01.10 - Section 10. Mat_24:1-51; Mat_25:1-46.
Section 10. Matthew 24:1-51; Matthew 25:1-46. The Great Prophetic Outline. The King’s Dealings with the Jew, the Church, and the Nations
There are many wonderful things about the Word of God. No other book is like it in this, that it has a Divine Author. God has spoken. What He says must be true, authoritative, and final. It can be subject neither to revisal nor development, for the Author is infinite and All-wise.
Then again it does what no word of man can ever do in the same way — it speaks to the conscience. Men address their words to the intellect, the emotions, or the imagination. God speaks right home to the conscience. He deals with the foundation questions of man’s sin, and God’s righteousness, and so unconverted men hate the Book because they love not its Author.
Yet another most wonderful thing about the Bible is that it tells of the future. Other books tell of the past, or give details of current events, but when the line of the present moment is reached, all beyond it becomes mere idle speculation.
God’s Book with graphic touch, and precise definition, gives an outline of the course of time, from the time that time began, until the time when time shall be no longer. It lifts the veil that shuts in the future from mortal ken, and shows us the glories of the ransomed around the throne of God, and the awful fate of the lost in that place where hope never comes. We can know about the end of time with just as much certainty as we know about the beginning of it, for the same word has revealed both. With this assurance of faith, then, let us draw near and listen to the words of the Lord Jesus, as recorded for us in these wonderful chapters. He here takes the place of the Prophet of God, according to what was before spoken of Him by Moses: —
"I will raise them up a prophet from among their brethren . . . and I will put my words in his mouth and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him" (Deuteronomy 18:18). It was a solemn moment in Israel’s history when He went out and departed from the temple. Never more would His voice be heard in its courts. Never again would His feet stand within its gates. Jerusalem had rejected her King, and the things that belonged to her peace were hid from her eyes. The temple was that in which the Jew of that day made his boast. Even disciples were still occupied with its glories, and the Lord, to deliver them from the influence of things seen, brings in the light of things as yet unseen. Doubtless it was with something of dismay that they heard of the day of distress so soon to overtake their "beautiful house," and they waited only for a more convenient season to learn more about such a startling event. That occasion soon presented itself. Leaving the temple and the city, they take their way towards Bethany, and when sitting on the slopes of Olivet, it may be to rest after climbing up from the Kedron Valley, the disciples come to Him, eager for information as to the solemn events of which He had but darkly hinted, as they left the temple courts. With this object they put to Him the three great questions: —
1 When shall these things be?
2 What shall be the sign of Thy Coming?
3 What shall be the sign of the end of the world (age)? The Lord, in replying to their questions, gives them, as is ever His wont, instruction and guidance far beyond what they had asked for. And in the present section of the Gospel we have an outline of events beginning from the moment then present, and carrying us on to that time of blessedness for the earth, still future, when "the King shall sit upon the throne of his glory," and the Kingdom will no longer exist in mystery, but will be seen in manifestation, and "everything that hath breath shall praise the Lord," according to Psalms 150:6. The prophecy divides itself into three distinct parts, which we must carefully distinguish, if we are to profit by our Lord’s teaching: —
1. The First Part has to do with the Jew (Matthew 24:1-41).
1 His Trials (Matthew 24:9).
2 His Temptations (Matthew 24:24).
3 His Deliverance (Matthew 24:31).
2. The Second Part has to do with Christians (Matthew 24:42-51, Matthew 25:1-30).
1 As Ministering (Matthew 24:45).
2 As Waiting (Matthew 25:1).
3 As Working for their Absent Lord (Matthew 25:14).
3. The Third Part has to do with the Gentile Nations (Matthew 25:31-46).
1 As Receiving (Matthew 25:34); or 2 As Rejecting the King’s Messengers (Matthew 25:41).
It will be seen at once that the first part of the prophecy carries us right on to the "coming of the Son of Man," taking no notice of the Church period, which must necessarily lie within its bounds. Having done so, the Lord turns back to deal with the Christian position, not so much in relation to "times and seasons" which have to do with the earth, but giving instead an outline of what the motives which govern Christian profession are, whether real or unreal; with the necessary teaching connected therewith. And this is as we would expect, and is on the lines of all prophecy which, strictly speaking, has to do with the earth, and an earthly people. So Peter says the prophets "spake of the sufferings of Christ — and — the glory that should follow." To them the mystery of the Church had not been revealed, and the disciples here were in a somewhat similar position. They are looked upon representatively, as the followers of Christ, in His absence, and at His return to the earth.
