Mishpat - The Law of the Kingdom
Before Christianity, before the Church, before the kingdom of heaven, and the kingdom God were proclaimed - there was mishpat! The promise of a yet future dispensation.
Introduction
4941 מִשְׁפָּט [ mishpat / mish· pawt /] n m . From 8199 ; TWOT 2443c ; GK 5477 ; 421 occurrences; AV translates as “judgment” 296 times, “manner” 38 times, “right” 18 times, “cause” 12 times, “ordinance” 11 times, “lawful” seven times, “order” five times, “worthy” three times, “fashion” three times, “custom” twice, “discretion” twice, “law” twice, “measure” twice, “sentence” twice, and translated miscellaneously 18 times. 1 judgment, justice, ordinance. 1a judgment. 1a1 act of deciding a case. 1a2 place, court, seat of judgment. 1a3 process, procedure, litigation (before judges). 1a4 case, cause (presented for judgment). 1a5 sentence, decision (of judgment). 1a6 execution (of judgment). 1a7 time (of judgment). 1b justice, right, rectitude (attributes of God or man). 1c ordinance. 1d decision (in law). 1e right, privilege, due (legal). 1f proper, fitting, measure, fitness, custom, manner, plan.
Born again Christian! Have you ever wondered what you'll be doing in heaven besides strumming a harp? Well, the Bible gives a lot of information about what the future will be like for the saints who make it. That future is tied to the Old Testament concept of the Hebrew word mishpat.. At it's most basic, it is the intertwining of perfect world government and perfect religion. It is about the Throne of David, and why progressive dispensationalism is wrong theology. It is about the blood of Christ, and how that blood will legally be respected throughout the world. It is about the Jewish Temple where that respect will lawfully be exemplified for the world to see. It is about what John the Baptist declared was "at hand" while Christ was here on earth for only He can administer mishpat. It is a lot more, and I will do my best to present it correctly. The saints (we born again Christians of this age) will have the responsibility to thoroughly teach mishpat during the millennial reign of Jesus Christ! A little more then strumming on a harp during the next dispensation anyway!
The promise of mishpat (usually translated judgment always meaning justice), and the one who will bring it to fruition may be best understood in Isaiah 42: 1-4.
Isa 42:1-4
42:1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
2 He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
3 A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.
4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.
KJV
"His law," Perfect justice administered by a perfect King. The perfect Biblical law. The Old Testament Law with Christ acknowledged as the center. The perfect society of mishpat. Here in Matthew Christ identifies Himself as the servant of Isaiah.
Matt 12:16-21
16 And charged them that they should not make him known:
17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,
18 Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles.
19 He shall not strive, nor cry; neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets.
20 A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.
21 And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.
KJV
Bruce K. Waltke in his paper on the Creation Account in Genesis 1:1-3, Part V
comments on the meaning of mishpat:
A third difference between Whybray and the NASB is in the rendering of "mishpat"
The basic meaning of this word is "to establish the heavenly norm or pattern on earth." Normally this concept is applied to society, i.e., the bringing of society into the right order or arrangement. In this sense it is translated "justice." But in three passages its meaning is applied to a building. In Exodus 26:30; 1 Kings 6:38; and Ezekiel 42:11 this word is used in reference to the design of the tabernacle, the temple of Solomon, and the future temple prophesied by Ezekiel, respectively. Significantly, in all these passages it refers to the design or arrangement of God’s dwelling place.
BSac—V133 #529—Jan 76—31
It is extremely important to recognize the Temple is as much a part of mishpat as the concept of a perfect society. It is the Temple where blood sacrifice will legally and reverently be ministered under the direction of Jesus Christ. This perfect Kingdom society will be centered in blood. The sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ on Calvary's cross will be center to the salvation message of this future Kingdom. The subjects of this future Kingdom will daily be reminded of the most important event in all human history. They will daily be put in remembrance of the cost for sin to be forgiven in the era of justice. Man will still be born in sin, and the need for Christ will be as necessary during the Kingdom Age. as is today.
The Enhanced Strong's Lexicon defines mishpat as follows:
4941
mishpat { mish-pawt’}
from 8199; TWOT - 2443c; n m
AV - judgment 296, manner 38, right 18, cause 12, ordinance 11, lawful 7, order 5, worthy 3, fashion 3, custom 2, discretion 2, law 2, measure 2, sentence 2, misc 18; 421
GK - 5477 {mishpat)
1) judgment, justice, ordinance
1a) judgment
1a1) act of deciding a case
1a2) place, court, seat of judgment
1a3) process, procedure, litigation (before judges)
1a4) case, cause (presented for judgment)
1a5) sentence, decision (of judgment)
1a6) execution (of judgment)
1a7) time (of judgment)
1b) justice, right, rectitude (attributes of God or man)
1c) ordinance
1d) decision (in law)
1e) right, privilege, due (legal)
1f) proper, fitting, measure, fitness, custom, manner, plan
There are many meanings to mishpat, but within all these meanings is the concept so clearly expressed by Waltke. It is the concept of the Kingdom. It is the concept of perfect government blended together with perfect religion. A single system that will be, and only can be, administrated by a single perfect King who sees the heart. He makes perfect righteous judgment in every instance.
Allan A. MacRae rightly expresses the true meaning of mishpat when he wrote: ." The word translated judgment means the establishment of justice." This will be the task of Christ when He will sit on the throne of David. He will administer worldwide justice.
BSac—V121 #482—Apr 64—130
The royalty of this administrator of mishpat who will establish justice is noted by F. Duane Lindsey:
"A recognition of the servant as a royal figure is important for a proper understanding of the messianic significance of this passage. While it is true that terms such as "my servant" and "my chosen one" are not exclusively royal terms, there is much evidence that the passage views the servant primarily as a royal personage. Not only is the literary genre of the passage similar to a royal designation oracle (as already indicated), but the task of establishing mishpat ("a just order") is a characteristically royal responsibility."
