X. I ll Be Back. A. Review. B. Introduction. Subject: Three-Day Journeys

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1 X. I ll Be Back Subject: Three-Day Journeys Date: Theme: 02-Feb-14 The Bible is full of three-day journeys from death to life. Key Verses: 2 After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence (Hosea 6:2). 40 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth (Matthew 12:40). A. Review Last week we looked at the biblical theme of water. From the waters of creation to the river of life in the new creation, the symbolism of water flows through the Scriptures. In the original creation, dry land is separated from the water. This separation is temporary, because in the new heavens and new earth, there is no more sea. God s people are a people of the land; in fact, they are given a Promised Land as their inheritance. Meanwhile the Gentile nations are often portrayed in terms of the restless or raging sea. The sea of nations stands in contrast to the land of God s people. While God s peoples are planted by still waters, the pure water of life, the nations are pictured as the storm-tossed sea. The sea of Gentiles is always restless, always plotting against God. The great nations of the world are pictured as arising from the Gentile sea. In fact, the sea is also pictured as the Abyss, the opposite of heaven. Spiritually speaking, the deeps of the sea are a picture of judgment and condemnation. However, the biblical imagery of water is not all negative. Waters from the heavens above descend upon the earth to provide life and bounty. God s blessings are often tied to the supply of life-giving rain. In fact, the blessings of life giving water flow out of God s sanctuary and ultimately out of God Himself. Jesus is the source of all living water, of all true spiritual vitality. Ultimately, in heaven the sea will be no more and the river of life will flow continually in the midst of God s people. There is a transition in the New Testament from the Gentile sea to the river of life. Jesus commands His disciples to become fishers of men. The gospel is no longer simply for the people of the land; it is for all nations. The church is therefore to go out into the world and preach the gospel to every creature, to harvest the seas and preach Jesus Christ, the true water of life. B. Introduction My family and I like to take vacations to different parts of the country, and even different parts of the world. A typical vacation might last 2 weeks or slightly longer. The longest vacation trip I ever took with Diane (BC before children) was 4 weeks: 1 week in Hawaii, 1 week in the north island of New Zealand, 1 week in the south NZ island, and 1 week in Australia. That was a great holiday, but it was a very long time to be away from home. Maybe you like to take shorter trips, like over a long weekend. We all get a few long weekends, where you get a Monday or a Friday off in addition to Saturday and Sunday. At Shell, I get a lot Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 87 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

2 of three-day weekends, because my normal work schedule gives me every other Friday off that s 26 Fridays a year (if I can take them all!). Most of the time, I don t go anywhere on those Fridays. I usually stay around the house. Often I work on Sunday school. In fact, this lesson was prepared mainly on one of my Fridays off. When you get a three-day weekend, how do you spend it? Have you ever taken a short trip on one of these three-day weekends? Where did you go? Galveston? San Antonio? Somewhere else? What do we typically do on a three-day weekend? Usually we get away to enjoy ourselves, to relax, to see someplace different. Our three-day trips usually are for pleasure. In the Bible, there are also some three-day journeys. However, these are far from pleasure trips! Instead, what we see generally see is that three-day journeys in Scripture usually point to a process of going from a state of death into a condition of life. Three-day journeys in Scripture picture for us the truth about redemption, as God raises us up from the dead into newness of life through His Son, Jesus Christ. Can you think of any that we can list on the flip chart? Three-day journeys in Scripture are generally of two different types. The first type is the traditional journey where someone actively travels from point A to point B for some specific purpose. The second type is a passive journey, where the travel is more in terms of waiting for events to unfold. They are three-day periods of waiting, or preparation, or transformation. They are journeys in the sense that those involved are changed after the three-day period. So, we have active and passive three-day journeys. But what they all have in common is that they picture for us a change from death to life. There are 100 references to three day, three days, or third day in Scripture. We certainly can t look at all of them, so we will restrict ourselves to a few case studies. This morning I want to look at examples of three 3-day journeys, three 3-day waits, and one 3-day fulfillment. That s a total of seven case studies a very significant number! C. Lesson 1. Three 3-Day Journeys a. Abraham & Isaac (Gen. 22:1-18) 1 Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, Abraham! Here I am, he replied. 2 Then God said, Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about. 3 Early the next morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 He said to his servants, Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you. 6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, 7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, Father? Yes, my son? Abraham replied. The fire and wood are here, Isaac said, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering? 8 Abraham answered, God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son. And the two of them went on together. 9 When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 88 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

