24:16) and when we look at some of the entries that refer to this Strong’s number, it becomes clear that God dwells there in our midst to establish His righteousness in us through His judgments (Psa 97:2).

“thick darkness” H6205‛ărâphel

Total KJV Occurrences: 18
darkness, 13
Exo_20:21, Deu_4:11, Deu_5:22, 2Sa_22:10, 1Ki_8:12, 2Ch_6:1, Psa_18:9 (2), Isa_60:2 (2), Jer_13:16, Joe_2:2, Zep_1:15

dark, 2
Job_22:13, Eze_34:12

gross, 2
Isa_60:2, Jer_13:16 

cloud, 1
Job_22:13

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

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

Mat 7:14  Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

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

Eph 1:12  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted^G4276 in Christ.

G4276 proelpizō pro-il-pid’-zo

From G4253 and G1679; to hope in advance of other confirmation: – first trust.

G4253pro pro

A primary preposition; “fore”, that is, in front of, prior (figuratively superior) to. In compounds it retains the same significations: – above, ago, before, or ever. In compounds it retains the same significations.

G1679 elpizō el-pid’-zo

From G1680; to expect or confide: – (have, thing) hope (-d) (for), trust. [Jer 29:11]

If we have the mind of Christ which enables us to see through a glass darkly, our groaning will be within because of the birth pangs we are experiencing, and we will know “that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now” and that pain and groaning without ourselves is for our sakes as well (2Co 4:15) causing us to sigh and cry for the abominations of this world as Christ softens our hearts in this age through all the suffering that is unfolding in this world (Rom 8:20-23, Eze 9:4).

2Co 4:15  For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God. 

Rom 8:20  For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
Rom 8:21  Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 
Rom 8:22  For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. 
Rom 8:23  And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. 

Eze 9:4  And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof. 

Christ has “surely built thee an house to dwell in, a settled place for thee to abide in for ever” as was promised in John 14:3, and it is through the much tribulation of this life that we become a “settled place” (Act 14:22, 1Pe 5:10) where our Father and Christ abide as we learn to possess our souls patiently as we are saved by grace through faith that He gives, along with peace that passes all understanding (Luk 21:19, Eph 2:8, Php 4:7).

Joh 14:3  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

Solomon says of our LORD, “I have surely built thee an house to dwell in, a settled place for thee to abide in for ever” and God’s elect are given to see and acknowledge that it is the Lord who builds the house (Psa 127:1, Php 2:12-13) and uses Solomon to accomplish this as he or we give back to God that which was always His in the first place (1Ch 29:14, Rev 4:10-11).

Psa 127:1  A Song of degrees for Solomon. Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain. 

Php 2:12  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 
Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. 
Php 2:14  Do all things without murmurings and disputings: 

1Ch 29:14  But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee. 

Rev 4:10  The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying,
Rev 4:11 Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.

[Study Aired March 29, 2021]

Jdg 6:1  And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years. 
Jdg 6:2  And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel: and because of the Midianites the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and caves, and strong holds. 
Jdg 6:3  And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the east, even they came up against them; 
Jdg 6:4  And they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, till thou come unto Gaza, and left no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass. 
Jdg 6:5  For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and they came as grasshoppers for multitude; for both they and their camels were without number: and they entered into the land to destroy it. 
Jdg 6:6  And Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel cried unto the LORD. 
Jdg 6:7  And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD because of the Midianites, 
Jdg 6:8  That the LORD sent a prophet unto the children of Israel, which said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage; 
Jdg 6:9  And I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all that oppressed you, and drave them out from before you, and gave you their land; 
Jdg 6:10  And I said unto you, I am the LORD your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but ye have not obeyed my voice. 
Jdg 6:11  And there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites. 
Jdg 6:12  And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour. 
Jdg 6:13  And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites. 
Jdg 6:14  And the LORD looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee? 
Jdg 6:15  And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house. 
Jdg 6:16  And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man. 
Jdg 6:17  And he said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, then shew me a sign that thou talkest with me. 
Jdg 6:18  Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I come unto thee, and bring forth my present, and set it before thee. And he said, I will tarry until thou come again.
Jdg 6:19  And Gideon went in, and made ready a kid, and unleavened cakes of an ephah of flour: the flesh he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot, and brought it out unto him under the oak, and presented it.
Jdg 6:20  And the angel of God said unto him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out the broth. And he did so. 
Jdg 6:21  Then the angel of the LORD put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there rose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the LORD departed out of his sight.
Jdg 6:22  And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the LORD, Gideon said, Alas, O Lord GOD! for because I have seen an angel of the LORD face to face.
Jdg 6:23  And the LORD said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die. 
Jdg 6:24  Then Gideon built an altar there unto the LORD, and called it Jehovahshalom: unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

The life of an elect is not that simple. Like the Israelites, we have to go through our wilderness experience before we enter the Promised Land, and it is in the Promised Land that we have to battle the enemies within to possess our body, which is the land. Our wilderness experience is the period of our lives when we are devoted to the worldly church system (Babylon) that is Jerusalem which is and is in bondage with her children. Even though we come out of the world (Egypt) with enthusiasm to serve God, we end up spiritually dead as we imbibe great swelling words of vanity (every wind of false doctrine) of our shepherds in Babylon which sweep us away and cause us to have our own righteousness.

Gal 4:25  For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. 
Gal 4:26  But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. 

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. 

Jud 1:16  These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men’s persons in admiration because of advantage.

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 everyone that believeth.