2002 Feb -- XXXV -- 2(02) (William Grotheer- Thought Paper - Watchman, What of the Night)
The Chapter (Ezkiel 9) also contains a revelation of a description of the work of the men with slaughtering weapons.
These execute the wrath of God against those who have filled Jerusalem with "a wresting of judgment" (v.9, margin)
((In Ezek 9:9, "wresting of judgment" is perhaps too concrete, and "perverseness" is kept in the margin (inverted in the King James Version) - http://net.bible.org/dictionary.php?word=perverse))
These execute the wrath of God against those who have filled Jerusalem with "a wresting of judgment" (v.9, margin), a stretching or bending of what is right, while making it more acceptable, mitigates its witness.
On the typical Day of Atonement, there was to be soul affliction, and the one not so doing, would be cut off. (Lev. 23:29).
{23:27} Also on the tenth [day] of this seventh month [there
shall be] a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation
unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an
offering made by fire unto the LORD. {23:28} And ye shall
do no work in that same day: for it [is] a day of atonement,
to make an atonement for you before the LORD your God.
{23:29} For whatsoever soul [it be] that shall not be
afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among
his people.
"Soul affliction" is incompatible with "a wresting of judgment."
While the "man clothed in linen" is doing his work of "marking" those sighing and crying in their "soul affliction;" others also under the direct command of God do their work against those who are perverting the way of God.
They slay "utterly" beginning at God's sanctuary with "the ancient men which are before the house" (9:6).
There is much to learn from this prophecy, so as not to make a wrong interpretation or application.
The "man clothed in linen" does not pass from view, for in the next phase of this extended vision shown to Ezekiel, He again appears, but minus "the writer's inkhorn" (10:2, 6, 7).
The marking had been done. (9:11).
Ez. {9:11} And, behold, the man clothed with linen, which
[had] the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter, saying, I
have done as thou hast commanded me.
Now another command awaits him. This command and the symbolism connected with it demands our careful study.
From the throne (10:1) the "man clothed in linen" was instructed - Go in between the wheels, even under the cherub, and fill thine hand with coals of fire from between the cherubim, and scatter them over the city." (10:2)
These cannot be considered "coals" of destruction, because the men with slaughtering weapons had already slain "utterly" all who had not been marked (9:6).
Those remaining in the city were only the marked ones, and on these were scattered "the coals of fire from between the cherubim."
Here again we see the mingled blood (Lev. 16:18)
{16:18} And he shall go out unto the
altar that [is] before the LORD, and make an atonement for
it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and of the
blood of the goat, and put [it] upon the horns of the altar
round about.
Here again we see the mingled blood (Lev. 16:18) of the final atonement - the Man clothed in linen, who marked His people with a "mark of redemption;" and the One on the throne who provided "coals of fire" for their cleansing. (See Isaiah. 6:6-7)
{9:4} And the LORD said
unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the
midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of
the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that
be done in the midst thereof.
{9:5} And to the others he said in mine hearing, Go ye
after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare,
neither have ye pity: {9:6} Slay utterly old [and] young,
both maids, and little children, and women: but come not
near any man upon whom [is] the mark; and begin at my
sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which [were]
before the house.
{6:6} Then flew one of the seraphims
unto me, having a live coal in his hand, [which] he had
taken with the tongs from off the altar: {6:7} And he laid
[it] upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips;
and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.
Then "the court was full of the brightness of the Lord's glory" (Eze. 10:4). Is this again alluded to in Revelation 18:1 - "and the earth [the court] was lightened with his glory"?
"Joshua was Clothed with Filthy Garments" --
The revelation given to Zechariah in the vision of the third chapter demands careful study. Joshua, the high priest stands in judicial review before, "the angel of the Lord" with "Satan standing at his (Joshua's) right hand to resist him" (v.1).
{3:1} And he shewed me Joshua the high priest standing
before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his
right hand to resist him.
As the vision unfolds, this Angel is designated simply as "the Lord" (v. 2)
{3:2} And the LORD said unto
Satan, The LORD rebuke thee, O Satan; even the LORD
that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: [is] not this a brand
plucked out of the fire?
and His redemptive powers as the Messiah are revealed (v. 4).
{3:4} And he
answered and spake unto those that stood before him,
saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto
him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass
from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment.
Further, this Divine Messenger proclaims the promise and the objective of the Lord of hosts to be realized by His messianic servant, "the BRANCH" (vs. 7-8).
{3:7}
Thus saith the LORD of hosts; If thou wilt walk in my
ways, and if thou wilt keep my charge, then thou shalt also
judge my house, and shalt also keep my courts, and I will
give thee places to walk among these that stand by. {3:8}
Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou, and thy fellows
that sit before thee: for they [are] men wondered at: for,
behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.
