1
e Rapture of
the Saints and
the Character
of the Jewish
Remnant
By John Nelson Darby
B&P
Bibles & Publications
5706 Monkland, Montréal, Québec H4A 1E6
BTP #nnnn
BibleTruthPublishers.com
59 Industrial Road, Addison, IL 60101, U.S.A.
BTP# 16437
3
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
4
Contents
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 1 .............................................. 5
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 2 ............................................15
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 3 ............................................25
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 4 ............................................37
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 5 ............................................43
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 6 ............................................53
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 7 ............................................67
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 8 ............................................79
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 1
5
145626
e Rapture of the Saints
and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 1
e rapture of the saints to meet the Lord in the air,
before His manifestation to the earth, and the existence of
a Jewish remnant, in whom the Spirit of God is graciously
working, before the Lord manifests Himself to them for
their deliverance, is happily attracting the attention of
Christians. It has made sucient way to be the occasion
of a renewed opposition, which can only do good by
urging serious Christians to examine the scriptures on
the subject — an examination which will, under grace,
spiritually enlarge their apprehensions on many most
important points, full of blessing and interest for their
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
6
souls. e true character of the church of God will appear,
and the nature of its connection with Christ, on the one
hand, and the ways of God in the government of the world
on the other — the two great topics of which the scriptures
treat; besides that rst of all concerns, the reconciling of the
soul with God. On this last also, indeed, a right intelligence
of the other two casts abundant light. e rapture of the
saints before the appearing of Christ, strange as it may
appear to some, has nothing to say to the church, directly
or exclusively; but as we form part of these caught up, it, of
course, interests us in the highest degree.
1
e rapture is in
connection with the glory of the kingdom; and the saints in
general, who are to reign in the kingdom, have part in this
rapture. Still, indirectly, the inquiry leads to the question,
What is the church? because the doctrine of the rapture
of the saints, before the appearing of Christ, connects
itself with the existence of a Jewish remnant waiting for
deliverance after the rapture and before the appearing;
and the position of this remnant connects itself, more or
less, with the spiritual condition of the saints before the
manifestation of the church on the earth.
ose who believe in the rapture of the church before the
appearing of Christ hold that the church has a special and
peculiar character and connection with Christ, in virtue of
its being formed into one body by the descent of the Holy
Ghost from heaven; and that, while salvation is always
necessarily the same, the relative condition of the saints
previously was a distinct one. ey are convinced that in
the Psalms a Jewish remnant is found, and that thoughts,
1 Hence, indeed, it is often, in a practical way, treated of, in
scripture, as applicable to those who now believe, without
going farther.
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 1
7
feelings, hopes, fears, into which the Spirit of Christ enters
prophetically with and for them, are there expressed in
their behalf. is remnant is believed to be continually
spoken of in the prophets, as existing before the appearing
of the Lord, and waiting for that appearing, and delivered
by it. But, further, the Lord Himself being a minister of
the circumcision for the truth of God, as well as a Savior,
presented Himself necessarily to Israel, according to these
promises, and became associated with the remnant, and the
leader of it, as far as it was awakened to know Him. Hence
the interpretation of many passages of the New Testament
also became involved in this question; and, indeed, the
whole order of the dispensations of God. But above all,
the question of the church and its privileges, as formed by
the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven, is important and
essential in this matter, and a right understanding of it a
key to the interpretation of the word of God.
On the other hand, the denial of the existence of a Jewish
remnant, such as is above spoken of, involves the most
grave and, indeed, fatal consequences; because it connects,
especially through the contents of the Psalms, the Spirit
of Christ, which speaks in them, with the ungodly and
unconverted Jews, and makes the declaration of integrity
and uprightness, not the breathings of a righteous soul
pleading with God — yea, its pleadings furnished to it by
the Spirit of Christ — but the pride of self-righteousness
presenting itself to God. It is hard to suppose that
any could allege that the Lord should give all this self-
righteousness by revelation in connection with — yea,
identied with — the breathings of Christ’s Spirit and the
piety owing from it; but such is the theory of those who
deny the rapture of the saints before Christ’s appearing,
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
8
and, consequently, the existence of a Jewish remnant, in
which the Spirit of Christ is at work in connection with
the hopes proper to Israel.
A point connected with this has been insisted on by
the adversaries of the truth, to which I advert here only to
leave it aside, as not touching the main point, even if true,
and used by them only to obscure the great and vital truth
of the rapture of the church — I mean the secrecy of the
rapture. e two points on which it is important to have
the clear testimony of scripture are — rst, that there will
be a Jewish remnant at the end, with a place belonging to
itself as such; secondly, the true character of the church of
God.
at there will be a Jewish remnant at the close, delivered
and blessed by the Lord at His coming, blessed on earth,
is, beyond all controversy, the doctrine of scripture. is
remnant has neither the church’s heavenly blessings nor
the church’s hope. For those who have inquired into these
subjects, it ought not to be necessary to quote passages of
scripture to prove this. Still, as it is in its consequences a
very important point, I will reproduce here some of the
principal passages which prove the fact that there is a
remnant, and show the state in which that remnant is.
First, as regards the Jews, Zech. 13:8, 9: “And it shall
come to pass, that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts
therein shall be cut o and die; but the third shall be left
therein. And I will bring the third part through the re,
and will rene them as silver is rened, and will try them
as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear
them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, e
Lord is my God.”
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 1
9
As regards the ten tribes of Israel, the case is somewhat
dierent; the rebels will not enter into the land. Of Ezek.
20:33-38 I quote a part: “And I will bring you into the
wilderness of the peoples, and there will I plead with you
face to face … And I will cause you to pass under the rod,
and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant: and I
will purge out from among you the rebels, and them that
transgress against me: I will bring them forth out of the
country where they sojourn, and they shall not enter into
the land of Israel: and ye shall know that I am the Lord.”
Still they will be united in the land. See Ezek. 37:11-28. In
verse 19: “Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is
in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows,
and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah,
and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine
hand.” Verse 24: “And David my servant shall be king over
them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also
walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes and do
them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given
to Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt … my
tabernacle also shall be with them.”
As regards Judah, Daniel tells us (12), “And at that time
shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth
for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time
of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation,
even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall
be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the
book.” I have no doubt verse 2 refers to those scattered in
the countries; but on this point I do not dwell here. Only let
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
10
the reader remark that the wise and those that instruct
2
the
many in righteousness are distinguished from the rest (ver.
3; see chap. 11:32-35). e general blessing and promise
to Israel may be seen at the close of Hos. 3 and 4. I do not
quote in detail here, because these passages do not touch
the question of a remnant. For the great day of trouble the
reader may compare Jer. 30:4-9, and for the certainty of
their blessing in general, that chapter, and chapters 31, 32,
and 33. I might refer to a multitude of chapters besides, but
this may suce.
What I have quoted also shows that it is the remnant
of Israel which is blessed with Israel’s blessings. As it is
said in Isa. 10: “For though the number of the children
of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall return”;
and verse 21, “the remnant shall return, even the remnant
of Jacob, to the mighty God.” e points thus made clear
are that it is the remnant which is blessed, and blessed with
Israel’s blessings, according to promise, in the land, with
Jehovah as their God. e next and capital point (for what
precedes is generally admitted) is their previous state: is it
a Christian or church state? And now I pray the reader to
mark one most important consequence of any supposition
that this remnant of Israel is previously in a Christian
or church standing. eir blessings are, the earthly glory,
under Christ, in the land, according to the promises made
to them.
Now, if their hopes have been church hopes, and their
spiritual condition the same as ours, their hopes are not
fullled, they are disappointed in them; or (and it is this
2 Not “turn many to righteousness.” It refers to chapter 11:33,
and other passages, where these wise ones are noticed. (See
chap. 11:35; 12:10.)
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 1
11
I pray the reader especially to remark) if they are not,
our hopes are reduced to the level of Jewish earthly and
temporal ones. Now this is the great object of the enemy
in all this scheme, for that it is the positive work of the
enemy I have no doubt at all. In denying a distinct Jewish
remnant, having Jewish faith, Jewish hopes, and resting on
Jewish promises, it reduces the church to the level of these;
and the value and power of spiritual blessings in heavenly
places in Christ, and the place of Christ’s body in union
with Him, are denied and lost. It is this which makes the
question vital for Christians themselves. e great object
of the enemy in denying the rapture of the saints before
the appearing of the Lord, and the consequent rejection
of a distinct Jewish remnant with Jewish hopes and Jewish
piety, is to deny and destroy the proper faith of the church
of God, and to set the church itself aside. Far be it from me
to say, that all who have fallen into this system have any
such purpose, or are even aware of the eect; but the eect
is nothing the less produced, and the loss theirs, though the
intention be not. ey are deceived by the enemy, though
far from intending to deceive with him.
But my task now is to show, from scripture, that this
honored and gloried remnant is previously under the
inuence of God’s Spirit — a people waiting on the Lord.
I repeat, that those who are blessed as Israel by the Lord
are previously waiting on the Lord, and that the Lord
recognizes them in this character.
ere are two classes of texts referring to Israel in the
latter day, to one of which I only refer here, and leave aside,
though full of interest, as not bearing on our present subject.
I speak of the texts which speak only of the intervention of
God in power, whether to deliver or gather Israel, blessing
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
12
the nation in contrast with their previous depression and
misery, without touching on the question of a remnant, or
the state in which that remnant is found. I refer to such
passages as Amos 9, Jer. 30-33, and many like passages.
e other class refers explicitly to the despised remnant
and its state previous to Jehovah’s intervention in power
to deliver. Texts of this character are what I would now
lay before the reader, quoting as many as are needed to
show the existence of a godly though oppressed remnant,
which is under the inuence and working of the Spirit
of God. is truth rests not on a few casual texts, but
on the constant teaching of the scriptures. For the Lord
shall judge His people, and repent Himself concerning
His servants, when He seeth that their power is gone, and
that there is none shut up nor left. Not only this, but it
will be found that these scriptures connect this remnant
of the latter day with those who had ears to hear when
the prophets spoke. e connection of “the day,” or “that
day,” with the testimony delivered by the prophet at the
time, and that without supposed interruption or interval,
is characteristic of prophetic scriptures. But we shall nd
that this is applicable to the testimony of Christ viewed
as the great Prophet of Israel, by whose Spirit alone the
prophets prophesied; and that thus the prophetic witness
is continued in connection with a waiting remnant during
His life, and even after His lifetime, in connection with
God’s government of Israel, and as long as God dealt
with that people as such; and that the doctrine of the
church alone took the witness of God entirely out of this
connection. e doctrine of a heavenly calling paved the
way for this, though not the same thing as the church,
though the church had surely a heavenly calling; while the
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 1
13
destruction of Jerusalem, and the judgment of the nation
connected with this event, and the warnings which refer
to it, closed and broke all connection of God’s testimony
with the nation, and left the church and the Gentiles the
only acknowledged place of witness, as such, until that of
the Jews is resumed, according to the clear testimony of
the prophets.
To be continued
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
14
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 2
15
145627
e Rapture of the Saints
and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 2
Our rst duty will be to produce the testimony of
scripture to the existence of a godly Jewish remnant in
the latter day, with Jewish hopes sanctioned of God.
is once distinctly shown, the whole question as to the
state of things in the latter day is really solved, and the
modied or transitional state of the remnant becomes easy
to discern. God would not deprive the Jews of the hopes
of Israel till they deprived themselves of them; meanwhile
He introduced the church, and their hopes gradually
died down, giving place to exclusively heavenly ones, till
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
16
judgment closed all other relationship between God and
them.
I shall begin by a very plain and strong testimony, which
will set the state of the Jewish remnant in the latter day in
the clearest light, and then quote passages to show it was a
constant theme of prophecy; some showing the fact that a
remnant will exist, others its character.
Mal. 3:16 “en they that feared the Lord spake often
one to another; and the Lord hearkened and heard it, and
a book of remembrance was written before him for them
that feared the Lord and that thought upon his name.
And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that
day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as
a man spareth his own son that serveth him. en shall ye
return and discern between the righteous and the wicked,
between him that serveth God and him that serveth him
not.” Chapter 4. “For, behold, the day cometh, that shall
burn as an oven; and all the proud, and all that do wickedly,
shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them
up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither
root nor branch. But unto you that fear my name shall the
Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and
ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. And ye
shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under
the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the
Lord of hosts. Remember ye the law of Moses my servant,
which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with
the statutes and judgments. Behold, I will send you Elijah
the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful
day of the Lord: and he shall turn the heart of the fathers
to the children, and the heart of the children to the fathers,
lest I come and smite the earth [land] with a curse.”
