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By Faith Arlen L. Chitwood
CONTENTS (On this website page numbers are unique to each chapter)
Introduction vii
Faith to a Saving of the Soul (Chapter 1) 1
By Faith We Understand (Chapter 2) 16
SECTION 1 ABEL — A More Excellent Sacrifice (Chapter 3) 37 The Blood of Abel (Chapter 4) 51 ENOCH — Translated Into Heaven (Chapter 5) 65 The Biblical Structure (Chapter 6) 81 NOAH — Through the Flood (Chapter 7) 97 Beyond the Flood Chapter 8) 113 ABRAHAM — From Ur to Canaan (Chapter 9) 135 After the Order of Melchizedek (Chapter 10) 153 On the Mountain (Chapter 11) 175
SECTION 2 ISAAC — The Offering of Isaac (Chapter 12) 201 The Rights of Primogeniture (Chapter 13) 217 JACOB — Heavenly and Earthly Blessings (Chapter 14) 231 JOSEPH — The Resurrection of Israel (Chapter 15) 253 MOSES — The Restoration of Israel (Chapter 16) 269 Destruction of Gentile World Power (Chapter 17) 283 RAHAB — The Salvation of Gentiles (Chapter 18) 297 GIDEON, BARAK, SAMSON, et al. — A Good Report (Chapter 19) 313 CONCLUSION 327 APPENDIXES Appendix 1 – Adoption, Redemption of the Body 341 Appendix 2 – The Willful Sin 349 SCRIPTURE INDEX 357
Rear Cover Remarks
Hebrews is a book built around five major warnings, all drawn from a history of Israel, up to and including the time Israel’s Messiah was on earth the first time. The warnings though are directed, not to the Jewish people, but to Christians; and all five warnings, presenting the same subject matter from different standpoints, have to do with the salvation of the soul.
Hebrews chapter eleven, which is placed in the book chronologically between the fourth and fifth warning passages (passages in chapters ten and twelve), forms an apex in the book relative to “faith” and the saving of the soul. Moving from chapter ten into chapter eleven, the saving of the soul is clearly seen as the goal of “faith” (ref. Chapter 1 in this book).
Not only does Hebrews chapter eleven deal with faith to the saving of the soul — illustrating the matter by and through the faith of individuals, extending from Abel to numerous individuals throughout Jewish history, covering millennia of time — but this chapter in Hebrews is structured after a fashion that numerous dispensational truths regarding the Jews, the Gentiles, and the Church of God are also dealt with.
The entire drama of human history, from man’s beginning in Eden to that toward which all Scripture moves — the Messianic Kingdom — is set forth by and through a divinely arranged dispensational plan, using selected individuals and events. And by and through these individuals and events — particular individuals, and events in the lives of these individuals (events occurring under God’s sovereign control of all things) —that which God deems of primary import in the complete 6,000 years of Man’s Day, leading into the 1,000-year Lord’s Day, that time when the salvation of the soul will be realized, can be seen.
Thus, if one wants to see that which God deems of primary import relative to bringing His plans and purposes regarding mankind to pass, Hebrews chapter eleven would be one place to go. Then the larger context, from which Hebrews chapter eleven draws — the whole of Scripture — would be the primary place to go.
And, whether one goes to Hebrews chapter eleven or to the whole of Scripture itself, he must always keep one statement in one verse from chapter eleven at the forefront of everything:
But without faith [apart from believing that which God has revealed] it is impossible to please Him [to please God] . . . . (v. 6a)
Introduction
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
For by it the elders obtained a good testimony.
By faith we understand that the worlds [the ages] were framed by the Word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. (Hebrews 11:1-3)
(Hebrews chapter ten, leading into chapter eleven, sets the tone for and governs how chapter eleven is to be understood. Actually, the whole of the preceding part of the book, chapters one through ten, leads into chapter eleven in this respect, with chapter ten forming an apex to the preceding nine chapters and chapter eleven forming an apex to all which precedes. This is fully developed in the opening two chapters of this book.
