Psalm 45 Publications

When Jesus offered up for all believers his high-priestly prayer in their behalf, he summed up the essence of his request thus: “Father, I desire that those whom you have given me might be with me, where I am, in order that they might behold my glory, which you gave me because you loved me before the foundation of the world” (John 17:24). From which circumstance we may learn that the very essence of what Jesus died to provide us with is nothing less than a rapturous gazing upon his glorious person, as we dwell in his presence forevermore. Heaven is nowhere but where Jesus dwells in his glory, and eternal life is nothing besides the sight of this glory. This is why Jesus had earlier defined eternal life as this: “that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” (John 17:3). True life is that which fulfills the purpose for which man was created, namely, to know and enjoy fellowship with God; and Jesus Christ is the only One who is able to reveal the nature of God to mankind, as we may learn from John chapter one, verses 14 and 18: “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, glory as from the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth….No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has revealed him.” If we would be eternally satisfied, we must learn to behold the glory of Christ. And if we would be among those who for all eternity will indeed be in the joy of God’s presence, we must learn to seek Christ’s glory even now, as we live upon the earth. Continue Reading

Note: In the past, I posted a few “Images of the Savior” from the Old Testament, in random order; but now that I’m finished with those from the gospel, I plan on going in a more systematic fashion throughout the OT, Lord willing, and numbering the posts in more or less canonical order. This is the second in the series; and if you haven’t already read the one on Creation, I would encourage you to do so before moving on to this post.

Immediately after his account of God’s creation of the world, Moses goes on to describe the creature in whom would be centered God’s design for creation, namely, the man whom he had formed; and likewise he describes the place in which the fulfillment of this design would be possible, namely, the Garden in Eden. In this description, we encounter a very notable and foundational glimpse of the coming Messiah, in at least two basic ways: first of all, in the general design and features of the Garden we have an image of the perfect state which Christ’s work of redemption should accomplish for its subjects; and second, we have a foreshadowing of the means which Christ would employ in bringing about this final state of blessedness. Let us now reflect upon several specific things in which this twofold foreshadowing may be observed. Continue Reading

After our first father Adam had rebelled against the word of God, thereby losing all of the blessings and privileges of the glorious state into which he had been created, and inheriting instead a most fearful curse, the promise of death, and an expectation of the terrible wrath of God; instead of receiving only the judgment which he deserved, he was immediately comforted with a promise so rich in the gospel truths of Christ, that theologians have long referred to it as the “protoevangelium,” which is a designation meaning simply, “the first gospel”. It would be hard to overestimate the importance of this first gospel promise: the rest of the scriptures, both in the old and new testaments, simply unfold the meanings which inhere in this brief statement, and make good upon the promises which it contains. Continue Reading

Very soon after God had made his first promise to mankind that he would send a Deliverer, he began to advance his redemptive design along several different lines, all of which would eventually culminate in the advent and work of the promised Seed, and his gathering together in himself a multitude of people, whom he had undertaken to bring back to God. This era of redemptive history is characterized by a series of highly notable firsts, which would set the stage for the promised coming of salvation by putting in motion those forces which should prepare the way for the coming of the Seed, and ultimately bring about the fullness of time in which God should finally send him; and also, they whisper ahead of time the way in which this Savior, when he had finally come, should go about his work of saving his people. Of these firsts, one of the most significant is the life of Abel, the first man born twice, which we will look into in due time; but for now, let us mention a few other notable circumstances that God had already brought about. Continue Reading

The Kingdom of God, composed as we have seen of all those who had placed their faith in God’s promise of a coming Seed who should deliver them from sin and the Serpent, began to grow greatly from its small beginnings, when it was represented only by Adam and Eve and the first martyr, Abel. For soon after Abel had given his life for his testimony of faith, God added another seed to Eve, namely Seth, to strengthen her faith, and through whom he should continue the line from which she still hoped the Messiah should come. From Seth, God was in fact pleased to cause his Kingdom to continue, and whenever she began to be in any desperate straits, or on the brink of extermination, he blessed her with whatever grace she needed to survive and persevere. For first of all, we find the first report of a great revival among God’s people in the days of Enosh, the son of Seth (Genesis 4:26). We must suppose that at this time the Church had grown very cold and hardhearted, as she has done many times throughout her history; but rather than let her love grow entirely extinct, God sent his Spirit to stir up the hearts of his people to call upon the name of the Lord. This is the first of what would soon become very many times of corporate revival, such as those in the days of Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 29-31) and Josiah (2 Chronicles 34-35), or much later, those now known as the Reformation of the sixteenth century, and the Great Awakening of the eighteenth century after Christ. Continue Reading

Of all the promises and foreshadows of the coming of Christ and his accomplishing his mighty work of redemption, there is none in all the Old Testament that is more foundational than the promise made to Abraham, when God called him out from the land of his people and brought him into the land of Canaan, and there entered into a solemn covenant with him, promising to be his God and his exceeding great reward. This calling and promise was so monumental as thoroughly to govern the course of redemptive history from that point on, and to shape forever afterward the nature and substance of the blessings which the promised Christ’s redemption should provide. Thus it is that, at the conclusion of the history of God’s redeeming his people, the final proclamation, sealing up every blessing and fulfilling every promise, will come in these words: “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he shall dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and he shall be God with them, their God” (Revelation 21:3). This is a conclusion that was most explicitly marked out in the calling of Abraham, and serves only as the actual accomplishment of all that was promised at that time; and at the heart of that promise, we see Christ himself, who should become “Immanuel,” that is, “God with us,” and so provide in himself the substance of every good thing which God had covenanted to give to Abraham and his offspring. It would certainly behove us, therefore, to look in more detail at this monumental occasion, in which the promise of a conquering Seed takes on a history-shaping clarity and significance. Continue Reading

Given the unique status of the patriarch Abraham, who was called out to be the first in the line of the people of God, and the father of all those who should later believe, and from whom it was also said that the promised Seed of the woman should come, it is to be expected that his life should prefigure and anticipate the life of the faithful, that is, of the Church as a whole and all her members in particular, and most especially, the life of Christ himself, the Seed through whom he would inherit his eternal blessing. And as we study the life of Abraham, after his first calling, with this principle in mind, we are eminently justified in our supposition; for the first account we are given of his subsequent life, in which he is driven to sojourn in Egypt by a fierce famine, is very much like the later history of God’s people, and also foreshadows the life of Christ himself. In what ways this is so, how Abraham’s experiences are a type both of the Church’s journey to paradise and of the Messiah’s work of redemption, we will now make clear. Continue Reading

