OLIVE TREES
Zechariah 4:11 Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof?
We shall not be dealing with these two olive trees in particular in this article, but just with olive trees in general! Let us see what we can learn.
First of all, let us remember that all scripture is given to reveal Christ! He is the key that unlocks the entirety of the revelation of God! John 5:39 Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. Revelation 1:1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him,…
Secondly, let us understand that trees are often spoken of to reveal men! Psalm 1:3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
Isaiah 61:3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
Jeremiah 17:7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. 8 For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.
Daniel 4:20 The tree that thou sawest, which grew, and was strong, whose height reached unto the heaven, and the sight thereof to all the earth; 21 Whose leaves were fair, and the fruit thereof much, and in it was meat for all; under which the beasts of the field dwelt, and upon whose branches the fowls of the heaven had their habitation: 22 It is thou, O king, that art grown and become strong: for thy greatness is grown, and reacheth unto heaven, and thy dominion to the end of the earth.
The owner of the olive tree obtained his fruit by beating it! Deuteronomy 24:20 When thou beatest thine olive tree, thou shalt not go over the boughs again: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow.
As a boy, I remember the grown ups using a long cane pole to thrash among the limbs of the pecan trees to cause the pecans to fall on the ground. Then it was my job to help gather them up.
The Lord Jesus Christ is the man the Father was pleased to bruise! And from his bruising, he brought glory to the Father and redemption to all the the elect! Isaiah 53:10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. 11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
As he went to the cross to be wounded for our transgressions, he prayed, Father, the hour is come; glorify they Son, that thy Son may glorify thee: He was praying that the rich fruit of the glory of the Father would be received as a result of the wounding and bruising he was about to obtain! But there is not one single son among any whom the Lord justifies whom the Father chastens not! Hebrews 12:5 And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: 6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. 7 If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?
And his purging of the vine is for the fruit of the Lord’s glory! John 15:2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. And that fruit is the fruit of the Spirit which every one created in Christ Jesus brings forth! Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. Ephesians 5:9 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)
The fruit that remained after this one beating is a picture of a holy remnant! Isaiah 17:3 The fortress also shall cease from Ephraim, and the kingdom from Damascus, and the remnant of Syria: they shall be as the glory of the children of Israel, saith the LORD of hosts. 6 Yet gleaning grapes shall be left in it, as the shaking of an olive tree, two or three berries in the top of the uppermost bough, four or five in the outmost fruitful branches thereof, saith the LORD God of Israel. 7 At that day shall a man look to his Maker, and his eyes shall have respect to the Holy One of Israel. 8 And he shall not look to the altars, the work of his hands, neither shall respect that which his fingers have made, either the groves, or the images. See also Isaiah 24:11-15.)
We especially see this holy remnant as being the entire ransomed church, consisting of both regenerate Jews and Gentiles! Jeremiah 11:16 The LORD called thy name, A green olive tree, fair, and of goodly fruit: with the noise of a great tumult he hath kindled fire upon it, and the branches of it are broken. 17 For the LORD of hosts, that planted thee, hath pronounced evil against thee, for the evil of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah, which they have done against themselves to provoke me to anger in offering incense unto Baal. Romans 11:17: And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree;
Romans 11:26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: 27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. “All Israel!” Not ‘all Jews!’ But “all Israel!” Christ does not save nations! He saves sinners! Galatians 6:15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature. 16 And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.
Romans 2:28 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: 29 But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
Olive wood was used for the doorway entrance into the holy place of the temple! 1Kings 6:31 And for the entering of the oracle he made doors of olive tree: the lintel and side posts were a fifth part of the wall.
The Lord Jesus Christ is our entrance into the holy presence of God, the Father! John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. 10:7 Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. 9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
O Precious Savior! His open wounds provide us entrance into the presence of redemption, righteousness, and fellowship with God Himself! Hebrews 10:19 Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;
And upon this doorway of olive wood were carved three images representing those in whom Christ delights! 1Kings 6:32 The two doors also were of olive tree; and he carved upon them carvings of cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold, and spread gold upon the cherubims, and upon the palm trees.
Of Christ and his pre-foundation fellowship in the Trinity we read, Proverbs 8:30 Then I was by him, as one brought up with him: and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him; 31 Rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth; and my delights were with the sons of men.
As much as the Father was delighting in the Son, so was the Son delighting in those chosen in him from the foundation of the world! (Ephesians 1:4). And He continued to do so throughout his earthly ministry! John 13:1 Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.
The king of Tyre was called an anointed cherub who was supposed to guard and protect those citizens under him became a fallen man! Ezekiel 28:12 Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. 14 Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. 15 Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. And the Lord Jesus came into the world to save sinners! – John 19:10. And we are instructed that we only love him because he first loved us! – 1 John 4:19.
The palm tree was also to be carved on the entrance into the holy place. It is said to represent the righteous! Psalm 92:12 The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Psalm 52:8 But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever. If there is one thing that every sinner learns, it is that Christ alone is his righteousness! 1 Cor. 1:30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: 31 That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.
And lastly, there were the open flowers! Isaiah clearly tells us that man’s flesh and his goodness are like the grass and the flowers of the field! And as we know, these flowers wither and fade! (Isaiah 40:6-8). But the flowers carved on the olive wood doorway were always open! They were in a perpetual budding state! For the Lord Christ has given unto them eternal life which shall never perish! (John 10:28). Righteous is a treasure laid up! Rust cannot corrupt, nor thieves break through to steal this gift, imputed effectually by Christ! – All glory to the Lamb!!
And just as this doorway had these reminders of Christ’s work for sinners, so our Lord, as our High Priest bears our names upon his heart! Exodus 28:29 And Aaron shall bear the names of the children of Israel in the breastplate of judgment upon his heart, when he goeth in unto the holy place, for a memorial before the LORD continually. Hebrews 8:1 Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;
And remember that these carvings on this doorway were overlaid with gold! 1Kings 6:32 The two doors also were of olive tree; and he carved upon them carvings of cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold, and spread gold upon the cherubims, and upon the palm trees. And gold is a picture of the deity of God! For God’s glory shall cover our sinful beings in a greater way than David’s table cloth covered Mephibosheth’s cripple legs as he dined with the king and enjoyed the meal with him! (2 Sam.9:13).
Luke 12:37 Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them. 1John 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. John 17:11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
Pastor Gene Breed
December 29, 2010
