Hebrews, chapter 2, comments; the amazing logic of God's plan

 

Hebrews 2:1 ¶  Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. 2  For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; 3  How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; 4  God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?

 

When you’ve read everything in chapter one and absorbed it Paul warns the reader not to neglect these fundamental truths. If the Law given to Moses by God’s angels, who clearly it says here assisted in the dispensing of that Law, and through the presence of God Himself in the preincarnate Christ was not to be ignored or disobeyed then how can we dare ignore the gospel of Christ?

Remember, an angel is a presence, an appearance of something that is somewhere else, representing that person or thing but with power and ability that would prevent us from distinguishing the difference.

Isaiah 63:9  In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old.

Matthew 18:10  Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.

Acts 12:15  And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel.

Revelation 1:20  The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.

Christ is the appearance of God; the angel of the Lord, His presence. I want to repeat the definition of an angel in Isaiah 63:9.

Isaiah 63:9  In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old.

Galatians 4:14  And my temptation which was in my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.

(Even can link two things that are the same such as I, even I, in Genesis 6:17 and over a dozen other verses.)

Who led the Hebrews out of Egypt.

Judges 2:1 ¶  And an angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you.

You can imagine the angel of the LORD (LORD with all letters capitalized is Jehovah in the Old Testament) or the angel of God as this Angel.

How then can we afford to neglect or ignore the gospel, good news, glad tidings given to us directly by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself through the Apostles and through His disciples? This is far better news than the Law given to Moses provided.

 

How can we hold in contempt the salvation provided by the Lord Jesus Christ?

 

Hebrews 2:5 ¶  For unto the angels hath he not put in subjection the world to come, whereof we speak. 6  But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him? 7  Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands: 8  Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him. 9  But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.

 

Only Jesus Christ reigns supreme. No angel or son of God, lowercase s, has such authority.

Matthew 28:18  And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

 

The Messiah coming to earth, God in the flesh, in human form, is referred to in David’s Psalm, chapter 8, which is alluded to here.

 

Psalm 8:1 ¶  «To the chief Musician upon Gittith, A Psalm of David.» O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens. 2  Out of

the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.

   

3 ¶  When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; 4  What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? 5  For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. 6  Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet: 7  All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field; 8  The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas. 9  O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!

 

Now, in His state of glory, His power is revealed.

 

1Peter 3:22  Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.

 

Although we cannot tell this truth the way the world appears to us so that now we see not yet all things put under him. 

 

Philippians 2:6  Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:

7  But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8  And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. 9  Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 10  That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 11  And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

 

Hebrews 2:10 ¶  For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. 11  For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, 12  Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee. 13  And again, I will put my trust in him. And again, Behold I and the children which God hath given me.

 

Think on verse 10;

 

Romans 3:26  To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

Colossians 1:16  For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: 17  And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

 

Christ, as the Word, by which all things were created, not some fictional “singularity”, and are held together, not some fictional “dark matter,” or, “dark energy,” has made us perfect to God through His suffering on the Cross.

 

What is also amazing is that by His sanctification of us He has made us His family.

 

Ephesians 3:14 ¶  For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

15  Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,

 

Romans 8:29 ¶  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

 

For verse 12 see from the Psalm Jesus quoted the first verse of from the Cross;

 

Psalm 22:22 ¶  I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.

 

Then 13 alludes to a sentiment common throughout the Psalms and elsewhere;

 

Psalm 16:1 ¶  «Michtam of David.» Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust.

 

Psalm 36:7  How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.

 

Remember that Christ has generated us. We are God’s children because of Him.

 

Psalm 22:30  A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation.

 

Given to Him by the Father.

 

John 10:28  And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. 29  My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.

 

Hebrews 2:14 ¶  Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; 15  And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. 16  For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. 17  Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. 18  For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.

 

God took on the form of a human being, flesh and blood, that dying in that flesh He would show His preeminence over the one who is said here to have the power over death, Satan himself. John Gill wrote that Satan’s empire is supported by death, the death of the unsaved.

 

We are all of our lifetimes one step, one heartbeat from death and in our fears and efforts to prolong our lives show our preoccupation with death, even if it is an unconscious preoccupation.