The introductory material that follows focuses on an overall view of chapter eleven itself; and the opening part of the book deals with the chapter from a contextual standpoint, apart from which the central tenor of this chapter cannot be properly understood.)
Hebrews 11:1 is not so much a definition of faith as it is a description of that which emanates out of faith.
So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. (Romans 10:17)
The words for “faith” and “believe” are the same in the Greek text, just different parts of speech. The former is a noun, and the latter is a verb (cf. Ephesians 2:8; John 3:16). “Faith” is simply believing that which God has to say about a matter. “Faith” is confidence in that which God has said. Thus, no one can act “by faith” apart from the Word of God.
All of the individuals in Hebrews chapter eleven were moved to do certain things and react in certain manners because God had spoken. They simply believed (had faith in) that which God had said, revealed, and acted accordingly.
“By faith we understand” (v. 3) because we believe that which God has revealed about different matters. We understand that the ages have been placed in an orderly arrangement by the Word of God so that the things that we see in the world about us did not originate out of that which can be seen, through the Word, by faith.
Hebrews 11:3 is one of the most difficult verses in the Greek New Testament to properly translate into English. And about the only way in which this can be satisfactorily accomplished is to add explanatory statements in different places in the text:
“By means of faith we understand that the ages were placed in an orderly arrangement by the Word of God; with respect to that [the ages being placed in an orderly arrangement by the Word of God], the things seen to have come into existence [the disorder which has come into existence, which one sees in the world all around us], not out of things appearing [i.e., this disorder did not emanate out of that appearing ‘by faith’; this disorder is not part of that, did not have its origin out of that, which can be seen ‘by faith’].”
God rules over all, and He has so ordered the ages and events in these ages that any possibility of haphazard events within the framework of these ages is immediately ruled out.
God planned and arranged the ages around the movement and activity of His Son (the living Word, the Word made flesh) within the framework of these ages. In so doing, God has appointed His Son “Heir of all things” (Hebrews 1:2).
This inheritance will be realized in the coming age, and all activity throughout the preceding ages transpired (and continues to transpire) with an end in view — the Son inheriting all things.
And God has revealed these things in His Word. By faith (by believing that which God has revealed in His Word) man can understand.
And the converse of that is equally true. Apart from faith (apart from that which God has revealed in His Word) man cannot understand.
There is no middle ground. It is one or the other. Progression of Revealed Events — Section One (vv. 4-16) — When studying the Old Testament, or, as in Hebrews chapter eleven — Old Testament individuals mentioned in the New Testament — one must keep the words of 1 Corinthians 10:6, 11 ever before him:
Now these things became our examples [lit., ‘Now these things were brought to pass as types for us’] . . . .
Now all these things happened to them as examples [lit., ‘Now all these things happened to them typically’] . . . .
The list of individuals in Hebrews chapter eleven is complete insofar as truths that the Spirit of God desires to set forth in this chapter are concerned, but it is far from complete insofar as a list of Old Testament individuals who died in the faith is concerned. The Spirit of God has singled out certain Old Testament individuals and events, not only to teach great spiritual truths, but also to teach a progression of revealed events in biblical prophecy — additional spiritual truths associated with the prior spiritual truths. Those who have eyes to see recognize that Scripture has been written in a framework of this nature. 1) Abel (v. 4)
Abel is the first of four individuals forming a unit of progressive revealed truth in this chapter. Abel presented to God the sacrifice that God required. Abel was a keeper of the sheep, this was evidently an offering of the first fruits that God could only have previously made known to Adam, and Abel brought both the correct type of offering and the correct amount.
His brother, Cain, was a tiller of the ground. Cain, as well, presented the type of offering that God required (from that which God had provided an increase), but Cain evidently didn’t bring the amount that God required.
(The thought often promulgated that the difference between these two offerings had to do with one being a blood offering and the other a non-blood offering cannot be correct. The incorrect nature of this type of teaching can be seen from at least three interrelated standpoints:
1) From the Hebrew text of Genesis chapter four.