In the next episode of Abraham’s life, in which he arises in behalf of Lot, his nephew, who had been taken captive by Chedorlaomer and the other kings with him, and wins a very great victory over this confederation of kings, slaughtering them in the valley of Shaveh, and thereafter, is blessed by Melchizedek, the king of Salem and priest of the Most High God, we may discern two very notable images of the coming Savior: for first of all, Abraham’s slaughter of the kings is a type of the Messiah’s later victory, in several specific instances; but even more notable yet is the image of the Savior which we encounter in the person of Melchizedek, who stands out as one of the foremost types of Christ in all the Old Testament. From these two related events, Abraham’s victory and Melchizedek’s bringing a blessing, we will now see what we may learn of Abraham’s Seed, who is our great High Priest in the order of Melchizedek. Continue Reading

The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah by fire from heaven, Lot’s gracious deliverance from that judgment, and Abraham’s mediation for him, provide a very notable glimpse of the future destruction of the world, and the deliverance of the righteous from the midst of God’s burning wrath, through the one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus (see 1 Timothy 2:5); as we shall see in several particulars noted in the paragraphs below. Continue Reading

Of all the notable things that could be said of the life of Abraham our father, without a doubt the most outstanding is only this: he was promised by the God of heaven, to whom nothing is impossible, that he should be given a Seed who would bless all the nations of the earth, and bring down the very presence of God to mankind. It stands to reason, then, that of all the types that we see displayed in Abraham’s calling, wanderings, the covenant ceremonies he went through, and so on, one of the most notable should pertain to his being given a seed, quite apart from natural human means, as a testimony to the life-giving and promise-fulfilling power of the God who first called him out from his land and kindred. And in actual fact, this is precisely what we encounter in the birth of Isaac, Abraham’s promised heir, and the most remarkable type of the virgin birth of our Savior in all the Old Testament histories. Continue Reading

We have already observed how perfectly fitted the miraculous conception and birth of Isaac was to foreshadow the virgin birth of Abraham’s true promised Seed, Jesus Christ; and now, as we continue to examine the details of his later history, we come to find as well that God was pleased to arrange circumstances in such a way as to make his life prefigure in an astonishing and unsurpassed manner the substitutionary offering of Christ on the cross. This truth, from the outset, should serve to underscore the illimitable worth and precise centrality of the atoning death of Christ: his virgin birth, as sweet and awe-inspiring as it was, had no other end than the bloody death of Calvary which should follow it some thirty-three years later. The virgin birth was a mighty and necessary step toward a great end; but the end itself was Calvary. We see this relationship hinted at also in the life of Isaac, Abraham’s first promised seed, who was given a miraculous birth just to have it taken away from him violently and unseasonably (in a figure) by the very God who had brought him into the world in the first place. Continue Reading

It is altogether fitting that Abraham’s promised Son, Isaac, should be set forth as a type of our Savior in every notable event of his life: for, first of all, his birth was of so miraculous a nature as to reinforce to Abraham the truth that the promised Seed, who would bless all the nations of the earth, could never come naturally, by the efforts of the flesh, as Ishmael came. On the contrary Isaac came by the divine promise, and through the divine power, which is even able to bring life out of death. And so that son in whom was said to be the promised Seed, Christ our Savior, was, even from his birth, a type of the Savior, by virtue of his life which was brought out of death, through the power of God, and in accordance with his covenant promise. And second, in the account of Abraham’s testing, we have as clear a personal type as can be found in all of scriptures, of the substitutionary sacrifice and the rising again of our Savior; by means of which test, Abraham demonstrated his faith in the coming Messiah, whom he knew that God would certainly raise from the dead, and thus received his own promised son, “in a figure,” back from the dead (Hebrews 11:17-19). And so, if in two marvelous and unsurpassed ways this man Isaac served to foreshadow the life of our Savior, then we may with some reason suppose that the next notable circumstance in his life, the means by which he obtained his wife, may also convey some truth to us about the coming work of the true Seed of Abraham, Jesus Christ. In pursuance of which expectation, we will now turn to the account in Genesis, chapter twenty-four. Continue Reading

In all the accounts of God’s dealing with the patriarchs thus far, we have been primarily struck with these two things, first, God’s absolute sovereignty in choosing and calling out the subjects of his redemptive blessing; and second, the surprising and unexpected ways in which he does so, which may be seen both in the choice of the vessels which he should prepare for mercy, and the means by which he should bring this mercy to bear in their lives. Thus, God called Abraham alone, when he had many and mighty nations and nobles which he might instead have chosen; he called Isaac and not Ishmael, although Ishmael was Abraham’s eldest son, and begotten of natural and expected means, whereas Isaac was younger and begotten in a most surprising way; and he ensured and ratified the blessing which he had sworn should come through Isaac by commanding that he be put to death on Mount Moriah, before he had been able to extend Abraham’s line. In these and in many other ways beside, we see those two notable truths everywhere confirmed and illustrated. Now, as we look to the account of the next generation of the patriarchs, and observe the early life of Jacob and Esau, we will see again the same truths most admirably displayed. Continue Reading

As we continue to follow the life of our father Jacob, we see that at every step, God causes him to flourish and increase, no matter what contingencies might face him. So it is that, having been driven out from the promised land by the rage of his brother Esau, God used his sojourn in another land to make him into a great family, which should later issue forth in a mighty nation, and eventually, the Christ himself. And likewise, in every cheat and deception that he endured from Laban his uncle, he always prospered and grew stronger, rather than weaker, due always to God’s particular care and governance. The time that Jacob spent with Laban, although necessitated by a brother’s persecution and marked throughout by hardship and unjust treatment, was the very time when he sprang up in the faith, and began to put forth those buds which would eventuate in the mighty boughs of the Kingdom of God. We would do well to learn from this, for the same mystery is at work even today, among those who are Jacob’s heirs and possessors of the promise. Continue Reading

Everywhere in the Law and the Prophets we see Christ and his gospel-work symbolized, prophesied, and foreshadowed in many marvelous ways: but only a very few times, and at the most critical junctures of redemptive history, do we see our Savior, before his advent in Bethlehem, appear in visible form to his saints. Jacob’s encounter at Peniel, just prior to his return to the land of promise, is one of these occurrences; and in this history, we may learn much of our blessed Redeemer, and of the true religion which alone prevails with him. To this end, we now turn our attention to the account at hand. Continue Reading

