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ANSWER

As God encourages Israel with the hope of the coming Messiah, He exhorts the people, “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old” (Isaiah 43:18, ESV). Something new was going to happen.

The Messianic announcement was made in Isaiah 42:1–4, and God further describes the certainty of His coming reign in Isaiah 42:5–8. That section concludes with God’s statement that the former things have come to pass and now He is declaring to them new things (Isaiah 42:9). The reference is contrasting the oldness of the judgment under the Old Covenant (or the Mosaic Covenant) with the newness of the hope provided by the promise of a coming Messiah who would redeem the people and rule righteously (ultimately fulfilling the Abrahamic, Land, Davidic, and New Covenants).

After recounting the reasons for the current and soon-coming judgments Israel would encounter (Isaiah 42:10–25), God reminds them that He is their God (Isaiah 43:1–3) and that they are precious to Him (Isaiah 43:4–7). Because of this, they can remember not the former things (Isaiah 43:18). While there had to be a judgment and consequences for Israel—they broke the conditional covenant that God had made with the nation—that judgment would not last forever. God announces the coming of a new administration in which Israel’s failures and the resulting judgments would be long past. While there might be those who would continually accuse Israel and proclaim the former things as if they were an ongoing reality (Isaiah 43:8–9), their witness is false. The former things have passed away as God had promised, and new things are coming.

While some might testify against Israel, the people themselves would be witnesses that their Creator and their Messiah would bring new things to pass just as He promised (Isaiah 43:10–13). Even as the people would experience God’s judgment at the hands of Babylon, God would bring judgment to Babylon as well, and Babylon’s might would be extinguished (Isaiah 43:14–17). Because God is sovereign and faithful, Israel could trust Him and take Him at His word. Thus they would have no need to remember the former things or ponder the trouble of the past (Isaiah 43:18); instead, they could look forward with anticipation to what God would do and how God would ultimately deliver and redeem them (Isaiah 43:19–21).

God brought the promised judgment to Judah at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon in 605, 597, and 586 BC, when the people were taken into exile. Less than 50 years later—before Judah’s 70-year judgment and exile was complete, Babylon fell to Medo-Persia. God keeps His word. His people could remember not the former things or ponder what is past (Isaiah 43:18) because He promised redemption and restoration, and these new things would come.

In the same way that Israel was exhorted to trust in God and look toward the fulfillment of His promises, we are encouraged to keep our eyes focused on the Author and Finisher of the faith so that we will be able to run the race He has set before us (Hebrews 12:1–2). God has made commitments, and He always keeps those commitments. Because of that we can read His Word and take it at face value, knowing that what He has said He will bring to pass. Like Israel, we can remember not the former things or consider the things of old. We also have a past riddled with failure and sin (Ephesians 2:1–3), and, as He will do with the nation of Israel, God has intervened to resolve our past and redeem us for a life of newness, hope, purpose, and joy (Ephesians 2:4–10).

ANSWER

The name “LORD of hosts” occurs some 261 times in the Old Testament Scriptures. God is first called the “LORD of hosts” in 1 Samuel 1:3. The word LORD, capitalized, refers to Yahweh, the self-existent, redemptive God. The word hosts is a translation of the Hebrew word sabaoth, meaning “armies”—a reference to the angelic armies of heaven. Thus, another way of saying “LORD of hosts” is “God of the armies of heaven.” The NIV translates YHWH saboath as “LORD Almighty.”

This name for God first appears at the close of the period of the judges. In the same sentence as “LORD of hosts” is a reference to Shiloh, where the Ark of the Covenant was kept. The Ark symbolized Yahweh’s rulership, among other things, for He sits enthroned above the cherubim (1 Samuel 4:4; Psalm 99:1). Some have suggested that ”LORD of hosts” reaffirms that God is the true Leader of Israel’s armies, in spite of the low spiritual condition of the nation of Israel at the time of the judges. In 1 Samuel 17:45, as part of his pre-fight verbal sparring with Goliath, David invokes this name of God. In doing so, David was claiming that God is the universal ruler over every force whether in heaven or on earth.

Soon after David’s defeat of Goliath, Israel would enter the international scene. It was necessary for the nation to realize that Yahweh was King even of the many other mighty nations. This kingship of the LORD of hosts is vividly expressed in Psalm 24:10: “Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory!” (ESV). He is the glorious King of Israel, and Zechariah 14:9 tells us that He will be King of the world, over all the kingdoms of the earth (cf. Isaiah 37:16).

Eventually, Yahweh of armies will put down all rebellion (Isaiah 24:21–23) and establish His Kingdom from Mt. Zion (Isaiah 31:4–5; 34:12). As the LORD of hosts, God is the all-powerful Ruler over the entire universe. All power and authority are His. He alone intervenes to provide victory for His people. He alone brings world peace. At the same time, He is available to hear the prayers of His people (Psalm 80:19). There is no other God like this.

The sovereign LORD of hosts has the grace to always be there for the one who comes to Him through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The King of glory, who commands the armies of heaven and who will eventually defeat all His enemies in this world, is none other than Jesus Christ. He is the LORD of hosts (Revelation 19:11–20).

