The previous articles in this issue have observed, among other things, the power, peace, provision and protection of the Lord in the names ascribed to Him in the Old Testament. We come now to the last of those titles, found in the prophecy of Ezekiel.
The years from 740 B.C. onwards were among the darkest days in Israel’s history. Having previously seen the nation fracture in 975 B.C. following the reign of Solomon, both parts of the nation slipped deep into idolatry. The northern part (Israel) was brought into exile in 722 B.C., and the southern part (Judah) suffered the same outcome in 586 B.C. Two godly young men, Ezekiel and Daniel, were separately also taken into exile in Babylon. The land, city and temple they left behind, which had known the presence and glory of the Lord, were now in ruins, and Ichabod conditions were the norm due to the governmental judgment of God having fallen on the rebellious nation through the elect instruments of Assyria and Babylon.
It is against this backdrop that Ezekiel, at the end of his great prophecy, narrates a future day when the people of Israel will be returned, the land restored, the city of Jerusalem and the temple rebuilt, and the glory and presence of the Lord known once more. Thus, he concludes his prophecy, “And the name of the city from that day shall be, The LORD is there [Jehovah Shammah]” (Eze 48:35).1
The presence of the Lord is one of the great themes of Scripture, seen from the earliest chapters of Genesis through to the closing verses of Revelation, and we will briefly consider herein key features of His presence.
God’s Purpose
It was God’s purpose in creation that man would enjoy His presence. The manifestation of this is in the order seen in the Garden of Eden where He placed the man as head of creation. Man had mediatorial dominion over the creation, ruling and representing Him. God walked in the garden with the man, spoke to him and instructed him. In this dispensation, God’s purpose is that believers should personally and collectively enjoy the presence of the Lord. The Lord Himself mandated to His disciples, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Mat 18:20).
God’s Promise
That close fellowship between man and God was broken by man’s sin, resulting in man’s being “driven out” (Gen 3:24). Throughout Scripture we are continually aware of God’s desire that man would know His presence and the promise of His presence. Some examples will show this. The Lord told Isaac, “I will be with thee, and will bless thee” (26:3). Joshua was promised, “As I was with Moses, so I will be with thee” (Jos 1:5); and God told Israel, “I have redeemed thee … thou art mine … I will be with thee” (Isa 43:1-2). In addition to the promise of Matthew 18:20 above, the Lord, in sending His disciples out to preach the gospel, told them, “Lo, I am with you alway” (Mat 28:20). Before leaving them, the Saviour promised He would send the Holy Spirit to be with them and in them (Joh 14:17; 16:7), so we have God’s promise of His eternal presence with us.
God’s Principles
The OT example of the nation of Israel clearly demonstrates that the promise of the Lord’s presence is not unconditional. He is omnipresent and omniscient and was always aware of their behaviour and recurring unfaithfulness to Him. Israel’s enjoyment of the Lord as His peculiar treasure depended on their obedience to the commandments of the covenant made at Mount Sinai (Exo 19:5). While the Church has a different relationship to God, the requirement for obedience to His Word is no different today in order for us to enjoy His presence in our lives individually or collectively. This is seen in the various NT epistles, where instruction is set out for the Christian, covering all ages, genders, offices and service. If we are to know the Lord’s presence, we must observe and conform to the conduct that God expects of His children. Peter writes, “As obedient children … as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation (1Pe 1:14-15).
God’s Punishment
King Saul’s disobedience to the commandment of the Lord resulted in the loss of the Lord’s presence (1Sa 16:14). Similarly, in the days of Samuel, it was the daughter-in-law of old Eli who, whilst dying in childbirth, named her newborn son Ichabod, meaning, “The glory has departed from Israel.” She lamented over news that the ark of the Lord was forfeit, and that her father-in-law and husband had both died. Like the Psalmist, if we regard iniquity in our hearts, He will not hear (Psa 66:18). Our failure will hinder our prayer, our power, our peace and our consciousness of the presence of God in our lives.
God’s Presence
We return to the prophecy of Ezekiel. As he sat in exile, how he must have felt encouraged by the Word of the Lord that came to him to know that the now desolate Jerusalem would bear a new name. He was given a vision of the glory that would endow the city and temple; but more than that, the crowning joy would be the new name, Jehovah Shammah, “The LORD is there.” That is the future for Israel in this world, as the great Kingdom, still yet future, rolls through its covenanted millennial glory and the ultimate eternal blessing of creation.
For us today, we need to grasp two very important and challenging thoughts. First, every believer is presently indwelt by the Spirit of God, a divine presence. Paul writes, “Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you?” (1Co 6:19). That profound fact cannot be changed and ought to search our hearts as we grasp the dignity of the believer, soul and body, as a living sanctuary where the Spirit of God dwells. Second, we can grieve the indwelling Spirit of God (Eph 4:30) by our behaviour with bitterness, wrath, anger, clamour (outcry), evil speaking, malice (v31). These things should be put away from us, and the indwelling Spirit allowed to manifest the presence of the Lord in us, by the fruit of the Spirit – “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance” (Gal 5:22). That which by grace is our state positionally will be manifest conditionally to the glory of God.
1 Bible quotations in this article are from the KJV.
