Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.
I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.
SEEING JESUS IN
ABRAHAM
SOJOURNER
Genesis 21:34 And Abraham sojourned many days in the land of the Philistines.
Matthew 8:20 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”
Temporary. Nothing permanent, nor fixed. No forwarding address, and certainly nothing to return to. Abraham was a man who lived a life of temporariness, of no constant residence or place to call home, other than his temporary tents, living a nomadic life. Moving about a land he had no “rights” to in the view of those he lived amongst.
He lived amongst the Philistines, seeking to maintain a peace with those he lived amongst. He sought to recover a well that Abimelech’s servants took from Abraham, Abraham offerd sheep and oxen to Abimelech, negotiating a covenant with the king of the Philistines. Abraham gave Abimelech a gift, though the claim was that Abraham had been wronged, not Abimelech.
After this one sided covenant with Abimilech, Abraham planted a tamarisk tree and called on the name of the Everlasting God.
You see, Abraham sought a permanent place, a permanent home, and that home was the Everlasting God. The sheep and oxen provided to Abimelech was of no consequence to Abraham, for they did not represent that which he held onto as permanent. He was merely passing through.
Jesus also, as the ultimate sojourner, did not even own sheep or oxen to offer to His offenders. No – nothing of personal ownership was offered by the Lord Jesus. Golly, he didn’t even have a place to rest His head. It was His body that was the offering, and His life on earth was surely the tantamount example of sojourning, living the life of a man on pilgrimage.
Jesus’ offering of His body was the sacrifice He provided to initiate a covenant with the Abimelechs of the world. Those who are takers and not givers.
Are we not all takers? Do we not take advantage of situations we find ourselves in? Consider identifying with Abimelech in the story we have of Abraham. Can you also see yourself as the one opposite the Lord in the negotiations? As the one who is facing Jesus, as He offers much much more than sheep of oxen?
He was the ultimate sojourner, with no worldy wealth, no property, no livestock, no goods to bargain with, except for His own body, and the extreme passion He exercised to cut a covenant with us.
May His name be lifted up!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
128
FACE OF GOD
Genesis 33:10 Jacob said, “No, please, if I have found favor in your sight, then accept my present from my hand. For I have seen your face, which is like seeing the face of God, and you have accepted me.
A little context may help in this passage we are considering today.
Jacob ripped his brother Esau off. He connived his birthright from him and stole the blessing from him. Out of these actions, a family was torn apart, with Esau expressing a fury equal to the crimes committed against him.
Jacob was going to die at the hand of Esau.
Genesis 27:41 Now Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him, and Esau said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are approaching; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”
Did he not deserve this retribution? Was Jacob not the supplanter, the deceiver, the self seeking conniving little cheat that was a destroyer of a family.
Fast forward two decades, with Jacob hearing Esau’s threat of death in his memory, knowing that he had completely wronged his brother, and caused much pain for the family.
And a message from God, speaking of Esau coming to meet him with 400 men.
400 men did not bode well in Jacob’s mind, certainly reminding him of this death sentence hanging over his head. Judgement was on it’s way for Jacob and Judgements name was Esau! But Jacob was the ever wiley man, separating his family into camps, hoping some would survive. He truly was a man who lacked courage. But he did know who to call on in times of trouble.
In Jacob’s trouble, he called out to God, wrestling with God all night. In the end, Jacob came away a new man, with a new name.
Genesis 32:30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, “For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered.”
Jacobs life had been delivered, even though he saw the face of God. Prior to encountering Esau, Jacob’s life was on the line before the Lord, and the Lord delivered Jacob from himself. The life changing event of Jacob’s life!
Jacob endured the night of struggle and came away a new man. A new man that was about to meet his brother. A brother with thoughts of killing on his mind – or so Jacob thought. Yet Esau initiated the response of love, of embrace, of weeping.
Genesis 33:4 But Esau ran to meet him and embraced him and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept.
Jacob refers to Esau as the face of God. He had just experienced seeing the face of God that night, and he described Esau’s lavish forgiveness, love, care and brokenness as that of the face of God.
Esau provides us a witness of what Jacob experienced in that night of wrestling. He was wrestling with One who would be broken for him, that provided forgiveness, undeserved love, mercy and relationship. A clearing of a painful conscience, and a healing of brotherhood.
Esau. A man who threatened death upon his own brother, yet looked beyond justice and to his heart. To healing and not to hurting. To love and not lashing out.
What a picture of our God, and a description of the Face of God for us to live under.
When you think of the Face of God, remember the context of forgiveness, love, weeping and reunion.
Jesus is the Face of God!
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
127
EYE OF THE LORD
Psalm 33:18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love,
The psalter has been reminiscing of the exodus and of Gods power exhibited in the overthrow of the the Egyptian army. Prior to our description of God as the eye of the Lord, the psalter speaks of warriors and horses.
Psalm 33:16-17 – The king is not saved by his great army; a warrior is not delivered by his great strength. The war horse is a false hope for salvation, and by its great might it cannot rescue.
Might he be thinking of the Egyptian army being vanquished by the Red Sea. Of course the conclusion after considering the Egyptian army is that the strength of men is a vain strength, a false confidence. Though the power nation of the time, their strength was consumed in a matter of seconds.
Exodus 15:4 “Pharaoh’s chariots and his host he cast into the sea, and his chosen officers were sunk in the Red Sea.
God has exhibited His care and power over the small and great nations through His wisdom. This is a wonderful truth, and yet the psalter starts our verse with “Behold”.
Though God is active in the national affairs of mighty nations, that is not all there is to God. God is also resting His eye, His attention on the one who fears Him. This is not an aggregate of thousands or tens of thousands that gather as a nation, but refers to an individual, a lone person, a solitaire and single person that is of the right spirit, that is humble, fearing the Lord.
Behold the Eye of the Lord is on the individual. The solitaire man, woman or child, that fears Him and trusts in His mercy.
As I grow older in the Lord, I realize I have so little to offer Him, such an insignificant servant. One who had great dreams and aspired to much. Missionary work in far flung nations, self sacrifice for the poorest of the poor. So proud. So full of myself.
And yet my life is a “common” life, that of a husband and father who gets up every morning to go to work and comes home at night to help out around the house, watch my grandbabies occasionally and then fall asleep, only to repeat again the next day.
Yet the Eye of the Lord has been my ever present protection and guide. He is the One who works in the insignificant, amongst the common man who fears the Lord. He is the One who exhibits mercy to us, and as I get older, I see His steadfast love in the day to day experiences of His protection, guidance and comfort.
Oh to recall that His eye, the Eye of the Lord is upon those who trust the Christ. May we fear Him and to depend on His mercy for more in our lives!
For He truly is the One who is good.
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
As many who have followed me for a bit, I have fallen into the Psalms, and I can’t get up! (As if I would want to.) The Psalms are a majestic collection of poetry, of heart felt human experiences that constantly challenge me in my own frail attempt to follow the true King. As many of the Psalms are written by David, my study on the Psalms has spurred me on to looking at the life of David, is the main contributor to this book, and to follow the victories and tragedies of the shepherd King of Israel.
Many times in the narrative, we will see the Lord Jesus, imperfectly, yet a reflection of His spirit in a man with weaknesses.
1 Samuel 22:20-23
20 But one of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped and fled after David. 21 And Abiathar told David that Saul had killed the priests of the LORD. 22 And David said to Abiathar, “I knew on that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul. I have occasioned the death of all the persons of your father’s house. 23 Stay with me; do not be afraid, for he who seeks my life seeks your life. With me you shall be in safekeeping.”
One priest escaped the slaughter of our earlier passage. If you will remember, Saul had all the priests, their family, those who lived in the city of Nob, along with all the livestock put to the sword.
