Firstborn Sonship of Christ
Vol 26 No 3
March 2001
The New Birth
Series Number: 28
INTRODUCTION TO THE OLD TESTAMENT
Each reader who has not read and studied the preceding 27 articles on this subject in sequential order is urged to do so.
TYPES, ALLEGORIES, SYMBOLS
&nbs p;1 "Sing, O barren, you who have not borne! Break forth into singing, and cry aloud, you who have not labored with child! For more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married woman, says the LORD," Isa 54:1.
Here is a rich symbolic paradox where we have a great advantage over the Old Testament saints in understanding because the same allegory is more fully explained in Gal 4:21-31. Paul gives more detail from the same life experience of Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Hagar, and Ishmael. Yet the language in Gal 4:21 and context indicates that the Law Covenant saints should have understood this symbolism as certainly, though not as clearly, as we can under the New Covenant.
It should have been obvious to the Old Testament saints, and much more so to us, that symbolism was and still is God's paramount method of revealing His plan of covenant salvation in a semi-cloaked way. The Holy Spirit uses this method to conceal God's will from the wise and arrogant and reveals it to the poor and lowly, Mt 11:25-26; 13:10-15; 1Co 1:26-29; Ja 2:5.
Metaphors, for instance, abound in the New Covenant of the body of Christ; the temple of God; the salt of the earth; the light of the world; transforming our lifestyle into the image of Christ; bearing the cross; crucifying the flesh; bearing about in our bodies the dying and the life of the Lord; putting off the old man and putting on the new man; baptism; being baptized into the body of Christ and thereby becoming members of His body; eating Christ's flesh and drinking His blood symbolized in the Lord's Supper, which also symbolizes our feeding on Christ by feeding on the Word of God; washing feet; daily presenting our bodies a living sacrifice; being crucified daily together with Christ, dying daily together with Christ, being buried daily together with Christ, being daily raised again together with Christ, being born again in baptism together with Christ; and many others. These are all meaningful symbolic representations of past, present, and future events.
A BARREN WOMAN
1 "Sing, O barren, you who have not borne! Break forth into singing, and cry aloud, you who have not labored with child! For more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married woman, says the LORD," Isa 54:1.
Here are two married wo-men: one is barren with no children and the other has many children; yet, the barren wife who has not borne a child has many more children then the wife who has many children. And the wife who has not labored in birth for physical children, has labored far more in birth for spiritual children. Birth pains for physical children primarily require painful laboring in the flesh, while birth pains for spiritual children also require laboring in the flesh but produce spiritual, deified children. The children of the one are earthy and mere flesh, while the children of the other are heavenly and filled with the fullness of God – the full array of the divine attributes, Eph 1:22-23; 3:19; 5:31-32; Col 1:19; 2:9-10; 2Pe 1:4; Jn 10:30-36; 14:8-11; 17:21-23; et al.
THE TWO WOMEN
21 "Tell me, you who desire to be under the Law (Covenant), do you not hear the Law?
22 "For it is written that Abraham had two sons: the one by a bondwoman, the other by a freewoman.
23 "But he who was of the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and he of the freewoman through promise,
24 "Which things are symbolic. For these are the two covenants: the one from Mount Sinai which gives birth to bondage, which is Hagar:
25 "For this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and corresponds to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children:
26 "But the Jerusalem above is free, which is the mother of us all.
27 "For it is written: ‘Rejoice, O barren, you who do not bear! Break forth and shout, you who are not in labor! For the desolate has many more children than she who has a husband.'
28 "Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise.
29
"But, as he who was born according to the flesh then persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, even so it is now.
30 "Nevertheless what does the Scripture say? ‘Cast out the bondwoman and her son, for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.'
31 "So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman but of the free," Gal 4:21-31.
In this maze of multiple mixed metaphors, both Sarah and Hagar represent Israel, the covenant people. Hagar represents not only Ishmael, but also Mount Sinai, the Law Covenant, the earthy Jerusalem, and Israel in the flesh or the covenant people walking according to the flesh in both Old and New Covenants. While Sarah represents Israel or the remnant within Israel or within the covenant people (in both Old and New Covenants) who are walking according to faith.
In the end, Hagar gave birth to and represents flesh born sons of all ages, born after the normal pattern of life, who mind earthy things and will forever be mere flesh sons. Sarah gave birth to Isaac as a son of promise, which required God's special divine power in giving life to the dead, Rom 4:17-25. Isaac was therefore the son of promise – the promise of a divine sonship.
