NOTES OF READINGS ON DEUTERONOMY (6)
NOTES OF READINGS ON DEUTERONOMY (6)
JT This chapter clearly supposes that the people had fully arrived at the divine purpose for them; typically they are in their heavenly position; they are in the enjoyment, intelligently, of the land, and reaping the good, the fruit of it; and fully owning God as having brought them into it. So it answers, I think, in a peculiar way to the epistle to the Ephesians.
TMG What Canaan is to us now.
JT Yes, at the present time. Still bearing in mind what we were, our father a Syrian, ready to perish at one time. Ephesians 2 contemplates what we were, and what we are, and the place we are in. But there are one or two principles that appear after chapter 21 that are important; that is, there is to be no admixture of two kinds, and the careful avoidance of all unlawful alliances and relationships, showing the danger to which we are exposed. Even in a right state we are exposed to intermingling with that which is foreign to us viewed as God’s people. It says in Deuteronomy 22:9 “Thou shalt not sow thy vineyard with divers seeds, lest the fruit of thy seed which thou hast sown, and the fruit of thy vineyard be defiled. Thou shalt not plow with an ox and an ass together. Thou shalt not wear a garment of divers sorts, as of woollen and linen together”. These are principles of the very last importance to us, because we may be in the Christian state, in the full recognition of what is due to God in the assembly, and yet be in danger of mixing with what is foreign to us. The point is not so much what is evil, in these passages, but that it is foreign; it is not the same. Scripture insists on things and species abiding in their kind; there is to be no admixture.
WH How is it applied practically now?
JT Well, it works out in the way in which we [p. 313] are to form alliances, and enter into relationships with those who are really not God’s people; they are of a different kind; the persons may not be wicked in a sense, but they are of a different kind and order. We get in the same chapter that which is openly lawless; but this is not that. You might not enter into that which is openly lawless; but yet form alliances with another kind; for the believer is heavenly, and he is not to form an alliance with what is distinctly earthly.
Ques What is the distinction between possessing the land, and dwelling in it?
JT Well, I was thinking that the chapter contemplates what we call Ephesian truth. We possess the land as a matter of title; we have title to heaven, and possess it in that sense; but then we are to dwell there also. One may have a title to a house, and yet not live in it. We all hold our title to heaven, and of course that is quite right; but then, alas, we do not seem to appropriate our title to heaven; we dwell on earth. It says: “When thou art come in unto the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and possessest it, and dwellest therein”, and so on. Deuteronomy 26:1.
Rem That would be our side, in response.
JT Yes. The chapter sets out with the portion that God receives from a heavenly people, as in the enjoyment of their inheritance, and reaping the good of the land.
WK Is there not another thing, the cultivation of the land? They cultivated it and brought the fruit; and that showed they had not only taken possession of it and dwelt in it, but also that they had practical evidence of the value of the land and therefore they had something to present.
TMG I was thinking that what follows in this chapter is really the proof of their possessing the land and dwelling in it.
JT Quite so. It says, “Thou shalt take of the first of all the fruit of the earth, which thou shalt bring of thy land that the Lord thy God giveth thee, and shalt put it in a basket, and shalt go unto the place which the Lord thy God shall choose to place his name there”. Deuteronomy 26:2. The land is viewed as yielding fruit; and it is viewed as theirs. Now, I believe that the present is a moment when the Lord would speak to His people as to their proper heavenly portion. I would be far from discouraging anyone from exercise as to prophecy or prophetic lines, but it must be borne in mind that it has relation to the earth; it is the testimony of Jesus, but it is Jesus in relation to the earth; and I am sure everyone would like to have the mind of God in relation to the earth; but we ought to take that up in heaven. John is very suggestive as to that; all that appertains to and is in relation to the earth is given to John as in heaven; he is called to “Come up hither”, Revelation 4:1 and he receives in heaven light about the earth; whereas, what appertains to the history of the assembly here is given to him here on earth.
WK I consider that of great importance. I am glad you do not discourage the study of prophecy.
