"The Number Two"

Amos 3:3 Can two walk together, except they be agreed?    Galatians 4:29  But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now.

We now come to the spiritual significance of the number “Two.” We have seen One excludes all difference, and denotes that which is sovereign. But Two affirms that there is a difference, there is another: while One affirms that there is not another.

This difference may be for “good” or for “evil.” A thing may differ from evil, and be good, and be evil. Hence, the number Two takes a two fold coloring, according to the context.

It is the first number by which we can divide another, and therefore in all its uses we may trace this fundamental idea of division or difference.

The two may be, though different in character, yet one as to “testimony” and “friendship.” The second that comes in may be for help and deliverance. But, alas! where man is concerned, this number testifies of his fall, for it more often denotes that difference which implies opposition, enmity, and oppression.

When the earth lay in the chaos which had overwhelmed it, (Genesis 1:2, And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.). Its condition was universal “ruin” and “darkness.” The second thing recorded is “Light“: and immediately there was difference and division, for God divided the light from darkness, (Genesis 1:3, And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. Psalm 119:130, The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple).

This great spiritual significance is maintained throughout the Word of God. Of course we cannot recognize any human arrangements of divisions of the books, chapters, or verses, etc. We can take only that division, order, and arrangement which is Divine.

The second of any number of things always bears upon it the stamp of difference, and generally of enmity. Take the second statement in the Bible. The first is (Genesis 1:1, In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth). The second is (Genesis 1:2, And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters). And the earth was, or rather (became) without “form” and “void.” Here the first speaks of “perfection” and of “order.” The second of “ruin” and “desolation,” which came to pass at some time, and some way, and for some reason which are not revealed.

The Divisions Of The Bible:

Then we have seen that the Book of Genesis is divinely divided into twelve parts, consisting of an Introduction and eleven generations. The first of these twelve divisions records the perfection of God`s sovereign work. The second, (Genesis 2:4, These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens. Genesis 4:26, And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD).

 

Contains the account of the Fall: the entrance of the second being the Enemy, that old Serpent the Devil, introducing “discord,” and “sin,” and “death.” Enmity is seen first in the second division. I will put enmity, (Genesis 3:15, And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel). We see a second to God in the Serpent: a second creature in the woman, who was deceived and in the transgression: a second man in the “Seed” of the woman, the subject of the great primeval promise and prophecy. Hence the number two becomes associated with Incarnation, with the second Person of the ever blessed Trinity. The second Man, the last Adam.

If we look at the Pentateuch as a whole, we see, in the First Book, Divine sovereignty, but the Second Book, Exodus opens with the oppression of the enemy. Here again, there is another, even the Deliverer and Redeemer, who says in (Exodus 3:8, And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.). To Him the praise is offered in the Song of Moses, (Exodus 15:13, Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed: thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation). And thus Redemption is introduced into the Bible, and mentioned for the first time in this second Book, and in connection with the enemy, just as the first promise of the Redeemer in (Genesis 3:15, And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.).

The second of the three great division of the Old Testament, called Nebiim, or the Prophets (Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1st and 2nd Samuel, 1st and 2nd Kings, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel), contains the record of Israel`s enmity to God, and God`s controversy with Israel. In the first Book (Joshua) we have God`s sovereignty in giving the conquest of the land: while in the second Book (Judges) we see the rebellion and enmity in the land, leading to departure from God and the oppression of the enemy. Here, again, we have side by side with the enemy, the savior whom God raised up to deliver His people.

In the third great division of the Old Testament, called Psalm, we have in the Hebrew Canon, as the second Book, the Book of Job. Here again, we see the enemy in all his power, opposing and oppressing a child of God: and we are taken within the veil to behold the living God as the shield of His people, a very present help in a needful time of trouble.

Beside Genesis, the Book of Psalms is the only Book which is marked by and similar Divisions.

It consists of Five Books:

The First-(Psalm 1 to Psalm 41). The Second-(Psalm 42 to Psalm 72). The Third-(Psalm 73 to Psalm 89). The Fourth-(Psalm 90 to Psalm 106). The Fifth-(Psalm 107 to Psalm 150).

The Second Book of the Psalm commences, as does Exodus, with the oppression of the enemy, (Psalm 42:9 I will say unto God my rock, Why hast thou forgotten me? why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?). This is the burden of the whole of this Psalm, and indeed of the whole of this Book! Not only is this true of this Second Book, but it is true also of the second Psalm of each of the other Books.

The second Psalm of the First Book, (Psalm 2:1-5, Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure.). But here, again, we have the Deliverer in (Psalm 2:6, Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion).

The same significance of the number Two is seen in the New Testament. Wherever there are two Epistles, the second has some reference to the enemy.

In (2 Corinthians) there is a marked emphasis on the power of the enemy, and the working of Satan, (2 Corinthians 2:11, Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices. 2 Corinthians 6:14, Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? 2 Corinthians 7:7, And not by his coming only, but by the consolation wherewith he was comforted in you, when he told us your earnest desire, your mourning, your fervent mind toward me; so that I rejoiced the more).

