Friday, September 20, 2019

They Failed, We Too Can Fail. They Needed Faith, We Too Need Faith.


'In the book of Hebrews are several lines of argument proving the exalted nature, and office, and the Messiahship of Jesus of Nazareth.

It is affirmed, and proved from the Scriptures, that he is superior to the angels, to Moses, to Joshua, and to Aaron. On the last point the writer dilates, giving a lengthy argument on the priesthood. That Moses, Joshua, and Aaron were types of Christ is beyond dispute.

Of Moses it is written: “And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after; but Christ as a son over his own house;” etc. This fixes the standing of Moses and the typical nature of his work.

In like manner the writer argues that Joshua did not give to the house of Israel the rest or the inheritance which was promised, but that it remains yet to be given to the people of God. That the Lord did give rest in the land of Canaan to the descendants of Abraham is no more proof that the promise was therein exhausted, than the fact that they were circumcised, and that they were descended from Abraham, fulfilled all that was designed in circumcision, and met in full all that was expressed by the term seed. But we have seen that this was not the case.

And we have seen also that the promise was to Abraham as well as to his seed, and that it was not fulfilled to him in any sense; also that the promise was “that he should be the heir of the world,” which has never been fulfilled to him or to any of his descendants. This is that “rest” which remains to the people of God, of which Paul speaks in Heb. 4:9.

It has been assumed, and is by many supposed, that, because Sabbath means rest, therefore whenever the word rest is found it is equivalent to the Sabbath. But this is not the case, as an examination of the Scriptures will plainly show. When Lamech begat a son (Gen 5:28, 29) “he called his name Noah, saying, This shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands.” The margin says, “That is, rest or comfort.” The name was prophetic; it means rest. This word was used by Moses in his address to the two tribes and a half who chose their inheritance east of Jordan. He said: “I commanded you at that time, saying, The Lord

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your God hath given you this land to posses it; ye shall pass over armed before your brethren the children of Israel, all that are meet for the war....Until the Lord have given rest unto your brethren, as well as unto you, and until they also possess the land which the Lord your God hath given them beyond Jordan.” Deut. 3:18-20. And again: “For ye are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance which the Lord your God giveth you.” Chap. 12:9. Joshua also uses the same word when speaking on the same subject: “And to the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to half the tribe of Manasseh, spake Joshua, saying, Remember the word which Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, saying, The Lord your God hath given you rest, and hath given you this land. . . . Ye shall pass before your brethren armed, all the mighty men of valor, and help them: until the Lord have given your brethren rest, as he hath given you, and they also have possessed the land which the Lord your God giveth them.” Josh. 1:12-15. And again, after the land beyond Jordan was subdued before them, it is written: “And the Lord gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers; and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them.” Josh. 21:44. And to the two tribes and a half Joshua said: “And now the Lord your God hath given rest unto your brethren as he promised them; therefore now return ye, and get ye unto your tents, and unto the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of God gave you on the other side of Jordan.” Chap. 22:4.

In these passages this word rest is used as the equivalent of inheritance, and as applied it refers to the peaceable possession of the land. But the generation which came out of Egypt, with the exception of two men, rebelled against the Lord and were not permitted to see the goodly land. Of these the Lord spake, saying, “Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways; unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest.” Ps. 95:10, 11. This refusal to permit them to enter into his rest is recorded in Num. 14:23, in these words: “Surely they shall not see the land which I

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sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoke me see it.” And in verse 30: “Doubtless ye shall not come into the land concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein.” By these texts we see again that “the rest” was the possession of the land promised to them. This is the subject of the argument of the apostle in Heb. 3 and 4. “But with whom was he grieved forty years? Was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness? And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not? So we see they could not enter in because of unbelief.” Heb. 3:17-19. He then proceeds to exhort his brethren (which exhortation is spoken unto us), saying: “Let us therefore fear, lest a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.” Chap. 4:1.

This exhortation contains the announcement that, as the rebellious Hebrews who fell in the wilderness did not enter into the rest because of unbelief, so we should fear lest we come short of it; and labor to “enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.” Verse 11. This is equivalent to a declaration that the promise which was given to them remains to be fulfilled; that we may inherit the rest offered to them, or fail of receiving it—”come short of it”—if we follow their example of unbelief. And to sustain this idea is the intention of the argument in Heb. 4:1-9. But before examining this argument we must call attention to the uses of the Hebrew words to which we have referred. The Hebrew verbs sha-vath and noo-ah may be used interchangeably as far as they simply convey the idea, “to rest.” Of this it is sufficient proof to cite Ex. 20:11, where noo-ah is used: “And he rested the seventh day.” But when used in a substantive form they, or their derivatives, differ in this respect: Shab-bath signifies a time or a period of rest; whereas no-ah (menoo-hah) passes to the idea of a resting-place; a place of rest. That Shab-bath, sabbath, relates to a period of rest every reader knows; that noo-ah carries the idea of a place of rest is sufficiently shown by the passages quoted. Menoo-hah (feminine termination ah, from the root noo-ah) is the word used in Ps.95:11. And Paul’s  quotation from this

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Psalm in Heb. 3:7-11 proves that that rest, or resting-place, the possession, the inheritance, is the subject of his exhortation and his argument in chapter 4.

According to the New Testament the people of ancient times knew much more of the counsel of God, through the types and shadows given to them, than we are wont to give them credit for, and even more than some Christians are able to discover in those same types.

Abraham had the gospel preached to him, Gal. 3:9;

Gal 3:9  So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham. 

and he rejoiced to see, by faith, the day of Christ; John 8:56.

Joh 8:56  Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad.

The Jews in the desert of Arabia drank of the rock which followed them, and that rock was Christ; 1 Cor. 10:4.

1Co 10:4  And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. 

It was “the reproach of Christ” that Moses esteemed as greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; Heb. 11:24-26;

Heb 11:24  By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; 
Heb 11:25  Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; 
Heb 11:26  Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.

and the gospel was preached to the rebellious ones whose carcasses fell in the wilderness. Heb. 4:2

Heb 3:17  But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases fell in the wilderness? 

Heb 4:2  For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. 

We, in this age, are quite too apt to draw a line of distinction between the faith of the ancient worthies and that of the faithful of this dispensation, which does not exist. Their gospel, their faith, their hope, were identical with ours. Through the types they looked forward to the “blessed hope” which cheers our hearts. “The rest” which was promised to them is promised to us; and, as many of them fell under the displeasure of God, and were not permitted to see even the land which was typical of the true inheritance (and which, of course, worked their forfeiture of the true), so may we fail of receiving the true inheritance if we follow their example of unbelief.

But the question is raised: If the everlasting inheritance is the subject of the argument, why does the writer introduce the seventh day, and also speak of another day? They who ask this question seem to think that the apostle is arguing concerning the weekly Sabbath, and its change to another day; but, surely, they never would gather such an idea if they carefully read or studied the connection. Besides the facts which have been already presented, showing that the inheritance is the subject of the discourse, we notice.'

(To be continued)

(Excerpt from-) THE ATONEMENT PART SECOND:
THE ATONEMENT AS REVEALED IN THE BIBLE
 (1884)

BY   ELDER J. H. WAGGONER


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