TMG It is a good lamp.
JT Yes, if it is taken up from heaven. It is our privilege. The Lord God will do nothing, but He revealeth His secret to His servants the prophets. Now, we have that privilege; but surely we are right to lay hold of our own place first. So that Ephesians is really the great scripture for us; it is, you might say, our charter. Ephesians is our title-book as regards our inheritance. The Lord Jesus will come down from heaven, and place His right foot on the sea, and His left foot on the land; that is taking possession of the earth; but He has not done that yet. He has taken up a place in heaven, and has given us a place there; and the epistle to [p. 315] the Ephesians is really the section of Scripture, above all others, that gives us our title. Deuteronomy, and the end of Numbers, give us in type heavenly territory. It is not the prophetic earth; the prophetic earth is clearly outlined in Scripture; the earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness of it; and we, as here on earth get the benefit of it, and give thanks for it; but the geography of heaven is given to us also in Scripture, and our distinctive place in it.
EM Is not salvation in view of entering the inheritance?
JT Yes; and more than that, one is not really saved unless one is in the land; and it is very striking as has been pointed out, that in Ephesians 2, where the great place and privilege of the Christian is set out, we get “By grace are ye saved”. Ephesians 2:5. There it is salvation from place. There is salvation from Egypt, and from the wilderness difficulties, but there is salvation from place. Where one settles down in Moab, you need salvation from earth; your living associations are in heaven. The professor here says, as he comes up to the priest with the basket, that he has kept the commandments; he is suited to the place.
WK With regard to what you say, there are some here who are only on the way, and at an early stage on it; and you are not referring to anything of the question of sins, or anything of that kind. Everybody has to start; and you begin at the bottom; and the Lord helps us, and ministers to us; and so there is food for every state of soul, from the very feeblest to the highest. But it is the Christian you are considering now.
JT I am sure I am fully with you in that the young people ought to be attended to. The attractions of the world are very great, and insidious; and they often do not get the food and shelter that their souls might look for amongst [p. 316] us.
WK I think it is a great thing for the youngest to see that there are great things to be had, not simply coppers, but gold and silver.
WH The youngest soul will not miss his portion if he is exercised.
JT No. It is remarkable that in Ephesians it is the glad tidings of the unsearchable riches of the Christ; and this book suggests that; it is the wealth and blessedness of the land.
JM Would the thought of God getting His portion in the assembly be suggested in this chapter?
JT If each person in the assembly has his basket full, there is a true testimony to the wealth and blessedness of Canaan.
PL The basket is filled outside, as it were, and brought to the assembly.
JT I think that is an important point. You do not expect to find it in the meeting. Of course it is quite true that if there are full baskets there will be a portion for all.
RL Every Christian may not be full, exactly, but every Christian ought to be so according to this; the basket was individual.
JT Yes; you see in Deuteronomy 16, that they are also supposed to be filled, but there it is that they have appropriated Christ as He is seen in the passover, and as He is seen in the feast of Pentecost, and also as He is seen in the feast of tabernacles. This chapter includes all that, but it goes beyond it, because it is the fruit of the land that is in view here.
RL I was wondering when you referred to Ephesians, if chapter 1: 3, applies here “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ”? Ephesians 1:3.
JT Yes, in heavenly places; and the basket of firstfruits has reference to what our souls gather in [p. 317] that connection.
TMG Is not that the force of “dwelling therein”? Deuteronomy 26:1.
PL You mean they could not get the fruit outside the land?
JT Yes. I think that is a remarkable scripture. He hath blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ. Now, this chapter supposes that the soul is there, and he is reaping the good of it. Earlier than this you get spiritual power in connection with the exercises of the soul in coming out of Egypt, and also in connection with the feast of Pentecost, but this chapter is what you get in the land.
WK And of the land.
JT Yes, it is the fruit of it. It is not what you get in the wilderness, nor as coming out of Egypt of course those things underlie it; but here it is the abundance of the fruit of the land.