BSac—V139 #553—Jan 82—15
Lindsey gives more insight into the meaning of mishpat as royal justice:
The meaning of the Hebrew word translated "justice" (Mishpat) is very significant (and is also much disputed) in this servant song. Whybray says that it should "probably be assumed" that the word has the same meaning all three times it occurs in these verses. The extent to which this assumption can be allowed demands evaluation, but it is necessary first to summarize the possible meanings of mishpat!
("justice") which Whybray calls "a word of many meanings."
The primary meaning of the noun mishpat!
("justice") is that of a judicial decision or sentence (e.g., Num 27:21: Deut 16:18; 1 Kings 3:28; 20:40 ). A variety of derived meanings also relate in some way to the judicial process, such as the act of deciding (Deut 25:1; Josh 20:6), the place of decision (Deut 25:1; 1 Kings 7:7), the process of litigation (Isa 3:14: Job 22:4; Ps 143:2), the case presented for litigation (Ezek 23:24; 1 Kings 3:11; Job 13:18), the time of judgment (Ps 1:5), and the execution of the sentence (Jer 7:5: Ezek 18:8). However, mishpat "can be used to designate almost any aspect of civil or religious government," such as sovereignty (Deut 1:17: Jer 8:7) or magisterial authority (Ps 72:1–2), the attribute of justice employed by civil leaders (Mic 3:1), an ordinance of law (Exod 15:25: Lev 5:10; 9:16 ; Deut 33:10, 21), or one’s right under law (Deut 18:3; Jer 32:7). mishpat also has the meaning of that which is fitting or proper (1 Kings 5:8; Isa 28:26: 40:14 ). The related verb shaphat ("to judge, govern") in its primary sense means "to exercise the processes of government," whether legislative, executive, or judicial. God Himself is "the Judge of all the earth" (Gen 18:25; cf. Isa 33:22) and has delegated this function of judging or governing to His theocratic representatives (but not to prophets) such as Moses (Exod 18:13), the judges (e.g., Deborah [Judg 4:5] and Samuel [1 Sam 7:6, 15]). and the kings (1 Sam 8:19–20: Ps 72:1–3, 12–15).
BSac—V139 #553—Jan 82—17
It is no wonder that Isaiah reveals only God's Servant (whom Christ identified in Matthew 11 as Himself) would be able to accomplish such a task. To bring in mishpat. { "he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles" - "he shall bring forth mishpat to the Gentiles".;" he shall bring forth judgment unto truth" - "he shall bring forth mishpat unto truth"; "He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth" - "He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set mishpat in the earth"}
A perfect world Government/Religion (a perfect society worldwide) will be administered by the King of the Jews from Jerusalem going far beyond the borders of Israel into the Gentile world. All the hypocrisy historically associated with government and religion will end, and truth will prevail. The perfect Jewish law founded in the Old Testament will find perfect administration for the whole earth through Christ.
I have long understood the price for world peace (a product of mishpat) is righteousness. It is righteousness that will be administered with a rod of iron. A dispensation of the iron rod righteous rule by the King of the Jews.
Ps 2:9
9 Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.
KJV
Rev 2:27
27 And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.
KJV
Rev 12:5
5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.
KJV
Rev 19:15
15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
KJV
It will not be mocked or ignored. Puritanical, Biblical standards will be the unbreakable law of the land. Strict adherence to the rules and statutes of righteousness will be administrated. Old Testament Law will be enacted correctly (Christ centered) as God always intended. Zechariah gives a description of the millennial Kingdom when mishpat is in operation.
Zech 14:17-19
17 And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain.
18 And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the LORD will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.
19 This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.
KJV
All the nations of the world will be required to obey Jewish Law. Here the Jewish feast of tabernacles is mandatory for all nations to participate. Disobedience is harshly dealt with by He who rules with the rod of iron. The rains of heaven are shut to the rebellious with plague and death the price of resisting the righteous reign of Christ the King.
I think it most wonderful that He who wields the rod is noted of such character so that "A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench." Only Christ can wield such a righteous rod of iron with such compassion and grace. No bending of the standards, yet no breaking of the weakest offender - no extinguishing of the smallest ember found in the worst rebel. There is much to learn as we will be taking on the responsibility of teaching this law this way for 1000 years.
The Jews have always known that Judaism was destined to dominate the world.. It has always failed in the past because of the arm of flesh. The Jews of today living in Israel well see those same fruits of the flesh They can't govern themselves much less the rest of the world, and their Jewish religion is in shambles with no cohesive message or identity.. Whenever a Jew looks at the reality of Judaism it must drive him to a messianic cure as the only answer. It must drive him to the words of Isaiah.
Long ago when messiah talk was just not mentioned by the news folks in Israel, I remember seeing a "dry bones" cartoon. It was the first time I saw any indication in the political Jerusalem Post that there was even a concept of a Jewish Messiah in Israel. Two Jewish men were conversing on the state of affairs "war, inflation at 100% plus, orthodox Jews throwing stones at cars, etc. etc." They ask "who can straighten out this mess?" Meanwhile, a dark shadowy character was approaching from the background in each cartoon frame. They suddenly notice him, and both ask the question - could it be? Do you think it is? The last frame reveals it's Uncle Shuldig (our equivalent of Uncle Sam) asking with a dumbfounded look, who did you think it was? My thoughts were "my servant" of Isaiah! Not much has changed in Israel over the years. Uncle Shuldig continues to be the reality. The arm of flesh is all the Jew has to look at in a hopeless search for a solution.
2000 years ago John the Baptist cried out to a similar generation of Jews that the Kingdom of heaven was at hand! It was not Uncle Shuldig, but the true Servant of Isaiah come to establish mishpat. He was ready to sit on the throne of David as King of the Jews, and administer mishpat throughout Israel and the world. He came unto His own, and His own received Him not! There was no throne offered Him, and so there was no Davidic throne for Him to sit! There was no mishpat established, because the only King who could administrate it was rejected. He was cut off, and never sat on David's throne at His first coming. He was given the servant's cross not the king's crown!
