Now it came to pass, when Isaac was old and his eyes were so dim that he could not see, that he called Esau his older son and said to him, “My son.” And he answered him, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Behold now, I am old. I do not know the day of my death. Now therefore, please take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me. And make me savory food, such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die.” verses 1-4
Since the Old Testament was written by Israelites and handed down by the Israelites, and it was they who passed it on to us, when we read passages like this, it is easy to give thought first to the blessing that Jacob received. Yet, if we take into consideration the terrible tribulations and difficulties encountered in the course of history by this nation that was blessed, we may see some inconsistency here. But the Bible is not quite as simple as that.
In the Bible we read that Esau was born first and then Jacob. It is a definite fact that Jacob’s name was Israel and he was a forefather of the nation of Israel, and yet it was Esau who turned out to be a shadow of the Israelites, the descendants of Jacob. Furthermore, Jacob is a shadow of the church, which came after the nation of the Israelites was established. The Israelites exist in the world as a shadow that God has put to use in order to achieve His original aim of drawing out from this world a bride for His Son, Jesus. Nevertheless, the Israelites will, without a doubt, also receive a tremendous blessing. This is the program of history as it appears in the Bible. This is all set out precisely in the biblical prophesies.
In this passage of Genesis chapter 27 it says, “He called Esau his older son.” Then Isaac commanded him to “take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me.” The elder son was given the command to go out into the field.
We find something similar in Genesis chapter 25. Esau was very masculine: his skin was ruddy, he was very hairy, and he like to hunt. Jacob’s skin was smooth and most likely pale, and he probably spent a lot of time at home with his mother. From a human perspective, we might be more drawn to Esau. A hairy man is generally considered more masculine and attractive. He will also appear to be more adventurous, stronger, and ambitious. This is how Esau comes across to us. Our first impression of Jacob, on the other hand, is of a man who sat quietly at home.
I have a reason for saying this. This is the image we are presented with of the time when Esau and Jacob were together. As the Israelites went out to battle, their nation was formed, and their kingdom was established, we find hidden away in the Old Testament an image of the church that was predestined, flowing quietly along, much like the image of Jacob when he was with Esau.
When the Old Testament times came to an end, Jesus came to the world, and the church that God had originally intended began, it was the apostles who took the lead in spreading the gospel. We can see this in the book of Acts. Similarly, once Jacob departed from Esau, he, too, wielded a hidden power. In the Bible, we find that as Jacob was working for twenty years far away in the house of his uncle, he appears as a worker with great strength and tremendous blessings from God. This power was hidden in Jacob. His activities as a forefather of the Israelites and as a shadow of the church appear in Genesis from chapter 27 through to the end of the book.
The content of the Bible is so profound that we cannot assess the whole just by reading one verse. Yet, when we examine the mystery of the church that is revealed in the Old and New Testaments together with the course of the history of Israel, we can see that God was foretelling the mystery of the church through the lives of these people.
John Bore Witness of Jesus
As we read the four Gospels in the New Testament, there may be times when we find it a little tedious, since the same accounts appear repeatedly. Yet, of the 66 books of the Bible, the Gospels are the most difficult to understand. Jesus said, “You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me” (John 5:39). The Gospels contain a condensed version of the things He said and did during the last three of the 33 years of His short life in this world. If you read the four Gospels carefully, you will be able to see that the content of the entire Bible is included here. We can also see that each and every one of the short phrases that Jesus spoke contains a key to understanding the course of history laid out in the Old Testament and the thoughts and words of the people who appear there.
At the beginning of the New Testament, a quite unique person appears; that is John the Baptist, a relative of Jesus. Mary, the mother of Jesus, and Elizabeth, the mother of John, were related (see Luke 1:36). John was born several months before Jesus. Why wasn’t Jesus born first. Why was John born first, and later Jesus?
