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coram_deo 13-Oct-21, 11:22 |
 “I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.” From thebiblesays.com Daniel is witnessing a vision. He has watched four beasts rise out of a stormy sea. Each beast represents a kingdom that will rise and fall. The fourth beast grows a horn that is boastful and blasphemous, representing a ruler that opposes the people of God. A courtroom with many thrones appears. On the judge’s throne sits the Ancient of Days, God. His throne is surrounded by fire and shoots fire out from it, representing God as the ultimate judge. He judges the beast with many horns, specifically the boastful horn who opposes His people. God kills the beast, destroys its body, and consumes it in fire. The other beasts are spared, even though their power is taken away. Now, with all the earthly kings and kingdoms stripped of power or destroyed, God will put a new king and kingdom on the earth. Daniel again records that he continues looking in the night visions. He sees an incredible, wonderful sight. The new king is arriving with the clouds of heaven. This king is like a Son of Man. He walks up to the Ancient of Days, the eternal God on his fiery throne. He is presented before God so that God can examine and evaluate Him. God clearly approves of this Son of Man, because He gives Him dominion, Glory and a kingdom. All rulership, praise, and the entire earth are given to this king. His subjects are all the peoples, nations and men of every language who will serve Him. This new king is unlike any king who came before Him. While the first three beasts rose and fell in power, this new king will rule over an everlasting dominion which will not pass away. Unlike the fourth beast, which was destroyed, this new King’s kingdom is one which will not be destroyed. This kingdom corresponds to the stone that was cut out of the mountain without hands in Chapter 2 (Daniel 2:34-45). The stone crushed the kingdoms of men represented by the statue and filled the entire earth. This indicates that the seasons of history will pass directly from the Roman era to the Kingdom of God. The Son of Man is the final king over the earth. His kingdom will last forever. He is, of course, Jesus Christ. Jesus quotes Daniel 7 and applies it to Himself. He does this while on trial, declaring Himself the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One (God), and “the Son of Man, who will be seen sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven” (Mark 12:61-62). This king will be a son of man (someone in human form) yet arrive with the clouds of heaven (v. 13), attaching heavenliness and deity to Him. This combination of man and God is only found in the person of Jesus Christ, the incarnate Son of God and of Man. Jesus claimed it Himself, and the mirrored imagery between Daniel 7 and Revelation confirm that this is Christ coming into the glory of His kingdom. It is also explained here (“all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints,” v. 27) and elsewhere that believers who suffer for Him will co-rule over the kingdom (2nd Timothy 2:12, Romans 8:17, Rev 3:21). It is the final kingdom with the final King. It will not pass away. It will be enduring. Unlike the kingdoms that come before it, it will not be destroyed. The kingdom of Jesus will never be conquered, nor crushed. thebiblesays.com |
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coram_deo 17-Oct-21, 10:50 |
“I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes.” (Hosea 13:14) The Apostle Paul appeared to reference this verse in his first letter to the church at Corinth when he wrote: “So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” (1 Corinthians 15:54-55) (The book of Hosea was written about 730 B.C., while 1 Corinthians was written about A.D. 55.) However, the wording in that verse from Hosea can be translated a different way in which it’s presented as a question rather than a statement. But either way, God, through the prophet Hosea, is declaring that He has the power to ransom people from the power of the grave and to redeem them from death, Here is an article on the different wording of that verse from Hosea and whether it should be a statement (as in the King James Version and New International Version of the Holy Bible) or as a question (as in the New English Translation of the Bible.) From gotquestions.org: Is “I will deliver” or “Will I deliver” the correct translation of Hosea 13:14? Comparing different translations of the Bible, readers may notice a contrast at Hosea 13:14. Some Bible translations, such as the NIV, say that God will deliver Israel from death: “I will deliver this people from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. Where, O death, are your plagues? Where, O grave, is your destruction?” Other translations, such as the NET, say that God will not deliver Israel: “Will I deliver them from the power of Sheol? No, I will not! Will I redeem them from death? No, I will not! O Death, bring on your plagues! O Sheol, bring on your destruction! My eyes will not show any compassion!” Are the first two sentences declarative (“I will”), or are they interrogative (“Will I?”)