Jer 1:1-10 To Build and to Plant- The Blessings of Obedience

[Study Aired November 29, 2020]

Because this prophecy of Jeremiah, taken as a whole, appears to our natural man to be so dire and so apocalyptic, our study today will be centered around the last part of the last verse of our last study. These words are designed to prepare our hearts to receive and even appreciate those parts of this prophecy which appear to our natural man to be so negative and seemingly lamentable. For the following couple of weeks, we will examine the curses which will come upon our old man for disobedience.

As we saw in our last study, Jeremiah is at this time a young man who is “set… over the nations”.  Notice what being placed in that position entails:

Jer 1:10  See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.

As is typical of the Lord’s word, the number of verses concerning our judgment, both our judgment… “first upon the house of God” (1Pe 4:17) and the later the judgment of all mankind, are over twice as many as the words which concern our rewards for being judged in this present time or the consequences of being judged at a later time. In either case the number of verses concerning judgment for disobedience far outnumber the verses which concern rewards for obedience. Jeremiah, as a type of who we are as judges with Christ during the thousand year reign and also the judges of the great white throne judgment, is told that his calling is 1) to root out, 2) to pull down, 3) to destroy, and 4) to throw down. Those four things have a negative implication to our old man. As a type also of those who will become the conduits of the mercy we have been shown and will in return show to all the rest of mankind (Rom 11:31), Jeremiah is told in half as many words that it is also given to him 1) to build, and 2) to plant:

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

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

This ratio of verses and pages which occupy curses for disobedience, compared to the number of verses and pages of scripture enumerating the blessings of obedience, is first made evident in Deuteronomy 28. The first 14 verses of this chapter enumerate all the blessings for obedience, and that is the subject of this study. We will appreciate these blessings and look forward to “the redemption of the purchased possession” today. Then we will take note of all the curses of disobedience in future studies. There is a particularly good reason why the scriptures which occupy themselves with the curses for disobedience far outnumber the verses and chapters of scripture which concern themselves with the blessings of obedience.

Our study today will center around the function of the blessings for obedience as they are promised in the first 14 verses of:

Deu 28:1  And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:

We will digress today from our direct study of this prophecy of Jeremiah, a prophecy which is filled with stories of the disobedience of the physical nation of Israel, to analyze why the curses of disobedience occupy far more of the pages of scriptures than do the blessings we are promised for obedience to the Lord’s words. We will also learn what the function is of the blessings we are promised for being obedient to the Lord’s commandments. There is a good reason for why the promises occupy comparatively little space in scripture, and we need to know and understand why it is so.

The short answer for why this is so, it that the scriptures are designed to deal with the lifelong process of bringing us out of death and darkness, and into life and the light. That is why the curses for disobedience occupy so much of the scriptures. However, there must be an incentive to help us see beyond the fact that we are dying creatures who are actually living in total spiritual darkness to begin with. To this end we are given “exceeding great and precious promises”:

2Pe 1:4  Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

The physical promises of blessings given to ancient Israel typify the spiritual blessings promised to “the Israel of God” (Gal 6:16 – GWV). The promise to Jeremiah as a type of the Lord’s firstfruit saints, of being given to rule over all the nations of this earth, is exactly what we, too, are promised to incentivize us as it did Jeremiah:

Jer 1:10  See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.

Both Jeremiah and Israel are merely types and shadows of the New Testament overcomers who keep the words and works of Christ to the end:

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

The true “Israel of God” (Gal 6:16) is an inward spiritual kingdom which is promised rulership over the kingdoms “on the earth”. This promise does not say, “He that overcomes… to him will I give power over the nations within.” These “overcomers” are those who have already been given that inward blessing, and that is why they are now proclaiming, “We shall reign on the earth.”