Let us notice further that Matthew does not give us, except in a general way, the Lord’s answer to the first question — "When shall these things be?" — that is, the overthrow of their temple and polity. The answer to this is given very fully in Luke, see Matthew 21:12-24, and is in keeping with the line of truth he is presenting. As a Gentile, writing to Gentiles, Luke shows the results of Gentile invasion of the land, which was, in its immediate consequences, the destruction of both temple and city by Titus, 70 A.D. But here the Lord sets first before the disciples what would be the state of the world after He left it, and what would be their own condition in it. As to the nations of the earth, they would not only hate the disciples, but they would hate each other. Wars and rumours of wars would be the result. The King of Peace rejected, peace will never again find a home on earth until He returns. Famine follows war. Pestilence follows famine. And not only are these dreadful results seen as the effects of men’s sin, but inanimate nature itself seems to respond to the universal unrest.
Such would be the condition of things in the absence of the King. They would be the "beginning of sorrows." In addition to the persecution from without, there would be that which would cause them even greater suffering than the physical torments to which they might be subjected — many would be false to their profession. The persecution of the world tests the reality of the professor. Many such are offended, and instead of standing firm as confessors of Christ, they become, alas! betrayers and haters of those they once professed to love and serve. With minds in such a condition the words of the false prophet find ready reception, and, turned aside from the truth, many are deceived thereby. The deadening effect of abounding iniquity is also seen in another way — the love of many waxes cold. Ephesus is not alone in this. Who is there among us who has not experienced it? Grace alone can keep.
Many deceived: many offended: many disheartened.
Many false Christs: many false prophets: many betrayers.
Every art of Satan is here laid bare by the eye of Omniscience, and the encouragement is added to the faithful that he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
We are introduced in Matthew 24:14 to something which marks in a special way the time of the end. "This Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations: and then shall the end come."
We must not confound the Gospel of the Kingdom with the Gospel of the grace of God. These are two distinct lines of truth as we shall see.
We get the Kingdom Gospel first mentioned in Matthew 4:1-25, where the Lord Himself began to preach it, and along with it went the healing miracles which marked that dispensation. Again, in Matthew 10:1-42, we find the proclamation more widely extended by the twelve apostles, still with the same signs following, but with the definite injunction to go only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As we have seen, Israel rejected both the Kingdom and the King, and with the ascension of Christ to the right hand of God on high, the "good news" is now of a different character. It is no longer a call to Israel to repent and be converted in order to be ready for an earthly reign, but it is a command to all men everywhere to repent, because He hath appointed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness. Before that day comes, God, in the operations of His sovereign grace, is saving sinners out of the world, and uniting them to Christ in heavenly glory; uniting them also to one another as well as to their Head on high, and forming the Church which is His Body. When the last member has been gathered in, the Lord Himself shall descend, and we shall ascend to meet Him in the air. And so shall we ever be with the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:1-18). This is the "Blessed Hope" set before the believer now, and we shall rejoice in the Hope, just in proportion as our hearts are occupied with the Person of our risen and glorified Lord on high. But none of these things are developed in Matthew’s Gospel. They were still future, and could only be spoken of in type and figure, as we shall see.
What we now know is that God is saving souls out of this world in grace, and the day is coming when He will establish a Kingdom in this world in power, and the preacher who is taught in the word will not fail to declare both these precious truths.
Here in our Gospel, then, we have reached a period beyond the rapture of the Church, and just before the "end." In spite of all the opposition and persecution of the world, there will be an evangelistic revival, such as this world has never yet witnessed. From restored Israel will go forth foreign missionaries, with something at least of the zeal and devotion of the greatest and most successful foreign missionary that this world has ever seen — the Apostle Paul. And their message will be, "Ho every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters" (Isaiah 55:1)." The Lord. God which gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith, yet will I gather to the gathered ones" (Isaiah 56:8). "Also the sons of strangers that join themselves to the Lord, to serve him, and to love the name of the Lord . . . even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer . . . for my house shall be called an house of prayer for all people" (Isaiah 56:6-7). The Lord had reminded them of this prophecy when He cleansed the temple (Matthew 21:13). Its fulfilment awaits the day when He shall sit as a Priest upon His throne. In short, there will be a world-wide testimony to a coming Messiah. Christendom has never accomplished this with the Gospel of the grace of God. In spite of the utmost self-denial and self-sacrifice on the part of very many devoted servants of Christ, whose efforts have been beyond all praise, yet it is a fact that Christendom, in modern days at least, has never succeeded in evangelising more than half of the known world. And the opinion of those best able to judge is, that the heathen nations of to-day are increasing faster than the present missionary activity can overtake. It is a humbling thought for all of us, if so it be. But the Lord now goes on to say that when this has been accomplished, the "end" shall come. It is no question of the world being entirely converted. That it will not be so, other scriptures clearly prove. But the testimony goes out, and in Matthew 25:1-46 we shall see what the results of accepting or rejecting that testimony will be, to the nations then upon the earth. Of what "end" does the Lord here speak? Clearly not the end of the world, as many teach, and as we shall endeavour to show later; but the end of the "age" about which the apostles had inquired in Matthew 25:3. That "age" would expire with the expiry of the period spoken of by the angel to Daniel the prophet (Daniel 9:24) as "seventy-sevens," beginning (as we know from the same scripture) at the 20th year of Artaxerxes in the month Nisan, B.C. 454. As every careful reader knows, that period is divided into three parts. "Seven weeks," "Three score and two weeks," and "One week ": and it began at the restoration under Nehemiah, when the commandment went forth to restore and rebuild Jerusalem. Seven "sevens" (forty-nine years) of "troublous times" passed, during which the city and state were being laboriously reconstructed in the midst of many enemies. Another three score and two "sevens" pass, and again it is the month Nisan (April), 29 A.D. The Messiah of Israel presents Himself as her King, but instead of receiving the Kingdom He is cut off and "has nothing." Instead of sitting upon His rightful throne He is cast out to lie in a borrowed grave.
