Is Messiah, the Son of God, also is God Himself?

Psalm 2 - talks about the Messiah. The Psalm is mostly written by David, King of Israel and other contributors. However, there are verses, like the one below, that is written as if God Himself is talking and here it is talking about His Son Yshua.

7 “I will declare the decree:
The Lord has said to Me,
‘You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You.
8 Ask of Me, and I will give You
The nations for Your inheritance,
And the ends of the earth for Your possession.
9 You shall break[a] them with a rod of iron;
You shall dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel.’”

But why do we say His Son, Yshua, is also God. To call anyone else God, apart from the Almighty God is blasphemy - God made this clear in "Thou shalt worship no other gods". This also means we cannot worship anyone else except God. But then verses like the ones below shows God Himself declaring that the Son has all authority (lest He be angry) and deserving of our worship (Kiss the Son). God does not share His worship with anyone else, hence the conclusion is the Yshua, the Son, is also God.

11 Serve the Lord with fear,
And rejoice with trembling.
12  Kiss the Son,[b] lest [c] He be angry,
And you perish in the way,

We were reconciled to God through the death of His Son

Romans 5:10
For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

Our salvation is totally the result of Yshua sacrificing Himself on the cross and shedding His blood for us. From terminology sometimes such as need for repentance to be saved and so on, there is a danger that makes us think we have to do something and that leads to our salvation. Atonement has been accomplished for us, it does not depend on what we do including the act of following Messiah.

They were Yours, You gave them to Me

John 17:6
“I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.

The realisation that we are not our own is the beginning of a new life in God. We have been bought with the price of Yshua's blood. However not everyone who are saved has the realisation that we completely belong to Him, and our actions reflect this. For those who realise that we no longer belong to ourselves, then the begin to pour themselves out for others. This is the beginning of living the new life that Messiah has intended for us. Only then can we be effective witness and workers for Yshua's Kingdom.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven

Matthew 5:3
Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

For many years I have read this without understanding the phrase poor in spirit. Only recently I discovered the interpretation from various sources. Instead of explaining with a few single word, poor in spirit means something like the opposite of self-righteousness. It is not strictly about humility. It is a person who realises that it is beyond his ability to achieve any kind of right standing or do anything that will be counted as anything in God's eyes. Our Lord Yshua opened the teaching of the Beatitudes with this because people need to reach this stage of poor in spirit before they can realise they need a Saviour to help them get right with God. Without this realisation the journey with Messiah cannot even begin. By ourselves, the situation is quite hopeless since we cannot earn any kind of salvation, then the realisation that Yshua has done it for us gives us the confidence that indeed we have the kingdom of heaven.

And he said, Who are You, Lord?

Acts 9:5
And he said, “Who are You, Lord?”

Paul was at the point of knowing the true Lord Yshua. Yshua never forces people to convert. He makes Himself known to people so they understand who He really is. When people come to believe and follow Yshua, the Spirit convicts them of their sins and they change their way of life to follow Yshua. It is not something that is forced on believers since that would not be true conversion. Asking the question "Who are you, Lord" is the beginning for many people in coming to Messiah.

You are ... a royal priesthood

1 Peter 2:9
You are ... a royal priesthood

Many have the impression that priests are super-holy, a separate class of human beings, that no one else have the ability to live like them. It is right to think that they are a separate people and that is in fact what God calls us to be. Through Yshua the Messiah, those who believe and walk with Him, are in fact a royal priesthood. Whether we feel adequate or not, God has determined that is who we are. We only have to focus on Him, and serve others without constantly looking at whether we are worthy.

He must increase, but I must decrease

John 3:30
He must increase, but I must decrease

John points the way to Yshua Ha Masiach as we all must do. John the Baptist would have been at the peak of his popularity right before he introduced Jesus. People from the cities came out to the desert to be baptised by him.

However, when Jesus was baptized, that became the beginning of Jesus' public ministry and John pointed his followers directly to Jesus. Like John, we must do the same. In our compassion and mercy, we may be helping many people. Ultimately, when those people give thanks, it should be directed towards God. To accept glory for ourselves would be to steal the glory from God.

