Adapted from
What the Bible Teaches about Mercy
by Rex B. Andrews
Chapter 1: What is Mercy?
• The Old Testament (Covenant) of the Bible
was originally written in Hebrew
• The main Hebrew word translated “mercy”
in the Old Covenant is “HHESED”
• Hhesed is translated into English by three
main synonyms:
– Mercy
– Lovingkindness
– Kindness
Chapter 1: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 25:10 All the paths of the
LORD are mercy and truth, To such as keep
His covenant and His testimonies.
• The word “mercy” used here is the Hebrew
word “hhesed”
Chapter 1: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 17:7 Show Your marvelous
lovingkindness by Your right hand, O You
who save those who trust in You From
those who rise up against them.
• The word “lovingkindness” used here is the
Hebrew word “hhesed”
Chapter 1: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 31:21 Blessed be the LORD,
For He has shown me His marvelous
kindness in a strong city!
• The word “kindness” used here is the
Hebrew word “hhesed”
Chapter 1: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• Hhesed - the eager and ardent desire by
which one is led to do good
• It describes a mercy In God which is not
merely a legal whim of a despotic ruler
• It describes a personal desire, strong desire,
to do the good which is in itself a
lovingkindness
• Not just a good turn for someone for
personal reasons, such as trading favors
Chapter 1: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• Without the word mercy-lovingkindness
(hhesed) the Bible is a dead book without
the revelation of God at all
• Without the word mercy-lovingkindness
there is:
–
–
–
–
–
no Bible
no salvation
no Savior
no Kingdom of God
no eternal life - nothing!
Chapter 1: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• Mercy is God’s supply system for every
need everywhere
• Mercy is that kindness, compassion, and
tenderness, which is a passion to suffer
with, or participate in, another’s ills or evils
in order to relieve, heal, and restore
• It accepts another freely and gladly AS they
are and supplies the needed good of life to
build up and to bring to and keep in peace
Chapter 1: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• It is to take another into one’s heart JUST
AS THE ARE and cherish and nourish there
• Mercy takes another’s sins, evils, and faults
as its own, and frees the other by bearing
them to God
• This is the Glow-of-love
• This is the ANOINTING
• This is the POWER of God
Chapter 1: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• This mercy is to be lived-unto-God by us,
and unto Him alone for it flows from Him
and returns to Him
• We are to do God’s mercy for God, seeking
nothing in return - only to give
• By not seeking gain or honor we are not
subject to the judgments of hurt, angry,
resentful, or envious people
• We are truly free!
Chapter 1: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 119:64 The earth, O LORD, is
full of Your mercy; Teach me Your statutes.
• That which fills and completes the Earth, so
that it is full like God intended, is Mercy!
• God’s purpose for Earth was, and is, an
immersion in the heavenly element of
Mercy
• Not sin which brought force, wrath,
corruption, suffering, pain and death
Chapter 2: What is Mercy?
• NKJ Psalm 119:41 Let Your mercies come
also to me, O LORD -- Your salvation
according to Your word.
• Thy mercies = Thy salvation
• By His Word God has made known His will
to give salvation, and that salvation is of His
Mercies
• To say salvation is to say mercy
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 119:88 Revive me according to
Your lovingkindness, So that I may keep
the testimony of Your mouth.
• “Revive me” means - cause me to live!
• Cause me to live according to your
lovingkindness (hhesed or mercy)
• The word “keep” in the Hebrew is the
shepherd’s word for watch, keep, guard
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• NKJ Ezekiel 36:27 "I will put My Spirit
within you and cause you to walk in My
statutes, and you will keep My judgments
and do them.
• Being made alive by the Holy Spirit - the
Spirit of Mercy - is the only way we can
keep the testimony of God and of Jesus
Christ, truly and acceptably before Him
• This is a promise of our New Covenant
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 119:76 Let, I pray, Your
merciful kindness be for my comfort,
According to Your word to Your servant.
• It is truly God’s merciful kindness (hhesed
or mercy) that fills all the need of comfort
• NKJ 2 Corinthians 1:3 Blessed be the God
and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
Father of mercies and God of all comfort,
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 119:77 Let Your tender mercies
come to me, that I may live; For Your law is
my delight.
• The word for “tender mercies” in Hebrew is
rahhamim which means compassions
• It is a great inward tenderness of love that
moves the soul - a passion to comfort
• It is tender care and willingness to suffer
with and for
• The law is a delight for those that
understand that it is all about mercy
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 119:124 Deal with Your servant
according to Your mercy, And teach me
Your statutes.
• “Do with me - or make with me - your
bondslave, according to your mercy”
• Mercy is what opens the understanding to
the amazing knowledge of God
• Without our eyes full of His mercy we will
never understand the Bible or God
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 119:149 Hear my voice
according to Your lovingkindness; O
LORD, revive me according to Your
justice.
• Judgment is the dividing of the evil from
the good, the false from the true
• God’s judgment is for us, delivering us,
upholding, sustaining, and supplying every
need by His mercy
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• We have been fearful of God’s judgment
because of a lack of understanding of mercy
• If we do His mercy then we will understand
that His judgment is for us, in our favor
against the adversary
• Realize that God hears our voice according
to His mercy, His lovingkindness
• The Psalmist cries out “Flood me with life
according to Thy Justice!”
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 119:159 Consider how I love
Your precepts; Revive me, O LORD,
according to Your lovingkindness.
• Precepts are instructions and charges that
are pressed upon us to bring life
• Consider how I love to do things the way
You want them (mercifully), and the way
you do them (mercifully), and Flood me
with life according to your mercy!
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 117:1 Praise the LORD, all you
Gentiles! Laud Him, all you peoples! 2 For
His merciful kindness is great toward us,
And the truth of the LORD endures forever.
Praise the LORD!
• All peoples, and all nations, are enjoined to
praise the Eternal Being because His mercy
is great towards us, and His truth is forever
• The truth of God is His mercy!
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• Mercy in the Old Covenant is the acting, the
doing, of the God who in the New Covenant
is unveiled in Christ Jesus as Love
• Just as in the New Covenant the truth of the
Eternal Father-Being is that He is love, even
so in the Old Covenant behind the veil the
truth of Him was made known that He is
mercy
• Mercy is love in action or lovingkindness
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• The word “praise” is from the Hebrew word
“halal” (haw-lal’) our beautiful universal
praising word hallelujah
• The root signifies to be clear, to be brilliant
• It refers to a clear sharp sound or tone and
can also be applied to the brilliance of light
• Thus, to sing forth praises in rejoicing
• Hallelu - jah = Praise Him who is Jehovah
• Jehovah is the Eternal Fountain of Being
• To us He is the Eternal Father Being!
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• The word “laud” comes from a Hebrew root
meaning to “praise with soothing words”
• It means to give God the glory, all the glory,
as being the glorious one
• In so doing the soother is soothed, the
praiser is exalted
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• The word “for” indicates the reason why we
should so praise God
• “For” His merciful kindness (hhesed or
mercy) is great toward us
• The word “great” carries the idea of great
strength, a strong one prevailing
• The word “toward” is better understood as
“upon”
• Because mightily upon us is His mercy
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• The truth of the Lord
• The word “truth” in the original Hebrew has
these related ideas:
–
–
–
–
–
–
stability
perpetuity
faithfulness
uprightness
integrity
truth as opposed to falsehood
• Today we would say, unchangingfaithfulness-and-truth
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• The Bible teaches that a great distinction of
God, the Eternal Being, the Creator, is that
His mercy is unchangingly true and faithful
to all who will live in it
• His truth is forever - endless - the great
eternal Constant
• His truth is the great unchangeable
• It is opposite to all evil, oppression,
falseness, destruction, and corruption
Chapter 2: What is Mercy? (cont.)
• Putting all of that together we have:
• With bright clear sounds of rejoicing, praise
the Eternal Being, all nations! Glorify Him
with all praises all peoples! Because
mightily prevailing upon us is His mercy;
and the unchanging faithfulness of His truth
is forever - endless! Halelu-jah
Prayer
O Lord, I see it, the fullness of the Earth is
Thy Mercy. Teach me, O teach me , that I may
learn this great section of thy law-laid-down,
thy statues. Amen
Chapter 3: Psalms 118
NKJ Psalm 118:1 Oh, give thanks to the
LORD, for He is good! For His mercy
[hhesed] endures forever.
2 Let Israel now say, "His mercy [hhesed]
endures forever.”
3 Let the house of Aaron now say, "His mercy
[hhesed] endures forever.”
4 Let those who fear the LORD now say, "His
mercy [hhesed] endures forever.”
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Psalms are ancient songs
They were chanted as a one part melody
O give thanks unto the Lord!
Why?
Because He is good!
In what way is He good?
His mercy is forever - endless!
Do what?
GIVE THANKS!
Who should?
All those that fear the Lord!
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• Again from Psalms 117, How should we
give thanks to God for His mercy:
– With clear bright sounds of rejoicing,
Praise the Eternal Being, all nations!
– Glorify Him with all praises due Him all
peoples!
– Because mightily prevailing upon us is
His mercy, and the unchanging
faithfulness of His truth is for ever endless!
– Halelu Jah! - Praise Him who is Jehovah!
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• That kind of praise has to well up out of a
full heart
• What kind of heart is full?
• A grateful heart - one that is purposed to
bring unto God an acceptable offering
• What is an acceptable offering?
• Thanks - simply real, genuine thanks
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• NKJ Matthew 11:25 At that time Jesus answered and said,
"I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You
have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and
have revealed them to babes.
• Jesus was the great giver of thanks
• In His great mercy the Father in wisdom had
hidden the things transpiring in the work of Christ
Jesus from the worldly wise and unveiled them to
the hearts of “babes”
• For that Jesus gave thanks
• The things done, which were so hidden and so
revealed, were the MERCIES of God
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 119:41 Let Your mercies come also to me, O
LORD -- Your salvation according to Your word.
• The name Jesus in Hebrew is - Yeshua
• The word salvation in Hebrew, as in this Psalm, is
- Yeshuah
• Let thy mercies come unto me, O Lord, even thy
Yeshuah (salvation) according to thy Word
• The perfect thanks came from the Yeshua (Jesus)
for the Yeshuah (salvation) revealed unto “babes”
but hide from the wise-in-their-own-eyes and from
the prudent of the world
• For they glory in their own wisdom and
forethought and strength, and do not know the
Yeshuah (salvation) of God
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• In this final desperate last hour of the history of
the Gentile world it will be a calamity to the soul
of any one to fail to connect together the words of
mercy and Yeshuah
• For they are the fulfilling of God’s Will according
to His Word
• Outside of mercy there is nothing but wrath,
corruption, and destruction
• Inside of mercy there is Yeshuah (salvation)!
• Jesus (Yeshua) is salvation!
• Yeshua is Yeshuah! (Jesus is salvation)
• God’s mercy is Jesus! Jesus is mercy Himself!
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
NKJ Psalm 118:5 I called on the LORD in distress; The
LORD answered me and set me in a broad place.
• The words “and set me” are supplied by the
translators to fill out the English, but perhaps are
just as well not used
• The word “distress” means: the distress of
extremely straitened circumstances or troubles
such as a siege in war, and of the distress resulting
from a siege
• A hopeless situation
• Our expression “tight spot” is near this meaning
• The word broad means wide, expanded
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• I called upon the Lord in a tight spot, in the
distress of a siege!
• He answered me!
• In a broad, expanded place!
• God came into the tight spot thus causing it
to became very broad!
• He came into the tight spot with the
besieged one!
• God is the answer!
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• NKJ Mark 4:38 But He was in the stern, asleep on a
pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, "Teacher,
do You not care that we are perishing?" 39 Then He arose
and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Peace, be still!"
And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.
• The raging of the waves subsided into a calm - He
was there!
• God changes the tight, hopeless, besieged place
from a destruction to an abundant freedom
• That is MERCY
• The remainder of Psalm 118 is around this central
theme
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 118:6 The LORD is on my side; I will not fear.
What can man do to me?
• As long as we remain givers of thanks, and doers
of mercy we are continually found of the Lord
• His delivering presence makes a great certainty
known - He is on my side
• “He is on my side” is a Hebrew idiom which
comes a little closer than just “on my side”
• The Hebrew says, “The LORD is TO me” which
simply means “is mine”
• It is the sense of being possessed by Him that
releases from all fear
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• NKJ 1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love
casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who
fears has not been made perfect in love.
• NKJ 1 John 4:8b for God is love.
• NKJ Isaiah 54:14 b You shall be far from oppression, for
you shall not fear; And from terror, for it shall not come
near you.
• The mercy-ing, thankful heart comes to know that
Presence, that possession, that rest from fear, in
the ceasing of works of self
• NKJ Matthew 11:28 "Come to Me, all you who labor and
are heavy laden, and I will give you rest 29 "Take My yoke
upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in
heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 "For My
yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• NKJ Isaiah 43:1 But now, thus says the LORD, who
created you, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel:
"Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by
your name; You are Mine. 2 When you pass through the
waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they
shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire,
you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you.
3a For I am the LORD your God, The Holy One of Israel,
your Savior
• NKJ Hebrews 13:6 So we may boldly say: "The LORD is
my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?"
• NKJ John 14:16 "And I will pray the Father, and He will
give you another Helper, that He may abide with you
forever -- 17a "the Spirit of truth
• NKJ John 14:26a ”...the Helper, the Holy Spirit,
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 118:7 The LORD is for me among those who
help me; Therefore I shall see my desire on those who hate
me.
• The words “my desire” were added by the
translators and again are better not read
• The thought is that I will see the same thing upon
them that hate me
• What same thing?
• The effect of the Presence of the Lord!
• We will see the Lord upon our haters - just
Himself and whatever He desires to do
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
•
•
•
•
•
Thanks rendered for His mercy was given
He answered in the tight distressing condition
He proved that “The LORD is mine”
In thanks and dependence on His mercy I am His!
Therefore, I shall see the same on the haters - just
Himself and whatever He desires to do
• FOR I SEE HIM
• The eventual and eternal position of the mercy-ing
heart is to always see Him - even upon our haters
• NKJ Matthew 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart, For they
shall see God.
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 118:8 It is better to trust in the LORD Than to
put confidence in man.
• 9 It is better to trust in the LORD Than to put confidence
in princes.
• 10 All nations surrounded me, But in the name of the
LORD I will destroy them.
• 11 They surrounded me, Yes, they surrounded me; But in
the name of the LORD I will destroy them.
• 12 They surrounded me like bees; They were quenched
like a fire of thorns; For in the name of the LORD I will
destroy them.
• 13 You pushed me violently, that I might fall, But the
LORD helped me.
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• Better is it to trust in the LORD than to put
confidence in man, or rulers
• NKJ Jeremiah 17:5 Thus says the LORD: "Cursed is the
man who trusts in man And makes flesh his strength,
Whose heart departs from the LORD. 6 For he shall be like
a shrub in the desert, And shall not see when good comes,
But shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, In a
salt land which is not inhabited. 7 "Blessed is the man who
trusts in the LORD, And whose hope is the LORD. 8 For
he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads
out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat
comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious
in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit.
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• Surrounded by all nations the enemies are cut off
in the LORD’s name
• They encircled and they surrounded, but
HALELU, the thanksgiving is in my heart, my
enemies are cut off
• They surrounded me like bees, but as a fire of
thorns is quenched in a moment, so they are cut
off
• They are cut off from contact with the mercy-lover
and thank-er BY the LORD’s presence
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• For His name is a place to dwell
• The giver of thanks “according to thy Word”
comes to know that place by and by
• How vicious was the thrusting stroke of evils
aimed to tumble me over helpless
• But the same One, the Known One, helped me
through it all
• NKJ Isaiah 59:19 So shall they fear The name of the
LORD from the west, And His glory from the rising of the
sun; When the enemy comes in like a flood, The Spirit of
the LORD will lift up a standard against him.
• NKJ Isaiah 60:2 For behold, the darkness shall cover the
earth, And deep darkness the people; But the LORD will
arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you.
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 118:14 The LORD is my strength and song,
And He has become my salvation. 15 The voice of
rejoicing and salvation Is in the tents of the righteous; The
right hand of the LORD does valiantly. 16 The right hand
of the LORD is exalted; The right hand of the LORD does
valiantly.
•
•
•
•
•
•
Hallelu, Hallelu, Hallelujah!
The LORD is my strength!
The LORD is my song!
The LORD is become my salvation - Yeshuah!
Rejoicing is in the tents of the just!
The LORD’s own right hand, His power, does
valiantly, does valiantly, does valiantly
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• God’s right arm or right hand in the Old Covenant
refer to Jesus
• NKJ Psalm 98:1 A Psalm. Oh, sing to the LORD a new
song! For He has done marvelous things; His right hand
and His holy arm have gained Him the victory. 2 The
LORD has made known His salvation; His righteousness
He has revealed in the sight of the nations. 3 He has
remembered His mercy and His faithfulness to the house
of Israel; All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation
of our God. 4 Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth;
Break forth in song, rejoice, and sing praises. 5 Sing to the
LORD with the harp, With the harp and the sound of a
psalm, 6 With trumpets and the sound of a horn; Shout
joyfully before the LORD, the King.
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
NKJ Isaiah 53:1 Who has believed our report? And to whom
has the arm of the LORD been revealed? 2 For He shall grow
up before Him as a tender plant, And as a root out of dry
ground. He has no form or comeliness; And when we see
Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him. 3 He is
despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and
acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from
Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. 4 Surely
He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we
esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But
He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for
our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have
gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And
the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 118:17 I shall not die, but live, And declare the
works of the LORD 18 The LORD has chastened me
severely, But He has not given me over to death. 19 Open
to me the gates of righteousness; I will go through them,
And I will praise the LORD. 20 This is the gate of the
LORD, Through which the righteous shall enter. 21 I will
praise You, For You have answered me, And have become
my salvation.
• Now arises the great conviction based on the
certainty which the understanding of mercy gives:
– I will LIVE and not die and declare His works
• What works? His mercy which is to always!
• The Lord has chastened me sore but has not given
me over to death
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• I live, I shall live!
• It is the convection of life that a mercy-in-thedoing imparts
• Open to me the gates of righteousness
• By them I will enter and praise the LORD
– The word praise used here is the same Hebrew word
rendered as “give thanks” in verses 1-29
• The gate of righteousness is flung open wide for
the givers-of-thanks!
• This is the gate to the Lord - the Lord’s gate - the
door to Him
• NKJ Psalm 100:4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and
bless His name.
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 118:22 The stone which the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone. 23 This was the
LORD's doing; It is marvelous in our eyes. 24 This is the
day the LORD has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.
25 Save now, I pray, O LORD; O LORD, I pray, send now
prosperity. 26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the
LORD! We have blessed you from the house of the
LORD. 27 God is the LORD, And He has given us light;
Bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.
• The balance of the Psalm tells of Jesus
• In reality the whole Psalm is an opening of light
into the inner-life of the Rejected Stone - Himself
- Our Jesus
• NKJ 1 Peter 2:4 Coming to Him as to a living stone,
rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious,
Chapter 3: Psalms 118 (cont.)
• We are in the days when the God of Heaven is
readying the hearts of the remnant of Israel to say:
– Blessed is he that comes in the name of the
Lord
• The end of this time is described in the last two
verses
• NKJ Psalm 118: 28 You are my God, and I will
praise You; You are my God, I will exalt You. 29
Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For
His mercy endures forever.
• For His MERCY IS FOREVER!
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121
• NKJ Psalm 107:43 Whoever is wise will observe these
things, And they will understand the lovingkindness of the
LORD.
• The word “lovingkindness” is the same Hebrew
word (hhesed) which is so frequently translated as
mercy
• The statement here is that God’s mercy shall be
understood by certain people
• Who are these “certain people”?
• The wise
• Why are they wise?
• Because they observe the things that are set down
in this Psalm
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
•
•
•
•
It is important to see clearly what the wisdom is
It results from observing
“Whoever is wise will observe and understand”
The term “observe” is an exceedingly interesting
and beautiful expression
• In the Hebrew it is the word “shamor”
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• The Hebrew word “shamor” (shaw-mar) means to
guard, watch, keep, observe, beware
• It has a large range of uses in the Old Covenant of
the Bible derived from the primary significance of
keeping watch or guarding
– “Covenant” in the Bible means “God’s proposal
of blessing”
• Is it distinctly the shepherd’s word - the shepherd
keeps watch-guard over his sheep
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• In the New Covenant Jesus describes Himself as
the good shepherd who faithfully keeps watch,
guards His sheep, and also gives His life for them
• He is not a hireling, but the owner of the flock
• We belong to Him
• He is our Shomer (shO’-mur) - our Keeper who
“shamors” His sheep
• This relationship of the watch-guarding shepherd
is described superbly in the 23rd Psalm
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
NKJ Psalm 23:1 A Psalm of David. The LORD is
my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He makes me to lie
down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still
waters. 3 He restores my soul; He leads me in the
paths of righteousness For His name's sake. 4 Yea,
though I walk through the valley of the shadow of
death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your
rod and Your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare
a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. 6
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the
days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the
LORD Forever.
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• Psalms 23 portrays the lovingkindness with which
the shepherd leads and cares for His flock
• It is the PICTURE of mercy - exactly what God
the Father and Jesus the son are
• And it is what He wants all of His children to be…
mercy-ers not judgers
• In the New Covenant John 10 portrays Jesus as
our Good Shepherd
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
NKJ John 10:1 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does
not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other
way, the same is a thief and a robber. 2 "But he who enters
by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 "To him the
doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls
his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 "And when he
brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep
follow him, for they know his voice. 5 "Yet they will by no
means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do
not know the voice of strangers." 6 Jesus used this
illustration, but they did not understand the things which He
spoke to them. 7 Then Jesus said to them again, "Most
assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 "All
who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the
sheep did not hear them. 9 "I am the door. If anyone enters
by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find
pasture.
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
NKJ John 10:10 "The thief does not come except to steal, and
to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life,
and that they may have it more abundantly. 11 "I am the
good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the
sheep. 12 "But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one
who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves
the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and
scatters them. 13 "The hireling flees because he is a hireling
and does not care about the sheep. 14 "I am the good
shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.
15 "As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I
lay down My life for the sheep. 16 "And other sheep I have
which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they
will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one
shepherd. 17 "Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay
down My life that I may take it again.
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
NKJ John 10:18 "No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down
of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to
take it again. This command I have received from My
Father." 19 Therefore there was a division again among the
Jews because of these sayings. 20 And many of them said,
"He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?" 21
Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a
demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?" 22 Now it
was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter.
23 And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch. 24
Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long
do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us
plainly." 25 Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not
believe. The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear
witness of Me. 26 "But you do not believe, because you are
not of My sheep, as I said to you.
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
NKJ John 10:27 "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them,
and they follow Me. 28 "And I give them eternal life, and
they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out
of My hand. 29 "My Father, who has given them to Me, is
greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My
Father's hand. 30 "I and My Father are one."
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• Psalms 121 is such a beautiful study of the word
“observe” that we will use it first before
proceeding into Psalms 107
• In Psalms 121 the words “keep” and “preserve”
are the same identical Hebrew word as is
“observe” (i.e., shamor) in Psalms 107
• “Keep” is used three times and “preserve” is used
three times
• For that reason we will analyze the whole of
Psalms 121
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 121:1 A Song of Ascents. I will lift up my eyes
to the hills -- From whence comes my help?
• This was a song that the priests chanted as they
ascended the steps in the temple
• It was also a song of the pilgrims going UP to
Jerusalem from the lower areas of the land
• They chanted such Psalms as this on the way UP
• In order to reach Jerusalem they must go up from
the valleys even if their dwelling places were on
other mountains
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
There at Jerusalem stood the temple
In it was the Holy of Holies
In the Holy of Holies was the Ark of the Covenant
The lid on the Ark was the Mercy-seat,
overshadowed by the golden cherubim
From over the Mercy-seat issued the VOICE and
WORD of GOD
That was His earthly dwelling and His Throne
The Mercy-seat was God’s representative
THRONE on the earth
It was the place where SIN was covered by His
Presence
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• All of the sacrifices had to do with that particular
place
• It was there that sin was COVERED
• The mercy seat is where God -mercy Himself was seated
• The glory of God - MERCY - rested there
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• The God-seeking worshipper going up to one of
the three annual feasts literally lifted up his “eyes
unto the hills”
• He looked and looked until he could catch a
glimpse of those hills from whence his help came
• NKJ Psalm 121: 2 My help comes from the LORD, Who
made heaven and earth.
• His “help comes from the LORD, which made
heaven and earth”
• The supreme help of all helps was the LORD
whose resting place was in that temple located on
the hilltops of Jerusalem
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 121:3 He will not allow your foot to be moved;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
• He that KEEPS (shamors) you - warm, familiar
terms very dear to the pilgrim’s heart
• Terms of his daily life transferred to the care of
God over himself and his own
• The God of Israel was his “shomer,” his shepherd,
his watchman, keeper, preserver
• He that shamors, keeps you, will not slumber
• This was daily-life language for the worshipper
that was himself a “keeper” of a flock or a herd
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• This Psalm brings God and His interest into the
daily life of His people
• Mercy, lovingkindness, is THE DAILY LIFE OF
GOD
• Again, the daily life of God Himself is MERCY
• The understanding of that MERCY should become
the daily life of His child
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• God Himself is our “shomer” - our keeper
• He wants you to be the same, to watch, keep, and
guard (shamor) what He teaches in the Word
about MERCY
• We learn to do it by seeing and loving Him and
acting on the Word given to us
• When we see what He IS, and love Him as He IS,
then we want, and earnestly desire, to keep
(shamor) His instructions
• NKJ John 14:15 " If you love Me, keep My
commandments.
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• That is the root and foundation of seeking
• Without that foundation the desire to seek Him
fades away during the proving of the faith which
works out patience
• NKJ James 1:2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall
into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith
produces patience.
• Patience is humble endurance
• It is uncomplaining endurance - endurance in
doing His words
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 121:4 Behold, He who keeps Israel Shall
neither slumber nor sleep.
• The word “keeps” is shamor
• The pilgrim is singing, “My watchman, who keeps
guard over me, will not slumber when I am
asleep”
• He will never be unconscious in slumber nor
unaware in sleep - lovely!
• What an intimate knowledge of God
• Such language is very dear to a shepherd’s heart
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 121:5 The LORD is your keeper; The LORD is
your shade at your right hand.
• That shade on the right hand meant particularly
one standing between the sheep and their enemies
thus hiding them
• It also meant the PATH in which the shepherd
would lead the sheep into the cool and shady
places from the fierce rays of the sun
• The shepherd is, in fact, himself the path of his
flock
• The sheep literally watch his every move and
follow him as he moves
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• The shepherd stands leaning on his staff or sits
down watching his sheep
• He takes a few steps - maybe speaks - instantly
every head is raised and every sheep’s eye is
fastened directly upon him
• Whatever way he moves in the path the sheep are
going to follow
• NKJ John 10:27 "My sheep hear My voice, and I know
them, and they follow Me.
• NKJ John 14:6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth,
and the life. No one comes to the Father except through
Me.
• NKJ Luke 9:23 Then He said to them all, "If anyone
desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up
his cross daily, and follow Me.
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 121:6 The sun shall not strike you by day, Nor
the moon by night. 7 The LORD shall preserve you from
all evil; He shall preserve your soul.
• Preserve used twice in verse 7 is our Hebrew word
shamor
• Soul means one’s own life, personal life, self
• The Lord who dwelt in the temple, in the Holy of
Holies, resting upon and over the Place-ofatonement and covering for sin - the mercy seat
• He would keep watch-guard against all evil
• He would watch to preserve the soul!
• Oh how marvelous, oh how wonderful is my
Savior’s love for me!
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 121:8 The LORD shall preserve your going out
and your coming in From this time forth, and even
forevermore.
• The Hebrew word shamor - keep, preserve - has
been used six times in various forms in this short
Psalm
• It is the same word “observe” in Psalms 107:43
• All of Psalms 121 is a description of mercy
• The incredible detail here, in Psalms 23, and John
10 shows a faithfulness of God toward us which
should become our own attitude and relation
toward Him and His word
• Jesus often said, “He that keeps my words…”
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 107:43 Whoever is wise will observe these
things, And they will understand the lovingkindness of the
LORD.
• The wise mentioned are those who observe the
things found in this Psalm
• If they keep these things, preserve them, attend to
them, then they shall UNDERSTAND the
lovingkindness of the LORD
• It is wisdom to understand God’s mercylovingkindness
• Jesus IS that mercy
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• NKJ Philippians 3:10 that I may know Him and the power
of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings,
being conformed to His death, 11 if, by any means, I may
attain to the resurrection from the dead.
• If you pray, Cause me to know Jesus
• It means that inevitably the Holy Spirit will seek
to guide you into the understanding of mercy
• Otherwise how are you going to fellowship with
Jesus? Remember, Jesus is MERCY!
• NKJ Proverbs 22:11 He who loves purity of heart And has
grace on his lips, The king will be his friend.
• NKJ 2 Timothy 1:12 For this reason I also suffer these
things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I
have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep
what I have committed to Him until that Day.
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• There is a fallacy about much hearing
• It is that one may deceive himself that having
heard, he knows
• Knowledge comes by doing, experiencing what
we hear
• The Bible teaches in many places and many ways
that lesson
• The knowledge of God is found in His mercy doing it, living it
• For mercy, lovingkindness, is what Love DOES
• NKJ James 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers
only, deceiving yourselves.
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• So far in these mercy studies we have largely
emphasized two things: Prayer and Thanksgiving
– Psalms 119 emphasized prayer
– Psalms 118 emphasized prayer and thanksgiving
– Psalms 107 has an objective stated in the last verse - the
UNDERSTANDING of the Lord’s MERCY
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 107:1 Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is
good! For His mercy endures forever.
• That is the spiritual door through which we may
enter in to the Presence of the Lord - through
which the “righteous” enter
• NKJ Psalm 107:2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,
Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,
• This is the message by the Holy Spirit to the
redeemed
• The rest of the Psalm describes that redeeming
grace, mercy, and compassion
• What is it by which they are redeemed out of the
hand of the enemy?
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
•
•
•
•
•
•
By that for which they are exhorted to give thanks!
What is that?
His MERCY which is to always
What are they to do about it?
SAY SO!
Suppose someone opposes, scorns, or just discounts
Mercy as of little value, what then?
• SAY SO, anyway!
• What if someone accuses you of being out of
balance with your emphasis on Mercy?
• SAY SO, anyway!
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• Throughout the Psalm is an unfolding description
of what happens against the truth of mercy
• Over and over it occurs - FAILURE TO
REMEMBER the wonderful works of the Most
High
• All His works are mercy and truth
• In Psalms 119 all His wonderful works are all
MERCY
• This 107th Psalm shows how they got stuck in the
results of their own ways
• The effects of their own ways are darkness and
death, and affliction and iron
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• They rebelled about this and they rebelled about
that
• Their hearts are brought down in difficulties
• They fail and fall down
• They find no help
• Why?
• Because they do not acknowledge the truth of
God’s dealings and His delivering them repeatedly
which is His MERCY - all MERCY
• Even today, many of God’s children fail and fall
because they do not understand His MERCY
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• Seek to understand MERCY
• If you do MERCY then you will understand
MERCY
• In Psalms 107 the Israelites did not remember His
wonderful works nor His goodness
• They forget because they fail to understand the
MERCY of the Lord
• This is un-wisdom or rather foolishness
• Why do they forget?
• Because they do not “observe” correctly the things
which are described in such accurate detail, and
which are so universally true
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• They failed to shamor, keep watch-guard, of the
truths which His wonderful works have taught
• Whatever fills your need of God is MERCY
• One great need which every one has is to “SAY
SO” about the mercy of God
• For after all REDEMPTION IS ONLY MERCY
• Anything which will open your eyes to God, or
turn you to God, is MERCY
• All of what has just been said arises with the
Psalm itself, or as a portrayal of the effects of not
remembering Him
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• We must not fail to get the lessons in this Psalm in
order to live in peace
• Peace is only found in the Mercy and Compassion
of God
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
NKJ Psalm 107:3 And gathered out of the lands, From the
east and from the west, From the north and from the south. 4
They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way; They
found no city to dwell in. 5 Hungry and thirsty, Their soul
fainted in them. 6 Then they cried out to the LORD in their
trouble, And He delivered them out of their distresses. 7 And
He led them forth by the right way, That they might go to a
city for a dwelling place. 8 Oh, that men would give thanks
to the LORD for His goodness [MERCY], And for His
wonderful works to the children of men!
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
NKJ Psalm 107:9 For He satisfies the longing soul, And fills
the hungry soul with goodness. 10 Those who sat in darkness
and in the shadow of death, Bound in affliction and irons -11 Because they rebelled against the words of God, And
despised the counsel of the Most High, 12 Therefore He
brought down their heart with labor; They fell down, and
there was none to help. 13 Then they cried out to the LORD
in their trouble, And He saved them out of their distresses. 14
He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death,
And broke their chains in pieces. 15 Oh, that men would give
thanks to the LORD for His goodness [MERCY], And for His
wonderful works to the children of men! 16 For He has
broken the gates of bronze, And cut the bars of iron in two.
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
NKJ Psalm 107:17 Fools, because of their transgression, And
because of their iniquities, were afflicted. 18 Their soul
abhorred all manner of food, And they drew near to the gates
of death. 19 Then they cried out to the LORD in their
trouble, And He saved them out of their distresses. 20 He
sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from
their destructions. 21 Oh, that men would give thanks to the
LORD for His goodness [MERCY], And for His wonderful
works to the children of men!
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
NKJ Psalm 107:22 Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of
thanksgiving, And declare His works with rejoicing. 23 Those
who go down to the sea in ships, Who do business on great
waters, 24 They see the works of the LORD, And His
wonders in the deep. 25 For He commands and raises the
stormy wind, Which lifts up the waves of the sea. 26 They
mount up to the heavens, They go down again to the depths;
Their soul melts because of trouble. 27 They reel to and fro,
and stagger like a drunken man, And are at their wits' end. 28
Then they cry out to the LORD in their trouble, And He
brings them out of their distresses. 29 He calms the storm, So
that its waves are still. 30 Then they are glad because they
are quiet; So He guides them to their desired haven. 31 Oh,
that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness
[MERCY], And for His wonderful works to the children of
men!
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
NKJ Psalm 107:32 Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the
people, And praise Him in the company of the elders. 33 He turns
rivers into a wilderness, And the watersprings into dry ground; 34
A fruitful land into barrenness, For the wickedness of those who
dwell in it. 35 He turns a wilderness into pools of water, And dry
land into watersprings. 36 There He makes the hungry dwell, That
they may establish a city for a dwelling place, 37 And sow fields
and plant vineyards, That they may yield a fruitful harvest. 38 He
also blesses them, and they multiply greatly; And He does not let
their cattle decrease. 39 When they are diminished and brought
low Through oppression, affliction and sorrow, 40 He pours
contempt on princes, And causes them to wander in the wilderness
where there is no way; 41 Yet He sets the poor on high, far from
affliction, And makes their families like a flock. 42 The righteous
see it and rejoice, And all iniquity stops its mouth. 43 Whoever is
wise will observe these things, And they will understand the
lovingkindness [MERCY] of the LORD.
Chapter 4: Psalms 107 with 121 (cont.)
• Five times in this Psalm is a clarion call to the
praise of the LORD for His mercy, goodness, and
wonderful works (verses 1, 8, 15, 21, and 31)
• The sixth time (verse 43) we are given the key to
understanding MERCY - DOING IT
• Five common conditions of men were given in this
Psalm:
–
–
–
–
–
Wandering
Rebellion
Fools
Wit’s End
Wilderness desolation
• In each of these conditions the deliverance named
is MERCY!
Prayer
Blessed Father, we want to KNOW Thee. Give
us light to see these things as You see them.
And open our eyes to see Jesus as He is
everywhere in Thy Word. In His Precious
name. Amen
Prayer
Blessed Father, teach us the meaning of Thy
Words so that we may do them; that we may
be truly wise in the understanding of Thy
Mercy, Thy Lovingkindness. For the glory of
Jesus. Amen
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136
• NKJ Psalm 103:1 A Psalm of David. Bless the LORD, O
my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
• It is hardly possible to know such depths of an
experiencing of God apart from the understanding
of mercy
• We want to see what the Bible teaches about it and
not merely gain some facts of human information
• We want to know these things within us as a
continual experience
• We begin eternal life here, and it is the purpose of
God that we understand the principles of that life
eternal
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• The Holy Spirit will lead us, as we pray or sing
this Psalm, into the sight of some of those beauties
of God which are made ours in Christ Jesus
• When “all that is within” us is controlled by The
Spirit of Blessing, then we are dwelling in
blessedness indeed
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget
not all His benefits:
• The benefits here described are all of them good
things offered to us freely through the grace of our
Lord Jesus
• They reveal to us the truth of HIS merits
• “GRACE” is His smiling face turned to us in favor
• That favor is unmerited for it is what-God-IS
• It is the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ
• The knowledge of that glory comes to us through
Jesus who is our brother-man, and whose lifedwelling is in the glory of God
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• Grace may be called the FACE of God’s love
• Mercy the WORKING of that love
• Compassion is being moved in the FELLOWSHIP
of that love
• That is blessedness
• The blessing call is directly to your soul, “Bless
the Lord, O my soul”
• Own soul is self; your own personal life as distinct
from all others
• O self, O me, let all “I” am, and have, and know all that constitutes what I call myself, “me” - bless
the precious and Holy Name of the LORD
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
•
•
•
•
Lord distinctly means head
The BEING who is the head
He is the LORD of Heaven and Earth
The LORD is returning soon in glory to be just
that - the “Day” is upon us!
• We have listed in the following verses seven
benefits, or goods, which we should not “forget”
• It is indeed an amazing cluster of wonderful
benefits
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:3a Who forgives all your iniquities,
• This is Grace doing Mercy in Compassion
• What a benefit it is to KNOW that He will forgive
all
• NKJ Micah 7:19 He will again have compassion on us,
And will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins
Into the depths of the sea.
• NKJ Isaiah 1:18 " Come now, and let us reason together,"
Says the LORD, "Though your sins are like scarlet, They
shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like
crimson, They shall be as wool.
• NKJ 1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and
just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:3b Who heals all your diseases,
• This is Grace doing Mercy in Compassion
• There is a very definite connection between giving
thanks for His endless mercy, and remembering
that He “heals all your diseases”
• In the gospels it appears in its supreme power and
beauty: Jesus healed ALL who came to Him
• NKJ Matthew 8:16 When evening had come, they brought
to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out
the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, 17
that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the
prophet, saying: "He Himself took our infirmities And bore
our sicknesses.” (see Isaiah 53:5)
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ 1 Peter 2:24 who Himself bore our sins in His own
body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live
for righteousness -- by whose stripes you were healed.
• Jesus conquered sin and sickness at the cross of
Calvary freeing us from being a slave to both
• It is not God’s perfect will that we sin or be sick
• However, we do sin and we do get sick
• Nevertheless, we must learn to seek the Lord in
sickness
• We must pray for our healing not because we want
to feel better, but rather because our healing will
honor the completed work of conquering sin,
sickness, and death by our Lord Jesus Christ!
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ 2 Chronicles 16:12 And in the thirty-ninth year of his
reign, Asa became diseased in his feet, and his malady was
severe; yet in his disease he did not seek the LORD, but
the physicians. 13 So Asa rested with his fathers; he died
in the forty-first year of his reign.
• Nothing wrong with going to the Doctor as the
Lord may choose to work through them - when we
go to Him first!
• Never stop taking medicine or stop going to
Doctors trying to impress God with your faith
• If God has supernaturally healed you then you will
know when you do not need the medicine or the
Doctor
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 11:23 For I received from the Lord that
which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the
same night in which He was betrayed took bread; 4 and
when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "Take,
eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in
remembrance of Me." 25 In the same manner He also took
the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant
in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in
remembrance of Me." 26 For as often as you eat this bread
and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He
comes. 27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this
cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of
the body and blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man examine
himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the
cup.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 11:29 For he who eats and drinks in an
unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not
discerning the Lord's body. 30 For this reason many are
weak and sick among you, and many sleep [die].
• Many sicknesses and early deaths amongst
Christians are the result of not living in
accordance with the Word of God
• For example, we live in unforgiveness and then
drink of the wine (grape juice) which represents
the ultimate forgiveness!
