Song of Solomon 4:6,7 "Until the day break, And the shadows flee away, I will get me to the mountain of myrrh, And to the hill of frankincense. Thou art all fair, my love: There is no spot in thee." The book Song of Solomon, also called "The Song of Songs," is a beautiful and intimate picture of love between Solomon and his bride. Yet beyond the earthly romance, it speaks of Christ’s deep and unwavering love for His Church. The sovereign grace of God is seen in these verses, for it is not by any goodness in the Bride that she is declared spotless, but by the gracious work of Christ, her Beloved. "Until the day break, and the shadows flee away..." The believer walks in a world where shadows still linger—shadows of sin, sorrow, and suffering. Yet, there is a promise of the coming dawn when all darkness will be dispelled by the full radiance of Christ’s glory. "For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect" (Hebrews 10:1). When the LORD Jesus came into the world, it was to fulfill all the types, pictures, and shadows of the Law. With His coming, a new day has dawned, and the shadows have fled away. The concept of "the Law as a shadow" is rooted in the New Testament, particularly in the writings of the Apostle Paul and the writer of Hebrews. The Mosaic Law was a precursor or foreshadowing of what the LORD Jesus came to fulfill. He did not come to set aside the Law, but to fulfill it. "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil" (Matthew 5:17). The Law, given to Israel through Moses, was a temporary and symbolic system pointing to the ultimate redemption and revelation found in Christ. Yet, there is a twofold nature to the redemption that the LORD Jesus obtained for those whom the Father gave Him to be His Bride. Although Christ has accomplished the full salvation of the elect already at the cross, fulfilling all that God's Law required, we still await the fullness of His kingdom at the end of time, when all that pertains to the darkness of this world will be done away. He is now seated on the throne of glory, where He intercedes for His Church even now, abiding in the "mountain of myrrh and the hill of frankincense," picturing His ongoing work as our High Priest. "Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them" (Hebrews 7:25). "I will get me to the mountain of myrrh, and to the hill of frankincense." Myrrh and frankincense are symbols of Christ’s work. Myrrh is a bitter yet fragrant resin used in embalming, signifying suffering, sacrifice, and death. It reminds us of Christ’s redeeming death on the cross . "And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight" (John 19:39). Frankincense is a sweet-smelling incense used in priestly offerings, symbolizing Christ’s intercession and mediation for His people. "And the LORD said unto Moses, Take unto thee sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these sweet spices with pure frankincense: of each shall there be a like weight" (Exodus 30:34). By referring to the "mountain of myrrh" and the "hill of frankincense," Solomon’s words point us to Christ’s dual role as both our Sacrificial Savior and our Great High Priest. "The mountain of myrrh " represents a place of elevation, difficulty, and suffering. Just as Christ ascended Calvary to bear the sins of His people, He is portrayed here as going to the mountain of myrrh—symbolic of His sacrificial death. "Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed" (Isaiah 53:4-5). For the Church, this reminds us that our Bridegroom has fully paid the price for our redemption. His sovereign grace alone has removed our sins, making us "all fair" in His sight. "Thou art all fair, my love; there is no spot in thee" (Song of Solomon 4:7). "The hill of frankincense" represents a smaller elevation than a mountain, suggesting that while Christ's suffering (the mountain of myrrh) was great, His continued work as our intercessor (the hill of frankincense) remains. "Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us" (Romans 8:34). "Thou art all fair, my love; there is no spot in thee." What a stunning declaration from Christ to His Church! In ourselves, we are not fair, but stained with sin. Yet, through the work of the LORD Jesus, accomplished at the cross by His shed blood unto death, we are declared pure and without spot or blemish in Him. "That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish" (Ephesians 5:27). Awaiting the Dawn Those in the Old Testament, who were the LORD's elect, awaited the day of Christ's coming just as those in the first century did. "The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up. From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 4:16-17). Now, those since the first coming of Christ await a new day dawning, when "new heavens and a new earth" shall be ushered in. "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away" (Revelation 21:1-4). May our eyes ever look to our gracious Lord God, and thank Him for His sovereign grace in Christ, who has made wretched sinners as we are, fair in His sight. May we ever rest in the finished work of the LORD Jesus Christ and long for the day when these earthly shadows will flee away, and we will dwell in His presence forever. May the Spirit of Grace keep our hearts fixed on Christ Jesus, our Beloved Bridegroom, and rejoice in the bridal robe of righteousness whereby we stand spotless and pure before Him.