Evidently the seventieth "week" is still future, and two reasons out of many will show it:
1 In Daniel 9:24, the angel gives the prophet to understand that at the end of the last week, six things would be accomplished, and the sorrows of Jerusalem and its people be over. These six things are set out in detail in the text referred to; none of them are yet accomplished, and Jerusalem’s sorrows only began after the Lord was crucified.
2 In Daniel 9:27, we learn that the prince that shall come shall confirm a covenant with (the) many for "one week." This "prince" is clearly not Messiah, for when He came, He was "cut off ": it is as clear that it is not Titus who is referred to; for when he came, instead of making any covenant with the Jews, he destroyed both their city and their state. The whole of Daniel 9:26 is fulfilled between the end of the sixty-ninth and the beginning of the seventieth "week." It is the great "interval" during which the mystery of the Church is brought to light, and when that period is over, times and seasons referring to earth will again begin to run their predestined course. The "coming prince" and the "last week" is still future. This "week" will be divided into two parts. Matthew 25:4-14, while giving a description in a general way of the world in the absence of the King, will really find their complete fulfilment in the first half of the "week." Matthew 25:15-28 describe the events which take place in the latter half.
These we now have to consider.
Just as the making of the "Covenant" marked the beginning of the first half of the week, so the breaking of the "Covenant" marks the beginning of the latter half of the "week." This event, according to Daniel 9:27; Daniel 12:11, is followed by the taking away of the daily sacrifice, and the setting up of the "abomination that maketh desolate." Our Lord refers to this in Matthew 25:15, and also connects with it another thing, and that is — the great tribulation.
If we set out these events in order we shall find that the latter half of the week is marked by seven important occurrences:
1 The Covenant confirmed by the Roman prince with the mass of the Jews is broken by him.
2 The antichrist arrogates to himself the titles of Christ, and endeavours to manifest the power of Christ.
3 The ordered temple services are interrupted.
4 The abomination that maketh desolate (or astonisheth) is set up in the Holy of Holies.
5 The Great Tribulation begins, as the result.
6 The Testimony of the "two Witnesses" continues during three and a half years.
7 The faithful remnant who remain true to God, and refuse the mark of the beast, are persecuted and slain. In the midst of this "time of trouble," the great arch-enemy, Satan, is abroad in the earth (Revelation 12:12), and true to his character as the Deceiver, he at once raises up false Christs and false prophets to deceive, if it were possible, the very elect (Matthew 25:24). His two great masterpieces of evil we get in Revelation 13:1-18. The one a "beast" out of the "sea" — the political unrest of the nations — and heading up in himself all the forces of infidelity and militarism which, though prominent now, will then be all but universal. He will be the finished product of man’s will as opposed to God: the super-man, in whom wicked men will find a chief so much superior to themselves in wickedness that they will fall down and worship him. He will both blaspheme God and persecute His saints. And, as his henchman, he will have the "beast" out of the "earth," who, although he may have "two horns like a lamb," yet betrays his Satanic origin by speaking like a dragon. Under his sway idolatry is again introduced into Jerusalem. The unclean spirit returns to his house, and in his company seven other spirits more wicked than himself. It is the fulfilment of the prophecy of Matthew 12:45. One very subtle form of the coming idolatry will be this — the worship of a living man. Such a thing had been foreshadowed in the history of King Darius, Daniel 6:7. Here we have it full blown. And what makes the delusion more strong is that the false prophet has power to give breath (not life, as in the common text) to the image of the beast, so that it shall be able to speak, and to cause those who refuse their homage to be killed. The "fiery furnace" will be seven times heated again, and so fierce will be the persecution that it will have to be written "Blessed are the dead" (Revelation 14:13). But God is over all. A limit is ever set to the power of evil — "He shall continue forty and two months" (Revelation 13:5). At the end of the latter half of the last week the judgment of God descends, and the beast and false prophet, "these both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone" (Revelation 19:20). In the midst of this terrible persecution disciples are warned not to be deceived by those who say that Christ has come in secret. Before the dread event of that coming, all the powers both of nature and government seem to lose their wonted control, as the symbolic language of Matthew 25:29 would (seem to) indicate, and instead of any secret coming, His appearing would he like a lightning flash, sweeping with dazzling intensity across the vault of heaven from the east unto the west. "And they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory."
