NO. 719: "CERTAINLY I WILL BE WITH THEE"

No. 719

“Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt. And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt? And he said, Certainly I will be with thee.” (Exod. 3:10-12)

Moses was surely a special servant of God; divine providence regulated the affairs of his life from his earliest infancy, and perhaps even before his birth. Saint Paul, whose interests were also superintended by divine power, said of himself that the Lord had set him apart even while he was yet in his mother’s womb. (Gal. 1:15) The Apostle recognized that he was born with certain traits of character and disposition that specially prepared him for his subsequent work as a minister of the Gospel. We may apply this same principle to Moses.

God equipped Moses with the qualities necessary for the great work of delivering His people from the bondage of Egypt. Nothing in this implies divine interference with free moral agency. Just as the Apostle Paul could have declined to preach the Gospel, and could even have repudiated the Lord and been a “castaway,” so also Moses could have repudiated his mission and chosen a life of sin and pleasure.

Because the wisdom and power of God is so diverse, the Divine Plan would not have been impeded if either of these men had taken the wrong course. Another could have been raised up, developed and instructed to do the work of the Apostle or the work of Moses and the Divine Plan would have suffered no loss. Nevertheless, we may be sure that God’s arrangements with respect to Saint Paul and Moses were so complete that it was more natural for them to take the course which they chose than to have taken the opposite one.

Moses was born at the time when Pharaoh Rameses II, fearing the Hebrews were becoming too numerous and strong, commanded all male Hebrew babies be killed at birth. (Exod. 1:8-22) We do not know how long this law was in effect, but it resulted in Moses being introduced into the royal family of Egypt. Moses had an older sister, Miriam, and a brother, Aaron, who was born early enough to escape the law.

When Moses was born his mother saw that he was a “goodly child,” and she hid him for three months. (Exod. 2:2) To hide the child for this long must have been difficult; the law regarding infants was known and probably a reward was offered for the detection of those evading it. When his mother could no longer hide him, an ark or basket made of bulrushes was prepared and overspread on the outside with pitch to keep it dry. With the baby inside, it was placed near the bank of the river among the rushes, which would hide it and prevent it from floating down the stream. The spot selected was somewhere near that portion of the river close to the royal palace set apart for the royal family to use for bathing. The time selected was when the princess was known to take her daily bath. The location was on the river Nile.

BROUGHT FORTH FROM THE WATER

As expected, Pharaoh’s daughter took her usual bath that day and saw the basket, which she had her maid retrieve. When the princess, who is thought to have been married but childless, opened the basket and saw the crying baby her heart was filled with compassion and she at once guessed the truth; this must be a Hebrew child, placed there by his parents in hope of saving his life. (Exod. 2:3-6)

Watching at a distance, little Miriam, as instructed, ran to propose to the princess that she might get one of the Hebrew women to act as a nurse for the child. The princess approved, and of course Miriam called Moses’ mother to be the nurse. The princess directed that the nurse take full charge of Moses and receive pay for doing so. Thus the family fortunes were helped, and at the same time full protection assured for Moses, for he was recognized as the adopted son of the princess.

It is thought that about seven years elapsed before Moses was brought to the princess and that during this time he enjoyed the care and instruction of his own godly mother. The princess named the child Moses, which signifies, “delivered from the water.” Some translate the word to mean, “born from the water,” supposing that the princess probably meant by this to signify that she had borne Moses as her son, borne him from the water. (Exod. 2:7-10)

To those who have the eyes of faith to see it, this chain of circumstances displays divine providence; to others, who have no such eyes, these were merely accidental occurrences. All these things worked together under divine providence to accomplish the divine purpose in connection with Moses and with the nation which God intended he should subsequently lead out of bondage as the typical people of God.

MIGHTY IN WORD AND DEED

“And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds.” (Acts 7:22) These words from Stephen’s discourse remind us that Moses was wonderfully prepared to become the great Captain of the Lord’s hosts. Moses is said to have been instructed at Heliopolis, one of Egypt’s two great universities at the time (the other being at Hermopolis).

It seems almost miraculous that young Moses could pass through such experiences as he had in the palace and in the school without being seriously injured by the vain philosophies that prevailed and were honored in these places. He evidently had sound religious instincts and undoubtedly the influence of his mother, acting as his nurse, had much to do with shaping his child mind and holding him firm in the Hebrew faith – the faith in the Oath-Bound Abrahamic Covenant, which promised that his people would in due time be blessed by the Lord and made the divine channel for the blessing of all the families of the earth. We have every indication that not only was Moses not spoiled by his education, in the sense of having his faith overthrown, but that his natural modesty, humility, and meekness continued with him to adulthood.

The favor Moses enjoyed in the palace and throughout the land as the adopted son of the princess did not diminish his loyalty to his people. He saw the injustice heaped upon his fellow Hebrews, and his sympathy for one of them who was being abused by a taskmaster caused him to strike the taskmaster so that he killed him. He buried him in the sand, thinking that his brethren, the Hebrews, would surely keep the secret of how he had defended one of their own. He presumed that his actions would awaken the energy and spirit of his people who would then accept him as their leader who would deliver them from Egypt.

He found himself mistaken, however, for when endeavoring to correct a dispute between two Hebrews, the one at fault flung in his face the fact that he was the murderer of an Egyptian. Soon word of this spread everywhere, even to the Pharaoh, who quietly began to seek an opportunity to kill Moses – not an easy matter, however, as Moses was very popular. Nevertheless, fearing for his life, Moses at the age of forty fled into the land of Midian, where he remained forty years, returning for the deliv­erance of his people when he was eighty years old. (Exod. 2:11-15)

Not every child can become a Moses, even with divine guidance. Very few are equipped for such an exalted position and generally there are few opportunities for them. Israel did not need more than one Moses. We can, however, say that divine providence has a general supervision of all the affairs of God’s people. While we cannot all be a Moses, we can be one of the Lord’s people and be cared for by Him through a Moses, through a Deliverer.

We cannot all be reared in palaces and educated in great institutions of learning nor become mighty in word and deed, but we should each look for the leadings of divine providence in our own experiences and be glad to fill any position marked out for us. While we cannot occupy so prominent a place in earthly affairs as did Moses, let us look to divine providence in the affairs of our lives, and note that still greater privileges, opportunities and honors are ours through Christ.

With all Moses’ preparation and fitness for the great work of delivering Israel from Egypt, the secret of his success lay in the fact that God was with him – God was the Deliverer of Israel; Moses was merely His servant and representative in connection with the work, as the Lord Himself declared: “I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” (Exod. 20:2-3)

LONG YEARS IN PREPARATION

When we consider the eighty years of Moses’ life when he was in preparation for the great work of the Lord, it helps us to better appreciate the fact that our God is never in haste. “Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world.” (Acts 15:18) He has no need for haste; He knows the end from the beginning, and every feature of the Divine Plan is properly timed. Thus 4000 years and more passed before Jesus was born, and yet the Scriptures assure us that “when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law.” (Gal. 4:4)

This thought should give us great confidence that the Lord’s plans will develop at the proper time. He cannot err in judgment; He is working all things according to the counsel of His own will. (Eph. 1:11) Whether matters seem to culminate rapidly or slowly, each feature of His plan will be in “due time.” Although so much time passed in preparation for the deliverance of Israel, yet when the appropriate hour came, in one morning the whole nation started to move. Let us all learn the lesson to wait on the Lord, and then to be ready to move promptly when He indicates that His appointed time has arrived. (Psa. 27:14)

The life of Moses was divided into three parts of equal length. The first forty years brought him to mature manhood and made him familiar with all the learning of the Egyptians. The second forty years began when he fled after killing the Egyptian, finding that his brethren were not prepared for deliverance. It ended when he returned to the people of Israel under the divine direction and successfully led them forth from Egypt. The third forty-year period of his life began with the exodus and terminated with his death at the end of the forty years in the wilderness, just as the people of Israel were about to cross over into Canaan.

The period of Moses’ life from forty to eighty years of age was spent as a shepherd in the service of his father-in-law, Jethro. We may be sure that in that long period of time this meek man, who was ready to do with his might whatever his hands found to do, had large opportunities for learning lessons of patience.

Like the shepherd David, Moses must have learned to think of the sheep and his care over them, and to consider God the great Shepherd of His flock. He may have wondered why God left the children of Abraham in apparently hopeless bondage after giving the gracious promise to Abraham. No doubt he thought back to his own fruitless efforts to help his people, thinking how it would have been to his advantage had he followed the course marked out for him by his adoptive mother, Pharaoh’s daughter. Had he remained a member of the royal family of Egypt, he would have shared in the honor and dignity of those who oppressed his people. He must have thought that by his desire to do good to his brethren and to serve their best interests he had blighted his entire life and spoiled all of his earthly prospects. Doubtless he thought of their ingratitude and failure to appreciate him, their resentment when he kindly offered his assistance, saying, “Who made thee a prince and a judge over us?” (Exod. 2:14)

Moses probably resolved the matter in his mind with the thought that he had done his duty, the best he knew how to do. He was probably more or less despondent about the future, as a meek, humble-minded man would be likely to feel. In the meantime, under the Lord’s providence his travels with his flocks and herds took him to the very land to which he would later lead the people of Israel. In those forty years he must have become very familiar with the vicinity of Sinai and lower Palestine. Little did he know the value of the lessons he was learning. The lesson in all this for us is faithfulness to God and to duty as He gives us to see it, leaving all the results with Him. Another lesson is that present experiences, trials and difficulties may be fitting and preparing us for a future useful service for the Lord and His people, even though at the time we see no relationship or connection between the two.

THE BURNING BUSH

At eighty years of age, Moses was shepherding his flock on the side of Mount Horeb, called Mount Sinai, where the law was subsequently given. He saw that a bush burned near him, probably acacia or shittim wood – the kind of wood used in the construction of the Tabernacle – which sometimes grows to quite a large size in that region. As Moses watched he noticed that the bush was not consumed by the flame, and considering this a most remarkable phenomenon, he drew nearer to it to observe. It was then that the Lord spoke to him through His angel from the midst of the burning bush saying, “Moses, Moses . . . . Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.” (Exod. 3:4-5)

Moses knew at once that what he had witnessed was a miracle used by the Lord to attract his attention, with the object of communicating some important lesson. God’s miracles usually have a symbolic meaning, and this one seems to represent Israel in the midst of tribulation, yet not consumed. Later on, in Reformation times, the Church of Scotland appropriated this burning bush as its emblem on its banner because its experience had been similar in that it had passed through severe afflictions and distresses and trials, yet had not been consumed. And is not the burning bush a good illustration of the experience of Christ and all of His members? Are they not indeed surrounded by fiery trials? Do they not emerge from these unscathed, uninjured, but rather blessed, developed, and strengthened?

The Scriptures well declare: “The fear [reverence] of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” (Psa. 111:10) We greatly deplore the growth of irreverence in our time, and urge upon all the cultivation of this proper attitude of mind, so helpful to prepare for the current life and the life to come. Liberty and indepen­dence are valuable qualities to be conserved and protected, but they should never lead to irreverence. It is important to guard against this because the world around us is growing more irreverent due to a declining faith in God and everything supernatural. The proper reverence for God is an integral part of love. The wise man wrote, “Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God.” (Eccl. 5:1) That is, take heed to your standing and to your conduct.

The Lord’s first instruction to Moses, who “was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth” (Num. 12:3), was a lesson of humility. May we not suppose that such a lesson is necessary to us? Let us honor the Lord in our hearts, in our outward demeanor. Whether we bow to give thanks for our daily bread, whether we bow our knee night and morning in acknowledgment of divine care and providences, or whether we meet with those of like precious faith, let us see to it that reverence marks our conduct and our words as well as rules in our hearts. Let us also take off our shoes, that is, let us lay aside the ordinary conduct of life by which we are in contact with the world, and in all our ways acknowledge Him, especially when we hearken to His voice in the study of His Word as His people.

“I KNOW THEIR SORROWS”

Rameses II had died and evidently the Israelites were even more oppressed under the new Pharaoh, but God heard their groans and had sympathy on them. (Exod. 2:23-25) “And the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows.” (Exod. 3:7) With these brief words the Lord informed Moses that He had not been negligent of the interests of Israel. By these words He allowed Moses to understand that not until this time had the appropriate moment come for Him to intervene on behalf of Israel.