One priest escaped that we know of. Abiathar, a priest who followed after David in his fleeing from Saul, saw David rise to power and was faithful to David throughout most of his reign. That is until Adonijah swept Abiathar away from David, but that is for a later time to consider.
In this passage, Abiathar is seen delivering the news to David the news of the slaughter of the priests, and of those in Nob.
David admits to this priest that he knew of the danger of Doeg, and that his actions of deception to Ahimelech caused his death. And the death of those in the city.
As a thought experiment, for just a moment, what if David had told Ahimelech the truth?
Possibility #1 Siding with Saul
Ahimelech could have decided to be faithful to Saul, and either reject David’s plea for assistance, or try to capture David for the sake of the king. Surely David was not in fear of physical capture from the priest. That seems unlikely.
Might Ahimelech have informed Saul after David left, helping the king in his quest for David? Possibly, but David would be in no more danger than he was as he entered Nob. Sure, Saul may know of the time and place David was at a certain time, but David would surely find alternate safehavens to venture to.
Saul would have no reason to kill the priest. The city of Nob would have remained a peaceful place for the priests of God and their families.
The strife between Saul and David had not yet reached Ahimelech. He was limited in his ability to make an informed decision. Out of David’s decision to deceive, Ahimelech and the entire city of Nob was sacrificed on the altar of a madman’s dreams.
So what if David had provided the priest the truth of the situation?
Possibility #2 – Siding with David
If David had trusted the priest, sat him down and explained the situation, Ahimelech may have sided with David, providing him the sword, the prayers and the food. Ahimelech would have had the knowledge to decide what to do, especially in view of Doeg being witness to this interaction.
Might Ahimelech joined David at this time? Hard to say, but it would have been Ahimelech’s choice and not David’s.
Might Ahimelech have had some early warning of the danger of Saul’s request for his appearance? Surely this would provide Ahimelech some warning. Might Ahimelech have had the freedom to attach himself to David at this point, and found a new king, a sane king, though not formally in power, but under the blessing of God?
As I said, this is simply a thought experiment, but it does allow us to see that deception has consequences, that the hiding of information can have dire results.
Hundreds had been slain. One man was with David. A priest, whom David took responsibility for.
It may seem that in this passage, David almost flippantly admits his sin and moves on. The psalms speak a far different matter. Psalms 52, 64, 109 and 140 all have reference to our passage in 1 Samuel 22, and the death of those in the city of Nob. I have currently posted on Psalms 52 and 64 as I work my way through the psalms. For your convenience, the following are links to previous related posts of David’s prayers and heart after the massacre of Nob.
David carried this result of his deception for the rest of his life. Out of this catastrophe, David was surely trained unto righteousness through this memory of this tragedy.
Hebrews 12:11 For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
The Lord has mysterious ways, and in the midst of horrible circumstances, that may have been assisted by ourselves, we can look to the forgiveness of the One who loves us, the Lord Jesus, and of His continuing love and guidance to us for His will and our good.
May His name be praised.
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.
I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.
SEEING JESUS IN
ABRAHAM
INTERCEDES FOR OTHERS
Genesis 18:23 Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?
Luke 6:12 In these days he went out to the mountain to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God. Luke 22:45 And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow,
Abraham had a family member in trouble.
At the beginning of Genesis 18, three “men” stood in front of Abraham. Abraham begged them to stay for refreshment, even a meal, and it turns out these men spoke of Abraham’s future child by his wife Sarah. We have in this story the laughter of Sarah’s disbelief, and the timing of their son’s birth foretold. It was about to become real within twelve months!
Although it appears the “men” had come to discuss Abraham’s future children, they were also on their way to a city called Sodom. As Abraham assisted them on their journey, God revealed to Abraham that the “men” were on their way to judge if destruction was to fall on the City of Sodom – where Lot and his family lived.
Abraham stood still, eventually drawing near to the LORD and then began to reason with God. He actually pleaded using the very nature of God against Him. You are not unjust! What if there are 50 righteous men. Will you kill them along with the unrighteous? What about 40? 30? 20? 10?
Abraham knew his God and advocated for those in a city He may not know. Except for Lot, Lot’s wife, their three daughters and their husbands, and hopefully, two righteous slaves. If Lot’s family was considered righteous, we have the ten Abraham may have been fighting for if we have 2 additional righteous slaves. We don’t know, yet he interceded for the city, and risked the anger of the Lord in his efforts.
It turns out only four survived the judgement. Yet Abraham’s interceding was effective, for it moved the heart and will of God to allow for Abraham’s desires to be realized. Abraham interceded, and God agreed. Even though ten were not found, God rescued four. God was righteous in that no righteous soul died in that conflagration. How utterly shocking that God’s righteous nature, that Abraham argued with God about, was realized in the saving of four souls, far less than the ten Abraham prayed for!
Jesus, in His intercession, prayed for His disciples, and of those who believed through their word, and finally that the world would know that God had sent Him. Abraham sought his own will, that is, the safety of some in Sodom by the removal of judgement and destruction. Jesus sought the Father’s will, not His own will, and joined into that will of God through a judgement undeserved, to deliver all those whom He prayed for.
Billions of souls later, He is still interceding for us.
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
126
EXALTED
Psalm 148:13 Let them praise the name of the LORD, for his name alone is exalted; his majesty is above earth and heaven.
I have been a believer for over four decades, and I remember the first time I simply considered God as being exalted.
Exalted, to be inaccessibly high, to be beyond and above, to be out of reach. As I considered His stature, His position only seemed to get greater and farther away, to be so out of reach, and yet He was with me, teaching me and stretching my understanding.
I was out late that night, walking my route with no one around, all the homes quiet, and not a dog barking for miles. Quiet. No traffic in that section of London that night. I just so happened to come to a pedestrian crossing, dang it if I still can picture it in my mind, with an old brick house converted to a corner store on my left, broken sidewalk below my feet, the curbing missing and the pavement cracked. It was, I tend to remember, a starless night with just an old street light giving some sight for me.
Yes, I remember that night forty years ago – the freedom, the loss of worry and fretting, the inner joy that was almost unbearable, and the holy fear of maintaining His presence. He cracked the door for me that night, gave me a glimpse, be it ever so small, that has remained with my memory ever since. All the surroundings became an anchor for my mind to remember such a privilege.
He is high. No matter the height you image He may dwell in, you, and I have not understood it correctly. He is very high, exalted above all and everything.
That night my only response to Him was praise. No prayer, no requests, no sharing of my burdens or concerns, no formulaic prayers. As a matter of fact I had no concerns, or burdens, or needs. I could only praise Him out of the mystery He is, out of the exalted position (weekly as I understood it) He dwells in.
He is Exalted
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
125
EXACT IMPRINT
Hebrews 1:3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
This is somewhat of a daunting name for myself as I have always associated this name with an imprint, or a stamp. Not sure where I got that idea, and I am not trying to assign error with this understanding. It is just that it doesn’t seem to connect with me. Maybe I am being too literal – Remember I tend to be too literal at times – but to associate Jesus as the imprint of God’s nature doesn’t tell me anything very specific. And I tend to associate it with a physical form that creates an imprint or stamp, and we all know that is not the message Hebrews is trying to communicate.
So I am left with a bit of a dilemma. How shall I try to write on something I don’t get? Of course – some may say that hasn’t stopped me before with most of my previous posts. That may be true!
Nevertheless, when all else fails, I started to study the phrase and looked initially at Strong’s dictionary. What a wonderful tool for the layman to take advantage of.
What I found was that the phrase “exact imprint” in the Greek New Testament is χαρακτήρ, transliterated as “charaktḗr” Now it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see the similarity of this transliterated word to our English word “character”.
