Turning to the chapter that we
read in Isaiah Isaiah chapter 60 I want tonight to draw your
attention for a little while to the words that we find here
in verse 8 Isaiah chapter 60 verse 8 Who are these that fly
as a cloud and as the doves to their windows? Isaiah chapter
60 verse 8 who are these that fly as a cloud and as the doves
to their windows. The theme then is simple. It is that of the clouds of doves. The clouds of doves. This chapter that we read, what
a chapter it is. It speaks so clearly of the day
of the gospel. Amongst other things it speaks
to us of the light that comes to shine in the midst of the
darkness, speaks of the calling of the Gentile nations. In those
opening words we see clearly something of the great light
of the Gospel. Arise, shine, for thy light is
come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon them. For behold,
the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the
people. But the Lord shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall
be seen upon thee." And then, even when we come to the end
of the chapter, we still have the same theme of the light,
that light that has come in Christ, the light of the world. Verse
19, The sun shall be no more thy light by day, neither for
brightness shall the moon give light unto thee, but the Lord
shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. The sun shall no more go down,
neither shall thy moon withdraw itself, for the Lord shall be
thine everlasting light, and the days of thy morning shall
be end it. Evidently here we have the great
promise of the Gospel with the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are reminded then that sin
is that that only brings darkness and deadness and ignorance. What do we read concerning those
Gentiles? And Paul writes in his epistle
to the Ephesians, he speaks of the Gentiles in the fourth chapter
having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life
of God through the ignorance that is in them because of the
blindness of their hearts, who are past feeling, he says. And here in the second verse
we have mention of the darkness. the gross darkness. Behold, the
darkness shall cover the earth and gross darkness the people."
And yet then comes the Lord Jesus Christ. Remember in that revelation
that we have in the New Testament and especially in John's Gospel,
how He reveals to us the truth concerning the Lord's Jehovah,
the Great I Am, and amongst other things he declares, I am the
light of the world, he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness,
but shall have the light of life. Oh, there is that darkness in,
that outward darkness. And how we're bidden to take
account of it. Here in the second verse, behold
it says, and you know the force of the words, fix the eye, look,
gaze, consider the darkness shall cover the earth and gross darkness
the people. Why? When we think of this world
what do we read? There in the end of his first
general epistle John tells us how the whole world lies in wickedness. And this is that world into which
the light has shone with the coming of Christ. The Lord shall
arise upon them and his glory shall be seen upon them. And the Gentiles, or the calling
of the Gentiles, the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and
kings to the brightness of thy coming." The calling of the Gentiles.
And now, even as the Lord Jesus Christ commences His earthly
ministry, we have mention of these things, an indication of
these things. Now, when the Lord had heard
that the Baptist had been cast into prison, he departed into
Galilee it says, and leaving Nazareth he came and dwelt in
Capernaum which is upon the sea coast in the borders of Zabulon
and Naphtalim that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by
Isaiah the prophet saying the land of Zabulon And the land
of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of
the Gentiles, or mark the words, Galilee of the Gentiles, 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. And this is what we have spoken
of here. not just a light coming and shining in the midst of all
this outward darkness, but how God is now fulfilling His eternal
purpose in the salvation of sinners, and not just sinners of Israel,
but sinners of the Gentiles. And here in the verses that follow,
verse 4 right through to verse 8, We see how rich symbolic language
is employed by the Holy Spirit to describe something of the
calling of those Gentiles, the coming of the Gentiles to that
light. Interestingly there at the end
of verse 6, we're told they shall bring gold and incense. Does
it not remind us again of the Gospel? and those wise men that
came from the east spoken of in the second chapter of Matthew
and they bring gifts of gold and of frankincense and of myrrh. There is a fulfillment of this
chapter in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ but not just
outward darkness, that darkness that covered the earth at that
time, the ignorance of the nations because God throughout the Old
Testament dispensation and had no dealings with the Gentile
nations. He says, of Israel you only have
I known of all the nations of the earth. But it's not just
that the Gospel is to go to the nations and that outward darkness
as it were is to be utterly shattered. But there is also an inward darkness.