• The forgiveness by God of our infinite debt of the
sin of rebellion against Him given out of His
grace, mercy, and compassion!
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Matthew 18:32 "Then his master, after he had called
him, said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you all
that debt because you begged me. 33 'Should you not also
have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had
pity on you?' 34 "And his master was angry, and delivered
him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to
him. 35 "So My heavenly Father also will do to you if
each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his
trespasses.”
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 11:31 For if we would judge ourselves,
we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we
are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned
with the world.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• We eat of the bread that represents Jesus’ body
broken for us
• Broken for us in the bearing away of our sickness
and disease that entered the world because of sin
• However, we do not trust God for our healing but
at the first sign of a pain turn to medicine or man
• Again, nothing wrong with medicine or doctors as
long as we seek God for His plan first
• You can walk with the Lord, in constant
communion, so as to know what to do when
sickness and disease attack
• This is His best - praying without ceasing!
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Hebrews 12:9 Furthermore, we have had human
fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall
we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of
spirits and live? 10 For they indeed for a few days
chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit,
that we may be partakers of His holiness. 11 Now no
chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful;
nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of
righteousness to those who have been trained by it. 12
Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, and the
feeble knees, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so
that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be
healed.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:4a Who redeems your life from
destruction,
• This is the central theme in the whole revealed
Word of God: redemption of the image of God
from destruction
• It is Grace doing Mercy in Compassion
• NKJ John 10:10 "The thief does not come except to steal,
and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have
life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
• NKJ Luke 4:18 "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me,
Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the
poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To
proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to
the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed;
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:4b Who crowns you with lovingkindness
[mercy] and tender mercies [compassions],
• In the original Hebrew:
– “lovingkindness” is hhesed our mercy word
– “tender mercies” is rahhamim that is equivalent in
power to our English word “compassions”
• This is Grace placing upon your head the insignia
of anointing of one of God’s kings
• What IS this crown, this kingly anointing, this
authority and power to rule?
• Hhesed and rahhamim! Lovingkindness and
tender mercies!
• Mercy and Compassion!
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
•
•
•
•
Think of it!
God’s Crown, God’s Grace gift!
This is truth of almost fathomless depth
What kind of a “crown” do you have in mind
when you think of “wearing a crown in the New
Jerusalem?”
• It is the hope of this “Mercy” series of studies will
bring you into the crown-fitting
• NKJ 1 Peter 5:4 and when the Chief Shepherd appears,
you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade
away
• Again, The GLORY of God is His MERCY!
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:5 Who satisfies your mouth with good
things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.
• The enjoyment of all “good” brings one into the
joy of divine youthfulness
• He satisfies our mouth with what? With Good!
• What a wonderful thing it is to have your mouth
satisfied - fully satisfied - with GOOD!
• What a freedom and release to be separated from
the peculiar craving for things which coming out
of the mouth defile one
• It is God’s goodness alone that satisfies the
craving and hunger of your heart
• Grace doing Mercy in Compassion!
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Proverbs 23:7a For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.
• What you are thinking about is what goes into and
grows in your spiritual heart
• NKJ Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are
true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just,
whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely,
whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue
and if there is anything praiseworthy -- meditate on these
things.
• NKJ Hebrews 6:5a and have tasted the good word of God
• God wants us to fill our minds and spiritual hearts
with the Word of God - the only GOOD words!
• We do this by saying (tasting) the Word of God
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Luke 6:45 "A good man out of the good treasure of
his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil
treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the
abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
• What is predominant in your spiritual heart is what
you talk about - especially in times of stress
• NKJ Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of
your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification,
that it may impart grace to the hearers.
• NKJ Colossians 4:6 Let your speech always be with grace,
seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to
answer each one.
• NKJ Proverbs 22:11 He who loves purity of heart And has
grace on his lips, The king will be his friend.
• Jesus is the King of Kings! (Revelation 17:14)
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Mark 4:13 And He said to them, "Do you not
understand this parable? How then will you understand all
the parables?
• Jesus told the parable of the sower and then stated
that understanding this parable was the key to
understanding all parables
• This parable illustrates the principle of what we
hear and think about goes into our spiritual heart
• Within our spiritual heart the thoughts become
intentions waiting for an opportunity to act
• For example, if we think about adultery then we
set ourselves up to commit adultery
• If we think about being a failure we fail
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Luke 8:11 " Now the parable is this: The seed is the
word of God. 12 "Those by the wayside are the ones who
hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of
their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
• Satan uses lies and deception to cause a person to
forget the Word of God heard
• For example, a lost person hears the gospel but
Satan immediately brings up reasons not to
believe that it is true
• 13 "But the ones on the rock are those who, when they
hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root,
who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall
away.
• Satan uses tribulation and persecution (failure) to
tempt us into not believing the Word of God
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• 14 "Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who,
when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares,
riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.
• If we persist in holding onto the Word of God
through failure then Satan tries to get us so busy
with success that we neglect the Word of God
• 15 "But the ones that fell on the good ground are those
who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart,
keep it and bear fruit with patience.
• However, if we consistently listen and think on the
Word of God then it will ultimately change the
way we talk and thus the way we live
• Realize, our tongues can either heal or kill
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Proverbs 15:4 A wholesome tongue is a tree of life,
But perverseness in it breaks the spirit.
• NKJ Proverbs 18:21 Death and life are in the power of the
tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit.
• NLT James 3:6 And the tongue is a flame of fire. It is full
of wickedness that can ruin your whole life. It can turn the
entire course of your life into a blazing flame of
destruction, for it is set on fire by hell itself.
• NKJ 1 Peter 3:8 Finally, all of you be of one mind, having
compassion for one another; love as brothers, be
tenderhearted, be courteous; 9 not returning evil for evil or
reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing
that you were called to this, that you may inherit a
blessing. 10 For "He who would love life And see good
days, Let him refrain his tongue from evil, And his lips
from speaking deceit.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:6 The LORD executes righteousness And
justice for all who are oppressed.
• GRACE, freely doing MERCY in COMPASSION
• This portrays a glorious future for us and for the
whole world
• What a benefit it is, and will be, as God causes
oppression to die at its root and fade away
• NKJ Isaiah 54:14 In righteousness you shall be
established; You shall be far from oppression, for you shall
not fear; And from terror, for it shall not come near you.
• NKJ 1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love
casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who
fears has not been made perfect in love.
• NKJ 1 John 4:16 b God is love, and he who abides in love
abides in God, and God in him.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Luke 4:18 "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me,
Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the
poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To
proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to
the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; 19 To
proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD." 20 Then He
closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat
down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were
fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, "Today
this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
• NKJ 2 Corinthians 6:2 For He says: "In an acceptable time
I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped
you." Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the
day of salvation.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Hebrews 2:1 Therefore we must give the more
earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift
away. 2 For if the word spoken through angels proved
steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience
received a just reward, 3 how shall we escape if we
neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be
spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who
heard Him,
• Heavenly Father, please flood with mercies the
one reading these words thus meeting all of their
needs so that Jesus Christ might be honored!
• I thank you Lord for You are good and Your
mercy is forever!
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:7 He made known His ways to Moses, His
acts to the children of Israel.
• God makes known His ways and His works
• He reveals Himself to man
• However, the stubborn, rebellious, and unmerciful
Israelites only knew of His works (i.e., His signs,
wonders, and miracles) - all acts of MERCY!
• NKJ Psalm 106:7 Our fathers in Egypt did not understand
Your wonders; They did not remember the multitude of
Your mercies, But rebelled by the sea -- the Red Sea.
• NKJ Psalm 78:7 That they may set their hope in God, And
not forget the works of God, But keep His commandments;
8 And may not be like their fathers, A stubborn and
rebellious generation, A generation that did not set its heart
aright, And whose spirit was not faithful to God.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 106:43 Many times He delivered them; But
they rebelled in their counsel, And were brought low for
their iniquity. 44 Nevertheless He regarded their affliction,
When He heard their cry; 45 And for their sake He
remembered His covenant, And relented according to the
multitude of His mercies.
• The faithful, humble, and merciful Moses not only
knew God’s works, but also His ways
• NKJ Exodus 33:11a So the LORD spoke to Moses face to
face, as a man speaks to his friend.
• NKJ Proverbs 22:11 He who loves purity of heart And has
grace on his lips, The king will be his friend.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Numbers 12:6 Then He said, "Hear now My words: If
there is a prophet among you, I, the LORD, make Myself
known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream. 7 Not
so with My servant Moses; He is faithful in all My house.
8a I speak with him face to face, Even plainly, and not in
dark sayings; And he sees the form of the LORD.
• NKJ Numbers 12:3 (Now the man Moses was very
humble, more than all men who were on the face of the
earth.)
• Furthermore, God wants us His children to know
His ways today
• NKJ John 15:15 "No longer do I call you servants, for a
servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have
called you friends, for all things that I heard from My
Father I have made known to you.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Isaiah 55:8 " For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD. 9 "For as
the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways
higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your
thoughts.
• God thinks and does things differently than we
think and do. However, we are commanded to
learn to think as God thinks and learn to
understand His ways
• NKJ Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world,
but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you
may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect
will of God.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• God has given us the Helper – the Holy Spirit in
order to learn God’s thoughts and ways
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 2:9 But as it is written: "Eye has not
seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared for those who love
Him." 10 But God has revealed them to us through His
Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep
things of God. 11 For what man knows the things of a
man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so
no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.
12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but
the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things
that have been freely given to us by God.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 2:13 These things we also speak, not in
words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy
Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14
But the natural man does not receive the things of the
Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he
know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15 But
he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is
rightly judged by no one. 16 For "who has known the
mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?" But we
have the mind of Christ.
• NKJ John 16:13 "However, when He, the Spirit of truth,
has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not
speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will
speak; and He will tell you things to come. 14 "He will
glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it
to you.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ John 14:26 "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom
the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all
things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said
to you.
• NKJ 1 John 2:27 But the anointing which you have
received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that
anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you
concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just
as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.
• Our ways are not God’s ways... yet
• NKJ 1 John 3:2 Beloved, now we are children of God; and
it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know
that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we
shall see Him as He is.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 13:9 For we know in part and we
prophesy in part. 10 But when that which is perfect has
come, then that which is in part will be done away. 11
When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a
child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put
away childish things. 12 For now we see in a mirror,
dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I
shall know just as I also am known.
• When Jesus - that which is perfect - returns we
will be glorified and immediately know all things!
• A sure benefit, a clear promise, to all those who
seek to know Him as we have learned to pray:
Make me to KNOW JESUS!
• GRACE, freely doing MERCY in COMPASSION
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:8 The LORD is merciful and gracious,
Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.
• This is the great Old Covenant definition of whatGod-is!
• The expression “slow to anger” is a Hebrew idiom
which carries the force of: patiently waiting,
longsuffering
• Patience and longsuffering unfold in the New
Covenant as the fruition of God’s Spirit
• The previous seven verses describe what God IS
• This verse sums all up in one statement
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• Three Hebrew words are used to summarize the
verses and describe God
• Hhen meaning gracious
• Hhesed meaning mercy (introduced earlier)
• Rahhum meaning compassion
• Rahhamim is plural and is the word more
frequently translated “mercies” in the KJV
– However, we will translate it as “compassions” because
it corresponds to the New Covenant “moved with
compassion” and “bowels of mercies”
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• However, it is not so important to remember the
Hebrew words themselves
• They are given here in order to show the cluster of
words associated together in the truth of MERCY
• All of them describe what God IS
• These three related fill out each other as a
description of the BEING OF GOD
• Distinctly that means: what He IS
• In the Old Covenant salvation and life are spoken
of as MERCY
• In the New Covenant the term used is GRACE
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• Both expressions describe God as the LIFEGIVER
• There is no life-giving apart from God’s GRACE
and MERCY
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Exodus 33:18 And he said, "Please, show me Your
glory."
• Moses had been with God for 40 days twice in a
row on the mountain and wanted to see God for
who He is - His most magnificent attributes!
• God’s response to Moses’ request:
– NKJ Exodus 34:6 And the LORD passed before him
and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God, merciful
and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness
and truth, 7a "keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving
iniquity and transgression and sin,
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• Although God could have revealed any of his
attributes to Moses - His omnipotence, His
omniscience, His omnipresence, that He is eternal- He chose to emphasize his MERCY
• God shows Moses that his glory is the glory of a
reconciling God!
• The Lord's response to Moses is so significant for
Israel's relationship with God that it is repeated
throughout Scripture
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Numbers 14:18 'The LORD is longsuffering and
abundant in mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression;
but He by no means clears the guilty, visiting the iniquity
of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth
generation.'
• NKJ Deuteronomy 4:31 '(for the LORD your God is a
merciful God), He will not forsake you nor destroy you,
nor forget the covenant of your fathers which He swore to
them.
• NKJ Nehemiah 9:17 They refused to obey, And they were
not mindful of Your wonders That You did among them.
But they hardened their necks, And in their rebellion They
appointed a leader To return to their bondage. But You are
God, Ready to pardon, Gracious and merciful, Slow to
anger, Abundant in kindness, And did not forsake them.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 86:15 But You, O Lord, are a God full of
compassion, and gracious, Longsuffering and abundant in
mercy and truth.
• NKJ Psalm 145:8 The LORD is gracious and full of
compassion, Slow to anger and great in mercy.
• NKJ Joel 2:13 So rend your heart, and not your garments;
Return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and
merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He
relents from doing harm.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:9 He will not always strive with us, Nor
will He keep His anger forever.
• Anger, as attributed to God, is viewed from
different positions in the Law and in the Gospel
• Under the Law it was necessary to view God in a
considerable degree of likeness to man, in order to
be understandable to people who had little
conception of spiritual things
• However, in the Gospel He is revealed in Christ as
He is in heaven, in His true nature
• It is impossible to correctly see what God’s anger
is, except from a heart immersed in MERCY
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• The word “chide” means - He will not always
strive-with-words
• Furthermore, He will not endlessly restrain His
anger
• If we continually spurn MERCY then a time will
come when it is withdrawn
• Outside of mercy ALL is wrath!
• This parallels the last part of God’s revelation of
who He is to Moses
• NKJ Exodus 34:7b by no means clearing the guilty,
visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the
children's children to the third and the fourth generation.”
• God is MERCY; however, He is also just!
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:10 He has not dealt with us according to
our sins, Nor punished us according to our iniquities.
• GRACE doing MERCY in COMPASSION
• Thank God! Thank God! We hope in His MERCY
• If He HAD dealt with us after our sins; and if He
HAD rewarded us according to our iniquities we
would have been destroyed!
• Gratefully, in the comfort of His salvation, we can
say “NOT dealt with us according to our sins,”
BUT according to His MERCY
• NKJ Lamentations 3:22 Through the LORD's mercies we
are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. 23
They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• Jesus Christ has taken our sin and borne our
punishment so that we can have His righteousness
• NKJ 2 Corinthians 5:21 For He made Him who knew no
sin to be sin for us, that we might become the
righteousness of God in Him.
• NKJ 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ,
he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold,
all things have become new.
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 1:30 But of Him you are in Christ
Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God -- and
righteousness and sanctification and redemption --
• In Christ, we have the same righteousness or
rightstanding with God that Jesus has, which
means we can “stand right with God!”
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• Because of the completed work of the cross of
Calvary, the original sin of rebellion against a
Holy God by Adam has been wiped out (removed)
from our charge forever in Christ
• Jesus bore this sin and was punished in our stead
so that we might have His sinless record imputed
to us - His righteousness!
• NKJ Colossians 2:13 And you, being dead in your
trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has
made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all
trespasses, 14 having wiped out the handwriting of
requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us.
And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the
cross.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Isaiah 53:4 Surely He has borne our griefs And
carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But He was wounded for
our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The
chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His
stripes we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone
astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And
the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all... 10 Yet it
pleased the LORD to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief.
When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see
His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of
the LORD shall prosper in His hand. 11 He shall see the
labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My
righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear
their iniquities.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:11 For as the heavens are high above the
earth, So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
• Not only high above, but also over, the earth
• The heavens, as we view them, are OVER the
earth, a canopy covering the earth
• So, in such great strength of position and quality is
His mercy
• NKJ Psalm 32:10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked;
But he who trusts in the LORD, mercy shall surround him.
• NKJ Job 1:9 So Satan answered the LORD and said, "Does
Job fear God for nothing? 10 "Have You not made a hedge
around him, around his household, and around all that he
has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands,
and his possessions have increased in the land.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ 1 John 5:18 We know that whoever is born of God
does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps
himself, and the wicked one does not touch him.
• The Christian is protected by the force of MERCY
as we keep ourselves in MERCY
• God is MERCY!
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:12 As far as the east is from the west, So
far has He removed our transgressions from us.
• Here are three qualities of destructive evils:
– sins
– iniquities
– transgressions
• They are all said to be removed and annulled by
MERCY
• It is a peculiar thing about the distance from the
East to the West
• The East is so far from the West that they can
never meet - they are infinitely separated!
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• Another way of looking at it is there is a point
where the East begins to be East and the West
begins to be West
• That point is the SEPARATION between
• In this sin matter, mercy came between!
• Mercy became the infinite separation between
• As the East is infinitely separated from the West,
so has God’s MERCY separated our sins from us
• That MERCY is the Blood of Jesus Christ - God’s
Lamb for us, our Lamb for God!
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
“O Lamb of God, Thou wonderful sinbearer; Hard
after Thee my soul doth follow on; As pants the
hart for streams in desert dreary; So pants my
soul for Thee, O Thou life-giving One.”
“At Thy feet I fall; Yield Thee up my all; To suffer,
live or die, For my Lord crucified.”
GRACE doing MERCY in COMPASSION!
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:13 As a father pities his children, So the
LORD pities those who fear Him.
• A loving Shepherd, a tender Father
• The word “pities” is from the same root as
“compassion”
• Like as a father is moved with compassion for his
children, so the LORD is for them that fear Him
• GRACE doing MERCY in COMPASSION
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Exodus 20:20 And Moses said to the people, "Do not
fear; for God has come to test you, and that His fear may
be before you, so that you may not sin.”
• Note that we are not to be afraid of the Lord but
rather to have His fear before us
• NKJ Deuteronomy 6:13 "You shall fear the LORD your
God and serve Him, and shall take oaths in His name.
• NKJ Luke 4:8 And Jesus answered and said to him, "Get
behind Me, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the
LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.' ”
• When Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6:13, during His
temptation by Satan in the wilderness, He reveals
that the “fear of the Lord” of the Old Covenant
meant to “worship the Lord”
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• The Greek word for worship here is “proskuneo”
• It means to prostrate oneself in homage, do
reverence, or adore
• To fear the Lord means to so adore Him for being
our source of everything that we would never do
anything contrary to His desire
• NKJ John 14:15 " If you love Me, keep My
commandments.
• It is easy to obey someone that you are “head over
heels in love with”
• NKJ John 14:24 "He who does not love Me does not keep
My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but
the Father's who sent Me.
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Acts 17:24 "God, who made the world and everything
in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell
in temples made with hands. 25 "Nor is He worshiped
with men's hands, as though He needed anything, since He
gives to all life, breath, and all things. 26 "And He has
made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all
the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed
times and the boundaries of their dwellings, 27 "so that
they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might
grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from
each one of us; 28a "for in Him we live and move and
have our being,
• NKJ Hebrews 12:9 Furthermore, we have had human
fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall
we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of
spirits and live?
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:14 For He knows our frame; He
remembers that we are dust.
• That we are dust!
• Not very flattering, not very complimentary, is it?
• The great gob of mud called “man” strutting his
superior know-it-all stuff even in the Face of God!
• Dust, our FRAME!, DUST!
• What value is a frame of dust?
• HE remembers that we ARE dust whether we do
or not
• Yet, His constant purpose toward us is
compassion, to supply our need
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• Mercy is whatever supplies our need, whatever
that need may be
• He wants to exalt us into the mercy-of-God
• NKJ Genesis 3:19 In the sweat of your face you shall eat
bread Till you return to the ground, For out of it you were
taken; For dust you are, And to dust you shall return.”
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:15 As for man, his days are like grass; As
a flower of the field, so he flourishes. 16 For the wind
passes over it, and it is gone, And its place remembers it no
more. 17 But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting
to everlasting On those who fear Him, And His
righteousness to children's children,
• Great man! His flourishing, his greatness, his
glories, all like the flower of the field
• Grass! Today is, tomorrow gone
• But the MERCY OF THE LORD! God’s flower,
His flourishing, His very glory, is everlasting!
• Blessed LORD! Blessed GOD!
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• Is there anything left within me that does not, or
will not bless You from, or at least to everlasting
for Your MERCY which is forever?
• This is not a description of an experience of
blissful self, happy in a sense of being-something
and knowing-a-lot
• This Psalm is setting forth one thing supremely:
– my soul-self and all this is within me - as part of me - is
called upon by the Holy Spirit of God to bless Him for
what He IS - MERCY!
• That is what the Bible teaches
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:18 To such as keep His covenant, And to
those who remember His commandments to do them.
• Keep what covenant?
• OF MERCY
• Every covenant that God ever made with man is
grounded in MERCY
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:19 The LORD has established His throne
in heaven, And His kingdom rules over all.
• Throne of what? Grace and Mercy
• GRACE doing MERCY in COMPASSION
• If you are looking for any other kingdom you will
be disappointed
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:20 Bless the LORD, you His angels, Who
excel in strength, who do His word, Heeding the voice of
His word.
•
•
•
•
Angels are messengers - God’s messengers
Messengers of His strength
Messengers of His Word
Adjured are they in this Psalm to bless the Lord,
because His mercy is forever
• GRACE doing MERCY in COMPASSION
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:21 Bless the LORD, all you His hosts, You
ministers of His, who do His pleasure.
•
•
•
•
•
•
The word “pleasure” here is will
They do, make, form, His WILL
In God His will and desire are one
Pleasure is the fulfilling of desire
Jesus completes that will
Numberless hosts are ministering the performance
of His desire, yet not Unnumbered
• Even we have a place and a number among His
ministering hosts - if we will DO His MERCY for
Him
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• Jesus completes the MERCY of God, and is the
MERCY of God
• Our place is IN HIM
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 103:22 Bless the LORD, all His works, In all
places of His dominion. Bless the LORD, O my soul!
• About everything capable of response has been
included in this blast of heaven’s bugle call
• One thing is set forth for all who are capable of
understanding and responding
• It is that “His Mercy is forever”
• We come to the last phrase of the Psalm
• Have we grasped a little of it?
• BLESS THE LORD, O MY SOUL
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 136:1 Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is
good! For His mercy endures forever. 2 Oh, give thanks to
the God of gods! For His mercy endures forever. 3 Oh,
give thanks to the Lord of lords! For His mercy endures
forever: 4 To Him who alone does great wonders, For His
mercy endures forever; 5 To Him who by wisdom made
the heavens, For His mercy endures forever; 6 To Him
who laid out the earth above the waters, For His mercy
endures forever; 7 To Him who made great lights, For His
mercy endures forever -- 8 The sun to rule by day, For His
mercy endures forever; 9 The moon and stars to rule by
night, For His mercy endures forever. 10 To Him who
struck Egypt in their firstborn, For His mercy endures
forever; 11 And brought out Israel from among them, For
His mercy endures forever; 12 With a strong hand, and
with an outstretched arm, For His mercy endures forever;
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 136:13 To Him who divided the Red Sea in
two, For His mercy endures forever; 14 And made Israel
pass through the midst of it, For His mercy endures
forever; 15 But overthrew Pharaoh and his army in the
Red Sea, For His mercy endures forever; 16 To Him who
led His people through the wilderness, For His mercy
endures forever; 17 To Him who struck down great kings,
For His mercy endures forever; 18 And slew famous
kings, For His mercy endures forever -- 19 Sihon king of
the Amorites, For His mercy endures forever; 20 And Og
king of Bashan, For His mercy endures forever -- 21 And
gave their land as a heritage, For His mercy endures
forever; 22 A heritage to Israel His servant, For His mercy
endures forever. 23 Who remembered us in our lowly
state, For His mercy endures forever; 24 And rescued us
from our enemies, For His mercy endures forever;
Chapter 5: Psalms 103 and 136 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 136:25 Who gives food to all flesh, For His
mercy endures forever. 26 Oh, give thanks to the God of
heaven! For His mercy endures forever.
• There is nothing else in the whole Bible that is
given so repeatedly and to such length
• It is clearly intended of God that we shall see this
fact very clearly
• Something like this which is “FOR EVER,” needs
to be for ever talked about
• We want to see what the Bible teaches, and then to
live IN what it teaches
• There can be no mistaking what the Bible teaches
about MERCY
Prayer
We thank You, Blessed Father, for Jesus
Whose word and blood have brought to us the
Holy Spirit. From the glory of the heavens He
has come, that we might know the things
which are freely given to us of God. We
acknowledge that Thy mercy is forever, And
that these great blessings are all of mercy,
and nothing but mercy. In Jesus’ precious
name. Amen
Prayer
Blessed Father, we acknowledge our utter inability
to cope with such a great subject as we are
investigating. We are dust. What does dust know
about dust? How can we who are but dust declare,
or expound the truth of what You are? If you are not
mercy in truth, and truth in mercy, surely we would
be presumptuous in Your Presence. But it is because
of Your Presence in mercy and truth that we desire
to expound these high things. Help us in giving out
and in taking in, that we may receive You as You are.
Here is a mystery so great as to be far beyond our
reach, yet placed within our grasp in the faith of
Jesus.
Prayer (cont.)
Here is eternal truth so utterly commonplace as to be
invisible to the heart which is hardened in any
degree of pride, yet which is Light to open the eyes
of the understanding for those who love Your
lowliness. Guide us, sweet eternal Spirit! Guide us,
O Holy One! We are sure to stray at any moment, or
every hour, except You will surely guide us. We
believe what the word of Your mouth has shown, that
you are a shepherd of souls and tender and
compassionate Father. Because we believe this, we
trust to be guided in this study of the knowledge of
God.
Prayer (cont.)
We thank You for Jesus. We thank You for Your
Word. We thank you for the precious redeeming
Blood. We thank you for the supreme promise and
gift of the Holy Spirit. All MERCY. Amen
Chapter 6: Psalms 145
• To Israel was given, by direct revelation of God
Himself, the knowledge of the truth concerning
His nature and character
• That revelation is handed down to us in The Law,
The Psalms, and The Prophets
• In these the Word of God is spoken
• By revealing His will, God revealed Himself
• In that revelation of His Will was embedded, and
partly hidden, the knowledge of the future in
which His “Anointed” would appear for the rule of
the world
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• All prophecy concerning the future of the world,
and of Israel’s place in that future, had to do with
The Anointed One or Messiah or Christ
• He would be just, faithful to God and to men,
ruling in the fear of God, establishing peace on
Earth
• But above all other things was the knowledge that
the coming Anointed One would restore to
mankind the lost Blessedness of the Spirit of God,
thus uniting again the human race with Himself
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Galatians 3:13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse
of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written,
"Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"), 14 that the
blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in
Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the
Spirit through faith.
• NKJ Acts 2:38 Then Peter said to them, "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. 39 "For the promise is to you and to your
children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord
our God will call."
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Luke 24:44 Then He said to them, "These are the
words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that
all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law
of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning
Me.”
• Jesus said it was necessary for all things to be
fulfilled which were written concerning Him in
the Law of Moses, and in the Prophets, and in the
Psalms
• By saying this Jesus established the truth of what
had been revealed of the nature and character of
God Who is The Eternal Spirit, the Eternal Good
in these texts
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• The New Covenant describes Jesus, the Messiah,
as being the actual image of God bodily and states
that in Him dwells all the fullness of God
• The expression “fullness” can mean nothing
whatever to us except as we gain the knowledge of
What-God-Is
• Jesus is the truth to man of WHAT GOD IS
• When we are studying in the Law and Prophets
and Psalms about what God is, we are also
learning what Jesus Christ is as our True Man
• The New Covenant describes Him as a NEW man,
a NEW creation, Who is the perfection of God’s
Image
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• The word MERCY is a term in the speech of
human beings that God has given as a revelation
of what He IS
• In this the Old Covenant agrees fully with the
New Covenant
• For Christ Jesus is bodily the perfected image of
those spiritual qualities of Mercy, Lovingkindness,
Grace, Compassion, Goodness, which are the
supreme revelation of God in the Old Covenant
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• Some might think wisdom and power are God’s
supreme qualities
• The difficulty in the use of the words “wisdom
and power” is in this: human beings can only think
of wisdom and power as of HUMAN wisdom and
power - even though increased to an imaginary
infinity and omnipotence
• That is, we can only think so until the
Understanding is opened by the Word of God
• It is the wisdom and power of WHAT-HE-IS that
is supreme
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• The knowledge of what He is has to be the basis
of all true wisdom and power in His creatures
• We could put it this way:
– WISDOM, divine wisdom, is the understanding of the
LOVE OF God as the Law of Life
– POWER, divine power, is the working of His Will
which raises and sustains His creatures in their relation
to Him who is their only Good
– HOLINESS is the SUM of all revelation
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:1 I will extol You, my God, O King; And I
will bless Your name forever and ever.
• It is unto the LORD that such an outburst of
worship arises
• The endless vista into the future - forever and ever
- becomes full of meaning to this Psalmist,
anointed wit the Holy Spirit to see the truth of
what God IS
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:2 Every day I will bless You, And I will
praise Your name forever and ever.
• It will be well for us to get such a great sight of
this great LORD that we also can sing out, “My
LORD, O King,” in the rapture of the Spirit of
Truth and Holiness, “forever and ever will I praise
thy name”
• This is rapture indeed and it is not excelled by the
most enthralling worship we know of
• In fact, in our greatest praise times we are caught
up in the same Spirit of Glory
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• One of the reasons, that it does not combine more
fully with our daily life, is that we have not caught
a clear sight of The One who is so praised
• It is one of the purposes of these studies to give us
a clearer sight
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:3 Great is the LORD, and greatly to be
praised; And His greatness is unsearchable.
• Words fail when it comes to ascribing greatness to
God
• True greatness is a scarce thing among men and
scarcely known
• The great greatness, drawing forth such
superlative expressions as these, is described in
verse 8
• There we will see how the terms: great; greatly;
greatness; fit in exactly with the expression, “of
great mercy”
• It is what He IS
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:4 One generation shall praise Your works
to another, And shall declare Your mighty acts.
• What mighty acts? Acts of MERCY!
• NKJ Mark 6:2 And when the Sabbath had come, He began
to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing Him were
astonished, saying, "Where did this Man get these things?
And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such
mighty works are performed by His hands! 3 "Is this not
the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James,
Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with
us?" And they were offended at Him. 4 But Jesus said to
them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own
country, among his own relatives, and in his own house." 5
Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He
laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6a
And He marveled because of their unbelief.
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• What kind of mighty works? Works of MERCY!
• Why did He marvel at them?
• Because of their unbelief concerning God’s
MERCY
• The terrible nature of that unbelief is that they
would rather see the people die than to
acknowledge Him sent of God
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:5 I will meditate on the glorious splendor
of Your majesty, And on Your wondrous works.
• In the Revelation shown to the Apostle John, we
are given some glimpses into the kind of speaking
that is done in the glory Presence of this LORD
• There they are singing and prostrating before Him
• His glorious honor and majesty are the theme of
their praises, likewise His wondrous works
• What is it that swells their rapture to such
compelling fullness?
• MERCY, free MERCY
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Revelation 7:9 After these things I looked, and
behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of
all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before
the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes,
with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a
loud voice, saying, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits
on the throne, and to the Lamb!" 11 All the angels stood
around the throne and the elders and the four living
creatures, and fell on their faces before the throne and
worshiped God, 12 saying: "Amen! Blessing and glory
and wisdom, Thanksgiving and honor and power and
might, Be to our God forever and ever. Amen."
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:6 Men shall speak of the might of Your
awesome acts, And I will declare Your greatness.
• I will declare! This expression unites with:
• NKJ Hebrews 2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little
lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned
with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might
taste death for everyone. 10 For it was fitting for Him, for
whom are all things and by whom are all things, in
bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their
salvation perfect through sufferings. 11 For both He who
sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one,
for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren,
12 saying: "I will declare Your name to My brethren; In
the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You."
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• Where the taster-of-death, by the Grace of God,
for every man was not ashamed to call them
brothers, who are sanctified with Him
• Jesus says to God our Father, “I will declare thy
name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church
will I sing praise unto thee”
• He it was who said:
• NAU John 14:10 "Do you not believe that I am in the
Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to
you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father
abiding in Me does His works.
• It was an awesome thing to raise the dead!
• MERCY!
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:7 They shall utter the memory of Your
great goodness, And shall sing of Your righteousness.
• What particularly is the memory of His great
goodness that must be constantly revived and
abundantly uttered from one generation to
another? Answer, MERCY!
• God’s “goodness” and His “righteousness,” when
analyzed in the simplest fashion invariably come
out with the truth of lovingkindness and mercy as
the banner title over it all
• There was NO OTHER SUCH GOD
• And there is no other such a God but this One of
whom we read of here
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:8 The LORD is gracious and full of
compassion, Slow to anger and great in mercy.
• For comparison:
• NKJ Psalm 103:8 The LORD is merciful and gracious,
Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.
• Comparison shows some slight differences of
expression, but they are happy differences!
• They show more fully the relation to each other of
the group of words which we have described
• The word “gracious” is the same, from the root
which means, grace
• The term “merciful” Psalms 103 is in Psalms 145
“full of compassion”
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• It is the same Hebrew word, meaning mercies in
the sense of compassion
• In Psalm 103, “plenteous in mercy” is in the
Hebrew “rab hhesed,” many, or much mercy
• In Psalm 145, it is “gadol hhesed” - great, large,
mercy
• Then there is in both Psalms the phrase, “slow to
anger” which means longsuffering and patient
• Psalms 145:8, is the central verse
• All of the verses preceding flow into it as the
central point, and from it the thought and action
flows into the balance of the psalm-song
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• It is a declaration of WHAT GOD IS; and it the
central truth in the Law and in the Prophets and in
the Psalms
• Apart from this Great Declaration the “God of the
Old Covenant” cannot be understood
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:9 The LORD is good to all, And His
tender mercies are over all His works.
• “Tender mercies” here, is the equivalent of our
word “compassion”
• It is the same Hebrew word
• The LORD is good to all
• Why and how?
• His tender mercies - compassions - are over all
His works
• The terrible nature of the blaze of the glory at the
opening of the 6th Seal, in the Revelation, is that it
is the glory of the God whose tender mercies compassions - are over all His works
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• He seems to them to be what they are, because
they are opposed to Him and hate His kingdom
and mercy
• There He appears, to sustain and protect and exalt
His little ones, IN THE MIDST of overflowing
Evils
• To the little ones it is a glory of tender mercies
because they KNOW and DO His Mercy
• To the unrepentant it is “The wrath of the lamb”
because they are full of wrath and are NOT doers
of His mercy
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Revelation 6:12 I looked when He opened the sixth
seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun
became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became
like blood. 13 And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a
fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty
wind. 14 Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled
up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its
place. 15 And the kings of the earth, the great men, the
rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave
and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the
rocks of the mountains, 16 and said to the mountains and
rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who
sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17 "For
the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to
stand?"
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:10 All Your works shall praise You, O
LORD, And Your saints shall bless You.
• We have here a peculiar expression: “saints.”
• The root of the word is the same as our “hhesed” MERCY
• In the form in which it is used in this passage “saints” - it carries the signification of: DOERS
OF MERCY, or as we sometimes express it “mercyers”
• There are two words used in the Hebrew for
“saints.”
• One is from the root for holy, or sanctified
• The other is from the root for mercy used here
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• If the meaning of “saints” were written out
descriptively, it would be “people of mercy”
• It means, or equals, godliness or great piety
• “Mercy-ers” may not sound polished in the
English, but that is the import of the word
• The true polish is the glory of God
• “All thy works shall praise thee and thy saints thy MERCY-ERS - shall bless Thee”
• And it is just that which makes one want to bless
His name for ever and for ever
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:11 They shall speak of the glory of Your
kingdom, And talk of Your power, 12 To make known to
the sons of men His mighty acts, And the glorious majesty
of His kingdom.
• “They (the saints, mercy-ers) shall speak of the
glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power; to
make known to the sons of men His mighty acts,
and the glorious majesty of His kingdom”
• We are so accustomed to thinking of glory and
majesty in terms of forcible power, that we are apt
to fail to see in the Bible WHAT IT IS that the
Holy Spirit is meaning when He speaks of the
glorious majesty God’s kingdom
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• But we have it told here so plain it is hard to miss
• “His tender mercies are over all His works”
• His glory is over all His mercies, and over His
mercy-ers (saints)
• NKJ 1 Samuel 2:9 He will guard the feet of His saints
[mercy-ers], But the wicked shall be silent in darkness.
"For by strength no man shall prevail.
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:13 Your kingdom is an everlasting
kingdom, And Your dominion endures throughout all
generations.
• Jesus said,
• NKJ Matthew 6:33 "But seek first the kingdom of God and
His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to
you.
• There is no way to enter that kingdom except by
MERCY
• His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom and a
dominion throughout all generations, because it is
the kingdom of mercy supplying all needs to all
creatures
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• Are you willing to belong to SUCH a kingdom?
• To do such works?
• Are YOU willing to work in God’s supply system
by which He supplies all needs everywhere?
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:14 The LORD upholds all who fall, And
raises up all who are bowed down.
• MERCY
• NKJ Psalm 145:15 The eyes of all look expectantly to
You, And You give them their food in due season.
• MERCY
• NKJ Psalm 145:16 You open Your hand And satisfy the
desire of every living thing.
• MERCY
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:17 The LORD is righteous in all His ways,
Gracious in all His works.
• The truth of MERCY
• Here is another peculiar expression: the word
“holy”
• It is the singular of the word “saints,” which we
have noted already
• The Lord is Himself a mercy-saint (“hhasid”), a
Holy
• This is the same root as the word “hhesed”
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 144:1 A Psalm of David. Blessed be the LORD
my Rock, Who trains my hands for war, And my fingers
for battle -- 2 My lovingkindness and my fortress, My high
tower and my deliverer, My shield and the One in whom I
take refuge, Who subdues my people under me.
• “Lovingkindness” is hhesed, and reads in the
Hebrew, “my hhesed” - goodness, MERCY
• Thus, “Blessed be the LORD my strength,… my
goodness-mercy, and my fortress; my high tower,
my deliverer; my shield, in whom I trust.”
• The Bible teaches that the LORD JESUS is
MERCY
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:18 The LORD is near to all who call upon
Him, To all who call upon Him in truth.
• MERCY
• The reason that the “truth” seems to fail
sometimes is that His children do not dwell in
MERCY
• Consequently, they are not in place when He does
try to be near
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:19 He will fulfill the desire of those who
fear Him; He also will hear their cry and save them.
• MERCY
• Whoever fulfills His desire, also knows that He
will likewise fulfill their desire
• They fear Him in truth, that is, they reverence and
honor Him, which is fear-of-good
• All working of His saving power is MERCY
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:20 The LORD preserves all who love
Him, But all the wicked He will destroy.
• In the last analysis, the wicked are those who
refuse to DO God’s mercy to others
• And they are destroyed simply by the withdrawal
of the mercies of life from them - destruction!
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 145:21a My mouth shall speak the praise of the
LORD,
• What about?
• According to all these divinely inspired Psalms, it
is about His mercy which is forever and is over all
His works
• NKJ Psalm 145:21b And all flesh shall bless His holy
name Forever and ever.
• In these words you may find your place in God
• Why look and look, here and there, for a PLACE
to work for God?
• The place is always with you
• Do MERCY right where you are
Chapter 6: Psalms 145 (cont.)
• That means you need to learn to pray for others as
Jesus prays for you:
• “Flood with fulfilling mercies the one I am
thinking of, fulfilling ALL their need”
• NKJ Psalm 107:43 Whoever is wise will observe these
things, And they will understand the lovingkindness of the
LORD.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law
• NKJ Exodus 34:6 And the LORD passed before him and
proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and
gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and
truth, 7 "keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity
and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty,
visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the
children's children to the third and the fourth generation."
