DIVINE WISDOM OPERATING AGAINST APOSTASY (1)
DIVINE WISDOM OPERATING AGAINST APOSTASY (1)
JT I was thinking of the working of wisdom as seen in 2 Samuel, so that we might understand how it comes in, in meeting the apostasy at the present time. Beginning with chapter 14 the subject runs on to chapter 20. I understand it is a question of the development of wisdom, in view, typically, of the antichristian uprising typified in Absalom. I thought this would be a suitable chapter to introduce the subject, because it lays bare the motives underlying the return of Absalom. The initiative lay with Joab; it was not that he cared for Absalom — he did not. His thought was to ingratiate himself with the king, to enhance his own importance. It helps to see that in this section David generally represents what is of God in the Christian profession, rather than Christ Himself. At times he appears as a type of Christ, of course.
Rem Joab did not really care for Absalom.
JT He cared about no one but himself; he was thinking of his own reputation and distinction. He wanted to be in the favour of the king as long as the king was in power. I think that he is a type of those influences that have opened the door to antichristian agents in Christendom, especially in the Protestant area.
Ques Would you say that they all had themselves and their own glory before them?
JT That is right; they did not know what the result would be, that is, the burning of the barley field.
[p. 2] Rem The food for the people of God would be destroyed on those principles.
JT More than that; it has reference to the Lord — to the Person of Christ. That is what these antichristian principles are dealing with; that is what they are really at. Joab did not bargain for it; he represents the ‘orthodox’, but out of selfish motives he opens the door for the admittance of these agents of evil.
Ques Would the barley field suggest Christ in resurrection?
JT Barley implies the firstfruits. I think that in Joab’s field it would not represent the whole thought; it would not go beyond Christ as He was here. As cut down and presented as a sheaf (Leviticus 23) it would be Christ in resurrection.
Ques Would it be what came out here in the Lord’s person?
JT It was Joab’s growing, typically; he was orthodox.
Ques Would you give us a word as to what is antichristian?
JT Well, you can see in Absalom indications of it. He was a very attractive man. He is described here as very fine in appearance; such a man as would appeal to the young — to the natural mind. There was no one in Israel so much praised for his beauty — he was praised. Much is made of his head and the hair he grew — the weight of it.
Rem It says there was not a blemish in him, he was so comely.
JT That would be an indication of the antichrist. He will be a very wonderful man; people will wonder after him. But it was not that he (Absalom) had any attraction for Joab — he had not. Absalom, however, represents the features of antichrist as they appear now, rather than the person himself.
[p. 3] Ques Would you say it was a question with Joab of getting Absalom back without touching the sin question?
JT That is the point; the sin question is not dealt with at all in Joab’s reckoning. And what you will notice is that he hires an agent, and that a woman having a reputation for wisdom, and he puts words into her mouth. I suppose he typifies those who are in a position today to bring in such men. The woman has no liberty as to what she is to say; he puts the words in her mouth (verse 3).
Rem In the New Testament language, she is a vessel “to dishonour”, 2 Timothy 2:20.
Ques Had you in your mind the thought of a system — a religious system that would work on that line?
JT What the woman says (verse 14) was intended to be orthodox, what David could accept. Indeed, it is often used as a gospel text.
Rem True things are not always the truth.
JT They get a twist in the mouths of persons who are governed by wrong motives. Paul speaks about serving God in the glad tidings in his spirit. It is not simply in word or doctrine, but in spirit; but that is not in this chapter. The spirit of Joab is ambition, and the spirit of the woman is that of an hireling, and the result is the bringing in of a murderer without repentance.
Ques In speaking of what is antichristian, is there a certain weakening on the part of David that makes room for it?
JT The breakdown of David is the antecedent to this. He is never again what he was before, he is weak — right in his motives, but weak. I suppose he represents those who are seeking to be for God at the present time.
Ques Would you connect that with the government [p. 4] of God?
JT Oh, surely. After the breakdown of the church it never, even in the remnant, regains its former greatness or power. What marks the whole position here is David’s weakness. It is unaccountable that such a man should be so wanting in watchfulness that all this terrible uprising should occur, he being there with his mighty men. But in the light of the antitype it is intelligible enough.
