(POSTPONED) The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible - Part Nineteen - C May 24, 2020 by: John Herbert | Series: The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible Study Notes PDF Refresh A Recap from the Sermon 1 Co 15:51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: Today we will look at the 'mystery' of the resurrection/rapture of the Church. The full text of this message can be found by clicking the PDF button. Sunday May 17th 2020 The Word of God A Survey of the Bible – Lesson 19C This My Inheritance 1). 1 Co 15:50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. 51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 1 Th 4:13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. 15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. The 2 sets of verses from 1 Corinthians Chapter 15 and 1 Thessalonians Chapter 4 both deal with the same subject, the resurrection/rapture of the Church, all Christians from the 2000 years of this dispensation. a). And as we know, this event has one purpose – 2 Co 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. And we will note particularly, with respect to the resurrection/rapture, what Paul writes at the beginning of v51 of 1 Corinthians Chapter 15, ‘Behold I tell you a mystery’. b). Paul tells the Corinthian Church that the resurrection/rapture of the Church is a ‘mystery’. And as we know from previous studies the use of this word tells us that the subject at hand has always been present in the OT Scriptures and is revealed in a type/antitype structure as we compare Scripture with Scripture. c). A ‘mystery’ then is something that cannot be understood by the exercise of the human intellect, but rather it is that which is Divinely brought forth from above and opened to our understanding by the Holy Spirit – Mt 13:11 He answered and said to them, “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven………. And this is of particular importance to us because of what the ‘mystery’ contained in the OT types teaches us about the resurrection/rapture, the events at the Judgment Seat, the redemption of the inheritance, which is the subject of our present study, and rulership in the 7th Day. d). And it is by putting together all the various parts of this picture from the OT and the NT that we are able to arrive at a proper understanding of the events which shortly await us. 2). Now, we have seen from our previous studies how rulership of the earth by a Man and a Woman in a marriage relationship, in the place of Satan and his angels has been God’s purpose from the beginning – Ge 1:26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion…………. With Adam and Eve providing the foundational type for Christ and His Bride. And inextricably connected to the realization of God’s purpose through Christ and His Bride, is redemption – Ge 3:21 Also for Adam and his wife the Lord God made tunics of skin, and clothed them. Ro 8:20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. And as we have seen God’s redemptive purpose encompasses both fallen Man and the ruined creation. And because of the unchangeable pattern set in Genesis Chapter 1 by which the redemption of a ruined creation is accomplished, we know that God’s redemptive work has a precisely defined timeframe and an explicitly stated terminal point – Ge 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. 2 And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made. God’s redemptive work then will come to its terminal point at the end of 6 days [6000 years] of work; the end of Man’s Day on the earth. And at its conclusion God, through His redemptive process, will have dealt with Christians, Jews, Gentiles and the material creation. a). What we see here then, provides us with a broad overview of what will take place, but as we continue to look at the OT types, so more detail is provided to the overview, detail that finds its parallel and its antitype in the NT Scriptures – Ge 5:23 So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. 24 And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him. Ge 5:32 And Noah was five hundred years old, and Noah begot Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Ge 6:13 And God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth. From Genesis Chapter 5 we have 2 excerpts from the genealogy of Adam and in these 2 excerpts we find the beginning of the ‘mystery’ that Paul had spoken of to the Corinthian Church concerning the resurrection/rapture. b). Enoch was the 7th generation from Adam, with 7 being God’s number of completion, the completion of that which is in view. So, after a complete period of time [7 generations], a man, Enoch is taken alive into heaven. c). And Enoch being taken alive into heaven precedes God’s judgment of the earth through the flood of Noah’s day. And Noah is the 10th generation from Adam, 10 being God’s number, of ordinal completion. And so, after another complete period of time [10 generations] we see God’s judgment upon the earth with Noah and his family being protected through the flood in order to come to a new beginning beyond it. d). And here is the foundational type for that which Paul wrote about in 1 Corinthians Chapter 15, 1 Thessalonians Chapter 4 and 2 Corinthians Chapter 5 and that which John wrote about in the opening Chapters of the Revelation – Re 4:1 After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.” Enoch is the foundational type for the resurrection/rapture of the Church. And the chronology in Genesis Chapter 5 clearly shows that Enoch is taken into heaven before God’s judgment comes on the earth and Noah and his family are delivered out of it. And this order of events we must keep in mind. 3). More detail is added to this foundation, opening the ‘mystery’ further to our understanding, through