IN Study 1 we examined the type of Judges 6: 1-24. We will now examine the remaining verses of Judges 6 and find brief typical pictures of important features of our Lord’s Gospel Age activities with His followers against errorists, as preparations for the overthrow of the main errorists and their errors.
The second bullock of Gideon’s father (verse 25) offered as a burnt offering, types Jesus’ ministry manifesting God’s acceptance of Jesus’ sacrifice for the Church. Joash, Gideon’s father, types here the Israelites indeed during the Jewish Harvest, of which Jesus was a member.
The altar (verse 26) that Gideon was commissioned to build types Jesus and the Church. It is built upon the Rock – that the Messiah is Jesus, the Head, and the Church, His Body. “In the ordered place,” means that both the typical and antitypical altar would have to be built according to the Lord’s arrangements as typed in the Law. The antitype would imply its actual and reckoned perfection through Jesus’ merit, and its acceptance by Jehovah for sacrificial uses. The wood of the grove represents the Old Testament truths that energized the Church to sacrifice.
The “ten men” (verse 27) represents the human, and possibly angelic helpers, the Lord used to carry forward His work of manifesting God’s acceptance of His sacrifice for the help of the Church and the overthrowing of Jewish clericalists. Gideon’s doing His work at “night” types the secret way that the Lord has throughout the Age worked with His people.
Verses 28-32 type the effects of the Lord’s manifesting God’s acceptance of Jesus’ sacrifice for the Church. “The men of the city” (verse 28) type the leaders in Judaism. Shortly after Pentecost, “early in the morning,” these perceived that their authority and power were questioned and refuted by faithful Christians. They recognized that the principles of the Truth repudiated their system and them as any longer the representatives of God. They recognized a sacrifice was being offered on a different Altar, one that permitted no grasping for power, lording it over God’s heritage, or any other selfish thing.
They searched (verse 29) for the instigator of these acts and traced them to Jesus. They demanded of the Israelites indeed (Joash, verse 30) – now faithful Christians – that they repudiate Jesus because of the effect His teaching had upon the Jewish systems. But the spiritual Israelites (verse 31) reasoned against supporting a clericalistic system and warned that such deeds as the Jewish clericalists desired against Jesus were a defense of Satan (Baal) himself. Christians of that time and onward have looked upon Jesus (Jerubbaal) as One who continually is a Challenger to Satan along this line (verse 32).
Jesus’ Activities Following Jewish Age Harvest
Verse 33 gives a brief history of the falling away in the beginning of this Age, leading to a union of church and state. Our Lord (verse 34) sent forth a message through Arianism and related movements calling upon the faithful to oppose the oppressors of Spiritual Israel. These faithful ones from the fourth to nearly the ninth century fought against the clericalistic errorists.
Verse 35 types four reformatory movements from the ninth to the end of the fifteenth century. The first, antitypical Manasseh, was led by Claudius of Turin and others; the second, antitypical Asher, was led by Peter Waldo and others; the third, antitypical Zebulun, was led by Marsiglio and others; and the fourth, antitypical Naphtali, was led by John Wessel and others.
In verses 36-40 our Lord was given two signs as pledges from God of the success of His mission in delivering God’s people from their oppressors. The “fleece of wool” (verse 37) types the Reformatory Churches. Wool is used to represent Justification by Faith, which was the condition and teaching of the true members of these churches. The earth represents those outside of these churches. The dew represents the Truth as due. The wool alone being full of dew represents that during the period of the Reformation by sects the Truth as due would be found only in these sects but would not be found outside of them. The fact that: (1) the reformatory truths were sufficient to consume the Papal power in many ways, and (2) the Truth given through the Reformation divided Christendom into many sects and nationalities made the overthrow of errorists much easier, gave our Lord the first proof of His coming success.
Verses 39 and 40 type the Harvest movement and Truth as another and final proof to Jesus that He would successfully deliver God’s people from their oppressors. During the Harvest, the Truth was found outside of the churches among the Harvest people (verse 40).
(to be continued)