2) From Genesis chapter four when studied in the light of the antitype, in relation to Christ and Israel, in the gospel accounts.
3) From the overall text and context of the passage in Hebrews chapter eleven, where an antitype in relation to Christians is seen.
Scripture simply will not support God’s acceptance of one offering and rejection of the other on the basis of the presence or absence of “blood,” along with the fact that an incorrect understanding of the passage after this fashion destroys the teaching that the Spirit of God built into these sections of Scripture on the subject at hand.
The blood sacrifice, which foreshadows the sacrifice of God’s Son 4,000 years later, is seen in Cain rising up and slaying his brother, Abel, not in Abel’s offering.
All of the preceding is fully developed in the first three chapters of this book.) 2) Enoch (v. 5)
Enoch was removed from the earth between two events — the offerings of Cain and Abel and the succeeding Flood during Noah’s day. The removal of Enoch between these two events has to do, typically, with the removal of the Church at the end of the present dispensation, preceding that which is typified by the Flood during Noah’s day, the coming Great Tribulation.
And this chronological arrangement of events by the Spirit of God, beginning in Genesis chapter five, in a foundational type, sets forth the truth at this opening point in Scripture that the Church will be removed from the earth before the beginning of the Tribulation.
Then, the fact that the Spirit of God singled out this one event occurring between events surrounding Adam’s two sons and the Flood during Noah’s day also sets forth a truth little appreciated in Christendom today — the importance that God attaches to the coming removal of the saints of this dispensation into the heavens, i.e., the rapture of the Church (cf. 2 Kings 2:11-24).
3) Noah (v. 7)
Noah was carried through the Flood in a place of safety. Noah cannot typify the Church, for “the Church” is typified by Enoch. This is clear from the fact that the Church is associated with the heavens into which Enoch was taken. “Noah” can only typify Israel — an earthly people with earthly promises and blessings — which will pass safely through the Tribulation here on earth (Isaiah 26:20; Matthew 24:15-22; Revelation 12:6, 14).
Noah passed through the Flood and came out on the other side. At the same time the nations of the earth suffered destruction in the Flood.
Thus will it be in the coming Great Tribulation. Israel will pass safely through this time, but the Gentile nations of the earth will suffer destruction.
And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man. (Luke 17:26)
A new beginning is seen in Noah’s experiences following the Flood, which is carried over into Abraham and his experiences, with more detail added. 4) Abraham (vv. 8-16) Abraham, by and through his experiences, sets forth both an earthly and a heavenly inheritance beyond the Flood. The earthly inheritance will be realized by Israel, and the heavenly inheritance will be realized by the Church. And the realization of these inheritances by both groups will occur in the coming age.
Abraham was called out of Ur of the Chaldees to go into a land that God would later give him for an inheritance. He sojourned in the land of promise with no permanent dwelling place, for the inheritance was yet future. God had previously given this tract of land in the Middle East to Abraham and his seed for an everlasting possession, but Scripture never places the full possession of all this land (the Israelites in the land, the nations outside the land) at any point other than the Messianic Era.
In a larger sense, the experiences of Abraham and the heirs with him of the same promise in verses eight through sixteen typify the experiences of Christians. This is the case because Israel’s earthly inheritance (which will one day be realized in a literal sense by Israel) is used to typify the Christians’ heavenly inheritance (which will one day be realized in a literal sense by Christians). “Abraham” and “the heirs with him of the same promise” looked beyond the earthly inheritance to “the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” This city is associated with a better country, “that is, a heavenly country” (vv. 10, 16).
Christians are to follow the identical order that “Abraham” and “the heirs with him of the same promise” followed. Christians, as Abraham, are strangers and sojourners with no permanent dwelling place during the present time. They are to fix their attention on an inheritance with the Son yet future. They are to fix their attention upon “the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” They are to confess that they are “strangers and pilgrims on the earth” and look toward a better country, “that is, a heavenly country.”
God was not ashamed to be called the God of those who so governed their lives in the type, and He will not be ashamed to be called the God of those who so govern their lives in the antitype.