This was an amazing find for me, for if I read this passage with this substitution, we get the following…
He is the radiance of the glory of God
and the character of his nature.
He is the character of God’s nature. Wow – That helps me so much.
In my mind there are numerous passages that speak of the absolute Deity of Jesus Christ, for which I am so thankful. This one passage, though strong on this topic based on my previous understanding, has now “landed” in my understanding. I get it – at least I get it better than before, and will be one of those passages that I will return to in discussions with saint or sinner.
He is the Character – the Exact Imprint – of God’s nature! Think of that for a moment – the suffering Savior has revealed not only the heart of God, but His exact nature.
May we praise Him for who He is!
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
As many who have followed me for a bit, I have fallen into the Psalms, and I can’t get up! (As if I would want to.) The Psalms are a majestic collection of poetry, of heart felt human experiences that constantly challenge me in my own frail attempt to follow the true King. As many of the Psalms are written by David, my study on the Psalms has spurred me on to looking at the life of David, is the main contributor to this book, and to follow the victories and tragedies of the shepherd King of Israel.
Many times in the narrative, we will see the Lord Jesus, imperfectly, yet a reflection of His spirit in a man with weaknesses.
1 Samuel 22:11-19
11 Then the king sent to summon Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father’s house, the priests who were at Nob, and all of them came to the king. 12 And Saul said, “Hear now, son of Ahitub.” And he answered, “Here I am, my lord.” 13 And Saul said to him, “Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse, in that you have given him bread and a sword and have inquired of God for him, so that he has risen against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?” 14 Then Ahimelech answered the king, “And who among all your servants is so faithful as David, who is the king’s son-in-law, and captain over your bodyguard, and honored in your house? 15 Is today the first time that I have inquired of God for him? No! Let not the king impute anything to his servant or to all the house of my father, for your servant has known nothing of all this, much or little.” 16 And the king said, “You shall surely die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s house.” 17 And the king said to the guard who stood about him, “Turn and kill the priests of the LORD, because their hand also is with David, and they knew that he fled and did not disclose it to me.” But the servants of the king would not put out their hand to strike the priests of the LORD. 18 Then the king said to Doeg, “You turn and strike the priests.” And Doeg the Edomite turned and struck down the priests, and he killed on that day eighty-five persons who wore the linen ephod. 19 And Nob, the city of the priests, he put to the sword; both man and woman, child and infant, ox, donkey and sheep, he put to the sword.
Nob was a small, peaceful city of priests, approx. 2 miles northeast of Jerusalem and 3 miles southeast of the capital of Gibeah, where Saul reigned under a tamarisk tree.
In our earlier passage, Doeg had revealed to Saul where David had been, and Saul was like a dog on the hunt. Get Ahimelech! And not just Ahimelech, but all of his house, even all of the priests of the city. Bring them to me!
As Ahimelech, and the priests of Nob arrived in front of Saul, in response to the kings demand, Saul, dwelling in his paranoia, makes ridiculous claims of the priest’s motivations. He exposed his baseless suspicions, claiming the priest of God had intended to subvert the king. Saul claimed that Ahimelech’s assistance was the impetus for David to rise up against the king.
Get a hold of what Saul said to Ahimelech once more.
“Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse, in that you have given him bread and a sword and have inquired of God for him,so that he has risen against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?”
Ahimelech, in Saul’s twisted thinking was the reason David was in rebellion. Have I mentioned that Saul is full blown nuts yet?
Ahimelech simply answered the king with true words, asking Saul to remember the type of man David was. David was a faithful servant, Saul’s son in law and captain over Saul’s bodyguard. Each of these known facts justified Ahimelech’s assistance to David, in support of King Saul. Ahimelech, based on David’s responses to him, understood that David was on mission for the king.
Saul’s claim that David was the arch enemy of king Saul must have come as a complete shock to Ahimelech. Can you imagine being a man after God’s will, quietly serving the community, seeking to honor the king, and then being confronted with treason?
But there was more.
Ahimelech must die. His crime? Living in Saul’s imagination as an enemy of the state, by giving aid to Saul’s son in law. Incredible!
Even as Saul gave the order to strike down Ahimelech’s household, the servants of Saul refused. This simple act of resistance may have opened the door for later retaliation, making the servants appear to take David’s side. At least in Saul’s mind it may have appeared so. That is what happens to a mind who is consumed with paranoia. Everyone is out to get you. In Saul’s mind, even his servants may have appeared to conspire against him, though in reality, they were only respecting the service of the priests.
Enter Doeg again. In our last post I suggested Doeg may have had a sense of loyalty to his men in providing David’s actions to Saul, that he may have had some positive motive. That may have been a stretch, for Doeg turns out to be a willing accomplice to this crime, a mass murderer, killing 85 priests.
85 priests! This is horrendous. Why 85 priests? Saul commanded Doeg to kill the priests. Not only Ahimelech, as if he had done anything deserving of death, but his family, his peers, all those who wore the linen ephod.
Did I say 85 died that day. Read on, for the blood letting continued on to the city of Nob. This was a blood thirst that was sustained through travelling 3 miles to the south east of Gibeah. To continue the killing only emphasizes the hysterical fever Doeg and his men were experiencing!
I can’t find any record of the number of people in the city of Nob during this time, it must have been in the hundreds. What shock for those left behind, to see wild and crazed men enter the village, bloody and with swords being used on the population. Hundreds were faced with the sword falling on them. Men and women brutally murdered, with the assailants still not satisfied. Children and infants slain, as if they posed a threat, or that they had personally assisted David. Livestock joined in as victims of Doeg and his men. Nob must have been a bloody ghost town when Doeg finished.
In all of this we see what paranoia can lead to, what an insecure and unstable man can cause by suspicious thoughts and wild accusations. Truth had no part in this encounter – Saul was seeing red and would not listen to reason.
It is amazing the unabashed brutality of Saul in this instance. A king, turning on his own people, living in a peaceful city, in service to God. And yet, was it not this same king, earlier in his reign, who was commanded by God to show no mercy to the enemy of his nation? Was he not to strike Amalek and devote to destruction all that they have?
1 Samuel 15:3 Now go and strike Amalek and devote to destruction all that they have. Do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’”
Saul showed mercy in this instance with Amalek, in direct disobedience to the Word of God,
1 Samuel 15:9 But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep and of the oxen and of the fattened calves and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them. All that was despised and worthless they devoted to destruction.
How amazing the difference in Saul’s actions here. In our current passage, we see Saul murdering his very own people, men and women who served God. Killing men, women, children and infants, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.
This disobedience in relation to Amalek brought about the loss of Saul’s kingdom and raised up a man after God’s own heart, a man that Saul would commit to hating. David lived “rent free” in Saul’s mind, letting his twisted imagination eat away at any common sense or compassion.
In all of this mass murder, David was on the run, likely with his 400 men. This early decision to visit Nob must have haunted David, for he eventually accepted that his visit to Nob brought Ahimelech, and his family and friends into the target sights of a fanatical king.
A very heavy burden for a man who loved God. A very real message to David. This king Saul was serious as a heart attack. David was being chased by a man fully committed to taking him out. And David trusted God, entering into the very mouth of the lion, looking to God for direction.
David is an incredible example of courage to obey the will of God, and is a wonderful picture of the Lord Jesus, in that even as Jesus knew of His end game, He set his face as a flint to Jerusalem.
Luke 9:51 When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.
Jesus would not be protected as David was, from the insane leadership that was hunting Him down, but He followed God’s guidance into danger, succumbing to torture and death out of love for His Father.
And love for us.
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.
I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.
SEEING JESUS IN
ABRAHAM
COVENANT KEEPER
Genesis 17:9 And God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations.
Mark 14:24 And he said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many.
