NO. 780: JUDAH MORE FAITHFUL THAN ISRAEL

No. 780

“In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” (Prov. 3:6)

In our July 2022 paper, we discussed how the unified kingdom of Israel, composed of twelve tribes, was split into two kingdoms after the death of Solomon, with the tribes of Judah and Benjamin being referred to as “Judah.” The remaining ten tribes, being more numerous, are most often referred to as “Israel,” but are sometimes called “Ephraim.” Having discussed in some detail the fall of the ten-tribe kingdom of Israel, we now consider the history of the kingdom of Judah.

It was during the reign of King Rehoboam that the united kingdom of Israel was split. Rehoboam was so affected by the experience that he and the people of Judah underwent a sort of religious reformation. The division in a sense worked to the advantage of Judah, in that it humbled them and drew them nearer to the Lord. The idolatrous course taken by the ten tribes made Judah more faithful in resisting the idolatry of the surrounding nations. As a result, the priests and Levites, as well as the more religious of the general population (“Israelites indeed”), deserted the ten-tribe kingdom and made their home in Judah. “So they strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and made Rehoboam the son of Solomon strong, three years: for three years they walked in the way of David and Solomon.” (2 Chron. 11:13-17)

But before long Rehoboam, finding himself strong in his position as king, became lax with respect to religious matters, and he and the people began to neglect the divine law. (2 Chron. 12:1) As a rebuke for this unfaithfulness, the Lord permitted the army of Egypt under Shishak to invade Judah. This brought Rehoboam and the rulers of the people to their senses, and caused them to appeal to the Lord for help: “Whereupon the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves; and they said, The Lord is righteous.” (2 Chron. 12:6)

Consequently, the Lord restrained the Egyptians, not allowing them to completely over­whelm the kingdom: “My wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem, by the hand of Shishak. Nevertheless they shall be his servants . . . So Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, and took away the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king’s house; he took all: he carried away also the shields of gold which Solomon had made.” (2 Chron. 12:7-9) Rehoboam was thus reduced for a time to a subservient position. His kingdom lost much of the wealth it had accumulated under the reigns of Solomon and David. All of this was intended to teach them the important lesson: If the Lord let go of them they would be swallowed up by their enemies, and although the Lord demanded their obedience, He always made that obedience profitable to them in their temporal welfare.

The lesson learned from Shishak’s invasion seems to have profited Rehoboam and the people of Judah throughout the remainder of his seventeen year reign, and his son and successor, Abijah, was a king who acknowledged the Lord. When a war with the ten tribes of Israel followed after his succession to the throne of Judah, he addressed the ten tribes, drawn up in battle array, sending them a message: “And now ye think to withstand the kingdom of the Lord in the hand of the sons of David; and ye be a great multitude, and there are with you golden calves, which Jeroboam made you for gods. Have ye not cast out the priests of the Lord, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, and have made you priests after the manner of the nations of other lands? . . . But as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not forsaken him; and the priests, which minister unto the Lord, are the sons of Aaron, and the Levites . . . And, behold, God himself is with us for our captain . . . O children of Israel, fight ye not against the Lord God of your fathers; for ye shall not prosper.” (2 Chron. 13:8-12)

Thus Abijah’s short three year reign was a good one in many respects, but his loyalty to the Lord did not lead him to completely eliminate the places of idol worship which had begun to be established in Solomon’s day. He failed to have the Lord’s approval, as his son, Asa, did after him: “And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God: For he took away the altars of the strange gods . . . the heart of Asa was perfect all his days.” (2 Chron. 14:2-3; 2 Chron. 15:17) Thus a right heart made Asa a great reformer and he destroyed the idols and altars, etc., some of which were dedicated to false gods, and some to the true God, Yahweh. The latter was, nevertheless, contrary to the divine instruction that no place of sacrifice should be recognized other than the temple. (Deut. 12:13-14)

Asa’s faithfulness to God laid him open to charges of being narrow-minded and bigoted by those who at that time considered themselves broad-minded and liberal. Asa even destroyed the idol which his mother had set up, and because she was using her influence in favor of idolatry, he removed from her the dignities of her position as a queen. All this showed that Asa’s loyalty and zeal for the Lord was from the heart and not a mere whim, nor was it from a selfish motive. In harmony with the divine covenant, a great blessing rested upon Asa and upon his kingdom, and during the first ten years of absolute peace he fortified his country, and strengthened the kingdom.

Twenty-five years after Shishak defeated Rehoboam and carried away the gold and treasures of the kingdom, another Egyptian army came against Asa, probably intent upon getting more spoils. But as God, according to His covenant with Israel, made the Egyptians to prosper because of unfaithfulness on the part of Rehoboam and his people, so now the Lord, under the same covenant, made Asa and his army to prosper because of their faithfulness to him, and gave them a great victory over the Egyptians.

In order that Asa and the people might know without a doubt that their victory was because of the Lord, a prophet was sent to them who said: “Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin; The Lord is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you. . . . Be ye strong therefore, and let not your hands be weak: for your work shall be rewarded.” This message encouraged Asa to continue his warfare against idols, and as a result, they were completely abolished from the land. (2 Chron. 15:2, 7-8)

With Asa’s zeal and the zeal of his people increased, a great convention was held – a holiness convention: “And they entered into a covenant to seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart and with all their soul . . . And all Judah rejoiced at the oath: for they had sworn with all their heart, and sought him with their whole desire; and he was found of them: and the Lord gave them rest round about. . . . And there was no more war unto the five and thirtieth year of the reign of Asa.” (2 Chron. 15:12-15, 19)

However, in the thirty-sixth year of Asa’s reign, he sent a present of gold and silver to the king of Syria to obtain his aid in repelling hostile advances made by the king of Israel (the ten tribes). Although this did avert war and might be considered shrewd states­manship, it was an error on his part, showing poor judgment. The Lord pointed this out to him through the Prophet Hanani, who upbraided him for relying on the King of Syria rather than on the Lord: “For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars.” (2 Chron. 16:1-9) Thus we see that the statement that Asa’s heart was right before God evidently signified merely that he honestly and conscientiously sought to do the Lord’s will as the king of Judah in the putting away of idolatry, and in the enforcement of the Mosaic law.

COMPARISON TO GOSPEL AGE DEALINGS

To say one’s heart is right with God would mean a great deal more when used with respect to the Lord’s people of this Gospel Age. It would mean a full consecration in thought, and so far as possible, of word and deed. In fact, all of the Lord’s dealings with fleshly Israel were very contrary to His Gospel Age dealings with the Church. Under the covenant made at Sinai, God promised the twelve tribes of Israel that He would give them earthly blessings as a reward for their faithfulness to Him, and earthly adversities as punishments for unfaithfulness to Him. (See Lev. 26)

The Law Covenant, with all of its arrange­ments, was confined to the natural seed of Abraham – to typical Israel (divided into ten tribes and two tribes). A wholly different arrangement and covenant has been made by the Lord with the spiritual Israelites of this Gospel Age. They are promised neither earthly blessings, nor freedom from earthly tribulations. The faithful spiritual Israelite is promised, however, that all the tribulations permitted by the Lord will work out for his good, preparing him for future good things in the life to come, which God has in reservation for those that love Him. (Rom. 8:28) Natural Israel’s promises were all earthly, while spiritual Israel’s promises are all heavenly.

The kings and people of Judah prospered to the extent of their limited faithfulness to the Lord. Likewise, there are today those who are on the Lord’s side and get a blessing as a result, but nevertheless fail to have the Lord’s complete approval. It is not sufficient that we outwardly acknowledge the Lord to be our God; to obtain full divine approval we must be zealous, not only in having the Lord on our side, but zealous also and faithful in serving His cause. Such faithfulness means activity in the cause of truth, and effort to bring others into full accord with the divine law.

Many Christian people have made the very serious mistake of not noticing the difference between the covenant God made with fleshly Israel, and the different covenant and different regulations with spiritual Israel. They have naturally fallen into the mistake of seeking to follow after the course of natural Israel. For instance, while it was perfectly right for Asa to interfere with the other religions in the land under his control, overthrowing the false worship, burning the idols and destroying the altars and groves, it would be entirely wrong for any Christian king, president, governor, mayor, or anyone in any other position, to attempt to do likewise with the religious arrangements of others today. The duty of the spiritual Israelite is to worship the Lord according to the dictates of his own conscience, and to leave everyone else free to do the same, not interfering with anyone’s traditions or observances in any manner whatever.

The only way a Christian would be permitted to influence others would be by preaching – by making known to others the true God and the true worship. Even in this he would have no right to intrude upon others contrary to their wishes, but may merely make known the good tidings to those who have “ears to hear” – to those willing to be taught. A misunderstanding of God’s approval of things done in Israel and a failure to recognize the different law of this Gospel Age undoubtedly led to many of the religious excesses and persecutions during the Dark Ages.

On the other hand, the general recognition that freedom of religion and tolerance for all creeds is the proper thing now has caused many to look upon the Bible as not up to date – as countenancing bigotry, persecution, etc. They fail to see how or why anything other than religious liberty could have been proper at any other time, and as long as they view the matter from this standpoint, they are in great danger of becoming agnostic and unbelieving. We must clearly understand, therefore, why God approved of and blessed Asa’s actions while a similar course of action today among professed Christians would have the disapproval of the Lord and of those who have His spirit.

The difference is that Israel, as a nation, made a special covenant with God at Mount Sinai, by which every individual of that nation, including the children, were bound nationally and individually to God, to be His people. In return, God bound Himself to them to be their God, their king, and their protector. In that covenant the people further guaranteed that they would neither have, nor make images of, nor worship, any other god. Through that covenant, Israel became God’s “peculiar people.” They became His typical kingdom and He was their recognized King, and so it is written, “Then Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord as king instead of David his father, and prospered; and all Israel obeyed him.” (1 Chron. 29:23)

It was God’s throne all along, with earthly representatives merely sitting upon it. Hence, so long as Israel was preserved as a kingdom, it was bound by the will or law of its King, the Lord, which specifically demanded that all idolatry be put away. God separated this one nation from all the other nations of the earth, in order that He might make of them a typical nation or kingdom, foreshadowing in them the “holy nation” of spiritual Israelites to be gathered out of every kingdom, people, nation and tongue. He will soon organize those spiritual Israelites under Immanuel to be the Kingdom of Heaven, to rule and bless all the families of the earth. (1 Pet. 2:9-10; Luke 12:32)

It would be wholly improper now for the people of the United States, for example, to attempt to interfere in any manner or degree with absolute religious liberty, because the United States is not God’s kingdom, as Israel was God’s kingdom. He has never recognized any nation other than Israel, nor has He made a covenant with any other nation. (Amos 3:2) On the contrary, present governments are all reckoned as “kingdoms of this world,” in contrast to the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Anointed. (Rev. 11:15)

While the heavenly Kingdom, the antitype of Israel’s kingdom, is not yet set up in glory as the holy nation, nevertheless, in each individual heart of this “elect” class this principle applies: each “Israelite indeed” has entered into a covenant with the Lord that he will have no other gods, and that he will render worship to no other, but will serve the Lord with all his heart, with all his mind, with all his being, with all his strength. Just as the nation of Israel was obligated by its covenant to abolish all idols, so each individual Christian, of this new holy nation, is obligated, by his covenant to destroy every idol from his heart, and to worship the Lord only, and in the “beauty of holiness.” (Psa. 29:2)

JEHOSHAPHAT’S GOOD REIGN

Asa’s son, Jehoshaphat, succeeded him as King of Judah and followed in his footsteps: “And the Lord was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father [ancestor] David, and sought not unto Baalim.” (2 Chron. 17:3) He copied David’s course of devotion to the Lord and did not seek the various forms of Baal-worship which had become the norm of the ten tribes and the various nations around them. The spectacles of Baal-worship and the connected licentious orgies were evidently strong attractions to depraved hearts, and must have exercised continually a seductive influence upon the people of Judah, who worshiped the unseen God, of whom no images or idols or sensual worship were permitted.

