Category Archives: Type and Anti-type

Common Pitfalls in Interpretation, Part 6

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Missing the Symbolism or Over Symbolizing

Admittedly this may be difficult at times. Further, over symbolizing can be as bad for the truth as missing the symbolism.

Take Jesus speaking of the leaven of the Pharisees.

To get the context we have go back to Matthew chapter 15. In the middle of the chapter Jesus had gone from the area of Tyre and Sidon back to the sea of Galilee. Many people were coming to Him, seeking His words and seeking His healing. Jesus said in Mtt 15:32 that He felt sorry for the people. They had been with Him for three days with nothing to eat, and He was afraid they might faint on the way back with nothing to eat. The disciples asked where would they get enough to feed this large crowd in such a deserted place. Jesu asked what the disciples what they had to eat, they said they had seven loaves of bread and a few fish. Jesus took what they had, blessed it and began breaking it and feeding it to the people. In the end, with that small beginning Jesus feed “four thousand men, besides women and children,” and picked up seven baskets of left-over pieces.

Somewhere in the events that followed,

The disciples came to the far side of the Sea of
Galilee, but forgot to take along
some bread, Mtt 16:5.

Then Jesus said to them,

“… Take heed and beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
Mtt 16:6

The disciples began talking among themselves and thought that Jesus said this because they brought no bread.

Jesus knew what they were thinking, and said

“… Why do you reason among yourselves, you of little faith, ‘because you have brought no bread?’”
Mtt 16:8

Jesus reminded them of the five loaves for five thousand people, and how many baskets of left-overs they had picked up! Also He reminded them of the seven loaves for four thousand and how many baskets of left-overs they had taken up!

“How is it that you don’t perceive that I didn’t speak to you concerning bread? But beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
Mtt 16:11

Jesus never directly told them He was
talking symboliclly about teachings.

But they finally got the point. That is the way it will often be with us.

“Then they understood that he didn’t tell them to beware of the yeast of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
Mtt 16:12

Also at times it is not an either or thing,

Prophecy Principles, discusses in detail that double prophecy in 2Samuel 7.

especially with symbolic persons, places, things, or events, sometimes called types and anti-types. Sometimes a passage my have both a literal meaning and a symbolic meaning. In 2Samuel chapter 7 the prophet Nathan talks about a special son of David who would build a house/temple for the Lord. It actually has a double meaning. Solomon the son of David fulfills this (1Chron 22:9-10), and built a physical temple to the Lord , and Jesus the Son of David also fulfills this (Heb 1:5), and He is in the process of building a spiritual temple to the Lord (Mtt 18:18, 1Pe 2:5, etc.).

Scriptures are from the World English Bible (WEB), a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Most History and Most Prophecy is not Strictly Chronological!

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An audio lesson.

Scripture is often unfairly criticized for not being strictly chronological. Actually the basic format of much of prophecy bears it greatest resemblance to human converstions. God is having conversations with us about the future. And the truth is that even most of the secualar histories which we read, are not strictly chronological!

Listen to this audio lesson here, or click on the Audio Player to download as an MP3 file.

Israels Wilderness Wandering as a Type

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An audio lesson.

This shows how the historical wanderings of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai, typify both our everyday Christian lives, and also our ultimate Exodus out of this world to go to what we often call “heaven,” and which Scripture often refers to as a new universe, i.e. a new heavens and a new earth!

Listen to this audio lesson here, or click on the Audio Player to download as an MP3 file.

Keys to Prophecy: God Makes Choices

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God chose a place for Israel to worship Him.

“But to the place which Yahweh your God shall choose out of all your tribes, to put his name there, even to his habitation shall you seek, and there you shall come;”
Deut 12:5 WEB

Then when God made a choice, Israel was obligated to perform all of their formal worship in that place.

God choose Jerusalem in ancient times, both a the one and only place where the Jews could carry on the formal worship of God, AND as a type, symbolic of the heavenly Jerusalem where God actually “dwells.” Compare Heb 12:22 and Rev 21:1-2.

“Only your holy things which you have, and your vows, you shall take, and go to the place which Yahweh shall choose:”
Deut 12:26 WEB

Also God has the right to choose who will be allowed
to approach Him for worship.

“and he spoke to Korah and to all his company, saying, In the morning Yahweh will show who are his, and who is holy, and will cause him to come near to him: even him whom he shall choose will he cause to come near to him.”
Num 16:5 WEB

We might compare it to our being able to choose who will come into our house to visit with us, so God has the right and does choose who can approach Him. In the test that followed in Numers 16, the presumptuous Korah was rejected as a priest, and he and all his house then entered Sheol alive, for their trying to push their choices on God!

And chose a special family for His Christ.