Now has come the day of deliverance for elect Israel, and of vengeance for their oppressors. God has taken in hand to "destroy them that corrupt the earth," and just as Israel had been "spread abroad as the four winds of heaven" (Zechariah 2:6), so will they be gathered from the four winds. The "great trumpet" shall be blown (Isaiah 27:13), and the outcasts shall be gathered, converted, and purified to worship the Lord in the holy mount at Jerusalem. Scattered by the oppressor because of their sins: regathered by angelic power, according to the free and sovereign grace of their covenant-keeping Jehovah. The rapidity with which the events move which lead up to all this, is doubtless taught by the "parable of the fig tree" — ever an emblem of the nation. As leaf and fruit appeared in rapid succession, so would the Lord hasten the day of deliverance for the people of His Covenant. And there is a needs-be for His solemn assurance in Matthew 25:32-34. "Verily I say unto you, this generation shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled." Now, some at least of those who listened to His words, and many of those to whom they would be repeated, would see the city and land swept clean of its inhabitants — "wiped as a man wipeth a dish; wiping it, and turning it upside down" (2 Kings 21:13); and they might well be tempted to think that all was over for the nation — and the promise unfulfilled after all. "Not so," says the Lord; "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away." We have only to look around to see the confirmation of that word. The prophet Hosea, who flourished in the days of four of Judah’s greatest kings, 800 years before Christ, had said, "The children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim" (Hosea 3:4). It may be that speaking as he did in the palmy days of Judah’s history, few believed his words, but so the Jews abide to-day. Having neither a king nor the hope of one, unable to sacrifice to the true God, yet so far they are preserved from image worship. With all genealogies lost, no one can lay claim to wear the priestly ephod wherewith to ask counsel of God; neither do they seek after oracular responses of lying spirits, through teraphim, as their fathers did of old. But to the same prophet was given the promise that "afterwards shall the children of Israel return and seek the Lord their God, and David their king; and shall fear the Lord, and his goodness in the later day" (Hosea 3:5).
Amid all the changing scene of time the word of the Lord endureth for ever.
Three things come out in the next section of our chapter (Matthew 25:36-44): —
1 The Day of the Coming of the Son of Man is known only to the Father.
2 The Coming will introduce a time of discriminative judgment for living men upon the earth: "taking," as in Noah’s flood in judgment, or "leaving" upon a redeemed earth for blessing.
3 To the men of the earth, the Coming will be as that of a thief in the night, unexpected, and unprepared for. [Hence the necessity for disciples to watch, for their Lord was coming, and as "Son of Man," coming to the earth. The world might say "Peace and Safety" when the dark cloud of "sudden destruction" was just lowering over it, but they were no longer in darkness, that that day should overtake them as a thief (1 Thessalonians 5:3-4).]
We turn next to consider the three parables which have to do with Christianity. Strictly speaking, they do not contain any outline of prophetic events, but deal rather with the moral condition of things which will obtain, as well as with what ought to obtain, on the part of those professing to be the Lord’s servants in His absence.
Three things confirm the view that the Lord is here speaking of Christianity: —
1 The Coming for which believers are here enjoined to wait, is the Coming of the LORD. The title — Son of Man — which He takes in connection with the earth, does not occur in any of the three parables under consideration. (The best authorities omit the last clause of Matthew 25:13.)
2 No "times or seasons ": no synopsis of earthly events: no signs, preparatory or introductory, are anywhere mentioned. The absent Lord is coming for His waiting people. It is the outline of truth more fully developed later in 1 Thessalonians 4:1-18 and other scriptures of the New Testament prophets.
3 No Old Testament prophecy in connection with this subject is quoted in any part of the section, and this is as we should expect, for no such prophecy exists. Many prophecies — at least three hundred — speak of the Coming of the Messiah, His rejection, and death. And again, many glowing pages picture the glory of the Kingdom established under the King in power. But the period of the Kingdom, in the absence of the King, during which the Church is formed, is nowhere spoken of in the Old Testament. Of what would transpire in this period the Lord here speaks to His disciples, using language they were able to understand, and yet in such a way that further light would enable them to comprehend more fully the deeper things of the Kingdom of Heaven. The first parable then, Matthew 24:45-51, deals with the servant in his Lord’s Household. He is placed there for the express purpose of giving them meat in due season. Why, of the three parables, does this come first in order? Is it to show that the Lord’s interest in His people down here holds the first place in His heart? The thrice repeated injunction to Peter in John 21:1-25 to feed the flock, shows at least the importance of the position of the household servant. He may be a "faithful and wise" servant, or, on the other hand, he may be an "evil" servant. The condition of things is still viewed here, as in all the parables, on the ground of profession. But the servant is in "the house," and on the ground of responsibility. As such he will be dealt with when his Lord returns. His commission is from the Lord.
