[From the first three chapters of the Author’s Book: “By Faith”, pp. 1-33]
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“If we would please
God, we must believe first of all that God IS; however that is not all. We must look ahead to all that God has said and
promised, and believe that in all things, He is the rewarder of them that
diligently seek Him.
“What
then? We take it that the believer in
order to please God must accept the Spirit’s revelation of the things to come;
for He is the Spirit of prophecy.”
R E. Neighbour
“By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had
received the promises offered up his only begotten son. Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy
seed be called: Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the
dead; from whence also he received him in a figure:”
- (Hebrews 11: 17-19).
1
THE OFFERING OF ISAAC
The first section in Hebrews, chapter eleven (vv. 4-16) terminates with an inheritance beyond the
Flood - that is, an inheritance beyond the Great Tribulation, in the Kingdom
Age. In verse seventeen there is a new beginning
in the chronological framework, which carries us once again through the same
period, but from a different perspective.
This section begins and ends at the same two places as the first section
- the shedding of blood, and the Messianic Era.
In this section, as in the first section, Old Testament characters with
their individual, peculiar experiences are used in an overall, typical
framework to teach great spiritual truths.
The offering of Isaac is recorded in Genesis, chapter
twenty-two. This is the second of five
consecutive chapters which set forth in type the complete history of
Overall Scope of Genesis 21-25
In Heb. 11: 17-19 the offering of Isaac is specifically stated to be a “type.”
It is a type of the offering of God’s Son 2,000 years later. Thus, in Genesis, chapter twenty-two, “Abraham” is a type of God the Father, and “Isaac” is a type of God the Son. It follows then in the other chapters in this overall
framework of events in Genesis that the “wife of Abraham” (chs. 21, 23, 25) is a type of the Father’s wife, the nation of Israel, and the “bride” secured for Isaac by Abraham’s
servant (ch. 24) is a type of the bride presently being secured for Christ by the Holy Spirit.
1. The Birth of Isaac (Gen.
21)
Isaac was born in a supernatural manner at a set time. Sarah was barren and beyond the age of
childbearing, but God intervened, restored unto Sarah “according to
the time of life,” and “Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at
the set time of which God had spoken to him” (Gen.
17: 1-7, 16-21; 18: 10-14; 21:1-7).
The birth of Jesus occurred in a supernatural manner at a set time (Gal.
4: 4). “Now
the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was
espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the
Holy Spirit” (Matt. 1: 18). God Himself became flesh in the person of His
Son - the God-Man (John 1: 14).
2. The Offering of Isaac (Gen.
22)
Abraham was instructed to offer his son for a burnt offering
upon a particular mountain in the
God offered His Son at Calvary on a
particular mountain in the
3. The Death of Sarah (Gen.
23)
Following the offering of Isaac, the wife of Abraham, Sarah,
died.
This typifies the fact that following the offering of Jesus,
the wife of God the Father,
4. The Bride for Isaac (Gen.
24)
Following the death of Sarah, Abraham sent his servant,
Eliezer, into a far country to obtain a bride for Isaac. After Eliezer’s
journey had been prospered the Lord, he returned to Abraham’s home with the
bride.
This typifies the fact that following the setting aside of
Israel, God the Father sent the Holy Spirit into the world (far country) to
obtain a bride for His Son. After the
Holy Spirit’s mission has been completed, He will return to the Father’s home
with the bride.
The Remarriage of Abraham (Gen.
25)
Following the completion of Eliezer’s
mission in the far country, Abraham again took a wife. Abraham’s second wife, Keturah,
was far more fruitful in childbearing than Sarah.
This typifies the fact that after the completion of the Holy
Spirit’s mission in the far country, God will again take
Faith Approved Through Testing
“And it came
to pass after these things, that God did tempt [test]
Abraham ...” (Gen.
22: 1).
It had taken approximately sixty years for the Lord to bring
Abraham from a life of Idolatry in
All his previous experiences, trials, and testings had worked together
to prepare Abraham for the events recorded in this chapter. In his response to the Lord’s testing at this
point in his life, Abraham could draw upon his experiences in
Every new development in Abraham’s life throughout his entire
pilgrim journey was for a purpose.
Nothing came to pass in a haphazard manner. All events in chapters twelve through
twenty-one anticipate events in chapter twenty-two. Events in chapter twenty-two, in turn,
anticipate events in chapters twenty-three through twenty-five. The offering of Isaac in chapter twenty-two
forms the acme toward which all preceding events moved, and events in this
chapter must occur before the events in succeeding chapters. Isaac must die before Sarah can die (chs. 22, 23). Sarah, in turn, must
die before the bride can be
obtained for Isaac (chs. 23, 24). And the bride must be secured before Abraham can remarry (chs. 24, 25).
Throughout history God has always moved His people through
various experiences, trials, and testings for particular reasons; and His
dealings with Christians today are no different. Christians are to “count it all
joy” when
subjected to various testings, knowing “that the trying [approval through testing] of your faith worketh
patience” (James 1: 2, 3; cf.
Through all the various trials and testings which Christians
encounter, God has one great purpose in mind:
“And we know that all things work [‘are working’]
together for
good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his
purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he
also did predestinate [‘foreordain’] to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he [Christ] might be the firstborn among
many brethren
[Christians, following the adoption]” (Rom. 8: 28, 29; cf. Rom. 8:
17-23; Heb. 2: 10).
Christians today bear the “image of the earthy”; but God’s great purpose looks beyond
this earthy image and the present trials and testings to that future day when
Christians will bear the “image of the heavenly,” occupying positions of power and
authority with Christ as sons of God in the coming kingdom (Rev. 2:
26, 27).
The Offering of Isaac
“And he [God] said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac,
whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for
a burnt‑offering upon one of the mountains which 1 will tell thee of” (Gen.
22: 2).
Isaac was a grown man at this time. The word translated “lad” (Heb. naar) in verse five is used elsewhere in the Word of God to describe
men who have attained their majority.
The word is used in Gen. 41: 12 to describe Joseph at the age of twenty-eight. The word is used in 2 Chron.
13: 7 to describe
Rehoboam after he became king, and Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he
began to reign (1 Kings 14: 21). This same word is
also used to describe the two men who accompanied Abraham and Isaac on their
journey to the
God commanded Abraham to offer his only son for a burnt offering upon a particular
mountain in the
God’s Son, 2,000 years later, was offered upon a particular
mountain in the
The mountain in the
For the first time in Scripture a
human sacrifice was involved. There are
only two such sacrifices under the direction of the Lord in all Scripture, and
both occurred on a particular mountain in the
Following God’s command to Abraham concerning the sacrifice of
his son, there was no remonstrance nor delay. “Abraham rose up early in the morning,
and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son,
and clave the wood for the burnt-offering, and rose up, and went into the place
of which God had told him” (v. 3).
