Rebekah Is A Type of the Bride

Isaac and Rebekah is a type of Christ and His Bride

Gen. 24

Abraham (a type of God the Father) sent Eliezer (a type ofthe Holy Spirit) from Canaan (at the time, a type of heaven) to Mesopotamia (a type of the world) to select a bride for his son Isaac (a type of Christ). The entire family of Bethuel received Eliezer, and he bestowed gifts upon each of them: to the brother (a type of the Family of God, the Saved), and to the mother (a type of the Body of Christ, the Church).

This is a beautiful example of God the Father sending theHoly Spirit in search of a Bride for His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Isaac is One of the Clearest Types of Christ

He was a Child of Promise

Gen. 15: 2--4 "And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing Igo childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus? AndAbram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in myhouse is mine heir. And, behold, the Word of the LORD came unto him, saying,This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine ownbowels shall be thine heir."

Gal. 4: 28 "Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise."

As was Christ Jesus, a Child of Promise --

Isa. 7: 14 "Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign; Behold, avirgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel."

He was of Miraculous Birth

Gen. 21: 1--8 "And the LORD visited Sarah as He had said, and the LORD didunto Sarah as He had spoken. For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son inhis old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abrahamcalled the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him,Isaac. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God hadcommanded him. And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac wasborn unto him. And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all thathear will laugh with me. And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, thatSarah should have given children suck? for I have born him a son in his oldage. And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast thesame day that Isaac was weaned."

As was the Lord Jesus Himself --

Lk. 1: 27--35 "To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of thehouse of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And the angel came in untoher, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee:blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at hissaying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And theangel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And,behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a Son, and shalt callHis name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest:and the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His father David: And Heshall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of His kingdom there shall beno end. Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not aman? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come uponthee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also thatholy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God."

He was Hated and Persecuted by His Half-Brother

Gen. 21: 8, 9 "And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made agreat feast the same day that Isaac was weaned. And Sarah saw the son of Hagarthe Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking."

Gal. 4: 29 "But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted himthat was born after the Spirit, even so it is now."

As Christ was hated and persecuted by his half-brothers, theJews --

Jn. 8: 41--59 "Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to Him, We benot born of fornication; we have one Father, even God. Jesus said unto them,If God were your Father, ye would love Me: for I proceeded forth and came fromGod; neither came I of Myself, but He sent Me. Why do ye not understand Myspeech? even because ye cannot hear My Word. Ye are of your father the devil,and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning,and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketha lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. Andbecause I tell you the truth, ye believe Me not. Which of you convinceth Me ofsin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe Me? He that is of Godheareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God. Then answered the Jews, and said unto Him, Say we not well that Thou art aSamaritan, and hast a devil? Jesus answered, I have not a devil; but I honourMy Father, and ye do dishonour Me. And I seek not Mine Own glory: there is Onethat seeketh and judgeth. Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep Mysaying, he shall never see death. Then said the Jews unto Him, Now we knowthat Thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and Thou sayest, Ifa man keep My saying, he shall never taste of death. Art Thou greater than ourfather Abraham, which is dead? and the prophets are dead: whom makest ThouThyself? Jesus answered, If I honour Myself, My honour is nothing: it is MyFather that honoureth Me; of whom ye say, that He is your God: Yet ye have notknown Him; but I know Him: and if I should say, I know Him not, I shall be aliar like unto you: but I know Him, and keep His saying. Your father Abrahamrejoiced to see My day: and he saw it, and was glad. Then said the Jews untoHim, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast Thou seen Abraham? Jesus saidunto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I Am. Then tookthey up stones to cast at Him: but Jesus hid Himself, and went out of thetemple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by."

He Left Home to be Offered as a Sacrifice

He left his home in Mamre (a type of heaven) to go to Moriah,a hill in Palestine, (a type of the world and Calvary) to be offered as asacrifice, and then returned home.

Gen. 22: 1--19 "And it came to pass after these things, that God did temptAbraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. And Hesaid, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get theeinto the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one ofthe mountains which I will tell thee of. And Abraham rose up early in themorning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaachis son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went untothe place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted uphis eyes, and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said unto his young men,Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, andcome again to you. And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laidit upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and theywent both of them together. And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said,My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and thewood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, Godwill provide Himself a Lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of themtogether. And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abrahambuilt an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, andlaid him on the altar upon the wood. And Abraham stretched forth his hand, andtook the knife to slay his son. And the Angel of the LORD called unto him outof heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And He said,Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now Iknow that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine onlyson from Me. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind hima ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, andoffered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. And Abrahamcalled the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In themount of the LORD it shall be seen. And the Angel of the LORD called untoAbraham out of heaven the second time, And said, By Myself have I sworn, saiththe LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son,thine only son: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I willmultiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon thesea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seedshall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed Myvoice. So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and wenttogether to Beersheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beersheba."

As Christ left heaven and went to the Cross on Calvary --

Jn. 3: 13, 17 "And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but He that camedown from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. For God sent not HisSon into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him mightbe saved."