? As declarative sentences, the text implies a promise that God will rescue the people; as interrogative sentences, God is stating He will not. Compounding the issue is Paul’s use, in 1 Corinthians 15:55, of part of the Hosea passage. “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” is often recited as a Christian victory cry. The root cause of the uncertainty is the structure of ancient language. In Ancient Hebrew, which has no punctuation, questions are identified in various ways. Some use explicit question words, translated as “who” or “why,” as in the first half of Genesis 4:9. Other questions add the Hebrew letter he (ה) before the statement, as in the second half of Genesis 4:9. In other cases, the question is identified purely by context: where a declaration seems out of place, it may be that it was meant as a rhetorical question, especially if that approach better fits the message of the surrounding passage. Hosea 13:14 seems to be one of those instances. The process feels unnatural to most English speakers but was instinctive for native Hebrew readers. Close examination suggests the rhetorical “will I?” interpretation is more accurate. A promise of deliverance doesn’t fit with the rest of the text. Everything in the passage involves God’s judgment against Ephraim. In fact, threat builds throughout the chapter. In Hosea 13:14, God rhetorically asks about sparing Ephraim, and then He answers His own question by calling for the plagues of death and the sting of Sheol, declaring His eyes will not show compassion. This would be like a judge saying, “Shall I let this prisoner go? Executioner, where is your axe? I will not have pity.” This raises the question of Paul’s reference to this verse, seen in 1 Corinthians 15:55. Paul begins in verse 54 by quoting Isaiah 25:8, declaring the defeat of death. His next quotation is from Hosea 13:14—the references to the powers of death. In the original Old Testament text, God is calling on those forces to bring judgment against Ephraim. Paul, in citing the same text, is using the words as a taunt against death—exclaiming how law and sin bring us doom, but Christ brings us salvation (1 Corinthians 15:56–57). Using the same analogy as above, a person rescued from execution might celebrate by repeating the judge’s question “Executioner, where is your axe?” as a way to highlight his victory. Why, then, do some translations choose to phrase Hosea 13:14 as a promise, not a threat? Individual translation teams will have their own reasons. It may be that the connection to 1 Corinthians 15:55 and tradition weigh heavily on their decision. Others may disagree that the context suggests a question, noting that Hosea does have a habit of abruptly switching tone and topic. It’s also important to note that the two choices—promise or threat—don’t present any doctrinal conflict. In other words, the difference between the two options is practically irrelevant. Hosea chapter 13 clearly means Ephraim will be judged. The only question is whether verse 14 is an uninterrupted part of that prophecy or one of many Old Testament references to the coming Messiah (see Daniel 9:25–26; Psalm 132:11; Isaiah 35:5–6). www.gotquestions.org I think it’s worth quoting more of 1 Corinthians 15 (along with a commentary on those verses) to show how Paul links his verses referencing Hosea (along with the verse from Hose itself) with Jesus Christ: “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:51-57) And here’s an excerpt from a commentary on these verses: From enduringword.com: a. Death is swallowed up in victory: A resurrected body is not a resuscitated corpse. It is a new order of life that will never die again. Death is defeated by resurrection. i. Freud was wrong when he said: “And finally there is the painful riddle of death, for which no remedy at all has yet been found, nor probably ever will be.” Compare that with Paul’s triumphant declaration, “Death is swallowed up in victory”! b. O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory? Paul, knowing death is a defeated enemy because of Jesus’ work, can almost taunt death, and mock it. Death has no power over the person found in Jesus Christ. i. “This is the sharpest and the shrillest note, the boldest and the bravest challenge, that ever man rang in the ears of death… Death is here out-braved, called craven to his face, and bidden to do his worst.” (Trapp) ii. “I will not fear thee, death, why should I? Thou lookest like a dragon, but thy sting is gone. Thy teeth are broken, oh old lion, wherefore should I fear thee? I know thou art no more able to destroy me, but thou art sent as a messenger to conduct me to the golden gate wherein I shall enter and see my Saviour’s unveiled face for ever. Expiring saints have often said that their last beds have been the best they have ever slept upon.” (Spurgeon) iii. For those who are not in Jesus Christ, death still has its sting. “The sting of death lay in this, that we had sinned and were summoned to appear before the God whom we had offended. This is the sting of death to you, unconverted ones, not that you are dying, but that after death is the judgment, and that you must stand before the Judge of the quick and dead to receive a sentence for the sins which you have committed in your body against him.” (Spurgeon) c. The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law: The principle of resurrection also proves that we are not under the law any longer. We are no longer subject to the penalty of the law (death), and we are set free from sin. Sin is the ultimate cause of death (Romans 6:23, Genesis 2:17), and the result can’t be defeated unless the cause is defeated. i. Paul brilliantly links together the ideas of sin, death, and our identification with Jesus’ death and resurrection in Romans 6:1-14. d. Through our Lord Jesus Christ: This defeat of death is only possible for those who live through our Lord Jesus Christ. For others, there is resurrection and eternal life, but unto damnation. If you are an unbeliever, death is not your friend; it is your enemy. enduringword.com |
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coram_deo 18-Oct-21, 11:08 |