These words gave Moses confidence in the Lord’s ability to work according to His own good purposes in His own due time. It should be the same with us. When we look back over this Gospel dispensation and perceive how the Lord’s cause has been permitted to be overwhelmed by the forces of evil, we stand amazed, and might be inclined to say, “Does God not know? Does God not care? Why does He allow His own name to be dishonored and His Truth to be trampled underfoot and His faithful people to suffer?”

The Lord assures us also that He knows all about these matters and is very sympathetic, far more so than we, and He is both able and willing to grant the deliverance needed at the appropriate time. What confidence it gives us now when we look back and behold that Spiritual Israel has been preserved through all these centuries! Despite the fiery affliction and adversity that burned against them, they have not been consumed! How it comforts and cheers us now to hear the Lord’s voice telling us of the deliverance that is just at hand,  sending through us His messages of love and power to all those who are willing to hear, and who are desirous of having liberty from the power of the world, the flesh and the Adversary. Oh yes! We occupy holy ground; we hear the holy voice; our eyes are opened to see the wonderful things. The Lord be praised! Let us give heed to His Word.

“BRING FORTH MY PEOPLE”

The Lord informed Moses, “I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians;” then He adds, “Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.” (Exod. 3:8,10) Note that God expressly declares Himself to be the Deliverer, and had Moses been disposed to boast of his own powers and actions we can be assured that the Lord would have found someone else for the work. When the Lord gives us work to do, He does not wish us to undertake it as our own mission or to claim the honor of any success it produces. He merely uses us as His instru­mentalities. How wonderful it seems that God throughout all His works, past and present, has been willing to use His consecrated people. While acknowledging their imperfections, He assures them of His willingness to use their imperfections and to overrule and guide them in their service for Him and His cause.

Reverence for the Lord and humility about our own talents and abilities are evidently the prime essentials for the faithful perfor­mance of such a service. It was so with Moses, the meekest of men; he was overwhelmed with the thought that the Lord would deign to use him as a messenger, saying, “Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?” (Exod. 3:11) He evidently felt there were others much more capable of the work, but it was this very appreciation of his own unworthiness that helped to make him suitable to do the Lord’s business.

And so it is with us: we may be sure that when we feel strong we are actually weak. When we feel our own strength to be lacking, then we are best prepared to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might and to be used of Him as His instruments. It was so with the great Apostle; it must be so, we believe, with all whom the Lord will use and acknowledge in any part of His service.

Overwhelmed with a realization of the responsibilities of the proposed work, Moses protested to the Lord that he lacked the qualifications. The Lord answered that his weakness would be perfected in the Lord’s strength: “Certainly I will be with thee.” (Exod. 3:11-12) This being true, how could the mission be a failure?

It is equally true with us today: “If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31) Many of the Lord’s people have been called out of Babylon and its confusion and darkness to worship the Lord in spirit and in truth, to give their hearts, all that they have, to Him and His service. (John 4:23; Prov. 23:26)

Not only did the Lord assure Moses of His presence and aid in the mission, but also that the mission would be successful – that He would bring the people out of the land of Egypt and to that very mountain, to the very place where the Lord was then communing with him. (Exod. 3:12) Moses began to see the matter take tangible shape in his mind. He believed it would be as God said it would be; undoubtedly His word would be fulfilled.

So the Lord’s assurances to us that all His purposes will be accomplished are an encour­agement for us to go forward and do our parts. The Lord will do the work, and the whole question is whether or not we will have a share in it as His representatives.

“I AM THAT I AM”

Moses seemed to have lost whatever confidence he had in his fellow Hebrews and their readiness to believe the promises of God and to accept deliverance from Egypt. Even as God assured him of the success of the mission upon which he was being sent, Moses’ mind went back to the attempt he had made forty years before, and so he asked: “Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?” (Exod. 3:13)

The people of Israel, during their long association with the Egyptians, had doubtless lost much of their faith in the one God of their fathers. The Egyptian nation recognized various gods, and seemed to be very prosperous, and likely the Israelites had by this time come to wonder which god they should count as theirs and what his name might be. Moses’ question seems to imply this thought.

God replied by giving His name: “I am that I am.” (Exod. 3:14) In Hebrew these words are derived from the same root word as the name Yahweh or Jehovah – the self-existent one, the one who always exists.

When Moses objected that the people would not believe him, the Lord gave him various signs to establish his faith. The burning bush itself was one of these demonstrations of divine power. There were other demonstrations: The Lord instructed Moses to throw down his shepherd’s staff; it became a serpent and Moses fled in fear. The Lord told him to take it by the tail, and it once again became a staff in his hand. (Exod. 4:1-4) The serpent is a symbol of evil, and the turning of it again into a staff represents God’s power to turn evil things into good things through the operation of faith.

Again, the Lord told Moses to put his hand inside his cloak and when he took it out it was leprous; when he put it in and took it out again it was healed. (Exod. 4:6-7) Leprosy represents sin and the healing represents the power of Christ to cover our blemishes with the merit of His righteousness.

The assurance that he would be able to give the people these and other demonstrations proving that God had sent him to them strengthened Moses’ confidence in God and made up for his lack of confidence in himself. And this should be the case with all of us; we are not to have confidence in ourselves, but if we go forth strong in the Lord and in the power of His might, confident and rejoicing because He is with us, we are not only safe as respects ourselves but in the proper condition for the Lord to more and more use us in His service – “For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.” (Luke 14:11)

Moses further argued that the Lord could find someone much more capable of telling the good tidings saying, “I am slow of speech.” (Exod. 4:10) Meeting this objection, the Lord told Moses “I will be with thy mouth,” adding that He would give him his brother Aaron as a mouthpiece and “I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do.” (Exod. 4:12-15) Thus strengthened and encouraged, the meekest of men set out upon his mission to meet the greatest king of earth at that time, Pharaoh Merneptah, the son of Rameses II.

Let each of us then impress upon our hearts the essence of this lesson: however humble and weak we are of ourselves, if God be with us and for us, we may be mighty through Him to the pulling down of the strongholds of error and for the building up of His people in the most holy faith, and for their deliverance from the bondage of error. Let us in the name of the Lord do with our might what our hands find to do, but always with the thought that we serve the Lord. Let His words, “Certainly I will be with thee” be the strength in our every endeavor in His name and cause.

(Based on Reprints 3987-3989)

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In our next paper we discuss the deliverance of Israel from Egyptian bondage and the dual fulfillment of the crossing of the Red Sea as a type.

P.O. Box 2246, Kernersville, NC 27285-2246; epiphanybiblestudents@gmail.com

NO. 718: SUPERIORITY OF THE ORIGINAL ABRAHAMIC COVENANT

No. 718

“Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” (Gen. 12:1-3)

As we have seen, the Scriptures show that the three wives of Abraham typify three great Covenants, represented in the order of those wives. Sarah was the first wife of Abraham, the only acknowledged wife. Then came Hagar, Sarah’s maid-servant; and later Keturah. Sarah and Hagar each had one son, but Keturah had six. The Scriptures show that Abraham made Isaac his heir (Gen. 25:5), and that through Isaac both Hagar’s son Ishmael and the sons of Keturah received their portion. The fact that Ishmael was born before Isaac did not alter the fact that Isaac was the heir.

The original Abrahamic Promise or Covenant, represented by Sarah, is the one operating in the Church. The Apostle Paul tells us that God preached the Gospel to Abraham in advance, saying, “In thee shall all nations be blessed.” (Gal. 3:8; Gen. 12:3; Gen. 28:14) The Abrahamic Covenant needs no mediator; for there are no terms and conditions upon which to base a mediation. In it God merely declared His purpose to find a Seed of Abraham, by certain selective processes of His own, and to bless and honor this Seed for the benefit of the remainder of mankind. This especially selected Seed of Abraham, as the Apostle points out, is Christ and the Church – God’s Elect. (Gal. 3:16,29; Rom. 8:29,30)

The Apostle also shows that the Abrahamic Covenant mentions two seeds, represented in the statement, “I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore.” (Gen. 22:17) Since Abraham here typified God, the Promise shows two classes developed as God’s children: (1) Christ and the Church, on the spirit plane; and (2) the Restitution class of mankind, on the human plane.

St. Paul refers to these two seeds in Rom. 4:16,17, showing that one is developed under faith and the other under the Law and works. The first, the Spiritual Seed, has been in process of development during this Gospel Age. The second, the fleshly seed, is the Restitution class, which will be developed under the New Covenant by its Mediator, according to law and works, and not by faith alone, the exception being the Ancient Worthies who were developed previous to the Gospel Age.

The Scriptures clearly show that our Lord was the Messiah, the long-promised Seed of Abraham. (Luke 1:32,33,55,72-74; Luke 2:11; John 1:41; John 4:25,26) The Church, His Body, is also developed under the original Abrahamic Covenant, which God bound with an oath. St. Paul calls it “the hope set before us: Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil.” (Heb. 6:13-20) Again, he says to the Church, “Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.” (Gal. 4:28) The Church are the children of the Oath.

That promise of begetting through Christ to the new nature, is very different from that by which the Jews were constituted the House of Servants, and wholly different from those promises by which restored Israel and all the families of the earth will be brought to human perfection through Restitution processes, as children of the Keturah, or New Covenant. Since our Lord was developed under the Abrahamic Covenant, the Church also must be developed under that Covenant; for the Spiritual Seed cannot be the child of two mothers. It is written, “In Isaac shall thy seed be called.” (Gen. 21:12)

The Law Covenant, made at Sinai, was a type of the New Covenant, and had for its mediator Moses, the man of God. This Covenant brought nothing to perfection, however, for its mediator was imperfect, as were the people. St. Paul explains that Israel, typified by Ishmael, did not receive the blessing, but that The Christ received it. Later, however, Israel is to receive a blessing, as the Apostle points out; and that blessing will be brought by the New Covenant, after the glorification of the Church.

The question arises: If the Abrahamic Covenant contained the full Divine Promise to both the Church and the world, why did God arrange for two other Covenants, namely, the Law Covenant, instituted at Mount Sinai with Israel, and having Moses for its mediator, and the New Covenant, which is to follow, and under which the whole world is to be blessed?

PURPOSE OF THE ADDED COVENANTS

These two Covenants were added to clarify the Divine Purpose, and to help us appreciate the operation of Divine Love and Justice. The Law Covenant (Exod. 19:3-8) was an addition to the Abrahamic Covenant, but this addition could not interfere with the original covenant. It was typical. It had a typical mediator, typical sacrifices of bulls and goats, a typical Atonement Day, a typical Holy and Most Holy. (Heb. 9:9-23)

As St. Paul explains, the Law Covenant was added to fill up the time until the arrival of the promised Seed to whom the Abrahamic Covenant applied, and this was necessary because of sin, so that the high Divine standard for the Seed might be illustrated. The Law Covenant with Israel set up the standard which approved Jesus and condemned all others. (Gal. 3:19) It also helped to develop the Jewish nation toward God and righteousness, and to fit and prepare a remnant of them for the glorious High Calling of the Gospel Age, inviting them to Divine favor and joint-heirship with Messiah in the Millennial Kingdom.

The types and shadows and prophecies provided by the Law Covenant have also been very beneficial to Spiritual Israel during the Gospel Age, illustrating and prophesying matters related to the blessing of the Church during this age, and that of the world during the next age.

Through the New Covenant (Jer. 31:31-34; Heb. 8:6-13), the second addition to the original Abrahamic Covenant, the world will get all of its blessings and favors of Restitution. It cannot set aside, or make null or void, the original Abrahamic Covenant of Grace, any more than could the Law Covenant of Sinai. The New Law Covenant cannot be introduced, sealed, made operative, until the Abrahamic Covenant has brought forth the Seed of Abraham and invested Him with glory, honor and Divine majesty. This New (Law) Covenant will be inaugurated in the end of this Gospel Age when the Mediator (Christ Head and Body) has been completed, and its work of blessing every member of Adam’s race will embrace the entire period of the Millennium.

Jesus, our Redeemer and Head, is the appointed Mediator of the New Covenant by virtue of the merit of His own sacrifice at Calvary. He could have sealed it and begun at once its operation, had not the Father “provided some better thing for us” (the Church, the Bride of Christ, whom God foreknew as Jesus’ members) than for the Ancient Worthies. (Heb. 11:40) This is the mystery – that the Gospel Age has been devoted to the development of the Body of the Mediator. (Eph. 3:3-6; Col. 1:27)

THE NEW COVENANT EVERLASTING

The world will not enter into New Covenant relationship with God individually at the beginning of the Millennial Age. Throughout that Age, matters will be strictly and solely in the hands of the Mediator. He will uplift mankind, making all who are willing individually and collectively worthy of God’s everlasting life and blessing. In this Covenant, God agrees that He will remember the sins and iniquities of the world no more, that He will have nothing against them, and that they may have His blessings the same as though they were personally received of Himself. They will be received through their repre­sentative and Mediator, The Christ.