COVENANT DISCIPLINE
2 "So Sarai said to Abram, ‘See now, the LORD has restrained me from bearing children. Please, go in to my maid; perhaps I shall obtain children by her.' And Abram heeded the voice of Sarai," Gen 16:2.
It was foremost in Abraham and Sarah's mind to have the promised son. For years Sarah had prayed and hoped to conceive and bear the divinely promised heir of Abraham. This persisting barrenness caused Sarah great agony in this unparalleled distress of giving an husband another woman to bear the dearly cherished son.
As an integral part of this extremely broad and meaningful allegory is the ever present covenant discipline of intently waiting on the Lord for His divine guidance. A part of this covenant discipline requires Israel as a nation to be cut off, divorced. More on this shortly.
Isaac's birth was not a normal flesh conception and birth: it was the result of walking patiently by grace through faith over many trying years. It required obedience to God's covenant disciplinary training of "waiting on the Lord." As Abraham and Sarah (especially Sarah in this context) endured with much agony and grief, praying and praying and hoping for conception and birth for this divine promise, so all of Sarah's "children of promise" must learn obedience by pa-tient suffering for the divine resurrection birth, Heb 5:8-9; 12:1-29. Hagar's children will forever be servant sons of the physical laws of the physical universe (Gal 4:3,9,19-31; 5:1-4; Col 2:8,20-21; 3:1-10); while Sarah's children will be free from the limitations governing the physical universe. As "children of promise" we have come to understand that we must sharply reflect the image of Christ in these earthen vessels to qualify for that divine birth, 2Co 3:17 thru 2Co 5:21; et al.
Sarah has now brought forth that promised son that Isaac symbolized in the person of Jesus. And Jesus also had to "learn obedience by the things He suffered," Heb 2:10-13; 5:8-9; 12:1-2. He was crucified, died, was buried, and then arose from the dead to become the firstborn human, yet fully divine, Son of God (Col 2:9), the Son of Promise. We too must endure these birth pains within ourselves and for one another, as Paul did (Gal 4:19), in order to be approved (dokimos) for that divine birth when Christ returns, Gal 4:19 thru 5:5; 6:7-9; Heb 12:1-29.
It appears that most saved covenant people abort that divine birth by fainting under the covenant discipline, 1Co 10:1-12; Heb 3:6-19. Indeed, we must labor in spiritual birth pains in this life, for that divine resurrection birth at the return of Christ, Gal 4:19 thru 5:5; 1Co 15.
MIXED METAPHORS
In this allegory of Gal 4 and touched on in Isa 54, we have multiple and mixed metaphors where Hagar is one of the two wives, she is Mount Sinai, the Law Covenant, the earthy Jerusalem, and she is also Israel in the flesh walking in the flesh. Her children are destined to be earthlings eternally – these sons are not firstborn sons, but are sons over whom the firstborn sons will be divine lords, Gen 27:27-37; Gal 4:19 thru 5:5; Heb 12:8,15-21; Rev 2:26-27; 21:23-26; 22:2.
While Sarah is the first and choice wife of the same Husband, is the heavenly Jerusalem, the New Covenant, and she is the remnant in Israel who walk by faith and who themselves are laboring in birth pains to qualify for the resurrection birth into the firstborn sonship and the divine bride of Christ relationships.
WHO IS THE HUSBAND?
"For your Maker is your Husband....." Isa 54:5.
Israel's Maker is her Husband in both Isa 54 and Gal 4. Her Maker is Jehovah of hosts, He is her Redeemer, He is the Holy One of Israel, and He is the Elohim of the whole earth, Isa 54:5. Obviously, the faithful covenant people from all ages (whatever their status in this life) are predestined to be one and the same bride of Christ.
Is Israel's Maker the Father, the Son, or all three in the divine Trinity? Though we are straight-laced and very conservative, we must broaden our scope here.
DIVINE ONENESS
31 "'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become ONE flesh.'
32 "This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church," Eph 5:31-32.
".....that you may be filled with all the fullness of God," Eph 3:19.
21 "That they all may be ONE, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be ONE in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.
22 "And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be ONE just as We are ONE:
23 "I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in ONE, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me," Jn 17:21-23.