 

 He came to live as one of us, not in the appearance of an angel, but in human form, specifically a Jew of the seed of Abraham. Remarkable stuff. His ability to be our high priest was based on His appearance here in flesh and blood as one of us, a human being. He appeased the wrath of God and justified those who believe in Him. The fact is that by suffering temptation He is able to uplift and help those who are tempted, that is we men and women.

 

For me this is the essence of the plan. To deliver us from our sins, from death and Hell, and from temptation itself, Christ became one of us. This made God’s ministry of reconciling mankind to Himself possible. It is an amazing plan, a bold plan, and a complete plan showing God’s foreknowledge, His mercy, and His sovereignty. Praise God.

 

 

Mark 6:1-6, part two, verses 3 and 4, Jesus' human family

 

Mark 6:1 ¶  And he went out from thence, and came into his own country; and his disciples follow him. 2  And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands? 3  Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him. 4  But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house. 5  And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them. 6  And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching.

3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him.

See here, how the Roman Catholic Church is wrong, and Jesus Christ has half-brothers and half-sisters, and that Mary had many other children than Jesus. She had at least six children other than Jesus. This and other verses show that the Vatican doctrine is incorrect. Things like the Assumption of Mary, she was a perpetual virgin, and the like have no Biblical basis.

Matthew 1:25 And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.

Saying that they were cousins or Joseph’s children from a first marriage has no basis in the Scripture. We can’t get together with the Catholics if they reject God’s word. It is impossible to pursue righteousness when you are zealously clinging to error.

On a side note wouldn’t you like to see some of the furniture or farm implements Jesus made during his work as a carpenter? I’m surprised that the Roman Catholics or Greek Orthodox haven’t claimed to own a chair or a table that Jesus made or perhaps a plow. Now, that would be quite a relic, wouldn’t it?

Back to the verse; the people who just marveled at His wisdom and mighty works are now offended by the fact that they think they know Him as simply a humble carpenter. They can’t reconcile who they think He is with what He has done, much like the modernist or adherent of another religion who regard Him as a great teacher and nothing else, like Thomas Jefferson or the Dalai Lama, have to discount and deny His miracles because they can’t reconcile His teachings with His claim of deity and being the only way to be saved.

There are even foolish so-called Christians, such as many of our nation’s founders, who believe that to be a Christian one might hold to some of the moral values of the Bible without confirming the deity of Christ and the supernatural events such as the resurrection of the body and the translation of the church. This is simply a waste of time. If Jesus isn’t God you might as well be home watching the news on Sunday morning and living like a maniac, burning out your body with sin and depravity and going into a silent eternity with a worn out body and a giant drunken blur for a memory. Because you’re going to spend a long time not existing if you were correct in your assumptions.

But we don’t believe that a person is merely an event in space-time that is here, then gone forever. We believe by faith in eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord, or eternal anguish as a suffering soul in a lake of unquenchable fire. You choose. The price has already been paid. The free gift is there. You have to accept it, to receive it, for it to be of any value to you.

4 But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.

Deuteronomy 18:15 The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken;

Deuteronomy 18:18 I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him.

With regard to John the Baptist whom they thought might be that Prophet and asked him;

John 1:21 And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No.

Country would be a place but the last two words Christ uses, kin and house, describe family. Kin we know but house refers to a family or a dynasty in ruling terms.

Exodus 1:21 And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that he made them houses.

1King 12:19 So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day.

It is interesting to note that in the Old Testament the house of God is a place while under grace the house of God is a group of people, a family.

Genesis 28:17 And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.

1Peter 4:17 For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?

It is common for us fundamentalists to refer to the church building as the house of God. But it confuses our doctrine to say that and lends a carnal, temporal touch to our belief much like asking the Holy Spirit to come down on a meeting that, if the Holy Spirit isn’t already there then no one in the meeting is saved. A new Christian or an unsaved person can leave such a meeting not understanding that the believers they were with are the house of God, the body of Christ, and the Holy Spirit was there and is always present within each of us. It’s one of those things that those of us who left them held over from the Roman Catholic Church which was an organization not an organism.

