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The six Old Testament books of 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles reveal not only a history of the tabernacle with its Ark, but also the recovery and enlargement of God’s building. If we have only seen the record of history, that is not sufficient. From the history we must see God’s way of recovery and enlargement. The record is mostly on the negative side, whereas the recovery and the enlargement are positive. All history is for the purpose of the enlargement of God’s building.
By the sovereignty of the Holy Spirit the six books of history to which we have referred are put together as a set. At the very beginning there is a good situation—God’s building has been established in a definite place called Shiloh. The people need wander no longer; from that time anyone desiring God had a definite place to which he could go. How wonderful it is to have a definite place where we can meet God.
This pleasant situation, this glorious condition, did not last long. The Ark was captured, and God’s building suffered severe degradation (1 Sam. 3—6). But even before the Ark was captured, the situation within the tabernacle was full of gloom. There was no light; everything was in darkness. There was no fresh word, no fresh revelation from God. The priests had become old and out of date. Therefore, God raised up a child: He was forced to bring forth something fresh and new. We must learn never to be old.
The degradation worsened. The Israelites would not become right with God; instead, they became superstitious. They used the Ark to fight one of their battles. The Ark was captured, and degradation reached its worst.
Although the Ark was captured, God’s recovery began at that very point. We must realize that God can never be defeated in His purpose. God’s enemy may frustrate and delay Him for a time, but Satan can never frustrate God to the uttermost. God’s purpose must be fulfilled. Once God plans something, He will inevitably accomplish it. According to chapters 5 and 6 of 1 Samuel, it appears that the purpose of God had been overthrown; the Ark was captured by the enemy. However, all the enemy’s activity and frustration only opens the way, not only for God’s recovery but also for God’s enlargement. When God recovers something, He always enlarges it. We need glorious insight to understand all these things.
Based upon the history of the degradation of God’s people, some Christian teachers have taught that once the situation is degraded, it can never be recovered. However, by reading the Scriptures over and over, we see just the contrary. Once the situation among God’s people is degraded, God eventually and inevitably recovers and enlarges it. During our early years in the Lord’s service, we were somewhat influenced by the negative teaching of these Christian teachers. To some extent, we took the same view. But later, by the Lord’s enlightenment, we discovered just the opposite in the Scriptures. How can we say that the things that have been degraded can never be recovered? Eventually, there will be the New Jerusalem, which is far better than anything! That will be much better, transcendently better than the situation at the day of Pentecost.
In 1 Samuel, the beginning of this set of six books, there is a tabernacle, but in the last three books of this set there is a temple. The temple is a tremendous improvement over the tabernacle. In fact, there is no comparison. In the tabernacle there were altogether twenty-four pieces of precious stone, but they were all rather small. The forty-eight boards, although they were overlaid with gold, were all thin and narrow. Both the stones and the boards were indeed precious, but they had little size or weight. Furthermore, the tabernacle had some sort of foundation, but there was no floor, for the tabernacle was erected in the wilderness. Now let us consider the temple. The precious stones used there were huge, incomparably larger that those in the tabernacle. In the temple there was not a small amount of one kind of wood as in the tabernacle, but an abundance of three kinds of wood—olive, cypress (or fir), and cedar of Lebanon. Even the ground floor in the temple was made of wood overlaid with gold. The length of the tabernacle was thirty cubits, but the length of the temple was sixty. The width of the tabernacle was ten cubits, but the width of the temple was twenty. All the horizontal dimensions were doubled. The tabernacle was ten cubits high, whereas the temple was thirty cubits high—three times higher. Thus, the tabernacle was not only recovered in the temple but was also much enlarged.
Some Bible teachers, as we have mentioned, do not see how things that are once degraded can ever be recovered. They insist that all these things are dispensationally past and can never be regained. But according to typology the picture is exceedingly clear that something that has been degraded can not only be recovered but also enlarged. Praise the Lord! We must have the faith to believe this. The church can be much better today than at the time of Pentecost. God is moving on! If God was One who could always be defeated, how could He reach His goal? Regardless of how much degradation and confusion there is, God is marching on. If we have this glorious vision, we will never be discouraged or disappointed. Some Bible teachers are always bemoaning the fact of how far the church today is removed from its wonderful state at the day of Pentecost. If we are in this condition, we do not have adequate vision. If our eyes have been opened to see the Lord’s recovery, we will leap up and shout, “Hallelujah, regardless of the degradation and confusion, the Lord is marching on!” It is really glorious.