This "ONENESS" mystery in-cludes far more than Christ and His church: it includes the Godhead and the firstborn covenant sons of the ages in a DIVINE ONENESS. This is the pervasive theme, the main stream of the Scriptures, seen in all the animal sacrifices, types, metaphors, and ceremonies of both Old and New Testaments. We will continue to have much to write of this divine oneness. The divine firstborn sons will never be infinite, but will receive of the full range of God's divine attributes according to their by grace through faith faithfulness in this life – according to their works, Ecc 12:13-14; Mt 24:14-30; Lk 19:11-26; 2Co 5:12; Rev 22:12; et al.
A BIT MORE
Here (Gal 4:21-31) the Scriptures embellish the allegory in very descriptive and meaningful language, yet the allegory is still so diverse and profound that it needs further clarification with additional and more definitive explanations. We will try to provide some of these as we proceed. At the moment, we further though still briefly, define the two women.
Sarah was the first and true wife of Abraham, but Hagar is described first in the allegory and represents the flesh and earth related things which stand first and foremost in human experience. Hagar and her son reign predominately while Sarah is held barren until the ability to conceive and bear children is lost through old age. If you will observe closely, Sarah is the heavenly Jerusa-lem, she is the barren wife, forsaken, but is to be received back as the wife of God, of Elohim, of Christ, Isa 54; Eph 5:31-32; Rev 19:7-8.
During this forsaken and di-vorced period of time (Hos 2:2; Isa 54:6-8; Hos 1:8-10; 2:23; Rom 9:24-26), the engrafted church as God's Israel (as the body of the Lamb of God, the body of the Sin Offering) is laboring in birth pains for that firstborn sonship. Christ Himself is the Chief Corner Stone, the Foundation Stone, the Stone the builders rejected, a stone with other stones (His disciples) in the same building, 1Pe 2:4-8; Mt 21:42; Isa 54:11-13.
Christ is a "Living Stone," yet He is the Husband. His disciples are His mother, His brothers, and His sisters (Mt 12:44-50), yet they are His children (Isa 8:13-18; Heb 2:11-13), and they are also the woman who is His bride, 2Co 11:2; Eph 5:22-32; Rev 19:7-8. In this maze of many mixed metaphors we have the bride of the Godhead, all in a unique "oneness" with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
The time of life was past: it was impossible for Sarah to conceive and bear children when she was about ninety years old. The Scriptures say that Abraham's body was also past fathering children when he was about a hundred years old. This was done to reveal God's grand plan to give divine life to the dead in resurrection, and thereby speak of "things which are not existing, as though they are existing," which language is well cloaked in a Scripture-wide metaphor of "the body of Christ," Rom 4:17; 6:2-14-23; 8:1-13. This "body of Christ" metaphor permeates the entire Bible as we will continue to see in articles to come.
THE METAPHOR
17 "(As it is written, ‘I have made you a father of many nations') in the presence of Him whom he believed – God, who is giving life to the dead and is calling things which are not existing as existing.....
22 "And therefore ‘it was accounted to him for righteousness.'
23 "Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was credited to him,
24 "But also for us. It shall be credited (will be literally infused [imbued, endowed] in the resurrection) to us who believe (who are believing) on Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead,
25 "Who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification," (being made the righteousness of God in Christ, in the body of Christ, requires the divine birth of the body), Rom 4:17,22-25; Phi 3:9; 2Co 5:21.
Abraham's justification (and justification in all cases in the Bible) points to the resurrection birth of Christ and the resurrection birth of the faithful covenant people in the resurrection. The human body of Christ was born into a divine state of being in His resurrection which constitutes Him the Firstborn from the dead and the Firstborn of all creation, Ps 2:7; 89:27; Col 1:15-19; Act 13:29-33; Heb 1; 1Co 15:3-4,44-50. But God will bring many other sons into that divine firstborn sonship to be the bride of Christ, 2Co 11:2; Eph 5:23-32; Rev 19:7-8.
The language, somewhat but not altogether, conceals specific re-ference to the covenant people as the body of Christ. "Calling things which are not existing as though they are existing," modifies the words, "God, who is giving life to the dead," Rom 4:17. This cannot be properly understood and explained apart from the metaphor of the covenant people being addressed as "the body of Christ," as in the bodies of millions of animal sacrifices throughout the Bible, Ps 40:6-8; Heb 10:5-10. The application of the allegory requires the children of the bondwoman will be cut off from Christ – from the body of Christ (Gal 4:31; 5:1-4; Jn 15:1-6) to be illegitimate or non-covenant sons, Heb 12:8; Gal 4:19 thru 5:5.