“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.” (Joel 2:28-29) This, imo, can be considered a Messianic prophecy because it’s a prophecy of the New Covenant, which was established by Jesus Christ’s sacrifice and Resurrection. Here is a great commentary on this prophecy from the book of Joel, which was written about 815 B.C. From enduringword.com: a. It shall come to pass afterward: After the restoration Joel spoke of previously in the chapter, there will come a time of ultimate restoration and blessing. This latter time will be marked by an outpouring of God’s Spirit on all flesh – not only selected men at selected times for selected duties. i. The Old Testament has a rich record of the work of the Spirit, but He was not poured out on all flesh under the Old Covenant. Instead, certain men were filled with the Spirit at certain times and only for certain duties. It was rather selective: · Joseph was filled with the Spirit of God (Genesis 41:38). · The craftsmen who built the tabernacle were filled with the Spirit of God (Exodus 31:3). · Joshua was filled with the Spirit of God (Numbers 27:18). · The judge Othniel was filled with the Spirit of God (Judges 3:10). · The judge Gideon was filled with the Spirit of God (Judges 6:34). · The judge Jephthah was filled with the Spirit of God (Judges 11:29). · The judge Samson was filled with the Spirit of God (Judges 13:5, 14:6, 14:19, 15:14). · Saul was filled with the Spirit of God (1 Samuel 10:9-10). · David was filled with the Spirit of God (1 Samuel 16:13). ii. Here, Joel looked forward to the glorious New Covenant, when the Spirit of God would be poured out on all flesh. Why, even your sons and daughters, your old men, and your young men would be filled with the Spirit of God. iii. This was fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost when the disciples gathered in the upper room, waiting in Jerusalem for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit that Jesus promised would come (Acts 1:4-5). When the outpouring of the Spirit came, the 120 followers of Jesus were all filled with the Spirit and began to praise God in other tongues. Jerusalem was crowded at that time, because of the feast of Pentecost – so a crowd quickly gathered because of the commotion. Those who heard the disciples praise God in these miraculous languages began to mock them, claiming they were drunk. Peter stood up and boldly set the record straight: the disciples were not drunk at all, but this was a fulfillment of Joel’s great prophecy of the outpouring of the Spirit. iv. At first, any Jew would scoff at the idea of 120 followers of a crucified man being filled with the Holy Spirit. Based on their understanding of the Old Testament they would think, “These 120 people are not kings or prophets or priests; God only pours out His Spirit on special people for special duties. These are common folk, and God doesn’t pour out His Spirit on them.” Peter uses the prophecy of Joel to show them that things are different now, just as God said they would be. Now, the Holy Spirit is poured out upon all who believe and receive, even the common folk. Now God offered a New Covenant relationship, and part of the New Covenant was the outpouring of the Spirit for all who receive in faith. v. Peter’s sermon of the Day of Pentecost also shows us that there is never any disparity between the work of the Spirit and the work of the Word. When Peter was filled with the Spirit of God in the midst of miraculous signs and wonders as he had never experience before, what did he do? He said, “Let’s open up our Bibles to the book of Joel.” He had a Bible study, one that both taught the 120 disciples (they better understood their experience according to the Scriptures) and called the lost to salvation. vi. We also notice that Peter’s application was exactly the same as the application made by the Prophet Joel: repent. Joel said, “Now, therefore,” says the LORD, “Turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.” So rend your heart, and not your garments; return to the LORD your God (Joel 2:12-13) Peter said, Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:38) b. And also on My menservants and on My maidservants: In this latter time, all the servants of the LORD will be filled with His Spirit in this unique and powerful way. Under the New Covenant, every believer can receive the full measure of the Spirit and be used in a special and wonderful way. i. Sometimes the common churchgoer simply wants a building to worship in, a nice service that isn’t too offensive, and a good sermon – after that he thinks, leave me alone. That isn’t New Covenant Christianity, which sees the work of the ministry as belonging to the people, not the “clergy.” ii. Some people have taken this idea and run too far with it saying, “Therefore we don’t need ministers or clergy. We believe in the priesthood of all believers, so there is no room for offices of any kind in the church.” This ignores the clear teaching of Scripture, which says that the work of the ministry belongs to all the people of God, but the work of equipping the saints belongs to God-appointed offices and ministries (Ephesians 4:7-16). It is because the ministry belongs to all Christians that God has appointed offices and ministries to equip every saint to fulfill their role. Acts 2:42-47 describes a wonderful fulfillment of this ideal. enduringword.com |
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coram_deo 18-Oct-21, 11:18 |
“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven. Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born? Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this? Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine. But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:” (Acts 2:1-18) |
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