HIS EMBRACE

M. Pavlik

Song of Songs 2: 6; 2 Kings 4: 17–21, 32–36; Acts 20: 7–12; Habakkuk 3: 17–19

It is my desire, dear brethren, to convey some impressions of the love of the Lord Jesus to all of us, but especially to our young brethren. It is very important to be conscious of that wonderful love in which the love of God Himself came into such rich expression.

In that verse of the Song of Solomon I have read we have a very instructive figure of this love, and there I at first would refer to the left hand under the head. I think that is something we very much need, and which essentially our young brethren need very much, for there is very, very much in this world which makes our heads tired, which disturbs us, disturbs our inward peace, disturbs our quietness. How many sorrows, how many concerns, how many exercises, how many problems, there are, especially for the young people; they affect them, and they bring in difficulties—real difficulties. So I think it is very important that their head should lean on the hand of the Lord. I love the thought of the apostle John not only lying in the bosom of the Lord Jesus but also leaning on His breast (John 13: 23, 25); it suggests to me the idea of his head leaning on the firm, reliable, faithful breast of the Lord. It implies faithful, fatherly feelings.

When the Lord speaks in Matthew 6 and parallel passages about our not having many cares, not being careful about what we should eat, what we should drink, what we should put on, referring to the birds of the heaven and to the lilies of the field (Matthew 6: 25, 26), I think He puts His left hand under our head and says, Do not be anxious. Well, I do not think in this time there are many among us who would have to worry about such things literally material things; but there are innumerable other sorrows, other difficulties, which make the heads of the young people ache. Dear young brother, dear young sister, there is a hand under your head, the left hand of the Lord—lean upon it! This is a very, very sweet figure found in this wonderful book.

But the matter has another side as well. It also has been suggested that the hands of the Lord may be seen in the brethren, and so there is very much need of the fatherly spirit among the brethren, and I think very much has been spoiled by the lack of that fatherly spirit. I would say we see that in the young child in 2 Kings 4. The boy said, “My head, my head!” and the whole, context shows us that the father was not in his place; he was not fulfilling what was his duty. The child went out to his father to the reapers in the field. The young boy was not up to that, and so his head suffered. And I think the matter with Eutychus was similar—it has often been suggested that maybe the condition of the local assembly in Troas was not as it should have been and that the head of that poor youth had nothing to lean upon, and so he fell down. There were “many lights” but somewhat more than many lights is needed. “Many lights”—that is an important factor; we need the light; but I love the comparison of this passage with another one where it says, in John 6, when the Lord was going to distribute the five loaves of bread and the two small fishes to five thousand men, “there was much grass in the place” (v.10). The “grass” is as much needed as the light. But although there was much light indeed in Troas I do not think there was much “grass”, and so that young man’s head had nothing to lean upon and he fell down.

But how wonderful is the help the Lord provides! When we fail He does not, and He brings in help in both cases, and so it is touching to read in the scripture in 2 Kings 4 how the prophet handled the boy; he “lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands, and bent over him” (2 Kings 4: 34)—this suggests the love he had for him. When we on our side fail the Lord brings in the richest provision of help. And so the young boy could be brought back to life through this embrace of the tender-hearted prophet.

It also has touched me very much as I was reading the account in Acts 20 how Paul enfolded that young boy in his arms. The verb has in the original text two intensifying prefixes, suggesting a very warm and very affectionate embrace. Indeed, that whole chapter has been called a chapter of love, a chapter of embraces—it starts with an embrace, in the midst of it we have an embrace, and in the end there are embraces. The apostle Paul was embracing the saints when taking leave of them, he enfolds the young man in his embrace, and in the end the believers were falling on his neck, weeping that they would no more see his face. Full of love is this wonderful chapter! Well then, how great is the loving labour of the Lord who makes up for what has been neglected. That, of course, does not free us from what is needed on our side. Let then the young brethren lean upon the great and all-satisfying provision of our Lord, upon His left hand which is always to be under their head; and let us

who are older give ourselves.to be at the disposal of our Lord, to be His left hand and to support the weary head of our young people.

Indeed, it means very much. In this world there is increasing evil on every side. We know that our path in this world is difficult and will be more and more difficult; it is dark, and will be darker and darker; so then let the head of our young brethren lean upon the mighty arm of our Lord, and let us help them that they might find His arm, that they might find help in the midst of the assembly. The apostle Paul said that there were “not many fathers” (1

Corinthians 4: 15); let us pray for more of them; let us grow to be fathers who are able to give fatherly help to the young brethren.

