Old Testament Stories with Deeper Meanings...

What if I told you that Jonah was actually killed by the fish who swallowed him and later resurrected by God? What if I told you of a man who single-handedly postponed the flood of Noah's day just by existing? Or what about the special relationship between Elijah and Elisha that most people don't actually know about? Today we're diving into the Old Testament to fish up some Bible stories with deeper meanings that I'm quite certain most of you will not have heard From a battle between gods to a new insight on a controversial Old Testament judge, I'm hoping this video will give you one or two light bulb moments and hopefully strengthen your faith in our Lord. If you learned something new today or this is a blessing to you in any way, consider subscribing. It's free and really helps out. Also consider joining our discord server. Now first up is Jonah, probably the most memorable of the minor prophets. Many of us have read the tale of his three-day journey in the belly of a fish, but have you ever paused to analyze his prayer from within? Some of the language he uses in this prayer suggests a more profound miracle in this story than we might anticipate. Some of the things he mentions in this prayer, such as being in the belly of Sheol, being barred inside the earth, being brought up from the pit, or his soul fainting within him, leads us to ask a few more questions. There's no doubt that Jonah was depressed. Being eaten by a giant fish would do that to you, but if you think about it, maybe it would do a little more. Consider this. Jesus was asked in Matthew 12 38 for a sign, to which he responded, a wicked and adulterous generation seeks a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. So what is this sign? Being swallowed by a huge fish doesn't seem to happen to Jesus, but he does go on to explain that, for as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the son of man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. When this verse is juxtaposed with Jonah chapter 2, and Jesus' death and resurrection is compared to the experience of the prophet Jonah, some might say a grave oversight comes to life. It's heavily implied that Jonah in fact died in the belly of the fish, due to Christ directly comparing Jonah's experience with his own resurrection that will happen after the cross. Jonah's own words seem to testify to this fact, showing that God raised him to bring salvation to the Gentiles, like God raised Jesus, which would bring salvation to all nations. This next one is going to blow you guys away. So many of you will know that if you lay out the first 10 men recorded in the biblical genealogy, their names actually create a secret message. Now I won't go into detail now, but if you're interested, let me know and I can include it in a future video. Anyway, I wanted to focus on one among their ranks, Methuselah. Of course, most of us know Methuselah as the oldest character in the Bible, possibly of all time. But as I researched him, I found a great deal of debate over when his death actually was. Was it sometime before Noah's ark? Or did he sneak his way on and survive the global flood? It wasn't until I looked into the deeper meaning behind his name that it all started to unravel. Methuselah is a combination of two Hebrew words. The word muth, meaning death, and the word selah, meaning forever. Hebrew scholar Dr. John Gill suggested that Methuselah's father Enoch named him intentionally under the spirit of prophecy, foretelling the flood by his name. And considering that Jude calls Enoch a prophet, there may be some significance to that. But that's not all. Even the Greek meaning for his name listed in Luke's genealogy translates, when he dies, there shall be an emission. The strongest evidence, however, is hidden in plain sight. When we examine the age of the patriarchs listed in Genesis, we can trace that Methuselah actually died in the year the flood began. Meaning that this guy alone held back the global flood just by existing. Two of the coolest Old Testament characters have to be Elijah and Elisha. You might recall the passage where Elisha requests a double portion of Elijah's spirit. This is a biblical concept where often the eldest son would receive a double portion of the inheritance from their father. Elijah basically responds by saying that his request is difficult, however, if he witnesses him being taken up to heaven, then he will receive it. Sure enough, mid-conversation, Elijah is taken up to God, and Elisha inherits his spirit. But this is the part you might not be aware of. Elisha quite literally received a double portion of Elijah's spirit because he performed twice the number of miracles. And most of these miracles either fulfill, complete, or succeed Elijah's in some way or another. But that's not all. During their lifetimes, both Elijah and Elisha were responsible for raising the dead once. Second Kings 13.21 