ANSWER

The title “Ancient of Days” first appears in Daniel 7:9, where Daniel is describing his vision of heaven. There an ancient, or venerable, Person sits on a flaming throne with wheels of fire, His hair and clothing white as snow. The flaming throne is symbolic of judgment, while the white hair and title “Ancient” indicate that God existed before time began. In Isaiah 43:13, we find that God refers to Himself existing from ancient of days (literally, “before days were”). That means God existed before days were even created. We read in Genesis 1 that God created time, days and nights, so God existed from before the beginning of time. God is often represented as ancient, as He that is “from everlasting to everlasting” (Psalm 90:2) and as “the first and the last” in Isaiah 44:6.

There can also be no doubt that the reference in Daniel 7 is to God as Judge. A similar description occurs in Revelation 1:14-15, wherein Christ is described as having snow-white hair and blazing eyes. In Revelation, God the Son is depicted with the same power of judgment over His church as the Ancient of Days is described as having in judging Israel. In fact, His sharp gaze judges all seven of the churches in Revelation 1–3 with complete clarity of the reality of all there is to know.

The title “Ancient of Days” is found only three times in Scripture, all three in prophetic passages in Daniel 7:9, 13, and 22. Verse 22 refers specifically to Jesus whose judgment will be part of the end-times events. In Daniel 7:13, the term “ancient of days” refers to God the Father, and we see Him on His throne as Jesus, the “Son of Man” approaches the throne on clouds. God is a triune God, meaning three Persons in One, and at different times “Ancient of Days” refers to Jesus Christ and at other times, to God the Father. But in the prophetic sense, it clearly refers to Jesus, the Ancient of Days returning to pronounce judgment on the world (Daniel 7:22).

ANSWER

Ezekiel’s vision of the four wheels dramatically illustrates the omnipresence and omniscience of God. These wheels were associated with the “four living creatures” (Ezekiel 1:4), who were later described (Ezekiel 10:5, 20) as cherubim, angelic beings appointed as guardians of the holiness of God.

Each wheel was actually two in one, with one apparently set inside the other at right angles which enabled the “living creatures” to move in any direction instantly without having to turn, like a flash of lightning. These wheels had the appearance of chrysolite, which may have been a topaz or other semiprecious stone. The outer rim of the wheels was described as high and awesome with the outer edge of the rims inset with “eyes” (Ezekiel 1:14-18).

The Spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels (Ezekiel 1:20-21). As a result, the creatures were able to move any direction the wheels moved. Most biblical scholars hold to the idea that the Spirit of God gave direction to the wheels through direct knowledge of and access to the will of God. The mobility of the wheels suggests the omnipresence of God; the eyes, His omniscience; and the elevated position, His omnipotence.

This vision appeared to Ezekiel as a powerful imagery of movement and action demonstrating the characteristics of God’s divine nature. It presented God as being on a chariot-like throne, His glory both supreme and immanent, existing in and extending into all the created universe. As such, the whole revelation by God in this vision to Ezekiel, i.e., the cherubim, the chariot, the Spirit, and the wheels, emphasized their unity and coordination.

As terrifying as this vision was, it vividly displayed the majesty and glory of God (Ezekiel 1:28), who came to Ezekiel and the children of Israel in the midst of their Babylonian exile. It reminded them of His holiness and power as the Lord of all creation. The message was clear: though His people were in exile and their nation was about to be destroyed, God was still on the throne and able to handle every situation. The lesson for us today is that, through His marvelous providence, God moves in the affairs of all nations to work out His own unseen plan, always at work, intricately designed, never wrong, and never late (Romans 8:28).

ANSWER

Cherubim/cherubs are angelic beings involved in the worship and praise of God. The cherubim are first mentioned in the Bible in Genesis 3:24, “After He drove the man out, He placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.” Prior to his rebellion, Satan was a cherub (Ezekiel 28:12-15). The tabernacle and temple along with their articles contained many representations of cherubim (Exodus 25:17-22; 26:1, 31; 36:8; 1 Kings 6:23-35; 7:29-36; 8:6-7; 1 Chronicles 28:18; 2 Chronicles 3:7-14; 2 Chronicles 3:10-13; 5:7-8; Hebrews 9:5).

Chapters 1 and 10 of the book of Ezekiel describe the “four living creatures” (Ezekiel 1:5) as the same beings as the cherubim (Ezekiel 10). Each had four faces—that of a man, a lion, an ox, and an eagle (Ezekiel 1:10; also 10:14)—and each had four wings. In their appearance, the cherubim “had the likeness of a man” (Ezekiel 1:5). These cherubim used two of their wings for flying and the other two for covering their bodies (Ezekiel 1:6, 11, 23). Under their wings the cherubim appeared to have the form, or likeness, of a man’s hand (Ezekiel 1:8; 10:7-8, 21).

The imagery of Revelation 4:6-9 also seems to be describing cherubim. The cherubim serve the purpose of magnifying the holiness and power of God. This is one of their main responsibilities throughout the Bible. In addition to praising God, they also serve as a visible reminder of the majesty and glory of God and His abiding presence with His people.