After Adam and Eve rebelled against God, they were expelled from Eden. Their lives plunged into darkness. You can already get a sense of what I am trying to relate. They had experienced light but now, life was dark. By contrasting, the dark with the glory of light, we may be better positioned tounderstand God and his activity throughout history.
As mentioned previously, God has chosen varying themes to convey to us how we are to understand his nature. We see him as God, king, a rock, the bread to life, a warrior, husband and father. It is by selecting just one of these identities, a husband, that I hope to convey to you God’s expectations for human relationships. I must acknowledge here that we must not restrict God to that of husband alone. To do so would be blasphemous. A balanced reading of Scripture will serve to guard against this danger.
Is life, as we know it, really that dark? We have so much to be grateful for. Hospitals, schools, material wealth. Sometimes we have moments where we feel unsettled. This usually peters out when the TV news moves on to more entertaining topics, especially those which provide dramatic video footage.
Some of us are aware of a sort of twilight. A mistiness which, while we can feel our way around, causes a sense of disquiet. It is only when we read Scripture that the twilight, the mist, evaporates and there is clarity. The light of Scripture exposes the darkness of our hearts, and in the world around us. This darkness contrasts with the glorious, white, brightness of God, his nature and plans as revealed in Genesis 1 and Revelation 21.
As we delve further into Scripture, we become intimately acquainted with God’s character and attitudes. We discover what brings him pleasure and what incites his wrath and judgement. I would have to say that this chapter requires full assent if we are to reach a conclusive understanding of the ancient prophecy.
We are told by Scripture that God has chosen a race of people to bring about blessing to the rest of humanity. That the darkness will eventually be overcome with blazing light. In a word, redemption. About four thousand one hundred years ago, God called to a man named Abraham. His descendants are those who are known as the Israelites. The Old Testament contains a history of this people. God has sent messages to the Israelites in a variety of ways. Included, in this process of communication, are his words to the prophets.
Despite the darkness of history there are, what may be viewed as, peaks and troughs. A peak, where a blazing beam of light from God was made manifest was when God gave his people, the Israelites, the Ten Commandments. Most of these commands have been consigned to the waste disposal. The exceptions are murder and theft. Throughout the Old Testament, it is clear that God expects the Israelites to live a life of obedience to his commands. This includes the prohibition of adultery. God warns the Israelites of the outcome for the nation if they are disobedient:
“And if you forget the Lord your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you today that you that you shall surely perish.”
Deuteronomy 8:19
At a time where other nations had kings, Israel had no king. Where there were a multitude of gods, Israel had one. As other nations sculpted gods of stone and wood and offered the lives of their own children in sacrifice, the Israelites were forbidden. The Ten Commandments set them apart. Israel itself provided the means whereby the light of God shone in the darkness of the world around them. This is why God called them to be his people. The contrast between, the glorious light of the lives of the Israelites and the darkness of the nations that lived nearby, clearly works to serve God’s mission to bring all of creation back into alignment with his previous intentions.
As we read on, we find that the Israelites failed to obey God’s call to worship him alone. They begin to adhere to the worship practices of surrounding nations. They followed other gods. After repeated warnings dispensed by God’s prophets, the people of Israel were expelled from the land that God had provided for them. Through the invasions by other nations, the Assyrians and the Babylonians, all that the Israelites held dear was wrenched from their grasp. The horrors of this period in Israel’s history are recorded in the book of Lamentations.
An unusual development on God’s command against adultery emerges. This development results in a greater understanding of God himself and the people of Israel. It also reveals something to modern day Christians.
“Only acknowledge your guilt, that you rebelled against the Lord your God and scattered your favours among foreigners under every green tree, and that you have not obeyed my voice,” declares the Lord.
“Return, O faithless children,” declares the Lord, "for I am your master."
Jeremiah 3:13 & 14
The above verses are taken from the English Standard Version Bible. To reach greater clarity, we can translate “for I am your master” as “for I am your husband” (New International Version Bible), and “for I am married unto you”. (King James Bible)
From reading these verses, we discover that God regards his people’s disobedience as spiritual adultery. He conveys to us that he views himself as Israel’s master and husband. They are to respond to him as being in covenant with him. A covenant is like a contract. Each party is required to act in accordance with the stipulations of the contract. God has determined the contractual obligations as one party and his people agree to obey as the other party. The covenant of marriage described in Genesis was unbreakable. It was described as ‘one flesh’. When God says “for I am married unto you”, this unbreakable bond is what he has in mind.
These few verses need to be enlarged upon if they are to support my views. This theme, of God and his people being joined in a marital covenant, is found in other Scriptural references.