Song of Solomon 3:1 "By night on my bed I sought him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not." Song of Solomon 3:1 is a poetic and deeply emotional verse that captures the longing and desire of the Shulamite woman for her beloved. This verse is part of a larger narrative in which she searches for him, expressing themes of love, yearning, and the fear of separation from the One she loved because of his love for her. The Song of Solomon—also known as the Song of Songs—is a beautifully written God-inspired love poem that is rich in the symbolic and spiritual significance of the love of Christ for His Church, and the Church for Christ. What is outlined in this song is an allegory of Christ’s love for the Church (the elect of God). In Song of Solomon 3:1, the Bride expresses her longing for her Beloved King, who has set His affection on her; this reflects the deep yearning of the soul for His presence during His absence. Nighttime is typically intended for rest, relaxation, and the restoration of both body and mind. And yet, night can also be a time of loneliness, isolation, and anxious fretfulness about the past or what lies ahead. Insomnia may be caused by stress, worry, or other factors—and even God's children are not spared. Since it is God who ordains all things, we must understand that even on the nights when sleep fails, yet, these have been ordained by God to cause His children to cry out for help and relief. At such times, our hearts may sink lower than we ever imagined, as the LORD may choose to hide Himself for a season. In this scripture, the Shulamite woman, representing the Bride of Christ—His Church—eagerly desires the presence of the King (Christ) and awaits His return at the end of a time of absence. For reasons known only to God, there are times when He conceals the blessing of His Presence—not to torment His children, but to intensify their yearning for Him. No one understands more fully than the LORD Jesus what it was to be the Man of sorrows, acquainted with grief during His time of humiliation when He bore the weight of His people’s sin to satisfy God the Father's law and justice (Psalm 22:1). However, because the LORD Jesus has already borne the Father’s chastening on behalf of His children, we can rest assured that there is not an ounce of wrath in God's dealings with us; rather, “Whom He loves, He chastens and scourges every son' " (Hebrews 12:6,7) not to consume them but to draw them lovingly to Himself through times of discipline—or the night seasons of life. Such was the case of the Shulamite woman who, in a season of darkness, reasoned: “I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them?... I opened to my Beloved, but my Beloved had withdrawn Himself and was gone...” (Song of Solomon 5:3–6). Of all the blessings bestowed on the Church in Christ, no chastening is felt more deeply than the heartache of the LORD hiding His face or temporarily withdrawing His presence. This pain is experienced most acutely by a wife and children whose husband and father must be away for a while, making the separation almost unbearable. Our comfort lies in knowing that the LORD understands our endless need for Him and will not cause any of His beloved children to suffer beyond what they can bear. His delays in renewing His presence through His Spirit are designed to deepen our awareness of our need for Him and to humble us, lest we become prideful or lethargic in the face of His gracious mercies and blessings. Although He chastens by withdrawing, He always ensures that He is found: “I found Him Whom my soul loveth: I held Him, and would not let Him go...” (Song of Solomon 3:4).

Song of Solomon 2:16 "My Beloved is mine, and I am His." The law is very cut and dry, precise, and clinical. It is not based on affection. Justice is blind to the lawbreaker; it doesn't matter if the lawbreaker is rich or poor, black or white, male or female—there is only retribution. Payment must be made. That is why the letter of the law spells death to all born in the flesh. The law requires their life, from Adam onward, for all the lives of his seed, because none satisfy the payment for his sin. We're all born dead, alienated from the life of God that is in Christ Jesus. "That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world" (Ephesians 2:12). Thank God that He determined to love the sinners He chose in Christ before the world began. But how could a Just God love any sinner? By paying the price of their sin with a perfect, righteous, sacrificial death. But none are innocent, none are righteous, so how could He accomplish this? By sending His Son, the God-Man, into this world to live a perfectly obedient life, and then shedding His blood unto death on the cross. "And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross" (Philippians 2:8). Each of God's elect died and rose in Him as their Substitute. The apostle Paul declared, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." The elect of God are so united with Christ in His person and work that if we are one of those for whom He died, we are His, and He is ours—one with Him; He is our Spouse. He washed us clean by His shed blood unto death, and by His Spirit, we are fed by Him and with Him in His everlasting love. "He brought me to the banqueting house, and His banner over me was Love" (Song of Solomon 2:4). This is how God's love is revealed in those He, from all eternity, purposed to save by the doing and dying of the Lord Jesus. It is that union with Christ in His life, death, resurrection, and ascension that enables God to be just in loving them as redeemed and justified sinners. Because of Christ, the Substitute, God loves each of His chosen ones with the same love wherewith He loves His Son. The Lord Jesus prayed for His own to the Father: "I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me" (John 17:23). So we rest in Christ, the Word. He is the Gospel of salvation. His Spirit makes us lie down in Him. "Behold, our bed is green" (Song of Solomon 1:16). "He maketh me to lie down in green pastures" (Psalm 23:2). The Word of God is our bed, our rest. All is accomplished by our Beloved Friend, "... This is my Beloved, and this is my Friend..." (Song of Solomon 5:16). "The Son of Man is come...a Friend of publicans and sinners" (Luke 7:34). Once awakened, we cannot endure hearing of a "god" void of a just love for His people, or any Scripture that is void of our Beloved One, the Lord Jesus. The Spirit makes us continually aware of our need for His presence with us but also causes us to cry out for Him, our Beloved, to come to us again in refreshing, when we are made to feel that He has withdrawn: "Make haste, my Beloved, and be thou like to a roe or to a young hart upon the mountains..." (Song of Solomon 8:14). "He that testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus" (Revelation 22:20).

