2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
This morning, we begin looking at citations in which God is called Jehovah Sabaoth, the Lord of hosts. I had heard terms like “heavenly hosts” but wanted to have a better understanding of what the word, “host,” means used in this context. The American College Dictionary defines host as “a multitude or great number of persons or things; archaic: an army.” Since the name for God used in these citations is “the Lord of hosts,” minus the word “heavenly,” it is perfectly acceptable for us to assume this means the Lord of all on earth and in heaven. That is significant, because it is a reminder of God’s supreme position in the scheme of things and of His ultimate sovereign power over all. It is also significant, because those who refer to God by this name acknowledge that their own resources are inadequate amidst the struggle that is the spiritual warfare they face. With recognition of this fact, they turn to the only Source of real strength, guidance, and endurance, Jehovah Sabaoth, the Lord of hosts.
From a historical perspective, it is interesting to note that the name Jehovah Sabaoth is not used in the book of Ezekiel. There is a logical explanation for this; the people were in captivity in Babylon for 70 years and had stopped fighting the battles of spiritual warfare. Zechariah’s vision of the horses [ZECH 1: 7- 17] deals with the spiritual condition of the people at the end of that time. ZECH 1: 9-11, “I [Zechariah] asked him [an angel of the Lord], ‘Sir, what do these horses mean?’ He answered, ‘I will show you what they mean. The Lord sent them to go and inspect the earth,’ They reported to the angel: ‘We have been all over the world and have found that the whole world is helpless and subdued.’” What this means is that the Jews had been brought to the point of brokenness after seventy years in captivity, the point at which God hoped they would once again be willing to accept His Lordship in their lives. God wanted the people of that time and us to understand that as Jehovah Sabaoth, He meets failure and offers deliverance. In addition to being a God that delivers, He is also a God Who righteously judges.
The book of Malachi, whose ministry was from 435-415 BC, was written in 433 BC at the time of Governor Nehemiah’s visit to Babylon. That was not long after the three waves of return from captivity which were in 536 BC under Governor Zerubbabel, in 458 BC under the priest, Ezra, and in 445 BC under Governor Nehemiah. The main message of Malachi was to call the Jewish priests to renew their faithfulness their covenant with God. Spiritually, the priesthood was in sad condition. They had been cheating God by not giving Him offerings due to Him and were surely not living by His teachings. We find the Lord reprimanding the priests through Malachi in MAL 1: 6-14, which I hope you will read. Here are a few highlights: MAL 1: 9-10, “Now, you priests, try asking God to be good to us. He will not answer your prayer, and it will be your fault. The Lord Almighty says, ‘I wish one of you would close the Temple doors so as to prevent you from lighting useless fires on My altar. I am not pleased with you; I will not accept the offerings you bring Me.’” Jehovah Sabaoth’s condemnation of disobedient priests rings out in MAL 1: 14, “A curse on the cheater who sacrifices a worthless animal to Me, when he has in his flock a good animal that he promise to give Me! For I am a great King, and people of all nations fear Me.” God is an angry Parent here, chastising His children for their hypocrisy, corruption, and refusal to acknowledge His righteous authority. It is bad enough when ordinary people sin, but somehow it is worse when people who claim to dedicate their lives to serving God do so. I remember Pastor Paul Pfotenhauer’s sermon expressing his (and my belief) that the clergy should be held to a higher standard as they set an example for those whom they lead.
We can begin to appreciate the spiritual condition at the time that the Jews returned from exile and the enormity of the task that was before them. First the city of Jerusalem had to be rebuilt, and we know from the books of Nehemiah, Ezra, and Haggai that it was no easy task. Then the Temple had to be rebuilt. Haggai speaks of delays in getting the people to “put first things first.” HAG 1: 8-9 [Jehovah Sabaoth speaking through Haggai], “Now go up into the hills, get lumber, and rebuild the Temple; then I will be pleased and will be worshipped as I should be. You hoped for large harvests but they turned out to be small. And when you brought the harvest home, I blew it away. Why did I do that? Because My Temple lies in ruins while every one of you is busy working on his own house.” Work on the Temple had started in 536 BC. Delays due to not making it a priority led to it not being completed until 516 BC. Haggai’s ministry was from 520-505 BC, and his book was written in 520 BC.
We might ask: Why is this important to me in 2001 AD? The answer has to do with our need to understand God’s priorities and why they are so important to us. Jehovah Sabaoth wants us to put “first things first,” meaning put Him first. There is nothing unfair or unrighteous about this. He is our Abba Who wants us to be delivered from the wages of sin [RO 6: 23]. He condemns sin and the people who insist on making it a lifestyle. His heart is huge for His children. He wants as many of them to enjoy eternal joy and fellowship with Him as possible. If we understand the human foibles built into the unrepentant sinner from these historical accounts of post-exilic Jews, we may understand that we really are inadequate to the job of salvation and sanctification without the One Source Who can provide it all for us, Jehovah Sabaoth. Then, hopefully, we will turn to Him.
PRAYER: O Lord, You are our Jehovah Sabaoth, the Lord of Hosts. That means You are the Lord of all on earth and in heaven. As such, You are the only One with the authority to judge, something You do through Your Son, Jesus Christ. While we acknowledge You as the Judge, we also acknowledge You as the only One and true Source of deliverance. It is through Your superiority and sovereign power that You alone can accomplish this task. We are honored by the fact that You want us to put You first and that You desire for us to turn to You and be delivered from the consequences of sin. The history of the post-exilic Jewish people as we see it in the books of Nehemiah, Ezra, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi reveal to us the struggle that has gone on between You and them. It is not unlike the struggle that goes on between You and people today. In RO 12: 2, You prompted Paul to describe what You do as “transformation by the renewal of one’s mind.” That is a power only You have. We humbly stand in awe of it and offer You our heartfelt thanks that You have called us to faith, thus having chosen to transform our minds. You deserve all the honor and glory for the righteous and loving use You make of the power You have. We offer You our adoration, worship, loyalty, trust, obedience, praise and thanks this day and every day. In Christ’s name, amen.
Tomorrow, we will look at more citations that reveal what is meant by Jehovah Sabaoth, the Lord of hosts. What a marvelous and awesome Deity our Lord is! He has not had an easy task in bringing us to faith and dealing with our sanctification. We can choose to make it easier for him when we put aside our human agendas and make His agenda our first priority. I can witness to the fact that when we do this, everything gets better in people’s lives. That is because of the love that our Lord has for us. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn