Message 73
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Scripture Reading: Exo. 23:20-33; 3:2, 4, 6, 14, 16; 14:19-20; Judg. 13:17-19; Zech. 2:8-9
Exodus 20 through 23 is a section containing the decree of the Mosaic law. In these chapters we first have the decree of the Ten Commandments and then the decree of the ordinances of the law. In the foregoing messages we have pointed out that if we would get into the depths of the ordinances in chapters twenty-one through twenty-three, we shall see that in them the economy of God with the redemption of Christ is portrayed.
It is very significant that chapter twenty-three concludes with a word about the Angel of Jehovah (vv. 20-33). Verse 20 says, “Behold, I send an Angel before thee to guard thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared” (lit.). The Angel was to bring the people into the promised land. The two main things regarding the land here in these verses are the frustraters and the boundaries. There were people inhabiting the land and frustrating the children of Israel from taking possession of it. Verse 23 says, “For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; and I will cut them off.” In verse 31 we have a word concerning the boundaries of the land: “And I will set thy bounds from the Red sea even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the wilderness unto the river” (lit.). If we would take possession of the promised land, we must deal with the frustraters and also pay attention to the boundaries of the land. Because the Angel of Jehovah plays an important role in leading the people into the land, this message is entitled, “The Angel of Jehovah for His People to Take Possession of the Promised Land.” The concluding word of the decree of the law and the ordinances refers to the Angel of Jehovah and the promised land.
Both the Angel and the promised land are types of Christ. The Angel typifies Christ as the One sent by God to guard us in the way and to bring us into the land. Christ is such a sent One, the One sent from God. The good land typifies Christ in His all-inclusiveness. Thus, Christ as the sent One brings us into Himself as the good land. This good land is the goal, the aim, the mark, of God’s purpose. Since the good land typifies Christ, this means that Christ is the goal. Who will bring us to this goal? No one other than Christ Himself. On the one hand, Christ is the good land; on the other hand, He is the One who brings us into the good land.
The ordinances in Exodus 21 through 23 portray at least nineteen different aspects of Christ. Christ is the sacrifice, the slave, the Sabbath, the One delivered to us who were the mistaken sinners that put Him to death, the city of refuge, and the One who brings the things of life to His enemies and releases those who hate Him from their heavy burdens. Furthermore, in these chapters the cross of Christ is typified in two ways. First, the altar in 20:24 and 25 typifies the cross. Hebrews 13:10 says, “We have an altar, from which they have no right to eat who serve the tabernacle.” This altar refers to the cross on which the Lord Jesus offered Himself as the sacrifice for our sins. The children of Israel had an altar, but that altar was merely a type. We have the fulfillment of this type, the cross as the true altar. Second, the cross is typified by the wine and oil presses which produce the “tears.” These tears signify the outflowing of the experience of Christ through the suffering of the cross. Exodus 22:29 speaks of the fullness and the tears (lit.). The fullness signifies the fullness of the harvest of the produce of the good land, and the tears signify the outflow of wine and oil from the presses.
On the one hand, the church is a lovely place, and the church life is wonderful. On the other hand, the church life is a wine press and an oil press. Our family life is also a press. We are pressed by our husband or wife and by our children. If we did not have the experience of the press in the church life and in our family life, there would be no tears, no outflow of wine and oil.
After presenting at least nineteen aspects of Christ and two types of the cross, these chapters conclude with a word about the Angel of Jehovah bringing the people into the promised land. Even the King James Version capitalizes the word Angel in 23:20. This indicates that the translators realized that the Angel here is unique and extraordinary. This Angel signifies Christ Himself.
The fact that the decree of the law concludes with a portion regarding the Angel and the good land indicates that the purpose of the decree of the law is that those who received the law would enter into the good land. It was not God’s intention simply to give the law to His people. His intention was to bring the children of Israel into the good land. Exodus 23:20 says, “Behold, I send an Angel before thee...to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.” It seems as if the Lord was saying to His people, “I have given you the law and the ordinances. However, this is not My goal. I did not bring you out of Egypt merely to give you regulations. My intention is to train you, discipline you, and regulate you so that you may be a proper people for Me to bring into the good land. Behold, I send an Angel before you to guard you in the way and to bring you into the promised land. This is My goal.” For this reason, immediately after the decree of the law and the ordinances, God speaks of the Angel bringing the people into the good land.
