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Scripture Reading: Exo. 16:13-15, 31; Num. 11:7-9
The book of Exodus can be divided into two sections: chapters 1 through 18 and chapters 19 through 40. The first section shows how God saved, led, and supplied the children of Israel. The second section shows that God wanted the children of Israel to serve Him and to build His dwelling place. Simply speaking, the first section speaks of God’s salvation, leading, and provision, and the second section speaks of serving God and building His dwelling place.
God called the children of Israel so that they would serve Him and build His dwelling place. However, the children of Israel fell into the world, so God had to save them. After saving them, He led them on a journey so that they could know Him and know themselves. Hence, after salvation there was leading. In the course of saving and leading the children of Israel, God gave them many provisions. In this way He brought them to the point that they could learn to serve Him. This process can be applied to us. God chose and predestinated us so that we may serve Him. However, because we are fallen, God has to come and save us out of the world and sin. After He saves us, He trains us to serve Him. As types, matters of God’s work on the children of Israel match our experiences.
In previous chapters we saw how God led the children of Israel to journey in the wilderness, to experience manna, to drink the living water flowing out from the rock, and to fight against Amalek. All these important points are related to Christ and should be a basic part of a Christian’s experience. In this chapter we will review the items of God’s provision for the children of Israel.
The first item of God’s provision for the children of Israel was the passover lamb, which signifies Christ. First Corinthians 5:7 says, “Our Passover, Christ,...has been sacrificed.” God’s saving and leading of His people and all His provisions depend on this lamb, which signifies Christ. The New Testament reveals that Christ is the Lamb of God. In John 1:29, John the Baptist saw Jesus and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God.” At the end of Revelation Christ is still the Lamb in the New Jerusalem in the new heaven and the new earth. The New Jerusalem is the wife of the Lamb (21:9), the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of the city (v. 22), and the Lamb is the lamp of the city (v. 23). Revelation also speaks of the throne of God and of the Lamb (22:1, 3). These verses show that in eternity the Lord Jesus will still be the Lamb. In saving His people and leading them into eternity, God supplies us with the Lamb. Without the Lamb, there is neither salvation nor leading. Every work of God in us has been done with Christ, the Lamb, as the supply.
The passover lamb was examined by the house of Israel, just as the Lord Jesus was examined by various people. The way that the passover lamb was killed typifies the way that Christ was killed, and the way that the passover lamb’s blood was shed typifies the way that Christ shed His blood. The passover lamb as the substitute for the children of Israel is a type of Christ as our Substitute. When the children of Israel kept the Feast of the Passover, they had a particular method for killing the lamb. They took a lamb, tied two legs to two ends of a crossbar, and then tied the other two legs together at the foot of a vertical piece of the wood. The two pieces of wood formed the shape of a cross. At that time the children of Israel did not know the meaning of the cross, nor did it occur to them that they were tying the lamb to a cross. The lamb was killed on the fourteenth day of the first month, but it was chosen four days in advance so that it might be examined for blemishes (Exo. 12:3, 5-6). Only a lamb without blemish could be a substitute for the children of Israel. From the day that the Lord Jesus went to Jerusalem until the day that He was killed was four days. During these four days He was examined by the Jews and the Gentiles.
In Exodus the passover lamb was examined for four days. In the New Testament the Lord Jesus went to Bethany six days before the Passover (John 12:1; Mark 11:1). The next day He went to Jerusalem, and then He returned to Bethany again (John 12:12; Mark 11:11). On the third day He went back to Jerusalem (vv. 12-15) and was examined by various people. The chief priests, scribes, and Pharisees repeatedly asked the Lord Jesus difficult questions. On the night that the Lord Jesus was betrayed, He had been examined six times. He was examined three times by the Jews according to the law (John 18:13-14, 19-24; Matt. 26:57-66; 27:1; Luke 22:66-71) and three times by the Gentiles, the Romans (Matt. 27:2, 11-14; Luke 23:1-11, 13-25; John 18:28-38). The Lord Jesus answered His examiners every single time, and His examiners could find no fault in the Lord Jesus. In the end Pilate proclaimed, “I find no fault in Him” (v. 38; 19:4, 6; Luke 23:4). The Passover lamb was judged and found to be without blemish. Hence, when they nailed Him to the cross, He as the sinless One was killed, bearing our sin and being judged by God. Christ as the Lamb is the source of all of God’s provisions.