• NKJ Deuteronomy 7:9 "Therefore know that the LORD
your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant
and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love
Him and keep His commandments;
• NKJ Deuteronomy 5:9 you shall not bow down to them
nor serve them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous
God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children
to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law
• Here was a startling new view of a supreme
monarch on the Earth, a king who forgives lawbreaking, and trespass, and evil, to anyone who
seeks that forgiveness
• However, He will not clear the guilty as long as
they remain guilty
• But they need not remain guilty before Him, for
His law provides a way to His MERCY
• Therefore, the guilty only remain guilty until they
are willing to meet God on the grounds of the
MERCY which He initiates for their forgiveness
• Furthermore, we do not have to be afraid that our
showing MERCY will allow others to get away
with evil - God will not let them get away with it
and this is in itself a MERCY
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• The Old and New Covenants both describe that
meeting between God and man
• On man’s part confession of his sin, with a
repentance that includes making his wrongs right
as far as it is possible to do so
• On God’s part is the offer to forgive the sin of the
sinner and to “cover” him
• In the Old Covenant the covering meant that the
sinner could remain in the congregation of the
people of God
• In the New Covenant forgiveness of sins is a
remission of the sin, and a cleansing of the sinner
from the sin itself; so that they may enter the
kingdom of God and dwell within the spiritual
congregation of those who are heirs of eternal life
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ Proverbs 28:13 He who covers his sins will not
prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will
have mercy.
• Genuine repentance involves not just being sorry
for being caught but also includes the recognition
and acknowledgement that God is right and we are
wrong about the matter and a resolve to never do it
again with the Lord’s help
• NKJ 1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and
just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.
• NKJ Psalm 32:5 I acknowledged my sin to You, And my
iniquity I have not hidden. I said, "I will confess my
transgressions to the LORD," And You forgave the
iniquity of my sin. Selah
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• The Old Covenant was a supreme wonder on the
Earth, in the world of that time, exactly on that
account: MERCY OFFERED TO ALL
• There never was any law in any other nation like it
offering MERCY to all!
• It is not true that there were older laws just as
good, and much older, in other nations
• No other nation had a law that revealed such a
LORD and such a GOD
• There were laws in other nations that recorded
some things similar to the Law of Moses
• Some of the Eden-law had filtered down through
the centuries, in traditions from before the flood,
by the sons of Noah
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• But, the similarities that are found between ancient
records of laws of other nations and the Law of
Moses only increase the vividness of things that
are dissimilar
• The laws of of the nations were saturated with
idolatry
• The Law of Moses was a revelation of God
Himself
• That revelation of the LORD God in the Law was
a separation between the Israel of God and “The
Nations” of the world
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• The revelation was limited, to a considerable
degree, to the conditions of life of both the people
Israel and the instrument Moses
• It had to be a revelation that could be received by
a people to whom the “new birth” was not yet
given, although it was promised
• The people were not capable of receiving the New
Covenant revelation of what Divine Love is
• Nevertheless, whoever entered into Faith must
have tasted that Love, for the simple reason that
Faith, itself, is faith in the truth of the love of God
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ Exodus 34:6 And the LORD passed before him and
proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and
gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and
truth,
• The expression “longsuffering”, better translated
“slow to anger”, is all the more wonderful because
the Law could not reveal God as a LIFE-GIVER
in the New Covenant sense
• The Law of Moses was an unveiling of the
mystery of sin and death
• It described sin within the man himself as the
cause of death
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• To bring such light (i.e., understanding) into the
world required the execution of the sentence of
death that had been pronounced upon sin at the
beginning
• NKJ Genesis 2:17 "but of the tree of the knowledge of
good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat
of it you shall surely die.”
• NKJ Genesis 3:6 So when the woman saw that the tree was
good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree
desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate.
She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then
the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that
they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and
made themselves coverings.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ 1 Timothy 2:14 And Adam was not deceived, but the
woman being deceived, fell into transgression.
• Eve was deceived into sin, but Adam chose sin
• NKJ Romans 5:12 Therefore, just as through one man sin
entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death
spread to all men, because all sinned -- 13 (For until the
law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there
is no law. 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to
Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to
the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of
Him who was to come.
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 15:45 And so it is written, "The first
man Adam became a living being." The last Adam became
a life-giving spirit. ... 47 The first man was of the earth,
made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• Thus God had to be known in human terms such
as pertained to law breaking sinners
• His anger, wrath, and destructiveness, as depicted
in the Old Covenant, fitted their understanding of
an all-powerful being
• Nevertheless, to Israel (and to all who would enter
into a covenant of faith with Him) God did give
the words that described and conveyed the
knowledge of what He is in Himself
• The inheritance of that knowledge, as a free
possession to everyone, came by the shed blood of
the Lamb of God - Jesus Christ!
• Jesus Christ, who in His own body bore the
world’s sin
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ John 1:29 The next day John saw Jesus coming
toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who
takes away the sin of the world!
• NKJ Hebrews 9:26b but now, once at the end of the ages,
He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of
Himself.
• NKJ 1 John 2:2 And He Himself is the propitiation [i.e.,
atoning sacrifice] for our sins, and not for ours only but
also for the whole world. (words in “[]” added by author)
• NKJ Hebrews 9:22 And according to the law almost all
things are purified with blood, and without shedding of
blood there is no remission.
• NKJ 1 Peter 1:18 knowing that you were not redeemed
with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your
aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, 19
but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without
blemish and without spot.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ Ephesians 1:7 In Him we have redemption through
His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches
of His grace
• NKJ Ephesians 2:13 But now in Christ Jesus you who
once were far off have been brought near by the blood of
Christ.
• NKJ Revelation 1:5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful
witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the
kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us
from our sins in His own blood, 6 and has made us kings
and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and
dominion forever and ever. Amen.
• Since that time the way has been open to all into
the life-giving knowledge of God - what He IS
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• In Exodus 34 we have one of the most unique and
remarkable happenings in the world’s history
• In some ways it is a part of the same pattern as the
life and work of Jesus Himself
• That is so because of a single phase of it: THE
QUALITY OF MERCY
• The scripture record shows that in order to make
mercy understandable to a world with no
understanding of it, God in dealing with Moses
placed Himself in an odd position and in an odd
light
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• It was of one who in a blaze of anger and wrath
was lunging forth upon the nation to destroy it for
the idolatry indulged in at the very time when He
was giving the first tables of the Law to Moses
• Moses’ reaction, of throwing himself as an
intercessor between the nation and God, was the
purpose and issue of it all
• For what Moses said and did was what God
Himself wanted to say and do (Exodus 32)
• It was the truth of God in Moses
• That truth of God in Moses became, then, the
established relation of God with Israel as the
LORD God who dwelt among them
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• It is immortalized in the following words we have
studied before:
• NKJ Exodus 34:6 And the LORD passed before him and
proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and
gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and
truth, 7 "keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity
and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty,
visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the
children's children to the third and the fourth generation.”
• The path way by which this truth unfolds leads to
The Cross
• This is the same grouping of mercy words in
Psalms 103 and 145, and is the great source from
which they were quoted
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• The word “merciful” here is the Hebrew word for
compassions and mercies
• “Gracious” is from the root meaning grace,
“Abundant in goodness” is: much mercy, which in
Psalm 103:8 is translated “plenteous in mercy”
• The term “longsuffering” is the identical Hebrew
phrase otherwise given as “slow to anger”
• In addition is the word “truth” (Hebrew word
“emet”) an integral part of of this group (i.e., the
words are truth, and the truth is in the words)
• “Keeping mercy for thousands” is our “hhesed”
word again, and is the same word as is “goodness”
that proceeds it
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• GLT Exodus 34:6b ...Jehovah! Jehovah God! Merciful and
gracious, slow to anger, and great in goodness and truth,
35a Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and
transgression and sin...
• Again, what were the circumstances in which
these MERCY words were given?
• In Exodus chapters 19-23, the LORD had come
down in a thick cloud to speak with Moses in the
sight of the people
• There was given to him the substance of the
“Law”
• Then in Exodus chapters 24-31, by the command
of the LORD Moses went up into the mount INTO
the cloud, and remained there in the presence of
the LORD for forty days and forty nights
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• During that time he was given the pattern, the
plan, and arrangement, of the Tabernacle (the
Tent-of-meeting) and also the instructions for its
making, and for the setting in order of the
priesthood of Aaron and his sons
• At the end of that time of communion, the Lord
gave Moses two tables of stone upon which was
written “the Testimony” by the finger of God
• So, robed in the spiritual splendor of the Holy One
(i.e., Moses glowed), he returned to the people
• In Exodus chapter 32, we read that the people had
fallen into idolatry during those forty days of
waiting
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• They had made a golden calf to worship and to
lead them
• In this was the essence of idolatry - the
covetousness to establish a power and good of
one’s own choosing to be worshipped as supreme
• They made and worshipped an image of a beast
• God called it corrupting themselves
• It was a falling short of the glory of God and was
sin
• That is what sin is: a vain glory of self, or
something, anything, in the place of God
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• The “Adam” race had been created in God’s
image, to bear His glory, to represent Him as He
is, to testify the truth of what He is, and to love
Him with all the powers of the being
• When Moses saw what was taking place, upon his
return to camp, he threw the two tablets of stone
down upon the rocks - breaking them into pieces
• The next day he returned to the Lord to make
atonement for the people if possible
• “Atonement” means a covering - a protective
covering
• The Hebrew word for atonement is “kaphar” one
from which is “kopher”
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• This word is translated “pitch” with which Noah
was to make the ark watertight
• With only slight changes this word had come
down to us through the long centuries in the
English word “cover” with nearly the same sound
• Kaphar is used in the Old Covenant as the distinct
word for atonement for sin
• It signifies a protective covering
• Sin is a naked state of the soul, denuded of its true
robes of light and glory
• Atonement is the COVERING, protective
covering of the Lord’s presence upon the
repentant soul
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• Moses returned to the Lord in the mount to seek a
means to atone for, or COVER the people from
their sin
• That is what is meant in the Bible by forgiveness
• It is the restoration to the protection of the
Covering Presence of the Lord, as being freed
from the guilt of the sin that was sinned
• For the sin is no longer in view when it has been
obliterated and covered
• NAU Micah 7:19 He will again have compassion on us;
He will tread our iniquities under foot. Yes, You will cast
all their sins Into the depths of the sea.
• NKJ Psalm 103:12 As far as the east is from the west, So
far has He removed our transgressions from us.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ Exodus 32:31 Then Moses returned to the LORD and
said, "Oh, these people have committed a great sin, and
have made for themselves a god of gold! 32 "Yet now, if
You will forgive their sin -- but if not, I pray, blot me out
of Your book which You have written."
• This is the epitome of the love of God (“hhesed”
in the Old Covenant and “agape” in the New)
• To be willing to die spiritually (i.e., to be
separated or isolated from God) so that another
might be joined to God!
• The Apostle Paul expressed this same sentiment
• NKJ Romans 9:3 For I could wish that I myself were
accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen
according to the flesh,
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ John 15:13 "Greater love has no one than this, than to
lay down one's life for his friends.
• How many of us are really willing to die
physically for a friend?
• At most we might take a wound for a friend - if
complete recovery can be assured!
• NKJ Romans 5:6 For when we were still without strength,
in due time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For scarcely for
a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man
someone would even dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates
His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners,
Christ died for us.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• Jesus chose to become our sin on the cross,
separating Himself from God the Father, in order
to join us to Himself
• NKJ 2 Corinthians 5:21 For He made Him who knew no
sin to be sin for us, that we might become the
righteousness of God in Him.
• NKJ John 3:14 "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the
wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15
"that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have
eternal life. 16 "For God so loved the world that He gave
His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him
should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 "For God
did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world,
but that the world through Him might be saved.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• The serpent represented Satan and Sin
• Jesus had our sin of rebellion against a Holy God
conferred upon Himself while on the cross
• Thus the serpent (i.e., Sin) was on the cross!
• NKJ Numbers 21:8 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Make
a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that
everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.” 9
So Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and
so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at
the bronze serpent, he lived.
• NKJ John 16:8 "And when He [the Holy Spirit] has come,
He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and
of judgment: 9 "of sin, because they do not believe in Me;
10 "of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you
see Me no more; 11 "of judgment, because the ruler of this
world is judged. (words in “[]” added by author)
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 2:7 But we speak the wisdom of God in
a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before
the ages for our glory, 8 which none of the rulers [Satan
and his minions] of this age knew; for had they known,
they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
• Yes, the cross was the greatest “sting” operation
ever conducted!
• Satan did not realize that by participating in the
death of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, and latter
incarcerating Him in the pit of Hades, that he was
agreeing with God’s judgment upon Sin - upon
himself!
• NKJ Romans 10:7 or, " 'Who will descend into the abyss
[the lowest part of Hades]?' " (that is, to bring Christ up
from the dead). (words in “[]” added by author)
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
NAU Acts 2:22 " Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of
Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles,
wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your
midst, as you yourselves also know -- 23 "Him, being
delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of
God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and
put to death; 24 "whom God raised up, having loosed the
pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be
held by it... 29 "Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you
of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and
his tomb is with us to this day. 30 "Therefore, being a
prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him
that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would
raise up the Christ to sit on his throne, 31 "he, foreseeing this,
spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul
was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. 32
"This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• Satan was in effect agreeing with God that the
wages of sin are death (i.e., isolation from God)
• NKJ Romans 6:23a For the wages of sin is death,
• Satan should have quit while he was ahead!
• Satan’s plan to steal mankind from God, via
Adam’s rebellion, was the perfect crime with no
way out for man in his ability
• Nevertheless, God knew that one thing was certain
about the fallen nature - like fire, greed never has
enough and will not quit while ahead (Prov. 30:6)
• Satan could not resist the chance to own the Son
of God - he just did not realize it was all part of
the plan and that ownership would be temporary
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• Furthermore, Satan broke the rules in taking the
life of an innocent man
• He did not realize that the reason God turned His
back on Jesus was because He became our sin
• Satan saw the withdrawal of God’s presence from
Jesus as a sign that He had sinned personally
• Realize God withdrew from Jesus at the cross
because He can not look upon sin and Jesus
became our sin on the cross
• In his greed, Satan crossed the line and was judged
guilty of taking the life of the innocent God-Man
Jesus the Christ the Son of the Living God!
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
The ordeal of the cross can be seen in this prophetic
Psalm:
NKJ Psalm 22:1b My God, My God, why have You forsaken
Me? [quoted by Jesus on the cross, Matthew 27:46] Why are
You so far from helping Me, And from the words of My
groaning? 2 O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not
hear; And in the night season, and am not silent. 3 But You
are holy, Enthroned in the praises of Israel. 4 Our fathers
trusted in You; They trusted, and You delivered them. 5
They cried to You, and were delivered; They trusted in You,
and were not ashamed. 6 But I am a worm, and no man; A
reproach of men, and despised by the people. 7 All those
who see Me ridicule Me; They shoot out the lip, they shake
the head, saying, 8 "He trusted in the LORD, let Him rescue
Him; Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!”
(words in “[]” added by author)
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
9 But You are He who took Me out of the womb; You made
Me trust while on My mother's breasts. 10 I was cast upon
You from birth. From My mother's womb You have been My
God. 11 Be not far from Me, For trouble is near; For there is
none to help. 12 Many bulls have surrounded Me; Strong
bulls of Bashan have encircled Me. [Satan’s demons
surrounded Jesus on the cross] 13 They gape at Me with their
mouths, Like a raging and roaring lion. 14 I am poured out
like water, And all My bones are out of joint; My heart is like
wax; It has melted within Me. [Jesus dies physically of a
broken heart] 15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And
My tongue clings to My jaws; You have brought Me to the
dust of death. 16 For dogs have surrounded Me; The
congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced
My hands and My feet; 17 I can count all My bones. They
look and stare at Me. (words in “[]” added by author)
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
18 They divide My garments among them, And for My
clothing they cast lots. 19 But You, O LORD, do not be far
from Me; O My Strength, hasten to help Me! 20 Deliver Me
from the sword, My precious life from the power of the dog.
21 Save Me from the lion's mouth And from the horns of the
wild oxen! You have answered Me. 22 I will declare Your
name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will
praise You. 23 You who fear the LORD, praise Him! All you
descendants of Jacob, glorify Him, And fear Him, all you
offspring of Israel! 24 For He has not despised nor abhorred
the affliction of the afflicted; Nor has He hidden His face
from Him; But when He cried to Him, He heard. 25 My
praise shall be of You in the great assembly; I will pay My
vows before those who fear Him. 26 The poor shall eat and
be satisfied; Those who seek Him will praise the LORD. Let
your heart live forever!
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
27 All the ends of the world Shall remember and turn to the
LORD, And all the families of the nations Shall worship
before You. 28 For the kingdom is the LORD's, And He
rules over the nations. 29 All the prosperous of the earth
Shall eat and worship; All those who go down to the dust
Shall bow before Him, Even he who cannot keep himself
alive. 30 A posterity shall serve Him. It will be recounted of
the Lord to the next generation, 31 They will come and
declare His righteousness to a people who will be born, That
He has done this. [quoted by Jesus on the cross in first person
voice - “It is finished”] (words in “[]” added by author)
NKJ John 19:30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine,
He said, "It is finished!" And bowing His head, He gave up
His spirit.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• At our precious Savior’s Cross of Calvary:
– It was judged that Sin (Satan) and all sinners were
condemned and must be isolated from God and His
family forever
– Jesus suffered the penalty for the sin of rebellion
against a Holy God in our place (i.e., He bore our sin of
rebellion and its resulting sins, sicknesses, and death)
– All that believe in Jesus as their Savior and submit to
His Lordship have their sins remitted (i.e., eliminated as
if they never existed) and have the righteousness of
Jesus Christ conferred upon them
• We are joined to God forever!
• NKJ Romans 6:23b but the gift of God is eternal life in
Christ Jesus our Lord.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• Consequently, Satan has already been judged and
his fate is sealed
• He will be cast into the Lake of Fire, thus isolated
from God and all those with God, forever!
• NKJ Revelation 20:10 The devil, who deceived them, was
cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and
the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and
night forever and ever.
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 15:55 "O Death, where is your sting? O
Hades, where is your victory?" 56 The sting of death is sin,
and the strength of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God,
who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ Ezekiel 28:15 You [Lucifer who became Satan] were
perfect in your ways from the day you were created, Till
iniquity was found in you. 16 "By the abundance of your
trading You became filled with violence within, And you
sinned; Therefore I cast you as a profane thing Out of the
mountain of God; And I destroyed you, O covering cherub,
From the midst of the fiery stones. 17 "Your heart was
lifted up because of your beauty; You corrupted your
wisdom for the sake of your splendor; I cast you to the
ground, I laid you before kings, That they might gaze at
you. 18 "You defiled your sanctuaries By the multitude of
your iniquities, By the iniquity of your trading; Therefore I
brought fire from your midst [greed]; It devoured you, And
I turned you to ashes upon the earth In the sight of all who
saw you. 19 All who knew you among the peoples are
astonished at you; You have become a horror, And shall be
no more forever." ' " (words in “[]” added by author)
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 15:3 For I delivered to you first of all
that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins
according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and
that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,
• NKJ Romans 1:3 concerning His Son Jesus Christ our
Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the
flesh, 4 and declared to be the Son of God with power
according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from
the dead.
• NKJ Romans 4:24b It [righteousness] shall be imputed to
us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from
the dead, 25 who was delivered up because of our offenses,
and was raised because of our justification. (words in “[]”
added by author)
• NKJ Romans 10:9 that if you confess with your mouth the
Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised
Him from the dead, you will be saved.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• Then followed a promise from the Lord to send an
Angel before them unto the promised land
• In case if His Presence went with them they
should be consumed on the way when they
rebelled
• Because God destroys evil as light blots out
darkness
• Sin was the motion of the evil spirit in opposition
to the Word of God
• God is present in His Word and reveals Himself in
it
• The whole power of evil is to shut God out from
the heart by deceit and lies that the self pleasing
heart loves
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• The devil can only oppose God in this world
through the hearts of those who were created in
His image
• God “COVERS” and “Protects” the repentant in
His MERCY
• But the rebellious cut themselves off from the
MERCY and the covering
• Consequently, they are the immediate target and
prey of the destructive spirits that seek to
obliterate the goodness of God with evil
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ 1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your
adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking
whom he may devour.
• NKJ Mark 4:15 "And these are the ones by the wayside
where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes
immediately and takes away the word that was sown in
their hearts.
• They did not guard the word of God by constantly
giving attention to it; therefore, Satan stole it from
them
• NKJ 2 Corinthians 4:4 whose minds the god of this age has
blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of
the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine
on them.
• Without the Word of God we are blind
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ Exodus 33:15 Then he said to Him, "If Your Presence
does not go with us, do not bring us up from here. 16 "For
how then will it be known that Your people and I have
found grace in Your sight, except You go with us? So we
shall be separate, Your people and I, from all the people
who are upon the face of the earth."
• Moses, as God intended him to do, pled with God
that His Presence should go with them, or else not
take them to the Land
• Note that the motive of this prayer request was
concern for what God would get out of the answer
and not Moses - this is the secret to answered
prayer (i.e., seeking only what God gets out of it)
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ James 4:2 You lust and do not have. You murder and
covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do
not have because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not
receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on
your pleasures.
• Two questions to diagnose our motives in prayer:
– What does God get out of the prayer request?
– What does God want to get out of the prayer request?
• NKJ John 17:1 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes
to heaven, and said: "Father, the hour has come. Glorify
Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You,
• Note Jesus’ motive in prayer was always to bring
Glory and Honor to His/our Heavenly Father
• You can not improve on Jesus - our Perfection!
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ Exodus 33: 17 So the LORD said to Moses, "I will
also do this thing that you have spoken; for you have found
grace in My sight, and I know you by name.”
• God answered “Yes” to the prayer request with a
motive concerned about God’s reputation
• NKJ Matthew 7:7 " Ask, and it will be given to you; seek,
and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
• We need to take in the whole counsel of God (the
Bible) to realize that it is not talking about just
asking for anything in prayer and getting it
• We must abide in God, as Moses did on the
mountain, so that we learn to ask for the things
that are in line with God’s will and plan
• NKJ John 15:7 "If you abide in Me, and My words abide
in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done
for you.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself also in the LORD, And
He shall give you the desires of your heart.
• By spending quantity time with the Lord we will
have the quality of relationship where our selfish
desires are replaced with His merciful desires
• This is what happened to Moses starting with the
“Burning Bush” experience
• God fulfills these desires when we ask in prayer
• NKJ 2 Corinthians 1:20 For all the promises of God in
Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God
through us.
• NKJ 1 John 5:14 Now this is the confidence that we have
in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He
hears us. 15 And if we know that He hears us, whatever we
ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked
of Him.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ 1 John 3:21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn
us, we have confidence toward God. 22 And whatever we
ask we receive from Him, because we keep His
commandments and do those things that are pleasing in
His sight.
• Only a heart full of MERCY is not condemned
• Only by spending quality time with the Great
Mercy-er will we have a heart full of MERCY
• We will only “keep His commandments and do
those things pleasing in His sight” as God floods
us with MERCY while we are spending quality
time Him
• Becoming a MERCY-ER is the key to the
victorious Christian life!
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ Exodus 33:18 And he said, "Please, show me Your
glory." 19 Then He said, "I will make all My goodness
pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the
LORD before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be
gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have
compassion.”
• The last part in the Hebrew reads, “I will grace
whom I will grace, and I will compassion whom I
will compassion.”
• Moses was not only humble, blindly obedient to
the commandments of the Law, but he was also
PARTAKER, in utter lowliness, of the MERCY
that God associates with his “NAME”
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• Exodus chapters 32, 33, and 34 depict a mighty
conflict against the truth of God
• For if it was not wanted, and His Presence was
spurned, then the evil spirit would win the day,
and the Word of God would be overthrown
• Everything depended on Moses’ FAITH and
lowliness
• Yet Moses himself was sustained by the Presence
of the Lord and by the very truth that was in
contest
• For Moses had found the Lord to be faithful and
good, and full of mercy and compassion and
gracious
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• In this terrific pressure, humility alone - as some
people think of it - was not sufficient to make him
able to STAND AGAINST THE ADVERSARY
• He had to PARTAKE of the peculiar “Something”
which constitutes the WILL of God, in order to be
able to stand
• Everything depended upon whether he KNEW
GOD well enough to be able to bear the
intercession for sin
• Moses STOOD in faith
• He was not repelled from God but drawn more
closely to Him in his intercessions by which the
evil spirit was overthrown
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ Exodus 33:20 But He said, "You cannot see My face;
for no man shall see Me, and live.” 21 And the LORD
said, "Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the
rock. 22 "So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I
will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you
with My hand while I pass by. 23 "Then I will take away
My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not
be seen.”
• Moses in all, and above all, wanted God - to know
Him, and love Him, and please Him
• So God made Moses His Intercessor, to stand
between the people and the evil spirit that was
bent upon their destruction
• The Intercessor was set to deliver them, for that
was like God Himself, and it was the working of
His Spirit
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ Exodus 34:5 Now the LORD descended in the cloud
and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the
LORD. 6 And the LORD passed before him and
proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and
gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and
truth, 7 "keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity
and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty,
visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the
children's children to the third and the fourth generation."
8 So Moses made haste and bowed his head toward the
earth, and worshiped. 9 Then he said, "If now I have
found grace in Your sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray, go
among us, even though we are a stiff-necked people; and
pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us as Your
inheritance."
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• And Moses’ request for God, instead of an angel,
to go with them was granted, because he believed
what-God-said-about-Himself
• He believed what God IS
• It is important to notice here, that the words which
God used, in proclaiming His NAME to Moses,
make up a grouping that describe what He IS
• In this group that describes what-He-is we find the
very center, and heart of the revelation of God to
mankind
• In fact, these words can be said to makeup the
Name of the Lord
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• They made up the flesh and blood life of Jesus
Christ when He came, centuries later, to make
cleansing for sin and reveal on earth God’s
salvation
• The Lord God IS: merciful, gracious,
longsuffering, abundant in goodness (hhesed),
keeping mercy for thousand, forgiving iniquity,
and transgression, and sin
• These things are repeated in order to emphasize,
as the Bible does, that is what He IS
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• Therefore, the institution of the Old Covenant Law
began in this revelation of God
• In it, and through it, the great-identifyingdistinction of the Lord was MERCY - mercy and
truth
• Truth has to do with the faithfulness of His Word that He keeps His word
• His Word has to do with the truth of what He is
• And the testimony of His Own Word is that He is
MERCY
• Man’s arguments are meaningless apart from
God’s own revelation of what He IS
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• We have shown the revelation of what the LOVE
of the God-of-love IS
• The “love” of the God-who-is-love has to be
understood by what the BIBLE teaches about
Him, and about it
• This grouping of divine words is the very fabric of
THE WHOLE BIBLE
• Without them there would be no unity in the Bible
• With them, the scriptures stand impregnable
against all the forces of evil and of the lying spirit
that corrupts the world
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• Taking “LOVE” as the all-inclusive term:
– GRACE is The FACE of love
– COMPASSION is the MOVING of Love to seek and to
suffer, and to do good
– MERCY is the ACTION, the deed of Love, or, Lovein-action
• These three make a One, called Good, as opposed
to that which is called evil
• The Love-of-God has to be known as the good
love, or, the love of good
• For the power of sin and death lies in the opposite
to divine love: the love of evil, or, evil love
• The love of evil is coveting-love
• Coveting love is lust
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• We are studying what the BIBLE teaches about
mercy
• We have seen something of what is taught in the
Psalms; and are now considering what is taught in
the Law - called the Law of Moses
• “The Law” includes the first five books of the
Bible
• We are gaining an insight into the Mind of The
Spirit
• The Mind of the Spirit is life and peace
• Perfect peace and the REST of God are obtained
only in this mind, also called “the Mind of Christ”
• The peculiarity of that mind is an utter lowliness
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ Philippians 2:1 Therefore if there is any consolation
in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the
Spirit, if any affection and mercy, 2 fulfill my joy by
being like-minded, having the same love, being of one
accord, of one mind. 3 Let nothing be done through selfish
ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each
esteem others better than himself. 4 Let each of you look
out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests
of others. 5 Let this mind be in you which was also in
Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not
consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made
Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant,
and coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in
appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became
obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• What the Bible teaches about MERCY has a very
large part in the structure of that Lowly Mind of
peace and rest
• Are you willing for your ideas to be formed from
GOD’s WORD?
• Do you want a mind like HIS?
• Do you desire to understand the knowledge of His
Will?
• Here you should find how to answer all of those
questions so that a million years from now you
can thank Him for what happened in you life on
Earth by an understanding of His MERCY!
Prayer
Blessed Father, we thank You. It is beyond our reach
and beyond our vision to know such things as these.
But in Your never changing faith and truth You have
made us near by the blood of Christ and given us
access by the Holy Spirit, to Yourself. Though You
are hidden from view in Your Love, You have,
nevertheless, revealed what Your love IS. We come
to You under that precious blood; and ask You to
guide us to enter and abide as You have commanded
us to do. And we ask You to guide us into the
knowledge which You have so freely offered. We
would know You. For the glory of the King of glory
and of Israel. Amen
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The “Law” in the Hebrew classification comprises
the first five Books of the Old Covenant called the
Torah (the Hebrew word for “Law” is “Torah”)
• “Torah” is from a root that means to teach;
therefore, it means teaching instruction or doctrine
• Being the the teaching, or instruction, of GOD it is
called “Law” in the English
• The authority of the “Torah” arises from the one
whose teaching it is - GOD
• Because it is the teaching from God concerning
how the Israelites were to live in those days, Torah
is “the law” in the highest sense of the word
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Yet it was not altogether a negative teaching on
what men should NOT do, with various penalties
attached for disobedience
• In those five books that are included in the Torah
there is very much about the LORD Himself, and
includes the history of the world, and of the
Abrahamic race, and the covenants of God with
the people of the world and of that race
• There is no other “Law” like it in the world’s
history
• In this ancient Torah the Person of the LORD God
is in every detail of it: His Presence, His Word,
His People, His Tabernacle, His Purposes, His
Love, His Anger, His Promises, His Glory
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
His Power - everything, in fact, HE is the Source
He is the Center
He is the End
The very language is HIS language
The meaning of the words in the Hebrew language
take on a color, significance, illumination, depth,
foreverness, beauty, intimacy, unity with the
heavens - a long list
The Heavens and the Earth are His
The Land - of Israel - is His
The sea is His; everything in them all is His
The past, present, and future are HIS
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• A book could be written on the subject of the
uniqueness of the ancient Hebrew language
• In that unique language there is one term which,
perhaps, stands out from, or beyond, or above,
everything else
• It stands out so because it names a “Something”
that enters into every life as the very support of
life
• That term is “HHESED” translated “MERCY”
• But the word means vastly more than the average
person thinks of when they hear or use the word
“MERCY”
• The word denotes lovingkindness - a passion of
love to do good to some one
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Hhesed, lovingkindness, is to mankind what the
light and warmth of the sun’s rays are to the earth
and its creatures
• Take away the sun’s RAYS, and everything would
fade away in death
• Take HHESED-MERCY-LOVINGKINDNESS
out of the world and the same thing would happen
to human life - both physically and spiritually
• Hhesed-mercy is to the Creation and to creatures
what the blood is to the body or oil to an engine
• And much more because MERCY is like the rain,
and the warmth, and the light, and all provisions
for all needs
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Neither the Old Covenant nor the New Covenant
would be anything or have any meaning apart
from that MERCY
• In fact human life would have no meaning without
it
• And that is what is the matter with human beings:
they do not “KNOW”
• We begin our examination of Mercy-in-the-law in
the middle of Exodus which is the second book of
the five in the “Torah”
• The reason for this is in order to come to the
GIVING of the Law, directly at the Source
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• There is too much about the subject in the Torah
for us to take more than a few studies of it
• Consequently, this study will take a sequence in
the understanding of the word, and words, used
that name this Personality-of-GOD
• It will greatly assist your study to read Exodus
Chapters 24 - 27
• A person could read a whole book on gold digging
and gold washing, with many interesting and
exciting things connected with the finding of gold
• However, no gold would result from the pages
unless the reader DID something about going and
digging or washing for the gold
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The commandment of the Lord to Moses was to
take an offering from all whose hearts willingly
offered, and construct a Tabernacle (a Tent-ofmeeting)
• NKJ Exodus 35:4 And Moses spoke to all the congregation
of the children of Israel, saying, "This is the thing which
the LORD commanded, saying: 5a 'Take from among you
an offering to the LORD. Whoever is of a willing heart, let
him bring it as an offering to the LORD... 20 And all the
congregation of the children of Israel departed from the
presence of Moses. 21 Then everyone came whose heart
was stirred, and everyone whose spirit was willing, and
they brought the LORD's offering for the work of the
tabernacle of meeting, for all its service, and for the holy
garments.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The Israelites gave so much for the building of the
Tent-of-Meeting that Moses had to tell them to
stop bringing offerings for it
• Imagine people stirred to give to the point of
giving to excess! MERCY!
• NKJ Exodus 36:4 Then all the craftsmen who were doing
all the work of the sanctuary came, each from the work he
was doing, 5 and they spoke to Moses, saying, "The people
bring much more than enough for the service of the work
which the LORD commanded us to do." 6 So Moses gave
a commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed
throughout the camp, saying, "Let neither man nor woman
do any more work for the offering of the sanctuary." And
the people were restrained from bringing,
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• It was to be the LORD’s Tent in the midst of the
great encampment of the tents of Israel
• The specifications were exact concerning every
detail of that Tent, the various instruments of
service, and the surrounding wall of boards
• Everything was planned to make it possible to take
it down and re-erect it with speed
• Israel was on the move toward the Promised Land
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The presence of the LORD was visibly with them
in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by
night
• The tabernacle, or tent, was to be peculiarly the
place where the Fire rested
• All this was GOD’S plan, fitted to the revelation
He was giving of Himself
• The Tabernacle that Moses constructed contains
many prophetic pictures of Jesus including how
we are to approach and relate to God
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• NKJ Hebrews 8:1 Now this is the main point of the things
we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated
at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the
heavens, 2 a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true
tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man. 3 For
every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and
sacrifices. Therefore it is necessary that this One also have
something to offer. 4 For if He were on earth, He would
not be a priest, since there are priests who offer the gifts
according to the law; 5 who serve the copy and shadow of
the heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed
when he was about to make the tabernacle. For He said,
"See that you make all things according to the pattern
shown you on the mountain." (cf. Exodus 25:40)
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The tabernacle was to prophetically point the way
to Jesus; therefore, no error was allowed in its
construction
• That is why God warned Moses to build the
Tabernacle exactly as it was shown to him on
Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:15-18)
• To accomplish this perfection the Holy Spirit
would come upon men to build the tabernacle and
its furnishings with the result that it was
constructed without error
• These anointed craftsmen were also given the
ability to teach others what they were taught by
the Holy Spirit.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
NKJ Exodus 31:1 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: 2 "See, I
have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the
tribe of Judah. 3 "And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in
wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of
workmanship, 4 "to design artistic works, to work in gold, in silver, in
bronze, 5 "in cutting jewels for setting, in carving wood, and to work
in all manner of workmanship. 6 "And I, indeed I, have appointed
with him Aholiab the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; and I
have put wisdom in the hearts of all who are gifted artisans, that they
may make all that I have commanded you: 7 "the tabernacle of
meeting, the ark of the Testimony and the mercy seat that is on it, and
all the furniture of the tabernacle -- 8 "the table and its utensils, the
pure gold lampstand with all its utensils, the altar of incense, 9 "the
altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the laver and its base -10 "the garments of ministry, the holy garments for Aaron the priest
and the garments of his sons, to minister as priests, 11 "and the
anointing oil and sweet incense for the holy place. According to all
that I have commanded you they shall do." (cf. Exodus 35:30-35)
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Jesus gave witness that even the law pointed to
His coming.
• NKJ Matthew 11:13 "For all the prophets and the law
prophesied until John. (See Luke 24:25-27)
• Furthermore, the building of the tabernacle reveals
the ultimate desire of God our Father:
• NKJ Exodus 25:8 "And let them make Me a sanctuary, that
I may dwell among them.
• Imagine the joy of God when He became flesh and
dwelt amongst His people, Immanuel – God with
us!
• God for us (The Father), God with us (Jesus), God
in us (the Holy Spirit)!
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The tabernacle was constructed by the Israelites at
the foot of Mount Sinai in 1445 BC just eleven
months after the Exodus from Egypt
• It was central to Israel’s worship and sacrificial
system for 485 years
• After the conquest of Canaan it was set up at
Shiloh (Joshua 18:1) and remained there until
about 1050 BC
• The Tent-of-meeting (the tabernacle) consisted of
two parts: The Holy Place and the Most Holy
Place
• It was surrounded by an outer court yard - the
third part
Most Holy Place
Holy Place
Outer Court
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The first area we will begin with is the outer court
• It was formed by a 7.5 foot tall fence enclosing an
area 75 feet wide by 150 feet long
• This is about the same size as an average house lot
today
• In the center of this court was located the tent
which containing the Holy Place and the Holy of
Holies
• The outer court being open to the sky received the
natural illumination of the Sun and Moon
• Here we learn our first truth - the tabernacle shows
us that we are separated from a holy God;
however, there is a way into His presence
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Just as there is only one way into the tabernacle,
even so Jesus Christ is the only way to God our
Father
• The Jews referred to the entrance of the outer
court as "the Way, the entrance to the Holy Place
as "the Truth" and the entrance to the Holy of
Holies as the "the Life"
• NKJ John 14:6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth,
and the life. No one comes to the Father except through
Me.
• NKJ 1 John 2:23 Whoever denies the Son does not have
the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the
Father also.
• NKJ John 10:9 "I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he
will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Note that the entrance is from the East which is
where the Sun rises – the Sun of Righteousness or
the Daystar (our Sun is a star that shines in the
day)
• NKJ Malachi 4:2 But to you who fear My name The Sun
of Righteousness shall arise With healing in His wings;
And you shall go out And grow fat like stall-fed calves.
• NKJ 2 Peter 1:19 And so we have the prophetic word
confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines
in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star
rises in your hearts;
• Even though it may seem that your life is in
spiritual darkness - remember to look to the East as the “Son” will rise again!
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• In order to reach the Holy Place (the first room in
the tent) you must pass through the BRAZEN
ALTAR (Exodus 27:1-8)
• It is centrally located in the outer court standing
4.5 feet high and 7.5 feet square made of acacia
wood covered in bronze
• Each corner of the square altar has a horn that was
used as a place to tie down the sacrifice
• The grate (covering) for the altar was made latter
from the censors used in the rebellion of Korah
(Numbers 16:38,39)
• It was here that lambs were sacrificed to atone for
the sins of the people
• When a person sinned, they were to bring a lamb
to the priest who would kill it as a sacrifice for
their sin(s)
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The Brazen Altar represents the cross of our Lord
Jesus
• NKJ John 1:29 The next day John saw Jesus coming
toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who
takes away the sin of the world!
• It was at 3:00 PM that Jesus died on the cross
which is the same time that the priest in the temple
offered up the lamb on the Day of Atonement
• The lamb’s blood was then sprinkled by the High
Priest on the Mercy Seat with the entrails of the
lamb being burned
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• NKJ Hebrews 13:10 We have an altar from which those
who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. 11 For the
bodies of those animals, whose blood is brought into the
sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned outside the
camp. 12 Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the
people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate. 13
Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing
His reproach. 14 For here we have no continuing city, but
we seek the one to come.
• The altar in the passage above is referring to the
cross of our Lord Jesus which was physically
located outside the Gates of Jerusalem
• However, this altar does not just represent the one
time sacrifice of Jesus
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• It also represents that the way into God’s presence
is to daily die to self
• NKJ Luke 9:23 Then He said to them all, "If anyone
desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up
his cross daily, and follow Me.
• NKJ Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by
the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living
sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable
service.