He is responsible to the Lord.
He will be rewarded by the Lord.
Taught in the Word himself, he is to teach others. He is to "give them meat in due season." If in the mind of his Master, he will provide the "sincere milk of the word" for the "babes," and "strong meat" for those of mature age. He will be blessed at the Coming of his Master, if found so doing. But there is more. The Lord adds that "he shall make him ruler over all his goods." We shall get further light here by comparing this with Revelation 2:26. The promise to the Thyatiran overcomer was power over the nations. The apostasy of Thyatira will mark the time of the coming, and the servant found true to his master, in time of peril, will by his master be promoted to power in Kingdom glory. But there is another side, as there is in all the parables. The hope of the coming was, alas! soon lost, and those who should have been "faithful and wise" became unfaithful and evil. Then, again, connected with the loss of the right spirit came the assumption of the wrong position and fellowship with the wrong company. He is found "eating and drinking with the drunken."
Morally, this is a complete inversion of true service, as defined by the Lord in Matthew 19:1-30, where, as we saw, the two great principles that actuated the true servant were love and humility. Here it is exaltation of self and oppression of others. And it is not difficult to trace the progress of this spirit in the history of the professing Church through the ages. Even in the days of the Apostles men were found who "loved to have the pre-eminence," and they soon had many followers. But the Lord is not unmindful of the interests of His people, and He will recompense. The "evil servant" is a hypocrite, and, in the day when the Lord judges, his place will be appointed with such.
We must not confound the coming in Matthew 24:46 with the coming in Matthew 24:50. The faithful and wise servant is living in the expectation of his Lord’s return. All his service is performed in view of that-to him-longed-for moment. To the evil servant, the coming is an event both unexpected and undesired. It carries us back to Matthew 24:37, where the wicked, whether open foes or false professors, meet their doom at the hands of the Son of Man. The next parable opens in a somewhat remarkable way, by indicating a particular time when the Kingdom of Heaven would be likened to "Ten Virgins." That time was clearly some period near the end of the age, when the various events would have transpired, of which the imagery of the parable treats. It contemplates the history of the Kingdom, not in a forward view, as in Matthew 13:1-58, but is, as it were, a backward view over its history from the time when the Ten went out on the ground of profession, until the moment when the Five went in to the marriage feast. The great subject of the parable is readiness to meet the Bridegroom. The chief business of the household servant in the last parable was occupation with his Lord’s interests. Here pre-eminently the great thought is occupation with the Lord Himself. May we all know more of it in a practical way day by day. The Coming of the Lord is the Hope of the Church, and therefore necessarily the hope of the individual believer, and it is from this latter standpoint it is looked at here. The imagery of the parable is extremely simple, yet divinely expressive.
"Virgins" — Separated ones, from a Greek root to "set apart."
"Lamps" — Profession.
"Oil" — The Holy Spirit.
"Vessels" — Hearts.
"Bridegroom" — Christ.
"Sleeping" — Unwatchfulness. The hope of the Coming lost to the Church for many ages.
"The Midnight Cry" — Is this truth restored. The first thing that the Lord emphasises is that the ten Virgins "went out" to meet the Bridegroom. And this is another proof, if such were needed, that He is here contemplating the heavenly calling of believers of the present dispensation. In no sense could the Jew be said to be called out of the world. Indeed, the world was, and is yet to be, the sphere of his blessing. But to His own the Lord could say, "Ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world; therefore the world hateth you" (John 15:19). When the Church lost that "called out" character and gave up the Hope of her heavenly calling, she began to fraternise with the world. When she came down to the world’s level, the edge of the world’s hatred was blunted, persecution ceased, and the Virgins "slumbered." Very soon even real Christians became like the world, and the world took on a profession of religion and became like the Christians, as we see in Christendom to-day. The result was that the precious truth of apostolic days, dear to the heart of every persecuted saint — the nearness of the Coming of the One he loved — was lost to view. Christians were at home in the world and did not need Him. Mere professors did not want Him. True and false, they all slumbered, and finally slept. But an explanation of the promise was needed and easily found. It was taught by those who wanted to prophesy smooth things, that He "often came." So He came at the fall of Jerusalem, or at the Reformation. So He comes at death, and will come at the "day of judgment." How any one of these comings — if we may call any of them such — agrees with the Bridegroom character of the Coming of the Lord Jesus, it would be difficult to say. The turning point of the parable is the Midnight Cry: "BEHOLD THE BRIDEGROOM!"