Ecclesiastes 1:12-18 "I the Preacher was king over Israel in Jerusalem. And I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven: this sore travail hath God given to the sons of man to be exercised therewith. I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit. That which is crooked cannot be made straight: and that which is wanting cannot be numbered. I communed with mine own heart, saying, Lo, I am come to great estate, and have gotten more wisdom than all they that have been before me in Jerusalem: yea, my heart had great experience of wisdom and knowledge. And I gave my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit. For in much wisdom is much grief: and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow." The Preacher’s voice echoes through the ages: " I, the preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem." God put him there, and from that high place he began to seek out all that is done “under heaven.” He gave his heart, not just his mind, to know wisdom. Yet in the end, after all his searching, he declares that all is vanity and vexation of spirit. The more he looked upon the works of men, the more he saw the crookedness that cannot be made straight, the lack that cannot be numbered. What is wisdom if it leaves us still empty, still fallen, still vain? That's why the LORD declared in Matthew 6:23, " But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!" There is a wisdom that belongs to this world, and God has endowed His creatures with it. It is the kind of wisdom that enables one to build, to heal, to govern, to invent. It is not of man’s making, but from the hand of God Who formed dust and breathed life into it. Yet even this wisdom cannot lift a soul heavenward, for it is limited to things under the sun. It may shine for a time, but it ends in death. All that is born of this fallen creation perishes with it. And so Solomon, taught by experience and by grace, turns his eyes upward. There is another wisdom—a spiritual wisdom—that no man has naturally. It is not found by reason, effort or study. It comes from above. It is the Wisdom of God in Christ. To know Him is to know Truth. "To be found in Him, not having one’s own righteousness, but that which is of God by faith" (Philippians 3:9), is to have the Wisdom that endures forever. Without Him, man seeks after a god of his own imagination; but in Christ, the Light of God's Wisdom breaks into the darkness of our ignorance and pride. Solomon’s heart, like ours, had to be humbled. When he was young, the LORD appeared to him in Gibeon and said, “Ask what I shall give thee” (1 Kings 3:5). He could have asked for long life, riches, or the death of his enemies, but instead he asked for an understanding heart. The LORD was pleased because He had given this cry of need to Solomon. Such a request did not spring from ambition but from need. Solomon confessed, “I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in” (1 Kings 3:7). That is the beginning of wisdom—to know one’s lack and to seek it in God alone. So God gave him a wise and understanding heart, a heart that saw more deeply than the outward works of men. Yet in that same wisdom he came to see the vanity of all things under the sun. The more he knew, the more he mourned. “In much wisdom is much grief,” he wrote in our text, “and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.” Knowledge of the world exposes its futility; knowledge of self reveals our corruption. All is vanity. The curse of Adam has touched everything—the earth groans, creation travails, the very air sighs beneath the weight of sin (Romans 8:18–22). But the LORD has subjected this vanity in Hope. The crooked cannot be made straight by human hands, but there is One Who came to make all things new. In Him, Righteousness is fulfilled. In Him, Wisdom is not a concept but a Person— “Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption” (1 Corinthians 1:30). To see ourselves rightly is affliction, yet it is mercy. God weans us from this world by showing us its emptiness, until our affection is drawn upward to where Christ is seated at the Right Hand of God (Colossians 3:2). True Wisdom is to be brought low and to cry to Him in Whom all the treasures of Wisdom and Knowledge dwell (Colossians 2:3) . To increase in such knowledge is indeed to increase in sorrow toward ourselves because of our depravity, but a sorrow that ends in joy when blessed by the Spirit of God—the joy of knowing that all vanity is swallowed up in His Glory, satisfied in the death of Christ on the cross. Only in Christ alone is true, lasting satisfaction.

Ecclesiastes 9:1 "For all this I considered in my heart even to declare all this, that the righteous, and the wise, and their works, are in the hand of God: no man knoweth either love or hatred by all that is before them." When Solomon reflects in this verse, he is not beginning with man, but with God. Everything — righteousness, wisdom, every work under the sun — is in the hand of God. That is the starting point of True Wisdom. " The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding" (Proverbs 9:10). Nothing lies outside His sovereign will and rule in Christ, in Whose Hand God the Father has put all judgment (John 5:22). And yet, here is the problem: if all is in God’s hand, then what righteousness, what wisdom, what works do we truly have to bring before Him? On our own, none. As Solomon himself confesses elsewhere, " For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not (Ecclesiastes 7:20). That is, who does not sin even in the good that he may do in men's eyes. "All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags" (Isaiah 64:6) . Left to ourselves, our hands are not only empty but filthy. But the Gospel declares that there is One Who is Righteous. There is One Who is Wise. There is One Whose every work was wholly in the hand of God—Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Who lived in perfect righteousness and embodied the wisdom of God in His Person and work. And when He was delivered up to the cross, what men purposed for evil, God purposed for good. By wicked hands He was crucified — yet it was according to the determinate counsel of God, it was purposed as the means that God would justify those that He gave to His Son from before the foundation of the world (Acts 2:23; 4:28). At Calvary, Christ took the place of sinners. Our sin as God's elected ones was laid on Him. The cross is where the justice of God and the mercy of God met together (Psalm 85:10). It is there that the declaration of Ecclesiastes 9:1 finds its fulfillment. For if we are counted among the righteous and the wise, it is not because of anything in us, but because we are in Christ, and Christ is in us. " (1 Corinthians 1:30). This is why Paul would write in 2 Corinthians 5:21, “ who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:" All is in His hand. Our justification, our sanctification, even our glorification, are in the Hands of the Surety, not by our grip on Christ, but by His grip on us (John 10:28). Solomon’s reflection is the comfort of those that God the Father has elected, God the Son has redeemed, and God the Spirit has drawn to Him. The righteous, the wise, and their works are from God and in Christ's hand, and therefore they are safe, and nothing can snatch any of His away. When we look at our lives, with all their frailty, with sin that still clings so closely, with death that looms over each one, we do not look within to discern whether we are loved or hated of God. From the standpoint of earthly circumstances — prosperity or adversity, health or affliction, life or death — one cannot determine God’s eternal love or hatred. Outward events in this world give no certain testimony of one’s standing before God. The wicked may prosper in this life, yet be under the abiding hatred of God, and the righteous may suffer loss, affliction, or even martyrdom, and yet be the objects of His everlasting love in Christ. Therefore, “all that is before them” (what happens in this life) cannot serve as a true indicator of God's love or hatred. The only way one knows God’s love is not by looking at outward providence  but by looking to Christ crucified . God’s eternal love is revealed in the covenant of grace , where He chose a people in Christ before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4–5) . That love is manifested at the cross, where Christ bore the wrath due to His elect and reconciled them to God (Romans 5:8; 1 John 4:9–10). The Spirit reveals this love by inwardly witnessing in the elect sinner's heart that he is a child of God (Romans 8:16) . Therefore, the believer’s assurance of God’s love rests not in fluctuating providences but in the finished work of Christ at the cross. alone.