There is that darkness in the minds and in the hearts of men. And so here in the opening words,
arise, shine it says, for thy light is come and the glory of
the Lord is risen upon the... Now look at what it says in the
margin, the alternative. the opening words there in the
margin are arise be enlightened always the enlightening of the
mind and that comes from the Lord
the glory of the Lord brings light into the midst of all the
darkness of the mind and now when the Lord begins to deal
with his people how by the coming of that light the believer is
made to feel his darkness that's a passage that we have previously
at the end of chapter 15 the contrast between two characters
who is among you that feareth the Lord that obeyeth the voice
of his servant that walketh in darkness and hath no light let
him trust in the name of the Lord and stay upon his guard
behold all ye that kindle a fire that accomplish yourselves about
with sparks walk in the light of your fire and in the sparks
that ye have kindled. This shall ye have of mine hand,
ye shall lie down in sorrow." Two characters. And which belongs
to us tonight, friends. Remember how both the great Puritan
Thomas Goodwin and also J.C. Philpott have remarkable sermons
on this passage of Scripture. The air of heaven walking in
darkness. the air of hell, walking in light. Those who think that they can
kindle a fire in and of themselves, they can create sparks in their
ability to walk in the light of that fire that they have kindled.
That false religion, that self-made religion. And then in contrast,
that God-fearer who is seeking to obey the voice of the Lord's
servants, even the Lord Jesus Christ himself, the servant of
God, he will obey that voice and yet he finds that he is walking
in darkness he has no light what is he to do is to trust in the
name of the Lord or when the light comes when the light comes
that inward light does he not make us to feel so much of the
native darkness of our minds and we sang it just now in our
opening praise in darkness born I went astray and wondered from
the gospel how true it is, friends. We were born in darkness, dead
in trespasses and sins, ignorant, without God, without Christ,
without hope. And the light comes. And what
does the light do? Why, it exposes what we are. And that reproof that comes as
we see our sins being altogether exposed. Again, listen to the
language of the Apostle. There in Ephesians 5.13 Paul
says, But all things that are reproved or discovered are made
manifest by the light. For whatsoever doth make manifest
is light, Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and
arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. Or when
the Lord gives light unto the upright, there arises
light in the darkness. Here then is something of the
context in which the verse that I want us to consider this evening
is set. It speaks to us of the Gospel,
it speaks to us of the coming of the light of the Gospel, the
God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, shines
in our hearts to give that light of the knowledge of God in the
face of the Lord Jesus Christ. But coming to the words that
we have in verse 8, And the question that is put, who are these that
fly as the clouds and as the doves to their windows? First of all, to say something
with regards to this multitude of doves. That's what the cloud
indicates. Other figures are used here in
the previous verses This is a conversion, you see, of multitudes, Gentiles. In verse 5 we read of the abundance
of the Suri. And we read of the forces, or
as the margin says, the wealth of the Gentiles. In verse 6 we
have mention of multitude of camels. In verse 7, all the flocks
of Cedar. And as I said, the language from
verse 4 right through to verse 8 is clearly that that is highly
symbolic, such rich language. And these various figures being
employed to convey to us something of the great success of the gospel
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now we see it immediately after
his His death and then His resurrection from the dead. As He ascends the disciples are
commanded to remain there in Jerusalem and to await the coming
of the Holy Spirit and the Spirit comes. Oh, there is that blessed
outpouring of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost. There are so
many there in Jerusalem There in Acts chapter 2 we have mention
of the various nationalities from verse 9 following. All Jews
or Gentile converts, proselytes, many of them and then Peter's
preaching. What is the consequence? Three
thousand. Three thousand Jews and proselytes converted. on the day of Pentecost. And
then we just go on a little way into the fourth chapter of the
Acts and we read of 5,000 men on one occasion. And the word
is generic, it's referring to the male, not the female, it's
not mankind in general. It is simply 5,000 men. There
must have been many females also who were converted. Or here we
see, you see, the significance of the figure. Multitudes. Doves. that fly as a cloud. It's those who are to be saved,
and when we come to the last book of Scripture, the book of
the Revelation, why they're out of every kindred and tongue and
people and nation. In Revelation chapter 7 we read
of how they are a specific, a particular people. It's 12,000, we're told,
of each of the 12 tribes of Israel, 144,000. It's a specific number. The language again is so symbolic
there in the Revelation, you don't need me to remind you of
that truth. How these things were all signified
unto John. Signified. Signified, the signs
and symbols being used. And the reference to the 12 tribes,
that's symbolic. And 12 times 12, 144, 144,000.