Abraham, when confronted with God in the 17th chapter of Genesis, is introduced into a covenant with God. The very first verse of the chapter has God describing Himself as “God Almighty”, and that Abraham was to walk before Him blameless.
Note that Abraham was to walk before God blamelessly in order that God may make a covenant with Abraham. This covenant was a bilateral covenant, one in which both parties to the covenant had responsibilities.
We have addressed the blessing God was offering to Abraham in previous posts, but in this post we want to emphasize Abraham’s responsibility before God.
This covenant, this bilateral covenant was intended to include an everlasting possession, a promised land, and God was intended to be their God (v9).
And the sign of the covenant? Circumcision. It was to be a sign. A sign of faithfulness to the covenant. The child was to be circumcised, an act of obedience of the parents, an indication of the parent’s hope for the child and the intention of the child to walk blameless before God. The sign of circumcision that would forever identify a man as being God’s. A sign that no one saw, for it was a private, hidden sign. A sign between God and the follower.
This sign of circumcision, in this instance indicates intention; intention of the parents to lead and for the child to follow, to be blameless before God.
Centuries later, a child was born, and though He was circumcised, and the parents sought to lead Him into a life of blamelessness before God, there was to be a revolutionary, unexpected, “outrageous” fulfillment of another covenant, forever linked to this Child.
Not only was Jesus blameless before men and God, but fully righteous (there is a difference!), and without sin. His acts, thoughts and desires only reflected a complete and utter obedience to the Father above.
Yes, He was circumcised but that was a shadow of an ancient covenant that His parents rightly observed. His covenant was to be greater, as the shedding of blood is greater than the shedding of a portion of skin as a baby. A self sacrifice that would initiate the greatest covenant offered to fallen man, a death that would produce life.
He initiated the covenant, He is Lord of the covenant, and has kept His covenant with His people.
His covenant is offered to all, and to enter this covenant, it is only to look to Him, to see Who He really is, and to follow. To believe He is the One, and to leave your sin behind.
Will you enter the covenant? He has poured out His blood for the many, and the many could include you.
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
124
EVERLASTING KING
Jeremiah 10:10 But the LORD is the true God; he is the living God and the everlasting King. At his wrath the earth quakes, and the nations cannot endure his indignation.
This name of God is our last in our mini series of “everlasting” names. It seems fitting that the Word has 7 names of God that speak in one way or another of His everlasting being.
Our last name of God is the Everlasting King, and since the listing has been alphabetical, I would not want to imply this is the least of all the names!
As Jeremiah spoke this name, He was in the midst of geopolitical upheaval that few have lived through. In the midst of this upheaval, Jeremiah speaks to a core reason for the upheaval. Idolatry.
By bending the knee to any other that the true God, brings conflict and enmity between men, and is the cause of pain throughout our history. Jeremiah mocks the very thought of idolatry, having known the True God and seeing this behavior form the view point of God.
The passage has Jeremiah speak of the vanity of idols, the uselessness of referring to an idol. Although idols can be beautiful, and intimidating, and pervasive, does not establish idols as true.
Jeremiah speaks of idols as being decorated with costly coverings, and the formation of the idol requiring great skill, yet they are simply a chunk of wood, an inanimate object that cannot speak, and that has no sentient existence.
Yet in our day, this truth is still valid, for how many idols are available for us to grovel at? Every thing created by man has the “idolatry factor” included in its existence.
I suppose the complexity of idols has grown exponentially, from a wooden block to technical marvels. Massive computers that “forecast” the future weather, or mechanical robots that are beginning to “think”. But complexity, or the increased skill set of the one creating the machine does not make the idol of greater value
The visual beauty of idols may have also greatly increased, grabbing our eyes and attention. Tremendous visual displays are everywhere, overloading our senses, providing messages for us to consider, seeking to convert the believer from God. We are in the midst of a land full of messages glaring at us through computers, billboards and most effectively the cell phone. This inundation of false beliefs delivered through visual beauty does not make the idol of greater value.
The fact that all the nations bow down to an idol, that everyone else is giving attention to an idol, whatever idol they choose, does not make the idol of greater value.
Idols, per Jeremiahs message, are pure vanity, of no value.
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
123
EVERLASTING FATHER
Isaiah 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
My brother-in-law once asked me if Jesus is our Father? What? Why would you even think that?
It turns out that he was asking a very good question, a question challenged me when he referred to the above verse to justify his request.
Although there are ways to address this seeming problem while referring to the Trinity as One God, that the characteristic of Fatherhood is consistent through each of the persons of the Trinity. Although it is common to refer to the Father as the One who sent Jesus the Son on mission to the earth, each of the persons in the Trinity may be thought of as Fatherly.
One additional viewpoint is that the term “Everlasting Father” speaks of Jesus as the author, or source of eternity. The phrase may be expressed as father of eternity if I understand it correctly.
No matter how you understand this name as it relates to the Savior, we have a passage that speaks of the Fatherhood of our God, and as a believer who lost his father early in his life, I have not typically thought of our God in this way. This speaks of my spiritual poverty, for to consider the Creator/Redeemer as my Father provides a life changing perspective on God.
So many impacts of relating to God as my Father come to mind, but for this post, the approachableness of God bears on my thoughts. To think that the One who has been offended by my sin, rejected by my attitudes and actions, and occasionally ignored in my thinking has His arms open to me, His door always open, and His heart ready to hear of my repentance and love to Him is a truly amazing truth.
And as a father, I have come to know the joy of my own children coming to me for advice, of their reaching out for help or guidance, of their sharing a joy or trial with me.
Is it correct to think we bring joy to the Everlasting Father when we come to Him with our burdens, our concerns, our request for guidance? As a child years back, I would think this would only be a burden for my father, but now I realize to be a father is to look for these times when your children come to you.
He is the Everlasting Father, and He waits for us to reach out, to ask for forgiveness, to seek guidance or to simply be with Him.
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
As many who have followed me for a bit, I have fallen into the Psalms, and I can’t get up! (As if I would want to.) The Psalms are a majestic collection of poetry, of heart felt human experiences that constantly challenge me in my own frail attempt to follow the true King. As many of the Psalms are written by David, my study on the Psalms has spurred me on to looking at the life of David, is the main contributor to this book, and to follow the victories and tragedies of the shepherd King of Israel.
Many times in the narrative, we will see the Lord Jesus, imperfectly, yet a reflection of His spirit in a man with weaknesses.
1 Samuel 22:6-10 6 Now Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men who were with him. Saul was sitting at Gibeah under the tamarisk tree on the height with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him. 7 And Saul said to his servants who stood about him, “Hear now, people of Benjamin; will the son of Jesse give every one of you fields and vineyards, will he make you all commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, 8 that all of you have conspired against me? No one discloses to me when my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse. None of you is sorry for me or discloses to me that my son has stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this day.” 9 Then answered Doeg the Edomite, who stood by the servants of Saul, “I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, 10 and he inquired of the LORD for him and gave him provisions and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine.”
Remember in our previous passage, David had found a certain security at the cave of Adullum, and though many came to follow him at the cave, it was a place of relative safety and security from Saul. That is, until the Lord spoke to David and told him to go into the lions mouth. To go back to Saul’s kingdom, to go to a place of far less safety. With 400 men following David, it was only a matter of time for Saul to hear that David was “back in town”.
This is instructive for me, in that in David’s obedience, the action appears to favor Saul’s goals. Opportunity opens up for Saul to get his man, and to keep his kingdom. David was a sitting duck, almost appearing to ask to be caught.
Yet in the mysteries of God, this act of obedience only gave David the opportunity to see the faithfulness of God in His protection from Saul. In my imagination, if David had settled in a different land. away from Saul and his minions, he may have rid the time of Saul’s kingdom out, waiting patiently for the promise to come true. But that was not to be, for David was to be exercised in his faith, was to see the goodness of God (in the midst of trial and turmoil), was to experience.