The end of the Millennial Age will be the end of the Mediatorial work of Christ; then each member of the human race will have a personal and individual New Covenant relationship with God. This same New Covenant that starts with the beginning of the Millennial Age will continue through all eternity. There will not be an additional New Covenant at the end of the thousand years of Christ’s reign.

The whole world during the Millennial Reign will be in Covenant relationship with God in exactly the same way that Israel was in Covenant relationship with God, through the Mediator. Just as the Law Covenant continued after Moses died, so the New Covenant will continue after Christ has finished His work and the whole world will be under that Covenant.

Before God finally accepts them, however, He will give them a test to see if they are found worthy of everlasting life. Hence the test at the close of the thousand years is a test by God, a test to prove the worthiness of each to enter into everlasting covenant relationship with Him. They will not be tested as a nation or as a race, but each individual must establish his own right to this covenant relationship, a new covenant relationship in that the original, similar relationship was invalidated by Father Adam’s disobedience.

Throughout the thousand years of Messiah’s Reign, He as Mediator will have absolute control of the whole human family. His Law and His arrange­ments, in full harmony with those of the Heavenly Father, will be the ones that will be operative. This arrangement will be more favorable than any arrangement with God directly, because mankind, being imperfect, would in the beginning be incapable of perfect thoughts and words and deeds and God’s Law cannot recognize sin in any degree.

Having bought the world, Messiah will have mankind fully under His control and regulations for the purpose of uplifting and perfecting all who are willing. This will also include the right to destroy in the Second Death any who will not obey. (Acts 3:23)

A FULL TRIAL GUARANTEED TO ALL

The Scriptures are clear in their declaration that God has purposed from the beginning that mankind will have an individual trial for everlasting life, wholly free from the injury they received as a result of Adam’s failure in the first trial. (Jer. 31:29-30) Justice can sanction this arrangement because God provided that Christ “by the grace of God should taste death for every man.” (Heb. 2:9) Christ “gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” (1 Tim. 2:6) The due time for some is in the present age and the due time for others will be in the Messianic Age.

Only those who have had a full trial and remained unconverted will die during the thousand years of Christ’s Reign; they will be those whose wills are not right. But God purposes that none will perish because of ignorance or misunder­standing. Therefore God has provided that all will be enlightened, and that all who will be obedient will be saved; and this full opportunity will be brought to all through Christ’s Kingdom. (1 Tim. 2:3-6; Jer. 31:34: Isa. 11:9)

All who accept and seek to obey the Divine will after coming to a clear knowledge of the Truth will be helped out of their weaknesses, allowance being made for all their failures through imperfection. But those who would sin willfully under such knowledge and opportunity are spoken of as angels or messengers of Satan and sin; for whoever willfully and intelligently sins against the Divine arrangement is of Satan’s spirit. All who develop such disobedient wills shall go into the Second Death. There is nothing further for them. (Rev. 21:7-8)

GOD’S SELECTION OF THE SPIRITUAL SEED

God has taken certain steps in making a selection of those worthy and pleasing to Him, to constitute this Messianic company. His arrange­ment for finding these is shown by the Scripture which, referring to this call of the Gospel Age to membership in that Seed of Abraham, says, “Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.” (Psa. 50:5; Rom. 12:1) This Covenant of sacrifice of the human will, and of all the rights and privileges and liberties of the flesh, proves a most drastic test, and demonstrates to God the very peculiar people whom He desires to be the Spiritual Seed of Abraham. They become a Spiritual Seed by renouncing the flesh and all its rights and liberties – even unto death.

The Head of this Seed contains the life for the entire Body. All the members added to Him must first of all be justified by His merit. These were not justified under the Law Covenant, which made nothing perfect; nor were they justified under the New Covenant, for it is not yet completed. But the blood which will in due time be effective for the sealing of the New Law Covenant for Israel and the world has been effective in advance for the justification of those accepted as the Body of the Mediator. This is possible because these Body members were selected from the same human family as the rest of mankind. Therefore the blood which will seal and make operative the New Covenant to the world is the same blood or merit of Christ which justifies freely all those called to be saints and joint-heirs of Jesus.

(Based on Reprint 5300)

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“CHOOSE YOU THIS DAY WHOM YE WILL SERVE” (Jos. 24:15)

“No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” (Matt. 6:24)

Here our Lord impressed upon His disciples a principle involved in service: no one can possibly render full service to two opposing interests, two opposing masters, because one will surely be neglected in the interest of the other. After making the general observation about the impossibility of serving two masters, the Lord applied this principle, saying, “Ye cannot serve God and mammon” – that is you cannot serve both God and selfishness, righteousness and unright­eousness. Man was originally God’s servant. It was natural for him to appreciate the Divine character and arrangements and to render willing service. But mankind was deceived as it came under the control of the great Adversary, being influenced by the powers of evil, the chief effects of which have been ignorance, superstition and selfishness.

It is a deplorable condition of the present time that from birth selfishness is almost forced upon one. Man learns to give his time and his influence for selfish purposes and projects. He fails to see that God is the One who should be served at any cost. Men were born and shaped in iniquity. (Psa. 51:5) They are servants of sin, slaves of sin. But our Lord Jesus pointed out that through the knowledge of Himself and compliance with His terms of discipleship, there came a release from this slavery, an opportunity to pass over to the side of righteousness.

However, an opportunity to take a stand for right came before our Lord’s time. When know­ledge of God is granted to any people, they have an opportunity to assert themselves on the side of right. When the Law Covenant was given, God set forth the principles of righteousness in that Law. The whole nation of Israel accepted God as their Savior, and entered into a Covenant with Him that they would be His loyal people. Yet after they had done this, the influences of evil in their flesh became manifest. They sought to be the servants of both God and self, dividing their interests between God’s affairs and their own affairs.

A WORTHY EXAMPLE

Jesus pointed out that it was impossible to perform this half-hearted service – they could not serve two masters, for nobody would be pleased. If they were to serve mammon, serve the present order of things, then they could not be pleasing to God. If they wished to serve God, serve right­eousness, to whatever extent they did this they would be displeasing to the world; they must be servants of either the one or the other; the two services combined would be impossible.

When our Lord Jesus came to earth He was in full harmony with this position; He fully renounced the world and made absolute consecration of His life to God and His service. Thus He set us an example. All who have the same spirit should walk in His steps. This was in accordance with the Jewish Law: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” (Deu. 6:5) Anyone who kept this Law would not be serving self; for his service would be all for God.

Those who are following in the Master’s footsteps are all for God, or, as we sometimes sing, “All for Jesus.” As we follow the example of Jesus, and walk as He walked, we are rendering whole-hearted service to God. The result of serving this Master will be a great reward. “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name.” (Phil. 2:9) The Church was invited to follow Him, and this course, followed faithfully to the end, will bring them to the same reward that Jesus received – glory, honor, immortality.

So we should serve God in everything, with all our heart, mind, soul, strength. This we are to do to the point of sacrificing all earthly interests and of laying down our lives for the brethren.

RENDERING UNTO CAESAR

It may be asked how the idea of choosing whom you will serve harmonizes with the Apostle’s suggestion that one who was bound when he received the Truth should not necessarily seek to be free, although if he gets the opportunity for freedom he should take it. (1 Cor. 7:20-22) St. Paul’s words express the thought that when the Truth finds us it does not necessarily change our earthly relationships. The Apostle is speaking of the body and not the heart when he says, “Seek not to be loosed.” (1 Cor. 7:27) Our bodies may be enslaved for one reason or another. It might be a bondage like that of olden times or it might be that we are the servants of those who are willing to pay for our services. While we are not to do anything contrary to the Divine Law or to our consciences, we are to serve our earthly masters faithfully. They have purchased our time, or a large measure of it; and we must render to them conscientiously all that is theirs by contract. If one is a servant in a military way, or in any other way, he should be faithful.

This will not interfere with one’s service to God; for our Lord has instructed us, “Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.” (Matt. 22:21) Whoever is faithful in this is doing the will of his Heavenly Master. There would be no conflict, but full harmony. The only conflict would be if the master on earth should wish us to do something contrary to the commands of our Master in Heaven. We are to suffer anything rather than do what our Heavenly Lord would not approve, thus defiling our consciences.

Looking into the future, we see that the present master, ruler, of this old order is soon to be bound, that he may deceive the nations no more for a thousand years, and that the new Ruler, the new Master of the world, is to be The Christ – Jesus and His Church. We ask ourselves how this principle will apply then. The answer is that there will be only the one Master to obey. There will be no rendering unto Caesar then. All will be made fully aware that this Master is the only one who has the power, the right to command. The knowledge of God’s glory shall fill the whole earth – the knowledge of God’s Righteousness, the knowledge of God’s Power, the knowledge of God’s Wisdom, the knowledge of God’s Love. Whatever He commands is the right thing, as everyone will then learn and fully understand.

THE SCRIPTURALLY “WICKED”

In the Scriptures Satan is represented as the deceiver of mankind. He puts light for darkness and darkness for light. God’s proposition through Christ is that during the thousand years of the Millennial Reign, the whole world will be brought to the true knowledge of God, an accurate knowledge. Deception will be no longer permitted. The world will see what righteousness really is, what its rewards really are, and how desirable it is. As a consequence, we believe the majority will then be glad to give heed to the one Master. The exceptions are represented as having the same disposition as Satan; and whoever will have that disposition will be destroyed. When a person comes to know the right and when the right is made reasonable, and possible for him, and he then prefers to do wrong rather than right, the sentence will be the Second Death. These are counted as “the wicked,” the incorrigible.

From the Scriptural standpoint, the “wicked” are those who do wrong intentionally. So all the wicked, knowing the wrong to be wrong, and doing it willfully and purposely, shall die the Second Death. In due time none shall be left alive except those who serve the one true Master. The difficulty with mankind at present is ignorance, which God has not yet lifted from the world. He has permitted the ignorance and darkness of the present time that the world may learn its lesson of the exceeding sinfulness of sin, and be the better prepared for the lessons that are to follow. “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. 4:4) But these blinded minds shall soon have the obstructions removed that they may see.

Those who have become children of the light, who have accepted the Lord Jesus and become His disciples, and who now see clearly the Divine will and Plan, have much more responsibility than those who have never seen but also greater prospects of blessing. God will leave the scattering of the darkness for Christ to do. God has let the world go on its way, while in the meantime providing the Savior, the Deliverer – The Christ – who will soon take control of the whole world. He will cause the light, the Truth, to shine out, to flood the earth with knowledge and blessing. Then with the true light shining everywhere, there will be no excuse for anyone who will not walk in it; each one must then choose finally whether or not he will serve the true Master.

(Based on Reprint 5666)

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LETTER OF GENERAL INTEREST

Dear brethren,

By “accident” I found your website (www.epiphanybiblestudents.com) while check­ing the spelling of “Youthful Worthyship” in Google.

I am German, living in Germany, and I got to know the Truth given by Br. Russell and Br. Johnson in 1993 through two brothers of the LHMM. While I loved studying the writings of these two Messengers of the Lord I soon recognized that something is wrong with the LHMM. But for many years I did not understand what the reason is. I was so much overwhelmed by the beauty of the Truth which I learned through the books which the brethren gave me that I trusted the brethren that they teach only the Truth. After some years I was so disappointed by the behavior of many of the brethren that I thought that something must be wrong with their teachings. My first conclusion was that the teachings of Br. Johnson are wrong. They seemed to me too complicated and too strict. For some time I had fellowship with Parousia Bible Students, but this didn’t satisfy me, neither. Then I studied again very carefully the writings of Br. Johnson and I recognized that in most cases he was right. Then I studied the writings of R.G. Jolly and was also satisfied. But meanwhile I found some doctrinal mistakes in the Manna comments, which were changed by August Gohlke in order to adapt them to the two classes of God’s people now living on earth. I discussed my findings with the brethren of the LHMM and the brethren of the so called “Opposition”, which arose in the year 2014. But I found almost no understanding among them. By means of these discussions I recognized more and more inconsistencies within the teachings of the LHMM. Most shocking was it when I recognized that the “Consecrated Epiphany Campers” do not exist at all. It was hard to me to accept that if I am truly consecrated I am a candidate for Youthful Worthyship. This seemed to me to be a too high honor and responsibility because I so much appreciate the faith and the valor of the Ancient Worthies. But one brother in Poland (my wife comes from Poland), who also left the LHMM, comforted me saying that the Youthful Worthies are a lower class than the Ancient Worthies.