Abraham, through various experiences, trials, and testings, had been
brought to the place of complete obedience.
Abraham set his son aside for a sacrifice and was perfectly willing to
slay his son, in accordance with God’s command.
God’s Son was set apart for a sacrifice by the Father and was
to be slain upon a particular
After two day’s travel, on the third day, Abraham lifted up
his eyes and saw the mount afar off.
From that point Abraham and Isaac left the two men who had accompanied
them thus far and travelled the remainder of the way alone. Abraham laid the wood on his son, and he himself
carried the fire and the knife as they proceeded toward the mount (vv. 4-6).
The “wood” which Isaac carried toward the mount foreshadowed the Cross which Christ
carried toward the mount. “Wood” in Scripture symbolizes humanity,
pointing in Gen. 22 to man’s sin,
which made necessary both the wood which Isaac carried and the Cross which
Christ carried. The “fire” and the “knife” which Abraham carried toward the
mount symbolize God’s judgment upon sin and the Word of God respectively.
God was about to judge sin upon the mount in accordance with His
revealed Word.
God’s judgment upon sin throughout Scripture is emblemized by “fire.” (Note the flaming sword at the
entrance to the garden in Eden following Adam’s sin; the destruction of Sodom, Gomorrah,
and the cities of the plain by fire from heaven; the tabernacle worship;
Elijah’s experience with the prophets of Baal; judgment during the coming
tribulation; the judgment seat of Christ; the Valley of Hinnom; the lake of
fire.) Judgment, in turn, is always administered in accordance with God’s
revealed Word, “the sword of the Spirit” (Eph. 6: 17; cf.
Gen. 3: 24; Judges 7: 18; Heb. 4: 12; Rev. 1: 16;
19: 15).
The great truth brought out here sets forth two inseparable
facts: 1) Sin must be judged; 2) the Word so states! In Gen. 22 God judged sin in accordance with His
revealed Word (cf. Gen. 3:
21; 4: 4), and
2,000 years later on Calvary’s Cross God also judged sin in accordance with His
revealed Word. In the case of God’s Son
dying at Golgotha, it was not only God judging sin in accordance with His
revealed Word, but it was God judging sin in the person of the Living Word Who was “made flesh,
and dwelt among us” (John 1: 14).
Abraham and Isaac went together alone to the mount. The two men who had accompanied them from
Gerar remained a sufficient distance from the mount that they neither had part
in nor witnessed the scene on the mount.
God the Father and God the Son went together to
As Abraham and Isaac journeyed toward the mount together, with
Isaac carrying the wood and Abraham carrying the fire and the knife, Isaac
observed that there was no lamb for a sacrifice. He then said to his father “Behold the
fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt-offering” (v. 7)? Abraham responded, “My son, God will provide himself a
Lamb for a burnt-offering” (v. 8).
This statement cannot refer to the ram caught in a thicket (v. 13), for Abraham knew nothing of this ram
and believe that he would actually have to slay his son. Abraham’s response to Isaac looks beyond the
offering of Abraham’s greater Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. (Note the statement of John the Baptizer in John 1: 29: “Behold the
Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.”
In essence, John not only answered Isaac’s question [“Where is the Larnb?”], but he also identified the One to Whom Abraham referred [“God will provide himself a
Lamb”].) God provided the
Lamb, and the Lamb was God Himself in the person of His Son.
Isaac in the type offered no resistance as he was bound and
placed on the altar upon the wood. He
willingly allowed himself to be the sacrifice.
God’s Son, likewise, in the antitype,
offered no resistance as He moved toward
As Abraham “stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to
slay his son.” he
was stopped by the angel of the Lord; and a “ram caught in a thicket by his horns” was provided as an offering “in the stead
of his son.” The
ram died in Isaac’s place. The wages of
sin (death) were satisfied via a substitute (vv. 10-13).
The wages
of sin today, likewise, have been satisfied in the person of a Substitute. God has provided Himself a Lamb. The Lord Jesus Christ has paid the required
price to atone for man’s sin, and God is satisfied with the price which His Son
has paid. Man can either receive Jesus
Christ Who paid the wages of sin on his behalf, or man can pay the penalty
himself. The Lamb has died, but the
death of the Lamb is insufficient without the proper application of the blood (Ex. 12:
6, 7, 12, 13).
Death - Burial - Resurrection
Abraham possessed God’s promise that “in Isaac
shall thy seed be called” (Gen. 21: 12).
From the time of Abraham’s call in
It is apparent that Abraham also understood many things about
the prophetic significance of the offering of his son on the mount. Gal 3: 8
reveals that the gospel (comprised of three parts: Death, Burial, Resurrection; 1 Cor.
15: 3, 4) had been
proclaimed to Abraham. Abraham knew that
the events of his day foreshadowed events of a coming day, which provided a
second reason why Abraham knew that God would have to raise Isaac from the
dead. This fact is set forth in the word
“figure”
(Heb. 11: 19). The Greek word
translated “figure” is parabole, from which we derive the English word “parable.”
A parable is one truth placed along side a previous truth to help
explain the previous truth. The offering
of Isaac was placed along the gospel which had been previously proclaimed to
Abraham. The gospel, in turn, looked
beyond the offering of Isaac to the offering of Abraham’s greater Son, the Lord
Jesus Christ, 1000 years later. Abraham
received his son from the dead in a parable - truth set forth in the offering of Isaac
which was placed alongside previously revealed truth (the gospel). The gospel message announced that God’s Son
would be raised [out] from
the dead, and, in this manner, Abraham that his son (a type of God’s Son) would
also be raised from the dead.
According to the Record, Abraham, in
God’s sight, actually offered up his son.
Note the words in Heb. 11: 17, “By faith Abraham, when he as tried, offered
up Isaac.”
Isaac then, to complete the type, was raised from the dead on the third
day. Note in Gen. 22: 4, it was on the third day that Abraham
“lifted
s eyes, and saw the place afar off.” Isaac had been dead
for two days and was raised on the third day.
God provided a ram, and the ram was to be slain in order that Isaac
might live. Not only do we have
substitutionary atonement, but we also have resurrection. The ram not only died in Isaac’s stead, but
the ram also died so Isaac (who was looked upon as dead at this point in the
account) could 1ive. That is resurrection.
Concluding Thoughts:
There is no mention of Isaac’s coming down from the mount with
Abraham. Of course, we know from Gen. 22: 5 that Isaac undoubtedly returned with
Abraham. But to guard the overall type
within Gen.
21-25, the Record is
silent on this point. The next
appearance of Isaac within the framework of these five chapters is in Gen. 24: 62 as he comes forth to meet Rebekah at “eventide.”
This is after the death of Sarah (ch. 23), after the completion of Eliezer’s mission in the far country (ch. 24), and immediately before the remarriage
of Abraham (ch. 25).