• We are to be living sacrifices (i.e., alive to God
but dead to sin)
• NKJ Romans 6:11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to
be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The entrails of the lamb were burned and God said
that this was a sweet smelling offering
• This consuming of our flesh produces a stench that
God calls pleasant
• Realize the only thing sweet smelling about
burning flesh is the purification of our souls
• NKJ Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; it is
no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life
which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of
God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
• The death of self takes place during the fiery trials
of life – only if we submit to God
• NKJ 1 Peter 4:12 Beloved, do not think it strange
concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though
some strange thing happened to you;
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The pain we feel during trials comes from the
release of our own weaknesses
• No more self will – no more pain
• NLT Isaiah 48:10 I have refined you but not in the way
silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the furnace
of suffering.
• Furthermore, the death of self will leads to the
resurrection of Christ’s will in our lives!
• NKJ Philippians 3:10 that I may know Him and the power
of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings,
being conformed to His death, 11 if, by any means, I may
attain to the resurrection from the dead.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• NKJ Luke 9:24 "For whoever desires to save his life will
lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.
• Note that even desiring to save your life will cause
you to lose it
• Furthermore, only desiring to lose your life will
not save it
• You must truly lose your life in Christ in order for
it to save your life
• This can not be done in our ability but only as we
submit to God’s plan for our lives
• It is a slow and often painful process that is
priceless in its result
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• NKJ Hebrews 13:15 Therefore by Him let us continually
offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our
lips, giving thanks to His name. 16 But do not forget to do
good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well
pleased.
• Today we go to our alter - the cross of Jesus - to
offer our sacrifices:
– Praise (i.e., giving thanks to His name)
especially when we do not feel like it
– Doing good and sharing with all of God’s
children
• NKJ James 1:27 Pure and undefiled religion before God
and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their
trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The Laver was a circular bowl made from the
mirrors of the women who served at the entrance
to the Tent of the Holy Place (Exodus 38:8)
• It was located before the entrance to the Tent of
the Holy Place so that the priests could wash
themselves after sacrificing the lambs
• This shows that even after offering our body as a
living sacrifice we must be cleansed continually
from sin by the Word of God
• NKJ Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, just as
Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, 26
that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of
water by the word, 27 that He might present her to Himself
a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such
thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Jesus prayed that we would be sanctified by the
Word
• NKJ John 17:17 "Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word
is truth.
• The Word of God is also referred to as a mirror in
the Bible
• NKJ James 1:23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and
not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a
mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and
immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25 But he
who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in
it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this
one will be blessed in what he does.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• If we look into intently into the Word of God it
will expose the sin and defects in our lives
• However, we must take action upon what is
revealed or it will not do any good
• It is not enough to just confess our sins
• We have not repented until we have confessed and
forsaken our sins
• NKJ Proverbs 28:13 He who covers his sins will not
prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will
have mercy.
• As believers we are freed from the guilt of sin
• NKJ Romans 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation
to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk
according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• However, there is still a need for daily cleansing
from sin
• As a priest unto God we have our bronze laver the Word of God revealed by the Holy Spirit available for our cleansing, our sanctification
• NKJ Revelation 1:6 and has made us kings and priests to
His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever
and ever. Amen.
• Furthermore, this cleansing is only found in the
Word – Jesus our Savior, Lord, and King!
• NKJ John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the
Word was with God, and the Word was God.14 And the
Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld
His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,
full of grace and truth.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• NKJ 2 Peter 1:4 by which have been given to us
exceedingly great and precious promises, that through
these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having
escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
• The Promises of God in His Word cause us to
have victory over lust and thus escape from the
corruption that is in the world due to sin
• NKJ Revelation 12:11 "And they overcame him [Satan] by
the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony,
and they did not love their lives to the death. (word in “[]”
added by author)
• Satan is overcome by the blood bought Word of
God in the hearts and mouths of Christ conformed
believers
The Tabernacle
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Within the Outer Court there was a tent called
THE TABERNACLE that was 45 feet long, 15
feet wide, and 15 feet high
• Four curtains serve as the roof and walls of the
tabernacle:
– The innermost curtain is made of fine linen (represents
Jesus has become our righteousness)
– This is covered by a curtain of black goat’s hair (Jesus
became our sin - our scapegoat)
– Then a curtain of ram’s skin that has been dyed red
(Jesus shed His blood for our Sin - our substitute)
– The outermost curtain is made from the skin of a
marine animal (Dolphin?) and serves to protect the
tabernacle from the harsh desert climate (Jesus our
provision for all needs including protection)
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• These curtains prevented any natural light from
entering the Holy Place
• Furthermore, only the priests were allowed to
enter the Holy Place
• Remember, all Christians are priests unto God
serving under the Great High Priest, our Lord
Jesus Christ
• NKJ Hebrews 2:17 Therefore, in all things He had to be
made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and
faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make
propitiation for the sins of the people.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• NKJ Hebrews 9:1 Then indeed, even the first covenant had
ordinances of divine service and the earthly sanctuary. 2
For a tabernacle was prepared: the first part, in which was
the lampstand, the table, and the showbread, which is
called the sanctuary;
• The HOLY PLACE is a long room that is 30 feet
by 15 feet
• It contains three pieces of furniture that are
attended to by the priests daily:
– the Table of Shewbread
– the Golden Lampstand
– the Altar of Incense
• Here we will discover what we priests are to be
doing daily
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Entering the Holy Place we see the TABLE OF
SHEWBREAD to our right along the North side
of the Tabernacle (Exodus 25:23-30)
• The table is made of acacia wood and is overlaid
with pure gold
• It has rings on each corner for inserting the gold
covered acacia wood poles that are used to carry it
• There are plates, bowls, pitchers, and cups all
made of pure gold
• Twelve small cakes (like tortillas) of unleavened
bread were placed on it in two rows of six each
(Leviticus 24:5-9)
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• There is one cake for each of the twelve tribes of
Israel
• The cakes remained on the table for seven days
and then are eaten by Aaron and his sons at the
table
• Furthermore, the bread had to be eaten together
with the other priests at the Table of Shewbread
• The solid gold plates were used for the cakes of
bread
• The solid gold bowls contained the frankincense
that was sprinkled on the bread
• The solid gold pitcher and cups contain wine
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Shewbread literally means the bread that will
cause God to “show up”
• The frankincense represents our prayers to God
(see Revelation 5:8)
• Therefore, the Table of Shewbread contains the
following message for us today: when we priests
(remember all believers are priests) come together
in unity and prayer to partake of Jesus then God
will “show up” or manifest Himself in our midst
• NKJ Matthew 18:19 "Again I say to you that if two of you
agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be
done for them by My Father in heaven. 20 "For where two
or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in
the midst of them."
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Furthermore, this table not only represents our
union with Christ but our unity with others
• The cakes are in a row six wide and adjacent to
one another
• In the Bible, six is man’s number so this
represents man in harmony with man via Jesus the
God - Man, the “Bread of Life”
• NKJ John 6:35 And Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of
life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who
believes in Me shall never thirst.
• NKJ John 6:33 "For the bread of God is He who comes
down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
• We are to draw our sustenance by entering into
Covenant with Jesus symbolized by the eating of
bread in the Lord’s Supper
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Jesus is our “One Bread” or rather the one that
joins all believers together into one body
• NAS 1 Corinthians 10:17 Since there is one bread, we who
are many are one body; for we all partake of the one bread.
• NKJ Romans 12:5 so we, being many, are one body in
Christ, and individually members of one another.
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 12:12 For as the body is one and has
many members, but all the members of that one body,
being many, are one body, so also is Christ.
• Furthermore, Jesus’ body was broken by the
beatings and the cross so that our physical bodies
could be made “unbroken” (i.e., whole)
• NKJ 1 Peter 2:24 who Himself bore our sins in His own
body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live
for righteousness -- by whose stripes you were healed.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 11:24 and when He had given thanks,
He broke it and said, "Take, eat; this is My body which is
broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
• Failure to understand and appropriate the
significance of Jesus’ body being broken, so that
we can be made whole corporately and
individually, can lead to sickness and even
physical death
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 11:29 For he who eats and drinks in an
unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not
discerning the Lord's body. 30 For this reason many are
weak and sick among you, and many sleep.
• For example, partaking of the Lord’s supper while
failing to forgive someone that has sinned against
us (see Matthew 18:19-35; 5:23,24)
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Whenever we come together in unified prayer then
God’s oil, the Holy Spirit, will flow down from
the Head of the church (Jesus) to the body (the
church on Earth) (see Acts 4:24-31)
• NKJ Psalm 133:1 A Song of Ascents. Of David. Behold,
how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell
together in unity! 2 It is like the precious oil upon the head,
Running down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, Running
down on the edge of his garments.
• NKJ Matthew 18:19 "Again I say to you that if two of you
agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be
done for them by My Father in heaven. 20 "For where two
or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in
the midst of them."
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
NKJ Acts 4:24 So when they [i.e., the church at Jerusalem]
heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and
said: "Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and
the sea, and all that is in them, 25 "who by the mouth of Your
servant David have said: 'Why did the nations rage, And the
people plot vain things? 26 The kings of the earth took their
stand, And the rulers were gathered together Against the
LORD and against His Christ.' 27 "For truly against Your
holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and
Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel,
were gathered together 28 "to do whatever Your hand and
Your purpose determined before to be done. 29 "Now, Lord,
look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all
boldness they may speak Your word, 30 "by stretching out
Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done
through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus." 31 And when
they had prayed, the place where they were assembled
together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy
Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• On our left, across from the Table of Shewbread,
along the South side of the tabernacle stands a
GOLDEN CANDLESTICK (lampstand) made of
one piece of pure gold (Exodus 25:31-40)
• It consists of an upright shaft with three branches
extending from each side with a lamp atop each
branch for a total of seven lamps
• The central shaft and branches are decorated with
golden almonds and flowers
• The seven lamps provide the only light in the Holy
Place and burn continuously with pure olive oil
supplied by the priests (Exodus 27:20)
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The oil represents the Holy Spirit (compare Luke
4:18 with Hebrews 1:9)
• The almonds represent God watching over His
word to perform it (Jeremiah 1:11,12)
• The pure gold represents the holiness of God
• Therefore, the message for us today is that we
must have the illumination of the Holy Spirit in
order to approach God in deeper intimacy (that is
to enter the Holy of Holies – the most Holy Place)
• What the Holy Spirit illuminates us with is the
revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ!
• WLT 2 Corinthians 4:6 Because the God who said, Out of
darkness light shall shine, shined in our hearts, resulting in
an illumination being given of the knowledge of the glory
of God in the face of Christ.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Jesus is the true LIGHT!
• NKJ John 8:12 Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I
am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not
walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”
• NKJ John 12:46 "I have come as a light into the world, that
whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.
• NKJ John 1:4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of
men.
• NKJ John 1:9 That was the true Light which gives light to
every man coming into the world.
• NKJ 1 Timothy 6:15b He who is the blessed and only
Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords, 16 who
alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light,
whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and
everlasting power. Amen.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
NKJ Revelation 1:10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day,
and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, 11
saying, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the
Last," and, "What you see, write in a book and send it to the
seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to
Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to
Laodicea." 12 Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with
me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, 13
and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of
Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded
about the chest with a golden band. 14 His head and hair
were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a
flame of fire; 15 His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in
a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; 16 He
had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a
sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun
shining in its strength.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• In the Outer Court the natural illumination of the
Sun represented man’s natural ability to
understand God
• This is where all Christians begin after having
accepted the Lord Jesus by faith alone
• We entered the Outer Court via the narrow gate
called “The Way” (Matthew 7:13,14)
• Here we are to offer our bodies as a living
sacrifice (Romans 12:1) and die to self at the
Bronze Altar (Matt 16:24,25) then submit our
lives to be washed from sins at the Bronze Laver
(John 17:17; 2 Peter 1:4)
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Then, and only then, will we gain entrance to the
Holy Place via the door called “The Truth”
• Carnal or cultural Christians are those that remain
in the Outer Court, living like natural man, with
little discernable difference between them and the
world
• Consequently, they do not believe it is possible to
understand the ways of God and live a life devoid
of God’s character and power
• They are full of self: self-pity, selfish, selfseeking, self-interests, self-motivated, etc.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• However, Christians that do choose a selfless life
will be ushered into the Holy Place
• Here begins the process of being transformed into
Christ-likeness by the renewing our minds
• NKJ Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world,
but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you
may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect
will of God.
• We are given the mind of Christ!
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
1 Corinthians 2:9 But as it is written: "Eye has not seen, nor
ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things
which God has prepared for those who love Him." 10 But
God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit
searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. 11 For what
man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man
which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God
except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the
spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we
might know the things that have been freely given to us by
God. 13 These things we also speak, not in words which
man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches,
comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14 But the natural
man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they
are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they
are spiritually discerned. 15 But he who is spiritual judges all
things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. 16 For
"who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct
Him?" But we have the mind of Christ.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Located directly in front of the veil that leads to
the Holy of Holies, at the West end of the Holy
Place, stands the GOLDEN ALTAR OF
INCENSE (Exodus 30:1-10)
• It is also made of acacia wood and overlaid with
pure gold
• Furthermore, it is smaller than the Bronze Altar in
the Outer Court, measuring about one and one-half
feet square and three feet high
• It is transported by poles inserted into four gold
rings attached to each corner of the altar
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The altar is used to burn incense in the morning
and evening so that the fragrance was continually
rising up to God
• When the morning batch of incense was
exhausted, the evening batch was lit
• The incense represents prayer to God:
• NKJ Revelation 5:8 Now when He had taken the scroll, the
four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down
before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls
full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The continual burning of incense depicts praying
without ceasing:
• NKJ 1 Thessalonians 5:17 pray without ceasing,
• The Altar of Incense is the closest piece of
furniture to the entrance of the Holy of Holies
• It is nearest to the heart of God
• As we wait before God, talk with God, long for
God, we are drawing near to His presence
• This ministry of intercession is the last ministry
prior to going beyond the veil into the presence of
God
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The Alter of Incense also represents the ministry
of Jesus as our Great High Priest always offering
intercession for us His Saints
• NKJ 1 John 2:1 My little children, these things I write to
you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have
an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
• NKJ Hebrews 7:25 Therefore He is also able to save to the
uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He
always lives to make intercession for them.
• NKJ Hebrews 4:14 Seeing then that we have a great High
Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son
of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not
have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our
weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet
without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne
of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help
in time of need.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Interestingly, the New Testament places the
location of this altar behind the veil:
• NKJ Hebrews 9:3 and behind the second veil, the part of
the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of All, 4a which
had the golden censer
• Remember, in the Old Testament the altar is in the
Holy Place in front of the veil and now in the New
Testament it is on the other side of the veil
• This represents the purpose of the Altar of Incense
– prayer here propels you into the presence of God
via the new and living way - Jesus!
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• NKJ Mark 15:37 And Jesus cried out with a loud voice,
and breathed His last. 38 Then the veil of the temple was
torn in two from top to bottom. 39 So when the centurion,
who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this
and breathed His last, he said, "Truly this Man was the Son
of God!" ,
• The veil of the temple in Jerusalem was
supernaturally torn in two from top to bottom
when Jesus died on the cross
• This was to show us that a new way had been
created to access the Heavenly Father by Jesus
• NKJ Hebrews 10:19 Therefore, brethren, having boldness
to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and
living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil,
that is, His flesh,
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The veil in the temple represented that our flesh
bodies limited our access to God who is a Spirit
and can only be worshipped in spirit and truth
• NKJ John 4:24 "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him
must worship in spirit and truth.”
• Jesus paid for our sin on the cross to enable
establishing a New Covenant with God the Father
for us
• This New Covenant gives Christians a new spirit
that is alive unto God the Father allowing us to
appear before Him in prayer
• NKJ Hebrews 6:19 This hope we have as an anchor of the
soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the
Presence behind the veil,
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• It is the maturing Christian, that has learned to
yield to the Holy Spirit in prayer, who will pass
through the veil into God’s presence
• NKJ Romans 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helps in our
weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for
as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for
us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27 Now He
who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit
is, because He makes intercession for the saints according
to the will of God.
• Remember God has promised:
• NKJ James 4:8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to
you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your
hearts, you double-minded.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The Most Holy (i.e., the Holy of Holies) was
separated from the Holy Place by a veil, a large
curtain, of blue and scarlet and fine twined linen
of cunning work with cherubims (angels)
• The veil was to be hung on four pillars of acacia
wood overlaid with gold
• Their hooks of gold and their sockets of silver
• The ark of the testimony was to be brought within
the veil, and the veil was to divide between the
Holy Place and the Most Holy
• The Mercy Seat, or Throne, was to be put upon the
Ark of the Testimony within the veil, in the Most
Holy Place (i.e., it was the lid of the ark)
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
NKJ Exodus 25:10 " And they shall make an ark of acacia
wood; two and a half cubits shall be its length, a cubit and a
half its width, and a cubit and a half its height. 11 "And you
shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and out you shall
overlay it, and shall make on it a molding of gold all around.
12 "You shall cast four rings of gold for it, and put them in its
four corners; two rings shall be on one side, and two rings on
the other side. 13 "And you shall make poles of acacia wood,
and overlay them with gold. 14 "You shall put the poles into
the rings on the sides of the ark, that the ark may be carried
by them. 15 "The poles shall be in the rings of the ark; they
shall not be taken from it. 16 "And you shall put into the ark
the Testimony which I will give you. 17 "You shall make a
mercy seat of pure gold; two and a half cubits shall be its
length and a cubit and a half its width.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
NKJ Exodus 25: 18 "And you shall make two cherubim of
gold; of hammered work you shall make them at the two ends
of the mercy seat. 19 "Make one cherub at one end, and the
other cherub at the other end; you shall make the cherubim at
the two ends of it of one piece with the mercy seat. 20 "And
the cherubim shall stretch out their wings above, covering the
mercy seat with their wings, and they shall face one another;
the faces of the cherubim shall be toward the mercy seat. 21
"You shall put the mercy seat on top of the ark, and in the ark
you shall put the Testimony that I will give you. 22 "And
there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from
above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which
are on the ark of the Testimony, about everything which I
will give you in commandment to the children of Israel.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The Ark was a box, or chest, about 45 inches long,
27 inches wide, and 27 inches high (assuming a
cubit to be 1.5 feet or 18 inches)
• It was overlaid with pure gold outside and inside
• Within the Ark was to be placed “The Testimony
which I shall give you,” the Lord told Moses
• NKJ Exodus 25:21 "You shall put the mercy seat on top of
the ark, and in the ark you shall put the Testimony that I
will give you.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• NKJ Hebrews 9:2 For a tabernacle was prepared: the first
part, in which was the lampstand, the table, and the
showbread, which is called the sanctuary; 3 and behind the
second veil, the part of the tabernacle which is called the
Holiest of All, 4 which had the golden censer and the ark
of the covenant overlaid on all sides with gold, in which
were the golden pot that had the manna, Aaron's rod that
budded, and the tablets of the covenant; 5 and above it
were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat.
• The New Covenant also tells us that the Ark
contained three things:
– A golden pot containing manna (Exodus 16:32-34)
– Aaron’s rod that had budded (Numbers 17:1-11)
– Tablets of the covenant (The Ten Commandments)
(Exodus 25:21)
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Each of the three things within the Ark
represented man’s rebellion against God
• Manna (Hebrew for “what is it?”) was given after
the Israelites questioned God’s faithfulness to
provide for them in the Wilderness of Sin
• Furthermore, after manna was given they rebelled
against God’s instructions for gathering and using
it (Exodus 16)
• When Korah and others rebelled against Moses
and Aaron (actually against God) the rod of Aaron
was caused to bud and produce blossoms and
almonds overnight to show that God had picked
Aaron and his descendents to be the priests
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The Testimony or Ten Commandments have been
rebelled against from their very inception
• While Moses was on the mountain receiving them
the Israelites made an idol of gold and worshipped
it calling it God’s name - Yahweh!
• Consequently, the Ark contained evidence of
man’s failure to live holy before God
• Evidence of man rebelling against a loving and
perfect God
• Evidence that God is the Great Provider, Leader,
and Giver
• Evidence that fallen man is hopelessly flawed
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• For a cover (or lid) over the Ark Moses was to
make a “mercy seat” of pure gold, with
Cherubims, one at each end facing each other, and
all in one piece
• The Cherubims were to stretch forth their wings
COVERING the Ark
• Again, the Testimony (Ten Commandments) was
to be put in the Ark, and the Mercy Seat placed
above it
• You can find God and understand Him by the
Testimony that He brings forth and establishes in
the world
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Each succeeding generation has had an unfolding
Testimony given to it for its present need
• Jesus became the PERFECTED TESTIMONY!
• In form The Lowly One, in power and work the
exact quality of the Will and the Name of the
Living God
• NKJ John 14:8 Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the
Father, and it is sufficient for us.” 9 Jesus said to him,
"Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not
known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the
Father; so how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?
• Only God can name Himself, with us becoming
“witnesses” - a testimony - of Jesus
• Jesus is the true Witness of God our Father
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The “Testimony” was to be put into the Ark, and
the Mercy Throne placed above upon it
• The Testimony was the two tables of stone
inscribed, by the finger of God, with the words of
the Law given to Moses in the mountain
• The giving of the words was IN THE GLORY OF
GOD
• The supreme fact about the Testimony was the
revelation to Moses of the “Goodness” of the
Lord, as His Glory passed by
• This was granted to Moses, the intercessor, as a
demonstration that he had found grace (i.e.,
unmerited favor) in the eyes of the Lord
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• Moses had stood between idolatrous Israel and the
Holy LORD God
• That meant he had to stand against the accusing
spirit of evil, interceding that The Presence of the
LORD should abide with them and go forth with
them
• And the devil had been defeated in his effort to
destroy the plan of God for Israel while it had
hardly begun
• The devil will ALWAYS be so defeated
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• In that hour of grace and triumph of meekness The
Supreme Fact of all the Law has been given in the
proclamation of that which the Name-of-theLORD consisted in:
• “THE LORD, THE LORD GOD, MERCIFUL,
AND GRACIOUS, LONGSUFFERING AND
ABUNDANT IN GOODNESS (HHESED) AND
TRUTH, KEEPING MERCY FOR
THOUSANDS, FORGIVING INIQUITY AND
TRANSGRESSION AND SIN…”
• That was Moses’ reward, his life long illumination
and authority from heaven and Israel’s triumph
• Triumph is to KNOW God when He reveals
Himself
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The Mercy Throne was, in the arrangement of the
Tent-of-meeting, the center of all
• The Tent was in the center of the camp
• So the Mercy Throne was in the center - or midst of everything
• The Mercy Throne was what the Most Holy Place
was made for
• Outside the veil, and before it, was the sevenbranched lampstand lighting the Holy Place, and
the table of the “showbread” on which were
placed day by day twelve loaves of bread “before
the Lord”
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The seven branched lampstand was a type of the
Spirit-filled body of Christ
• The twelve loaves of show-bread typified the
twelve tribes of Israel
• The Hebrew term for “show bread” means “bread
of faces”
• It represented Israel as a continual offering
presented “before the Lord”
• Israel is God’s SHOW!
• Without His Spirit they have not know what to do
with themselves
• Yet they have never ceased from being a show
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• But now it all slowly changes as the type becomes
the REALITY
• Jesus said, “Watch!”
• Inside, within the veil, solitary in its position in
the Holiest of All (i.e, the Most Holy Place), stood
the Ark of the Covenant
• It was the repository of the WITNESS of God
• Covering it above was the Mercy Throne from
which proceeded the WORD-OF-GOD
• NKJ Exodus 25:22 "And there I will meet with you, and I
will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from
between the two cherubim which are on the ark of the
Testimony, about everything which I will give you in
commandment to the children of Israel.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The Mercy Seat: Center of all, within the Holiest
of all, the throne of the God of glory and of the
issuing Word, place of covering and forgiving sin,
the point over which rested the cloud and fire of
God’s Presence
• THAT is the description of something SUPREME
- MERCY!
• The Hebrew word translated “mercy seat” is
“kapporet” and means “a covering”
• It is from the same root as the word “kaphar” we
saw earlier translated as “atonement”
• The only place in the Bible where the word
“kapporet is used is for “mercy seat”
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• It distinguishes the Mercy Throne as a
PROTECTIVE COVERING
• It is used of this one thing only:
– The Ark covering the place of forgiveness for
sin, and of the Testimony of the Lord
• In the way the ancients had of associating things,
the covering of the Ark was the protective
covering of the nation
• The Word of God was in multiplied instances: “If
you keep my covenant, I will cover and bless
you,”
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• And there were mercies promised in that blessing
that we are not fully enjoying even in our New
Covenant Christianity
• For instance, the removal of ALL SICKNESS
from the midst of them; and the removal of the
curse from the land and beast
• It is what is in “the Midst” that covers
• The covering of the Ark of the Testimony was the
place of the judgment-of-mercy for forgiveness of
sin
• It was the judgment throne of the Invisible One,
Israel’s King
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• NKJ Hebrews 9:5a and above it were the cherubim of
glory overshadowing the mercy seat.
• The Greek word for “mercy seat” used here is
“hilasterion” (hil-as-tay'-ree-on) meaning the place
of appeasement
• NKJ Romans 3:24 being justified freely by His grace
through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom
God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith,
to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His
forbearance God had passed over the sins that were
previously committed,
• The same Greek word “hilasterion” is translated
“propitiation” in verse 25 above
• Therefore, Jesus is our Mercy Seat!
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• NKJ 1 John 2:1 My little children, these things I write to
you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have
an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2
And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for
ours only but also for the whole world.
• The Greek word for “propitiation” used here is
“hilasmos” (hil-as-mos') meaning that which
appeases
• Jesus is both the “place of appeasement” and “that
which appeases”
• Jesus is both the “Mercy Seat” and the “Sacrificial
Lamb!”
• Fully “God” and fully “Man”
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• NKJ 1 John 4:10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but
that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for
our sins.
• God Himself became the appeasing demanded by
His holiness and justice
• God the Righteous Judge took upon Himself the
penalty of the one whom He has judged guilty
(i.e., man) so that man can have grace (favor) in
order to for God to show mercy
• God has paid the penalty for our sin at the cross of
Calvary and based on this God’s mercy is
extended to all
• The judgement seat has become a Mercy Seat!
• NKJ James 2:13b Mercy triumphs over judgment.
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• It was a throne of Mercy
• Everything in the Law of Moses centered in that
Mercy Seat
• All the sacrifices had to do with that Mercy Seat
within the veil
• All the shedding of blood of offerings had to do
with that one chief sprinkling of blood upon the
Mercy Seat
• The Ark and the Mercy Seat within the Holy of
Holies was the symbol of the coming Word-madeflesh, Jesus Christ
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
• The “blood of sprinkling” was the symbol of The
Lamb of God who bears away the world’s sin
• For everything here named there is one great
descriptive term - MERCY
Chapter 8: The Mercy Seat - Throne of the Word
NKJ Hebrews 9:11 But Christ came as High Priest of the good
things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not
made with hands, that is, not of this creation. 12 Not with the
blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the
Most Holy Place [in Heaven] once for all, having obtained eternal
redemption. ...22 And according to the law almost all things are
purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no
remission. 23 Therefore it was necessary that the copies of the
things in the heavens should be purified with these [i.e., the
tabernacle of Moses was cleansed with the blood of animals], but
the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.
24 For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands,
which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear
in the presence of God for us; ...26b He has appeared to put away
sin by the sacrifice of Himself. [i.e., Jesus cleansed the Heavenly
Tabernacle, defiled by the rebellion of Adam, with His own
blood] (words in “[]” added by author)
Prayer
Blessed Father open Thy Word to our hearts, and
open our hearts to Thy Word in Jesus’ Name. Amen
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Exodus 15:13 You in Your mercy have led forth The
people whom You have redeemed; You have guided them
in Your strength To Your holy habitation.
• This verse, from the deliverance triumph song, is a
sort of door opening into the whole scene
• It is a song of the triumph of God’s mercy to Israel
• Egypt’s calamities in the process were the result of
RESISTANCE to that mercy, and NOT because
no mercy was offered
• The first chapters in Exodus describe Israel’s
slavery in cruel bondage and the raising up of a
deliverer for them
• The name of the deliverer was Moses
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• He was raised in the king’s house as a son to his
daughter
• Moses fled from the Pharaoh's (Egypt’s king)
wrath after slaying an Egyptian in defense of a
Hebrew
• Moses was trying to fulfil the call of God in his
heart to free his people but was trying to do it his
way and in his ability
• We must wait on the Lord to discover how He
wants to fulfill His dream and purpose for our
lives
• If Satan can not get you to give up on your call
then he will try to get you to do it in other than
God’s timing or way
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in
everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving,
let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace
of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your
hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
• In the desert wilderness of Sinai he spent the
second period of his life as a shepherd for forty
years
• This period was a long time as we are accustomed
to measure time
• It meant a long training in the qualities he would
need in the years to come - those of a shepherd - in
the desert
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• In a previous chapter we have seen something of
the relation of the term mercy, to the life of a
shepherd
• It is certain that the forty shepherd years were
developing the fundamental meekness and mercy
that were absolutely essential in the life of the one
who should deliver God’s people from their
hopeless bondage in Egypt
• Indeed to man their bondage was HOPELESS
• Toward the end of this period of training, the Lord
appears to Moses in a flaming bush that was not
consumed
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• That unconsumed bush became characteristic of
all His future relations with His chosen deliverer
• Out of the blazing fire came the call to deliver
Israel
• A call that Moses had once expected, and even
attempted, but that was now long lost to view
• NKJ Exodus 3:7 And the LORD said: "I have surely seen
the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have
heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know
their sorrows.
• God’s COMPASSION resulted in His MERCY
being given - “I KNOW their sorrows” and you
Moses are now called to bear with Me those
sorrows - with Me and for Me
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Exodus 3:10 "Come now, therefore, and I will send
you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children
of Israel, out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, "Who
am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring
the children of Israel out of Egypt?”
• Moses took exception to God’s request
• NKJ Exodus 3:12 So He said, "I will certainly be with you.
And this shall be a sign to you that I have sent you: When
you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve
God on this mountain.”
• Then God revealed to Moses a name that signified
His Eternal Being
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• In the Bible that name remains always associated
with “The Being” as the Redeemer of His people:
the great “I AM THAT I AM”
• Redemption is mercy!
• This study started with Moses in service and
worship on the mountain
• That whole circumstance was an unfolding to
Moses, the Deliverer, of the meaning and
significance of the name “I AM”
• This name was given to him in order to identify
the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob,
to their seed the children of Israel
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• The “I AM” of Exodus 3 is the “LORD” of the
mountain, called “this mountain,” at the time we
are now considering in Moses’ life
• NKJ Exodus 34:6b "THE LORD, THE LORD GOD,
MERCIFUL AND GRACIOUS…
• From the desert and the burning-bush call, Moses
went and “did as the Lord commanded him” and
the Lord did “according to the word of Moses”
• That was not only the amazing characteristic of
the relation between Moses and the Great Eternal I
AM, but is also God’s relation to all who enter
into the understanding of His MERCY and the
dispensing of it
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Two things were to happen:
• Israel should know the Lord, as Redeemer, by His
MERCY
– NKJ Exodus 6:7 'I will take you as My people, and I
will be your God. Then you shall know that I am the
LORD your God who brings you out from under the
burdens of the Egyptians.
• The Egyptians would know that the God of Israel
is Lord of all
– NKJ Exodus 7:5 "And the Egyptians shall know that I
am the LORD, when I stretch out My hand on Egypt
and bring out the children of Israel from among them.”
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• The same circumstances were to issue in knowing
the Lord, Israel to know Him as redeemer and
deliverer
• Egypt to know Him in His power to judge them
and to break their power over Israel
• Israel to RECEIVE the delivering MERCY and to
prosper
• Egypt to RESIST the delivering MERCY and be
overthrown
• The same Lord, and the same mercy
• Two different reactions to Him and to it
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Two opposite effects produced and results
established
– I will have compassion on Israel and do him
MERCY
– I will harden Pharaoh’s heart and destroy his
power over Israel
• Yet only ONE MERCY that was offered to both!
• It is the fearful thing about MERCY, that it may
harden to destruction those opposing it while
simultaneously delivering, and releasing the
receiver of it
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• This account is of a very ancient period
• It was long centuries afterward that MERCY
appeared in the flesh and said:
– NKJ John 6:37 "All that the Father gives Me will come
to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no
means cast out.
• And
– NKJ Revelation 22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say,
"Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" And let
him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take
the water of life freely.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• The expression, “I will harden Pharaoh’s heart” is
the truth as seen in the giving of the Law
• In the Gospel the same thing is stated:
– NKJ John 5:40 "But you are not willing to come to Me
that you may have life.
• And again:
– NKJ John 3:19 "And this is the condemnation, that the
light has come into the world, and men loved darkness
rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
• Condemnation is judgment against as
distinguished from judgment FOR
• Two different ways of saying the same thing
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• The condemnation was established by the light
coming to them and their refusing it
• The light, which was life-giving MERCY to those
who received it, was condemnation to those who
refused it - the very same light!
• In the Old Covenant (Testament) phraseology it
could have been said, “And the Lord hardened
their hearts to destruction, but upon these He had
mercy unto life”
• More clearly - mercy unto “repentance unto life”
• Beyond that point we may not go into the mystery
of God bearing sin
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• But if we are willing to know and do His will of
MERCY, we may share, as Moses did, with Him
in the revealing of that MERCY Will
• Now we enter the arena of contest between the
Lord of the whole Earth, and a ruler who
considered himself as the Lord of the whole Earth
• Pharaoh was a ruler capable of resisting the Lord,
and also capable of fighting against offered
MERCY
• In deceitful hypocrisy he made a show-acting
mockery of submission and obedience, even when
he was in clear view of his own sin and impotence
• This is the most fearful of all sins that men sin
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh
• NKJ Exodus 7:10 So Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh,
and they did so, just as the LORD commanded. And Aaron
cast down his rod before Pharaoh and before his servants,
and it became a serpent. 11 But Pharaoh also called the
wise men and the sorcerers; so the magicians of Egypt,
they also did in like manner with their enchantments. 12
For every man threw down his rod, and they became
serpents. But Aaron's rod swallowed up their rods. 13 And
Pharaoh's heart grew hard, and he did not heed them, as the
LORD had said. 14 So the LORD said to Moses:
"Pharaoh's heart is hard; he refuses to let the people go.
• The LIGHT of MERCY that the sign of the rodserpent offered, being refused, hardened Pharaoh’s
heart
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• From the perspective that God offered the rejected
MERCY, it could be said that God hardened
Pharaoh’s heart
• However, from the perspective that Pharaoh could
have accepted the MERCY, but knowingly and
willfully chose to reject it, then Pharaoh hardened
his own heart
• Everything is contained in these simple words
“Moses did so as the Lord commanded” but
Pharaoh did not do so as the Lord commanded
• The same MERCY offered, though, and even
demonstrated as MERCY directly to the hearthardening monarch
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Exodus 7:17 'Thus says the LORD: "By this you shall
know that I am the LORD. Behold, I will strike the waters
which are in the river with the rod that is in my hand, and
they shall be turned to blood.
• The Nile River and its streams, ponds, and all of
its water in containers were turned to blood
• This river was Egypt’s lifeline, the God-given
means by which to irrigate the land and make it
fruitful
• NKJ Exodus 7:22 Then the magicians of Egypt did so with
their enchantments; and Pharaoh's heart grew hard, and he
did not heed them, as the LORD had said. 23 And Pharaoh
turned and went into his house. Neither was his heart
moved by this.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 8:1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, "Go to
Pharaoh and say to him, 'Thus says the LORD: "Let My
people go, that they may serve Me. 2 "But if you refuse to let
them go, behold, I will smite all your territory with frogs. 3
"So the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall
go up and come into your house, into your bedroom, on your
bed, into the houses of your servants, on your people, into
your ovens, and into your kneading bowls. 4 "And the frogs
shall come up on you, on your people, and on all your
servants." ' " 5 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, "Say to
Aaron, 'Stretch out your hand with your rod over the streams,
over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to come
up on the land of Egypt.' " 6 So Aaron stretched out his hand
over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered
the land of Egypt. 7 And the magicians did so with their
enchantments, and brought up frogs on the land of Egypt.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 8:8 Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron,
and said, "Entreat the LORD that He may take away the frogs
from me and from my people; and I will let the people go,
that they may sacrifice to the LORD." 9 And Moses said to
Pharaoh, "Accept the honor of saying when I shall intercede
for you, for your servants, and for your people, to destroy the
frogs from you and your houses, that they may remain in the
river only." 10 So he said, "Tomorrow." And he said, "Let it
be according to your word, that you may know that there is no
one like the LORD our God. 11 "And the frogs shall depart
from you, from your houses, from your servants, and from
your people. They shall remain in the river only." 12 Then
Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh. And Moses cried
out to the LORD concerning the frogs which He had brought
against Pharaoh.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Exodus 8:13 So the LORD did according to the word
of Moses. And the frogs died out of the houses, out of the
courtyards, and out of the fields. 14 They gathered them
together in heaps, and the land stank. 15 But when
Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart
and did not heed them, as the LORD had said.
• Frogs, frogs everywhere! In their houses, in their
beds, in their ovens - Frogs!
• The magicians played at it but only made it worse
• Pharaoh ASKED FOR MERCY, “entreat the Lord
for me” and got it
• But when he saw there was respite, he “hardened
his heart”
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• This is the sure inner view of the hardening of
Pharaoh’s heart:
• Refusing to enter into the mercy offered as his
OWN relation to God
• It was necessary for him to DO the MERCY to
Israel that God wanted done, then he would have
been IN the same MERCY
• The MERCY was offered every time, and these
respites showed clearly that if Pharaoh had been
willing to DO God’s MERCY to Israel, he would
likewise have been partaker of the same MERCY
• We need to understand this lesson in order to find
God in the critical time that we now live
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Exodus 8:16 So the LORD said to Moses, "Say to
Aaron, 'Stretch out your rod, and strike the dust of the land,
so that it may become lice throughout all the land of
Egypt.' " 17 And they did so. For Aaron stretched out his
hand with his rod and struck the dust of the earth, and it
became lice on man and beast. All the dust of the land
became lice throughout all the land of Egypt. 18 Now the
magicians so worked with their enchantments to bring
forth lice, but they could not. So there were lice on man
and beast. 19 Then the magicians said to Pharaoh, "This is
the finger of God." But Pharaoh's heart grew hard, and he
did not heed them, just as the LORD had said.
• Self demonstrating lice, getting closer to the man,
crawling on him
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• The magicians played at it but failed to bring forth
lice
• The dust of the land was crawling, and they said to
Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God”
• But Pharaoh had just played the hypocrite when he
entreated for MERCY, and even the lice did not
affect that hardness of heart
• Hypocrisy works devastation in the inner life of a
person
• NKJ James 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers
only, deceiving yourselves.
• Those that practice deceit ultimately deceive
themselves
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 8:20 And the LORD said to Moses, "Rise early
in the morning and stand before Pharaoh as he comes out to
the water. Then say to him, 'Thus says the LORD: "Let My
people go, that they may serve Me. 21 "Or else, if you will
not let My people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies on
you and your servants, on your people and into your houses.
The houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies,
and also the ground on which they stand. 22 "And in that day
I will set apart the land of Goshen, in which My people dwell,
that no swarms of flies shall be there, in order that you may
know that I am the LORD in the midst of the land. 23 "I will
make a difference between My people and your people.
Tomorrow this sign shall be." ' " 24 And the LORD did so.
Thick swarms of flies came into the house of Pharaoh, into
his servants' houses, and into all the land of Egypt. The land
was corrupted because of the swarms of flies.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 8:25 Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron,
and said, "Go, sacrifice to your God in the land." 26 And
Moses said, "It is not right to do so, for we would be
sacrificing the abomination of the Egyptians to the LORD our
God. If we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before
their eyes, then will they not stone us? 27 "We will go three
days' journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to the LORD
our God as He will command us." 28 And Pharaoh said, "I
will let you go, that you may sacrifice to the LORD your God
in the wilderness; only you shall not go very far away.
Intercede for me." 29 Then Moses said, "Indeed I am going
out from you, and I will entreat the LORD, that the swarms of
flies may depart tomorrow from Pharaoh, from his servants,
and from his people. But let Pharaoh not deal deceitfully
anymore in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the
LORD."
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Exodus 8:30 So Moses went out from Pharaoh and
entreated the LORD. 31 And the LORD did according to
the word of Moses; He removed the swarms of flies from
Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people. Not one
remained. 32 But Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time
also; neither would he let the people go.