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

Gal 6:15  Certainly, it doesn’t matter whether a person is circumcised or not. Rather, what matters is being a new creation.
Gal 6:16  Peace and mercy will come to rest on all those who conform to this principle. They are the Israel of God. (GWV)

The twentieth chapter of Revelation reveals more details about those who are destined to “reign on the earth”:

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

Only those who are blinded by the Lord Himself to the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven will fail to see that it is only those who keep the works of Christ to the end in this present time, who will be given a part in the first resurrection to rule with Christ for a thousand years, after which there is “the resurrection to judgment”.

Joh 5:28  Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
Joh 5:29  And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. [The Greek word translated ‘damnation’ is ‘krisis’, and it is much better translated as ‘judgment’].

“The resurrection of judgment” in this twentieth chapter of Revelation is called the “great white throne… judgment”. The fact that the second resurrection follows the first is as obvious as the fact that this is the second group who are only now dying to their old man for the first time, follows those who died to their old man first in “this present time” (Rom 8:18). Those in the first resurrection will rule with Christ for a thousand years:

Rev 20:7  And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
Rev 20:8  And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
Rev 20:9  And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.
Rev 20:10  And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

This “thousand years” is without a doubt as much a spiritual signification of a time period as the ‘slain… Lamb’ is of a spiritual signification of death. However, a lamb is not used to signify a period of time and a thousand years is not used to signify a living creature. Both are signified by a counterpart of the same sort.

So, it is with the subject of resurrection. Both are symbolized by a counterpart. As Christ tells us there are only two resurrections – One is to life and the other to judgment. The first resurrection is symbolized by life, while the second resurrection follows the judgment which is now on “the house of God” and is symbolized by judgment.

1Pe 4:17  For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?
1Pe 4:18  And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?

Peter knew very well where any who are not being judged in this age would appear. They will appear at the second resurrection, “the resurrection of judgment” (Joh 5:27-29), the “white throne judgment”, which we are told is the lake of fire, of which it is written:

Rev 20:14  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

This “lake of fire” symbolizes the judgment which must take place at this symbolic “great white throne”:

Rev 20:11  And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
Rev 20:12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. [“The books” signifies the many who are not the “one seed” (Gal 3:16) while “the book” signifies those who are that “one seed” in the “one Christ” (1Co 12:12)]
Rev 20:13  And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

Yet another name for this second judgment is “the second death”:

Rev 20:14  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
Rev 20:15  And whosoever was not found written in the book of life [to rule and reign with Christ for a thousand years “on the earth”] was cast into the lake of fire.

Getting back to demonstrating that both Deuteronomy and Jeremiah, and indeed the whole of the Lord’s Word, emphasize the process of judgment much more than the reward for being judged in this present time, here are the rest of the first 14 verses of the 68 verses of this 28^th chapter of Deuteronomy:

Deu 28:2  And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.
Deu 28:3  Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.
Deu 28:4  Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.
Deu 28:5  Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.
Deu 28:6  Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out.
Deu 28:7  The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.
Deu 28:8  The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
Deu 28:9  The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, and walk in his ways.
Deu 28:10  And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee.
Deu 28:11  And the LORD shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers to give thee.
Deu 28:12  The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.

All these blessings “in the land which the Lord gives [us]” are ours even now spiritually in down payment form.

Here are Christ’s words as they relate to all these promises of blessings:

Mat 19:29 And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.

Demonstrating the spiritual downpayment form of these blessings, Mark adds the words “now in this time” and “with persecutions” to those words of Christ:

Mar 10:30 But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.

These spiritual realities here in Matthew and Mark are in complete accord with the shadow and type which are the promises of Deuteronomy 28:

Deu 28:13  And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the LORD thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them:
Deu 28:14  And thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.