This idea was based on the structure of the pagan Roman Empire, and everything had to be interpreted in the very concrete and earthly dimensions of the Roman mind which could only conceive of being inheritors of and carrying on the physical Hebrew theocracy of David’s kingdom. It’s very comforting but erroneous. There are no sacred spaces in Christianity except in the believer’s heart. The Christianity that has sacred places, sacred relics, sacred groves, sacred temples, sacred altars is not the Christianity of the Bible but merely another pagan religion. The church that belongs to Christ is His body on earth. It is a living organism, a living body with its head in Heaven, not simply an organization.

There is an important parallel here for the Christian. Your family and friends, with whom you grew up, will be less likely to accept the change that comes over you when you got saved.

With regard to Christ Himself;

Isaiah 53:3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Is Christ held in low regard in His own house, in the body of Christ, His own church? How much is Christ elevated in your church body? Are Christ’s moral teachings more important to you than who He is, God in the flesh? Is the Sermon on the Mount more real to you than the Resurrection? Is the Golden Rule more important to you than the Translation of the church? Is being a positive force in the community or in politics of more value to you than worshipping a Risen Saviour? Is your so-called service for the Lord more important than sitting at His feet and letting Him speak to you through His words in the Bible?

There are at least two types of Christianity. The Christianity of the Founders of our country was one of honoring the moral values of the New Testament, not the deity of the one who gave those moral values. The Christianity called for in the Bible includes the moral values but elevates Christ as being the central focus of the religion not the moral values He imparted without His elevation.

Then within the second Christianity there are two sides. The one says the Christian must examine the moral values that Christ manifests and choose to follow them. That is Humanism, pure and simple. It assumes power on your part you really don’t have to change yourself without uplifting your will in God’s place. It makes the Bible a manual of training rather than a Living Book that speaks to your heart.

The truly Biblical Christianity acknowledges that the believer submits to Christ and Christ makes all the changes through His word; written, spoken, and preached. You choose whom you will follow but you have no control over where they will lead. If you honor Christ, you will surrender your will to His, not to your good intentions.

It is interesting to note that with regard to Jesus’ earthly family his brother, James, eventually became a follower.

Galatians 1:19 But other of the apostles saw I none, save James the Lord’s brother.

On the cross, Jesus assigned the care of His mother to the Apostle, John.

John 19:26 When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!

Proverbs 21:11, 12 comments consider the house of the wicked

 

Proverbs 21:11 ¶ When the scorner is punished, the simple is made wise: and when the wise is instructed, he receiveth knowledge.

The Holy Spirit gave Solomon a lot of wisdom about scorners in the Proverbs.

Proverbs 9:7 He that reproveth a scorner getteth to himself shame: and he that rebuketh a wicked man getteth himself a blot.

Proverbs 9:8 Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee.

Proverbs 13:1 A wise son heareth his father’s instruction: but a scorner heareth not rebuke.

Proverbs 14:6 A scorner seeketh wisdom, and findeth it not: but knowledge is easy unto him that understandeth.

Proverbs 15:12 A scorner loveth not one that reproveth him: neither will he go unto the wise.

Proverbs 19:25 Smite a scorner, and the simple will beware: and reprove one that hath understanding, and he will understand knowledge.

Again, when a scorner is punished the naive and inexperienced will be benefited as a deterrent. The scorner will probably get nothing out of it. However, when a wise person is punished he benefits. This is the difference between a scorner and a wise person. The scorner never learns. The wise person learns from every situation and is made the better person by honest rebuke or correction.

Are you a scorner? Are you one of those who have never learned from your mistakes and sins and probably never will? When God corrects you, Christian, do you seek to live better, to walk closer with Him? Or do you just keep banging your head against the same brick wall?

 

Proverbs 21:12 ¶ The righteous man wisely considereth the house of the wicked: but God overthroweth the wicked for their wickedness.

