Chapter 47: Shows that believers have not only rest in afflictions, but also rest from afflictions
you, that He will not even provide you with bread? Take matters into your own hands." So it is for a troubled soul. The soul is troubled, the Lord has withdrawn from it, and now the tempter comes and says,
"You see, you cannot find comfort. You have prayed all this time, and yet you cannot find comfort, peace, or rest. Now, therefore, seek rest elsewhere." Oh, take heed of this! A deserted soul should abandon such temptations and resolve to remain in a restless condition for all eternity if it cannot find rest here.
It is like those who carry out evil tasks—if there is any breach between a father and child or between friends, they take advantage of it. They say, "Do you not see how your father cares nothing for you, though you are in such need? He will neither regard you nor help you. Come, then, and take my advice, and I will show you how you can live a better life." Just as those who sow discord take advantage of breaches, so does the devil. When the Lord has withdrawn from the soul, and the soul is in a deserted condition, then the devil comes to draw the soul to unlawful ways. He will be sure to take advantage and do all the evil work he can between God and the soul. Therefore, let those who are in such a condition beware of such temptations.
And these, then, are the helps for those who are under the burden of spiritual desertions. There is enough in Christ to help them, and by observing these, they may come to find rest in Jesus Christ.
Chapter 47
Shows that believers have not only rest in afflictions, but also rest from afflictions.
But now further, beyond all the rest you have heard of, there is a time when the Lord will not only give the soul rest in afflictions, but shall give the soul rest from afflictions; indeed, this may even happen in this world. Scripture speaks as if there were a rest for the people of God, a deliverance from affliction, not only in affliction but from affliction. Consider the passage in Isaiah 54:11: O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires. And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones. You are now afflicted, tossed, tempted, and not comforted, but it shall not always be so.
It is true that the Church, ever since the beginning of the world, has been in an afflicted condition, tossed with tempests and not comforted, not in the manner described here. However, there is a promise of a glorious time when a sure foundation shall be laid, and that foundation will be of precious stones, and there will be rest. If you compare this Scripture with Revelation 21, you will see it points to a glorious time when Christ shall give rest to the soul. In verse 4 it says, And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes, and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things are passed away. And if you read further, you will find that it seems to allude to Isaiah 54.
It describes what those precious stones shall be, which will form the foundation of the happy estate of God's saints. This is not referring to heaven, but to a time before the great and general day of judgement.
This is made plain by the text, which says that the kings of the earth shall bring their glory and honour to it (verse 24). The nations of
them which are saved shall walk in the light of it, and the kings of the earth shall bring their glory and honour to it. This speaks of a time when the Church shall be in such a state that the kings of the earth will bring their glory and honour to it. After the day of judgement in heaven, the kings of the earth do not bring their glory and honour to the saints in heaven; rather, they bring their glory and honour to the saints here on earth. This prophecy speaks of a blessed condition for the saints, when the kings of the earth shall bring their glory and honour to them. Therefore, this promise of a glorious time for the saints, when all tears will be wiped away from their eyes, applies to this world. It seems to refer to the same time spoken of in the previous chapter, Revelation 20, concerning the first resurrection. After that time, the Devil will be loosed, and Gog and Magog will gather themselves together against God's people. But before that, there is a rest to be had from all affliction, even here on earth, to be hoped for when the saints of God will be honoured before all the world, and all wicked and ungodly men will be subdued before them.
Beyond this, there is certainly a rest of glory in the world to come, which must be added to all the other forms of rest. This is when the saints will keep an eternal Sabbath before the Lord, continually engaged in praising, magnifying, and blessing the great God.
Question: You may ask, "Shall that be a rest while performing holy duties?"
Yes, it shall indeed be a rest, for there will be no weariness of the flesh. The soul will be in a spiritual condition, and the flesh will be subservient to the soul. There will be no weariness in the flesh as it enjoys communion with God, beholds blessed visions of Him, and dwells in the Father's house above all enemies. There will be no more