Ecclesiastes 7:14  "In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: God also hath set the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him." By definition, a tragedy is a drama or literary work in which the main character is brought to ruin or suffers extreme sorrow. For some, it is the upheaval of an entire nation, whether due to political, economic, or pandemic-related problems. Towns and communities suffer tragedy when, suddenly, the “normal” day-to-day life of that community is disrupted for one reason or another. Like ants scattered by someone stepping on their world, they scramble to regroup. Some suffer tragedy individually, as one acquaintance recently shared—being in a waiting room full of people when a surgeon came out and told them that their loved one had terminal cancer. They felt alone, isolated, and devastated. How are we, as the LORD’s own, to deal with these unexpected upheavals? Are they random events that befall us? 1. These are times to bow to the LORD and consider.   The word in Scripture means to ponder, weigh, or discern. Where does one look in such times? We are to see God’s hand even in the worst of situations, knowing that He ordains all things for our good and His glory. The truth is that God has set adversity over against prosperity for His purposes. 2. These are times to thank the LORD.   We recognize His many blessings day by day, in which He mercifully gives us peace, health, and well-being—all undeserved. Yet how often we take those days for granted, until or unless He  takes them away. When He does, we are reminded that our health, wealth, or state of being is truly only loaned to us for a time, and He , the Creator and Judge, has the right to reclaim them according to His good pleasure. As Job declared in His time of suffering: “Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord" (Job 1:21). 3. These are times to remember that all that befalls us is ordained of HIM.   It is the mercy of the LORD when He causes us to look outside ourselves and cry unto Him  in our need, our greatest need being our sinful self, and the blood and righteousness of the LORD Jesus alone. Our nature is such that it takes tragedy, sent from God, to bring us low at Christ’s feet and cause us to look to Him  for mercy, grace, and strength. And yet, if Christ has paid the sinner’s debt, there is not an ounce of wrath in what the LORD ordains for His own, but rather a merciful drawing of our hearts to Him. A s declared by the prophet Jeremiah in Lamentations 3:32, 33 “But though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies. For he doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men.” God’s afflictions are not out of wrath for His people, but tempered with mercy and purposed for their good, to draw them to Himself. Here we are reminded that both joy and sorrow, prosperity and adversity, are appointed by the sovereign hand of God. The believer rests not in changing circumstances, but in Christ, who is the unchanging Rock. In prosperity, we rejoice in Christ our portion; in adversity, we are taught to consider Him who governs all things for our good and His glory. Thus, the Lord strips us from resting in the creature, that we may find all in Christ alone—our wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. As the prophet Habakkuk declared in his day: “Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines… Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation” (Habakkuk 3:17, 18). Even in adversity, the believer finds joy, not in circumstances, but in the LORD Himself.

Ecclesiastes 7:1,2 "A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one's birth. It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart." He would be the kind of person for whom you might ask, “What do you give to someone who has everything?”  Yet, God caused Solomon to reflect upon his life and the vanity of having all things, while lacking the one thing needful. What is that one vital thing that truly matters? Better even than "precious ointment!" Where was the precious ointment found?  It was found in the kings’ palaces. It speaks of the incense and perfumes often burned in such places. Remember, they didn’t have air conditioning in those days. In the heat and humidity, homes could easily become musty. How precious, then, was an ointment that gave off a sweet savor—especially when this world offers little more than the stench of death. But what name is better than precious ointment?  It is the name of Christ. To bear His name, to be given that name, is greater than all that the world has to offer. Even our LORD Jesus, when the seventy disciples returned with joy, rejoiced that they had the power to heal and cast out devils. He redirected their focus. That power, though real, was temporary. Not all who were healed or delivered were the LORD’s. It was a manifestation of His messianic power. “And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name. And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven”  (Luke 10:17–20). That was a house of feasting, a moment of joy and excitement. But the Lord gently turned their joy from temporal power to eternal grace. When He said, “I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven,”   He was declaring His eternal origin and authority. He was there when Satan was cast down, and now on earth, He had come to crush that old serpent’s head (Genesis 3:15). This is the name that is above every name (Philippians 2:9) —better than ointment, better than all that the world esteems: to be in Christ. By His power and authority, He has conquered .  He has overcome. And therefore, in Him, no enemy, no power, can touch us, but that which has already touched Him. In Psalm 119:71, we hear the voice of the Savior: “ It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes.” We rejoice not because we bear our condemnation for sin, but because He bore it. That is what brings true joy. What was the house of mourning to which our LORD went? The Scripture says He didn’t come to enjoy ease or festivity. Look at how He walked this earth. He was given the Spirit without measure (John 3:34) , and everything about His taking on flesh was for suffering and sorrow—that which was due to His people. He bore it Himself. His ultimate house of mourning was the cross. Yet He “set His face like a flint”   toward Jerusalem (Isaiah 50:7), and would not be deterred. Why? Because it would be in that house of mourning—His death—that God the Father would once for all justify the sinners He gave to Christ. The cross was His house of mourning where He came to lay down His life and save those the Father had given Him from before the foundation of the world. When He told His disciples, "I go to prepare a place for you," it was His death on the cross that was that place (John 14:3). Why then does the Lord afflict His children in this world?  