The faithfulness of the king and the people of Judah brought the divine blessing according to the covenant, and resulted in peace with surrounding nations and temporal prosperity – “riches and honour in abundance.” (2 Chron. 17:5) This further energized the king in the Lord’s service, and spurred him to make additional efforts to put away idols. Although these “groves and high places” had been prohibited and destroyed by his father Asa, some had apparently been secretly preserved by the people, or had sprung up again like weeds that must be continually removed. We may suppose that not all of these places were for Baal-worship, but that some of them were misguided attempts to modify or “improve” the worship of the true God.

We find the same thing happening among Christians who continually seek variations from and additions to what the Lord instituted. They take pleasure in these innovations, neglecting the Lord’s wishes and regulations. They have not learned that following the Lord’s will is far better and more acceptable in His sight and every alteration of the divine arrangement will eventually prove injurious.

King Jehoshaphat perceived that knowledge was necessary as a basis for faith and obedience, and he very wisely instituted a general system of instruction throughout his kingdom, so that the people might become intimately acquainted with the Word of the Lord. (2 Chron. 17:9) Thus he attacked the root of the evil tree of idolatry and disobedience with the ax of truth.

GOD’S WORD THE LAMP OF LIBERTY

Christian experiences conform to the course followed by Jehoshaphat. To the degree the Lord’s people know the instructions, promises, and warnings of His Word, to that degree they are liberated from earthly affairs and fully realize their obligations to the King of kings and Lord of lords.

With the Reformation movement, the Bible began to be translated into the living languages of the people and was no longer hidden as during the Dark Ages. The progress of the Reformation as well as civilization in general has kept pace with the study of the Scriptures. As the influence of the Lord’s Word in the time of Judah and Israel doubtless extended far beyond those who heard it taught, so likewise the influence of Scripture today extends far beyond those who actively study it. The spirit of the Truth is a spirit of liberty and civilization, even among those who do not love it or obey it.

With the greatly increased circulation of the Scriptures in civilized lands, we may wonder why greater blessings do not result, leading mankind into the right appreciation of the Lord’s grace and truth, and to obedience to His requirements. We may wonder why it instead is bringing, as the Scriptures forewarned and as we can clearly see, “a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation.” (Dan. 12:1)

First of all, the minds of the vast majority of people are fettered by the various conflicting false theories, human traditions, and creeds handed down from the Dark Ages. These have been used by the Adversary to blind the eyes of many, hindering them from a proper study and understanding of the Scriptures. Many who promote the circulation of the Scriptures also promote the misunderstanding of them. What our Lord said to the religious leaders at His first advent applies to the majority of religious teachers up to the present day: “Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.” (Matt. 15:6)

Furthermore, many who give the appearance of being religious, by attending religious meetings, owning Bibles, etc., are not religious in their hearts. They are not seeking to know and do God’s will, but are instead selfishly seeking to do their own wills, merely using the cloak of religion to hypocritically further their own aims. The breaking of the shackles of fear and superstition with the spirit of truth and liberty has merely made them free to do more evil. In the approaching great time of trouble, unrestrained liberty will run riot among those whose hearts have merely been freed from superstition but have not been bound to the will of God in Christ.

Jehoshaphat’s efforts to increase knowledge of the Lord among the people led to a greater respect for Yahweh, not only among the people of Judah, also among the surrounding nations. Although those nations evidently considered that each nation had its own god, they apparently knew that Israel’s God, Yahweh, was a “God of gods,” the Almighty God, superior to their own. Some of the heathen kings seemed to grasp the situation so clearly that they reasoned that if they could cause the people of Israel to commit idolatry, then their God would no longer fight for them and they could be defeated in battle. Thus when the surrounding nations saw the growing devotion to Yahweh among the people of Judah, they became fearful: “And the fear of the Lord fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were round about Judah, so that they made no war against Jehoshaphat.” (2 Chron. 17:10)

This is often how the world reacts to spiritual Israel. The worldly recognize in a general way that there is some truth in Christianity, and they fear injuring those they sense to be true children of God. They sense the truth of the statement, “If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31) Hence the great Adversary, Satan, and his willing servants attempt to lead us into temptations of selfish desires and pride to separate us from the Lord and start us on a course of evil.

JEHOSHAPHAT’S THREE MISTAKES

The record of Jehoshaphat’s reign seems to show only three serious mistakes, and the implication is that none of these was recognized by the Lord as being wholly intentional, but as being partly errors of judgment.

His first and most serious mistake was affiliating with the weak and wicked Ahab, the king of the ten-tribe kingdom of Israel. Jehoshaphat accepted the friendly advances of Ahab, perhaps out of courtesy and possibly with the thought of reuniting with the ten tribes at some future time. He agreed to join with Ahab in battle against the Syrians, despite the Prophet Micaiah warning of disaster in battle, in opposition to the assurances of success given by four hundred false prophets called by Ahab. In the defeat that followed, Jehoshaphat was spared while Ahab was killed.

Upon his return home, the Lord sent a prophet to him who said, “Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the Lord? therefore is wrath upon thee from before the Lord. Nevertheless there are good things found in thee, in that thou hast taken away the groves out of the land, and hast prepared thine heart to seek God.” The lesson was not lost upon Jehoshaphat, as evidenced by the fact that shortly after this, when appointing judges throughout Judah, he instructed them, saying, “Take heed what ye do: for ye judge not for man, but for the Lord, who is with you in the judgment. Wherefore now let the fear of the Lord be upon you; take heed and do it: for there is no iniquity with the Lord our God, nor respect of persons, nor taking of gifts.” (2 Chron. 19:2-3, 6-7)

This mistake of Jehoshaphat contains a lesson for spiritual Israelites who are seeking to follow the Lord’s counsel. If it was improper for the king to “help the ungodly,” it would be even more improper for spiritual Israelites to follow such a course. How many have been led into disobedience and various improprieties by neglecting Paul’s admonition: “Be not deceived: evil communications [associations] corrupt good manners.” (1 Cor. 15:33) To the extent possible, we should keep company with those that love the Lord, so that our friends and associates are the Lord’s friends who honor Him with their lips and serve Him from the heart. “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly . . . But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.” (Psa. 1:1-2)

Jehoshaphat’s second mistake was joining in partnership with Ahaziah, the son of Ahab, in the construction of a fleet of vessels to trade in the gold of Ophir as Solomon had done. The Lord sent a rebuke to Jehoshaphat through a prophet, saying, “Because thou hast joined thyself with Ahaziah, the Lord hath broken thy works. And the ships were broken, that they were not able to go to Tarshish.” (2 Chron. 20:37) This is another lesson for the Lord’s people: do not associate with those who are known enemies of the Lord.

Jehoshaphat’s third mistake was to arrange a marriage between his son and the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel. He doubtless thought the marriage might result in reuniting the divided kingdom in the hands of his son. He seemed to forget that the Lord was fully capable of reuniting the kingdom without any assistance, if He saw fit to do so. The daughter, having inherited the evil nature of her mother, eventually led her husband and the nation of Judah into Baal worship. This evil influence continued during the eight year reign of her husband, the one year reign of her son, and her own six year reign, after she had murdered all but one of her grandchildren. She was killed when the people revolted against her evil rule and her grandson, Joash, then seven years of age, was anointed king.

During the wicked queen’s reign, the temple of the Lord had fallen into decay and an imposing temple of Baal had been built. It seems the young King Joash decided on his own that the temple should be repaired without advice from his adult advisor, a priest. A contribution box was placed at the entrance of the temple, and the priests exhorted the people to remember Moses’ commandment with respect to giving. (Exod. 30:11-16) Thus the money was raised and the repairs to the temple were completed. (2 Chron. 24:4-13)

REPAIRING THE ANTITYPICAL TEMPLE

The Apostle refers to the Church as a whole as the antitypical Temple of God, in which each individual Christian is a member. (1 Cor. 3:16-17) Our Lord spoke of His Church from this standpoint when He said, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” (John 2:19) He was referring to the Church, His body, and the glorification of that body on the third thousand-year day, at the beginning of the Millennium. Each one of the Lord’s people is to be very zealous that the Temple be kept in good condition, in good repair. To this end, the Apostle urged the members of the Temple to build up, encourage and restore one another. (Gal. 6:1)

During the Dark Ages, the nominal temple of God, the nominal church, fell into great disorder through false doctrines and practices, priestcraft, superstition, and general degradation. Much was done to cleanse and renovate this nominal temple during the Reformation movement of the sixteenth century, but those who recognize the true Temple of God, as shown in the divine Word, realize that the nominal temple is still in a deplorable condition.

The nominal temple is not the real Temple, and it will soon be abandoned. The work of this Gospel Age has been to quarry, chisel, fit, shape, and polish the living stones for places in the true Temple of God. Then the glory of the Lord will fill it: “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” (Matt. 13:43; 1 Pet. 2:5)

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The above is based on Reprints 2362-2367.

Write to us at: epiphanybiblestudents@gmail.com

NO. 779: THE PROPHECY OF AMOS

No. 779

“Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be evil [calamities, disasters] in a city, and the Lord hath not done it? Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” (Amos 3:6-7)

Through Amos the Lord foretold a speedy coming doomsday, a time of trouble and retribution, upon Judah, Israel and the adjoining nations.[1] While the principal focus of the prophecy is against the twelve tribes of Israel as a whole (collectively the Lord’s covenanted people – the seed of Abraham), the brunt of the Prophet’s message fell against the ten-tribe kingdom of Israel.

Amos, whose home was in Judah, went under the Lord’s direction into the territory occupied by the ten tribes to deliver to them the Lord’s message. Among other things, the message pointed out that the families of Israel (all twelve tribes) constituted God’s peculiar people; that He had brought them out of Egypt; and that He had overseen their affairs to their favor. He even declared of them, “You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities. Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” (Amos 3:2-3)

The Lord had made Himself known to no other nation, had recognized no other nation, had made a covenant with no other nation, and had given His laws to no other nation. Consequently, this nation, Israel (in its two parts), had a special responsibility. Nevertheless, instead of God’s favor making them loyal of heart to Him, they had continually resisted His favor, and were not even faithful as eye-servants. The reason for this was because they were not in harmony with the Lord; their hearts were really in harmony with sin and wickedness.

The Lord wished them to see clearly that the judgments about to come upon them, like their previous judgments, were not by chance but of divine providence. Consequently, the message of Amos is likened to a trumpet of alarm, announcing the dire catastrophes that shortly would come. The announcement was not made with the objective of bringing about repentance, but so the people might know that the things coming were judgments and not accidents, that His people might know and profit by the chastisements and experiences and recognize them as coming from the Lord’s hand.

Not all disasters that afflict mankind are of divine providence; that is, they are not judgments sent by the Lord. On the contrary, we believe that, so far as the world of mankind in general is concerned, natural disasters, epidemics etc. are merely a matter of chance. We do not consider these beyond divine control or fore­knowledge; however, we do consider that in general they are the natural operations of the divine laws, which at the present time are not regulated for man’s comfort and welfare.

Yet there are marked instances in which the Lord has evidently interceded to bring calamities upon certain nations as chastisements, for their correction. The United States Civil War, which resulted in the freeing of millions of slaves, is such an instance. Without question, God has made use of wars and human selfishness to awaken certain nations at various times, and to let in the light of civilization. All this does not prove that war is right, any more than it proves that pestilence and famine are desirable; but these things show us how God is able and willing to use even the wrath and the selfishness of man in the present time, and to overrule the effects indirectly for good, in harmony with His plan.

God dealt differently with fleshly Israel, the natural seed of Abraham. His special covenant with this one particular nation ensured that nothing would happen to them by chance. Under the Law Covenant (Lev. 26), the seed of Abraham was to be God’s peculiar people, devoted to His service and He was to be peculiarly their God, careful of their interests. As long as they would be faithful to God, no calamity could befall them personally or nationally; they would be spared from wars and disasters, spared from famines and pestilences. They would prosper in proportion to their faithfulness to their covenant. If unfaithful, they would not only be subject to the same accidents of nature as the remainder of the world, God would also assuredly bring upon them special judgments, chastisements, and calamities of every kind, both as individuals and as a nation.