Those 14 verses give us the types and shadows of all the “great and precious promises we are given in Christ:

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

We are given “all that pertains to life and godliness “through the knowledge of Him”, and it is only “by these… exceeding great and precious promises” that we are “partakers of the divine nature”. That makes our understanding of these promises the conduit for the “grace and peace [which comes to us only] through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.” Therefore it is expedient that we get to know God, and Jesus Christ whom He has sent, and familiarize ourselves with the promises we are given, through Christ, because that is the very definition of “life eternal”:

Joh 17:3  And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

These “exceeding great and precious promises” being so very important, we will do well to take note of what they promise us. So, let’s look at what we are being promised in our knowledge of Christ and His Father:

Deu 28:2  And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.
Deu 28:3  Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.

“The city” is contrasted with “the field”, but we are blessed in both because:

Pro 16:7  When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.

“The city” signifies “the city of our God” whereas “the field” signifies all that which is outside the city… “the field is the world”:

Psa 48:1  A Song and Psalm for the sons of Korah. Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness.

Psa 48:8  As we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the LORD of hosts, in the city of our God: God will establish it for ever. Selah [We are “Jerusalem above… the city of our God” (Gal 4:26-27)].

Mat 13:38  The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;

“The fruit of thy body” is the increase of the kingdom of God within us, the “few chosen” who appear to this world to be as barren as all the wives of the ancient patriarchs:

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.

Neither Paul nor Christ nor His Christ hold back from acknowledging who they are… “Now we brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.”

Joh 10:34  Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?
Joh 10:35  If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken;
Joh 10:36  Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?

Our next promise is:

Deu 28:4  Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.

The Lord’s blessing is upon us as it was upon Joseph as a slave in Egypt, both in the house of Potiphar and as the servant of the keeper of the prison:

Gen 39:2  And the LORD was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian.
Gen 39:3  And his master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the LORD made all that he did to prosper in his hand.

Gen 39:21  But the LORD was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison.
Gen 39:22  And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners that were in the prison; and whatsoever they did there, he was the doer of it.
Gen 39:23  The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was under his hand; because the LORD was with him, and that which he did, the LORD made it to prosper.

Joseph’s suffering in Egypt typifies all our suffering in these clay vessels. Both Joseph and Job were exceptionally good men. We are all first self-righteous Job before we are crushed and humbled to become repentant Job.

Solomon was given to tell us why we must be evil before we can become righteous:

Ecc 1:13 I applied my heart to inquiring and exploring by wisdom concerning all that is done under the heavens: it is an experience of evil Elohim has given to the sons of humanity to humble them by it. (CLV)

We all first contend with, reprove, disannul the Lord’s judgment and condemn His ways before we are dragged to repentance through fiery trials, as the book of Job and the book of Revelation demonstrate clearly (Rev 14: 6-12):

Job 40:1  Moreover the LORD answered Job, and said,
Job 40:2  Shall he that contendeth with the Almighty instruct him? he that reproveth God, let him answer it.
Job 40:3  Then Job answered the LORD, and said,
Job 40:4  Behold, I am vile; what shall I answer thee? I will lay mine hand upon my mouth.
Job 40:5  Once have I spoken; but I will not answer: yea, twice; but I will proceed no further.
Job 40:6  Then answered the LORD unto Job out of the whirlwind, and said,
Job 40:7  Gird up thy loins now like a man: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.
Job 40:8  Wilt thou also disannul my judgment? wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be [self] righteous?

Rev 14:6  And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,
Rev 14:7  Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.
Rev 14:8  And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.
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.
Rev 14:13  And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.

These “blessed” are only those “who died in the Lord” in “this present time” (Rom 8:18). They are the first, who “by these… great and precious promises, [will be made] partakers of the divine nature [and be given] part in the first resurrection:”

2Pe 1:4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

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

What exactly is “the first resurrection”? It is quite easy for the Lord to blind the eye of the multitudes from perceiving what we were just told. The first resurrection is for those who are being judged in this time, “who first trusted in Christ” (Eph 1:12) and who are given a part in the first resurrection which Christ called “the resurrection of life” (Joh 5:27-29). The first resurrection are those who are the firstfruits of them who have died in Christ and are raised up from the dead at the beginning of the thousand years to “live… and reign with Christ a thousand years”.