the account of Abraham and Lot – Ge 19:29 And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot had dwelt. The destruction of the cities of the plain is another representation of God’s judgment upon the earth seen in the flood of Noah, a type of the tribulation which is still to come. And in Genesis Chapter 19 we see that God removed Lot from Sodom before the overthrow took place – Ge 19:22 Hurry, escape there. For I cannot do anything until you arrive there.” Lot’s removal from Sodom is another type of the resurrection/rapture of the Church and must be added to that seen through Enoch. In this instance, through Lot’s experience, we witness the outcome for the unfaithful Christian following the resurrection/rapture, something not dealt with in the type of Enoch. a). And again, in Genesis 19 the same sequence of events is repeated that we have seen in Genesis Chapters 5 and 6 – the resurrection/rapture followed by God’s judgment upon the earth. b). If we then go to the great panoramic type given in Genesis Chapters 21-25, we won’t find God’s judgment upon the earth because that is seen elsewhere, but we will find the outcome of that judgment as well as additional detail given with respect to the resurrection/rapture of the Church. Power Point – Slides 1-6 In Genesis Chapter 24 Abraham’s oldest servant is sent to Abraham’s family to search for a bride for Abraham’s son Isaac – Ge 24:2 So Abraham said to the oldest servant of his house, who ruled over all that he had, “Please, put your hand under my thigh, 3 and I will make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell; 4 but you shall go to my country and to my family, and take a wife for my son Isaac.” And the young woman, Rebekah, who was found by the oldest servant by a well of water, was subsequently shown that which could be hers and offered a choice with respect to receiving it – Ge 24:53 Then the servant brought out jewelry of silver, jewelry of gold, and clothing, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave precious things to her brother and to her mother. 54 And he and the men who were with him ate and drank and stayed all night. Then they arose in the morning, and he said, “Send me away to my master.” 55 But her brother and her mother said, “Let the young woman stay with us a few days, at least ten; after that she may go.” 56 And he said to them, “Do not hinder me, since the Lord has prospered my way; send me away so that I may go to my master.” 57 So they said, “We will call the young woman and ask her personally.” 58 Then they called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” And she said, “I will go.” Rebekah then made a journey in the company of the oldest servant, at the end of which there was marriage to Isaac – Ge 24:67 Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent; and he took Rebekah and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother's death. Following this marriage, in Genesis Chapter 25, Abraham married Keturah and their relationship was fruitful – Ge 25:1 Abraham again took a wife, and her name was Keturah. 2 And she bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. Between the time when Isaac met Rebekah between his home and hers, and Abraham’s fruitful relationship with Keturah, would have to come that seen through the flood of Noah and the destruction of the cities of the plain. There is no type in these chapters to show this however, as the detail is found elsewhere, and God’s judgment of the earth is not the purpose for this panoramic type. However, the new beginning seen following Noah’s flood is seen there through Abraham’s marriage to Keturah and the children they produced. c). Nothing is seen concerning judgment upon the earth in these chapters as they present a type of the experience of the faithful Christian ending the picture with marriage to the son of promise and what lies beyond it. d). And although no judgment upon the earth is seen between the time when Rebekah first saw Isaac and Rebekah becoming Isaac’s wife, we know that it would be there in the antitype because of the previous types we have looked at. e). But there is mention of the new beginning seen by Abraham’s marriage to Keturah, and this must be there because there is a direct connection in the antitype between the Bride becoming Christ’s wife and Israel’s future fruitfulness, which we will eventually see. 4). The ‘mystery’ surrounding the resurrection/rapture of the Church is further opened to our understanding in – Ge 41:44 Pharaoh also said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, and without your consent no man may lift his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.” 45 And Pharaoh called Joseph's name Zaphnath-Paaneah. And he gave him as a wife Asenath, the daughter of Poti-Pherah priest of On. So Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt. In this part of the type, it is only following Joseph taking a Gentile bride that he then deals with his brothers within the context of 7 years of famine. The resurrection/rapture is not dealt with per se but is implicit because of the previous types we have seen. a). The 7 years of famine form another type for God’s judgment upon the earth that we have previously seen in Noah’s flood and the destruction of the cities of the plain, and in addition to that seen through Enoch and Lot, we see that it is only after Joseph has a Gentile bride that this judgment can begin. b). And exactly the same picture is presented again in Exodus – Ex 2:21 Then Moses was content to live with the man, and he gave Zipporah his daughter to Moses. Moses, like Joseph, is a type of Christ. And in Exodus the resurrection/rapture is not explicitly dealt with either, but we do see that it is only after he has acquired a Gentile bride, Zipporah, that the full extent of Israel’s suffering at the hands of the Assyrian Pharaoh comes into view – Ex 2:23 Now it happened in the process of time that the king of Egypt died. Then the children of Israel groaned because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry came up to God because of the bondage. 