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` . . . .and a three-fold cord is not quickly broken '
Our title comes from the fourth chapter of the Book of Ecclesiastes and is often used in marriage ceremonies amongst Christians, indicating the joining of a man to a woman by the Holy Spirit - the three making an unbreakable cord. While we do not wish to critisise such thoughts - for there is a truth in them - they are clearly out of context with the actual thoughts of `the Preacher', for King Solomon (the Preacher) was considering the paradox in which he was placed, and it was this: Which would prevail, `the wisdom of man', centered on power and wealth and fuelled by selfish ambition, or `the wisdom of God', which works in and through man's wisdom, powered by His love for His Covenanted people? In verse twelve of this chapter Solomon is pondering on the strength of unity amongst men, saying simply, `One will not stand on his own; two may last a while longer but even a three-fold cord will succumb in the end' - which is of course quite the opposite to the use of this verse in a wedding ceremony. But first we shall look at the background to this Book of Ecclesiastes which is no doubt familiar to many of our readers.
The Hebrew title for this Book is `Qoheleth' or in English `Koheleth', meaning `an Assembler or Convener of people', and it reveals Solomon assembling his inner circle to talk through the paradox in which he is placed. There is no doubting Solomon's wisdom, which can be seen in the closing words of his discourse with his friends when he says, `Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter' (12:13). Earlier in chapter 2 we see confirmed why over the long centuries it is `the Book of Solomon's Wisdom' which is read at the Feast of Tabernacles - the Word of God `dwelling amongst us': (2:9 KJV)
" So I was great, and increased more than all that were before
me in Jerusalem, also my wisdom remained with me. "
And so to the paradox, and for that we need to turn to the First Book of Kings where we read: (1 Kings 11:9 and 11)
" And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from
the LORD God of Israel, Who had appeared to him twice . . . Wherefore
the LORD said to Solomon, `Forasmuch as this is done by you . . . . .
I will surely rend the kingdom from you and will give it to your servant'. "
The Jewish/Chaldean Targum, commenting on these verses from Kings says:
" These are the words of the prophecy which Koheleth delivered when
Solomon foresaw by the Spirit of prophecy that the kingdom of Rehoboam
his son, would be divided by Jeroboam the son of Nebat. "
And yet Solomon also knew by the Word of God given to his father David that this throne of his kingdom would last forever. The Second Book of Samuel records the Promise given to David: (2 Samuel 7:11-13)
" The LORD declares to you that the LORD Himself will establish a House
for you . . . . . I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will
come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the
one who will build a House for My Name, and I will establish the throne
of his kingdom for ever. "
Thus the Book of Ecclesiastes is a paradox - that the great wisdom of man will come to nothing but the Wisdom of the LORD will endure for ever. The Koheleth concludes therefore: ` Fear God, and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man'. This brings us back to the title of this Study, for in an earlier chapter we find the Koheleth considering: `To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven' (3:1). Continuing in verse 11 we read of the Koheleth's total trust that what man sees as a paradox God sees as His `Time and Season' - and here we need to fill out the wording of verse 11 for there are enough Metonymies (interchange of words whilst retaining their own meanings) and Ellypsis (unspoken but understood words) in these verses to satisfy any English language student:
" He has made everything beautiful to be revealed in the proper season.
Also He has put worldly, earth-bound thoughts into man's mind so
that he cannot find out the work that God has purposed from the beginning
to the end. "
This, then, was the Koheleth's paradox which he finally settled in his mind. Put simply it was that whatever the LORD God of Israel had promised him required only his trust in its outworking. The word `Koheleth' occurs seven times in this Book of Ecclesiastes, the number indicating perfection in the Koheleth's understanding of a total trust in his God. We can also break that figure of seven down from the fact that this word occurs three times in the opening chapters, once in the centre of the Book and three times in the closing chapters. This last thought springs from the words at the end of verse 11: `that which God has done from beginning to end' - in every situation God is in the beginning and the end, and at the very centre is His Purpose being worked out! Surely the Apostle Paul, a Rabbi of Rabbis, must have had in mind the paradox Solomon spoke of when he wrote to the Corinthians - even though the quotation comes more directly from the Book of Isaiah: (1 Corinthians 2:9)
" No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
no mind has conceived
what God has prepared for those who love Him -
but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit. "
Paul then directs our thoughts beyond that which Solomon could understand, urging the Corinthians, and all who would follow on from them, to look at God's Purposes and not to our own desires and the pursuit of worldly knowledge.
As we began by looking at `a three-fold cord', which even in its combined strength could break, so we now look for an unbreakable `three-fold cord' as we wait for the fulfillment of God's Purposes. We have written in many studies of a Fourty Year Probation Period which ended in the year 2007, and in noting that all Scriptural probations end in captivity through a lack of `character' we believe that both Israel and `the Church' have entered their own forms of captivity. However we need to look beyond this and look to a release from captivity as surely as did ancient Israel through the Decree of Cyrus. We therefore turn our thoughts to the three prophets who spoke to Israel following the release of Israel from it's captivity in Babylon, still keeping in mind a `three-fold cord' which even in it's combined strength could not and did not withstand the pressures of the world.
