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[butterbobbin]

"If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, and shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation." Luke 19:42-44.

From the crest of Olivet, Jesus looked upon Jerusalem. Fair and peaceful was the scene spread out before Him. It was the season of the Passover, and from all lands the children of Jacob had gathered there to celebrate the great national festival. In the midst of gardens and vineyards, and green slopes studded with pilgrims' tents, rose the terraced hills, the stately palaces, and massive bulwarks of Israel's capital. The daughter of Zion seemed in her pride to say, I sit a queen and shall see no sorrow; as lovely then, and deeming herself as secure in Heaven's favor, as when, ages before, the royal minstrel sang: "Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion, . . . the city of the great King." Psalm 48:2. In full view were the magnificent buildings of the temple. The rays of the setting sun lighted up the snowy whiteness of its marble walls and gleamed from golden gate and tower and pinnacle. "The perfection of beauty" it stood, the pride of the Jewish nation.

This book and I have a peculiar history. When I first started to read it several years ago, it was as if my spiritual eyes were completely blind, because I was reading the pages with absolutely zero comprehension—and this was after reading and falling in love with "Patriarchs and Prophets", so it wasn't the style that was throwing me off. I really believe it was not the right time for me to read it.

Because when I picked it up last year at the recommendation of my pastor, it was as if the pages were literally aglow with the fire of the Holy Spirit, and not only did I understand it clearly, I could physically feel it burning itself into my heart. It was at that time I decided that this is one of the most powerful openings of a book I've ever encountered.

That being said, I still feel this is a grand chapter, despite the fact I've read it a good five or six times. I enjoy the way it ties such a myriad of events and themes together in such a clear way. It briefly describes the purpose of Jesus' mission, the significance thereof, and His emotions regarding the holy city due to His knowledge of what was to come in just a few decades.

Certainly this gives a very unusual viewpoint of the Jewish nation's history, declaring that the Jews are no longer the chosen of God and explaining why.

For nearly forty years after the doom of Jerusalem had been pronounced by Christ Himself, the Lord delayed His judgments upon the city and the nation. Wonderful was the long-suffering of God toward the rejectors of His gospel and the murderers of His Son. The parable of the unfruitful tree represented God's dealings with the Jewish nation. The command had gone forth, "Cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground?" (Luke 13:7) but divine mercy had spared it yet a little longer. There were still many among the Jews who were ignorant of the character and the work of Christ. And the children had not enjoyed the opportunities or received the light which their parents had spurned. Through the preaching of the apostles and their associates, God would cause light to shine upon them; they would be permitted to see how prophecy had been fulfilled, not only in the birth and life of Christ, but in His death and resurrection. The children were not condemned for the sins of the parents; but when, with a knowledge of all the light given to their parents, the children rejected the additional light granted to themselves, they became partakers of the parents' sins, and filled up the measure of their iniquity.

The long-suffering of God toward Jerusalem only confirmed the Jews in their stubborn impenitence. In their hatred and cruelty toward the disciples of Jesus they rejected the last offer of mercy. Then God withdrew His protection from them and removed His restraining power from Satan and his angels, and the nation was left to the control of the leader she had chosen. Her children had spurned the grace of Christ, which would have enabled them to subdue their evil impulses, and now these became the conquerors...

The Jews had forged their own fetters; they had filled for themselves the cup of vengeance. In the utter destruction that befell them as a nation, and in all the woes that followed them in their dispersion, they were but reaping the harvest which their own hands had sown. Says the prophet: "O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself;" "for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity." Hosea 13:9; 14:1. Their sufferings are often represented as a punishment visited upon them by the direct decree of God. It is thus that the great deceiver seeks to conceal his own work. By stubborn rejection of divine love and mercy, the Jews had caused the protection of God to be withdrawn from them, and Satan was permitted to rule them according to his will. The horrible cruelties enacted in the destruction of Jerusalem are a demonstration of Satan's vindictive power over those who yield to his control.

It is not that God does not still love the Jews and long to have them in His family again. It is more that on the whole they have continued to persistently reject Him.

And that is a sad thing, but the good news is that Jesus can break any chain that binds us to Satan's deceptions.

Comments

[polargriff.livejournal.com]

The children were not condemned for the sins of the parents; but when, with a knowledge of all the light given to their parents, the children rejected the additional light granted to themselves, they became partakers of the parents' sins, and filled up the measure of their iniquity.

Unfortunately, Christendom today is no better than the Jewish nation of Christ's day. Just like them, we are saved individually when we give our hearts to the Lord, but too often people think and act that if they just belong to the "right" church or because their family are "Christians" that they are saved, yet they are rejecting the light of the Lord.

Jesus even warns us in Matthew 7:21-23. "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."

[butterbobbin.livejournal.com]

I think it's so beautiful that God held the door open just a little longer for the Jewish nation that way.

This morning in church, the pastor was talking about how the "silence in heaven for the space of half an hour" in Rev. 8.1 equals 7.5 prophetic days, and he thinks that passage refers to probation because of the language that points to the Day of Atonement and the casting down of the censer. He pointed out that Jericho had 7 days of probation while the Israelites marched around, that there were 7 days between the closing of the door of the ark and the beginning of the flood, and 7 days from the day Jesus entered Jerusalem to His resurrection. Later I'll upload the sermon because it was really good, but anyway.

Since the Christians of today are "spiritual Israel", I can definitely see your point about the state of those who claim the name of Christ. Even among Adventists, who have no excuse to not know the truth, there are a lot of people who take everything for granted, and they are missing the point completely. I find this really sad.

Yet God continues to hold the door open, just a little longer, hoping and waiting until there *is* no more He can do for people because they have all made their choice.