There is a close relationship between these verses and the revelation in Chapter 6:12-13, which reveals "The BRANCH" as the One who will accomplish the design of "the counsel of peace which was between the Two of Them" (Heb).
{6:12} And speak unto
him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying,
Behold the man whose name [is] The BRANCH; and he
shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple
of the LORD: {6:13} Even he shall build the temple of the
LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule
upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne:
and the counsel of peace shall be between them both.
Here in Zechariah 3 are all the elements symbolized in the services of the typical Day of Atonement:
the mingled blood of the bullock and the Lord's goat to accomplish the final cleansing (the action of the Messianic Lord and the decree of the Lord of hosts);
the scapegoat for Azazel (Satan standing at the right hand of Joshua);
the High Priest carrying in himself the sins of the children of Israel, and placing them on the head of the scapegoat (Joshua clothed in filthy garments);
and the ultimate atonement, the removal of the uncleanness of the children of Israel (the change of raiment and the removal of all iniquity). (See Leviticus 16).
In this vision given to Zechariah, the High Priest is standing for the people as the mediator between them and Jehovah.
When the office was instituted, not only was the high priest to carry Israel in symbol in the two onyx stones set in gold placed on his shoulders (Ex. 28:11-12) and in the breastplate (28:29); but there was a special significance to the plate of pure gold which he was to wear on his forehead on which were engraved the words, "HOLINESS TO THE LORD" (28:36) The instruction states: And it (the plate) shall be upon Aaron's forehead, that Aaron may bear the inequity of the holy things which the children of Israel shall hallow in their holy gifts, and it shall be always upon his forehead, that they may be accepted before the Lord" (Ez. 28:38)
Keil & Delitzsch make a very enlightening comment on this verse. It reads: The high priest was exalted into an atoning mediator of the whole nation, and an atoning sin-exterminating intercesion was associated with his office. The qualification for this he received from the diadem upon his forehead with the inscription "holiness to the Lord." Through this inscription, which was fastened upon his head-dress of brilliant white, the earthly reflection of holiness, he was crowned as sanctified to the Lord, and endowed with the power to exterminate the sin wich clung to the holy offerings of the people on account of the unholiness of their nature, so that the gifts of the nation became well-pleasing to the Lord, and the good pleasure of God was manifest to the nation. (Commentary of the Old Testament, Vol.1, pp.203-204)
When we understand that the Aaronic priesthood was but typical of the reality, Jesus Christ, High Priest forever after the Order of Melchizedec, then the "sin exterminating intercession" which was basic in the final atonement, takes on renewed significance in the light of the vision to Zechariah.
First, Joshua, standing for the people, could not remove his filthy garments.
They had to be taken from him.
The command was given by the Divine Messenger, "Take away the filthy garments from him" (3:4). Joshua could refuse, knowing the result - he would at some point be naked before the Lord. He had a choice. Either respond as did Adam, and make himself a garment of "fig leaves," or accept the provision of the Divine Mediator: "I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will give thee a change of raiment."
It is either faith or works, my works to achieve perfection, or faith to believe what the great High Priest says He will and can do.
The message of the type declared plainly that the High Priest alone accomplished the cleansing on the typical Day of Atonement.
The vision given to Zechariah states likewise that the Divine Messenger, The BRANCH, will do for man that which he cannot do for himself, take away his "filthy garments" and give him a change of raiment.
The concept that the high priest stood for Israel before God is echoed in the New Testament motif of being "in Christ."
"Ye are complete in Him" (Col. 2:10);
"Your life is hid with Christ in God" (3:3);
"If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature" (II Cor. 5:17).
Even the hope of the resurrection is based in this relationship: "the dead in Christ shall arise first" (I Thess. 4:16).
"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive" (I Cor. 15:22).
It was Paul's desire to "be found in Him, not having [his] own righteousness, which is of the law but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith" (Phil. 3:9).
There are two other revelations in this vision given to Zechariah which need further and careful study:
1) The results of the mediation of the Divine Messenger produce "men wondered at" (v.8). ({3:8} Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou, and thy fellows
that sit before thee: for they [are] men wondered at: for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.)The margin, indicating the Hebrew, states that these cleansed ones will be "men of wonder." What does this mean? And
2) The "Lord of hosts" declares that He "will remove the iniquity of the land in one day" (v.9). ({3:9}For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua; upon one stone [shall be] seven eyes: behold, I will engrave the graving thereof, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.)) The question is, does this apply to the final cleansing of the earth by fire at the end of the age, or is this speaking of the final "manifestation of the sons of God" (Rom. 8:19) (({8:18} For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time [are] not worthy [to be compared] with the glory which shall be revealed in us. {8:19} For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.)) just prior to the close of probation?
