I hope you enjoyed the study of Isaac and Rebecca and the foreshadowing for us the Lord did in their lives. I find it amazing and fascinating, so I'd like to share a few other types and shadows. They aren't life-changing, but they do build us up to know He was thinking of us so far in the past, so we know our future is secure and thought out, we might say.
Some examples of types and shadows
In Isaiah 40:2 and 61: 5-7 respectively, the Lord says:
"Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she has received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins." and
"For your shame you shall have double; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them."
To a person not familiar with the customs of the times it would seem these are contradictory statements: Their sin is pardoned and yet they have received double for all her sins...what does that mean? For her shame 'you will have double' and 'possess the double', thus everlasting joy will be to them..." What does that mean?
The custom of the day was that if a person was bankrupt they would write their debts on papyrus and nail that notice at their gate for all to see, in the hopes a pilgrim with tithes and offerings on the way to temple would see their debt, and pay them as an offering to the Lord.
When the person paying did so, they folded double the papyrus and sealed it with their own seal, marking it 'paid in full' and their name. This was called 'receiving the double', or for the person receiving the grace, 'possessing the double'.
This may be one reason Paul made this statement in Colossians 2: 14: "Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross..."
Jesus was the man who as an offering to the Lord, doubled over the list of our debts, nailed it to the cross, and put His seal (the Holy Spirit) on it, marking our debts PAID IN FULL. With that understanding the verses make sense, and provide a beautiful and humbling picture of the work of Jesus on the cross on our behalf.
Another example
Another example is the revealing of King Joash after having been hidden for 6 years. II Kings 11 tells the story that evil Athaliah killed all the royal line and took the throne herself for 6 years (6,000 prophetic years). But Jehosheba, the daughter of former king Joram took the boy Joash who was the rightful heir, and hid him for those 6 years.
II Kings 11: 3 says he was, "...hidden in the house of the Lord six years. And Athaliah reigned over the land."
In the 7th year Jehoiada gathered the nobles and army and came to the temple, and 11: 5 says '...and showed them the king's son.' There is much more about the coronation that is a type of Jesus. He was hidden for 6 years, or 6,000 years while an evil king rules. But at the 7th year, He will reign in Israel (and over the whole world).
In the coronation II Kings 11: 11-12 tells us they gave king Joash 'the crown' and 'the testimony'. There are 4 parts to the ancient coronation ceremony not detailed in the text. They were the anointing, affirmation, enthronement, and paying homage to the king. The oil poured on his head represents the anointing of the Holy Spirit, the testimony given him is the Word of God. In the passage the people yell out, "God save the king!" in affirmation, and 11: 19 tells us that king Joash "sat on the throne of the kings." - this is the assumption of power and authority as king.
What a beautiful picture of the future crowning of the Lord Jesus on the 7,000th year who will rule the world, after having been 'hidden' for 6,000 years.
The wedding at Cana
John chapter 1 details 4 consecutive days in the life of Jesus, then tells us nothing for 2 days, and then the 7th day is a wedding feast. This is a type of the Jewish perspective of Messiah being in the world of the Old Testament, over the course of 4,000 years, then has disappeared from them for 2,000 years, and on the 7th day or 7,000th year, there will be a wedding feast.
John 1: 19-28 is the first day, in which the elders ask John if he is the Messiah, which he of course denies and tells them of the One coming after him.
John 1: 29 says 'the next day' or day 2, John saw Jesus coming to him, and proclaimed: "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" His teaching continues to v34.
John 1: 35 says 'the next day John stood, and 2 of his disciples...', which is day 3, and that continues through verse 43.
John 1: 44 says 'the day following' Jesus wanted to go to Galilee, which is day 4. His discussion with Philip, Andrew, Peter and Nathaniel continues to the end of the chapter, ending in v51.
John 2: 1 opens with: "And three days later there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee..."
For 4 days Jesus is seen, then 2 days He is unseen, and 'three days later' is the 7th day. The wedding feast. There was 4,000 years of Messiah being present in the OT, then 2,000 years of the Gentiles in which He is not seen by the Jews - and we are near the close of that Gentile age, and then on the 7,000th year will be a wedding.
There is much more, but I'll not take up more space. If someone tries to teach something goofy, off balance, know there are many types and shadows that speak of the traditional timing of end time events, such as I've shared with Isaac meeting his bride in the field part way between his home and her home, to the above. New subject next week, until then, blessings,
John Fenn
www.cwowi.org and email me at [email protected]