Thus, the things set forth by and through Abraham’s faith point to things beyond the Flood, things beyond the Great Tribulation that will occur during the Messianic Era. The heavenly inheritance for Christians, as well as the earthly inheritance for Israel, will be realized then, not now. Progression of Revealed Events — Section Two (vv. 17-40) — The first section in Hebrews chapter eleven terminates with an inheritance beyond the Flood — that is, an inheritance beyond the Tribulation, in the Messianic Era. In verse seventeen there is a new beginning in the chronological framework, which carries us once again through the same period but from a different perspective.
This section begins and ends at the same two places as the first section — the death of an individual (a vicarious death in the second), with the Church and the Messianic Era in view out ahead (note that not everything is seen in a single type; the Tribulation, not seen here, is seen in other types).
In this second section, as in the first section, Old Testament personalities with their individual and particular experiences are used in an overall, typical framework to teach great spiritual truths. 1) Abraham and Isaac (vv. 17-19) As Abel in the first section (in the Genesis account [also seen in Hebrews; cf. Genesis 4:10; Hebrews 12:24]) became the blood sacrifice, Abraham in the second section offered his son for a blood sacrifice.
Cain slaying Abel typifies Israel slaying Christ 4,000 years later — one brother slaying the other brother; and Abraham offering his son typifies God the Father offering His Son 2,000 years later.
The place where Abraham offered his son was a designated “mountain” in “the land of Moriah,” which included the area around Jerusalem. God was very particular about the place where Abraham was to offer his Son; and many scholars believe that God, 2,000 years later, offered His Son at exactly the same place where Abraham had previously offered his son. Others (mainly Jewish scholars) believe that the brazen altar in the courtyard of the Temple (where the sacrifices under the Mosaic Economy occurred) later stood at this place referred to as “the mount of the Lord” (cf. Genesis 22:2, 8, 14; 2 Chronicles 3:1).
(Either way the matter would be perfectly in line with that which is stated about Abraham offering his son in Genesis 22:1-14, and the antitype. All of the blood sacrifices occurring at the brazen altar in the courtyard of the Temple foreshadowed the work of God’s Son at Calvary, which occurred a short distance north of the Temple Mount, where the brazen altar stood.)
In the case of Abraham and his son there was a substitutionary death. A ram caught in the thicket died in the stead of Isaac. In the case of God and His Son there is also a substitutionary death. God Himself, in the person of His Son died in your place and in my place. Thus, the point of beginning through salvation by death and shed blood is once again set forth. 2) Isaac (v. 20) Following the blood sacrifice, events throughout the entire present dispensation, leading into the Messianic Era, are portrayed in the experiences of Isaac. The offering of Abraham’s son, typifying the offering of God’s Son, is recorded in Genesis chapter twenty-two. Chapters twenty-three and twenty-four typify events occurring following the offering of God’s Son, leading into and including the present dispensation; and chapter twenty-five then projects the whole of the matter into the coming dispensation (the Messianic Era).
Following the offering of Isaac (chapter 22), Sarah, the wife of Abraham, died (chapter 23). This typifies the setting aside of Israel, the wife of Jehovah, following the events of Calvary.
After this, the servant of Abraham was sent into a far country to search for and procure a bride for Isaac (chapter 24). This typifies events throughout the entire present dispensation. God the Father has sent the Holy Spirit into the world, the far country, to search for and procure a bride for His Son.
After Abraham’s servant had procured the bride in the far country, the bride was removed from this country and taken to Isaac’s home. This typifies the fact that after the Holy Spirit has procured a bride for the Son, the bride will be removed from the world and taken to the Son’s home.
The next event following the removal of the bride is the remarriage of Abraham (chapter 25). This typifies the fact that after the Holy Spirit has completed His work of calling out a bride for the Son, God the Father will restore Israel to her proper place as the wife of Jehovah.
The procurement of a bride for God’s Son and the restoration of Israel will then usher in the Messianic Era.