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

Joh 5:27  And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man.
Joh 5:28  Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
Joh 5:29  And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life [The “blessed and holy first resurrection” at the beginning of the thousand year reign]; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation [G2920: ‘krisis’… ‘judgment’… “When the thousand years are expired”].

Rev 20:7  And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
Rev 20:8  And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
Rev 20:9  And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.
Rev 20:10  And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

This is not “the resurrection to life” to which Christ referred in John 5:29. This is the resurrection of “the rest of the dead” of Revelation 20:5. This is “the resurrection to judgment” before the great white throne of John 5:28. This the resurrection of all the rest of mankind who did not have part in the “blessed and holy… first resurrection:

Rev 20:11  And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
Rev 20:12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

Let’s now go back to the promises by which those who obey the Lord are given to “partake of the divine nature [in] this present time”:

Deu 28:5  Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.
Deu 28:6  Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out.

“[Our] basket” includes what we bring in sacrifice to the Lord in His service:

Deu 26:1  And it shall be, when thou art come in unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and possessest it, and dwellest therein;
Deu 26:2  That thou shalt take of the first of all the fruit of the earth, which thou shalt bring of thy land that the LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt put it in a basket, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD thy God shall choose to place his name there.
Deu 26:3  And thou shalt go unto the priest that shall be in those days, and say unto him, I profess this day unto the LORD thy God, that I am come unto the country which the LORD sware unto our fathers for to give us.
Deu 26:4  And the priest shall take the basket out of thine hand, and set it down before the altar of the LORD thy God.
Deu 26:5  And thou shalt speak and say before the LORD thy God, A Syrian ready to perish was my father, and he went down into Egypt, and sojourned there with a few, and became there a nation, great, mighty, and populous:
Deu 26:6  And the Egyptians evil entreated us, and afflicted us, and laid upon us hard bondage:
Deu 26:7  And when we cried unto the LORD God of our fathers, the LORD heard our voice, and looked on our affliction, and our labour, and our oppression:
Deu 26:8  And the LORD brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with great terribleness, and with signs, and with wonders:
Deu 26:9  And he hath brought us into this place, and hath given us this land, even a land that floweth with milk and honey.
Deu 26:10  And now, behold, I have brought [“in a basket”] the firstfruits of the land, which thou, O LORD, hast given me. And thou shalt set it before the LORD thy God, and worship before the LORD thy God:

Our “going out and coming in” is also speaking of our service as the Lord’s soldiers in His army:

Jos 14:11  As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in.

King Solomon acknowledged his inadequacy as a soldier because he was a “little child”:

1Ki 3:7  And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.

Whatever the phrase “go out and come in” means, it certainly includes being a good soldier in the Lord’s service of which the apostle Paul instructs us:

2Ti 2:3  Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
2Ti 2:4  No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.

Our means of “partaking of the divine nature [and] escaping the corruption that is in the world” continues:

Deu 28:7  The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.

The flight of the enemies of the Lord “seven ways” signifies the complete and total defeat of all the false doctrines which are the “arrows” of our enemies.  The Lord’s arrows will nullify any and all of the ‘arrows’ of the lies of the adversary:

Psa 57:4  My soul is among lions: and I lie even among them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword.

Psa 64:3  Who whet their tongue like a sword, and bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words:

“Their arrows” are helpless against the Truth, the Lord’s ‘arrows’:

Psa 21:12  Therefore shalt thou make them turn their back, when thou shalt make ready thine arrows upon thy strings against the face of them.

Psa 45:5  Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king’s enemies; whereby the people fall under thee.

Psa 64:7  But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly shall they be wounded.
Psa 64:8  So they shall make their own tongue to fall upon themselves: all that see them shall flee away.

Hab 3:11  The sun and moon stood still in their habitation: at the light of thine arrows they went, and at the shining of thy glittering spear.