The second item of God’s provision for the children of Israel was the blood of the lamb, typifying the precious blood of Christ (1 Pet. 1:19). In the New Testament the blood of Christ is extremely important. It is by the precious blood that our sins are forgiven (Heb. 9:22; Matt. 26:28), that we are purified before God (Heb. 9:22), and that our conscience is purified and at peace (v. 14; 10:22; Col. 1:20). It is also by the precious blood that we are sanctified (Heb. 13:12; 10:29; Rom. 5:9) and have fellowship with God without any barriers (1 John 1:7). Even more, it is by the precious blood that we overcome Satan’s accusations (Rev. 12:11). This blood speaks for us before God something better than that of Abel (Heb. 12:24). The cup that we drink in remembrance of the Lord signifies His precious blood. In God’s provision the Lord’s blood is crucial.
The third item of God’s provision for the children of Israel was the flesh of the lamb. The blood is for our outward defilement, whereas the flesh is for our inward life. The blood of Christ redeems us from our sins and cleanses us before God. The life of Christ, typified by the flesh of the lamb, is Christ entering into us to be our life. This truth has been neglected by many who have received God’s salvation. When we received the Lord Jesus, we received not only an objective Savior but, even more, a subjective Savior. When I first believed in the Lord, I did not understand that the Lord Jesus had entered into me and that His life had become my life. I knew only that the Lord Jesus was the Lamb of God who bore my sins, died, and shed His blood as my Substitute. Since He died on my behalf, I knew that my sins were forgiven and that I was justified and saved. Many years later, through experience and through reading the Bible and spiritual books, I gradually became clear that the Savior in whom I had believed not only died for me on the cross but also entered into me to be the life element in me. There is a great difference between those who have not received Christ and those who have received Him. There is a great difference between those who have not eaten the flesh of the Lamb and those who have eaten it. As those who have eaten the flesh of the Lamb, we are different from others because we have the element of Christ’s life in us.
The flesh of the Lamb refers to the life of the Lord Jesus because in John 6 the Lord said, “He who eats My flesh...has eternal life” (v. 54). My flesh refers to the Lord’s life. The Lord laid down His life for us and was raised from the dead to become the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45). As long as we contact the Lord as the Spirit, He brings His life into us. This is a very mysterious, yet very practical, matter. The life that enters into us transforms us. Once the life of Christ is added into us, we begin to be transformed.
These two precious things—the objective blood and the subjective life—continually supply and sustain us. Our sins and defilements have been resolved before God by Christ’s precious blood. We can overcome our weaknesses and sinful nature because we have the Lord’s life in us. God did not give Christ to us as a whole Lamb. Rather, God slew the Lamb and shed His blood, causing His life to flow out so that the resurrected Spirit could enter into us. Thus, we should not say, “I believe that Christ is my Savior” in a general way. We should see that Christ not only shed His precious blood to solve our problem of sin, but He also imparted His life into us to be our supply.
The fourth item of God’s provision for the children of Israel was the unleavened bread. The unleavened bread refers to the life of Christ. The Lord said in John 6:35, “I am the bread of life.” In chapter 6 the Lord Jesus fed five thousand people with five loaves and two fish. The crowd came to find Him again the next day, and the Lord Jesus told them, “You seek Me...because you ate of the bread and were filled” (v. 26). The Lord told them not to work for the food which perishes but to work for the food which abides unto eternal life (v. 27). The Lord is the bread of life for people to receive as the eternal life.
The Lord also told the crowd that His flesh could be eaten (v. 51). The life that He gave to them was His flesh. Both the flesh of the Lamb and the bread refer to life. There is a difference between the flesh of the Lamb and the unleavened bread in our experience. We initially receive the flesh of the Lamb, but what remains in us continuously is the unleavened bread. The flesh of the Lamb, the life of Christ, enters into us through our receiving of Christ’s death and resurrection through faith. Once this life enters into us, it becomes the life (signified by the unleavened bread) by which we live. In the Bible leaven signifies sin, something corrupted and spoiled. Christ as the bread is unleavened, because Christ’s life is sinless. Since He is in us, He gives us a sense of sin, a demand and desire to be sinless, and the power to be apart from sin.