When Jacob had first been driven out of the promised land by the wrath of his brother Esau, the fulfillment of the promises made to Abraham seemed in every way to be in jeopardy: for he had received both the birthright and the blessing, and the Abrahamic promises were therefore all bound up in his own future and fruitfulness; and not as yet having any offspring by which the Messianic line could advance, nor any wife by whom he should raise up a seed, nor even any goods and possessions to sustain him in his wanderings, his life was in imminent danger, and the likelihood of his entering again into the land where the fulfillment of the promises was centered seemed very small. It was, therefore, a most gracious and powerful operation of God that some twenty years later, after many trials and dangers had been overcome, he would again enter the land of Canaan with wives, goods, possessions, and twelve sons through whom God had purposed to build a mighty nation, and through one of whom he intended to bring about the One who should fulfill every promised blessing, that is, the Messiah. Until this generation, God had seen fit to pass along the Abrahamic promises to one sole heir of each father, first to Isaac alone instead of Ishmael, and then to Jacob alone instead of Esau. But now, returning to Canaan with twelve sons who should all be possessors of the promise, the question of how the Messianic blessing should be passed on is in some manner changed, and hence becomes, “Which of the twelve brothers shall gain ascendancy over all the rest, and be chosen to bring about the Seed in whom all alike shall be blessed?”. The several histories of this time immediately after Jacob’s leaving Laban have all to do with the answer to that one question. Continue Reading

Although the promise of the coming of the Messiah, in whom Israel and all the world should be blessed, had devolved upon Judah, of the twelve sons of Jacob, who thereby obtained a very prestigious position of ascendancy over his brothers, as we observed in the last lesson (cf. Genesis 49:8-12); yet, at this time, the possessors of the Messianic blessing had already begun to expand, whereas before they had been ever more restricted with each passing generation: for the promise had been made first to Abraham and his offspring; then to Isaac and his offspring alone, of Abraham’s children; then to Jacob and his offspring alone, of Isaac’s children; but now, the promise would not be to Judah alone, but through Judah would come the Messiah who would belong to all of Jacob’s children alike, and all of them would have some role in preparing the way by which he should come into the world, and in signifying and foreshadowing his advent. The next episodes we encounter in our journey through Genesis serve to confirm this point; for hereafter, the entire book is devoted to an account of the life of Joseph, the eleventh and most beloved son of his father Jacob, whose history would foreshadow the entire earthly ministry of the promised Seed far more exactly and minutely than any other history had done up to this point in time, and more exactly indeed than the life of any other person until the coming of David himself. Continue Reading

In all the Old Testament scriptures, there is perhaps no more notable and central person than Moses, the giver of the Law, the prophet who spoke with God face-to-face, the author of the Pentateuch, which serves as the foundation of all the bible, and the key figure of all that portion of it which follows Genesis (see Deuteronomy 34:10-12). It is to be expected, then, of so central a character, that his life should especially show forth the coming Messiah, who is in actual fact the central Person, not just of the Pentateuch, but of all the scriptures, in both the Old and New Testaments. And indeed we find, that when Moses was about to die, and was giving his final words of exhortation to the Jewish people, just before they crossed over into the land of Canaan, he promised them that God would raise up a prophet like himself, but vastly superior (Deuteronomy 18:15-19); and so he made that very role which most exceptionally marked him as an unsurpassed hero in God’s redemptive works to be but a foreshadow of a greater Hero who should come. This prophecy was of course fulfilled in the coming of the Son of God, the eternal Word, who revealed God so much more fully than Moses had, that it could be said of him that he alone brought grace and truth to the people of God (John 1:14-18; see also Hebrews 1:1-4). As we turn to the book of Exodus, therefore, and examine the life of this man Moses, let us be careful to consider what we may learn thereby of the life of Christ, which it anticipates and typologizes. Continue Reading

The deliverance of the children of Israel from their bondage in Egypt would become the greatest redemptive act of God in all the Old Testament, and so would serve as the great illustration of Israel’s peculiar blessedness throughout the rest of her history, and be the act of covenant love which she would remember more ardently than any other, and cling to as an immovable assurance of her future salvation, no matter what trouble she was in (see, for example, Deuteronomy 15:15; Psalm 66:5-6; 74:10-15; 78:13; 105:26-38; 106:7-12; 136:10-15). In fact, it was not until the coming of the Messiah himself that a greater deliverance would be accomplished, which should forevermore eclipse the glory of this one; and so it clearly stands as an unsurpassed type of the final redemptive work of Christ (see Jeremiah 16:14-16). It is therefore most appropriate that the circumstances surrounding this particular event, more especially than almost any other event in the life of Moses, should be filled with glimpses of the coming Savior; and so in fact we find, from the time when Moses was first called out by God to deliver his people from Egypt, that he confirmed and illustrated his calling with many notable and instructive signs, upon which we will now reflect. Continue Reading

When we look to our God and Savior, with a heart of faith and eyes that have been opened by his Holy Spirit, we must be struck immediately and overwhelmingly with a sense of the diversity and excellence of his character, which joins together every trait that could be desired or admired, no matter how different one might be from another, in a manner that admits of no internal contradiction, but in such a glorious fashion that every delightful property most brilliantly complements and enhances the others around it, so that the peculiar wonder of each lovely quality is displayed in a striking and perfectly proportioned splendor. This we see in all its inexhaustible wealth in the shining face of Jesus Christ, who is at once the Lion of the tribe of Judah and the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world (see Revelation 5:5-6); and of all the Old Testament images of the Christ, there are few that show forth this diverse excellence more abundantly than the operations of Yahweh in his bringing the children of Israel out from their bondage in the land of Egypt. In that event, we see the meek and lowly servant of the Lord, Moses, who had no brilliant oratorical ability or comely form to commend him to the people, taking on the role of God for Pharaoh and for the people of Israel. Thus Christ became a lowly and humble man, despised above all, in order to bring the true nature of the Godhead both to his people, that he might save them, and his enemies, that he might destroy them. But also, in this event, we see the dreadful Angel of the Lord passing through the land with a terrible fury, and judging all the firstborn of the people, save those who are covered with the blood of the Passover Lamb; and this Angel is also Christ, sent by the Father to judge the world (John 5:22-23; Acts 17:31); and so is the Passover Lamb, whose blood saves God’s people from his own wrath, an evident type of Christ. And so, in a very diverse manner, we have a picture of a very diverse Christ, who would go about through very diverse methods to redeem his people: he is a lowly man speaking the word of God in the world and confirming his messages with signs and wonders; he is the righteous Judge, exacting vengeance on all who have opposed him; he is the innocent Lamb, giving up his life freely in exchange for the lives of his people; he is the Savior who delivers his own people while destroying their enemies; and his power is ever shown in his lowliness and humility: for his greatest deliverance of all, being a deliverance not just from Pharaoh or from the Serpent he typified, but from his own implacable and boundless wrath, was wrought by his humblest and lowliest act of all, in offering up his body as an atoning sacrifice for his people. Ah, what a Savior this is! Let us now examine the account in more detail. Continue Reading