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 2
17
Such are the last solemn words uttered by the prophetic
Spirit to Israel before the coming of the Messiah and His
precursor. e provisional application to Christ and John
the Baptist will be noticed, and is most important, to show
the way in which the testimony of their day took a Jewish
character and application; but the last days are denitely
here in view. A godly Jewish remnant is the very subject of
the prophecy. ey are contrasted with the wicked, they fear
Jehovah’s name, and unto them the Sun of righteousness
arises with healing in his wings. ey triumph judicially
over their wicked oppressors in that day. ey are identied
with the godly in Israel in the prophet’s time; they speak
often one to another; God will spare His in that day. ey
are called on to remember Moses and the law given to
him for all Israel. Nothing can be more distinct and plain,
more specic and positive in its character; and it has all the
peculiar weight of a nal and closing testimony, the last
words of prophecy to Israel.
Let us now see if this doctrine of a remnant is constantly
recognized in the prophetic testimony, and in what way.
Isaiah, a prophet who unfolds to us the ways of God with
Israel as a whole, will abundantly instruct us on this point.
e general principle, which connects the remnant with all
God’s moral dealings with Israel, is found in chapter 1:18,
19.
Before I proceed to quote the passages in detail,
let me here state the great principles which this rst
citation suggests. I have already noticed that, after the
question of personal salvation or relationship to God, two
great subjects present themselves to us in scripture: the
church, that sovereign grace which gives us a place along
with Christ Himself in glory and blessing; and God’s
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
18
government of the world, of which Israel forms the center
and the immediate sphere. Only we have to remember that
in this government, grace must have a part, or it would
not be the government of God. It would be simple judicial
condemnation, and impossibility of blessing. ese ways
of God are revealed in Ex. 32; 33; 34, and Deut. 32. e
prophets founding themselves on the law given in Horeb,
are sent in grace to seek the fruit which the vine of the
Lord’s planting ought to have borne. ey reproach Israel
with not producing it; and solemnly warn the people of the
consequences in judgment.
But as God, and therefore grace, was at work, there were
the purposes and will of that grace to be revealed: only
that it was not in Israel’s case made eectual in a simple
sovereign gift to the divine glory in a new creation, but in
display of God’s ways in divine government in connection
with the responsibility of man. is grace must be in Christ,
for He is the center of all God’s ways. He is the Messiah,
then, of the Jews, the King that is to reign in righteousness,
and to display fully and in perfection God’s immediate
government (see Psa. 101). Hence there is a double test
applicable in the ways of God in government in Israel.
Have they proted by and gloried God in the privileges,
in the enjoyment of which they were originally placed? Are
they in a condition to meet Jehovah in glory, coming in the
person of Christ? ese two questions may be seen treated
in Isa. 5 and 6.
e question of the remnant is treated, let the reader
remark, entirely in connection with the second of these
subjects (i.e., in connection with Christ). It is the same
nation of course: the residue have the law necessarily
before their consciences, and this fully maintained; but it
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 2
19
is, after all, the presenting of Christ, the dealing of God
in grace, which brought the state of the nation to an issue,
separated the remnant, and brought judgment on the
body. After sending the prophets, speaking by the Spirit
of Christ which was in them, to seek fruit, the Lord of
the vineyard said, I have yet one Son: it may be they will
reverence my Son when they see Him. We all know the
result. Judgment came upon the nation, a remnant clung
to Him through grace. But this necessarily raised another
point, “the kingdom” as well as the law. e kingdom was
not set up, but the King was there, and the kingdom in that
sense among them; and, moreover, since John the Baptist,
it was preached as at hand. It passed, on the rejection of
the King, into its mysteries as unfolded in Matt. 13 It will
be established on the earth; but on the return of the King
from heaven, where He is gone to receive it. e reader
may see that in Isa. 5 the remnant is not brought into view;
in chapter 6 it is, while the people’s hearts are made fat.
Now, the whole of this process of government is
unfolded in Isaiah: in the early part, before the history of
Hezekiah, in judgment, and connected with all God’s ways,
and the national condition ending in the millennial glory
and blessing in connection with Emmanuel the King; in
the second part, after the history of Hezekiah, in grace,
showing that Israel had failed in maintaining Jehovah’s
glory as His servant, that Jehovah had substituted Christ
come in humiliation as His servant, “the true vine,” and
that He (rejected and despised of men) would inherit the
Gentiles also. e restoration of Israel was a small thing;
but still God would, in and with the remnant, bring in the
nal glory of Jerusalem and His people.
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
20
us the whole of the ways of God in government, in
connection with Israel, are unfolded in his prophet. e
question which exercises many saints connects itself with
this whole in this way: Christ having been rejected, and
having gone on high, has become the Head of the body,
the church; but how far can we, admitting this great and
blessed truth, consider the disciples, viewed as associated
with Christ during His life — or even in some respects
for a time, through God’s patience, after His death — as
entering (though, in result, then merged in the church)
into the scheme and course of God’s ways with Israel?
Are they ever, whatever higher privileges God may have
granted to them, viewed and treated as the remnant of
Israel according to promise? How far did Christ act and
speak in this character, or did He at all? And will not a
remnant be found in the latter days, associated, according
to God’s will, with the hopes of, and promises to, Israel;
taking up the link where it was suspended and broken o,
a remnant to whom Jehovah (Jesus) will show Himself in
glory, to bless them on earth, as having waited on Him and
for Him, the Lord Jehovah, for their help in their trouble?
Or is it the church which will continue to the appearing of
Christ? And will there be no remnant of Israel waiting, with
a right Jewish faith owned of God, for the accomplishment
of the promises?
is is the point at issue.
Let us now examine the testimony of Isaiah as to
the remnant. First, we get the fact stated. e prophet
(i.e., the Spirit of Christ), representing the testimony of
judgment against sin, and God’s grace pointing faith to
Jehovah’s faithfulness and a Messiah to come, thus lays
down the state of Judah: “Why should ye be stricken any
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 2
21
more? … Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a very
small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and made
like unto Gomorrah.” is is the general prophetic view of
the condition of Israel. At the prophet’s point of view, such
is Israel. Further, the nation must be restored by judgment
(chap. 1:24-31). But there shall be a remnant left, and full
glory and holiness With Christ for those who have escaped
(chap. 4:2-6).
Judgment having been used to purify them, the glory
is connected with Jerusalem on earth. We have already
noticed the judgments of chapters 5 and 6; the former in
respect of conferred privileges, the second of expected glory.
In this second case, as the glory is necessarily connected
with Messiah, the doctrine of the Jewish remnant is fully
brought out. First, in general desolation and forsaking, the
people’s heart being made fat. is, we know, carries us on
to the time of Christ, connecting Israel’s state under the
prophets with their state under Christ, in whose time this
judgment was accomplished (Matt. 13:14, 15). And let the
reader remark Acts 28:26, 27, showing that there was a
dealing with Israel, as such, in patience, after the Lord’s
rejection and departure.
But secondly, the same passage shows us that there is a
remnant (Isa. 6:13) — a holy seed, which is the substance
of the old and seemingly withered tree. It shall return and
be eaten. Chapters 7 and 8 unfold this fully in connection
with Emmanuel.
e local enemies of Judah are set aside; and through
the inroad of the Assyrian, the circumstances of the Jews
connected with the latter day; for the enemy who then
overran Judah is the, often-named enemy of the latter day,
of whom the prophet speaks continually as the overowing
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
22
scourge. At the same time, the sign of the virgin’s Son,
Emmanuel, is given to them. Assyria will overow Judah.
But this is not all; there is a confederacy of nations against
Judah. Now we get the resource of the faithful, connecting
this history with our particular point.
In presence of Judah’s dangers from the confederacy of
her enemies they were not to lean on human sources of
strength, and confederate as men would. e Lord of hosts
was to be their sanctuary. Where found? Here it is Christ
comes in. He separates the remnant, being a stone of
stumbling to the nation itself: for He is the Lord of hosts
(compare chap. 1.). He is a sanctuary for those who look to
Him as such; for there is no question of atonement here.
However needed it may be, it is not the subject. e person
of Christ is before us. e testimony is bound up and the
law sealed among His disciples; and He teaches them, in
the spirit of prophecy, to wait on Jehovah, who hides His
face from the house of Jacob, and to look for Him. In a
word, He maintains by faith the connection of Jehovah with
Israel in the remnant. He and the children which God has
given Him are for signs and wonders to both the houses
of Israel, from the Lord of hosts who dwells in Mount
Zion. Trouble and judgment are then announced and the
full deliverance of Israel through Messiah by victory and
judgment. He shall reign upon the throne of David with
judgment (chap. 9:3-7: in ver. 3, read, “to it increased,”
instead of “not increased,” i.e., “thou hast increased its joy”).
What is so important in this passage is, that while the
church’s position, undoubtedly assumed subsequently by
the remnant who adhered to Christ, is passed over, their
connection with Israel’s hopes, and the accomplishment
of Israel’s hopes, are fully established through Him who
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 2
23
teaches them to look to Him who hides His face from the
house of Jacob, and to wait for Him; for church blessings
and grace they had not to wait. e church still waits for
the accomplishment of this also; its own proper hopes are
dierent, as we shall show in due time. Here the remnant
connected with Christ are connected with a proper and
exclusively Jewish national hope.
(continued)
(To be continued)
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
24
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 3
25
145628
e Rapture of the Saints
and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 3
e prophecy that follows (chap. 9:8) takes up the
general history of Israel, its chastisements and hardness of
heart, till the inroad of the Assyrian, the nal instrument
of God’s anger, and in whose destruction His indignation
is to cease. Here Israel, in Zion at least, is encouraged
not to be afraid when the Assyrian is there; for God’s
indignation shall soon cease in his destruction. at is,
God owns and warns in that day His people, has to say
to them as such, and counsels and encourages them. Be
it that the mass will not have heard, will have joined, as I
believe they will have done, with Antichrist, to ward o
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
26
the inroad (see chapter 28.); still the remnant will hear, and
will reap the fruit of this grace. All I insist on here is that
there is a Jewish remnant who will have Jewish blessings,
and who have Jehovah’s witness and testimony for them
to rely on, before He comes to deliver. In this general
history the ultimate result is more in view for the nation
than the previous detail as to the remnant. Still, necessarily,
general principles are maintained. Hence we nd, in the
following chapter, where the rod out of the stem of Jesse is
introduced, that while in the main the millennial blessing
is introduced, yet He reproves with equity for the meek
of the earth. at is, He introduces a new order of things,
in which pride is put down, and the poor and meek (that
is, the remnant) vindicated. e Lord, when He was here,
refused to judge thus, but the connection of this passage
with those whom He owned in His testimony, and owned
as those that should inherit the earth, is too evident to every
reader of scripture for me to insist on. ere is, therefore,
a remnant who are blessed with Jewish blessings, and who
have previously a character suited to them, and who are
owned in this character even by the Lord, and as heirs of
this blessing.
at in the new establishment of the kingdom in
heavenly power at the time of Christ’s rst coming they
succeeded — and sometimes with very slow and reluctant
faith — to other and higher blessings, is quite true; but
this did not aect the truth suspended in its eectuation
by Israel’s unbelief for a time, but to be accomplished yet
by Him who hides His face from the house of Jacob, and
for whom, and whose time of mercy, they must now wait.
When we examine the Psalms and Gospels, all this will
come out with the clearest evidence. Chapters 13 and 14
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 3
27
I only note as showing the way in which prophecy passes
over from these present or near approaching judgments to
the last day. e same remark applies to chapter 17 while
there we nd, verses 6, 7, the remnant and its moral state
in the last days. In chapter 24 the remnant are again found
(vers. 13, 14, 16); the righteous are owned. Judgment then
comes in to establish the glory and blessing: but we nd
therein (chap. 25: 4) the character of the delivered remnant
very plainly recognized. Jehovah has been a strength to the
poor and needy. Not only so, but this pious expectation is
clearly stated (ver. 9), and it shall be said in that day, “Lo!
this is our God, we have waited for Him, and he will save
us: this is the Lord; we have waited for him; we will be
glad and rejoice in his salvation.” is is very clear; but the
whole of chapter 26 sets this position of the remnant in the
strongest possible point of view.