But, since this brother does not agree with some of the Epiphany truths, I felt very lonely because it seemed to me that I am the only one in the world who accepts the Truth given through Pastor Johnson and rejects the Errors given through R.G. Jolly etc. I was about 2 years in this condition till I found your website one week ago. Now I know that I am not alone in the world with my faith. Thank you very much for continuing the work of Br. Hoefle.

May the peace and grace of God be with you

………………(Germany)

P.O. Box 2246, Kernersville, NC 27285-2246; epiphanybiblestudents@gmail.com

NO. 717: DIVINE PLAN HIDDEN IN ABRAHAM'S FAMILY

No. 717

“And Isaac brought her [Rebekah] into his mother Sarah’s tent . . . and she became his wife; and he loved her.” (Gen 24:67) “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world [age] are come.” (1 Cor. 10:11)

When we speak of Abraham, Isaac and other Old Testament figures as types we do not mean that the Bible stories about them are fictitious. A person or thing is a type when the Scriptures indicate that the actual experiences prefigure and illustrate on a small scale some person or thing yet future. For instance, in certain respects Adam, as the head of the human race, was a type of Messiah, the second Adam. While the first Adam failed to give the race the eternal life desired, in God’s providence Messiah is to be the second Adam in the sense that He will regenerate as His children all the posterity of the first Adam. Messiah is thus declared in prophecy to be the Everlasting Father of mankind – the Father or Life-giver, who will give to our race everlasting life, instead of a heritage of weakness, imperfection and death. (Isa. 9:6)

Similarly, Moses was not only the real leader of the nation of Israel, he was also a type of the greater Mediator, Messiah. As Moses mediated the Law Covenant for Israel, so Messiah, the Prophet “like unto” Moses (Acts 3:22) will be the Mediator of Israel’s New Covenant, under which the Abrahamic blessings will reach them, and through them all the families of the earth. (Jer. 31:31) Similarly, Aaron was a type of the higher priesthood and its better sacrifices connected with the New Covenant and the under-priests and the Levites were types of the higher institutions by which the New Covenant will be inaugurated.

We now focus our attention particularly on Abraham, his son Isaac, and Isaac’s wife, Rebekah. Abraham is known in the Scriptures as the “Friend of God,” and as “the father of all them that believe.” (Jas. 2:23; Rom. 4:11) Isaac was the son of promise, miraculously born out of the natural order, when his mother was old. Rebekah was selected by Abraham to be the companion and joint-heir with his son Isaac in his inheritance. These three lived their lives wholly unconscious that God was using them and overruling their affairs so as to make of them prophetic pictures of His own great Plan of the Ages. Our understanding of these type-pictures must be in full harmony with the inspired writings of the Bible and never in contradiction to Scripture.

ABRAHAM A TYPE OF GOD

Not everything that Abraham did, however, is to be considered typical. In a general way this grand man of the past looms up before our minds as a monument of faith, integrity and justice. St. Paul points out that because the blessings promised to go through him to his Seed constitute him the “father of many nations” (Gen. 17:5), this makes him a type of the Almighty, from whom flows every good and every perfect gift – from whom proceeds the blessing which ultimately is to flow through Messiah, His Son, and through Israel, His people, to all the families of the earth. (Rom. 4:16-25; Gal. 3:8,16,29)

All Christians should be aware of St. Paul’s interpretation of Abraham and his family as types. As Abraham typified God, so his wife Sarah typified the Covenant through which the vitality of the promise ultimately develops the Seed of Promise – Isaac in the type, and Messiah in the antitype. St. Paul also explains that Sarah’s servant, Hagar, at Sarah’s wish, became for a time her representative with Abraham and brought forth Ishmael. St. Paul explains that Hagar typified the Law Covenant, vitalized by the gracious arrangements of the same God and Father; and Hagar’s son, literally Abraham’s firstborn, typified the Jewish nation, the first development under the Covenant. (Gal. 4:22-31)

Just as Abraham loved Ishmael and desired a blessing on him, so God loved Israel and desired a blessing upon Israel, the offspring of the Law Covenant. Nevertheless, as the offspring of the bond-woman, Ishmael was declared not to be the primary heir of the Abrahamic promise, but a secondary one. Likewise the children of Israel, the offspring of the Law Covenant, were not designed to be the Spiritual Messiah through whom the promised blessing would first proceed.

In the type, Abraham’s wife Sarah, who represented the original Abrahamic Covenant, brought forth a son of her own, Isaac, long years after her substitute, the bond-maid, had brought forth Ishmael. When Isaac was born, Sarah repudiated Ishmael and no longer acknowledged him as her son, but, instead claimed everything for Isaac.

While on the surface this may seem harsh, we see the antitype of this: As soon as God began the development of the Spiritual Israel and set forth the covenant by sacrifice (Psa. 50:5) through which this Spiritual Israel would be developed, it began to be clearly manifest that the chief portion of the promise of God to bless the world was not to be fulfilled through the Ishmael Seed, Natural Israel, but through the Isaac Seed – Spiritual Israel.

HOPE FOR THE JEWS

From the beginning there was a competition for the Abrahamic blessing. Just as the infant Isaac was mocked by the older Ishmael (Gen. 21:9), so Jesus, the antitypical Isaac, and His comparatively unlearned followers were mocked and persecuted by the established Jews. In continuation of the type, God commanded Abraham to send Hagar and her son into the wilderness. (Gen. 21:10-12) That sending away typified the Divine disfavor which came upon the Jews when they rejected Messiah, making them outcasts from God’s favor, just as Hagar and Ishmael were cut off from the presence and care of Abraham and his family.

Abraham gave Hagar bread and water to take with her and by these she and Ishmael were nourished in the wilderness for a time. (Gen. 21:14) This types the promises of God through the Law and the Prophets. These promises, which still belong to the Jews, have nourished them throughout their period of disfavor and without them the hope of the nation would have perished.

Now we come to the dire moment when the water provided by Abraham was gone and there was no more to be found. Ishmael was dying and Hagar separated herself from him because she could not bear to see it. God heard Ishmael crying and the angel of God appeared to Hagar and pointed her to a spring of water, where she refreshed herself and Ishmael with new life. (Gen. 21:15-19)

The antitype of this is now seen before us. Because the Jewish people became separated more and more from the Law and the Prophets, their hope became weak and faint. They have been about to die! But the Lord graciously points out a well-spring of the Water of Life at this critical moment. As Ishmael was rescued from death by this water, so the nation of Israel whom he typified, is now about to find in the providence of God that their portion of the Abrahamic Covenant is the earthly one, not the Heavenly one, not the spiritual. They are about to be refreshed and to enter upon a new vocation, a New Law Covenant relationship, not symbolized by Hagar, who represented the Old Law Covenant. Thenceforth they are represented under a new type.

God permitted Hagar to cease as a type after her child, representing the Jews, was recovered from perishing and her subservience to Sarah was shown. The Lord did not confuse the types by representing the renewal of Divine favor toward Israel by reinstating Hagar as Abraham’s wife after the death of Sarah. Instead, after Sarah’s death Abraham took another wife, Keturah. She was also a type and represented a third Covenant. Her many children represented typically the many peoples, families and tongues of the world which will ultimately come under the New Covenant arrangement and be children of the Highest.

It should be continually borne in mind that in this series of types God everywhere showed the superiority of the Sarah Covenant. In one sense of the word Sarah was Abraham’s only wife, because Hagar and Keturah are considered merely as concubines. Thus the Divine Plan all centered in the promise, “In thy seed shall all the nations [peoples] of the earth be blessed.” (Gen. 26:4) Nevertheless the Jews and their Law Covenant have been used by the Lord as a supplementary means of blessing and instruction to the Church and to the world. Likewise the future blessings that will go to Israel under the New Covenant, and through Israel to the world, will all depend upon the first Covenant, the spiritual Sarah Covenant, and its Seed – The Christ, Head and Body.

At first our Jewish friends might be inclined to feel disappointed that they were represented in Ishmael and not in Isaac, by the Hagar Covenant of bondage to the Law, instead of being formed free from the Law. Their consolation is that Isaac typified the Messiah and that Israel is pictured as the nation on whose behalf Messiah will mediate the New Law Covenant. The Messiah must be spiritual, in order to be able to confer the great blessings indicated in the Covenant made with Abraham. The nation of Israel never expected to be spiritual and had no such promise in the Bible. To the Jews will come exactly what they have always been expecting – greatness as an earthly people, honor as the elect nation through whom the New Covenant blessings will be opened up to all mankind.

ELIEZER A TYPE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

When the time came, Abraham sent his trusted servant Eliezer (type of the Holy Spirit) to select a bride for his son Isaac. Eliezer was directed to limit his search to Abraham’s country and family, typifying that none would be called to be the Bride of Messiah except those already in relationship to God through faith, obedience and justification. (Gen. 24:3-4) When the servant found Rebekah he gave her certain jewels, explained his mission to her and her relatives, and asked her if she were willing to come and be Isaac’s bride. He ex­plained that his master, Abraham, was very rich and had given all that he had to Isaac. (Gen. 24:35-36)

Thus the great riches of God are again illustrated in Abraham, and the fact that Messiah is His Son and the Heir of all the promises of God, the One through whom Israel and all mankind will be blessed. Rebekah promptly responded, betrothing herself to the unseen bridegroom and quickly accompanied the servant to Isaac. As her family told her goodbye they wished her a blessing in these words, “Be thou the mother of thousands of millions.” We read that “Rebekah arose, and her damsels [maids, servants], and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man.” (Gen. 24:60-61)

Here we find, in harmony with other Scriptures, a picture of the Gospel Age, and its work of bringing to Messiah a special Bride class of saintly ones. First among these saints were some of the Jewish nation, according to the Divine Rule; as the Scriptures set forth – “to the Jew first.” (Rom. 1:16) This Bride class has been selected from every nation, people, kindred and tongue yet in all will be but a little flock – “Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.” (Luke 12:32) This is the spiritual, unseen Kingdom of Messiah, joint-heirship with Him in His Throne. It is not the earthly Kingdom which has been promised definitely to Israel. (Jer. 3:17)

BRIDE CLASS AND GREAT COMPANY

Scriptures show us that among these saints there are two classes. A few, peculiarly devoted, will constitute the Bride class. A larger number, not so courageous for the truth and righteousness, will constitute her companions, her servants, as Rebekah traveled accompanied by her maidens. These two classes are particularly specified in the Scriptures (Psalm 45), where we read of the Messiah-Bride and Queen. In her resurrection glory she is pictured as the Queen robed in gold of Ophir with fine needlework – the glory representing the Divine nature which will be granted her, and the fine needlework representing her glorious righteousness, embellished with the fruits of the Holy Spirit.

The Psalmist tells us that she will be brought into the presence of the great King, the Heavenly Father, and then adds that the virgins, or compan­ions, that follow her shall also be brought into the presence of the King, thus showing that there will always be a difference of rank on the spiritual plane. These two classes are pictured in the Law as Priests and Levites, the Bride class being represented by the Priests, owing to their willing sacrifices of the earthly portion in favor of the Heavenly.

We are not to identify the Bride class with the nominal Christian churches of today any more than we would identify the Apostles with the Jewish church of their day. The Apostles were a select few; and similarly all the members of the Church throughout the Age have been a select few out of a nominal many. “The Lord knoweth them that are His.” (2 Tim. 2:19) The true Church has not only been selected from all of the twelve tribes of Israel, but also from every other nation, people and tongue, even so many as the Lord our God has called.

Rebekah’s leaving her father’s house typified the personal consecration of each one who, led of the Spirit, accepts the Divine invitation to joint-heirship with Christ. The first jewelry given to Rebekah, when she first heard the invitation and invited the servant to her home, represents the earliest blessing received by believers. The jewelry she received after she had decided to go to Isaac and become his wife represents the blessings of the Holy Spirit which come upon the fully consecrated, those who determine to walk in the footsteps of Jesus in the narrow way into the Kingdom, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

When she arrived at the end of her journey, she found herself in the presence of Isaac, and immediately alighted from her camel and covered herself with a veil. This pictorially represents the fact that the Church, having experienced the change of the First Resurrection and having entered the presence of the Heavenly Bridegroom, will no longer need the guidance of the Holy Spirit through the Scriptures. This part of the picture, of course, is yet future. However, the Scriptures indicate and outward conditions corroborate that the time of this glorious change is near.