BREAK FORTH INTO SINGING
"Sing, O barren, you who have not borne! Break forth into singing, and cry aloud, you who have not labored with child! For more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married woman," says the LORD," Isa 54:1
By way of introduction to Isa 54, one writer wrote words to the effect that after the cross of Isa 53 comes the singing and rejoicing of Isa 54. In this context, the "cross" refers to Christ's sufferings of Isa 53, while the singing and blissful shouting of Isa 54 properly addresses the incomparable joy of the resurrection morning of Christ's return.
However, this deeply anticipated divine birth of our earthy body into a heavenly deified body is also the occasion for great joy at the present time. This is our "hope" of divine glory, Rom 5:2; 8:17-25; Col 1:5,23,27. In this earthy mortal body we should be groaning and laboring in birth pains to insure that we qualify for the unsearchable riches of Christ, Eph 3:8; 1Co 2:9. Those unsearchable riches are resident in the divine body that Christ now possesses in heaven at the right hand of the Father. That this earthy body, Rom 8:23; 2Co 3:17 thru 5:5; Phi 3:7-14,21.
ENLARGE YOUR TENT
2 "Enlarge the place of your tent, and let them stretch out the curtains of your dwellings; do not spare; lengthen your cords, and strengthen your stakes.'
3 "For you shall expand to the right and to the left, and your descendants will inherit the nations, and make the desolate cities inhabited," Isa 54:2-3.
Here is a call, not only for the incomparable joy of the resurrection morning, but also a call for more positive and more intense dedication to good works in soul winning that will produce immensely greater glory and joy in that day and forever thereafter. Why enlarge the tent, stretch out the curtains, spare not, lengthen the cords, strengthen the stakes?
Why expand to the right and to the left? The answer is to make more room for more children, more converts, more free sons. We must strive to be more evangelistic, more missionary, more enthusiastic and dedicated in our efforts to win others to share this glorious resurrection birth into God's divine oneness. We must "groan" in this earthy body, desiring to be clothed in that heavenly body, Rom 8:23; 2Co 4:7 thru 5:5. We must "groan" with great compassion for the souls of men as Jesus, Paul, and others did, Mt 9:35-38; Lk 19:41-44; Act 20:19,31; Rom 9:1-2.
HEIRS OF THE WORLD
3 "For you shall expand to the right and to the left, and your descendants will inherit the nations,and make the desolate cities inhabited," Isa 54:3.
13 "For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the Law, but through the righteousness of faith," Rom 4:13.
21 "Therefore let no one boast in men. For all things are yours:
22 "Whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas, or the world or life or death, or things present or things to come – all are yours.
23 "And you are Christ's, and Christ is God's," 1Co 3:21-23.
32 "He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?" Rom 8:32.
The firstborn sons will be joint heirs with Christ (Rom 8:17), which means joint heirs of all creation, Rom 8:17-32. The inheritance is to all of Abraham faith descendants, not just those in the church. Covenant-wise, we Gentiles in the church are wild olive branches grafted into the tame olive tree, and we are warned not to boast, Rom 11:11-32. Lack of fervent prayer, and lack of giving all diligence to make our calling and election sure will result in being cut off from the election,Rom 11; 2Pe 1:5-10. During the Millennium and on the new earth there will still be many earthy nations over which the divine bride people will rule eternally,Rev 20:4-10; 21:23-26; 22:1-2. The difference between the nations in mere flesh bodies, and the bride in divine bodies is inexpressible.
DO WE HAVE IT MADE?
"Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed; neither be disgraced, for you will not be put to shame; for you will forget the shame of your youth, and will not remember the reproach of your widowhood anymore," Isa 54:4.
The projection here is two fold: 1) the victory is assured. The Holy Spirit is given as an "earnest" or guarantee that if we walk in the Spirit by grace through faith and thereby retain the indwelling of the Spirit, we will receive what is guaranteed. And the thing guaranteed is the new birth into a divine heavenly body (2Co 4:17 thru 5:5; 1Co 15:1-2,29-58; 2Pe 1:5-10; et al); 2) the new birth into the "free son" status of the allegory is therefore conditioned on continuing in Christ. Observe that those who do not continue in the "freedom wherewith Christ has made us free," will be cut off from Christ and Christ will profit them nothing as far as the free son (firstborn sonship of the free woman) is concerned, Gal 4:19 thru 5:5. We must give all diligence to make that calling and election sure, 2Pe 1:3-10.