All of this in graphic, unblemished detail foreshadows the
experiences of Christ in the antitype.
Following His resurrection, He, as Isaac, was removed from the
scene. He ascended into heaven. And the next appearance of Christ will be the
same as that foreshadowed by Isaac in Gen. 24: 62. Christ, as Isaac will
not reappear until that time when He comes forth to meet His bride at “eventide” - at the end of the present age. This time follows both the setting aside of
Just as surely as the day arrived when Eliezer completed his
mission and Rebekah was removed from the far country, the day will arrive when
the Holy Spirit will complete His mission and the bride of Christ will be
removed from the far country (earth).
And, just as Isaac came forth and met Rebekah between his home and her
former home, Christ will come forth and meet His bride between His home
and her former home. Then just as
Rebekah went to Isaac’s home and became his wife, the bride of Christ will
journey into heaven with her Bridegroom and become the wife of the Lamb (cf. Gen. 24:
61-67; 1 Thess. 4: 16, 17; Rev. 19: 7-9).
Then will follow the antitype of Abraham’s remarriage
All these things were decreed in the councils of eternity during
a time before the ages even began. And
the Lamb dying on
“Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to
receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and
blessing. And every creature which is in
heaven, and on the earth and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and
all that are in them, heard I saying ‘Blessing, and honour, and glory, and
power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb forever and
ever’” (Rev. 5: 12, 13).
* * *
2
The Rights of Primogeniture
“By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau
concerning things to come:”
(Hebrews 11:20).
[“Esau, being
the firstborn son, held by right of birth the privileges before described as
belonging to the firstborn. He
did not have to win or buy these rights; they attached to him by birth
according to the will of God. Yet it was
incumbent upon him to retain them.
“But he held them in such small
esteem that he readily bartered them away in exchange for a passing
gratification of the palate. It was not
that other food could not easily have been obtained, for he had come into the
encampment. The fact is, as recorded by
God, that he “despised his birthright.” …
“To warn one against losing what he
does not possess is a futility that we dare not attribute to the Spirit of the
Lord.
“But real believers, being born of
God and being called to His kingdom and glory, fulfil the facts of Esau’s case.
…”
G. H. LANG: Firstborn Sons, pp. 103, 104.]
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Follow peace
with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: Looking
diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness
springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled; Lest there be any
fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his
birthright. For ye know how that
afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he
found no place of repentence, though he sought it
carefully with tears (Heb. 12:14-17).
Esau and Jacob were twin brothers.
Esau, having been born first, was recognized as the elder and thus the one in
line to receive the blessing of the father reserved for the firstborn. But Esau forfeited the rights of
primogeniture, and his younger brother, Jacob, received the blessing in his
stead. Esau received a
blessing from his father, but it was far inferior to Jacob’s blessing; and it
was not connected in any manner with the rights belonging to the firstborn, for
these rights had been forfeited.
Esau’s forfeiture of the birthright was foretold before he was
even born. At a time prior to the birth
of Esau and Jacob, the Lord had told Rebekah, “the elder shall serve the
younger” (Gen. 25: 23).
In order for this to come to pass, the elder would have to forfeit the
rights of primogeniture, and the younger would have to receive the blessing in
his stead (cf. Gen. 27: 37).
When the time arrived for Isaac to bestow his blessings upon
Esau and Jacob, he set about to bestow the blessing of the firstborn upon Esau,
contrary to what the Lord had revealed to Rebekah. But Isaac could not bless Esau as the
firstborn, for Esau had forfeited these rights.
And, although Jacob used deceptive means to obtain his father’s blessing as the
firstborn (Gen. 27:18ff), he was merely
taking what rightfully belonged to him.
The faith of Isaac in Heb. 11: 20 centers around God’s promise in the Abrahamic covenant. This convenant had
been confirmed to Isaac (Gen. 26: 3-5), and the Lord had specifically told Isaac, “unto thy seed,
I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto
Abraham thy father” (v. 3).
In-so-far as the promises in the Abrahamic covenant were concerned,
Jacob was the only one recognized as Isaac’s seed. Esau, because he was Isaac’s son, received a
blessing - as Ishmael, because he was Abraham’s son (Gen. 17:
20, 21; 21: 13) -
but this blessing, as Ishmael’s, was completely outside the scope of the
Abrahamic covenant and the rights of primogeniture.
The
forfeiture of the birthright by Esau and the blessings bestowed upon both Jacob
and Esau by their father are recorded in Gen. 25: 27 - 27:40. These experiences of Jacob and Esau form the last of five major
warnings directed to Christians in the Book of Hebrews; (12: 14-17). Even though it had been
revealed before the birth of Jacob and Esau that the elder would serve the
younger, Esau, through a wilful act of his own, forfeited the rights of
primogeniture. And within this forfeiture lies
the warning to every Christian concerning the possibility of a [regenerate]
Christian, in like manner, forfeiting his birthright.
Every Christian is a firstborn child of God and in line to
receive the inheritance belonging to the firstborn. But it is evident from the clear teaching of Scripture that every [regenerate]
Christian will not receive this inheritance. The Christian’s present [eternal] salvation
is not an inherited salvation and has nothing to do with the rights of
primogeniture, except that of placing the Christian in a position where, at a
future date, he can either receive or be denied the inheritance belonging to
the firstborn.
The birthright in-so-far as Jacob and Esau were concerned involved an earthly inheritance.
And the birthright in-so-far as Christians are concerned involves a
heavenly inheritance. Esau forfeited his earthly
inheritance, and the clear teaching of Scripture attests to the fact that
Christians, in like manner, can - [during the
millennial reign of Christ] - forfeit their
heavenly inheritance.*
[* See at the end: ‘Being
Saved and Inheriting Differ’ – a selected writing by G. H. Lang.]
The Birthright
The word translated “birthright” is prototokia in the Greek text. Prototokia
is a plural noun which should properly be rendered, “the rights of
the firstborn.” This word points to the fact that the
birthright consists of a plurality of rights.
1. Firstborn Sons -
In the Old Testament the inheritance belonging to the
firstborn in the camp of
(a) The firstborn was to be ruler of the household under and for the father. He held the position of
authority among sons in the family. In the blessing bestowed upon Jacob, he
was placed as “lord” over his brother (Gen. 27: 37). When Joseph’s
brothers were seated at the table to dine with him in
(b) The firstborn
was to act as priest of the family.
(c) The firstborn was to receive a double portion of the
father’s estate. If there were six heirs
in the family, including the firstborn, the father’s estate was divided into
seven equal parts. The firstborn
received two of the seven parts, and the remaining heirs in the family received
the other five parts, which were divided equally among them (Deut. 21:
15-17).
2. Firstborn Sons - Christians
In the New Testament the inheritance belonging to the firstborn
(Christians) is foreshadowed by the triple inheritance bestowed upon the
firstborn in the Old Testament.
