THE THIRD PART: 24 CRUCIAL LINES IN THE BIBLE

Christ and the Church

Message Two
Christ and the Church Typified by the Four Couples
in the Old Testament

Scripture Reading: Gen. 2:18-25; John 19:34; Eph. 5:25-27, 32; Rev. 19:7; 21:2, 9-10; 22:17

I. The entire Bible is a divine romance, a record of how God courts His chosen people and eventually marries them—Gen. 2:21-24; S. S. 1:2-4; Isa. 54:5; 62:5; Jer. 2:2; 3:1, 14; 31:32; Ezek. 16:8; 23:5; Hosea 2:7, 19.

II. In Genesis 2 we see a picture of Christ and the church in the types of Adam and Eve—cf. Eph. 5:22-32:

A. Adam typifies God in Christ as the real, universal Husband, who is seeking a wife for Himself—Rom. 5:14; cf. Isa. 54:5; John 3:29; 2 Cor. 11:2; Eph. 5:31-32; Rev. 21:9.

B. “Jehovah God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper as his counterpart”—Gen. 2:18.

C. “Jehovah God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh in its place”—Gen. 2:21:

1. Adam’s deep sleep for the producing of Eve as his wife typifies Christ’s death on the cross for the producing of the church as His counterpart—Eph. 5:25-27.

2. Through such a process God in Christ has been wrought into man with His life and nature so that man can be the same as God in life and nature in order to match Him as His counterpart.

D. “Jehovah God built the rib, which He had taken from the man, into a woman and brought her to the man”—Gen. 2:22.

E. “The man said, This time this is bone of my bones / And flesh of my flesh; / This one shall be called Woman / Because out of Man this one was taken. Therefore, a man shall leave his father and his mother and shall cleave to his wife, and they shall become one flesh”—Gen. 2:23-24.

F. Adam and Eve becoming one flesh, a complete unit, is a figure of God and man being joined as one; the coming New Jerusalem will be the eternal union of God and man, a universal couple as a complete unit composed of divinity and humanity.

III. We have a type portraying Christ and the church, symbolized by the marriage of Isaac and Rebekah—Gen. 24:

A. Genesis 25:5 also tells us that “Abraham gave all that he had to Isaac”:

B. Isaac took Rebekah as his wife, who was of his father’s house and of his kindred; this typifies that Christ desires to obtain the church, which is of the same blood and flesh as He is, to be His counterpart—Gen. 24:2-4; Heb. 2:14:

1. The counterpart of Christ must come from Christ’s race, not from the angels nor from any other creatures, but from the human race.

2. Christ’s desire is to obtain the church, which is of the same blood and flesh as He is, to be His beloved counterpart for the satisfaction of His heart’s intent.

C. Just as Isaac is a type of Christ, so Isaac’s wife Rebekah is a type of Christ’s counterpart, the church—Gen. 24:14; Rev. 19:7.

D. Rebekah was given to Isaac and married to him, and the two became one flesh; thus, Isaac was comforted, and she also enjoyed all the riches which Isaac had inherited from his father; this typifies that the church is given to Christ to become one with Him as His beloved counterpart for His full satisfaction and thus to be able to enjoy all the riches which He has inherited from God the Father.

IV. Boaz is a type of Christ, and Ruth is a type not only of the seeking saints but of the church—Ruth. 2:1, 14-16; 3:15; Eph. 3:8; 2 Cor. 12:9; Phil. 1:19b; Eph. 5:23-32; John. 3:29-30:

A. Boaz typifies Christ in two aspects:

1. As a man, rich in wealth and generous in giving, Boaz typifies Christ, whose divine riches are unsearchable and who takes care of God’s needy people with His bountiful supply—Ruth 2:1, 14-16; 3:15; Eph. 3:8; 2 Cor. 12:9; Phil. 1:19b.

2. As a kinsman of Mahlon, the dead husband of Ruth, who redeemed the lost right of Mahlon’s property and took Mahlon’s widow, Ruth, as his wife for the producing of the needed heirs, Boaz typifies Christ in redeeming the church and making the church His counterpart for His increase—4:9-10, 13; Eph. 5:23-32; John 3:29-30.