It begins in the heart, where He shows us the sinfulness of sin. And then, through life’s trials, He continues to chasten: “For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth”  (Hebrews 12:6). You don’t want to be left to yourself, to a life of nothing but outward feasting and carnal ease. Thank God that, moment by moment, He brings His children again and again to the house of mourning, the foot of His cross. He afflicts, chastens, and corrects, lest they ever put confidence in the flesh. So much for the saying, “Believe in Jesus, and all will be well.”  To be drawn to Christ puts you at odds with the world. The world wants a popular Jesus—a Jesus of health, wealth, and prosperity. And many pulpits accommodate this false christ. They say, “Come to Jesus, and all your needs will be met." But that’s not what our Lord said. What did He say in John 16:33? “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” How do we have hope in this world? Because He has overcome. What does the house of mourning teach us?  That we are nothing. That, apart from the finished work of Jesus Christ, there is only condemnation. That’s why our Lord taught: “ Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted” (Matthew 5:3–4). We bring nothing. Better to be of that poor number Christ came to save. The Spirit of God teaches our hearts to mourn—not only for sin, but for having ever looked to ourselves for hope. How are we comforted?  By the grace of God, we know that Christ came into the world for such as we are. The house of mourning, where sinners of God's choosing dwell, and He has entered in to deliver them and bring them out into His banqueting House of Wine, the wine representing His shed blood unto death for His own (Song of Solomon 2:4).

Ecclesiastes 9:7 "Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works." If this particular verse were to fall into the hands of most people today who are in the world and yet without Christ, they might think it’s a license to go out and live however they want—living for the flesh and themselves. However, every scripture is set in context, and any verse taken out of context is a pretext. This verse is not addressed to just anyone. Most people in the world already have their fill of eating bread and drinking wine. They serve their flesh far too much, and outside of Christ, their works are certainly not accepted. It cannot be said of them, “God now accepts thy works.” No, these words are addressed to the child of God in Christ. Now, who is a true child of God? He has been made so by God Himself—one whom God has chosen in His grace and mercy to save. The Lord Jesus Christ, when He came to earth, lived and died as their Substitute, in their place. They have been redeemed and justified by the death of the Lord Jesus Christ. Not only are they redeemed and justified, but they are also called to Christ, made alive by the Holy Spirit, and brought to the Lord Jesus Christ in faith. As it is written: "Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied" (1 Peter 1:2). To be elected means that someone did the choosing. It’s not the sinner who chooses God; it’s God who has chosen those sinners He purposed to save in His eternal decree—elect before the foundation of the world, elect according to the foreknowledge of God. As Acts 13:48 states, " And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed." In the Apostle Paul’s day, religion was already setting up standards that led people to believe that by abstaining from certain things—even things God had ordained for the good of His elect—they could make themselves closer to God, or have a greater spiritual experience or some sort of spiritual benefit by what they did or didn’t do. Colossians 2:21-23 says, "(Touch not; taste not; handle not; Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men. Which things have indeed a show of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body: not in any honor to the satisfying of the flesh." It’s like some today encouraging fasting, or advocating a life in a monastery, or saying that it's more spiritual not to marry. All of these things are taught by religion, but here it says that God has given them to His people to enjoy (1 Timothy 4:1-5). There are two things in this text that the believer in Christ may do. i. First, to “go his way.” It says, “Go thy way,” which implies peace, forgiveness, and right standing. How can that be? How can God say to the sinner, "Go thy way"? ii. Second, it says, "Eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works." To eat and drink, not just for refreshment, but for enjoyment—enjoying this life. Only the believer can truly enjoy this life because of what Christ has done for him. Not just out of necessity but out of pleasure. This does not mean gluttony or drunkenness, but it does mean taking what God has created and enjoying it with thanksgiving. It says, "thy bread and thy wine.” The Bread and the Wine of the redeemed child of God is the LORD Jesus Christ, of whom they partake joyfully and freely every day (John 6:55,56, Matthew 26:26). Now, on what basis can a sinner hope to hear these words of grace from the Lord? What is the basis on which I can hope to hear my LORD saying to me, "Go your way, for God now accepteth thy works"? The first reason is that the power of salvation, the authority of salvation, is in Christ’s hands. "As thou hast given Him power over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given Him" (John 17:2). The second reason is that the LORD Jesus Christ, by His life and death, obtained perfect redemption for those sinners He came to save. Did He accomplish their redemption, or didn’t He? To hear preachers today, it sounds like He made a down payment, but now it’s up to the sinner to finish it. No! He accomplished redemption for His people, and therefore, He can rightly speak peace to them, having paid their complete sin debt. The Lord Jesus Christ paid it all for His people. "And, having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile all things unto Himself; by Him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven" (Colossians 1:20). The third reason is that, having accepted Christ’s work as the Substitute for His people, the Father now accepts the works of His people. Believers enjoy the fruit of Christ’s work in every aspect of their lives. They are not trying to appease God with their works, gifts, prayers, or personal devotion. No, if anyone is trying to do this, they’ll never make it because God is a holy God. He’s a just God. He cannot accept anything that is not 100% righteous, as righteous as He is. Every time someone does something, every time they give something, every time they open their mouth to address God, their very words are tainted by the sinful nature within them and, therefore, cannot please God. God can’t accept these things from their hands, but He can accept them from the Hand of Christ. He’s able to save to the uttermost all who come to Him through Christ (Hebrews 7:25) , and those who, by His Spirit, have been brought to Christ are in the LORD Jesus Christ, having their hope in Him alone.