It is a particular people that known to the Lord. Oh it is Israel
only that He has known you, only have I known, that's true of
God's spiritual Israel. As it was true of ethnic Israel
in the Old Testament. and yet in that same 7th chapter
that speaks of the 144,000 we read later that it is a multitude
that no man can number. It is a vast quantity of those
who are to be saved. This is the significance of the
word cloud. It means many, a multitude. In
Hebrews chapter 12 doesn't the Apostle speak of a great cloud
of witnesses seeing therefore that we also are encompassed
by so great a cloud of witnesses. He has spoken in the previous
11th chapter of those from the Old Testament those who were
the true Israel of God they are not all Israel that are of Israel
but there was ever a spiritual Israel there were ever those
who were the Lords, the Church in the Old Testament And they
are spoken of as a great cloud of witnesses. Who are these that
fly as a cloud and as doves to their windows? The multitudes
then. It speaks, as I said, of the
blessed success of the Gospel. That's our encouragement. Oh,
let us not doubt that. That Christ is to see of the
travail of his soul. and He will be satisfied. He
will be satisfied. Why as many as the Father gave
Him in the Eternal Covenant, they are, they must be saved. That is our comfort even in a
day like this. We're not to despise the day.
Oh, it is a day of small things we say, but we're not to despise
the day. The Lord is still accomplishing
His eternal purpose, saving as many as were ordained to eternal
life in this day. None can frustrate His purpose.
He doeth according to His will among the armies of heaven and
the inhabitants of the earth. None can frustrate Him. None
can even say to Him, what doest thou? He is sovereign. and he
is saving. Well, having considered the significance
of the language, flying as a cloud, a multitude, I want to, in the
second place, look a little bit more carefully at the particular
figure that is used, the figure of a dove. Our believers are
likened to doves. Various figures are used in scripture,
of course. In the book of Proverbs, believers
are likened to conies, a feeble folk. But they make their houses
in the rocks. They're wise, you see, those
conies, those little creatures, those rabbit-like creatures.
They're feeble. That's the believer. But here
we have this figure of the dove. They fly as the doves to their
windows, to the dovecote. And the figure is used in different
parts of scripture. It's used in the book of the
Prophet Hosea, Ephraim. Ephraim is spoken of there as
to be like a silly dove, without heart. They go to Egypt, they
go to Assyria. That's Ephraim, Assyrida. Such
a harmless birds. And they go to Egypt, it says,
they go to Assyria. Here is their father, you see,
instead of turning to the Lord, their God. When they're in trouble,
they turn to the nations round about them, they want to enter
into a confederacy with the ungodly. They are silly doves. Though often is that true of
us, friends. Instead of looking to the Lord,
we run hither and thither. Believers so often are so simple
and so foolish. Well, I know I am. Instead of
looking to the Lord and calling upon God, we we consult with
others. Now I know, I'm aware that in
the multitude of counsellors they're recited. That is a scriptural
truth. But how often do we look first
to the arm of flesh whereas first of all we should look to the
Lord God himself. This was the silliness of Ephraim. Ephraim representing the northern
kingdom of Israel They go to Egypt, they go to Assyria for
help. And yet, in spite of all their
folly, God loves His people. What does He say concerning the
dove? My dove, He says, my undefiled. They're so precious, you see.
