Message 31
Scripture Reading: Exo. 15:27; Num. 33:9; John 7:38-39; Psa. 92:12a; Lev. 23:40; Neh. 8:15; John 12:13; Rev. 7:9; 1, Exo. 24:4; Num. 11:16, 24-25; Luke 9:1; 10:1
After the children of Israel crossed the Red Sea, the pillar of cloud led them to Marah, and then to Elim. If we study a map, we shall see that they did not journey in a way that was according to the human concept, but in a way that was according to the divine concept. We have pointed out that when the children of Israel made their exodus from Egypt, God did not lead them through the way of the land of the Philistines (13:17). Instead, He “led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea” (13:18). God deliberately led them to the south so that they could be baptized in the Red Sea, the baptistry He had prepared for them in His creation. Having crossed the Red Sea, they did not journey northward to the land of Canaan. God led them southward to Marah.
Remember that it was God Himself in the pillar that led the people on their journey. He led them to take a way altogether different from that which is according to the natural concept. If we had been there, we probably would have said, “Moses, where are we going? Are we on our way to the good land, or to Arabia?” To such questions, Moses might have replied, “I do not choose the way we take. The pillar is guiding us. Just three days ago, this pillar protected us from Pharaoh’s armies. Don’t you think we should trust in this pillar and follow its leading?” No doubt, the children of Israel expected to be led northward, to the good land; however, God led them southward, to Marah and to Elim. By this we see that God’s way is different from ours.
Israel’s experience at Elim is a picture of the experience of resurrection life. We all know that death ushers us into resurrection. However, our concept is that this experience of resurrection will be on a way that is upward, not on a way that leads downward. In our opinion, any way that leads downward is not in resurrection. Yes, in itself resurrection takes us upward, but its application requires us to take a way that leads in a downward direction. When we are in the heavenlies, we do not sense the need for resurrection. But when we are in a low situation, we become conscious of the need for resurrection life. When we are in death, even in a tomb, we need resurrection. For this reason, the experience of Elim is in a downward direction from Marah.
As we consider the spiritual significance of 15:27 according to our experience, we need to be reminded not to study the Word of God in a superficial way. We should study the Word according to the way of life, according to the way the Lord Jesus applied the Old Testament Scriptures in the Gospels. This way is deep. Although this account is very short, only one verse long, we need to take the time to study in a thorough way Israel’s experience at Elim. Then we shall begin to see the riches implied in this verse.
We have pointed out that instead of northward, the direct way to the land of Canaan, the children of Israel journeyed southward. No doubt, the good land was higher in elevation than the land of Egypt. But the way into this elevated land was downward, down to the south. This indicates that to reach a high destination we need to take a downward way.
Some readers of Exodus may think that the children of Israel journeyed southward because they did not have the faith to go directly into the land of Canaan. Although their lack of faith was a factor later, it was not the reason for their southward journey here. If they had not gone to the Red Sea, they could not have passed through the baptistry God had prepared for them. They had to pass through water in order to be saved from the tyranny of Pharaoh and the Egyptians. The blood of the Passover lamb saved them from God’s judgment, but the water of the Red Sea saved them from the armies of Pharaoh. They were led to the Red Sea, not because they were weak in faith, but because they needed to be baptized. As we have pointed out, even after they had crossed the Red Sea, they did not immediately journey northward. Contrary to our expectation, the pillar of cloud led them downward from Shur to Marah. After their experience at Marah, the pillar continued to lead them downward to Elim.
Israel’s experience at Marah signifies the experience of the cross. After we have an experience of the cross, we may expect to go upward. However, we shall go downward once again, for the experience of resurrection is in a downward direction. If you go upward instead of downward, you will not experience resurrection. Some Christians think that God leads His people only upward, never downward. But according to the picture in Exodus, the pillar of cloud led the children of Israel downward from Marah to Elim.
I can testify that the journey from Marah to Elim corresponds to my spiritual experience. After I have experienced the crucified life, I often expected to be in an upward situation. But just the opposite has taken place many times. God led me downward, into a situation that was lower and even more difficult to bear. We should not be frightened by this. If we follow the pillar of cloud in a downward direction, we shall arrive at Elim, where there are twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees. This is the experience of resurrection which issues from the experience of the cross, the experience at Marah.