24 So God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God acknowledged them. And it is only once the children of Israel’s ‘cry came up to God because of the bondage’ that Moses is sent back to deliver them – Ex 3:9 Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” And again, we will note the sequence. There is the revealing of a Gentile bride, the wife of the one who is a type of Christ. The Gentile bride being present precedes the judgment of both Israel and Egypt, which results in the deliverance of Israel from bondage and the complete overthrow of the power of Egypt. c). That which we see through these types is part of the ‘mystery’ that Paul showed the Corinthian and Thessalonian Churches. They would have known from it that following the resurrection/rapture a separation between the faithful and unfaithful Christian would take place, as seen through Enoch and Lot. A separation that would reveal the Bride for Christ. A Bride taken from among the eternally saved, seen through Rebekah. A Bride taken primarily from the Gentiles seen through, Asenath and Zipporah. d). They would have known that following the events at the Judgment Seat where the Bride is revealed, judgment would then come upon Israel and the nations of the earth seen through the flood of Noah, the destruction of the cities of the plain, the 7 years of famine and the 10 plagues in Egypt. e). They would have known that Christ would return to the earth to deliver Israel and completely overthrow Gentile world power, ushering in a time of fruitfulness, seen through Noah’s new beginning, Abraham’s fruitful marriage to Keturah, the blessing of Joseph’s family and Israel’s entrance to the land of promise – 1 Th 5:1 But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you. 2 For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. 3 For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape. 4 But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. And being in the Day of the Lord following the resurrection/rapture should not overtake us as a thief either. For not only has the mystery spoken of by Paul been revealed to us through the types, but it has been confirmed through the antitype presented in the Book of the Revelation. f). We have seen the resurrection/rapture of the Church in Revelation Chapter 1 and the events following this at the Judgment Seat in Chapters 2-3. Only because the Bride has been revealed can the casting down of crowns by the 24 elders take place in Chapter 4, the search for the One worthy to redeem the inheritance take place in Chapter 5 and the judgment poured out upon Israel and the nations take place in Chapters 6-19. g). The revealing of the Bride is the precursor to all that is then to follow. And with respect to the relationship between the revealing of the Bride for Christ and the events which follow there is another part of the ‘mystery’, presented through another type that we must go to. 5). Ru 1:1 Now it came to pass, in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem, Judah, went to dwell in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. 2 The name of the man was Elimelech, the name of his wife was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion—Ephrathites of Bethlehem, Judah. And they went to the country of Moab and remained there. 3 Then Elimelech, Naomi's husband, died; and she was left, and her two sons. 4 Now they took wives of the women of Moab: the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth. And they dwelt there about ten years. 5 Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died; so the woman survived her two sons and her husband. As we know, Ruth is set in ‘the days when the judges ruled’. A time in Jewish history characterized in the final verse before the Book of Ruth begins – Jg 21:25 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes. Not only does this give us an historical perspective, but also takes us to the condition of Israel as it has existed for the last 2000 years. a). There is and has been no King in Israel for the past 2000 years because they crucified the One born the ‘King of the Jews’. Consequently, there is a spiritual famine throughout the nation and the nation is scattered among the Gentile nations typified by Elimelech and his family dwelling in Moab. b). And into this picture of famine and exile while there remains no King in Israel, come 2 Gentile women who become part of this Jewish family – Ga 3:29 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. In the antitype, becoming the ‘seed of Abraham’ necessitates eternal salvation through Christ’s death and shed blood. This is not dealt with in the type, but is implied through the deaths of Mahlon and Chilion, deaths that took place after a complete period of time [about 10 years] – Da 9:26 “And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; It is only because Orpah and Ruth are part of this family through the implied eternal redemption that a return to the land, to Bethlehem, to find bread becomes possible. c). In the same way, it is only because Rebekah returns with Abraham’s oldest servant to marry Isaac, that Abraham’s marriage to Keturah can happen. d). It is only because Christians have, for the last 2000 years been making the same journey as Rebekah and Ruth, with the same end in view, that the restoration of Israel and the ruined material creation becomes certain and the Millennial Kingdom will become a reality. But more on this next time – If the Lord is willing. (POSTPONED) The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible - Part Nineteen - C May 24, 2020 Speaker: John Herbert Series: The Word of God - A Survey of the Bible Category: Sunday Morning x