The course of history has been arranged by the minute sovereignty of God to no other end than the accomplishment of the great redemptive work of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God. This is the center of all worlds, that which binds everything together in a unified whole, the heart and life of the great self-revelation of the diversely glorious God which he designed creation and history to be. So it is that the great climax of history was the Son of God’s taking on human flesh to display the glory of the godhead in all its brilliance; and the pinnacle of that climactic act was the cross of Calvary, where every various perfection of God was displayed in the full and infinite magnitude of its splendor. Much in the same way, the economy of the Old Testament, during which time God was pleased to prepare for and foreshadow this great pinnacle of history through the typology of his chosen people Israel, was brought to a corresponding climax in the redemption from Egypt; and the pinnacle of that climactic redemption was the passover feast. If we would see the very reason for all existence painted before us in concrete images and splendid colors, if we would look upon the nature of God graphically displayed in all its economical fullness, then we can do no better than to look here. To understand the one message here displayed is to be a true Christian, a scholar in the heavenly wisdom, an immovably grounded divine. To miss this one message is to be a blind and hardened pagan under the eternal and fiery judgment of God. Father of Lights, send us your Spirit that we might look upon our Passover Lamb and find eternal life and joy in him! Continue Reading

The effectuation of God’s delivering his people from their bondage in Egypt, as we have often observed before, tended in many particulars to two diverse, yet complementary ends: which are the glory of his just wrath and fury, which is displayed in his fierce judgments against the Egyptian people; and the glory of his free mercy and covenant faithfulness, which is displayed in his redeeming the children of Israel, and bringing them out from the house of slavery. These two facets of God’s glory, as different as they are, do not detract from each other, but rather serve to set each other off with a more distinct and brilliant luster, the severity of the judgments underscoring the depth of the calamity that awaits those who have not known mercy, and thereby magnifying the greatness of God’s grace, which, when sin and wrath abounded in full measure, still abounded even more (cf. Romans 5:20-21). The stubbornness of Pharaoh, whose heart God had hardened for this purpose, brings out this various glory in greater measure; for the heavy and unyielding hand which he laid upon God’s people made necessary a very strong and admirable salvation, if God were to bring them out from his cruel oppression, and at the same time provided cause for the ongoing and ever-increasing displays of God’s wrath and punishment upon the land of Egypt. This twofold glory was most poignantly displayed in the first Passover, when the Angel of the Lord, who is Christ, poured out God’s final cup of wrath upon his enemies, and put them all to a violent death; and yet, on the day of judgment, he mercifully passed over all those who were covered by the blood of the Passover Lamb, who underwent his bloody judgment in their place. Now, as the great and manifold glory of Christ was admirably displayed in the climax of the redemption from Egypt, that is, in the Passover celebration; so would it also be displayed in the culmination of the redemption from Egypt, in at least two marvelous ways, which are, first, the appearance of the pillar of cloud and fire; and second, the crossing of the Red Sea. And thus, in order that this diverse excellence of Christ might be brought to its final display, God hardened Pharaoh’s heart yet again, so that he pursued the children of Israel into the wilderness, after he had once let them go. Continue Reading

After God had redeemed his people from their slavery in Egypt, and destroyed Pharaoh and his hosts in the Red Sea, it is very significant that he did not immediately whisk them away to the promised land, but rather brought them first by slow degrees through a barren wilderness, where they sojourned and camped as pilgrims, and by heavenly supply fitted them with all the necessary provisions for their journey until they had finally reached their destination in Canaan. In this arrangement, we see an indication of the state of the Church on earth, which has already been redeemed, and for whom the victory has already been won, but which must nevertheless press on through the wilderness of sin as a company of strangers and pilgrims until she should finally reach her home in the promised land of God’s presence. It is most fitting, therefore, that this time of wandering is filled up with so many precious glimpses of the person and various ministries of Christ, who continually sustains his Church in the time of her sojourn. About these diverse types and images, we will now inquire in a little more detail. Continue Reading

The occasion of the giving of the Law on Mount Sinai, when God went down in terrible glory to meet with his people whom he had redeemed, and to speak with them audibly, and to declare to them all his will and commandments, would forever afterward shape the character of the nation of Israel, and serve as the unalterable foundation upon which she was built, dictating the nature of her relationship with God, showing with manifold precision the way in which she must ever conduct herself, and forecasting with implacable exactness the response that Yahweh would have to any covenant unfaithfulness that should be found in her. It was the Law that should serve as the greatest self-revelation of Yahweh until the coming of his perfect and final self-revelation in the eternal Word; and so it was the Law that should come to the fore again and again in all the poetic writings of David, in the thundering condemnations and announcements of judgment that the prophets brought down against rebellious Israel, and in the sweet glimpses of conquering mercy and steadfast covenant love with which they bound up the remnant of grace. The Law was the very backbone of God’s pre-incarnational revelation: and so it is most appropriate that the Law should prefigure and teach of Christ in several diverse ways, which we will now consider. Continue Reading

Of all the offices and ministries that the Son of God has undertaken to enter into for his people, one of the most precious and comfortable is that of his unceasing intercession for those who belong to him. What troubles may not be vanquished, what doubts may not be dispelled, what fears and misgivings may not be put to flight, when the most desperate criminal but glimpses the Savior standing before the holy Father and pleading with him, “Let this sinner be forgiven! For I was indeed blotted out from the land of the living, that he might not be forever.”? Of this most precious office of Christ Jesus our Savior, the most outstanding type is Moses; and in this typical role, he shines the most brilliantly in his activity immediately following Israel’s great sin with the golden calf. Continue Reading

When Moses met with God on Mount Sinai, and was given instructions to make a tabernacle where God might dwell among his people, he was strictly enjoined to make it precisely in accordance with the pattern that God had shown him. This is because the tabernacle was symbolic of heavenly realities, and was intended to instruct the people of God concerning his holiness and the way into his presence through Jesus Christ, every part and arrangement answering to the true dwelling place of God and the manner in which his people might come before him (cf. Hebrews 9:23-24). The ways in which the tabernacle symbolized God’s presence among his people are many, but every way is united and brought into harmony in the person of Jesus Christ: for the tabernacle was in one sense a microcosmic model of the entire universe, in which God created the earth for the habitation of men, the heavens where they might behold his glory, and the highest heavens in which is his very throne room, and into which they might not at all enter; and in another sense, it is constructed to depict the process of redemption, in which, through the shedding of blood, the washing of water, the fragrant incense of intercessory prayer, and so on, a sinner is brought from profane earth into thrice-holy heaven; and yet again, it depicts the movement of redemptive history as a whole, being reminiscent of the original paradise in Eden, prophetic of the New Covenant Church of Christ, and answerable to the final city of New Jerusalem, in which all history will find its fitting conclusion. But in all these things, there is brought about an admirable unity in Christ, through whom the universe was created, redemptive history is realized, sinners are brought to God, and New Jerusalem becomes the place of God’s dwelling among men. But let us reflect on these things a little further. Continue Reading