Clear and simple, a wise man considers what the wicked man has acquired, knowing that God will destroy them for their wickedness. The news showed us that the infamous criminal and murderer “Whitey” Bulger was captured after 16 years on the run. He was in his 80’s. If he had the capacity for self-reflection and many sociopaths don’t, the capacity for self-pity, yes, but not for self-examination, then he must have wondered before he died what happened to all of his big plans. There are men in our own government and men in the banks and international corporations that run the government that are no better than Bulger. They just had an ‘Ivy League’ education and opportunity to steal and murder in a legal way, sometimes wrapping their crimes in patriotism for our deception. It’s hard for us to patiently wait for their overthrow.

The writers of the Bible often spoke of this frustration we have over the temporary triumph of wickedness.

Job 12:6 ¶ The tabernacles of robbers prosper, and they that provoke God are secure; into whose hand God bringeth abundantly.

Jeremiah 5:26 For among my people are found wicked men: they lay wait, as he that setteth snares; they set a trap, they catch men. 27 As a cage is full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit: therefore they are become great, and waxen rich. 28 They are waxen fat, they shine: yea, they overpass the deeds of the wicked: they judge not the cause, the cause of the fatherless, yet they prosper; and the right of the needy do they not judge. 29 Shall I not visit for these things? saith the LORD: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

Jeremiah 12:1 Righteous art thou, O LORD, when I plead with thee: yet let me talk with thee of thy judgments: Wherefore (why) doth the way of the wicked prosper? wherefore are all they happy that deal very treacherously?

Psalm 10:13 Wherefore doth the wicked contemn God? he hath said in his heart, Thou wilt not require it.

We often wonder why the wicked men in America seem to get a pass for such a long time. And there is a very good answer for that. The wicked men get by here because we exalt them. We praise them. We elect them or throw our money at their music, acting endeavors, or writings. We place our money under their control, in their banks, and seek employment from them, hoping to have a little of their “success” trickle down to us, or just looking for a better ride through life. Yet, we complain about helping the poor or the elderly as not being our responsibility.

Psalm 12:8 The wicked walk on every side, when the vilest men are exalted.

While we complain about our economy or the drop in our standard of living should we not also consider the house of the wicked, that were we not such willing sheep that house would not stand? For a bit of sarcasm, do you remember when poor, elderly people, mentally ill people, teachers, contractors, government employees, firemen, policemen, and just plain poor folks crashed the stock market, wiped out half of our 401K savings, took trillions in taxpayer funded bailouts, polluted the Gulf of Mexico with thousands of gallons of oil, gave themselves millions in bonuses, paid no taxes, started two, maybe three wars that cost a trillion and more, manipulated our currency, printed phoney money that made our working for a living more and more futile, and lied to get us into wars? I don’t either.

Consider the house of the wicked. Don’t be too worried. God’s judgment is coming and, is, in fact, already on us. You’ll have to share in it because you went along with their evil deeds like the shill in a 3 card monte game or you temporarily benefited while they robbed others blind. But, then it was your turn. So, hang on. It’s going to be a wild ride.

 

You have only one hope. Believe, believe on, and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ to save you, because when this life is over, without Christ, it’s only going to get much worse for these people and their citizen auxiliary, which is you.

Romans 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

It’s a very simple plan God has laid out for wicked humanity but the stakes are very high. This world system is under the operative control of Satan, the devil, our enemy (2 Corinthians 4:4). God came in the flesh in the person of Jesus Christ to destroy Satan’s works (1 John 3:8) and to save sinners (1 Timothy 1:15), to give his human life a ransom for many (Exodus 30:12 with Matthew 20:28 and Mark 10:45).

So, consider the house of the wicked. Then think on your house.

Acts 16:31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

Trust in Christ’s righteousness to get you to heaven and don’t trust in anything else but Him (Ephesians 1:12; Acts 4:12). He’ll send His Spirit to live inside of your body making your spirit alive and leading you (John 14:23). You speak to Him in prayer (Philippians 4:6; Colossians 4:2; 1 Thessalonians 5:17) and He’ll speak to you through His words in the Bible (Isaiah 55:11; Joshua 1:8; 1 Timothy 4:13; 2Timothy 3:16). He’ll change you (John 17:17; Ephesians 5:26) and prepare you to one day leave the physical world either when the church is removed (1Thessalonians 4:14-17) or at the death of your flesh (2 Corinthians 5:8).