records an event after Elisha's death, where a corpse was thrown into his tomb, and once it made contact with Elisha's body, it sprung back to life. Meaning Elisha not only performed double the amount of miracles, but he raised twice as many people from the dead. Anyone who attended Sunday school growing up would have learned about the great power of God on Egypt. But just a few days ago, I learned something about those plagues that took the story to a whole new level. Each one of the 10 plagues ushered in by God corresponds to an Egyptian god or goddess, turning this story from a battle between nations to a battle between gods. The drama starts with Moses and Aaron performing an initial sign, turning a staff into a serpent. But we read that Pharaoh called his magicians, and they were able to replicate the miracle using sorcery. This inclusion may seem unusual, but proves that this was a spiritual battle of light versus darkness, good versus evil, God versus gods. Each one of the plagues sent by God is meant to symbolize defeat to the top Egyptian deities. For example, the plague of blood was against Happy and Osiris, the gods of the Nile. The plague of the dead livestock was against Apis, the god of livestock. And the plague of darkness was against Ra, the god of the sun. Each plague dealt a devastating blow to the Egyptians beliefs, causing many to question their understanding about God. Of course, it was no mystery that God had the victory secured all along, as in the initial miracle of the serpent, Aaron's staff consumed all the other staffs, symbolizing God's dominance over the Egyptian pantheon. When it comes to the biblical judges, none may be more famous than Samson. Known for his unrivaled strength and unruly attitude, Samson seemingly had free reign to do whatever he wanted with God's spiritual power. But it turns out there actually were some rules. Before Samson was born, his mother was visited by an angel, saying that her child would be a Nazirite, that no razor would come upon his head, and that he would deliver Israel from the Philistines. Number six outlines what was involved in a Nazirite vow. A man or woman dedicated to the Lord in this way would dedicate themselves to a period of separation for the Lord. They weren't allowed to eat grapes or drink wine, they weren't allowed to cut their hair, and they weren't allowed to touch any dead bodies. Pretty familiar sounding, right? These vows get interesting when compared to Samson's life. Firstly, Samson is described as getting engaged to a Philistine woman from Timnah. On the way there, we read that a young lion came towards him, roaring. Then the spirit of the Lord rushed upon him, and although he had nothing in his hand, he tore the lion to pieces as one tears a young goat. But he did not tell his father or mother what he had done. But not only that, in verse 8, it says that after some days he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion. And behold, there was a swarm of bees in the body of the lion and honey. He scraped it out into his hands and went on eating as he went. And he came to his father and mother and gave some to them, and they ate. But he did not tell them that he had scraped the honey from the carcass of the lion. He knew how profoundly wrong it was to eat something unclean as a Nazirite, and to share it with his parents, making them unclean also. But he didn't seem to care. He didn't care about his vow, he didn't care about his parents, he didn't even care about God. The Bible states that Samson There was almost certainly drinking involved at these feasts. This, along with Samson's propensity for chasing after women, suggested he didn't take his vows too seriously. All except one. Samson refused to cut his hair. And as long as he respected the sanctity of this vow, God seemingly was still with him. We know about Delilah and how her constant pestering caused Samson to reveal the secret of his hair to her. But I posit that it wasn't really about his hair at all. This was just a sign that his separation for God had come to an end. Number 6 goes on to explain that when a Nazirite is defiled, he shall have his head shaved and the priest shall offer one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. Samson had been defiled by renouncing his final vow to the Lord. The only vow he actually bothered keeping Consequently, Samson's eyes were plucked out, the part of his body that had continually led him to chase after Philistine women. The two offerings of his eyes, along with his shaved head, allowed him to begin another period of separation for the Lord. Samson's faith grew along with his hair, and like any Nazirite, a lamb one year old was offered up as a guilt offering for Samson. This, along with his own sacrifice and death, brought about reconciliation between Samson and God. He even managed to fulfil the angel's words through his death, as he killed more Philistines in his death than in his life.