Elim is a plural noun that means the mighty ones or the strong ones. It is derived from a root that means mighty or strong. According to a number of scholars, this word also means a grove of palm trees. The first meaning may be applied to the twelve springs, and the second, to the seventy palm trees. At Elim there were twelve mighty springs flowing and seventy palm trees growing. What a picture of resurrection life!
Consider the twelve springs flowing and the seventy palm trees growing. The springs were flowing forth, and the trees were growing upward. No doubt the palm trees at Elim were not dwarf palms, but giant palm trees reaching high into the air. Certainly the water from the springs flowed downward. Therefore, at Elim we have the water flowing downward and the trees growing upward. This is a picture of resurrection life flowing out of God into us and then growing up from within us. Firstly, resurrection life flows from God into us. The result of this inflow is that something grows within us.
We have pointed out that in His creation God prepared the Red Sea to serve as the baptistry in which His people were baptized. Now at Elim we see God’s plantation. God created the twelve springs of water, but He planted the seventy palm trees. Hence, the springs are related to God’s creation, and the palm trees, to His plantation. The principle is the same in the church life today.
Everything related to the experience at Elim was sovereign of the Lord. In His creation God prepared the springs, and in His natural plantation He prepared the palm trees. Certainly it was no accident that the children of Israel came to Elim and found there twelve springs and seventy palm trees. Why were there not eleven springs and sixty-nine palms? The answer is that in His sovereignty God placed twelve springs and seventy palm trees at Elim for a specific purpose. When we follow the Lord as the pillar of cloud, we shall come to a place of twelve springs flowing and seventy palms growing.
In the Bible the numbers twelve and seventy have a spiritual significance. According to the Bible, twelve is composed of four times three. For example, the New Jerusalem has twelve gates, three on each of the four sides of the city. The number four signifies the creatures, especially mankind, and the number three signifies the Triune God. The fact that there are three gates on each side of the New Jerusalem indicates that we come into this city through the Triune God, that is, through the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. Matthew 28:19 says that we are baptized into the name of the Father, Son, and Spirit. Since four signifies humanity and three signifies the Triune God, four times three signifies the mingling of God with humanity. Therefore, the meaning of the number twelve is the mingling of divinity with humanity.
This mingling is not temporal but eternal. As we consider the description of the New Jerusalem in Revelation 21 and 22, we see that the number twelve is an eternal number, a number used in eternity. Furthermore, in the New Jerusalem we see that the mingling of divinity with humanity is related to God’s administration, for the New Jerusalem is the center of God’s universal and eternal administration. The number twelve also signifies eternal perfection and completion. Therefore, the number twelve signifies the mingling of divinity with humanity for the complete and perfect carrying out of God’s administration eternally.
If we consider the New Jerusalem, we shall see the comprehensive significance of the number twelve. It is God mingled with man to carry out His eternal administration in a complete way. In this eternal administration there is no lack. Rather, everything is perfect and complete. In the Old Testament the children of Israel, God’s chosen race, were of twelve tribes. In the New Testament the Lord Jesus selected twelve Apostles. These twelve tribes and twelve Apostles will be in the New Jerusalem. The twelve tribes will be the twelve gates, and the twelve Apostles will be the twelve foundations. This indicates that the twelve tribes and the twelve Apostles are for God’s eternal administration.
Now we can understand the significance of the twelve springs of water at Elim. These springs are for the mingling of divinity with humanity. They signify that God as living water is flowing into His chosen people to be mingled with them for the purpose of accomplishing His administration.
The twelve Apostles in the New Testament were springs flowing with living water. God flowed out of the Apostles into the believers. However, the flowing forth of the living waters is not limited to the Apostles. All who believe in Christ may be living springs. John 7:38 speaks of rivers of living water flowing out of our innermost being. The rivers in John 7 are the very springs in Exodus 15. Both the rivers and the springs signify the divine life in resurrection. John 7:39 shows that the rivers of living water are related to the Spirit: “But this He said concerning the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were about to receive; for the Spirit was not yet, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” Jesus was glorified in His resurrection (Luke 24:26). Immediately after Christ’s glorification in resurrection, the disciples received the Spirit (John 20:22). The Spirit is the divine life in resurrection portrayed by the twelve springs in Exodus 15 and the rivers of living water in John 7. The divine life in resurrection flows out from God and into God’s people for the mingling of divinity with humanity. This mingling carries out God’s eternal administration.