Christians, presently constituting “a royal priesthood, an holy nation” (1 Peter
2: 9), are to be
made “kings and priests” and receive a double portion of the Father’s estate.
(a) The firstborn is to be made a ruler.
This was God’s purpose for the creation of man in the beginning (Gen. 1:
26-28) - a purpose
which will be realized in the coming age: first, through Jesus Christ (God’s firstborn Son); second, through the Church [of the firstborn] (God’s firstborn son, following the adoption); and third, through the nation of
Christ is the “second man,”
“the 1ast Adam,” Who has paid the price to redeem what the “first man,”
the “first Adam,” forfeited in the fall.
The time when
the purchased possession will be received and God’s purpose for the creation of
man realized in its completeness awaits the Messianic Era.
Christ will rule from the heavens over the earth; overcoming Christians, constituting the Church in its
ultimate manifestation - the “church of the firstborn [‘called out firstborn ones (sons)’]” (Heb. 12: 23) - will rule from the heavens with Christ; and [the nation of]
“And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write ... And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him
will I give power over the nations: And he shall
rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken
to shivers: even as I received of my Father” (Rev. 2: 18, 26, 27).
“And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans
write ... To him that overcometh will I grant to
sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my
Father in his throne” (Rev. 3:
14, 21).
(b) The firstborn is not only to be a ruler, but he is also
to be a priest in the coming
There is a present existing priesthood in which all believers
participate equally, and Christ is our great High Priest, ministering on our
behalf in the Holy of Holies of the tabernacle in heaven. Although Christ has already been made a
Priest “after the order of Melchizedek” (Heb. 6: 20), He has not yet entered into this priestly office, for the
Melchizedek priesthood has to do with a combined Kingly-Priestly function of Israel’s Messiah. Christ has already been anointed King, as He
has already been made a priest after the order of Melchizedek. But the time when He will become King and exercise a Kingly-Priestly office - the Melchizedek
priesthood - is yet future.
The ministry of Christ today is
patterned after the order of Aaron not that of Melchizedek. His present ministry in the heavenly
tabernacle is being performed on the basis of shed blood - the blood which He
shed at
Consequently,
the priesthood of Christ must undergo
a change. (Note the word “unchangeable”
in Heb. 7: 24. This is a translation of the Greek word aparabatos, which means, “without a successor,” i.e. “unchangeable
with respect to a successor,” which was not possible in the Aaronic
line; v. 23.) Christ’s ministry in the Holy of Holies will
continue throughout the present age. At
the end of this [evil]
age the present priestly ministry of Christ in the sanctuary will be completed,
and a change in the priesthood will then occur.
At that time Christ will come forth from the
tabernacle in heaven and appear to
Melchizedek appears only two times in
all the Old Testament Scriptures (Gen. 14: 18; Psa.
110: 4), and both
passages are Messianic in their scope.
In turn, Melchizedek appears in only one book of the New Testament. The
Holy Spirit has inscribed the name “Melchizedek” nine times in the Book of Hebrews (5: 6, 10;
6: 20; 7: 1, 10, 11, 15, 17, 21); and teachings surrounding his appearance in this book are to
be understood in the light of what is revealed in the Old Testament, for all
New Testament Scripture is simply an expansion of God’s previous Revelation,
beginning with Genesis.
1) Melchizedek in
Genesis (14:17-20)
Melchizedek met Abraham returning from the battle of the
kings, and blessed him. Melchizedek was
a king-priest. He was “king of
Following the battle of the kings in Gen. 14, Melchizedek brought forth bread and
wine and blessed Abraham. Two thousand years later, the One Whom Melchizedek
foreshadowed partook of bread and wine with His disciples immediately before
His crucifixion (Matt. 26: 26-28). He then
stated, “I will not drink henceforth of
this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink
it new with you in my Father’s kingdom” (v. 29). This statement from the lips of Jesus
clearly reveals that between these two times - between events surrounding the
crucifixion and events surrounding the kingdom (a period covering the entire
present age) - He will not bring forth bread and wine after the order of
Melchizedek.
Melchizedek’s ministry in Genesis centered around
his blessing Abraham; the antitype of this ministry will centre
around the One Who is greater than Melchizedek blessing the descendants
of Abraham.
The day when Israel will experience this blessing at the hands
of their Messiah is clearly revealed to be: a) following
the battle of the kings (following the treading of the winepress, where the
battle will be fought between Jesus [God’s True King] and the man of sin with
his allies [Satan’s false king, with the “kings of the earth, and their armies”]; Rev.
14: 14-20; 19: 17-21), and b) during the time the tabernacle of Israel’s Messiah is in
Jerusalem (during the time Jesus is seated on the throne of His father, David, in
Jerusalem). Thus, the typology in Gen. 14: 17-20
can only be millennial in its scope.
When Jesus exercises
the Melchizedek priesthood, He will be the great King-Priest in
2) Melchizedek
in Psalms (110:
1-7)
During the present age the Son is seated at the Father’s right
hand in the Holy of Holies of the tabernacle in heaven. He is to occupy this position until His
enemies are made His “footstool” (v. 1).
The time when His enemies will be brought under subjection (made His
footstool) occurs at the end of this present age. In the coming age, Jesus will exercise a rule
which will issue forth from “
Christ is said to exercise a priestly office “after the
order of Melchizedek” (v. 4) during the time He rules from
3) Melchizedek in Hebrews (chs. 5-7)
Hebrews is a book which aligns itself with the age to
come. After four introductory verses,
the first chapter is composed almost entirely of Messianic quotations from the Old
Testament, establishing a foundational premise for the remainder of the
book. And the book itself is built
around five major warnings, beginning with chapter two, which find their
ultimate fulfilment in the coming age.
The things revealed about Melchizedek in chapters five through seven,
interpreted in the light of both the Old Testament and the Book of Hebrews as a
whole, likewise, have to do with a future ministry of Christ in the age to
come. These things can refer to no other
period in the ministry of Christ, for the totality of Revelation concerning
Melchizedek in Genesis and Psalms is Messianic; and so must the corresponding
Revelation be in the Book of Hebrews.
The Writer of Hebrews
introduces Melchizedek by quoting Psa. 110: 4 (5: 6).
He then states that
there are numerous things which he would like to discuss concerning the
antitype of the Melchizedek priesthood, but the ones to whom he is writing are not mature enough to
understand.
Teachings of this nature have to do with “strong meat,” and the recipients of this epistle
could only take “milk” (vv.
10-14).
These teachings are further associated with the “hope” set
before Christians, and the salvation of the “soul”
(6: 19, 20), which have to do with [the time of Resurrection and] the coming age, not the present age.
The present ministry of Christ, our High Priest, is connected
with the tabernacle; and the present ministry of Christians, as priests, is
also connected with the tabernacle.
