A Wife going aside
Dear Beloved Brethren,
In this message, we will be continuing our discussion on 'Two kinds
of women', under the topic: "A WIFE GOING ASIDE". This phrase - 'a
wife going aside' is found in Numbers 5:12-21. Accordingly, we
will be reading three or four verses from Numbers 5, taking them as our
starting text:
"And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying speak unto the children of
Israel, and say unto them, if any man's WIFE GO ASIDE, and commit a
trespass against him.
And a man lie with her carnally, and it be hid from the eyes of
husband and be kept close, and she be defiled, and there be no
witness against her, neither she be taken with the manner:
And the spirit of jealousy come upon him, and he be jealous of his
wife, and she be defiled: or if the spirit of jealousy come upon
him, and he be jealous of his wife, and she be not defiled:
Then shall the man bring his wife unto the priest ...." (Numbers
5:11-15a)
Now, this is a provision in the Old Testament concerning the
institution of marriage. It relates to the sanctity of the
matrimonial bed. A woman (and the man also) takes certain vows as
she enters into wedlock with her spouse. Essentially, it is a
religious rite prescribed by the Lord through the instrumentality
of Moses, used in ascertaining the fidelity or otherwise of a woman.
It is used when for some reason the husband of the woman is in doubt
of her faithfulness. It is interesting to note that this religious
rite was used in Israel for over 2,500 years. The entire passage is
interesting and it would be profitable for the reader to go through
it once or twice. That will be sufficient to familiarise yourself
with all the provisions. In another connection, we will be able to
take an exposition of all verses beginning from the 11th verse of
Numbers 5. But for our present purpose, one or two things would be
observed from a consideration of this passage.
In verse 29 of Numbers 5, we are told explicitly that this
religious rite as described in the upper verses constitutes the law of
jealousy. When a wife goes aside to another other than her
husband, there is a divine witness attesting to this. The woman's belly
swells and her thighs shrink. What an unsightly figure she
becomes!
There is much to be seen in the judgements of the unfaithful woman.
They have a strong bearing to what results in the judgement of an
unfaithful ecclessia.
Let us look at this briefly. Three things happened to the guilty
woman. Her belly swells, her thighs shrink and she becomes a curse
among her people. The woman that is not guilty is given a special
capacity to conceive seed and bring forth children.
It is important to note that this religious rite is administered on
a woman only when the spirit of jealousy comes upon the husband,
whether or not the wife is defiled. The true state of affairs
comes out at the completion of the ceremony. It is even more curious to
observe that in the case of an unfaithful wife, if the spirit of
jealousy does not come upon the husband, he is accounted as sharing
in the guilt of the wife. But if he is sensitive enough to feel
uncomfortable about the wife, he is approved even when the
religious rite does not confirm her guilty. In this case, God would bless
both man and wife. This looks a little bit queer, but we know and
understand that all scriptures point to the Lord Jesus Christ. And
this passage faithfully used by husbands year after year, for 2,500
years actually points to Christ and the Church. For we know that
the relationship between Christ and the church is set forth in the
scriptures under the figure of marriage. And whatever we find here
has a prophetic undertone.
Now, we will link up what we have been reading so far to the
provisions in the book of Revelation. Our burden is to have an
introductory consideration of the harlot woman of Revelation 17.
It can be demonstrated that the book of Numbers has a special relation
to the book of Revelation. And, of course, many persons are quite
familiar with this situation. For example, the books of Joshua and
Ephesians enjoy the same relationship. Joshua 1:3 says,
".withersoever the soles of your feet shall tread upon, that have I
given unto you for an inheritance.". That is the counterpart of
Ephesians 1:3, ".Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ who has blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.". There is thus a human
responsibility involved in the enjoyment of these spiritual
blessings as may be inferred from a consideration of Joshua 1:3.
Coming back to the main stream of our meditation, we are saying the
book of Numbers has a special relationship with the book of
Revelation. We are shown here that the Lord Jesus Christ takes
special interest in those congregation that profess to have a
relationship with Him. He will test them for faithfulness now and
again. He will do so, whether these assemblies are faithful or
not.
Note this carefully.
You will recall that in a previous meditation, we examined the
faithful wife. We looked at Revelation 12 as detailing a later
development among the faithful class of believers. Revelation 17
does the same but showing the future state of unfaithful
assemblies.
What is interesting is that the persons who find themselves in
either one or the other of these two classes were once in the same
assemblies. As the tares are separated from the wheat, in the
process of time, the tares are left in denominational bundles. The
wheat class is assisted to come into the priviledges and glories of
the sign-woman of Revelation 12.
Now, our emphasis in the main is on 'a wife going aside'. In what
respect is this woman going aside? Or putting it more correctly,
what things constitute the going aside of the woman? This
composite figurative woman is said to be in relationship with the Lord Jesus
Christ.