Evidently it is the Spirit preparing His way by means of watchmen raised up for the purpose. Is the midnight cry and the recovery of the doctrine of the coming, so long lost, one and the same thing? If so there is this difficulty that in the parable, after the cry, the awakened foolish Virgins were too late to procure oil for their dying lamps. But we could not carry the simile into history or else we should have to say that it is now too late for the mere professor to be saved; which, thank God, is not the case. May it not be, that, even as, after the Lord was crucified, risen, and ascended, there was still the lingering of grace over Israel, according to Peter’s testimony in Acts 2:1-47; so it is to-day. The Bridegroom has been announced, yet the long suffering of our God, which is salvation, induces Him to tarry yet a moment longer before the trumpet sounds. If this be so, how near is that moment? He is, as it were, on the way, and may arrive at any moment. May our loins be girded about, and our lights burning, and we, like unto men that wait for their Lord (Luke 12:35). When the awakened foolish Virgins realised that even the possession of trimmed oilless lamps was not sufficient preparation for the Bridegroom, they further manifested their foolishness, by going for oil to the wrong place. So it is, and so it will be in Christendom. Mere professors may hold even the truth of the Lord’s Coming as a mere doctrine or creed, which never influences either their hopes or their ways. They will learn, alas! when too late, that nothing but saving grace in the heart communicated by the Holy Spirit Himself can fit any soul for the Coming of the Lord; and the great point of the parable is preparedness for that coming. The great essential for the Virgins was oil. The one thing needful for all is the Holy Spirit in the heart. "If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his" (Romans 8:9). "They that were ready went in with him" — it is the heavenly hope realised. The Bride is not mentioned. Co-related truths are never all stated in one parable. In Matthew 22:1-46 we have a parable dealing with the condition of the Guests. Here it is a question of the Corning of the Bridegroom. In Revelation 19:1-21 we get a glimpse of the Bride in her bridal array, and in Revelation 21:1-27 we again see her, but now it is the day of display. "And the door was shut." Five little words, yet of the most solemn import. To-day they come to all as a warning. Some day soon they will express an accomplished fact, with tremendous realities for all. Some will be shut IN, with the Lord they have loved and longed for; in the presence of the Father, and in the Father’s House.
"Oh I what a Home, but such His love That He must bring us there."
"And the door was shut." Some will be shut OUT from all the joys and all the glories of the heavenly home, and shut out for ever. To the impassioned prayer, "Lord, Lord, open to us," the answer is, "I know you not." Scripture knows nothing of a "second chance," or "larger hope." These are vain ideas conceived only in the minds of foolish men, who love sin too much to turn to God now in the day of His grace, and so fall into the snare of Satan, to the loss of their souls. Is the reader a mere professor only? If so, oh, be warned in time, for the Coming of the Bridegroom is nigh, even at the door.
"Watch, therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour" (Matthew 25:13).
One other parable was needed to express yet another aspect of Christian profession during the absence of the King.
He has gone into a far country, and the question is, "What are His servants doing for Him in His absence?" In the first parable of our chapter He takes the title of "Bridegroom," and every thought connected with that is of love and affection. It is pure grace on His part without any thought of merit on the part of the loved one, and that is one aspect of truth. But here He takes another title, that of "Lord." He was "the Lord of those servants" (Matthew 25:19). As such, they were under His authority, and it was to Him that they should render an account, on His return, for the "goods" He had committed to their trust. We do well to remember that this is before each one of us. "Wherefore let us labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be acceptable to Him" (2 Corinthians 5:9, R.V.). In the parable the servants receive, in varying amounts, goods from their Lord to trade with in His absence. It is grace going out to others, and by those who have received gifts from their risen Lord so to serve Him. The parable is similar to that in Luke 19:1-48, only there, the great point is the Christian’s responsibility according to his opportunities. There, all received equal amounts, but produced different results, for which they are rewarded differently. Here they receive different amounts, and secure different results, but the good are rewarded each cent per cent, because both were alike faithful to the amount of their gift. Here it is the sovereignty of God. In Luke it is the responsibility of man. The talents, then, were given to be used for the Lord, not for the glory of the servant. We are in a world of need, and there are souls to be won for Christ. Just as a business man is in business, to do business, so should the Christian be here for Christ. The Lord Himself could say, "Wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business" (Luke 2:49), and He was the Pattern Servant.