According to 23:20, the Angel of Jehovah was sent by Jehovah. Here we have both a Sender and a sent One. Zechariah 2:8 and 9 indicate that the Sender and sent One are one. Verse 8 says, “For thus saith Jehovah of hosts: After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you” (lit.). Verse 9 concludes with the words, “Ye shall know that Jehovah of hosts hath sent me” (lit.). These verses indicate that Jehovah of hosts sent Jehovah of hosts. According to verse 8, Jehovah of hosts says, “After the glory hath he sent me.” Here we see that the Sender and the sent One are actually one.
Those who follow the way of systematic theology may ask how we can say that Christ the Son and the Father are one. They may point to the fact that the Son prayed to the Father and that the Father answered the Son (Luke 3:21-22). If the Father and the Son are one, they ask, how could the Son pray to the Father, and how could the Father answer the Son? The answer is found in Zechariah 2. Who is the sent One, and who is the Sender? In Zechariah 2:8 and 9 both “he,” the Sender, and “me,” the sent One, refer to Jehovah of hosts. According to these verses, Jehovah sent Jehovah, for He is both the Sender and the sent One. The same is true in Exodus 23:20, where we are told that the Angel of Jehovah was sent by Jehovah.
Regarding the Angel of Jehovah verse 21 says, “My name is in him.” The name Jehovah means “I Am That I Am” (3:14). This name is in the Angel of Jehovah. Why is the name of Jehovah in the Angel? Simply because the Angel is Jehovah Himself. If the Angel were not Jehovah, how could Jehovah’s name be in him? The name of a person is identical to the person himself. We cannot separate a person from his name, for his name indicates his very being. For this reason, we do not simply speak of ourselves as persons, but we identify ourselves by name. The name of Jehovah was in the Angel and inseparable from the Angel.
Exodus 3 indicates strongly that the Angel is Jehovah. Verse 2 says, “The Angel of Jehovah appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a thorn-bush” (lit.). As we read through chapter three, we see that it was actually Jehovah who appeared to Moses and spoke to him (vv. 4, 6, 14, 16). Furthermore, the Jehovah who appeared to Moses is the Triune God, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. The Angel of Jehovah is equal to Jehovah, Jehovah is equal to God, and God is triune — the Father, the Son, and the Spirit — as signified by the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Therefore, this Angel of Jehovah actually is the Triune God. Furthermore, this Angel is Christ, and Christ is the Son of God. This means that the Son of God is Jehovah God, even the Triune God.
Exodus 23:22 says, “If thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak....” This indicates that the Angel’s voice is God’s speaking. In John 14:10, the Lord Jesus said, “The words which I speak to you, I do not speak from Myself; but the Father who abides in Me, He does His works.” Just as the Angel’s voice was Jehovah’s speaking, so the Son’s speaking was the Father’s working. The fact that the Angel’s voice was Jehovah’s speaking proves strongly that the Angel and Jehovah are one.
If we study the record in the Old Testament concerning the journey of the children of Israel from Egypt, through the wilderness, and into the good land, we shall not find one instance where the Angel of Jehovah spoke anything. Why then does God speak of the Angel’s voice, if the Angel never voiced anything? The reason is that God was the One who spoke. God’s speaking was the Angel’s voice. God sent Himself to accompany His people, to guard them in the way, and to bring them into the good land. This indicates that the Angel and God were truly one. Thus, God’s speaking was the Angel’s voice.
As we consider the fact that God’s speaking was the Angel’s voice, we see that it involves the matter of the Trinity. The Trinity is the dispensation of God to man. Even with the children of Israel in the Old Testament, we can see God’s dispensation.