Arise, shine; For your light has come!

Isaiah 60:1
Arise, shine;
For your light has come!
And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.


It is well agreed upon that the latter half of the book of Isaiah is filled with hope in God, through the promise of a Messiah. The command in this verse is "Arise, Shine". How much more so that this command should apply to us that are living after the birth of Yshua the Messiah.

This is more than just a call to lift up our spirits, although that must begin first. It also mean that, once we come to know Yshua, that we actually arise out of our old lives. Having risen, then we are called to Shine - this is none other than shining the light of our Lord. Once we believe in the Lord, we are definitely being called apart - the question is do we go on to a new life or do we fall back to our old routines.

No man ever spoke like this Man!

Jesus remained in Galilee, knowing that people were plotting to destroy Him if He goes to Judea for the Feast of Tabernacles. His brothers still had some unbelief, and they urged Him to show Himself in Judea as well as working some more miracles to convince people. However, Jesus knew His timing and decided to stay in Galilee while He told His brothers to go.

When His brothers went to Judea, Jesus also went in secret and started to teach in the temple. Again, the people were amazed at His teaching, that He knew Scriptures so well, even though He was clearly not one of the religious leaders working there. Then Jesus told them His doctrine is directly from God the Father. He challenges them that they accepted Moses and the Law and also the circumcision done on Sabbath during Moses time, yet they seek to destroy Him for healing on the Sabbath.

Some people thought He may be the Christ, while others wanted to destroy Him but dare not catch Him yet. On the day of the Feast, Jesus spoke boldly about Him being the source of the living water which is the Holy Spirit. More people were convinced that He was the Christ as other people wanted more to destroy Him. Some said they knew where Jesus is from, so they could not believe that He is the Messiah.

The authorities, perhaps the temple police, questioned the Pharisees why they did not bring Jesus to them. They knew Jesus was not ordinary from the things He spoke about. It is not clear if the authorities wanted to arrest Him or questioned why the Pharisees did not bring Him to join them. Anyway, the Pharisees rebuked the authorities for marvelling at His teaching and saying that none of the Pharisees were listening to Jesus. However, Nicodemus the Pharisee who received teachings from Jesus before, asked his fellow Pharisees not to judge Jesus until they heard from Him or understand His works first. The Pharisees answered that no prophet has ever come from Galilee.






John 7
Jesus’ Brothers Disbelieve

1 After these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews[a] sought to kill Him. 2 Now the Jews’ Feast of Tabernacles was at hand. 3 His brothers therefore said to Him, “Depart from here and go into Judea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You are doing. 4 For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.” 5 For even His brothers did not believe in Him.

6 Then Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready. 7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil. 8 You go up to this feast. I am not yet[b] going up to this feast, for My time has not yet fully come.” 9 When He had said these things to them, He remained in Galilee.

The Heavenly Scholar

10 But when His brothers had gone up, then He also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret. 11 Then the Jews sought Him at the feast, and said, “Where is He?” 12 And there was much complaining among the people concerning Him. Some said, “He is good”; others said, “No, on the contrary, He deceives the people.” 13 However, no one spoke openly of Him for fear of the Jews.

14 Now about the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and taught. 15 And the Jews marveled, saying, “How does this Man know letters, having never studied?”

16 Jesus[c] answered them and said, “My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me. 17 If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority. 18 He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him. 19 Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law? Why do you seek to kill Me?”

20 The people answered and said, “You have a demon. Who is seeking to kill You?”

21 Jesus answered and said to them, “I did one work, and you all marvel. 22 Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. 23 If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath? 24 Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”

Could This Be the Christ?

25 Now some of them from Jerusalem said, “Is this not He whom they seek to kill? 26 But look! He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly[d] the Christ? 27 However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from.”

28 Then Jesus cried out, as He taught in the temple, saying, “You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know. 29 But[e] I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me.”

30 Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come. 31 And many of the people believed in Him, and said, “When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?”

Jesus and the Religious Leaders

32 The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him. 33 Then Jesus said to them,[f] “I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me. 34 You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come.”

35 Then the Jews said among themselves, “Where does He intend to go that we shall not find Him? Does He intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? 36 What is this thing that He said, ‘You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come’?”