Before we were saved, we spoke loosely. We spoke whatever we wanted to speak, and the more we spoke, the happier we were. However, after we received the flesh of the Lamb, loose words left us with a bad taste in our mouth. We did not need others to tell us what not to speak or what not to do. The life in us gave us a taste, demand, and desire to live apart from sin according to the power of Christ’s sinless life. This taste, demand, desire, and power became our supply. This is the life of Christ as the unleavened bread. Many people think that Christians can live a sinless and sanctified life by their own effort, but they do not understand that the life of Christ is a Christian’s motivating power to be sinless. The more we live by the life of Christ, the stronger our taste for sinlessness will become.
Christ cannot be contacted lightly. Once we contact Him, there is a demand for sinlessness. Once the flesh of the Lamb enters into us, it produces this unleavening function in us. In the life of Christ there is a demand for sinlessness; this is a requirement related to life. When a saved person is defiled by sin, he feels miserable. When Gentiles sin, they have the enjoyment of sin, but when Christians sin, they feel miserable, because they have the life of Christ in them. The life of Christ becomes the demand and the desire in them to be sinless.
During the Feast of Unleavened Bread the children of Israel had to eat unleavened bread for seven days (Exo. 23:15). The number seven signifies completion, and seven days signifies a complete period of time. To eat the unleavened bread for seven days indicates that we need to live an unleavened life from the day we are saved until the day we meet the Lord. We need to daily deal with sin, enjoy the Lord, rejoice, and rest, and neither work nor produce anything by our human effort. When the children of Israel kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread, they removed leaven from every house on the first day. If anyone ate anything leavened, they were cut off from the children of Israel (12:15). To be cut off is to lose the fellowship. First Corinthians 5 speaks of removing an evil man from the fellowship of the church because the church never tolerates sin (v. 13). Therefore, we have to remove leaven, and we should not tolerate sin in our living. Once we eat the flesh of the Lamb, we need to keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread by removing all our sins. On the first and seventh days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the children of Israel were not allowed to do any work apart from preparing the things each one needed to eat (Exo. 12:16). This means that when we participate in God’s salvation, only eating and enjoying have a place. No human work has a place (cf. Rom. 3:20). Whenever we labor by our own strength, we lose the fellowship and do not know grace.
After receiving the Lord, Zaccheus immediately said, “If I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore four times as much” (Luke 19:8). This is to live a life without leaven. In Acts 19 a considerable number of believing ones in Ephesus brought their books related to magic and burned them (vv. 17-19); this also is to remove leaven, that is, to remove sin. Removing leaven, that is, removing sin, is the effect of the operation of the sinless life of Christ within us.
The fifth item of God’s provision for the children of Israel was the bitter herbs, which are related to the life of Christ. The bitter herbs were eaten with unleavened bread, indicating that the life of the Lord within us continually gives us a taste and a desire to be sinless and also continually gives us a bitter taste. Whenever we veer away from the Lord, even a little, the Lord gives us no peace and causes us to feel bitter within. This bitter taste helps us to live a sinless life. Hence, God commanded the children of Israel to eat the passover lamb with unleavened bread with bitter herbs (Exo. 12:8). These three items taken into us—the flesh of the Lamb, the unleavened bread, and the bitter herbs—will remain unto eternity and will still be effective in eternity.
To eat the flesh of the lamb with unleavened bread with bitter herbs means that the flesh of the lamb is the main dish, and the unleavened bread and the bitter herbs are side dishes. Once we eat the flesh of the Lamb, the life of Christ enters into us with two effects: the effect of sinlessness and the effect of bitterness. From the day we are saved until the day the Lord comes back, His life demands that we be sinless, and it gives us the desire and power to be apart from sin. His life also gives us a bitter feeling. Whenever we are defiled by sin or do something wrong, the Lord’s life in us causes us to feel bitter and have no peace. Only by confessing the sin and dealing with it thoroughly can we have any inward peace. The more we experience bitterness, the more we live by the Lord’s life.