This is clearly stated to be the Lord’s rule for dealing with them, and it was to this covenant that they gave their assent at Sinai. Consequently, their failure to keep that covenant made it a curse to them, a greater burden and disadvantage than rested upon the other nations of the world, with whom God had made no covenant, and to whom He had extended no promises, they being “strangers from the covenants of promise.” (Eph. 2:12)

Whatever calamities, disasters, and troubles they suffered were to be sure proof to them that God was again chastising them for violation of their covenant with Him. Through the Prophet, He named various chastisements visited upon them: hunger, lack of rain, blights of mildew and palmer worms in their gardens and vineyards, plagues of pestilence such as He visited upon Egypt, loss of men’s lives in war. Despite these things, they did not reform: “Yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the Lord.” (Amos 4:6-10)

Many in Israel were in a very ease-loving and self-satisfied condition. Many of them abounded in wealth, and drank excessively of the wine of earthly pleasure and extravagance. They were not anxious to praise and worship God, nor were they anxious to assist the poor. They were intemperately selfish, and hence hastened the judgments to come upon them, the evil days of their captivity and overthrow as a nation. Their sin of intemperance did not consist solely of literal drunkenness, but rather a drunkenness of greed, by which many of the influential were inclined to swallow up the poor and needy. This is evident from the Lord’s words of reproof:

“Forasmuch therefore as your treading is upon the poor, and ye take from him burdens of wheat: ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drink wine of them. For I know your manifold transgressions, and your mighty sins: they afflict the just, they take a bribe, and they turn aside the poor in the gate from their right. Therefore the prudent shall keep silence in that time; for it is an evil time.” (Amos 5:11-13)

“Hear this, O ye that swallow up the needy, even to make the poor of the land to fail, Saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell corn? and the sabbath, that we may set forth wheat, making the ephah [measure] small, and the shekel [price] great, and falsifying the balances by deceit? That we may buy the poor for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes; yea, and sell the refuse of the wheat? The Lord hath sworn by the excellency of Jacob, Surely I will never forget any of their works. Shall not the land tremble for this, and every one mourn that dwelleth therein?” (Amos 8:4-6)

PARALLELS TO CURRENT CONDITIONS

While this prophecy evidently applied specifically to natural Israel, the Prophets, the Apostles and our Lord Jesus applied similar statements to nominal antitypical Israel, Christen­dom. The prophecy brings to mind the judgments pronounced upon Christendom, “Babylon the Great,” which are to come in the end of this age. And as we compare the conditions, now and then, it strengthens the thought that the words of Amos have to some extent a double application.

We find conditions today similar to those described by the Prophet: “Woe to them that are at ease in [nominal] Zion . . . That lie upon beds of ivory . . .” (Amos 6:1, 4) Many in Christendom boast of their prosperity, symbolically resting upon beds of ivory. They are at ease, trusting that the nominal church is being carried forward along a new pathway unknown to the Master and the Apostles, a pathway that is neither narrow nor difficult, but broad and pleasant and leading to the conquest of the world.

The wealthy are often members of nominal Zion, or at least liberal supporters of her arrange­ments, services, etc., and she in turn boasts of her wealth: “I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing.” Yet, the Lord says, “Knowest not that thou are wretched, and miserable and poor, and blind, and naked.” (Rev. 3:17) Just as those who were prospering and at ease in nominal fleshly Zion did not believe the message of Amos, nominal spiritual Zion of today does not believe the announcement of calamities coming upon her in the “day of vengeance.”

The Bible record indicates how unacceptable the message of Amos was to the priests of Israel: “Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words [he is disturbing the peace of those who are at ease in Zion] . . . Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there: But prophesy not again any more at Bethel: for it is the king’s chapel, and it is the king’s court.” (Amos 7:10-13)

But Amos was faithful in declaring God’s message and was not deterred into silence. Likewise, those today who understand God’s Word are instructed regarding the things that are shortly to come to pass upon nominal spiritual Israel, and are not to hold their peace. “The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.” (Prov. 29:25)

In this prophecy of Amos, the Lord pointed out that the wrath He was about to permit to come upon Israel as chastisements would nevertheless work out a blessing for them, and that in His due time, He would bring them back again into harmony with Himself, under more favorable conditions than in the past. We are not only to believe the portion of this prophecy foretelling calamity, which we see has already been executed upon Israel in fullest measure. We are also to believe the features of it which are favorable to Israel – the future blessings. For instance, we see how literally this prediction has been fulfilled:

“Behold, the eyes of the Lord God are upon the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from off the face of the earth; saving that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob, saith the Lord. For lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth.” (Amos 9:8-9) While Israel was to be destroyed as a nation, the people of the nation were to be preserved as a separate people from others.

The Lord God thus showed His continued supervision of Israel, according to the covenant made with them. And how accurately this has been fulfilled: the Israelites as a people have been scattered throughout the whole earth, yet they have not lost their identity; as a nation they were utterly destroyed, yet unlike every other nation, they have preserved their national identity, and have not been mixed and blended with the world in general.

And if this feature of the prophecy has been accurately fulfilled today before our eyes, we certainly have every reason to believe that the remainder of the prophecy, the portion that applies to the Times of Restitution, will be just as accurately fulfilled. After the true spiritual Israel has been selected, natural Israel will be brought back into covenant relationship with God, becoming the earthly agent of the spiritual Kingdom for blessing, instructing and restoring the families of the earth, under the terms of the New Covenant. This is set forth in the closing words of the prophecy, and we can clearly see signs that its fulfillment has begun:

“In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old: That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and of all the heathen, which are called by my name, saith the Lord that doeth this . . . And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God.” (Amos 9:11-15)

In the New Testament, this prophecy was quoted by the Apostle James. (Acts 15:16-17) It is also in full accord with the words of the Apostle Paul, who showed that divine favor will return to natural Israel after spiritual Israel has been developed as the true seed of Abraham, through Christ. (Rom. 11:1-32)

THE FALL OF THE TEN TRIBES

While Amos prophesied of Israel’s fall, giving some of the reasons for it, in Kings we find an historical account of its fall and further details on its causes. (2 Kings 17) At the divinely appointed time, the ten-tribe kingdom of Israel was utterly overwhelmed by the kingdom of Assyria and deported to the lands under Assyrian control, while other peoples conquered by the Assyrians were settled in their place in the land of Israel.

For many centuries Israel, the ten-tribe kingdom, was extremely perverse. Their perversion was considered more reprehensible than that of the surrounding nations because of the greater privileges, blessings, knowledge and opportunities which the Lord had granted to them as the inheritors of the great Oath-bound Covenant. Other nations (the heathen) were not specially chastised for idolatry as were Israel and Judah, but were allowed to take practically whatever course they chose. The Apostle explained that the people of these other nations did not wish to retain God in their minds, so He gave them over to “a reprobate mind,” to do improper things. (Rom. 1:28)

The captivity of the ten-tribe kingdom of Israel should be viewed from this same standpoint. It was God’s abandonment of that kingdom, His permission for them to have their way and henceforth be treated as the heathen, without special chastisement. It was in this sense and in this sense only that those tribes were “lost.” Relocated in various parts of Assyria, they gradually assimilated with the population surrounding them, and lost their identity as Israelites.

The Israelites recognized that God had chosen them to be His special and peculiar people. While they were quite willing to be His special people, and to have His special favor, they seemingly were willing to be peculiar only in the sense of having a peculiar or special deliverance from Egypt, and peculiar or special manifestations of divine favor. They were willing for God to subdue their enemies, and they were willing for Him to bring them into the land of promise, dividing the land among the tribes. They were willing to be His peculiar people as long as they had the hope that God would continue to marvelously and miraculously lead them, as long they were satisfied with their condition.

They did not realize that if they were to be fit as a people to be used of the Lord as His Kingdom, through whom He would operate to bring the blessings of the Abrahamic Covenant to all the families of the earth, they must not only be peculiarly or specially treated by the Lord, but they must also be peculiarly responsive to His commandments and statutes.

Because Israel had a tendency to copy after the nations around them, when they found themselves restricted and restrained as God’s people they did not relish this peculiarity, this difference from the world. When they found that deviations from God’s commandments were punished, they rebelled. They looked for an excuse for their rebellion, becoming skeptical, doubting that their experiences were in any sense or degree under the supervision of the Lord. Their evil unbelieving hearts looked at the nations around them and saw that those who worshiped pagan gods had greater national prosperity than Israel, for whom God had declared special care.

The Israelites began to believe that there were other, different gods. While they still believed that their God must indeed be respected and placated, they evidently hoped to gain something of national greatness by the worship of the heathen deities, which they believed blessed other nations. While their God, Yahweh, had charge of them, com­manded their obedience, and punished them for disobedience, nevertheless His promised blessings upon their nation were largely yet to be fulfilled.

They first became dissatisfied with the divinely arranged government. While they had liberty, more than the other nations surrounding them, the very fact that this liberty was not common or general, but rather unusual, caused them to desire that they might have a king like the other nations around them. (1 Sam. 8:5) God pointed out to them the advantages of the peculiar condition under which He had placed them, but nevertheless granted their request, and gave them kings, Saul being the first, followed by David, then Solomon.

With King Solomon’s reign came a spirit of broadmindedness or public policy. Solomon desired to be popular with neighboring kings and to be considered broadminded in religious matters. This led him to establish, for the benefit of foreigners at his court and his foreign wives, the religious customs and ceremonies common to foreign nations. This led to the thought that everyone should have some kind of a religion, but that each should be at liberty to choose for himself, or to blend elements of the various religions.

After the ten tribes split off from Judah, Jeroboam, king of the ten tribes, took advan­tage of the liberal religious views to thoroughly engraft upon the people a false worship. This false worship was the cause of Israel’s further decline, and its ultimate fall: “And they left all the commandments of the Lord their God, and made them molten images . . . Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of his sight.” (2 Kings 17:16-18)

The ten-tribe kingdom of Israel favored the false religions, and practiced them secretly, hypocritically building the altars to idols and establishing false worship in all their cities and villages, under the pretense that they were doing this in the service of the true God. (2 Kings 17:9) They claimed, and probably to some extent believed, that they were becoming holier and more religious. While formerly only the one city of Jerusalem was set apart for divine worship, these various altars of worship in every city were seen as evidence of increased religious zeal.

FURTHER PARALLELS TO TODAY

Israel’s tendency to secretly or hypocritically introduce false worship corresponds with the tendency of Christendom today. There are many today who persuade themselves that in multiplying programs and ceremonies, in building elegant churches, and in engaging finer choirs and other musical entertainment, in multiplying meetings, and outward displays, they are increasing in godliness, holiness, and becoming more religious. It is important that we learn the lesson that “to obey is better than sacrifice” (1 Sam. 15:22); that is, we are not brought near to God by outward show, but by strict heed of His Word. These attempts on the part of humanity do not produce a sweet fragrance of incense to the Lord, but rather the opposite. Every step taken contrary to the divine leading is a step away from the Lord, no matter how we may deceive ourselves or others with false arguments.

Israel’s worship of idols also finds its counterpart today. The idols of the present time are known by different names from those of olden times. Some of the idols most worshiped today are popularity, wealth, fame, self, our denomination, and our church. There are very few indeed who have no other gods than the one true God.

The Lord sent repeated warnings and reproofs to Israel through Elijah, Elisha, Amos and others. To us He speaks by a still higher authority, and in still more forceful language: “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son.” (Heb. 1:1-2) Never­theless, just as many who heard the Prophets of old were careless, so today many are careless of the voice of the Son of God, and of His special messengers, the Apostles, and are failing to receive the blessing now due.

Natural Israel succumbed to seductions which hindered them from receiving divine instructions. (2 Kings 17:15-17) They loved the present rewards of unright­eousness more than they loved the rewards of righteousness promised for the future. They sold themselves to do evil by seeking and accepting the rewards of evil acts; as for instance, when King Ahab was pleased to receive the vineyard of Naboth, although it came to him as the result of dishonesty and murder. (1 Kings 21) The Prophet Elijah said to Ahab, “Thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the Lord.” (1 Kings 21:20) He temporarily possessed the thing he desired, but it brought with it a curse which rested not only upon himself but upon his throne.