The Promise of the Holy Spirit

37 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” 39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing[g] in Him would receive; for the Holy[h] Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

Who Is He?

40 Therefore many[i] from the crowd, when they heard this saying, said, “Truly this is the Prophet.” 41 Others said, “This is the Christ.”

But some said, “Will the Christ come out of Galilee? 42 Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the seed of David and from the town of Bethlehem, where David was?” 43 So there was a division among the people because of Him. 44 Now some of them wanted to take Him, but no one laid hands on Him.

Rejected by the Authorities

45 Then the officers came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, “Why have you not brought Him?”

46 The officers answered, “No man ever spoke like this Man!”

47 Then the Pharisees answered them, “Are you also deceived? 48 Have any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed in Him? 49 But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed.”

50 Nicodemus (he who came to Jesus by night,[j] being one of them) said to them, 51 “Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?”

52 They answered and said to him, “Are you also from Galilee? Search and look, for no prophet has arisen[k] out of Galilee.”

An Adulteress Faces the Light of the World

53 And everyone went to his own house.[l]

For we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world

Interesting note that Jesus Himself did not baptize but His disciples baptize others. The Pharisees heard His influence was greater than John the Baptist's and so Jesus went to Samaria on his way to Galilee. Jesus stopped at Jacob's well and offered the Samaritan woman His living water. Jesus had a long and fruitful conversation with the woman. The woman became interested to accept the living water offered by Jesus. Jesus revealed that He knew about her many husbands and she asked if He was a prophet. Then Jesus taught her that true worship must be to God the Father and done in spirit and in truth. She talked about the Messiah and Jesus admitted that it is Him.

The disciples found Jesus and were amazed why He was talking to a Samaritan. Jesus explained that it is part of His Father's work. Jesus also told the the harvest is ready and then He taught about the principle of reaping where someone else had sowed. This is much more than the principle of reaping what you sow. In practice, we should be ready to sow and allow others to reap, as well as reaping where others have sown before.

The woman who had gone back to town to tell others, resulted in many Samaritans coming to hear Jesus and believing in Jesus. They accepted Jesus is the Messiah and were overjoyed that they asked Him to stay with them. Jesus stayed in Samaria for two days before going to Galilee.

Jesus said that a prophet is not honored in his own country, when he returned to Galilee. Nevertheless, people came out to see Him and believed because of the things He did in Jerusalem. Then a nobleman also came to request Jesus to heal his son. When he found that his son was healed at the same time that Jesus spoke healing on his son, the nobleman and his entire household believed.




John 4
A Samaritan Woman Meets Her Messiah

1 Therefore, when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John 2 (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), 3 He left Judea and departed again to Galilee. 4 But He needed to go through Samaria.

5 So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6 Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.

7 A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.” 8 For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.

9 Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.

10 Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”

11 The woman said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? 12 Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?”

13 Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”

15 The woman said to Him, “Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw.”

16 Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.”

17 The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.”

Jesus said to her, “You have well said, ‘I have no husband,’ 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly.”

19 The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.”

21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

25 The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will tell us all things.”

26 Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.”

The Whitened Harvest

27 And at this point His disciples came, and they marveled that He talked with a woman; yet no one said, “What do You seek?” or, “Why are You talking with her?”

28 The woman then left her waterpot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, 29 “Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” 30 Then they went out of the city and came to Him.

31 In the meantime His disciples urged Him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.”

32 But He said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.”

33 Therefore the disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?”

34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work. 35 Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! 36 And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. 37 For in this the saying is true: ‘One sows and another reaps.’ 38 I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have entered into their labors.”

The Savior of the World

39 And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all that I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. 41 And many more believed because of His own word.

42 Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ,[a] the Savior of the world.”

Welcome at Galilee

43 Now after the two days He departed from there and went to Galilee. 44 For Jesus Himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country. 45 So when He came to Galilee, the Galileans received Him, having seen all the things He did in Jerusalem at the feast; for they also had gone to the feast.

A Nobleman’s Son Healed

46 So Jesus came again to Cana of Galilee where He had made the water wine. And there was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum. 47 When he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to Him and implored Him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. 48 Then Jesus said to him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe.”