3 bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 11 But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, Abraham! Abraham! Here I am, he replied. 12 Do not lay a hand on the boy, he said. Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son. 13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. And to this day it is said, On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided. 15 The angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me (Genesis 22:1-18). Abraham embarks upon a three-day journey to sacrifice the promised one, the seed, his only son. So Abraham leaves his home and journeys three days to the land of Moriah, to the place of sacrifice, to the very mountain where Solomon will later build the Temple. He remains obedient to God s command, even though it seems as if it will contradict the promises the Lord has made to Abraham. When Isaac asks where is the sacrifice, Abraham replies, God will provide a lamb. What a picture of sacrificial love, pointing us to the Savior. Michael Card, the talented Christian singer/songwriter and also PCA elder in Tennessee, has written a wonderful song about this passage. It s entitled, appropriately enough, God Will Provide A Lamb. Listen to the lyrics: Three days journey to the sacred place A boy and a man with a sorrowful face Tortured yet faithful to God s command To take the life of his son with his own hands. CHORUS: God will provide a Lamb to be offered up in your place A sacrifice so spotless and clean to take all your sin away. Here s wood for the fire-where s the sacrifice? The questioning voice and the innocent eyes Is the son of laughter who you waited for To die like a lamb to please the Lord? CHORUS A gleaming knife: an accepted choice, A rush of wind, and an angel s voice, A ram in the thicket, caught by his horns, And a new age of trusting the Lord is born! God has provided a Lamb: He was offered up in your place; What Abraham was asked to do, He s done: He s offered His only Son! To take all your sin away. Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 89 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

4 Michael Card quite correctly connects the sacrifice of Isaac by Abraham as a picture that is ultimately fulfilled by Christ. What faith Abraham had! 17 By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 18 even though God had said to him, It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned. 19 Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death (Hebrews 11:17-19). So we see that Isaac journeys from death back to life through the vicarious substitution of the lamb. In addition, Abraham moves from the death of his seed the end of his line to a state of life and blessing whereby the promises of abundant descendants are again repeated in vv Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham's offspring not only to those who are of the law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. 17 As it is written: I have made you a father of many nations. He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were (Romans 4:16-17). So we see that Abraham becomes the Father of Faith, the father of all of us who believe in Christ, the father of all those who have journeyed from death unto life. That s the first three-day journey in Scripture. b. Moses & the Israelites (Ex. 3:1-22; 5:1-3; 8:25-32) 1 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the desert and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, I will go over and see this strange sight why the bush does not burn up. 4 When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, Moses! Moses! And Moses said, Here I am. 5 Do not come any closer, God said. Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. 6 Then he said, I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God. 7 The LORD said, I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 9 And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. 10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt. 11 But Moses said to God, Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt? 12 And God said, I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain. 13 Moses said to God, Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, What is his name? Then what shall I tell them? 14 God said to Moses, I AM WHO I AM. Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 90 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

