THE FUTURE (16)
—H. L. Heijkoop
A Few Complementary Remarks About Prophetic Themes
Prophetic Summary
The sequence of subjects which we have covered has been as follows:
A. First of all, the Lord will come to the air to take the Assembly from the earth to the Father's house (John 14:1-3; 1 Co. 15:5154; 1 Th. 4:15-17). There is no indication that even one single prophecy in Scripture must be fulfilled before the rapture of the Assembly. Most of the prophetic predictions relate to the time after this event. This for instance, is the case with Revelation 4:1.
B. God will then begin to deal once more directly with Israel and the nations. From the prophecies it is not clear whether this will begin after the rapture of the Assembly or whether there will be a period, similar to the one at the beginning of the Assembly when Israel was put aside after a time of transition (Acts 3:19-21; 28:20-28).
From Ezekiel 37, we conclude that God's dealings with the scattered Jews begin before they have a national identity in Israel. Ezekiel prophesies upon God's command and the Jewish body is formed. Naturally, it is not God's purpose that they return to Palestine in unbelief. The first verses are clear enough on this. Their return is the result of the prophesying that occurs at the command of God. This agrees with Jeremiah 16:15-18.
Daniel 9:27 shows, however, that the seventieth week of years will only begin after the Jews have established an independent existence in Palestine and after the Roman Empire has been restored.
Today, the nation of Israel is well established. Whether the Roman Empire will be restored and make a covenant with Israel before the rapture of the Assembly is, as far as I can see, not clear from Scripture. It is evident, however, that the events of the second half of the seventieth year-week will definitely take place after the rapture of the Assembly. Revelation expressly mentions these 3 ½ years only, prior to that time the Assembly is taken up into heaven.
C. Halfway through this 70th week, the devil will be cast out of heaven (Rev. 12:7 etc.). Knowing that he has only a little time (v. 12), he will incite his two great instruments — the two beasts of Revelation 13, the first the political and the second the religious head of the Roman Empire — to show their true nature. The latter, the king of the Jews, will reveal himself as the Antichrist, and the first beast will show his blasphemous and satanic character (Dan. 9:27; 7:25; Rev. 13:5).
For the Jews, this will mean that their worship services in the temple in Jerusalem will cease and that an image (possibly that of the political head of the Roman Empire) will be placed in the temple (Dan. 9:27; 12:11; 11:38, 39; Rev. 13:15). For the Roman Empire, this most likely will mean that the last trace of Christendom will be destroyed (Rev. 17 and 18).
D. The faithful remnant of the Jews will flee from Jerusalem (Mat. 24:15-21). The second book of the Psalms (Ps. 42-72) presents prophetically the feelings of this remnant while they are outside of Jerusalem. Two strong witnesses of God, however, will remain in the city (Rev. 11:2-13) and will be untouchable by their enemies.
The remnant that has fled will be the object of hatred and persecution by the antichrist (Rev. 12:6, 13-17; Is. 16:3, 4; 21:14, 15; Ps. 52; 55 etc.). At that time, the judgment of God will come over Judea and the territory of the Roman Empire, it is the time of the great tribulation (Mt. 24:21).
E. Toward the end of these 3 ½ years, the King of the North (the ally of Russia) and the King of the South (Egypt), will simultaneously attack Palestine. The King of the North will conquer and enter Jerusalem and then go on to Egypt.
F. The Jewish king (the Antichrist) will flee to his ally, the political leader of the Roman Empire. Together, they return with the Western-European armies to Palestine. They take Jerusalem and kill the two witnesses of God (Rev. 11:7-8).
G. When they think to turn against the faithful remnant, the Lord Jesus comes on the clouds of heaven and defeats the armies and casts its two leaders alive into hell (Zech. 14:4 and Rev. 19:11-21). This concludes the seventieth week of Daniel.
H. The King of the North returns out of Egypt because he has heard rumors out of Palestine but he too is destroyed (Dan. 11:45). The Jews then punish the nations around them (is. 11:14). This will very likely occur in the first 30 days after the seventieth week (Dan. 12:11).
I. Then come Gog and Magog, but they fall on the mountains of Israel (Ezek. 38 & 39). Meanwhile, the remnant of the ten tribes has also entered Palestine (Ezek. 20; 37:20; 38:14). Most likely this will occur within 45 days after the preceding events (Dan. 12: 21).