We answer (the above questions), by drawing our attention to the
things we observed the penultimate chapter. In considering
Revelation 12, we said that woman came to the exalted position as
the seven great promises were being gradually fulfilled towards her.
So then, we see the several elements in the glory of the sign-woman of
Revelation 12 as contained in the seven great promises of Revelation
2 and 3.
Taking a cue from this, it can be demonstrated that the infamy or
shameful estate of the woman of Revelation 17 has its constituting
elements in the things condemned by the Lord Jesus Christ in the
letters to the churches.
Let us attempt to look more closely at these letters, focussing our
attention on what is condemned. In the very first letter, at the
4th verse, we see Jesus saying to the woman, or the church in Ephesus:
".Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast
left thy first love."
So, the first mark of unfaithfulness in the wife going aside is
that she left her first love. We are not told that the woman lost her
first love, but she left it. That is, there was loss of focus.
She allowed herself to be distracted by other things that seemed to
captivate her heart. This typical church is seen in busy
activities.
So much is commended in her zeal for outward service. But she has
come to be doing these things routinely. Christian service is
motivated by love. Heart affections are of great value in the
sight of God. Probably, we should read the preceding two verses to help
our understanding:
".I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou
canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which
say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
And hast borne, and hast patience and for my name's sake hast
laboured, and hast not fainted." (Revelation 2:2-3)
Such were the credentials of this church in Ephesus. But she has
deviated from the source-spring of all true service unto God. True
devotion unto Christ, the place of personal devotion, was
abandoned.
The use of those instruments of devotion that the word of God
reveals was not given special attention. They were busy involving
themselves in some service but they did not know that the first important
consideration in our walk with God is that we should have vital
fellowship with Him.
In Mark 3:12-15, we find Jesus selecting the twelve Apostles. The
Lord's first objective for these men is that they might be with
Him.
Even in the natural setting, a woman can be so hardworking in the
home, and yet be lacking in the things that pertains to true
companionship with the husband. Devotions to Christ rate higher
than outward service. Salvation is first and foremost designed to meet
the needs of God. He desires our fellowship and dwells in our
worship. This then is the first duty of love. When the church is
not properly focussed upon Christ, it may result in placing too
little premium on ministering to the Father's pleasure in worship
and fellowship. So this woman goes aside first in not being focussed
on her husband. Something has distracted her. Some other things have
taken her attention from the love of her husband.
Next, we go to the letter to the church in Pergamos. There we find
two elements that we might use to discuss the issue of the wife
going aside:
".But I have a few things against thee because thou hast there
them that hold the doctrines of Balaam, who taught Balak to cast a
stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things
sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication." (Revelation
2:24)
Now, Balaam is a figure we are all familiar with. He taught or
serves the Lord in the aspect of teaching or prophesying. But he
does this for filthy gain. Both Peter and Jude addressed this
matter in their epistles. That is, he laboured only where there is cash
to pay for his services. And, we were told that even though he had
awareness that God would not have him curse the children of Israel,
because of lust for money, he taught Balak to cast a stumbling
block on the path of the children of Israel. Applying this to our
present meditation, we can say that this woman is found going aside in the
matter of being distracted toward covetousness. In Colossians 3:5,
covetousness is taken as idolatry. And we are told in Revelation 2
that Balaam taught Balak to cast a stumbling block before the
children of Israel. It was to cause them to eat food sacrificed to
idols and commit fornication. Idolatry is one area where the wife
goes aside from the husband. Her heart is drawn away from the Lord
because of covetousness. From experience, we know that when a
believer is properly focussed upon Christ, he is sensitive to
things cropping up in his life that are evil. There is a work of the
indwelling Spirit of Christ in this regard. Before things get out
of the way, the Spirit of God witnesses it to the believer who has
become acquainted with the voice of God.
When devotion is entered into under a sense of duty, and we do not
wait long to come into real fellowship with the Lord, it is sure
that the inward counsel of the Lord will not be discerned. When things
are done from a merely religious viewpoint, then there can be no
increase of Christ's consciousness, no increase of Christ's life
within. And we know that, once our heart is turned towards God, we
begin to enjoy those ministrations from the Spirit of God. So, in
this element, the wife goes aside in the matter of covetousness,
drawn to materialism, because of some perceived gains that she
might get from it. This brings us to the next situation.
The third issue is committing fornication. The reference is to
worldliness manifesting itself in unholy ties. We know that James
says that, ".ye adulterers and adulteresses know ye not that the
friendship of the world is enmity with God.?" (James 4:4). And the
sixth verse says that , ".don't you know that the Spirit within you
lusteth unto envy.?". This reminds us of what we find in Numbers 5
".And if the spirit of jealousy comes upon the husband.". Now,
there can be devotions towards things, towards persons which ought to be
exclusively reserved for Christ. Even in the natural, if a woman's
heart is unusually drawn to another man, it provokes jealousy. If
we go to the letter written to the church in Thyatira, there again we
find this same thing under the figure of Jezebel. We are told
that, the church (in Thyatira) was lured into committing fornication and
eating food sacrificed unto idols by the whorish activities of that
woman Jezebel.