Christ ministers in the Holy of Holies on our behalf, and we approach
God through Jesus Christ on the basis of His blood on the mercy seat. However, when Christ comes forth from the
tabernacle to exercise the Melchizedek priesthood, His ministry will no longer
be connected with the tabernacle. And
the priesthood of Christians, at that time will, likewise, no longer be
connected with the tabernacle, but will be connected with Christ’s
priesthood. We will reside in sinless,
glorified bodies in a city which has no temple (1 Cor.
15: 51-57; 1 John 3: 2; Rev. 21: 22). As Christ will reign
as the great King-Priest, Christians will
reign as joint-heirs with Him in the capacity of kings and priests.
(c) The firstborn in the family is not only to be a ruler and a priest, but he is also to receive a double portion of the Fathers estate. This double portion undoubtedly has to do
with both spheres of the kingdom heavenly and earthly.
The “kings and priests” who reign with Christ will rule from the heavens over the
earth. Inheriting with Christ really means
possessing both, for the Father has promised His Son, “Ask of me,
and I will give thee the heathen [Gentiles] for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth
for thy possession” (Psa. 2: 8).
This earthly inheritance and possession is open only to God’s Son and
those who rule from the heavens as “joint-heirs”
with Him. Thus, a rule from the heavens
over the earth will incorporate this double portion.*
[* NOTE.
The “double portion, which overcomers
will inherit, refers also to the two “kingdoms” of God: the first upon
this restored earth (Rom. 8: 19-21);
and the second - after “the elements … shall be
dissolved (2 Pet. 3: 10) - in “a new heaven and new earth” (Rev.
21: 1.) – Ed.]
Warning: One’s Birthright can be Forfeited
There are two classic examples in the Word of God concerning
the forfeiture of the rights belonging to the firstborn. One is the account of Esau, and the other is the account of Reuben.
1. Reuben and the Birthright
Reuben, the firstborn of Jacob, was in direct line to inherit
the rights of primogeniture; but because of one grave sin committed during his
life, Reuben forfeited these rights.
Reuben’s sin, resulting in the forfeiture of his birthright, was sexual
impropriety of a nature which dishonoured and shamed his father: “Reuben went
and lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine” (Gen. 35: 22).
Because of this one sin, years later when Jacob called his
twelve sons into his presence shortly before his death to relate what would
befall them “in the last days,” Reuben heard the
words:- “Thou art my firstborn, my might, and the
beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:
Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to thy
father’s bed; then defiledst thou it: he went up to
my couch” (Gen. 49: 3, 4). The tribe of Reuben, as Jacob prophesied, did
not excel. From this tribe came no
judge, no king and no prophet. That
which Reuben lost, he lost forever. But
he himself remained a son of Jacob and was blessed in measure, but not as the
firstborn.
Reuben’s birthright was divided among three of his brothers.
The tribal rulership was bestowed
upon “
During the Kingdom Age the status created by Reuben’s sin will
still abide. The King will be of the house of
Esau and the Birthright
Esau, as Reuben, forfeited his birthright. In Esau’s case the entire inheritance went to
his younger brother, Jacob. Esau
forfeited his birthright to satisfy a fleshly gratification. He sold his birthright to his younger
brother, Jacob, for a single meal (Gen. 25: 27-34).
Since the rights of the firstborn had ultimately been promised
to Jacob (Gen. 25: 23) some doubt that Esau
ever actually possessed these rights.
However, Esau was no pretender to the rights of the firstborn. The Greek word translated “sold” in Heb. 12: 16 is inflected in a tense implying that the article sold
belonged to Esau alone, and he was fully aware of his actions when he sold his
birthright to Jacob.
In Gen. 25: 34 we read that Esau “despised his birthright.” The Greek word in the Septuagint Version of
the Old Testament translated “despised” implies that Esau regarded the
birthright as a paltry, a mere trifle.
Esau regarded the birthright as practically worthless, and sold his
rights as firstborn with the thought in mind that what he was selling was of no
real value. It was only later, at a time
when it was too late, that Esau realized the value of what he had sold. As in Reuben’s case, the forfeiture of the
birthright did not affect his sonship, but it did affect forever his
relationship to Isaac as firstborn.
After Jacob had been blessed as the firstborn in the family,
Esau, apparently for the first time, realized the value of what he had
lost. Esau then tried to retrieve the
birthright, but the Scripture records that “he found no place of repentance.”
After Esau realized the value of the
birthright and the finality of what had occurred, he pleaded with his father,
Isaac, to change his mind and bless him also.
Esau cried out to Isaac: “Hast thou but one blessing, my father:
bless me, even me also 0 my father.” And it is recorded that “Esau lifted up his voice, and wept”
(Gen. 27: 38).
The word “repentance” means to change one’s mind. Esau sought to effect a change of mind on the part of his
father, but “he found no place of repentance,” i.e., “he found no place for a change
of mind.” The American
Standard Version of the Bible (1901
ed.) has possibly the most accurate rendering of Heb. 12: 17 to be found in any of the translations presently
appearing on the market. This verse in the American Standard Version
reads, “For ye know that even when he afterward desired to inherit
the blessing, he was rejected; for he found no place for a change of mind in
his father, though he sought it diligently with tears.”
Isaac could not
change his mind.
The birthright had been forfeited and was beyond Esau’s grasp forever.
3. Christians and the Birthright
Within the minds of many Christians is
the thought that after a person has received the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour it
makes little difference how he conducts his life, for all Christians will
inherit with the Son when He receives the kingdom. Nothing could be further from the truth.
To reign with Christ is contingent upon identifying oneself with Christ
and sharing in His rejection and reproach during the present day and time. If all Christians are to rule and reign with
Christ in His kingdom, what does the scripture mean when it states, “If we suffer [‘patiently
endure’], we will also reign with him: if he we
deny him, he also will deny us” (2 Tim. 2:
12)? If a Christian lives an
undisciplined life, following the carnal nature (typified by Esau’s attitude
toward the birthright) rather than the spiritual nature (typified by Jacob’s
attitude toward the birthright), fails to occupy until the Lord comes (Luke 19: 12, 13), or fails to use the talent or
pound entrusted to him by the Lord (Matt. 25:
14-30; Luke 19: 15-24), that Christian will also fail to occupy a place
in our Lord’s kingdom.
Every Christian is presently a firstborn child of God awaiting
the adoption and inheritance belonging to the firstborn (Rom. 8:
16-23, 29; Heb. 2: 10; 12: 23). The adoption and
inheritance are both future, and both can be forfeited, for one is intimately associated
with the other. A Christian’s
relationship to the Father as a firstborn child awaiting the adoption cannot be forfeited. But a
Christian’s relationship to the Father as a firstborn son participating in the rights belonging
to the firstborn can be forfeited. As in
the account of Esau and Reuben, once this forfeiture has occurred, the rights
belonging to the firstborn cannot be retrieved.