Matt 27:29
29 And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews!
KJV
He is coming again! This time He will bring in mishpat. This time He will sit on David's throne with the rod of iron. They and the world rejected the servant, but all of them will have no choice in receiving the King! "He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set mishpat in the earth" Old Testament stringent adherence to the law with Christ centered understanding of that law is what I see mishpat to be.
Mishpat, the throne of David, the kingdom to which John the Baptist proclaimed as "close at hand" are all one and the same. It is the Old Testament law as God intended it to operate worldwide with Jesus Christ underlying everything, and most importantly the sacrificial blood aspect of it all. Mishpat is not being administered today either by Jesus or the Jews. It is future! The progressive dispensationalists miss the point because they can't let go of the Church age. They try to drag or blend it into the coming kingdom of David. They can't grasp the truth that the Church must step aside so the Kingdom can come! The next dispensation is 100% Jewish! It is separate from the Church and Christianity. It is everything found from Genesis 12 (Abraham) forward finding fruition. It is the scarlet thread from Genesis 1 that flows into Genesis 12 that is the victor. Man (God's true children) has failed throughout the Bible to bring into fruition what God desired he do (today's Christian society exemplifies failure of God's will for this Church age at it's highest) , but God will be the final victor.
Old Testament law is centered in sacrifice, and a place to sacrifice (a Temple). The main reason why Judaism is in such chaos today is because it has no roots in the Bible anymore. They have substituted the tradition found in the Mishnah and Talmud for the law of the Bible. It is understandable because for 2000 years God made it impossible for them to keep the Biblical law. They had lost their land and place of sacrifice. The Jews are now back! It must be soon coming that Biblical sacrifice will again be established. I do not believe the Jew can ignore for long the Old Testament Biblical requirements. Not now that they are back? Mishpat must have sacrifice. It must have blood, or it makes no sense. It must have a Temple! The One who shed His blood will be responsible from David's throne to oversee this future Kingdom centered in Temple sacrifice, and that it be done honorably and faithfully throughout His reign. There is only one place where sacrifice is acceptable. It is at the same city where Jesus bled and died. The only place where the Jewish Temples with their altars for sacrifice were built. It is in the city which David established as his capital; the place of his throne. It is no wonder that mishpat is associated with the Temple as Waltke (see above) so well stated. It all comes together in the future Kingdom of David.
I. The Beginnings of Mishpat
To understand mishpat, is to understand the Old Testament.
The first occurrence of mishpat in the Bible is rather significant. It defines the attitude that God saw in Father Abraham, and that which he would focus his children and followers upon. It is a vision of sorts maybe better identified as a goal. A concept of the perfect society. It is to keep the way of the LORD! That way is defined as doing justice / mishpat! Here is the foundation of the nation Israel. It is the building of that foundation with mishpat always in sight. There are clearly two groups which will be included in this visionary goal.
Gen 18:19
19 For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.
KJV
Circumcision early on identified those who were committed to this goal of living (or really trying to live) life in such a way as the God of the Bible required. A way of perfect justice for the true seed as well as the stranger attached to the household . A society of God fearing men who will lead the world toward a perfect society. Perfect religion and perfect government. It was intended to start in the heart, and have real consequences in the life. Time has proved that reaching mishpat is beyond human ability. By the time of Isaiah it was recognized that only the "servant of Isaiah" will have the power to accomplish perfect mishpat.
The Failure of Religion
The failure of past religion was still fresh in the mind of Abraham and his household. Knowledge of the flood of Noah, and the fiasco at Babylon was evidence enough that going back to the message in the stars {Ps 19:1-3} turned by man into a false worship (which I'm convinced was the pre-flood religion that became corrupted beyond repair) was finished. The story of the coming anointed messiah drawn in the stares was never going to influence mankind in a positive way again. In Abraham, comes an all new era formulated by God. A new dispensation. A nation where government and religion are one! A nation looking for the eternal messiah to bring mishpat to fruition. God looked in the heart of Father Abraham, and saw what was compatible with His ongoing eternal plan.
Circumcision is a subject which must be investigated right here at the beginnings of mishpat.
Gen 17:10-14
10This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised.
11And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you.
12And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed.
13He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.
14And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.
KJV
The commitment to mishpat "they shall keep the way of the LORD" was preceded by joining into a covenant relationship with God. A covenant that was to start in the heart. Notice the same two groups are again identified. The natural seed, and the householder. Mishpat is 100% Jewish in Father Abraham with provision made for the Gentile stranger or householder. This is worldwide in scope. It has as its center a future nation of Israel. It's future capital Jerusalem, and it's future Temple of sacrifice.
I think it also important to look at the first circumcision recorded in the Bible related to this commitment to mishpat. It occurs after the events of Genesis 14 where Father Abraham rescues his nephew Lot. The reason this event is important is because it reveals the size of at least part of Father Abraham's household.
Gen 14:14
14And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan.
KJV
This is a minimum number as it only includes the armed trained servants, but is reflective on just how large a group took part in the first circumcision at the end of Genesis 17. These are men who say by this act they are committed to the same God of Father Abraham.
Gen 17:23-18:1
23And Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all that were born in his house, and all that were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham's house; and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the selfsame day, as God had said unto him.
24And Abraham was ninety years old and nine, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
25And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
26In the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son.
27And all the men of his house, born in the house, and bought with money of the stranger, were circumcised with him.
KJV
Only Father Abraham represented the seed. His son Isaac was not even born. It wouldn't be for another year before the very first seed, the very first natural born Jew, was circumcised.
Gen 21:3-5
3And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac.
4And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him.
5And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him.