From 1939 to 1942 Brother Watchman Nee was helping us during a time of informal training in Shanghai. One night in a prayer meeting of the church, someone prayed like this: “O Lord, we are so pitiful! The church is so weak and poor; there is nothing but disappointment!” It sounded good, and many responded with Amens. But Brother Nee immediately interjected a prayer that was something like this: “Lord, Your church can never be defeated. In Your eyes the church is strong, the church is beautiful.” So many followed this prayer with, “Hallelujah, Amen!” It was a great contrast.
Everything depends on our vision. The Lord told Balaam, the Gentile prophet, “He has not beheld iniquity in Jacob, / Nor has He seen trouble in Israel” (Num. 23:21). In the eyes of the Lord, “How fair are your tents, O Jacob, / Your tabernacles, O Israel!” (24:5). God always sees through the valleys to the goal. Of course, if we are in a valley, we may bemoan the fact. But that is not the end—that is just an underpass on the highway to the goal. We must drive through the underpass to the goal upon the high mountain. We must learn to see through things to the goal, not only with insight but also with foresight. The church can never be defeated. We are wrong if we say that the church is always defeated. The church will eventually be victorious! We must see God’s way in the recovery and enlargement of His building.
In 1 Samuel 13:14 God told Saul, “Now your kingdom will not continue. Jehovah has sought a man according to His heart for Himself.” The beginning of God’s recovery of His building was with David, a man according to His own heart. If we are interested in the recovery and enlargement of God’s building, by God’s mercy we must be a man according to His own heart.
The book of 1 Samuel portrays David not only as the man according to God’s heart but also as one who is inexperienced and young. David had to be worked upon and wrought through to become ripened and experienced. The only way that he could be prepared was by suffering. Thus, God put David under the headship of Saul. David suffered much, undergoing many kinds of trials, afflictions, and ill treatment. He became a real student in suffering. He learned the lesson of suffering, and he became completely successful in suffering. All the sufferings experienced by us deal with our nature, our self, and our flesh. David was thoroughly tested; his flesh, his self, and his natural life were severely dealt with. To use the language of the New Testament, David learned the lessons of the cross. Abraham’s life was a life of faith, but David’s was a life of suffering under the lessons of the cross. If we mean business for the proper church life, if we are truly interested in the recovery and enlargement of God’s building, we must be willing and ready to be broken so that we may learn the lessons of the cross. The many chapters of 1 Samuel stress this one point: that a man according to God’s heart will be subjected to severe pressure so that he may learn the lessons of the cross. The flesh, the self, and the natural life must be broken; the motives must be tested. David was subjected to the ill-treatment of Saul in order to be broken. Many young brothers today need a “Saul” who is able to deal with them. We must be put into trials and broken.
Because David had successfully learned this lesson of suffering, he could enter into the kingdom. God took the kingdom from the hand of Saul and delivered it to David. David had passed the examination. But this was not yet the end; although he had successfully passed this test and gained the throne, he was still not adequate for the Lord’s recovery. He still had something hidden within him that had to be exposed. Following his enthronement, he still found it in his power to do something for the Lord for which he could boast and take the credit. The Lord will never allow man to boast in such a way. David conceived of building a house for God; he desired to recover the tabernacle and enlarge it. Even Nathan the prophet, on hearing of David’s desire, encouraged him in this project. Nathan went along with David in a natural way. But the Lord immediately intervened. During the night He commanded Nathan to tell His servant David not to build Him a house, for David’s work at that time would afford him something of which to boast. God could not permit that. We have seen how David was told to wait until God built a house for him; then from that house a son would come forth to build a house for God (2 Sam. 7:1-13). The meaning here is that man cannot glory in anyone but God. It is not what we can do for God, but what God can do for us.
Following this word of God to David, the Scriptures record two great failures. First, David killed one of his own men, Uriah, and not only this, he took Uriah’s wife (ch. 11). Could you imagine that a person like David would do such a shameful and sinful thing? If this incident were not recorded in the Scriptures, you would never believe it. David’s sinful deed was permitted by the Lord. The Lord undoubtedly could have interceded and frustrated David from doing this thing, but God withdrew His hand just a little from David so that his real condition could be brought to the surface and exposed. If we read only 1 Samuel, we may conceive that David was perfect and wonderful, but 2 Samuel exposes him.