• Let my people go… else if not… swarms of flies!
• Mercy offered in the commandment, Obey and no
flies!
• This time an added sign, thus an added offer of
mercy:
– I will sever the land of my people that there be
no flies
– I will put a division between my people and thy
people
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• A sign that Pharaoh or anyone might know that, “I
am the Lord in the midst of the Earth”
• That is, no flies in Goshen where Israel lived
• This time Pharaoh called for help and said, “I will
let you go… intercede for me.”
• Have MERCY on me!
• And Moses entreated the Lord, and the Lord did
according to the word of Moses and did this
MERCY and removed the flies
• But Pharaoh hardened his heart
• MERCY hardened his heart because he would not
do it, would not be part of it
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 9:1 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go in to
Pharaoh and tell him, 'Thus says the LORD God of the
Hebrews: "Let My people go, that they may serve Me. 2 "For
if you refuse to let them go, and still hold them, 3 "behold,
the hand of the LORD will be on your cattle in the field, on
the horses, on the donkeys, on the camels, on the oxen, and
on the sheep -- a very severe pestilence. 4 "And the LORD
will make a difference between the livestock of Israel and the
livestock of Egypt. So nothing shall die of all that belongs to
the children of Israel." ' " 5 Then the LORD appointed a set
time, saying, "Tomorrow the LORD will do this thing in the
land." 6 So the LORD did this thing on the next day, and all
the livestock of Egypt died; but of the livestock of the
children of Israel, not one died. 7 Then Pharaoh sent, and
indeed, not even one of the livestock of the Israelites was
dead. But the heart of Pharaoh became hard, and he did not
let the people go.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• A destructive plague upon the animals of Egypt
• This touched their wealth
• But Pharaoh hardened his heart in the face of the
sign of MERCY that the animals of Israel were
left untouched
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Exodus 9:8 So the LORD said to Moses and Aaron,
"Take for yourselves handfuls of ashes from a furnace, and
let Moses scatter it toward the heavens in the sight of
Pharaoh. 9 "And it will become fine dust in all the land of
Egypt, and it will cause boils that break out in sores on
man and beast throughout all the land of Egypt." 10 Then
they took ashes from the furnace and stood before Pharaoh,
and Moses scattered them toward heaven. And they caused
boils that break out in sores on man and beast. 11 And the
magicians could not stand before Moses because of the
boils, for the boils were on the magicians and on all the
Egyptians. 12 But the LORD hardened the heart of
Pharaoh; and he did not heed them, just as the LORD had
spoken to Moses.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
•
•
•
•
Boils breaking out on man and beast alike
Boils come out from the inside
Closer and closer comes the stroke
The magicians could not stand before Moses they were full of boils
• Moses was free, but the MERCY hardened
Pharaoh’s heart
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 9:13 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Rise early
in the morning and stand before Pharaoh, and say to him,
'Thus says the LORD God of the Hebrews: "Let My people
go, that they may serve Me, 14 "for at this time I will send all
My plagues to your very heart, and on your servants and on
your people, that you may know that there is none like Me in
all the earth. 15 "Now if I had stretched out My hand and
struck you and your people with pestilence, then you would
have been cut off from the earth. 16 "But indeed for this
purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in
you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth. 17
"As yet you exalt yourself against My people in that you will
not let them go. 18 "Behold, tomorrow about this time I will
cause very heavy hail to rain down, such as has not been in
Egypt since its founding until now.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 9:19 "Therefore send now and gather your
livestock and all that you have in the field, for the hail shall
come down on every man and every animal which is found in
the field and is not brought home; and they shall die." ' " 20
He who feared the word of the LORD among the servants of
Pharaoh made his servants and his livestock flee to the
houses. 21 But he who did not regard the word of the LORD
left his servants and his livestock in the field. 22 Then the
LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand toward heaven,
that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt -- on man, on
beast, and on every herb of the field, throughout the land of
Egypt." 23 And Moses stretched out his rod toward heaven;
and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and fire darted to the
ground. And the LORD rained hail on the land of Egypt.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 9:24 So there was hail, and fire mingled with the
hail, so very heavy that there was none like it in all the land of
Egypt since it became a nation. 25 And the hail struck
throughout the whole land of Egypt, all that was in the field,
both man and beast; and the hail struck every herb of the field
and broke every tree of the field. 26 Only in the land of
Goshen, where the children of Israel were, there was no hail.
27 And Pharaoh sent and called for Moses and Aaron, and
said to them, "I have sinned this time. The LORD is
righteous, and my people and I are wicked. 28 "Entreat the
LORD, that there may be no more mighty thundering and
hail, for it is enough. I will let you go, and you shall stay no
longer." 29 So Moses said to him, "As soon as I have gone
out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the LORD; the
thunder will cease, and there will be no more hail, that you
may know that the earth is the LORD's.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 9:30 "But as for you and your servants, I know
that you will not yet fear the LORD God." 31 Now the flax
and the barley were struck, for the barley was in the head and
the flax was in bud. 32 But the wheat and the spelt were not
struck, for they are late crops. 33 So Moses went out of the
city from Pharaoh and spread out his hands to the LORD;
then the thunder and the hail ceased, and the rain was not
poured on the earth. 34 And when Pharaoh saw that the rain,
the hail, and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet more; and
he hardened his heart, he and his servants. 35 So the heart of
Pharaoh was hard; neither would he let the children of Israel
go, as the LORD had spoken by Moses.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Hail, none like it in Egypt since the nation was
formed
• This time the word is given, “I will at this time
send all my plagues upon your heart… that thou
may know that there is none like me in all the
Earth
• MERCY, still MERCY
• That you may know!
• The great statement of God’s foreknowledge as to
Pharaoh’s reactions to His offered MERCY:
– NKJ Exodus 9:16 "But indeed for this purpose I have
raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and
that My name may be declared in all the earth.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Yes, God had given him his position: exalted as a
great ruler on Earth
• NKJ Romans 9:14 What shall we say then? Is there
unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! 15 For He says
to Moses, "I will have mercy on whomever I will have
mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will
have compassion." 16 So then it is not of him who wills,
nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. 17
For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, "For this very purpose I
have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and
that My name may be declared in all the earth." 18
Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He
wills He hardens.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Now God offers him MERCY at each step of the
contest - the same MERCY offered to Israel
• When the hail struck, and the mighty thunder with
it, then the great exalted man called again for
Moses to pray for him to the Lord, saying:
– NKJ Exodus 9:27 And Pharaoh sent and called for
Moses and Aaron, and said to them, "I have sinned this
time. The LORD is righteous, and my people and I are
wicked. 28 "Entreat the LORD, that there may be no
more mighty thundering and hail, for it is enough. I will
let you go, and you shall stay no longer."
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Exodus 9:29 So Moses said to him, "As soon as I
have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the
LORD; the thunder will cease, and there will be no more
hail, that you may know that the earth is the LORD's.
• MERCY entreated, MERCY given
• However, Pharaoh sinned more leading to further
hardening of his heart
• NKJ Hebrews 3:13 but exhort one another daily, while it is
called "Today," lest any of you be hardened through the
deceitfulness of sin.
• Sin promises freedom but in reality it hardens our
spiritual hearts separating us from God and
enslaving us to Satan - the deception of sin
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• In the days in which we are living, such a contest
has arisen between the “world” and god
• Definitely it is between “Man” and God
• The contest is over: who owns the Earth?
• The devil claims it
• Man sides with the devil
• Mercy claims the Earth for the fulfilling of God’s
blessing
• Man is between and turns to one or the other as it
pleases his heart
• The contest in Egypt is a picture of the forces in
conflict today
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• But “THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S”
• NKJ Exodus 9:29 So Moses said to him, "As soon as I
have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands to the
LORD; the thunder will cease, and there will be no more
hail, that you may know that the earth is the LORD's.
• NKJ Psalm 24:1 A Psalm of David. The earth is the
LORD's, and all its fullness, The world and those who
dwell therein.
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 10:26 for "the earth is the LORD's, and
all its fullness.”
• His will is MERCY
• Force is to be overthrown by MERCY
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 10:1 Now the LORD said to Moses, "Go in to
Pharaoh; for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his
servants, that I may show these signs of Mine before him, 2
"and that you may tell in the hearing of your son and your
son's son the mighty things I have done in Egypt, and My
signs which I have done among them, that you may know that
I am the LORD." 3 So Moses and Aaron came in to Pharaoh
and said to him, "Thus says the LORD God of the Hebrews:
'How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let
My people go, that they may serve Me. 4 'Or else, if you
refuse to let My people go, behold, tomorrow I will bring
locusts into your territory. 5 'And they shall cover the face of
the earth, so that no one will be able to see the earth; and they
shall eat the residue of what is left, which remains to you
from the hail, and they shall eat every tree which grows up for
you out of the field.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 10:6 'They shall fill your houses, the houses of
all your servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians -- which
neither your fathers nor your fathers' fathers have seen, since
the day that they were on the earth to this day.' " And he
turned and went out from Pharaoh. 7 Then Pharaoh's servants
said to him, "How long shall this man be a snare to us? Let
the men go, that they may serve the LORD their God. Do you
not yet know that Egypt is destroyed?" 8 So Moses and
Aaron were brought again to Pharaoh, and he said to them,
"Go, serve the LORD your God. Who are the ones that are
going?" 9 And Moses said, "We will go with our young and
our old; with our sons and our daughters, with our flocks and
our herds we will go, for we must hold a feast to the LORD."
10 Then he said to them, "The LORD had better be with you
when I let you and your little ones go! Beware, for evil is
ahead of you.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 10:11 "Not so! Go now, you who are men, and
serve the LORD, for that is what you desired." And they were
driven out from Pharaoh's presence. 12 Then the LORD said
to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for
the locusts, that they may come upon the land of Egypt, and
eat every herb of the land -- all that the hail has left." 13 So
Moses stretched out his rod over the land of Egypt, and the
LORD brought an east wind on the land all that day and all
that night. When it was morning, the east wind brought the
locusts. 14 And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt
and rested on all the territory of Egypt. They were very
severe; previously there had been no such locusts as they, nor
shall there be such after them.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 10:15 For they covered the face of the whole
earth, so that the land was darkened; and they ate every herb
of the land and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left.
So there remained nothing green on the trees or on the plants
of the field throughout all the land of Egypt. 16 Then
Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste, and said, "I
have sinned against the LORD your God and against you. 17
"Now therefore, please forgive my sin only this once, and
entreat the LORD your God, that He may take away from me
this death only." 18 So he went out from Pharaoh and
entreated the LORD. 19 And the LORD turned a very strong
west wind, which took the locusts away and blew them into
the Red Sea. There remained not one locust in all the territory
of Egypt. 20 But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart, and he
did not let the children of Israel go.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
•
•
•
•
•
Locust
And again Pharaoh asks for MERCY
This time he also asks for forgiveness
He is conscious that he is involved in death
But the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart - a
hypocrite - BY ANSWERING his prayer!
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 10:21 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch
out your hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over
the land of Egypt, darkness which may even be felt." 22 So
Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was
thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days. 23 They
did not see one another; nor did anyone rise from his place for
three days. But all the children of Israel had light in their
dwellings. 24 Then Pharaoh called to Moses and said, "Go,
serve the LORD; only let your flocks and your herds be kept
back. Let your little ones also go with you." 25 But Moses
said, "You must also give us sacrifices and burnt offerings,
that we may sacrifice to the LORD our God. 26 "Our
livestock also shall go with us; not a hoof shall be left behind.
For we must take some of them to serve the LORD our God,
and even we do not know with what we must serve the LORD
until we arrive there."
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 10:27 But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart,
and he would not let them go. 28 Then Pharaoh said to him,
"Get away from me! Take heed to yourself and see my face
no more! For in the day you see my face you shall die!" 29
And Moses said, "You have spoken well. I will never see
your face again."
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Darkness that could be felt with movement
impossible
• Bogged down, but light in the dwellings of the
children of Israel
• The hypocrite, hardened, by self-exalting, in the
face of multiplied mercies, does the thing that
“mercy-opposers” do
• He got “HIGH” and ANGRY, His heart so
hardened by the Lord’s goodness to him that he
threatened the life of Moses
• In so doing he he decided his own fate
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Exodus 10:28 Then Pharaoh said to him, "Get away
from me! Take heed to yourself and see my face no more!
For in the day you see my face you shall die!” 29 And
Moses said, "You have spoken well. I will never see your
face again.”
• A king’s prerogative! But his own death sentence
• All of it the result of refusing mercy - refusing
also to participate in doing mercy
• And in that hardened condition he did what
“opposers” do
• He confused the messenger with the results of his
own evils, and determined to eliminate the very
one who OFFERED mercy to him
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Exodus 11:1 And the LORD said to Moses, "I will
bring yet one more plague on Pharaoh and on Egypt.
Afterward he will let you go from here. When he lets you
go, he will surely drive you out of here altogether.
• One more stroke of the breaking hammer
• NKJ Jeremiah 23:29 "Is not My word like a fire?" says the
LORD, "And like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?
• One more, but final, offer of MERCY
• But now no longer known - the result of a
hardened heart
• This time the offer of MERCY was blood over the
door
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Wherever the blood is NOT on the door, death
will strike
• DEATH KNOWS NO MERCY and is only kept
at bay by the moment by moment, day by day,
mercy of God
• Any door WITH the blood sprinkled over it, and
on the sideposts, will be “passed over”
• Any door, MERCY still, but the Egyptians would
not believe and humble themselves to such an
extreme
• It was a sacrifice of “abomination” to them
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 12:1 Now the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron
in the land of Egypt, saying, 2 "This month shall be your
beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to
you. 3 "Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: 'On
the tenth day of this month every man shall take for himself a
lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a
household. 4 'And if the household is too small for the lamb,
let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to
the number of the persons; according to each man's need you
shall make your count for the lamb. 5 'Your lamb shall be
without blemish, a male of the first year. You may take it
from the sheep or from the goats. 6 'Now you shall keep it
until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole
assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight.
7 'And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two
doorposts and on the lintel of the houses where they eat it.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 12:8 'Then they shall eat the flesh on that night;
roasted in fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs
they shall eat it. 9 'Do not eat it raw, nor boiled at all with
water, but roasted in fire -- its head with its legs and its
entrails. 10 'You shall let none of it remain until morning,
and what remains of it until morning you shall burn with fire.
11 'And thus you shall eat it: with a belt on your waist, your
sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. So you shall
eat it in haste. It is the LORD's Passover. 12 'For I will pass
through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the
firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and
against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am
the LORD. 13 'Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the
houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass
over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you
when I strike the land of Egypt.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 12:14 'So this day shall be to you a memorial;
and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD throughout your
generations. You shall keep it as a feast by an everlasting
ordinance. 15 'Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread.
On the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses.
For whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the
seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. 16 'On
the first day there shall be a holy convocation, and on the
seventh day there shall be a holy convocation for you. No
manner of work shall be done on them; but that which
everyone must eat -- that only may be prepared by you. 17
'So you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on
this same day I will have brought your armies out of the land
of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe this day throughout
your generations as an everlasting ordinance.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 12:18 'In the first month, on the fourteenth day
of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread, until
the twenty-first day of the month at evening. 19 'For seven
days no leaven shall be found in your houses, since whoever
eats what is leavened, that same person shall be cut off from
the congregation of Israel, whether he is a stranger or a native
of the land. 20 'You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your
dwellings you shall eat unleavened bread.' ” 20 'You shall eat
nothing leavened; in all your dwellings you shall eat
unleavened bread.' " 21 Then Moses called for all the elders
of Israel and said to them, "Pick out and take lambs for
yourselves according to your families, and kill the Passover
lamb. 22 "And you shall take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the
blood that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two
doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. And none of you
shall go out of the door of his house until morning.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 12:23 "For the LORD will pass through to strike
the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel and
on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the door and
not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to strike
you. 24 "And you shall observe this thing as an ordinance for
you and your sons forever. 25 "It will come to pass when you
come to the land which the LORD will give you, just as He
promised, that you shall keep this service. 26 "And it shall
be, when your children say to you, 'What do you mean by this
service?' 27 "that you shall say, 'It is the Passover sacrifice of
the LORD, who passed over the houses of the children of
Israel in Egypt when He struck the Egyptians and delivered
our households.' " So the people bowed their heads and
worshiped. 28 Then the children of Israel went away and did
so; just as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so
they did.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 12:29 And it came to pass at midnight that the
LORD struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the
firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of
the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of
livestock. 30 So Pharaoh rose in the night, he, all his
servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in
Egypt, for there was not a house where there was not one
dead. 31 Then he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and
said, "Rise, go out from among my people, both you and the
children of Israel. And go, serve the LORD as you have said.
32 "Also take your flocks and your herds, as you have said,
and be gone; and bless me also." 33 And the Egyptians urged
the people, that they might send them out of the land in haste.
For they said, "We shall all be dead." 34 So the people took
their dough before it was leavened, having their kneading
bowls bound up in their clothes on their shoulders.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 12:35 Now the children of Israel had done
according to the word of Moses, and they had asked from the
Egyptians articles of silver, articles of gold, and clothing. 36
And the LORD had given the people favor in the sight of the
Egyptians, so that they granted them what they requested.
Thus they plundered the Egyptians. 37 Then the children of
Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred
thousand men on foot, besides children. 38 A mixed
multitude went up with them also, and flocks and herds -- a
great deal of livestock. 39 And they baked unleavened cakes
of the dough which they had brought out of Egypt; for it was
not leavened, because they were driven out of Egypt and
could not wait, nor had they prepared provisions for
themselves. 40 Now the sojourn of the children of Israel who
lived in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 12:41 And it came to pass at the end of the four
hundred and thirty years -- on that very same day -- it came to
pass that all the armies of the LORD went out from the land
of Egypt. 42 It is a night of solemn observance to the LORD
for bringing them out of the land of Egypt. This is that night
of the LORD, a solemn observance for all the children of
Israel throughout their generations. 43 And the LORD said to
Moses and Aaron, "This is the ordinance of the Passover: No
foreigner shall eat it. 44 "But every man's servant who is
bought for money, when you have circumcised him, then he
may eat it. 45 "A sojourner and a hired servant shall not eat
it. 46 "In one house it shall be eaten; you shall not carry any
of the flesh outside the house, nor shall you break one of its
bones. 47 "All the congregation of Israel shall keep it.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
NKJ Exodus 12:48 "And when a stranger dwells with you
and wants to keep the Passover to the LORD, let all his males
be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and
he shall be as a native of the land. For no uncircumcised
person shall eat it. 49 "One law shall be for the native-born
and for the stranger who dwells among you." 50 Thus all the
children of Israel did; as the LORD commanded Moses and
Aaron, so they did. 51 And it came to pass, on that very same
day, that the LORD brought the children of Israel out of the
land of Egypt according to their armies.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• The lamb was an object lesson representing Jesus
who shed His blood for our sins (John 1:29)
• The bread was an object lesson representing Jesus’
body broken for our healing (1Peter 2:24)
• However, the bread was not to contain leaven
• Leaven represents hypocrisy which is to act like
you are holy by outward appearance but inside be
full of evil thoughts and desires
• A hypocrite is an actor on the stage of life
• NKJ Luke 12:1b ...He began to say to His disciples first of
all, "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is
hypocrisy.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Note that the one actually doing the killing was
the destroyer (Exodus 12:23)
• Just like in the book of Job, Satan must have
God’s permission to do anything against God’s
people
• God judged it right that the ones not covered by
the blood of the lamb be turned over to Satan
(likely delegated to one of his fallen angels whose
name is the Destroyer) to be killed
• NLT Revelation 9:11 Their king is the angel from the
bottomless pit; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in
Greek, Apollyon-- the Destroyer.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• God as the righteous judge takes responsibility for
the sentence; however, Satan carries it out
• It is just that, “a sentence” upon those that have
chosen to disobey
• Remember, MERCY refused leaves only wrath,
corruption, and destruction!
• NKJ John 10:10 "The thief does not come except to steal,
and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have
life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
• God brings the life of God (Greek “zoe”
pronounced zō-ā) to all that He touches
• Satan brings death and destruction to all he
touches
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Furthermore, God takes the responsibility for the
good angel He created, called “Lucifer”, who
invented sin and became known as Satan - the
head of all fallen angels
• NKJ Ezekiel 28:15 You [Lucifer] were perfect in your
ways from the day you were created, Till iniquity was
found in you.
• NKJ Isaiah 54:16 "Behold, I have created the blacksmith
Who blows the coals in the fire, Who brings forth an
instrument for his work; And I have created the spoiler
[Satan] to destroy. (Words in “[]” added by author)
• Lucifer (i.e., bright shining one) was not created
evil by God but rather he chose to become evil and
God then changed his name to Satan (i.e., accuser
of the brethren)
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Nevertheless, God takes full responsibility for
Satan’s doings since He is His creation gone bad
• In addition, Satan must do his acts of destruction
within the bounds of God’s law
• For Satan to harm a righteous person (i.e., a
person that has not sinned and thus not chosen
Satan as their master) would violate God’s law
and lead to Satan’s removal as “God of this
World”
• That is what is pictured in the Passover - blood on
the door posts represents people that have been
made righteous by the blood of the lamb - our
Jesus!
• These people Satan can not touch
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• This was all setting the trap of the cross of Calvary
where Satan would take the life of an innocent
Man
• There he broke the rule, that God observes and
requires of Satan, of not overriding the will of a
person
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you
except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who
will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able,
but with the temptation will also make the way of escape,
that you may be able to bear it.
• Jesus was more than able to take the fullness of
Satan’s temptation without God the Father having
to limit it as He does our temptations
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ James 1:14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn
away by his own desires and enticed. 15 Then, when desire
has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is fullgrown, brings forth death.
• Satan never makes us sin but rather tempts us by
our own desires and we chose to sin
• NKJ Romans 6:16 Do you not know that to whom you
present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves
whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of
obedience leading to righteousness?
• When we sin we are in effect saying that Satan is
our master!
• He then starts bringing death into our lives (i.e.,
death of relationships, health, wealth, etc.)
• NKJ Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the
gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Matthew 26:39 He went a little farther and fell on His
face, and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if it is possible, let
this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as
You will.”
• The cup represented entering into covenant or
union with Satan - a covenant of death - for us
• NKJ John 19:29 Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting
there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on
hyssop, and put it to His mouth. 30 So when Jesus had
received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished!" And
bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.
• Jesus had refused the wine mixed with pain killer
earlier but willingly accepts the sour wine
(vinegar) because it represented Him joining
himself to Satan for us and becoming our sin
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Luke 23:46 And when Jesus had cried out with a loud
voice, He said, "Father, 'into Your hands I commit My
spirit.' " Having said this, He breathed His last. (compare
Psalms 31:5)
• By these verses Jesus went on record that He had
chosen God and not Satan - chosen righteousness
and not sin
• Jesus was not out of His mind, nor deceived, but
rather willingly chose to become sin (i.e., joined to
Satan and separated from God) in order to take our
punishment thus paying our debt for the sin of
rebellion against a Holy God in the Garden of
Eden
• NKJ Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love
toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died
for us.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Satan apparently thought that God the Father
turned His back on Jesus, and the Holy Spirit
withdrew from Him, because of some sin Jesus
had committed
• When in fact these things occurred because Jesus
took upon Himself our sin - but He never sinned
• Therefore, Satan took the life of an innocent man
• Satan broke the rule of violating a person’s will,
thus God the righteous (i.e., fair) judge - even to
Satan - removed the authority from him over
planet Earth and gave it back to Jesus
• NKJ Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and spoke to them,
saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and
on earth.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Man had been given rule over all of planet Earth
when created in the Garden of Eden
• NAU Psalm 8:4 What is man that You take thought of him,
And the son of man that You care for him? 5 Yet You have
made him a little lower than God, And You crown him
with glory and majesty! 6 You make him to rule over the
works of Your hands; You have put all things under his
feet, 7 All sheep and oxen, And also the beasts of the
field, 8 The birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea,
Whatever passes through the paths of the seas.
• Satan had usurped this authority from Adam in the
Garden of Eden when man sinned
• Jesus restored this authority to the church
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and spoke to them,
saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and
on earth. 19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the
nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of
the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
• The authority to rule on Earth is in the Name of
Jesus!
• NKJ Philippians 2:9 Therefore God also has highly exalted
Him and given Him the name which is above every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of
those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under
the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
• Christians have been given the Name of Jesus
• NKJ Acts 4:12 "Nor is there salvation in any other, for
there is no other name under heaven given among men by
which we must be saved.”
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• Satan has been judged!
• NKJ John 16:8 "And when He [the Holy Spirit] has come,
He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and
of judgment: 9 "of sin, because they do not believe in Me;
10 "of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you
see Me no more; 11 "of judgment, because the ruler of this
world is judged. (words in “[]” added by author)
• This was spoken before the cross about what the
Holy Spirit would do after the cross
• All that follow Satan will reap his future sentence
of eternal separation from God in the Lake of Fire
• NKJ Revelation 20:14 Then Death and Hades were cast
into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And
anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into
the lake of fire.
Chapter 9: The Redemption and Deliverance from Egypt
• NKJ Exodus 13:15 'And it came to pass, when Pharaoh
was stubborn about letting us go, that the LORD killed all
the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man
and the firstborn of beast. Therefore I sacrifice to the
LORD all males that open the womb, but all the firstborn
of my sons I redeem.’
• It came to pass and the wailing for the dead began,
it surged forth in a mighty cry from every house of
the Egyptians - from the lowest slave to Pharaoh
himself - All OUTSIDE OF MERCY
• MERCY offered and refused leaving only death
• The high, educated, intellect of man will challenge
the right of even GOD, and blaspheme Him for it,
BUT, everyone on the whole Earth will be
HUMBLED
Prayer
Oh Precious Father, please give us, Lord, the mind
of Jesus; make us holy as HE, is: may we prove
we’ve been with Jesus, who is all our righteousness.
Teach us, we pray, that though our-own-will is a
wild beast, yet THY WILL is a Mercy-ing Savior.
Sweet Will of God! Amen
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• NKJ Genesis 6:8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the
LORD.
• The word grace above is the Hebrew word “hhen”
meaning “loving favor”
• In studying what the Bible teaches about MERCY
in the Old Covenant, it is very interesting to know
that there are several Hebrew words that are in the
English translated “Mercy”
• Furthermore, there are five different English
words used as the translation of the one Hebrew
word, “hhesed”
• In addition, the word for “grace” in Genesis 6:8
above is sometimes translated mercy
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• NKJ Psalm 27:7 Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my
voice! Have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
• This Hebrew word translated, mercy, is a form of
the word “hhen” often translated as grace (i.e.,
favor) in the Bible
• NKJ Isaiah 49:13 Sing, O heavens! Be joyful, O earth!
And break out in singing, O mountains! For the LORD has
comforted His people, And will have mercy on His
afflicted.
• In this case the word translated mercy is the
Hebrew word “rahham” that is more properly the
love expressed in the word “compassion”
• It is impossible to understand the Bible apart from
these words
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• Even the truth of humility has only a slave
meaning apart from the word mercy, and its
associates
• That which is going to “fill the Earth,” in the days
ahead, cannot be understood apart from the word
MERCY
• The evils that are thought of as ruling the world
are all of them the opposites to God’s MERCY
• However, it is not so important to remember the
Hebrew words themselves
• They are used mostly for the sake of giving the
reader a realization of the scope of the subject
somewhat as it appears in the ancient language
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• NKJ Genesis 6:8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the
LORD.
• The subsequent events show that the result of the
grace (loving favor) was a very great MERCY
• He was given the wisdom to construct a great ship
as a means for passing safely through a
catastrophe which must have been a cataclysm of
nature
• Apparently it was a complete change of some kind
in the atmospherical conditions of the world
• The wickedness of man was very great in the
Earth, and every imagination of thoughts of his
heart only evil continually
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD,
and the MERCY done to him opened out into a
new epoch in the world’s history
• Here, again, as in the plagues upon Egypt
centuries later, the MERCY offered to Noah was
evidently offered to the people around him
• His boat-building industry could hardly have
failed to become known, and very widely known,
because of the sensational nature of the purpose of
its construction
• NKJ 2 Peter 2:5 and did not spare the ancient world, but
saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of
righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the
ungodly;
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• There can be no question that Noah, called a
preacher of righteousness, preached a mighty
warning message to the comparatively small world
of his day
• Anyone who wished to do so could have learned
from him how to build a boat that would save
them
• He was just, and walked with God, and anyone
who was willing to believe God like He did could
certainly have made preparations like he did
• NKJ Matthew 24:37 "But as the days of Noah were, so
also will the coming of the Son of Man be.
• This verse meant not only the evils, but also the
MERCY offered
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• This time, the saving structure will not be a boat,
or anything that human ingenuity can produce
• This time it will have to be a temple-of-God
• There will be a “building of God” that will BE A
SAVING structure capable of saving God’s people
in and through the midst of such a fiery
reconstruction of the creation as has not entered
into man’s mind
• The MERCY done to Noah, and for him, was that
which filled his need
• It was God meeting and filling his need
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• From Jesus’ lips came the word in His day
• NKJ Matthew 24:37 "But as the days of Noah were, so
also will the coming of the Son of Man be.
• The MERCY done to Noah was a deliverance so
great that it was the means of repopulating the
water destroyed Earth
• It was not only a great destruction and terrific
cataclysm of natural forces
• It was also a greater MERCY, a far more superior
working of God FOR the ones who went through
it
• This distinctly means that the MERCY provided
was superior to all forces involved
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• We are in danger of not seeing such facts, in our
zeal in emphasizing the destruction side of
judgment
• The MERCY side is very much greater
• In this study, through the Bible on MERCY, the
fact becomes very prominent that mercy was the
great thing in all judgments
• That the destruction only came as the effect of
refusing MERCY offered
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• Next we look at Lot and then Abraham
• NKJ Luke 17:28 "Likewise as it was also in the days of
Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they
planted, they built; 29 "but on the day that Lot went out of
Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and
destroyed them all. 30 "Even so will it be in the day when
the Son of Man is revealed.
• As in Noah’s day, warning was given even to the
wicked dwellers-in-Sodom
• NKJ Genesis 19:19 "Indeed now, your servant has found
favor in your sight, and you have increased your mercy
which you have shown me by saving my life; but I cannot
escape to the mountains, lest some evil overtake me and I
die.
• This verse above contains the first use of the
Hebrew word “hhesed,” MERCY, in the Bible
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• However, this does not mean the first act of
MERCY by God
• In this verse Lot is speaking to the angels who
were sent to warn him
• NKJ Genesis 19:19 "Indeed now, your servant has found
favor [hhen or grace] in your sight, and you have increased
your mercy [hhesed] which you have shown me by saving
my life; but I cannot escape to the mountains, lest some
evil overtake me and I die. 20 "See now, this city is near
enough to flee to, and it is a little one; please let me escape
there (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live." 21
And he said to him, "See, I have favored you concerning
this thing also, in that I will not overthrow this city for
which you have spoken. (Words in “[]” added by author)
• It seems that Lot was a city-lover, like many of us
today - he wanted to stay in his element
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• His choices caused Abraham to have to save him
repeatedly (i.e., he was Abraham’s “Lot in Life”!)
• Because of Lot’s request for MERCY, the “little
city” was pronounced exempt from the impending
judgement!
• It is a very significant thing under the
circumstances, showing how far God will go when
asked
• The angels said, “escape to the mountains” but Lot
said, “ I cannot escape lest some evil take me and I
die”
• He may have been vexed day by day with the
filthy conduct of the people around him in Sodom
and Gomorrah, but his soul longed for the city life
just the same
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• NKJ 2 Peter 2:6 and turning the cities of Sodom and
Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction,
making them an example to those who afterward would
live ungodly; 7 and delivered righteous Lot, who was
oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked
• However, when the flaming destruction fell on the
city where he had been living, it scared him so bad
that he was afraid to try to live in even the “little
city” of Zoar for which he had pled, saying, “Is
this not a little one?”
• NKJ Genesis 19:30 Then Lot went up out of Zoar and
dwelt in the mountains, and his two daughters were with
him; for he was afraid to dwell in Zoar. And he and his two
daughters dwelt in a cave.
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• That evident weakness in Lot makes the MERCY
offered to him stand out all the more clearly
• What a tremendous working of MERCY operating
within the overwhelmingly wrath of judgment!
• Anyone in Sodom could have fled with him had
they so desired
• If we oppose what the Bible teaches about
MERCY, there is nothing left but wrath
• Sometimes people even get “wrathy” and upset in
challenging the truth of MERCY as it seems to
them that a too-great generosity is being presented
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• However, we must not give in to such arguments
because we may lose the keenness of perception as
to what the Bible actually teaches about MERCY
• What the Bible teaches is super-important!
• God has put these things in the Bible so as to open
our eyes
• Jesus said, “As it was in the days of Lot… so shall
it be in the Day when the Son of man is revealed.”
Mercy is going to survive the wrath of Judgment in those who have given their lives to the DOING
of it
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• Why did not Jesus say, As in the days of Abraham
• Abraham was the great one
• He was living and praying for Lot, and Abraham
knew what was going to happen
• You would think that Jesus would have spoken of
Abraham rather than Lot!
• But, Jesus was not only describing the calamity of
destruction and its suddenness
• He was also describing a triumph of MERCY!
• The whole account, as given in the Bible, shows
vividly the fact that MERCY was amazingly in
operation in the very midst of the judgment
against evils
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• The PURPOSE of “judgment” is to uphold the
position of the righteous
• But this MERCY was to Abraham, too
• NKJ Genesis 19:29 And it came to pass, when God
destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered
Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow,
when He overthrew the cities in which Lot had dwelt.
• Abraham was called to be a “blesser” of mankind
• In him and in his seed all nations were to be
blessed
• Anything that blessing does is MERCY
• The whole universe is run that way
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• No outreach of science and its mathematics will
ever pass beyond the limits of blessing-mercy
• It is there, EVERYWHERE, operating in the
vastness of space just as surely as in the Bible
account of God’s dealings on this Earth
• The prophet Micah says:
– NKJ Micah 7:18 Who is a God like You, Pardoning
iniquity And passing over the transgression of the
remnant of His heritage? He does not retain His anger
forever, Because He delights in mercy. 19 He will again
have compassion on us, And will subdue our iniquities.
You will cast all our sins Into the depths of the sea. 20
You will give truth to Jacob And mercy to Abraham,
Which You have sworn to our fathers From days of old.
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• God has involved Himself in oaths made to human
beings - TO DO MERCY!
• Abraham like Moses was humble and meek
• In both of them their humility consisted in a
willingness to DO God’s mercy for Him
• NKJ Luke 1:67 Now his father Zacharias was filled with
the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:68 "Blessed is the
Lord God of Israel, For He has visited and redeemed His
people, 69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us In
the house of His servant David, 70 As He spoke by the
mouth of His holy prophets, Who have been since the
world began, 71 That we should be saved from our
enemies And from the hand of all who hate us, 72 To
perform the mercy promised to our fathers And to
remember His holy covenant, 73 The oath which He
swore to our father Abraham:
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• This passage of scripture directly concerns the
appearance of Jesus, the Redeemer and the
Salvation of God
• HE is “the MERCY” promised to Abraham
• He was willing to be made “the MERCY”
• NKJ Galatians 3:13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse
of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written,
"Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"), 14 that the
blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in
Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the
Spirit through faith.
• The promise of the Holy Spirit is described above
as the “blessing of Abraham” - a truly supreme
MERCY
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• In fact, the whole book of Galatians is describing
That MERCY, that in Jesus Christ, is the “blessing
of Abraham”
• God still remembers Abraham - and the MERCY!
• Note the progressive revelation of the MERCY of
God in the lives of Noah, Abraham, and Moses
• When God told Noah He was going to destroy all
people, thought obedient to God, he did not
intercede with God for any of them but was
content that he and his family would be saved
• NKJ Genesis 6:13 And God said to Noah, "The end of all
flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with
violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them
with the earth.
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• NKJ Genesis 6:22 Thus Noah did; according to all that
God commanded him, so he did.
• When God told Abraham that He was going to
destroy Sodom and Gomorrah he interceded with
God for the righteous to be saved
• NKJ Genesis 18:20 And the LORD said, "Because the
outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because
their sin is very grave, 21 "I will go down now and see
whether they have done altogether according to the outcry
against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know.”...
23 And Abraham came near and said, "Would You also
destroy the righteous with the wicked?... 25 "Far be it from
You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with
the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked;
far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do
right?"
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• Abraham’s concern was with the fairness to those
keeping the rules of God (i.e, they deserved to live
for their sake)
• When God told Moses that He was going to
destroy all of Israel he interceded for ALL of their
lives for God’s sake!
• NKJ Exodus 32:9 And the LORD said to Moses, "I have
seen this people, and indeed it is a stiff-necked people! 10
"Now therefore, let Me alone, that My wrath may burn hot
against them and I may consume them. And I will make of
you a great nation." 11 Then Moses pleaded with the
LORD his God, and said: "LORD, why does Your wrath
burn hot against Your people whom You have brought out
of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty
hand?
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• NKJ Exodus 32:12 "Why should the Egyptians speak, and
say, 'He brought them out to harm them, to kill them in the
mountains, and to consume them from the face of the
earth'? Turn from Your fierce wrath, and relent from this
harm to Your people.
• Both Noah and Abraham were selfish in their
motives being concerned only for their family and
friends respectively
• However, Moses demonstrates the highest motive
of MERCY - for God’s sake, because only He
deserves it!
• Furthermore, Moses was willing to be separated
from God that Israel might be saved (i.e, he was
selfless)
• NKJ John 15:13 "Greater love has no one than this, than to
lay down one's life for his friends.
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• Moses:
– NKJ Exodus 32:32 "Yet now, if You will forgive their
sin -- but if not, I pray, blot me out of Your book which
You have written.”
• Later Jesus was separated from God to save us:
– NKJ Romans 5:7 For scarcely for a righteous man will
one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would
even dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love
toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ
died for us.
• The Apostle Paul also had this motive:
– NLT Romans 9:3 for my people, my Jewish brothers
and sisters. I would be willing to be forever cursed-- cut
off from Christ!-- if that would save them.
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• We are to allow God to change our motive from
from only being concerned about the salvation of
ourselves and family, to concern for the salvation
of good people, to saving all mankind for God’s
sake (Are you willing to be made willing?)
• God made mankind because He desired to not be
alone but rather have a family to love
• However, Adam chose to join Satan’s family and
separated the human race from God
• Therefore, God sent His unique Son Jesus to take
our sentence of death in order that we can be free
to be a member of His family
• Consequently, we are to save the lost so God can
have the family He desires and deserves (i.e., save
them for God’s sake)
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• Lastly we look at MERCY in King David’s life
• David’s entire life is an exhibition of what God’s
MERCY IS
• David, himself, attributed every triumph, at all
times, to the MERCY of God
• NKJ Psalm 13:5 But I have trusted in Your mercy; My
heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.
• NKJ Psalm 18:50 Great deliverance He gives to His king,
And shows mercy to His anointed, To David and his
descendants forevermore.
• The great theme, and supreme climax of the songs
that his choirs sang, was:
– NKJ Psalm 106:1 Praise the LORD! Oh, give thanks to
the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures
forever.
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• All of David’s greatness, power, wealth, and
victory over his enemies were attributed to one
direct cause - The MERCY of God!
• There came an hour in which Satan opposed the
triumph of that MERCY, and the God of MERCY
• Seeking to break through the anointing of David
• Satan tried to effect one thing: a deed that in its
nature was the very evil that MERCY is not
• He pressed David to take another man’s wife, and
as a direct consequence to order the murder of the
man
• It was aimed at the very source of David’s
anointing and fellowship with his lovingkindnessGod
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• David’s prayer in Psalms 51 shows the faith of a
truly repentant heart, broken and feeling regret for
the sin, but believing and certain in the assurance
of God’s MERCY
• It is MERCY that breaks the stubborn heart, and it
is MERCY that raises the broken heart to the
certainty of faith
• NKJ Psalm 51:1 To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David
when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in
to Bathsheba. Have mercy [hhen] upon me, O God,
According to Your lovingkindness [hhesed]; According to
the multitude of Your tender mercies [rahhamim], Blot out
my transgressions.