“In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah:
We have a strong city; salvation will God appoint for walls
and bulwarks. Open ye the gates, that the righteous nation
which keepeth the truth may enter in. ou wilt keep him
in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he
trusteth in thee. Trust ye in the LORD forever, for in the
LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength: for he bringeth
down them that dwell on high; the lofty city, he layeth it
low; he layeth it low, even to the ground; he bringeth it
even to the dust. e foot shall tread it down, even the feet
of the poor, and the steps of the needy. e way of the just
is uprightness. ou, most upright, dost weigh the path of
the just. Yea, in the way of thy judgments, 0 LORD, have
we waited for thee: the desire of our soul is to thy name, and
to the remembrance of thee. With my soul I have desired
thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
28
thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the
inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness. Let favor
be shewed to the wicked, yet will he not learn righteousness:
in the land of uprightness will he deal unjustly, and will
not behold the majesty of the LORD. LORD, when thy
hand is lifted up, they will not see: but they shall see and
be ashamed for their envy at the people; yea, the re of
thine enemies shall devour them. LORD, thou wilt ordain
peace for us; for thou also hast wrought all our works in
us. O LORD our God, other lords beside thee have had
dominion over us: but by thee only will we make mention
of thy name. ey are dead, they shall not live; they are
deceased, they shall not rise: therefore hast thou visited and
destroyed them, and made all their memory to perish. ou
hast increased the nation, O LORD, thou hast increased
the nation: thou art gloried: thou hadst removed it far
unto all the ends of the earth. LORD, in trouble they have
visited thee, they poured out a prayer when thy chastening
was upon them. Like as a woman with child, that draweth
near the time of her delivery, is in pain, and crieth out in
her pangs; so have we been in thy sight, O Lord. We have
been with child, we have been in pain, we have as it were
brought forth wind; we have not wrought any deliverance in
the earth; neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen.
y dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall
they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy
dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the
dead. Come, my people, enter thou into my chambers, and
shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little
moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the
LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 3
29
of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose
her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.”
Here the true state and character of these poor and
needy are the special subject of the Spirit’s teaching. God
“most upright weighs the path of the just.” ey have
waited for God in the way of His judgments. eir prayer
was to Jehovah when His chastenings were upon them:
“With my soul,” says the righteous, speaking by the Spirit
of Christ, “have I desired thee in the night.” Jehovah will
ordain peace for them, and nally desires them to enter
into their doors and hide themselves for a little moment,
till the indignation be overpast, for He was coming out
of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth. is
passage needs no comment; its whole object is to own and
show the character of the remnant of Israel in connection
with Israel’s peace and glory, and before the judgment is
executed (they waiting for and desiring the Lord). I pass
rapidly over chapters 28:5; 29: 9; 30:18; 31:6; and cite
them merely as conrming the same truth, which they do,
however, very clearly. Chapter 33 furnishes a testimony
to the point which I must not pass over. “e sinners in
Zion,” says the Lord, speaking of the last days of Zion,
“are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who
among us shall dwell with the devouring re? who among
us shall dwell with everlasting burnings? He that walketh
righteously and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the
gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding
of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and
shutteth his eyes from seeing evil; he shall dwell on high;
his place of defense shall be the munitions of rocks; bread
shall be given him; his waters shall be sure. ine eye shall
see the king in his beauty.” Here the righteous remnant in
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
30
Zion, in her last day of trouble, are brought under view as
denitely as can possibly be, and their security announced
on this very ground that they walk righteously (chap.
35:3, 4). e feeble remnant are encouraged while waiting
for the Lord, who will surely come with vengeance. e
ransomed of the Lord come to Zion with songs. It is a
Jewish deliverance.
at part of Isaiah which extends from chapter 40
to the end has quite another character. It is a series of
reasonings with God’s people, rst, mainly on the point of
idols in contrast with Babylon, introducing Cyrus by name;
and, secondly, on the rejection of Christ. In the former
part (chap. 40-48.) the general restoration of the nation,
taking the Babylonish captivity for its point of departure,
is prophesied; so that a remnant previously in Jerusalem
could evidently have little or no place. In chapter 49 Christ,
who has labored in vain in Israel, takes the place of Israel as
servant; He is the true vine. Here the remnant at once comes
in view (chap. 49:6); but after the rejection of Christ (chap.
1.) their character in the last days (ver. 10) is distinctly and
denitely brought out: “they fear the LORD, and listen
to the voice of his servant.” In chapter 51:1, they follow
after righteousness; and they know righteousness — have
the law in their heart. Yet the comfort of Zion is not yet
come, nor has His arm put on strength. But it does; and the
redeemed of the LORD return to Zion with singing. e
whole chapter follows out the progressive development
of the appeals of Jehovah to the righteous remnant, and
their deliverance by Him, in the most remarkable manner,
with the remnant’s appeal also to Jehovah, bringing in that
deliverance.
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 3
31
Remark, that in these appeals, righteousness, the
circumstance of the grace shown to Abraham, and the law
in the heart, are spoken of as characterizing or called for
in the remnant who follow after righteousness; and their
deliverance is wrought, and Jerusalem called to stand up.
Afterward (chap. 53) the exalted servant is introduced
when the Lord has made bare his arm in the eyes of all
the nations, and all the ends of the earth see the salvation
of the God of Israel; and the spared remnant recognize
that the despised and rejected One had been bruised for
their iniquities. en comes out the full blessedness of
Jerusalem. Her Maker is her husband. e call of chapter
55:6, 7, conrms the great principle; but I do not insist
further upon it. Chapter 57, some of the righteous ones
perish — have the lot of the Righteous One: the wicked
will never have peace. Chapter 58 commences anew with
warnings, showing the spirit in which the godly Jew should
walk; the result of which will be walking on the high places
of the earth, and being fed with the heritage of God’s
servant Jacob. Yet he that departed from evil made himself
a prey. Here was a suering, godly remnant, in the midst of
an ungodly nation; and Jehovah comes in in righteousness.
Chapter 61 is remarkable in this, that the Lord quotes the
early part of the statement, to apply it to Himself, but stops
before the part which speaks of the day of vengeance, which
is part of the same sentence in the prophecy. Yet that day
of vengeance comes to comfort all that mourn, to appoint
to those that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for
ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for
the spirit of heaviness, that they might be called trees of
righteousness, the planting of the LORD that He might
be gloried: and they shall build up the old wastes, and
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
32
raise up the former desolations; and then all the blessing
and glory of God’s people is entered on.
Now here we get the Jewish remnant in the latter day,
clearly connected with Christ’s personal service on earth
when He rst came, and all Christian or church blessing
dropped out (the link of the latter day blessings of Zion,
with His ministry being immediate, and the blessing being
earthly, Jewish, and millennial, just indeed as in chapters 8,
9.). It is hardly possible to have anything clearer to prove,
not only the existence of a Jewish remnant in the last day,
owned of God as such, and blessed with Israel’s blessing on
the, earth, but the connection of this with Christ’s ministry
as the great Prophet on the earth, to whom Israel was to
hearken, the minister of the circumcision, the character
withal of the remnant being in terms such as He owned
in that ministry, though in order to the introduction of the
church all was for a time suspended. is introduction of the
Gentiles is explained in chapter 65, quoted by the apostle for
this purpose, as well as to prove God’s patience with Israel.
In this chapter the remnant is again very distinctly and
prominently introduced, declaring that, because of these,
His servants, He will not destroy all Israel; they are the
elect of Jehovah, who shall inherit His mountains — His
servants, contrasted with those who forsake Him. ey
shall sing for joy of heart when misery and judgment shall
come upon the rest. ese (chap. 66) had hated those who
trembled at Jehovah’s word, and cast them out for His
name’s sake, and said, Let Jehovah be gloried: but He
will appear to the joy of the poor, despised, but faithful
remnant, and they shall be ashamed. ey are righteous
in heart and spirit before He comes; and, therefore, He
appears, and gives them the earthly blessing.
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 3
33
I have gone through these prophecies that the reader may
clearly see that the doctrine of a Jewish remnant (owned
in this character by Jehovah, with Jewish hopes pressed
on them by God’s word, by Jehovah Himself — hopes
to be fullled in the possession of earthly blessings in
Zion, the holy land) — a remnant, pious, and waiting on
Jehovah before His appearing to deliver them, and whose
piety and condence are owned by Him — is not a matter
of speculation, or of the interpretation of some dicult
or obscure text; but the clear, constant, impressive, and
prominent testimony of the Spirit of God. He may have
seen, too, that this remnant is directly and immediately
connected, in character and in the divine testimony, with
the position and character of the remnant at the time of
Christ’s presence on the earth, though meanwhile, for
other purposes, the Lord may hide His face from the house
of Jacob.
e Psalms will aord us the thoughts and feelings
of this remnant in the double aspect of the righteous in
connection with Jehovah, and the purposes of God as to
His anointed Christ — respectively the subjects of Psa. 1
and 2. e Gospels will aord us (only that John’s from its
very nature treats the Jews from chapter 1 as reprobate) the
transition to the previously hidden counsels of God as to
the church which last forms the second subject we have to
treat of.
e Psalms begin (Psa. 1) with distinguishing the
righteous man from the nation; that is, marking out the
remnant morally. e ungodly are not so. ey shall not
stand in the judgment, nor in the congregation which
the righteous will form. As Isaiah had said, in what we
have examined, “ere is no peace, saith my God, for the
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
34
wicked.” Not only this, but the godly man is promised
the present temporal blessing of the righteous Jew; and,
further, the law is the measure of righteousness, in which
he delights.
us the rst thing the Psalms do is to give the
position of the remnant, and the results of that position
in the government of God, while the blessing of God is
pronounced upon the godly remnant itself.
e next thing is to present to us the heathen and Jewish
rulers rising in rebellion against Jehovah and His anointed,
and the sure decree which sets Him, as Son of God, upon
the throne of Zion, and calls upon the kings and judges of
the earth to submit to Him lest they perish. Such are the
thoughts of God, the eect of His government.
But another scene is opened out before it is accomplished.
e godly man (and Christ, as such) nds himself a prey to
the relentless hostilities of the ungodly. In Psa. 3-7 we have
the various relative feelings of the faith of the remnant
in this position — faith in spite of the taunts of enemies
as to apparent desertion, calling upon God in peaceful
condence, appeal to God in contrast with the wicked, the
distress so strong that God’s chastening in displeasure is
deprecated, and appeal against the wicked in this distress,
looking to God’s bringing it to an end as the righteous
Judge. en, in Psa. 8, the remnant own Jehovah their Lord
as having made His name excellent in all the earth, while
the Son of man, rejected when He came as Messiah,
3
is set
over all the works of His hands: that is, the full universal
dominion of Christ is owned.
3 Hence, when drawing to the close of His ministry, Christ
forbids to say He is the Christ: e Son of man was to suer,
Compare Luke 9.
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 3
35
Now we have the remnant here very distinctly, and
Jehovah their Lord: but we have the godly man. In Psa. 1,
the righteous is plural in verse 6. But what undoubtedly is
specially presented is Christ’s entering in spirit, as the true
godly one, into all the sorrows of the righteous remnant,
which, though stated in principle, and specially in principle
from Christ’s rst coming (when the position of the godly
remnant and the rebellion of the nation were denitely
and in their full character brought out), reach on to the
nal destruction of his enemies, as indeed stated in the
two introductory Psalms. at it is stated in principle is
evident from Psa. 1; that it is true in its main principle
of Christ, the application of Psa. 2 by the apostles to the
circumstances of Christ’s death, and by Christ Himself of
Psa. 8 on the same occasion, are ample proof. at it runs
on to the close, and gives the suerings of the remnant, and
the judgment of the wicked then, is shown by Psa. 1:5; 2:8-
12; 3:7, 8; 7:6, and following; while Psa. 8 gives the result in
blessing when the Son of man takes His place in the glory.
(continued).
(To be continued).
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
36
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 4
37
145629
e Rapture of the Saints
and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 4
us the general character of the book (more correctly
of the ve books of Psalms, in which there is much more
method than is supposed) is clearly given. It is the position
of the godly remnant in Israel, and Christ entering in
spirit wholly and fully into the position of this remnant,
sometimes animating their feelings according to His mind
in them in it, while sometimes the Spirit rises up to the
expression of His own, as entered personally into it, so that
what is there said becomes direct prophecy as to Christ
Himself. e Lord, entering fully in grace (for in all their
aiction He was aicted) into their trial, appropriates
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
38
more than once language which is also true and applicable
in the mouth of the remnant, though sometimes, as we
have seen, it is exclusively Himself. In all, it is His Spirit
graciously furnishing the expression of sorrows and desires
in the trial by His perfect sympathy, or of which He is
the source — sorrows and desires into which He has so
personally entered, that often the terms employed belong
prophetically to Him.
