13 Christians Are the Heirs of the Covenant
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The Cross Typified in the Old Testament
1In like manner He points to the cross of Christ when the prophet asked, “when shall these things be fulfilled?” The Lord answered,
“When a tree shall be bent and stand upright, and when blood will flow from a tree.” Unknown Quote
3Another example of the cross and Him who would be crucified, is when Israel was losing a battle because God wanted to teach them death comes on them because of their sins.
The Sign of the Cross
4The Holy Spirit moved Moses to represent the sign of the cross because, unless they put their trust in Christ who would suffer upon it, they would be overcome forever. 5So Moses piled up armor upon armor in the midst of the hill, stood on it in order to be seen by all and stretched forth his hands and Israel obtained the victory. 6But no sooner did he put down his hands, then they began losing the battle again.[m] God did this to show them they could not be saved unless they put their trust in Him. In another place a prophet declared,
“All day long I have stretched out My hands to an unbelieving people, and who speak against My righteous way.” Based on Isaiah 65:2; Romans 10:21
8Moses made another typological prophecy about Jesus, His suffering on the cross, and that the Jews would seek to destroy Him even though He was the only way to eternal life. 9Since Eve transgressed through the serpent, the Lord caused deadly serpents to attack the Israelites. 10This should have taught them their own sins are what cause death. Even though God instructed the Israelites not to create graven images, He instructed Moses to create a brazen serpent[n] to foreshadow Jesus Christ. 11Moses placed the brazen serpent on a pole and instructed the people that if anyone who was bitten would come to the brazen serpent and truly repent, they would be healed.
Joshua Son of Nun
12Another typological prophecy of the glory of Jesus is when Moses named Joshua son of Nun as the people’s new leader. [In Greek, Joshua means “Jesus” and Nun means “fish.” ] He prophetically said the people should “listen to him alone.” 13This was another way that the Father revealed all things about His son Jesus. After naming Joshua son of Nun as leader, Moses told him to spy out the land and to
“Take a book in your hands, and write what the Lord says, how the son of God shall cut out by the roots all the house of Amalek in the last days.”
Based on Exodus 17:14
15Here Jesus is again manifested typologically and in the flesh, not as a Son of Man, but as the Son of God!
Son of David
16Since it was prophesied that the Christ would be a descendant of David, David wrote,
“The Lord said to my Lord, sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies Your footstool.”
Psalm 110:1
18Again Isaiah says the same,
“The Lord said to Christ my Lord, I have laid hold on His right hand, that the nations should obey before Him, and I will break the strength of kings.” Unknown Quote
20See how both David and Isaiah call Him “Lord,” and not “son.”
Commentary
Many ancient church fathers, including Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, and John Chrysostom, taught that Moses’ upraised arms formed a cross and this was a typological prophecy that victory over sin and death would be through the cross of Christ.
The first century Christians used the Greek word for fish, , as an acrostic. Each letter in the word is the first letter for the sentence “Jesus Christ God’s Son Savior.” In places where Christians would gather secretly, the symbol of the fish could be found carved on the walls and floors.
This chapter teaches us that since the Hebrew word for Joshua means “Jesus,” and Nun means “fish,” that the full name of Joshua son of Nun is yet another typological prophecy of Jesus being the Messiah, God’s Son, and the savior of mankind.
The last comment about verse 15 repeats what Paul said,
“God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.” 1 Timothy 3:16 KJV
The Fish Was An Ancinet Symbol Of The Christains
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