Let’s take a moment to consider Saul. A petulant, self centered man committed to the destruction of David, a young man who had served Saul faithfully. Saul was a man that alienated his children in order to protect his own status, and in this scene we have him whining about his circumstances in front of those he was to lead. (By the way, if you are a leader of any ilk, whining is not a good look on you. Lead, don’t whine!)
First he sought to buy votes. It is a poor politicians method of gaining power, by enticing the populace – his servants in this case, with worldly goods. David wouldn’t be so kind as offering fields and vineyards to the servants, implying that Saul had provided these things! Had Saul provided fields and vineyards to his servants yet? Who knows. Yet he appealed to their baser nature.
v8… No one discloses to me when my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse. None of you is sorry for me or discloses to me that my son has stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this day.”
Then he claims his servants were traitorous. They were unwilling to rat out Jonathon, implying Saul thought they knew of Jonathon’s connection with David. Saul was questioning their loyalty, and assuming the worst. In his paranoia, he claims all his servants had conspired against him. He goes so far as to claim his son is the one who instigated David’s rebellion. This man is nuts!
And as self absorbed men reveal, they rely on pity for support. “None of you is sorry for me…”
When was the last time you looked up to a leader who exhibited this type of treatment towards his people? Saul was not in his right mind!
And as the first verse tells us, Saul had a spear in his hand. Many times we have seen that Saul is not reluctant to use a spear he is holding onto, and at this time of instability. the spear may fly if someone doesn’t do something soon!
Enter Doeg. Not a stellar chap in any stretch of the imagination, but he was the chief of Saul’s herdsmen (1 Samuel 21:7). Might the servants in this passage may be the same? The instability of Saul and the danger it may pose for the servants may have been the impetus to reveal David’s recent appearance in Nob.
Maybe, but most likely, Doeg was one that would take advantage of a situation, and not worry about morality, right over wrong, or the outcome of his actions, other than getting something out of it!
So Doeg spilled his guts!
For Doeg also, it must have seemed like God’s will for him to be at the very same place as David, and then days/weeks later, have an opportunity to gain favor from this king. Opportunity!
Consider our own lives. We sometimes have situations that seem to line up for us, that are obviously the correct way to go, that provide apparent blessings and goodness for our own lives.
Yet I would challenge us to consider the revealed will of God when things are coincidentally lining up for us. Will the next step violate the character of God if we follow through? Will our words, decisions or actions cause harm to others, and go against God’s will for our lives.
For Doeg, he saw opportunity and jumped. As believers, we should be wary of circumstances that are lining up, but always consider the way of the Lord, His will in every decision.
We don’t want to look like a Doeg!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.
I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.
SEEING JESUS IN
ABRAHAM
FRUITFUL
Genesis 17:6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you.
Hebrews 6:14 saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.”
Earlier on in Genesis, the Lord spoke to Abram of the many offspring He would produce through Abram. We reviewed this topic in Genesis 15:5 a couple of weeks ago. See Jesus in the Old Testament – Abraham – 13 if of interest.
Although this occurrence seems to be of a similar massage as before in Genesis 15, the message is slightly different, in that God comes to Abram speaking of fruitfulness. In the middle of this message of fruitfulness, God informed Abram of two things.
Abram would now be Abraham.
God was to establish a covenant with Abraham. A covenant of circumcision to be obeyed.
So my ears perk up – How does fruitfulness and circumcision relate to each other?
Let’s take a moment and consider some passages that may shed some light on the idea of circumcision, and see if it connects with fruitfulness.
When God initiated the command of circumcision, it was directedly related to the obedience of the believer to the Word of God. Notice two verses that directly speak of the covenant of circumcision and obedience linked together.
Genesis 17:9 And God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations.
Genesis 17:10 This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised.
As mentioned in earlier post, Abram would have many offspring, speaking to the quantity of children he could claim as from his loins. But I wonder – Is there such a thing as an offspring that is not fruitful?
To be fruitful, as we find through the witness of the Word, speaks of obedience. Fruitfulness is the result of obedience. Many reading may know of believers, all in various states of fruitfulness. Some even may not be exhibiting any fruit in their lives, and yet they are offspring.
Where are you going with this Carl?
I am suggesting that there is a difference between the quantity of children and the quality of children. Consider Isaac – he had two sons (quantity), but one son was of a different quality, experienced a different fruitfulness, compared to the other.
In Genesis 15, Abram was addressing his lack of any children when speaking to God, that he only had a servant to pass down to. God said he would have many physical children.
In this passage, I would suggest that out of the many, many offspring of Abraham, some would be fruitful, obedient offspring.
Abraham, to be sure, was exceedingly fruitful. Joseph was exceedingly fruitful. Moses, Joshua, Samuel, David, the prophets, faithful priests. All fruitful.
Yet there was One who is the epic topic of this verse. He is the ever fruitful, ever blessed One who, through life eternal would continually produce fruit to God, even through us, if we listen and obey.
He is the Fruitful One
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
122
EVERLASTING ROCK
Isaiah 26:4 Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock.
This name is one more description of our God with the Hebrew term olam used to describe Him. As a matter of fact, there will be a total of eight Names of God that include the this Hebrew word.
For those who may find this post and not have been following the series, check some of my earlier posts to consider what the message is, and how it may be understood. Or do a search on eternal/everlasting within this blog.
For our God to be called an everlasting rock, at first seems to be a misnomer, for what rock have you ever found that is not from antiquity.
If we believe the scientists who say they know, rocks have been in existence for 13.8 billion (or is it trillion) years. That kinda smacks of everlasting. And if we understand the law of the conservation of matter, the rock (or at least it’s components) will always exist.
But all of this is simply restricted thinking, since both these statements above cannot prove their claim, as in the age of the rock, nor has the law of conservation considered anything outside of creation in their theory.
Both statements remove God from the analysis, and come up short for the sake of the believer. Let me clarify one point. To be honest, the conservation of matter is an important theory by which mankind can see the faithfulness of God in the stability of creation. At least it should bring a man to a humility when he observes this consistency in creation, but I fear we have lost humility before God, and replaced it with a pride of knowledge – So sad. But I digress!
For our God to be called a Rock, is to call Him as the One who is stable, immovable, unchanging and of great weight. He is the everlasting Rock, the God who is the same yesterday, today and forever, never changing in His character, in His nature, in His abilities, unless by voluntarily abdicating His privilege’s for a greater purpose.
The concept of God as being of great weight may make you think I am thinking pounds, tons and grams. My friend – this is not my thought when I bring the concept of great weight to your thoughts.
For a rock to have great weight many also bring the idea of influence, or even authority.
Let me tell you a short story, about a your husband who was trying to supply for his family, and found an odd job digging out material from beside a house foundation. I spent the better part of the morning and most of the afternoon laboring away, until I hit a large rock aprox. equal to my hip when in the hole.
My job was to excavate along the foundation, and the rock was in the way. Eventually I freed the rock from the material surrounding it, and as gravity would have it, the rock “influenced my movements” until a co-worker returned to the site. Yes, it pinned me to the wall, and though it was a heavy sucker, what I remember most is that it influenced my ability to move. I was locked up, helpless and without any hope until someone came to my rescue.
That inanimate rock influenced me, made it’s will dominant over mine, and stopped me from completing my work.
Our God is the Everlasting Rock, and His influence steers our lives. Sometimes against our will, sometimes with our will, sometimes to change our will. But His influence is very real, especially if you open your eyes to the many times you may have been frustrated with life, or found disappointment with your circumstances, or needed to change your mind due to circumstances beyond your control.