MOTHER OF THOUSANDS OF MILLIONS

Isaac immediately received Rebekah, and took her into his mother’s tent. Sarah had died, and Rebekah became her successor. Thus is beautifully pictured the fact that when the Bride of Messiah is complete on the plane of glory, the Sarah Covenant will be at an end, and its place as a channel of blessing will be taken by the glorified Church. Then will be fulfilled the prophetic blessing of her relatives, “Be thou the mother of thousands of millions.” Those thousands of millions represent the world of mankind, which will be regenerated, or granted new life, by the great Messiah during the thousand years of His reign as the Mediator of the New Covenant.

Messiah will be the regenerator and His Bride will be the nourisher, instructor, and helper, of all mankind under the New Covenant. This Antitypical Isaac and His Bride will mediate the New Covenant of Restitution blessings for Israel, and for the world through Israel. (Acts 3:19-21)

As St. Paul shows, the blessing of all the families of the earth through the Seed applies primarily to Messiah and His Church in glory, when their sacrifices are past and they have attained the spiritual nature as a reward. (Gal. 3:16,29)

The first to be blessed by the Seed will be whoever will first receive Messiah and come into harmony with the righteous laws of His invisible Kingdom. There will be no partiality in this matter, for “God is no respecter of persons.” (Acts 10:34) However, because of their past experiences and earthly hopes and trust in the Law and the Prophets, the Jews will be the first among the nations to accept the new order of things and to ally themselves with it. Therefore, to them will the blessings go first and through them the blessings will extend to all mankind. (Rom. 2:10; Isa. 2:2-3)

(Based on Pastor Russell’s Sermons, page 200)

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THE 1967 WAR – A FIRST PERSON ACCOUNT

Below are excerpts from the book Window on Mount Zion by Pauline Rose, a British Jew who immigrated to Israel with her husband Albert in 1959. They eventually established their home on the top of Mount Zion and were there during the Six-Day War of 1967. This is her account of the war as experienced from the top of Mount Zion.

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All through the month of May 1967, the storm clouds darkened on the horizon. Egypt was massing troops on the border and building up a formidable military force ready for attack; Israel was preparing to defend herself. Each day the situation became more serious. All our able-bodied men were being called up. The roads were filled with military vehicles carrying soldiers and equipment.

Many more soldiers were being posted in Mount Zion and every corner was inspected as plans for its defense went ahead. It was dangerous to linger near the border at night. . . . . War was threatening our beloved land . . . .

Thursday, June 1: The month began with a great movement of people; citizens of other nations who had been advised to leave and Israelis abroad who were hurrying to return. [A rabbi friend said] “It seems that war is inevitable . . . . And when all the Arab countries around us come against us intending to destroy us completely, what chance have we got?” . . . . I replied, “but I would ask what chance the Arabs have when they come to fight against Israel? . . . . You know what befalls the ene­mies of Israel who attempt to foil the plan of God.”

Sabbath Eve, June 2: Rabbi Uri . . . . said to Albert, “Again we have to face our enemies. When will they leave us in peace?” Albert answered cheerfully. “Next Friday we’ll all be at the Wailing Wall.”

The soldiers smiled at this incredible thought.

Monday, June 5: Suddenly the noise of machine-gun shells and rifle fire rent the air. Bullets were flying in all directions and as they hit the walls, I knew that I must leave everything and make a dash for the gallery . . . .

The noise was deafening and continuous. It sounded as if every bullet hit the wall of the gallery and every explosion was outside our door. The play of sound was very misleading . . . . There was no lull in the fighting that whole day. Shots were being fired from above the gallery and from all the posts around us. Also the bullets and shells were coming from the other side of Mount Zion. It was a great battle. Jerusalem – City of Peace – heralding by its name its ultimate destiny, was once again being lashed by the enemies of peace.

We tried to sleep that night but it was impossible. The battle for Jerusalem raged all night with unabated fury. Added to the deafening noise of shells and bullets was the roar of war planes flying over Mount Zion in waves with such speed and power, scooping up every other sound in their path and then casting it all back to earth with such a thunderous roar that it seemed as if our ears would be shattered. We listened to all the firing on Mount Zion, not knowing which was from our side and which from the Arabs, and because every shot and explosion always sounded as if it was destined for our wall, I imagined that little would be left of our house.

There was fierce fighting to the right of us, on the hill of Abu Tor, also on Mount Scopus and in the Mea Sherim quarter. Then we heard that four hundred Egyptian planes had been destroyed. We looked at one another. “That is surely impossible,” someone remarked. “They must have made a mistake in the announcement. Perhaps they meant forty.” But there had been no mistake in the announcement.

During the night we had to brave the bullets and flying shrapnel and go upstairs. The toilet was situated on the open roof, next to the room where our soldiers were shooting from behind sand-bagged windows. On this open roof, the whizzing of shells and bullets and the noise of their hitting the stones seemed so unreal that we did not fully comprehend the danger in which we stood. A great blaze in front of the Dormition Church lit up the whole area. Then, suddenly, the dome of the Church went up in flames.

Tuesday, June 6: A day we shall never forget. All day, without a stop, bullets and shells were flying and exploding. Always the noise seemed to be just outside the gallery. Israeli forces were occupying so many places, making such rapid progress, it was hard to believe . . . . [A broadcast came over in Arabic, which one of the men understood.] When it was finished he said simply: “King Hussein giving orders to his soldiers: ‘Kill every Jew you encounter, kill them with your guns, your hands, your feet, your teeth – only kill them.’”

At nightfall the shooting died down a little. The Commander came down . . . . “I have had some strange experiences today,” he said quietly; “every bullet we fired struck its target. Whatever we did succeeded. We were amazed to see how quickly the Arabs evacuated their posts . . . . I cannot believe the things I did today. It was as though someone else was commanding.”

Wednesday, June 7: I rushed upstairs. Everything was covered with a thick layer of dust which had fallen from the ceiling with every explosion, but I could not see any damage, not even a broken window. I was astonished. Where had all the bullets and shells landed during those two days of constant battle? It was really a miracle. Mount Zion seems to have been specially protected. I remembered the Commander’s words: “It was as though someone else was commanding.”

The shooting started again. There was hard fighting in the street and blood flowed in the narrow alleyways of the Old City. A high price was being paid in human lives and suffering in order to break down the walls of hatred and division. There are moments on the road of destiny which inspire fanciful thoughts, perhaps even prophetic thoughts. I looked into the future, the promised future, when the State of Israel would become the Kingdom of Israel, the Kingdom of peace, the Kingdom of God on earth with the Messiah ruling on the throne of David, and bringing peace to all the world.

Later in the morning there was a silence, a strange silence, broken only by occasional shots from snipers . . . . Then the sound of a trumpet could be heard, the long blast of the ram’s horn – the shofar – shattering the silence. The battle for Jerusalem was over. Rabbi Gorden, the army chaplain, was blowing the shofar at the Wailing Wall, the wall of the Temple, and we could hear him singing the prayers.

At that moment all Israel was pouring out its heart in prayers. For the first time for nearly two thousand years independent Jews were again in the City of David, at the Temple Wall, freed of its enemies. I remembered the time when the Jews stood praying at the Wall and had been stabbed in the back as they prayed.

However, the war had not yet ended, and we listened intently to the news coming over the radio. We heard that Jericho was in our hands, and later, Hebron and Bethlehem, Ramallah and all the surrounding towns and villages. We were quite dazed. It seemed so incredible.

Thursday, June 8: It was an emotional day. So much joy, so much tragedy and such a consciousness of having experienced a miracle. Even those who had no religious beliefs at all had to acknowledge that something had happened which was beyond their power alone . . . .

Everyone was saying with the Commander of Mount Zion: “It was as though someone else was commanding.” In fact, one religious soldier said: “I hope that our people will not forget that God has given us this victory.” His words reminded me of the time of the siege of Jerusalem in 1948. Then, too, a wave of religious fervor swept through the people.

“Yes,” I answered, “we hope that this experience will strengthen the faith of our people and bring a deeper realization of the fact that when Israel fights her battles there are also the ‘armies of God’ fighting with her.” “That was always true,” replied the soldier, “just as He fights for us now.”

Friday, June 9: In the first pale light of dawn I looked out of my window and saw intense action among the soldiers – some coming, some going. Then I learned that Egypt had accepted the United Nations cease fire. The war in Sinai was over.

A new sound drew me to my window. A huge bulldozer was noisily climbing the hill. I watched it turn clumsily to face the corrugated iron fence which marked the border, marred the beauty of the landscape and was a constant reminder of the divided Jerusalem. How intensely I had always wished it could be removed. As it passed, broken walls and mounds of scattered stones and debris were all that was left. But the great majestic trees which had shielded it from view also lay prostrate in the dust. The border had disappeared and a new road was being made. After little more than an hour of continuous work with the bulldozer a small part of the way was cleared and I saw a car coming through from the Old City – a safe and free road from Mount Zion to the wall – all barriers down. It was only five days since the war started.

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Trouble has continued for Israel since that war and we expect more and worse trouble yet ahead, but we have the sure word of prophecy that they will ultimately be victorious. “Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses.” (Psa. 107:19) Note also Zech. 14:1-3: “Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.” As the Berean Comments on this Scripture note, He will fight for them as He fought for Joshua against the six Amalekite kings at Gibeon; as He fought for David against the Philistines at Perazim; and as He mirac­ulously delivered Israel from the hosts of Midian by Gideon and his band.

P.O. Box 2246, Kernersville, NC 27285-2246; epiphanybiblestudents@gmail.com

NO. 716: THE GREAT DAY OF ATONEMENT

No. 716

“And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you: For on that day shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before the Lord.” (Lev. 16:29-30)

The Jewish civil year precedes our calendar year by about three months. Regulated by lunar time, its beginning usually falls near October 1st. Yet the first month of their civil year is referred to as the “seventh month,” since the first month of their religious year began with the new moon nearest the Spring Equinox. In the Divine arrangement for Israel, religion always stood first. These two year beginnings were prominently marked by their two chief religious ceremonies. We have already considered the Passover Memorial celebrated on the fifteenth day of the first month; we now consider the Atonement Day and its sacrifices celebrated on the tenth day of the seventh month.

The Atonement Day celebrated annually the inauguration by Moses of the Law Covenant, the covenant between God and the people of Israel, of which Moses was the Mediator. But it was more than a commemoration, more than a mere reminder. The provisions of the Law Covenant were that any person of the “seed of Abraham” who would keep that Law perfectly would have Divine favor and blessing to the utmost, including eternal life.

Knowing well that it would be impossible for any imperfect being to fulfill the requirements of the Divine Law, the Almighty made provision that the nation might remain in Divine favor from year to year by annual repetitions of the Atonement Day sacrifices. The sacrifices by which the Law Covenant was instituted were repeated annually thereafter. At the close of the year the Covenant did not cease, but the people were all under special condemnation and Divine disapproval as sinners until a new Atonement Day made satisfaction for the people’s sins and extended the Divine favor toward them for the new year – until the next Atonement Day.

Thus the people of Israel had a trial, a year at a time, and this continued with them for centuries. But during the entire period of their favor with God, not a single Jew was found able to keep fully the Divine Law – not one was counted worthy of eternal life. Nor could Abraham or anyone else have attained more under the Law Covenant, because all were imperfect – for the Law was the measure of a perfect man’s ability.

This manner of continuing sin-forgiveness with annual repentance and repetition of the sacrifices, with a fresh trial for each new year, lasted for sixteen centuries and more, until the miraculous birth of Jesus. His transfer from the heavenly glory produced the one man who could and who did keep the Law perfectly – “The man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” (1 Tim. 2:5-6) In the end of this age He will apply the merit of His sacrifice on behalf of Adam and his entire race, and will seal the New Covenant with Israel for the blessing of every nation. (Jer. 31:31-34)

NO JOT OR TITTLE OF THE LAW SHALL FAIL

Both Jews and Christians have proclaimed that not one jot or tittle of the Divine Law given through Moses could fail. (Matt. 5:18) That is to say, each little particle of the Law must have its fulfillment. Moses himself was a type of the great Mediator or Atoner for sins, as he declares, saying, “A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.” (Acts 3:22-23; Deut. 18:15)

As there is to be a greater Mediator for the New Law Covenant yet in the future, so there is to be a greater Day of Atonement than the one which Moses inaugurated. And that Day of Atonement will have “better sacrifices” than the Day of Atonement which Moses instituted as a type. (Heb. 9:23) But recall that no type could pass away, fail, without reaching its antitype. Next notice that Israel’s Atonement Day has passed away! This means one of two things:

(1) That the Law has failed; or,

(2) That the antitypical Atonement Day has come without Israel knowing about it.

