 |  |
By the great love and mercy of the Lord, Israel, though thus "put away", shall yet be
brought back again.
"They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another
man's, shall he return unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? But thou
hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to Me, saith the Lord"
(Jer. 3: 1).
"Surely as a wife treacherously departed from her husband, so have ye dealt
treacherously with Me, O house of Israel, saith the Lord . . . . . Return, ye backsliding
children, and I will heal your backslidings" (Jer. 3: 20-22).
This blessed restoration is the theme of Isaiah's prophecies:
"Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed
Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah: for the Lord
delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married" (Isa. 62: 4).
The restoration of a divorced woman and the betrothal and marriage of "the chaste
virgin" which Paul speaks of in II Cor. 11: 2, and which John speaks of as the "Bride",
must not be confused. Israel, as a nation, are the restored wife, but a remnant out of
Israel, together with some believing Gentiles, constitute the new company, "the bride,
the Lamb's wife". During the Acts, Gentile believers were, equally with Jewish
believers, Abraham's seed and heirs, and to this company belongs Jerusalem which is
above (Gal. 3: 29; 4: 26).
The distinction between these two companies is suggested in the two parables of
Matt. 13: 44-46. The treasure hid in a field, which, after discovery, was hidden again,
represents the nation of Israel, God's peculiar treasure.
"For thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God, and the Lord hath chosen thee to
be a peculiar people (segullah) unto Himself" (Deut. 14: 2).
"For the Lord hath chosen Jacob unto Himself, and Israel for His peculiar treasure
(segullah)" (Psa. 135: 4).
While "all Israel" was a treasure, the Lord noted with special approbation those "of
Israel" who walked by faith, and these, such as Abraham, were granted the heavenly
prospect, associated with the heavenly city, and are represented in the parable as the "one
pearl". The reader will remember that "one pearl" is noted in the description of the gates
of the New Jerusalem. While the pearl is a part of the Lord's treasure, it is signally
different from other treasures in that it is organic, being produced by suffering and so
typical of that remnant, according to the election of grace, that walked by faith, while the
bulk of their fellows fell into idolatry and unbelief.
"All Israel" shall be saved (Rom. 11: 26); the erring wife shall be restored; but the
marriage of the Lamb refers not to this restoration but to the new company that inherits
the heavenly sphere of the kingdom. It is to this marriage of the Lamb that the parable of
Matt. 22: looks forward, where particular emphasis is put upon the invitation which
was sent out to the "guests". Not by any stretch of imagination can "guests" at a