Through the way in which John the Baptist lived in this world, we can see that his life was very similar to the path walked by the Israelites. Where did John spend his time? The Bible says of him, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness” (Luke 3:4). He lived in the wilderness. Jesus was also born at that time. This is very similar to the image of Esau hunting out in the field while Jacob was at home with his mother. The Bible is definitely not a random record of events.
Let’s turn to Luke’s Gospel chapter 1.
Now his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying: “Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited and redeemed His people, and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David, as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets, who have been since the world began, that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.” verses 67-71
Zacharias was the father of John the Baptist. Here, he spoke about the birth of the Savior into this world when his son John was born.
“To perform the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember His holy covenant, the oath which He swore to our father Abraham: to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life. And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest; for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways, to give knowledge of salvation to His people by the remission of their sins, through the tender mercy of our God, with which the Dayspring from on high has visited us; to give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.” So the child grew and became strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his manifestation to Israel.
Luke 1:72-80
Then he spoke about John the Baptist. Here it says of him, “for you will go before the face of the Lord.” Why does it say this here? Let’s read verses 70 and 71 one more time.
As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets, who have been since the world began, that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.
Hail to the brightness of Zion’s glad morning!
. . .
Long by the prophets of Israel foretold!
Hail to the millions from bondage returning!
Gentiles and Jews the blest vision behold.
As it says in the words of this hymn, long ago God appeared to the prophets in visions, and He moved them to write about the blessing of which they dreamt. Then when God appeared in this world—when Jesus, the Savior, appeared—there was someone who was sent before Him. Here we have an image of, and reason for the existence in this world of the Israelites who testified and wrote of the coming of the Messiah before the beginning of the age of the church that God had predestined. This image reappears in miniature at the time when Jesus was born.
John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.’” John 1:15
When it says here, “He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me,” it is a reference to John having been born a few months before Jesus, we need to be aware that this also includes the sequential order of the plan that God had in mind for the history of mankind.
God predestined the church before the creation, and then, because man sinned, God prepared the history of Israel. What God originally predestined appeared in this world in the course of the history of Israel when the time came in accordance with His will. This is why John the Baptist said, when he saw Jesus, “He was before me,” since He existed before John the Baptist.
This systematic order is maintained throughout the Bible from beginning to end, and is an image of the church. Through the stories we read in the Bible, we can see that God is expressing His will for mankind in this way.
And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. John 1:16-17
Two images are to be seen here. It says that the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. The law appeared first, and grace and truth followed later. If we read these verses carefully, we can see that the order in the Bible is extremely precise. First comes the law, and after that, grace and truth.
In the New Testament, we find Jesus saying, “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:27-28), and, “Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so” (Matthew 19:8). What is the nature of the law? As we consider this matter, we need first to think about the leading figures who appear in the course of the history of the Israelites and the relationship between them and their brothers, the relationship between Jesus and John the Baptist, who was born before Him, and the relationship between Israel and the church.
People in this world make an effort to keep the law, and they live their entire lives as slaves to the law. We need first to think about why the law was given. While Esau was wandering around in the fields hunting for animals, the blessing was given to his younger brother Jacob who was at home. What does this signify? Let’s read Hebrews chapter 7 verse 16.
Who has come, not according to the law of a fleshly commandment, but according to the power of an endless life.
This is a very short verse, but read it carefully. This is talking about Jesus. The “law of a fleshly commandment” refers to the law that was passed down through the Israelites in Old Testament times. Then it says “the power of an endless life.” This “endless life” has been given to us through Jesus, who appeared after the law, but actually he was there with God from the beginning, before there was the law. God planned the church to be the partner in love for God the Son through this endless life, and in order to achieve this aim, He created this world. Then, the moment Adam fell, becoming a sinner through disobedience to God’s word, God planned the history of Israel. God gave the law within the history of Israel, and it contains
| 정회원으로 가입하시면 전체기사와 사진(동영상)을 보실수 있습니다. |
 |
이전기사 :<2022.07> 이 모든 날 마지막에 아들로 우리에게 말씀하셨으니
다음기사 :<2022.07> 세상 끝까지 이어질 하나님의 법칙