To proceed (Psa. 9 and 10.), the trial and judgment of
the last days are denitely gone into, and the state of the
remnant plainly set forth; the needy expectations of the
poor would not always be forgotten. e connection of the
Lord with the remnant, and their praise for deliverance,
is unfolded in Psa. 9; the extensive power of wickedness
and distress of the remnant in Psa. 10; but the general
subject and result is the same. In Psa. 11-15 the various
thoughts, feelings, and apprehensions of the remnant in
these circumstances are developed, Psa. 15 showing the
Jewish character of godliness which shall nd its place in
God’s holy hill. All this, and its unquestionable carrying
on of the subject to the last days (for we have in Psa. 8 the
full nal exaltation of Christ and blessing of Israel under
the glory of Jehovah’s name; and in Psa. 10 the heathen
perished out of the land, and the Lord king forever and
ever) shows the existence and character of the remnant in
that day, and its connection with the remnant in the time
of Christ’s personal presence in humiliation here on earth,
in the very clearest possible way.
is is completed in Psa. 16 and 17, especially the rst,
by Christ’s denitely taking this place of association with
the godly remnant, as He did historically when He was
baptized with John’s baptism (the submission to which,
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 4
39
on the part of the remnant, was the rst expression of the
action of the Spirit of God in their separating in view of
the thoroughly purging of the Jewish oor). In the path
of that action, Christ, who surely needed no repentance,
at once goes with them. e principle laid down in the
beginning of this
Psalm is brought forward in the Epistle to the Hebrews,
4
to show that “both he that sanctieth and they who are
sanctied are all of one.” In the Psalm, Christ says, I take
the place of a servant to Jehovah, not my divine place. He
says to Jehovah, ou art my Lord; my goodness extendeth
not to thee. He says (for that is the connection) to the saints
on earth, the excellent, In them is all my delight. Having
taken this path, and owning, leaning on, and desiring
none but Jehovah, He follows the path of life, does not see
corruption, and nds His eternal joy as man in the presence
and at the right hand of Jehovah. As Psa. 16 was His trust in
God, so Psa. 17 is His appeal to His righteousness. He will
behold His face in righteousness and be satised, awaking
up in His likeness, the true eternal image of the invisible
God. But here He brings in the remnant as associated with
Him in His sorrow. In Psalm 16:2, it is absolutely Himself
passing through death in the power of life. Mainly so in
Psalm17; only He associates the rest of the godly with
Himself.
Psa. 18 is, I doubt not, the application of Christ’s death
backwards and forwards (to the deliverance of Israel from
Egypt, and to their nal deliverance when, under the gure
of David, all is subdued under Him).
4 e quotation, as is shown by reference to the LXX., is from
Isa. 8. But if this be referred to, it will only still more strongly
conrm this connection of Christ with the place of the
remnant, as the securer and inspirer of their Jewish hopes.
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
40
e Psalms which follow are remarkably interesting.
In Psa. 19 we have the testimony of the creation, and the
law. Psa. 20, Messiah; but now it is the sympathy of the
remnant with Him, as suggested by the prophetic Spirit.
Psa. 21 the full result of His sorrows and desires recognized
in His glory. Compare Psa. 20:4, and Psa. 21:2. e result
is, length of days forever and ever as man, and glory laid on
Him. In result, His right hand nds out all His enemies. In
Psa. 22 we have, not His sorrows from man merely, but the
forsaking of God. He mentions these sorrows, and appeals
to God not to forsake Him, and is forsaken as none other
had been. e result is all grace, which He exercises on His
full deliverance, in making known the deliverer’s name to
His brethren, and associating the remnant in praise with
Him, then all Israel (for He has been heard as the poor
man, so that they may trust in their cry); and then all the
ends of the earth bow to Him in millennial fullness; and
generations to be born learn what He has done as the
source of their blessedness.
I will close this rapid review of the early Psalms with
noticing Psa. 23 and 24. Psa. 23 as showing Jehovah’s faithful
shepherd care through every diculty, now exercised in our
favor by Christ, is in principle the portion of every believer;
but as He knows His sheep and is known of them, so He
has walked in the path in which the sheep had to walk, and
when He put them forth, went before them; and though
the place of sheep was properly still theirs, not His, yet
He has really walked in it; and, in that sense this Psalm
is the expression of His own condence. Restoring is not
exclusively from sin — though He does that for us, but
from sorrow and oppression of heart; as, “Now is my soul
troubled and what shall I say? Father, save me from this
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 4
41
hour.” In Psa. 24 we nd, that He who has walked in the
path of the sheep themselves in grace is the Lord of hosts
Himself; and in the last day will take His place in glory
in the hill and in the house of the glory of Jehovah. e
character of him who shall have a place there, and blessing
and righteousness from the God of his salvation, is found
in verses 3-6. For the righteous remnant are all forgotten;
only here, I apprehend, it goes out to Gentiles (so verses
5 and 6 seem to imply), for they shall rejoice in that day
with His people. From this to Psa. 41, which closes the
book (Psa. 40 giving the source of all the blessings in the
counsels of God, and the willingness of Christ to undertake
the accomplishment of His will), are largely and blessedly
unfolded the various exercises of heart in condence, joy,
and sorrow, with exhortations and warnings suited to the
godly in such circumstances, and Christ’s entering into
them given as a ground of condence: “is poor man
cried and the Lord heard him,” though this be in principle
true of many a saint.
In this part, consequently (for it is never the case
before Psa. 25), sins are referred to, and the blessedness of
forgiveness; for, after all, the remnant had sins, and Christ
took them. But the true godly character of the remnant, as
under the inuence of Christ’s Spirit, is what is put forward
in the rst place as the true essential characteristic of the
book, and of the position of those who are its immediate
subjects. Even in Psa. 22, where the fact of God’s forsaking
is spoken of, the “Why?” shows the perfectly righteous
man. rough grace we can answer the “Why?” but in the
Psalm itself Christ is the Righteous Suerer forsaken of
God. Of Psa. 6 we can say, that the occasion of such fear to
us would be our sins; but sins are not spoken of there — it
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
42
was grief: but the wicked who pressed Him He sends away,
as apart from them. In a word, sins are not spoken of before
Psa. 25. is is after the whole introductory part of the
connection of Christ with the remnant. ence to the end
of Psa. 41 every kind of practical exercise is gone through
to which the remnant will be in fact subject, of which they
need the exposition from God; but it is always of the godly
these Psalms speak, even when forgiveness is sought or sins
confessed. ey acquaint us with the circumstances of the
godly remnant in the latter day, though often on principles
which all, by grace, can use. See Psa. 35 and 37.
Remark also the essential dierence between the
suerings of Christ from man and from God; the rst were
for righteousness, the second for sin. e consequence of
the rst (Psa. 21) is, that He will make His enemies as a
ery oven in the day of His wrath. In the second He was
bearing wrath: the consequence is all unmingled blessing,
and nothing else, as its fruit. (See Psa. 22:11-23).
(To be continued)
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 5
43
145630
e Rapture of the Saints
and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 5
Now, the reader has only to take up these Psalms and he
will see the remnant recognized as a godly Jewish remnant,
and their deliverance wrought by judgment (which is not
the case of the raised or heaven-born saints in any case);
their blessings, Jewish blessings; the character of their
righteousness, Jewish. ey wait on God, are owned;
their cry is heard. ey are exhorted to perseverance and
dependence. e earth is their portion in many exhortations.
Yet they go back to the place Christ held on the earth, and
show Him buried — not seeing corruption and ascended
on high. For their piety and waiting on the Lord for earthly
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
44
deliverance, see Psa. 27:4, 13, 14, and indeed the whole
Psalm; for their separation from the ungodly, Psa. 26; for
their trial and appeal, Psa. 31; for the positive reassuring of
the saints, and condence founded on Jehovah’s ways with
the poor man, Psa. 37. Psa. 38 is the full heart guidance
and encouragement of God, the inheritance of the earth
promised to those blessed of Jehovah. e whole Psalm
should be read.
In Psa. 40 we have Christ’s example to encourage. He
waited patiently for the Lord. en His whole work from
His rst undertaking it is shown, and His taking the place
Himself of the poor and needy. I only notice Psa. 41 as
an example of a statement fullled in the case of Christ,
but not properly a prophecy of Him. He was, above all,
that poor man so often spoken of in the Psalms; but His
brethren will tread in the same path, however feebly, and
meet similar treachery, and what is done to one of the least
of them is done to Him. e Lord God of Israel would
accomplish His purposes in blessing.
I need not go into the same detail with the remaining
four books. is gives the position of the remnant in the
midst of Israel, all its great principles, and the place Christ
has taken in their sorrows, Jehovah delivering, though in
the end He is proved to be Jehovah.
In the second book, Psa. 42-72, they are cast out, the
power of Antichrist established; but (Psa. 45) Messiah
appears, and full deliverance is celebrated to the end of Psa.
48. Psa. 49 is the world’s instruction by the judgment; Psa.
50 the general judgment of Israel; Psa. 51 their confession
of Christ’s death now He has appeared; then the various
relative exercises of heart under these circumstances. In
Psa. 65; 66; 67 that praise which only waits for God’s
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 5
45
deliverance to burst forth in Zion is sounded out, and thus
the nations are to be made glad. Psa. 68, an ascended Christ
is the real secret of all this; Psa. 69, a suering Christ the
basis of that ascended glory, and the security of the poor
and needy in Zion. Psa. 70 and 71 apply it in the remnant,
and against the wicked, in the person of David, I doubt
not to Israel, seemingly past hope; and Psa. 72 describes
the full reign of peace. But take the end even of Psa. 69,
which applies to Christ’s suerings; you will nd the poor
and needy owned in Zion, and the earthly Jewish types
recognized and opened by God. e seed of His servants
shall inherit it, and they that love His name shall dwell
therein.
e third book, Psa. 73-89, goes out to all Israel, not
simply the Jews, and gives God’s beginning, their fuller
history in the latter days, the glory and blessing of Zion.
e judgment of Israel under law, but election brought out,
and the certainty of mercy by infallible promises to David’s
seed.
e fourth hook is the bringing in the First-begotten
unto the world, directly connected with God’s faithfulness
to Israel, but reaching out to all nations. It shows how the
suering Christ could have a share in the restoration of
Zion. He is the Eternal Creator (Psa. 102). In Psa. 101, we
have His government as man.
In the closing book we have various consequences and
eects on the bringing back of Israel — explanatory Psalms
of the scheme of God, as Psa. 110; the law written on Israel’s
heart, Psa. 119; the Psalms of degrees commenting on
God’s ways; and then the praises of God, with their various
grounds, and pursued in view of millennial blessedness.
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
46
I have just thus run rapidly through the whole book to
give a general idea of its connection with Christ and Israel.
It would evidently be impossible to enter into the detail
of the hundred and fty Psalms here. I think, if the reader
looks at them, he will see the leading ideas borne out. What
he cannot fail to see, if anything can impress the truth, as I
would trust it may, on his mind, is, that there is a godly pious
Jewish remnant — ever true in principle — tried, oppressed,
all but overwhelmed, in the latter day; whose piety Jehovah
owns and encourages before their deliverance; which He
rewards with Jewish blessings according to promise; with
which Christ identies Himself in spirit, as He did, in fact,
when on earth with those of the like spirit; into all whose
sorrows He enters, His own having given Him the tongue
of the learned; whose sins He has borne; and that in this
state of things the case is supposed of dying (Psa. 16; 17)
and heavenly joy provided in that case, but the hopes held
out are of Jewish blessings, the earth, the holy hill, and
deliverance wrought by judgment, that they may enjoy it
(which we learn in the second and fourth books); that the
ascension and sitting at God’s right hand precede these
blessings, Christ returning to judgment to bring them in-
returning withal as Jehovah, and entering into the temple
as such — assuring all things to Israel as David’s seed,
having all things under His feet as Son of man, and while
King in Zion, subjecting all the nations as Son of God
born in this world. e name of the Father and the thought
of the church do not appear: room is left for one after His
resurrection, when He calls the saints brethren; and some
gure of the other in Psa. 139, but no direct reference to
either. e Holy Ghost’s work, as come down from heaven,
is intimated in the form of gifts in man, but so as Israel also
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 5
47
will have them in the latter day — “Yea, for the rebellious
also, that the Lord God may dwell among them” — only so
far, however, intimated, as to say that Christ has received
gifts for men.
Such is the testimony of the Psalms. While ministering
to piety at all times, though often a piety with imperfect
intelligence, their subject is the remnant of Israel, and the
blessings of that remnant as such, of course through Christ,
the ministrations of His Spirit, preparing them to enjoy it
with earthly though divinely given hopes, and in an earthly
way.
Note here, too, that all this connects itself with God’s
government of the world, and in no way with that sovereign
grace, which sets a sinner in heavenly glory as one with
Christ Himself, and a member of His body. But a heavenly
calling is shown in Him, and the possibility of passing to
it by death; but it is only stated as to the person of Christ
directly, or in the general expression, “e heavens shall
declare his righteousness.”