We may gather from the Lord’s teaching that every believer has some talent imparted to him according to his "several ability," and that it is expected of him that he will use that gift or talent for the Lord’s glory. Now, ability may be either natural, or acquired, and, if acquired, may also be developed in proportion as he seeks diligently so to do. This, taken in connection with the injunction to Timothy to stir up the gift that was in him, would show that by diligent and faithful exercise of our talents and abilities, both the vessel and the talent it contains will alike increase, the sphere of service widen, and the blessing extend. This should be the desire of every servant — the object in view ever being the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. On the other hand, even a believer may allow his gift to lie dormant, and through mere slothfulness either of body or mind, neglect to equip himself for the service and opportunities that may lie just at hand. A man cannot "do the work of an evangelist" unless he goes where souls are to be found. The Word of Christ cannot "dwell richly" in a saint unless he make it his study. No Sunday school teacher will succeed unless he seeks diligently, earnestly, and prayerfully to learn the Book he has set out to teach. To speak a word in season to him that is weary, we must be ever drinking from the Living Spring. There are ever very practical lessons to be learned when the Lord is the Teacher. No one teaches like Him. But the possibility is counted upon here, as in all parables, of a man taking the place of a servant who never knew the Lord. There is no question at all of the "wicked and slothful servant" being a Christian. He was not. His words, his actions, and his end abundantly prove it. But the Lord uses the case, and the end of the mere professor, to warn of the possible danger a real Christian is exposed to in this matter. The man hid his talent in the earth, instead of using it for his Master, and it may be possible that for some the "earth" is a greater snare than the "world." A Christian man may have no desire for the world’s concert rooms or theatres, and yet allow his business concerns so to engross his heart and life that every moment is devoted to the things of earth, and he can find neither time nor interest for the things of the Lord. It was the man with one talent that proved false to his trust, and it may be safely assumed that men of this class compose the majority of the servants. Outstanding "five talent" men are but few; hence the warning in the parable extends to the greatest number. We are tempted to think that because we can do but little, that little left undone will not matter. But not so. The sons of Merari bore the pins and cords of the Tabernacle, and their service was just as important as that of the sons of Kohath, who bore the sacred vessels.
We have next to consider the Lord’s relationships to the earth in His character of "King." He has already been before us as "Bridegroom," and "Lord," and if, as the Bridegroom, He touches all the springs of the heart’s affections, so as Lord, He reminds us of the salutary truth that we belong to Him. He has bought us with His Blood. But nowhere in Scripture is He spoken of as King of the Church. He is the King of Israel and the King of Nations: when He reigns, "all kings shall fall down before him, and all nations shall serve him. Men shall be blessed in him, and all nations shall call him blessed." Well might the Psalmist, as he considered that Glorious One, of whom Solomon in all his glory was but a faint type, exclaim, "Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. And blessed be his glorious Name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory" (Psalms 72:1-20). The introduction of this day of blessing for a groaning creation is now set before us.
"When the Son of Man shall come in his glory and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: and before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats" (Matthew 25:31-32).
It is no question of a general judgment at the "end of the world," as so much of the current theology of the day would teach, but which scripture nowhere warrants. If it be compared with the judgment of the "Great White Throne," it will be seen that the subjects, test, time, place, and sentence are all different. Far from there being only one judgment spoken of in the Bible, there are at least seven: —
1. The Judgment of the Cross: the basis of every blessing for man.
2. The judgment Seat of Christ: the manifestation day for every believer (2 Corinthians 5:10).
3. The Judgment of the Living Nations upon the Earth (Matthew 25:31).
4. The Judgment of the Great White Throne, when earth and heaven have fled away (Revelation 20:11).
5. The Judgment in the House of God: the Father dealing in Government with His own (1 Peter 1:17).
6. The judgment by the Assembly, as to that which is in keeping with the Name of Christ (1 Corinthians 5:4).
7. The Judgment of ourselves, by ourselves, so as to allow nothing in our ways inconsistent with Christ’s death (1 Corinthians 11:28).
Here, in our Gospel, however, we have the details of the picture of which Matthew 13:41-44 gives the outline. It is the deliberative, sessional judgment, by the Son of Man of the living nations upon the earth at His appearing. The passage links up with Matthew 24:31. The Lord takes up the thread of events in connection with the earth and pictures what will take place after the upheavals of the "last week." At His appearing He has destroyed the beast and the false prophet, taken, as it were, in red-handed rebellion against Him (Revelation 19:1-21; 2 Thessalonians 2:8). He is now about to put right the place they had put wrong: to measure out judgment to their self-deluded followers: recompense to the faithful of the earth who had been true to the Hope of His Coming, and introduce the righteous nations into all the blessings of the millennial Kingdom, of which Psalms 72:1-20 gives so glowing a description.
What, then, is the condition of things upon the earth just before the Son of Man appears, and who are its occupants? The Church has been called away to meet Him in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:1-18), and with the Church, the Holy Spirit, whose operations of grace will, after that period, assume a new form. Men of the world little realise how much the world owes to the presence of the Spirit of God now. He is that restraining power who is preventing the outbreak of the powers of evil. When the Spirit is taken out of the way, evil will come to a head, under a man so wholly possessed by the spirit of Satan, that Scripture knows him as the Man of Sin (2 Thessalonians 2:3). Ten different names are applied to him, clearly defining both his origin and his character. He is called: —
1 The Man of the Earth (Psalms 10:18).
2 The False Prophet (Revelation 19:20).
3The Antichrist (1 John 2:18).
