Continuing: In the prior post we discussed the deeper meanings found when names of things are used to direct our attention to the traits of them. We have many times in past seen a similar quality is almost always found when proper names are translated instead of transliterated. One of the examples we looked at in the prior post was found in Zechariah 9:9, and then requoted in Matthew 21:5 specifically telling of LORD coming riding an ass. We have in many times in detail discussed this name when used is to tell of a burden being carried. We know this is the case by our being told of the LORD coming into Jerusalem in Zechariah 9:9 and the chapter beginning telling us so, saying, “The burden of the word of the LORD,” as it also defines the word as what is borne. We saw the burden further described when we are told in Micah 5:2 of the LORD coming from Bethlehem (house of bread), meaning where and how he was brought up in the house of the God’s nourishment.
We saw these two aspects, the word and the bread, well-defined when spoken of in Deuteronomy 8:3 as it says, “And he [the LORD] humbled you, and suffered you to hunger, and fed you with manna, which you knew not, neither did your fathers know; that he might make you know that man does not live by bread only, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the LORD does man live.”
We know the above verse is also found quoted by the LORD in Matthew 4:4 telling of when he was tempted to turn stones into bread, and responded, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” We know this was telling of His preparation, and now we further see it was His being nourished up in this way, by the word of God. This became His burden He carried to His people, God’s people, and which is spoken of in ending Matthew 11. In prior posts we’ve seen this defined by the LORD as He speaks of the things that had been revealed through Him by the Father, and of His then calling on those understanding to take up this same burden. There we are also told this is our being joined (yoked) together with him, bearing the same light burden.
We know Mathew 11 begins with speaking of the LORD’s being examined by John’s disciples, and we have seen in mid chapter the LORD likening the generation to those expecting Him to dance to their tune, and to lament over their mourning the unbearable burden they themselves had created. This is the same testing that Matthew 4 tell of as coming from the devil, and was the same testing that would later and always try to cause Him to stray from delivering the burden as He had received it.
We know this is the preparation because it is what the LORD told John’s disciples of the preaching of repentance they had heard before His coming, and which they were being prepared by, to dance to the same tune He had become led by, the Father’s will. They of course, as we read in Matthew 4, and see happening before our eyes this day, rather than be converted and corrected wanted the LORD to bow and worship them in God’s place.
Matthew 4
1 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered.
3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If you be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.
5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and sets him on a pinnacle of the temple,
6 And said unto him, If you be the Son of God, cast yourself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning you: and in their hands they shall bear you up, lest at any time you dash your foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, You shall not tempt the LORD your God.
8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and shewed him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
9 And said unto him, All these things will I give you, if you will fall down and worship me.
10 Then said Jesus unto him, Get you hence, Satan: for it is written, You shall worship the LORD your God, and him only shall you serve.
11 Then the devil left him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.
Matthew 11
1 And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples, he departed thence to teach and to preach in their cities.
2 Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples,
3 And said unto him, Are you he that should come, or do we look for another?
4 Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which you do hear and see:
5 The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.
6 And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.
7 And as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes concerning John, What went you out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind?
8 But what went you out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? behold, they that wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses.
9 But what went you out for to see? A prophet? yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet.
10 For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before your face, which shall prepare your way before you.
11 Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there has not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
12 And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffered violence, and the violent take it by force.
13 For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.
14 And if you will receive it, this is Elijah, which was for to come [as spoken of in Malachi 4:5 and 3:1].
15 He that has ears to hear, let him hear.
16 But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in the markets, and calling unto their fellows,
17 And saying, We have piped unto you, and you have not danced; we have mourned unto you, and you have not lamented.
18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He has a devil.
19 The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.
20 Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not:
21 Woe unto you, Chorazin! woe unto you, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre [Tyrus] and Sidon [Zidon], they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
22 But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre [Tyrus] and Sidon [Zidon] at the day of judgment, than for you.
23 And you, Capernaum, which are exalted unto heaven, shall be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in you, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.
24 But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for you.
25 At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank you, O Father, LORD of heaven and earth, because you have hid these things from the wise and prudent, and have revealed them unto babes.
26 Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in your sight.
27 All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knows the Son, but the Father; neither knows any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.
28 Come unto me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and you shall find rest unto your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Tyre and Zidon when literally translated tell of the false rock (Tyrus) and the catcher (Zidon). They speak of those who claim to be fortified and strengthened so the people are able to depend on them, and the people believing this deception become trapped by relying on what has no power to save them. So it is today in church and nation.
Zechariah 9
1 The burden of the word of the LORD in the land of Hadrach [the upper room], and Damascus [silence and weeping – repentance] shall be the rest thereof: when the eyes of man, as of all the tribes of Israel, shall be toward the LORD.
2 And Hamath [walled – thought to be protected] also shall border thereby; Tyrus [the (false) rock], and Zidon [cather], though it be very wise.
3 And Tyrus did build herself a strong hold, and heaped up silver as the dust, and fine gold as the mire of the streets.
4 Behold, the LORD will cast her out, and he will smite her power in the sea; and she shall be devoured with fire.
5 Ashkelon shall see it, and fear; Gaza also shall see it, and be very sorrowful, and Ekron; for her expectation shall be ashamed; and the king shall perish from Gaza, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited.
6 And a bastard shall dwell in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines.
7 And I will take away his blood out of his mouth, and his abominations from between his teeth: but he that remains, even he, shall be for our God, and he shall be as a governor in Judah, and Ekron as a Jebusite.