We must see the issue and consequence of this failure. It is a real mercy and very meaningful. Out of David’s failure came his son, Solomon, the very one who would build God’s building. Solomon, the son of David, was born of the wife of Uriah. Again, could you imagine that one who would build God’s temple would be born out of such a match? And it is recorded in the genealogy of Matthew 1 that David begot a son by the wife of another person (v. 6). The greatness of the Lord’s mercy shines forth in this incident, for David was forgiven of that sin. Psalm 51 reveals David’s repentance and God’s forgiveness. Thus, after forgiving David, God gave him a son, Solomon, who eventually built the house of God (2 Sam. 12:24-25). The mercy of God to man could alone be the testimony regarding such a house.
Now let us see David’s second failure, a failure that exposed him to the uttermost. David was first exposed in the case of Uriah so that he might learn the lesson of humility. However, he was still so proud that he tried one day to count the total number of Israel (ch. 24), thus manifesting not only his hidden pride but also his unbelief in the Lord. The Lord intervened and judged David. But the issue, the consequence, of this second failure was indeed strange and marvelous. A piece of land that was gained because of this failure became the very site for the building of the temple (1 Chron. 21:18; 2 Chron. 3:1). The issue of his first failure was a son born to build the building, and the issue of the second failure was the obtaining of the land for the building. Such positive results from such negative failures are beyond our human understanding.
After reading 1 and 2 Samuel, we must bow before the Lord and say, “Lord, I have nothing to say. It is all Your mercy.” Even so, today the finished building will not be a testimony of how much we can do for God but of how much God has done for us. We must learn to be a man according to God’s heart, a man who has learned the lessons of the cross, who knows how sinful he is and how absolutely unsuitable he is to do anything for the Lord. We must learn the lesson of humility. Regardless of how much we are according to God’s heart or how much we have learned the lessons of the cross, we must still be humble. No matter how careful we have been in the past or how careful we may be in the future, sooner or later the Lord will allow us to fail so that He might expose us and humble us. Then we will realize that it is not we but the Lord, that it is not our attributes but the Lord’s mercy, the Lord’s grace. We must learn all these lessons. Never suppose that since you love the Lord and are continually learning the lessons of the cross that you must be the right person to build up His house. No! We are not the right person. What is within us must be exposed; our failures must be realized. We do not realize how sinful we are. When everything hidden within us is exposed, we will be different. Then the Lord will use us, but the glory will not go to us but to Him.
If David were here today, and we began to praise him, he would stop us short and say, “Brother, do not praise me. Read the story of Uriah’s wife; read about the numbering of the people. It is not my goodness but the Lord’s mercy. It is His forgiveness, His mercy, His grace that I received a son and a plot of land for the building up of the temple.”
David had learned the lessons of the cross. He had been exposed and humbled to the uttermost. He had no more trust, no more boast in himself, but deeply realized God’s mercy and grace. This was the man according to God’s own heart, the man who fought the battles, gained the victories, prepared all the materials for God’s building, brought forth a son to build the house, and obtained the site for the building. In addition to all this, David also received the pattern for the temple. God had granted the builder, the site, the materials, and the blueprints. All that remained to be accomplished was the actual building.
It is through a life like David’s that all the needful things for the building up of the church are prepared. If the church is to be built up today, we must have a life according to God’s heart, a life willing to learn the lessons of the cross, a life fully exposed and humbled, a life that knows the mercy and grace of God and that has no trust, no boast, in its own human nature. It is through such a life that the building, the site, the material, and the pattern for God’s building are prepared. If we are serious concerning the church life, we must apply all these principles to ourselves. The main reason this group of six long Old Testament books are given to us is that we might learn such lessons and see God’s way for the recovery and enlargement of His building.
During the past years, by the Lord’s mercy I have experienced and observed these principles in action. On the other hand, I have seen so many dear seeking Christians who supposed that all they needed for the recovery of the church life was the acquisition of some Pentecostal gifts. While observing many cases, I have never seen one who succeeded in this way. The church life can never be recovered merely by Pentecostal gifts. It requires a life that has learned all the lessons of David. With such a person there is the possibility of the recovery of the church life. All these incidents are not simply a record of history but types that indicate the way for the recovery of God’s building today.