5 This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you. 15 God also said to Moses, Say to the Israelites, The LORD, the God of your fathers the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob has sent me to you. This is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation. 16 Go, assemble the elders of Israel and say to them, The LORD, the God of your fathers the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob appeared to me and said: I have watched over you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt. 17 And I have promised to bring you up out of your misery in Egypt into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites a land flowing with milk and honey. 18 The elders of Israel will listen to you. Then you and the elders are to go to the king of Egypt and say to him, The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Let us take a three-day journey into the desert to offer sacrifices to the LORD our God. 19 But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go unless a mighty hand compels him. 20 So I will stretch out my hand and strike the Egyptians with all the wonders that I will perform among them. After that, he will let you go. 21 And I will make the Egyptians favorably disposed toward this people, so that when you leave you will not go empty-handed. 22 Every woman is to ask her neighbor and any woman living in her house for articles of silver and gold and for clothing, which you will put on your sons and daughters. And so you will plunder the Egyptians (Exodus 3:1-22). The Israelites are groaning under the slavery of the Egyptians, when God hears their cries and sends a deliverer, a redeemer, Moses. God is going to deliver His people from slavery in Egypt, but they are not being freed from slavery to do whatever they want. No, they are being called by God from slavery to service. The whole story of the Exodus, the whole Exodus pattern, is a picture of redemption, a picture of transformation; a journey from slavery to service, from sin to salvation, from death to life. The Exodus is the great story and pattern of Redemption in the Old Testament, and points in a powerful way to the greater redemption to come through Jesus Christ. Notice how the Israelites are called by God from their slavery of Ex. 3:7 to service at the holy mountain, Horeb or Sinai, the meeting place with God (Ex. 3:12). Also, note how the three-day journey in Ex. 3:18 signals the transition from slavery to service, from death to life. The threeday journey language is repeated twice more in the early chapters of Exodus: 1 Afterward Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: Let my people go, so that they may hold a festival to me in the desert. 2 Pharaoh said, Who is the LORD, that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD and I will not let Israel go. 3 Then they said, The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Now let us take a three-day journey into the desert to offer sacrifices to the LORD our God, or he may strike us with plagues or with the sword (Exodus 5:1-3). 25 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, Go, sacrifice to your God here in the land. 26 But Moses said, That would not be right. The sacrifices we offer the LORD our God would be detestable to the Egyptians. And if we offer sacrifices that are detestable in their eyes, will they not stone us? 27 We must take a three-day journey into the desert to offer sacrifices to the LORD our God, as he commands us. 28 Pharaoh said, I will let you go to offer sacrifices to the LORD your God in the desert, but you must not go very far. Now pray for me. 29 Moses answered, As soon as I leave you, I will pray to the LORD, and tomorrow the flies will leave Pharaoh and his officials and his people. Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 91 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

6 Only be sure that Pharaoh does not act deceitfully again by not letting the people go to offer sacrifices to the LORD. 30 Then Moses left Pharaoh and prayed to the LORD, 31 and the LORD did what Moses asked: The flies left Pharaoh and his officials and his people; not a fly remained. 32 But this time also Pharaoh hardened his heart and would not let the people go (Exodus 8:25-32). Notice the significance of Pharaoh s concession. After the fourth plague, he s willing to let the Israelites offer sacrifices to God, but only nearby. Not a three-day journey away. Pharaoh will only allow the sacrifices in Egypt, on his terms, in his land, not on God s terms or at God s holy mountain. But such a compromise is worthless. Worship God in my way, and we can get along, says the world. But God says, Worship me on my terms! If Moses had accepted Pharaoh s request, it would have availed nothing they would still be slaves in the land of slavery, of sin, and of death. They needed to move out of that place, take a three-day journey from death to life. And that s what they did (but as we ll see in a few moments, that three day journey actually took three months! So, we can see that the three-day figure is ultimately symbolic of this death to life movement.) c. Jonah & the Big Fish (Jonah 1:1-17) 1 The word of the LORD came to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me. 3 But Jonah ran away from the LORD and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the LORD. 4 Then the LORD sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up. 5 All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship. But Jonah had gone below deck, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep. 6 The captain went to him and said, How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god! Maybe he will take notice of us, and we will not perish. 7 Then the sailors said to each other, Come, let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity. They cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 So they asked him, Tell us, who is responsible for making all this trouble for us? What do you do? Where do you come from? What is your country? From what people are you? 9 He answered, I am a Hebrew and I worship the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land. 10 This terrified them and they asked, What have you done? (They knew he was running away from the LORD, because he had already told them so.) 11 The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us? 12 Pick me up and throw me into the sea, he replied, and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you. 13 Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder than before. 14 Then they cried to the LORD, O LORD, please do not let us die for taking this man's life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, O LORD, have done as you pleased. 15 Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm. [16] At this the men greatly feared the LORD, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows to him. 17 But the LORD provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights. 10 And the LORD commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land (Jonah 1:1-17, 2:10). Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 92 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