The reference in Hebrews 11:20 concerns Isaac’s blessings bestowed upon both Jacob and Esau. Only Jacob received the blessing belonging to the firstborn. Esau was rejected for the inheritance associated with this blessing, and he received a far inferior blessing.
Esau had previously sold his birthright, considering it to be of little value (Hebrews 12:16, 17). The truth brought out here is the same as that in Genesis chapter twenty-four. In this chapter the bride was called out of the family to participate in the inheritance that the father had given the son. And in the case of Jacob and Esau, the blessing of the firstborn, associated with the inheritance bestowed by the father, was likewise a family matter.
3) Jacob (v. 21) Jacob was a sojourner in a strange land. He constitutes a dual type, which is the case with many of the Old Testament types. “Jacob” in his experiences typifies both Israel and Christ, similar to the experiences of “Jonah,” typifying both Israel and Christ. a) A Type of Israel As a type of Israel, Jacob left the land covenanted to his fathers and became a merchantman and a wanderer in a strange land. But Jacob, like Israel, possessed God’s promise that in all the places where he went God would be with him and eventually restore him to his own land. While in a strange land Jacob met Laban, was mistreated by Laban, and became a crafty merchantman who grew wealthy at Laban’s expense. Israel, in a strange land during the Times of the Gentiles, has served Gentile causes and has been mistreated by the Gentiles. And the Israelites, in turn, have become crafty merchantmen who are growing wealthy at the expense of the Gentiles. After acquiring a certain amount of wealth from Laban, Jacob expressed a desire to return to the land of his fathers (Genesis 30:25, 26). But the time for his return, although near, had not arrived. God’s command for Jacob to return came only after Jacob had acquired ALL of Laban’s wealth. Now Jacob heard the words of Laban’s sons, saying, “Jacob has taken away all that was our father’s, and from what was our father's he has acquired all this wealth.”
And Jacob saw the countenance of Laban, and indeed it was not favorable toward him as before.
Then the LORD said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers and to your family, and I will be with you.” (Genesis 31:1-3)
From Genesis 28:15 to Genesis 31:3 God did not speak to Jacob. The heavens remained closed during the entire time of Jacob’s exile. God did not speak to Jacob until it was time for him to return from his exile.
Jacob then returned to Bethel (meaning, “house of God”) bearing the riches of Laban (Genesis 28:12-19; 31:17, 18; 35:1-8). Then, at Bethel the Abrahamic covenant, concerning ownership of the land, was reaffirmed to Jacob (Genesis 35:9-12; cf. Genesis 28:3, 4).
Israel today has acquired a certain amount of wealth from the Gentiles and is expressing a desire to return to the land. But the time for Israel’s return, although near, has not arrived. We’re still living during the Times of the Gentiles, and God has not issued the command for Israel to return.
The present restoration of a remnant to the land, resulting from a Zionistic movement, is NOT the restoration prophesied numerous times in the Old Testament and set forth in type by the experiences surrounding Jacob’s return. God’s command for Israel to return will come only after Israel is in possession of ALL of the Gentile’s wealth.
During the entire time of Israel’s present exile the heavens will remain closed. God will not speak to Israel again until that time typified by Genesis 31:3 (cf. Jeremiah 30:3, 7-10, 18; 31:8, 9).
Israel will then be brought back into the land and there possess the wealth of the Gentiles. Not only will Israel possess Gentile wealth, but Israel will dwell in the most valuable piece of real estate on the face of the earth, and the Gentiles will be subservient to Israel (cf. Isaiah 14:1, 2; 60:10-12; 61:5, 6, ASV). b) A Type of Christ As a type of Christ, Jacob left his home and went into a far country to obtain a bride. This bride was to be taken from the family of Abraham. Jacob was specifically charged not to take a wife “of the daughters of Canaan” (Genesis 28:1). As in the experiences of Isaac and Rebekah, this sets forth once again the truth that the bride is to be taken out of the family of Abraham (the saved), not from the Canaanites (the unsaved)
Jacob met Rachel by a well of water and fell in love with her (Genesis 29:6-18). As with Rebekah, so with Rachel — the bride is taken from those who draw from the Well, from those who dwell deeply in the Word of God.