Our Jewish friends might say: Israel’s Atonement Day has not passed away – we observe it every year, just as our fathers did. For more than three thousand years we have kept it up! Not one jot or tittle of our Law can pass without fulfillment.

But our Jewish friends are mistaken. However honest they may intend to be in making their claims, we can disprove them from their own Law. And the sooner they realize the true state of the case the sooner they will be ready to rectify the mistake – for surely there are many who are honest and sincere.

NO PRIEST – NO SACRIFICE – NO ATONEMENT DAY

No Jew will dispute that the Scriptures declare that there is no remission of sin except by a blood atonement. (Lev. 17:11) No rabbi will deny that the Day of Atonement sacrifices could be offered only by a priest. And not one of them surely will deny that in the millions of Jews today there is not one who could authenticate himself as a priest – as a son of Aaron. There is not one, therefore, who would attempt a reproduction of the Tabernacle or Temple, with its Court, its Holy and its Most Holy, and its Atonement Day sin-offerings, even if the Jews had the land of Israel completely in their possession.

If a Tabernacle or Temple were restored on the sacred Mount Moriah, not one of Israel’s millions would venture to offer the Atonement Day sacrifices – knowing that according to the Law it would mean death for him to pass into the presence of the Ark of the Covenant and the Mercy-Seat where the blood of atonement must be sprinkled “to make an atonement for the children of Israel for all their sins.” (Lev. 16:34)

What does it mean then, some may ask, that Jews all over the world still reverently observe the tenth day of the seventh month of their year as the Day of Atonement? What does it mean that even those who would do business on the Seventh Day, in violation of the Law, will religiously abandon all business and all pleasure on his Day of Atonement? What does all this mean if God’s Chosen People no longer have a Day of Atonement?

If Christian people could really appreciate the situation, their hearts and eyes would overflow with sympathy towards God’s Chosen People! Devout Jews still have some confidence in Abraham, in Moses, the Law and the Prophets. Whatever may be the motives of sin in their flesh, whatever may be their selfish propensities in common with other men, nevertheless they know the meaning of reverence and veneration. Intelligent Jews realize the situation, yet if they mention it at all, it is with bated breath, with fear, with the realization that this really explains why they had no favor from the Almighty as a people for eighteen centuries. They try to forget the marks of Divine disfavor – the fulfillment of the prophetic declaration that they would be without priest and without ephod many days – many years. (Hos. 3:4)

If at any time Christians should have the opportunity of speaking to God’s Chosen People about this great matter and the fact that his annual celebration of the Atonement Day has been a farce, the matter should be mentioned in full sympathy. It should be done solely with the desire to call attention to the fact that where the type ceased the antitype began. In other words (as their Talmud and the Bible instructs them), everything that Israel possessed in the way of a Priesthood and Sacrifices and a Holy and Most Holy have higher and spiritual antitypical parallels or duplications.

Not one jot or tittle of the Law has failed. The priesthood did not cease – it merely passed from the typical Aaron to his great antitype, Messiah. Of Messiah, God through the Prophet David said, “The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou [Messiah] art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedek” (not after the order of Aaron). (Psa. 110:4; Gen. 14:18)

Until recently Christians have not been able to give to God’s Chosen People any help along these lines, and only a few do so now. They have instead hindered them. So called Christian nations, devoid of the Spirit of Christ, have black-listed and tabooed and defrauded and persecuted Jews in nearly every nation of Europe. They have called them Christ-killers and told them that God would everlastingly torment them, unless they ceased to be Jews and joined some Christian sect or party. Is it any wonder that the Jew classes the Christian as his enemy? Is it any wonder that he is suspicious, and prefers to believe that the unfulfilled promises and Oath of God must yet be fulfilled to his nation? It is no wonder!

The true explanation of matters, however, is this: As not everyone who is circumcised in the flesh and calls himself a Jew is really recognized of God as such, so likewise not everyone called a Christian who names the name of Jesus is accepted of the Father. On the contrary, the Scriptures assure us that the true Church of Christ is not any of the sects of Christendom; they tell us that the Church of the First-born have their names written in heaven. Hence the church rolls furnish no criterion whatsoever respecting sainthood or relationship to God. To apply the word Christian to them is a misnomer. The cause of Christ would be far better off without their adherence or support. They have helped to deceive both Jews and heathen as respects the true Christianity set forth by Jesus and His Apostles. They are of the world, and have neither part nor lot with Christ.

We are glad, however, that neither they, nor the Jews whom they denounce are destined to eternal torment, but, on the contrary, that for them God’s great provision is a full opportunity for eternal life as perfected human beings in a world-wide Eden. All of these blessed opportunities will be secured for mankind through the antitypical Day of Atonement and its higher priest and better sacrifices for sin.

TYPICAL AND ANTITYPICAL SIN ATONEMENT

The worldly-wise of today, Christians and Jews alike, are aligning themselves with the Higher Critics and Evolutionists, telling us that if there was an Adam and Eve, at least there has been no fall and that we should put our trust in Evolution. We should believe neither in the Atonement Day for sin nor in a coming Messiah and His glorious Empire of Righteousness, nor should we think it necessary to have such aid. Indeed, they doubt if there is a God, or if they acknowledge one, they deny His love for mankind or His interest in human welfare. They believe the blind laws of Evolution decree the survival of the fittest, and working through Trust, Syndicate and Labor Unions crush out the happiness and life of the less fit instead of helping them.

But the word of God stands sure. There is a great malevolent influence at work among mankind, and Sin and Death reign. Despite all the increased skill of humanity along the lines of science and social reform, the death rate among infants remains high, physical and mental illness is rampant and crime and immorality are abounding.

Every fact agrees with the declaration of Scripture that our race is under the dominion, under the rule, of Sin and Death, and not under the reign of righteousness and life-everlasting, its reward. We therefore should be deeply interested, Christians and Jews, in Sin-Atonement. If any­thing can be devised or done to release our race from present conditions of sorrow, pain and death – to joy and harmony with God and everlasting life, surely every member of the race should be deeply, intensely interested.

The Bible, that wonderful Book so sadly mis­understood and misrepresented both by its friends and its enemies, gives the only key of hope. It tells us of a great Day of Atonement in which, by Divine provision, better sacrifices for sins will make complete atonement for the original sin of Adam and grant complete relief from its death sentence, “Thou shalt surely die.” (Gen. 2:17)

Israel’s great Covenant, its Atonement Day, with its sacri­fices, the Priests and Levites who served, and the people who were blessed, were all typical of this great arrangement which God purposed in Himself from before the foundation of the world. (Eph. 1:9-10; 1 Pet. 1:19-20) He pur­posed that all the families of the earth shall be blessed through the Seed of Abraham. The blessing comes through the Spiritual Seed, the glorified Messiah and His Bride, who are “as the stars of the heaven.” It also comes secondarily through the earthly seed, fleshly Israel who, ultimately joined by all nations, are “as the sand which is upon the sea shore.” (Gen. 22:17-18)

THE CEREMONY IN TYPE AND ANTITYPE

In the type the consecration of the priests came first. The bullock, representing the High Priest, was slain and subsequently the Lord’s goat, representing the under-priests, was also slain. Thus was indicated the great fact that the sacrifice of Christ and of His followers, their renunciation of the earthly nature, was necessary for their attainment of the kingly priesthood (typified in Melchisedek). (Lev. 8:14-33)

Next in turn, the Atonement Day sacrifices (Lev. 16:3-34) show the same bullock and the same goat; typical of The Christ, Head and Body, whose sacrificial death not only served for the consecration of the real priesthood, but also will be acceptable by God as the price of the world’s At-one-ment with God. These “better sacrifices” (Heb. 9:23), more than fully rewarded in the exaltation of the sacrificers to glory, honor and immortality in the Kingdom, are applicable for the sins of “the whole world,” “all the people.” (1 John 2:2; Lev. 16:33)

Thus did Israel’s bullock of the Day of Atonement and bullock of the priest’s consecration represent the consecration and death of Jesus the great Sin-bearer, who died, the Just for the unjust, to bring us back into harmony with God. (1 Pet. 3:18) His high exaltation by resurrection to the highest plane of spirit being has been a reward not only to His own sacrifice, but has qualified Him to be the great King of kings and Lord of lords. Through Him God will fulfill all the gracious promises made to Abraham and reiterated to Isaac, Jacob and through the Prophets – that in his Seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

As the Lord’s goat was taken from among the people, so the Little Flock, the Royal Priesthood, the followers of Jesus gathered from every nation, Jew and Gentile, will constitute Messiah’s associates on the spirit plane. As the Lord’s goat in the type underwent all the experiences of the bullock, so of the footstep followers of Jesus it is declared that they must walk in His footsteps, must suffer with Christ, must be dead with Him, must go with Him “without the camp,” must with Him bear the reproaches of those whose eyes of understanding are still blinded by the great Adversary and who therefore know them not, even as they knew Him not. (Heb. 13:13) The sacrifice of the antitypical bullock was accomplished at Calvary nearly two centuries ago.

The sacrifice of the antitypical goat class has been in process from the Day of Pentecost until the end of the Gospel Age. According to our understanding of the Scriptures, therefore, this Gospel Age has been the antitypical Day of Atonement in which “the better sacrifices” have been offered. (Rom. 12:1; Heb. 9:23)

The privilege and opportunity of joining in this sacrificial work has been limited to a certain number who must have certain characteristics, character-likeness to the Great High Priest. We understand that this elect Church and saintly few is complete or almost complete, and that the nominal church systems have no part in the matter, being unrecognized of the Lord, unauthorized.

In the past, however, there have been saints included in all of them, and in proportion as these saintly ones were therein, “the light of the world” (Matt. 5:14) was in them; proportionately as there were fewer therein there was grosser darkness. All the time, however, God recognized the few only as His Church: “Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.” (Luke 12:32) “Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.” (Psa. 50:5) “They shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels.” (Mal. 3:17)

The non-elect, instead of being doomed to an eternity of torture, are to have glorious privileges and opportunities for attaining eternal life and eternal harmony with God in the Millennial Kingdom, if they are willing.

THE ATONEMENT IS TWO-FOLD

The word atonement (at-one-ment) refers to two parties out of harmony becoming reconciled. Original sin brought humanity under the condemnation of the Divine sentence of death. The real Atonement Day sacrifices will fully accomplish the satisfaction of Divine Justice, but still more will remain to be done. And it is for this great work that Messiah’s Kingdom has been promised and will be inaugurated. Man will still need to be reconciled to God, not that man has any real grievance against his Creator, but because his fall brought him into a condition of “enmity against God” and righteousness. (Rom. 8:7)

Love, peace, joy and goodness were originally part of man’s character when created in the image and likeness of his Maker. Man now finds himself full of an opposite spirit – selfishness, envy, hatred, strife – works of the flesh and of the devil. Man now needs to be reconciled to God – to be brought back again to the place where he can properly appreciate Divine Justice, Wisdom, Love and Power. He will then be able to live acceptably to God and therefore be permitted to live forever and to enjoy his Creator’s blessings fully.

The great work of the Day of Atonement, therefore, may in this sense of the word be considered as including the thousand years of Messiah’s reign, during which He will make atonement with God for all the willing and obedient of Adam’s race, assisting, encouraging, uplifting, correcting, reproving, blessing every nation, people and kindred. Ultimately we are assured that all who decline this free gift of God’s love will be completely and everlastingly destroyed, annihilated in the Second Death, from which there will be no recovery. (Acts 3:23)

In the type, the blessing of the world was represented as being accomplished by the high priest on the Day of Atonement after he had made satisfaction to Justice. He then came out of the Most Holy and laid aside the sacrificial garments and put on the robes of glory and beauty. This foreshadowed the great work of the Mediator of the New Covenant between God and the World.

