For I, saith the LORD, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her.
The Lord promises restored Jerusalem that He Himself will encircle her as a wall of fire and dwell within her as her glory, so that she can inhabit an unwalled city in safety though filled with a multitude of people and livestock. That measuring and promise was His care giving security, comfort and strength to His afflicted returned exiles as they rebuilt, fulfilling His everlasting covenant and revealing His glory through them in answer to intercession. The wall of fire is the abundant gift of the Holy Spirit encompassing the church, the angels of God in thousands pressing back the powers of darkness, and Christ Himself as Captain of the Lord's host leading heaven's army against principalities and powers. It is also the truth as it is in Jesus cherished in the heart with unshaken confidence in the atonement, and the grace of Christ surrounding the soul to guard the senses, hold passion in check and shut out every appearance of evil. The glory in the midst is God as rearward and as light among His obedient people, belonging to those who separate from sin and rely on Christ's merits, whom angels will enclose as a wall of fire and deliver when the decisive trial comes.
Promise to Restored Jerusalem
The Lord Himself would surround restored Jerusalem as a wall of fire and dwell in her midst as her glory, joining divine protection with divine presence. The city would be inhabited without walls because of its multitude of people and livestock, a multitude dwelling directly under God's protection. The measuring of the city symbolized God's care and the security, comfort and strength He would give His afflicted people as Jerusalem was rebuilt. This promise gave comfort, hope and strength to the afflicted returned exiles as they rebuilt.
It fulfilled God's everlasting covenant, with His glory to be revealed throughout the earth through His people. Through Messiah the Lord comes to the relief of His afflicted people in answer to intercession and in pity toward them, calling them to repentance and obedience. Israel had before been sheltered and set apart like a vineyard enclosed by sea and mountains, with God's protection and abundant provision intended to make them the people He designed them to be.
The words belong to Christ's rebuke of Satan when Joshua stood accused, Satan declaring his sins too great to be restrained from destroying him. In that setting Satan stood to resist God's merciful work for the church and ministers of the gospel in their work of the Word by pointing to their imperfections and disobedience. His work is to cover the repentant, believing, commandment-keeping people with defiling garments, while Christ causes their iniquity to pass and clothes them with His righteousness woven in heaven in the loom of heaven. They therefore refute the claim that the commandment-keeping people are Babylon.
Protection and Presence Today
The wall of fire is the abundant gift of the Holy Spirit encompassing the church, guarding it against the power of hell so that those powers cannot overcome it. That same wall is the angels of God encircling those who trust Him, thousands upon thousands of angels of light standing round about as a fiery barrier in the constant battle between Christ's army and Satan's army. Satan ever seeks to cast his hellish shadow between people and God, but the angels press back the powers of darkness so he cannot hurt those who trust in the Lord. When people do their utmost to overcome, the angels shine around them and hold back the influence of evil angels, and ample provision is thus made for the weary, burdened and distressed. Humble, lowly followers of Christ who follow without boasting of goodness are lovingly surrounded in this way, showing that God protects and values them even when others overlook them.
This guarding preserved faith unharmed from deceptive influence while among the Shakers, so that departure could come without harm. Angels were also seen surrounding the speaker at Danvers and elsewhere like a wall of fire, the Lord as protective wall surrounding His people and as glory dwelling among them. Christ Himself defends His people as Captain of the Lord's host and General of armies, coming armed and equipped to the front and leading the heavenly host to stand as a wall of fire about them against principalities and powers and spiritual wickedness in high places. His claimed righteousness goes before those who hang like little children upon the merits of a crucified and risen Saviour, covering all who love and trust Him. He alone judges their righteousness because He created them and redeemed them at infinite cost to Himself, seeing obedience to God's commandments rewarded and transgressors receiving according to their works.