Rem I suppose that at the beginning things were held by the apostles in the power of the Spirit.
JT John says, “they went out from among us”; 1 John 2:19 instead of coming in they are seen going out.
Rem Certain crept in unawares.
JT Yes, but they were met by apostolic energy; they were not unchallenged, as in later days.
Rem This line of things leads up to the burning of the barley field.
JT Yes; it is very solemn. David is increasingly encumbered, but his weakness was apparent, and Joab saw that his leanings were toward Absalom.
Ques Would it be natural affection that Joab worked on with David?
JT No doubt it was. He went to all this trouble with the woman; he knew how to get at David. There was an absence of righteousness. It was quite right, of course, that the banished should be brought back, and that means should be devised; God does that, but what kind of means does He use? not such as we get here, it must be on the ground of righteousness. Any leanings towards Absalom must be on the ground of righteousness. David, above all men, should have known this.
Ques Does David represent that which is supposed to stand for God — the church?
JT He does here. We shall see in the following chapters that he acts wisely; he has recourse to the wisdom of God in which he fails here. He fails in [p. 5] common righteousness in allowing Absalom to return unrepentant.
Rem It says in 2 Timothy 2:22, “pursue righteousness”.
JT That is the first thing to be followed. Whatever feelings you may have, the wise course is to follow righteousness first, but it is coupled with faith and love and peace — four things.
Rem These qualities were absent in Joab because he had himself before him.
Rem He was allowed to continue until Solomon’s reign, when judgment was meted out to him, the immediate occasion of it being that he turned after Adonijah.
JT Yes; he represents cleverness in the things of God — orthodox cleverness. This is sure to be coupled with unrighteousness.
Rem It was a humbling thing in the case of David that he gave way here.
JT Very humbling, especially in view of what he represents — what exists today — as we have been saying. The very fact that Joab was behind the woman’s speech ought to have condemned it in the eyes of a man like David. We are reminded here of our exposure to damaging influence through clever flattery.
Ques Does this indicate that David had not got right with God?
JT Well, it appears that he had not regained the spiritual perception that he had. There is evident a peculiar combination of weaknesses. As already said, this is intelligible in view of what marks the people of God today.
Ques Looking at it in connection with the government of God, does it go back to Uriah?
JT It does, but if we view David as an individual believer, that does not account for his weakness here; he ought to have been stronger, as having judged [p. 6] himself. The facts given, particularly Psalm 51, would show that he did. So that while David’s personal state has to be taken into account, the true explanation is in what exists at the present time, which is pictured in what is before us in these chapters.
Rem Psalm 51 seems to indicate that he had judged things, but there must have been some hidden motives, otherwise we can hardly conceive that in full restoration he would have made a mistake like this.
JT The explanation is in the antitype, the history of the assembly.
Ques Would not the original defeat have been “at the time when kings go forth [to battle]”? 2 Samuel 11:1 Quite so; he should have gone, but stayed at home; hence the breakdown. What we have before us is the moral consequence; but the result of David’s sin from the standpoint of grace is Solomon. Solomon is out of view in these chapters; he exists, but he is not in view. What is in view in connection with the work of God is the working out of the thing he represents. Solomon represents the wisdom of God, but the wisdom of God in public display. In the meantime, there is the working out of wisdom in other connections; that is, at the present time, in the face of the awful breakdown in the testimony, God has come in, as we shall see in the later chapters, and He meets the antichristian uprising by wisdom.
As this proceeds we have to accept the solemn fact that He allows the introduction of such men as Absalom, and that this has come about through orthodox persons — persons holding the truth ostensibly — those who are professedly true to David, but only in order to enhance their own position. In our weakness true Christians, being governed by natural feelings, give way to them.
[p. 7] Ques Would you say that these upheavals worked out the desire in David’s heart to build God an house?
JT They did; he had the desire to build for God before, but the result is reached in Solomon, who came in on God’s part, in grace. In Chronicles we see how David reached the thought of God through discipline occasioned by his failures. But on the other hand we see here how the enemy works on what is natural in us.
Ques Do you also suggest that the weakness was in regard to natural relationships?