David had prepared everything for God’s building. Now Solomon began to build the temple in Jerusalem at the place prepared by David and according to the pattern that God had given to David (2 Chron. 3:1). The historical account of this building is full of meaning, for it reveals how Solomon brought everything of the former tabernacle to the new temple. All the vessels including the Ark were brought to it (1 Kings 8; 2 Chron. 6:41—7:3). There was still only one Ark with one container. Everything was normal. We have already mentioned the abnormal situation which existed in David’s day—the proper tabernacle was at Shiloh, but the improper one pitched by David was on Mount Zion. Now, according to God’s way of recovery, the old, proper tabernacle was mingled with the new temple, and the one Ark was brought into that temple. This is absolutely normal, a full recovery according to God’s pattern. We see here a vital and important principle. God will never allow two expressions of His Ark to exist at the same time. The tabernacle could not exist by itself; it must be mingled with the temple. This proves that in God’s sight there was always one unique expression of His Ark. God is never careless. According to our human opinion and way, as long as a better, enlarged temple is built up, we would forget the old one. We may think it is all right to leave the old one where it is, but God is more careful. If after the temple was built and the old tabernacle still existed separately, ground would be left for some to say, “Although the temple is built, the tabernacle still remains. What is wrong with having two or more expressions of the Ark?” But God does not leave any such divisive ground to us. We cannot have two or more expressions of God’s testimony. There must be only one unique expression of the Ark; the tabernacle must be swallowed up by the new temple. Thus, there was no division, no separation, and no confusion. We must realize today that there is only one unique expression of Christ in one unique church. This is God’s way of recovery.
In God’s way of recovery through Solomon there was a tremendous enlargement. We have seen how the measurements of the temple were much greater than those of the tabernacle. Almost everything in the temple was two or three times enlarged (1 Kings 6:2, 20), and the utensils were enlarged ten times. However, there was one item which was not in the slightest enlarged—the Ark. It is because the Ark is Christ, and Christ Himself can never be enlarged. He is “the same yesterday and today, yes, even forever” (Heb. 13:8). He is always the same. Our experience of Him, however, must be greatly increased and enlarged.
In God’s recovery through Solomon the bronze altar of the outer court was much increased in size (2 Chron. 4:1). It accommodated many more offerings. This means that we must have an enlarged, increased experience of the cross of Christ. Our experience of consecration should be greatly increased. If the old, small bronze altar had been kept in the new building, it certainly would not have fit in. Even so, our experiences of the cross must be increased to match the enlargement of God’s building.
We do not have the measurements of the old laver in the tabernacle, but we do know that there was only one laver. However, in the temple, in the recovery, there were ten lavers. And between these ten lavers, in the center, was a sea—not a pool or a lake, but a sea (vv. 2-6). This reveals that the exposing, enlightening, cleansing, and purging work of the Holy Spirit must be greatly enlarged and increased in us for God’s building.
In the former tabernacle the table of the bread of the Presence was very small, and there was only one. But in the temple there were ten tables (v. 8), an increase of ten times. Formerly, we experienced Christ in a small way as our bread of life, but now our experience of this living bread must be increased ten times. In the tabernacle there was only one small lampstand, but in the temple there were ten lampstands (v. 7). Our experience of Christ as the light of life shining within us must also be increased to match the ten tables in the enlarged temple. We must match God’s enlargement.
Not only was there enlargement in size and weight but also an increase in the constituents of the temple. We have seen how in the former tabernacle there was only one kind of wood—acacia. But in the temple there were at least three kinds. There was cypress (1 Kings 6:15, 34), a tree commonly planted in cemeteries in ancient times. This wood signifies something existing in death, thus typifying the death of Christ. Then there was the cedar from Lebanon (vv. 15-16), signifying in typology the resurrection, or the resurrected Christ. There was also olive wood (v. 31). The olive tree supplied the oil, and oil is a type of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, this tree signifies the Christ who gives us the Spirit. From these three kinds of wood we experience Christ in death, in resurrection, and as the Holy Spirit.
There was also a greater quantity of gold used in the temple. The entire temple was overlaid with gold (vv. 20-22). In addition, there were many varieties of stones, and they were large stones. The entire temple building was composed of stones. In the building of God stones signify transformation. A precious stone is not an element originally created by God but an entity that has been wrought upon and brought into being over a period of time. We human beings were originally composed of clay, but now by the work of the Holy Spirit we are being transformed into something precious.
In the church life there are the real experiences of Christ in death, in resurrection, and as the Holy Spirit. There is also the experience of the pure gold, the divine nature of God being added to us, and the experience of constant transformation. It is by such experiences that we become adequate materials for God’s building. We should not have a large expression, yet only a small experience of Christ. We must have an enlargement as well as an increase of our experiences of Christ that we may match the enlarged expression. The Ark, Christ Himself, can never be enlarged—He is continually the same. But we must grow in our experiences of Him.