J. The judgment of the nations described in Matthew 25 follows these events. This will be the end of all open opposition against the Lord Jesus Who will rule in justice and righteousness for a thousand years. During that time, Satan will be cast bound into the abyss (Rev. 20).
K. At the end of the thousand years, Satan will be temporarily loosed to once more test men. The greater part of mankind will put itself under Satan's leadership and surrounding Jerusalem, will revolt against God and the Lord Jesus. Then they are killed and Satan is cast into he[[ (Rev. 20). Then comes the moment in which heaven and earth will pass away (2 Pet. 3) and in which the dead will be judged before the Great White Throne.
L. After this comes the eternal condition in which all who have turned to God and who, therefore, are born again will live on the new earth. Even there the Assembly will occupy a special place and God will dwell in her among men.
Which Nations will be Judged in Palestine?
In Genesis 10, we find the descendants of Noah as patriarchs of the different nations. When following the next remarks, it will prove to be helpful to refer to a map of the old world on which the names of the mentioned nations are indicated in the regions where they lived.
In verse 2, we see that the children of Japheth are Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech and Tiras. First of all we may observe that Media (Madai) and Persia have become one according to Daniel 6 and 8:20. Then we notice that, apart from Javan and Tiras, all other names are mentioned literally in Ezekiel 38 and 39 as belonging to Russia or to its sphere of influence. One of the sons of Gomer, Togarmah, is mentioned separately. According to Zechariah 9:13, Javan (Greece), will also be involved in the battle at the end. Daniel 11:30 tells us in connection with Genesis 10:4 that Javan will be linked to the Roman Empire. We will come back to Tiras when dealing with the word Rash in Ezekiel 38 and 39.
The sons of Ham were Cush, Mizraim, Phut and Canaan.
Canaan was destroyed when the Israelites took possession of the land. We also find Cush (often translated by Ethiopia) and Phut under Russia in Ezekiel 38. We find Mizraim (Egypt) and another part of Cush in Daniel 11:43. Cush is mentioned twice because part of his descendants came to live along the Euphrates (Gen. 10:8-10) and the other part along the Nile in Africa.
The sons of Shem were, Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud and Aram. It is obvious from Isaiah 21:2, Jeremiah 25:25 and Daniel 8:2 that Elam is Persia. Aram is often translated by Syria. As seen above, Persia is connected with Russia in Ezekiel 38. Syria is seen in Asshur (2 Ki. 16:9), the King of the North, who will be a pawn of Russia. Lud is always mentioned together with Phut (see Ezek. 27:10, 30:5; Jer. 46:9; Is. 66:19) but he is not specifically referred to in the time of the end. Arphaxad is the patriarch of, among others, Israel.
So we notice that all the descendants of Noah are involved in the final battles in Palestine except for Lud (who is most likely seen together with Phut) and Tiras. A little later, we will speak more about this last one.,
Is Rash or Rosh in Ezekiel 38 and 39 today's Russia?
The Hebrew word Rash or Rosh in Ezekiel 38:2-3 and 39:1 is translated by head in the Authorized Version. Doubtless, the word occurs in this sense in the Bible but we also find it with different meanings, such as "gall" etc. and further as a personal name. In the latter sense, we find it for instance in Genesis 46:21 where one of Benjamin's sons is called by that name. Since it was obviously a personal name there, the translators left it untranslated.
This sort of thing is very normal in the Old Testament; all names in it have a meaning. A translator often has to decide on the basis of the context whether or not a word is a personal name that must remain untranslated. Thus, how should the word Rosh or Rash in Ezekiel 38:2-3 and 39:1 be rendered?
The first Greek translation of the Old Testament, the so-called Septuagint, was completed by Jewish scholars some two hundred years before the birth of the Lord Jesus. They lived just a few centuries after Ezekiel and obviously knew the Hebrew of those days very well. They took the word to be the name of a nation and rendered it Rosh. This translation was used by the Lord Jesus and the Apostles. Later Greek translations, by Theodotion and Symmachus treated the word in the same manner.
All persons with insight in such matters during the last century: Bochart, Vitringa, De Wette, Kuenen, David Levie, Smend, Bertholet, Duhm, Frank Delitsch, W. Gesenius, Fr. Buhl, Darby, Kelly, Grant, Toy, etc. have all confirmed it to be a proper name.