7 Jonah is a prophet of God. Yet he rebels, he is disobedient, he runs away in sin. He can run, he can hide, but he can t escape God. God finds him and tosses him into the sea, the Abyss, the Deep, Sheol, the Pit, the Grave, Death. He is swallowed up by the great fish and spends three days and nights in its belly entombed, as it were, in the Abyss of death. There he undergoes a transformation Jonah repents, prays, and is heard by God. Jonah is vomited onto dry land and given the commission a second time to go to Ninevah. This time he obeys. He s been given a second chance. He s gone from Abyss to the Land, from the Grave to terra firma, from death to life. Jonah goes to Ninevah and preaches the word of life. Jonah goes from death to life. 1 Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time: 2 Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you. 3 Jonah obeyed the word of the LORD and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very important city a visit required three days. 4 On the first day, Jonah started into the city. He proclaimed: Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned. 5 The Ninevites believed God. They declared a fast, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth. 10 When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion and did not bring upon them the destruction he had threatened (Jonah 3:1-5, 10). Notice the description of Ninevah: Now Ninevah was an exceedingly great city, a three-day journey in extent (NKJV). The exact meaning of the phrase three-day journey is unclear. It may refer to the physical size of the city. It may refer to the duration of visit appropriate for a diplomatic emissary to such an important city. But I would like to suggest that it also symbolizes the spiritual transformation the city undergoes. The city of Ninevah was under a death sentence from God. They were given forty days to repent. An interesting number 40! And so, the people of Ninevah undertake their own three-day journey. Under the death-sentence of God, the people of Ninevah repent and believe on God. And God sees their repentance, has compassion on them, and spares them he gives them life! So we have two examples of three-day journeys in this short little book of Jonah, and in both cases we see a transformation from death to life. 2. Three 3-Day Waits a. Joseph & the Servant s Dreams (Gen. 40:1-23) 1 Some time later, the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt offended their master, the king of Egypt. 2 Pharaoh was angry with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, 3 and put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, in the same prison where Joseph was confined. 4 The captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, and he attended them. After they had been in custody for some time, 5 each of the two men the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were being held in prison had a dream the same night, and each dream had a meaning of its own. 6 When Joseph came to them the next morning, he saw that they were dejected. 7 So he asked Pharaoh's officials who were in custody with him in his master's house, Why are your faces so sad today? 8 We both had dreams, they answered, but there is no one to interpret them. Then Joseph said to them, Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams. 9 So the chief cupbearer told Joseph his dream. He said to him, In my dream I saw a vine in front of me, 10 and on the vine were three branches. As soon as it budded, it blossomed, and its clusters ripened into grapes. 11 Pharaoh's cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes, squeezed them into Pharaoh's cup and put the cup in his hand. 12 This is what it means, Joseph said to him. The three branches are three days. 13 Within three days Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 93 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