And so it was also with the rank and file Israelites. Their general desire for self-gratification, with its unsatisfactory fruits, caused them the loss of divine favor. We are also told they used divination and enchant­ments; they communicated with the fallen angels (“familiar spirits”), operating through mediums, witches, wizards, necromancers, who pretended to impersonate the dead and to reveal the secrets of the future. All of this was in violation of God’s statues. (Deut. 18:10-11)

A willful disposition and dissat­isfaction with God’s arrangements naturally leads people into these delusions; it leads them to seek knowledge of the future from some other source, that they might override, if possible, the operations of God’s providence in favor of their own self-will. This same spirit is present today, and in many instances leads people in the same direction, to consult through spiritualist mediums the same fallen angels, demons, who now, as then, attempt to impersonate the dead. The result now, as then, is that those who are discontented with God’s arrangements and thus seeking in a wrong direction for light and leading are in danger of being led further and further away from God’s Word, the only true revelation, the only true prophecy.

We are told that in the fervor of their misplaced religious zeal the Israelites caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire, as sacrifices to Moloch. (2 Kings 17:17) It was not that they were devoid of parental love; rather they esteemed such “religious” sacrifices a duty. Many today are likewise misled by false teachings, and by the mixture of paganism with the divine revelation. They have gotten to the place where they have similarly perverted ideas respecting the Lord and the sacrifice which would be pleasing to Him. They have come to think of the Almighty as a ferocious deity, who would take pleasure in the everlasting torture of the children of men.

The modern Moloch, ignorantly worshiped by many professed spiritual Israelites today, is far more terrible than was the Moloch of olden times, for the children who were then burned did have an end of tortures, while according to the theories prevalent today in Christendom, they worship a Moloch who will hopelessly torture his victims to all eternity. Just as the worship of Moloch in olden times tended to lead to degradation, toward brutality and heartlessness, so the tendency of the modern Moloch worship is in the same direction. He who thinks of God as brutal, unjust, and lacking compassion is unlikely to act and feel directly the opposite of this. The tendency of all is to copy after the character and disposition of their ideal God.

We see evidence that civilized people are becoming more compassionate and merciful, more sensitive to human rights. This can only be accounted for by the realization that the orthodox teachings of nominal Christianity, the teachings of modern day Moloch, are losing their power. Superstition and priest-craft are losing their influence. The Bible is also losing its power with many – because of its association in so many minds with the distasteful creeds of Christendom, and because of the modern day philosophy of “higher criticism.” Nevertheless, the spirit of its teachings – mercy, forgiveness, love – is widely recognized by both believers and unbelievers.

The reasons for Israel’s downward course are enumerated: (1) they rejected God’s statutes, His Law, His Word; (2) they lost sight of and neglected the covenant which He made with their fathers, losing faith in His promises; (3) they lost sight of His testimony as to what would be the result of forsaking His counsel; (4) they followed “vanity” (they acted foolishly rather than wisely), and as a result “went after” (copied) the heathen around them, desiring to be popular rather than “peculiar,” contrary to the Lord’s instructions. (2 Kings 17:15)

Today we find to the extent that antitypical nominal Israel has gone from the Lord, in theory and in practice, it has generally been as the result of not heeding the Lord’s Word, of being negligent of the promises which were set before spiritual Israel (the high calling, etc.), becoming foolish, in attempting to serve God and at the same time be popular with the world. The tendency to “do like them,” to do like the world in general, is the seductive point at which the great Adversary would divert us from being the Lord’s consecrated people.

Let us remember, in this connection, the Master’s words: “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” (John 15:19) The course of the consecrated is to be along wholly different lines from the course of the world.

The reasons for the fall of the ten tribes of Israel are similar to the reasons for Papacy’s fall. The faithful Israelites were sifted out and gathered into Judah; likewise God’s faithful people were generally gathered out of Papacy into Protestantism during the Reformation. But as Judah subsequently became similarly idolatrous and instituted Moloch worship, so Protestantism has failed to be faithful to God and is to fall as Judah fell.

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The above is based on Reprints 2355-57, 2359-60, and 3463.

Write to us at: epiphanybiblestudents@gmail.com

[1] Israel (composed of all twelve tribes) was a unified kingdom under the reigns of Saul, David and Solomon, a period of 120 years. Because Solomon caused the people to worship pagan gods, the Lord warned him that the kingdom would be split. After the death of Solomon, the kingdom divided into two kingdoms, Israel (sometimes called Ephraim), composed of ten tribes, and Judah, composed of two tribes.

NO. 778: THE KING’S HIGHWAY

No. 778

“Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people.” (Isa. 62:10)

Under the reign of sin and death there is now a “broad way”  upon which, under the influence of the world, the flesh and the devil, almost all mankind are walking in a greater or lesser degree of selfishness, worldly desires, and pride. Its grade is downward and away from God. Its end is death, in just harmony with the original sentence of sin in Eden. (Matt. 7:13) On it none can retrace his steps so as to return to God. He may stop for a time, or even attempt to return, but the grade is too steep, and the influence and pressure of the crowd irresistible; and soon he is on the downward course again – moving slowly or swiftly.

But there is a way of life, into which the pilgrim may turn. Of it our Lord said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6) There is consequently only one way of return – through acceptance of Christ and obedience as proof thereof. The gate to this way of life is faith, and at present it is a very difficult road to travel, even after it has been found. This gate and way have been open for some twenty centuries, but comparatively few have seen it or even know of it, as Jesus explained: “Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” (Matt: 7:14)

The Apostle Paul gave us the reason for this: “But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world [Satan] hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” (2 Cor. 4:3-4) The light of the Gospel currently does not shine into the hearts of very many. A thick darkness of error hinders many hearts from receiving the full benefit of God’s light and blessing and joy. They find it impossible to love the Lord, because the creeds of human tradition have so misrepresented Him that they do not deem Him to be worthy.

Here is a mysterious thing! Why does the God of love make the gate to the way of life so obscure that only a few have any opportunity of even knowing of it? – and so narrow and rugged that when found many are so discouraged with the prospect that they make but little effort to walk therein, and gradually drift back into the broad way? From the world’s standpoint of ignorance and human speculation, there is no reasonable answer to this question. But from the standpoint of the Divine Plan of the Ages as revealed in the Scriptures, there is a very satisfactory answer.

God’s plan for the world (which entered the broad road through Adam’s transgression and sentence – 1 Cor. 15:22) is to let all have an experience with the wages of sin, which we are clearly told is death. (Rom. 6:23) The reign of sin and death under Satan will then end through Christ, who will inaugurate a reign of righteousness and life under His rule – the Kingdom of God. Thus seen, the “narrow way” is not meant to be the way of life for the human race in general. It is provided only for a special class, who are referred to in Scripture by various names including the “church,” the “bride,” the “temple of the living God,” the “elect,” the “body of Christ,” and the “little flock” to which it is the “Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32) The gate of faith is made obscure to ensure that those who enter are faith-full (full of faith). The way is rugged and difficult to ensure that all who continue in that way faithful to the end are “overcomers” of strong character.

The special service for which this special class is being selected demands that they be tried as gold is purified, in the furnace of discipline. They may thus be found vessels unto honor and meet for the Master’s use when His time comes for them, along with their Lord and Redeemer, as “the Seed of Abraham” to extend the blessing of God to all the families of the earth (the dead as well as the living). (Gal. 3:16, 29) They will then with Him be the Kings and Priests unto God who will reign on the earth during the Millennial Age, to bind Satan’s power (Rev. 5:10; Rev. 20:1-2) and to open the eyes of those whom he has so long blinded and deceived. By these God will prepare a favorable way for all. (Isa. 62:10)

WHEN CHRIST IS KING – WHAT THEN?

After the last member of the Church, the body of Christ, has been perfected and glorified with Christ their Head upon the throne (Rev. 11:17; Rev. 3:21), our Redeemer will take to Himself His great power and establish His Kingdom. This will be after the great “time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation” (Dan. 12:1) has swept away present institutions and humbled the pride of man in the dust and brought the world into a teachable attitude. Then the broad way to death will be abolished and thereafter the way to death (the Second Death) will be made narrow and difficult because speedy and just retribution will promptly follow every attempted violation of Immanuel’s laws.

The narrow way to immortal life will also have terminated, having served its purpose by selecting the “little flock,” the “Royal Priesthood,” through persecution for godliness and fierce oppositions from the world, the flesh and the devil. Then Satan will be bound (restrained from deceiving mankind) and the world will be forced to respect, at least outwardly, the laws and Kingdom of God. The fleshly weaknesses men labor under as the result of the fall will alone stand between men and perfect happiness – and full arrangements are provided by the Mediator-King for assisting the fallen flesh back to perfection: “Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert.” (Isa. 35:5-6)

The way of life will then be a “highway” cleared of every impediment – the Highway of Holiness: “And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it . . . No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon, it shall not be found there; but the redeemed shall walk there: And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.” (Isa. 35:8-10)

The various arrangements of the Millennial Kingdom will at first make it difficult to enter the road to death (to insure that only the willfully sinful go by it into the Second Death); and the same Kingdom arrangements will make the way to life easy to access. Its gate of faithful obedience will be clearly seen and easily accessible to all; and its name correspondingly will no longer be the “narrow way,” but instead the “way of holiness” – the King’s Highway of Holiness, leading to life everlasting, and open to all who desire righteousness. (John 10:16)

As the Prince of Darkness (Satan) now rules and leads the blinded millions to death, the Prince of Light (Christ, head and body) will then rule and lead millions to life eternal. It is as a means to this end that He has selected His Church and is causing the great trouble to come upon the world, and will shortly bind Satan for the thousand years of His reign. And, more than this, He will open the blinded eyes that all may see the light of the knowledge of the goodness of God as it shines in the face of Jesus Christ our Lord. (2 Cor. 4:6)

Then Satan will no longer have power to deceive men, showing good for evil and evil for good. All will then have the eyes of their understanding opened to see and appreciate “the true Light.” (John 1:9) Then the knowledge of the Lord will fill the whole earth as the waters cover the depths of the sea. (Isa. 11:9) “And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord.” (Jer. 31:34) Then the Lord’s Kingdom will come and His will be done on earth as it is done in heaven. (Matt. 6:10) Instead of the message of the Gospel being limited to a few, all will know the plan of God; and the evidences of its truth will be so clear and convincing that none will have an excuse to disbelieve. The conditions will be such that doubt will be more difficult than is belief at present. Nevertheless, each individual will be required to personally accept Christ and the conditions of the New Covenant.

Not only will men learn unquestionably that Christ died for our sins, “the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God,” they will also see and feel the restitution work begun, in themselves and in others. (1 Pet. 3:18; Acts 3:19-21; Ezek. 16:48-50, 53-55, 60-63) They will see righteousness ruling the world unto life instead of sin ruling it unto death as it does now. They will see great changes in the climate of the earth because he “that had the power of death, that is the devil” (Heb. 2:14), will no longer be “the prince of the power of the air.” (Eph. 2:2) “The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose.” (Isa. 35:1; Ezek. 34:27) The microbes of destruction and disease will be restrained and, “They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain [kingdom].” (Isa. 11:9)

Sickness and pain and all diseases will yield to the power of the Great Physician upon the throne; and He will not permit death to befall any except those who intelligently and willfully refuse His offers of full restitution, by rejecting the terms of obedience required under the New Covenant then open to all. Even these will be liberally dealt with, “For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.” (Ezek. 18:32; 2 Pet. 3:9)

Accordingly, all will be forced to “bow” and “confess” in at least outward recognition of that Kingdom – a blessed improvement upon the reign of sin unto death. (Isa. 45:23; Rom. 14:11; Rom. 5:21; 1 Cor. 15:26) Yet their will must remain their own and their progress in restitution will depend upon their willingness or unwillingness to come into accord with the Kingdom and its righteous arrangements. We are expressly told by the Prophet that those still sinners when a hundred years old will be cut off (in the Second Death – destruction from which there is to be no ransom and no resurrection). (Isa. 65:20; 2 Thess. 1:9) To die at that age then, would be like a death in infancy now, because “A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench.” (Isa. 42:3; Matt. 12:20) All who will then show any evidence of love and consecration to the Lord may continue to enjoy the Kingdom blessings at least until the close of that Millennial Age.