Exodus 23:23 says, “Mine Angel shall go before thee.” In 14:19 we have a clear indication that the Angel of Jehovah was leading the people: “And the Angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them.” The Angel refers to Christ, and the cloud signifies the Spirit. The Father also was present, but He, as usual, was behind the scene. Thus, in the incident recorded in Exodus 14, the Triune God was present. The Son was the protecting Angel, the Spirit as the cloud was darkness to the Egyptians and light to the children of Israel, and behind the Angel and the cloud, the Son and the Spirit, was the Father. Here we see the Triune God applying Himself to the people in their situation. Therefore, we may define the Trinity as God’s application of Himself to His people. Without the Trinity, God could not have been applied to His chosen people in their distress in Exodus 14.
We have pointed out that the Trinity denotes both the dispensation of the Triune God and the application of the Triune God. No doubt, to many Christians such definitions will come as something altogether new. Nevertheless, according to the Word of God, it is a fact that apart from the Trinity God has no way to apply Himself to His people. When God said, “Behold, I send an Angel before thee,” He was applying Himself to the children of Israel. He not only gave them laws and ordinances, but He applied Himself to them.
According to Exodus 23:20, the Angel of Jehovah kept the people, guarded them, in the way. An excellent illustration of the Angel’s guarding is found in chapter fourteen, when the Egyptians were pursuing the Israelites (vv. 19-20).
Exodus 23:20 says that the Angel would bring the people into the place which God had prepared. From verse 23 we know that this was the land occupied by pagan tribes. The Angel of Jehovah would bring God’s people into this good land.
Verse 31 describes the boundaries of the promised land: “And I will set thy bounds from the Red sea even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the wilderness unto the river” (lit.). The “sea of the Philistines” refers to the Mediterranean Sea, and “the river” denotes the Euphrates. Although the land between the Mediterranean Sea and the Euphrates is extensive, more extensive than the territory the children of Israel have ever inhabited, my point here does not concern the extensiveness of the land. Rather, it concerns the boundaries and their spiritual significance. The bounds were from “the Red sea even unto the sea of the Philistines.” The seas here signify the waters of death. Hence, from sea to sea signifies from death to death. This means that one of the boundaries of the promised land is death. Verse 31 also says that the boundary was to be “from the wilderness unto the river.” The river also signifies the water of death, and the wilderness signifies barrenness. If we study a map, we shall see that the promised land is surrounded by death and barrenness. The land itself, however, is a region of life filled with abundance of fruit.
We have pointed out that the promised land is a type of Christ. Now that we see that the boundaries of the good land are death and barrenness, we can realize that outside of Christ there is nothing but death and barrenness. Death and barrenness surround Christ as our land and are the boundaries of Christ. The Bible indicates that the promised land is elevated. This signifies that Christ is elevated in resurrection. However, this elevated land, this elevated Christ, is surrounded by death and barrenness.
We need to apply the boundaries of the good land to our spiritual experience and ask ourselves where we are. Where are you? Are you in the Red Sea, in the Mediterranean Sea, or in the Euphrates? In other words, are you in the waters of death? Are you wandering in a barren wilderness? I repeat, the good land is bounded by the waters of death and by the barrenness of the wilderness. But the territory of the good land is elevated and fruitful, full of life and produce. Hallelujah, this good land is our territory!
Many Christians do not have a proper understanding of the promised land. Some think that the good land refers to heaven. A well-known hymn even speaks of crossing the cold waves of the Jordan and passing over into the promised land of heaven. According to the concept of many, to die is to cross the Jordan, and to enter into the land is to go to heaven. But what about the pagan tribes and their idols? Will heaven be filled with pagans and idols? Is it necessary to fight against these pagan tribes and destroy their idols after we get into heaven? If we ask questions such as these, considering the significance of the pagan tribes and their idols, we shall realize that the promised land does not refer to heaven.
According to another interpretation, the good land typifies the heavenlies mentioned in Ephesians 6. In the heavenlies there are evil forces against which we must fight. This understanding is close to the proper significance. However, according to the Bible, the habitation of the saints will not be the air, the heavenlies. Do you expect to go to the air and dwell there? Thus, it is not satisfactory to say that the good land denotes the heavenlies of Ephesians 6.
For many years we were seeking to learn the significance of the good land. Approximately forty years ago, we began to realize that the good land is a type of the all-inclusive Christ. In the history of Israel, Christ is portrayed by different types: the Passover lamb, the unleavened bread, the bitter herbs, the sacrifices, the manna, the smitten rock flowing with living water, and the tabernacle with its utensils. The good land also is a type of Christ. Without the land as a type, we would not have an ultimate, consummate, all-inclusive type of Christ.