Proverbs 3:1 "My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments:" These are the words of the Father to His Son, and this entire book is the record that God has given of His Son. What we read here is what God the Father required of His Son to satisfy His law and justice, in order to be just and to declare righteous those that the Father had given His Son from eternity. When we read these words, we are not reading a rulebook for self-improvement. We are beholding the LORD Jesus Christ , The Obedient Son. He is the One of Whom the Father says, “My Son.” He is the One Whose heart kept every commandment. In Him there was no forgetting, no failing, no transgression. Every jot and tittle of the law was fulfilled perfectly in Him. The law says, “Do and live.” We could not do; but Christ did. The Father’s demand was perfect obedience. The law requires that every commandment be kept from the heart. “Thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind” (Matthew 22:37). None but Christ ever did that. He loved His Father with a perfect love, and He loved His neighbor as Himself (Matthew 22:39). " Though He were a Son, yet learned He obedience by the things which He suffered" (Hebrews 5:8). " For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh" (Romans 8:3). Here is the marvel of the Gospel—what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son condemned sin in the flesh; that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us (Romans 8:3–4). The righteousness of the law is fulfilled in Christ, and by substitution is counted to us as "fulfilled in us". He obeyed where we disobeyed. He remembered where we forgot. He kept what we broke. He did not lean on His own understanding, but trusted perfectly in the Father. To understand perfect obedience, it's not in us! It's in that Righteousness that the LORD Jesus earned and established in His obedient life, and culminated in His death in fulfillment of the penalty for the disobedience of those sinners for whom He paid their sin debt. The law demanded holiness, righteousness, and truth. All of that is seen in the Person of the LORD Jesus. The law reveals God’s justice; the Gospel reveals His justice satisfied through the perfect obedience of the Son unto death. We all stand condemned under that law— “There is none righteous, no, not one” (Romans 3:10). But when Christ Jesus stood in our place as elect sinners by the Father, He fulfilled the law’s demands, and bore its curse. Either Christ finished the work or He didn’t. Thanks be to God, He did finish it! On the cross, He cried, “It is finished.” In His life He fulfilled the law; in His death He satisfied the penalty that God's justice required. By His resurrection God the Father declared His people already righteous because of His death. " Now there is therefore no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1). He alone is The Obedient Son, the Beloved in Whom the Father is well pleased. The command, “My son, forget not My law,” finds its complete obedience in Him. Every precept of Proverbs 3—trusting in the LORD with all the heart, acknowledging Him in all ways, fearing the LORD and departing from evil—was lived perfectly by Christ. He is the Wisdom of God. He is the One Who feared the LORD and turned away from evil. He is the One Who honored the LORD with all His substance. We do not come to this passage to learn how to make ourselves righteous. We come to see the righteousness of Another. “Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth” (Romans 10:4). The believer’s Hope is not in his own obedience, but in the obedience of Christ. When the Father looks upon His people, He beholds them in His Son, clothed in that perfect righteousness which satisfies His law forever. So, as we read Proverbs 3, let our eyes by the Spirit be turned to Christ—to behold Him and Him alone. He is The Faithful Son, The Perfect Substitute, the One in Whom the Father delights. In Him the command is kept, the justice of God is satisfied, and Grace reigns through Righteousness unto Eternal Life by Jesus Christ our LORD (Romans 5:21).