B. Ruth typifies the church:

1. Ruth typifies the church, before her salvation, as men in God’s creation and sinners in man’s fall being “our old man”—Rom. 6:6. )

2. Ruth typifies the church with her old man as her crucified husband redeemed by Christ—7:4a.

3. Ruth, after being redeemed by Boaz, becoming a new wife to him typifies the church, after being saved, through the regeneration of the church’s natural man, becoming the counterpart of Christ—v. 4b.

C. Ruth being united to Boaz typifies the Gentile sinners being attached to Christ that they may partake of the inheritance of God’s promise—Eph. 3:6.

V. The Shulammite was Solomon’s queen; Solomon typifies the resurrected and glorified Christ; hence, the Shulammite typifies the church in resurrection and glorification—1 S. S. 6:13:

A. Solomon typifies the glorious aspect of Christ, that is, His power in His ascension—Heb. 2:7, 9; Acts 1:16:

1. Christ’s being in the heavens now, His coming back to the earth in the future, and His living in us and being with us today are all in glory; Solomon is a type of Christ in glory—Col. 1:27.

2. The One into whom we believe is the Christ in resurrection; He overcame the constraints of man, resurrected, and is in the Holy Spirit; He came out of death and entered into glory; this glory is resurrection and also the Spirit—Acts 2:24.

B. The Shulammite, as a type of the church, centers on the church in resurrection and the way that the church enjoys and experiences the resurrected Christ—S. S. 2:8-10.

C. There is a complete union and full satisfaction between the Shulammite and Solomon, and in this satisfaction there is rest—Rev. 22:17:

1. At the end of Song of Songs, the Shulammite and Solomon have reached complete harmony with full satisfaction and endless rest without any distraction or interruption; this typifies the New Jerusalem—21:2-3.

2. The union and satisfaction between the Shulammite and Solomon typify the complete union and full satisfaction that exist between Christ and the church; in this satisfaction, Christ and the church are living a life of satisfaction and peace in endless rest; rest and satisfaction are characteristics of the New Jerusalem.

 

Ministry Excerpts:

NOT GOOD FOR ADAM TO BE ALONE—
IMPLYING THAT IT WAS NOT GOOD FOR GOD
TO BE ALONE IN THE UNIVERSE

The background related to the producing of Eve reveals the background related to the producing of the church. Before God created Eve for Adam, He said, “It is not good for the man to be alone” (Gen. 2:18), meaning that it was not good for Adam to be alone. In its spiritual significance, this word reflects the feeling of God toward Himself. The man, Adam, symbolizes the God of the universe. For God to say that it was not good for Adam to be alone indicates that God felt that it was not good for Himself to be alone; thus, He needed to create a counterpart for Himself.

Adam Unable to Find a Counterpart—Implying That God
Was Unable to Find Someone in the Universe to Match Him

Before God created a counterpart for Adam, He brought all kinds of living animals before Adam. Adam named them one by one, but he was not able to find a counterpart to match him (vv. 19-20). Adam could not find his counterpart out of all the living animals. This signifies that God could not find anything to match Him out of all the created things. The word match means that the two parties must be similar. Among so many living animals, Adam was unable to find one who matched him. This implies that among all the created things, God was not able to find anyone who could match Him and be His counterpart.

The Producing of the Church

Incarnation

Adam could not find his counterpart among all the things. Then God caused a deep sleep to fall upon him. When he was asleep, God opened his side and took one of his ribs (v. 21). Adam signifies the incarnated Son of Man, God who became man. Romans 5:14 speaks of Adam as “a type of Him who was to come.” Adam is a picture of the One who was to come—Christ. Adam not only is a type of Christ as the Head over all things but also as God who became man.