Jacob became a servant and worked a total of fourteen years to obtain Rachel (Genesis 29:18-28). The fourteen years (two sevens) have to do with two complete periods of servitude Jacob performed on behalf of His bride.
In the antitype, this foreshadows two complete periods of servitude Jesus performs on behalf of His bride. The first period is past and points to His ministry in the camp of Israel, terminating with the events of Calvary. The elder (Israel, as Leah) must be dealt with before the younger (the Church, as Rachel). Christ purchased His bride on Calvary’s Cross. And in His present period of servitude, Christ, as High Priest, is providing a cleansing for His bride.
After completing his commitment as a servant to Laban, Jacob took Rachel and returned to his own country (Genesis 31:17).
After the Lord Jesus Christ completes His commitment to the Father on behalf of His bride (servitude on earth, followed by His present high priestly ministry in the heavenly sanctuary), Jesus will, like Jacob, take His bride to His own country — to heaven (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).
The reference concerning Jacob in Hebrews 11:21 pertains to the blessings bestowed upon the sons of Joseph — Ephraim and Manasseh.
Manasseh was the elder son, in line to receive the blessing belonging to the firstborn. However, when Joseph brought his two sons into the presence of Jacob to be blessed, Jacob placed his right hand upon Ephraim’s head and his left and upon Manasseh’s head. Jacob placing his right hand upon Ephraim’s head indicated that the younger (Ephraim) was to be blessed above the elder (Manasseh).
“Manasseh,” associated with the father’s house, typifies Israel; and “Ephraim,” associated with fruitfulness in the land of Joseph’s affliction, typifies the Church (Genesis 41:51, 52). Manasseh was born before Ephraim, just as Israel was called into existence before the Church. But, just as Ephraim was blessed above Manasseh, the Church will be blessed above Israel. The Church is in possession of a heavenly calling, which is a higher calling than Israel’s earthly calling. 4) Joseph (v. 22) The things revealed about Joseph in Hebrews chapter eleven have to do with the coming resurrection of Old Testament saints, immediately preceding the deliverance of Israel from a worldwide dispersion.
Joseph “made mention of the departing of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones.” Joseph knew that the Israelites would one day be delivered from Egypt, and the bones of Joseph being carried out with the Israelites under Moses speak of that future day when the Old Testament saints who died in the faith will be raised and delivered along with the living.
When Joseph died he was placed in “a coffin in Egypt.” This coffin remained in the camp of Israel, UNBURIED, for about two hundred years. Joseph had known that God would one day visit his brethren, lead them out of Egypt, and place them back in the land of Canaan. And he had specifically instructed the Israelites that his bones were to be carried out of Egypt with them at the time of the Exodus (Genesis 50:24-26).
When Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, the coffin containing the bones of Joseph was carried out with them (Exodus 13:19). This coffin remained UNBURIED in the camp of Israel throughout the forty-year wilderness journey, and the bones of Joseph were buried only AFTER the Israelites entered into and possessed the land of Canaan, five generations after his death in Egypt (Joshua 24:32).
When the One who is greater than Moses returns and leads the Israelites out from a worldwide dispersion, Old Testament saints will be raised from the dead and accompany the living back to the land. This fact is set forth in biblical typology in the bones of Joseph accompanying the living back to the land. Thus, the bones of Joseph reflect upon Israel’s resurrection at the end of this age. 5) Moses (vv. 23-29) During the days of Moses, 3,500 years ago, we find the birth of a nation in the land of Egypt. The book of Exodus, which records this birth, and also records the scenes in Hebrews 11:23-29, constitutes an overall type of that which is about to occur immediately before and after the time yet future when this same nation will be “born at once” (Isaiah 66:8). This book sets forth, in chronological order, events that will take place both during and after the coming Great Tribulation.