You see, He is in control, and as the Everlasting Rock, He is a shelter for us, a foundation for us, a stability for our lives, but He is also the great influence. He is the Rock.
Matthew 21:44 And the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.”
Consider the Rock, and how you relate to Him. Until we come to understand He is the the One who has the greater weight, the greater influence, the final decider, we are be on very shaky ground.
Don’t let the Rock crush you simply because of stubbornness.
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
121
EVERLASTING NAME
Isaiah 63:12 who caused his glorious arm to go at the right hand of Moses, who divided the waters before them to make for himself an everlasting name,
Isaiah again speaks of God with the term “everlasting” and in our verse this morning, he speaks of the everlasting name as the goal of God’s actions in this world.
But let us consider what it means to have a “name”. Is it simply the combination of verbal noises that string together a complex (or simple) sound to identify a person. When someone lets the term “Carl” slip from their mouth, I identify with that noise. Is that all Isaiah speaks of? Simply a method of identifying a person?
I think not.
Isaiah reaches back in the history of Israel, and reminds the nation of God’s deliverance from Egypt, focusing on the crisis God resolved when there was no hope, for the Red Sea was in front of them and the Egyptian army was behind them, and there was no escape.
Although the nation had experienced 10 previous plagues, or at least had witnessed them, for they were saved through them, let’s remember that they were passive in those plagues. They watched as God provided judgement on their captives.
In this deliverance, the nation was not passive, but had to venture out between walls of water, moving forward based on the message Moses provided them. They walked through their deliverance, and saw the enemy consumed by the very walls that were held back by the power of God.
Exodus 14:29-31 But the people of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses.
The people obeyed the word of Moses, walked a path through death, and experienced in a deeper way, the salvation of God than they had in Egypt.
His name was elevated in the Israelite’s lives, not simply by observation but by experience.
This lone act became a central story for the nation, a time referred to when times were tough, when the way of God seemed impossible. The nation could look back, and in the looking back at God’s salvation on the shore of the Red Sea, associated His name with the deliverance!
His reputation had been established for the nation in this deliverance. His name had become renown, and His identity was that of a saving God. From that point on, (though He is always a saving God) the Israelites had a miracle that was a basis for His reputation.
Of course since then, the Lord has provided many more works that have established His name and brought renown to His person. His everlasting name has only increased in stature, in fame and glory.
For the Everlasting Name of God is now associated with the Lord Jesus, His person and His works, and the story we have now is of His death and resurrection, of His reigning in the heavens and over His creation.
He is the Everlasting Name!
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
As many who have followed me for a bit, I have fallen into the Psalms, and I can’t get up! (As if I would want to.) The Psalms are a majestic collection of poetry, of heart felt human experiences that constantly challenge me in my own frail attempt to follow the true King. As many of the Psalms are written by David, my study on the Psalms has spurred me on to looking at the life of David, is the main contributor to this book, and to follow the victories and tragedies of the shepherd King of Israel.
Many times in the narrative, we will see the Lord Jesus, imperfectly, yet a reflection of His spirit in a man with weaknesses.
1 Samuel 22:3-5
3 And David went from there to Mizpeh of Moab. And he said to the king of Moab, “Please let my father and my mother stay with you, till I know what God will do for me.” 4 And he left them with the king of Moab, and they stayed with him all the time that David was in the stronghold. 5 Then the prophet Gad said to David, “Do not remain in the stronghold; depart, and go into the land of Judah.” So David departed and went into the forest of Hereth.
David escaped the hands of King Saul, running to the Philistine country, to the King of Gath for a possible hideout, or place of safety. That didn’t turn out, and he shamed himself in finding escape. Now he is taking his parents to the country of Moab.
Why Moab? And why Mizpah? Why not keep his parents with him, to keep an eye on them and to defend them from any danger?
Jesse and David’s mother are descendants of a woman from Moab. Her name is Ruth and there must have been some strong connections to the country of Moab for David to take his parents into a foreign nation for protection. Not only connections in Moab, but at this point, it may not have been beyond Saul’s effort to get David by way of capturing his parents. Moab was a good location, and in taking them there, he exercised his care for his parents in the midst of his own trials!
Ok Moab has a connection with David’s family, but what about Mizpeh? Why there, and where might it be?
Moab was on the eastern side of the dead sea, far from the hand of Saul.
As for Mizpeh, the likely location is in the hills of Moab, east of the dead sea. It is a place that occurs a number of times in the Scripture and is associated with the concepts of witness and a watchtower. As a matter of fact, the name means a watchtower or a lookout, and by implication would seem to be a good defensive position to be in for any future skirmish or attack. This was to be David’s parents home for the foreseeable future!
The king of Moab was to watch for David’s parents, which surely strengthened this relationship for the future as David rose to prominence in the nation of Israel.
Once David’s parents had been taken care of, the prophet Gad shows up in David’s presence. This is the first time Gad appears in the life of David, but it is not the last. Gad became a personal prophet to David and was used at times to direct or rebuke David in his goings in and out.
We will see him again in future posts, but for now his message is to return to Israel, to the tribe of Judah. What? Did not David just flee from this region of danger? Is he not on the run from the king of Israel? Was it not beginning to look like David was just starting to become established with a small army congregating about him?
Why the sudden change?
Humanly speaking, this advise was ridiculous. Leave an established stronghold and enter the very area that represents danger. Strategically, I would imagine this direction from Gad was not expected by David, nor desired.
But David did it. He ventured into danger based on the message of a prophet, a man of God.
Although it is not certain, the forest of Hereth is likely southeast of the cave of Adullum, approximately 15 miles south of Jerusalem. In the land of Judah, and within the grasp of Saul, David’s stay in this desolate area was most likely brief.
David was open to the direction of God, as he stated to the king of Moab.
1 Samuel 22:4 …till I know what God will do for me
God provided direction, and David would know it from the mouth of the prophet. But surely not the direction he anticipated. The Forest of Hereth was closer to danger, had less physical defensive positions available and provided less available resources for sustenance. Other than the Word of God directing David, I do no see any advantage for David in relocating here!
Have you experienced the direction of God in a totally unexpected way? If so, were you open to God’s loving hand, accept His wisdom and hear enough to step out?
It may take you into apparent danger, (or actual danger) but it is much safer in the will of God than in a cave with hundreds of soldiers protecting you.
Thoughts to think on!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.
I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.
SEEING JESUS IN
ABRAHAM
A COVENANT INCLUDING DEATH
Genesis 15:12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him.
Mark 15:37 And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last.
Three men in the Old Testament experienced a deep sleep as described in our verse above. Adam, when his rib was removed from his side for the sake of his wife (Genesis 2:21). Abraham, as we see in this passage. The third one was Saul, when David took the jar of water and the spear from beside Saul’s head. (1 Samuel 26:12).
From these examples, we can understand Abraham entered a very deep sleep, even coma like, representing a type of death, especially when we think of Adam. See Jesus in the Old Testament – Adam 9.
Nevertheless, Abraham entered a covenant with God while experiencing a deathlike experience. This covenant was provided to give Abraham a certainty, a settled knowledge of the promise he had received regarding the land. Abraham’s very question – “how am I to know that I shall possess it” (Genesis 15:12) is being answered in this act of covenant making by the Lord. And note that this covenant is being performed by the Lord Himself, as the smoking fire pot and flaming torch passed between the split animals.
The Lord placed Abraham in a deep sleep, and the Lord Himself, in the picture of the smoking fire pot and the flaming torch, passed between the split animals, passing though a picture of death.
This ceremony was provided to Abram in order that he may have a certainty about the promise of the land being his. The Lord reiterated to Abram (and to no-one else), in a very socially understood ceremony, that Abram’s offspring would live in the land, with the Lord defining the limits of the land. This act of entering a covenant was performed by the Lord Himself, for Abram was in a deep sleep, unable to act.