That's the language that we have in the Song of Solomon. My dove,
my undefiled is but one. so precious to the Lord. Even
with regards to Ephraim there in the prophecy of Hosea, what
does God say? How shall I give thee up, Ephraim? Now God yearns over his people
in spite of their folly. Here we have this figure then
of the Doven and believers. when wrought to their senses
will mourn over their sins and they mourn like doves. We have
that in the previous chapter, look. There in chapter 59, verse 11,
we roar all like bears and mourn sore like doves. We look for
judgment but there is none for salvation. But it is far off
from us, for our transgressions are multiplied before them, and
our sins testify against us, for our transgressions are with
us, and as for our iniquities, we know them. Or, says David,
my sin is ever before me. How we see these, you see, God's
children, they roar as bears, they mourn like doves, they mourn,
mourning over their sins, all lamenting their folly and their
foolishness as they transgress God's holy law and fall short
of the glory of God. Remember the language of that
gracious man, that good King Hezekiah. We have his prayer,
his song of thanksgiving here in the 38th chapter. And what
does he say concerning himself? Like a crane or a swallow, so
did I chatter. I did mourn as a dove. Mine eyes
failed with looking upward. I am oppressed, he says. Undertake
foreman. Oh, how that man mourns. Mourned
over his sins. Mourning like a dove. This is
the figure that we have, you see. It's a lovely figure. And
it's used often times in scripture in reference to God's children
and the experiences of God's children they might at times
be a silly dove like Ephraim or they
might be so simple, so foolish slow in calling upon God slow
in even looking to the Lord their God and yet God loves them, God delights
in them And God will so deal with them as to make them mourn
like doves, mourning over their sins. But then we have the figure
again there in the Song of Solomon. In chapter 2 and verse 14. Oh my dove, it says thou art
in the clefts of the rock. Like those colonies you see.
Those feeble folk. They make their homes in the
rocks. Here is the dove, sheltered in the cleft of the
rock. Our top lady brings it out so
beautifully in the well-known hymn, Rock of Ages. Cleft for
me, let me hide myself in the... This is what the dove will do,
hiding itself. Or are we those who would hide
ourselves in that cleft of the rock? We are bidden to be as
wise as serpents and as harmless as doves. Harmless as doves. But also how we need to be wise. And how are we wise? Why, when
we seek to be hiding ourselves in the person and the work of
the Lord Jesus Christ. The only. The only is our salvation. There is salvation in none other,
none other name on the heaven given amongst men, whereby we
must be saved." Well, it is to the Lord Jesus Christ then that
we must fly. And it is in Him that we must
hide ourselves. Who are these that fly as a cloud
and as the doves to the windows? But when we think of this figure,
this figure of a dove, In Scripture, it's not only taken up and applied
to the believing people of God, you know, it also is used in
reference to God Himself. We see it in reference to God
the Holy Spirit. At the baptizing of the Lord
Jesus Christ, what did John the Baptist witness? Heaven was opened. And the Spirit descended upon
the Lord Jesus in the form of a dove, it says. And the Father
spoke those words, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well
pleased. The three blessed persons of
the Godhead, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, there as Christ
is baptized. And the Spirit represented by
the dove that descends upon the Lord Jesus. Oh, the Father, give
us not the Spirit by measure unto him. Oh, there was such
an outpouring of the Spirit, such an effusion of the Spirit
upon the Lord Jesus Christ. He was anointed. He is the Christ. But oh, we see the Spirit. And
interestingly, when we turned to that remarkable book the Song
of Solomon and I said only the other Thursday
as we looked into that book for a short while on a Thursday evening
there are passages there where it is so difficult to discern
who is being spoken of is it Solomon? is it the bridegroom? or is it the beloved, is it the
bride? Sometimes it's not easy, not
possible even to be definite as to which one it is. But there's
no doubt there that there are times when the believer is spoken
of in terms of a dove. The church is referred to as a dove. In
chapter 1 at verse 15, again in the opening verse of chapter
4, Thou hast Dove's eyes, it says. Thou hast Dove's eyes,
that's the church. But then in chapter 5 and verse
12, the same figure is used, but not now in reference to her,
the church, but it says His. His eyes are as the eyes of Dove's,
the Lord Jesus. So it's not just the Holy Spirit,
but even the Lord Jesus. The figure is used in reference
to Him. His eyes are said to be as the eyes of doves. And we know that the eyes of
the Lord Jesus, when we come to the New Testament, when we
come to the very last book there in the opening chapter of the
Revelation, we're told His eyes are as a flame of fire. Dove's
eyes. Eyes as a flame of fire. Why? God's eyes. Behold, it says
in the psalm, and His eyelids try the children of men. What does all of this tell us?