Although the priestly office of Jesus Christ our Savior is most properly to be thought of in the order of Melchizedek (see Psalm 110:4; Hebrews 6:20), who stands as the pre-eminent Old Testament type of Jesus our High Priest, yet the Aaronic priesthood, as well, although not precisely in continuity with Jesus’ priestly ministry, is nevertheless full of images and symbols that speak of the later work of the Messiah, and foreshadow his mediatorial, intercessory, and reconciliatory roles. We may obtain an overview of the diverse and numerous ways in which this is so from a cursory examination of the instructions given to Moses on Mount Sinai, pertaining to Aaron his brother, in which regulations concerning the persons, the vestments, and the ministries of the priestly class are enjoined upon him in some detail; and of which we may read in Exodus chapters twenty-eight through thirty. Continue Reading

At the end of the book of Exodus, God has just given Moses his servant very careful instructions for the building of the tabernacle, and for the institution of the Levitical priesthood to serve in it, in order to make atonement for the people, and bring them into the presence of the holy God; and in precise accordance with those instructions, Bezaleel, filled with the Spirit of God, has built the tabernacle and prepared the vestments for the priestly class, whom Moses has just finished consecrating for their ministry. Now, in acceptance of their careful adherence to his instructions, God has been pleased to establish his presence in the midst of Israel, filling the newly constructed tabernacle with his glory, and calling out to Moses from the midst of it, with the detailed instructions for its ongoing service and ministry that will take up the entire book of Leviticus. This book, then, has a very definite centrality and culminative nature both in the Pentateuch and the entire Old Testament: it is placed in the center of the Pentateuch, and at the shadowy climax of God’s fulfilling his long-awaited promise that he should bring a people back to himself, and be their God, and dwell in their midst; and it is the most intricate and detailed typological intimation of just how he should accomplish that promised reconciliation in the searing daylight of the Gospel, elaborating as it does the sacrificial system for which the tabernacle and the priests existed and served day and night. Let us be very clear about the significance of this book of Leviticus, before we venture into its sacred pages: the very heart of the entire scriptures consists of that utterly crucial principle of substitutionary sacrifice and resulting atonement and reconciliation. This is what God first promised and signified to Adam and Eve after their sin in the Garden, this is what was typified and foreshadowed in countless ways throughout the history of God’s people in the Old Testament, and this is precisely what was actually accomplished through that one great work for which all of history was designed, the incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection of the Son of God. And there is no more elaborate description of that absolutely central reality of all history than the sacrificial instructions contained within the book of Leviticus. If the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ stands at the pinnacle and climax of redemptive history, the very crux of that tree, casting its shadow backwards through the pre-incarnational history of the people of God, falls precisely upon the first seven chapters of the book of Leviticus. Father, if we cannot see Christ here, then where will we see him? Open our eyes to our spotless sacrificial Lamb! Continue Reading

Although the book of Leviticus is largely full of very detailed instructions for the priestly class, teaching them how to approach God with acceptable sacrifices, how to make a distinction between clean and unclean, and between holy and unholy, at what time and in what ways the solemn festivals are to be observed, and so on, it contains as well a historical prelude immediately following the first series of regulations concerning the offering up of sacrifices, in which Aaron, having been consecrated for his work, offers up the first acceptable sacrifice to the Lord, for his people Israel; and then his two sons, Nadab and Abihu, offer up unacceptable incense, and are put to death. This account serves to underscore the seriousness of the instructions which are detailed everywhere else throughout the book, emphasizing both the vastly salutary and effective nature of the true sacrifices, and the vastly devastating consequences attendant upon approaching Yahweh in any other way. As we have already observed how particularly the priestly class, ministrations, and vestments speak of Jesus Christ the High Priest; and how the various sacrifices speak most clearly of Christ the spotless Lamb of God; we may learn most importantly, from this historical account, of what immeasurable importance those christological types are: for those priests and sacrifices that are in accordance with God’s commands, which everywhere foreshadow Christ, are effective to reconcile his people to himself, and to facilitate his presence and good pleasure among them; but those that do not come from himself he is very displeased with, and instead of being propitiated by them, he responds only in great wrath and fury. So true religion ever begins with God, and comes down by his own initiative, and in his own way, and through his own Christ; every other religious work, which originates in the heart of man, is utterly abominable to him. Continue Reading

The very heart of the Levitical laws, being summed up in this one phrase, “You shall be holy, as I the Lord your God am holy,” signified the need for God’s people, in the midst of whom he had condescended to dwell, to be separate from all that was common, or tainted with the manifold deleterious effects of sin and the curse. And of the many ways in which this basic truth was taught to the children of Israel, one of the most instructive was the elaborate system of laws making a separation between the clean and the unclean, and governing the way in which God’s people had to go about their daily lives, if they should continue in his presence without being consumed by his wrath. In this symbolic code, we may learn very poignantly, and in very concrete and exemplary fashion, the truth that, if we should be permitted to enjoy God’s fellowship, we must distance ourselves from all that is contrary to his nature: God is a God of order, life, wholesomeness, and consistency; and nothing that is chaotic or commingled in a disorderly fashion, nor anything tainted by death or the curse, nor anything unwholesome or abnormal may be found in his presence. We may also learn, moreover, that these unclean elements which God will not tolerate are all around us, ever barring us from his courts; but that he has provided a way to restore, renew, and cleanse us again, and make us separate from the defiling agents of sin and its loathsome consequences. Of course, this cleansing is to be found only in Jesus Christ, as we shall soon observe. Continue Reading

The Day of Atonement, coming as it does in the middle of the festive cycles, and in the heart of the calendar year, being observed on the tenth day of the seventh month, which is the month having the greatest symbolic and ceremonial significance; and being described most minutely, moreover, in the heart of the most intricate elaboration of the Law, which comprises the book of Leviticus, and which is itself at the center of the Pentateuch; must therefore take on a character of utter centrality and solemn importance from the very outset. With regard to the festive cycles, it is distinct in that it alone is a day of solemn affliction and mourning over sin (Leviticus 16:29-31); and yet, its observance prepares for the celebration of the most joyful of feasts, that of Tabernacles (see Leviticus 23:26-43); by which we may learn that it constituted the deep and solemn foundation for all the feasts of joy by which Israel’s entire year was structured – without its time of sorrow and affliction, there would be no times of joyous fellowship in the presence of God. And then, it is likewise set apart from all the other feasts in the book of Leviticus, where it is described in great detail in chapter sixteen, in the midst of the laws and regulations governing cleanness and holiness; even though it is also described again in chapter twenty-three, where all the feasts of the Lord are discussed. In this way, its distinct character is emphasized, and especially its relationship to the heart of the Law, which existed to show God’s people what it was to be clean and holy, so that he might dwell among them. The Law described what it is to be holy in God’s sight: and in the midst of the Law, lest its overwhelming and unyielding demands should terrify and discourage the people, God enjoins upon the people this solemn feast, as if to say, “Although you are insufficient to keep my holy statutes, I have prepared a way for you to be made clean and holy again, so that I might continue to dwell among you”. Continue Reading