“They broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them, declares the Lord.”
Jeremiah 31:32
“Your maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is his name.”
Isaiah 54:5
From these three Scriptural references, we learn that, God reveals himself as a husband to Israel. A husband with the expectation of faithfulness. His reaction to disobedience is judgement. Prior to this are warnings. Scripture reveals his desire for reconciliation and a return to the covenanted relationship. He calls to them through the prophet Jeremiah to “acknowledge your guilt”.
Despite many warnings, the people continue to actively live lives which provoke God and result in his being forced to carry out his threats. In 597BC Jerusalem was besieged by the Babylonians, the Temple ransacked and the people displaced, many of whom were deported to Babylon. His reaction to their rebellion was once more, couched in terms of the husband of an adulterous woman. His emotions were in plain sight, as we read of his reaction to Israel’s betrayal:
“Therefore thus says the Lord God: Because you have forgotten me and cast me behind your back, you yourself must bear the consequences of your lewdness and whoring.”
Ezekiel 23:35
“Then I said of her who was worn out by adultery. Now they will continue to use her for a whore, even her! For they go in to her, as men go into a prostitute.”
Ezekiel 23:43&44
Despite this all-pervasive darkness, there was cause for hope. God spoke through his prophet, Isaiah, revealing that the time of judgement will come to an end. After 59 years in Babylon, the Israelites were freed and allowed to return to their homeland.
“Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the Lord’s hands double for all her sins.”
Isaiah 40:1&2
“For the Lord has called you like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit, like a wife of youth when she is cast off, says your God. For a brief moment I deserted you, but with compassion I will gather you. In overflowing anger for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,” says the Lord, your Redeemer.
Isaiah 54:6-8
We can, therefore, draw some conclusions from this chapter. Th
ese are that God aspires to the greatest of all connections to his people. He uses the institution of marriage as the template, whereby we may understand his desires. We also have displayed his reaction to the breakdown of this connection. He warns, he woos. With words of profound heartbreak, he calls on his people to renounce their unfaithfulness and return to him. Despite this, Israel continued to reject him. Rather than pouring out his wrath on them, God displayed his generosity and patience. Eight hundred and sixty or so years pass by before he allowed the Babylonians to be his instrument of judgement.
Once more we are drawn to the contrast between the light and darkness of history. The Ten Commandments provided a glorious chapter in Israel’s history. There we had in view, a revelation of God’s holy glory. Despite this, the people failed to obey and there was once more a slippage into darkness. Through the prophets, there was once more the hope of glory as God promises to bring them back from the exile in Babylon. Not only that, he promises a New Covenant. With this, God’s glory, will not be restricted to the Israelites alone. He includes the rest of humanity in his plans.
“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel,….not like the covenant I made with their fathers...my covenant they broke, though I was a husband to them...I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God and, they shall be my people.”
Jeremiah 31:31-33
A message to Israel and the glory their future holds for humanity:
“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you. And nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.”
Isaiah 60:1-3
Chapter 13
I Am the Lord
In the previous chapter, our survey provided a bird’s eye view of the relationship between the nation of Israel and their God. We saw that, despite their rebellious behaviour, God reassured them that his commitment to them was unwavering. Their special status as his chosen people would be re-established. A faithless wife, Israel had the promise that God, her husband, would resume their marriage. Through this survey the values that God holds dear are brought into sharp relief. The contrasts are unmistakable.
God is immutable. That is, he never changes. His values and plans are the same today as they were when he first spoke to Abraham over four thousand years ago. Our lives are so different to the lives of those who peopled the many biblical stories. It is hard to identify with these individuals and the socio-political experiences that are related.
With this in mind, inevitable questions arise. Is God still interested in whether his commands are broken? Is he serious about judging adulterers? An answer to these questions may be found by once more surveying Scripture.
One of the earliest involvements that God had with the people of Israel is when they were enslaved in Egypt. From an extended family of just seventy, their numbers multiplied. They began to be viewed as a threat by the Egyptians. They suffered at the hands of the Egyptians. In response, God called to Moses to lead the people to the land of Canaan.
Moses met with the king, the Pharaoh Ramesses11 and commanded him to release the Israelites. He refused and God brought about various judgements upon Egypt to convince Ramesses to change his mind and submit. It was at this time that definitive evidence of God’s plans and motivations were made manifest. When Moses approached him, Ramesses refused to release the Israelites. In response, God brought a plague upon Egypt. He turned all of the water into blood. There was one reason only that this plague was sent:
“By this you shall know that I am the Lord.”