In that day when we all stand before the judgment seat of
Christ there will be two classes of Christians: 1) those who have retained their rights as
firstborn, and 2) those who have
forfeited their rights as firstborn.
Christians
retaining the rights of the firstborn will exercise these rights as “joint-heirs” with the Son in the kingdom. But Christians who forfeit the rights of the
firstborn will find themselves in the same position which Esau and Reuben found
themselves, following the loss of the rights belonging
to the firstborn. Such Christians will
seek a place of repentance. That is to
say, they will attempt to have the Judge change His mind and bless them
alongside the others who did not forfeit the rights belonging to the
firstborn. But they will find no place
for a change of mind. It will be too
late. The birthright will have been
forfeited. The blessing pertaining to
the inheritance awaiting the firstborn sons of God will have been forfeited,
and those who forfeit this blessing will occupy no position among the “kings
and priests” who reign over the earth with the Son. Christians in that day, as Esau in the type,
when they at 1ast realize what has been lost, will lift up their voices and
weep.
“Behold,I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man
take thy crown” (Rev. 3: 11).
* *
*
3
Heavenly
and Earthly Blessings
By faith
Jacob, when he was a dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph; and worshipped,
leaning upon the top of his staff (Heb. 11: 21).
To properly understand the significance of the blessings Jacob
bestowed upon Joseph’s sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, one must turn to the Book of
Genesis. This book contains the exact
sequence of events which God would have man to know concerning the lives and
times of these individuals, and apart from this sequence of events Heb. 11: 21 cannot be correctly interpreted.
The key to a correct understanding of New Testament Revelation
always rests on
understanding what the Old Testament has to say about the matter. The instructed Christian, studying any part
of the New Testament, will continually find himself turning back to the
writings of Moses and the Prophets, God’s Own commentary on the subject. All individuals and every event, place, or
object associated with these individuals carry spiritual significance and appear
in an orderly arrangement, setting forth great spiritual truths concerning
various aspects of God’s dealings with mankind during the ages through the
person of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Teachings drawn from the framework of events surrounding Jacob’s
blessings bestowed upon Ephraim and Manasseh are built around three key points:
1. The time of the birth of Ephraim and Manasseh (before the famine).
2. The time when Ephraim and Manasseh received their blessings (after the famine).
3. The fact that the younger (Ephraim) received the blessing reserved for the
firstborn.
This study - a study in proper distinctions and divisions of
the Scripture concerning God’s plans and purposes for both
Before the Famine
The birth of Joseph’s two sons is recorded in Gen. 41: 50-52.
These sons were born in
Manasseh, Joseph’s elder son, was associated with the father’s
house; and Ephraim, Joseph’s
younger son, was associated with “fruitfulness” in the
The future blessing of the Church as
the firstborn - typified by Ephraim’s reception of the blessing belonging to
the firstborn - stems from the fact that
During the time allotted (present age) for Christians to bring
forth fruit,
During the present age God is dealing with the Church, and He
will not resume His national dealings with
[* Luke 21:
34-36; Rev. 3: 10.]
God’s dealings with
Between
the Sixty-ninth Week and the Seventieth Week of Daniel’s prophecy there is an
interval of time lasting approximately 2,000 years. During this interval the chronometer marking
off the complete 490 years of Daniel’s prophecy is idle, for
During the Famine
A time of famine is coming.
It came during Joseph’s day following a time of plenty, and it will come
again following a time of plenty. The famine
during Joseph’s day covered all lands,
and the coming famine will, likewise, coverall all lands (Gen. 41: 54; Luke 21: 35). When the famine covered all the land during
Joseph’s day, his brethren reappeared, and he dealt with them. This typifies the fact that when the
Tribulation covers all the land during the coming day (Day of the Lord), the
Jewish people will reappear - no longer set aside - and be dealt with by their
Brother.
1. Joseph’s Day
During the time of famine in the Genesis account, Joseph’s
brethren found themselves in a position in which they had nowhere to turn but
to the disseminator of corn in
Joseph’s brethren did not know him, but he knew them. Joseph then, through predetermined events and
circumstances, brought his brethren into a position in which they were forced,
in his presence, to acknowledge their guilt concerning their prior treatment of
him. He then revealed himself to his
brethren and became their deliverer from the time of famine.
2. The Lord’s Day
It will be during the coming Tribulation that Jesus’ brethren will
again come into view and be dealt with by God on a national basis. During the Tribulation,
Jesus’ brethren will not know the true identity of the God of
their fathers upon Whom they will call, but He will
know them. He will then, through
predetermined events and circumstances, bring His brethren into a position in
which they will be forced, in His presence, to acknowledge their guilt
concerning their prior treatment of Him.
Jesus’ brethren, as Joseph’s brethren, will acknowledge their “offence”
during the coming time of
their “affliction,” the time of Famine, the Great Tribulation. And Jesus, as Joseph, will reveal Himself to
His brethren and become their Deliverer from the Great Tribulation (Hosea 5:
15 - 6: 2).
Following the Famine
The account of the blessings bestowed upon Ephraim and
Manasseh is recorded in Gen. 48: 14-20. This account, within the
chronological framework of events surrounding Joseph and his sons, is placed
after the time of famine. The bestowal
of these blessings follow Joseph’s dealings with and revelation of himself to
his brethren, and is projected into that time when Joseph’s brethren went forth
proclaiming his “glory” and the fact that he was “governor” over all the land of Egypt (Gen. 45:
13, 26).
Thus, that which is foreshadowed by the blessings bestowed
upon Ephraim and Manasseh has to do with events and conditions following the
Great Tribulation and Christ’s revelation of Himself to
Jacob had adopted Joseph’s two sons (48: 5, 6).
They would, thus, be blessed as his sons, for they were his sons; and
they would partake of the inheritance and each receive full portions along with
Jacob’s other sons. In this manner
Joseph realized the double portion of the father’s goods - part of the
birthright forfeited by Reuben (Gen. 48: 22; Joshua 16, 17; 1 Chron. 5: 1, 2; Ezek. 47: 13; 48: 4, 5).
Even though Joseph’s sons each
received full portions, they were to be blessed with the thought of the double
portion in mind. One was blessed above
the other, receiving the blessing belonging to the first-born. In this respect Jacob is a type of God the
Father, and Joseph, his son, is a type of the Father’s Son, Jesus. Manasseh and Ephraim, adopted by Jacob,
foreshadow
When it came time for Jacob to bless Ephraim and Manasseh,
Joseph placed Ephraim opposite Jacob’s left hand and Manasseh opposite Jacob’s
right hand. The right hand was to be
placed upon the head of the elder, and he was, in this manner, to receive the
blessing belonging to the firstborn.