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• In the Hebrew it reads, “Grace me, O God,
according to thy mercy, and according to thy
much compassion, blot out my transgression.”
• And then:
• NKJ Psalm 51: 2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
And cleanse me from my sin. 3 For I acknowledge my
transgressions, And my sin is always before me. 4 Against
You, You only, have I sinned, And done this evil in Your
sight -- That You may be found just when You speak, And
blameless when You judge. 5 Behold, I was brought forth
in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me. 6
Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, And in the
hidden part You will make me to know wisdom. 7 Purge
me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall
be whiter than snow.
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• New Christians are typically like children,
repenting of sin because they do not like the
consequence it brings in their lives (i.e., sorry for
being caught)
• This is the same type of repentance that is in the
world and it leads to death (i.e., separation from
God - think of Adam and Eve’s first sin response)
• NKJ 2 Corinthians 7:10 For godly sorrow produces
repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the
sorrow of the world produces death.
• However, maturing Christians realize that all sin is
first and foremost a sin against God our creator
• Consequently, we must run to Him as He is
always for us and is the only one that can help us
out of the mess we have created
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
NKJ Psalm 51:8 Make me hear joy and gladness, That the
bones You have broken may rejoice. 9 Hide Your face from
my sins, And blot out all my iniquities. 10 Create in me a
clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take
Your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of Your
salvation, And uphold me by Your generous Spirit. 13 Then I
will teach transgressors Your ways, And sinners shall be
converted to You. 14 Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed,
O God, The God of my salvation, And my tongue shall sing
aloud of Your righteousness. 15 O Lord, open my lips, And
my mouth shall show forth Your praise. 16 For You do not
desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in
burnt offering. 17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit,
A broken and a contrite heart -- These, O God, You will not
despise.
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• All MERCY, ALL NEED, to be sure, but all
mercies for all need
• NKJ Psalm 23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow
me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of
the LORD Forever.
• David was many years in the training of lowliness
and mercy
• NKJ Isaiah 55:3 Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear,
and your soul shall live; And I will make an everlasting
covenant with you -- The sure mercies of David.
• The verse above describes the relationship of
David to God
• “The sure MERCIES (hhesed) of David”!
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• We have touched on the sin, the exceeding great
sin of David
• We hope that it is clear to all that MERCY,
through repentance, puts an end to sin
• One does not sin into MERCY but out of it
• We do not come into MERCY by sin; rather by sin
we go out of MERCY
• But when we turn to God, from sin, we forsake the
sin for the MERCY that takes its place and fills
the need
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• When for instance I testify that corrupt, wicked,
and vile as I was, God, nevertheless did not
reproach me, but did MERCY to me
• I am not testifying that He was encouraging me to
continue in sin
• Neither am I saying that He put a sort of premium
on sin
• Nor am I saying that the sin was not reckoned as
very great in His sight
• What I am saying is that though I was NOTHING
BUT sin, everything gone and only sin remaining,
my God needed not strike me for the sin with
reproaches
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• Instead He brought MERCY into view, in such a
complete contrast to the evil, that there could
remain no more any mistake as to the nature of sin
• And by the same view no mistake as to the nature
of GRACE doing MERCY in COMPASSION in
order to bring me to peace in God
• The result, then, of choosing, by repentance, the
mercy-brought-into-view, was a cleaving unto
God with the whole heart - UNAFRAID - for a
riddance of the sin, and for cleansing away of its
place and power
• For after all, sin is something else in God’s place
in one’s life
• And MERCY is God assuming His rightful place
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• The mercy of God, who is rich in MERCY, is not
only dealing with the sinfulness of sin
• The MERCY is also His complete and fulfilling
provision for that which is to take the place of the
sin
• The great wonder of His love is that He offers
HIMSELF to take the place of sin
• And that is what MERCY is as related to sin
• In Jesus Christ, God offers Himself as the life of
righteousness that takes the place that sin had
ruled in
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 1:30 But of Him you are in Christ
Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God -- and
righteousness and sanctification and redemption --
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• Mercy is not only pardon and cleansing; MERCY
is also God filling the need of the sinner’s heart
with Himself
• That is “MERCY,” that is God, and it describes
what His will is
• NKJ Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love
toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died
for us.
• NKJ John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave
His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him
should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 "For God
did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world,
but that the world through Him might be saved.
• NKJ 1 John 4:19 We love Him because He first loved us.
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• The message of GRACE, MERCY, and
COMPASSION leads to victory over sin not to sin
• NKJ Romans 5:20 Moreover the law entered that the
offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace
abounded much more, 21 so that as sin reigned in death,
even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal
life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
• NKJ Romans 6:1 What shall we say then? Shall we
continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not!
How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?
• NKJ Romans 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over
you, for you are not under law but under grace. 15 What
then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under
grace? Certainly not! 16 Do you not know that to whom
you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's
slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or
of obedience leading to righteousness?
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• NKJ Romans 6:22 But now having been set free from sin,
and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to
holiness, and the end, everlasting life. 23 For the wages of
sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ
Jesus our Lord.
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 6:12 All things are lawful for me, but
all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I
will not be brought under the power of any.
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 10:23 All things are lawful for me, but
not all things are helpful; all things are lawful for me, but
not all things edify.
• NLT Romans 6:13 Do not let any part of your body
become a tool of wickedness, to be used for sinning.
Instead, give yourselves completely to God since you have
been given new life. And use your whole body as a tool to
do what is right for the glory of God.
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• NKJ Titus 2:11 For the grace of God that brings salvation
has appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying
ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly,
righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 looking for
the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God
and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us, that
He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify
for Himself His own special people, zealous for good
works.
• We have been created in Christ for good works
not sin, not idleness
• NKJ Ephesians 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created
in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared
beforehand that we should walk in them.
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• The message of GRACE, MERCY, and
COMPASSION is to energize not paralyze
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am
what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I
labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the
grace of God which was with me.
• NKJ 2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to make all grace
[i.e., FAVOR] abound toward you, that you, always having
all sufficiency in all things [i.e., MERCY], may have an
abundance for every good work. 9 As it is written: "He has
dispersed abroad, He has given to the poor [i.e.,
COMPASSION]; His righteousness endures forever."
(Words in “[]” added by author)
• NKJ 2 Thessalonians 3:10 For even when we were with
you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work,
neither shall he eat.
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• The message of GRACE, MERCY, and
COMPASSION is to produce fervency not apathy
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 3:10 According to the grace of God
which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have
laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each
one take heed how he builds on it.
• NKJ Ephesians 3:7 of which I became a minister according
to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective
working of His power. 8 To me, who am less than the least
of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach
among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
• The message of GRACE, MERCY, and
COMPASSION draws us to God not away from
Him
• NKJ Romans 2:4 Or do you despise the riches of His
goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing
that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?
Chapter 10: Noah - Abraham - David
I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from
whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, I ask
that He would grant us, according to the riches of His glory,
to be strengthened with might through His Holy Spirit in the
inner man, that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith;
that we, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to
comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length
and depth and height - to know the love of Christ which
passes knowledge; that we may be filled with all the fullness
of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly
abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the
power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by
Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Prayer based on Ephesians 3:14-21
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
Blessed Father, coming in the precious name of
Jesus who is Thy mercy and Thy salvation, we ask
for Your blessing now. Open, we pray, our
understanding to understand the scriptures of truth.
Let us see You, even in the dimness of the Old
Covenant law; and show us how to live by all the
words that proceed out of the mouth of God. Teach
us to love You with all our heart, and our neighbor
as ourselves, and to love our brother as Jesus has
loved us. Amen
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• This study starts with the sending of spies from
the wilderness into the Promised Land recorded in
Numbers Chapters 13 and 14
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• NKJ Numbers 13:1 And the LORD spoke to Moses,
saying, 2 "Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which
I am giving to the children of Israel; from each tribe of
their fathers you shall send a man, every one a leader
among them.” ...17 Then Moses sent them to spy out the
land of Canaan, and said to them, "Go up this way into the
South, and go up to the mountains, 18 "and see what the
land is like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong
or weak, few or many; 19 "whether the land they dwell in
is good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit are like
camps or strongholds; 20 "whether the land is rich or
poor; and whether there are forests there or not. Be of good
courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land." Now the
time was the season of the first ripe grapes. 21 So they
went up and spied out the land...
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• NKJ Numbers 13:23 Then they came to the Valley of
Eshcol, and there cut down a branch with one cluster of
grapes; they carried it between two of them on a pole.
They also brought some of the pomegranates and figs.
• ...26 Now they departed and came back to Moses and
Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel in
the Wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; they brought back
word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them
the fruit of the land. 27 Then they told him, and said: "We
went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk
and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 "Nevertheless the
people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are
fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants
of Anak [i.e., race of Giants] there. (Words in “[]” added
by author)
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• NKJ Numbers 13:30 Then Caleb quieted the people before
Moses, and said, "Let us go up at once and take
possession, for we are well able to overcome it." 31 But
the men who had gone up with him said, "We are not able
to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we."
32 And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the
land which they had spied out, saying, "The land through
which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its
inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men
of great stature. 33 "There we saw the giants (the
descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were
like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their
sight."
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• NKJ Numbers 14:1 So all the congregation lifted up their
voices and cried, and the people wept that night. 2 And all
the children of Israel complained against Moses and
Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, "If only
we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if only we had died in
this wilderness! 3 "Why has the LORD brought us to this
land to fall by the sword, that our wives and children
should become victims? Would it not be better for us to
return to Egypt?" 4 So they said to one another, "Let us
select a leader and return to Egypt." 5 Then Moses and
Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the
congregation of the children of Israel. 6 But Joshua the
son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who were
among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes;
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• NKJ Numbers 14:7 and they spoke to all the congregation
of the children of Israel, saying: "The land we passed
through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. 8 "If the
LORD delights in us, then He will bring us into this land
and give it to us, 'a land which flows with milk and honey.'
9 "Only do not rebel against the LORD, nor fear the people
of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has
departed from them, and the LORD is with us. Do not fear
them." 10 And all the congregation said to stone them with
stones. Now the glory of the LORD appeared in the
tabernacle of meeting before all the children of Israel. 11
Then the LORD said to Moses: "How long will these
people reject Me? And how long will they not believe Me,
with all the signs which I have performed among them?
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• NKJ Numbers 14:12 "I will strike them with the pestilence
and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater
and mightier than they." 13 And Moses said to the LORD:
"Then the Egyptians will hear it, for by Your might You
brought these people up from among them, 14 "and they
will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have heard
that You, LORD, are among these people; that You,
LORD, are seen face to face and Your cloud stands above
them, and You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day
and in a pillar of fire by night. 15 "Now if You kill these
people as one man, then the nations which have heard of
Your fame will speak, saying, 16 'Because the LORD was
not able to bring this people to the land which He swore to
give them, therefore He killed them in the wilderness.'
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• NKJ Numbers 14:17 "And now, I pray, let the power of
my LORD be great, just as You have spoken, saying, 18
'The LORD is longsuffering and abundant in mercy,
forgiving iniquity and transgression; but He by no means
clears the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the
children to the third and fourth generation.' 19 "Pardon the
iniquity of this people, I pray, according to the greatness of
Your mercy, just as You have forgiven this people, from
Egypt even until now." 20 Then the LORD said: "I have
pardoned, according to your word; 21 "but truly, as I live,
all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD --
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• The spies had gone up into Canaan Land and
returned
• They brought back tales of giant men, and a
visible bunch, a giant bunch of grapes
• They were afraid to try and enter and conquer the
Land
• They gave a discouraging report that made void all
of God’s promises and commandments
• When we do not believe God we limit what He
can do in our lives by nullifying the power of His
word in our lives
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• NKJ Psalm 78:41 Yes, again and again they tempted God,
And limited the Holy One of Israel.
• NKJ Hebrews 3:17 Now with whom was He angry forty
years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses
fell in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did He swear that
they would not enter His rest, but to those who did not
obey? 19 So we see that they could not enter in because of
unbelief. 4:1 Therefore, since a promise remains of
entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have
come short of it. 2 For indeed the gospel was preached to
us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did
not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who
heard it.
• NKJ Mark 7:13 "making the word of God of no effect
through your tradition which you have handed down. And
many such things you do."
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• Two of the twelve, Joshua and Caleb, brought a
report of faith in God, and were rewarded by the
promise that they should live to inherit the Land
• The Lord, speaking to His servant Moses, said that
He would disinherit the people and destroy them
with pestilence, and make of Moses a greater and
mightier nation than they
• Then Moses stood as the intercessor asking that
the people be spared for the honor and glory of the
Lord
• Moses displayed the proper motive for prayer
again - for God’s sake (i.e., a selfless motive)
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• One thing, supremely, does the Christ-like
intercessor plead: the fact of God’s great MERCY
• In the power of the knowledge of that MERCY
Moses prevails
• Numbers 14:19 "Pardon the iniquity of this people, I pray,
according to the greatness of Your mercy, just as You have
forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.”
• This Law seems to place the LORD God in a
discrediting light, as of one suddenly flaming with
anger to destroy the rebellious people
• While the human leader seeks to placate Him and
to change His behavior
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• It is one of the great mysteries of God’s Kingdom
that He limits Himself to the capacity of human
beings; and takes thousands of years to
accomplish purposes which we would think He
should complete in a single generation
• He shapes a man to the mold of the need, and
limits Himself to that man
• One reason for His doing so is that the creature
called “man” was made in His Image
• From Adam to Christ, God was carrying through
the processes by which that image should at last
emerge, perfected and triumphant over all the
powers of evil
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• At every step through the long centuries there
appears, and reappears one supreme revelation of
this God and His working
• It is His MERCY
• And nowhere does the truth of it appear more
clearly and vividly than at the points where some
son-of-Adam fills the calling of Intercessor
• Another part of the mystery is in this: the
intercessor is actually acting FOR God before Him
• It is God’s own Spirit of Truth that fills the “prayer” to intercede before God, AS God wants to do
Himself
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• The Old Covenant presents what would happen if
God’s MERCY were withdrawn when the Evil
One seduces those who are under the MERCY to
despise it and turn from it
• And the intercessor seems to change God Himself
from a human type of anger
• In the New Covenant it appears as it really is, i.e.,
that the devil is the destroyer and the “curser” and
the author of evils and wrath; but the intercessor
stands before God, to intercede against the
Adversary, in order that the working of MERCY
may continue
• In Jesus we see it:
– NKJ Luke 23:34a Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive
them, for they do not know what they do."
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• There is nothing like this intercession in the world,
apart from the revelation of the working of the
MERCY of God
• Here, we have read the condensed wording of a
mighty prayer of intercession by which the Evil
One was overthrown
• The quality of God that emerges by this means is
MERCY
• In this case, pardoning MERCY:
– NKJ Numbers 14:20 Then the LORD said: "I have
pardoned, according to your word;
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• Lastly, part of the mystery is that in the Old
Covenant man did not understand that Satan
tempted man into sin by playing on our desires
• NKJ James 1:14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn
away by his own desires and enticed. 15 Then, when desire
has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is fullgrown, brings forth death.
• Then he brought legal charges against man, whom
He seduced into sin, before God
• NKJ Revelation 12:10 Then I heard a loud voice saying in
heaven, "Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of
our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the
accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God
day and night, has been cast down.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• Then there was no man in Heaven to mount a
defense
• NKJ Job 9:33 Nor is there any mediator between us, Who
may lay his hand on us both.
• NKJ Job 16:21 Oh, that one might plead for a man with
God, As a man pleads for his neighbor!
• God the Father then simply enforced the law as an
unbiased, merciful, and righteous judge giving
Satan permission to inflict man, but with limits
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you
except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who
will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able,
but with the temptation will also make the way of escape,
that you may be able to bear it.
• An example of this is recorded in the book of Job
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• YLT Job 1:8 And Jehovah saith unto the Adversary [i.e.,
Satan], 'Hast thou set thy heart against My servant Job
because there is none like him in the land, a man perfect
and upright, fearing God, and turning aside from evil?' 9
And the Adversary answereth Jehovah and saith, 'For
nought is Job fearing God? 10 Hast not Thou made a
hedge for him, and for his house, and for all that he hath -round about? 11 The work of his hands Thou hast blessed,
and his substance hath spread in the land, and yet, put
forth, I pray Thee, Thy hand, and strike against anything
that he hath -- if not: to Thy face he doth bless Thee!' 12
And Jehovah saith unto the Adversary, 'Lo, all that he hath
{is} in thy hand, only unto him put not forth thy hand.'
And the Adversary goeth out from the presence of
Jehovah. (Words in “[]” added by author)
• Satan then went forth to kill, steal, and destroy all
that Job has including children, servants, and
possessions but does not harm Job (God’s limit)
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• Today we have a High Priest, a mediator, an
intercessor, an advocate in Heaven - the God-Man
- our Lord Jesus Christ!
• NKJ Hebrews 4:15 For we do not have a High Priest who
cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all
points tempted as we are, yet without sin.
• NKJ 1 Timothy 2:5 For there is one God and one Mediator
between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus,
• NKJ Hebrews 7:25 Therefore He is also able to save to the
uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He
always lives to make intercession for them.
• NKJ 1 John 2:1 My little children, these things I write to
you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have
an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• NKJ Romans 8:31 What then shall we say to these things?
If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not
spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how
shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? 33
Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God
who justifies. 34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ
who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the
right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. 35
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall
tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or
nakedness, or peril, or sword? ...38 For I am persuaded that
neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor
powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor
height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able
to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ
Jesus our Lord.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• And then, as a shining gem lying alone and apart,
is the glorious 21st verse:
– NKJ Numbers 14:21 "but truly, as I live, all the earth
shall be filled with the glory of the LORD --
• How? Why? When?
• As the display of the truth of His MERCY
• For the LORD is over, and in, the MERCY of the
LORD
• Compare the significant word in:
– NKJ Leviticus 16:2b ...for I will appear in the
cloud above the mercy seat.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• God’s residence in Israel was that place
• And His cloud and fire, called the Shekinah, was
over that place
• The fullness of the Earth is His MERCY
• And the whole Earth shall be filled with His Glory
- that Glory (i.e., His MERCY)
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• NKJ Deuteronomy 7:12 " Then it shall come to pass,
because you listen to these judgments, and keep and do
them, that the LORD your God will keep with you the
covenant and the mercy which He swore to your fathers.
13 "And He will love you and bless you and multiply you;
He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of
your land, your grain and your new wine and your oil, the
increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flock, in
the land of which He swore to your fathers to give you. 14
"You shall be blessed above all peoples; there shall not be
a male or female barren among you or among your
livestock. 15 "And the LORD will take away from you all
sickness, and will afflict you with none of the terrible
diseases of Egypt which you have known, but will lay
them on all those who hate you.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• Some of the passages do not have the word
MERCY in them
• They do; however, show what the Bible teaches
about MERCY in the Law
• Here is a long list of mercies promised:
– love, multiply, blessings on all fruitfulness and increase
of family, land, grain, cattle, olives, sheep, blessed
above all peoples especially in fertility of both humans
and animals,
– and in addition a a breath-taking word: TO TAKE
AWAY ALL SICKNESS
• These are all mercies!
• How great is such MERCY as just described
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• Where today is the Christian church group in
which these mercies have full sway and power?
• Where is the place where ALL sickness is taken
away so that there is none at all?
• MERCY is not only the pardoning of sin, iniquity,
transgressions
• In MERCY are included innumerable blessings
that meet and fill innumerable needs
• In this passage they are named and can be
numbered
• It is good to get a clear understanding of what the
Bible teaches about MERCY
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(i.e., the Ten Commandments)
• Exodus 20:1-17 include the “ten words” called
also the Ten Commandments
• The purpose here is to show that every one of the
ten commandments issues in MERCY
• Their purpose and meaning is MERCY, spoken by
the God of MERCY
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The First Commandment)
• NKJ Exodus 20:3 " You shall have no other gods before
Me.
• He is merciful and gracious, longsuffering and of
great MERCY
• It is a supreme MERCY to know Him and to
worship Him
• The commandment guides into MERCY
• Furthermore, God designed us to become like
what we worship
• The plan was and is for us to worship the Lord and
resultantly be changed into His image
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Second Commandment)
• NKJ 2 Corinthians 3:18 But we all, with unveiled face,
beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being
transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just
as by the Spirit of the Lord.
• However, man has often been seduced into
worshiping a false God or a distorted version of
the one true God
• This has resulted in us becoming unlike the one
true God
• NKJ Psalm 115:4 Their idols are silver and gold, The work
of men's hands. They have mouths, but they do not speak;
Eyes they have, but they do not see; 6 They have ears, but
they do not hear; Noses they have, but they do not smell; 7
They have hands, but they do not handle; Feet they have,
but they do not walk; Nor do they mutter through their
throat. 8 Those who make them are like them; So is
everyone who trusts in them.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Second Commandment)
• Consequently:
– If you believe God is judgmental with your sins then
you will be judgmental of others
– If you believe God is impatient with your weaknesses
then you will be impatient with others
– If you believe God is uninvolved in your pain then you
will be uninvolved with others, etc
• However:
– If you believe God is GRACIOUS then you will be
gracious with others
– If you believe God is MERCIFUL then you will be
merciful with others
– If you believe God is COMPASSIONATE then you
will be compassionate with others, etc
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Second Commandment)
• NKJ Exodus 20:4 " You shall not make for yourself a
carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven
above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water
under the earth;
• A commandment rooted in MERCY
• For what more terrible thing can happen to the
man created in the image of God, than to turn the
truth of His Merciful Being into the worship of an
image, or an idea of some created thing or power
• Yet, we have many idols in our hearts that we
worship - many things we desire more than God
• NKJ Colossians 3:5 Therefore put to death your members
which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion,
evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.
• NKJ Matthew 6:21 "For where your treasure is, there your
heart will be also.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Second Commandment)
• Furthermore, if we come before God with a heart
full of our desires (idols) then we will be deceived
into thinking our will is God’s will
• NKJ Ezekiel 14:4 "Therefore speak to them, and say to
them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "Everyone of the house of
Israel who sets up his idols in his heart, and puts before
him what causes him to stumble into iniquity, and then
comes to the prophet, I the LORD will answer him who
comes, according to the multitude of his idols, 5 in order to
lay hold of the hearts of the house of Israel who are
estranged from Me
• God does this so that we will grow weary of our
ways and realize that surrendering control of our
lives to Him is the only option that leads to life
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Second Commandment)
• Remember Balaam who wanted profit more than
to obey God? (Numbers Chapter 22)
• God gave him permission to go with Balak (his
will) even though judgment awaited in the form of
an Angel blocking his path
• NKJ Acts 13:22b 'I have found David the son of
Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all
My will.'
• We must have our hearts set on doing all of God’s
will
• Partial obedience is not obedience at all!
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Second Commandment)
NKJ Luke 17:5 And the apostles said to the Lord, "Increase
our faith.”
6 So the Lord said, "If you have faith as a mustard seed, you
can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be pulled up by the roots
and be planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.
7 "And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending
sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field,
'Come at once and sit down to eat'?
8 "But will he not rather say to him, 'Prepare something for
my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten
and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink'?
• The servants job was to put food on the masters
plate which began in the field but was completed
in the dining room
• The message here is that our faith will grow when
we are obedient all the way to task completion
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Second Commandment)
• NKJ Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself also in the
LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your
heart.
• NKJ John 15:7 "If you abide in Me, and My words
abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it
shall be done for you.
• We must spend time with God with a neutral
(submitted) heart seeking His will for lives
• Then God will put His desires in our hearts and
cause them to come to pass as we trust (keep our
eyes on) Him
• So what is God’s primary purpose for our life?
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Second Commandment)
• NKJ Romans 8:28 And we know that all things
work together for good:
– to those who love God,
– to those who are the called according to His
purpose.
• If you are “head over heels” in love with God then
you will trust Him to always do what is best no
matter what the circumstances
• The winds and waves will not distract, for you are
are not walking on them, but rather on the “C”
• That is the C-o-m-e WORD as you keep your eyes
fixed on Jesus whom you trust with all your heart!
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Second Commandment)
• NKJ Romans 8:29 For whom He foreknew, He
also predestined to be conformed to the image of
His Son, that He might be the firstborn among
many brethren.
• We are called according to one major purpose:
to be conformed to the image of Jesus!
• Trusting God to cause everything to conform you
to Jesus will result in everything working to your
good
• The “good” that is being referred to is the
hastening of the process of Christ conformation in
our lives!
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Second Commandment)
The dearest idol I have known,
Whate’er that idol be,
Help me to tear it from thy throne,
And worship only thee
(William Cowper, 1772, Hymn Writer)
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Second Commandment)
• NKJ Exodus 20:5 you shall not bow down to them nor
serve them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God,
visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the
third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, 6 but
showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and
keep My commandments.
• He is “jealous” to preserve them; jealous to keep
them in the liberty that is in His MERCY and
TRUTH
• How blood-chilling is the expression, “those who
hate me”
• How can it be that creatures of clay can assert a
will and purpose to HATE the God of Mercies?
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Second Commandment)
• To “hate” God is to willfully chose to disobey
Him
• To “love” God is to willfully chose to obey Him
• NKJ John 14:23 Jesus answered and said to him, "If
anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father
will love him, and We will come to him and make Our
home with him. 24 "He who does not love Me does not
keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine
but the Father's who sent Me.
• The result of love is unity with God
• The result of hate is separation from God
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Third Commandment)
• NKJ Exodus 20:7 " You shall not take the name of the
LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him
guiltless who takes His name in vain.
• There are several ways to take His Name in vain:
– by the cursing of foul and evil words
accompanying His Name
– by false oath or appeal to His Name
– by laying blame upon Him
– by seeking to compel others by threat of fear
His Name so as to please one’s self
– by condemning others in His Name
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Third Commandment)
• This commandment is of MERCY, for as Jesus
said, all such vanities are evil
• NKJ Matthew 5:37 "But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your
'No,' 'No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil
one.
• There is no mercy in the evil one
• NKJ Proverbs 12:10 A righteous man regards the life of
his animal, But the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.
• We often take God’s name in vain when we say
that we trust Him but then talk and take actions as
if we do not
• For example, we thank God for being JehovahJireh our provider but then complain that we can
not pay our bills and turn to man for help
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Fourth Commandment)
• NKJ Exodus 20:8 " Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it
holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10
but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God.
In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your
daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant,
nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates.
11 For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the
earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh
day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and
hallowed it.
• He blessed and hallowed it
• On that day all self-works were to cease, in order
to rest and worship God the LORD
• That was MERCY, all MERCY
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Fourth Commandment)
• It is a very great MERCY in the lives of humans
and animals to have a day of rest every seventh
day
• How blessed it is that in Christ we may enter into
the true spiritual rest of God, and live in the
SPIRIT of Holiness - EVERY DAY
• A very powerful truth is here - MERCY never
ceases!
• The Sabbath was designed to exhibit that fact, and
to make them know:
• NKJ Leviticus 20:8 ' And you shall keep My statutes, and
perform them: I am the LORD who sanctifies you.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Fourth Commandment)
• And it is startling to find in the establishing of the
New Covenant that Christ Jesus, the guiltless One,
was condemned for doing MERCY on the Sabbath
days
• The day had become theirs, not God’s, and they
repudiated God in His own day
• Why? Because they did not know what this
means: “I will MERCY”
• They did not know what His MERCY IS, nor
what it means
• The Sabbath was MERCY
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Fifth Commandment)
• NKJ Exodus 20:12 " Honor your father and your mother,
that your days may be long upon the land which the LORD
your God is giving you.
• MERCY to father and mother was a distinct
means for God’s MERCY to the children
• It has its fuller meaning in this: that God is our
Father, and we can honor Him truly only in
MERCY
• Mercy-lovingkindness is the preservation of such
intimacy
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Sixth Commandment)
• NKJ Exodus 20:13 " You shall not murder.
• All violence, force, wrath, is opposite to the nature
of MERCY
• MERCY is LIFE-GIVING and life-imparting
• Our Heavenly Father considers our lives precious
• NKJ Psalm 116:15 Precious in the sight of the LORD Is
the death of His saints.
• God does not even take pleasure in the death of
the wicked
• NKJ Ezekiel 33:11a "Say to them: 'As I live,' says the Lord
GOD, 'I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but
that the wicked turn from his way and live.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Seventh Commandment)
• NKJ Exodus 20:14 " You shall not commit adultery.
• One cannot do God’s MERCY and commit
adultery
• The world is full of corruption through this lust
and other corruption-working desires
• This commandment is singularly a bulwark for
MERCY
• There is little MERCY in a life of unfaithfulness
(i.e., a faithless life)
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Eighth Commandment)
• NKJ Exodus 20:15 " You shall not steal.
•
•
•
•
How directly opposite to MERCY is stealing
MERCY is GIVING, providing, filling need
Stealing is a blinding of the eyes to MERCY
One does not steal in the passion of doing
MERCY-GIVING
• These commandments were great MERCIES
• They were knowledge
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Ninth Commandment)
• NKJ Exodus 20:16 " You shall not bear false witness
against your neighbor.
• Exactly opposite to MERCY is lying, and
especially lying about someone else
• If you realized what a liar you are yourself many
times in what you say with your mouth, you would
see the need of a MERCYING heart, and a
MERCY prayer, to deliver your lips from a lying
tongue
• NKJ Psalm 58:3 The wicked are estranged from the womb;
They go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Ninth Commandment)
• Psalms 120, following directly after the great
prayer Psalms 119, says:
• NKJ Psalm 120:2 Deliver my soul, O LORD, from lying
lips And from a deceitful tongue. 3 What shall be given to
you, Or what shall be done to you, You false tongue? 4
Sharp arrows of the warrior, With coals of the broom tree!
• Pierced through! And burned!
• The tongue needs to be pulled out by the roots, or,
have the roots changed from lying, judging,
criticizing, and evils, TO the outflowing of
MERCY
• To do God’s MERCY in the heart is TRUTH!
• The truth purges out the false deceitful tongue,
and gives freedom to the soul
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Ninth Commandment)
• I repeat, if you knew what a liar and deceiver you
are in some of the things that you say or express,
you would deny self, and humble yourself, and do
MERCY
• And that does not mean: tell others about MERCY
• It means do MERCY in your own heart toward the
ones you go around lying about
• The commandment is MERCY
• NKJ Colossians 4:6 Let your speech always be with grace,
seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to
answer each one.
• NKJ Proverbs 22:11 He who loves purity of heart And has
grace on his lips, The king will be his friend.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Ninth Commandment)
• NKJ James 3:8 But no man can tame the tongue. It is an
unruly evil, full of deadly poison.
• Only God can tame our tongue as we submit
control of it to Him
• NKJ Psalm 141:3 Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth;
Keep watch over the door of my lips.
• NKJ Matthew 12:34 "Brood of vipers! How can you, being
evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the
heart the mouth speaks.
• We must allow God to so fill our hearts with
MERCY, that MERCY comes out of our mouths
• God fills our hearts with MERCY as we DO
MERCY to others (e.g., pray the MERCY prayer)
• NKJ Matthew 5:7 Blessed are the merciful, For they shall
obtain mercy.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
• NKJ Exodus 20:17 " You shall not covet your neighbor's
house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, nor his
male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his
donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor's.”
• We stop abruptly lest someone say, “O I don’t
covet my neighbor’s house, or his wife, or his
servants, nor his oxen, or donkeys”
• But wait! Do you mean, for sure, that the
conclusion is true of you: “ANYTHING THAT IS
THY NEIGHBOR’S”?
• Anything! Do you mean that you covet
NOTHING?
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
• However, do not be afraid to mean that, for one of
the purposes of this kind of Bible study is to bring
full assurance to your heart that you CAN keep the
words of God
• We need Light to see what the way is, and to see
what hinders us from walking in it
• All the sin there ever was, and is, in the world
stems from the root of coveting
• Coveting is a fire of Evil that is the opposite of the
fire of Love - God’s Love
• Pride is the immediate result of coveting - its face,
its light
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
• There is a false fire and its false light: coveting is
the fire and pride is the light - its form, visibility,
exterior
• There is a true desire and its true light
• The true desire is Love (divine), and its light is
lowliness of heart and mind
• Coveting is LUST - a desire to gain and to
consume for one’s own self
• Love is the desire to GIVE what one is and what
one has, for the fulfilling of the needs of others
• The working of coveting-lust-gain is selfishness
with all its many forms, such as: self-interest, selfindulgence, self-pleasing, self-exalting, etc.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
• All are LUSTS
• The working of LOVE-true-desire is “MERCY”
(hhesed), which is the opposite of ALL those selfI-nesses
• There are named in the Bible there forms, or
stems, of coveting lust:
– The lust of the flesh
– The lust of the eyes
– The pride of life
• NKJ 1 John 2:16 For all that is in the world -- the lust of
the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life -- is not
of the Father but is of the world.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
•
•
•
•
These are called: “The love of the world”
The “love of the Father” is not in them
The love-of-the-Father is what we call “LOVE”
It is the love of God - the love that the Bible
teaches
• These three main branches of coveting-lust
include:
– All flesh loves that make the flesh to master the
soul
– The love of riches, possessions, goods-of -Earth
– The love of intellect and power, by which we
may equal or surpass, or rule over others
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
• These are distinctly idolatrous
• They are a love of exalting self into position to be
honored by others, and to dominate over them
• This “pride of life” is devil-likeness
• And these three lust branches are what this kind of
teaching uncovers and destroys
• The only reason that anyone can fight against
MERCY, as unveiled in the Bible, is that they are
in the working of coveting lusts, to some degree
• All the sin there ever was, and is, in the world
stems from the root of coveting-lusts
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
• The sin that is called “the sin of the world” was
just that: coveting, a false love for one’s self
• The “sin of the world” was a coveting of a
wisdom-of-one’s-own in the place of GOD’S
WORD
• The modern world-of-intellect is the seed-bearing
fruit of thousands of years of development, of the
lust for wisdom and knowledge without God
• That is SELF-wisdom and SELF-knowledge
• That is the Devil and Satan, and “that great
serpent”
• We are called of God to “overcome the world”
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
• All the sins that have ever appeared in the world
are dominated by that supreme lust-for-wisdomand-power
• This lust is the corrupting power of hell
• In it are the flesh lusts, and the eye lusts, and the
pride lusts
• The animating power is false-love: COVETING
• Coveting is lusting
• The Law brought “the knowledge of sin” (i.e.,
what it is)
• NKJ Romans 4:15 because the law brings about wrath; for
where there is no law there is no transgression.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• The Law brought revelation that our disobedience
to God was sin
• Furthermore, it revealed that we are born with a
sin nature as a result of the fall of Adam
• That is, our flesh desires sin and all the more what
is denied
• Consequently, the Law actually strengthens sin’s
hold on us as it denies us the disobedient acts that
our flesh desires causing us to want them more
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 15:56 The sting of death is sin, and the
strength of sin is the law.
• The law was necessary for us to understand our
hopeless condition in sin and that all our efforts to
save ourselves would be futile
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
• NKJ Romans 7:7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin?
Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin
except through the law. For I would not have known
covetousness unless the law had said, "You shall not
covet." 8 But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment,
produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from
the law sin was dead. 9 I was alive once without the law,
but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died.
10 And the commandment, which was to bring life, I
found to bring death. 11 For sin, taking occasion by the
commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. 12
Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and
just and good. 13 Has then what is good become death to
me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was
producing death in me through what is good, so that sin
through the commandment might become exceedingly
sinful.
Chapter 7: The Giving of the Law (cont.)
NKJ Galatians 3:19 What purpose then does the law serve? It
was added because of transgressions, till the Seed [Jesus]
should come to whom the promise was made; and it was
appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator. 20 Now
a mediator does not mediate for one only, but God is one. 21
Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not!
For if there had been a law given which could have given life,
truly righteousness would have been by the law. 22 But the
Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith
in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. 23 But
before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept
for the faith which would afterward be revealed. 24
Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we
might be justified by faith. 25 But after faith has come, we
are no longer under a tutor. (words in “[]” added by author)
NKJ Galatians 5:14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word,
even in this: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
• MERCY is the opposite to the coveting: for
MERCY is the love-of-giving for the needs of life
• In the last analysis, your spiritual conflict is
against a coveting nature - in some form
• The Bible defines covetousness as idolatry
• NKJ Colossians 3:5 Therefore put to death your members
which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion,
evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.
• Anyone’s idol is that which is coveted as a power
for self, that includes pleasures, possessions, and
position
• We have come now to the time of the supreme
idolatry, that is: the worship of one’s own SELF
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
• Self worship may be concerning one’s own mind,
or achievements, or one’s greatness in his own
eyes; or it may be a devotion to self-pleasing
desires of the flesh or of the world
• The words, “Thou shall not covet” would require a
long list to complete it if all coveting lusts were
named
• But, the command is of MERCY
• Mercy nullifies and destroys the coveting spirit
• When we say that MERCY destroys the coveting
spirit, we are speaking of DOING MERCY
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
• What MERCY?
• The same that God has done to you, or that you
desire Him to do to you
• An example of MERCY in the Law:
– NKJ Exodus 23:4 " If you meet your enemy's ox or his
donkey going astray, you shall surely bring it back to
him again. 5 "If you see the donkey of one who hates
you lying under its burden, and you would refrain from
helping it, you shall surely help him with it.
• This is from the Law of the Old Covenant
• It describes a MERCY to an enemy, one who
hates you, or whom you yourself do much dislike
• Would YOU do what this commandment says?
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
• A large part of the fusses and quarrels between
Christians arises from the simple unwillingness to
do the MERCY described in these two verses
• Would you bring back to your enemy his ox or his
donkey?
• Would you stoop down and help up the donkey of
him that hates you, or whom you greatly dislike?
• WOULD you?
• NKJ Matthew 5:44 "But I say to you, love your enemies,
bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you,
and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute
you,
• NKJ Galatians 5:14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word,
even in this: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
• NKJ Matthew 22:36 "Teacher, which is the great
commandment in the law?” 37 Jesus said to him, " 'You
shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all
your soul, and with all your mind.' 38 "This is the first and
great commandment. 39 "And the second is like it: 'You
shall love your neighbor as yourself.' 40 "On these two
commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
– NKJ Deuteronomy 6:5 "You shall love the LORD your
God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all
your strength.
– NKJ Leviticus 19:18 'You shall not take vengeance, nor
bear any grudge against the children of your people, but
you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the
LORD.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(The Tenth Commandment)
• We have taken only the entrance, as it were, to the
study of what the Bible teaches about MERCY in
the Law
• It should suffice to open that part of the Bible
more fully to you; for MERCY is the revelation of
God; and
• NKJ Psalm 19:7 The law of the LORD is perfect,
converting the soul; The testimony of the LORD is sure,
making wise the simple; 8 The statutes of the LORD are
right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the LORD
is pure, enlightening the eyes;
• NKJ Proverbs 6:23 For the commandment is a lamp, And
the law a light; Reproofs of instruction are the way of life,
• NKJ Proverbs 13:14 The law of the wise is a fountain of
life, To turn one away from the snares of death.
Chapter 11: Mercy in the Law of Moses
(Closing Prayer)
Blessed Father, we are thankful that You are not
leading our feet into an entanglement of laws that we
cannot understand or keep. You have given Christ
Jesus to dwell in us, and to be our very food and
drink and light of life. Show us, we pray, how to
continually offer ourselves to You as the temple of
Your holy and wonderful love. Make us to KNOW
You and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. Change
our cravings and desires, so that we truly crave for
You, and ardently desire to give to others the
MERCY of Thy love that You have so freely given to
us. In Jesus’ Name
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
Blessed Father, let the Holy Spirit have complete
control of our hearts and minds in these verses. We
want to KNOW JESUS; and we want to know YOU.