As the Lord now sends seed-time and harvest, sun and rain, upon the just and unjust, so then, to a certain extent (i.e., for one hundred years each), the restitution blessings, that is, the equitable laws and other public arrangements for the education and uplifting of the masses, and the climatic conditions more favorable to health, will be common to all men. But although He is plenteous in mercy, He will not continue to tolerate willful sin and sinners indefinitely: “He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger forever.” (Psa. 103:9) “And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear [obey] that prophet [Teacher], shall be destroyed from among the people.” (Acts 3:23)

GOD’S LAW WILL NOT CHANGE

Although conditions in the Millennial Age will differ so greatly from present conditions as to be almost the reverse, the laws of God, like God Himself, will not change. God’s law will be the same law in every particular that it always has been when exercised by our Lord Jesus and His Church (“Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world?” – 1 Cor. 6:2). It will be tempered with mercy because of man’s fallen condition (for which our Lord Jesus as Redeemer paid the price in His own death). It cannot change, for the same reason that God Himself cannot change: it is perfect, and to change it in any degree would be to make it imperfect.

God’s law is love. Full obedience to it means perfect love – controlling every thought, word and deed; partial obedience means a measure of love. At the beginning of that new era, the world in general will be as loveless as it is now, controlled by selfishness, for the heart of the natural (fallen) man is enmity against this law of God which represents God’s character. (1 Cor. 2:14) When present-day selfishness blossoms and goes to seed in the great Time of Trouble now impending, it will become apparent to all that, however selfish their hearts may be, their deeds must thereafter conform more closely to the principle of love – doing unto others as they would have others do unto them. (Matt. 7:12)

It will thus be with a practical lesson that the new King will introduce the Law of His Kingdom. Loving deeds and words will be required of all, though their hearts (wills) may still be tainted with selfishness; for God does not now, and never will, force the wills of His creatures. Those who at the end of the hundred years of trial remain obstinate in heart and only outwardly obedient, under compulsion, shall be judged hopeless sinners, and will be cut off from all further trial for life; for the principle will still hold: “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” (John 3:36)

“In that day” an intellectual unbelief in Christ and the offer of salvation will be an impossibility (Isa. 11:9), for even “the devils also believe, and tremble.” (Jas. 2:19) However, acceptance of Christ as the Lord who bought us, and hearty obedience to the letter and spirit of His requirements will be the condition upon which any may obtain everlasting life, provided and intended only for those who love God, which implies a love of His character and His laws. (Isa. 57:14-21)

But perfect love and obedience in letter and spirit will not be realized by the world then on trial until the close of the Millennial Age, because perfection of being is necessary for perfection of obedience. For those who accept the Son, the entire age will be necessary for the full restitution or bringing back to the perfection and divine fellowship lost six thousand years ago. Just as from the first moment of the death sentence Adam and the entire human race were no longer fully alive but dying, so perfection of life will not be attained until the end of the process of uplifting or restitution. None will get that grand gift of God except such as are perfected in love – not only in word and deed, but also in the very deepest thoughts and intents of their hearts. Only those who believe the Son, accept of His grace and are conformed to His image will see life, in the full and absolute sense. Only those will be presented unto the Father perfect and beyond reproof in love, when Christ delivers up the Kingdom, having thus accomplished the work begun by Him nearly three thousand years before when He bought the world with His own life that He might give life unto all them that obey Him.

ACCEPTANCE OF THE NEW COVENANT

Although everlasting life (the reward for obedience in the school of Christ) will not be given to the worthy ones of the world until the close of the Millennial Age, yet that everlasting life will be reckoned to each one from the moment he accepts Christ and comes to any degree of heart-harmony with the terms of the New Covenant.

The varying temperaments and degrees of degradation of fallen men guarantee that their hearty acceptance of Christ and His regulations for their blessing will differ, as is now the case with those who come to the knowledge of the Truth. Some will respond quickly, some slowly, some not at all. But the Lord’s provision, that all shall have at least a hundred years of opportunity under the clear light of “the Sun of righteousness” (Mal. 4:2; Luke 1:78-79), guarantees against the loss of any for whom there could be any hope of developing characters fit for an eternity of fellowship with God. Nor will it be merely those who promptly and fully accept Christ that will be continued beyond the first hundred years of trial, for we are assured that if there is even a smoldering spark of love toward God and righteousness (the “smoking flax”), the Lord will not break off such a one (the “bruised reed”), but will fan the spark so that it might become a blaze of love which would purify the heart and eventually bring every thought into conformity with the will of God. He will pursue this course until “he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.”(Isa. 42:3)

Those who most quickly and most fully accept the new conditions will more quickly and more fully taste the joys of salvation and the Lord’s favor, and have the peace of God rule in their hearts. Thus the measure of “light” sinned against in the present life determines not only the amount of heart-hardening, but also the time and the amount of difficulty the person will experience in getting his heart softened again.

STONES GATHERED OUT

Those who will be cut off during the Millennium will be those who refuse to “go up thereon” when they are given full opportunity to enter upon the King’s Highway of Holiness. (Isa. 35:9) Satan’s broad way of the present time is a downward one, but the King’s Highway in the Millennium will have an upward grade. Men now can go downward to death almost without effort; but in the Millennium reaching the prize of life at the end of the Highway will require effort.

The Highway of the Millennial Age will require less effort and overcoming than the Narrow Way of the Gospel Age, however. It will be less steep, for several centuries may be allowed for the gradual development of character in likeness to the Lord’s, in contrast to the short period allowed in the Gospel Age Narrow Way for development as a pilgrim, an overcomer, and a worthy associate with the Lord Jesus for the peculiar work of the future, as His Bride.

On the King’s Highway, there will be no “stones” of error to stumble the faithful, no “lions” of worldly opposition to test them, no “ravenous beasts” of temptations to hinder their progress. The stumbling stones will all be gathered out, the mountains of difficulty will be leveled, and the valleys of despair and discouragement will be filled up: “Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.” (Isa. 40:4-5) All the redeemed of the Lord who will accept the gift of life upon the conditions of its offer may go up that Highway to perfection. (Isa. 35:8-10; Isa. 62:10)

It must not be supposed, however, that progress along that easy Highway, with everything to aid in the development of character, and with nothing like opposition or temptation to test its strength, will be sufficient evidence of heart loyalty to God and His laws. It will not prove worthiness for everlasting life, even though those on the Highway may have attained human perfection – physical, mental and moral – as a result of its elixirs of life, its pure air, nutritious foods, inspired skill and conformity to its divine laws and regulations.

TESTS ON THE KING’S HIGHWAY

While the tests along the Narrow Way have been gradual, step by step, there will be primarily two tests on the King’s Highway – at the beginning and at the end. There will first be a test as to who will start to go upward on it and keep on going upward. Those who will make no effort upward, despite all the favorable conditions of knowledge and obedience, will be cut off after one hundred years of opportunity, testing, and reproof. They will be unworthy of further testing or further Millennial privileges. (Isa. 65:20)

There will be a final test of all who have gone up that Highway to its end – to the end of the Millennium. These will then be tested or proved as to their fitness for everlasting life. The object of this test will not be to prove whether they are sinners, either openly or covertly. None of them will be transgressors of God’s law, because the evil doers will have been cut off long before, at the end of a hundred years trial. No doubt it will surprise many of them when they learn that God has purposed to give them a trial at all. What! Test those who for hundreds of years have been living in harmony with God’s law, and constantly blessed by it? Are not those centuries of obedience a sufficient proof of loyalty to God? Can any further test be required? If so, for what purpose?

We answer that their obedience for centuries had its corresponding reward of blessings and enjoyment experienced during those centuries. They are still God’s debtors. God does not owe them everlasting life. Everlasting life is a gift of God through Christ. (Rom. 6:23) It is one of the things, however, prepared for those who love God, and the test at the end of the Millennial Age will be a test of love – to prove the degree of love and consecration that has been developed in those who have seen and enjoyed so many of God’s favors. Not outward perfection merely, but inward perfection will be the test; and that some who will have reached outward perfection will not have developed the inward perfection of heart or will, even with every favorable opportunity, is evident from the results of the test. (Rev. 20:9)

Adam was also perfect before his trial in Eden, but he had not developed a consecrated will or character fully submitted to the Lord. Satan was perfect as an angel of God, but he developed a character or will antagonistic to God’s. And God’s purpose is that the trial or judgment both of angels and men will be so thorough, so complete, that not a single creature who is not in absolute heart-harmony with God and His laws shall receive everlasting life and pass into the ages of eternity beyond the Millennium. All not possessed of characters (wills) in full, absolute harmony with God’s will, must die the Second Death. And yet they will have enjoyed much, and will have much for which to be thankful.

In no other way could the Lord continue His creatures in His own likeness as free moral agents, and yet guarantee that the Millennial reign of Christ will cause the former things of sin to pass away: “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” (Rev. 21:4)

The test at the close of the Millennium is symbolically represented in Revelation: “And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations . . . to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. 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. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire . . . ” (Rev. 20:7-10) Satan will be permitted to attempt to deceive all, whose number will then be as the sand, but what proportion he will succeed in leading astray is not stated.

The Lord’s Word does not indicate the nature of this attack, but we do not suppose that Satan and his followers will go up and surround the beloved city (the capital of the earthly phase of the Kingdom) with any thought of war, or with intent to use physical force. They could not be so foolish, after so long an experience with the power of God’s Kingdom. We surmise that they will miscalculate when the thousand years of Christ’s autocratic Kingdom will end, and when the dominion of earth will be restored to mankind in general to be exercised as a Republic – in full harmony with the divine law. Miscalculating the time, they may feel that the rulers of that time (Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the Prophets – the Ancient Worthies) are prolonging their rule without warrant. The surrounding of the beloved city may be in the form of a demonstration, or appeal for their rights, such as has often been made by present-day citizens, surrounding Congress, Parliament, or council chambers with demonstrations against infringe­ments of their claimed rights.

Such peaceful protests against wrongs or oppressions in the present time are not sins, but such a demonstration on the part of perfect men after centuries of benefits and blessings at God’s hands would indicate that their hearts were not fully submitted to the Lord. Those in the right condition of heart will respond to an invitation to participate in such an event with a forceful, “No!” They will trust the wisdom, justice, love and power that will have so abundantly provided for them to that point, even while they were yet sinners. They will be content to continue as “servants” and will not question when God sees best to grant them full liberties and privileges as “children.” (Rom. 8:21) They will not even harbor in their hearts a wish to change any of the Lord’s arrangements, much less join in any demonstration or protest against them.

The gift of everlasting life has only been prepared for those who under such a test would manifest heart-harmony with God. Those passing this test will be received and blessed, but the others will be cut off in the Second Death. If an objection is made that they committed no great crime, we answer, neither was the transgression of the perfect Adam a gross crime; but the eating of the forbidden fruit was a disobedience; and disobedience and transgression on the part of perfect beings is a just cause for a refusal to grant them the great blessing of life everlasting.

Praise God for the lengths and breadths of His great and gracious plan of salvation through Christ. Praise Him for the Narrow Way of the Gospel Age with its severe trials and temptations and its great prize of life in joint-heirship with our Lord Jesus the Redeemer. Praise Him too for the great Highway of Holiness which the Christ will soon prepare and open to all the redeemed, that whosoever will may not perish, but have the gift of God, eternal life. (John 3:16; Rom. 6:23)

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This paper is drawn from Pastor Russell Reprint 1771.

Write to us at: epiphanybiblestudents@gmail.com

NO. 777: ANOINTED TO PREACH GOOD TIDINGS

No. 777

“The spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.” (Isa. 61:1-3)

This text is surely “good tidings” in a very broad and deep sense. Its message is one of comfort, not only to consecrated believers, but to all who mourn. While some people are undoubtedly full, satisfied, and mourn for nothing, they are exceptions to the rule. Some are wealthy in material possessions and feel they have need of nothing. They are kept busy with their efforts to enjoy themselves. There are also others who are not wealthy, but are very self-satisfied because they feel themselves to be of a high moral status. They do not realize themselves to be sinners in need of a Savior. Neither of these groups are mourning for anything, and therefore they cannot receive the comforting assurances and promises the Lord has made for those who mourn.

But as we consider the state of affairs in the world, we are deeply impressed with the thought that the vast majority of mankind are in mourning. As far as the world in general is concerned, our Lord’s ministry of comfort is chiefly a future work, but we rejoice in knowing that the time is sure to come when all that mourn will be brought under the blessed influences and provisions of the Millennial Kingdom, when they will come to know the comfort God has provided in Christ.