There are two complete deliverances of the Israelites in Scripture. One deliverance is past; the other is future. The first deliverance was under Moses; the second will be under the One greater than Moses, the Lord Jesus Christ.
When God states that He will “bring again the captivity” of His people (Jeremiah 30:3, 18), or “set His hand again the second time to recover the remnant of His people” (Isaiah 11:11), He is not alluding to a prior deliverance from the Assyrian and Babylonian captivities under Zerubbabel. This restoration was only partial, as is the present restoration of the Israelites to the land.
There is only one restoration in all history which was complete and can be placed alongside, by way of parallel, the restoration which is about to take place (cf. Jeremiah 16:14, 15; 23:7, 8).
This past restoration constitutes an overall type of the future restoration. “Moses” is a type of Christ, and “Egypt” is always a type of the world in Scripture.
The deliverance from Egypt under Moses is a type of the future deliverance from a worldwide dispersion under Jesus the Christ. Events on both sides of the actual deliverance from Egypt, revealed in the book of Exodus, complete the overall type and provide us with a detailed explanation concerning that which is about to occur in the antitype.
The type has been set, and the antitype must follow the type in exact detail. 6) The Destruction of Jericho (v. 30) Immediately following the deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt and immediately following their entrance into the land of Canaan, Gentile world power was brought to naught. The Pharaoh of Egypt (an Assyrian [Isaiah 52:4]) and his armed forces were overthrown in the Red Sea immediately following the deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt, and Jericho was destroyed immediately following the entrance of the Israelites into the land of Canaan.
The manner in which God delivered His people from Egypt and established them in the land of Canaan in the past is the same manner in which He will deliver His people from a worldwide dispersion and re-establish them in the land of Canaan in the future.
Antichrist (an Assyrian [Isaiah 10:5, 12, 24-27; Micah 5:5, 6]) and his armed forces will be overthrown following the deliverance of the Israelites. This man of sin and his armed forces will be overthrown after the Great Tribulation but preceding the Millennium. Christ will return to the earth, deliver the Israelites from a worldwide dispersion, and then tread the winepress (Isaiah 63:1-5; Revelation 16:13-16; 19:17-21). 7) The Salvation of Rahab (v. 31) Rahab, a Gentile, was saved out of the destruction of Jericho. She received and believed the message of the two spies who had been sent into Jericho prior to its destruction.
The two spies who were sent into Jericho prior to its destruction foreshadow the 144,000 Jews in Revelation chapters seven and fourteen who will be sent throughout the Gentile world prior to its destruction. And Rahab’s reception of the spies and her belief in the message that they proclaimed foreshadows the innumerable host of Gentiles who will receive and believe the message of the 144,000 during the Great Tribulation (Matthew 25:31-46; Revelation 7:9-14; 20:4-6). 8) Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, et al. (vv. 32-40) Following the destruction of Jericho and the deliverance of Rahab, six individuals are named in verse thirty-two. And the verses following reiterate the experiences of these and other individuals who, by faith, passed through certain experiences with their attention fixed on things out ahead. “Through faith” all of these individuals “obtained a good testimony,” but they “did not receive the promise” (v. 39). The realization of that which had been promised lay out ahead, and it remains out ahead today. That which has been promised is millennial in its scope of fulfillment (note: “better resurrection,” v. 35). Thus, this second section in Hebrews chapter eleven ends at the same point as the first section in this chapter — in the Messianic Era.
An interesting feature concerning the six individuals named in verse thirty-two is the fact that they are not listed in the same chronological order of their appearance in Old Testament Scripture as the ones preceding in verses four through thirty-one. Barak appears before Gideon, but is here mentioned last; Jephthah appears before Samson, but is here mentioned last; Samuel appears before David, but is here mentioned last.
The order is not haphazard, but, as in the preceding part of the chapter, the Holy Spirit has a designated purpose, not only in the individuals chosen, but also in the order in which they are presented. This purpose is to teach God’s people great spiritual truths drawn from Old Testament types.
“O what blessed truths people deny unto themselves by a refusal to study the types of the Bible.”
—A. Edwin Wilson |