4 The Beast from the Earth (Revelation 13:1-18).
5 The Son of Perdition (2 Thessalonians 2:3).
6 The Man of Sin (2 Thessalonians 2:3).
7 That Wicked [One] (2 Thessalonians 2:8).
8 The Idol Shepherd (Zechariah 11:17).
9 The King (Daniel 11:36).
10 One Coming in His Own Name (John 5:43).
It is the revealing of this Person that brings matters on earth to an issue. To-day, the question is — For Christ, or against Him? Then the question will be — For Antichrist, or against him? The mass of the Jews will be "for him." Having come in his own name, he will be received by them as the Lord forewarned them (John 5:43). Apostate Christendom, taking pleasure in unrighteousness, and having refused the love of the truth, will believe "the lie" and find themselves in the same unhappy company. It is a most solemnising thought, that, when the Lord comes for His people, the day of grace for Christendom will be over for ever. Sudden and rapid will be its development into the "Babylon" of Revelation 17:1-18, and as swift will be its overthrow at the hands of the Son of Man. In addition to the nation of the Jews gathered back to Palestine in unbelief, and apostate Christendom in European and other lands, there will also be the vast masses of the hitherto unevangelised heathen nations. How will the solemn events of the time of the end affect them? To answer this question we must turn to Romans 11:1-36. See the whole chapter. The argument there is, that Israel, rejecting Christ, was rejected. Israel rejected, blessing thereupon flowed out to the Gentiles. God visited them to "take out of them a people for his name" (Acts 15:14). "Now," says the apostle, "if the fall of them, (the Jews) be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles, how much more their fulness?" (Romans 11:12). In other words, Israel’s fall brought blessing to the Gentiles, and Israel’s restoration, when the Lord comes back, will bring double blessing — "life from the dead." This blessing these nations are offered in the proclamation of the Kingdom Gospel of Matthew 24:14, and Revelation 14:6; and the acceptance or rejection of the King’s messengers ("My brethren") fixes their place and title to life, or condemnation. But the King’s commendation of the righteous here (Matthew 25:34-36) brings out another thing. Those who had heralded the tidings of the Coming King had done so in the face of the greatest difficulties. Antichrist’s followers had accepted the "mark of the beast" (Revelation 13:1-18), and were content with the great pseudo-religious-social system introduced by him. They wanted neither God’s King, nor God’s righteousness. So hunger and thirst, banishment, nakedness, and prison lay before the evangelists. With these servants the King here identifies Himself, even as with another persecuted company, when He arrested their persecutor, Saul of Tarsus. And those who ministered to their necessities hear, with joyful wonder, that what they had done was reckoned by the King even as if done unto Himself. And now we reach the time when the promises in Matthew 5:1-48 will receive their complete fulfilment. "Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world" (Matthew 25:34). Now, the mourners are comforted; the meek inherit the earth, and the merciful obtain mercy. The day of regeneration has come, and they go into life eternal. But there is the other side. He gathers out of His Kingdom all things that do offend. It must be so, for righteousness is about to reign. During the present day of grace righteousness suffers because evil is predominant. In the eternal day it will dwell. Every stain of sin will then have been for ever eradicated. But here, not only is there the company on the right hand — "the sheep"; but there are also those on the left hand — "the goats." And the remarkable thing about the latter is that their judgment, as here set forth, is simply on the ground of what they had not done. It would seem as if they had tried to take a middle course between the "for" and the "against." They had not been among the followers of the "beast," taken in high-handed rebellion against the King, and slain with the sword (Revelation 19:21). Nevertheless, neither had they identified themselves with His cause and with His servants. They had seen the servants both persecuted and slain, and had extended neither succour nor sympathy, thereby showing the state of their hearts. Is not the lesson here, that, in divine things, there can be no middle ground. Men are for the Lord, or against Him, as He has already declared.
Solemn and sad is their doom. They had done the devil’s work by abstaining from the work of God, and they find their place in "everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels." "These shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal."
It is well to note that every mark of the moral condition of the later day is with us now. Superstition and infidelity are as rampant in Europe to-day as ever they were during the dark ages. In addition, men of the world are binding themselves together into all kinds of "associations" and "brotherhoods" to further their own selfish ends. And, sad to say, many Christians are voluntarily joining themselves up with such, thereby both slighting their heavenly calling and participating in the "unequal yoke." In a coming day the "beast" will grasp the reins of all such confederacies, and use them for his own ungodly ends. Mark the fidelity of the coming witnesses, who will rather give up life itself than compromise their testimony by receiving the mark of the beast. The Father’s Name on their foreheads will bring persecution and death here, but life and glory hereafter.
Well will it be with us if our every gift, every power and every hour, be consecrated to Him alone, who, in grace, hath called us to be for Him, in a world that is still against Him.