Proverbs 14:34 "Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people." When we speak of a righteous nation, we are not speaking of earthly kingdoms built on morals or outward order. No nation in this world has ever been made up of citizens who are perfectly righteous before God. Even Israel of old, though called holy, was only a shadow of something greater. The true nation that is exalted is a spiritual nation — a people chosen of God, redeemed by Christ, and born of His Spirit (1 Peter 2:9). Who are these righteous ones? They are not those who work out their own righteousness or rely on the law. They are those whom God the Father has declared righteous through the righteousness that His Son earned and established in His spotless, sinless life, and laid down that life as the spotless Lamb of God to redeem each one that the Father sent Him to save. Christ, Who knew no sin, was made sin for His people, that they might be made the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21). On the cross, He bore the guilt of those given to Him by the Father. He accomplished their redemption, satisfied Divine justice, and clothed them in His own perfect obedience (Romans 5:9-11). This is why righteousness truly exalts that spiritual nation for whom Christ died and God the Father justified. Not morality, not human effort, but the Righteousness of God worked out perfectly for each of the elect sinners for whom He died. In Him, the wrath of God has been turned away. In Him, the guilty are declared justified. In Him, the condemned are set free. And this righteous nation is not limited by borders or bloodlines. God promised Abraham a great nation, and that promise was fulfilled not in physical Israel, but in Christ and His seed (Galatians 3:16). Out of every tribe, tongue, and people, God calls a holy nation, a chosen generation, a royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9) . Christ is their King, and His honor is magnified by the multitude of His willing subjects who serve Him in the day of His power (Psalm 110:3) What marks the citizens of this kingdom? They honor their King with willing hearts. They have been given an understanding that is not natural, but the gift of Christ through His Spirit (1 John 5:20). Their hearts, once dead and deceitful, have been made sound by grace. They are merciful, for they know the mercy of God in Christ. They are delivered from the evil one, for at the cross the prince of this world was cast out, and Christ prayed that His redeemed are kept from the wicked one (John 17). They walk in wisdom, guided by His Spirit. And in death they have hope, for Christ in them is the Hope of glory. This is the glory of Christ’s people — not their works, not their efforts, but His righteousness. If we try to work out our own righteousness, it will end in failure and reproach. But in Christ, justification and sanctification are complete, and the believer stands perfect before God. "For by one offering, He hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified" (Hebrews 10:14). And so the citizens of this holy nation serve their King faithfully, as wise servants under His favor. They serve not in fear, but in grace, knowing that His wrath is satisfied and His mercy is sure. What a blessed kingdom in which to dwell —to be born of the Spirit, to be joined to Christ, to have Him as Head and King. Here is the great call of the Gospel: Look to Christ. Trust Him alone. In Him is righteousness, in Him is Life, in Him is Peace. He is the exalted King, the sovereign Redeemer, and the Righteousness of His people.

Proverbs 13:7,8 "There is that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing: there is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches. The ransom of a man's life are his riches: but the poor heareth not rebuke." There are many in the world today who think themselves rich. These are people that strive all their lifetime to attain a certain level of wealth and ease, just like that man in the parable in Luke 12:20 , that filled his barns and yet the LORD said unto him, " ...thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? " Here is an example of one who made himself rich yet had nothing. Riches are not the key to eternal life. We live in a nation where people consider riches to be a blessing of God: "How blessed we are," they say. You often see it on the front of a brand-new vehicle with a plate that reads, "Blessed!" That's what people consider to be a blessing, and yet they are lost, and left in that state, they will spend eternity separated from God. Those earthly riches will not help them in any way, Psalm 49:7 - " None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him." To make oneself poor is to be brought low by the Spirit of God, and that's what God's Spirit does for everyone that Christ has saved by His shed blood. He didn't come to save the righteous, but sinners. Consider how we have been made poor in Adam. We're born in this world desperate sinners with nothing to recommend ourselves to God, and yet it says here, "yet hath great riches." What could that be other than the riches of God in the LORD Jesus Christ, the riches of His grace, the riches of His mercy, the riches of that redemption that the LORD Jesus Christ worked out on behalf of sinners: justification, sanctification, glorification, eternal life (Ephesians 1:3-7). These are true riches that belong to those who have been made poor. Being poor in that sense is a blessing of God's grace. The word "ransom" is key, we find it in verse 8, " The ransom of a man's life are his riches." The word "ransom" means "a covering." It's the word from which we get the word "atonement," and it's also used of the ark that was pitched without and within with that pitch (Genesis 6:14-21). It's the word "kaphar" which means "to cover." So it's speaking here of the covering of a man's life are his riches. This verse is stating that one who has riches, those riches are his covering against any legal suit he has wherewith to answer every demand in every suit. A parallel truth is the fact that our LORD Jesus Christ was sued because of His riches. Because of Who He is and the infinite riches in answering to God's just demands. What happened? He was sued, and what happened to the poor, representing those that He came to save? It says, "the poor heareth not rebuke." That's an amazing reality when you consider how the LORD Jesus Christ stood in the place of wretched sinners such as we are, and bore that judgment. He bore what was due the sinner, but He bore it in His flesh by working out that perfect righteousness that was necessary to satisfy every demand of God's law and justice by laying down His life in death. He's the only One Who could have done that. So because of Him and the ransom in His blood shed unto death, for those that the Father gave Him to save. These are the poor who hear not rebuke for their sin because of Christ their Advocate. "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1). In 2 Corinthians 8:9 , it says, " For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich." We can look at this from the standpoint of the Spirit of God making us poor, showing us our poverty as we are as sinners before God, and certainly that is true, and yet having in Christ great riches. Let's not forget the other aspect of this, whereby He Who was rich made Himself poor that we might enjoy the riches of God's grace in Him. You can't separate God's grace from His Son, whereby God purposed to save sinners from eternity. It was because the Son was there already as that Rich Man, as that One capable of coming, and paying the sin debt, and how great that debt is, so great none could ever answer to that debt were it not for that Rich Man, the LORD Jesus Christ, that His Father sent into this world to be that Ransom, to be that Substitute on behalf of His people. "that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor." Here is an anomaly: the rich poor man. Those who saw Christ in the flesh saw nothing but a common, ordinary man walking this earth. And yet the Glory that was in Christ was veiled to their eyes and it was only by the Spirit of God opening eyes, that any did perceive that this Poor Man is indeed the Rich Man, "for your sakes became poor." That's what John testified in John 1:18, " we beheld his glory." None saw a halo over Christ's head as He marched from place to place. That's why those mocked Him, who were left in spiritual blindness. The fact that He, being a Man, would make Himself equal with God, they would not hear of it, (John 5:18) . Yet, that's Who He was as He walked on this earth, emptied Himself of that glory that He had with the Father from all eternity and came and took on Him the form of a Servant, became a Man, and not only become a Man but became obedient unto death for poor sinners that He came to save (Philippians 2:8). That's the reason a body was prepared for Him (Hebrews 10:5-7), to lay down His life that He might redeem (ransom) those sinners that the Father gave Him to save (Mark 10:45). In the light of these words, we behold in the LORD Jesus the true Rich Man. He possessed from all eternity the unsearchable riches of divine Glory, yet laid them aside to take on Himself the form of a Servant, to be despised and rejected of men, and to lay down His life as a ransom for many. In His voluntary poverty, He bore the wrath and curse due to His elect, purchasing them with His blood, that they should be “heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ” (Romans 8:17) . Here is the mystery of grace: the infinitely wealthy Son impoverished Himself, not that the world might have a possibility of enrichment, but that His chosen people should be enriched beyond measure with “all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ” (Ephesians 1:3) . In Him, the poorest sinner, stripped of all righteousness of his own, is clothed in the garments of salvation and made the very “riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints” (Ephesians 1:18) . Such riches neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and no thief can approach (Matthew 6:20) ; for they are preserved in Him Who is “the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever” (Hebrews 13:8).