(Note in this respect that Christ, God’s firstborn Son, is today seated
at the Father’s right hand.) However,
Jacob placed his right hand upon Ephraim, the younger son, and his left hand
upon Manasseh, the elder. And in this
manner Jacob blessed Joseph’s two sons.
Jacob knew that he was bestowing the
blessing belonging to the firstborn upon the younger son (v. 19), and we read in Heb. 11: 21 that Jacob blessed Ephraim and
Manasseh in this manner, “by faith.” To bless the
sons “by faith,” Jacob had to know the mind of God in the matter and act in accordance
with God’s revealed will. Faith is simply believing what God has to say. Thus, it is evident that God had previously
revealed certain things to Jacob concerning Ephraim and Manasseh. This same truth holds concerning Jacob’s prophecy
surrounding each of his sons in chapter forty-nine. The words of Jacob concerning his sons
constitute the Revelation of God concerning these sons.
Both Ephraim and Manasseh were to become a people, but
Ephraim, the younger, was to become greater than Manasseh, the elder. This holds true not only concerning Ephraim’s
and Manasseh’s descendants, but also concerning that which is foreshadowed by
circumstances and events surrounding Ephraim’s and Manasseh’s experiences
leading into their individual blessings.
The Sons of God
[* That is, at the time of Christ’s return and the Resurrection,
when the bodies of the dead are redeemed: “Even we
ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for Sonship, - the redemption of our
body:” (Rom. 8: 23). Hence the importance of attaining unto that ‘better’ and ‘out- resurrection’,
(Heb. 11: 35b; Phil.
3: 11). See also Luke 21: 35; Rev. 20: 4-6.]
1. Classification of Sons
The expression “sons of God” is not used in Scripture to
distinguish between the saved and the unsaved. Rather, this expression is used
referring to special creations of God, or to individuals or nations adopted
from one of these special creations.
Outside of any reference to Jesus, God’s only begotten Son, the expressions “son of God,”
“sons of God,”
“my son,” or “my sons” are restricted to these two senses in Scripture.
Angels are sons of God because of “creation.”
Every angel is an individual creation of God, and there is no
procreation within the angelic realm itself.
The fall of Satan and the angels who followed him produced no change in
their status as sons of God, simply because this fall produced no change in the
fact that they were special, individual creations of God. Fallen angels are called “sons of God” in Gen. 6: 2, 4, and Satan is placed among un-fallen
angels in Job
1: 6; 2: 1, with the
expression “sons of God” covering the entire group.
Christians, on the other
hand, although special creations of God and in a saved state, are not presently
sons of God. Christians are children of God awaiting the
adoption into sonship.
Thus, in the human realm only a certain segment of mankind
falls under the classification “sons of God” (the nation of
2. Firstborn Sons
The word “firstborn” carries the thought of supremacy.
God’s announcement
to Pharaoh through Moses, “
God presently has two firstborn Sons (Jesus, and
The word “firstborn” in Heb. 12: 23 is from the same root form of the Greek word
translated birthright (“Esau ... sold his birthright”) in Heb.
12: 16. This word in verse
twenty-three has reference to the firstborn who, unlike Esau, retain their
rights and privileges. This is the same
word used relative to Christ, “the firstborn
among many brethren,” in Rom. 8: 29.
These “brethren” are synonymous with the ones to be adopted in verse
twenty-three of this same chapter, and, retaining their rights of
primogeniture, they will reign as joint-heirs with Christ in the coming [millennial] kingdom.
3. Awaiting the Adoption
There is one place in the Book of
Romans (8: 14) and one section in the Book of Galatians
(3: 26 - 4: 7) where Christians are
called “sons” of God in a present tense. In all
other instances the expression is, or should be, rendered “children” of God (ref. John 1: 12; Phil. 2: 15; 1 John 3: 1, 2).
However, neither the verse in Romans nor the section in Galatians
teaches that Christians have been adopted into sonship, for both, if rightly
understood in the light of their respective contexts and related Scripture, are
used in a future sense.
a) Romans, Chapter Eight
The verses immediately
preceding Rom. 8: 14 have to do
with individuals (Christians) either walking after the flesh or walking after Spirit - following the old man or the new man (vv. 1-13).
The verses immediately following Romans 8: 14 state that we are presently “children” awaiting the adoption (vv. 15-23). Consequently, in the light of the
con text and related Scripture - which
clearly teaches that we are presently children,
not sons - it appears evident that Rom. 8: 14 must be understood in the sense that the ones, as the first
part of this verse states, who are “led [presently being led] by the Spirit of God” are the ones who will be adopted, i.e., placed in the position of “sons.”
These are the ones who will be manifested as the “sons of God”
in verse nineteen,
synonymous with both the “many sons” who will be brought into glory in Heb. 2: 10 and the
ones who will comprise the “church of the firstborn” in Heb. 12: 23.
The great burden of Scripture has to do with God’s intentions
to replace the “sons of God” presently ruling
under Satan with a great host of individuals He is about to place in the
position of “sons” via adoption. Angels
ruling under Satan have disqualified themselves, and they are to be deposed;
Christians are presently in the process of qualifying to rule, and they are to
be established in these positions. Christ has already shown Himself fully qualified to replace Satan, and
Christians who qualify will hold positions under Christ, presently held by
angels ruling under Satan.
b) Galatians,
Chapters Three and Four
Gal. 3: 26 – 4: 7 is a section which deals with our
position in Christ (3: 26-28), the adoption (4: 5), and the heirship (3: 29; 4: 7).
The expression “in Christ” sets forth a positional standing, not what we are personally
and actually here and now. “In Christ” all distinctions of the human race
have been blotted out. There is neither
male nor female, bond nor free, etc. But
personally and actually these conditions exist.
“In Christ” we have been seated together in heavenly places, “far above all
principality, and power, and might, and dominion” (Eph. 2: 6; 1: 20, 21).
But personally and actually we are here on earth, Jesus is at His
Father’s right hand, and these heavenly powers (synonymous with the powers in Eph. 6: 12) still possess dominion. “In Christ” we have been blessed with all
spiritual blessings and have received the inheritance “reserved in
heaven.” But Personally and
actually the reception of most blessings and the entirety of the inheritance
are yet future (Eph. 1: 3, 11-14; cf. 1 Peter 1: 3, 4).
The same is also true of the sonship in the section in Gal. 3: 26 - 4: 7.
We have already come into this position “in Christ,” but personally and actually the
adoption and the heirship are yet future.
This is the clear teaching of related Scripture, and Scripture does not
contradict itself.
Placement and Position of Sons
Sons of God have held, continue to
hold, and will always hold the main positions of power and authority under God
over this earth. During prior ages,
continuing into the present, angels have held these positions. But God is about
to bring into existence a new order of sons; and this order of sons will,
during the coming age, occupy positions of power and authority presently held
by angels, for “unto the angels hath he [God] not
put in subjection the world to come” (Heb.