Judgment of this present evil world (Galatians 1:4), this house of the wicked, is coming. Are you ready?

2Samuel, chapter 24, comments: the census

 

2Samuel 24:1 ¶  And again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he moved David against them to say, Go, number Israel and Judah. 2  For the king said to Joab the captain of the host, which was with him, Go now through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan even to Beersheba, and number ye the people, that I may know the number of the people. 3  And Joab said unto the king, Now the LORD thy God add unto the people, how many soever they be, an hundredfold, and that the eyes of my lord the king may see it: but why doth my lord the king delight in this thing? 4  Notwithstanding the king’s word prevailed against Joab, and against the captains of the host. And Joab and the captains of the host went out from the presence of the king, to number the people of Israel. 5  And they passed over Jordan, and pitched in Aroer, on the right side of the city that lieth in the midst of the river of Gad, and toward Jazer: 6  Then they came to Gilead, and to the land of Tahtimhodshi; and they came to Danjaan, and about to Zidon, 7  And came to the strong hold of Tyre, and to all the cities of the Hivites, and of the Canaanites: and they went out to the south of Judah, even to Beersheba. 8  So when they had gone through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. 9  And Joab gave up the sum of the number of the people unto the king: and there were in Israel eight hundred thousand valiant men that drew the sword; and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand men.

 

The beginning of this chapter is very interesting. Note a contrasting verse. My intention was to wait until the events of 1^st and 2^nd Samuel are reported in Chronicles but I thought this was an important point to make.

 

1Chronicles 21:1  And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.

 

Regarding the same event we learn that a man may provoke God’s anger under the Law and yet Satan may carry out the provocation. So, in history, we cannot tell if it is God’s perfect will that a thing happens or if it His permissive will in allowing it to happen unless we are told.

 

God was angry with Israel, Satan stood against them, and David was prompted to perform a census, which justified God’s wrath. Events in the spiritual world are much more complicated than our little children’s Sunday School idea of church allows.

 

Joab tries to dissuade David from carrying out this census. However, David’s pride prompted him, in his old-age, to conduct this census of fighting men. Perhaps David wanted to gloat about his earthly power. God was not pleased with this and Joab tried to warn him not to do it.

 

This passage makes a good point that the ancient world was more populous than we are led to believe by movies and some scholars. Israel was rich in agriculture and could maintain a large population. I think that is apparent and I have discussed things like climate in my comments on Genesis.

 

2Samuel 24:10 ¶  And David’s heart smote him after that he had numbered the people. And David said unto the LORD, I have sinned greatly in that I have done: and now, I beseech thee, O LORD, take away the iniquity of thy servant; for I have done very foolishly. 11  For when David was up in the morning, the word of the LORD came unto the prophet Gad, David’s seer, saying, 12  Go and say unto David, Thus saith the LORD, I offer thee three things; choose thee one of them, that I may do it unto thee. 13  So Gad came to David, and told him, and said unto him, Shall seven years of famine come unto thee in thy land? or wilt thou flee three months before thine enemies, while they pursue thee? or that there be three days’ pestilence in thy land? now advise, and see what answer I shall return to him that sent me. 14  And David said unto Gad, I am in a great strait: let us fall now into the hand of the LORD; for his mercies are great: and let me not fall into the hand of man. 15  So the LORD sent a pestilence upon Israel from the morning even to the time appointed: and there died of the people from Dan even to Beersheba seventy thousand men. 16  And when the angel stretched out his hand upon Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed the people, It is enough: stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD was by the threshingplace of Araunah the Jebusite. 17  And David spake unto the LORD when he saw the angel that smote the people, and said, Lo, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly: but these sheep, what have they done? let thine hand, I pray thee, be against me, and against my father’s house.

 

David repents of his prideful sin but it is the Israelites who must pay for his wrongdoing. It is important to understand the politics and social culture of a monarchy. In history, in an absolute monarchy the king held power over every decision and even life and death. The land and the people were regarded as his property although under Israel God is the ultimate owner of everything and everyone. This is why this punishment could be considered as enacted on David by taking tens of thousands of his subjects away from him.

 

We have discussed what it means to say the Lord repented previously, as when someone turns from something they announced to do.