JT Yes. Joab succeeded on that line here. Thus we are warned as to the danger of allowing natural feelings in the things of God; through this the door is opened to the enemy. This woman’s speech may be taken to represent what is orthodox — what any person might accept, for it is true that we “are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again”. It is true, but it is not the whole truth. In the first book of Samuel we read that the children of Israel drew water and poured it out before Jehovah (1 Samuel 7:6); this represented the people in self-judgment. Samuel offered up a sucking lamb. That involves the gospel. This woman speaks about water being spilt, this is man’s state, but pouring it out before the Lord is owning it — repentance. Christ (the sucking lamb) is the answer, which God accepts. The rights of God are thus maintained. Popular evangelisation, to a large extent, brings back man without repentance. You hear of people being brought back in thousands, but what about the rights of God? What about repentance?
Ques Does the woman represent that, as one who is supposed to be mourning for the dead, and not anointed with oil (verse 2)?
JT Quite so; popular service makes much of appearance, but God is not looking at this. He is looking at man’s heart — what the motives are. The [p. 8] whole atmosphere of popular ministry makes room for the man who does not judge himself. Thus material is brought in that Satan can use against Christ.
Rem God is not fully represented in popular preaching.
JT I suppose Joab’s field of barley does not go beyond what is orthodox. It is Christ, but not Christ cut down in death and risen. It was Joab’s field, and it was near Absalom’s.
Ques Would you not say that one of the great causes of weakness in the professing church is the way in which it has pandered to popular tastes and pleasures, all sorts of music, and even dancing?
JT Quite so; this woman represents that sort of thing, I mean popularity in the way of preaching. It is orthodox, but admitting of persons without repentance, without genuinely judging the man that sinned. God will not have this.
Rem What one feels about the preaching in our days is that it has not got the assembly in view.
JT In a true conversion there is joy in heaven. There is joy in heaven over one sinner that repents, and then there is joy among the saints in his reception; there is joy in the house for others as well as for himself. How many come into fellowship? Unless the converts come into fellowship the result is not complete.
Rem Joy in the house would be the result of being sympathetic with heaven.
JT The joy begins in heaven, and then it has its reflection in the house where the music and dancing are; Luke 15. Take a man like Absalom coming in; look what he does. In the first place there is distance. There he was for two years, he had no communion with David; and then he goes and burns the barley field. He is no product of the gospel; he is the result of the manoeuvres of selfish men, such as Joab, who [p. 9] ought to know better. There was no affinity there really. Joab was not thinking a bit of Absalom, he was only thinking of his own aggrandisement. There is no fellowship — nothing but distance. For two whole years Absalom does not see the king’s face, and then he burns the field of barley. Joab is now at his mercy. That is another thing; these orthodox men allow evil-doers, and then they are at their mercy. What can they do today in Christendom? Nothing; they are powerless, and the barley field is being burnt.
Rem If you have any light regarding the assembly, you will eschew all this kind of thing.
Ques What are we to do to keep clear?
JT We are to see how the wisdom of God works. David is brought to it. As an exile, fleeing from his capital, he is brought to it. We shall see, I hope, how he rises to the mind of God; we shall see how true believers are brought through discipline back to the wisdom of God.
Rem I was thinking that what should be in view is what God is seeking.
JT Exactly. So that the apostle enlarges on the gospel that he preached; he says, “not in wisdom of word”, 1 Corinthians 1:17. I think Joab here depends on the wisdom of words. He gave the woman a form of words. “we preach Christ crucified” 1 Corinthians 1:23 that is the preaching that will shut out the man after the flesh. It is not simply the man who repents once; repenting sinners are spoken of (Luke 15); it is continued.
Ques Do I understand from what you have been saying that in our gospel preachings we want to beware of mere popularity?
JT Quite so; and then having right motives in the service; renouncing “the hidden things of shame, not walking in deceit, nor falsifying the word of God, but by manifestation of the [p. 10] truth commending ourselves to every conscience of men before God”, 2 Corinthians 4:2.
Ques What do you mean by continual repentance?