THE ALLEGORY
19 "My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you,
20 "I would like to be present with you now and to change my tone; for I have doubts about you.
21 "Tell me, you who desire to be under the Law (Covenant), do you not hear the Law?
22 "For it is written that Abraham had two sons: the one by a bondwoman, the other by a freewoman.
23 "But he who was of the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and he of the freewoman through promise,
24 "Which things are symbolic. For these are the two covenants: the one from Mount Sinai which gives birth to bondage, which is Hagar:
25 "For this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and corresponds to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children:
26 "But the Jerusalem above is free, which is the mother of us all.
27 "For it is written: ‘Rejoice, O barren, You who do not bear! Break forth and shout, You who are not in labor! For the desolate has many more children than she who has a husband.'
28 "Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise.
29 "But, as he who was born according to the flesh then persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, even so it is now.
30 "Nevertheless what does the Scripture say? ‘Cast out the bondwoman and her son, for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.'
31 "So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman but of the free," Gal 4:19-31.
The Holy Spirit through Paul delineates briefly but precisely the symbolic significance of the allegory. Abraham represents God (Elohim of the Old Testament, Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit) as the allegorical Husband of two strikingly diverse peoples. The first wife described is Hagar, who represents God's covenant people in their earthy enslaved environment and state of being, whereas Sarah represents God's elect covenant people in their divine state of being.
By grace through faith, severe discipline, and holy living, God is choosing for Himself a uniquely faithful and obedient people to be His bride people over and above many nations of the other servant sons. "As it is written: ‘For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter,'" Rom 8:36.
APPLICATION OF THE ALLEGORY
19 "My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you,
20 "I would like to be present with you now and to change my tone; for I have doubts about you," Gal 4;19-20.
The allegory (Gal 4:21-31), quoted above, springs from this grave mistake the Galatian churches were in the process of making. They were going back under the Law Covenant which, in its finality, would constitute them mere slaves in flesh bodies to the physical laws of the universe for eternity, Gal 4:3,9,19-31. God, in the person of Christ, became a lowly human being in order to bring the faithful covenant people into a heavenly, spirit, and divine state of being possessing all the fullness of God's divine attributes, Eph 1:22-23; 3:19; Col 1:19; 2:9-10; Jn 10:30-36; 14:8-11; 17:21-23.
However, in brief, and contrary to our sinful nature, God's covenant requires that we labor in birth pains to be transformed (a metamorphosis) into the glorified image of Christ, Gal 4:19; 2Co 3:18-19; Phi 3:7-14,20-21; Rom 12:1-2. For us this is impossible, yet God has given us His Holy Spirit as a guarantee that we can make this transformation by grace through faith – by letting the Spirit minutely rule our daily lives, 2Co 3:18 thru 5:5; Rom 8:17-30.
YOUR MAKER IS YOUR HUSBAND
5"For your Maker is your husband, The LORD of hosts is His name; and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel; He is called the God of the whole earth," Isa 54:5.
The bride of Christ (of Jehovah Elohim) is the same faithful covenant people in both the Old and New covenants. We in the church are wild olive branches grafted into the tame olive tree, which is Israel. We are in this age the Israel of God, Gal 6:16; Eph 5:23-32; Rom 2:28-29; 11:1-32; Eph 2:10-22; et al.
The idea that God the Father will have Israel as His bride and Christ will have the church as His bride, constituting two bride peoples, is foreign to the Scriptures. All the faithful covenant people of all ages are predestined, by grace through faith, to be ONE with the Father, ONE with the Son, and ONE with the Holy Spirit. All humor aside, there will be no split bride. The same bride city, the New Jerusalem, is promised to Abraham and his descendants, Heb 11:8-16; Rev 21. This will not be a split city. Christ, as God in deified flesh, will sit on the throne of David and rule all nations for the Millennium, Isa 9:6-7. The faithful covenant people in the church will share that bridal relationship with Israel, Lk 22:28-30; Rev 2:26-27. Again, there will be no split bride ruling with Christ. The faithful covenant people in Israel will be the top nation (the head and not the tail) to rule over all nations (Ex 19:4-6; Deu 7:6-11; 26:16-19), and the church (made up chiefly of wild olive branches) has been grafted into that holy bride position to share that bridal glory, Rom 2:28-29; 11:11-22; 2Co 11:2; Eph 5:23-32; Rev 2:26-27.