We are blessed with great spiritual reserves in the Lord’s service. We have so much in reserve that we can give freely to others:

Deu 28:8  The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

The Hebrew word for ‘storehouses’ is:

H618
אָסָם
‘âsâm
aw-sawm’
From an unused root meaning to heap together; a storehouse (only in the plural): – barn, storehouse.

This word appears only in one other place in the Old Testament, where it is translated as ‘barns’, demonstrating that the “blessing of [our] storehouses” speaks to our service to the Lord through our giving freely of our store to our brothers:

Pro 3:9 Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:
Pro 3:10 So shall thy barns [H618: ‘asam’] be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.

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

Eph 4:28  Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give [from our “storehouses, our barns] to him that needeth.

The Lord Himself fights our battles for us, and as “partakers of [His] divine nature:

Deu 28:9  The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, and walk in his ways.
Deu 28:10  And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee.

That is how the Lord Himself provides for His elect, who are now partaking of His divine nature through these great and precious promises. God makes our enemies to both fear us and live in peace with us:

Pro 16:7  When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.

Rev 11:11  And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them.
Rev 11:12  And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.

Yes, of course Revelation 11:11-12 has a ‘will be’ application. I am certainly not of that school which is telling you “the resurrection is past already”:

2Ti 2:17  And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;
2Ti 2:18  Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.

That is a lie of our enemies who have internalized and spiritualized away your crown of life, your rulership with Christ for a thousand years, and your hope of “the redemption of the purchased possession”. Our enemies want you and me to settle for what is nothing more than the downpayment of the “redemption of the purchased possession”.

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

This is not a new false doctrine. It is one of the earliest lies taught in the New Testament church, and Paul warned us against falling for this false doctrine:

2Ti 2:17  And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;
2Ti 2:18  Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.

I am well aware that Revelation 11:11-12 has a glorious “will be… redemption of the purchased possession” future application. However, there is also a present inward application which does not teach “that the resurrection is past already”:

Rev 11:11  And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them [the Lord’s “two witnesses” in every generation], and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them.
Rev 11:12  And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.

“…And their enemies beheld them… and great fear fell upon them which saw them.” These two verses, Revelation 11:11-12, are the ultimate fulfillment of:

Deu 28:10  And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee.

Two verses earlier in Revelation 11 we read:

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.

We are at this very moment ‘lying dead in the streets of the great city wherein our Lord was crucified’. Our death of 3½ days is being fulfilled at this very moment. “The spirit of life from God entered into them” and “great fear fell upon them which saw them” are both in the aorist tense, because this is all the process of the revelation of Jesus Christ within us as our old man dies daily and our new man is being raised up from the dead… [to] walk in newness of life” (Rom 6:1-4).

The phrases “they heard a great voice from heaven” and the phrase “come up here” and the phrase “they ascended up to heaven in a cloud” and “their enemies beheld them” are all in the aorist tense because all of this is the revelation of Jesus Christ taking place within us even as we “wait for… the redemption of the purchased possession”… that “blessed and holy first resurrection” where we will be made to rule and reign with Christ for a symbolic thousand years.

Deu 28:11  And the LORD shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers to give thee.
Deu 28:12  The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.

The ‘rain’ is the Lord’s “words [which] are spirit” (Joh 6:63). This blessing with rain in our land in due season, signifies an abundance of growth in understanding the things of the spirit. “You shall lend unto many, and you shall not borrow” signifies the fact that Babylon has nothing to offer you, but you have an over-abundance of good sound doctrine to offer them, as our next verses demonstrate:

Deu 28:13  And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the LORD thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them:
Deu 28:14  And thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.

Being “the head and not the tail” are words selected by the holy spirit to signify that the blessings of obedience and strict adherence to and trembling at the words of our Lord, makes us the possessors of “The Truth”. Being the head means we possess the Truth, and being the tail signifies that we have been deluded by “the refuge of [the] lies [of the false] prophets” of this age. Isaiah gives us this key to the kingdom of heaven:

Isa 9:15  The ancient and honourable, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail.

