Jehovah Shammah

This week we learned some awesome things in Bible Study as we studied Jehovah Shammah, The Lord is There. The homework and the class lesson gave us very different insights into the revelation of God’s name. 

What I Learned in the Homework

Why the Israelites Needed Restoration

The main theme we camped on in the homework was restoration. In order for there to be restoration, there first has to be a period of neglect or deterioration. This is exactly what happened to the Israelites’ relationship with the LORD as detailed in Ezekiel 22.  They fell into a familiar pattern of sin. They despised the holy things of God, desecrated the Sabbath, oppressed the weak, and worshiped idols. The prophet Ezekiel was sent by God to the Israelites to foretell their coming destruction; the warning was ignored.  “"Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge you, each one according to his ways, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall” (Ezekiel 18:30). The homework points out that God’s desire wasn’t to destroy Israel, His heart was for them. He wanted them to repent and live.  We also learned that God had another desire that can be found throughout the book of Ezekiel, “Then they will know that I am the LORD” (Eze. 35:15). 

We were given a thought-provoking question based on Ezekiel 22:30, “I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none”. As God was looking for someone to intercede on behalf of His people, there may be people in our own lives to whom God is calling us to ‘stand in the gap’. Is the LORD bringing anyone to your mind? Stand in the gap for them.

The Promise of Restoration to the Israelites

As you know, Ezekiel’s prophecy came to pass.  Jerusalem, as well as the temple, was destroyed.  The people were killed or taken captive to Babylon. It was a dark hour for the Israelite’s. It seemed that God had abandoned them, yet He had not.  We read in Ezekiel 36:8-9, “But you, O mountains of Israel, will produce branches and fruit for my people Israel, for they will soon come home. I am concerned for you and will look upon you with favor”.   God still loved them and desired to bless them.  The homework made the point that it was of utmost importance that the Israelites remember that God was the LORD.  We were asked to think of a time in our own lives when we were under the discipline of the LORD yet He gave us hope in this time through His Word.

We now come back to God’s revealed name, Jehovah Shammah, The LORD is There.  It says in Ezekiel 48:35: “And the name of the city from that time on will be: THE LORD IS THERE”.  We were encouraged to know that even in the midst of suffering and discipline God is still there.  And not only would He be there for them then, but there is a promise that one day they would be in His presence forever!  

What I Learned in Class

“Glory Story!!”  Does this capture your attention? It certainly did mine! Today we learned about the Glory of God. You might be asking yourself what this has to do with Jehovah Shammah. Read on! I freely admit I cannot give justice to the lesson in this blog post.  Sometimes you just have to be there but I pray that you will have a renewed amazement of God’s glory as you follow along. (As a side note, this lesson was recorded. If you would like a cd copy, please let us know.)

We already learned that the Israelites were under God’s judgment and that the temple had been destroyed. The destruction of the temple was so much more significant to the Israelites than we might understand. To them, the temple was the place where God was present, the place His Glory dwelt, not a mere building.

To help us better grasp the concept of God’s glory and of its vital importance to the Jewish people, Arlene brought us back to the time of the Exodus.  As you might recall, God gave the Israelites very specific instructions regarding the building of the tabernacle in the desert. In Exodus 25:8-9 it says, “Then have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell with them. Make this tabernacle and its furnishings exactly like the pattern I will show you.”  The words for both ‘dwell’ and ‘tabernacle’ are related to the Hebrew word shekinah and are associated with the presence of God and His glory. Looking at the verse, it is not that we wanted to dwell with God, but that God wanted to dwell with us!!

Arlene walked us through the Scriptures and traced the manifestation of God’s glory, straight back to the Garden of Eden.

Garden: “So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the man out of the place (shakinah, God’s presence) on the east side  of the Garden of Eden  cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life” (Gen. 23-24).  

Abrahamic Covenant: “When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces. On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram and said, "To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates” (Gen. 15:17-18).

Burning Bush: “There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up” (Ex. 3:2).

The Law at Mt. Sinai : “Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the LORD descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, the whole mountain trembled violently” (Ex. 19:18).

In the Tabernacle: “Then the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle Moses could not enter the Tent of Meeting because the cloud had settled upon it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. So the cloud of the LORD was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel during all their travels” (Ex. 34-35, 38).

In the Temple: “And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled his temple.  Then Solomon said, "The LORD has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud; I have indeed built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell forever “(1 Kings 8:11-13).

Reading through the following Scriptures we can trace the glory of the LORD as it departs the temple through the East Gate up to the Mount of Olives: “Then the glory of the LORD rose from above the cherubim and moved to the threshold of the temple. The cloud filled the temple, and the court was full of the radiance of the glory of the LORD“ (Eze. 10:4). “Then the glory of the LORD departed from over the threshold of the temple and stopped above the cherubim.  While I watched, the cherubim spread their wings and rose from the ground, and as they went, the wheels went with them. They stopped at the entrance to the east gate of the LORD's house, and the glory of the God of Israel was above them.” (Eze. 10:18-19). “The glory of the LORD went up from within the city and stopped above the mountain east of it” (Eze. 11:23).

What happened next was profound. God was silent for 400 years. Even when the Israelites had been under His hand of judgment, His presence was still made known through the prophets. Now there was nothing. Not one word. Four hundred years.

Please read the beginning of the Gospel of John in light of what we have just learned! “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  The Word became flesh and made his dwelling (tabernacled) among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:1,14).  The glory of God had returned!!

From the Gospel of Luke you are probably familiar with the account of Jesus being presented in the temple as an infant. Mary, Joseph and Jesus met an old man named Simeon. Here is what the Word tells us about Simeon: “Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel” (Luke 28:32).  Think about this…Simeon was waiting!! For 400 years, the glory had departed the temple, yet Simeon still waited for its return. This is huge. Upon Jesus’ entrance into the temple, Simeon knew that the Glory was back!!!!!!

Arlene showed us the story of God’s glory does not end there. “Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day's walk from the city” (Acts 1:12).  The apostles were returning from the Mount of Olives where they had witnessed Jesus ascension into heaven. Remember Ezekiel 11:23?  “The glory of the LORD went up from within the city and stopped above the mountain east of it”. The mountain east of the city is Mount of Olives! As the glory had departed in Ezekiel’s day, it once again departed from the very same place!

The story of Glory still does not end! We know that Jesus is coming back again one day. One of the places this is prophesied is in the book of Zechariah. “On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south” (Zech. 14:4). God’s glory will be there!

Now let’s go back to where we began, Ezekiel 48. This portion of Scripture is also a prophecy about the time of Christ’s return. The final verse in this portion of Scripture is Ezekiel 48:35: "And the name of the city from that time on will be: THE LORD IS THERE."  The glory will be back, never to leave again. Halleluiah!!

"Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!" Luke 19:38