“Moreover he rejected the tent of Joseph,
And didn’t choose the tribe of Ephraim,
68 But chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount Zion which he loved.”
Psa 78:67-68 WEB

He can do that. If we can make decisions, God surely can.

“He also chose David his servant,
And took him from the sheepfolds;”
Psa 78:70 WEB

Then from that family Yahweh will bring His special One, His Messiah (Hebrew), His Christ (Greek).

“Behold, my servant, whom I uphold; my chosen, in whom my soul delights: I have put my Spirit on him; he will bring forth justice to the Gentiles.”
Isa 42:1 WEB

And of course, He did.

At a time, a still future time, God can “the second time recover” the Jews.

Of course the first time that God recovered the Jews from “Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath,” was in the time of Ezra of Nehemiah. However, before even that first time happened, Isaiah foretold that God would recover the Jews a second time!

“It shall happen in that day, that the Lord will set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, who shall remain, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.”
Isa 11:11 WEB

He can do that, He can decide that, and perform whatever He wishes.

And God choses the time when He will judge
the heavens and the earth.

“When I choose the appointed time,
I will judge blamelessly.”
Psa 75:2 WEB

God makes choices.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: There is more than one Jerusalem

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David did say,

“For David said, Yahweh, the God of Israel, has given rest to his people; and he dwells in Jerusalem forever:”
1Chron 23:25 WEB

“Forever,” David says. That is in line with the prophecy in 2Samuel 7 about that special son of David who would build the temple of the Lord. Solomon does tell us by inspiration that he was the fulfillment of this prophecy.

“Yahweh has established his word that he spoke; for I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as Yahweh promised, and have built the house for the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel. ”
1Kgs 8:20 WEB

That indeed seems to fit 2Samuel 7, and there it is that it says,

“Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure for ever before you: your throne shall be established forever.”
2Sam 7:16 WEB

That would fit 1Chron 23:25 reviewed above. Still there are problems.

For Solomon’s throne only lasted until 586 BC.

For another 50 years few Jews lived in Jerusalem. Further, starting in the second century AD Jews were banned from living in Jerusalem for many centuries. None of which sounds like “forever”, and I am sure it caused many to wonder if these prophecies were false.

Nonetheless, are other factors at work here?

For starters, Heb 1:5 says that 2Samuel 7 refers to Jesus the Christ. That would have Solomon as a “type”/symbolic of Jesus. Of that fulfillment Isaiah seems to speak of a Mount Zion and Jerusalem beyond the moon and sun passing away!

“Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed; for Yahweh of Hosts will reign on Mount Zion, and in Jerusalem …”
Isa 24:23 WEB

Present Jerusalem, pictured above with the Mohammedan “Dome of the Rock” sitting where Solomon’s Temple used to sit, is symbolic of the New Jerusalem in the New Heaven and the New Earth.

Additionally Isaiah writes of a time of no more mourning or crying in Jerusalem. For instance,

“For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem; you shall weep no more; he will surely be gracious to you at the voice of your cry; when he shall hear, he will answer you.”
Isa 30:19 WEB

Further, Isaiah clearly speaks in more than one passage of this earth, and this universe being completely destroyed. For instance in Isaiah 13, and Isaiah 34. Isaiah writes well before the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC. So what are the missing parts of the puzzle.

For Isaiah writes of a new
heavens and earth.

“17 For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former things shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. 18 But be you glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.”
Isa 65:17-18 WEB

And that is the context in the New Testament. When God makes everything new (Rev 21:5), He make a new Jerusalem.

“I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready like a bride adorned for her husband.”
Rev 21:2 WEB

Some of those Old Testament passages are about the “new,” heavenly, Jerusalem. And that one, of that kingdom, indeed will be forever!

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: There is more than one Mount Zion

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Both Mount Zion and Jerusalem are symbolic
of heavenly entities.

Also both the earthly Zion is spoken of in Scripture, and also the heavenly Zion. For instance you can see this in Psalm 11. In Psalm 11 David is being told that he had better run for his life, because the wicked are getting ready to shoot him in the dark, Psa 11:1-2. David then asks very mournfully, if the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do, Psa 11:3? Indeed, David has already said that Yahweh lives on Mount Zion.

“Sing praises to Yahweh, who dwells in Zion,
And declare among the people what he has done.”
Psa 9:11 WEB

But there is more to the story.

Despite this, David by inspiration also says in Psa 11:4, “Yahweh is in his holy temple.” There is more to point out even here. In English, and in many languages, there is a word for a temple, and word for a palace, and these are different concepts. In Hebrew however the word hekal does double duty as the word for both a king’s palace and a religious temple. In this sense then, the temple of God is really God’s palace to the Hebrew mind. The other term used in Hebrew is to call it “the house of God,” which is the ordinary term for in Hebrew for a “house,” byet, which even further enforces the idea that God lives there, and David did say Yahweh lives/dwells in Zion, Psa 9:11 above.