*******
Pausing here.
This last bit got me thinking. People struggle with the thought of being sinfilled and not acceptable to God. We know that God cannot accept sin, He won't compromise with sin. He won't make a deal with sin. He's not going to accept little sins that aren't so bad. We know that Go abhors sin and that sin is His enmity. We know sin, all sin is punishable by death. Knowing all this and knowing how easy it us for us to sin, it comes natural to us a breathing in some respects. That little white lie hurts no one at all. Those very valid reasons for neglecting to live a life wholly acceptable to God, all that doesn't matter and we pat ourselves on the back, or even get another to do so, telling us it's not so bad that God understands. I'm sure God does understand. But understanding doesn't mean sin is any less sinful and any less punishable by death. We can't make God accept sin and yet we try to because otherwise we believe ourselves to be too sinful to ever, ever...ever be right with Him. We console ourselves and we need consoling don't we because we are wickedly sin-filled.
Reading this... Zechariah 3:9 '...saith the LORD of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.' Got me to thinking as I mentioned above and what it got me to thinking about is, that we fuss and wrestle with the idea of being sinless before God so we are ready for Christ's return knowing that by then the judgment is over and done with. We know that right now with the Time's of the Gentiles being completed, that the judgment has moved from the corporate to the individuals and when that is finished Christ will return. That the generation that was born in 1980 will not pass away before Christ comes. Now there is a lot of speculation as to how long that will be, some say 20 years (they were proven wrong), some say 30 years (2010 is right around the corner who knows) others say 40 years and go up to 72 years being allotted to a man. The speculation is endless and can get us caught up in trying to put a date on things when a set date wasn't something we're meant to have, a general date yes. A warning given for us to be ready, yes.
Back to this... Zechariah 3:9 '...saith the LORD of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.' And my little odd thought on this can be way off but I had it nonetheless. The thought being that while we constantly, daily need to seek forgiveness for our sins just as there was a daily sacrificed offered for sin- the sins remained there covered but not cleansed away. Once a year on the Day of Atonement, sin was cleansed from the sanctuary. So while we never can accept sin in our lives as something that doesn't bother God, and while we forever need to seek forgiveness at the foot of the cross - is it possible that the time period of judgment is done this way-- with God knowing us each individually and whether or not we are clinging to the cross complete for forgiveness and that our hearts are truly repentant and it's not that when we are judged we won't sin again after that judging, but rather the knowledge that we will with a sincere heart seek life only found in Christ, forgiveness that only comes through Christ. And if it is known that we will be such that we will only grow in grace and knowledge of the Lord then while we are not walking about never sinning during this time, we are walking about clinging to Christ realizing our helpless state without Him. Then... and this is where my odd thought came to be... the bit about 'I will remove the iniquity of the land in one day.' Prior to the second coming of Christ to take us to heaven with Him all the sins that have been confessed and repented of in Him will finally be cleansed. We will finally be completely cleansed, no record will exist of our sins because Christ's blood has covered them and as the last act of cleansing the Sanctuary, of cleansing from life in Christ the existance of sin, we will have our lives made such that we are sinless in Him once and for all.
What does this odd thought mean? Well, not that we can ever sin and just offhandedly say, God understands, we're all sinners, we can't help it, it's our nature, not that we can do any of that ever, but we can know that instead of fighting the battle that will lead us to despair of ever being sinless in Christ we can live clinging to the cross, not worrying about that 'sinless' state that has to be attained. God who knows the end from the beginning will take care of things and we have to believe that, we have to have faith in God, faith in Jesus. If we do our part- bringing our guilty to Christ, admitting our helplessness to save ourselves, accepting that we need a sacrifice to take our place - a worthy sacrifice - then that is all we can do. Admit our helplessness and that our only hope is in Christ. Repent- know that our sinning separates us from God and no sin is worth that, not one. Repent, confess, and cling to Jesus, that's what we have to do and we have to do it daily not just once in a while as the mood hits us.
I believe it is a trick of Satan's to get us caught up in *trying* to be sinless, forgetting that Christ alone is our Righteousness as we seek to find that Righteousness in ourselves and it doesn't exist. As long as Satan has us looking inward at ourselves we're not looking outward to Christ. As long as we're trying to save ourselves, we're not relying on Christ to save us.
Philippians {2:12} Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always
obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in
my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and
trembling. {2:13} For it is God which worketh in you both
to will and to do of [his] good pleasure.
Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. No one said it'd be easy. We have to determine where our salvation is found and my Bible tells me that it's found in Christ and Christ alone.
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