8 Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your position, and you will put Pharaoh's cup in his hand, just as you used to do when you were his cupbearer. 14 But when all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison. 15 For I was forcibly carried off from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing to deserve being put in a dungeon. 16 When the chief baker saw that Joseph had given a favorable interpretation, he said Joseph, I too had a dream: On my head were three baskets of bread. 17 In the top basket were all kinds of baked goods for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head. 18 This is what it means, Joseph said. The three baskets are three days. 19 Within three days Pharaoh will lift off your head and hang you on a tree. And the birds will eat away your flesh. 20 Now the third day was Pharaoh's birthday, and he gave a feast for all his officials. He lifted up the heads of the chief cupbearer and the chief baker in the presence of his officials: 21 He restored the chief cupbearer to his position, so that he once again put the cup into Pharaoh's hand, 22 but he hanged the chief baker, just as Joseph had said to them in his interpretation. 23 The chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot him (Genesis 40:1-23). Joseph is in prison in Egypt, along with the butler and the baker. Now, being a Baker myself, I don t particularly like how this one ends up! Both the butler and the baker have a dream, and Joseph interprets them. In each case, the interpretation indicates that the fate of the dreamer is going to change. In the case of the butler, he is restored to his former position, while the baker is executed. So we have a situation where we have a 3-day wait in the dungeon, in the pit, in Sheol, in the grave. One is restored to his former position and is granted life, while the other one is not so fortunate, and goes to his physical grave. So, a three-day journey of sorts results in life for one, but death for the other. Later on, Joseph imprisons his brothers for a three-day period to test their hearts. Have his brothers changed from hard-hearted killers to soft-hearted sacrificial servants? 13 But they replied, Your servants were twelve brothers, the sons of one man, who lives in the land of Canaan. The youngest is now with our father, and one is no more. 14 Joseph said to them, It is just as I told you: You are spies! 15 And this is how you will be tested: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you will not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here. 16 Send one of your number to get your brother; the rest of you will be kept in prison, so that your words may be tested to see if you are telling the truth. If you are not, then as surely as Pharaoh lives, you are spies! 17 And he put them all in custody for three days. 18 On the third day, Joseph said to them, Do this and you will live, for I fear God: 19 If you are honest men, let one of your brothers stay here in prison, while the rest of you go and take grain back for your starving households. 20 But you must bring your youngest brother to me, so that your words may be verified and that you may not die. This they proceeded to do (Genesis 42:13-20). The story ends happily the brothers have repented of their sin against Joseph and have changed. They have been redeemed from death to life. b. Israelites & Mt. Sinai (Ex. 19:1-25) 1 In the third month after the Israelites left Egypt on the very day they came to the Desert of Sinai. 2 After they set out from Rephidim, they entered the Desert of Sinai, and Israel camped there in the desert in front of the mountain. 3 Then Moses went up to God, Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 94 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

9 and the LORD called to him from the mountain and said, This is what you are to say to the house of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel: 4 You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. 5 Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, 6 you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites. 7 So Moses went back and summoned the elders of the people and set before them all the words the LORD had commanded him to speak. 8 The people all responded together, We will do everything the LORD has said. So Moses brought their answer back to the LORD. 9 The LORD said to Moses, I am going to come to you in a dense cloud, so that the people will hear me speaking with you and will always put their trust in you. Then Moses told the LORD what the people had said. 10 And the LORD said to Moses, Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow. Have them wash their clothes 11 and be ready by the third day, because on that day the LORD will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. 12 Put limits for the people around the mountain and tell them, Be careful that you do not go up the mountain or touch the foot of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death. 13 He shall surely be stoned or shot with arrows; not a hand is to be laid on him. Whether man or animal, he shall not be permitted to live. Only when the ram's horn sounds a long blast may they go up to the mountain. 14 After Moses had gone down the mountain to the people, he consecrated them, and they washed their clothes. 15 Then he said to the people, Prepare yourselves for the third day. Abstain from sexual relations. 16 On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled. 17 Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. 18 Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the LORD descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, the whole mountain trembled violently, 19 and the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder. Then Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him. 20 The LORD descended to the top of Mount Sinai and called Moses to the top of the mountain. So Moses went up 21 and the LORD said to him, Go down and warn the people so they do not force their way through to see the LORD and many of them perish. 22 Even the priests, who approach the LORD, must consecrate themselves, or the LORD will break out against them. 23 Moses said to the LORD, The people cannot come up Mount Sinai, because you yourself warned us, Put limits around the mountain and set it apart as holy. 24 The LORD replied, Go down and bring Aaron up with you. But the priests and the people must not force their way through to come up to the LORD, or he will break out against them. 25 So Moses went down to the people and told them (Exodus 19:1-25). The children of Israel arrive at Mt. Sinai their three-day journey has actually taken three months (Ex. 19:1)! But when they arrive, God tells them to wait and prepare for three days. So, they come to serve God, and He makes them wait three days to purify themselves, to be consecrated, to be made holy. They ve escaped slavery through God s great redemption, but they are not yet ready to serve Him. You see, when God comes to meet His people at His mountain, it is a terrifying experience. The people need to get ready. The Israelites have come out of the land of slavery and sin and death Egypt to the holy mountain of the lifegiving Lord. But death is still all around them (vv ; 21-22). They need to prepare Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 95 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