Solomon of course denies the literalness of God
living on earthly Mount Zion,

“But will God in very deed dwell on the earth? behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens can’t contain you; how much less this house that I have built!”
1Kgs 8:27 WEB

But David says more that once more.

“Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God shines forth. ”
Psa 50:2 WEB

Or again, and of course Jerusalem is Jeru-salem, David speaks of the original tent of meeting.

“His tent is also in Salem;
His dwelling place in Zion.”
Psa 76:2 WEB

And God’s rule goes forth out of Zion (a double meaning do you think?)

“Yahweh will send forth the rod of your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of your enemies.”
Psa 11:2 WEB

Or another time, but perhaps more mysteriously

“Yahweh is great in Zion.
He is high above all the peoples.”
Psa 99:2 WEB

All the same, David gives details in Psalm 11.

Yes, Yahweh is in His holy temple, Psa 11:4a, and then he tells us,

“Yahweh is on his throne in heaven,” Psa 11:4b

The palace of God, the real palace, is in heaven.

God’s rule is not threatened by the rule or
opposition of someone on earth.

The old earthly temple on Mount Zion in Jerusalem is only symbolic (a type) of the heavenly temple on the heavenly Mount Zion (the fulfillment).

“5 Yahweh examines the righteous,
But the wicked and him who loves violence his soul hates. Psa. 11:6 On the wicked he will rain blazing coals; Fire, sulfur, and scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup. ”
Psa 11:5-6 WEB

Earthly Zion is only symbolic, a type, of the true palace of God and His throne.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: Some Types/Symbols are NOT Announced.

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However, generally there are hints that a person, place, thing, or event is symbolic of something else

Generally speaking, it will say things which only fit
the ultimate fulfillment.

There is an in depth analysis of 2Sam 7:12-16 in Prophecy Principles,

An example of this is the prophecy of a son of David who will build a temple of the Lord, in 2Sam 7:12-16. Solomon is the immediate subject of this prophecy, and he did build a literal temple in Jerusalem in the 10th century BC. Still Solomon is symbolic of Jesus who is now building a spiritual temple for God. The tip off is the parts of this prophecy which really DO NOT FIT SOLOMON! Parts of this prophecy only fit Solomon, and parts only fit Jesus, and parts fit both, but in different ways. There is a complete discussion of this prophecy in Prophecy Principles, in the section called “Type and Anti-Type, Symbol and Fulfillment.

Another example is Antiochus IV and the mysterious
“abomination of desolation.”

Antiochus IV put a full statue of “Zeus” in the temple in Jerusalem. This is described in Daniel as an “abomination”

Many different kings are spoken of in the prophecies of Daniel. Some of them are very easy to identify, for instance Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon in Dan 2:38, and Alexander the Great and the four Greek kings who succeeded Alexander in Dan 8:20-22. Others require more research. It seems that Antiochus IV Epiphanes (215-163 BC) is clearly described in more than one place in Daniel’s writing, including Dan 11:21, 27-35. Antiochus IV tried to force Greek paganism on the Jews, and spectacularly failed. He put an idol of “Zeus” in the temple in Jerusalem, and offered a pig as a sacrifice on the altar there. This is described in the these prophecies as “the abomination of desolation,” Dan 11:31, etc. Idols are commonly called an abomination to God in the Old Testament. These are well known events in ancient history.

Then come the “problems” with these prophecies.

For also clearly, not everything ascribed to “Antiochus IV” happened in ancient times, especially Dan 11:36-45. Nor does everything said about “the abomination of desolation” fit the events in those same days. These are signs of either 1.) a false prophecy, as many liberal argue, or 2.) Antiochus IV is symbolic of some other ruler who will come later, and parts of these descriptions fit Antiochus IV, and parts fit someone else in later times! When?

Then Jesus makes the mystery even deeper.

Details of these things are disccused in both Prophecy Principles and Revealing the Christian Age, from different points of view.

Jesus clearly speaks in Matthew 24 of both the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, and the end of the world, and says,

““When, therefore, you see the abomination of desolation, which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),”
Mtt 24:15 WEB

So Jesus does indicate the idol of “Zeus” was also symbolic … and part of what He says will happen, clearly DOES NOT fit 70 AD! Keep in mind that Matthew 24 talks about TWO subjects!

These issues are described in much more detail in both Prophecy Principles, and in Revealing the Christian Age.

God evidently WANTS US to HAVE TO think out these
things in order to understand them.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901