KJV
The household had a rather large jump on the natural seed in the beginning. The roots of the Nation Israel are laid here at the end of Genesis 17.
A covenant relationship, and the adjoining outward sign of circumcision was always intended to have it's start in the heart. It was always possible to bypass that first step, but by doing so only produced a lie and imitation. Let me continue with the Biblical facts. Baptism is an outward expression in Christianity today of a personal commitment to a covenant relationship with Jesus Christ. It is an outward sign of something that happened on the inside after a born again experience. Not everyone who is physically baptized is born again. There are imitators and liars. Not everyone circumcised in the flesh was saved in the Old Testament economy either. Ishmael is an example of a liar and imitator.
Gal 4:28-5:1
28Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.
29But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now.
30Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.
31So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.
KJV
God who sees the heart saw something wrong with both Ishmael and his mother. The commitment to Father Abraham's vision of the future State of Israel (ruled by the only single perfect King Jesus Christ not Allah) was not in the heart of the bondwoman and her son, nor their prodigy. This rejection of some of those circumcised in the flesh was not limited to the household (Gentile strangers), but also included the natural seed.
Deut 10:16-17
16Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked.
17For the LORD your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward:
KJV
Deut 30:6
6And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.
KJV
Lev 26:40-42
40If they shall confess their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, with their trespass which they trespassed against me, and that also they have walked contrary unto me;
41And that I also have walked contrary unto them, and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if then their uncircumcised hearts be humbled, and they then accept of the punishment of their iniquity:
42Then will I remember my covenant with Jacob, and also my covenant with Isaac, and also my covenant with Abraham will I remember; and I will remember the land.
KJV
Rom 2:29
29But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
KJV
It is the heart that the God of the Bible examines. It is not outward rituals, but inward conviction. From the beginning to the end, God examines the heart. He knows if His eternal plan in Jesus Christ will be accepted or rejected. He knows true repentance, He knows real commitment, and He knows when He sees imitation and lies. The natural seed, or the householder. They are all equally and individually examined. The only perfect judge makes the final decision. His way is clear and always exclusive. Not everyone wants to submit to His way of mishpat (justice) as it will ultimately be instituted (in Christ the King). It is strict obedience in righteousness to Old Testament law. It will not bend! It is only found during the Kingdom age (and the 7 year tribulation period leading into the Kingdom) in Judaism! There is no place else one can go! The Gentile must come! He must attach himself to the household of Father Abraham. He must attach himself to the root of Jesse who will sit on David's Throne! There is no other way in the coming dispensation of the Kingdom. It is the law!
John 14:6
6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
KJVPhil 2:9-11
9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
KJV
II The Impossible Dream
When I was the pastor of my first Church, I dreamed the impossible dream. I dreamed I could somehow produce the perfect Church as envisioned by God through the Bible. A truly Biblical Church with a Biblical congregation, and of course a perfect Biblical pastor. Well, I failed! The last mentioned item was my greatest failure. It wasn't that I didn't have the knowledge, and it wasn't that I lacked the fullest desire. It was because the arm of flesh is too weak. There are things that only God can accomplish. Try as I can I will never be a perfect anything until God makes me perfect. Try as I may to develop the perfect Church, it will never be accomplished until God does it. Abraham and his followers had come up against this same problem. The dream of mishpat would never be realized until God produced it.( Isa 42::4 " He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment [mishpat] in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.") The dream would only find it's fruition in the messiah. My perfect Biblical Church was under the same condition. I can only take comfort in the knowledge that every dispensation ends in the failure of the flesh to meet the expectations of God. The same lesson is repeated again and again that only in Christ can the perfect be realized. There is no other way either for Abraham and Israel, or for me and Christianity. The perfect pastors only exist in heaven in the presents of Christ/ That is where you will find the perfect congregations, and the perfect Churches. On earth, it is the impossible dream. It must be strived for, but reality dictates the arm of flesh is not capable.
I'm convinced the last days of the Church age are upon us. The truly "born again" Christians will be raptured, and the Great Apostate Church will remain. The liars and imitators who avoided or mimicked the first step of a circumcised heart will be left behind. Christianity will continue. The gospel message will continue to be proclaimed by the Apostate Church, but the power will not be there. The heart of the deceived will be left untouched. The power of God will shift to Two Witnesses and 144,000 unmarried Jews in Jerusalem, Israel. A new dispensation will begin. The fullness of Abraham's dream will now be able to find reality in Christ. All that the law had meant for Israel will find a perfect application through Jesus Christ not only for the Jew, but the Gentile world also. (Isa 42:1 "Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment [mishpat] to the Gentiles.")
This is not an extension of the Church as progressive dispensationalist's and most of Christianity see it! Christianity (the Church) must step aside for Israel. We were only grafted in to God's plan. We come and go, but Israel (the Jew) is the fullness of God's plan in Christ. It is to Israel that Christ will return. It is to Israel that the offer of the Kingdom can only find fulfillment. It is only through Israel that mishpat can find it's perfect promised end result!
Rom 11:17-21
17 And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree;
18 Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee.
19 Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off, that I might be graffed in.
20 Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear:
21 For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.
KJV
The true root has it's origin in Genesis 12 with the introduction of Father Abraham. How prideful is the boasting that God has replaced Israel with the Christian Church! How prideful are any claims that Israel must somehow blend together with the Christian Church in future dispensations. The highminded have the ear of Apostate Christianity today. The only root of such theology will be to hate Israel when God again places His hand upon them.
Abraham was just the beginning of the impossible dream. Moses brought to Israel the written law that Abraham had in his heart. God was the true author of the impossible dream, but men could respond. Men could grab hold of this vision. The vision of perfection, of right religion attached to just governmental administration, was not limited to some utopian fairytale. In God, there was real hope. The awesome God of the Bible has the power to produce perfect justice worldwide! In God the impossible dream becomes possible! Perfect justice (mishpat) is from the very beginning tied to the blood.