This bitter feeling is our safeguard, preventing us from being defiled by sin. This bitter feeling comes from the bitter herbs. Before I was saved, I liked playing soccer. Although playing soccer is neither wrong nor sinful, I had an unexplainable sadness one day when I was about to kick the ball. I left the soccer field immediately and never played soccer again, because I had a bitter taste. We can be kept from being contaminated or defiled by sin, positively, by Christ’s sinless life, signified by the unleavened bread, and negatively, by the bitter taste that Christ’s life has toward sin, signified by the bitter herbs.
The sixth item of God’s provision for the children of Israel was the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire. The pillar of cloud was present by day, and the pillar of fire was present by night (13:21-22). In the Bible a pillar signifies strength. The children of Israel did not follow merely a cloud or fire but a pillar. On the day of the passover the children of Israel were able to escape from Egypt because the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire separated them from the Egyptians (14:20, 24). God was in the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire until the children of Israel raised up the tabernacle. Then the glory of Jehovah filled the tabernacle, and the cloud settled on it (40:17, 34-35). Today this pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire are the Holy Spirit, who is in us, leading us step by step by His presence. The children of Israel needed guidance from the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire because the way was not clear on their circuitous journey in the wilderness.
In our Christian walk the indwelling Holy Spirit gives us a living leading all the time. In all things related to our walk, living, occupation, family, human life, and future, He is leading us. This is not an objective doctrine but our subjective experience. Because the pillar of cloud became indistinct at night, the pillar of fire appeared to the children of Israel (13:21-22). This reveals that in addition to the inward leading of the Holy Spirit, we also have the holy Word as a lamp to our feet and a light to our path (Psa. 119:105). We should not read the Word as mere letters. If our reading of the Word does not have the Lord or the Spirit in it, it will be mere dead letters that are unable to render any help to us.
All Scripture is God-breathed (2 Tim. 3:16). John 1:1 says, “The Word was with God, and the Word was God.” This shows that the Word and God are one. We cannot separate the Lord from the Scriptures, nor can we separate the Scriptures from the Lord. When we read the Scriptures but do not touch the Lord, the Scriptures are mere letters to us. However, when we touch the Lord in our reading of the Scriptures, the words in the Scriptures become living to us, and they shine upon us. Then we can see the principles and teachings and receive the life supply. When our inward condition is bright, like the day, the Holy Spirit in us is a pillar of cloud. When our inward condition is dark and confused, like the night, the holy Word is a pillar of fire to us. We receive the Lord’s leading in the Word, and this leading is the Lord Himself. We should never think that God is leading us apart from the Lord as the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire. When we touch the Lord as the Spirit and in the Word, we have God’s leading.
Whether we have the Spirit and the Word leading us depends on whether we have the presence of God with us. The pillar of cloud is the embodiment of God. When the pillar of cloud was with the children of Israel, God was with them. God’s presence was their leading. Whenever we do something, do we have a sense that God is with us? When we go somewhere, do we have a sense that God is going with us? If we go to watch a movie, can we say that God is bringing us to watch that movie? If we have God as the pillar of cloud leading us to watch the movie, we should watch it, but if we do not have His leading, we should not watch it. Many Christians have neither the pillar of cloud nor the pillar of fire in their life. Such Christians have lost God’s presence and His leading. Thus, they simply do whatever they want. However, some believers have the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire with them, and God’s presence in them is strong. Therefore, they walk boldly and strongly and can testify that God is with them.
God’s presence is not only a leading but also a safeguard and protection. When the children of Israel were pursued by the Egyptians, the pillar of cloud was behind them, like a separating wall between them and the Egyptians, to protect and deliver them out of the hands of the Egyptians (Exo. 14:19-20). The reason that we do not fall into sin or come under the destruction of Satan is that the pillar of cloud is our safeguard. When the enemy is not present, the pillar of cloud leads us from the front. When the enemy is present, the leading safeguards us from behind. Many Christians do not have this safeguard in their living because they live a life without the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire. They walk on their own way, and thus, they do not have the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire as their safeguard when they encounter the enemy. We need to see that the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire are God Himself as our leading. If we follow this leading, we will sense God’s presence everywhere we go.