 

See my comments from Exodus.

 

Exodus 32:7 ¶  And the LORD said unto Moses, Go, get thee down; for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves: 8  They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them: they have made them a molten calf, and have worshipped it, and have sacrificed thereunto, and said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which have brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. 9  And the LORD said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people: 10  Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation. 11  And Moses besought the LORD his God, and said, LORD, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand? 12  Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, For mischief did he bring them out, to slay them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people. 13  Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom thou swarest by thine own self, and saidst unto them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it for ever. 14  And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people.

 

God tells Moses to stand back while He destroys the Hebrews for their idolatry. This gives Moses the chance to argue that to do such a thing would go against God’s glory. It would not glorify Him in the sight of the Egyptians. It would even appear that this destruction was the very reason He led them out of Egypt and would justify the Egyptians rather than Himself. After all, no one would think what the Hebrews were doing was amiss, now would they, in the religious conditions of that world?

 

In verse 12 there is the definition of repent used here. It is to turn from something. This, then, in context is the definition of repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people in verse 14. He turned from this. This is in keeping with a doctrine found in the Bible that God does not repent as in ‘change His mind.’ As God’s foreknowledge covers every event as if it has already happened we must look to the context for understanding. In the next two verses repent is linked with lie, the point being that God can be trusted for the promises He made, and will not turn from them.

 

Numbers 23:19  God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

 

1Samuel 15:29  And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for he is not a man, that he should repent.

 

Here are other verses where repent means to turn from something as in the passage studied, to stop doing it or not do it, by comparing the contrast in the verse in which the words repent and turn are used.

 

Jeremiah 4:28  For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be black: because I have spoken it, I have purposed it, and will not repent, neither will I turn back from it.

 

Jeremiah 18:8  If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.

 

Jeremiah 26:3  If so be they will hearken, and turn every man from his evil way, that I may repent me of the evil, which I purpose to do unto them because of the evil of their doings.

 

Ezekiel 14:6  Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Repent, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your abominations.

 

Ezekiel 18:30  Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin.

 

Jonah 3:9  Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?

 

Acts 26:20  But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.

 

Sometimes, someone’s behavior can compel you to turn from what you are permitting or doing. For instance, a child you have given a privilege to disobeys in a way that compels you to punish them or to revoke the privilege. In that case their behavior repenteth you. And, in Genesis 6:6,7 that behavior that compelled Him in something He already knew was going to happen grieved Him.

Clearly then, to repent of your sins is to turn from them. For the Christian repentance also suggests being sorry for your sins and for who you are, a sinner. As Paul noted;

 

2Corinthians 7:9  Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. 10  For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.

 

But, in this context repent is simply to turn from what was stated to be done.

 

2Samuel 24:18 ¶  And Gad came that day to David, and said unto him, Go up, rear an altar unto the LORD in the threshingfloor of Araunah the Jebusite. 19  And David, according to the saying of Gad, went up as the LORD commanded. 20  And Araunah looked, and saw the king and his servants coming on toward him: and Araunah went out, and bowed himself before the king on his face upon the ground. 21  And Araunah said, Wherefore is my lord the king come to his servant? And David said, To buy the threshingfloor of thee, to build an altar unto the LORD, that the plague may be stayed from the people. 22  And Araunah said unto David, Let my lord the king take and offer up what seemeth good unto him: behold, here be oxen for burnt sacrifice, and threshing instruments and other instruments of the oxen for wood. 23  All these things did Araunah, as a king, give unto the king. And Araunah said unto the king, The LORD thy God accept thee. 24  And the king said unto Araunah, Nay; but I will surely buy it of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing. So David bought the threshingfloor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. 25  And David built there an altar unto the LORD, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the LORD was intreated for the land, and the plague was stayed from Israel.

 

Later we are told that the Lord had ordered the prophet Gad to tell this to David.

 

1Chronicles 21:18 ¶  Then the angel of the LORD commanded Gad to say to David, that David should go up, and set up an altar unto the LORD in the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite.