Refresh A Recap from the Sermon 1 Co 15:51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: Today we will look at the 'mystery' of the resurrection/rapture of the Church. The full text of this message can be found by clicking the PDF button. Sunday May 17th 2020 The Word of God A Survey of the Bible – Lesson 19C This My Inheritance 1). 1 Co 15:50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. 51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 1 Th 4:13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. 15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. The 2 sets of verses from 1 Corinthians Chapter 15 and 1 Thessalonians Chapter 4 both deal with the same subject, the resurrection/rapture of the Church, all Christians from the 2000 years of this dispensation. a). And as we know, this event has one purpose – 2 Co 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. And we will note particularly, with respect to the resurrection/rapture, what Paul writes at the beginning of v51 of 1 Corinthians Chapter 15, ‘Behold I tell you a mystery’. b). Paul tells the Corinthian Church that the resurrection/rapture of the Church is a ‘mystery’. And as we know from previous studies the use of this word tells us that the subject at hand has always been present in the OT Scriptures and is revealed in a type/antitype structure as we compare Scripture with Scripture. c). A ‘mystery’ then is something that cannot be understood by the exercise of the human intellect, but rather it is that which is Divinely brought forth from above and opened to our understanding by the Holy Spirit – Mt 13:11 He answered and said to them, “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven………. And this is of particular importance to us because of what the ‘mystery’ contained in the OT types teaches us about the resurrection/rapture, the events at the Judgment Seat, the redemption of the inheritance, which is the subject of our present study, and rulership in the 7th Day. d). And it is by putting together all the various parts of this picture from the OT and the NT that we are able to arrive at a proper understanding of the events which shortly await us. 2). Now, we have seen from our previous studies how rulership of the earth by a Man and a Woman in a marriage relationship, in the place of Satan and his angels has been God’s purpose from the beginning – Ge 1:26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion…………. With Adam and Eve providing the foundational type for Christ and His Bride. And inextricably connected to the realization of God’s purpose through Christ and His Bride, is redemption – Ge 3:21 Also for Adam and his wife the Lord God made tunics of skin, and clothed them. Ro 8:20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. And as we have seen God’s redemptive purpose encompasses both fallen Man and the ruined creation. And because of the unchangeable pattern set in Genesis Chapter 1 by which the redemption of a ruined creation is accomplished, we know that God’s redemptive work has a precisely defined timeframe and an explicitly stated terminal point – Ge 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. 2 And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made. God’s redemptive work then will come to its terminal point at the end of 6 days [6000 years] of work; the end of Man’s Day on the earth. And at its conclusion God, through His redemptive process, will have dealt with Christians, Jews, Gentiles and the material creation. a). What we see here then, provides us with a broad overview of what will take place, but as we continue to look at the OT types, so more detail is provided to the overview, detail that finds its parallel and its antitype in the NT Scriptures – Ge 5:23 So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. 24 And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him. Ge 5:32 And Noah was five hundred years old, and Noah begot Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Ge 6:13 And God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth. From Genesis Chapter 5 we have 2 excerpts from the genealogy of Adam and in these 2 excerpts we find the beginning of the ‘mystery’ that Paul had spoken of to the Corinthian Church concerning the resurrection/rapture. b). Enoch was the 7th generation from Adam, with 7 being God’s number of completion, the completion of that which is in view. So, after a complete period of time [7 generations], a man, Enoch is taken alive into heaven. c). And Enoch being taken alive into heaven precedes God’s judgment of the earth through the flood of Noah’s day. And Noah is the 10th generation from Adam, 10 being God’s number, of ordinal completion. And so, after another complete period of time [10 generations] we see God’s judgment upon the earth with Noah and his family being protected through the flood in order to come to a new beginning beyond it. d). And here is the foundational type for that which Paul wrote about in 1 Corinthians Chapter 15, 1 Thessalonians Chapter 4 and 2 Corinthians Chapter 5 and that which John wrote about in the opening Chapters of the Revelation – Re 4:1 After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.” Enoch is the foundational type for the resurrection/rapture of the Church. And the chronology in Genesis Chapter 5 clearly shows that Enoch is taken into heaven before God’s judgment comes on the earth and Noah and his family are delivered out of it. And this order of events we must keep in mind. 3). More detail is added to this foundation, opening the ‘mystery’ further to our understanding, through