The seventh item of God’s provision for the children of Israel was the waters of the Red Sea. The waters of the Red Sea in the Bible is a great salvation, separating the children of Israel from Egypt. The waters of the Red Sea signify the death of Christ; when we are baptized, we are baptized into the death of Christ. Just as the waters of the Red Sea separated the children of Israel from Egypt, so the death of Christ separates us from the world. In the past, for our baptism meetings, we hung a banner that read Departing from the World for Good. When we are baptized, we are dead and buried and have come out of the world. We can be delivered and separated from the world only through the waters of the Red Sea, which is the water of baptism. This water signifies Christ’s death. After we cross the Red Sea, Christ becomes our supply.
The eighth item of God’s provision for the children of Israel was the bitter waters becoming sweet. When the children of Israel came to Marah, Jehovah instructed Moses to cast a tree into the bitter waters in order for the waters to become sweet (15:25). This tree, this piece of wood, signifies the cross of Christ (1 Pet. 2:24). Making the bitter waters sweet is the function of the cross. For two thousand years many martyrs who suffered for the Lord had a common factor—the inward sweetness of the cross. In the eyes of the Gentiles all the things that happen to a Christian are bitter, but once a Christian receives the cross into his bitter situation, the bitterness becomes sweet.
When a person is saved, he is truly happy. This is like the praises of the children of Israel after crossing the Red Sea. However, after this praising, the new believer encounters difficult situations. This is the experience of coming to and tasting the bitter waters at Marah. At such a time the Spirit leads him to consider the Lord’s cross, and once the cross enters into his feeling, his bitter experience immediately becomes sweet. His situation may seem bitter in others’ eyes, but it will be sweet in his eyes because the tree has been cast into the bitter waters, indicating that he has applied the cross to his bitter situation. The more others persecute and trouble him, the more he experiences the cross, and the less he feels bitter. Instead, he feels sweeter and sweeter. The cross is the provision that causes bitter waters to become sweet. After we are saved, we need to experience Christ’s cross whenever we experience a bitter situation. Whenever we bring Christ’s cross into our bitter situation, the bitterness immediately becomes sweet.
The ninth item of God’s provision for the children of Israel was manna (Num. 11:7-9; Exo. 16:13-15, 31). Manna has many characteristics. First, it descended from heaven. Second, it descended with the dew. Dew appears only in the morning; thus, manna descending with the dew indicates that manna descended at a time that is full of vigor and vitality. Third, it was small. Fourth, it was very fine. Fifth, it was round, like bdellium or a seed. Sixth, it was white. Seventh, it was like the frost on the earth. Not only was its color like frost, but its taste was as cool as the frost. Eighth, it was bright, like bdellium. Ninth, it tasted like honey. Tenth, it tasted like oil. Eleventh, it was like coriander seed. Twelfth, it was like a cake. On the day that the children of Israel first saw manna, they did not know what it was, and they named it manna, meaning, “What is it?”
Manna is a symbol of Christ, and it is fitting to apply all the above points to Christ because Christ is food to His people. Some may wonder why we need manna as a type of Christ, since we already have the types of the flesh of the lamb and the unleavened bread. The flesh of the lamb refers to the life of Christ having passed through death and resurrection for us to receive. The unleavened bread refers to the life of Christ producing a demand and desire for sinlessness and enabling us to live a life apart from sin. Manna, however, refers to the life of Christ as food to us on our heavenly journey. For forty years the children of Israel were able to journey and survive in the wilderness by feeding on manna. Christ’s life as the flesh of the slain lamb is received by us once and for all. Christ’s life as the unleavened bread gives us the power to live apart from sin, and Christ’s life as the daily supply of manna enables us to journey on the heavenly path. These three things—the flesh of the lamb, the unleavened bread, and manna—portray three aspects of Christ’s life. With respect to the life that we receive, Christ is the flesh of the slain lamb. With respect to the life that enables us to live a life apart from sin, Christ is the unleavened bread, and with respect to the life that daily supplies us, Christ is manna.