The translation head found acceptance through Jerome who improved the old Latin text. He argued that nowhere in the Bible is a nation found by the name Rosh, and others accepted this argument. However, the publishers of Jerome's writings give sufficient counter argument by their observation that neither do the names Chebar, Gammadin, Chilmad, Dub, Hethlon and Sibraim occur elsewhere except in Ezekiel. We can even extend this list with Diblath, Gebal, Hamonah, Hauran, Helbon, Koa, etc. etc.
Through Jerome, the Vulgate (the official translation of the Roman Catholic Church) accepted the rendering head. Consequently, this rendering exerted a great influence upon some of the later translations, such as the Authorized (King James) Version, even though the words "prince of head, Mesech and Tubal" do not combine into a good sentence, whereas "prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal" is quite clear. Even its connection with the names Meshech and Tubal makes it probable that Rosh is the name of a nation. However, because the nation of Rosh was unknown in the days of Jerome, the translators deviated from the clearer sense of the word.
Byzantine historians refer repeatedly to the inhabitants of Russia as Rosh. Based on this fact, (and other things), the well-known Hebraist, W. Gesenius, explained that there is no doubt that Rosh signifies the Russians. Also the historian Gibbons says that Rosh is the Greek name for Russia. Toy points to the connection between Rosh or Rash and Tiras in Genesis 10:2. In Genesis 10, Tiras is named in one breath with Meshech and Tubal which are also connected with Rosh or Rash in Ezekiel 38 and 39.
In this connection, it is interesting that a book was published in 1825 from the hand of J. von Hammer entitled "Origines Russes." This writer makes an effort to show that Rosh in Ezekiel 38 and 39 and the Rosh found in certain places in the Koran is one and the same as Tiras in Genesis 10, to whom he refers as the father of the Russians. Also, the omission of part of a name is not an uncommon practice in the Bible. Just think of Abram — Abraham, Sarai — Sarah. Then, when we consider that the Russian river Dnestr used to be called the Tiras and that a city named Tirospol is situated near the mouth of that river, and that the Wolga river at that time was called the Rha, we will realize that such ideas are not without basis.
The Greek words for Meshech and Tubal are Mosoch and Thobal. Very clearly we can recognize therein the names of Moscow and Tobolsk, the capitals of the European and Asian parts of Russia. The region in which Moscow is situated used to be called Moscovia.
The Seventy Year-Weeks of Daniel Nine
We can divide the history of Israel into the following periods:
1. Origin. The period from the birth of Abraham to Israel's redemption out of Egypt and the giving of the Law at Sinai.
2. Settlement in the land. The period from Sinai until the construction of the temple under Solomon.
3. Decline and Judgment. The period from the construction of the temple until the arrival of Nehemiah in Jerusalem to rebuild the temple.
4. Restoration and Reconciliation. The period from the rebuilding of Jerusalem until the complete reconciliation and the entering into the glory of the Millennium.
It is remarkable that God arrived at a time interval of 490 years for each of these periods — 70 year-weeks for each.
Origin:
According to Genesis 12:4, Abraham was 75 years old when he received God's promise and went from Haran to Palestine (Heb. 11:8). In Galatians 3:17, the Apostle Paul mentions that the law was given 430 years later. From the birth of Abraham until the law was then a period of 505 years.
But included in this are the 15 years of unbelief from the moment that Abraham wanted to receive the blessings in a carnal way by taking Hagar as wife until the birth of Isaac (Gen. 16:3, 16; 21:5). If we subtract these years of unbelief we are left with 490 years.
Settlement:
From Acts 13:18-22 we obtain the following calculation.
| In the desert | 40 | years | |
| Conquest of the land | "x" | years | |
| From then until the first judge | "y" | years | |
| Time of the judges | 450 | years | |
| Saul | 40 | years | |
| David | 40 | years | 1 Ki. 2:11 |
| Solomon, until completion of the temple | 11 | years | 1 Ki. 6:38 |
From Numbers 9:1 and Joshua 14:7-10 it appears that "x" is six years. From Judges 11:26 and the numbers in the preceding chapters, one can calculate that "y" must have been 14 years. This would make a total of 601 years.