In (2 Thessalonians) we have a special account of the working of Satan in the revelation of the man of sin and the lawless one. In (2 Timothy) we see the church in its ruin, as in the first epistle we see it in rule. In (2 Peter) we have the coming apostasy foretold and described. While in (2 John) we have the antichrist mentioned by name, and are forbidden to receive into our house any who come with his doctrine.

It is impossible even to name the vast number of things which are introduced to us in pairs, so that the one may teach concerning the other by way of contrast or difference.

The two foundations of (Matthew 7:24-27, Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it). The one which fell not, for it was founded upon a rock: the other which fell, and great was the fall of it. The two goats, (Leviticus 16:7 And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation). The two birds (Leviticus 14:4-7 Then shall the priest command to take for him that is to be cleansed two birds alive and clean, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop: And the priest shall command that one of the birds be killed in an earthen vessel over running water: As for the living bird, he shall take it, and the cedar wood, and the scarlet, and the hyssop, and shall dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water: And he shall sprinkle upon him that is to be cleansed from the leprosy seven times, and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the living bird loose into the open field). The two opinions (Matthew 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon). The two commandments, (Matthew 22:40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets). The two covenants, (Galatians 4:24 Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar). The two men, (Luke 18:10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican). The two sons, (Matthew 21:28 But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard).

The second of the seven life types of Genesis has the same character. The first Adam sets forth our first parents in their innocence, fall, and expulsion, driven out from the presence of God, (Genesis 3:24 So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.).

 

How could they again walk with God? This is the great problem which is to be solved in the words which immediately follow, written on the forefront of revelation to set before us the answer to the all important question, (Amos 3:3 Can two walk together, except they be agreed? Hosea 14:9, Who is wise, and he shall understand these things? prudent, and he shall know them? for the ways of the LORD are right, and the just shall walk in them: but the transgressors shall fall therein).

 

The solution is given in Genesis the fourth chapter, in the second life type, which is two fold in the person of Cain and Abel. Here are presented and describing the two ways. The way of God, (Acts 18:26 And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly.). The way of Cain, (Jude 1:11, Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.).

The only two religions which the world has ever seen. One the true: the other, the false. True religion is one and unchangeable. Its language is, nothing in my hand I bring, simply to Thy cross I cling. False religion is one and unchangeable. It has many varieties: its one language is, something in my hand I bring. Men quarrel bitterly as to what that something is to be. They persecute, and burn, and destroy one another in the heat of their controversies, about its. But however this something may vary, it is one, in that it is not the way of God, not the way which God has appointed, but it is the way of Cain, man`s way. The one is faith, the other works. The one is grace, the other human merit. The one is the path of life, the other ends in the second death. Not only have we this contrast or eternal difference in Cain and Abel, but others are present in this manner, in order to bring out truths of the deepest significance and solemnity.

 

Abraham and Lot are presented. The two were related as uncle and nephew: both descended from Shem through Terah. Both started together from Ur of the Chaldees to Haran in Mesopotamia, Genesis the ninth chapter: (Genesis 12:4 So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran). And afterwards they both go together out of Egypt, (Genesis 13:1 And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south). But soon the difference between the two was manifested, and there was a strife between them.

Lot, the second of this pair, lifted up his own eyes and chose his own portion, (Genesis 13:11 Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they separated themselves the one from the other). While Abram`s portion was chosen for him by God, (Genesis 13:14 And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward). Thus they were separated.

First, Lot looked and beheld the plain of Jordan with its cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and it seemed to him as the garden of the Lord, (Genesis 13:10 And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar). Then he chose this for his portion, (Genesis 13:11 Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they separated themselves the one from the other). Then he pitched his tent towards Sodom, (Genesis 13:12 Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom). Then he dwelt in Sodom, and shared in Sodom`s troubles and wars, and lost all the treasure which he had laid up there, (Genesis 14:12 And they took Lot, Abram’s brother’s son, who dwelt in Sodom, and his goods, and departed). He afterwards sat in the gate of Sodom, (Genesis 19:1 And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground). And held office there as a judge in spite of his being daily vexed with their ungodly words and deeds, (2 Peter 2:6-9 And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly; And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;) The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished). And finally he escaped from its overthrow, only with his life.

Abram, on the other hand, had his portion with God. He walked by faith: he pitched his tent only where he could build his altar, (Genesis 12:8 And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD. Genesis 13:3-4 And he went on his journeys from the south even to Bethel, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Hai; Unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first: and there Abram called on the name of the LORD). He held communion with God who was his shield and exceeding great reward, (Genesis 15:1 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward). "Though he was a stranger on earth, he was the friend of God, and received the secrets of God`s purposes, (Psalm 25:14 The secret of the LORD is with them that fear him; and he will show them his covenant. Amos 3:7 Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets. John 15:15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you).

Truly there was difference. And this difference was greater in their two wives. Sarah was a type of the Heavenly Jerusalem, (Galatians 4:21-31 Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law? For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman. But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise. Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar. For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband. Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now. Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman. So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free. Luke 17:32 Remember Lot’s wife).

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