The characteristics of manna signify how Christ becomes our supply. First, manna was from heaven and was absolutely heavenly, signifying that the life that Christ supplies to us comes from heaven and is heavenly, not earthly. Second, manna descended with the dew. Dew appears in the morning and signifies God’s descending grace. Where there was dew, there was manna, signifying that where there is grace, there is the supply of Christ. According to the spiritual principle, it is morning only when there is dew. Whenever we receive a supply of Christ, it is morning. Even if we receive a supply of Christ at ten in the evening, it is still morning. When we receive the supply of Christ, our inward condition is full of vigor and vitality because it is morning. However, if we rise up early but do not meet Christ, we will feel sad and depressed; it will be as if we were in the night. Whenever we meet Christ, we have the dew, and no matter what time it is, it is morning. Not only is dew the sign for morning, but dew also waters because it is gentle and fine. Whenever we are supplied in our daily life, our inward condition is like the descending dew that is fresh and watering.
Third, manna was small, signifying that in order to become our supply, Christ humbled Himself to become small. The smaller He is, the more we worship Him. Fourth, manna was fine, signifying that Christ is even and fine. When we touch Him, we feel comfortable. When Christ becomes our enjoyment, He is not only fine but also detailed. Fifth, manna was round. Roundness signifies eternity, which is without beginning or ending and is inexhaustible. Manna was round, signifying that the eternal Christ becomes our enjoyment. Even though He is small, He is eternal, perfect, full, and inexhaustible. Sixth, manna was white, signifying that Christ is pure. When Christ becomes our supply, He enables us to live a clean and pure life. Seventh, manna was cool as frost. Frost is cool, whereas snow is too cold to feel comfortable. Whenever we receive Christ’s supply, we feel refreshed inwardly. Eighth, manna was bright as bdellium. This signifies that although Christ is fine, small, and lowly, He is also bright as bdellium. How much Christ supplies us determines how bright we are. Ninth, the taste of manna was like that of honey, signifying that Christ is sweet. Tenth, the taste of manna was like that of cakes baked in oil, signifying the savor of the fragrance of Christ. Eleventh, manna was like coriander seed. Coriander is a kind of cilantro, and the seed has life, signifying that Christ is full of life. Twelfth, manna was like cakes, signifying that Christ can satisfy our hunger. The above twelve points show how Christ becomes our supply.
Manna descended quietly. When the children of Israel woke in the morning, manna was there. Such a thing had never happened on earth. Manna was available and very special yet very ordinary. We have such a feeling whenever we are supplied by the life of Christ. Whenever we have a need, spontaneously we receive the supply of Christ. We are amazed when we receive this supply, because although the supply is ordinary, it is also very special. Therefore, we often respond, “What is going on?” We are just like the children of Israel, saying, “What is it?” when they first saw manna (16:15). Now we know that it is Christ; it is Christ in our spirit becoming our supply at any time. For forty years the children of Israel lived by manna (v. 35). Similarly, every day we need to live by the supply of Christ.
The tenth item of God’s provision for the children of Israel was the living water flowing out from the rock. First Corinthians 10 clearly says that this rock was Christ (v. 4). Although the rock was on dry ground, water flowed out of it to quench man’s thirst. This is incredible. Living water flows out from Christ, and this living water is the life-giving Spirit. The Lord Jesus said, “He who believes into Me,...out of his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water” (John 7:38). This living water supplies us. The water that the children of Israel drank and that flowed out from the cleft rock (Exo. 17:6) signifies the living water that flows out from Christ. This shows that our thirst is quenched and that we gain strength inwardly through the supply of Christ. We all have the experience of the Spirit becoming living water in us to quench our thirst. This living water flows out from Christ as the cleft rock. The cleft rock signifies that Christ passed through death on the cross. If we are to enjoy this living water, we must not only believe that Christ died for us, but we also need to experience His death on the cross. When we experience Christ’s death on the cross, we receive the supply of the living water, and the living water also flows out of us to supply others. If we have been broken by receiving Christ’s death on the cross, living water will flow out of our innermost being to supply others. The life-giving Spirit of Christ will flow out of us to quench man’s thirst.