What we have now to inquire into is the extent to
which the New Testament seals these hopes and promises
to Israel, while introducing higher and heavenly hopes. For
it is absolutely impossible that it can set them aside. It does
not undo what God had before promised and assured to His
people; that is certain and evident. “e gifts and calling
of God are without repentance.” It is said in speaking of
Israel, Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for
the truth of God, to conrm the promises made to the
fathers. Has his rejection and death set them aside? Far
from it. It is just this the apostle insists on in Rom. 11. It
has made their accomplishment to be of pure grace, and
has secured that accomplishment. Our only research, then,
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
48
is as to this point: Was the remnant owned in connection
with the kingdom then? Is this connection carried on to
the latter days, so as to link the future restoration with the
remnant then owned of and owning Christ, so as to show
that there will be a pious godly remnant owned of God,
such as the Psalms speak of, before the manifestation of
the Lord, and waiting for Him?
e beginning of the Gospel of Luke announces Christ
fully as thus coming in connection with Israel, before
entering on the wider moral ground connected with the
Gentiles, which Luke more especially does, and I think
we may say because he does. e Spirit of God, at the
commencement of this Gospel, has put His seal on all the
promises to, and hopes of, the godly remnant (that is, of
Israel). e pious remnant were looking for redemption in
Jerusalem, and knew one another thus (Luke 2:38). ere
were just and devout ones waiting for the consolation
of Israel, and saw in Christ a light indeed to reveal the
Gentiles, but the glory of God’s people Israel. e angels
brought good tidings to the shepherds, which were such to
all the people (not all people). In the city of David a Savior
was born to them, which was Christ the Lord. e angels
of the heavenly chorus alone, in this part of the Gospel,
celebrate the full result of Christ’s coming to the earth-a
result not yet produced, but, as the Lord Himself states, for
the present the contrary, but which will be produced fully
on the earth hereafter.
Prophetically, it was declared that many of Israel should
be turned to the Lord their God, through him who came
in the spirit and power of Elias: he was to make ready a
people prepared for the Lord. Note the last expression, for
it gives the divine intention as to any Elias service, and
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 5
49
what the essential character of the remnant is. It is not
sovereign grace visiting a sinner of the Gentiles in his sins,
but a people prepared for the Lord before He comes. To
Mary it is announced that the child born of her on the
earth should be called the Son of the Highest, and that the
throne of His father David should be given Him. He was
Jesus, i.e., Jehovah the Savior. Help to His servant Israel is
the nal subject of praise with Mary in the touching and
beautiful interview between her and Elizabeth. And the
song of Zacharias (Luke 1:67-79) is wholly composed of
the divinely-given celebration of God’s having visited and
redeemed His people, and raised up a horn of salvation
for them in the house of His servant David — a temporal
salvation aorded — promises to Abraham in favor of
his earthly seed to be fullled. e whole is too clear and
denite to need any comment: a remnant already waiting,
a people prepared for Jehovah, full earthly deliverance from
Him. ese are the topics divinely given by inspiration
on the occasion of the birth of Christ. at they were
interrupted, for the accomplishment of brighter and
more blessed purposes, by His rejection, is quite true; but
to suppose that He was to invalidate them would be to
subvert divine testimonies and destroy divine faithfulness.
at it is only a remnant is clearly shown. He was for the
fall, as well as for the rising up, of many in Israel. Further,
all that passes, Mary’s purication and the whole scene,
places us on Jewish ground.
Matthew’s whole Gospel reveals to us the presentation
of Christ to the Jews, and the substitution of the new
divine order for the Jewish on His rejection. Hence it
becomes particularly important to see how far it assures
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
50
us that, notwithstanding this new divine order, the old
5
is still according to the mind of God to be accomplished
in its time. We shall nd that the yet future testimony of
the servant of God in Israel is expressly linked up with
the service of Christ’s disciples in His lifetime, passing
over, as the prophets are wont to do, the whole intervening
church period unnoticed. is Evangelist, from the outset,
introduces Christ as the accomplishment of prophecy and
promise. e very genealogy itself, and Matt. 1:22, and
2:5, 15, suce to point out this — the last showing that
Israel’s history is taken up afresh in Christ, the true Vine,
according to the principle of Isa. 49:5.
In the sermon on the mount the remnant are morally
distinguished; the qualities of those who should have part
in the kingdom, are clearly and fully stated in contrast
with the current self-righteousness of the Jews. Two great
principles characterize this teaching of the Lord — the
spiritual character of the law, and the revelation of the
Father’s name. It is to be remarked that persecution is
supposed, and reward in heaven presented as the fruit of
it. us we have the Lord’s teaching in Israel clearly and
fully brought before us. Obedience to His teaching was
like a man building his house on the rock; while Israel was
warned he was in the way with God, and if he did not
come to agreement with Him, he would be cast into prison
till all was paid. (Compare Isa. 40:2). It will be remarked,
that all this is divine government, not divine salvation.
I pass by a multitude of indications of the same
relationship of God with Israel, accompanied with
5 When I say the old, it is not of course under the old covenant.
It was God’s wisdom to accomplish all promised and predicted,
but on the pure ground of grace. (See the close of Rom. 11).
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 5
51
warnings of the introduction of the new order of things,
to draw my reader’s attention to a chapter which brings
the point which occupies us out into the fullest light. In
chapter 10 Christ sends out the twelve. ey were not to
go in the way of the Gentiles, nor to enter into a city of
the Samaritans; but to go to the lost sheep of the house
of Israel, and declare the kingdom of heaven at hand; to
inquire who was worthy (i.e., seek the righteous remnant,
not poor sinners), and repel with fullest condemnation,
shaking o the dust of their feet, those who did not receive
them. ough in Israel, they were “as sheep in the midst
of wolves”: it was an ungodly nation. ey were to seek
the worthy ones in it, speaking peace everywhere, but that
peace resting only on the sons of peace. But in verse 18
this goes on to circumstances out of the Lord’s lifetime.
ey were to be brought before Gentiles, and the Spirit of
their Father to speak in them; not only so, but they would
be hated of all men for Christ’s name sake, and when
persecuted in one city, go to another; for they would not
have gone over the cities of Israel till the Son of man was
come.
Now here we have a mission exclusively to Israel, carried
on during the Lord’s lifetime, carried on by the Spirit
afterward, in which they were to endure to the end — a
ministry which would not be closed nor completed, and
still conned to the cities of Israel, till the Son of man
came. How often do we see the prophets passing on from
some notable circumstances in their day to “that day!”
Here we nd the Lord establishing a ministry exclusively
to Israel, drawing out the remnant; carried on after Him
by the Spirit, and carried on with the same objects still
unnished even when He comes as Son of man. ey have
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
52
only to do with Gentiles as enemies, along with the wicked
and hostile nation of the Jews. Nothing can be plainer
in all its parts. ey were, according to Jewish hopes and
prospects, to gather out a remnant and prepare a people
for the kingdom which was at hand. Such is the direct
teaching of the Lord.
I note, in passing, that, besides the history of the
mysteries of the kingdom to its close, consequent on
His rejection, the church itself (chap. 16) and the glory
of the kingdom (chap. 17.) are announced in connection
respectively with His titles of Son of the living God and
Son of man. He and His disciples are (chap. 17:24-27)
the children of the kingdom. e judgment of the nation,
viewed in their own responsibility is clearly announced in
divers parables under law and under the grace of Christ’s
mission at that time.
(To be continued)
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 6
53
145631
e Rapture of the Saints
and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 6
But in chapter 23 we come again to positive instructions
on this point. e multitude and the disciples are both put
on distinct Jewish ground, subjected to Moses’s seat; yet
they who lled it — all the teachers and the righteous of
the nation — put under lawful condemnation. Further, the
apostolic mission (vers. 34-36) is presented as “prophets, and
wise men, and scribes,” sent to the nation (as the prophets
rejected of old had been), their rejection bringing present
temporal judgment on that generation. Often would Jesus-
Jehovah have gathered Jerusalem’s children together-that
Jerusalem who thus, in all times, stoned the prophets, and
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
54
killed those sent to her; but she never would listen. Now
her house was left desolate to her; she would not see her
Lord till she repented. When, through grace, she was in
the spirit of that which God had perfected praise by, in
putting it into the mouth of babes and sucklings when
Christ was rejected by the nation-namely, the confession
of Psa. 118 — then, and not before, she would see Christ
again. In a word, there must be a prepared people, a people
prepared to receive Him, saying, “Blessed be he that cometh
in the name of the Lord,” before the Lord would appear to
them. Nothing, I apprehend, can be clearer than this, as to
the position in which the Lord sets the multitude and the
disciples; the character He gives to the witness of these last
in Israel, after His decease, and the desolation of Jerusalem
and the house, till repentance and a prepared heart had
made them ready to receive the Lord, ready for the home
here on earth, now to be desolate no more.
e Lord then proceeds to announce the judgment
of Jerusalem, and the circumstances of His disciples in
connection with the end of the age. e disciples inquire
when should the temple be destroyed, what the sign of
Christ’s coming, and of the end of the age. at the questions
here relate to the Jewish people is perfectly evident: the end
of the age (it is well known that “world” is a mistake) has
no sense or application out of the sphere of Jewish thought.
at it referred to this, in the mind of the disciples, is most
clear; that the other question, when the temple should be
destroyed, had this reference, it is not needed to say. Does
the Lord’s answer continue on this ground? His answer
is divided into two parts; a general warning to the end of
verse 14, and particular circumstances from verse 15.
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 6
55
As to the rst part, to whom do persons come, saying,
I am the Christ? Not to Christians as such, I suppose. It
was an expectation that Christ might appear, into which
the disciples, with Jewish expectations, might be seduced.
e scene, sphere, and character, of deception are Jewish.
Many troubles and wars would arise; but the end of which
they inquired was not yet. Before that arrived, the gospel of
the kingdom, which Jesus, and even John the Baptist, had
announced, would be sent to all the Gentiles, and then the
end would come. Why even this dierence, if the previous
part were not Jewish in its sphere?
e latter part, from verse 16, demonstrates, as clearly
as any language can do, that the Lord was referring to what
was Jewish. e abomination of desolation of which Daniel
spoke in a prophecy specially referring to his (Daniel’s)
people, is the point of departure: it would stand in the
holy place. ose who were in Judea were to ee to the
mountains; they were to pray that their ight should not be
on the sabbath day. What language can be plainer, to show
the place, the people, the circumstances, which occupy the
Savior’s thoughts? the rather because we get the saints, and
the nations, and their judgments, in chapter 25.
at is (to resume the evidence this Gospel aords
us), it takes up the ministry in Christ’s time (chap. 10.),
and pursues it to the close — the coming of the Son
of man — in an exclusively Jewish character. e Lord
takes up the disciples and the multitude (chap. 23.) on
denitely Jewish ground, subjecting them to Moses’ chair,
while rejecting those that sat there; and declares, at the
close, that repentance must characterize the remnant
before they would see Him again: and then, showing the
judgment on the house, shows the nation guilty — iniquity
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
56
abounding — the testimony of the remnant in the midst
of this iniquity — the true witness of the kingdom — and
extending before the end to all nations: and, nally, He
returns to the last great tribulation and occupies Himself
with the godly remnant in Judaea and Jerusalem, previous
to His own appearing; warning them that new pretenses
would arise of His being there, a suggestion having no
application whatever to Christians, properly so called,
because they are to be caught up to meet the Lord in the
air. A person must have renounced Christian hopes before
such a pretense could be a snare to him. To an earthly
remnant the presence of Christ upon earth is the sum of
all their rightful hopes.
As regards the subsequent continuation of this testimony
in the midst of Jerusalem, the Lord on the cross (Luke
23:34) intercedes for them, saying, “Father, forgive them,
for they know not what they do.” To this the Holy Ghost,
in witness, responds, saying by the mouth of Peter (Acts
3:17) “Now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did
it, as did your rulers. Repent ye, therefore, and be converted,
that your sins may be blotted out, so that [not “when”] the
times of refreshing may come from the presence of the
Lord; and he shall send Jesus, whom heaven must receive
till the times of the restitution of all things, of which God
hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since
the world began.” Now, this gracious continuation of the
testimony to Israel, as such (see vers. 25, 26 — the remnant
is distinguished by the reception of the testimony, ver. 23),
shows that repentance was called for in order to Christ’s
return. ose would be cut o who did not receive this
prophetic testimony. Stephen bears witness to their always
resisting the Holy Ghost; and to Saul, the most active
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 6
57
resister of the Spirit amongst them, the willing help of
the slayers of the witness, the full doctrine of the church
is revealed. e persecuted witnesses are owned to be
members of Christ Himself; yet, though the church be set
up (and we have it in fact, Acts 2, before Peter’s testimony),
and Paul be made a minister of it, he preaches rst to the
Jews only; when they count themselves unworthy of eternal
life, he turns to the Gentiles, and pronounces, as witness of
this church ministry, as the Lord in His living one, that the
judgment pronounced by Isaiah must soon fall upon them;
but it is only in Acts 28 that this is nally said-the last
scriptural witness that we have historically.
e general doctrine of a remnant in Israel is clearly
stated in the Epistle to the Romans; an elect remnant spared,
who, not continuing in unbelief, will be grafted in again,
and that into their own olive tree; not into the Christian
assembly, which was not their own olive tree — they had
never been broken out of that, nor had the believing
branches continued in it. ere is an elect remnant of Israel
which shall be brought to believe, and be grafted into their
own olive tree, and become the nation — the “all Israel.”
ere are many passages in the prophets, as Joel 2, Zech. 9,
to which it may suce thus to refer.