The producing of the church began with incarnation. Without God becoming man, the church could not have been produced. God became a man in order to produce the church. Adam had to be created first, and then Eve could be produced. Although Christ existed before the creation of the world, in eternity past He had not yet become a man. In order to produce the church, it was necessary that Christ come to be Adam, a man; that is, it was necessary for the Creator to become a creature in order to produce the church. The church possesses a dual nature—both divinity and humanity; thus, divinity alone cannot produce the church. To produce the church, it was necessary for God to become a man.

Passing Through Death

God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam (Gen. 2:21), which typifies Christ’s passing through death on the cross. When Christ was dying on the cross, His side was opened, and out came blood and water (John 19:34). When Adam fell into a deep sleep, God took one of Adam’s ribs from his side. In the Bible bone signifies a life of strength. The water that flowed out from the Lord Jesus’ side while He was on the cross also signifies life. This life is the Spirit of life, the pneumatic life, which is also typified by the living water flowing out of the smitten rock in the Old Testament (Exo. 17:6).

In John 4:14 the Lord said, “Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall by no means thirst forever; but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into eternal life.” The Lord also said, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes into Me, as the Scripture said, out of his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water. But this He said concerning the Spirit, whom those who believed into Him were about to receive” (7:37-39). Then Revelation 22:1 speaks of the river of water of life. Hence, water denotes both life and the Spirit of life. When Christ died on the cross, His side was opened, and water flowed out; that is, the Spirit of life flowed out from Him. The opening of Christ’s side is typified in Exodus 17 by the rock being smitten and water flowing out. Thus, the water that flowed out from Christ’s side and the rib that was taken from Adam’s side both refer to the same matter.

Passing Through Resurrection

If we take a rib out of the human body, the rib will surely die. Thus, when God took a rib from Adam’s side, the rib must have passed through resurrection in order to become a living woman. After resurrection the dead bone became a living woman. Eve was produced in resurrection. First Peter 1:3 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has regenerated us unto a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” On the day Christ was resurrected, we also were resurrected. On the day of His resurrection, He caused the grain of wheat to become many grains and the only begotten Son of God to become the Firstborn among God’s many sons. On the morning of the Lord’s resurrection, He told Mary, “Go to My brothers and say to them, I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God” (John 20:17). On the day of the Lord’s resurrection, His disciples became His brothers, and all those who believed into Him received His life. The producing of Eve was through the rib that God took from Adam’s side, typifying that the church is produced through the three steps that Christ passed through—incarnation, death, and resurrection.

The Nature of the Church—Christ

Just as the nature of Eve is Adam, so also the nature of the church is Christ. Eve was built from a part taken out of Adam’s body. As a result, her nature was not only the same as that of Adam; she was Adam. Eve was not only the same as Adam; she was Adam. Before Adam fell into a deep sleep, he was alone, but when he woke up, Eve was there. When he awoke, Eve was alive. Both of them passed through resurrection. The word woman in Hebrew is ishshah, and the word for man is ish. In Hosea 2:16 God’s people called Him Ish. In the New Testament, the Lord Jesus is called Christ, and the believers are called Christians. The two, Christ and the Christians, are not only similar; they are one and are out of the same source. Eve was Adam, and the church is Christ. Christ is the nature of the church, and the church is Christ Himself. Anything short of Christ is not the church. Whatever is not Christ is not the church. First Corinthians 12:12 says, “For even as the body is one and has many members, yet all the members of the body, being many, are one body, so also is the Christ.” In this verse the body refers to the church, but the following words, so also is the Christ, show that the church is Christ.

The Issue—Being Joined to Christ and Returning to Christ

The issue of the church being produced is that the church is joined to Christ and will return to Christ. This is typified by Eve and Adam becoming one. Eve came out of Adam and returned to Adam. After Eve came out of Adam, she and Adam did not become two. In Genesis 2:23, regarding Eve, Adam said, “This time this is bone of my bones / And flesh of my flesh.” In verse 24 the two became one flesh. Eve came out of Adam, and she returned to Adam and became one with him. Ephesians 5:32 says, “This mystery is great, but I speak with regard to Christ and the church.” We are bone of Christ’s bone and flesh of His flesh. We came out of Him and are joined to Him. We are not only the same as He; we are one with Him and will return to Him in the future. (CWWL, 1956, vol. 2, “Three Aspects of the Church, Book 1: The Meaning of the Church”, ch. 9)