A final matter for us to learn from God’s way of recovery and enlargement is seen in the pattern of the temple. When God gave Moses the vision of the tabernacle, He revealed mainly the size of the tabernacle and its utensils, with the weight of a few of the items included. But in the pattern of the temple, David was given all the sizes and weights of the vessels within the temple (1 Chron. 28:11-19). David saw in the vision not only the sizes of the vessels but also their weight. The principle we must learn here is that in the church life there are all kinds of gifts and functions, and all must be properly proportioned. The different aspects of the experiences of Christ must be in very good proportion and balance. Some Christians today stress only one thing, such as speaking in tongues. They make the tongue bigger than the whole body. This is a real problem. Other Christians pay attention only to knowledge, studying Hebrew and Greek day by day. They have a giant head, entirely out of proportion with the rest of the body. Some so-called churches emphasize the need of going to the mission fields, thus lengthening their feet out of all proportion. Others stress all kinds of activities—all they have are two big hands which work and toil strenuously. In all these cases some part is overly enlarged and the body is diminutive. The situation today among the Lord’s people and in the so-called churches is all out of proportion and balance.
In some places I have observed a few dear brothers who have really learned something of fellowshipping with the Lord. To them nothing is more important than one’s fellowship with the Lord. Whenever they see others studying the Scriptures together, they tell them to forget that, for study is useless. If they should observe some serving as ushers in a meeting, they would tell them to abandon that and just learn to fellowship with the Lord. They emphasize fellowship to such an extent that they care for nothing else. Everything in the Body, in the church life, must be balanced and in proper proportion. Consider our wonderful human body: it has so many different members, yet it is so balanced. We have two hands, two ears, two eyes, yet everything is properly proportioned. If a man only had two eyes like the headlights of an automobile, he would be a monster. Praise the Lord that in the vision given to him David not only saw the size of the vessels but also their weight. All the spiritual experiences of Christ in the church life must be balanced and in good proportion. There is a place for speaking in tongues, for knowledge, for serving the Lord, and for going to the mission field, but all these experiences must be in good proportion.
David and Solomon, the two men vitally related to the building of the temple, were both types of Christ, representing Him in two aspects. David typifies the suffering Christ, and Solomon typifies the resurrected Christ, the Christ of glory. Christ from His incarnation to crucifixion is typified by David, and Christ from His resurrection to His enthronement is typified by Solomon. Everything necessary for the building up of the temple was prepared by David—this means that everything necessary for the building up of the church has been prepared by the suffering Christ. The actual building of the temple was accomplished by Solomon—this means that the real building of the church is accomplished by the resurrected Christ. In chapter 2 of John’s Gospel, Christ told the Jews, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up” (v. 19). This means that Christ builds the church in resurrection.
Some Bible teachers give the wrong impression by saying that Solomon typifies only the Christ who will come again in glory. Others teach that when Christ returns, He will then build the church. Such teaching strongly implies that this present age is not the era for the building up of the church but instead is the time for the preparing of the materials. The result of this teaching is that no attention is given to the present building up of the church since that is expected to be accomplished in the future. This kind of teaching is seriously mistaken. Solomon not only typifies the returning Christ but also the Christ of resurrection. The resurrection of Christ is not in the future; it has already been accomplished. We are indeed waiting for the second coming of Christ, but we are presently in the period of the resurrected Christ. If the building of the church is to be accomplished in the next dispensation, then what was it that took place on the day of Pentecost? Was that only the preparation of the materials? No! There was a real building up of the church at that time. The apostles in their writings were very definite and strong at that time concerning the building up of the church in this age (1 Cor. 3:10, 12; Eph. 2:22; 1 Pet. 2:5). We must be clear that by His suffering and death, Christ prepared all the materials, and now in His resurrection Christ is building the church.
All the degradation and failure of the church could not and will not defeat the Lord. It just opens and paves the way for the Lord to accomplish something even more wonderful. Praise the Lord, we are not disappointed. Many have come to me lamenting the degradation existing among the Lord’s people today. I have reminded some of them of the principle shown in Genesis 1. There it does not mention morning and evening, but evening and then morning. If every morning brings us only to an evening, we would have ground for disappointment. But the Lord’s work is always in the evening and then in the morning. To us, evening ushers in a morning. We need to read the Scriptures again. The Lord is not backsliding; He is marching on, from Genesis to Revelation. Of course, the marching takes us through some valleys, but we must not remain in the valleys. We must continue marching on with the Lord. Eventually we will reach the glorious goal. Regardless of the disappointments, we have full assurance that we will reach the goal. Regardless of how many evenings there are, we will finally have a full, eternal morning.
Praise the Lord for these Old Testament pictures. By the time of the building up of the temple, God was marching on more gloriously than at the time that the tabernacle was completed. By comparing these two phases of building, we see God’s way of recovery and enlargement. The Lord is still marching on.