We will now proceed to take up the other capital point of
which we desired to speak — that in which God shows the
sovereign fullness of His grace. e historical development
of the doctrine we have hinted at, and we will briey state
it here. We have the largest and fullest warrant for saying,
that it was entirely unrevealed in the Old Testament.
Speaking of the mystery, the admission of the Gentiles to
be of the one body in the assembly of God, Paul says (Rom.
16:25, 26), “e preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
58
revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the
world began, but now is made manifest and by prophetic
scriptures [not “the scriptures of the prophets”], according
to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known
to all nations for the obedience of faith,” etc. In Eph. 4;
5, “e mystery of Christ, which in other ages was not
made known to the sons of men, as it is now revealed
unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; that the
Gentiles should be fellow-heirs and of the same body”;
and (ver. 9), “the fellowship of the mystery which from the
beginning of the world was hid in God: to the intent that
now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places
might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of
God, according to the eternal purpose which he purposed
in Christ Jesus.” So (Col. 1:24), “For his body’s sake, the
church, whereof I am made a minister, according to the
dispensation of God, which is given to me for you, to fulll
the word of God; the mystery which hath been hid from
ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to
his saints.” is doctrine, of which Paul, as he states in
the Colossians, was a minister, as well as of the gospel,
in order to complete the word of God, was thus wholly
unknown to the saints of the Old Testament. Much
more was utterly obscure; but this was hid in God. Other
things they might have were for an age to come, not for
themselves, as the promise of the Spirit and the Messiah’s
glory and redemption; but this they knew not at all. When
the Father had revealed to Simon Bar-jonas the truth of
the person of Christ, that He was the Son of the living
God (not merely the Christ), Christ could then speak of
the church; for it was to be founded on that. But He spoke
of it only prophetically, and as a future thing — “on this
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 6
59
rock I will build my church.” It was by resurrection He was
declared Son of God with power; so that Satan’s power was
of no avail; and His death was needed to gather together
in one the children of God, wherever scattered abroad-His
departure, that the Comforter might come.
Except the corn of wheat fell into the ground and died,
it abode alone. When Christ had died — had gone up
on high — the great foundation was laid for all blessings,
and in particular for the church. And the Holy Ghost,
the Comforter, came down according to promise; and the
assembly, the church, was formed; and the Lord added daily
to the Church such as should be saved (the residue, the
σωζομένους). at was the way He now disposed of them,
though His promises to Israel remained sure. e doctrine
of the church, however, was not taught as far as scripture
informs us. e Christians remained strictly attached to
Judaism, zealous of the law; priests were obedient to the
faith, nor seem to have ceased to be priests. Peter never
even teaches that Jesus is the Son of God; his doctrine is,
“Him whom ye have crucied, God hath exalted to be a
Prince and a Savior, for to give repentance to Israel, and
remission of sins:” God had made Him both Lord and
Christ.
What will, perhaps, surprise the reader, the church
is never named in the Epistles but by Paul. A particular
assembly is named by John; but the assembly or church, as
a whole, the body of Christ, is spoken of by Paul only; nor,
consequently, I may add, the rapture of the saints before
the appearing of Christ. God raises up, we learn in the
Acts, a free ministry outside the college of the apostles.
is brought out the fullest hatred of the Jews; and
Stephen, an eminent instrument of God in this ministry,
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
60
is put to death. Heaven receives its rst-fruits of the power
of the Holy Ghost, of the church; heaven itself is opened,
and a heavenly Christ is seen — a man in glory is seen.
Conformed to Christ, the spirit of Stephen joins Him on
high, and the nal tale of Judaism was told in blood: they
always resisted the Holy Ghost. God did not dwell in a
house made by hands. is changed everything; a heavenly
gathering before Christ’s return was actually begun.
is, however, was individual; but the enmity of the Jew
was to assume a yet more active and violent character. Not
content with making havoc of the church at Jerusalem,
Saul must persecute them to strange cities; but while
occupied with this, and close to Damascus for the purpose,
he is arrested by the Lord’s revealing Himself in glory
to him, and telling him that those he was persecuting
were Himself — “I am Jesus whom thou persecutest;
why persecutest thou me?” Here, then, sovereign grace
abounded over nal resistance to the Holy Ghost Himself.
e foundation for the gospel of the glory was laid, and the
identication of all the saints on earth with their gloried
Head in heaven was made the starting-point for Paul’s
testimony as to what His church was. Of this he became
minister. For a heavenly, glorious Christ, Jew or Gentile
were all one; they were all one in Him.
e reception of Cornelius was entrusted to Peter, that
the new truth might not be a separate one; but unity, as
manifested on the earth, continues, with a new element
of truth introduced. e unity of Jew or Gentile, as one
body in Christ, was entrusted as a testimony to Paul. He
was minister of the church to complete the word of God.
He who alone verbally speaks of the church, what does he
teach? “God hath put all things under his feet [Christ’s,
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 6
61
exalted on high], and gave him to be head over all things
to the church [assembly], which is his body, the fullness of
him who lleth all in all.” Such, then, is the church. It is an
assembly which, when Christ is exalted on high and lls all
things, is His body, the fullness or completion of the Head.
So in Col. 1 “He is the Head of the body, the church,
the rstborn from the dead.” So in detail (Rom. 12), “We
being many are one body in Christ, and members one of
another.” So 1Corinthians 12. “For as the body is one, and
hath many members, and all the members of that one body,
being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one
Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be
Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have
been all made to drink into one Spirit … Now ye are the
body of Christ, and members in particular.”
Another character as to the formal existence of the
church on earth is, that we, Jew and Gentile (Eph. 2), are
builded together for an habitation of God through the
Spirit. e manner of its building is the breaking down
the middle wall of partition, and to make of twain one new
man; or, as is expressed in a passage already quoted, the
mystery is, that the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs and
of one body. e baptism of the Holy Ghost, by which it
was formed, took place on the day of Pentecost (Acts 1:8),
which it was the distinctive title of Christ to confer (John
1:33, 34), and which for the saints He ascended up on high
to receive. (Acts 2:33; compare John 16:7).
In a word, the church, or assembly, is the body of
Christ, formed, when the Head was exalted, by the Holy
Ghost, which He then sent down to gather together the
saints into unity. Before Israel’s being owned as a nation,
the saints walked in individual faith; when Israel was
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
62
owned, they were individual members of a nation owned
as such as God’s people, but of which the vast mass were
unconverted, the unity of which, such as it was, was in
the esh — a unity with which the Spirit had nothing to
do, and which, consequently excluded Gentiles. After the
death and exaltation of Christ, who gave Himself, not for
that nation only, but to gather together in one the children
of God which were scattered abroad, all was changed in
this respect; the distinction of Jew and Gentiles eaced;
both alike (through faith) reconciled to God, and gathered
into the unity of one assembly by the Holy Ghost sent
down from heaven, which assembly is the church, i.e., the
assembly of God, the body of Christ, the dwelling-place of
the Holy Ghost on earth. We are not inquiring here how
far it could be corrupted or ruined, viewed as the house of
God, or dwelling-place of the Holy Ghost on earth; but
what it is in the primitive scripture view of it. Nothing is
that but itself.
is assembly is, as may be seen (Eph. 5), the bride of
Christ. e word is applied to the particular assemblies
of Christians in dierent places, because they formed the
assembly of God in that place; but if the word be taken as
scripture uses it, it is not possible to attach any equivocal
sense to it. It is God’s assembly, formed by the Holy Ghost
sent down from heaven, when the Head had been exalted
as man on high. It is His body and His bride. Translate the
Greek word by the natural English one, and no one would
have a moment’s hesitation as to what it meant — the
assembly, or the assembly of God. e Lord added daily to
the assembly. He set some in the assembly; rst, apostles;
secondly, prophets.
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 6
63
It is called to participate in the suerings of Christ,
and He will present it to Himself as His bride, as Eve to
Adam, a glorious church, without spot or wrinkle, or any
such thing. When the Lord added to the assembly such as
should be saved, it is quite clear that it was not to that to
which they belonged already; and their adding to it, an act
which showed they did not belong to it as members of the
Jewish nation, not even if they were previously pious. It
was a newly instituted body, formed in unity by the Holy
Ghost sent down from heaven, and united to the Head,
Christ, who was there.
We have now to inquire what the testimony of God is
as to joining Him there. e church’s joining Christ has
nothing to do with Christ’s appearing or coming to earth.
Her place is elsewhere. She sits in Him already in heavenly
places. She has to be brought there as to bodily presence.
Christ would not remain with His disciples here, and
tells them, “I go to prepare a place for you and if I go and
prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you
to myself; that where I am there ye may be also.” e thing
she has to expect for herself, then, is not, though sure of
that also, Christ’s appearing, but her being taken up where
He is. And so the apostle, speaking of it in detail, “e
Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with
the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God, and
the dead in Christ shall rise rst; then we which are alive
and remain shall be caught up together with them in the
clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be
with the Lord.”
We go up to meet Christ in the air. Nothing clearer
then, than that we are to go up to meet Him, and not await
His coming to earth; but that this coming to receive us
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
64
to Himself is not His appearing is still clearer, if we pay
attention to Col. 3, which shows that we are already with
Him when He shall appear. “When Christ who is our life
shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.”
is identication of the church’s hope and glory with
Christ Himself is of the essence of the church’s blessing.
He is our life, our righteousness; the glory given to Him
He has given to us: we are members of His body, we are of
His esh and of His bones. We reign with Him, suer with
Him, are gloried together, being like Him-conformed to
His image. He is hid in God: our life is hid with Him in
glory; but for this we must be caught up to meet Him,
and that before He appears at all — when He does, we are
already with Him and appear with Him. is does not
state the epoch of the rapture of the church, but, what is far
more important, it does clearly show the entire dierence
of relationship of the heavenly saints with Christ, and of
those who only see Him when He appears. e one are
blessed under His reign, and are connected with the earth;
the others are identied with Himself — with Him who
reigns — appear and reign with Him. Wherever this is
enfeebled, Satan is at work.
ere are truths common to all, such as being manifested
before the judgment-seat of Christ. ere are those which
are the prerogative of faith; and such is our association with
Christ, the Firstborn among many brethren, the being His
bride and His body. He who awaits Christ’s appearing, as
the time in which he is to go to be with Him, has denied
the proper hope and proper relationship of the church
with Christ. On this point there can be no compromise.
Ignorance of privilege is one thing (it is our lot, all of us, in
one shape or other), the denial of it another. When once
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 6
65
we have seen that we are to appear with Christ, and that,
consequently, our hope of Christ’s coming for us is not
properly His appearing, all our habits of thought and our
spiritual aections are changed. Our proper hope is not
even the glory in which we appear with Him, wonderful
as that is, but this, “I will come again and receive you unto
myself, that where I am there ye may be also.” “So shall we
ever be with the Lord.”
(continued)
(To be continued)
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
66
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 7
67
145632
e Rapture of the Saints
and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 7
ree several ways of presenting the return of Christ are
found in scripture.
ere is, rst, the general fact. We do not expect things
to go on to an unknown end of dissolution; we are converted
to wait for God’s Son from heaven. Nothing precise and
distinctive is here presented. We do not think that things
go on as they were from the creation of the world. Christ
will come again, and we wait for Him. is is the abiding
thought in every instructed Christian, whatever degree of
light he may have as to details. He expects Christ, so that,
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
68
morally, the fashion of this world is closed for him: the
object of his hope is elsewhere.