Our text assures us that all the Lord’s people are ordained to proclaim His message of comfort to all that mourn, to all who realize that the present condition of things is an unsatisfactory one, quite beyond the power of any human being to fully rectify – a condition that God’s Kingdom alone can correct. The Gospel of Christ appeals to those who mourn, addressing itself especially to those who labor, are heavy laden, and seeking rest. It passes by those who are content and self-satisfied.

Why is it that those who mourn can appreciate God’s message as others cannot? Would we not expect the opposite? Surely heaven is not a place of mourning; surely the heavenly Father is not sad; and surely the holy angels are not weary, heavy laden, and seeking rest. So why does the Gospel of the Lord Jesus appeal to the mourners? If in heaven all are rich in health, joy, and prosperity and they all rejoice in the divine character and divine plan, why is it that the rich, favored, and self-satisfied on earth are not attracted by the Gospel of Christ?

The answer is that the conditions are totally different. In heaven there is no sin, no sickness, no pain, no sorrow, no death, no weeping – nothing to cause mourning. On earth all these conditions prevail – if not in each individual, certainly in each family. It is proper for perfect heavenly beings who are free from the penalties of sin to rejoice in the Lord and be joyful. It is equally proper for those under the penalties of sin to mourn, assuming they have the right attitude of mind and can realize their true condition. It is proper that they feel weary with the mental, moral, and physical burdens of sin brought upon us as a race. It is expected that they feel heavy laden with life’s trials and difficulties and mourn, longing for deliverance from these unfavorable conditions.

Although much is done for the benefit of the less favored in the provision of public education, health care, and other types of assistance, some of the favored few in the world seem to have no feeling of sympathy, sorrow, and mourning for the disadvantaged. Selfishness has crowded out feelings of empathy and sympathy among many advantaged people. It would not be fair, however, to assume that all the rich and well-to-do are filled with joy and pleasure despite appearing to be so. If the truth were known, nearly all human beings have more than a few heart-aches, even though they may enjoy all manner of riches and advantages. Many also have a longing desire to help others, but they realize that it would be impossible to rescue all of humanity. They realize they must draw the line somewhere, and so they select their special projects and objects of sympathy and assistance, providing many private benevolences. In any event, it is not for us to attempt to judge the hearts of others to assess whether they mourn. We are safe to assume that the majority of people mourn.

JOY IN THE MORNING

In the words of the hymn, “There’s a wideness in God’s mercy, like the wideness of the sea.” The wideness of His mercy is in marked contrast with the narrowness of human creeds and theories. According to the latter, God’s provision for the majority of the human family is that they will mourn and be weary and heavy laden. These creeds hold that mankind will be a groaning creation throughout this present life, and at its close they will be ushered into conditions awful to contemplate: an eternity of woe, mourning, sorrow, pain, and anguish. This is the false Gospel concocted during the Dark Ages by those who actually thought they served God by burning one another at the stake. How different is the true message of God! It is the message referred to in our opening text, which God anointed the Christ, Head and Body, to proclaim. It is the message announced by the angel at the birth of Jesus: “I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.” (Luke 2:10) It is a message of comfort to all who mourn.

Many who now mourn are unable to appreciate God’s message because they are blinded and deafened by the Adversary. They neither know nor understand the gracious provisions of the divine plan of salvation, provisions centered in the cross of Christ. Confused by the various religious creeds of the world, they cannot discern the voice of the true Shepherd, and so the vast majority are in despair, lacking any comfort whatsoever.

While it is the privilege of the Lord’s people to tell the good tidings which will ultimately be to all people, they are to understand that only a few who have an ear to hear will be able to comprehend and appreciate their message. The majority will not be able to comprehend until the new dispensation is ushered in, and the clouds of error, darkness, confusion, and falsehood melt away. Then the glorious “Sun of righteousness” will rise “with healing in his wings.” (Mal. 4:2) These healing beams will bless the whole world during the Millennium. During this Gospel Age, the comfort provided by the Scriptures about the blessings that are to come to the world is only for the Household of Faith. As the Master said: “But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.” (Matt. 13:16)

The Lord’s people would mourn more for their dear ones who are still in the darkness of sin were it not for this comfort the Lord provided in the Scriptures. As they come to understand the divine message, it means an ultimate blessing to each member of the human family – it means that as all of Adam’s race were involved in his penalty without their consent, likewise all of them are provided for in the great redemption accomplished by the second Adam, likewise without their knowledge. Thus the Lord prophetically declares: “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” (Psa. 30:5)

NOT UNIVERSALISM

The whole creation is involved in the weeping, mourning, suffering, and sorrowing resulting from the curse of the death penalty. Likewise, the whole creation has been redeemed by the precious blood, and will come forth on the Millennial morning to joyful opportunities for attaining life everlasting through obedience to the glorious Kingdom of God’s dear Son, who bought them with His precious blood. To this the Scriptures all agree. Pointing to the Millennial Age, they declare: “For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.” (Rev. 7:17)

Almost the same message was given thousands of years earlier through the Prophet Isaiah: “He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces.” (Isa. 25:8) This shows that tears will not be wiped away merely from the faces of the saints of this Gospel Age. These divine testimonies are in full accord with others that declare: “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil. 2:10-11)

All these testimonies apply generally to the whole world of mankind, because God has provided a full atonement for the sins of the whole world. The penalty of Adam’s fall has been wiped away and during the Millennial Age every human being will have an opportunity to rejoice in the Lord’s favor, knowing that past sins are forgiven. All will have an opportunity to demonstrate their love for righteousness and their opposition to sin, thereby proving their fitness for everlasting life under God’s terms.

This is not universalism, however, which teaches that all humankind will eventually be saved eternally. The Scriptures teach that after having been brought to a full knowledge of God’s provisions and terms, all who willfully reject or oppose them will be deemed opponents of God and His righteousness and will be cut off in the Second Death: “And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear [obey] that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.” (Acts 3:23)

MOURNERS IN ZION

Everywhere throughout the Scriptures the Lord distinguishes between mourners in general, and those who “mourn in Zion” – the mourners who are truly His through faith and consecration. The Apostle Paul pointed out that both the world and the Lord’s people are groaning and waiting:

“For the earnest expectation of the creation waiteth for the revealing of the sons of God. . . . that the creation itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the liberty of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only so, but ourselves also . . . even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for our adoption . . . the redemption of our body.” (Rom. 8:19-23, ASV) While not realizing it, the whole world is waiting for the revealing of the sons of God – waiting for the Kingdom to be established. The belief in a future life, though vague, is almost universal and most people believe it will be everlasting.

The Lord’s consecrated people groan more privately, not in an outward manner, awaiting their adoption, their deliverance as the body of the Anointed One, and their share in the First Resurrection. Those who mourn in Zion have hearing ears, and the eyes of their understanding are open; hence the message of the Gospel means to them what it cannot mean to mourners in general.

In our opening text, the Lord foretells through the Prophet the joys and blessings the mourners in Zion have for their comfort and consolation. They do not sorrow as others do because they believe that the entire human family will be released from the death sentence, which has been turned into a “sleep” through the redemptive work of Jesus. As the Apostle explained: “But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.” (1 Thess. 4:13-14)

Although the Lord’s people do not sorrow as others who have no hope, they groan within themselves because the blessings are still future, while the trials and difficulties are still present. The hope they enjoy cheers and comforts their hearts, lightening their burdens, although they still have burdens and sorrows. Our Lord called to the sorrowing ones, saying, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 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.” (Matt. 11:28-29) The Lord’s yoke is easy and His burden light compared with the yoke of sin and the burden of death.

The burden of those who are in Christ is very different from the burden that is upon the world. Our burden decreases as we become more acquainted with our heavenly Father and with our Lord the Redeemer, and with the gracious plan of which He is the center.

ANOINTED TO PREACH

The anointing to preach the great message primarily applied to our Lord Jesus, who pointed out the fulfillment of this scripture in Himself. (Luke 4:18) From God’s standpoint, however, all His consecrated people who have knowledge of His Word and possess the spirit of the Truth are included in this anointing. Every child of God must be a preacher, although not all preach from a public platform. They are commissioned to share to the best of their abilities the message detailed in the first two verses of our text:

“To preach good tidings unto the meek.” They are anointed to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom – Jesus, the resurrection, restitution, and the high calling. They are to preach only to the “meek” – those willing and able to hear, those who are feeling after the Lord and not satisfied with the things of this world, those who manifest a teachable disposition. They are not to preach to the rebellious or the indifferent, who will be dealt with in the Kingdom by the judgments of the Lord. (Isa. 26:9)

“To bind up the brokenhearted.” The mission of the Lord’s people is not to break hearts but to heal hearts that have been broken by sin. The mission is not to shake with threats of torment, but to soothe with the message of divine mercy, teaching that the Kingdom will bring order, peace, and joy.

“To proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.” This is the message of resurrection and restitution. All of mankind are captives of death, whether already in the grave or yet alive. Christ will open the prison house of death, releasing its captives (John 5:28-29), giving them the opportunity to return to man’s former estate, free from sin, ignorance, superstition, and the dying process.

“To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn.” This identifies the Gospel Age as the “acceptable” time period during which God will accept joint-sacrificers with Christ. On the occasion when the Lord Jesus read this verse from Isaiah in the synagogue (Luke 4:19), He stopped His reading after “the acceptable year of the Lord,” because the remainder of the prophecy was not yet due to be understood, but now it is. The “day of vengeance” – the time of trouble – is upon us and when it ends the whole world will be comforted by the Lord’s reign.

THE PROMISES PICTURED

The beautiful promises made to the mourners in Zion are then symbolically described in the third verse of our text, foreshadowing the great ministry of comfort to take place in the Millennium:

“Beauty for ashes.” The beauty of the resurrection will replace the ashes of death. The word “beauty” here signifies a beautiful crown or garland, symbolizing hope and joy, while ashes symbolize the opposite. Prior to the redemptive work of Christ, we were without hope and “without God in the world.” (Eph. 2:12) While we may have had earthly hopes, desires, and prospects, as time passed we found that these withered, failed, and turned to ashes. The acceptance of Jesus with a whole heart brings new hopes and joys, represented symbolically as a “garland.” (Isa. 61:3, ASV) Not one joy, but many joys, not one blessing, but many blessings, come to those who are the Lord’s – to them old things have passed away and all things become new. Even death itself loses its sting when we realize that Christ has bought every prisoner in the tomb, and that ultimately death will be swallowed up in victory and there will be no more death, and no more pain, because the former things will have passed away. (Isa. 25:8; 1 Cor. 15:54; Rev. 21:4)

“The oil of joy for mourning.” After a period of mourning had passed in ancient times, it was the custom to display the spirit of rejoicing by washing and then anointing with a fragrant oil. Such oil was also used in anointing the kings and priests of Israel, and in Scripture it is a symbol of the Holy Spirit. Throughout this Gospel Age, those who accept Jesus as their Redeemer and who seek to walk in His steps, making a full consecration to Him and to His service, are accepted of the heavenly Father as His children and anointed with His Holy Spirit, the spirit of gladness, the spirit of joy, to all who receive it. In proportion as they receive it, it drives away much of the spirit of mourning and brings instead the spirit of joy. As the Apostle declared, “Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.” (Phil. 4:4)

“The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.” To put on the garment of praise means to be sufficiently thankful, sufficiently appreciative of the good things received of the Lord. Many never get rid of the spirit of heaviness because they fail to put on the garment of praise. If we continually acknowledge and give thanks for the blessings we enjoy, we will find that they will increase and their value will be enhanced day by day. Before long, tears will be replaced with praise and thanksgiving. Instead of asking the Lord continually for new blessings, our petitions will be in the form of thanksgiving, and we will only ask that the Lord give us what is best. We should seek to take our burdens to the foot of the cross and leave them there, remembering that the Lord has promised that all things work together for good to them that love God. (Rom. 8:28)

“That they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.” The Apostle Paul used this same illustration to show how we are to progress in Christ. (Col. 2:7) The roots of a tree push themselves downward and take nutrients from the soil, while at the same time the trunk and the branches reach up into the atmosphere to obtain necessary elements of growth through the leaves. In the same manner, the roots of the Christian’s faith must push down deep into the knowledge of the divine plan, while the tree of character grows higher and higher, developing and maturing the rich fruits of the Holy Spirit of God. A tree that is well rooted in the earth is hard to uproot. Likewise, when the Christian’s faith is properly established in the promises of God’s Word, no wind of doctrine or theories of the day can overturn it. The Lord will not accept little, undeveloped sprouts for the Kingdom; He wants sturdy trees that have grown and matured.