The apostle Paul took close and careful notice of the three ‘ifs’ in this section of scripture, in verses 1, 9 and 13… “if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God”…”If you listen unto the commandments of the Lord…” and… “if you go not aside from any of the words which I command you this day to the right hand or to the left…” neither adding to nor taking away from His words:

Deu 12:32  What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it.

“The Lord shall make you the head and not the tail” tells us that if we are granted to be obedient to the words of our Lord we will be Him, in the sense that we agree completely with Him.

These are His words concerning what He means by “You shall be the head…”:

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

Mat 25:45  Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.

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

That, too, is just another “great and precious promise” which is beyond the ability of the natural man to appreciate the depth of its significance. The holy spirit helps us to take hold of this truth with these, our closing words for today:

1Jn 4:17  Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment [‘Now on the house of God’ (1Pe 4:17)]: because as he is, so are we in this world.

In our next study we will examine and analyze why the curses of Deuteronomy 28 occupy 54 verses, exactly 4 times the number of verses which these 14 verses of “great and precious promises” occupy.

Here are the verses we will begin with which concern the curses the Lord will bring upon us to humble us:

Deu 28:15  But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:
Deu 28:16  Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field.
Deu 28:17  Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store.
Deu 28:18  Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.
Deu 28:19  Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and cursed shalt thou be when thou goest out.
Deu 28:20  The LORD shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto for to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thou perish quickly; because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me.
Deu 28:21  The LORD shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he have consumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest to possess it.
Deu 28:22  The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish.
Deu 28:23  And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.
Deu 28:24  The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed.
Deu 28:25  The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies: thou shalt go out one way against them, and flee seven ways before them: and shalt be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.
Deu 28:26  And thy carcase shall be meat unto all fowls of the air, and unto the beasts of the earth, and no man shall fray them away.
Deu 28:27  The LORD will smite thee with the botch of Egypt, and with the emerods, and with the scab, and with the itch, whereof thou canst not be healed.
Deu 28:28  The LORD shall smite thee with madness, and blindness, and astonishment of heart:
Deu 28:29  And thou shalt grope at noonday, as the blind gropeth in darkness, and thou shalt not prosper in thy ways: and thou shalt be only oppressed and spoiled evermore, and no man shall save thee.
Deu 28:30  Thou shalt betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her: thou shalt build an house, and thou shalt not dwell therein: thou shalt plant a vineyard, and shalt not gather the grapes thereof.
Deu 28:31  Thine ox shall be slain before thine eyes, and thou shalt not eat thereof: thine ass shall be violently taken away from before thy face, and shall not be restored to thee: thy sheep shall be given unto thine enemies, and thou shalt have none to rescue them.
Deu 28:32  Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and thine eyes shall look, and fail with longing for them all the day long: and there shall be no might in thine hand.
Deu 28:33  The fruit of thy land, and all thy labours, shall a nation which thou knowest not eat up; and thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed alway:
Deu 28:34  So that thou shalt be mad for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see.
Deu 28:35  The LORD shall smite thee in the knees, and in the legs, with a sore botch that cannot be healed, from the sole of thy foot unto the top of thy head.
Deu 28:36  The LORD shall bring thee, and thy king which thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation which neither thou nor thy fathers have known; and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone.
Deu 28:37  And thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all nations whither the LORD shall lead thee.
Deu 28:38  Thou shalt carry much seed out into the field, and shalt gather but little in; for the locust shall consume it.
Deu 28:39  Thou shalt plant vineyards, and dress them, but shalt neither drink of the wine, nor gather the grapes; for the worms shall eat them.
Deu 28:40  Thou shalt have olive trees throughout all thy coasts, but thou shalt not anoint thyself with the oil; for thine olive shall cast his fruit.
Deu 28:41  Thou shalt beget sons and daughters, but thou shalt not enjoy them; for they shall go into captivity.