Rem The basket is the person; and the more you gather, the larger the basket you have.
JT Yes, you become enlarged; the apostle says, “Be ye also enlarged”, 2 Corinthians 6:13.
JM Is the basket the new being that is formed by the Holy Spirit?
JT Yes, I would say that; and including your body; you could not be the basket without a body.
JM But it does take in the thought of a subjective work in the soul?
JT Certainly; Ephesians takes all that into account.
RL They were to be filled with the Spirit.
JM Well, as to dwelling in the land, is it the position that your soul takes up, and lives in? You recognise the position that divine love has given you?
WK In a settled way. You are not a sojourner; you are a dweller.
SL Does not Colossian truth help you?
JT Certainly. Colossians is what one might [p. 318] call the boundaries of the land. You are to set your mind on things above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. All is clearly defined. But then when you come to Ephesians you have not only the boundaries of the land, you have the land itself; the breadth and the length and the depth and the height. In Moses you have a heavenly minded man typically; he not only knew the boundaries, but he knew the land itself, he had it in his heart.
SL You spoke of prophecy. If we are in right relation to Christ, we are fitted to look at prophecy.
JT I think so; prophecy brings Christ into the earth again; whereas Colossians and Ephesians bring the saints into heaven. I believe it is of great importance to get the idea of the boundary.
WK In connection with what you were saying about the extent of the land, is there also the idea here not merely of the quantity, but of the character of the thing? You have it, you have entered in, and you have taken conscious possession. You are not going out of it; you are dwelling there, you have cultivated that land, and the fruit of that land you bring to God with acceptance. That is what I mean by character.
JT Then when you come to the land of Canaan, the food is the “old corn”. Now, the idea in that is that the corn was so plentiful that they did not eat it the year it grew; but it is corn you cannot find outside; it is indigenous to the land; it is Christ, the heavenly Man. That is the fruit God accepts now; in the future He will have fruit from Israel, and from the nations, unquestionably; but it is not that kind of fruit God is looking for now. The fruit God is looking for is that which He saw in Christ as you find Him in the gospels. It is the heavenly Man on earth; and we are taken up in that way, and God looks for fruit. It is not simply a question of righteousness in the wilderness; it is Christ, the [p. 319] heavenly Man. Of course this chapter does not contemplate us as in heaven; it is what we are here in the light of heaven, and as dwelling there in our souls. It supposes that we are still down here in flesh. My father was a Syrian ready to perish.
TMG Philippians would answer to it; the heavenly Man here.
WK Our citizenship is in heaven.
EH What is the thought in bringing it to the priest?
JT Well, it is only a priest who has to say directly to the things of God. It raises the question of holiness; priesthood refers to the holiness of God. A priest recognises what is due to Him. It is the priest that will be in those days. It is always the character in Deuteronomy. The official side is not prominent.
EH Does not the individual seem to have a good deal to say about himself in this chapter?
JT It is because he is in accord with the place; he does not say, “God be merciful to me, a sinner”. Luke 18:13. There is no disparity between you and the place you are suited to it. “Giving thanks to the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light”, Colossians 1:12. That is, you axe not there as unsuited to it. The prodigal helps us as to this: in the house there was no disparity; he was perfectly suitable to it; because the best robe and the ring, mean state.
JM Would you say that the basket and fruit set forth state?
JT It is Christ as the heavenly Man in the heart. It may seem to be a distinction without a difference, but the fruit here is not that which you acquire through wilderness exercises; it is that which you acquire as living consciously in Canaan.
WK The sense of suitability that you have referred to is a deeply important thing, because it is [p. 320] impossible to be in meetings and not to realise that the conscious sense of suitability is not the possession of everybody; and is it not of all importance that we should have that sense so that we can draw near to God with holy freedom?
JT You feel perfectly restful there.
WK You have liberty of access into the immediate presence of God.
JT Yes and the more you are conscious of it the more you give thanks for it because it is the Father who has made you that.