49 The nobleman said to Him, “Sir, come down before my child dies!”

50 Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your son lives.” So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way. 51 And as he was now going down, his servants met him and told him, saying, “Your son lives!”

52 Then he inquired of them the hour when he got better. And they said to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” 53 So the father knew that it was at the same hour in which Jesus said to him, “Your son lives.” And he himself believed, and his whole household.

54 This again is the second sign Jesus did when He had come out of Judea into Galilee.

And on the wing of Abominations shall be One who makes Desolate

This chapter goes forward to the time of during the reign of Ahaseurus, the son of Darius the Medes, over the land of the Chaldeans. It appeared Daniel was studying the prophecies from the prophet Jeremiah and understood that Jerusalem will be in desolation for seventy years. It may be that the time of the seventy years is almost over. In response to this, Daniel prayed fervently, perhaps asking God to fulfill the prophecy to restore Jerusalem.

In his prayer, Daniel recounted the sins and rebellion of his people from previous generations. He understood that his people have been unfaithful, wicked, committed iniquity and forsaken the ways of God. He knows God makes and keeps covenant and that God can show great mercy. So Daniel prays to God to act now and show His mercy.

Then Daniel was visited again by the angel Gabriel. It appeared that Gabriel gave Daniel another prophecy, that spans from the first coming of the Messiah till the second Coming. According to the prophecy, the Israelites will be send back to Jerusalem to rebuild it and then 7 and 62 weeks later, the Messiah will come for the first time. Historically this is consistent between the time Artaxerxes gave the command to rebuild the temple till the time Jesus entered the Temple which is 483 years. This is because 69 weeks = 69 x 7 days  = 483 days which is 483 years.

Following this, it is natural to take the last week, the 70th week, as 7 days which means 7 years of tribulation, during the End Times. In the last verse, it describes in this last week, the Anti Christ will make a covenant, likely to be a peace treaty. But he will break the treaty in middle of the seven years and shall end the temple sacrifices and does abominable things in the Temple. From this, it is also clear that the temple sacrifices will be restarted someday in our future, after the temple is again rebuilt.

Another note is that the 69 weeks is mentioned as 7 and 62 weeks because the first 7 weeks (=49 days - representing 49 years) is the time when the order was given to rebuild the temple to the time it was finished. This took 49 years because of the constant opposition in rebuilding the temple, as mentioned in Nehemiah.



Daniel 9
Daniel’s Prayer for the People

1 In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans— 2 in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the Lord through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.

3 Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. 4 And I prayed to the Lord my God, and made confession, and said, “O Lord, great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with those who love Him, and with those who keep His commandments, 5 we have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments. 6 Neither have we heeded Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings and our princes, to our fathers and all the people of the land. 7 O Lord, righteousness belongs to You, but to us shame of face, as it is this day—to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, those near and those far off in all the countries to which You have driven them, because of the unfaithfulness which they have committed against You.

8 “O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You. 9 To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him. 10 We have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in His laws, which He set before us by His servants the prophets. 11 Yes, all Israel has transgressed Your law, and has departed so as not to obey Your voice; therefore the curse and the oath written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against Him. 12 And He has confirmed His words, which He spoke against us and against our judges who judged us, by bringing upon us a great disaster; for under the whole heaven such has never been done as what has been done to Jerusalem.

13 “As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us; yet we have not made our prayer before the Lord our God, that we might turn from our iniquities and understand Your truth. 14 Therefore the Lord has kept the disaster in mind, and brought it upon us; for the Lord our God is righteous in all the works which He does, though we have not obeyed His voice. 15 And now, O Lord our God, who brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and made Yourself a name, as it is this day—we have sinned, we have done wickedly!

16 “O Lord, according to all Your righteousness, I pray, let Your anger and Your fury be turned away from Your city Jerusalem, Your holy mountain; because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your people are a reproach to all those around us. 17 Now therefore, our God, hear the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, and for the Lord’s sake cause Your face to shine on Your sanctuary, which is desolate. 18 O my God, incline Your ear and hear; open Your eyes and see our desolations, and the city which is called by Your name; for we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great mercies. 19 O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and act! Do not delay for Your own sake, my God, for Your city and Your people are called by Your name.”