God redeemed His people through Christ as the Passover lamb so that they might enter into the good land. God’s goal is that we enter into the full enjoyment of Christ as the all-inclusive One. Having been redeemed through Christ as the Passover lamb, on our way to the good land we enjoy Christ as the manna and the rock. On the one hand, we are satisfied with Christ as the Passover lamb and the manna. On the other hand, Christ in these aspects stirs up our appetite for more of Him. As we are pursuing something richer, greater, and more all-inclusive with respect to Christ, Christ as the good land, we experience Him as the daily manna. Our goal, however, is to enter into Christ as the all-inclusive land.
According to Exodus 23:23-24, 32-33, there are frustraters which keep us from possessing the land. These frustraters, the various pagan tribes occupying the land, signify different aspects of our natural life. For example, one of the tribes was the Canaanites. The word Canaan means merchant. In our natural life there is a Canaanite, one who aspires to make money. Other tribes signify the lust of the natural man and the greed of the natural life. In principle, all of the pagan tribes signify aspects of the natural life. In a very real sense, these tribes are in us. This means that in our natural life there are many frustraters which hinder us from taking possession of the all-inclusive Christ.
Exodus 23:24 indicates that these pagan tribes had idols: “Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works.” Furthermore, verses 32 and 33 say, “Thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor with their gods. They shall not dwell in thy land, lest they make thee sin against me: for if thou serve their gods, it will surely be a snare unto thee.” The gods of the pagan tribes were idols, and idols are related to demons. Behind every idol there is a demon. The idols with the demons behind them represent spiritual forces (Eph. 6:12).
Behind our natural life are spiritual forces. For example, do you like to lose your temper? To be sure, none of us is happy when we lose our temper. Within our natural life there is an evil temper, which we despise. But behind this evil temper there are spiritual forces, demons. Often it is these evil forces that cause us to lose our temper. As Christians, we have experienced losing our temper even when we did not want to do so. There was something, some kind of force, which caused us to lose our temper involuntarily. This indicates that the aspects of our natural life are utilized, manipulated, and directed by spiritual forces behind the scene. The aspects of the natural life with the spiritual forces behind them frustrate us from the enjoyment of the riches of the all-inclusive Christ.
Exodus 23:22 says, “But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries.” Here we see that if the children of Israel obeyed the Angel of Jehovah, Jehovah would cut off the pagan tribes. Verse 23 goes on to say, “For mine Angel shall go before thee...and I will cut them off.” He would drive out the pagan tribes from before His people.
Verses 29 and 30 say, “I will not drive them out from before thee in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee. By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.” Here we see that God would not cut off the pagan tribes all at once. Israel was still comparatively small in number. If God were to cut off all the tribes within one year, much of the land would be desolate, and the beasts would multiply against the people. This indicates that as Christians we should not expect to become fully spiritual overnight. If we were suddenly emptied of our natural life, we would be inwardly vacant. Then demons would have an opportunity to damage us.
After hearing messages on the natural life, we may desire to cut off the natural life all at once. However, to do this is to become vacant and be in danger of being taken over by demons. There is a sense in which we still need our natural life for a period of time. Then the more we grow in the Lord, the more He will cut off the natural life. As long as the number of the children of Israel was rather small, there was the need for the pagan tribes to remain so that the land might be kept from the beasts. But as God’s people increased, the Lord would cut off the tribes according to the degree of the numerical increase of His people. This signifies that as we grow in Christ, our natural life will be cut off gradually, according to the degree of our growth in life. God will not cut off the pagan tribes once for all, but He will do it “by little and little” according to our growth.
Verse 25 says, “And ye shall serve Jehovah your God, and he shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee.” Here God promised to bless the people’s bread and water and to remove sickness from their midst. This indicates that spiritually God will give us food to nourish us and drink to satisfy us. Moreover, He will take away our weaknesses that we may come to full age, full maturity, full growth in life. In this way we shall take the all-inclusive Christ as our possession for our enjoyment.