First we turn to the Book of Haggai, which although undated can be seen to be written after the captivity, for the opening words reveal:
" In the second year of Darius (Hystaspis)
. . . . the Word of the LORD came to Haggai. "
This places the Word of the LORD some sixteen years after the Decree of Cyrus, releasing Israel from captivity, and from the following verses we see that Haggai's words were spoken over a very short period of four months. But that was all that was required, for `the Word of the LORD' was for Zerubbabel and the remnant who had returned from Babylon - who must have been utterly devastated at the indifference of the people to the building of the Temple: (Haggai 1:3-14)
" Then spoke Haggai, the LORD's messenger, the LORD's message to the
people, saying, `I am with you', says the LORD. And the LORD stirred
up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel . . . . and they came and
did work in the Temple of the LORD of Hosts, their God. "
The word of encouragement continued and directed their thoughts, first back to Solomon's Temple in all its glory and then forward to a Temple beyond their present efforts, which God will build in His `Time and Season': (Haggai 2:7-9)
" `. . . and I will fill this Temple with Glory', says the LORD of Hosts.
`The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,' says the LORD of Hosts.
`And greater shall be the last Glory of this Temple than the first'. "
The words `the silver and the gold are Mine' takes our thoughts back to Exodus 25, when the LORD asked for a Heave Offering `of every man who was willing' in order to build the Tabernacle, but now His Word through Haggai takes us forward to the glorious Millenium Temple that He will build in that promised Kingdom of God on this earth. Zerubbabel would have understood these words: (Haggai 2:6)
" In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea
and the dry land. I will shake all nations . . . . "
for within the `memory bank' of Israel would have been the remembrance of those earlier `shakings' which destroyed the then-known world of those times (we have set this out in an earlier Study). So once again we see `the paradox of Solomon' - Zerubbabel did not know how such things could happen but he trusted that the LORD knew they would happen!
The Word of the LORD spoken through Haggai now moved forward from faithful Zerubbabel - whose spirit had been stirred to enable him to carry on with his work - to the Desire of the Nations, the `Heavenly Zerubbabel', who alone offered `the Silver and the Gold' required of God to build His Temple. So now is established the legality of His `Zerubbabel' to be King over all Israel (as recorded in Matthew 1): (Haggai 2:23)
" `In that Day,' says the LORD of Hosts, `I will take You, O Zerubbabel,
My Servant, the Son of Shealtiel,' says the LORD of Hosts, `and will
make You as a signet, for I have chosen You,' says the LORD of Hosts. "
And so we leave the first of the last three prophets of Israel following their return from captivity in Babylon (the first strand in our `three-fold cord') and turn to the second, for the Word of the LORD now came through Zechariah - whose name with its meaning of `the LORD remembers' gives us an understanding of the central message of this Book. Zechariah was a contemporary of Haggai, his ministry coming at the same time in the `second year of Darius (Hystaspis)'. The length of his ministry extended to seven years, indicating that what is set out in the various prophecies was the complete perfection of the LORD's Word to Israel. Indeed it could be said that the prophecies of Zechariah are the `filling out' of the prophecies of Haggai, and it is worth noting that Zechariah uses the title `the LORD of Hosts' fifty-three times in the course of these prophecies - indicating not only the faithfulness of the LORD in His acts towards His people, but also the power of the Heavenly Hosts to ensure that no power on earth or in Heaven can thwart them. With this in mind we can see that Zechariah closes the `Old Testament' with its fifteen prophetic Books, indicating the LORD's grace towards His people. This leaves our third `prophetic cord', Malachi, the Seal of the prophets. However it is not our intention to set out a full exposition on the Book of Zechariah, for we are looking for the paradox of the `three-fold cord' of man's efforts - which will ultimately fail - and the `Three-Fold Cord' of the LORD' - in which we trust - which cannot fail for it is bound into the Purposes of God!