COMFORTING THEM THAT MOURN

 The Scriptures point out that our comfort comes through fellowship with the heavenly Father and with our Lord Jesus. Our comfort does not come from believing that they are ignorant of our weaknesses and shortcomings, nor that they have low standards of righteousness and indiscriminate requirements for fellowship with them. Quite to the contrary, they comfort us with the assurance that they are very sympathetic and very merciful, although our every imperfection is known to them. Having provided a full propitiation (satisfaction) for all sins in the great sacrifice at Calvary, the Lord is very pleased to apply on behalf of each of His adopted children the riches of grace necessary to cover and offset every unintentional error and failure. What comfort and consolation are these privileges of fellowship with the Father and with the Son!

The Scriptures assure us that this comfort comes to us through the Holy Spirit, the spirit of the Lord, which is accordingly called the “Comforter.” (John 14:26) Those who have the Holy Spirit may have the comfort; those who do not have the Holy Spirit may not have this comfort and consolation. It is only to the extent that we receive the spirit, mind, and disposition of the Lord that we are able to understand, appreciate, and be comforted by the lengths and breadths, the heights and depths of His love, compassion, and provision for us.

This comfort of the Holy Spirit comes to us through the Scriptures – they are the medium through which the knowledge of God’s grace reaches us. In the words of the Apostle, “For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.” (Rom. 15:4)

While this comfort is of the Father, through the Son, and communicated through the Scriptures, it is also to a considerable extent communicated by the Lord’s people one to another. For instance, the Apostle, after relating certain features of the divine plan relating to the deliverance of the Church, said to the brethren: “Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” (1 Thess. 4:18) Similarly, in his epistle to the Thessalonians, he told them that he sent Timothy to establish and comfort them concerning their faith. (1 Thess. 3:2-5)

This comfort evidently came from the establishment of the “faith which was once delivered unto the saints” – the faith in the glorious promises of God’s Word. (Jude 3) This comfort was of the Lord, through the Holy Spirit, through the agency of Paul and Timothy. Again, the same Apostle, speaking in the same strain, said, “Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.” (1 Thess. 5:11)

While the work of Christ and the Church for the world will not be accomplished in this present age, God gives His people the opportunity to use their talents in His service in the present life. To the best of their ability, they are to bind up broken hearts and give “the oil of joy for mourning.” In this manner they are to allay the sufferings of others, especially of the Lord’s Household, though they are to assist others as they have suitable opportunity. But their special work in blessing and comforting the world will be in the Kingdom, when all mankind will be brought back from the tomb and will have all the blessed assistances of Messiah’s Reign. Everything evil will be uprooted, and everything good will be fostered and blessed.

AMBASSADORS FOR THE LORD

While in this life, the Lord’s people are to be His ambassadors, showing forth His praises by telling others of the coming Kingdom and the blessings then to be showered upon all. They are to tell that God’s great plan for the world is much broader and grander than once thought, and that these blessings are both for those now living and for those who have gone down into the grave. Let us tell all who have an ear to hear that the Lord is now pouring out His Spirit upon His “servants and handmaids,” and soon will pour it out upon “all flesh” – all mankind. (Joel 2:28-29)

To the degree the Lord’s people are His ambassadors and representatives, it will be their privilege in the Kingdom to “comfort all that mourn,” and to be the “trees of righteousness” whose leaves will be for the “healing of the nations.” (Rev. 22:2) They should remember, however, that in the present life they have a ministry of comfort to perform also toward all who mourn in Zion – toward all of the Lord’s people who are in any tribulation, whether physical or mental. It is their privilege to bind up the broken-hearted and comfort those that mourn. In order to have the disposition to comfort, strengthen, edify, and build up the Household of Faith, one must possess a considerable measure of the spirit of the Truth, the spirit of the Lord, the spirit of love. To the degree each of the Lord’s people seeks to cultivate this privilege of brotherly helpfulness, to that same degree he will find the spirit of love developing and abounding in his own heart, and his likeness to the Lord Jesus will increase day by day, and from year to year.

One of the Apostle’s expressions respecting the great comfort and consolation which God has provided for His consecrated, faithful people is especially to the point: “Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.” (2 Cor. 1:3-4)

If we are rightly exercised by the lessons learned from our trials, difficulties, and tribulations, we will receive greater comfort through the gracious promises of the Lord’s Word, and become more capable and efficient ambassadors of comfort to others in their trials and difficulties.

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This paper is drawn from several writings of Pastor Russell, including Reprints 2664 and 5536, as well as excerpts from Harvest Gleanings.

Write to us at: epiphanybiblestudents@gmail.com

NO. 776: THE GREATEST EVENT OF HISTORY

No. 776

“And he bearing his cross went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha: Where they crucified him, and two others with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst. And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS.” (John 19:17-19)

Calvary was the scene of the most wonderful event of history, the foundation of the Gospel, the fulcrum upon which divine love and justice worked to roll away the curse resting upon humanity. As the Apostle wrote, “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures.” (1 Cor. 15:3)

The exact location of Calvary is not definitely known, but it is referred to in all four Gospels. Matthew, Mark and John refer to it as Golgotha, the Hebrew word equivalent to the Latin word Calvary used by Luke, both words signifying “place of a skull.” (Matt. 27:33; Mark 15:22; Luke 23:33; John 19:17) There is a site outside Jerusalem that is a bare hill with two caves in the front, which gives the appearance of a skull when looked at from a distance, the caves and the brush growing therein representing the eye sockets. It has been suggested that this was the place of the crucifixion.

Crucifixion was a most horrible and torturous form of death, yet it is not the torture alone which our Redeemer suffered on our behalf that awakens our feelings of sympathy and sorrow when we think of Calvary and the events preceding it. Two others were crucified with Jesus, and many others have suffered a similar death before and since. Some, we may presume, suffered as much or more agony through longer and more drawn-out torture, gradual burning at the stake, lacerations, etc. Aside from our dear Savior’s experiences being undeserved by the one “who went about doing good,” the thought that impresses our hearts most deeply is that His experiences were in connection with paying our penalty, so that “with his stripes we are healed.” (Acts 10:38; Isa. 53:5)

“THE LOVE OF CHRIST CONSTRAINETH US”

The thought that Christ died for our sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God – that we might be restored to divine favor and released from the just sentence of death upon us – this thought moves our hearts to loving sympathy. “For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead [under sentence of death]: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.” (2 Cor. 5:14-15)

Doctors of divinity and college professors of our times, full of the “wisdom of this world” (1 Cor. 1:20), deny the necessity for our Lord’s death and the value of the precious blood as an atonement for the sins of mankind. The more they deny this foundational feature of the Gospel, the more those who are able by the grace of God to see the divine plan must emphasize the value of the cross as the basis of reconciliation between God and man.

Today Jesus is presented as a good, noble, wonderful and wise teacher, whose words are suitable for texts and comments, but the sin of the world is denied when it is claimed that man is evolving to a higher nature, approaching the divine likeness. If there is no sin of the world to be atoned for, the Scriptural record that Jesus made atonement for the sins of the world is of course in error, but this is the view that is rapidly spreading throughout Christendom and destroying all true Christian faith.

Any faith other than faith based on the atonement is not the true Christian faith, not the faith once delivered to the saints, not the faith that is pleasing to God, not the faith that is the basis for justification and forgiveness of sins, not the faith that is to be respected and honored, blessed and rewarded by the Lord in due time. We cannot state this matter too strongly, even though it may offend some to be told that they are not Christians in the Scriptural sense of the word if they no longer hold to the doctrine of atonement through the blood of the cross – through the death of Jesus. Ultimately this doctrine will be the touchstone which will clearly show who are the Lord’s people and who are not, and those who lose it will lose membership in the household of faith, at least, as the present age is concerned. They are no more Christians than are those who adhere to Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, or no faith at all. Many among these groups believe that Jesus lived and died and was a great teacher, but this does not make them Christians and does not justify them. As the Apostle points out, we are justified “through faith in his blood.” (Rom. 3:25)

“CONSIDER HIM” – JESUS BEFORE PILATE

The chief priests and leading Jews of the Sanhedrin had been anxious for some time to apprehend our Lord, causing Him to no longer walk in Judea because the Jews there sought to kill Him. (John 7:1) Our Lord returned only at the time of the Feast of the Passover, knowing that then “his hour was come.” (John 13:1) He knew that it must happen at the time of the Passover in order to fulfill the types and prophecies of the Law.

The Jewish leaders had been exasperated by the Lord’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem on the ass, and by His driving the money-changers out of the Temple. They seized upon the idea of using Judas to betray Jesus at night, capturing Him when the multitudes were at home, and holding His trial and condemnation by the Jewish court during the night. They planned to rush the matter through and secure Pilate’s endorsement of the death sentence, which was essential. After the Lord’s arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, He was brought before the high priests, Annas and Caiaphas, for examination and trial before the Jewish Sanhedrin. Our Lord was brought in as a prisoner at probably about one o’clock in the morning, and the examination and trial are thought to have lasted until the early morning hours.

It was necessary that at least a form of justice be followed in the trial before the Sanhedrin, the Jews highest court. Accordingly, witnesses were sought to prove something against our Lord which would show Him worthy of death. But finding no such witnesses, they ultimately secured two who were willing to bear false witness by slightly perverting our Lord’s statements. Their wish to bear witness against Him and to secure the favor of the chief priests probably prompted them to distort our Lord’s words. (Matt. 26:59-66)

A little later that morning, He was brought before Pilate, the representative of the Roman government. They brought Jesus before Pilate because the Sanhedrin had no power to put anyone to death without the consent of the Roman governor. They brought Him bound, to indicate that they had already determined Him to be a vicious character and duly guilty, and that the endorsement of their verdict and the order of execution were the only proper steps for Pilate to take.

The charge before the Sanhedrin had been blasphemy, a charge that would have had no weight before Pilate, since he himself was probably not a believer in the Jewish religion and customs. Hence, the charge they made against Him before Pilate was treason to Caesar, the high priests and Sanhedrin hypocritically taking the position that they were loyal defenders of the Roman power. No charges of treason or sedition were made in the trial before the Sanhedrin, because that would have been out of order. As the Jews held to their right to freedom from the Roman yoke, treason to Rome would have been considered loyalty to Judaism. Besides that, they had been waiting for centuries for a great deliverer to free them from Roman rule.

Pilate evidently saw through their subterfuge. His experience with human nature enabled him to see at a glance that the prisoner before him was a remarkable man and not the type to be a dangerous enemy to the empire. Pilate’s question to our Lord was evidently one of curiosity and full of irony: “Art thou the King of the Jews?” If Pilate expected Jesus to make any assertion of power and greatness, or any appeal for compassion or pity, he was disappointed. The Master merely answered in the brief and simple words, “Thou sayest.” He made no response to the various charges and calumnies the Jewish elders and priests heaped upon Him – “never a word.” (Matt. 27-11-14)

Jesus knew that His hour had come; He knew that the cup of bitterness and ignominy which He was drinking was permitted by the Father. His will was entirely submitted to the Father’s will, and He had no desire to clear Himself, nor to avoid or resist the death sentence being sought. Pilate was amazed that anyone could be so indifferent to the preservation of His own life; but he clearly saw that the charges were base fabrications, unworthy of consideration. He informed the accusers that it was the season when it was the custom for him to a set a prisoner at liberty, hoping they would be satisfied to reckon Jesus as having been justly accused, justly sentenced, and then set free.

Pilate announced that the one to be released would be either Jesus or a very noted criminal named Barabbas. By naming Barabbas as the alternative choice to Jesus, he evidently thought that the Jews would finally conclude that of the two they would prefer to have Jesus at liberty rather than the clearly undesirable Barabbas, but Pilate was mistaken. The Jewish leaders were enraged at the thought that their plans might fail, and they incited the gathered multitude against such a decree. The hatred inspired by religious fanaticism is the deepest, wickedest and most conscienceless of all, and Barabbas was promptly accepted, leaving Pilate committed to freeing him and leaving Jesus under the implied sentence.