8 And I will encamp about mine house because of the army, because of him that passes by, and because of him that returns: and no oppressor shall pass through them any more: for now have I seen with mine eyes.
9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, your King comes unto you: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.
10 And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth.
11 As for you also, by the blood of your covenant I have sent forth your prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water.
12 Turn you to the strong hold, you prisoners of hope: even to day do I declare that I will render double unto you;
13 When I have bent Judah for me, filled the bow with Ephraim, and raised up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and made you as the sword of a mighty man.
14 And the LORD shall be seen over them, and his arrow shall go forth as the lightning: and the LORD God shall blow the trumpet, and shall go with whirlwinds of the south.
15 The LORD of hosts shall defend them; and they shall devour, and subdue with sling stones; and they shall drink, and make a noise as through wine; and they shall be filled like bowls, and as the corners of the altar.
16 And the LORD their God shall save them in that day as the flock of his people: for they shall be as the stones of a crown, lifted up as an ensign upon his land.
17 For how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty! corn shall make the young men cheerful, and new wine the maids.
When we read of this preparation and the coming of the LORD we see the same Tyre and Zidon are spoken of in Zechariah 9 and mentioned in Matthew 11. In Zechariah we are told of them as being the wise of their time, who had built what they thought was a strong hold by heaping up silver and gold. It then tells us of the LORD striking down their false strength/wealth by the waters, and burning it in the fires. This is the fire spoken of in the same preparation in Malachi 3:3 as the refining fires of the LORD’s messenger, which refines and purifies the silver and the gold.
In Matthew the LORD says that if the mighty works had been done in them (Tyre and Zidon) that were being done before the eyes of these inquisitors, they would have repented and been corrected.
Zechariah 9:1 tells us these thing will happen, the burden will be delivered as received, when the LORD has our attention and all eyes are toward Him.
Here again are Malachi 3 & 4 telling of the message of this preparation, and afterward Zechariah 8, which I think is one of the most descriptive accounts of what the LORD brings into being in New Jerusalem when He arrives, and Has taken His place (as now for those who receive it).
There is nothing here hard to be understood; the only thing standing in the way is refusal and rejection of subordination to it. It is the same old rebellion and betrayal, wanting to hold onto the seats usurped in the rebellion, and holding the money bag and lusting for more – actually only sells their own soul as the price of the betrayal. What do you gain if you gain the whole world and lose your soul?
Malachi 3
1 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the LORD, whom you seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom you delight in: behold, he shall come, says the LORD of hosts.
2 But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appears? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap:
3 And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.
4 Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the LORD, as in the days of old, and as in former years.
5 And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, says the LORD of hosts.
6 For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore you sons of Jacob are not consumed.
7 Even from the days of your fathers you are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, says the LORD of hosts. But you said, Wherein shall we return?
8 Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed me. But you say, Wherein have we robbed you? In tithes and offerings.
9 You are cursed with a curse: for you have robbed me, even this whole nation.
10 Bring you all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, says the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
11 And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, says the LORD of hosts.
12 And all nations shall call you blessed: for you shall be a delightsome land, says the LORD of hosts.
13 Your words have been stout against me, says the LORD. Yet you say, What have we spoken so much against you?
14 You have said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the LORD of hosts?
15 And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered.
16 Then they that feared the LORD spoke 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.
17 And they shall be mine, says the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spares his own son that serves him.
18 Then shall you return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serves God and him that serves him not.
Malachi 4
1 For, behold, the day comes, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that comes shall burn them up, says the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
2 But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and you shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.
3 And you shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, says the LORD of hosts.
4 Remember you the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.
5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:
6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
Zechariah 8
1 Again the word of the LORD of hosts came to me, saying,
2 Thus says the LORD of hosts; I was jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I was jealous for her with great fury.
3 Thus says the LORD; I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth; and the mountain of the LORD of hosts the holy mountain.
4 Thus says the LORD of hosts; There shall yet old men and old women dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, and every man with his staff in his hand for very age.
5 And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof.
6 Thus says the LORD of hosts; If it be marvelous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvelous in mine eyes? says the LORD of hosts.
7 Thus says the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country;
8 And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness.
9 Thus says the LORD of hosts; Let your hands be strong, you that hear in these days these words by the mouth of the prophets, which were in the day that the foundation of the house of the LORD of hosts was laid, that the temple might be built.
10 For before these days there was no hire for man, nor any hire for beast; neither was there any peace to him that went out or came in because of the affliction: for I set all men every one against his neighbor.
11 But now I will not be unto the residue of this people as in the former days, says the LORD of hosts.
12 For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things.
13 And it shall come to pass, that as you were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and you shall be a blessing: fear not, but let your hands be strong.
14 For thus says the LORD of hosts; As I thought to punish you, when your fathers provoked me to wrath, says the LORD of hosts, and I repented not:
15 So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah: fear you not.
16 These are the things that you shall do; Speak you every man the truth to his neighbor; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates:
17 And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbor; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, says the LORD.
18 And the word of the LORD of hosts came unto me, saying,
19 Thus says the LORD of hosts; The fast of the fourth month, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be to the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts; therefore love the truth and peace.
20 Thus says the LORD of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities:
21 And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts: I will go also.
22 Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the LORD.
23 Thus says the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew [circumcised in mind], saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.