In the Bible the number seventy is composed of seven times ten. Like the number twelve, seven also signifies perfection and completion. But in contrast to the number twelve, it signifies perfection and completion in time dispensationally, not eternally. The book of Revelation speaks of seven churches, seven golden lampstands, seven Spirits, seven lamps of fire, seven eyes, seven seals, seven trumpets, and seven bowls. All these sevens are related to God’s dispensation in time. In eternity the number seven will be replaced by the number twelve.
In the Bible the number seven is composed either of six plus one or of four plus three. In Genesis 2 we see seven composed of six plus one: the six days of God’s work plus the day of God’s rest. The same is true in Revelation, where the seven seals, the seven trumpets, and the seven bowls are arranged in groups of six plus one. In Revelation we also see seven composed of four plus three. For example, the seven churches are in groups of three and four.
The number six represents man, who was created on the sixth day. When God the unique Creator (signified by the number one), is added to man, the result is completion, satisfaction, and rest. The unique Creator is the Triune God (signified by the number three) and man is a creature (signified by the number four). On the one hand, the Creator is added to man to produce the number seven. On the other hand, the Triune God is added to His creature, man, also to produce the number seven. In either case, seven signifies the addition of God to man, not the mingling of God with man.
The first mention of the number seven in the Bible is in Genesis 2:2, where we are told that God “rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.” This use of seven is definitely related to time, not to eternity. Daniel 9:24 speaks of the seventy weeks of years that have been determined for the children of Israel. These weeks are also related to God’s temporal dispensation, not to eternity. Furthermore, the local churches are signified by the number seven because the churches today are for God’s dispensation in time. All these examples indicate that the number seven signifies perfection and completion dispensationally and temporally.
The number ten signifies fullness. As we consider our ten fingers and ten toes, we have the impression of fullness. Since seven signifies completion and perfection in time and ten signifies fullness, seventy, composed of seven times ten, signifies completion and perfection in time for God’s dispensation in full. The fact that there were seventy palm trees at Elim instead of just seven indicates such a fullness of God’s dispensation in time.
The twelve springs and the seventy palm trees are all in resurrection. In resurrection we have the flowing of the twelve springs for eternity. In resurrection we also have in time the growing of the seventy palm trees for God’s dispensation.
In the Bible there are two important cases where the numbers twelve and seventy are used together. In Exodus 24:1 and 4 we read of the seventy elders of Israel and of the twelve tribes of Israel. When Moses was about to contact God for the carrying out of His administration on earth, the Lord told him to bring seventy elders of Israel. The twelve tribes may be likened to the twelve springs, and the seventy elders, to the seventy palms. We see another case in the New Testament. In Luke 9:1 the Lord “called together the twelve,” and in Luke 10:1 “the Lord appointed seventy others.” The use of the numbers in each case is significant. When used together, the numbers twelve and seventy indicate that the Lord’s people are to carry out His ministry. The principle is the same both in Exodus 24 with the twelve tribes and the seventy elders and in the Gospel of Luke with the twelve Apostles and seventy disciples. In each instance the Lord’s people were to carry out His ministry. God has a ministry which must be carried out by the flowing life signified by the twelve springs and by the growing life signified by the seventy palms. Only life flowing and growing can fulfill God’s ministry.
In the past we may have talked much about resurrection life without having words to describe it. Now through the help of the picture of the children of Israel at Elim we see that resurrection life includes twelve springs and seventy palm trees. It includes life flowing in a perfect and complete way to carry out God’s administration for eternity. It also includes life growing to carry out God’s administration to express life that is flourishing (Psa. 92:12), rejoicing in satisfaction (Lev. 23:40; Neh. 8:15), and victorious over tribulation (John 12:13; Rev. 7:9). In the Bible palm trees signify life that is flourishing. They also signify rejoicing in life’s satisfaction and victory over tribulation. Eventually, resurrection life carries out God’s ministry both dispensationally in time and eternally.
Both as the church corporately and as the believers individually, we need to experience the resurrection life at Elim. Oh, the resurrection life flows and grows! It flows out of God into us, and through this flowing it grows upward to express the riches and victory of the divine life.
We have pointed out that in the Bible palm trees signify flourishing, rejoicing in satisfaction, and victory. The growth of the flowing life expresses the riches of the divine life and its victory over all things. Those in the vast multitude in Revelation 7 are all holding palm branches and have come out of great tribulation. These palm branches signify both the riches in life and the victory of life.