Proverbs 26:11 "As a dog returneth to his vomit, so a fool returneth to his folly." This verse illustrates the natural corruption and depravity of man  apart from the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit. It highlights the persistent nature of sin in the unregenerate heart and underscores the need for the sovereign, effectual grace of God to bring about true and lasting salvation. In ancient Israelite culture, dogs were considered unclean animals , often used as metaphors for those outside the covenant (e.g., Gentiles  or the impure —cf. 1 Samuel 17:43 , Philippians 3:2 ). The image of a dog returning to its vomit was repulsive and vividly communicated the loathsome nature of sin and the folly of unbelief and false profession. The fool in Proverbs is not just intellectually deficient but morally and spiritually bankrupt , one who despises wisdom and instruction   (Proverbs 1:7) . Returning to folly, like a dog to vomit, shows the deep-seated nature of sin that cannot be cured by mere instruction or outward reform. Nothing less than the sovereign work of the LORD Jesus Christ in redeeming the sinner and the Spirit of Christ drawing them to Christ can accomplish the work of salvation of which God is the Author and Finisher (Hebrews 12:2). What then is the spiritual significance of a fool returning to his folly like a dog to his vomit? Who are those so described in this scripture? 1. Those totally depraved and corrupted in their souls and flesh This verse is a stark reminder that, apart from the sovereign grace of God in Christ and His redeeming, justifying death on the cross, sinners will always return to sin. The heart, left to itself, is enslaved to corruption. Jeremiah 13:23 -Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil." John 8:34 -"Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin." Just as a dog is instinctively drawn to its filth, so is the natural man drawn to his sin. Grace must do what man cannot—save and keep the sinner from the way he would continue to go without the sovereign work of God in Christ, by the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 2:8-10). 2. False Converts and Professing Fools Peter quotes this very proverb about false teachers and apostates: 2 Peter 2:20–22 "For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ… the latter end is worse with them than the beginning… But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again..." Here, Peter speaks of those who had a form of the knowledge of the Truth but were never truly taught of the LORD Jesus by His Spirit. They cleaned up externally, perhaps even influenced outwardly by the preaching of the Gospel, but eventually reverted to their former ways. This is not the loss of salvation (which is impossible for the elect), but the revealing of the sin and unbelief of an unchanged heart. By contrast, the one who is born again (literally born from above, John 3:3,8 ) does not return to his old ways of sin and unbelief in the same enslaved manner as he once lived. Though the believer still has the flesh, he has been made a new creation in Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." He is no longer under the condemnation of his former father, Adam, but now been put in Christ and under His Headship, whereby all things are new with regard to pardon from sin, justification before God, and sanctification full and complete already in Christ and His finished work. The Spirit of God has given such an one a new heart to serve Christ, and not the adamic flesh, and never to return to that former life of condemnation. Ezekiel 36:26–27 "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you... I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes..." It is the work of the triune God in choosing out those that should be saved, and the Son of God coming in the flesh to earn and establish that righteousness necessary for God to justify them, and in time the Spirit of God calling each one to Christ. Kept as little dogs eating crumbs of mercy from the Master's table, Matthew 15:27-29. No longer returning to vomit, but longing for that Righteousness of God, imputed in the LORD Jesus Christ. The fool returns to his folly because he has never known Christ, and therefore pursues his own way. Only Christ, the Power and Wisdom of God, has saved and keeps each of God's elected ones ( 1 Corinthians 1:24). The one made wise unto salvation by God in Christ hears His voice, follows Him, and does not return to the ways of death (John 10:28 ). Proverbs 26:11 is a vivid illustration of what man is without grace—a fool enslaved to sin, repeatedly returning to the corruption of a false way and dead works. But the grace of God in Christ not only warns us of this reality, it delivers the elect from it. By God's sovereign will, His people are redeemed, justified, called, and preserved, never to be lost, never to be like the dog returning to its vomit. Jude 24–25- " Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy..." This is the triumph of sovereign grace in Christ—not merely saving us from folly, but keeping us in Christ forever.