It is obvious that Jesus also entered into the New Covenant through death without our participation. He alone passed through death, to give us certainty of life, to provide a hope and a confidence in the promise of God.
Truly, He entered the covenant through death that we might have hope and life!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
120
EVERLASTING LIGHT
Isaiah 60:20 Your sun shall no more go down, nor your moon withdraw itself; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended.
We are in the midst of a number of description of our God that centers around the concept of everlasting, or the eternality of God. Our first description – Everlasting God – laid out the concept of God being out side of time, of His being, without the constraints of time being a concern. He is. A statement that in it’s simplicity is somewhat beyond our understanding!
Todays description speaks of God as our everlasting light, and as we have noticed previously, to be everlasting is to lack the constraints of the past, future and present, to be beyond time. From our perspective, our Light, from our current existence in the present, has always been, and shall always be.
Of course, as we look to Isaiah, his emphasis is on the future, that God will be Israel’s everlasting light. He is speaking of the day when all of creation will no longer require the sun or moon, that though both created bodies might never set or withdraw themselves, the everlasting light of God is the only light that His people will lean on, will seek, and will walk in.
He is not a temporal light that sets on our lives, that withdraws after a few hours, but praise God, He is the Everlasting Light we do not deserve, and that we have been invited into.
He is the Everlasting Light!
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
119
EVERLASTING GOD
Isaiah 40:28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.
A week or so back, I published a Names of God post, describing the Eternal God. This morning, you will kindly notice, our Name of God is Everlasting God.
Is this simply a repetition of the name of God?
Not exactly, for both speak of “time” in a sense, at least from our perspective. Remember now, time is one of God’s creations and as such the Creator is not controlled or dependent upon the passage of time. He is the One who is outside of the boundaries of time!
Yet, this concept of everlasting is different than the reference to God as being eternal, as in post # 117. We found that in our earlier post, God is spoken of as always having been, not necessarily as One who would always be. Moses was speaking in the previous passage of God’s dependability based on His past existence, His continual faithfulness based on the witness of His past actions and work.
This passage speaks of God in the more common term used in the Old Testament. Moses uses עוֹלָם ʻôwlâm in our passage today. I wrote on this subject earlier, A Study of Eternal / Everlasting for those who may be interested.
This name of God describes the Lord in an even fuller way than our previous name, in that this term speaks on not only the past, the antiquity of God. From our point of view, as those created in a universe controlled by time, God was described by association with the past, with those actions and history that are fixed in time.
This name speaks of not only the past existence, but also the future existence of God, that He is beyond the constraints of the past and the future. By extension, He is also beyond the constraints of the present. He is beyond our imagination, beyond our limitations, beyond our understanding and beyond all of creation!
He is on the throne, never to be moved, for being beyond the constraints of time implies there is no change in His position, nature or characteristics. To be within a creation restricted by the passage of time implies the concept of change, and this is simply not an idea that fits with the Bible’s description of our God.
Malachi 3:6 “For I the LORD do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.
How could the Everlasting God change, for how could He become greater, or holier, or wiser. He is the perfection of all His attributes. He is outside of the creation of time, and for our sake, He is trying to help us understand His duration, His existence, His continuity.
All these descriptions fall far short of the mark, and I fear my thoughts are lacking in massive areas of truth, but I would challenge you my friend to consider the truth of the Everlasting God as a precious truth, a challenging idea, and a description of the God we serve, no matter what generation we live in.
He is always there, and He is always there for us.
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
As many who have followed me for a bit, I have fallen into the Psalms, and I can’t get up! (As if I would want to.) The Psalms are a majestic collection of poetry, of heart felt human experiences that constantly challenge me in my own frail attempt to follow the true King. As many of the Psalms are written by David, my study on the Psalms has spurred me on to looking at the life of David, is the main contributor to this book, and to follow the victories and tragedies of the shepherd King of Israel.
Many times in the narrative, we will see the Lord Jesus, imperfectly, yet a reflection of His spirit in a man with weaknesses.
1 Samuel 22:1-2 1 David departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. And when his brothers and all his father’s house heard it, they went down there to him. 2 And everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul, gathered to him. And he became commander over them. And there were with him about four hundred men.
David departed from there, from Achish, after having acted mad in front of King Achish and his servants. David had sought refuge from a former enemy, and when push came to shove, he resorted to deception, seemingly in reaction mode, having just begun his flight from the King of Israel.
He was a bandit, an enemy of the state, a rebel and a threat to his nation. He was rejected by his own nation and at this time, without a place of safety granted by his neighbor nation. David would return to Achish later, but without acting out in such a way as he did here.
Yes he ran from King Achish, escaping from his influence and ending up in a cave in Adullam. This cave was near a small settlement called Adullam, approximately 16 miles southwest of Jerusalem, between Israel and Philistia, a sort of no-mans land. It was an isolated location providing some anonymity for David. Or at least he may have thought so.
But it was not to be so. David was a natural born leader and news of his location began to spread. Although the cave, according to my research was large enough to fit 40 men, was clearly not enough once the word got out.
Soon, the cave was the central meeting place for the band of men that would become his fighting men, his militia, his comrades.
And of course, only the finest men came, those of high standing, wealthy, highly trained men with good blood lines. No – this is not so, for those who came to David were of three descriptions.
Those in Distress
These men who came to David were in distress, or in other words, anguish. They were undergoing personal trials, and may have looked to David for solutions, or at the very least to provide an escape from the conditions they wanted out of.
This does not bode well for the “value” these men brought to David, for they may have initially been more of a burden to the future king than a benefit.
Yet David took them in, accepting them and became their commander, their leader, their master. I may be overextending the message here, but I have noticed that those who are under the greater pressure in their lives, if given a place to focus their thoughts and lives, actually shake off the distress they may have experienced.
Those in Debt
Our second group on individuals who congregated around David were those who had no personal resources to bring to the fight. They had a baggage of debt, and though it may have been circumstantial, it may also indicate one who is not a responsible man, one who does not have a disciplined life. These who came with debt may have been born into it, without any connection to the circumstance of the debt. In both these cases, David became their commander. Those who were born into debt, and those who allowed / created their own debt. Both were now with David.
Those bitter in soul
Bitterness. It speaks of anger, of a discontented spirit. A certain hostility towards life.
I find it instructive that when David was on the run from his own son years later, Hushai described the king and his men as enraged like a bear.
2 Samuel 17:8 Hushai said, “You know that your father and his men are mighty men, and that they are enraged, like a bear robbed of her cubs in the field. Besides, your father is expert in war; he will not spend the night with the people.
Enraged. This bitterness spoken of in this passage leads me to see some amongst David’s fighting men as men who are on the edge, furious, ready to lash out, even possibly somewhat out of control.
These that came to David were not of the highest quality of men, but how they came to David and what they became are two different stories. David became their commander, and as they followed David, they found themselves becoming a fighting force, a group of men who coalesced about a leader, on the path to the Kingdom.
Of course, this is such a beautiful picture of the greater David, associating with 12 men who may not have been the most illustrious, powerful and influential of men, but by being with Him, they turned the world upside down!
Acts 4:13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.
Is it not so for the modern man too, for if we seek to be with Him, our life will change. It matters not where we start in life, what hole we may be in, what moral depth we may have fallen into, what personal hell we are experiencing. He is there to accept us and to lead us into His Kingdom.
1 Corinthians 1:26 For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth.
Yes – He is there to accept you, change you and lead you into His Kingdom.
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.
I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.
SEEING JESUS IN
ABRAHAM
MANY OFFSPRING
Genesis 15:5 And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
Galatians 3:29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.
How many children did Abram have at this time? Take a quick guess.