When Pilate asked what he should do then with Jesus, their blood-curdling cry was, “Let him be crucified!” Astonished, Pilate answered, “Why, what evil hath he done?” Seeing that the case hung in the balance, the bloodthirsty accusers cried out with greater vehemence for Him to be crucified, causing Pilate to fear a general insurrection if their demands were not met. As a representative and mouthpiece for the Roman Empire, Pilate was required to preserve order at any cost. Although he yielded to the demands, he indicated his disagreement, washing his hands with water before them and saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it.” (Matt. 27:22-25) Thus he put the responsibility upon them, evidently still hoping they would change their minds.

When all the people cried, “His blood be on us, and on our children,” it was a prophecy of divine judgment against them. (Matt. 27:25) When they cried, “We have no king but Caesar,” the Almighty took them at their word. (John 19:15) The only way for them to escape the curse of His blood that they pronounced upon themselves is to accept His blood, freely offered to them as to all mankind, as the blood of sacrifice, the blood of atonement which sanctifies (makes holy to God) all who accept it by faith. It is the blood or seal of the New Covenant.

Pilate endeavored to arouse sympathy for Jesus in His accusers by having Him scourged. His soldiers then put a crown of thorns and a purple robe on Jesus, and Pilate presented Him to the crowd. He stated again that he found no fault with Jesus and then cried, “Behold the man!” (John 19:1-5) All Pilate’s appeals were futile. Jesus’ enemies were so filled with bitterness and envy that they were blind to His personal qualities, although some women who were not His disciples seemed to perceive them, and as He passed they wept.

Jesus was the most composed of all those present, because He had the assurance that He was doing the Father’s will. This assurance had kept Him calm and unmoved from the moment the angel appeared in Gethsemane to give Him the word of divine favor and thus strengthen Him. (Luke 22:43) Because He had such confidence in the wisdom, love, justice, and power of God, He was ready to endure anything that would be the Father’s will and would carry out the Father’s plan. To the weeping women He said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children.” (Luke 23:28) He doubtless had in mind the awful trouble that was to come upon that city thirty-seven years later.

The story of the shame that our dear Redeemer endured so patiently on our behalf is deeply touching. The telling and reading of it may have brought more hearts to repentance than almost anything else, nor does it lose its power with those who have already accepted our Lord and the redemption effected by His blood. The Apostle gave one of his most forceful lessons on this subject: “For consider him that endured such contradiction [opposition] of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.” (Heb. 12:3) It mellows our hearts every time we consider that the opposition was unmerited by Him, and that it was a part of His sacrifice on our behalf. The Apostle urged all the Lord’s followers to consider the meekness, patience and sufferings of Christ, endured most unjustly, lest we become weary or faint in our minds, when enduring comparatively light afflictions.

“TAKE UP HIS CROSS”

The route from Pilate’s judgment hall to Calvary was indeed a “via dolorosa” – a sorrowful way, a doleful way. Jesus, bearing His cross, headed the procession, accompanied by four Roman soldiers. The two thieves with their crosses followed, with four soldiers guarding each. The entire procession was under the charge of a Centurion. Our Redeemer had been under a tremendous strain and without food for about twelve hours. Evidently He was scarcely able to carry His load, and the Centurion compelled Simon of Cyrene, a countryman, to bear the cross after Jesus. (Luke 23:26) It is uncertain whether this means that he walked behind Jesus in the procession, carrying the cross, or whether he carried the back part of the cross with Jesus. In any event he had a most glorious opportunity, even though it was compulsory.

Many of the Lord’s people who have read this account have wished that they could have had a share in carrying that cross, but where were Peter, James, John and all the other disciples? Sadly, they allowed fear to stand in their way, depriving them of a most glorious service. When we think of this, we should remember that our Lord has graciously provided that all of His followers may share in the carrying of His cross. The weight of the cross has not ceased. The cross of Christ is still in the world, and the privilege is still with us to bear it with Him, following after Him. Although the Apostles lost the privilege of bearing the literal cross for Jesus, they gloriously recovered from their fear, and we have the record of their noble service, bearing the cross of Christ for all the years of their lives afterwards.

Let us love much and show our love by our zeal in cross-bearing. The mainspring of our devotion to the Lord must be love for Him, a desire to do what would please Him, and an appreciation of what He has done for us. Jesus said, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” (Matt. 16:24)

“HE WAS NUMBERED WITH THE TRANSGRESSORS”

It was prophesized that our Lord would be “numbered with the transgressors” (Isa. 53:12) and His crucifixion between two thieves fulfilled that prophecy. (Mark 15:28) From the standpoint of Jesus Himself, this could only have meant the depths of humiliation. Any noble man or woman would find it especially detestable to be considered as belonging with transgressors, murderers, and thieves. If this is true with us in our imperfect condition of mind and heart, how much more intense must this feeling have been in the perfect one, our Lord. How He must have loathed sin, how utterly opposed to it in every sense of the word He must have been, and how much more shame He must have felt than we could possibly have felt in His position.

That the heavenly Father permitted His Son to experience such humiliation was evidently intended to be a demonstration to angels and to men of the Son’s unlimited loyalty of heart: “And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” (Phil. 2:8) Thus the Lord demonstrated that He was not only willing to die, but He was willing to die in the most despicable manner possible. He demonstrated full self-renunciation, complete deadness of His own will and thorough aliveness of His own heart and mind to the Father’s will. In all this He became an illustration of humility to His followers, as the Apostle suggested: “Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.” (1 Pet. 5:5-6) Humility is essential to all who would be of the Lord’s family, no matter how deep the humiliation that obedience to God may bring.

From the standpoint of the priests and Pharisees, the Lord’s crucifixion with the two thieves was especially desirable. It prevented Him from being seen as a martyr, demeaning and degrading Him before the people, and making them ashamed to be seen as His followers. How could it be expected that any could ever see glory in the cross of Christ? But how wonderfully God’s plans overrule all human arrangements, and make even the wrath and envy and villainy of the human heart work out to His praise and in accordance with His plan.

KILLING THE PRINCE OF LIFE

The distance from Pilate’s palace to Golgotha apparently was not great, though the latter is outside the city wall. The spot was soon reached, the crosses were laid upon the ground, and the soldiers quickly stripped the prisoners and nailed them, probably with wooden spikes, to the crosses which they then lifted and dropped into the previously prepared holes, the feet of the crucified coming within about two feet of the ground. The agony resulting from such a proceeding can be better imagined than described, especially at the moment when the cross dropped into the socket, and the weight of the body together with the swinging, surging, and jolting of the cross would make the pain extreme.

It was customary to publish the crime for which the convicted was being executed by a printed notice over the head of the victim. In the case of Jesus, the notice said, by Matthew’s account, “THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.” Mark gives the superscription as, “THE KING OF THE JEWS,” and Luke gives it as, “THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.” (Matt. 27:37; Mark 15:26; Luke 23:38) All three may be correct since the notice was written in three languages – Hebrew, Greek and Latin.

In a sense, this was Pilate’s opportunity to get even with the envious and malicious Jewish rulers who were forcing him to crucify Jesus, contrary to his will and contrary to justice. His decision to allow the writing above Jesus to stand was correct, and ultimately the blind eyes of the world will be opened to the great truth that Jesus was indeed divinely anointed to be the King of earth, but as He said, “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.” (John 18:36) That is to say, His Kingdom was not of the present order or arrangement and was not yet due to come into power. His followers were also not of this world and thus were not fighting to establish His Kingdom authority.

Those who have thus far acknowledged Him as King are very small in number and very insignificant in the world – “not many mighty, not many noble,” but chiefly “the poor of this world rich in faith.” (1 Cor. 1:26; Jas. 2:5) Those who conclude that Jesus is now the King of the world and is reigning are nearly as blind and prejudiced as were the doctors of divinity who secured our Lord’s death. Those who “love his appearing,” whose souls long for the presence of the King and the inauguration of His reign of righteousness in the earth are a woefully small number. (2 Tim. 4:8)

After they crucified Him, the Roman soldiers immediately began to divide His garments, casting lots for them. The soldiers coldly looked at the Lamb of God who was suffering, the just for the unjust as their redemption price, and divided His clothing as their plunder. They greatly resembled the whole of “Christendom” throughout history, from that time to the present. In all parts of the civilized world, millions who have heard of Jesus and His love for us and His sacrifice on our behalf are still totally unmoved, unconcerned, and unthankful. They are willing to receive and divide among themselves the various blessings and advantages which have come to them through His death, but they receive them without appreciation or gratitude. As the Apostle explained, the most kindly view we can take of them is that the Gospel is hidden to them: “But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” (2 Cor. 4:3-4)

WITH HIM IN HIS DYING HOUR

Four of His very special friends were with the Lord in His dying hour: His mother, the wife of Cleopas (stated to be His mother’s sister, but perhaps her cousin), Mary Magdalene, and John. We are not to judge too severely the apparent lack of courage on the part of Jesus’ other friends. The popular bitterness against Jesus which led to His crucifixion extended to His followers to a large degree, and it was natural for them to be afraid; it had even been hinted that Lazarus would be put to death also. The three women might reasonably feel themselves safer from being harmed despite their interest in Jesus. John may also have had reason to be less afraid because he had a friend in the High Priest’s household. That friend had permitted him to be present when Jesus was first brought before the High Priest, while Peter had been afraid to show himself.

Although He was in great pain, it was at this time that Jesus commended His mother to John’s care, saying to her, “Woman, behold thy Son!” To the disciple He said, “Behold thy mother.” (John 19:25-27) Although we are not literally able to be at His cross to show our sympathy for Him, we can lend our presence and aid to dear brethren in their dark hours and He will count it as being done for Him.

Another prophecy of Scripture remained to be fulfilled: “They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.” (Psa. 69:21) The fulfillment of this prophecy would further identify Jesus as the Messiah, and it is why He mentioned His thirst: “After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst.” (John 19:28) He doubtless had been thirsting for quite a while given the circumstances of the crucifixion, but now the time had come to express it. Vinegar (actually a sour wine, the common drink of Roman soldiers) was given to Him. It was mixed with gall or myrrh, a bitter substance commonly given to those being crucified to dull the pain. It was a kindness, not an injury, but Jesus refused it, preferring to experience the full measure of pain and suffering the Father’s wisdom, love, and justice had prepared for Him.

Having thus fulfilled the various Scriptures relating to His career, our Lord realized that the end of His course had come. It was probably at this point that the Father’s fellowship was withdrawn from Him for a moment. The actual withdrawal of the Father’s favor and communion was a necessary part of the Lord’s suffering as a sin-bearer so that at least for a short time He had the full experience of the sinner. He was treated as a sinner on our behalf so that we might be considered as righteous by God. Of all our Lord’s experiences we believe that this moment, in which the Father completely hid His face from Him, was the most trying moment, the severest ordeal, and the one that apparently our Lord had not foreseen. Although bereft of every earthly comfort, favor, privilege, and blessing up to this moment, He had nonetheless possessed a realization of fellowship and communion with the Father. For that upon which His whole life had depended to now be taken away was the severest trial.

In agony He cried, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matt. 27:46) He wondered what He had done to cause a cloud to come between Him and the Father. He probably soon realized that it was necessary for Him to thus fill up the cup of suffering and to demonstrate to the very limit His loyalty and obedience, fully and completely meeting the penalty against our race. While probably still under this cloud, but with having come to this realization, He cried, “It is finished!” and died. (John 19:30)

We figuratively speak of people dying of broken hearts, but it appears our Lord experienced this very thing. Today this is referred to as “broken heart syndrome,” a potentially fatal condition. Deep grief tends to interfere with the ability of the heart to pump blood, causing strain upon the heart. We have all felt this at times – a weight and heaviness of heart when under unusual stress. This seems to have been the case in our Lord’s situation; He literally died of a broken heart.

If we are devoted followers of Jesus, we should consider that our Lord bore this agony for us and ask ourselves, what we have borne for Him – what shame, what humiliation, what pain? The very thought of this should make us ashamed to mention any trials we may have endured, and give us more courage to patiently endure all things which divine providence may allow us to experience because of our discipleship.

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This paper is drawn from the writings of Pastor Russell, primarily Reprints 3560 and 2312.

Write to us at: epiphanybiblestudents@gmail.com