The Seventy-Weeks Prophecy

20 Now while I was speaking, praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the Lord my God for the holy mountain of my God, 21 yes, while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, reached me about the time of the evening offering. 22 And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, “O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you skill to understand. 23 At the beginning of your supplications the command went out, and I have come to tell you, for you are greatly beloved; therefore consider the matter, and understand the vision:

24 “Seventy weeks[a] are determined
For your people and for your holy city,
To finish the transgression,
To make an end of[b] sins,
To make reconciliation for iniquity,
To bring in everlasting righteousness,
To seal up vision and prophecy,
And to anoint the Most Holy.
25 “Know therefore and understand,
That from the going forth of the command
To restore and build Jerusalem
Until Messiah the Prince,
There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks;
The street[c] shall be built again, and the wall,[d]
Even in troublesome times.
26 “And after the sixty-two weeks
Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself;
And the people of the prince who is to come
Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary.
The end of it shall be with a flood,
And till the end of the war desolations are determined.
27 Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week;
But in the middle of the week
He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering.
And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate,
Even until the consummation, which is determined,
Is poured out on the desolate.”

Lord, Remember David

The psalmist recalls the exemplary way which David approached God. David is famously described as "after God's own heart". Here it mentions that David would not sleep until he finds God. So the psalmist encourages all to seek out the LORD in His tabernacle and the priests to be prepared. It establishes the LORD as the God of Israel who has a special relation with them, enabling them to be accessible to Him.

In the last part, God answers that He is in His resting place. He will bless his people with provision, especially the poor, give salvation to His people. The final verses may be a reference to the Messiah with words like "horn of David", "the Anointed" and "His crown shall flourish".


Psalm 132
The Eternal Dwelling of God in Zion
A Song of Ascents.

1 Lord, remember David
And all his afflictions;

2 How he swore to the Lord,
And vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob:

3 “Surely I will not go into the chamber of my house,
Or go up to the comfort of my bed;

4 I will not give sleep to my eyes
Or slumber to my eyelids,

5 Until I find a place for the Lord,
A dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

6 Behold, we heard of it in Ephrathah;
We found it in the fields of the woods.[a]

7 Let us go into His tabernacle;
Let us worship at His footstool.

8 Arise, O Lord, to Your resting place,
You and the ark of Your strength.

9 Let Your priests be clothed with righteousness,
And let Your saints shout for joy.

10 For Your servant David’s sake,
Do not turn away the face of Your Anointed.

11 The Lord has sworn in truth to David;
He will not turn from it:
“I will set upon your throne the fruit of your body.

12 If your sons will keep My covenant
And My testimony which I shall teach them,
Their sons also shall sit upon your throne forevermore.”

13 For the Lord has chosen Zion;
He has desired it for His dwelling place:

14 “This is My resting place forever;
Here I will dwell, for I have desired it.

15 I will abundantly bless her provision;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.

16 I will also clothe her priests with salvation,
And her saints shall shout aloud for joy.

17 There I will make the horn of David grow;
I will prepare a lamp for My Anointed.

18 His enemies I will clothe with shame,
But upon Himself His crown shall flourish.”

Families of Reuben, Gad and Manasseh

The families of Reuben, Gad and Manasseh are detailed here. Although Reuben was the firstborn physically, it explained here that Reuben had lost his birthright when he defiled his father with his concubine. So the birthright of the firstborn which is a double portion go to Joseph through his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. However, the royal line of Israel, from which Messiah came, went through Judah instead.

One thing in common among the families of Reuben, Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh was that they negotiated with Moses and settled on the east side of the river Jordan. On various occasions they fought together against their enemies and they trusted God. But they also strayed away from God, being led to the gods of the pagans. They lived there until their defeat by Assyria and were taken into captivity.