During that period, Israel was a total of 111 years under foreign rule, namely:
| Judges 3:8-11 | 8 | years | Cushan |
| Judges 3:14-30 | 18 | years | Eglon |
| Judges 3:31; 4:3 | 20 | years | Jabin |
| Judges 6:1; 8:28 | 7 | years | Midian |
| Judges 10:8 | 18 | years | Philistines and Ammonites |
| Judges 13:1 | 40 | years | Philistines |
| 111 | years | |
Once we subtract these years from the 601, we are left with 490 years.
According to 1 Kings 6:1 and 38 we get 487 years. There, the 3 years under the violent rule of Abimelech have also apparently been deducted (Judges 9:22; 10:10).
Decline and Judgment:
The temple was completed in the year 1005 B.C. Nehemiah returned to Jerusalem to rebuild the city in 445 B.C. (Dan. 9:25; Neh. 2:5-8). That is 560 years. If we deduct the 70 years of the captivity, we once more are left with 490 years.
Restoration and Reconciliation:
Daniel 9:24 tells us that 70 year-weeks, which is 490 years, are determined over Israel and Jerusalem to complete the transgression, to make an end of sins, to make expiation for iniquity, to bring in eternal righteousness, to seal the vision and prophet, and to anoint the holy of holies.
The start of this would be the rebuilding of Jerusalem, the end would be the complete blessing for which the Messiah would come. He would, however, be rejected and, therefore, we find other things, that do not belong to this calculation between the 69th and the 70th year-week.
Would the God Who didn't count the years of Abraham's action in unbelief, the years of foreign rule in the time of the judges and the years spent outside the country during the Babylonian exile, count the years during which His Son is rejected? This rejection resulted in the dispersion of Israel among all the nations. It is rather obvious that He would not do so.>
The 70 year-weeks are, therefore, interrupted at the cross and will be continued when Israel is back in its country, when at least a remnant has returned to Him.
The End
THE ASSEMBLY IN THE BIBLE
—H. L. Heijkoop
"Wherefore I also having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which is in you, and the love which ye have towards all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you, making mention of you at my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, would give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the full knowledge of Him, being enlightened in the eyes of your heart, so that ye should know what is the hope of His calling, and what the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what the surpassing greatness of His power towards us who believe, according to the working of the might of His strength, in which He wrought in the Christ in raising Him from among the dead, and He set Him down at His right hand in the heavenlies, above every principality, and authority, and power, and dominion, and every name named, not only in this age, but also in that to come; and has put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be Head over all things to the Assembly, which is His body, the fulness of Him Who fills all in all"
(Eph. 1:15-23).
Two hymns which we often sing speak of God's love and goodness. One says, "Thou lovest us beyond compare, God, full of grace and goodness. The way Thou lovest and givest us Thy blessings evermore, no tongue can e'er express." The other says, "May Thy spirit show us clearly, Thine heart filled with grace and truth." Is there a portion in God's Word that presents these thoughts more clearly than the verses we just read in Ephesians 1?
In these verses, we have the prayer of the Apostle Paul who, because he had heard of the faith the Ephesians had in the Lord Jesus and of the love they had to all the saints, could not cease to give thanks for them. He also prayed for them that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, would give them the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the full knowledge of Himself. Paul wanted them to come to know Him, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory: "that ye should know." Three things then follow whereby the love of the Father is revealed.
But first I want to stress that God is here called the God of our Lord Jesus Christ. This means that in this verse, we see the Lord Jesus as the Man Christ Jesus. The Assembly has been built on the Son of the living God, on the Rock — on the Lord Jesus as the eternal Son of God, on God the Son. He is the Rock on which the Assembly is built, an infallible certainty. But in His connection with the Assembly, He is not seen as the eternal Son of God but as the Son of God Who became Man, for we could only be united with Him as the Man Christ Jesus.
In John 14, we have the same thought although in a different context. There, we are united with the Lord Jesus. However, as in the entire gospel of John, the subject is not the Assembly but our life: eternal life is the issue. In connection with this, we read in verse 20, "In that day (the day in which the Holy Spirit would have come, which is now since the Holy Spirit is on earth) ye shall know that I am in My Father, and ye in Me, and I in you." Then they would understand that the Lord Jesus is entirely one with the Father — not just the Father in Him but He in the Father: God the Son entirely one with God the Father.
Then the Lord adds, "ye in Me, and I in you." This means that we have been completely united with Him. Not only is He in us (which could easily mean something quite different) but we are also in Him. Yes, we have been made entirely one with the Man Christ Jesus Who at the same time is the eternal Son of God, and as such is one with God the Father! No, a creature can never be brought into the Godhead. But I believe that nothing comes closer to this than the thought here expressed: We have been made one with Him Who is completely one with the Father.