EM Is the basket of fruit the presenting of our appreciation of Christ to God?
JT Our appreciation of the heavenly Man. You have come now to appreciate the heavenly Man.
JM What you have been saying would convey that it is more than title. Heaven is our place; we have title to that place; but this is more than that; it is the soul brought consciously into the enjoyment of that.
JT Yes; Romans 8 lays the basis in your soul; it introduces this, that we are to be conformed to the image of God’s Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Now, that lays the basis for the heavenly position. Light as to Christ has got into your soul, and it leads to this, that you want to be like that Man; and that lays the ground for Ephesians, because that Man is to have brethren in heaven.
EM There is another question I would like to ask: What is involved in the thought of every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ; Ephesians 1. Is not every blessing in a way in Christianity?
JT Yes. We have all our blessings there. The Jews will have spiritual blessings too; only they will not have them in heaven. I think the emphasis is on the place, in heaven. You get the thought in Romans 8 of relationship with Him. The Spirit is the Spirit of God’s Son. That is light, and it is the [p. 321] basis laid in your soul for Ephesians. You are related to that Man. You are fit for union by the Spirit of God’s Son; and you want to know what it is to be with Him where He is.
PL I suppose what you were referring to in chapter 16 is fulfilled here; no one shall appear before the Lord empty.
JT It is indeed fulfilled here. In chapter 16 it is fulfilled too, but there it is in connection with the passover, and the feast of weeks, and the feast of tabernacles; here the worshipper brings the fruit of the land, in which he is dwelling.
WK It is set down not merely before God, but before the altar. You have the thought of worship there.
JT Yes; it says in verse 8 “And the Lord brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with great terribleness, and with signs and with wonders; and he hath brought us into this place, and hath given us this land, even a land that floweth with milk and honey”. Deuteronomy 26:8,9. The land is regarded as a possession.
WK It was given to them. God had given it to them, and they were in full appreciation of His goodness. The firstfruits are what we acquire in the land.
Rem Title will not produce fruit.
JT No; for instance, Moses could never have brought this basket of firstfruits.
WK That is a very strong illustration; that surely ought to meet the case.
JT There was no wilderness Christian like him; and yet he could not have brought this.
PL It is all what “the Lord thy God giveth thee”, in this chapter. Deuteronomy 26:1.
JT Yes, you are blessed with every blessing in the heavenlies. You do not bring any of them into the heavenlies; they are all there. The fruit is that your heart is filled with that heavenly Man; He controls every affection [p. 322] that you have.
JMcF Could you enumerate some of the spiritual blessings?
JT Well, there are so many when you have every spiritual blessing; the point of it is, that there is not one that we have not got. The Jews would not get them all; and certainly the nations will not get them all; they will get the blessing of everlasting life; even the nations will get that; but they do not get the blessing of sonship; nor do they get the blessing of being companions of Christ before the face of the Father; nor do they get the place in the Father’s house.
EM Then you would say the assembly is one family where God gets full response to His love.
JT Full response; that is, Christ as the heavenly Man having His place in the hearts of people who are themselves heavenly. That is what this chapter presents to us. Now, Christ shall have a place in Israel, surely; but it is not this; it is below this.
JT There is another important point to notice; there is no need of manna, when you have the old corn.
JM Would you say a word as to how it works out practically in our pathway here. We do feed on the manna here; and we have wilderness experiences; and we have to do with things, and men.
JT As regards the manna, it refers to Christ, as He was here on earth, walking about as a Man amongst men in ordinary circumstances. He was here for God’s will, and never did anything else. Now, that is what the soul feeds on in the circumstances of everyday life. So the manna was on every blade of grass as it were. Now, John 6 is also food, it is food in order that we should live; not simply to carry out God’s will down here, but that we should live; and that is Christ, not as living here, but as having died here, because the blood is separated from the body. But when you come to the “old corn”, it is not simply Christ dying; it is Christ as He is, in heaven; “the Son of man, which is in heaven”. John 3:13.