Ex 24:6-8
6 And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basons; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.
7 And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the LORD hath said will we do, and be obedient.
8 And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the LORD hath made with you concerning all these words.
KJV
The law of Mosses. The law of the Old Testament. The covenant commitment made from the heart is all intertwined in blood. It will be the same in the Kingdom age.
Earlier I had pointed out that the whole world will be required to observe the Feast of Tabernacles (Zech 14:16-19) during the reign of Christ. One of the reasons why this Feast is singled out for mention is because it is tied to the reading of the law as given to Mosses. Evidence that the law of the Old Testament will be operating during the millennium.
Deut 31:10-13
10 And Moses commanded them, saying, At the end of every seven years, in the solemnity of the year of release, in the feast of tabernacles,
11 When all Israel is come to appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose, thou shalt read this law before all Israel in their hearing.
12 Gather the people together, men, and women, and children, and thy stranger that is within thy gates, that they may hear, and that they may learn, and fear the LORD your God, and observe to do all the words of this law:
13 And that their children, which have not known any thing, may hear, and learn to fear the LORD your God, as long as ye live in the land whither ye go over Jordan to possess it.
KJV
The law of Mosses will be the law of the Kingdom. It will be read and taught so that the millennial residents can learn what God the Messiah/King expects of them as His citizens. The rules and regulations, the statutes and precepts, the conduct of day to day living in the Kingdom will be clear. It will not be up to legislators to debate and vote. It will be up to what God has already established. It will be perfect law applied with perfect justice. It will be mishpat in action. There will be no need to write another Newer Testament to add to the Bible for a millennial aged dispensation. The Old Testament will suffice. It will find all application in Christ the Messiah/King. The law will bring forth another attribute of Christ during the Millennium. That of High Priest. He will be Messiah/King/High Priest of the Kingdom. He will administer the blood in the Kingdom Temple.
Heb 5:5-6
5 So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee.
6 As he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.
KJV
The responsibility of the High Priest in the Old Testament was to administer sacrifice for sin. So also will Christ administer the blood of sacrifice in the Kingdom Temple.
Heb 5:1
5:1 For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins:
KJVLev 9:9
9 And the sons of Aaron brought the blood unto him: and he dipped his finger in the blood, and put it upon the horns of the altar, and poured out the blood at the bottom of the altar:
KJV
The Lord Jesus Christ administering blood sacrifice in the Kingdom Temple is hard for some to accept. This is not a refutation of Hebrews 9 as taught in many fundamental Bible Schools.
Heb 9:19-28
19 For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people,
20 Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you.
21 Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry.
22 And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.
23 It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.
24 For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:
25 Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others;
26 For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.
27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
28 So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.
KJV
I do not see in "once" an exhortation forbidding animal sacrifice forever after the crucifixion. I do see an exhortation against the "mass" which the Roman Catholic Church has practiced for over 1000 years. I do see an exhortation against the Lutheran Church which practices a similar ritual as well as do Anglicans and Episcopalians which make up a large part of Apostate Christianity today. They do crucify Christ again and again every time they claim the true blood and flesh of Christ is being consumed in such rituals. The animal sacrifices of the Kingdom will be similar to the Lord's Supper as practiced in fundamental Churches. It is a remembrance not magic. The citizens of the Kingdom age will be put in remembrance of Calvary's Cross by the very one who shed His blood for the remission of sin. All the pain and suffering of animal sacrifice will drive home the reality of what Christ went through once so that sinners can be saved. It is something lightly esteemed in Christianity today. Our meat is all clean and nicely packaged. Every Church should go down to the slaughter house once a year to see the blood spurt, and hear the howls of death's agony. The next Lord's Supper will be a very different experience I'm sure. Mishpat is centered in blood. It was so in the Old Testament, and it will be true in the Kingdom also.
Lev 9:18
18 He slew also the bullock and the ram for a sacrifice of peace offerings, which was for the people: and Aaron's sons presented unto him the blood, which he sprinkled upon the altar round about,
KJV
Lev 1:11
11 And he shall kill it on the side of the altar northward before the LORD: and the priests, Aaron's sons, shall sprinkle his blood round about upon the altar.
KJV
Lev 1:15
15 And the priest shall bring it unto the altar, and wring off his head, and burn it on the altar; and the blood thereof shall be wrung out at the side of the altar:
KJV
Lev 3:2
2 And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering, and kill it at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron's sons the priests shall sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about.
KJV
III The Christian Church in the Kingdom
I Cor 6:1,2
1Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unjust, and not before the saints? 2Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
Paul was speaking to the New Testament saints (born again Christians) at Corinth. He is telling them that in some future era they would have the responsibility to administer mishpat or justice throughout the whole world ("the saints shall judge the world"). It will be our responsibility to see that mishpat established by the Lord Jesus Christ is practiced. We will be the policeman of the world making our judgment of enforcement according to mishpat. The just application of the law will be our duty. Accountability to the Lord Jesus Christ will be our Priestly responsibility. That means we must know mishpat, teach it, and enforce it. The religious law of mishpat will also be the governmental law for the whole world. One religion, and one world wide government all coming from the throne of David at the Jewish capital city of Jerusalem where the Jewish King Jesus Christ will reign. There will be nothing else but Christ in the millennium. The mishpat promised to the Jews and Gentiles in Isa 42:1-3 will have the Christians of the Church Age (complete as one body after the rapture) helping to teach and enforce the Jewish law of mishpat. Jewish law will be the messianic law it was always intended to be. It will be Christ's law, the new covenant, the Kingdom . We will not be evangelizing with the gospel message in the Christian sense because the gospel will be universal in the millennium, but rather enforcing the gospel message that Christ is the Savior, King of the Jews, and the world. We will be fit administrators of justice (mishpat) because we will all be perfect as a body after the rapture. We will be like Christ in that sense, and fit to administer His perfect justice. We will know how not to break the bruised reed, and how not to extinguish the smoking flax as we enforce Puritanical standards of Old Testament law on a world where every newborn is born in sin. The citizens of the millennium will not be perfected! Every newborn will have need of salvation. The saved will struggle with an old nature always fighting against the keeping of mishpat. We will be gaining new knowledge about how great a love it takes to be merciful to those who are bent on rebellion. How to be gracious in the face of rejection and ridicule. We will undoubtedly have great power with these responsibilities, yet we will learn how to administer punishment in love. Just enough punishment as not to break or extinguish. We will learn what a loving Father, Son, and Holy Spirit contended with in us before we were perfected. We will gain even greater love and respect for our eternal God. A love that will continually grow throughout the millennium and into eternity future.