Exodus 7:17
It is true that God wanted his people to be set free. Their release was a demonstration of his power. Yet this above reference, is his underlying motive. Throughout the process of the continuing plagues, God’s attitude is on display. He repeatedly states that his ultimate purposes are for revelation. By his actions he becomes known. God even speaks to Ramesses. He tells him that his life is for a specific purpose. It was not his governmental talents or his massive building projects. God tells Ramesses:
“But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.”
Exodus 9:16
As Ramesses repeatedly resisted Moses’ demands, further plagues eventuated, each worse than the one before. Each message to Ramesses was accompanied by this declaration of the lordship of God, and his plan to bring judgement upon rebellion.
This theme of judgement is deeply connected to God and his integrity. His reputation is tied to his actions. His activity reflects his holiness, a rejection of all those who rebel. When God refers to his ‘name’, it is identity that he has in mind. He is beyond understanding, yet he honours us by giving us glimpses of himself over the millennia, so that we can ‘know’ him.
Were God’s encounters with Ramesses an isolated incident? Have his requirements for holy obedience and judgement of the rebellious been superseded? Does God change his mind? And how does this bode for the covenant of marriage?
From an objective standpoint, we can answer in the negative. The events of the exodus, of the Israelites, from Egypt were reliably dated at 1446 BC. Further Scriptural reference to God’s Lordship over creation is found in the Psalms of David written 400 years later. David’s inspiration led him to conclude that his God had not changed. He was committed to affirming his Lordship and his determination to maintain his reputation.
“Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”
Psalm 46:10
Another 500 years pass by and we are almost overwhelmed by the prophecies of Ezekiel. Most of the other prophets have a lyrical, poetic quality to their messages. Not so with Ezekiel. His approach is like a jackhammer pounding away at us, presenting us with disturbing, confronting images. Graphic and almost hideous, God, through Ezekiel, tells the Israelites that they are doomed. Judgement is imminent. We are left with the impression that time is running out, there is no going back. There is a sense of impending disaster. God’s repeated warnings of the past eighteen hundred years are about to be acted on.
This presentation, of the prophecies to Ezekiel, are accompanied by the repetitious use of the phrase “Then you will know that I am the Lord”. Over and over, sixty five times in all, this phrase is used. There is no mistaking God’s intention. The end is near and he will prevail. There is no opposition which can withstand his rule.
With this evidence before us we can conclude that the Old Testament presents a clear understanding of God, his plans and motivations. God has not changed. Therefore we can conclude that his attitude to marriage is unwavering.
This heightened sense of action on God’s part is clarified in his declaration that he will usher in a New Covenant.
“I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.”
Ezekiel 36:26 & 27
This New Covenant is to be viewed in a specific way.
“It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations…. And the nations will know that I am the Lord.”
Ezekiel 36:22&23
These verses form a bridge, which form the basis, for understanding the New Testament. Many consider that, the God of the Old Testament bears no resemblance to that of the New. With this in mind, the idea of a wrathful God bent on vengeance is dismissed as primitive and as such unpalatable. These verses once more provide a staggering contrast between the darkness of Israel’s rebellion and the brilliant light promised by the New Covenant.
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As this chapter closes, my hope is that the reader will take to heart this profound realisation that there is a transcendent deity who wishes to be known. To be known as intimately as a husband is to his wife. A one-flesh relationship which is indissoluble.
Chapter 14
The Last Prophet
Three hundred years passed by. A period where some of the Israelites have returned and began to rebuild the temple. National life was far removed from the days of King David and his son Solomon. They were now occupied by the Romans, the dominant civilisation of the time.
Entering this scene is a man, known as John the Baptist. He was the final prophet. His work was pivotal. Jesus declares:
“Among those born of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom is greater than he.”
Luke 7:28
This is a perplexing quote. What was is that made John great? The answer may be that his arrival and work were themselves the subject of prophecy (Isaiah 40:3, Malachi 3:1 & John 1:23). He spent his time in the desert preaching and baptising in the Jordan River, declaring that Israel should repent and prepare for the arrival of the “Lamb of God” who would take away the sin of the world.
The content of his preaching makes it clear that he had soaked himself in the prophecies of the prophets of old. He was blessed by God in a way that most of us can barely imagine. The prophecy in Ezekiel 36:26 regarding the coming of the Spirit was presented in a most tangible way. He was enabled to actually see the Spirit, in the form of a dove, as he descended from heaven and hovered above the head of Jesus. No prophet had witnessed all of what John had seen and heard. He was enabled to hear the Father’s voice, see the Son in the flesh and experience the vision of the Holy Spirit. This, then, was what made him great. It was not for any particular skill or achievement that he demonstrated. He was great because God made him great. It was grace upon grace.
An Unloved Woman Page 6