Thus when the Assembly is seen as the bride of Christ, she is not connected with Him as the eternal God but with Him as Man, as the Son of God Who became Man. But this Man is the eternal God. We should never forget this. So when the connection between the Assembly and Christ is referred to in Ephesians 1, then we see Christ really as Man although this Man is at the same time the eternal God. Yet, He is Man here in Ephesians 1, since it is concerned with our being united with Him. It is, however, not the same as in John 14 where we find our personal union with Him because we have received His own Person as our life. Ephesians 1 rather shows our complete unification with His position — in all that He received as Man from God.
For this reason, our verses speak of the God of our Lord Jesus Christ. And the Apostle expresses his desire that the Ephesians would realize how good God is and how great His love is "in the knowledge of Him." But how can I know what sort of person someone is? By the manner in which he reveals himself! And that is specially true of God. God Who dwells in an unapproachable light (1 Tim. 6) can only be known when He reveals Himself. Even if He did not live in an unapproachable light, we would only know Him (because He is God and we are creatures) as far as He had revealed Himself. And here we are told wherein He has revealed Himself so that we would learn to know Him.
Now that we have considered why God is introduced as the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, we can take up those three things whereby the love of the Father is revealed to you. Paul prays, "So that (being enlightened in the eyes of your heart) ye should know":
Point 1."What is (the content of) the hope of His calling."
We find the content of this hope in Ephesians 1:3-6, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ; according as He has chosen us in Him before the world's foundation, that we should be holy and blameless before Him in love; having marked us out beforehand for adoption through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace."
That is the hope of His calling! Isn't it a wonderful calling that God has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in the heavenlies? Isn't it wonderful that He has beforehand marked us out for adoption to Himself? This means that God thought of us before the world existed and that He then determined that we would be as He is: "holy and blameless before Him in love." Even then He had determined that we would be His sons; He marked us out beforehand "for adoption (or sonship) to Himself." Even then, He had determined that we would share all the blessings "in the heavenlies" which means all the blessings found in heaven. Before man existed, yes, before the foundations of the earth were laid, God had determined this in His counsels, "according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace." It wasn't because anything at all obliged Him to do so but simply on the basis of His own will alone. What a revelation this is of the love and goodness of God!
God's purpose thus is that we should be holy and blameless before Him, people who are able to be in His presence, just as Colossians 1:12 says that we have been made fit to have part in the inheritance of the saints in light. But verse 4 does not only say "holy and blameless" but "holy and blameless before Him in love." We find the same thing in Colossians 1:13 where it says that we have been translated into the kingdom of the Son of His love. God is light and God is love, and He has determined that we should be entirely in agreement with Him — holy and blameless in love: entirely suited to be in His presence.
God did not want us as mere slaves or servants in His presence. This is what the angels are. He wanted us there as His children and not just as little children who are loved but who need to be commanded. No, He wanted us there as His sons, as persons who have rights in His presence and with whom the Father can share His thoughts, His plans, yes, all that is in His heart. It is as stated in Romans 8:29, that He knew us beforehand and destined us beforehand "to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He (Christ) should be the Firstborn among many brethren."
As such, we are "blessed with every (or all) spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ." That is a wonderful expression! When we really think about this, we understand something of what it entails. There is not a single blessing in heaven that God has not given us. We have not just received a part of the blessings in heaven, but God has blessed us with all the blessings that are there. We have, therefore, received much more than the angels. No matter how blessed the angels may be, they are servants and slaves, and there are things in heaven that they do not possess, things they cannot enjoy.
What kind of blessings have we received? When God's Word tells us that we have been blessed with all spiritual blessings, then that means that God has given us the same part that He has given to the Lord Jesus, whatever was His part. He alone enjoyed all blessings: all that is good, all that is lovely, all that is glorious in heaven belonged to Him, the Father and the Son. Now we read here that He has given us all these things and that we share with the Lord Jesus all that is found in the Father's house. What overwhelming goodness, what overpowering grace of God it is to give all this to such insignificant creatures as we are, in spite of the fact that He knew that we would be sinners!