A very unique feature of the millennial reign of Christ is that there will be "two Jerusalems". One will be earthly, and the other will be heavenly hovering above the earthly Jerusalem during the millennium. The heavenly Jerusalem will be our home. We will live there for all eternity future. We will share it with the Old Testament saints, the angels, most probably the tribulation saints, and eventually all the saved of the millennium.. It will descend from heaven in proximity to the Second Coming of Christ. It will be the only thing preserved from the physical universe that we know after the Great White Throne Judgment after the millennium. It will go preserved into the eternity future where a new heaven and new earth will be created. Dr. John Walvoord discussed the different views of the heavenly Jerusalem when he taught on Rev 21:9-22:5 in an article in Bibliotheosacra..
Rev 21:9-22:5
9 And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.
10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
11 Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;
12 And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
13 On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.
14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
15 And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.
16 And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.
17 And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.
18 And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.
19 And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;
20 The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.
21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.
22 And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.
23 And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
24 And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.
25 And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.
26 And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.
27 And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.
Revelation 22
22:1 And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.
2 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
3 And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:
4 And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.
5 And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.
KJVInterpretations of Revelation 21:9—22:5 . The heavenly city of Jerusalem is described in detail in Revelation 21:1—22:5 . Most conservative expositors agree that Revelation 21:1–8 has reference to the eternal state, the new heaven and the new earth which will be created after the millennium, and the holy city, the New Jerusalem as it will exist in eternity. Difference of opinion, however, has risen regarding the express application of Revelation 21:9—22:5 . Three principal interpretations have been advanced. Some believe that this portion of Scripture is a retrospect, like certain other portions of the book of Revelation, and is in fact a description of the millennial scene in figurative language (cf. William Kelly, Lectures on the Book of Revelation, pp. 459-90). In support of this position is noted in Revelation 21:24 that nations and kings of the earth are mentioned, which some think would be incongruous with the eternal state. Further, in Revelation 22:2 reference is made to the leaves of the tree of life which are for the healing of the nations, and from this it is inferred that the reference is to the millennial scene because no healing would be necessary in the eternal state.
A second view is advanced that Revelation 21:9 and following is a description of the eternal state introduced in the first eight verses of the chapter (cf. L. S. Chafer, Systematic Theology, IV, 418–20, 427, V, 365–68). Inasmuch as there is in the context a new heaven and a new earth to which the holy city is coming down, it would imply that the description of the city is
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contemporary with the eternal state. According to this view, the city is proceeding from heaven to the earth as seen in Revelation 21:10 and is established with its foundations on the new earth. It is evident from any careful study of the millennial scene that the heavenly Jerusalem does not correspond to the earthly Jerusalem of the millennium.
It would be impossible for such a city in the size that is given, 1500 miles square, to be situated on the earth in the Holy Land. Adherents of both views therefore hold that if the heavenly Jerusalem is in existence during the millennium it is located above the earth and not on the earth. Exponents of this position point out that there is nothing incongruous with the racial background of the saints continuing in the eternal state. The word nations actually is the word Gentiles and is no more out of place than references to Israel or angels or the church as separate entities in the eternal scene. Further, the problem of the healing of the nations in Revelation 22:2 is dissolved when it is recalled that the tree of life originally existed in the Garden of Eden before sin came into being and therefore is a normal part of eternity as well. The word translated healing can just as well be translated health or benefit which would not necessarily mean more than that the leaves of the tree were beneficial in some way. Though scholars argue at length on both sides of this question, there does not seem to be any solid reason for denying the possibility that the New Jerusalem as pictured in Revelation 21:9ff is viewed from the standpoint of its descent to the earth at the beginning of the eternal state.
A third view, however, is sometimes offered which is a mediate view between the first two mentioned. This view contemplates the heavenly Jerusalem as in existence during the millennium over the earth as the habitation of the resurrected saints, and is in contrast to the city of Jerusalem located on the earth. The heavenly Jerusalem apparently is withdrawn at the time of the destruction of the present earth and heaven. Then as pictured in Revelation 21:2 it returns to the new heaven
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and the new earth when the scene is ready for its descent. This interpretation regards Revelation 21:9ff as the heavenly city in the eternal state though recognizing its existence in the millennium. This seems to solve most of the exegetical problems that are involved and, in fact, answers many objections to the premillennial interpretation of Scripture as a whole. It provides a clear distinction between resurrected saints who inhabit the New Jerusalem and the millennial saints on the earth who will inhabit the millennial earth. It is assumed, though the Scriptures do not state it, that the millennial saints at the end of the millennium will be translated prior to their entrance into the eternal state and thus will qualify for entrance into the heavenly Jerusalem.
This third view is the right view in my estimation. We the perfected saints of the Church dispensation will live in the heavenly Jerusalem with the Old Testament resurrected saints, and untold multitudes of angels. We "born again" Christians of the Church (Christian) age were given a special promise of a mansion.