MUST JEWS BECOME CHRISTIANS? WHAT THE SCRIPTURES SAY

God’s Chosen People have been under Divine supervision and care for more than thirty-five hundred years so that they have been kept separate from all the nations of earth and are thus a standing miracle testifying to the truthfulness of the holy promises of the Scriptures. This teaches us to look to the Scriptures respecting their future. The same Scriptures which testify to their solidarity as a people inform us that they will become a nation at the close of this Gospel Age when “the set time” for God to remember Zion shall come. (Psa. 102:13)

St. Paul explicitly points out that Divine favor will return to natural Israel just as soon as the “call” of this Gospel Age to the Heavenly Kingdom class shall have reached fulfillment. Then “through your mercy they also may obtain mercy” – through the saintly few who, during this age, become identified with the glorified Messiah as His Bride and joint heir. (Rom. 11:25-32)

Hence it was evidently not the Divine intention that the Jew should be amalgamated into the Christian systems of today. Indeed, this separateness from the masses of Christendom is to work to the advantage of the Jews in that they will be the better prepared for the earthly blessings that are then to come to them.

The blessings of the new dispensation about to be ushered in will be earthly blessings, and the Jew knows that all of the promises of God contained in the Mosaic Law and writings of the holy Prophets of old tell of earthly blessings, not of heavenly or spiritual favors. The Jew will be more ready to respond to the new order of things than his Christian or Gentile neighbors will be.

Moreover, according to the Scriptures, the princes or rulers seen among men will be of Jewish stock, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and all the Prophets raised from the dead in full human perfection to be the “princes in all the earth” and representatives of Messiah’s invisible spirit Kingdom. (Psa. 45:16)

Before leaving this subject, we note the prophesy of old which tells us that at the time Messiah manifests the glories of His power and begins His intervention in human affairs in favor of the right and against the wrong, there will be a time of “Jacob’s trouble,” a time when the Jews will be in special tribulation from their foes. Then the Lord will manifest His power on their behalf as in olden times, giving them a miraculous deliverance which they will recognize. (Jer. 30; Zech. 14:2-3)

As a result of this, the Prophet declares, “They shall look on him whom they pierced” – not by seeing the glorious Messiah with their natural sight, but by recognizing Him with the eyes of their understanding. (John 19:37; Zech. 12:10)

At that time of favor toward them on the part of Messiah, “the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people” (Dan. 12:1), they shall discern that the glorious time of opportunity and blessing for which they so long waited has come. Then their sorrow will be great, as they will fully recognize their national mistake in the rejection of Jesus, but the Lord will pour upon them the spirit of prayer and of supplication, and their mourning will be but the beginning of their blessing and time of rejoicing.

Although they will then recognize Messiah, this prophesy proves decidedly that it is not the Divine intention that the Jews as a race should become Christians, or become associated with the Christian systems of this age, which have so seriously misrepresented the Great Teacher and the glorious truths which He and His Apostles taught.

(This paper is drawn from What Pastor Russell Wrote for the Overland Monthly, pages 103-107 and page 116)

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“THINE ENEMIES MAKE A TUMULT”

“For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate thee have lifted up the head. They have taken crafty counsel against thy people . . . They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.” (Psa. 83:2-5)

Israel’s “Friend” Is Not Obama-Kerry (excerpts) – by Cal Thomas, December 28, 2016:

By instructing his U.N. ambassador not to veto a resolution condemning Israel for building so-called “settlements” on disputed land, the president has aided and comforted that nation’s enemies. The U.S. abstention will inevitably invite stepped-up attacks against Israelis, as well as calls for more boycotts by the European Union, whose ugly anti-Semitic past and present is well documented.

In the Middle East, symbols can be more important than substance, and this symbolic act will send a strong message to Israel’s enemies. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the resolution a “shameful ambush” and “distorted,” noting, “It states that the Jewish quarter and Western Wall (in Jerusalem) are occupied, which is absurd.” . . . Netanyahu likes to cite history to show how the Jews were in the land long before Arab peoples showed up and started rewriting the past to the point that it belongs in the fiction section of bookstores.

What makes anyone think that what Israel does, or does not do, has any effect on the behavior and declared religious mandate of those dedi­cated to eliminating the country and killing and/or expelling every Jew from it? Did unilaterally relinquishing Gaza bring Israel closer to peace? It did not. Instead, it invited Hamas to use the region as a launching pad for terrorist attacks . . .

Only the self-deluded think the estab­lishment of a separate Palestinian state will result in peace. Such a state would most certainly be used as a base for a modern “final solution” against Israel. What kind of state would the Palestinians establish? Their leaders have already said it would be one without Jews. Netanyahu noted that in any other scenario this would be seen as “ethnic cleansing,” but because much of the world hates Jews and is embarrassed by Israel and its prosperity, it applies a different standard to the Palestinians.

The prophet Isaiah wrote: “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem” (Isaiah 40:2). The Psalmist said: “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem” (Psalm 122:6). In his final insult to Israel, President Obama has spoken harshly and ensured there will be more war, not peace. The Nobel committee should demand he return his prematurely awarded Peace Prize.

P.O. Box 2246, Kernersville, NC 27285-2246; epiphanybiblestudents@gmail.com

NO. 715: SOME THOUGHTS FOR THE MEMORIAL

No. 715

“And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show [proclaim] the Lord’s death till he come.” (1 Cor. 11:24-26)

The time again draws near for us to commemorate the anniversary of our Lord’s Supper, instituted in commemoration of His death as the antitypical paschal lamb – “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29) The correct time for 2017 is after 6 p.m. on April 9. The date is determined by this method: The moon nearest the Vernal Equinox becomes new in Jerusalem on March 28 at 5:57 a.m., thus establishing 6 p.m. March 27 as the beginning of Nisan 1, Bible reckoning. Counting forward to Nisan 14, we arrive at 6 p.m. April 9. Any time that evening after 6 p.m. would be proper for the celebration.

Let all the faithful in Christ Jesus, in every place, do this in remembrance of God’s Lamb who redeemed us by the sacrifice of Himself. Such, in every place should assemble together, even if there be but two or three of like precious faith. And even the solitary ones may break the bread and partake of the wine, in heart communion with the Lord and with fellow believers.

TWO PASSOVER MEMORIALS

The subject of the Last Supper is one of the most interesting features of Jesus’ earthly ministry. He knew the Apostles did not know it was to be His last supper with them. Although He had intimated the nearness of His death, His disciples had found it impossible to comprehend that any such disaster could be so near. (Matt. 16:21-22) Jesus, however, with full consciousness of what it meant, was longing for the consummation of His work. It was probably at the close of the very day on which He and His disciples went to eat the Passover that Jesus said, “I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened [in difficulty] till it be accomplished!” (Luke 12:50) It was a baptism into death, which was finished the following day.

Peter and John were the two disciples sent to make ready the Passover. It is supposed that the large upper room in which the Passover was eaten by Jesus and His disciples was the same one in which the Apostles and others later gathered to await the Pentecostal blessing. In the evening of the same day, Jesus with the entire Twelve met in this room, all the preparations having been made to celebrate the Jewish Passover at its appointed time. The lamb had been roasted, and the unleavened bread prepared, also the bitter herbs.

Everything, we may be sure, was exactly in conformity with the original requirement; for Jesus and His Apostles were bound by every feature of the Jewish Law as much as were other Jews. Every feature of the Law was binding up to the time of the Pentecostal blessing, which marked the Divine approval of the sacrifice of Jesus and the Divine acceptance of all those who had become His disciples by a full consecration.

KINGDOM HONORS DESIRED

Far from realizing that they were on the eve of a great tragedy, the Apostles believed that Jesus would very soon be enthroned as King. They remembered His promise that they would sit with Him in His Throne. This promise seemed so near to realization to them that they could think of little else but the degree of honor which they would have in the Kingdom. Perceiving their attitude of mind, Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them . . . But ye shall not be so: but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve.” (Luke 22:25-26)

These were new standards, difficult for them to understand; and apparently they are still difficult for the followers of Jesus to comprehend fully. The One who will be chief in the Kingdom will be the One who was the chief Servant in the flesh. This greatest Servant of all was, of course, the Lord Jesus Himself. But the Master intimates that the same principle holds good in respect to all of His followers. Whoever of them will most faithfully, most earnestly, most zealously, serve the brethren will thereby be increasing his favor with God, and be preparing himself for so much higher station in Messiah’s Kingdom.

With the thought that any menial service would signify admission of their unworthiness of a high place, the disciples made no arrangement for feet-washing, none wishing to assume the role of servant. In that sandy country feet-washing was almost a necessity when sandals were worn. By way of rebuke, Jesus arose from the table and performed this menial service for His disciples, telling them the significance of the lesson – namely humility – and intimating that no matter how humble a service they might be able to render to each other, they should be glad to render it. (John 13:14-15)

The lesson is still with us: Any humble act of service done to one of the Lord’s brethren corresponds to this feet-washing.

THE CRISIS IN JUDAS’ LIFE

The Passover Supper proceeded – the eating of the lamb with the bitter herbs and the unleavened bread, which resembled a thick pancake, and which was sometimes used instead of a spoon to sop up the essence of the meat. Jesus began to be heavy-hearted, and then said, “One of you shall betray me.” (John 13:21)

There may have been a double object in this statement. First, it showed the disciples that Jesus was fully aware of the premeditated betrayal, so they would not think that something unexpected had happened to Him that was not part of the Divine Plan. Second, our Lord may have meant this as a final reproof to Judas, to cause him to think. A traitor’s course is especially dishonorable when the traitor accepts the hospitality of the one against whom he is plotting and eats his bread.

Consternation spread among the disciples; and one after another they asked, “Is it I?” (Matt. 26:22) The import of this question would be, “It is not I whom you have meant!” Even Judas joined in the general inquiry, “Is it I?” John was seated next to Jesus, and Peter beckoned to him that he should ask the Master who was meant. It was probably a whispered inquiry, heard by Jesus only. Our Lord’s whispered reply was, “He it is, to whom I shall give a sop.” (John 13:23-26) Presently, having prepared a special sop, a mark of special interest, He handed it to Judas. Thus John and Peter knew the truth.

Apparently it was but a short time after this that Judas withdrew, the record being that “Satan entered into him.” (John 13:27) The spirit of the evil one got complete control of him while he stopped and weighed and balanced the matter of selling his best Friend for thirty pieces of silver. It is entirely probable, therefore, that Judas was not present when Jesus, a little later, instituted the Memorial Supper which Christians now celebrate.

THE MEANING OF THE MEMORIAL

he Memorial Supper which Jesus instituted is totally separate and distinct from the Passover Supper, and yet they are closely related; for the one was the type and the other its archetype, or higher type, with a still higher significance. The Memorial of Christ’s death should not be celebrated monthly or quarterly or weekly; but as the archetype of the Jewish Passover, it should be celebrated annually, and at about the same time as the Jewish Passover.

In the Jewish Passover a literal lamb was used to typify Jesus, the Lamb of God (this of course was not realized by the Jews); in the other, the archetype, the death of Jesus is represented by the breaking of the bread.

In their Passover, the Jews celebrated the birth of their nation and its deliverance from Egyptian bondage. This had its start in the passing over of their first-born when the tenth plague came upon the Egyptians. The edict was sent forth that all of the first-born of the Egyptians should die, and that the first-born of the Israelites should not die. The Israelites were directed to take special steps to mark themselves as separate and distinct from the Egyptians. They were to take for each family a lamb without blemish and bring it into the house on the tenth day of the first month. They were to cherish it and care for it until the fourteenth day, and then to slay it. Its blood was to be sprinkled on the outside doorpost and lintels while its flesh was to be roasted in the fire without a bone of it being broken (a prophecy of the Messiah – see John 19:36). It was to be eaten on the night of the fourteenth with bitter herbs and with unleavened bread. Strengthened by this food, the next day they were to march out of Egypt to go to the Promised Land for an inheritance under the Covenant made with Abraham.

The Apostle Paul calls our attention to the fact that Jesus, “the lamb of God,” was the antitype of the Passover lamb, saying, “Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast.” (1 Cor. 5:7-8) He also shows us that the first-borns of Israel, spared in that Passover night, typified the Church of the First-born (Heb. 12:23), spared, or passed over, in the Gospel Age while the night of sin prevails and before the morning of Messiah’s Kingdom is ushered in.

We are not to understand that the Apostles comprehended the meaning of Jesus’ words when He explained to them the meaning of the Supper which He instituted. Rather, as He had already foretold, the Holy Spirit brought these things to their attention and enabled them to comprehend their meaning after they had received the Pentecostal blessing and enlightenment. Now we may see the import of Jesus’ words, “This is my body, which is broken for you.” (1 Cor. 11:24) We perceive that He could not have meant, as some have thought, that the bread was turned into His actual body and the wine into His actual blood. He still had His actual body and His actual blood. He could only have meant that the bread and the wine symbol­ically represented His body and His blood – His life given up.