the account of Abraham and Lot – Ge 19:29 And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot had dwelt. The destruction of the cities of the plain is another representation of God’s judgment upon the earth seen in the flood of Noah, a type of the tribulation which is still to come. And in Genesis Chapter 19 we see that God removed Lot from Sodom before the overthrow took place – Ge 19:22 Hurry, escape there. For I cannot do anything until you arrive there.” Lot’s removal from Sodom is another type of the resurrection/rapture of the Church and must be added to that seen through Enoch. In this instance, through Lot’s experience, we witness the outcome for the unfaithful Christian following the resurrection/rapture, something not dealt with in the type of Enoch. a). And again, in Genesis 19 the same sequence of events is repeated that we have seen in Genesis Chapters 5 and 6 – the resurrection/rapture followed by God’s judgment upon the earth. b). If we then go to the great panoramic type given in Genesis Chapters 21-25, we won’t find God’s judgment upon the earth because that is seen elsewhere, but we will find the outcome of that judgment as well as additional detail given with respect to the resurrection/rapture of the Church. Power Point – Slides 1-6 In Genesis Chapter 24 Abraham’s oldest servant is sent to Abraham’s family to search for a bride for Abraham’s son Isaac – Ge 24:2 So Abraham said to the oldest servant of his house, who ruled over all that he had, “Please, put your hand under my thigh, 3 and I will make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell; 4 but you shall go to my country and to my family, and take a wife for my son Isaac.” And the young woman, Rebekah, who was found by the oldest servant by a well of water, was subsequently shown that which could be hers and offered a choice with respect to receiving it – Ge 24:53 Then the servant brought out jewelry of silver, jewelry of gold, and clothing, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave precious things to her brother and to her mother. 54 And he and the men who were with him ate and drank and stayed all night. Then they arose in the morning, and he said, “Send me away to my master.” 55 But her brother and her mother said, “Let the young woman stay with us a few days, at least ten; after that she may go.” 56 And he said to them, “Do not hinder me, since the Lord has prospered my way; send me away so that I may go to my master.” 57 So they said, “We will call the young woman and ask her personally.” 58 Then they called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” And she said, “I will go.” Rebekah then made a journey in the company of the oldest servant, at the end of which there was marriage to Isaac – Ge 24:67 Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent; and he took Rebekah and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother's death. Following this marriage, in Genesis Chapter 25, Abraham married Keturah and their relationship was fruitful – Ge 25:1 Abraham again took a wife, and her name was Keturah. 2 And she bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. Between the time when Isaac met Rebekah between his home and hers, and Abraham’s fruitful relationship with Keturah, would have to come that seen through the flood of Noah and the destruction of the cities of the plain. There is no type in these chapters to show this however, as the detail is found elsewhere, and God’s judgment of the earth is not the purpose for this panoramic type. However, the new beginning seen following Noah’s flood is seen there through Abraham’s marriage to Keturah and the children they produced. c). Nothing is seen concerning judgment upon the earth in these chapters as they present a type of the experience of the faithful Christian ending the picture with marriage to the son of promise and what lies beyond it. d). And although no judgment upon the earth is seen between the time when Rebekah first saw Isaac and Rebekah becoming Isaac’s wife, we know that it would be there in the antitype because of the previous types we have looked at. e). But there is mention of the new beginning seen by Abraham’s marriage to Keturah, and this must be there because there is a direct connection in the antitype between the Bride becoming Christ’s wife and Israel’s future fruitfulness, which we will eventually see. 4). The ‘mystery’ surrounding the resurrection/rapture of the Church is further opened to our understanding in – Ge 41:44 Pharaoh also said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, and without your consent no man may lift his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.” 45 And Pharaoh called Joseph's name Zaphnath-Paaneah. And he gave him as a wife Asenath, the daughter of Poti-Pherah priest of On. So Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt. In this part of the type, it is only following Joseph taking a Gentile bride that he then deals with his brothers within the context of 7 years of famine. The resurrection/rapture is not dealt with per se but is implicit because of the previous types we have seen. a). The 7 years of famine form another type for God’s judgment upon the earth that we have previously seen in Noah’s flood and the destruction of the cities of the plain, and in addition to that seen through Enoch and Lot, we see that it is only after Joseph has a Gentile bride that this judgment can begin. b). And exactly the same picture is presented again in Exodus – Ex 2:21 Then Moses was content to live with the man, and he gave Zipporah his daughter to Moses. Moses, like Joseph, is a type of Christ. And in Exodus the resurrection/rapture is not explicitly dealt with either, but we do see that it is only after he has acquired a Gentile bride, Zipporah, that the full extent of Israel’s suffering at the hands of the Assyrian Pharaoh comes into view – Ex 2:23 Now it happened in the process of time that the king of Egypt died. Then the children of Israel groaned because of the bondage, and they cried out; and their cry came up to God because of the bondage. 