That seems to go just the same way the letter to the church in
Pergamos goes, but there is a difference. The difference is this.
In the case of Balaam, we go to the New Testament to know what the
Lord is pointing out, while in the case of Thyatira, under the
figure of Jezebel, we go back to the Old Testament to see what the Spirit
of the Lord is witnessing against. Here it is unholy ties and mixed
worship. God wants to emphasize. Some servants of God, unusually
blessed by the Lord's presence, get carried away. They turn
themselves to demi-gods, and make the people of God to worship
them.
Remember that Jesus said through the prophet Isaiah that He would
not share His glory with another (Isaiah 42:8). So, in the matter of
whom she reverences and worships, the wife could go aside. And,
even in the natural, when a woman tends to give so much reverence to
another, while at the same time she neglects to do her duties unto
her husband, it is a mark of gross infidelity.
We will take the next thoughts and then bring this meditation to an
end. The letter to the church in Sardis points to something that
the Lord condemns. Let us read the first two verses to illustrate what
in this passage answer to the wife going aside.
".And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things
saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I
know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art
dead.
Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain,
that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect
before God." (Revelation 3:1-2)
So, dead formalism is another indication that the wife is going
aside. And again, we know that in a natural marriage, either
viewed from the man's or the wife's perspective, it is the same. A man
may give his wife all that she seems to need of physical things but
starve her of love and companionship. The woman will certainly
know that something is wrong, because the husband's affections are
stayed from her.
In the same way, the church in Sardis was given to too much labour
but just little or nothing of real firepower. So, here it says,
".you have a name that you are living but you are actually dead.".
The church services of many assemblies are cold and formal. It is
sometimes so superficial that it will be safe to call it mere
drama.
Things are said and done with no real meaning. Nothing goes deep,
yet there is so much noise and funfair. Even in the natural, such
things can be found in the home. A very careful observation may
easily detect the superficial in a relationship. The woman seems
to be about her duties, taking care of the children, doing this and
that, but somewhere along the line, something is wrong. We are
bound to crystallise the manifest presence of God in our church meetings.
This is achieved through recourse to prayers and worship. Once our
personal altars, our one-to-God fellowship suffers a loss, the
effect is seen, not only in our character, but also in our services.
Last, in the letter to the church in Laodecia, we can find yet
another element of the wife going aside. In the 15th to 17th
verses of Revelation 3, we read the following words:
".I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would
thou wert cold or hot.
So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I
will spew thee out of my mouth.
Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have
need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and
miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked; ."
Here is a reference to the fact that a wife can go aside in matters
that pertain to false values. This church is quite conscious of
her wealth and she thinks she no longer stand in need of any supply
from Christ. She said, ".I am rich, increased with goods and have need
of nothing.". Many get pompous and vain when they come to wealth. We
know that whatever we see in the natural has its spiritual
counterpart. The situation of the church in Laodecia is common
place today.
Recall that we are told in Numbers 5 that the guilty woman will
have a swollen stomach. That is, the excesses of such a church will be
so evident even to the unbelieving public. Her sins and evil ways
would become so obvious that all may see it. Many assemblies today are
so out of place that even the unsaved know they have run out of
acceptance with God. It says, the stomach will get swollen, and
the thighs will shrink, and the woman will be a curse among her people.
Now, what we have simply done is to assist us to know that whatever
the Lord will do in our day it is foreshadowed in some Old
Testament scriptures. Just like the Hebrew may be constrained by the spirit
of jealousy to drag his wife to the priest so the-greater-than-man,
our heavenly Bridegroom, will do with the churches. Any assembly of
people professing to be serving Christ will not miss divine
attention.
Just like the Hebrew man, moved by jealousy caused the wife to be
inspected, so Jesus Christ is carrying out a divine inspection of
all assemblies that go by His name. We all need to take out time to
carry out self-examination now and again. There is a call to
repentance that the Lord is sounding to all that have ear to hear
Him. It is particularly disturbing that many assemblies pay no
attention whatsoever to their condition. There is a need to go
periodically before the Lord not only as individuals but also
corporately. We would find the seven letters of Revelation
chapters 2 and 3 very useful. In the mirror of these letters God's people
are always made able to see their true state.
May the Lord burden His people further to give full attention to
this important matter of habitually judging themselves in the light of
the scriptures. May the Lord richly bless you, AMEN.
We will stop here again for now. When next the Lord by His mercies
brings us your way, we will be considering these 'two kinds of
women'
under another topic: "THE LADY OF THE KINGS." We indeed covet your
earnest prayers as we pray that 'YOU' stay blessed in Him who alone
is the Bridegroom of His church.
JESUS IS LORD!
Your Brother - 'Segun Ogunfile.
The Writings of Segun Ogunfile 