Of all the things we have observed so far from the book of Leviticus, the sum is this: God is a pure and holy God, and if he should have any people at all, and should stoop to dwell in their midst, they must be made holy as well, so that he might walk among them, and not consume them altogether in his righteous fury against sin and uncleanness. This shows just how important holiness to the Lord is: for the true substance of every redemptive blessing is only the presence of God, and fellowship with him; and that goal can only come through sanctification, that is, through being made holy, as God is holy. As we shall see presently, this observation must ultimately lead us to Christ, and drive us to cast ourselves upon him alone, who sanctified himself to his redemptive mission, that we too might be sanctified in the truth (John 17:17-19). In order to unfold these principles more minutely, let us touch first upon the greatness of that one redemptive principle, that God should dwell among his people; then, show how necessary a thing holiness is to that end; and finally demonstrate how those two great truths, which form the core of the book of Leviticus, lead us to Jesus Christ. Continue Reading

In many ways and at many different places in the book of Leviticus, we have encountered the theme of holiness to the Lord as that one central motif which binds everything together, and gives all the diverse regulations a unity and singularity of purpose: in the tabernacle, the children of Israel had a holy place, where they might meet with their holy God; in the laws of morality and cleanness, they were shown the way to be set apart from sin and the world as a holy people, among whom the holy God might dwell; in the laws concerning the sacrifices and the priesthood, they were given a way to be cleansed and made holy in spite of all their failures to follow God’s Law, so that the tabernacle might remain a holy place, and they might continue to be a holy people living in the presence of the holy God. Of course, all this emphasis on holiness led the children of Israel straight to their promised Messiah, who would be the true tabernacle, bringing the very presence of the holy God down to men; and also the true Sacrifice, offered up to make men holy, the true Priest, bringing them out from the world of sin and uncleanness, the true Law-keeper, able always to stand in the thrice-holy presence of God, and so on. In light of this history, it should come as no surprise that the next portion of Leviticus, in which the sacred feasts of Yahweh are detailed, is likewise underscored by the need for holiness, and designed to lead to Christ the Savior: just as the people of Israel were to be a holy nation; just as the tabernacle was to be a holy place; and just as all the worship rituals were to be holy activities; so the appointed feasts were to be holy times. And furthermore, even as all the elements preceding the discussion of these feasts pointed ahead to a better and more lasting fulfillment in the days of the Messiah, so it was with the feasts too: just as, when the Messiah came, he would make his people utterly holy, cleansing their conscience indeed (Hebrews 10:9-14); and just as he would make the whole world their holy place, ensuring its entire recreation as a world where righteousness dwells (John 4:21-24; 2 Peter 3:13); so also would he make all the time of his people holy time, and would ensure an eternity set apart for them to enjoy his holy presence (Hebrews 4:9-11). Continue Reading

In all the Levitical laws concerning the sabbaths and solemn feasts, the children of Israel were reminded to look backward to the wonderful works of God in the past, by which he had created the world in perfect splendor and made it altogether suitable for man’s joyful habitation; and then, after mankind’s first rebellion, had made great promises of a better restoration, and taken great steps to that end; but also, they were admonished by these holy times to look forward to the true fulfillment and culmination of the redemption thereby testified to and sealed, and even tasted, as it were, if but for a day. Thus, on the day of the Sabbath, the Israelites remembered God’s perfect creation, and how he entered into the joy of resting in what he had accomplished, and likewise brought in his image-bearing creature, man, to enjoy that rest together with him; and they also would remember, a little later, how Joshua had brought them into their promised land of rest (save only that generation that murmured and doubted, and were destroyed in the wilderness); but even after that entrance into Canaan, the Psalmist spoke of another rest that remained for the people (Psalm 95:7-11; Hebrews 4:7-10); by which he meant that rest which Christ would accomplish for those who are his, working so that they might rest in his sufficiency, and so be brought in to the eternal rest in the New Jerusalem. In the same way, as we have just seen, the feasts taught the people to remember God’s redemptive works in the past, and to look through them to the anti-typical redemptive works of Christ in the future, which should provide for and ensure the eternal enjoyment of those things the feasts merely symbolized and hinted at. Continue Reading

Throughout the entire book of Leviticus, we have seen demonstrated in many ways that the peculiar blessedness of God’s people consists only in this, that he is their God, and has taken them unto himself to be his own people; and likewise, the land which he had promised to their fathers to give to them, was a blessing ultimately in this respect, that it was the land where God’s tabernacle would dwell, the land where his presence would abide in the midst of the people. Accordingly, it is a matter of utmost seriousness, which extends far beyond the mere horrors of physical famine, fruitlessness, and subjugation to enemies, that the covenant curses at the end of the book hold forth to the people, if they disobey his law: for these are but fruits of a much vaster problem, viz., that God himself is displeased with his people, and cannot dwell with them favorably anymore. And likewise, the blessings held forth to the people, as long as they keep his covenant, are far greater than mere physical ease and prosperity, which things even the nations enjoy at some times and to some degree; for they signify that God is not only dwelling in the midst of the people, but that he is pleased to do so, and rejoices to be with them, and is favorably disposed to provide them with any good thing of which they might have need. So that, the essence of the covenant blessing consists most fundamentally in God’s favorable presence; and the essence of the covenant curses consists in God’s wrathful presence, so that he cannot endure anymore the sight and proximity of those whom in their rebellion he abhors. Continue Reading

When we arrive at the book of Numbers, in our journey through the five books of Moses, a very considerable portion of the Pentateuch has passed since Israel first arrived at Mount Sinai, comprising half of Exodus and the entire book of Leviticus. But in spite of this lengthy segment of text, we find the hosts of Israel still gathered together at the foot of Mount Sinai, so that, for the entirety of one and a half of Moses’ five books, they have made no progress in their journey whatsoever. This very fact emphasizes the utterly crucial and significant nature of what took place on Mount Sinai; for the Holy Spirit has seen fit to devote a very large part of the foundational books of the Law to detailing the events of that one monumental episode. As we move into a consideration of the book of Numbers, therefore, it would behoove us to give a little reflection to what had in fact transpired at the Holy Mount of Yahweh, and how the thing that had there taken place undergirds and gives meaning to the next event in Israel’s history, when she sets out from the mountain to journey across the wilderness. In this reflection, we will learn much of the nature of the Church, and see many glimpses of the Savior, which will serve to encourage and instruct us today, as we move across the wilderness of this world, a united body and kingdom of priests, under the headship of Christ. Continue Reading