1 Chronicles 5

The Family of Reuben

 1 Now the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel—he was indeed the firstborn, but because he defiled his father’s bed, his birthright was given to the sons of Joseph, the son of Israel, so that the genealogy is not listed according to the birthright; 2 yet Judah prevailed over his brothers, and from him came a ruler, although the birthright was Joseph’s— 3 the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel were Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.
4 The sons of Joel were Shemaiah his son, Gog his son, Shimei his son, 5 Micah his son, Reaiah his son, Baal his son, 6 and Beerah his son, whom Tiglath-Pileser[a] king of Assyria carried into captivity. He was leader of the Reubenites. 7 And his brethren by their families, when the genealogy of their generations was registered: the chief, Jeiel, and Zechariah, 8 and Bela the son of Azaz, the son of Shema, the son of Joel, who dwelt in Aroer, as far as Nebo and Baal Meon. 9 Eastward they settled as far as the entrance of the wilderness this side of the River Euphrates, because their cattle had multiplied in the land of Gilead.
10 Now in the days of Saul they made war with the Hagrites, who fell by their hand; and they dwelt in their tents throughout the entire area east of Gilead.

The Family of Gad
 
11 And the children of Gad dwelt next to them in the land of Bashan as far as Salcah: 12 Joel was the chief, Shapham the next, then Jaanai and Shaphat in Bashan, 13 and their brethren of their father’s house: Michael, Meshullam, Sheba, Jorai, Jachan, Zia, and Eber—seven in all. 14 These were the children of Abihail the son of Huri, the son of Jaroah, the son of Gilead, the son of Michael, the son of Jeshishai, the son of Jahdo, the son of Buz; 15 Ahi the son of Abdiel, the son of Guni, was chief of their father’s house. 16 And the Gadites dwelt in Gilead, in Bashan and in its villages, and in all the common-lands of Sharon within their borders. 17 All these were registered by genealogies in the days of Jotham king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam king of Israel.
18 The sons of Reuben, the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh had forty-four thousand seven hundred and sixty valiant men, men able to bear shield and sword, to shoot with the bow, and skillful in war, who went to war. 19 They made war with the Hagrites, Jetur, Naphish, and Nodab. 20 And they were helped against them, and the Hagrites were delivered into their hand, and all who were with them, for they cried out to God in the battle. He heeded their prayer, because they put their trust in Him. 21 Then they took away their livestock—fifty thousand of their camels, two hundred and fifty thousand of their sheep, and two thousand of their donkeys—also one hundred thousand of their men; 22 for many fell dead, because the war was God’s. And they dwelt in their place until the captivity.

The Family of Manasseh (East)
 
23 So the children of the half-tribe of Manasseh dwelt in the land. Their numbers increased from Bashan to Baal Hermon, that is, to Senir, or Mount Hermon. 24 These were the heads of their fathers’ houses: Epher, Ishi, Eliel, Azriel, Jeremiah, Hodaviah, and Jahdiel. They were mighty men of valor, famous men, and heads of their fathers’ houses.
25 And they were unfaithful to the God of their fathers, and played the harlot after the gods of the peoples of the land, whom God had destroyed before them. 26 So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria, that is, Tiglath-Pileser[b] king of Assyria. He carried the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh into captivity. He took them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river of Gozan to this day.

God Builds David am Eternal House

The kingdom of David was enjoying the peace that God delivered to them by destroying their surrounding enemies. David's love and gratefulness to God caused him to think how he could do something for God. Perhaps as was done by other pagan nations, David thought of building a temple for God. Nathan, the prophet for David, initially encouraged David to do as he pleased but the LORD spoke to Nathan to tell David to stop.

God explained to David via Nathan that He has been with Israel, even physically, since they came out of Egypt. Then on a more personal level, God also explained that He took David from being a shepherd to rule over Israel and had destroyed the enemies. Contrast this to the false pagan gods which people had to make idols to represent and build temples to house them. The God of Israel, creator of heavens and earth, in all his magnificence and glory would not be able to be housed in any man made temple.

Instead of accepting the House David intended to build for God, God turned around and declared that He will build a house for David that will last forever. This is the prophecy concerning the Messiah. God revealed the details of the Messiah being the descendant of David, and that the Messiah's throne will be everlasting.