If you said zero, you would be right! He only had a servant who would act as his heir in the event of his death. No children. Not one. And we must remember that Abram was an old man by this time. And yet in this passage, the Lord promised him offspring as numerous as the stars in heaven. It may have started slowly, and required a miraculous birth, but Abram’s offspring through Sarah was found in one son.
Isaac is a great image of Jesus in the Old Testament, and we shall consider him in the future, but for this post, consider the many offspring through the promise offered in this passage, during an extended time of disappointment and apparent delay.
Looking back, it is abundantly clear that the promise offered to Abram has been realized, for no-one could count the number of physical children that are from the loins of Abram. To go beyond the physical, to the greater intent of the promise, we must realize that we all as believers are the result of this promise to Abraham being exercised through the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the One who is the source of life, and of whom we are properly related to in relation to our faith.
His offspring are greater than the stars of the sky!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
118
EVERLASTING ARMS
Deuteronomy 33:27 The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms. And he thrust out the enemy before you and said, ‘Destroy.’
In our last post we referred to the very same verse, and noted that Moses described Israel’s dwelling place, not as a patch of land, but as the Eternal God. We also noted that Moses did not use the typical word commonly used to describe eternal (“Olam”) in the Old Testament, but “qedem”, emphasizing Gods past existence, that God is from the beginning.
Moses strengthens his message with our next description of God, describing God as Israel’s Everlasting Arms. Here is where Moses uses the commonly used Hebrew word translated as eternal, or everlasting, not specifically defining Gods past existence, but His existence not in relation to our time based understanding.
For God to be called the Everlasting Arms brings many thoughts to mind.
First off, He arm is under the believer, supporting us, carrying us. In this word picture, we don’t have a God who is looking down on us, pointing fingers, demanding results. We have a picture of a loving Father, ready to protect us as we learn to walk, ready to scoop us up if we fail.
His arm provides redemption Exodus 6:6 ..and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm
His arm provides protection Isaiah 52:10 The LORD has bared his holy arm
His arm provides strength Psalm 136:12 with a strong hand and an outstretched arm,
His arm provides salvation Isaiah 53:1 ..And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
The Arm of the Lord has been revealed in the person of Christ, most gloriously on the cross, suffering for my sin, for your sin.
He is the Everlasting Arm, never to die again, always on the throne with might and power, protecting His people.
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
The remaining Names of God in this series might be considered descriptors, or characteristics of the Lord. We have reviewed the three primary Names of God, along with nineteen compound Names of God in our previous posts. As we venture through these descriptors of our God, I hope we will recognize all the many characteristics of our God that we tend to take for granted.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly is a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
117
ETERNAL GOD
Deuteronomy 33:27 The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms. And he thrust out the enemy before you and said, ‘Destroy.’
Moses spends all of Deuteronomy 33 defining the blessing of God for each tribe of Israel, much like Israel did in Genesis 49 prior to his passing.
His conclusion to this list of blessings is a summary statement of Moses as he closes this section of the Word. He is addressing all of Israel, and not any individual tribe, stating the eternal God is their dwelling place.
Hold up now – God has just delivered this rag tag family of slaves out from Egypt, creating a nation at Sinai, with divine laws and ordinances, defining a religious order, and finally delivering them east of the Jordan, on the cusp on receiving the promised land. He has delivered them to a place they can call their own, a place to dwell, and then Moses speaks of the Eternal God as their dwelling place.
Note that Moses was directing the attention of the tribes to the Eternal God instead of the land, drawing their minds and hearts to the person of God, and not for just a fleeting glance, but directing them to consider God as the Eternal God.
Sure God provided the tiny nation a land to settle in, but Moses wanted to direct them to the true “place” to live. Moses, in describing God as Eternal, does not refer to a place that can be defined by borders, or by size of fields and cities, but by the Eternal God, the God who is defined in relation to time.
As a matter of fact, this term “Eternal” is not the common Hebrew word which I assumed Moses would use. This word is “qedem”, not “olam”, and it speaks of antiquity, of being of an ancient time, from the beginning. Moses, if I understand his message, is directing those entering the land to consider God as the One who has always been, Who has always existed, emphasizing the past existence of God, He who is the uncaused cause, the source of all life, independent from Creation and ruling over all. He speaks of God as the One who has existed from the beginning.
Moses knew God’s people get distracted easily with the gifts of God, and he wanted to direct their attention to the source of all life, not the resources to survive, or to even to prosper.
Do we not also get distracted, confused with shiny trinkets and dreams of grandeur? We need to find out place of dwelling in the Eternal God, and not simply be satisfied with earthly gifts from the Eternal God.
For He alone is the Eternal God.
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
As many who have followed me for a bit, I have fallen into the Psalms, and I can’t get up! (As if I would want to.) The Psalms are a majestic collection of poetry, of heart felt human experiences that constantly challenge me in my own frail attempt to follow the true King. As many of the Psalms are written by David, my study on the Psalms has spurred me on to looking at the life of David, is the main contributor to this book, and to follow the victories and tragedies of the shepherd King of Israel.
Many times in the narrative, we will see the Lord Jesus, imperfectly, yet a reflection of His spirit in a man with weaknesses.
Let’s continue in 1 Samuel 21:12-15, where David faces the King of Gath, in the Philistine territory.
12 And David took these words to heart and was much afraid of Achish the king of Gath. 13 So he changed his behavior before them and pretended to be insane in their hands and made marks on the doors of the gate and let his spittle run down his beard. 14 Then Achish said to his servants, “Behold, you see the man is mad. Why then have you brought him to me? 15 Do I lack madmen, that you have brought this fellow to behave as a madman in my presence? Shall this fellow come into my house?”
David heard the servants of Achish speak the very words that caused him to flee from the murderous king Saul. The military success David experienced, that the Israeli women sang of, was becoming a noose tightening around his throat.
How could something that was done in the service of his king become the very reason he was being persecuted, and on the run for his life? We cannot assume that good deeds will produce favorable results for ourselves, and as we may enter this circumstance in our own lives, we need to remember the Lord Jesus in his offering of blessing, and receiving of death. It is not an uncommon experience for the believer!
But let us take a look at our passage this morning with a bit more detail.
David reacted to the words of the servants to Achish, and made the decision to act mad. Notice that the servants of Achish had David “in their hands”, implying they were restricting him from attacking Achish.
Although hindsight is 20/20, if David had taken a chance with Achish to explain the situation, might the outcome have been different? Did David have an opportunity to discuss with Achish during the servants report to Achish? It does seem that as David feigned madness, Achish was present with the servants.
Again, let us remember that David was in flight mode, and may have been less strategic and more reactive at this early period of his running. I get it, for though I have not had the threat of death chasing me, I have experienced a state of fear that greatly influenced my decision making skills. Reacting to a fear based problem is a knee jerk reaction, and if David’s response was out of a reaction to the situation, I get it!
But David really put in on, for his act of madness was awesome. Spittle down the beard! Wow. Achish accepted the appearance of insanity and simply rejected David from his house. It may have went far worse for the future king of Israel, for David was the reason the Philistines lost the battle years back. David could have been considered a national enemy of the Philistines, but for some reason Achish may have provided some protection in the acceptance of David as being mad!
David may have acted mad, but out of this experience poured forth Psalm 34. Take a moment and consider the truths of the Psalm, understanding the background of David’s experience
I began this post with a question. How could doing good produce problems instead of blessings for the doer? In the midst of trials, God’s blessing may be found in our weakness. He is the ever helpful One, working out His will in the middle of our confusion and poor reactions. As we see this truth in our lives, I pray we move from reacting out of fear to trusting Him in the midst of a problem, listening for direction from Him we need to obey.
May it be so!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
Considering the Bible 