In the events following Israel’s first setting out for the Promised Land, from the foot of Mount Sinai, we are instructed in many particulars of the dangers of grumbling and rebellion, the several ways in which the Lord responds to these treacherous dispositions, and the serious and devastating consequences of continuing in such a frame of disbelief; and we see, moreover, the consolatory and beneficial ministry of Moses, who mediates, intercedes for, and guides the people, as a type of the Messiah, together with the favorable effects of this office, but only upon the believing remnant within the largely apostate Church. In the confluence of these two lessons, we are taught to fear, and not to be highminded at all; but also, to hope for and be confident of victory, though all the world should oppose us, if we continue steadfast in the faith. Let us now see how the scriptures holds forth these lessons to us. Continue Reading

Immediately after the account of Israel’s failure to enter the land of Canaan, and her being cursed, therefore, to wander about in the wilderness for forty years, until that entire generation which disbelieved God’s promises should be utterly consumed, excepting only Caleb and Joshua, who had a different spirit; God then immediately sees fit to set forth in summary the laws that Israel must obey when she had entered into the Promised Land, and the means of the forgiveness of sins committed in ignorance, through an atoning sacrifice. In this way, after so devastating an occurrence, he holds forth both a solemn warning and a certain hope, as we shall now make clear. Continue Reading

In the ninth chapter of the letter to the Hebrews, the author proclaims that Christ has made an eternal redemption for his people, by offering himself up, once-for-all, as a perfect sacrifice for their sins; and he goes on to prove his assertion by reflecting that, “if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, being sprinkled on them who were defiled, sanctifies unto the purification of the flesh, how much more does the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself up blameless to God, purify our conscience from dead works, to serve the living God?” (Hebrews 9:13-14). In this way, he makes clear the typological function of the red heifer, which Israel was commanded of old to sacrifice and burn, and to make of its ashes a water of purification, not as though there were anything especially salubrious in the ashes themselves, but that they were a foreshadow of the sufferings of Christ, which really did cleanse the conscience, and purify those who had been dead in trespasses and sins. As we look to the account in Numbers, in which this ceremonial action is commanded, we must immediately be struck with how many details and instances were perfectly adapted to show forth, in a figure, the perfect redemptive work of Christ, both in its execution and its purifying results, as we shall now observe. Continue Reading

After the instructions concerning the ministry of the tabernacle were given to the sons of Levi in general and the priestly class in particular, which was marked out by divine appointment as comprising the family of Aaron alone, following the rebellion of Korah, and after provision was then made for the fabrication of the water of separation, through the ashes of a red heifer, which things were made necessary by the assault on the divine institution which Korah and those who were with him had waged in their deception, the text then turns once more to a historical account of the final stages of Israel’s forty-year journey through the wilderness, before they enter the promised land; and in this account, we may discern several very notable types of the Savior, both in the second striking of the rock, in the opposition of Edom to the children of Israel, and most especially in the matter of the fiery serpents which God sent among the people, and the remedy he provided, through a brazen serpent lifted up as an ensign in the wilderness, upon which, if one even looked, he would be healed of his malady and live. Continue Reading

In all the Old Testament scriptures, there are very few prophecies of the coming Messiah that shine with a greater brilliance or more explicit certainty than the testimony of Balaam, the false prophet who sought to destroy Israel, but ended up blessing her and confirming her great victory through the light-bearing, scepter-wielding Christ. How all this came about, that he who sought to frustrate God’s redemptive design was constrained to render an indisputable testimony to the final triumph of the Church through Christ, and how God caused Israel to prosper at every turn, and protected her with his might, we shall now observe from the account at hand. Continue Reading

As we saw previously, the book of Numbers opened up with an account of the census of Israel, just before they set out from the foot of Mount Sinai, to cross the wilderness and enter the Promised Land; and now, as we have come to the end of the book of Numbers, we shall see that it likewise concludes with a census of the people, after they have wandered for forty years in the wilderness, during which time the entire generation of Israelites who refused to enter the land were destroyed, saving only Joshua and Caleb alone. So the title “Numbers” is very appropriate after all, drawing our attention as it does to the significance of these two censuses: for we may learn, when we reflect upon them, that if God’s people are faithless, and rebel, they will not live, nor ever experience the promised blessings of his grace; but this faithlessness of the people does not nullify God’s own faithfulness (cf. Romans 3:3-4), for he will not allow his covenant to be broken, but will raise up in their place another generation that will know the grace that he had promised. Thus, even after killing all the Israelites twenty years of age or older, including 603,550 men able to go to war, from the eleven tribes excepting Levi (Numbers 1:46-47), he raised up in just forty years time another multitude, including 601,730 men of war (Numbers 26:51); and this was just a foreshadow of what he would do in later times, casting off the unbelieving nation of Israel, so that he might graft in by faith another generation of Gentiles, in order that his covenant should not be fruitless, but that they should inherit the blessings promised to Abraham (Romans 11). Only, we must learn from this not to be highminded, but to fear (Romans 11:20): for if this generation of Israel which heard the gospel did not enter into God’s rest because of unbelief, neither will we, who have been given the same gospel, enter in if we do not persevere in true faith (Hebrews 4:1-2); so that, if we would learn from the example of the Israelites destroyed in the wilderness, we must not be as they, but looking unto Jesus, we must press on through every difficulty, hoping in his sure covenant, and so find his promised rest at last. Continue Reading

Immediately after God first gave his Law to the people whom he had chosen, and established his covenant with them, they showed their unworthiness by transgressing his commandments, and building a golden calf to worship in his stead. But instead of casting off his people, God brought them through forty years of testing in the wilderness, and thereafter, when he was about to bring them into the land that he had covenanted to give them, he gave them the Law a second time, through Moses his servant, and reminded them in many ways of all the blessings he had promised their fathers to give to them, which they had not yet received; and he therefore enjoined the strictest obedience upon them most ardently, in order that they might enter into the joy of the promised blessings. This second giving of the Law, after the failure of Israel to obey it when it was first given, is recorded for us in the final book of the Pentateuch, Deuteronomy; which is a name that simply means “second law”. Continue Reading