After hearing God's prophecy it appeared David had a good understand of it and went straight to thanking God. He did insist on building the temple anymore but wholeheartedly accepted God's future plans. His thanksgiving praise to God below is a very interesting and unique example of how to receive blessings and give thanks for it. The amazing way that he thanked God was by accepting God's promises literally and completely and more than just thanking God, he prayed and asked God to bless the prophecies to make it come true. He knew God was trustworthy and God's promises will come true, yet David immersed himself in the future blessing and got involved in the blessing by praying to God to make it come true.

How often do we pray only when things seem humanly impossible? How often do we get involved in the promises and blessings of God, by praying for them to come true, even though we already know God will make them come true. Perhaps this is what it means when we pray in the Spirit, pray according to the Will of God and pray according to the Will of God.


2 Samuel 7

God’s Covenant with David

 1 Now it came to pass when the king was dwelling in his house, and the LORD had given him rest from all his enemies all around, 2 that the king said to Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells inside tent curtains.”
3 Then Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is in your heart, for the LORD is with you.”
4 But it happened that night that the word of the LORD came to Nathan, saying, 5 “Go and tell My servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD: “Would you build a house for Me to dwell in? 6 For I have not dwelt in a house since the time that I brought the children of Israel up from Egypt, even to this day, but have moved about in a tent and in a tabernacle. 7 Wherever I have moved about with all the children of Israel, have I ever spoken a word to anyone from the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying, ‘Why have you not built Me a house of cedar?’”’ 8 Now therefore, thus shall you say to My servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts: “I took you from the sheepfold, from following the sheep, to be ruler over My people, over Israel. 9 And I have been with you wherever you have gone, and have cut off all your enemies from before you, and have made you a great name, like the name of the great men who are on the earth. 10 Moreover I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own and move no more; nor shall the sons of wickedness oppress them anymore, as previously, 11 since the time that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel, and have caused you to rest from all your enemies. Also the LORD tells you that He will make you a house.[a]
12 “When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men. 15 But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you.[b] Your throne shall be established forever.”’”
17 According to all these words and according to all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.

David’s Thanksgiving to God
 

25 “Now, O LORD God, the word which You have spoken concerning Your servant and concerning his house, establish it forever and do as You have said. 26 So let Your name be magnified forever, saying, ‘The LORD of hosts is the God over Israel.’ And let the house of Your servant David be established before You. 27 For You, O LORD of hosts, God of Israel, have revealed this to Your servant, saying, ‘I will build you a house.’ Therefore Your servant has found it in his heart to pray this prayer to You.
28 “And now, O Lord GOD, You are God, and Your words are true, and You have promised this goodness to Your servant. 29 Now therefore, let it please You to bless the house of Your servant, that it may continue before You forever; for You, O Lord GOD, have spoken it, and with Your blessing let the house of Your servant be blessed forever.”

Jacob's Last Blessings and Prophecies

The last words of Jacob to his sons, apart from blessings, is also filled with prophecies. Some of the prophecies may even be recognizable in our time.

Reuben - although physically the first born, he was not allocated the inheritance of the first born, which went to Joseph. His sin of adultery with his father's concubine is remembered.

Simeon and Levi - their cruelty was shown in the incident at Shechem.

Judah - though not a perfect man by any measure, was granted the honour to be the line of royalty of Israel. The Messiah - king and priest - will come from him.

Joseph - like Judah, the blessings on Joseph was also quite elaborate compared to the other brothers. This translated into reality for the people from these two tribes.

Finally, before his death, Jacob reminded his sons of his wish to be buried at the land that Abraham bought.


Genesis 49

Jacob’s Last Words to His Sons

 1 And Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days:


 2 “ Gather together and hear, you sons of Jacob,
      And listen to Israel your father.

 3 “ Reuben, you are my firstborn,
      My might and the beginning of my strength,
      The excellency of dignity and the excellency of power.

 4 Unstable as water, you shall not excel,
      Because you went up to your father’s bed;
      Then you defiled it—
      He went up to my couch.

 5 “ Simeon and Levi are brothers;
      Instruments of cruelty are in their dwelling place.