How is this possible? Hasn't man been created to live here on earth? Psalm 115:16 says, "The heavens are the heavens of Jehovah, but the earth hath He given to the children of men." We are not able to leave this earth. If we do so even for a short time, we die unless exceptional precautions are taken. How then can God give us a place in the Father's house? How could He make such men as us to conform to the image of His Son, the Lord Jesus? How could He make us "holy and blameless" in love and give us this position as sons of Himself? How could we have part in all the blessings that are in the heavens, blessings which, at least in part, were so far only enjoyed by God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit?
We will answer this question later. For now, I only wanted to show what the blessings are that the Father has given to us, before we continued to see what was the second thing whereby the love of the Father was revealed.
Point 2."What is the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints."
We find the answer to this in Ephesians 1:9-13, "according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself for the administration of the fullness of times." "The fulness of times" speaks of the earth since in heaven, in eternity, there are no times; the last "age" in "time" is the Millennium — "to head up all things in the Christ, the things in the heavens and the things upon the earth." This last age is accompanied by something wonderful. After God has said that He has determined by Himself to head up all things in the Christ so that He might reign over everything, the verse continues: "in Him, in Whom we have also obtained an inheritance, being marked out beforehand according to the purpose of Him Who works all things according to the counsel of His own will, that we should be to the praise of His glory." We wonder how such a thing is possible!
God says in Psalm 2 of the Lord Jesus, "Thou art My Son, I this day have begotten Thee… I have anointed My King upon Zion, the hill of My holiness." But the kings of the world and the princes of Israel rejected the Lord Jesus and the result was (although He Who dwells in the heavens laughs) that the world rejected Him and Christ had to suffer. In Psalm 3-7 we therefore find the suffering of the faithful remnant of Israel that is connected with Him. Suffering is their portion because they are connected with the rejected Christ.
Psalm 8 then follows in which we see that God gives the Lord Jesus (now that He is rejected as King of Israel) a new place as Son of Man, a place not restricted to Israel. Christ will indeed rule over the land as King of Israel; but as Son of Man, God connects the Lord Jesus with the entire human race and even says that He will rule over the universe. "What is Man, that Thou art mindful of Him? and the Son of Man, that Thou visitest Him? Thou hast made Him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned Him with glory and splendour. Thou hast made Him to rule over the works of Thy hands; Thou hast put everything under His feet: sheep and oxen, all of them, and also the beasts of the field; the fowl of the heavens and the fishes of the sea, whatever passeth through the paths of the seas."
Psalm 8 is referred to three times in the New Testament which always applies it to the Lord Jesus. I do not mention these places in their chronological order but in their moral order. Hebrews 2:8 says that when Psalm 8 states that all has been put under the feet of the Lord Jesus, then that all includes the heavens. Thus, the whole universe will be subjected to Him. In 1 Corinthians 15:27 we read further, "When He says that all things are put in subjection, it is evident that it is except Him Who put all things in subjection to Him." The Father Who has put all things under the feet of the Lord, will not be subjected to Him. Heaven and earth, men, angels, the entire creation, all will be put under His feet except the Father Who has subjected all things to Him. Therefore, as Son of Man, which means as Man, the Lord Jesus will rule over all things.
That is also how we read it in Ephesians 1:22, "And has put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be Head over all things to the Assembly." But since apart from the Father, all things are subjected to Him, how can it then be possible that (as Ephesians 1:11 puts it) we have received an inheritance with Him, which would mean that we are not subjected? If I am a co-heir, I am put on equal footing with the other heirs and not subjected to them; and Scripture says that I am a co-heir with Christ! Scripture also states very clearly that we will rule over this earth and that we will rule with Him. When I am blessed with all spiritual blessings, I will also have part in Christ's government over the universe.
How can this be explained? This is the second question that presents itself in connection with the blessings which we have found in the first part of this chapter. We will also answer this question later on and first continue with the third thing whereby the love of the Father was revealed.
Point 3.
The third point is presented in verse 19, "What the surpassing greatness of His power towards us who believe, according to the working of the might of His strength." What is this? It is what we find in chapter 2:4-6, "But God… (we too being dead in offenses) has quickened us with the Christ, (ye are saved by grace) and has raised us up together and has made us sit down together in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus." This is clear, He has raised us together and made us to sit together in the heavenlies. But how could God possibly do so? God could not possibly raise us together with Christ and seat us together in the heavenlies as sinful men who were dead in trespasses and sins. How then could He do so?
To be cont'd