John 14:1-3
4:1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
2 In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
KJV
Where are these mansions? Where is the place where Christ is preparing an eternal dwelling place for all the New Testament saints of the entire Church age from Pentecost to the rapture? It's not on earth! It's above the earth! The Heavenly Jerusalem is the city where our mansions can be found. It is being prepared this very minute by Jesus Christ Himself. Somewhere within those 1500 square miles of the Heavenly Jerusalem is my mansion. Fit for a prince with innumerable angelic servants created from the beginning to serve me as heir of the King of kings. I'm convinced the nature of the angels is to serve. They are not satisfied unless every need of their charges are met to the utmost. I don't know but that I'll ever be allowed to make a bed or sweep a floor after I enter my mansion? I honestly believe the angels would be offended that they were not allowed to show their love for me, and wanting ness to serve. They are awesome in ability. It is their desire to see we are given the royal treatment throughout eternity future. I am the product bought by the precious blood of Christ that gives me such respect. The angels exist to serve as I will exist in Heavenly Jerusalem to serve my Love, my Savior, my King.
We will start by serving Christ through His millennial reign. The Heavenly Jerusalem will descend from heaven after the 7 year tribulation in close proximity to the Second Coming of Christ. It will hover over the earthly Jerusalem for 1000 years. First, we will return to earth as an army with Christ at the Second Coming at the end of the 7 year tribulation in our resurrected bodies.
Rev 19:11-15
11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
KJV
Christ will sit upon David's throne in Jerusalem, and begin to administer mishpat. Our home will be in Heavenly Jerusalem, but we will help administer mishpat at Christ's direction leaving our eternal home for earth as on business trips.
Heb 12:22-24
22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,
23 To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
24 And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.
KJV
Rev 20:6
6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
KJV
We shall be priests overseeing the sacrifices in the earthly Temple. The blood shall be honored for the thousand years. The law of earthly government and religious mandate will all be one. The millennial Temple of Ezekiel 40 -48 is the place where priests will teach through actual instruction blood and sacrifice.
Ezek 40:42-43
42 And the four tables were of hewn stone for the burnt offering, of a cubit and an half long, and a cubit and an half broad, and one cubit high: whereupon also they laid the instruments wherewith they slew the burnt offering and the sacrifice.
43 And within were hooks, an hand broad, fastened round about: and upon the tables was the flesh of the offering.
KJV
The millennial Temple of Ezekiel has flesh on the tables from the offerings. It has an altar for sacrifice. Notice this altar has sacrifice and blood upon it.
Ezek 40:46-47
46 And the chamber whose prospect is toward the north is for the priests, the keepers of the charge of the altar: these are the sons of Zadok among the sons of Levi, which come near to the LORD to minister unto him.
47 So he measured the court, an hundred cubits long, and an hundred cubits broad, foursquare; and the altar that was before the house.
KJV
Ezek 43:22
22 And on the second day thou shalt offer a kid of the goats without blemish for a sin offering; and they shall cleanse the altar, as they did cleanse it with the bullock.
KJV
Ezek 43:26-27
26 Seven days shall they purge the altar and purify it; and they shall consecrate themselves.
27 And when these days are expired, it shall be, that upon the eighth day, and so forward, the priests shall make your burnt offerings upon the altar, and your peace offerings; and I will accept you, saith the Lord GOD.
KJV
Ezek 45:19
19 And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering, and put it upon the posts of the house, and upon the four corners of the settle of the altar, and upon the posts of the gate of the inner court.
KJV
An earthly Aaronic priesthood will already be established for Ezekiel's Temple (built, I believe, in the first 3 1/2 years of the Tribulation Period). Zadok (the High Priest during David's reign) puts an Aaronic priestly emphasis on David's rule. I believe the Two Witnesses of Revelations 11 (see "Second Woe") will lay this foundation in the first 3 1/2 years of the Tribulation Period for the reestablishment of the Aaronic Priesthood. We will share as priests in our own right with the Aaronic priests in this responsibility. Those earthly Jews of the reestablished Aaronic Priesthood will survive the tribulation. Blood will again be the central emphases of sacrifice in Ezekiel's Temple both during the tribulation, and then on into the millennium.. It all will represent the single sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ at Calvary. It never was, nor ever will be the blood of bulls and goats.
Ps 51:16-19
16 For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering.
17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
18 Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: build thou the walls of Jerusalem.
19 Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and whole burnt offering: then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar.
KJVHeb 9:11-18
11 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;
12 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.
13 For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:
14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
15 And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.
16 For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator.
17 For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.
18 Whereupon neither the first testament was dedicated without blood.
KJV
Heb 10:3-12
3 But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.
4 For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.
5 Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:
6 In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.
7 Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.
8 Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law;
9 Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.
10 By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
11 And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:
12 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;
KJV
Everything in the Bible (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) from beginning to end is Christ. The Old Testament sacrifice was an eternal remembrance or reminder of what the yet coming Christ/Messiah was going to do. Ezekiel's Temple will offer the same sacrifices in remembrance of what the same Christ/Messiah did. The Temple itself where the blood of sacrifice was, and will again be made is mishpat. Mishpat is not just administrative law. It is law bought with blood! It is blood in the only building where that blood is acceptable to God.
In 3 places in the Bible, as Waltke so wisely recognized, mishpat is a building, or more rightly a place where a building would stand. Read "This Place" for a full understanding of the intertwining of the Tabernacle and the Temple in Biblical history.
Ex 26:30
30 And thou shalt rear up the tabernacle according to the fashion thereof (mishpat-tow) which was shewed thee in the mount.
KJV
The Tabernacle was to be built according (tow) to mishpat. The Tabernacle was the forerunner of the First Temple which King David planed, and his son Solomon built. The fashion thereof is mishpat. The tabernacle contained the first altar where sacrifice was acceptable to God when Israel began their journey to the promised land where the city of Jerusalem would be their capital. The city where the First Temple would be built. The city where the Lord Jesus Christ was sacrificed on the cross of Calvary. .
1 Kings 6:38
38 And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the parts thereof, and according to all the fashion of it (mishpat Taayw). So was he seven years in building it.