ISAAC AND REBEKAH BEING A TYPE OF CHRIST AND THE CHURCH

Isaac Typifying Christ

Inheriting All That the Father Has

Isaac as the son brought forth by Abraham through his wife Sarah became the unique seed to inherit all that his father had. When Abraham’s old servant was securing a wife for Isaac, he testified that his master had given all that he had to his son (Gen. 24:36). Genesis 25:5 also tells us that “Abraham gave all that he had to Isaac.” Hence, Isaac became the one who inherited his father’s riches. Isaac’s inheriting of all that his father had is a type of Christ’s inheriting all that God the Father has. John 3:35 says, “The Father loves the Son and has given all into His hand.” Furthermore, in John 16:15 the Lord said, “All that the Father has is Mine.” Hence, Christ not only has received all that was given by the Father but has also inherited all that the Father has.

Obtaining the Church, Which Is of the Same Blood and Flesh as He Is

Abraham sent his oldest servant, who ruled over all that he had, charging him to take a wife for Isaac not of the daughters of the Canaanites but of Abraham’s kindred (Gen. 24:2-4). As a result, Isaac took Rebekah as his wife, who was of his father’s house and of his kindred. This typifies that Christ desires to obtain the church, which is of the same blood and flesh as He is, to be His counterpart. The counterpart of Christ must come from Christ’s race, not from the angels nor from any other creatures, but from the human race. Hebrews 2:14 says, “Since therefore the children have shared in blood and flesh, He also Himself in like manner partook of the same.” Through Christ’s becoming a man of blood and flesh, the human race has become Christ’s race. Christ’s desire is to obtain the church, which is of the same blood and flesh as He is, to be His beloved counterpart for the satisfaction of His heart’s intent.

Rebekah Typifying the Church

Being Chosen and Prepared by God

Just as Isaac is a type of Christ, so Isaac’s wife Rebekah is a type of Christ’s counterpart, the church. Rebekah was chosen to be Isaac’s wife by the old servant whom Isaac’s father, Abraham, sent to the place from where he was called out by God. Rebekah never dreamed that she would be selected to be Isaac’s wife. What happened to her altogether did not depend on her. It all depended on God’s sovereign arrangement (Gen. 24:14), for she was the one chosen and prepared by God to be given to Isaac. This typifies that the church is chosen and prepared by God to be given to Christ. Ephesians 1:4 says, “Even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world.” This shows that before He created us, God chose us according to His infinite foresight to match Christ as His corporate bride.

Receiving the Holy Spirit as a Seal and as a Pledge

When Rebekah had provided sufficient water for the camels, the old servant took a gold ring weighing half a shekel and put it on Rebekah’s nose (Gen. 24:22, 47). Half a shekel signifies the first taste, the foretaste, indicating that another half, the full taste, is coming. The gold ring signifies the sealing Spirit. This is a type of the church’s receiving the Holy Spirit as a seal and a pledge. Ephesians 1:13-14 says that in Christ we have been “sealed with the Holy Spirit of the promise, who is the pledge of our inheritance.” To be sealed with the Holy Spirit is to be marked with the Holy Spirit as a living seal. At the time we were saved, God put His Holy Spirit into us as a seal to mark us out, indicating that we belong to God. The Greek word for pledge also means “foretaste, guarantee.” God gives His Holy Spirit to us not only as a pledge of our inheritance, securing our heritage, but also as a foretaste of what we will inherit of God, affording us a taste beforehand of the full inheritance.

Receiving the Spiritual Gifts

The old servant gave Rebekah not only a gold ring but also two gold bracelets for her hands weighing ten shekels (Gen. 24:22, 47). Moreover, when the old servant went to Rebekah’s house, he brought forth articles of silver, articles of gold, and raiment and gave them to Rebekah (v. 53). The bracelets on her hands weighing ten shekels signify that we have received the gifts of life and thus can fulfill the requirements of God’s commandments and fully fulfill the heavenly function. The articles of gold, the articles of silver, and the raiment all indicate the riches of Christ. This typifies that the church has received the spiritual gifts and the riches of Christ from the Holy Spirit. At the time of our salvation, we not only receive the Holy Spirit as a seal and a pledge, but we also receive the spiritual gifts and the riches of Christ from the Holy Spirit for us to carry out the heavenly function and enjoy the riches of Christ.

