The taken and the left

[Matthias]

“Then Yahweh said to Noah, ‘Enter the ark, you and all your household, for you alone I have seen to be righteous before Me in this generation. … Then the flood came upon the earth for forty days, and the water multiplied and lifted up the ark, so that it rose above the earth. And the water prevailed and multiplied greatly upon the earth, and the ark went on the surface of the water. And the water prevailed more and more upon the earth, so that all the high mountains under all the heavens were covered. The water prevailed fifteen cubits higher, and the mountains were covered. And all flesh that moved on the earth breathed its last, that is birds and cattle and beasts and every swarming thing that swarms upon the earth, as well as all mankind. All in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life - of all that was on the dry land died. Thus He blotted out every living thing that was upon the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky, and they were blotted out from the earth; and only Noah remained, and those that were with him in the ark.”

(Genesis 7:1,17-23. LSB)

 

[Matthias]

Who did God leave and who did God take?

God left righteous Noah and his family on the earth and took away the wicked from the earth.

This is another scene in the Hebrew Bible pointing forward to Jesus and the gospel of the kingdom he preached.

The wicked are eventually removed from the land. The righteous eventually inherit the land.

 

[Matthias]

“Land is a central, if not the central theme of biblical faith.”

(Walter Brueggeman, The Land, p. 3)

This is one of my all-time favorite quotes. It was deeply impressed upon me during my days as a college student. I can’t even imagine reading the Bible now without having this fundamental understanding always firmly in mind.

Old Testament professors don’t, in my opinion, get the credit they deserve.

 

[Matthias]

“How blessed are the meek! for they will inherit the Land!”

(Matthew 5:5, CJB)

The Complete Jewish Bible picks up on this “central theme of biblical faith” expressed by Jesus in the sermon on the mount and bolds it to draw the readers attention to it. Don’t miss this!

 

[Matthias]

“For evildoers will be cut off, but those hoping in ADONAI will inherit the land. Soon the wicked will be no more; you will look for his place, and he won’t be there. But the meek will inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace.”

(Psalm 37:9-11, CJB)

If you closed your eyes and someone read this passage of scripture to you, would your mind instantly flash to the Messiah upon hearing it? Do you find yourself listening to the sermon on the mount?

Taken away -> the wicked.

Left -> the righteous.

The inheritance -> the land.

A central theme of biblical faith -> the land.

I suggest to the reader that now we are thinking like Jesus.

Luke 6:40.

 

[Matthias]

“I have one thing in mind in particular, namely, the hypothesis that from start to finish, the Old Testament is a Messianic document, written from a Messianic perspective, to sustain a Messianic hope.” - James Hamilton

Excellent.

The “Old Testament” is the Hebrew Bible. The only way I can think of it is the way that Dr. Hamilton describes it.

What about the New Testament? If we take out the reference to “Old Testament” in Dr. Hamilton’s comment and substitute “New Testament” in its place then we have a revised statement that I unequivocally embrace.

If we leave “Old Testament” (but preferably “Hebrew Bible”) in the statement and add “New Testament” to it, the combination is a faith statement I teach, preach, and affirm.