2: 5).
In time past
The future adoption of Christians, as in
The double portion of the Father’s
estate, to be possessed by the Church [of the
firstborn], has to do with both spheres of the
kingdom heavenly and earthly. The blessings in store for Christians are
heavenly, but these heavenly blessings will include an earthly “inheritance” and “possession,” for Christians [who overcome] will
be joint-heirs with Christ; and
the Father has promised His Son, “Ask of me, and I will give thee the
heathen [Gentiles] for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession” (Psa. 2: 8,
cf. Rev.
2: 26, 27). This earthly inheritance and possession -
completely separate from
“To him that
overcometh will I grant to sit
with me in my throne” (Rev. 3: 21).
-------
Being Saved and Inheriting Differ
By G. H. Lang
But the question of the application of these warnings is
surely settled, and their impressiveness greatly deepened, by their repetition
in letters to other churches. Different
indeed in spiritual condition and apprehension were the churches in
[* See 1 Cor. 6: 9; Gal. 5: 21; Eph.
5; 5.]
The Galatian christians were shifting their standing before God from
the sole ground of His grace working in Christ Jesus to the ground of
ceremonial observances being meritorious for salvation. Knowing that this falling away from
confidence in the grace of God would involve their forfeiting the moral energy
which that grace alone supplies, and that consequently the flesh would soon
assert its old supremacy, the apostle addresses them thus: “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are
these, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife,
jealousies, wraths, factions, divisions, heresies, envyings, drunkenness,
revellings, and such like: of the which I forewarn you, even as 1 did forewarn
you, that they who practice such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
(ch. 5: 19-21).” Can anything be
plainer than these repeated and emphatic words, “Of the which I forewarn you
(not carnal unregenerate professors among you; but “you,”
all of you who form the churches of
The passage is noteworthy inasmuch as it shows that this line
of teaching formed part of Paul’s oral instruction to the churches: “of the which I did forewarn you”; presumably when with them, since we
know nothing of an earlier letter to them.
And, secondly, it is to be observed that the stress is here laid upon
the practice of such evils. A believer
may be suddenly tempted, and may without premeditation commit one of these
sins. He will be blameworthy, for by
watchfulness and prayer we may ever find grace to help in such an hour of need. But in such an event immediate repentance
secures, through the blood of Jesus, immediate pardon, for “if we (believers) confess our sins, God is
faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness” (1 John 1: 9). But such as
deliberately turn to these wickednesses and persist
in the indulgence, how do they stand before God?
One great school of theology has asserted that these passages
which we are considering declare the final perdition of such; which involves the
idea that really saved people, justified, possessors of eternal life, the
children of God, may forfeit all this standing and relationship and be finally
lost. But this teaching seems so
obviously to conflict with numerous and explicit assertions of Scripture, such
as declare the everlasting security from God’s wrath of those who are in Christ
Jesus, that not unnaturally many others have rejected it. Yet it must be
confessed that this latter school of teachers does not know how to give due
weight to these many and awful warnings.
At the most these can but apply them to persons (unregenerate
professors) to whom by no fair exegesis can the passages be made to apply.
The radical error in the matter has been to confound terms
that differ. By both schools “inheriting
the kingdom” has
been wrongly taken to mean simply being saved from hell and so “not
inheriting” has
been wrongly deemed synonymous with everlasting perdition. But once it is seen that receiving [eternal] salvation from
wrath is one thing, and that rising to the glory of rule in the [millennial] kingdom
is another thing, and is an attainment that follows, then the Gordian knot is
untied; for it at once becomes a possibility to forfeit the kingdom by personal
misconduct,* whilst yet retaining eternal life by the pure grace of
God, exercised on the ground of the merit of Christ alone.
*And to
incur in addition abundantly severe chastisement, proportionate to the
offences, and sufficient, if apprehended, to deter from carnality. But this is not our present theme, and we do
not pursue it (Luke 12: 46-48; e.g.)
And this contrast gives much force and clearness to the
exhortation found in Ephesians 5: 3, 6, where we read: “But fornication, and all uncleanness,
or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as becometh saints; nor
filthiness, nor foolish talking, or jesting, which are not befitting: but
rather giving of thanks. For this ye
know of a surety, that no fornicator, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who
is an idolator, hath any inheritance in the
* “Notice the perfect ‘are saved.’ not ‘are being saved’,
because we have passed from death unto life: salvation is to the Christian not
a future but a past thing, realized in the present by faith.” Alford in logo.
This call is not addressed to the
dead, that is, the unregenerate (2: 1), but
to the living but sleeping Christian, one who has shut himself off from the
present enjoyment of fellowship with Christ by having gone among the godless as
his sphere of interest, and who is thereby risking future fellowship with the
Lord in His kingdom. To come out of the tomb is the only way for Lazarus to get
into the sunshine.
In view of this mass of testimony that a christian can sin,
and can do so after the fashion contemplated, and in view of sad corroborations
in practical life, what exegetical violence must be employed to make 1 John 3: 9, declare that a child of God cannot
sin, and so cannot bring himself within these solemn warnings. Yet we have heard the words used for that
purpose. But thus is John thrown into
conflict, not only with other apostles, but with himself; for he has but a
little before pointed out what is the resource of a believer if he should sin (ch. 2: 1); while to such persons as “are
forgiven,” and who
“know Him who is from the beginning,” and “are strong” because “the word of
God abideth in them,” so that they “have overcome
the evil one” (2: 12-14), he gives the direct warnings that
they must guard against such evils as a love of the world and compromise with
idolatry (5: 21). It is not incumbent upon
us to attempt here an exposition of the verse in question; but it is a duty to
protest that it must not be forced into antagonism with other inspired
writings, nor be misused to break the force of sorely needed warnings. For any such wrong use as we have indicated
the words must be held to teach that a christian cannot sin at all; which would
carry the consequent assertion that no person who ever commits a sin is born of
God. Surely the words should be read in the
light of and in harmony with Romans 7: 16-25.
Considering how almost universally these searching appeals
have been neglected or misapplied it can be perceived why once and again the
Spirit exclaims “be not deceived,” “let no one
deceive you.” The gross liver is unfitting himself for a realm
into which nothing unclean can enter (Rev. 21: 27), and they are equally out of sympathy
with the kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy (Rom. 14: 17) who give place to the subtler moral defilement of enmities, strifes, jealousies, and
the like, enumerated in Galatians 5: 20. And seeing how widely
these conditions obtain in the house of God, were it not well that these
deep-acting and vigorous correctives were freely administered to the Lord’s
people? Thus might some be moved to
amend their ways and their doings, to the present good of all, and to their own
ultimate advantage in the kingdom.
(G. H. Lang’s “Firstborn Sons,” pp. 112-116.)