Willing to Forsake Her Relatives and Being Given to Christ

After Rebekah received and enjoyed these riches, she was willing to leave her father’s house immediately and be given to Isaac (vv. 54-58). This typifies that the church is willing to forsake her relatives in the flesh and be given to Christ. Today, although we have never seen Christ, we are attracted by Him and we love Him (1 Pet. 1:8) because of the Spirit’s testifying in us on behalf of Him. Hence, we are willing to forsake the world and our relatives and be given to Christ.

Following the Holy Spirit to Go to Christ

After Rebekah decided to leave her father’s house to be given to Isaac, she rode on a camel and followed the old servant to go to Isaac (Gen. 24:61). This is a type of the church’s following the Holy Spirit to come to Christ. According to Leviticus 11, a camel is unclean, yet it is useful. Many of today’s conveniences are not clean in the eyes of God. Nevertheless, through them we can follow the Holy Spirit to travel through the desert to come to Christ.

Being Married to Christ as His Beloved Counterpart

One day Isaac went out to meditate in the field at eventide, and he lifted up his eyes and saw that camels were coming. When Rebekah lifted up her eyes and saw Isaac, she took her veil and covered herself. Isaac brought her into his mother’s tent, took her as his wife, and loved her (Gen. 24:63-67a). Rebekah was married to Isaac at eventide, and she was loved by him. This typifies that at the close of this age the church will be married to Christ as His eternally beloved counterpart (Rev. 19:7).

For Christ’s Full Satisfaction

After Rebekah was brought to Isaac, Genesis 24:67b says, “Isaac was comforted after the death of his mother.” Rebekah was given to Isaac and married to him, and the two became one flesh. Thus, Isaac was comforted, and she also enjoyed all the riches which Isaac had inherited from his father. This typifies that the church is given to Christ to become one with Him as His beloved counterpart for His full satisfaction and thus to be able to enjoy all the riches which He has inherited from God the Father. (Truth Lessons, Lev. 3, vol. 1, lsn. 8)

THE ASPECTS IN WHICH BOAZ TYPIFIES CHRIST

Boaz Typifying Christ in Two Aspects

As a Man Rich in Wealth and Generous in Giving

As a man, rich in wealth and generous in giving (Ruth 2:1, 14-16; 3:15), Boaz typifies Christ, whose divine riches are unsearchable and who takes care of God’s needy people with His bountiful supply (Eph. 3:8; 2 Cor. 12:9; Phil. 1:19b).

Sadly, in their experience many of today’s Christians do not have Christ in His riches, and they do not have Him as the Husband. In the church we have Christ as our riches, and we also have Him as our Husband. In Ephesians Paul speaks of the unsearchable riches of Christ (3:8). He speaks also of Christ as the Husband of the church (5:23-32). In Revelation our Husband is unveiled as the Lamb, the redeeming God (21:2, 9). The Bible reveals, therefore, that Christ with His unsearchable riches is our Husband. In the last two chapters of the Bible, we see that Christ, the Lamb, is our Husband and that we, the believers in Christ, are the Lamb’s wife.

As a Kinsman of Mahlon

As a kinsman of Mahlon, the dead husband of Ruth, who redeemed the lost right of Mahlon’s property and took Mahlon’s widow, Ruth, as his wife for the producing of the needed heirs (Ruth 4:9-10, 13), Boaz typifies Christ in redeeming the church and making the church His counterpart for His increase (Eph. 5:23-32; John 3:29-30).