A WOMAN FORSAKEN
6 "For the LORD has called you Like a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, like a youthful wife when you were refused," says your God.
7 "For a mere moment I have forsaken you, but with great mercies I will gather you.
8 "With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment; but with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you," says the LORD, your Redeemer," Isa 54:6-8.
For lack of space, we will cut this short in this paper. Mark closely, Israel has been forsaken, divorced, for a "small moment." In all cases God promises to take her back after she has suffered justly for her rebellion. Perhaps in the March issue of the paper we can provide fuller comment on these verses, and on the remainder of Isa 54.
A COVENANT STANDING
9 "For this is like the waters of Noah to Me; for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah would no longer cover the earth, so have I sworn that I would not be angry with you, nor rebuke you.
10 "For the mountains shall depart and the hills be removed, but My kindness shall not depart from you, nor shall My covenant of peace be removed," says the LORD, who has mercy on you," Isa 54:9-10.
As God swore to Noah (Gen 9:1-17 and above), to Abraham (Gen 11:15-18; Heb 6:13-20) to David (Ps 89:35-37), so God swore to Israel that His justice and mercy would not depart forever from Israel, but he will receive her back, as stated above and many other places.
THE NEW JERUSALEM
11 "O you afflicted one, Tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay your stones with colorful gems, and lay your foundations with sapphires.
12 "I will make your pinnacles of rubies, your gates of crystal, and all your walls of precious stones," Isa 54:11-12.
The Holy Spirit through Isaiah is still speaking to the forsaken and divorced wife, but she is being addressed as a city, a beautiful city indeed. But that is the way Sarah is addressed in the allegory of Gal 4:21-31. This is clearly the New Jerusalem, the city promised to Abraham and his faith descendants of both Old and New Testaments – a city that has foundations whose Builder and Maker is God
;8 "By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.
9 "By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise;
10 "For he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.
11 "By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised.
12 "Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude – innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore.
13 "These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
14 "For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland.
15 "And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return.
16 "But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them," Heb 11:8-16.
In the allegory Sarah represents the New Jerusalem, the New Covenant, and the freedom that resides only in the divine nature. This heavenly bride city is for her descendants. Hebrews 11 describes the bride people, the firstborn sons; but God is preparing many other nations of mere flesh born sons.
YOUR CHILDREN
"All your children shall be taught by the LORD, And great shall be the peace of your children," Isa 54:13.
Sarah and her children are ultimately seen as one and the same. She is the New Jerusalem and she is the bride, but so are her children
THE NEW BIRTH
"In righteousness you shall be established; You shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear; and from terror, for it shall not come near you," Isa 54:14.
Isaiah is still speaking to Sarah, the mother in the singular – the mother and her children are "one" and the same bride in the context of Isa 54, as the city and the bride are the same in Rev 21:9-11.
"No weapon formed against you shall prosper, And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, And their righteousness is from Me, Says the LORD," Isa 54:17.
Compare this with the application of the allegory in Gal 4 & 5.
"For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith,"Gal 5:5.
Justification (the new birth, the divine birth of the body) is the theme of the scriptures with explicit emphasis from Abel to the resurrection. Abel was justified (with a view to the resurrection) by his offering, Heb 11:3; Rom 4:24-25. Adam and Eve were clothed in the skins of animals (Gen 3:21), which must be associated with the clothing of the bride, Rev 19:7-8.
Gal 5:5 is a part of the application of the Allegory of Gal 4:19 thru 5:1-5, and on. As the covenant people, we are in the proper position to be earnestly and eagerly waiting for that "hope of righteousness" (Gal 5:5), which is the clothing of our house from heaven (2Co 5:1-5). At the same time that the faithful covenant people will receive that divine clothing, their earthy bodies will be "swallowed up of life" (divine life), 2Co 5:4. The righteous clothing and the divine life are attributes of the divine nature.
Paul gave up all and counted it as nothing in order to gain Christ (Phi 3:7-8), which would result in being clothed in God's righteousness in the resurrection, Phi 3:9-11. This would further include his vile body being fashioned into the same image of Christ's glorified body, Phi 3:21. God's righteousness must reign through the Holy Spirit in our daily lives in order to receive that divine life, Rom 5:21.
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