Next, the scene of this world is confusion and evil to
his spirit; he knows that it will ripen up into rebellion, and
that God will judge this world by that Man whom He hath
ordained — that Christ will therefore judge the quick and
the dead at His appearing and His kingdom that He will
set up His earthly kingdom by judgment — further, that the
eect of His governmental judgment will be manifested in
the saints at that time — that if it be the day of the Lord
for this world, it is the time when the responsibility of the
saints will be brought to its manifested issue or result. He
will return and take account with His servants, and set
one over ten cities, another over ve. He knows that the
appearing of Christ is naturally and necessarily connected
with manifested judgment; hence he nds responsibility
always referred to this in scripture.
irdly, besides the facts of Christ’s coming and
manifested righteousness, there is, through grace, special
privilege, the proper association of the saints with Christ,
which must have their accomplishment also. No doubt
the saints will be manifested before the judgment-seat of
Christ to give an account of themselves to God; but this is
not separated from privilege, for they arrive there already
like Himself. Yea, He has come Himself to fetch them
there. is special association with Christ is made good, not
by Christ’s appearing, as we have seen (though manifested
then), but by His coming to receive them to Himself where
He is, His introducing them into His Father’s house;
and in the kingdom placing them in the heavenly seat
of government with Himself. is is eectuated by His
coming, and causing them, raised or changed, to come up
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 7
69
and meet Him in the air. is is the rapture of the saints,
preceding their and Christ’s appearing: at that they appear
with Him. So that at their rapture He has not appeared yet.
Such is the general doctrine of the rapture of the
church — a doctrine of the last importance; because it is
immediately connected with the relationship of the church
to Christ, its entire separation from the world and its
portion. It is the act which crowns its perfect justication.
is rapture before the appearing of Christ is a matter of
express revelation, as we have seen from Col. 3:4.
As to the time of this rapture, no one, of course, knows
it. But the dierence, in this respect, between it and the
appearing is very marked, in what is most important. At
the appearing comes the judgment of this world: hence it
connects itself with, and closes, its history; and before it
that history must have run on to its revealed result, revealed
events must have occurred, and the objects of judgment
must have appeared on the scene and accomplished what
is predicted of them. e church is associated with Christ
already gone, is not of the world as He was not, is risen
with Him, has its life hid with Him in God. ere is no
earthly event between it and heaven. It must have been
gathered, and Christ rise up from the Father’s throne to
receive it: that is all. It is this conviction, that the church
is properly heavenly, in its calling and relationship with
Christ, forming no part of the course of events of the earth,
which makes its rapture so simple and clear; and on the
other hand, it shows how the denial of its rapture brings
down the church to an earthly position, and destroys its
whole spiritual character and position.
Our calling is on high. Events are on earth. Prophecy
does not relate to heaven. e Christian’s hope is not a
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
70
prophetic subject at all. It is the promise that Christ will
come and receive him to Himself, that where He is the
Christian may be also.
Although the question be already answered in
principle, it may be well to put it formally here, When is
the Christian to expect the Lord? I answer, Always. It is
his right spiritual character. His always doing it is that by
which his right spiritual state is characterized. Be ye “as
men that wait for their lord when he shall return from the
wedding that they may open to him immediately. Blessed
are those servants whom the Lord when he cometh, shall
nd watching. Verily, I say unto you, that he shall gird
himself, and make them sit down to meat, and will come
forth and serve them … Be ye therefore ready also, for at
such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.”
And, after speaking of service to the saints, the Lord adds,
“Blessed is that servant whom his Lord, when he cometh,
shall nd so doing. Of a truth, I say unto you, He will make
him ruler over all that he hath. But and if that servant say in
his heart, My Lord delayeth his coming, and begin to beat
the men-servants and the maidservants he will appoint
him his portion with the unbelievers.” Here, as a general
principle, the constant waiting for the Lord as a present
thing is given as characterizing those who are blessed when
the Lord comes, and who reign over all things. at which
leads the wicked servant into all mischief is, not the denial
of the Lord’s coming, but the loss of the sense and present
expectation of it.
is was the origin of the church’s departure from
simplicity, and its fall into clerical authority and
worldliness — the cause of the loss of its spiritual authority.
e saints went out, left the world and worldly religion by
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 7
71
going out, to meet the Bridegroom. It characterized them as
a present thing. It was recalled to its primitive position and
liveliness by the renewal of the immediate expectation of
Him. He did tarry, in fact; and the sense of His coming was
lost. “Behold the Bridegroom cometh!” was what aroused
and prepared them. No events, no earthly circumstances,
intervene or modify the direct summons. ey go out to
meet Him. ere is no other thought, no confusion with
the government of this world, none of any previous dealing
in respect of the marriage-feast (His union with the Jews).
ey go back with Him to it.
at the apostle lived in, and taught, this immediate
expectation, as the proper primitive doctrine of the Spirit
of God, is evident, whatever degree of light as to detail may
have been possessed. e essalonians were converted to
wait for God’s Son from heaven; with very little clearness
of light; but they had been so taught, and Paul approves
of their expectation as a divine witness to the world, of
which the world itself spake. It was his manner of entering
in — they were waiting for Him. It was not a prophetic
explanation of events they possessed: there is no event,
I repeat, between us and heaven. God’s Son was coming
from heaven; and they were waiting for Him as the fruit
of Paul’s entering in among them, owned and delighted in
by himself. ey drew certain conclusions from it in which
they erred, which Paul corrected (as he did another mistake,
induced by false teachers, in the second epistle); but their
constant expectation was right. e word even is used only
here, and speaks of awaiting; but Paul was doing as much.
He speaks to them of “we which are alive and remain to
the coming of the Lord.” We are told this is a class. Be it
so. But it is a class in which Paul reckons himself, showing
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
72
that that class could and ought so to await the coming of
the Lord. Why not we?
But there were, as we have seen, errors. e essalonians
were distressed about those who perished for Jesus’ sake;
fearing, as it appears (so much did they expect Christ in
their life-time), that these would not be there to enjoy
His coming. Paul corrects this error, by showing that the
dead would be raised, and then the living go up to meet
Christ with them. But he is so far from weakening the
essalonians’ present expectation of Christ during their
life-time that He conrms it by associating himself with
them in this expectation. e circumstance, that it was a
conclusion drawn from this expectation which misled the
essalonians so that they were troubled about the saints’
dying, gives uncommon force to the statement of the
apostle. How anxiously would he have set them right, had
they been wrong on this, and shown them that he never
had led them, nor meant to have led them, to such an
expectation — that it was an excited and erroneous way of
looking at the Lord’s coming! How would he have shown
them (the occasion and need of correcting error being thus
oered), as do many now, that there were many events
to Occur, much history of the church and world to be
accomplished, before the Lord could come! But, quite the
contrary, he corrects the mistake they did make as to the
dead, showing them that they should rst rise; and they,
being changed, all go up together on high; and conrms
in the strongest way their own present expectation by, as
I have said, associating himself with it. Was he deceived,
as rationalists allege, in having and conrming in others
this thought? Surely not. e moment was not revealed, as
we know: the constant expectation was right. It produced
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 7
73
a liveliness of expectation, a courage in persecution, a
brightness of heart-association with the Lord’s person, and
personal approval, of which Paul will reap the blessed fruits
when the moment does come — of which the essalonians
did reap the fruits every day, in the liveliness of their faith,
and the brightness of their hope, and the labor of their love-
and of which we do: in a witness of liveliness of aection
and liberty of heart, and superiority to circumstances, of
which no epistle in scripture aords a like example. Would
there were a little more enthusiasm in Christians, if it be
founded on a hope sanctioned by the apostle himself!
But those circumstances to which the essalonians
were exposed, were very trying; and if lively, they were young
in the faith. ey had heard that the day of the Lord would
come — a terrible day of trouble and of judgment. False
teachers came and sought to upset their minds, alleging
even a letter of Paul, and declarations of the Spirit, that that
day was there. If hope was somewhat enfeebled by their
suerings, as perhaps was the case (as the apostle speaks
only of their faith and love here), this unsettling of their
minds is not dicult to conceive, entirely inexperienced
as they were, and subjected to trial. But the Lord was
there to help them, as the wicked one to trouble them. It
is to be remarked that the verse translated (2ess. 2), “as
that the day of the Lord is at hand,” should be, beyond
all controversy or question, “as that the day of the Lord
were present,” It is the word translated elsewhere present,
in contrast with things to come. ey were troubled and
upset by the impression that the day of the Lord, that great
and terrible day was actually come. No wonder the apostle
could not speak of their hope. Before the apostle touches
on their mistake, and unfolds the true order of events, with
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
74
heavenly skill he sets their minds at ease. is he does in
the rst chapter. He glories in their patience and faith in
their persecutions. It was a righteous thing with God to
recompense tribulation to those that troubled them, and to
them that were troubled rest with Paul and others (he was
associated in the sorrow and the rest too) when the Lord
Jesus shall be revealed from heaven in aming re to take
vengeance on them that know not God, and obey not the
gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, when He shall come to be
gloried in His saints, and admired in (not “to receive to
himself”) all them that believe (for the essalonians had
believed) in that day.
Here all is set in its place. It was Christ’s appearing in
glory which would bring in the day. If that day had been
then present, it was without Christ. If His appearing
brought it in, He was not going to trouble those that
were His, but surely those who troubled them. at was a
righteous matter with God; so that the terrible persecution
the essalonians were undergoing was but a pledge with a
righteous God that, when the kingdom came, they would
have rest and glory. ey would not have trouble when
Christ appeared, and when the kingdom was established
by judgment. In that day their portion would be ease and
delight; nay, indeed, more than that — they would be the
admiration of the world, or rather Christ in them, in that
day.
us, by introducing Christ and God’s righteous ways,
all was as clear as possible, and the delusion dispelled. e
essalonians’ minds were re-established. It is ever so:
introduce Christ and God’s ways, and all is clear and peace.
ey can now, calmly and with a restored soul, in which
known truths had their place, receive fresh and satisfying
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 7
75
light on the point which troubled them. e moment we
see that they thought the day of the Lord was there, all is
perfectly simple and clear.
It has been supposed that “rest when” means the moment
of relief. Nothing is more unfounded. e reasoning of
the apostle is that Christ introducing the day, it was not
when He had the upper hand that His people would be
troubled and ill-treated. Was He going to treat them so? In
the day exactly the contrary would be the case: they would
enjoy rest and blessing: the persecutors would be troubled.
e word ἄνεσις by no means conveys always the same
meaning of a moment of relaxation arriving; it is never so
used in scripture. e other passages are Acts 24:23; 2Cor.
2:12; 7:5; 8:13. It is used in the same sense here. In 2Cor.
8:13, it is in a similar opposition with θλίψις.
We come now to the very easy understanding of 2ess.
2, in which to the relieved essalonians the apostle unfolds,
by fresh instructions, the order in which events will really
take place. I only remark, before turning to it, that if “rest
with us” meant relief at the moment of the revealing of
Christ, it would mean that the essalonians and Paul
were to expect Christ’s appearing in their lifetime, as the
term of their trials, and the moment of their rest. is reply
would be complete and absolute to those who allege this;
but it would not be the truth, nor scriptural. It is not the
force of ἄνεσις here, nor is it the meaning of the passage,
nor would such an expectation, using ἄνεσις in this way, be
a scripturally enlightened one, such as an inspired apostle
would give. It proves the absurdity of their reasoning as an
argumentum ad hominem, but no more.
As regards 2ess. 2, as I have said, the apostle unfolds
additional truth. He had already told the essalonians
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
76
that they would be caught up to meet the Lord in the
air. Hence their being under the day of Christ on the
earth was an absolute impossibility, since they would be
in heaven, with the executor of the wrath of it, before it
arrived. is motive he now pleads. ey fancied (or at
least were unsettled as to it by the false teachers) that
the day was actually come consequently, without Christ’s
coming. Hence he says, “We beseech you, by the coming
of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together unto
him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, nor troubled … as
that the day of the Lord was come.” Both facts, and both
together, proved that the day of the Lord was not there;
already evident by the moral absurdity of the day of the
Lord being against the Lord’s people; but here he leads
them on to positive ground. Christ must come for it, and
their portion was to be gathered up to Him before the day
arrived.