And so our thoughts turn first to the prophecies in chapters 3 and 6 of Zechariah concerning Joshua the high Priest. This Joshua is not the Joshua, who as successor to Moses led and established the Israelites in the Land of Promise. This is Joshua, son of Josedech the High Priest, who would have been the High Priest officiating at the ceremonies in the rebuilt Temple of Ezra's time and who is mentioned along with Zerubbabel in the Book of Haggai. In chapter 3 Joshua stands `before the Angel of the LORD' representing the apostate and wayward nation of Israel, which had caused the despondency of Haggai and the remnant of the people. Here he is seen standing in filthy garments before the Angel of the LORD with Satan mocking and accusing him in his efforts to thwart the Purposes of God. The people now hear the Voice of the LORD spoken through Zechariah: (verse 2)
" The LORD rebuke you, O Satan; the LORD who has chosen Jerusalem
rebuke you. Is this not a brand plucked out of the fire? "
Here in these words is the `Paradox of Solomon' - the despair and despondency of Haggai and Zechariah, who saw that in the sixteen short years following the return from the Captivity of the People apostacy and indifference had clothed the `Nation' in filthy garments, but that the Promise of the LORD sees them as a chosen people called to worship and witness to the Living God. The Promise of Redemption follows as the LORD speaks against Satan the Accuser: (Zechariah 3:4-5)
" Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him He said:
`Behold, I have taken away your iniquity and I will clothe you with
a change of clothing'. And I said, `Let them set a fair mitre upon
his head'. So they set a fair mitre upon his head, and clothed him
with garments. And the Angel of the LORD stood by. "
Yet between these events was the warning of a `brand plucked out of the fire' of the Tribulation, revealing that `the Time and Season' was yet to come. Chapter 4 shows this intertwining of Haggai with Zechariah as the Heavenly Zerubbabel is brought in to reveal that the Promises of the LORD will not be fulfilled by any `three-fold cord' efforts of man. In the end they will fail for: (Zechariah 4:6-7)
" This is the Word of the LORD to Zerubbabel . . . `Not by might nor by
power, but by My Spirit,' says the LORD of Hosts'. `What are you, O
great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain . . .' "
So once again the answer to the `Paradox of Solomon' is revealed: (Zechariah 6:9-13)
" And the Word of the LORD came to me, saying: `Take these of the
captivity . . . which came out of Babylon . . . and go into the house
of Josiah the son of Zephaniah. Take silver and gold and make crowns,
and set them upon the head of Joshua the son of Josedech, the High Priest.
And speak to him saying: `Thus says the LORD of Hosts, saying: `Behold
the Man, whose Name is The BRANCH and He shall grow up out of His
place, and He shall build the Temple of the LORD . . . . and He shall be
a Priest upon His Throne, and the counsel of Peace shall be between them both. "
The Heavenly Zerubbabel and the Heavenly Joshua are now joined and shown to be the promised Branch, spoken of by Isaiah as `a Stem of Jesse' of the royal line of David, who was born Jesus `who is called the Christ', the Messiah of Israel. Here we see the second part of the Heavenly unbreakable `Three-Fold Cord' - a High Priest joined as Priest and King, sitting on the Royal Throne of David in the Messianic Kingdom of God.
We must now look for the third part of the Unbreakable Cord of the LORD's faithfulness, and so we turn to the third prophet who returned from the captivity in Babylon, Malachi, known as `The Seal of the Prophets' by the Jewish scribes for they knew of no further revelation concerning the purposes of God beyond the establishment of the Kingdom of God in the Land of Israel, ruled by a Priest King of the royal line of David! The Book itself is undated and so we have to work backwards from the birth of Christ to the Restoration of Israel after its release from captivity and the commencement of the Temple rituals at the great Passover Feast (recorded in Ezra 6:19) - a total of 400 years:
" And the children of the captivity kept the Passover upon
the fourteenth day of the first month. "
But now, a mere thirty years following that Passover, came Malachi `My Messenger' to speak of the LORD's anger against Israel's indifference towards the God who had delivered them and brought them safely into the Land of Promise! Once the restraining hands of Ezra and Nehemiah had gone the moral and religious life of the people deteriorated rapidly, corruption spread and so for 400 years the character of the Nation was to be tested. But the Word of the LORD is true, and in Malachi it was proved to be so - as recorded in Deuteronomy 18 verse 15 where we see Moses, the first prophet to Israel, speaking:
" The LORD your God will raise up a Prophet from the
midst of you like me. You must listen to Him. "
And so now we have four such prophets - indicating once again a testing to come that would last over long centuries. First there was Malachi, `My Messenger', `the Seal of the Prophets'. Second came John the Baptist, he who would prepare the way. Next came the Messenger of the Covenant, the Messiah Himself, and at a time yet to come there will come the fourth: (Malachi 4:5)
" Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before
the Coming of the Great and Terrible Day of the LORD. "
Three times the Messengers sent by God were rejected by the people, leaving only the fourth yet to speak to them, thereby indicating a final testing to come as they enter `the Time of Jacob's Trouble' and at last accept Jesus the Messenger of the Covenant, whom they had previously rejected but will finally accept as the Messiah of Israel!
At last we have the Unbreakable `Three-Fold Cord' of Solomon's Paradox! Not of man's work, for even the three-fold cord of man will eventually break, but this Cord is totally of the LORD God of Israel:
Prophet, Priest and King
The Messiah of Israel
" For there are three that bear witness . . . the Spirit and
the water and the blood, and these three agree in One. "
" That which was from the beginning, which we have heard,
which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked
upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of Life. "
Jesus, our Three-Fold Cord.
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You may E-mail us at: derek@northernstyletrust.com or Telephone (01493) 444494 (UK)
Our Web Address: www.northernstyletrust.com
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