Ruth Typifying the Church

A Woman in Adam in God’s Creation and a Moabitess in Man’s Fall

Ruth, being a woman in Adam in God’s creation and a Moabitess in man’s fall, thus becoming an old man with these two aspects, typifies the church, before her salvation, as men in God’s creation and sinners in man’s fall being “our old man” (Rom. 6:6). Ruth became a Moabitess not because of man’s fall but in man’s fall. The Moabites, an incestuous people, typify all sinners, because all sinners were born of incest (John 8:41, 44a). This means that Ruth was not the only one with an incestuous background. We all have the same background. Adam and Eve joined themselves to Satan; that is, they married Satan. As human beings created by God, we should have married our Creator, taking Him as our Husband (Isa. 54:5), but instead we married a fellow creature, Satan. This is incest.

A Widow Redeemed by Boaz,
Who Cleared the Indebtedness of Her Dead Husband

Ruth, being the widow of the dead husband, redeemed by Boaz, who cleared the indebtedness of her dead husband for the recovery of the lost right of her dead husband’s property, typifies the church with her old man as her crucified husband (Rom. 7:4a) redeemed by Christ, who cleared away her old man’s sin for the recovery of the lost right of her fallen natural man created by God.

We need to realize that the believers’ old man consists of a natural part created by God and a fallen part corrupted by sin. In God’s creation we are good—we are “doves”; but in the fallen Adam we are evil—we are “serpents.” The natural part is good and desires to do what is good, whereas the fallen part practices what is evil (Rom. 7:19, 21). From this we see that in the old man typified by Ruth, we have two natures and that one of these natures is good and the other is evil. The evil nature, acting with the good one, assumed to be the husband, and together they became the old man, our incestuous husband.

Our old man has been crucified with Christ (Rom. 6:6). Christ’s crucifixion destroyed the fallen part of our old man, but it redeemed the created part. Christ did not redeem the fallen part of our old man; on the contrary, He terminated it. However, He redeemed our created part in order to recover us. Therefore, Christ’s death on the cross terminated the fallen part of our old man and redeemed the part created by God.

Becoming a New Wife to Him after Being Redeemed by Boaz

Ruth, after being redeemed by Boaz, becoming a new wife to him typifies the church, after being saved, through the regeneration of the church’s natural man, becoming the counterpart of Christ (Rom. 7:4b). Just as the redeemed Ruth became a new wife to Boaz, so the saved and regenerated church has become His new wife, His counterpart, in the organic union with Him.

Being United with Boaz

Ruth being united to Boaz typifies the Gentile sinners being attached to Christ that they may partake of the inheritance of God’s promise (Eph. 3:6).

The more we consider these aspects of Ruth as a type of the church, the more we can know our status as believers in Christ today. First, we were created by God. Second, we became fallen persons. Third, we were redeemed by Christ. Fourth, we were regenerated by the pneumatic Christ as the life-giving Spirit. Thus, we may summarize our status in four words: created, fallen, redeemed, and regenerated. (Life-Study of Ruth, msg. 6)

SOLOMON TYPIFYING THE RESURRECTED AND GLORIFIED CHRIST AND THE SHULAMMITE TYPIFYING THE CHURCH
IN RESURRECTION AND GLORIFICATION

In the Old Testament the seventh and last woman to typify the church is the Shulammite (S. S. 6:13). The Shulammite was Solomon’s queen. Solomon typifies the resurrected and glorified Christ; hence, the Shulammite typifies the church in resurrection and glorification.

Some people think that Christ’s glorification will begin with His second coming; however, the Bible clearly reveals that Christ entered into glory after His death and resurrection. In Luke 24:26 the Lord said to two of His disciples on the road to Emmaus, “Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and enter into His glory? This indicates that the Lord entered into glory as soon as He resurrected. In principle, Christ’s being in the heavens now, His coming back to the earth in the future, and His living in us and being with us today are all in glory. Solomon is a type of Christ in glory.