KJV
The First Temple was built according to the plans God had supernaturally given to David the King. Here David's son Solomon completes it as David had envisioned it. As God had instructed it be done. The fashion of it is mishpat. A building built specifically for blood! A building where the blood was so great that the need for it to be washed away was part of the design. The Kidron valley would run red with the washed blood from the Temple.
Ezek 42:11
11 And the way before them was like the appearance of the chambers which were toward the north, as long as they, and as broad as they: and all their goings out were both according to their fashions (uwk mishpat Teehen), and according to their doors.
KJV
Now is the description of Ezekiel's Temple yet to be built. It also has the same fashion of mishpat design. A mishpat first envisioned by father Abraham. Given in specific design to Moses in the building of the Tabernacle. Then that same mishpat is further designed into the First Jewish Temple. Now, the same mishpat will be designed into a Temple not yet built. It will be given, I believe, to the Two witnesses of Revelations 11. The blood will again be central to the design. Look how God intends the Two Witnesses to make provision for cleansing of blood within the design of the Third Jewish Temple to be built on this place where the First, and Second Temples were built.
Ezek 43:22-27
22 And on the second day thou shalt offer a kid of the goats without blemish for a sin offering; and they shall cleanse the altar, as they did cleanse it with the bullock.
23 When thou hast made an end of cleansing it, thou shalt offer a young bullock without blemish, and a ram out of the flock without blemish.
24 And thou shalt offer them before the LORD, and the priests shall cast salt upon them, and they shall offer them up for a burnt offering unto the LORD.
25 Seven days shalt thou prepare every day a goat for a sin offering: they shall also prepare a young bullock, and a ram out of the flock, without blemish.
26 Seven days shall they purge the altar and purify it; and they shall consecrate themselves.
27 And when these days are expired, it shall be, that upon the eighth day, and so forward, the priests shall make your burnt offerings upon the altar, and your peace offerings; and I will accept you, saith the Lord GOD.
KJV
Ezek 47:1-9
47:1 Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south side of the altar.
2 Then brought he me out of the way of the gate northward, and led me about the way without unto the utter gate by the way that looketh eastward; and, behold, there ran out waters on the right side.
3 And when the man that had the line in his hand went forth eastward, he measured a thousand cubits, and he brought me through the waters; the waters were to the ancles.
4 Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through the waters; the waters were to the knees. Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through; the waters were to the loins.
5 Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over.
6 And he said unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen this? Then he brought me, and caused me to return to the brink of the river.
7 Now when I had returned, behold, at the bank of the river were very many trees on the one side and on the other.
8 Then said he unto me, These waters issue out toward the east country, and go down into the desert, and go into the sea: which being brought forth into the sea, the waters shall be healed.
9 And it shall come to pass, that every thing that liveth, which moveth, whithersoever the rivers shall come, shall live: and there shall be a very great multitude of fish, because these waters shall come thither: for they shall be healed; and every thing shall live whither the river cometh.
KJV
A river will wash the blood from the altar. It grows as it flows with the blood of sacrifice from Ezekiel's Temple altar. It brings with it life! Life which only the Son of God can give. Mishpat is life as much as it is blood and sacrifice. Mishpat is going back to the Old Testament, and making it complete in Christ. Mishpat is Jewish in honor of the Jewish King who will rule from the only Temple with a throne.
Ezek 43:6-7
6 And I heard him speaking unto me out of the house; and the man stood by me.
7 And he said unto me, Son of man, the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever, and my holy name, shall the house of Israel no more defile, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoredom, nor by the carcases of their kings in their high places.
KJV
The place where all this mishpat takes place is significantly in the news today. The Temple Mount has been brought to the attention of the world with purpose! The time is short before the Third Jewish Temple will rise over the city of Jerusalem again. The Temple is mishpat. Mishpat is the Temple. This Temple will be designed for the Lord Jesus Christ to sit on His throne to rule the world as the King/Messiah of the Jews! Mishpat will find it's fulfillment when these events come to pass.
Isa 42:1-4
42:1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment (mishpat) to the Gentiles.
2 He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
3 A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment (mishpat) unto truth.
4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment (mishpat) in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.
KJV
Perfect Justice can only be administered through the blood. It is the only way to salvation that is acceptable to the God of the Bible. The one time sacrifice of Christ has met the justice requirements of the holy God of the Bible. The millennial Kingdom will exemplify this Biblical justice. Mishpat will not be a suggested way of social conduct, but will be the law of the land for 1000 years. It will not be some powder puff administration by Christ. The blood will be honored with full intensity. The letter of the law will be administered and enforced by perfected saints. We of the Christian Era will have responsibility to see that mishpat is not taken lightly by the citizens of the millennium. The harp may come later, but the millennium comes first.
The reason the progressive dispensationalists have it wrong is because their theology dictates that Israel must somehow flow into Christian Church age theology in the next dispensation. All those "left behind" books carry the same premise. The truth is that the Church must step aside at the end of this dispensation for Israel. This stepping aside is what the progressive dispensationalist can't conceive. The grafted branch stands alone. It is separated from the Old Testament saints today, and throughout the millennium. The freedom from the Old Testament law that we have today is not going to be the case in the millennium. Old Testament requirements to attend the Feast of Tabernacles will be back in force during Christ's reign. Old Testament Judaism had to step aside for the Church on the Day of Pentecost. On the day of the rapture, the true Church will step aside for the Two Witnesses and 144,000 specially chosen Jews. The Two witnesses never leave Jerusalem. They must be Jewish. I'm convinced the theology of these Jews of the tribulation will be Old Testament Jewish law. This theology will carry into the millennial reign of Christ. The Kingdom will have reached fruition. The Temple will again be central to everything. The Kingdom will be ruled by the Jewish King from the Third Jewish Temple built in Jerusalem. The law of the Temple will be universal.
It all makes sense - at least to me.
edited by DDSrail April 4, 2001
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