We ask for the fulfillment of the New Covenant in us;
not just what we think it means, but what You have
meant to do in us. So earthly are we that we do not
feel able to either express or receive these so simple
truths. Guide us, we pray, into the depths of the
understanding of Your Love, that we may love one
another as You have loved us. In this, we need so
greatly to be shown day by day, how to let go of all
and rest entirely on You. We ask You to make us
willing to see what Your great mercy IS, and that we
have nothing apart from it. For the glory of Jesus
and Your great Kingdom upon the Earth. Amen
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• There are two general classes of references on
MERCY in the Prophets
– First, there are those which were for instruction in the
way of righteousness
– Second, those which are foretelling the future
• Both classes of truth are prophecy, meaning that
which is spoken forth from The LORD under the
power and inspiration of the Holy Spirit
• The Prophets saw and heard; and they were moved
by God to lay down the ground work of the
testimony of Jesus Christ
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• So great was the divine authority of their
utterances, that the Lord Jesus Himself lived, died,
rose again, ascended into Heaven, and comes
again to rule the world in righteousness, according
to the words of the Prophets
• Concerning His own death, then approaching, He
said:
• NKJ Matthew 26:53 "Or do you think that I cannot now
pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than
twelve legions of angels? 54 "How then could the
Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen thus?”... 56
"But all this was done that the Scriptures of the prophets
might be fulfilled." Then all the disciples forsook Him and
fled.
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• Thus is expressed, by the mouth of The King
Himself, the infallible and irrevocable truth and
authority of the Prophets
• We want to see what the Prophets teach about
MERCY
• That will divide naturally into two parts:
– Concerning the life of the individual and nation
– Concerning events which were the future - and
some of them very far distant in the future
• Both classes of prophesy are very explicit, and the
same authority of God is in each
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• We will not exhaust the references on MERCY in
the Prophets
• But we will use enough to see what they teach - do
actually teach - on the subject
• When we come into the New Covenant, we will
find the more direct application of these truths
• And we will leave it until then to deal more fully
with what the Bible teaches about MERCY in the
life of a believer
• But, as in all of the truths of the New Covenant,
the roots and foundations are found in the Old
Covenant
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• We might add that it will appear, as we proceed,
that the prophecies relating to fulfillment in our
time cannot be fully understood, unless we have a
clear grasp of what the Prophets and the Bible
teach about MERCY
• In the Psalms and in the Law, we have seen that
God, in the revelations that He gave of Himself, IS
supremely MERCY
• We have seen something of the working of the
mystery of that MERCY
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• Now in the Prophets we find direct teachings and
injunctions to Israel concerning that MERCY, and
clear utterances of God concerning the future of
Israel, and of the world, in relation to that
MERCY
• Some of the Psalms, also, are prophecies of the
future
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ Proverbs 3:3 Let not mercy [hhesed] and truth forsake
you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet
of your heart, 4 And so find favor [hhen] and high esteem
In the sight of God and man.
• Recall that hhesed is a word for MERCY and hhen
is a word for GRACE in the original Hebrew
• This is followed by a spiritual sequence
• NKJ Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your
ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.
• The critical judging heart is a forsaking of
MERCY and TRUTH
• It causes MERCY and TRUTH to slink out of the
back door ashamed, or to fly from all the windows
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• There are too many people who let MERCY
forsake them while they are championing what
they like to call “truth”
• NKJ 2 Corinthians 3:6 who also made us sufficient as
ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the
Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
• The “Truth” is the reality of who and what God is
not rules and regulations (i.e., the letter) that only
tend to alienate us from Him in our own hearts
• NKJ 1 John 3:18 My little children, let us not love in word
or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. 9 And by this we
know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts
before Him. 20 For if our heart condemns us, God is
greater than our heart, and knows all things.
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• To bind MERCY about the neck means,
significantly, to yield the old stiff neck to the
working of the truth of MERCY
• The stiff neck, and the hard heart, need MERCY
wrapped around them and written upon them as
the very law of existence
• The law of self-preservation, that is existence of
so many, is NOT the law of LIFE
• It is the law of the animal nature
• This fallen nature tries to please God by our
performance even as Cain offered the produce of
his gardening juxtaposed with Abel who offered a
sin offering of innocent blood
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• A stream of MERCY flowing through the heart, or
written upon it is The law of the heavens and of
God
• In it one finds grace and good understanding with
God and with man
• For it is God’s will and pleasure
• Life and peace are hidden in it
• Then one learns to trust with all the heart in the
LORD, and to not lean to his own understanding
• For he finds a NEW understanding of God
• Then, one learns to acknowledge Him, the LORD
of MERCY, in all His ways
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• And then, one finds that his path is truly directed
from above
• We can justly state that the reason you do not
“Give thanks always for all things,” is simply that
you have failed to comprehend the significance
and meaning of the lowly sounding couplet:
– “MERCY and TRUTH”
• Without referring to any scripture passages for
proof, we can justly state that there is NO
SALVATION in the Bible apart from that couplet,
that union, of MERCY and Truth, for Jesus is that!
• If we say, “Oh He is the truth!” Then the reply
would be: “The truth of what?”
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• And no matter what stated in answer to that, it
comes out as MERCY
• For if we say of Jesus that He is the truth of Love,
the reply is simply, that Love cannot be know
apart from MERCY
• The wonder of God - what He is - is always
beyond the range of what is called “reason”
• There is a heavenly understanding that occupies
the place of human reasoning
• It belongs to those who “walk in the light as He is
in the light” (1 John 1:7)
• That Heavenly understanding is the understanding
of God
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• To the natural mind that is a mystery
• The mystery of God is simply His UTTER
LOWLINESS in which He gives Himself
• God is Himself utterly lowly - just what Jesus was
in His flesh
• In speaking of Himself as the True Vine, Jesus
said that His Father “is the gardener” (John 15:1)
• The gardener is the one who works the vineyard
and cares for he vines
• That is a servant’s task
• And God is the servant of all the servants
• He is lowlier than all His creatures
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• In the Old Covenant God called Himself, “God
Almighty,” which in the Hebrew is “El Shaddai”
• El Shaddai means:
– the Breasted God - the One Who nourishes His
creatures like a mother
• He is the almighty “nourisher” - an utterly Lowly
Servant to all His creatures
• It is, of course, the lowliness of love
• But it makes a mystery of God because the natural
mind thinks of mighty power in terms of powerto-destroy, rather than in terms of power-to-givelife
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• In the New Covenant the corresponding term is
“Pantokrator” in the Greek language
• It means: all powerful in HOLDING, or simply
“all holding”
• And that, like the Hebrew “El Shaddai,” signifies
not only what we ordinarily think of as the
meaning of “Almighty,” but also the peculiar
lowliness of the One Who gives and preserves life
- the SERVANT OF ALL
• NKJ Mark 9:35 And He sat down, called the twelve, and
said to them, "If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last
of all and servant of all.”
• NKJ Mark 10:45 "For even the Son of Man did not come
to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for
many."
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ John 13:3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given
all things into His hands, and that He had come from God
and was going to God, 4 rose from supper and laid aside
His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. 5 After
that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the
disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which
He was girded.
• That is why we do not know Him better: we do
not understand what that utter Lowliness is
• And the only way in which we can really
understand it is to be like that ourselves
• That knowledge of God is always right before
your face
• It is the NEED OF HUMAN LIVES
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• The TRUTH of MERCY opens your eyes to see in the doing of it - what God IS in Himself
• NKJ Proverbs 16:6 In mercy and truth Atonement is
provided for iniquity; And by the fear of the LORD one
departs from evil.
• These are two ways of saying the same thing:
– Iniquity purged by DOING Mercy and Truth
– Departing from evil by the fear of the LORD
• The fear of God and the fear of evil are two very
different things
• They are exactly opposite to each other
• Both fears signify the overwhelming of the mind
and heart with that which awes
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• But, the fear of God is the fear of goodness and
MERCY
• The mind overwhelmed with the wonder of God’s
lovingkindness and tender MERCY
• On the other hand, the fear of Evil is the fear of
loss, suffering, destruction - a very different thing
• NKJ Exodus 20:20 And Moses said to the people, "Do not
fear; for God has come to test you, and that His fear may
be before you, so that you may not sin."
• The context of this verse is when the Israelites that
have been delivered from Egypt are being lead by
Moses to Mount Sinai where God will physically
manifest His awesome presence to them
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• Moses told the Israelites not to fear (i.e., not to be
afraid that God will kill, steal, or destroy)
• However, the purpose of them seeing the majesty
of God is so that His fear will go before them
• His fear of what?
• The fear of having to live a life independent of
God the Great Mercier!
• Once exposed to the true God then one never
wants to live a life without Him
• Then a Holy Fear comes upon the person that
keeps them from doing anything that will cause
separation from Him and the life He brings
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ Deuteronomy 10:12 " And now, Israel, what does the
LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD
your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to
serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all
your soul,
• NKJ Matthew 4:10 Then Jesus said to him, "Away with
you, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD
your God, and Him only you shall serve.' "
• Note that Jesus clarified what the “fear of the
Lord” of the Old Covenant means when He quoted
a verse to Satan
• Jesus said that to “fear the Lord” is to “worship
the Lord”
• This worship is not confined to just praise
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• This worship is the direct acknowledgement to
God of His nature, attributes, ways, and claims out
of the overflow of our heart in thanksgiving and
praise and by deeds done to others in His name
• NKJ John 4:23 "But the hour is coming, and now is, when
the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and
truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24
"God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship
in spirit and truth.”
• NKJ James 1:27 Pure and undefiled religion before God
and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their
trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• However, in order for our acts of MERCY to be
worship they must be done not to bring attention
to ourselves but rather out of compassion
• NKJ Matthew 6:1 "Take heed that you do not do your
charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them.
Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2 "Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound
a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the
synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory
from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.
3 "But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left
hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 "that your
charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees
in secret will Himself reward you openly.
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• So we have in this verse, that mercy and truth
equal the fear of the Lord
• By this iniquity is purged, and men depart from
evil
• Iniquity distinctly means lawlessness
• It is a love of breaking the law
• Mercy and truth purge that love out of the heart,
because mercy and truth are the meaning of the
Law
• When one DOES mercy and truth he departs from
evil; and EVIL DEPARTS FROM HIM
• All of these things unfold as you proceed
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ Isaiah 55:7 Let the wicked forsake his way, And the
unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the
LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.
• Abundantly, lavishly, overflowing, multiplying,
fulfilling - that is what this scripture intends to
convey
• This is one of the standard verses used in Gospel
appeals
• It is a fortress of truth set solidly in the foundation
of MERCY, as being the direct purpose of God’s
will
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• Forsake and return, that is God’s Will; and mercy
is an abundant welcome always
• You will have the joy of full and free salvation as
long as you abide in the MERCY which you found
when you came to God
• And you always find it that way
• We are to live the Christian life the exact same
way we entered it
• NKJ Colossians 2:6 As you have therefore received Christ
Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,
• That is by faith that receives grace (i.e., favor)
leading to an outpouring of God’s MERCY (i.e.,
whatever we need)
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• Not by keeping rules in the hopes of earning
God’s favor
• NKJ Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved
through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of
God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
• In fact we greatly slow down our growth
spiritually when we try to do it in our ability
• NLT Galatians 3:2 Let me ask you this one question: Did
you receive the Holy Spirit by keeping the law? Of course
not, for the Holy Spirit came upon you only after you
believed the message you heard about Christ. 3 Have you
lost your senses? After starting your Christian lives in the
Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your
own human effort?
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• Just like in the Garden of Eden, Satan offers us a
way to obtain what we already have (i.e., they
were already like God and the knowledge of good
and evil would have been learned by them as they
matured without sinning (Hebrews 5:14))
• We already have favor with God because of the
work of Jesus upon the cross
• NKJ Ephesians 1:6 to the praise of the glory of His grace,
by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved.
• However, Satan whispers in our ear that God
requires us to perform in order to please Him
• The lie is that we were saved freely by grace but
then God expects to be reimbursed
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ Isaiah 57:1 The righteous perishes, And no man takes
it to heart; Merciful men are taken away, While no one
considers That the righteous is taken away from evil.
• The term “merciful men” equals: men of mercy - a
distinct title
• In the Old Covenant the righteous and the merciful
were considered one and the same thing
• It is God’s purpose to make you one of them
• We are using this passage to show what the
Prophets taught
• Here, the righteous, and men-of-mercy, equal the
same thing
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ Hosea 2:19 "I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I
will betroth you to Me In righteousness and justice, In
lovingkindness [hhesed or mercy] and mercy [rahhamim or
compassion]; 20 I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness,
And you shall know the LORD.
• So, is He known
• In four things, and in five will the LORD make
His final and lasting betrothal with Israel - or with
you
• In righteousness, and judgment, and mercy and in
compassion, and in faithfulness
• Righteousness is justness
• It is rightness to God and to man
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• Judgment is division of evil from good
• It especially means deliverance and safety for the
just
• Lovingkindness is our word mercy, that is and
passion to do good to the need of the other
• Mercies is our word compassion, that is tender
care and willingness to suffer with and for
• Faithfulness is from the root word for truth or
truthful
• It is that in which one may repose all their trust
because word and dealing are truthful
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• All of these words are dependent on
lovingkindness-mercy for their meaning and
quality
• It is enough, now, to see that this is a promised
betrothal, a bond of love, in which “You shall
know the Lord”
• Righteousness, judgment, compassion,
faithfulness - all depend on the word “MERCY”
as the common quality of all
• Without that common quality of lovingkindnessmercy in each one, it is turned to the opposite:
UNrighteousness, perverted judgment, hardened
heart, faithlessness
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ Hosea 4:1 Hear the word of the LORD, You children
of Israel, For the LORD brings a charge against the
inhabitants of the land: "There is no truth or mercy
[hhesed] Or knowledge of God in the land.
• Could anything be more plainly stated?
• Then follows verse 2, a list of the evils opposite to
truth, mercy, knowledge of God
• NKJ Hosea 4:2 By swearing and lying, Killing and stealing
and committing adultery, They break all restraint, With
bloodshed upon bloodshed.
• And again in verse 6
• NKJ Hosea 4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of
knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also
will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have
forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your
children.
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• MERCY and TRUTH are a couplet, a united pair
in God
• Apart from TRUTH, MERCY becomes corrupt
• Apart from MERCY, TRUTH kills and dies
• But MERCY and TRUTH together distinctly
mean GOD’s MERCY and GOD’s TRUTH
• God’s MERCY is the TRUTH of Himself, and
God’s TRUTH is His MERCY
• And that is: the knowledge of God - He can not be
known apart from MERCY and TRUTH
• The knowledge of God means knowing God
intimately
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• The prophet is here teaching that swearing, lying,
stealing, killing, committing adultery, and the
desolating effects of evils and wrath, are there
because of the lack of MERCY and TRUTH
• The people are destroyed by the lack of that
knowledge of God
• We His people are destroyed for a lack of
knowledge God, a lack of knowing God intimately
• Again, the knowledge of God is the TRUTH that
God is MERCY
• It is a marvelous thing how God’s truth carries
throughout the Bible
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ Hosea 6:6 For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, And
the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
• Here is another couplet, so common in the Hebrew
writings
• Mercy, not sacrifice; and knowledge of God, not
burnt offerings
• Therefore, MERCY equals the knowledge of God,
is what the prophet is teaching the people
• The is coupling together of phrases can be a
wonderful commentary and a dictionary of
synonyms to you
• It is found in many places in the scriptures
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• We will have occasion to refer to this passage
again when we are in the New Covenant
• It is a rather startling thing to find in the Old
Covenant: “It was MERCY that I desired - willed
- not sacrifice; It was the knowledge of God that I
desired - willed - not burnt offerings”
• Yet, He had commanded the sacrifices and the
burnt offerings as a part of the Law
• The meaning and object was not the sacrifices, but
to find and know God intimately leading to the
understanding that He IS MERCY!
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• From this one passage, the entire Bible could be
reconstructed by the Holy Spirit
• In fact, He could start with any passage in which
is the word “MERCY” and reconstruct the whole
revealed Word and Will of God
• Hosea is not pleasant reading
• The book is full of descriptions of evil - some
almost sickening to read
• Yet in the midst of it all, there stands out the
continual repetition of the central truth of God’s
Will toward man SHINING, as Peter expresses it
in his second letter, “as a light in a dark place” (2
Peter 1:19)
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ Hosea 10:12 Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap
in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, For it is time to
seek the LORD, Till He comes and rains righteousness on
you.
• In a time of wickedness and desolation break up
the idle land of your hearts and sow in it the seeds
of obedience to God and righteousness to man
• Then reap a harvest in His MERCY [hhesed]
• For the time is one in which to seek the Lord; to
seek until He comes and pours down showers floods of heavenly righteousness
• Such is the foundation of happiness and peace
• Do you see how the prophets taught “MERCY”?
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ Hosea 12:6 So you, by the help of your God, return;
Observe mercy and justice, And wait on your God
continually.
•
•
•
•
•
•
Judgement means, primarily, to divide the evil
from the good
They were to render judgment for the oppressed,
and for the widow, and the fatherless
That meant establish, and uphold, the cause of the
poor and needy in his right
And such judgment IS mercy
It fills the need
Keep it, says the Prophet, and wait continually
upon God
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ Jonah 2:8 "Those who regard worthless idols Forsake
their own Mercy. 9 But I will sacrifice to You With the
voice of thanksgiving; I will pay what I have vowed.
Salvation is of the LORD."
• Jonah had observed lying vanities in going his
own way and doing his own will
• And sure enough, in doing so he had forsaken his
own mercy
• And that makes almost visible the source of wrath
• Down at the bottom of the sea, in the stomach of
the great fish, his soul fainted; and he remembered
the LORD; and begin to really pray
• He wanted to return to his forsaken mercy
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• No sacrifices or burnt offerings were available
there
• He would sacrifice with the voice of thanksgiving,
and would pay his vow to show forth the MERCY
of the LORD
• Faith and Salvation is of the LORD
• Then the fish vomited him out - it is a rather lowly
condition to be just plain fish vomit!
• The LORD spoke and He was on dry land once
more
• For what purpose?
• TO DO MERCY
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• For as the story turns out, we hear him saying:
• NKJ Jonah 4:2b ...for I know that You are a gracious
[hhanun from hhen - giver of unmerited favor] and
merciful [rahhamim - compassionate] God, slow to anger
[longsuffering, patient] and abundant in lovingkindness
[hhesed - mercy], One who relents from doing harm.
• NKJ Micah 6:8 He has shown you, O man, what is good;
And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly,
To love mercy [hhesed], And to walk humbly with your
God?
• Old Covenant Prophet - yes
• But exactly, EXACTLY, what the Lord Jesus
Himself taught
• The difference was that Jesus GAVE HIMSELF to
them, and for them
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ Zechariah 7:9 "Thus says the LORD of hosts:
'Execute true justice, Show mercy [hhesed] and
compassion [rahhamim] Everyone to his brother.
• What is the true judgment to execute as declared
to them?
• NKJ Zechariah 7:10 Do not oppress the widow or the
fatherless, The alien or the poor. Let none of you plan evil
in his heart Against his brother.’
• True judgment is to divide the evil from the good;
and cast out your own evil imaginings
• This sentiment is echoed in the New Covenant
• NKJ James 1:27 Pure and undefiled religion before God
and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their
trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ Daniel 9:18 "O my God, incline Your ear and hear;
open Your eyes and see our desolations, and the city which
is called by Your name; for we do not present our
supplications before You because of our righteous deeds,
but because of Your great mercies [rahhamim].
• It is the consistent teaching throughout the
Prophets, the Law, and the Psalms that our prayers
reach God and prevail, not for our own
righteousness, but BY HIS COMPASSION
• Compassion is a great inward tenderness of love
that moves the soul - a passion to comfort
• Furthermore, it is tender care and willingness to
suffer with and for
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• NKJ Daniel 4:27 Therefore, O king, let my advice be
acceptable to you; break off your sins by being righteous,
and your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Perhaps
there may be a lengthening of your prosperity.”
• A heathen king! A warning of disaster!
• The turning of it shown: DO MERCY
• All evils can be overcome by the issuing forth of
MERCY from the heart in Jesus’ Name
• And that is why we have His name, that we may
live in the MERCY of God, and do that MERCY
to others
• NLT James 2:13 For there will be no mercy for you if you
have not been merciful to others. But if you have been
merciful, then God's mercy toward you will win out over
his judgment against you.
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• It is the very life of our heart - the MERCY He has
done to us
• If you want a formula for the lengthening of your
“tranquillity”, or for the establishing of your peace
of heart and mind, MERCY is it: DO MERCY
• If some of you are honest with yourselves, you
will admit that the quality of your “tranquillity” is
not of the Grade A, blue ribbon variety
• You are poor and feeble in MERCY for yourself,
because you do not do to others the MERCY God
has done to you
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• If you are to be judged with the same judgment
that you render, you are apt to find the bed too
short to lie on it, and the food too scantly to satisfy
your hunger
• Meaning by that: you may not have ENOUGH to
take you triumphantly through your trials
• I believe that God wants every one of these
chapters to be a means to consecration
• Not only the making of a consecration, but the
insight into what is involved in the keeping of the
consecration made
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
• As we proceed it will appear quite clearly to you,
without much stating of the fact, just what a FULL
and complete consecration to God means, and
what it involves
• You will find in these truths just what you need
for assurance and power, to walk and live closer to
God than you have ever before known to be
possible
• These truths will show you how to go on, and how
to keep on keeping on
• For in these simple words of God lies hidden the
divine law of increase
• It is a wonderful thing to know how to walk with
God in such a way that He can give a continual
INCREASE in your life
Chapter 12: Mercy in the Prophets
Our Blessed Lord, take our hand in Yours, we pray,
and let us walk in the light as You are in the light.
For Your Glory on Earth. Amen
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
Precious Lord, draw near to us we pray, as we study
Thy Holy Word. Overshadow us with that wonderful
Presence which enfolds us into the great Oneness of
Thy believing body. And show us in the light of God
what we need to know for this peculiar and difficult
hour of the world’s history. Open our hearts to Thy
Word, open Thy Word to our hearts. Let us “SEE
GOD” as Jesus said the pure in heart should do.
And if we are not yet pure enough in heart for such,
purify us until we ARE, able to see God. BaSHEM
YESHUA (In the name of Jesus), Amen.
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• It is a long, long time since the ancient worship of
the Hebrews took superior form under the
anointing and rule of David
• Much of it is unknown to us, and perhaps foreign
to our ideas of what a “meeting” should be like
• Yet the solid base of all true Christian worship, as
well as that of the Jews, is there in the worship,
prayer, praise, and reading of God’s Word in that
distant period
• About three millenniums have passed since David
played his harp with his hand and made sweet
music unto God
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• He is called, “The sweet psalmist of Israel”
• NKJ 2 Samuel 23:1 Now these are the last words of David.
Thus says David the son of Jesse; Thus says the man raised
up on high, The anointed of the God of Jacob, And the
sweet psalmist of Israel: "The Spirit of the LORD spoke by
me, And His word was on my tongue. 3 The God of Israel
said, The Rock of Israel spoke to me: 'He who rules over
men must be just, Ruling in the fear of God. 4 And he
shall be like the light of the morning when the sun rises, A
morning without clouds, Like the tender [welcome] grass
springing out of the earth, By clear shining after rain.'
Words in “[]” added by author
• This title, “The sweet Psalmist of Israel,” is quite
unique in the Bible
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• The word sweet, in this connection, means lovely,
pleasing
• As you read the story of David from ruddy youth
to manhood and old age, you can almost see the
changes taking place in his character
• For long centuries he remained the model of hope
to Israel, Waiting and waiting for the hoped-for
“Son” of David the generations slipped by
• But in the time of the manifestation of that Son
only a small part of the nation recognized and
accepted Him
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• David is in this scripture called, “The anointed of
the God of Jacob”
• The word anointed, is meshiahh in the Hebrew
• That is the great title of David’s son: Messiah
• In the Greek language it is “Christos,” from which
comes our English word Christ
• In the life of David, the anointed of God, many
lessons appear, which stand out as spiritual
instruction for all time
• Vivid, rugged, straight to the point, there is a
loveliness, and sweetness, and lowliness which
remains hovering over the record of his life and
his words
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• Where will you find any utterances of man that
have excelled the expressions of praise and
worship in David’s psalms?
• Faith, and hope, and need, and love in amazing
variation are sung forth, in them, to the Most High
• Thanksgiving in full and wonderful detail appears
to our eyes as we read them
• In using the term, “David’s psalms,” we are
including all of them that were brought forth as
the result of his anointing
• It is useless to quibble about the authorship of
them
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• It is completely non-essential in the Bible whether
every single line and word was written by the one
whose name appears on the book which contains
them
• Take, take for instance, Isaiah
• The prophecies in the book of “Isaiah” are
grouped around a great central theme: GOD’S
SALVATION TO COME
• They are the expression of a great central purpose
• It makes no difference whatever how many
“Isaiahs” contributed to the grouping
• The great central them and purpose carry through
by the Spirit of God
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• The very word, Isaiah, means: Jehovah is
salvation; and it is synonymous with the word
“Joshua” which is the Hebrew equivalent of our
English word, “Jesus”
• The inspiration is by the Holy Spirit, and GOD is
the writer
• The instrument, or instruments used, are described
perfectly by the Apostle Paul as being simply
“one”
• You can lose your bearings in the intellectual
quibbles which some people indulge in over
things; and you can also lose the very vital sense
of God-breathing in the truth, in the doubt so
raised
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• Thus, in the Psalms, we have collection of songsto-God which have their solid bases in the
“ANOINTING” of David
• In that anointing others also sang to God, as we
will see in this glimpse of the ancient worship
• There are some Psalms that are of a character
unsuited to our New Covenant Gospel and its
Spirit, that nevertheless belonged to the terrors of
the ancient days in which they were written
• It is an amazing fact that the majority of those
ancient songs carry right through into our New
Covenant worship
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• An in our own time there has appeared again on
the earth something of the same style, and praise,
and faith, and hope, and need, and love, in a
gripping and compelling, worshipping of God “in
Spirit and in truth”
• We cannot now make a study of David’s life
• But we can find the high point in the worship that
he seems to have established in a full and vigorous
form
• And so, to that supreme point we go - the supreme
point in the whole idea and plan of the worship of
that ancient day
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• You should read carefully 1 Chronicles 15 and 16,
here we only quote the following portion
• NKJ 1 Chronicles 16:37 So he left Asaph and his brothers
there before the ark of the covenant of the LORD to
minister before the ark regularly, as every day's work
required; 38 and Obed-Edom with his sixty-eight brethren,
including Obed-Edom the son of Jeduthun, and Hosah, to
be gatekeepers; 39 and Zadok the priest and his brethren
the priests, before the tabernacle of the LORD at the high
place that was at Gibeon, 40 to offer burnt offerings to the
LORD on the altar of burnt offering regularly morning and
evening, and to do according to all that is written in the
Law of the LORD which He commanded Israel; 41 and
with them Heman and Jeduthun and the rest who were
chosen, who were designated by name, to give thanks to
the LORD, because His mercy endures forever;
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• This was the occasion of the bringing up of the
Ark of the God from the house of Obed-edom to
the tent Tabernacle that David had pitched for it
• NKJ 1 Chronicles 15:1 David built houses for himself in
the City of David; and he prepared a place for the ark of
God, and pitched a tent for it.
• It was a time of great joy
• Triumphantly king David had appointed singers
and players on instruments - psalteries, and harps,
and cymbals, sounding by lifting up the voice with
joy
• Heman, Asaph, and Ethan were to sound with
cymbals of brass
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• Another group to sound with psalteries - which are
supposed to be something like a guitar, only larger
and deeper
• Another group played on harps, still another was
for singing, and they were all robed in fine linen
• These are some of the background facts and ideas
of the picturesque portrayals in the book of
Revelation
• David wore an ephod, a priestly garment of linen
• Thus all Israel brought up the Ark of the Covenant
of the LORD with shouting, and with the sound of
cornet, trumpets, and cymbals making noise, and
with psalteries and harps
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• And with them David - there he was playing his
harp and dancing and leaping before the Ark
• And he left before the Ark Asaph and his brethren
to minister before the Ark continually, with the
others who were chosen, who were expressed by
name: “TO GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD
BECAUSE HIS MERCY IS FOR EVER”
• The high point of the worship was, therefore, that
which they did continually before the Ark
• This was combined with the offering of sacrifices,
for the sacrifices were the expression of God’s
favor in admitting them to His Word and to His
Mercy
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• Continually, before the Ark, was given expression
to that which constituted the meaning of all the
worship of Israel
• And it was in this sentence: “To give thanks to the
Lord because his MERCY is for ever”
• NKJ Acts 15:15 "And with this the words of the prophets
agree, just as it is written: 6 'After this I will return And
will rebuild the tabernacle of David, which has fallen
down; I will rebuild its ruins, And I will set it up; 17 So
that the rest of mankind may seek the LORD, Even all the
Gentiles who are called by My name, Says the LORD who
does all these things.' 18 "Known to God from eternity are
all His works.
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• The tent tabernacle of David did not have a veil
made of fabric hiding the ark like the tabernacle of
Moses or latter Solomon’s Temple
• It was a foreshadowing of the New Covenant
worship where all can approach God in Spirit and
Truth for all that are born again are priests of God
• NKJ John 4:23 "But the hour is coming, and now is, when
the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and
truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24
"God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship
in spirit and truth.”
• NKJ Revelation 1:5b To Him who loved us and washed us
from our sins in His own blood, 6 and has made us kings
and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and
dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• Perhaps you may be interested to see those words
as they sound in the Hebrew language
• We spell them phonetically, here, the vowels
sounding with the European vowel sound
• HODU LaYEHOVAH KI TOV KI LeOLAM
HHASDO
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
HODU = give thanks
LaYEHOVAH = to the LORD
KI = because, for
TOV = good
KI = for, because
LeOLAM = for ever, to always
HHASDO = his mercy, hhesed
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• NKJ 1 Chronicles 23:3 Now the Levites were numbered
from the age of thirty years and above; and the number of
individual males was thirty-eight thousand. 4 Of these,
twenty-four thousand were to look after the work of the
house of the LORD, six thousand were officers and judges,
5 four thousand were gatekeepers, and four thousand
praised the LORD with musical instruments, "which I
made," said David, "for giving praise."
• There were 4,000 persons appointed to praise the
LORD with instruments
• NKJ 1 Chronicles 25:1 Moreover David and the captains
of the army separated for the service some of the sons of
Asaph, of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who should prophesy
with harps, stringed instruments, and cymbals. And the
number of the skilled men performing their service was:
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
2 Of the sons of Asaph: Zaccur, Joseph, Nethaniah, and
Asharelah; the sons of Asaph were under the direction of
Asaph, who prophesied according to the order of the king. 3
Of Jeduthun, the sons of Jeduthun: Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah,
Shimei, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah, six, under the direction of
their father Jeduthun, who prophesied with a harp to give
thanks and to praise the LORD. 4 Of Heman, the sons of
Heman: Bukkiah, Mattaniah, Uzziel, Shebuel, Jerimoth,
Hananiah, Hanani, Eliathah, Giddalti, Romamti-Ezer,
Joshbekashah, Mallothi, Hothir, and Mahazioth. 5 All these
were the sons of Heman the king's seer in the words of God,
to exalt his horn. For God gave Heman fourteen sons and
three daughters. 6 All these were under the direction of their
father for the music in the house of the LORD, with cymbals,
stringed instruments, and harps, for the service of the house
of God. Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman were under the
authority of the king. 7 So the number of them, with their
brethren who were instructed in the songs of the LORD, all
who were skillful, was two hundred and eighty-eight.
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• This gives us a glimpse of how they did it and
what they did
• 4,000 appointed for the general service of praise,
with instruments that David made for them
• Over the service of song and music were Asaph,
Jeduthun, and Heman
• Under each of these three were their sons, who
PROPHESIED in song with harps, psalteries, and
cymbals
• Under this group were 288 who were specially
instructed in the songs of the LORD
• These served in shifts as appointed
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• This looks like a very substantial arrangement for
the regular worship service of the LORD morning,
and evening, And the center, and high point, of all
their songs and praises and prophesying was this
singular truth and purpose:
• TO GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD BECAUSE
HIS MERCY IS FOREVER
• Perhaps we have never seen how great was the
arrangement and its power
• Repetition is for that purpose
• 1 Chronicles 16:1-36 describes the scene and
gives the song that they sang
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
NKJ 1 Chronicles 16:1 So they brought the ark of God, and
set it in the midst of the tabernacle that David had erected for
it. Then they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings
before God. 2 And when David had finished offering the
burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people
in the name of the LORD. 3 Then he distributed to everyone
of Israel, both man and woman, to everyone a loaf of bread, a
piece of meat, and a cake of raisins. 4 And he appointed
some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the LORD,
to commemorate, to thank, and to praise the LORD God of
Israel: 5 Asaph the chief, and next to him Zechariah, then
Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, and
Obed-Edom: Jeiel with stringed instruments and harps, but
Asaph made music with cymbals; 6 Benaiah and Jahaziel the
priests regularly blew the trumpets before the ark of the
covenant of God.
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
NKJ 1 Chronicles 16:7 On that day David first delivered this
psalm into the hand of Asaph and his brethren, to thank the
LORD: 8 Oh, give thanks to the LORD! Call upon His name;
Make known His deeds among the peoples! 9 Sing to Him,
sing psalms to Him; Talk of all His wondrous works! 10
Glory in His holy name; Let the hearts of those rejoice who
seek the LORD! 11 Seek the LORD and His strength; Seek
His face evermore! 12 Remember His marvelous works
which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His
mouth, 13 O seed of Israel His servant, You children of
Jacob, His chosen ones! 14 He is the LORD our God; His
judgments are in all the earth. 15 Remember His covenant
forever, The word which He commanded, for a thousand
generations, 16 The covenant which He made with Abraham,
And His oath to Isaac, 17 And confirmed it to Jacob for a
statute, To Israel for an everlasting covenant,
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
NKJ 1 Chronicles 16:18 Saying, "To you I will give the land
of Canaan As the allotment of your inheritance," 19 When
you were few in number, Indeed very few, and strangers in it.
20 When they went from one nation to another, And from one
kingdom to another people, 21 He permitted no man to do
them wrong; Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes, 22
Saying, "Do not touch My anointed ones, And do My
prophets no harm." 23 Sing to the LORD, all the earth;
Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day. 24
Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all
peoples. 25 For the LORD is great and greatly to be praised;
He is also to be feared above all gods. 26 For all the gods of
the peoples are idols, But the LORD made the heavens. 27
Honor and majesty are before Him; Strength and gladness are
in His place. 28 Give to the LORD, O families of the
peoples, Give to the LORD glory and strength.
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
NKJ 1 Chronicles 16:29 Give to the LORD the glory due His
name; Bring an offering, and come before Him. Oh, worship
the LORD in the beauty of holiness! 30 Tremble before Him,
all the earth. The world also is firmly established, It shall not
be moved. 31 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be
glad; And let them say among the nations, "The LORD
reigns." 32 Let the sea roar, and all its fullness; Let the field
rejoice, and all that is in it. 33 Then the trees of the woods
shall rejoice before the LORD, For He is coming to judge the
earth. 34 Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For
His mercy endures forever. 35 And say, "Save us, O God of
our salvation; Gather us together, and deliver us from the
Gentiles, To give thanks to Your holy name, To triumph in
Your praise." 36 Blessed be the LORD God of Israel From
everlasting to everlasting! And all the people said, "Amen!"
and praised the LORD.
• Then in the 37th verse we come to where we began
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• We have used a special occasion for a glimpse of
he ancient worship; its arrangement and order
• After David’s death Solomon his son reigned on
his throne
• Israel had become a great nation, and temporarily
the greatest nation
• To befit the new order of things, Solomon built the
temple of God that David had gotten the pattern of
by The Holy Spirit, and for which he had made
ample preparations
• When the temple was completed Solomon held a
great feast for the dedication of it
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• NKJ 2 Chronicles 5:1 So all the work that Solomon had
done for the house of the LORD was finished; and
Solomon brought in the things which his father David had
dedicated: the silver and the gold and all the furnishings.
And he put them in the treasuries of the house of God. 2
Now Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the
heads of the tribes, the chief fathers of the children of
Israel, in Jerusalem, that they might bring the ark of the
covenant of the LORD up from the City of David, which is
Zion.
• Here is described one of the great times of
worship in the history of Israel
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• The elders and all the heads of the tribes, the chief
of the fathers of the children of Israel, were
assembled to Jerusalem to bring up the Ark from
David’s city of Zion to the temple
• This was the Feast of Ingathering in the 7th
month, that follows with a memorial of trumpets;
following is the Day of Atonement; and then the
Feast of Tabernacles, or booths, which lasted
seven days commemorating the departure from
Egypt
• These three sections of the Feast of Ingathering
were held during the first three weeks of the
seventh month
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• And this was one of the three regular yearly feasts
that all men were commanded to attend
• But this particular year was one of importance
beyond any of the preceding years, because this
was the time the new temple was to be dedicated
and the Ark brought up and set in its permanent
place
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• NKJ 2 Chronicles 5:3 Therefore all the men of Israel
assembled with the king at the feast, which was in the
seventh month. 3 Therefore all the men of Israel assembled
with the king at the feast, which was in the seventh month.
4 So all the elders of Israel came, and the Levites took up
the ark. 5 Then they brought up the ark, the tabernacle of
meeting, and all the holy furnishings that were in the
tabernacle. The priests and the Levites brought them up. 6
Also King Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel who
were assembled with him before the ark, were sacrificing
sheep and oxen that could not be counted or numbered for
multitude.
• The people ate of the sacrifices offered to God
• Therefore, this is a description of a very great
worship feast indeed
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• The Day of Atonement was a day for afflicting
their souls with the memory and
acknowledgement of their sins
• And on that day, once in the year, the high priest
alone went into the Holy of Holies to sprinkle the
Mercy Seat with the blood of the sacrifices
• The Mercy Seat with the Holy of Holies was the
center of the entire plan
• And it was the Mercy Seat that gave meaning to
all that was done
• The Mercy Seat over the Ark, in which was
reposed the Law on tables of stone, gave promise
of forgiveness and covering of sins from the
presence of the Creator that He might dwell
among them as He had said
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
NKJ 2 Chronicles 5:7 Then the priests brought in the ark of the
covenant of the LORD to its place, into the inner sanctuary of the
temple, to the Most Holy Place, under the wings of the cherubim. 8
For the cherubim spread their wings over the place of the ark, and
the cherubim overshadowed the ark and its poles. 9 And the poles
extended so that the ends of the poles of the ark could be seen from
the holy place, in front of the inner sanctuary; but they could not be
seen from outside. And they are there to this day. 10 Nothing was
in the ark except the two tablets which Moses put there at Horeb,
when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when
they had come out of Egypt. 11 And it came to pass when the
priests came out of the Most Holy Place (for all the priests who
were present had sanctified themselves, without keeping to their
divisions), 12 and the Levites who were the singers, all those of
Asaph and Heman and Jeduthun, with their sons and their brethren,
stood at the east end of the altar, clothed in white linen, having
cymbals, stringed instruments and harps, and with them one
hundred and twenty priests sounding with trumpets --
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• It was a very tremendous array
• It is from these very scenes that the book of
Revelation draws its language, using terms that
were still full of significance and meaning to the
Israel of the Apostle’s day
• NKJ 2 Chronicles 5:13 indeed it came to pass, when the
trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to
be heard in praising and thanking the LORD, and when
they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals
and instruments of music, and praised the LORD, saying:
"For He is good, For His mercy endures forever," that the
house, the house of the LORD, was filled with a cloud, 14
so that the priests could not continue ministering because
of the cloud; for the glory of the LORD filled the house of
God.
