This is from pages 3 and 10-12 of The Shepherd of Israel by M.R. DeHaan, with a copyright date of 1962
In the Old Testament there are five definite shepherds which stand out among the rest as pointing to Jesus as the Great Shepherd of Israel and of the Church. They are:
1. ABEL, the sacrificing shepherd, giving his life and shedding his blood at the hands of his wicked brother
2. JACOB, the toiling shepherd, who left his father’s house to dwell among his kinsmen in a far country.
3. JOSEPH, the loving shepherd hated and rejected by his brethren, but then became King and spared their lives
4. MOSES, the delivering shepherd, who became the savior of God’s people after they had rejected him the first time.
5. DAVID, the royal shepherd, who reigned over Israel in the days of her glory....
We have already taken up the case of Abel who was the sacrificing shepherd, the one who brought the first acceptable sacrifice in history, as recorded in the Bible. The next in order of these shepherds in the Old Testament which speaks of the Lord Jesus is Jacob the toiling shepherd. As we take up these different types, the picture of the Lord will become more clear and beautiful! In following the history of Jacob, we notice the he, too, was hated by his brother. He left from his father’s house by the threat of his brother Esau, and fled to his kinsman in a far country. There in Haran he became a servant.; though the son of a wealthy farmer and destined to be the heir, yet we see him in a far country as a slave, toiling and laboring. Here he was taken advantage of, his wages were changed seven times, and he was shamefully treated.
Our Lord Jesus Christ also left His Father’s house of rest and peace and glory, and came to his brethren in a far country. Here He became a servant and took on Him the form of a man. We read in Philippians that the Lord Jesus Christ “being in the form of God thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of men (
Philippians 2:6, 7).
He is the Greater-than-Jacob, for He, too, left His Father’s house and dwelt in the house of humanity in a far country. Notice that in this house where Jacob dwelt were two daughters --Leah and Rachel. These two became the wives of Jacob. He was to have Rachel first, and then Leah; but Rachel was denied him and he received the elder first. However, Leah was fruitful and Rachel was barren, until Rachel learned to cry to the Lord, and then she too became fruitful.
I want you to notice what a marvelous picture of dispensational dealing we have in this wonderful record! Leah represents the Church of the Lord Jesus; Rachel the Nation of Israel. He desired her first, but when He came to present Himself to her nineteen hundred years ago, He did not receive her. Israel (Rachel) rejected Him and now is barren and despised; the Church (Leah) is bearing fruit in the millions of the redeemed who are being brought in during this present dispensation. Israel today, as represented by Rachel, is an empty vine; while the Church, represented by Leah, is fulfilling the purposes of God. But Rachel (type of Israel) according to Scripture shall yet bear! There is a time coming when she too shall become fruitful and bring forth Josephs and Benjamins, the beloved ones and the sons of the Lord’s own right hand. It is of this future restoration of the Nation of Israel and her fruitfulness and her dominion over the earth that Isaiah speaks:
Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD. (
Isaiah 54:1)
And a little farther on we hear the Lord speaking in this strain:
5 For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.
6 For the LORD hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God.
7 For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.
8 In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer. (
Isaiah 54:5-8)
Do you not see the glorious picture of the future of the Nation? The time is coming when Leah, the Church, will be taken up and God will again begin to deal with Israel. They shall look upon Him whom they have pierced, and accept Him. He will turn their captivity and gather them from all the nations whither they have been driven; they shall be settled in their own land an become the great and wonderful heritage of the Lord and the instrument by which millions upon millions will be turned to Jehovah, their Lord and their God.
Now to continue the story of Jacob as the toiling and loving shepherd, notice that on the way back to his father’s house he brings both Leah and Rachel home in triumph, and on the way home he received a new name. His name is changed from Jacob to “Israel,” which means “the prince of God.” We are told in the book of Revelation that when Jesus Christ comes back again with His Bride to bless Israel and all the earth, He has a name which no man knows but Himself. This, beloved, is God’s program for the Good Shepherd of Israel and the Church. He came once and was rejected by the ones He came to safe; then, setting them aside for a time, He is now calling out a Bride, the Church of His love. After she is gone He will return again to Israel who the first time rejected Him, and He will become their Deliverer, their Savior, and their Lord. Then shall He establish the Kingdom on earth, and every knee shall bow to Him, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
Re: How Many Wives?
LOL!!
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