The wall of fire is the truth as it is in Jesus, the precepts of truth cherished in the heart and the promises of God surrounding His people. Resting with unshaken confidence in the virtue and power of the atonement enables firm principle and integrity against Satan's attacks, temptations, delusions and enchantments. When the Bible is studied in humility with earnest prayer for guidance, angels open its living realities, and the truth received and cherished protects in this way. Temptation can then be met by trusting what God has said, for temptations test during earthly probation and reveal the heart, while temptation itself is not sin but yielding to it is. The wall is also the grace of Christ surrounding the soul to guard the senses and hold every unlawful liberty in check. In the soul in which Jesus abides, with respect to all God's commandments, the moral powers are kept in control over every thought, word and action, shutting out impure thoughts, sensual speech and every appearance of evil. A firm boundary is thus set to the passions of the heart, telling them how far they may come and where their proud waves must be stayed.
The glory in the midst is the glory of God as rearward and as light and glory among His people. God builds this safeguard around His people as they are taught to obey His will, and when they walk uprightly and obey His commandments Christ is a wall of fire around them and God's glory is in their midst. The promise is joined to the church's faithful relation to God, and then its light shines steadily to the world. The Father's presence was such a wall of fire around Christ when Christ asked the Father to glorify His name. A voice came from the hovering cloud, and light darted out and encircled Him as if the arms of Infinite Power were thrown about Him, beheld with terror and amazement while holding the people in terrified, breathless silence with eyes fixed on Jesus until the testimony was given and the cloud lifted and scattered and the visible communion between Father and Son ended.
The protection belongs to those who seek to separate from sin and rely on Christ's merits and blood, who may be guarded by angels in the day of affliction and will one day walk with them in the city of God. When the earnest test and decisive trial comes to God's people in earnest, the everlasting arms will be around them and angels will make a wall of fire about them and deliver them. That deliverance belongs only to those who now crucify self every day and every hour, emptying and thoroughly cleansing the vessel of impurity and being made holy unto God before the destiny of souls is decided. It requires dying to self while there is still work to do and entrusted capabilities still to be used, since self-crucifixion afterward will do no good.
The Lord promises restored Jerusalem that He Himself will encircle her as a wall of fire and dwell within her as her glory, so that she can inhabit an unwalled city in safety though filled with a multitude of people and livestock. That measuring and promise was His care giving security, comfort and strength to His afflicted returned exiles as they rebuilt, fulfilling His everlasting covenant and revealing His glory through them in answer to intercession. The wall of fire is the abundant gift of the Holy Spirit encompassing the church, the angels of God in thousands pressing back the powers of darkness, and Christ Himself as Captain of the Lord's host leading heaven's army against principalities and powers. It is also the truth as it is in Jesus cherished in the heart with unshaken confidence in the atonement, and the grace of Christ surrounding the soul to guard the senses, hold passion in check and shut out every appearance of evil. The glory in the midst is God as rearward and as light among His obedient people, belonging to those who separate from sin and rely on Christ's merits, whom angels will enclose as a wall of fire and deliver when the decisive trial comes.
Promise to Restored Jerusalem
The Lord Himself would surround restored Jerusalem as a wall of fire and dwell in her midst as her glory, joining divine protection with divine presence. The city would be inhabited without walls because of its multitude of people and livestock, a multitude dwelling directly under God's protection. The measuring of the city symbolized God's care and the security, comfort and strength He would give His afflicted people as Jerusalem was rebuilt. This promise gave comfort, hope and strength to the afflicted returned exiles as they rebuilt.
It fulfilled God's everlasting covenant, with His glory to be revealed throughout the earth through His people. Through Messiah the Lord comes to the relief of His afflicted people in answer to intercession and in pity toward them, calling them to repentance and obedience. Israel had before been sheltered and set apart like a vineyard enclosed by sea and mountains, with God's protection and abundant provision intended to make them the people He designed them to be.