Another thing which showed the day was not then come
(this supposition being the groundwork of all the apostle’s
reasoning and, indeed, the occasion of the whole epistle)
was, that the day would not come till the apostasy came,
and the man of sin was revealed. Before the day of Christ
could be present on the earth, events must occur — the
object of judgment must be there. us the mistakes of
the essalonians only gave occasion to clearer and surer
light. And here I must remark that confounding the day
of the Lord and His coming to receive the church is not
a mere mistake in terms, but a subversion of the whole
nature of the relationship between Christ and the church,
and Christ and the world, an apostate world; and a losing
sight wholly of the great moral bearing of a day coming on
the world, of which the Old Testament is full as well as the
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 7
77
New. To mix this up with “I will come again and receive
you to myself, that where I am there ye may be also,” is to
confound the whole bearing of Christ’s aections towards
His own, with the terror of an apparition which every eye
shall see — a confounding the aming re of destructive
judgment with the dearest condences of perfect grace,
and bringing down the hopes of the saints, founded on the
all-perfect grace and truth of Christ, to the level of an event
common to all, and terrible in its glory. It is the practical
establishment of the error to correct which the second
Epistle to the essalonians was written. It not only sets
aside the distinctive revelation of our being caught up to
meet the Lord in the air, and the distinctive existence and
position which (it is here, as elsewhere, revealed) we shall
have with Christ when He appears. When He appears we
shall appear with Him; He will come to be gloried in His
saints, and admired in all them that believe (not to receive
them up to Himself). e scripture is as plain as possible.
He who confounds the day of Christ with His coming to
receive the church knows neither what His day is, nor His
coming, nor the church.
Do the saints not await His coming to earth, and His
appearing? Undoubtedly: but not as the time of their
joining Him; for, I repeat, they will appear with Him: as
walking on earth, they await this event. ey await it as the
great eventful act of God’s government, in which Christ is
gloried, as that in which all responsibility will be brought
to its manifest result. It is the grand act of that display
of power which sets everything in its place according to
the divine judgment, and by which evil power is set aside.
But they do not expect it as that which is to fulll and
accomplish their own personal blessedness according to
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
78
sovereign grace in their own relationship with Christ (that
is, in the Father’s house). Christ’s appearing will be the
fall establishment of divine power in government, and the
result of responsibility; the rapture of the church, and its
entrance into the Father’s house, the accomplishment of
sovereign grace towards the saints in their full individual
blessedness — of the hopes which communion with the
Father and the Son has given them. Another special result
will follow for the church — the marriage of the Lamb.
But this is distinctive and peculiar, not the completing of
individual grace.
e moment of the rapture none can know. Its
distinctive character is vital for him before whom the truth
is set. I will now cite some passages of detail, which show
our exemption from the tribulation predicted a position in
which the world will nd itself, and in an especial manner
the Jewish people restored to their land.
In the address to the Philadelphian church, and in
reference to the near coming of the Lord, and giving, as
the ground of the promise, that they had kept the word of
Christ’s patience (for He waits also), it is declared that they
shall be kept from the hour of temptation which shall come
on all the world to try them which dwell upon the earth.
is last description of persons is frequently so designated
in the Revelation, and expresses, surely, much more than
the fact that they live on earth. ey are characterized by
having their dwelling-place there.
(Continued)
(To be continued)
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 8
79
145633
e Rapture of the Saints
and the Character of the
Jewish Remnant — 8
In Rev. 12:10-12, it is said, “And I heard a loud voice
saying in heaven, Now is come salvation and strength and
the kingdom of God, and the power of his Christ, for the
accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them
before our God day and night. And they overcame him by
the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony;
and they loved not their lives unto the death. erefore
rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that’ dwell in them. Woe to the
inhabiters of the earth and of the sea!” Now I do not take
this as the rapture, because I believe it had taken place
before, and is pointed out in the timeless rapture of the
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
80
man-child, for the church is one with Christ, and shall rule
the nations as He. But I nd a positive revelation, that three
years and a half before the close (that is the last half-week
of Daniel), Satan is cast down, the accuser of the brethren is
no longer in heaven, the triumph of those accused is come-
their trial passed; they had been in trial and conict, and
had overcome, and conict is ended for dwellers in heaven.
It begins, and with great wrath of Satan, for the inhabiters
of earth. ere had been persecution, there had been death.
For one class it had now ceased, and for another it was just
going to begin. And note, this is exactly the epoch spoken
of by Daniel, which the Lord refers to as the tribulation
such as never was since there was a nation; nor have I
the smallest doubt that the woman represents the Jews.
I am aware, as to the remnant of her seed, diculty has
been raised from the expression, “the testimony of Jesus
Christ.” But the answer is in the book itself: “e spirit of
prophecy is the testimony of Jesus.” It will be a prophetic,
not a church, testimony — a very dierent thing. Compare
with this the end of Isa. 1, where the remnant are expressly
declared to hear the voice of God’s servant (that is, of
Christ as prophet).
I only notice these as accessory and explanatory, as
my object is not controversial, but to bring out plainly
the testimony of scripture on the Jewish remnant and
on the church. Renewed opposition to these truths has
come recently under my eye, but what is alleged was only
proof to me how, when men are not taught of God on
any subject, little diculties hide and obliterate immense
and fundamental truths, which a child, learning of God
in simplicity, could not go astray upon. Indeed, wherever
the connection between Christ and the church is not seen,
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 8
81
reasoning on these subjects can only bring into deeper
darkness.
But, as I have said, my object is not controversy here;
and I pursue not my impressions on this point farther,
however clear and strong they may be. If the reader has
laid hold of the truth, clearly proved from scripture, that
there is a distinct Jewish remnant at the end, with Jewish
hopes given of God, and a Jewish character, that the
church has its own and peculiar association with Christ,
as the body with its Head, called into union by the Holy
Ghost, sent down from heaven; if we have seen that we
shall not abide down here till Christ appears, since it is
positively declared — revealed — that we shall appear with
Him when He appears, he will have got hold of clear
land-marks which will guide him safely through details,
in the discovery and order of which patience will surely be
needed; but through the knowledge of these land-marks,
the details will not take him out of the main road, will
never enfeeble divine relationship, upon which the holiest
and most precious aections are necessarily dependent,
and in which indeed, they have their origin. It is, indeed,
this last consideration which makes these subjects so vital
and important to my mind. All right aections depend
on divinely constituted relationships, and cannot exist out
of them. If I know not the relationship of the church to
Christ, and the position in which He has set us, along with
Himself in reference to the Father, none of the aections
suited to these positions can have any place in my soul; and
my spiritual discernment and judgment as to everything
will suer in proportion. e recrudescence of opposition
to the truth on these points shows that it is making
progress. What I have seen written against it only seems
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
82
to me to mark deeper darkness and more ignorance of the
great outlines of scripture than earlier opposition, though
the general spirit and character be the same.
As regards passing through the tribulation (a question
which every one knows is that which always arises on
this matter) the scripture seems to me to make it very
simple. How can I tell there will be a tribulation? I shall
be answered, “Passages of scripture positively declare there
will be such.” I admit it: but there are no passages which
reveal it, which do not also show that the church will not
be in it. As far as I am aware they are these: Jer. 30:7; Dan.
12:1; Matt. 24:21; Mark 13:19; to which we may add
Rev. 3:10; 7:14. I am not aware of any other which can be
applied to this subject. Now who are in this tribulation in
the passages which speak of it in scripture? Rev. 7:14 could
alone leave open the smallest question. Of this I will speak.
Of all the rest, the positive evidence is, that the Jews are in
it — the church not.
Jeremiah tells us, “It is the time of Jacob’s trouble,” the day
which none is like. is shows to whom it belongs. Daniel
shows us that that day of “trouble, such as there never was
since there was a nation,” was the day of indignation upon
Israel. Daniel’s people, as the whole prophecy declares, are
there in question, and they will be delivered (that is, those
written in the book). e Savior, who applies this passage
in Matt. 24, leaves not the smallest doubt that it applies to
those of Israel, and, even exclusively, to Palestine, or, still
narrower as to locality, Judea and Jerusalem. ey are to
ee to the mountains. e abomination of desolation is in
the holy place. ose in the countries are not to return.
ey are the days of vengeance to accomplish what is
written. ey are to desire their ight should not be on a
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 8
83
sabbath day. In a word, the tribulation is in Jerusalem, in
Judea, and among Jews. Mark 1 need not comment on;
it is evidently the same event. us Jeremiah, Daniel, the
Lord Himself, in Matthew and Mark, citing and applying
Daniel, declare that the tribulation regards the Jews. It is
the time of Jacob’s trouble.
But Rev. 3 speaks of a time of temptation; and here it
is said that it shall come on all the world, to try them who
dwell on the earth. is, therefore, is more general; it is
not the great tribulation of Jeremiah, Daniel, and Matthew,
which is exclusively Jewish. Here we have the church.
But what is said of this time of temptation as regards the
church who await Christ? ey shall be kept out of it. at
is, the passages which speak of the tribulation which none
is like (and from which alone we know there is one) declare
unanimously it is for the Jews and not for the church. e
passage which, addressed to the church, refers to an hour
of temptation, declares in a precious promise that, having
kept the word of Christ’s patience, she shall be kept out of
that hour.
If I turn to Rev. 12, which in eect, speaks of the “three
years and a half trial, I am told the conict of the heavenly
saints is over before it begins. e woe is for others (that is,
for Jews). Christ was not born of the church; nor is it the
church who has to say, “To us a Son is born.” e positive
witness is as clear as clear can be. e statement, that there
is a tribulation, declares the Jews will be in it, the church
kept out of it. But there is a passage obscure to most (Rev.
7). It is one of the signs of error and the enemy’s work, that
he takes an obscure passage to trouble the minds of saints
and unsettle them by this means in great and plain truths.
e passage may be employed so, and hence I notice it also.
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
84
at it is not the church which is spoken of here is clear
from the promise to Philadelphia. All conrms this. It is a
dierent class from the elders, who represent the heavenly
kings and priests to God. One of the elders explains who
they are. I would remark that the expression (ver. 15)
“dwell among” them, is a wholly false translation. It is
“shall tabernacle (or, dwell) over” them. e word is used
for “dwelling with,” with other prepositions as ἐν, μετα, ἐν
μέσῳ, but not with ἐπὶ, whereas this is the preposition used
for overshadowing, as in Num. 9:18, 22, with the word
σκιάζω, it is true; but σκηνόω is not so used in the LXX
(unless once in some MSS, where it has nothing to do with
this). ere can hardly be a doubt of the allusion, I think,
to the cloud which was a shelter over Israel.
Hence the only conferred blessing spoken of as the
result is this protection, nourishment, refreshment, and
the cessation of sorrow. ey come in after the sealing of
the elect of the twelve tribes of Israel, as a distinct class
from all before a new and distinct class from the elders;
one of whom has to give an account of who they are as
such. Hence their position is as dierent as possible from
those in chapter 5:10. ey are talked about, and it is
explained who they are; but, save as to owning their own
salvation through God and the Lamb, they are silent. ey
are sheltered, refreshed, fed, blessed, but take no part with
others; indeed, the elders do not praise here. ey have
the privilege of serving God continually in His temple;
6
but they are no part of the scene above, who celebrate and
unfold the acts of God: on the contrary, as we have seen,
6 Remark, that in the heavenly Jerusalem there is no temple; so
that the service here spoken of does not apply to that blessed
place.
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant — 8
85
those who are, are presented as a separate class, capable of
explaining the enigma of this additional class of persons
who are found standing before the throne and before the
Lamb. ere is no praising for others, no intercessional
language. One has only to compare the passage above cited
to see the dierence — to see they are another class. To use
this passage, certainly obscure in its application (in which
those who have been in the great tribulation are denitely
distinguished from the heavenly company of crowned and
enthroned elders, their whole position being dierent), to
destroy the force of one expressly declaring that those who
have kept the word of Christ’s patience will be kept out
of that “hour of temptation,” is certainly the opposite of a
sound interpretation of scripture.
In result, what is the evidence of scripture, on this
point? ere are six passages which speak of tribulation,
and by which we know there will be tribulation. Four are
clear and positive in applying it to the Jews; one declares
that the faithful church saints will be kept out of it; and the
last, speaking of Gentiles, distinguishes them, in the most
marked way, from those who represent the church, and
saints in heaven, the crowned and enthroned elders. us
direct scripture is as clear as clear can be. We have seen
that, indirectly Rev. 2 conrms this view. What remains?
General principles. Hence the attempt to bring the church
into the tribulation;
7
and this is the secret of the whole
matter — the confounding the church of God with the
7 One tract I have seen goes so far (showing the utter destruction
of all spiritual discernment, which is the result of these views)
that it speaks of the loss to the church in not going through
this tribulation (thus confounding suering for Christ with the
terrible chastening of God for sin and unbelief- the temptation
which the disciples were taught to pray to be kept from.
e Rapture of the Saints and the Character of the Jewish Remnant
86
Jews and with the world, their hopes, and the trials that
come upon them.
(Concluded)
J. N. D.
Courtesy of BibleTruthPublishers.com. Most likely this text
has not been proofread. Any suggestions for spelling or punctuation
corrections would be warmly received. Please email them to: BTPmail@
bibletruthpublishers.com.