Solomon Typifying the Glorious Aspect of Christ,
That Is, His Power in His Ascension

Before Christ was glorified, He experienced on the earth all kinds of sufferings and eventually death. David typifies the Christ who passed through all kinds of sufferings, and David’s wife, Abigail, typifies the church in the midst of sufferings. Solomon typifies the glorification of Christ, and the Shulammite, the queen of Solomon, typifies the church reigning in glory and enjoying the resurrected Christ. The entire book of Song of Songs portrays how the Shulammite experienced and enjoyed Solomon, typifying the church’s experience and enjoyment of the resurrected Christ. The Christ in Song of Songs is the resurrected Christ who passed through death, came out of death, and entered into resurrection.

David and Solomon, as types of Christ, are related. Solomon, as a type, did not come into being after the death of David but rather while David was still living. David and Solomon typify two aspects of a shared experience. David typifies the lowly aspect of Jesus, that is, His footsteps in His living; Solomon typifies the glorious aspect of Christ, that is, His power in His ascension. The Lord was first Jesus and then Christ, first David and then Solomon. However, in our experience He is first Christ and then Jesus, first Solomon and then David.

The Shulammite Typifying the Church in Resurrection

Christ is typified by Solomon, whom the Shulammite enjoyed and experienced. The Shulammite, as a type of the church, centers on the church in resurrection and the way that the church enjoys and experiences the resurrected Christ. For the church to be in resurrection means that the church is experiencing and enjoying the resurrected Christ. Without resurrection the church could not exist. In other words, there is no church apart from resurrection. The Body of Christ is not natural or of the old creation; rather, the Body of Christ is in resurrection and of the new creation.

The Christ whom we have received is the resurrected Christ. We met Him as the Spirit. In John 7:38 the Lord said, “He who believes into Me, as the Scripture said, out of his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water.” Then verse 39 continues, “But this He said concerning the Spirit, whom those who believed into Him were about to receive; for the Spirit was not yet, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.” This indicates that as the Spirit, Christ is in resurrection and glory. The Christ whom we have received and whom we contact daily is the resurrected Christ. The reason that we can experience Christ is that He is in resurrection. If He were not in resurrection, we would have no way to contact and experience Him.

As the church, we can enjoy our Solomon-Christ and rest with Him in the love feast whenever we contact Him, because He is in resurrection and glory. According to our condition today, we do not have full rest in Christ, nor does Christ have full rest in us; however, we do have some rest, and this rest is in resurrection.

The records of Eve and Rebekah end with their marriages, but the record of the Shulammite begins with her marriage and the living of her marriage life. This marriage life is a life in resurrection After Eve came out of Adam, she joined with him to become one, and her story ends there. After Rebekah was married to Isaac, little is recorded about her, and what is recorded does not typify the church The Shulammite’s record, however, begins with her marriage and the living of her marriage life. Her marriage life is a life in resurrection. The wedding feast of the Lamb will be in the future, but in resurrection we have already been married to Christ, we are living a marriage life, and we are in the New Jerusalem. Our present marriage life is a foretaste of the life in the New Jerusalem. The focus of the Shulammite as a type is the church in resurrection. The church is not only united with Christ but is also living a marriage life with Him.

A Complete Union

There is a complete union and full satisfaction between the Shulammite and Solomon, and in this satisfaction there is rest. Although the type of Eve shows her union and satisfaction with Adam and although the type of Rebekah shows her union with Isaac and Isaac’s being comforted, these are not the main points of these two types. In the type of the Shulammite, however, the main point is the union and satisfaction between her and Solomon. At the end of Song of Songs, the Shulammite and Solomon have reached complete harmony with full satisfaction and endless rest without any distraction or interruption; this typifies the New Jerusalem.

The union and satisfaction between the Shulammite and Solomon typify the complete union and full satisfaction that exist between Christ and the church. In this satisfaction, Christ and the church are living a life of satisfaction and peace in endless rest. Rest and satisfaction are characteristics of the New Jerusalem.

As seen in the type of the Shulammite, the church obtains full satisfaction and eternal rest through her union with Christ and her experience and enjoyment of Christ in His resurrection. Eventually, she becomes the New Jerusalem. The Shulammite typifies a living of complete rest and satisfaction. (CWWL, 1956, vol. 2, “Three Aspects of the Church, Book 1: The Meaning of the Church”, ch. 9)