Lk. 23: 33 "And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and theother on the left."

He was under Sacrificial Death for Three Days

Gen. 22: 4 "Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw theplace afar off."

As Christ was under sacrificial death for three days --

Matt. 16: 21 "From that time forth began Jesus to show unto His disciples,how that He must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders andchief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day."

He was Given a Bride that was Chosen after His Sacrificial Death (in figure) on Mount Moriah (a type of Calvary)

Gen. 24: 1--4 "And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: and the LORDhad blessed Abraham in all things. And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under mythigh: And I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac."

Abraham, (a type of God the Father) was concerned about awife for his son, Isaac. He did not want him to marry one of the Canaanites,among whom they lived, because they were evil and unbelievers. God had said they were not to intermarry. This is a type of the Bride of Christ being takenfrom spirit filled believers (the Church, the Body of Christ).

Abraham called his servant, Eliezer (a type of the HolySpirit), and sent him back to his own people to find a bride for his son,Isaac. This is a type of God the Father sending the Holy Spirit to take out of the Body of Christ (the Church) a Bride for His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Remember, it is not all that are in the Family of God (the Saved; the BornAgain) nor is it all that are in the Church (the Body of Christ), that will bein the Bride. It is only the Overcomer, out of the Church that will be theBride.

As the Church is taken out of the Family (the Body ofBelievers), so will the Bride be taken out of the Church (the Body of Christ).

The Son Will Not Return To Get His Bride.

The servant, Eliezer, was aware that the one he chose forIsaac might be too involved in the affairs of her own country and kindred, andmight refuse to follow him back to his land. There is little or almost no desire in the Church today to "…follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth."(Rev. 14: 4)

Gen. 24: 5, 6 "And the servant said unto him, Peradventure the woman willnot be willing to follow me unto this land: must I needs bring thy son againunto the land from whence thou camest? And Abraham said unto him, Beware thouthat thou bring not my son thither again."

So likewise God the Father is saying, "My Son will notreturn to earth again before He gets His Bride."

Lk. 12: 36 "And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their Lord, whenHe will return from the wedding;"

After the marriage of the Lamb has taken place, then, andonly then, will the Lord return in the air to Rapture the Church. Then theChurch will be invited to the Marriage Feast.

Lk. 12: 37 "Blessed are those servants, whom the Lord when He cometh shallfind watching: verily I say unto you, that He shall gird Himself, and make themto sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them."

When the Lord came the first time, they rejected Him.

Isa. 53: 3 "He is despised and rejected of men; a Man of sorrows, andacquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from Him; He wasdespised, and we esteemed Him not."

They refused His message.

Jn. 8: 45 "And because I tell you the truth, ye believe Me not."

They mocked Him, plaited a crown of thorns, and put it onHis head. Then they nailed Him to a Cross and crucified Him.

Lk. 23: 33 "And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and theother on the left."

In fulfillment of the type of Eliezer searching for a bridefor Isaac, the Holy Spirit is in the land today searching for a Bride for theSon of God.

Requirements for the Bride

The Bride will meet the requirements of the Servant. Eliezer took with him servants and camels laden with gifts and went back to theland from which Abraham came. When he arrived at to the well, he prayed aprayer.

Gen. 24: 14 "And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say,Let down thy pitcher, I pray Thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink,and I will give thy camels drink also: let the same be she that Thou hastappointed for Thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that Thou hast showedkindness unto my master."

The Bride Will Be Beautiful and A Virgin

Gen. 24: 15, 16 "And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that,behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife ofNahor, Abraham's brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder. And the damselwas very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and shewent down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up."

Before he had finished praying Rebekah came and she "…wasvery fair to look upon, a virgin…" The Bride of Christ is going to be fairto look upon; not adorned with coverings of the world. In the eyes of the HolySpirit, she is going to be very fair to look upon; pure, holy, righteous. TheLord's Bride is going to look holy, dress holy and be holy.

Rev. 19: 7, 8 "Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to Him: for themarriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready. And to herwas granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for thefine linen is the righteousness (righteous acts) of saints."

This is acquired righteousness. It is the righteousness of"good works," for which we were "…created in Christ Jesus unto goodworks, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." (Eph.2: 10) This is not imputed righteousness that we received when we acceptedChrist as our Saviour; this is acquired righteousness that is gained byobedience to the Word of God.

The Bride Will Be Willing to Fulfill All Righteousness

Rebekah met the requirements of the servant for the Bride. The servant's request was that the Bride give him drink and give the camelsdrink. These ten camels had traveled a long way through a desert land, andwould have been very thirsty. Camels are able to drink enough to last themseven days. The ten camels are a type of the Law of God. The law requiresmuch and cannot be easily satisfied.

The Bride Will be Willing to Forsake All

She had to be willing to leave her father's house.

Gen. 24: 58 "…They called Rebekah, and said unto her, Wilt thou go withthis man? And she said, I will go."