24 So God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God acknowledged them. And it is only once the children of Israel’s ‘cry came up to God because of the bondage’ that Moses is sent back to deliver them – Ex 3:9 Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” And again, we will note the sequence. There is the revealing of a Gentile bride, the wife of the one who is a type of Christ. The Gentile bride being present precedes the judgment of both Israel and Egypt, which results in the deliverance of Israel from bondage and the complete overthrow of the power of Egypt. c). That which we see through these types is part of the ‘mystery’ that Paul showed the Corinthian and Thessalonian Churches. They would have known from it that following the resurrection/rapture a separation between the faithful and unfaithful Christian would take place, as seen through Enoch and Lot. A separation that would reveal the Bride for Christ. A Bride taken from among the eternally saved, seen through Rebekah. A Bride taken primarily from the Gentiles seen through, Asenath and Zipporah. d). They would have known that following the events at the Judgment Seat where the Bride is revealed, judgment would then come upon Israel and the nations of the earth seen through the flood of Noah, the destruction of the cities of the plain, the 7 years of famine and the 10 plagues in Egypt. e). They would have known that Christ would return to the earth to deliver Israel and completely overthrow Gentile world power, ushering in a time of fruitfulness, seen through Noah’s new beginning, Abraham’s fruitful marriage to Keturah, the blessing of Joseph’s family and Israel’s entrance to the land of promise – 1 Th 5:1 But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you. 2 For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. 3 For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape. 4 But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. And being in the Day of the Lord following the resurrection/rapture should not overtake us as a thief either. For not only has the mystery spoken of by Paul been revealed to us through the types, but it has been confirmed through the antitype presented in the Book of the Revelation. f). We have seen the resurrection/rapture of the Church in Revelation Chapter 1 and the events following this at the Judgment Seat in Chapters 2-3. Only because the Bride has been revealed can the casting down of crowns by the 24 elders take place in Chapter 4, the search for the One worthy to redeem the inheritance take place in Chapter 5 and the judgment poured out upon Israel and the nations take place in Chapters 6-19. g). The revealing of the Bride is the precursor to all that is then to follow. And with respect to the relationship between the revealing of the Bride for Christ and the events which follow there is another part of the ‘mystery’, presented through another type that we must go to. 5). Ru 1:1 Now it came to pass, in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem, Judah, went to dwell in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. 2 The name of the man was Elimelech, the name of his wife was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion—Ephrathites of Bethlehem, Judah. And they went to the country of Moab and remained there. 3 Then Elimelech, Naomi's husband, died; and she was left, and her two sons. 4 Now they took wives of the women of Moab: the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth. And they dwelt there about ten years. 5 Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died; so the woman survived her two sons and her husband. As we know, Ruth is set in ‘the days when the judges ruled’. A time in Jewish history characterized in the final verse before the Book of Ruth begins – Jg 21:25 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes. Not only does this give us an historical perspective, but also takes us to the condition of Israel as it has existed for the last 2000 years. a). There is and has been no King in Israel for the past 2000 years because they crucified the One born the ‘King of the Jews’. Consequently, there is a spiritual famine throughout the nation and the nation is scattered among the Gentile nations typified by Elimelech and his family dwelling in Moab. b). And into this picture of famine and exile while there remains no King in Israel, come 2 Gentile women who become part of this Jewish family – Ga 3:29 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. In the antitype, becoming the ‘seed of Abraham’ necessitates eternal salvation through Christ’s death and shed blood. This is not dealt with in the type, but is implied through the deaths of Mahlon and Chilion, deaths that took place after a complete period of time [about 10 years] – Da 9:26 “And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; It is only because Orpah and Ruth are part of this family through the implied eternal redemption that a return to the land, to Bethlehem, to find bread becomes possible. c). In the same way, it is only because Rebekah returns with Abraham’s oldest servant to marry Isaac, that Abraham’s marriage to Keturah can happen. d). It is only because Christians have, for the last 2000 years been making the same journey as Rebekah and Ruth, with the same end in view, that the restoration of Israel and the ruined material creation becomes certain and the Millennial Kingdom will become a reality. But more on this next time – If the Lord is willing.