10 themselves three days for the coming of God. And what happens when God comes? The Lord gives them life. He gives them life in the form of His Word, His Law, His Ten Commandments (Exodus chapter 20). So God comes to His people at Mt. Sinai after a threeday wait to give them the words of life. c. Esther & the King (Est. 4:12-5:8) 12 When Esther's words were reported to Mordecai, 13 he sent back this answer: Do not think that because you are in the king's house you alone of all the Jews will escape. 14 For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this? 15 Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: 16 Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish. 17 So Mordecai went away and carried out all of Esther's instructions. 1 On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the palace, in front of the king's hall. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the hall, facing the entrance. 2 When he saw Queen Esther standing in the court, he was pleased with her and held out to her the gold scepter that was in his hand. So Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter. 3 Then the king asked, What is it, Queen Esther? What is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be given you. 4 If it pleases the king, replied Esther, let the king, together with Haman, come today to a banquet I have prepared for him. 5 Bring Haman at once, the king said, so that we may do what Esther asks. So the king and Haman went to the banquet Esther had prepared. 6 As they were drinking wine, the king again asked Esther, Now what is your petition? It will be given you. And what is your request? Even up to half the kingdom, it will be granted. 7 Esther replied, My petition and my request is this: 8 If the king regards me with favor and if it pleases the king to grant my petition and fulfill my request, let the king and Haman come tomorrow to the banquet I will prepare for them. Then I will answer the king's question (Esther 4:12-5:8). Now we skip forward 1000 years to the time of the empire of Persia. Evil Haman has hatched a plot against the Jews, because of his hatred toward Mordecai. All of the Jewish people lie under a death sentence, due to Haman s decree. Mordecai tells queen Esther of the plot, and so she determines to fast (and pray) for three days before confronting the king. What she plans goes against the law, and there is a chance that she will die for disobeying the king and coming into his presence without permission. But she is already under the death sentence of Haman. And so she waits three days, and at the end of that period goes to meet the king. She comes into the presence of the king, and the king grants her life. He hears her request, and after that, the course of events in the book of Esther begin to change. At first there was a downward spiral toward death and destruction, but now there is an upward spiral toward life and blessing. After the three-day wait and Esther s action, everything begins to change. In a way, this is a picture of every believer approaching the throne of grace and coming to the King of Kings in prayer. God hears our prayers, and things begin to change. Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 96 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

11 d. Other Examples Now, time does not permit us to look at some of the other examples of three-day journeys in Scripture. Let me just briefly mention a few of them. Joshua and the children of Israel wait three days before crossing the Jordan river into the Promised Land (Jos. 1:11, 3:2). The two spies hid by Rahab in Jericho wait three days before returning to the Israelite camp (Jos. 2:16, 22). Following Solomon s death, the kingdom of Israel splits in two after a three day wait (1 Ki. 12:5, 12). That s actually a negative example, where they go from life to death instead of the other way around. Likewise, another negative example is the three days of plague following David s census sin (2 Sam. 24:13; 1 Chr. 21:12). But what I really want to talk about in the remaining minutes is the fulfillment of this three-day type in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. 3. One Three-Day Fulfillment a. Death & Resurrection of Christ There are 23 references in the New Testament to Christ s three-day journey into death before His resurrection. There are 8 references in Matthew, 5 in Mark, 6 in Luke, 2 in John, 1 in Acts, and 1 in I Corinthians. Let me just read you a few examples, one from each of the gospels plus Acts. These should be familiar to you all. 21 From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life (Matthew 16:21). 30 They left that place and passed through Galilee. Jesus did not want anyone to know where they were, 31 because he was teaching his disciples. He said to them, The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill him, and after three days he will rise. 32 But they did not understand what he meant and were afraid to ask him about it (Mark 9:30-32). 1 On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. 2 They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. 5 In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, Why do you look for the living among the dead? 6 He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: 7 The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again. 8 Then they remembered his words (Luke 24:1-8). 18 Then the Jews demanded of him, What miraculous sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this? 19 Jesus answered them, Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days. 20 The Jews replied, It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days? 21 But the temple he had spoken of was his body. 22 After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the Scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken (John 2:18-22). Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 97 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