As Rebekah met all the requirements of the servant, solikewise the Bride of Christ will meet all the requirements of the Holy Spirit.

Being baptized in the Holy Spirit and speaking in othertongues does not necessarily qualify one to be the Bride. However, it doesgive one access to become a part of the Bride. To be a part of the Bride theremust be a willingness and a dedication to the Lord to obey all that Herequires. One must also submit to the Holy Spirit, allowing Him to sanctifyand bring them into perfection (maturity). God has given the Holy Spirit theresponsibility of perfecting the Bride, and He is performing the work in thehearts of those who will yield to Him.

"Wilt thou go with this man?"

The Bride Will Thirst for Fullness

It is very interesting that Eliezer went to the well tosearch for a bride. Jesus said:

Jn. 7: 37 "If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink."

Those who will make up the Bride will always be thirstingfor more. Like Paul, after years of ministry and being part of great miraclessaid, "That I may know Him…" (Phil. 3: 10)

"Ginosko" -- "Know" -- experiential knowledge

Paul's desire was to know Christ in a greater way than hehad ever known Him. This will be the compelling thirst of the Bride, to knowHim in all His fullness.

Gifts for the Bride

Gen. 24: 53 "And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels ofgold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah…"

Jewels of Silver

Silver is a type of the Redemptive work of Christ whichprovides salvation in its completeness. The Bride will apprehend everyredemptive right by the Word of Truth, through faith.

Jewels of Gold

Gold is a type of the Divine Nature of God.

Rom. 13: 14 "… Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision forthe flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof."

I Cor. 15: 49 "…As we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall alsobear the image of the heavenly."

II Cor. 7: 1 "…Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the fleshand spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."

II Pet. 1: 4 "Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and preciouspromises: that by these ye might be partakers of the Divine Nature…"

Raiment

Raiment is a type of the fullness of the Holy Spirit.

Lk. 24: 49 "And, behold, I send the promise of My Father upon you: buttarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high."

"Enduo" -- "Endued"-- be clothed with, to put on

The Scripture is easily understood to be saying, "…Untilye be clothed and empowered with the Holy Ghost."

The Church has received the earnest of theirinheritance but the Bride will receive the fullness of their inheritance.

Eph. 1: 13, 14 "In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the Word oftruth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, yewere sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of ourinheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto thepraise of His glory."

The baptism of the Holy Spirit, proven by the sign evidenceof speaking in other tongues, is the earnest of our inheritance untilthe redemption ("Apolutrosis" -- the complete state of release of the purchasedpossession). We are in the process of being released or delivered. Whencomplete deliverance has been reached, we will receive the fullness of ourinheritance.

I Pet. 1: 4, 5 "To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and thatfadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation (deliverance)ready to be revealed in the last time."

This is not salvation in its first principles, which Petercovered in:

I Pet. 1: 3 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, whichaccording to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope bythe resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead."

This fullness of inheritance has not yet been given. "To aninheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reservedin heaven for you." Who is it reserved for? Peter says for those "Who arekept by the power of God through faith unto salvation (deliverance) ready to be revealed (disclosed) in the last time."

It was in the evening time that Rebekah was brought toIsaac. We are now in the evening time. The Bride will soon be brought to herBridegroom in the fullness of the Spirit, the "fullness of our inheritance."

Rebekah Rode the Camel

Gen. 24: 61 "And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon thecamels, and followed the man…"

There were two things Rebekah had to do -- ride the camels,and follow the man. She reached her destination by riding on the camels. Notice, she did not drive, she did not control -- "she rode" "andfollowed the man;" This is a type of following the Spirit's leading.

Rom. 8: 14 "… As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sonsof God."

"Huios" -- "Sons" -- fully mature -- grown up -- no longer babesor children

Gal. 4: 1, 2 "…The heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing froma servant, though he be lord of all; But is under tutors and governors untilthe time appointed of the father."

We have the earnest of our inheritance until fully grown,fully mature, unto a state of perfection.

II Cor. 7: 1 "Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let uscleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfectingholiness in the fear of God."

Eph. 4: 11, 12 "And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some,evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfectingof the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body ofChrist:"

Heb. 6: 1 "…Let us go on unto perfection…"

Jn. 16: 13 "Howbeit when He, the Spirit of Truth, is come, He will guideyou into all truth…"

"Hodegeo" -- "Guide" -- lead -- to show the way

Those that are full grown and mature will be obedient andfollow the leading of the Spirit.

In fulfillment of the type of Rebekah, the Bride will followthrough the desert, through the wilderness, through the rivers, through theheat of the day, through the coldness of the night, through the thickets,through valleys and over mountains until she sees the Bridegroom.

The Bride Will Watch For The Bridegroom

Gen. 24: 64, 65 "And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac,she lighted off the camel. For she had said unto the servant, What man is thisthat walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is mymaster: therefore she took a veil, and covered herself."

Gen. 24: 67 "…Isaac… took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he lovedher…"