 

Variant spellings of names written by different chroniclers are not uncommon. The writer of 2Samuel spells it Araunah and the writer of 1Chronicles writes the name as Ornan. This prophet, Gad, named after the tribe, is first mentioned here;

 

1Samuel 22:5  And the prophet Gad said unto David, Abide not in the hold; depart, and get thee into the land of Judah. Then David departed, and came into the forest of Hareth.

 

Honored, the Jebusite, not an ethnic Israelite, offers the site for free to the king, as he is honored but David refuses to burn offerings at no cost so he pays him for it. I was struck by the interplay and ancient ethics involved in this passage as 2Samuel draws to a close. A Canaanite offers up his own property as it is not seized or appropriated by the Israelite king. The king will not receive it unless he pays a fair price. This reminds me of Abraham’s purchase of a burying place for Sarah from the sons of Heth in Genesis, chapter 23.

Mark 6:1-6 comments; what wisdom is this?

 

Mark 6:1 ¶  And he went out from thence, and came into his own country; and his disciples follow him. 2  And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands? 3  Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him. 4  But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house. 5  And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them. 6  And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching.

We’ve had a miracle over nature, a miracle over the Devil, a miracle over disease, and a miracle over death. Christ has shown His power over all four.

1 ¶ And he went out from thence, and came into his own country; and his disciples follow him. 2 And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands?

The world looks at you that unless you have the world’s learning and education you can’t amount to much.

John 7:15 And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?

But, education will not save you in eternity or from sin and its consequences in this life.

1 Corinthians 3:11 For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. 13 Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

You cannot know God or have a relationship with Jesus Christ from a textbook. It is His Bible that will set you apart for His service. A book on engineering is not going to save you from Hell or make you useful to God.

The Bible is not like Emily Post’s Book on Etiquette where you read a little dribble here and there and then you try to follow its “advice.” The Bible is God’s word, a picture, if you can take it, of the Lord Jesus Christ in written form. It will change you. You have to read it from cover to cover, over and over. It has power.

Deuteronomy 17:19 And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them:

Psalm 119:9 BETH. Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word.

1Timothy 4:13 Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.

Fundamentalists, whom Dr. Ruckman refered to as ‘funnymentalists’ sometimes, say they believe the Bible literally. But, do they really? You must read the Bible, maintaining a dialogue with the author of it, hearing Him speak through it and you speaking to Him in prayer. He will change your heart about sin, taking things out of you that He wants gone from your life so that you won’t even be interested in them anymore.

John 17:17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

Ephesians 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

The mark of a Christian, a Bible believing Christian, is one who knows that God will use His printed , preached, and spoken words to change the soul of a believer. It is not for nothing that the Vaudois, those ancient Christians of the Cottian Alps said, “The Holy Scriptures alone are sufficient to sanctify the believer.” The mark of a Christian is one who believes and trusts in the Lord Jesus Christ through good times and impossible times. He also has a testimony before the world, being filled and overflowing with the fruit of, the evidence of the Spirit expressed in Galatians 5:22, 23.

Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

A Christian keeps His word even if it causes him difficulty. A Christian is honest even if it causes him hurt. A Christian works hard but is not too proud to admit he needs help. A Christian doesn’t hold people to a different standard than he holds himself. A Christian will repeatedly forgive even if he doesn’t foolishly restore the person who hurt him to a position where they can do further harm. A Christian wants to help others who are less fortunate than he is. A Christian isn’t like a Stoic Philosopher of Ancient Rome. He does not do right because doing right is the right thing to do. He does right because he loves the author of righteousness and cares for the person to whom the right thing is being done.

You can’t get these traits from a college education, a textbook, or a motivational seminar. They are implanted deep within you by a righteous God using the Bible He has given to you. You can’t pretend to have these traits by squinting your eyes and making a fist and wanting it to be so. You’ll fall down, no matter how good your intentions are. You get these traits by letting the words of the Bible cleanse your heart every single day and by walking with God through that Book every single day, not just on Sunday morning and Wednesday night.

Let people be astonished by you. Let them say emphatically, “from where does this man (or woman) get these things?” “What wisdom is this that is given to him (or her)?” Let them say about Christ when you should be crushed, broken, and beaten but are not because you trust Him, “such mighty works are wrought by His hands.”