JT Well, that is the attitude of your soul. It is a habit that becomes more and more effective. The more you get into the presence of God, the more there is to repent of. We do not know the true meanness of the natural heart; there are thirteen things that proceed out of it (Mark 7:20 - 23), and you have got to judge every one of them. Not only because the Lord says they are there, but because you find out they are there; they are not all found out at once, as a rule.
Rem The sense of it grew with Paul; he speaks of being chief of sinners.
JT Yes; he comes to that. He was then chief of sinners, it is in the present tense “of whom I am [the] first”, 1 Timothy 1:15.
Rem “sinners, of whom I am the first” 1 Timothy 1:15 “least of the apostles” 1 Corinthians 15:9 and “less than the least of all saints” Ephesians 3:8 — that is not boastful talking! I wonder, if one may put it so, how far we have travelled on that line.
JT I suppose the apostle Paul was the greatest lover of Christ; no one had sinned so much in his reckoning. As forgiven much he loved much, according to the Lord’s words; Luke 7:47.
Rem A man like that would have a wonderful influence for good; would you not say that others would feel it?
JT I think he would convey the idea of repentance and forgiveness when preaching; it would be in his own spirit at the time. It is not simply the words you use; the wise woman of Tekoah used right words to a point, but she would not convey the true idea. Paul said that he served God in his spirit in the gospel of His Son (Romans 1:9); he would convey the thing fully to you if you heard him speak.
[p. 11] Ques Would you say that Paul in speaking had the oil? This woman had no oil.
JT Quite so; Joab directed her not to anoint herself with oil. The true preacher or other representative of God is anointed, and not only with oil, but with fresh oil.
Ques What is the fresh oil?
JT You do not use the same sermon over and over again. It is very practical; there is always freshness. You may, of course, use the same scripture or subject more than once, but there are new features presented, and in freshness.
Ques Does not the oil stand connected with another Man, that is, with Christ?
JT I think that is what Paul would convey. If you heard him preach he would convey the idea; so that the glad tidings were “on the principle of faith, to faith” Romans 1:17, and the result would be, in some sense, a man after himself. The anointing is for representation of God, and for this Christ must be in evidence, not only in word, but also in spirit.
Ques Would the fresh oil depend upon fresh experiences which one would have with God? You were speaking of repentance being kept up.
JT In Matthew the Lord directs that the disciples were to see Him in Galilee; that would be a long way to go. In Luke He does not ask them to go that way. You may take a book down from your shelf, read a sermon, and commit it to memory; that is not going to Galilee to get it. You get your commission in Galilee. Galilee is the place of reproach; it is not the university. The university is the place of honour. Luke says, “do ye remain in the city till ye be clothed with power from on high” Luke 24:49; he uses the word ‘clothed’; that is to say, your habiliments are heavenly. I think that John’s ministry applied to the servant would make him forgiving: “whose soever sins ye remit” John 20:23 Luke would say to you, You must [p. 12] have the right tone; tarry in the city until you are clothed with power from on high. That is the external appearance you present in your ministry, you are heavenly. And Mark says, Be sure that you believe what you preach. If you do not believe it, how can you expect other people to believe it? Therefore he insists on faith in the things preached; Mark 16. In the end of his gospel he shows how unbelieving the apostles were. He says, Be sure you believe; and so Paul says, “we also believe, therefore also we speak” 2 Corinthians 4:13. But Matthew says, You must go to Galilee; you must get your commission from the place of reproach. You have got to go where the Lord is, and finding Him as rejected you can never hope to be a popular man in the world if you minister Christ. You never seek to maintain a place of distinction among the brethren; you just carry on your work and leave all distinctions to the Lord.
Ques Do you think that this woman represents an appeal to natural feelings, which often appear in local difficulties?
JT There has been a great deal of that, there is a great deal of it. Natural affections, as entering into assembly matters, are sure to make way for unrighteousness.
Rem That is the way the enemy seems to work in family matters.
JT The whole point here is that recovery must be on the wound of righteousness; the want of this was the great failure seen in this chapter.
Rem I was thinking of that verse, “But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who has been made to us wisdom from God, and righteousness, and holiness, and redemption” 1 Corinthians 1:30. Everything is found in Him.