The eleventh item of God’s provision for the children of Israel was a twofold provision for the children of Israel when they were fighting against Amalek. After a considerable number of experiences Amalek came to disturb the children of Israel (v. 8). The Amalekites were the descendants of Esau (Gen. 36:12), whereas the children of Israel were the descendants of Jacob (32:28). Esau and Jacob were twin brothers. Jacob was chosen and accepted by God, whereas Esau was rejected by God (Mal. 1:2-3). Esau was the firstborn, and Jacob was the second son (Gen. 25:25-26). In the Bible the firstborn typifies man in Adam, whereas the second son typifies man in Christ. The Amalekites were descendants of Adam and were of the flesh, but the children of Israel were descendants of Jacob and were of Christ. Amalek fought against the children of Israel, signifying the fight between the flesh and the Spirit, that is, the fight between that which is of Adam and that which is of Christ. Every saved person has two parts: that which is of Adam and that which is of Christ. That which is of Adam is our flesh, whereas that which is of Christ is the indwelling Spirit. With respect to the flesh we are Amalekites, but with respect to the Spirit we are the children of Israel. Today we are part of both the Amalekites and the children of Israel. The fight against Amalek is referred to in Galatians 5:17, which says, “The flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh.”
One day we will realize that our flesh is a problem and a frustration. The name Amalek means “warlike.” Our flesh is warlike and always robs, damages, and disturbs us. We want to follow the Lord, to please the Lord, and to enjoy Christ as our provision, but our flesh always disturbs us. When the children of Israel encountered the problem of Amalek, God prepared Moses and Joshua. Moses was interceding on the mountaintop, while Joshua was fighting alongside and for the children of Israel at the base of the mountain (Exo. 17:8-16). Moses’ interceding on the mountaintop typifies Christ’s interceding for us in the heavens (Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25), and Joshua’s fighting for the children of Israel at the base of the mountain typifies the Holy Spirit’s being with us. John 14 shows that the Holy Spirit is Christ (vv. 16-17); thus, Moses typifies Christ in the heavens, and Joshua typifies Christ in us, the indwelling Christ.
On the one hand, Christ has already ascended to the heavens, and on the other hand, He dwells in us. Christ in these two aspects is our provision to overcome the flesh. Christians with experience know that the power to deal with the flesh is not our own. It is a power that comes from the intercession that the Christ in heaven has offered and the fighting that the indwelling Christ has rendered. It is Christ who enables us to have the strength of life, to live a sanctified life, to receive daily sustaining power, and to deal with the flesh. When we live in Christ and have fellowship with Him, we have Christ with us. The Christ who is with us deals with our flesh for us.
From the time the children of Israel left Egypt until the time they defeated Amalek, both God’s salvation and His leading were through Christ as their provision. This reveals that the Lamb is our Savior, that the blood of the Lamb covers our sin before God, and that the flesh of the Lamb enters into us to be our life. This life causes us to have a taste and a desire to be sinless and also the ability to live a life apart from sin. The life of Christ in us as the bitter herbs gives us a bitter feeling toward sin. The pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire are Christ Himself as our leading. The pillar of cloud is the Holy Spirit, and the pillar of fire is the holy Word; both the Spirit and the Word are the expression of Christ. The waters of the Red Sea are Christ’s death, which separates us from the world. The bitter water becoming sweet is the effect of the cross. Difficult situations, persecutions, and afflictions become sweet through the cross of Christ. Manna is Christ becoming our daily life supply. The living water flowing out from the rock is Christ flowing out His Spirit of life in us to quench our thirst. The two aspects of Christ’s ascension and Christ’s indwelling are typified by Moses and Joshua. Moses typifies the ascended Christ, and Joshua typifies the indwelling Christ. The provision of these two aspects enables us to overcome the flesh, typified by Amalek. All the above items of God’s provision are Christ Himself.