If we consider the picture of Israel at Elim, we shall realize that it is a marvelous portrait of resurrection life. Something is flowing out of God into us, and something is growing through this flowing to express the riches and the victory of the divine life. As we consider this portrait further, I believe that the Lord will speak more to us regarding resurrection life.
At the end of 15:27 we are told that the children of Israel “encamped there by the waters.” The word encamped indicates that God’s people had been formed into an army. The flowing and growing life supplies God’s people as His army. When we come to chapter seventeen, we shall see God’s people entering into battle as an army. At Elim they were full of enjoyment of life that made them qualified for fighting. This enabled them to fight to carry out God’s purpose to build His habitation.
At Sinai, God’s people received the heavenly vision related to the building of the tabernacle. The long journey from Egypt to Sinai could not be made without fighting. At first, the people did not do the fighting themselves. God fought for them and defeated Pharaoh and his army by destroying Pharaoh and his chariots in the waters of the Red Sea. After God’s people had crossed the Red Sea and had the experiences at Marah and Elim, they were strengthened as God’s army and qualified to fight for God’s purpose. This was the reason that God did not fight for them in chapter seventeen. They themselves could fight through the flowing and growing life.
If we would be strengthened as God’s army today, we also must firstly experience the flowing of the twelve springs and the growing of the seventy palm trees. We need the perfect and complete flowing life and growing life. Only then shall we be qualified and equipped as an army to fight for God’s purpose. In the Lord’s recovery we have the consciousness of being engaged in spiritual fighting. We are not merely settled in our localities; we are encamped in them. In order to fight, it is not sufficient simply to eat the Passover lamb with the bitter herbs and the unleavened bread. We also need to experience the cross and the resurrection; that is, we must pass through Marah and arrive at Elim.
As we consider the implications of 15:27, we realize that we also need to come to Elim. I have the assurance that, at least to some extent, the churches in the Lord’s recovery are camping at Elim, enjoying the twelve springs and the seventy palm trees. How we thank the Lord for this picture of resurrection life! Have you seen the springs flowing and the palm trees growing? Have you seen that the result of this flowing and growing life is an army strengthened to fight for God’s purpose? Praise Him that we are His army encamped by the flowing and growing life!
In our experience we need not only the sweet water, but also the flowing water. This means that we need the water that has been changed from bitter to sweet and also the water that flows from the twelve springs at Elim. In order to have the flowing water, we must go on from Marah, the experience of the cross, to Elim, the experience of resurrection.
From the time of Madame Guyon and her contemporaries to the time of Mrs. Penn-Lewis, the Lord’s people for the most part were at Marah. Through the ministry of Mrs. Penn-Lewis, the subjective experience of the cross has been recovered in a full way. In the years following Mrs. Penn-Lewis, the Lord has gone on from Marah to Elim. At Elim He cares for His plantation with the twelve springs and seventy palm trees. However, many of those who seek the Lord still appreciate Marah very much and desire to remain there. They have not progressed beyond the writings of Mrs. Penn-Lewis concerning the cross. Instead, they still emphasize the experience of the cross. However, they do not pay much attention to the flowing springs and the growing palm trees. They mainly testify of how their bitterness has been changed into sweetness through the application of the cross. Those who linger at Marah have the healing tree, but not the seventy palm trees growing to express the riches and victory of the divine life. At Marah there is no plantation. There is only one tree cut down and cast into the bitter waters.
It is not my intention to make light of those who have gone before us in the Lord’s recovery. My intention is to point out the need for us to progress from Marah to Elim. We need to go on from the healing tree to the growing and flourishing palm trees. In His recovery today God does not want us to linger at Marah. He needs us to go on to Elim and be strengthened there as His army.
Recently, I received a letter from someone asking for books written by the mystics of three centuries ago, in particular the writings of Madame Guyon and Brother Lawrence. Actually, the autobiography of Madame Guyon is a history of the experience at Marah. The same is true of The Imitation of Christ. Those who emphasized the experience at Marah in the past three centuries did not stress very much the twelve flowing springs and the seventy growing palm trees. Today the Lord wants us to experience the springs that water God’s plantation so that the palm trees may grow to express the riches of His life and victory.
Because at Marah there is no plantation, only the changing of bitterness into sweetness, there is no growth there. But at Elim we enjoy God’s farm and the grove of palm trees to express the riches of the divine life and the complete victory of God’s administration. In our experience the waters that have been changed from bitter to sweet must become the flowing waters in which, by which, and with which we grow like palm trees to express God’s rich life and full victory.