Neither should we think that Jesus meant that special virtue would result to the disciples from the eating of that bread and the drinking of that literal cup. We should properly look far beyond these things, and see that He meant this: Only as they would by faith partake of the merits secured by His death could they have the great blessing provided for them as His disciples. The Apostles believed that the death of Jesus was for their sins, and that it constituted the basis of their acceptance with the Heavenly Father. They realized that only as they appropriated the sacrificed life of Christ would they be truly the recipients of all these blessings.

Paul also points out for us another important meaning of this bread and cup. He declares the oneness of Christ and His Church. He tells us that there is but the one Loaf and the one Cup. Primarily, this Loaf was Christ Jesus; but in a secondary sense all the followers of Christ, after having been justified through His Sacrifice, are privileged to become members of His Body, parts of the one Loaf that is being broken. Likewise, after partaking of the merit of Christ’s blood, His sacrifice, His true followers are counted as mem­bers with Him, as participants in that one Cup.

Hear the Apostle’s words: “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.” (1 Cor. 10:16,17)

THE SEALING OF THE NEW COVENANT

Jesus spoke of the cup, the fruit of the vine, as representing the blood of the New Covenant or Testament. (Luke 22:20) The Law Covenant was the Old Covenant, which failed to bring the blessings to the Jews because they could not keep it, and consequently they were not qualified to bless the other nations of the earth. But God promised a New Covenant, a better one, which would be introduced by a new and higher Mediator, a Mediator superior to Moses. That New Covenant, God declares, will accomplish what the old Law Covenant failed to accomplish; for the New Law Covenant will be inaugurated by Messiah, its Mediator, at His Second Advent. His Kingdom, then established in power and great glory, will rule, bless and instruct mankind, and to all who will respond to those blessed opportunities, God through the Mediator will “take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh.” (Ezek. 11:19)

Jesus’ death constituted the blood which seals, or makes efficacious, that New Covenant. But mark further: The Church is not to be blessed under that New Covenant of the Millennial Age, which will be inaugurated at the second coming of Jesus, at the establishment of His Kingdom. The Church is to be blessed in advance of that New Covenant. Their consecrated lives (blood), accepted by our Lord, are counted in as a part of His own sacrifice, which seals the New Covenant. Hence the New Covenant will not be fully sealed until the entire Body of Christ, which is the Church, shall have shared with Him in the drinking of His Cup – in the sacrifice of earthly rights, privileges, life itself.

We see that Jesus and the Church receive their reward neither under the Law Covenant nor under the New Covenant, but under a special covenant, called a Covenant of Sacrifice. Reference is made to this covenant of Christ and the Church in the Psalms, where the Lord is represented as saying, “Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.” (Psa. 50:5) The gathering of those who enter into this special Covenant of Sacrifice with the Lord having been in progress for now over nineteen hundred years, we have every reason to believe that the sacrifice is complete or nearly complete.

THE MEMORIAL SERVICE

As there was but one Passover in type, so there is but one “Lamb of God” in antitype; and by taking notice of that antitype each year, we merely do so “in remembrance” just as the Jews to this day keep their Passover “in remembrance.” And the service for the occasion is unique; there is no other service like it in Christian ritual throughout the earth. When our Lord gave command that we observe it, He did so in simplicity of speech and with few words:

“And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.” (Luke 22:19-20)

Yet, upon these two forthright and uncomplicated sentences great rituals have been erected by the various sects of Christendom. Fundamentally, no more would be required of us in our observance than our Lord’s statement, although explanatory remarks and scripture reading as a foundation for partaking of the bread and the wine is certainly in keeping. However, we should avoid pompous plays upon words and “stage” perfor­mances. The seriousness of the occasion should be stressed, however, that all be done “decently and in order” (1 Cor. 14:40), not nonchalantly, as of some common thing. Blessed are we if we may arrive at that balance of mind and heart that does not overdo or underdo the service – greatness in simplicity, inspiration in solemnity, uplift and virtue in a good and honest participation.

Whereas the tendency today is for larger and more costly church edifices in which to observe services, the institution of this “remembrance” by Jesus Himself was in an “upper room” of a private residence. In many of the great edifices of today “the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee.” (Rev. 18:23) Therefore, may the fact impress us that it is the occupants who sanctify the building; the building does not sanctify the occupants. Thus, St. Paul addresses one of his most human and endearing letters “unto Philemon our dearly beloved, and fellowlabourer . . . and to the church in thy house.” (Phlm. 1:1-2) Therefore may each participant in this year’s Memorial rest in the strong assurance that where “two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matt. 18:20), regardless of the edifice they occupy.

WHO MAY PARTAKE

It is left open for each to decide for himself whether he has or has not the right to partake of this bread and this cup. If he professes to be a disciple, his fellow disciples may not attempt to judge his heart – God alone can positively read the heart. And though the Master knew beforehand who would betray Him, nevertheless one who had “a devil” was with the twelve. (John 6:70-71)

Because it symbolizes the death of Christ, let all beware of partaking of it ignorantly, un­worthily, improperly – “not discerning the Lord’s body” as our ransom, else the breaking of it in his case would be as though he were one of those who murdered the Lord and he in symbol would “be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself.” (1 Cor. 11:27-29) Let him see to it that in partaking of the emblems he realizes them as the ransom price of his life and privileges.

The primary participants in the Lord’s Supper were to be the Saints, the Little Flock. However, we believe there is an unbegotten class who consecrate after the closing of the high calling similar to those faithful ones who preceded the Gospel Age (see Reprint 5761). We call that class “Youthful Worthies” and believe they will be rewarded in the earthly phase of the Kingdom in honor and in service with the Ancient Worthies of Hebrews Chapter 11.

Do Youthful Worthies partake of the Lord’s Supper? Most certainly they do! They are thankful and appreciative of what our Savior has done for them. They do not “suffer with Christ,” nor will they “reign with Christ,” therefore they partake of the wine and bread, symbolizing our Lord’s death as the Lamb of God and symbolizing their tentative justifica­tion. Their trial is for faith and obedience and not for life as was the Saints trial, although they make the same kind of consecration as did the spirit-begotten: “Ye shall have one manner of law, as well for the stranger [the unbegotten], as for one of your own country [spirit-begotten].” (Lev. 24:22)

It is our prayer that this year’s remem­brance may be profitable to all who partake in sincerity and in Truth. We suggest reading the Passover chapter in Volume Six; and we pray a rich blessing upon all who partake. We are living in wonderful times, and we know not what a day may bring; but we have the strong assurance that we can firmly trust Him who left us an example that we should follow in His steps. (1 Pet. 2:21)

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“SHE HATH DONE WHAT SHE COULD”

The incident related in Mark 14:1-11 occurred at the close of the Jewish Sabbath day just preceding our Lord’s crucifixion. Jesus and His disciples had come to the Passover Feast and He told them that He would there be crucified, but they thought that He was speaking in some kind of figurative language. Indeed, at no time during Jesus’ ministry did His crucifixion seem to be less likely than when it occurred. His preaching and the preaching of His disciples, first the Twelve and afterward the Seventy, had awakened considerable interest among all Jews, especially in Galilee.

Great throngs of people were at Jerusalem to celebrate this Feast, which would last a week. Thousands of them had heard of Jesus; and many of them had been recipients of His mercy in the healing of their diseases. Just a short time before, a number of them had discussed if it would be proper to proclaim Jesus king. Indeed, on the very next day after the incident related here the multitude proclaimed Him as King when He rode into Jerusalem upon the ass. They cried out, “Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord!” (Matt. 21:9)

But the Master knew there was a murderous hatred against Him among the chief priests, the Scribes and the Pharisees. It is written that they hated Him without cause; that is to say, without just cause (John 15:25), but they had cause enough to hate Him, from their own viewpoint.

Although the Jewish nation had lost its liberty long before and had no prospect of ever winning it back, nevertheless there had never been a time since the days of Solomon when their political prospects looked so favorable. The Roman Emperors had manifested their willingness to co-operate with these very priests, scribes and religious leaders. The Emperors wished merely to rule, and realized that they could exercise more influence through these religious leaders than in any other way.

Thus the great religious teachers considered themselves sponsors for the people. They perceived that their hold over the more ignorant Jews was being impaired by the teachings of Jesus. They felt so satisfied with themselves as the claimed representatives of God and as intermediaries with the Roman government that they did not think it worthwhile to inquire into Jesus and His teachings. From their viewpoint everything was going along reasonably well. They could wish for nothing better than that their plans might not be interfered with.

Many of them had lost all faith in God and in a future life. Others, retaining faith in God and His promised Kingdom, thought that affiliation with the Roman Empire would be the best way of strengthening their nation and preparing it for the Messianic glories. From this viewpoint, Jesus was a disturber of the peace. He did not belong to their clique. His manner, no less than His teachings, reproved them and tended to break all their influence with the people.

The religious leaders had heard that Jesus was coming to the Feast. They discussed how He could be wisely dealt with, killed, gotten rid of in any way. They seem to have been unanimous in believing that His destruction would be for the good of God’s cause, as they misunderstood that cause. Another scripture tells us that Caiaphas, the chief priest, had declared that it was expedient that one man should perish rather than that the nation should perish. (John 11:49-52) They fancied that the teachings of Jesus, if allowed to proceed, would certainly awaken the people to a faith in the Messianic Kingdom. They thought of Jesus as an imposter, but feared that His teachings would incite some kind of fanatical uprising.

The religious leaders had murder in their hearts. It was merely a question of how they could accomplish the murder and deceive the people, so as not to provoke those who had begun to have faith in Jesus. Their conclusion was that the Feast time would be an unfavorable one; for He would be surrounded by the multitude, some of whom thought Him a great prophet, others of whom considered Him to be the Messiah. Such was their attitude of mind when Judas went to them privately, suggesting that he would be in touch with the movements of Jesus, and that for a certain amount of money he would inform them of the most suitable time for making Jesus a prisoner – a time when the multitude would not be with Him. His plan was finally decided upon and carried out.

On this occasion, Jesus and His disciples were the honored guests of that Lazarus whom Jesus awakened after he had been dead three days. It was at the home of Simon the Leper, who probably was already dead. Jesus was the guest of honor, His disciples sharing with Him. Martha and Mary (sisters of Lazarus) along with Lazarus hosted the gathering. The supper had progressed when Mary entered with a vial of very expensive perfume, the contents of which she poured upon the head of Jesus and, according to another account, subsequently poured a portion of the same perfume upon His feet.

The house was filled with the perfume; Jesus was honored. Then came voices of murmuring – “Why was this waste of the ointment made?” St. John tells us that the leader of the murmurers was Judas. (John 12:4-6) Judas posed as the friend of the poor, intimating that his regrets were not selfish or personal, but that he thought what good might have been done to others with the money.

The Apostles afterward learned that this speech was hypocritical. Jesus, however, understood at the time the anger of Judas which led him to openly insult one of the hostesses. St. John tells us the anger of Judas was because he had failed to get this money himself. He was the treasurer of the little company of disciples; he carried the money-bag; and, as they afterward came to know, he was a thief, who privately was laying by for himself. (John 12:6) Judas is probably not the only person who has plead for the poor and at the same time sought to divert funds to himself.

The statement of Judas that the perfume was worth three hundred pence was probably not an extreme valuation. At a time when the silver penny, worth sixteen cents, represented a day’s labor, three hundred pence would practically represent the labor of a year. Today perfumes can be made and sold at trifling cost in comparison with the past. And yet the ancients were passionately fond of perfumes; and the liberal use of them, as in this case, indicated a deep respect, even reverence. Mary doubtless felt that her very highly esteemed friend Jesus, who had brought her brother back from the tomb, was none other than the Messiah, the Son and Representative of the Almighty God. The reverence which she felt for God she sought to express toward His highest Repre­sentative, Jesus.

Mary must have felt crushed as she heard the harsh criticism. But Jesus came to her defense, saying, “Let her alone; why trouble ye her? she hath wrought a good work on me. For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but me ye have not always. She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint my body to the burying.” (Mark 14:6-8)

The Master’s approval must have comforted Mary; and wherever the Gospel has been preached, this story of her loving devotion, at great cost and probably great self-denial, has been told as a memorial of her, not merely to honor her, but especially to inspire and encourage others of God’s people to the obtaining and exercising of a love which delights in service, even in costly sacrifice.

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(This paper is primarily drawn from several writings of Pastor Russell, including Reprints 5540-5541)