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• Note that the Ark now only contains the tablets of
stone on which are the Ten Commandments
• Earlier it also contained Aaron’s rod that had
budded and a golden pot of manna
• NKJ Hebrews 9:3 and behind the second veil, the part of
the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of All, 4 which
had the golden censer and the ark of the covenant overlaid
on all sides with gold, in which were the golden pot that
had the manna, Aaron's rod that budded, and the tablets of
the covenant;
• Likely the Jar of Manna and Aaron’s staff that had
budded was lost to the Philistines when they
captured the Ark of the Covenant (1 Samuel
chapters 4 through 6)
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• It is important to get the significance of all of this
clearly into view because there was then, and still
is, a false system of worship of false gods
prevailing all over the earth, and all around the
nation of Israel
• Reviewing these points again - Israel was now a
conquering nation, as large and as strong as any
other
• One might even say the mightiest nation on the
earth at that time
• The new, and golden temple stood complete
• The whole nation was gathered to the feast
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• Apparently the whole of the priesthood was in
attendance for the offering of unnumbered
sacrifices
• Perhaps the entire 4000 singers were there also,
and the 288 men who were the leaders and
strength of the musical arrangements, and 120
priests with trumpets
• With one voice and one sound they celebrated the
great center of national faith and worship
• And with that one great central, all inclusive,
theme of praise and thanksgiving: “Praise the
LORD of he is good, for His MERCY is for ever”
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• The significance, literally of everything was in
that little sentence
• Without it the temple, the sacrifices, the splendor,
the holy place of sacrifices, and the Most Holy
with the Ark of the Covenant, the Mercy Seat, and
all, HAD NOT MEANING
• Ponder this statement: There was NO MEANING,
no vital meaning, to all that gathering and worship
apart from this supreme statement, “FOR HE IS
GOOD, FOR HIS MERCY (HHESED) IS FOR
EVER”
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• Outside of that little sentence the whole world was
gripped, and sunk, and lost, in the blindness of
idolatrous systems, as though a great octopus with
a tentacle upon each nation was holding them fast
• Here in Israel was a light
• Not the full light that was to come with the
Anointed Delivering King, but the light of the
Law that revealed both sin and the penalty of sin
• But which also showed a way to the God of
MERCY, and to the MERCY of God
• It is not only important, now that we grasp this,
but it is absolutely imperative, for we are in the
final contest - now
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• The SYSTEM of idolatry that was an octopus
then, is now the very ocean itself, and the whole
world is engulfed in it
• The civilized world, so-called, supremely so
• And the greatest sign of all is the extent to which
the “Christian” church is enmeshed in it
• Today, as then, the central theme and issue is the
same: His Mercy, Only, now the Grace of God
HAS APPEARED bringing salvation
• That Grace of God, and that salvation, and Jesus
Christ are the MERCY of God - that is for ever!
• Is the GRACE of God His will? Is salvation His
will? Is Jesus Christ the Lord God’s will?
• Then also is MERCY His will
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• There is absolutely nothing, except this MERCY,
between this generation and the wrath of
destruction
• It is almost the hour for the appearance of what the
Bible calls “THE LIE”
• No one will be able to withstand the seeming
scientific fact-truth of that “The Lie” except those
who understand what MERCY is, because Truth,
which is the truth of GOD, cannot be understood
apart from the knowledge of His Mercy
• Why? Because that is what the truth of GOD IS
• Now is the time to make the first thing in your life
to know, experience, and abide in that MERCY
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
•
•
•
•
MERCY is not just a “thing”
MERCY is Jesus Christ
By it (HIM) God makes Himself to be known
Solomon, before all the people, spread forth his
hands to Heaven and prayed a prayer of love for
God and His people - prayed in the anointing of
the wisdom of God
• Read through this prayer that follows and see if
you can discern something of the great light of
spiritual truth that was shining in the law
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
NKJ 2 Chronicles 6:1 Then Solomon spoke: "The LORD said
He would dwell in the dark cloud. 2 I have surely built You an
exalted house, And a place for You to dwell in forever." 3 Then
the king turned around and blessed the whole assembly of Israel,
while all the assembly of Israel was standing. 4 And he said:
"Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who has fulfilled with His
hands what He spoke with His mouth to my father David,
saying, 5 'Since the day that I brought My people out of the land
of Egypt, I have chosen no city from any tribe of Israel in which
to build a house, that My name might be there, nor did I choose
any man to be a ruler over My people Israel. 6 'Yet I have
chosen Jerusalem, that My name may be there; and I have
chosen David to be over My people Israel.' 7 "Now it was in the
heart of my father David to build a temple for the name of the
LORD God of Israel. 8 "But the LORD said to my father David,
'Whereas it was in your heart to build a temple for My name, you
did well in that it was in your heart.
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
NKJ 2 Chronicles 6:9 'Nevertheless you shall not build the
temple, but your son who will come from your body, he shall
build the temple for My name.' 10 "So the LORD has
fulfilled His word which He spoke, and I have filled the
position of my father David, and sit on the throne of Israel, as
the LORD promised; and I have built the temple for the name
of the LORD God of Israel. 11 "And there I have put the ark,
in which is the covenant of the LORD which He made with
the children of Israel." 12 Then Solomon stood before the
altar of the LORD in the presence of all the assembly of
Israel, and spread out his hands 13 (for Solomon had made a
bronze platform five cubits long, five cubits wide, and three
cubits high, and had set it in the midst of the court; and he
stood on it, knelt down on his knees before all the assembly
of Israel, and spread out his hands toward heaven);
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
NKJ 2 Chronicles 6:14 and he said: "LORD God of Israel,
there is no God in heaven or on earth like You, who keep
Your covenant and mercy with Your servants who walk
before You with all their hearts. 15 "You have kept what
You promised Your servant David my father; You have both
spoken with Your mouth and fulfilled it with Your hand, as it
is this day. 16 "Therefore, LORD God of Israel, now keep
what You promised Your servant David my father, saying,
'You shall not fail to have a man sit before Me on the throne
of Israel, only if your sons take heed to their way, that they
walk in My law as you have walked before Me.' 17 "And
now, O LORD God of Israel, let Your word come true, which
You have spoken to Your servant David. 18 " But will God
indeed dwell with men on the earth? Behold, heaven and the
heaven of heavens cannot contain You. How much less this
temple which I have built!
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
NKJ 2 Chronicles 6:19 "Yet regard the prayer of Your servant
and his supplication, O LORD my God, and listen to the cry
and the prayer which Your servant is praying before You: 20
"that Your eyes may be open toward this temple day and
night, toward the place where You said You would put Your
name, that You may hear the prayer which Your servant prays
toward this place. 21 "And may You hear the supplications
of Your servant and of Your people Israel, when they pray
toward this place. Hear from heaven Your dwelling place, and
when You hear, forgive. 22 " If anyone sins against his
neighbor, and is forced to take an oath, and comes and takes
an oath before Your altar in this temple, 23 "then hear from
heaven, and act, and judge Your servants, bringing retribution
on the wicked by bringing his way on his own head, and
justifying the righteous by giving him according to his
righteousness.
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
NKJ 2 Chronicles 6:24 " Or if Your people Israel are defeated
before an enemy because they have sinned against You, and
return and confess Your name, and pray and make
supplication before You in this temple, 25 "then hear from
heaven and forgive the sin of Your people Israel, and bring
them back to the land which You gave to them and their
fathers. 26 " When the heavens are shut up and there is no
rain because they have sinned against You, when they pray
toward this place and confess Your name, and turn from their
sin because You afflict them, 27 "then hear in heaven, and
forgive the sin of Your servants, Your people Israel, that You
may teach them the good way in which they should walk; and
send rain on Your land which You have given to Your people
as an inheritance. 28 " When there is famine in the land,
pestilence or blight or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers; when
their enemies besiege them in the land of their cities;
whatever plague or whatever sickness there is;
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
NKJ 2 Chronicles 6:29 "whatever prayer, whatever supplication
is made by anyone, or by all Your people Israel, when each one
knows his own burden and his own grief, and spreads out his
hands to this temple: 30 "then hear from heaven Your dwelling
place, and forgive, and give to everyone according to all his
ways, whose heart You know (for You alone know the hearts of
the sons of men), 31 "that they may fear You, to walk in Your
ways as long as they live in the land which You gave to our
fathers. 32 " Moreover, concerning a foreigner, who is not of
Your people Israel, but who comes from a far country for the
sake of Your great name and Your mighty hand and Your
outstretched arm, when they come and pray in this temple; 33
"then hear from heaven Your dwelling place, and do according
to all for which the foreigner calls to You, that all peoples of the
earth may know Your name and fear You, as do Your people
Israel, and that they may know that this temple which I have
built is called by Your name.
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
NKJ 2 Chronicles 6:34 " When Your people go out to battle
against their enemies, wherever You send them, and when they
pray to You toward this city which You have chosen and the
temple which I have built for Your name, 35 "then hear from
heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their
cause. 36 " When they sin against You (for there is no one who
does not sin), and You become angry with them and deliver them
to the enemy, and they take them captive to a land far or near;
37 "yet when they come to themselves in the land where they
were carried captive, and repent, and make supplication to You
in the land of their captivity, saying, 'We have sinned, we have
done wrong, and have committed wickedness'; 38 "and when
they return to You with all their heart and with all their soul in
the land of their captivity, where they have been carried captive,
and pray toward their land which You gave to their fathers, the
city which You have chosen, and toward the temple which I have
built for Your name:
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
NKJ 2 Chronicles 6:39 "then hear from heaven Your dwelling
place their prayer and their supplications, and maintain their
cause, and forgive Your people who have sinned against You.
40 "Now, my God, I pray, let Your eyes be open and let Your
ears be attentive to the prayer made in this place. 41 " Now
therefore, Arise, O LORD God, to Your resting place, You
and the ark of Your strength. Let Your priests, O LORD God,
be clothed with salvation, And let Your saints rejoice in
goodness. 42 "O LORD God, do not turn away the face of
Your Anointed; Remember the mercies of Your servant
David."
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• NKJ 2 Chronicles 7:1 When Solomon had finished
praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the
burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the
LORD filled the temple.
• The world’s system of idolatry also brings down
fire from the earthly skies - fire of an earthly kind
• Knowledge has increased, and one effect of it is to
nearly put an end to praying, in a great many
people
• God help us to know HOW to get down from
Heaven what is needed and what God wants to
give
• You will be very close to that kind of blessing and
joy, if you are willing to learn to do what these
scriptures bring clearly to your sight
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• NKJ 2 Chronicles 7:2 And the priests could not enter the
house of the LORD, because the glory of the LORD had
filled the LORD's house.
• Hallelujah! There is coming a triumph hour for
Jesus when the fire will come down from Heaven,
and the Glory of God will fill His people, of
whom it is said that their bodies are the temple of
God
• The fire does something to you
• If fills you, and thrills you, and fulfills you, and
destroys all that is not MERCY
• It burns off every band that binds, and sets you
free
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• NKJ 2 Chronicles 7:3 When all the children of Israel saw
how the fire came down, and the glory of the LORD on the
temple, they bowed their faces to the ground on the
pavement, and worshiped and praised the LORD, saying:
"For He is good, For His mercy endures forever."
• That is all that is the matter with Israel, beloved
• They were made for the GLORY, and are
confused and lost without it
• When the hour strikes for the LORD to:
• NKJ Lamentations 5:21 Turn us back to You, O LORD,
and we will be restored; Renew our days as of old,
• Then as Paul says the veil will be taken away from
their heart:
• NKJ 2 Corinthians 3:16 Nevertheless when one turns to
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• Something of staggering import is imminent; that
is certain
• God’s dealings with Israel are in GLORY; and in
the divine invasion of nature, to make right all
things
• That is the true secret and mystery of Israel and
the Jews
• They are out of place
• They are lost and do not know it, nor why
• They are incomplete, longing for something and
hardly knowing what
• But deep down within knowing that something
vital is missing
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• We have just read the secret: “When they saw the
fire and the glory they fell to the ground”
• Face down, prostrate in worship - it is coming!
• Both things! Glory to God! Glory to God! It is
coming, it is coming! Both things!
• The glory-fire and the prostrated worshipping
Israelite
• And when Israel repents it will release the broken
and contrite heart into the world as a “FLOOD” spiritual deluge - such a manifestation of MERCY
as the world has never before seen!
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• Did you notice what they said when the fire came
down, and the glory, on the house of the LORD?
• “And praised the LORD saying, For He is good,
FOR HIS MERCY IS FOR EVER”
• The prophets tell us that Israel was created for that
very thing!
• And when God creates something for a purpose,
there comes a time when He brings that purpose to
completion and to fullest fulfillment
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• NKJ 2 Chronicles 7:4 Then the king and all the people
offered sacrifices before the LORD.
• Do you want to live before the LORD, and stand
before the LORD, and abide in His presence?
• Then get this into your heart and life as the
controlling and moving principle
• NKJ 2 Chronicles 7:5 King Solomon offered a sacrifice of
twenty-two thousand bulls and one hundred and twenty
thousand sheep. So the king and all the people dedicated
the house of God.
• Do you want to be outdone by an under-the-law
man?
• Then go at it and offer the true and acceptable
offering of thanksgiving, the fruit of the lips
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• NKJ Hebrews 13:15 Therefore by Him let us continually
offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our
lips, giving thanks to His name.
• Why not offer 22,000 such praise-oxen? Or
120,000 such praise-sheep?
• Why not you 22,000 and 120,000 times offer to
God what the Bible teaches as the central theme of
the ancient worship:
• Thanks and praise to God, for He is good for His
MERCY is FOREVER? Why not?
• Think of the 22,000 complaints, and faultfinding's,
and judging’s, which you have made!
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• NKJ 2 Chronicles 7:6 And the priests attended to their
services; the Levites also with instruments of the music of
the LORD, which King David had made to praise the
LORD, saying, "For His mercy endures forever,"
whenever David offered praise by their ministry. The
priests sounded trumpets opposite them, while all Israel
stood. !
• They made a great noise, but it was not just a
noise, or even music
• They made one great sound meaning one great
thing:
• “FOR HE IS GOOD, FOR HIS MERCY IS
FOREVER”
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• May we worshipfully ask: What other meaning is
there to the great Bible phrase, “The Lamb of
God”?
• And to the expression, “The blood of the Lamb”?
• In the cross of Jesus Christ, and in the shedding of
His blood, God names what the mercy IS that
endures forever
• The MERCY that is forever emerges into view,
and is named, in Jesus and His blood
• Hallelujah! It makes you feel the burning,
cleansing flame just to talk about it, or think about
it
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
• We are waiting for the fire
• Israel is waiting for the fire - whether they know it
or not
• It will be something “new,” never before seen, not
like anything ever done before
• And yet, the same God, the same glory, only now
“in the face of Jesus Christ”
• But, there will be no glory, and no fire, apart from
His Mercy, which is forever
• We have had a glimpse of the ancient worship
Chapter 13: A Glimpse of the Ancient Worship
Thou Blessed and Heavenly Being, our Father, lift us
up out of the old Adam-nature mind, that can only
see Earth always. Show us Your glory. Open our
hearts with Thy mighty desire-will, that we may flow
in the “streams of mercy never ceasing,” which call
“for songs of loudest praise.” Convince us, Spirit of
Holiness, concerning what the mercy of God IS; that
we may not miss the call, for the hour, that comes as
an alerting trumpet sound from above. Convince us
that we can be more than conquerors through the
Blood, the Word, and the loving-not-our-lives-untodeath. BaShem Yeshua HaMashiahh (In the Name of
Jesus the Christ)
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• We will look at Isaiah chapters 55, 57, and 58
watching for two things:
– To see what is expressed about MERCY
– To see what you can learn about the lives of the
Prophets
• The calls and exhortations found in this 55th
chapter surely describe the instruction that these
Old Covenant prophets must have themselves
received
• “The Prophets” were an order of messengers
through whom God gave forth His Word for the
times
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• Their own lives must have been lived within the
meaning of their words
• They were all of them forerunners of Christ
• Perhaps it could be expressed that they were the
forerunners of the Great Forerunner, whose
ministry prepared the Messiah when He came
• The words of this chapter could be the
proclamation of a way-shower, and of The Way,
Himself, when He appeared:
• NKJ Isaiah 55:1 "Ho! Everyone who thirsts, Come to the
waters; And you who have no money, Come, buy and eat.
Yes, come, buy wine and milk Without money and without
price.
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• That is MERCY language: The Prophet was
imbued, aflame, with MERCY
• The urgent call was like a bell tolling
• It was a call from God, communicated by
someone with great passion, toward the people - a
mercy-passion
• Come! Come! You come! Free water from the
water carrier, free wine and milk from the vendor!
• That is what God’s Kingdom is like and that is
what MERCY is: a passion to give what is needed
• Buy and eat! Buy and drink! BUT - BUY
WITHOUT MONEY, for there is no price!
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• Why? Because everything was already paid for by
someone, and this was a dispensing of MERCY
• To fill a need:
– free food
– free drink
– free to ALL WHO WOULD COME!
• That is what Jesus was, and did - His lowliness
and humility was not just a personal religious
experience or achievement
• His lowliness and humility was made visible to all
by His MERCY and Compassion toward the
NEED of people - other humans - any humans
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• And that is what you are saved for, and destined
for, through Eternity: to be a MERCY dispenser
who gives freely what God gives to you
• FREELY, the words of this wonderful chapter are
used with great effect by many an evangelist in
our times
• The potency of these words must be a result of the
anointing and mercy-passion of God in those
Prophets
• We do not see any such vendors on the streets
anywhere, as described in this first verse everything is for a price
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• But this was a look ahead of a New Age
• It pictures the Kingdom of God
• In that Kingdom the great moving Spirit, operating
in all people and ruling the air, will be to fill the
other fellow’s need, supplying what the other one
lacks
• In that Kingdom, which is about to appear, each
will be concerned with the needs and happiness of
others instead of for themselves
• All economic problems will settle themselves and
he “cost of government” will be but a trifle
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• It is this very thing that God watches for in His
own children - that “all men might see”
• All men cannot always see lowliness, but all men
can see the MERCY that the lowliness does
• NKJ John 13:35 "By this all will know that you are My
disciples, if you have love for one another."
• And that is exactly the path in which the King
walks the Earth
• NKJ Matthew 5:44 "But I say to you, love your enemies,
bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you,
and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute
you, 45 "that you may be sons of your Father in heaven;
for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and
sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 55:2a Why do you spend money for what is not
bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy?
• Why, but that we are blind with selfishness, and
cannot see what God sees, whose will is MERCY
• NKJ Isaiah 55:2b Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is
good, And let your soul delight itself in abundance.
• Think of what God is saying - these are His
thoughts and show the way that He thinks
• His purpose is that we be fed, satisfied, and
delight in abundance
• He desires His people to be like Himself
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 55:3 Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear,
and your soul shall live; And I will make an everlasting
covenant with you -- The sure mercies of David.
• Some of you will have to quit the world’s things
that attract your ears
• And you will have to quit the gossip corner
• To “incline your ear” requires a very definite
choice to turn away from everything that would
turn your ear away from God
• God wants to give to you, and to the full, all that
fulfills your life and completes it
• He has a way, these things are not vain word
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• This is God’s desire, a passion, an eager desire of
MERCY, to fill and complete you
• A covenant has two ends: one the “proposer”, the
other the receiver who accepts and enters into it
• Thus it can be said that each covenants with the
other
• Here the “proposer” offers an everlasting
covenant, and the “accepter” must needs come to
some sort of intelligent understanding of what is
involved
• What is involved? “The sure MERCIES of David”
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• In the Psalms which took their rise largely from
his anointing, David sang,
• NAU Psalm 18:1 For the choir director. A Psalm of David
the servant of the LORD, who spoke to the LORD the
words of this song in the day that the LORD delivered him
from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of
Saul. And he said, "I love You, O LORD, my strength.”
• The word, David, means “Beloved,” and love for
the Lord is a constant theme
• There is a lengthy list of references in those
psalm-songs, to the love of God, and to that which
is love-in-action: MERCY
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• The words Mercy, Lovingkindness, Kindness, also
Goodness, are used with great frequency in the
Psalms
• All of these words are a translation of one word,
generally
• That word is the Hebrew word “hhesed,” MERCY
• The psalm-songs describe something SURE
• David wanted to build a house for God, a resting
place, or abiding place
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• And in answer to his desire God said:
• NKJ 2 Samuel 7:12 " When your days are fulfilled and you
rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you,
who will come from your body, and I will establish his
kingdom. 13 "He shall build a house for My name, and I
will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 "I will
be his Father, and he shall be My son. If he commits
iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with
the blows of the sons of men. 15 "But My mercy shall not
depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed
from before you. 16 "And your house and your kingdom
shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall
be established forever." ' ”
• Paraphrasing - “I will also build your house
forever, and my MERCY will not depart from
your offspring”
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• And David sang holy words about That One who
would one day succeed him and reign in his stead
• When, at last, that Anointed One was heralded by
the angel, the Word was:
• NKJ Luke 1:31 "And behold, you will conceive in your
womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name
JESUS [YESHUA]. 32 "He will be great, and will be
called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give
Him the throne of His father David. 33 "And He will reign
over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there
will be no end." (words in “[]” added by author)
• The name, David, is peculiarly the title of The
anointed One of God - in English anointed one is
“Christ”
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• All kingdoms have had their titles such as:
Pharaoh, Caesar, Czar, Kaiser, Emperor
• Israel’s ruler goes by the title: “BELOVED”
• From the skies spoke the Voice concerning Jesus:
• NKJ Matthew 17:5 While he was still speaking, behold, a
bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice
came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in
whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!”
• The prophet Ezekiel expressly states:
• NKJ Ezekiel 34:23 "I will establish one shepherd over
them, and he shall feed them -- My servant David. He shall
feed them and be their shepherd. 24 "And I, the LORD,
will be their God, and My servant David a prince among
them; I, the LORD, have spoken.
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Jeremiah 30:9 But they shall serve the LORD their
God, And David their king, Whom I will raise up for them.
• This is the divine title of the office of the King of
Israel - DAVID
• David means “Beloved”
• Jesus is that David whom God raised from the
dead according to the prophet-king David
• And God will bring Him to sit on that throne and
it will be and everlasting throne
• Now, what IS that throne, and that dominion, and
that everlasting covenant?
• MERCY - sure mercies - covenanted mercy
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Mark 10:46 Now they came to Jericho. As He went
out of Jericho with His disciples and a great multitude,
blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the road
begging. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of
Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, Son of
David, have mercy on me!" 48 Then many warned him to
be quiet; but he cried out all the more, "Son of David, have
mercy on me!" 49a So Jesus stood still and commanded
him to be called...
• “Son of David, MERCY me,” cried the blind man
and the outcast as Jesus passed by, “Son of David,
mercy me.”
• AND JESUS STOPPED IN HIS TRACKS for
that call
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Matthew 15:22 And behold, a woman of Canaan
came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, "Have
mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is
severely demon-possessed." 23 But He answered her not a
word. And His disciples came and urged Him, saying,
"Send her away, for she cries out after us." 24 But He
answered and said, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep
of the house of Israel." 25 Then she came and worshiped
Him, saying, "Lord, help me!" 26 But He answered and
said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw
it to the little dogs." 27 And she said, "Yes, Lord, yet even
the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters'
table." 28 Then Jesus answered and said to her, "O
woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire."
And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
• Jesus set aside all barriers to respond to the cry for
MERCY, the cry for help
Hymn: Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior
Pass me not, O gentle Savior Hear my humble cry!
While on others Thou art calling, Do not pass me by.
Savior Savior, Hear my humble cry! While on others Thou art
calling, Do not pass me by.
Let me at a throne of MERCY, Find a sweet relief:
Kneeling there in deep contrition Help my unbelief.
Savior, Savior, Hear my humble cry! While on others Thou art
calling Do not pass me by.
Trusting only in Thy merit Would I seek Thy face:
Heal my wounded, broken spirit, Save me by Thy grace
Savior, Savior, Hear my humble cry! While on others Thou art
calling, Do not pass me by.
Thou the spring of all my comfort, More than life to me!
Whom have I on earth beside Thee? Whom in heav'n but Thee?
Savior, Savior, Hear my humble cry! While on others Thou art
Calling, Do not pass me by.
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• We are taking a glimpse into the lives of the
prophets
• They looked forward to the Anointed Mercy
Ruler, as truly as we look back to where and when
He came
• Probably they were not able to grasp it all, but
neither are we for that matter
• But they did have a spiritual life put before them,
to which they called the people, and for which
they interceded to God against the spirit of evil
• They which they taught the people, they most
surely taught themselves, did they not?
• What is the one term that comprehends everything
here offered? MERCY
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 55:4 Indeed I have given him as a witness to
the people, A leader and commander for the people.
• So spoke Isaiah, about 300 years AFTER David,
the Son of Jesse
• THIS David, of whom he is speaking, and of
whom other prophets likewise spoke, is our Lord
Jesus, “The Beloved”
• And the significance of the title is MERCY - sure
MERCIES!
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 55:5 Surely you shall call a nation you do not
know, And nations who do not know you shall run to you,
Because of the LORD your God, And the Holy One of
Israel; For He has glorified you." 6 Seek the LORD while
He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near.
• The evangelistic fervor pleads on
• Our present day evangelists all use the same words
• Prophets, or evangelists, alike must LIVE in these
words
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 55:7 Let the wicked forsake his way, And the
unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the
LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.
• OUR God!
• What is the alternative offered here to the way of
the wicked and the thoughts of the unrighteous
man? MERCY
• And those prophets knew it
• All the prophets, whose writings we have, knew it
• The great singular characteristic of the true and
living God, who made our heavens and the earth!
• “OUR GOD” - MERCY!
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 55:8 " For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD
• Why? Because He plans MERCY!
• NKJ Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think
toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of
evil, to give you a future and a hope.
• God thinks and does things differently than we
think and do
• However, we are commanded to learn to think as
God thinks and learn to understand His ways.
• NKJ Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world,
but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you
may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect
will of God.
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• Furthermore, God has given us the Helper – the
Holy Spirit in order to learn God’s thoughts and
ways.
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 2:9 But as it is written: "Eye has not
seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared for those who love
Him." 10 But God has revealed them to us through His
Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep
things of God. 11 For what man knows the things of a
man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so
no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.
12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but
the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things
that have been freely given to us by God.
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ 1 Corinthians 2:13 These things we also speak, not in
words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy
Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14
But the natural man does not receive the things of the
Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he
know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15 But
he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is
rightly judged by no one. 16 For "who has known the
mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?" But we
have the mind of Christ.
• Furthermore, we have the Old Testament that is
full of “case studies” in order to learn God’s
thoughts and ways.
• NKJ Romans 15:4 For whatever things were written before
were written for our learning, that we through the patience
and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 55:9 "For as the heavens are higher than the
earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My
thoughts than your thoughts.
• In what way? MERCY
• You have it in the psalm-songs of David, the
Beloved:
• NKJ Psalm 108:4 For Your mercy is great above the
heavens, And Your truth reaches to the clouds.
• It is the song of “the Beloved,” whether of David,
or his successors
• With ONE SPIRIT the witness is given through all
generations
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 55:11 So shall My word be that goes forth
from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall
accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing
for which I sent it.
•
•
•
•
•
The prospering Word: MERCY
But is it not the LOVE of God?
Most surely it is - it is LOVE-IN-ACTION
And love-in-action is MERCY
Distinctly those prophets were not idealizing with
words - mere beauties of the mind’s power of
imagination and enjoyment
• They were in, and of, and for, the Spirit and
testimony of MESSIAH
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
•
•
•
•
And when Messiah came He LIVED that action
He WAS that MERCY
He was love-in-action
He fulfilled the hopes that can only be fulfilled in
MERCY
• For ever the Same
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 55:12 "For you shall go out with joy, And be
led out with peace; The mountains and the hills Shall break
forth into singing before you, And all the trees of the field
shall clap their hands. 13 Instead of the thorn shall come
up the cypress tree, And instead of the brier shall come up
the myrtle tree; And it shall be to the LORD for a name,
For an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”
• These verses describe the effects produced: Joy,
Peace, Singing, fir trees in place of thorns, myrtle
trees for briars
• A name for the Lord
• An everlasting sign that shall not be cut off
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• What is it that changes thorns into fir trees, and
replaces briars with myrtle trees? MERCY
• What shall be to the LORD for a name? MERCY
• What everlasting sign shall not be cut off?
MERCY
• The Theme of this chapter is in verse 3, “ The sure
mercies of David” and also verse 7, “Mercy,
abundant”
• God not only pardons, He ABUNDANTLY
pardons - How wonderful is His mercy!
• This is a glimpse into the lives of the prophets,
and it is also a glimpse into the life of the One
Who was coming: The-Greater-than-all-prophets
• What is seen is MERCY
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 57:1 The righteous perishes, And no man takes
it to heart; Merciful men are taken away, While no one
considers That the righteous is taken away from evil. 2 He
shall enter into peace; They shall rest in their beds, Each
one walking in his uprightness.
• Note that being merciful is equated with being
righteous
• Following these verses is the prophet-grieved
indictment of debauching evils
• NKJ Isaiah 57:3 " But come here, You sons of the
sorceress, You offspring of the adulterer and the harlot! 4
Whom do you ridicule? Against whom do you make a
wide mouth And stick out the tongue? Are you not
children of transgression, Offspring of falsehood,
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
NKJ Isaiah 57:5 Inflaming yourselves with gods under every
green tree, Slaying the children in the valleys, Under the
clefts of the rocks? 6 Among the smooth stones of the
stream Is your portion; They, they, are your lot! Even to
them you have poured a drink offering, You have offered a
grain offering. Should I receive comfort in these? 7 "On a
lofty and high mountain You have set your bed; EVEN there
you went up To offer sacrifice. 8 Also behind the doors and
their posts You have set up your remembrance; For you have
uncovered yourself to those other than Me, And have gone
up to them; You have enlarged your bed And made a
covenant with them; You have loved their bed, Where you
saw their nudity. 9 You went to the king with ointment, And
increased your perfumes; You sent your messengers far off,
And even descended to Sheol.
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
NKJ Isaiah 57:10 You are wearied in the length of your
way; Yet you did not say, 'There is no hope.' You have
found the life of your hand; Therefore you were not grieved.
11 " And of whom have you been afraid, or feared, That you
have lied And not remembered Me, Nor taken it to your
heart? Is it not because I have held My peace from of old
That you do not fear Me? 12 I will declare your
righteousness And your works, For they will not profit you.
13 When you cry out, Let your collection of idols deliver
you. But the wind will carry them all away, A breath will
take them. But he who puts his trust in Me shall possess the
land, And shall inherit My holy mountain." 14 And one
shall say, "Heap it up! Heap it up! Prepare the way, Take the
stumbling block out of the way of My people."
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• And then, an amazing light on the subject of
God’s Holiness in contrast, but displaying also the
peculiar quality of His holiness, which MERCY is
• NKJ Isaiah 57:15 For thus says the High and Lofty One
Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: "I dwell in the
high and holy place, With him who has a contrite and
humble spirit, To revive the spirit of the humble, And to
revive the heart of the contrite ones.
• Even as “righteousness” is made synonymous with
“merciful,” so is He whose name is HOLY, the
dweller in the high and holy, is MERCY
• For what is it that He does? He dwells with the
contrite and humble spirit
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• That is a picture of utter lowliness; it is the
“poverty” that Jesus embodied
• Why does He so dwell with the contrite and
humble?
• To give them life - to LIFE them
• He is the cause of their living
• What is that life-giving? MERCY
• The High and Holy, the servant of the lowly,
LIFE-ING them - MERCY!
• It is perhaps one of the most exact and fullest
definitions of MERCY
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• The prophets lived within view of that fact
• Oh beloved, that is where the true fire is, that
keeps you from perishing in a cold, dark, desolate
world of destructive spirits of evil
• In MERCY, hhesed, there is a refuge from evil,
desolation, destruction wrath
• It is God’s singular characteristic, and the
distinguishing feature of His Holiness
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 57: 16 For I will not contend forever, Nor will
I always be angry; For the spirit would fail before Me, And
the souls which I have made. 17 For the iniquity of his
covetousness I was angry and struck him; I hid and was
angry, And he went on backsliding in the way of his heart.
18 I have seen his ways, and will heal him; I will also lead
him, And restore comforts to him And to his mourners. 19
"I create the fruit of the lips: Peace, peace to him who is far
off and to him who is near," Says the LORD, "And I will
heal him." 20 But the wicked are like the troubled sea,
When it cannot rest, Whose waters cast up mire and dirt.
21 "There is no peace," Says my God, "for the wicked.”
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• We found, in the 57th chapter, verse 1, the terms
“righteous” and “merciful” used as descriptive of
those men who stood between the people and the
evils of their times
• We are apt to think of the prophets in the sense of
denouncers of evils - and to be sure, they did
denounce evils
• But unless we see the same prophets in the light of
the word “merciful” - meaning merciers, MERCY
DOERS - we cannot understand their true position
as “righteous” men of God
• They were SENT by God to the people with a
message
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• And they “stood before God” in many instances,
as intercessors FOR the people to whom they bore
His message
• Oftentimes they were so intimately associated
with their words as to BE the message
• That is, they acted out the word given, by
symbolic means
• They lived out what they said, It was not just
show-acting
• Likewise their teaching utterances would, of
necessity, be a description of their way of living,
or of the life they were supposed to live
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• Too often we want to be teachers of others in
WORDS only, without the knowledge in us that
GOD, Himself, gives what He demands
• He “gave Himself” when He demanded that men
give up themselves
• As we come into Isaiah 58, we have before us a
glimpse into the life of a true prophet - one called
a “merciful man,” and righteous”
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• In chapter 58 is a detailed description of the
righteous-merciful-contrite-humble man whom
God nourishes with life
• That man could be one of the prophets themselves,
for it was certainly an ardent, passionate plea of
God toward the people of their own time
• Or, that Man could be the Messiah, Christ, and
surely was
• Or, that one could be you, as belonging to Christ
Jesus, the Messiah
• A distinctively divine quality, a GOD quality, is
everywhere declared in the prophets, and that
quality is MERCY
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• All of the wrath that is mentioned is set forth as
the effect and result of the refusal of the MERCY
offered
• And that is what the nature of wrath is: UNmercy,
the opposite to MERCY - and thus opposition TO
MERCY
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 58:1 "Cry aloud, spare not; Lift up your voice
like a trumpet; Tell My people their transgression, And the
house of Jacob their sins.
• This is the characteristic of the position and
authority of a prophet
• As a trumpet demands the attention of all who
hear it, making no distinctions, they were to cry,
call forth, a message in no uncertain tones
• And as a trumpet makes a clear sound, different
from all other sounds, so they were to clearly
show the people their sins, in a way that could not
be confused or made to mean something else
• The trumpet sound was not merely as a club
hitting something
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• As we go through this chapter, we see two
opposite ways of living
• Certainly, through all time, the one who cries
aloud and spares not must be a partaker of the fruit
of his utterances
• The Apostle Paul says:
• NKJ 2 Timothy 2:6 The hard-working farmer must be first
to partake of the crops.
• And that does not mean only first in point of time:
first one to eat of the harvest
• Rather, the farmer must - of necessity - live on the
crops
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• These prophets were showing two opposite ways
of living:
– one a rejected way of transgression;
– the other an acceptable way, blessed of the
Lord, and thus fruitful in His goodness
• It is striking that everything that God teaches as
being good is also a MERCY in some form
• So it is in this remarkable chapter, that surely
describes the life of a prophet, as GOD would
desire him to be
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 58:2 Yet they seek Me daily, And delight to
know My ways, As a nation that did righteousness, And
did not forsake the ordinance of their God. They ask of Me
the ordinances of justice; They take delight in approaching
God.
• This verse is a delicate divine sarcasm - or irony as the next three verses show
• The words of verse 2 express the way the people
looked at themselves, and thought about
themselves - much like we are inclined to do
• “And delight to know my ways”
• It is not very hard to fall into line with the sound
of things, when you are among people you like to
be with
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• You can even fool yourself by a sort of handclapping endorsement of such great ideas as these
• But even enthusiasm over words does not
necessarily prove that you possess what is stated
in those words
• It is necessary to go through to the end of the
chapter
• “They seek me… they delight to know… did
righteousness… did not forsake the commands of
God… ask for instruction of justice and
righteousness… take delight in approaching God”
• Beautiful view of self and its unsullied
RIGHTness
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• Solid foundation, mean well, an amazing array of
loveliness that they fancied that they saw in
themselves
• The message of the prophets was to the people,
but it could not fail to search, also, the heart of the
messenger
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 58:3 'Why have we fasted,' they say, 'and You
have not seen? Why have we afflicted our souls, and You
take no notice?' "In fact, in the day of your fast you find
pleasure, And exploit all your laborers.
• Voice of self-righteousness
• All right, says God by the prophet, I will tell you
• In your fast day you seek pleasures and do your
own works
• (One of the really great pleasures about fasting is
to get credit from people for religiosity. False vain
pleasure of self-righteousness)
• But this seems to refer to worldly pleasures
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 58:4 Indeed you fast for strife and debate, And
to strike with the fist of wickedness. You will not fast as
you do this day, To make your voice heard on high.
• You fast, yes, but you use the time for strife and
argument
• You retaliate, striking one another
• You shall NOT FAST LIKE YOU DO IT shouting and yelling in angry debates
• The phrase, “To make your voice heard on high”
is a striking characteristic of these eastern
countries: each trying to out-shout the others with
a louder and shriller voice, in a clamor of confused
noise
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• It has the effect of being right by being the noisiest
(i.e., that is whoever shouts the fiercest wins)
• Sometimes people even seem to believe that God
is Himself greatly excited over their private
quarrel, and when they act vengefully
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 58:5 Is it a fast that I have chosen, A day for a
man to afflict his soul? Is it to bow down his head like a
bulrush, And to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Would
you call this a fast, And an acceptable day to the LORD?
• Now comes the description of a TRUE FAST one chosen by the LORD
• And note carefully that it is all MERCY
• Note also, that unless it was the life of the prophet,
then the prophet, himself, was one of the very
persons against whom the blast was directed
• But we may properly assume that the following
verses describe the kind of life that the prophets
sought to live
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• Thus it gives us a glimpse INTO the lives of the
prophets; and of their understanding of the things
that they taught to others
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 58:6 " Is this not the fast that I have chosen: To
loose the bonds of wickedness, To undo the heavy
burdens, To let the oppressed go free, And that you break
every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,
And that you bring to your house the poor who are cast
out; When you see the naked, that you cover him, And not
hide yourself from your own flesh?
• To loose, break off, the bands of wickedness only MERCY cares to do it
• To undo, untie, the heavy burdens and give
freedom to the oppressed - only MERCY sees or
bothers with such work
• And that you break every yoke - MERCY releases
from enslavement
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• Is not My fast to: deal out, share your food with
the hungry? It is one thing to stop eating as a
“fast”, but this fast is: caring for others
• And to bring the outcast to your house? Help for
the outcast poor is MERCY
• To clothe the naked when you see him? These are
questions requiring answers
• And do not refuse you family responsibilities?
• All of these verses are a description of MERCY
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 58:8 Then your light shall break forth like the
morning, Your healing shall spring forth speedily, And
your righteousness shall go before you; The glory of the
LORD shall be your rear guard.
• The clarion call still: “THEN”! You will have
your answer
• Then verse 3 will no longer be a complaining selfrighteousness of faultfinding against God
• For THEN! “Your light shall break forth as the
morning.”
• You will be IN the light, THEN “Your healing
shall spring forth speedily”
• Healing will take forth speedily - health breaking
out!
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• THEN! “Your righteousness will go before you”
• As a shining light that is visible to all
• THEN! “The glory of the LORD will be your rear
guard” - following, protecting, covering
• Think of it! The glory of the LORD following
after you!
• A clear reference to the old days when the LORD
marched with Israel, His pillar of fire a light
before, and a glory cloud behind
• We are coming into such days again, but doubtless
much more so, larger, grander, more complete
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 58:9 Then you shall call, and the LORD will
answer; You shall cry, and He will say, 'Here I am.' "If you
take away the yoke from your midst, The pointing of the
finger, and speaking wickedness,
• When shall you call and the Lord answers?
• When will you cry and the Lord will say, Here I
am?
• When you do MERCY!
– Taking away the yoke from your midst (i.e., exchange the love of
ruling over others for a heart to serve)
– The pointing of the finger (i.e., replace the love of judging,
accusing, faultfinding, condemning with grace, mercy, and
compassion)
– And speaking wickedness (i.e., stop loving foolishness, self-glory,
empty boastings and start speaking words of grace and truth)
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 58:10 If you extend your soul to the hungry
And satisfy the afflicted soul, Then your light shall dawn
in the darkness, And your darkness shall be as the
noonday.
• This expression is a perfect description of what the
passion of MERCY is: your soul goes out to the
need, in a deed
• THEN, shall thy darkness be as the noonday confusion, dismay, drooping faith all disappearing
in the floodlight of MERCY
Chapter 14: A Glimpse into the Prophets’ Lives
• NKJ Isaiah 58:11 The LORD will guide you continually,
And satisfy your soul in drought, And strengthen your
bones; You shall be like a watered garden, And like a
spring of water, whose waters do not fail.
• When you do God’s MERCY for Him, you will be
guided continually
• Ponder these things
• There is a tremendous authority expressed