When the people saw the Lord come down upon Mount Sinai in great power, so that the very mountains shook, and there were thunderings and lightnings, and a very thick darkness, and raging tempests and fires (Exodus 19:16-19; cf. also Hebrews 12:18-21), then the people were terrified, and were not only too afraid to go up the mount into the presence of the Lord, but they even asked of him not to speak to them again in so dreadful a way, and not to show them again this merest glimpse of his terrible glory (Exodus 20:18-21). God then told Moses that they were right to request this of him, thereby acknowledging that it was too much for the people to bear to have any glimpse of him or any word from him, except it should be given through a Mediator. Now, Moses himself was this mediator for a time, and he went up into the holy mount and brought down God’s words to the people; but he was inadequate for the task, and could not at all bring the people up to God, nor yet give them sufficient words in order to be a complete and satisfactory self-revelation; and so, God promised to send another Prophet like Moses, who should be greater than he, and reveal God in full, and make the people fit to come to him (Deuteronomy 18:15-19). This promise ranks among the greatest in all the Pentateuch, and its fulfillment was ardently hoped for by all Israel until the coming of Jesus, of whom the apostle John said that, “the Law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ” (John 1:17), thereby confirming that Jesus was greater than Moses, and was that Prophet of whom Moses had spoken so long before. Continue Reading

Before the children of Israel had entered the promised land, when Moses was still giving his final instructions to them, he commanded them, when they had once crossed over the Jordan River, to set up an altar of unhewn stones on Mount Ebal; and then, when they were all gathered together, to stand six tribes on Mount Gerazim and six tribes on Mount Ebal, the former to call out the covenant blessings and the latter to call out the covenant curses. In this arrangement, we may see several things which are intended for our instruction: first, that the covenant did not just threaten curses or promise blessings, but that it held forth both to the people; second, that even within the twelve tribes, there were those who, by divine choice, should be made to experience the curses, and those who should inherit the blessings; and we may note here, that all those whom God commanded to stand on Mount Gerazim for blessing were children of the free women of Jacob, that is, of Leah and Rachel, and not of their servants Bilhah and Zilpah; and so we may be instructed by this, that only we who are children of the free woman by faith, and not those who are children of slaves by the works of the flesh, shall know the covenant blessings (cf. Galatians 4:22-31); and third, that those who were chosen for blessing would escape the curses not by their own efforts, but only through the divinely-supplied sacrifice of grace; for the altar of burnt offering was made of unhewn stones, as if to say, God himself will provide a sacrifice not made with hands; and it was placed upon Mount Ebal and not Mount Gerazim, as if to say, “Mount Gerazim with its blessings is for you because Mount Ebal with its curses is for my Sacrifice”; who is, of course, the Christ. Continue Reading

At the conclusion of the book of Deuteronomy, which has been a book marked by very many repetitions and second affirmations of things, there is also a second confirmation made of the Covenant which was originally confirmed on Mount Sinai, in Horeb (see Deuteronomy 29:1). On the occasion of this confirmation, Moses takes great pains to describe many notable things about this covenant, what benefits and advantages it holds forth, wherein it is essentially inadequate, and so on; and when he is coming to the climactic conclusion of his speech, he is very emphatic to drive home Christ to the people, that they might take comfort in the certain hope of his mercy, and not be overwhelmed by the strict demands of the Law. Let us look to the comforting words quoted above, to see how well they are designed to lead the children of Israel, who were under the Law, to Christ their Savior, who should free them from its demands and enable them to obey it; but first, we must notice a few significant things about the nature of this Covenant of Law that Moses is here confirming; for it may seem to many minds to be in such opposition to the gospel of Christ, that it is enigmatical or even impossible that it should at one and the same time hold him forth so freely to the people. But this is a confusion that we will certainly clear up, by the Spirit’s illuminating grace. Continue Reading

We have now come to the conclusion of Deuteronomy, and with it, the conclusion of the five books of Moses, which are of such foundational importance to the entire bible, that it might be said without exaggeration that the whole divine plan of redemption and the schematic for all of history is here laid out, so that all the prophets who should later arise could speak no new thing, but only apply and exegete what Moses had already said; and even the Christ himself, when he came, set about to do only what God had before promised and signified by the hand of Moses so long before; and in these final chapters, although the superiority of Moses is again signaled (Deuteronomy 34:10-12); yet what is particularly emphasized is his inadequacy and failure, and the need for someone greater than he, to do what he could not. And so, as he admits his incapacity to do in earnest what he had spoken of and seen afar by the Spirit of prophecy, at the same time, he commits the people to God, who he trusts should go before them, and do himself what Moses had not been able to do, through another greater Moses. Continue Reading

Dear ones in Christ, we have now finished our survey of the books of Moses, and we have had many weighty things impressed upon us. Let us now take a few moments to consider what we have heard, in order that we might be very careful not to drift away: “for if the word which was spoken through angels was firm, and every transgression and disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape, having been careless of so great a salvation, which began to be spoken of by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by those who heard, God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders and diverse miracles and apportionings of the Holy Spirit according to his will” (Hebrews 2:2-4)? But we trust that it will not be so, but rather, having witnessed the beginning of the gospel of Christ, which Moses testified to, we will run all the more assiduously to the fullness of the gospel in the broad daylight, which God has now spoken to us perfectly through his Son (Hebrews 1:1-4). Continue Reading

Genesis 24:7 The LORD God of heaven, which took me from my father’s house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spoke unto me, and that swore unto me, saying, Unto your seed will I give this land; he shall send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife unto my son from there.

It is altogether fitting that Abraham’s promised Son, Isaac, should be set forth as a type of our Savior in every notable event of his life: for, first of all, his birth was of so miraculous a nature as to reinforce to Abraham the truth that the promised Seed, who would bless all the nations of the earth, could never come naturally, by the efforts of the flesh, as Ishmael came. On the contrary Isaac came by the divine promise, and through the divine power, which is even able to bring life out of death. And so that son in whom was said to be the promised Seed, Christ our Savior, was, even from his birth, a type of the Savior, by virtue of his life which was brought out of death, through the power of God, and in accordance with his covenant promise. And second, in the account of Abraham’s testing, we have as clear a personal type as can be found in all of scriptures, of the substitutionary sacrifice and the rising again of our Savior; by means of which test, Abraham demonstrated his faith in the coming Messiah, whom he knew that God would certainly raise from the dead, and thus received his own promised son, “in a figure,” back from the dead (Hebrews 11:17-19). And so, if in two marvelous and unsurpassed ways this man Isaac served to foreshadow the life of our Savior, then we may with some reason suppose that the next notable circumstance in his life, the means by which he obtained his wife, may also convey some truth to us about the coming work of the true Seed of Abraham, Jesus Christ. In pursuance of which, we will now turn to the account in Genesis, chapter twenty-four. Continue Reading

Everywhere in the Law and the Prophets we see Christ and his gospel-work symbolized, prophesied, and foreshadowed in many marvelous ways: but only a very few times, and at the most critical junctures of redemptive history, do we see our Savior, before his advent in Bethlehem, appear in visible form to his saints. Jacob’s encounter at Peniel, just prior to his return to the land of promise, is one of these occurrences; and in this history, we may learn much of our blessed Redeemer, and of the true religion which alone prevails with him. To this end, we now turn our attention to the account at hand. Continue Reading