 6 Let not my soul enter their council;
      Let not my honor be united to their assembly;
      For in their anger they slew a man,
      And in their self-will they hamstrung an ox.

 7 Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce;
      And their wrath, for it is cruel!
      I will divide them in Jacob
      And scatter them in Israel.

 8 “ Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise;
      Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;
      Your father’s children shall bow down before you.

 9 Judah is a lion’s whelp;
      From the prey, my son, you have gone up.
      He bows down, he lies down as a lion;
      And as a lion, who shall rouse him?

 10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah,
      Nor a lawgiver from between his feet,
      Until Shiloh comes;
      And to Him shall be the obedience of the people.

 11 Binding his donkey to the vine,
      And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine,
      He washed his garments in wine,
      And his clothes in the blood of grapes.

 12 His eyes are darker than wine,
      And his teeth whiter than milk.

 13 “ Zebulun shall dwell by the haven of the sea;
      He shall become a haven for ships,
      And his border shall adjoin Sidon.

 14 “ Issachar is a strong donkey,
      Lying down between two burdens;

 15 He saw that rest was good,
      And that the land was pleasant;
      He bowed his shoulder to bear a burden,
      And became a band of slaves.

 16 “Dan shall judge his people
      As one of the tribes of Israel.

 17 Dan shall be a serpent by the way,
      A viper by the path,
      That bites the horse’s heels
      So that its rider shall fall backward.

 18 I have waited for your salvation, O LORD!

 19 “Gad, a troop shall tramp upon him,
      But he shall triumph at last.

 20 “Bread from Asher shall be rich,
      And he shall yield royal dainties.

 21 “ Naphtali is a deer let loose;
      He uses beautiful words.

 22 “ Joseph is a fruitful bough,
      A fruitful bough by a well;
      His branches run over the wall.

 23 The archers have bitterly grieved him,
      Shot at him and hated him.

 24 But his bow remained in strength,
      And the arms of his hands were made strong
      By the hands of the Mighty God of Jacob
      (From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel),

 25 By the God of your father who will help you,
      And by the Almighty who will bless you
      With blessings of heaven above,
      Blessings of the deep that lies beneath,
      Blessings of the breasts and of the womb.

 26 The blessings of your father
      Have excelled the blessings of my ancestors,
      Up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills.
      They shall be on the head of Joseph,
      And on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers.

 27 “ Benjamin is a ravenous wolf;
      In the morning he shall devour the prey,
      And at night he shall divide the spoil.”
28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them. And he blessed them; he blessed each one according to his own blessing.

Jacob’s Death and Burial
  
29 Then he charged them and said to them: “I am to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30 in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite as a possession for a burial place. 31 There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife, there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah. 32 The field and the cave that is there were purchased from the sons of Heth.” 33 And when Jacob had finished commanding his sons, he drew his feet up into the bed and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.

The King on a Cross

On Easter Friday - our Lord is hung up on the cross. It was just the night before that the Lord celebrated Passover and instituted the Lord's Supper with His disciples. Before sunset, Our Lord would have given up His Life. As the scripture below shows, although Man mockingly puts the sign "King of the Jews", little did many of them realise the sign was true.

The crucifixion of the Messiah came to pass, but all of it has been prophesied centuries before. It wasn't just a group claiming a man was wrongly accused and made him Messiah. His coming, his life, his suffering had all been prophesied, even down to the smallest details such as the splitting of his garments and the casting of lots for his clothes by the Roman soldiers.

As we remember our Lord Jesus this Easter Friday, let us think of who he is and why he came.

John 19  
17 And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha,
18 where they crucified Him, and two others with Him, one on either side, and Jesus in the center.
19 Now Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross. And the writing was:

      JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
 20 Then many of the Jews read this title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin.
21 Therefore the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but, ‘He said, “I am the King of the Jews.”’”
22 Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”
23 Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His garments and made four parts, to each soldier a part, and also the tunic. Now the tunic was without seam, woven from the top in one piece.
24 They said therefore among themselves, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be,” that the Scripture might be fulfilled which says:

      “ They divided My garments among them,
      And for My clothing they cast lots.”[d]
(Psalm 22:18)

   Therefore the soldiers did these things.