12 39 We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a tree, 40 but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen (Acts 10:39-40). The scriptures plainly teach that the sign of Jonah three days in the belly of the great fish is a symbol that points to Christ s death and resurrection: 38 Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, Teacher, we want to see a miraculous sign from you. 39 He answered, A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now one greater than Jonah is here (Matthew 12:38-41). So we see that this recurring three-day pattern of death to life in the Old Testament points to the greater three-day journey, the greater three-day period of going from death to life. It points from Christ s death on the cross to the resurrection, Christ s victory over death and securing eternal life for all those for whom he died. Christ Himself teaches us that all of the Old Testament Scriptures point to Him. In fact, He tells us that the Scriptures teach us that He would suffer and rise on the third day: 44 He said to them, This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms. 45 Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. 46 He told them, This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem (Luke 24:44-47). Likewise, Paul also tells us that Christ was to be raised on the third day, according to the (Old Testament) Scriptures: 3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). So, how do the Old Testament Scriptures point us to a three-day period from death to resurrection of the Messiah? There are only a couple of verses in the Old Testament that seem even remotely connected: 9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure, 10 because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay. 11 You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand (Psalm 16:9-11). 1 Come, let us return to the LORD. He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us; he has injured us but he will bind up our wounds. 2 After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence (Hosea 6:1-2). Psalm 16 clearly teaches that the Messiah will be resurrected, but the three-day period is not in view. Hosea teaches about the revival and restoration of God s people using this third day language, but it is not clear at all that this is talking about the resurrection of the Messiah. So, Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 98 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13

13 the question is, how does the Old Testament teach us about the three-day period from death to resurrection of Christ? I believe that the answer has to do with the overall Scriptural pattern of three-day journeys from death to life. It is this repeating pattern that points to Christ; it is the sign of Jonah that points to Christ. D. Conclusion Like just about everything else in this course, we are looking at Biblical patterns and how they point to the Messiah, the Savior, the Christ, the Son of the Living God, our Lord Jesus. We ve looked at three-day journeys this morning. We ve seen how Isaac, the only son of Abraham goes from a sentence of death to life after a three-day journey to the place of sacrifice. We ve seen how Moses and the children of Israel take a symbolic three-day journey (that actually lasted three months) from the land of slavery and sin and death to the God s holy mountain, the mountain of worship, the mountain of the words of life. Jonah descends into the Abyss and three days later is reborn on the land. This is the famous sign of Jonah that Christ clearly teaches as pointing to Him. We recite in the Apostle s Creed: He descended into Hell; On the third day He rose again from the dead, according to the Scriptures. All of Scripture teaches us of Christ, and here is just another way in which it does. When we see a three-day journey, or a three-day waiting period, we can anticipate that Scripture is teaching us about the transition from death to life, from sin to salvation, from the Abyss to the Mountain of God. In short, there is a message of redemption for us to find. Three-day journeys teach us about Christ His death and resurrection, His victory over the grave, and His once-and-for-all atonement for sin that brings life to all who believe. Biblical Themes 2013.docx p. 99 of 135 DSB 16-Nov-13