The words belong to Christ's rebuke of Satan when Joshua stood accused, Satan declaring his sins too great to be restrained from destroying him. In that setting Satan stood to resist God's merciful work for the church and ministers of the gospel in their work of the Word by pointing to their imperfections and disobedience. His work is to cover the repentant, believing, commandment-keeping people with defiling garments, while Christ causes their iniquity to pass and clothes them with His righteousness woven in heaven in the loom of heaven. They therefore refute the claim that the commandment-keeping people are Babylon.
Protection and Presence Today
The wall of fire is the abundant gift of the Holy Spirit encompassing the church, guarding it against the power of hell so that those powers cannot overcome it. That same wall is the angels of God encircling those who trust Him, thousands upon thousands of angels of light standing round about as a fiery barrier in the constant battle between Christ's army and Satan's army. Satan ever seeks to cast his hellish shadow between people and God, but the angels press back the powers of darkness so he cannot hurt those who trust in the Lord. When people do their utmost to overcome, the angels shine around them and hold back the influence of evil angels, and ample provision is thus made for the weary, burdened and distressed. Humble, lowly followers of Christ who follow without boasting of goodness are lovingly surrounded in this way, showing that God protects and values them even when others overlook them.
This guarding preserved faith unharmed from deceptive influence while among the Shakers, so that departure could come without harm. Angels were also seen surrounding the speaker at Danvers and elsewhere like a wall of fire, the Lord as protective wall surrounding His people and as glory dwelling among them. Christ Himself defends His people as Captain of the Lord's host and General of armies, coming armed and equipped to the front and leading the heavenly host to stand as a wall of fire about them against principalities and powers and spiritual wickedness in high places. His claimed righteousness goes before those who hang like little children upon the merits of a crucified and risen Saviour, covering all who love and trust Him. He alone judges their righteousness because He created them and redeemed them at infinite cost to Himself, seeing obedience to God's commandments rewarded and transgressors receiving according to their works.
The wall of fire is the truth as it is in Jesus, the precepts of truth cherished in the heart and the promises of God surrounding His people. Resting with unshaken confidence in the virtue and power of the atonement enables firm principle and integrity against Satan's attacks, temptations, delusions and enchantments. When the Bible is studied in humility with earnest prayer for guidance, angels open its living realities, and the truth received and cherished protects in this way. Temptation can then be met by trusting what God has said, for temptations test during earthly probation and reveal the heart, while temptation itself is not sin but yielding to it is. The wall is also the grace of Christ surrounding the soul to guard the senses and hold every unlawful liberty in check. In the soul in which Jesus abides, with respect to all God's commandments, the moral powers are kept in control over every thought, word and action, shutting out impure thoughts, sensual speech and every appearance of evil. A firm boundary is thus set to the passions of the heart, telling them how far they may come and where their proud waves must be stayed.
The glory in the midst is the glory of God as rearward and as light and glory among His people. God builds this safeguard around His people as they are taught to obey His will, and when they walk uprightly and obey His commandments Christ is a wall of fire around them and God's glory is in their midst. The promise is joined to the church's faithful relation to God, and then its light shines steadily to the world. The Father's presence was such a wall of fire around Christ when Christ asked the Father to glorify His name. A voice came from the hovering cloud, and light darted out and encircled Him as if the arms of Infinite Power were thrown about Him, beheld with terror and amazement while holding the people in terrified, breathless silence with eyes fixed on Jesus until the testimony was given and the cloud lifted and scattered and the visible communion between Father and Son ended.
The protection belongs to those who seek to separate from sin and rely on Christ's merits and blood, who may be guarded by angels in the day of affliction and will one day walk with them in the city of God. When the earnest test and decisive trial comes to God's people in earnest, the everlasting arms will be around them and angels will make a wall of fire about them and deliver them. That deliverance belongs only to those who now crucify self every day and every hour, emptying and thoroughly cleansing the vessel of impurity and being made holy unto God before the destiny of souls is decided. It requires dying to self while there is still work to do and entrusted capabilities still to be used, since self-crucifixion afterward will do no good.