Lord, You have been favorable to Your land; You have brought back the captivity of Jacob. You have forgiven the iniquity of Your people; You have covered all their sin. Selah. (Psalm 85:1-2)
This psalm begins on a very interesting note; it connects the fertility of the land with the return of God’s people to the land, i.e. their redemption. In short, God’s favor upon His people is evidenced by the prosperity of the land. If that is so, when the land was barren and unproductive, it was evidence of His displeasure. To underscore this point, consider what the garden of Eden must have been like compared to what the land was subjected to after the fall of man. To Adam the Lord said, “Cursed is the ground for your sake; … both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you” (Genesis 3:17-18).
In the days leading up to the Flood, the situation worsened as man wandered farther away from the Creator. In those days, according to the Scripture, the earth became corrupt because mankind corrupted his way upon the earth (Genesis 6:11). Clearly there is a connection between mankind and the earth. Man was made from the dust of the earth, and to the dust we shall return. Between those two events how we conduct our lives, whether it be obedience to God or disobedience, will be reflected in the earth itself. If we produce good fruit in our lives, the dust from which we came will produce fruit as it was designed to do. In contrast, if we fail to produce good fruit, the earth will withhold its fruit as a sign that we are following in Adams rebellious footsteps.
This brings us to the main point where God’s people are concerned; there is coming a day when the earth, and particularly the land of Israel, will be redeemed. In fact, the earth is longing for the redemption of God’s people for in that day, the creation will realize its’ own redemption. According to Paul, “The earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God…. because the creation itself will also be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God” (Romans 8:19, 21).
Imagine if God were to call Adam to come back to the garden and to the life he knew before He fell into sin; that is, in essence what the redemption will be. As the psalmist said, “You have forgiven the iniquity of Your people; You have covered all their sin.” At that time, “The Lord will comfort Zion and all her waste places; He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord” (Isaiah 51:3); “the land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden” (Ezekiel 36:35). In other words, the coming redemption is not exclusively for man, it is for the entirety of God’s plan for His creation. In a manner of speaking, we who follow the Messiah, are making our way back to the Garden.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
Recent Comments