As this will be a physics/chemistry lesson, I shall try to make it as simple as possible for those who have not had grounding in the sciences. Everyone knows that water is H2O, and that the symbol stands for 2 parts Hydrogen and 1 part Oxygen. That is a good starting point. [Read more…]
91. Threefold – Introduction
On a number of occasions we find a threefold repetitive statement in the Scriptures.
Isa.6:3. And one [of the Seraphim] cried unto another, and said, Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.
Jer.7:4. Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, are these.
Jer.22:29. O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD.
Ezek.21:27. I will overturn, overturn, overturn it: and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him.
Rev.4:8. The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within. And they do not rest day or night, saying: “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!”
92. Threefold – Isaiah 6
“In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one cried to another and said: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!'”
Uzziah died a leper; and now Isaiah sees the Lord in His glory. What a contrast! As to time, this was about BC750 according to many chronologists, and ten more kings were to reign in Judah before the Babylonian captivity. It is therefore remarkable that the prophetic word given to Isaiah should find a major fulfilment nearly 800 years later, in the days of Jesus and the Apostles. What was his message? [Read more…]
93. Threefold – Jeremiah 7:4
“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: “Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place. Do not trust in these lying words, saying, ‘The temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD are these.’ For if you thoroughly amend your ways and your doings, if you thoroughly execute judgment between a man and his neighbour, if you do not oppress the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place, or walk after other gods to your hurt, then I will cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers forever and ever. Behold, you trust in lying words that cannot profit.” (Jeremiah 7:3-8)
What “are these”? The finger was pointing to the Temple buildings, and the threefold statement probably referred to the three parts of the Temple, the Outer Court where sacrifices were made, the Temple building, with the Holy Place, and the Most Holy Place. [Read more…]
94. Threefold – Jeremiah 22
“Is this man Coniah a despised, broken pot, a vessel no one cares for? Why are he and his children hurled and cast into a land which they do not know? O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD! Thus says the LORD: ‘Write this man down as childless, a man who shall not succeed in his days; for none of his offspring shall succeed in sitting on the throne of David, and ruling again in Judah.'” (Jeremiah 22:28-30)
Good King Josiah had two sons by Hamutal, his first wife, named Eliakim (or Jehoiakim, 2) and Shallum (or Jehoahaz, 1). And byZebidah, his second wife, Mattaniah (or Zedekiah, 4). And Nehushta, Jehoiakim’s wife, bore him a son by the name of Jehoiachin (orJeconiah, 3). The names in red are the usual names by which the kings are known, and they were the last four Kings of Judah before the Babylonian captivity, in the order numbered above. [Read more…]
95. Threefold – Ezekiel 21:25-27
“Now to you, O profane, wicked prince of Israel, whose day has come, whose iniquity shall end. Thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Remove the turban, and take off the crown; Nothing shall remain the same. Exalt the humble, and humble the exalted. Overthrown, overthrown, I will make it overthrown! It shall be no longer, until He comes whose right it is, and I will give it to Him.'”
The wicked prince is Zedekiah, the last king of Judah. Ezekiel takes up the theme of the Lord’s words through Jeremiah, which we read in the last number. Here is the history – [Read more…]
96. Threefold – Revelation 4
“Before the throne there was a sea of glass, like crystal. And in the midst of the throne, and around the throne, were four living creatures full of eyes in front and in back. The first living creature was like a lion, the second living creature like a calf, the third living creature had a face like a man, and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle. The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within. And they do not rest day or night, saying: “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!”” (Rev.4:6-9)
Now we are back where we started, in Isaiah 6, with the Seraphim saying, “Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of His glory.” But along the way the whole earth was certainly not full of His glory. Man’s disregard of God’s laws and character, and man’s inhumanity to man were prevalent. [Read more…]
97. Daughters of Thunder (1 of 4)
The Lord nicknamed James and John “Boanerges“, a word of Hebrew origin meaning “Sons of Thunder.” (Mark 3:17) In the early years of the 19th century there was an Irishman by the name of Patrick Brunty, (1777-1861) who decided to change the spelling of his name to Brontë, the Greek word for thunder. After graduating at Cambridge, he was ordained in 1806. In 1812 he met and married 29 year old Maria Branwell (1783-1821) from Penzance, Cornwell. In 1820 Brontë moved to Haworth, in Yorkshire, where he became Rector until his death in 1861. Sadly his wife died at 38 of uterine cancer in August 1821, and he was left to bring up his six children, Maria (1814-1825), Elizabeth (1815-1825), Charlotte (1816-1855), Patrick Branwell (1817-1848), Emily (1818-1848), and Anne (1820-1849), assisted by Aunt Elizabeth Branwell. In 1825 the two eldest children, Maria and Elizabeth died of tuberculosis. [Read more…]
98. Daughters of Thunder (2 of 4)
First of all we turn to Jane Eyre, written by Charlotte Bronte in 1847, the title bearing the name of the foundling child sent to a school run by the Calvinist Mr Brocklehurst, who was advised by Jane’s aunt that she was a wilful girl . . . . . [Read more…]
99. Daughters of Thunder (3 of 4)
Next we turn to Anne Brontë’s “Tenant of Wildfell Hall.” The “tenant” was Helen, wife of Arthur Huntingdon, a selfish and irresponsible man, whom she left for a season when life became intolerable for her. Later on in the book, having returned home, she talks with her aunt about the position of their marriage. [Read more…]