I very much love the book of the prophet Habakkuk. I have read from it especially because the name Habakkuk means ‘embrace’. Indeed, in his prophecy we may see a wonderful illustration of what I have read in the Song of Solomon. There is the first chapter in which we can see the weary head of the prophet. What he sees! “Jehovah, how long shall I cry and thou wilt not hear? I cry out unto thee, Violence! and thou dost not save. Why dost thou cause me to see iniquity, and lookest thou upon grievance? For spoiling and violence are before me; and there is strife, and contention riseth up. Therefore the law is powerless, and justice doth never go forth; for the wicked encompasseth the righteous; therefore judgment goeth forth perverted” (Habakkuk 1: 2–4). That is indeed a weary head, seeing iniquity, seeing righteousness trampled underfoot. Well, do we not see things like that in our time? Indeed we do, and there is very much which is apt to make our head tired.

But then, how wonderful is the answer of the Lord! I think in Habakkuk 2 we find the Lord’s

left hand put under the prophet’s head—“And, Jehovah answered me and said, Write the vision, and engrave it upon tablets, that he may run that readeth it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but it hasteth to the end, and shall not lie—though it tarry, wait for it; for it will surely come, it will not delay. Behold, his soul is puffed up, it is not upright within him—but the just shall live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2: 2–4). It is that very same verse which is three times quoted in Paul’s epistles, but I especially love the quotation in Hebrews where we find a wonderful encouragement and help for us, based upon that verse. Let us read the account in Hebrews—“For yet a very little while he that comes will come, and will not delay.

But the just shall live by faith; and, if he draw back, my soul does not take pleasure in him.

But we are not drawers back to perdition, but of faith to saving the soul” (Hebrews 10: 37–39). Well, that is the left hand of the Lord under the head; and then that marvellous unfolding follows of what faith is, illustrated by so many beautiful examples from the Scriptures of men and women of faith. Dear young brethren, read the epistle to the Hebrews! It is a wonderfully comforting and encouraging one, especially this part of it, really a very precious answer of love to the sorrows and exercises of our path in this age, especially for the young brethren.

Let us lean upon the left hand of the Lord!

And then I think in the third chapter, which I have read from, we have the embrace. It is a wonderful result of that conversation of the prophet with God. How greatly is he encouraged now to enjoy positively the love of the Lord! I very often think of this very precious scripture; it is an Old Testament one, but it very much links with what we have referred to in our readings about the “high mountains of Israel”, Ezekiel 34: 14. It says in the end, ‘And he will make me to walk upon my

high places’ (Habakkuk 3:19). How great is that! That is, the “mountains”, the “high mountains of Israel”, suggesting the most elevated position of Christ and the assembly, we can call ‘ my high places’. All that which is here below is in the shadow, and should there be no earthly blessing—indeed the people of Israel were promised to have earthly blessings—

but in this passage here the prophet looks beyond that, beyond the earthly blessings of Israel, and appreciates God’s own presence and God’s own embrace, rejoicing not in the fruit in the vines, not in the fig tree, not in the olive tree and in the fields and in the herds in the stall, not in that. Those things were blessings, but they were earthly blessings; he rejoices in Jehovah,

“I will joy in the God of my salvation. Jehovah, the Lord; is my strength, And he maketh my feet like hinds’ feet” (verses 18, 19).

That brings us back again to the Song of Solomon where the bridegroom is compared with “a gazelle or a young hart”, “Leaping upon the mountains, Skipping upon the hills” (Song of Songs 2: 8, 9). The prophet Habakkuk says, “He maketh my feet like hinds’ feet”; so that following Him, following Him on “my high places”, is truly the embrace of His love, bringing us where He is, to enjoy that wonderful position with Him and in Him, for His pleasure, and for the pleasure of His Father and our Father, His God and our God; that is truly the fervent embrace of His love. Dear brethren, let us have this impression in our hearts; let Him take the care of all our things. He said, Do not be careful as to them; your heavenly Father knows what your need is. And if there is iniquity around us, if we see justice trampled underfoot and violence prevailing; let us lean without any doubts upon the faithful arm of our Lord, and let Him satisfy our hearts. He will see to that, for “he that comes will come, and will not delay”, Hebrews 10: 37. Let us

look forward to that wonderful event and enjoy the embrace of His love, on our high places, for they are our high places, for what is His is ours as well; He will share all His things with us.

Address in Auckland, N.Z.,
23 June 1990