It indicates, you see, that those eyes, the eyes of the Lord, are
so searching, how burning they are. eyes as a flame of fire. How the Lord sees things so clearly,
so distinctly. How He distinguishes, how He
discriminates. But there's also this truth.
If the eyes of Christ and the eyes of the Church are referred
to under the same figure there in the Song of Solomon, can we
not also conclude that believers also should have those eyes that
are so discerning and so discriminating how we should desire that from
the Lord, a spirit of discernment to be those who would see the
importance of separation separating the precious from the vile The
word that God gives to the prophet Jeremiah, you shall be as my
mouth, he said. If you separate the precious
from the vile. Or do we discern, friends, between truth and error?
Do we desire that, that we might understand, and be those who
would reject the truth, reject the lie of Satan, and embrace
only the truth of God, and delight in it, and contend earnestly,
for that faith that is that great body of truth when he speaks
of the faith there in the epistle of Jude contending for the faith
not the grace of faith but the body of truth that we believe
once and for all delivered on to the saints without these eyes you see we
should be those who desire that expectancy when we consider I
said at the beginning though, we're not to overlook what appears
here at the beginning of the second verse. Behold! That means
we're to fix our eye, we're to consider the truth that is being declared,
the darkness covering the earth, gross darkness the people. But
then the Lord arising, His glory coming, the Gentiles being converted
but then it says this in verse 4 lift up thine eyes round about
and see all they gather themselves together they come to thee thy
sons shall come from far and thy daughters shall be nursed
at thy side then they shall see and flow together and thine heart
shall fear and be enlarged because the abundance of the sea shall
be converted unto thee. We come to these various figures
that indicate to us a great ingathering and he comes up to that in verse
8 you see the doves flying as a cloud coming to their windows. All friends are we those who
understand these things and we desire that spirit of expectancy.
All that spirit of expectancy. We're to expect great things
from our God. Nothing is impossible with Him.
He is able to save, and able to save to the uttermost. After we have that familiar 53rd
chapter, we're all aware of the content, I trust, of chapter
53, that remarkable chapter, speaking of the Lord's suffering
servant. Let me come into chapter 54. Sing, O barren, thou that
didst not bear break forth into singing and cry aloud, thou that
didst not travail with child. For more are the children of
the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the
Lord. Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth
the curtains of thy inhabitation. Spare not, lengthen thy cords,
and strengthen thy stakes, for they shall break forth unto the
right hand and on the left and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles
and make the desolate cities to be inhabited." You see again
it's speaking of the gospel and the enlarging of the great purpose of God no
more is His grace confined to the little nation of Israel no
now Gentiles are to be called And you're probably aware it
was on that second verse in particular that William Carey preached his
great sermon, Expect Great Things from God, Attempt Great Things
for God. And on that, of course, he went
forth into India to preach the gospel, expecting great things
from God. and so attempting great things
for God there is to be that spirit of expectancy the Lord Jesus
says lift up your eyes and look on the fields for they are white
for harvest or that we might have those dove's eyes dove's
eyes and then here in verse 5 we have the heart as it were swelling
and overflowing Then thou shalt see and flow together, and thine
heart shall fear and be enlarged. How often does one have to mourn
over a heart that's so constricted, so straightened because of unbelief,
or that the Lord would but enlarge our hearts. to see the wonder of His gospel,
the wonder of His grace. Oh, there's joy in the presence
of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth. Oh, then
they shall see and flow together, and thine heart shall fear and
be enlarged. Oh, that we might know it, friends,
the heart swelling, thrilled at the gospel of the
grace of our God. how we are to look beyond the
present situation that surrounds us on every hand much to cause
us to be dejected and downcast and yet hearing God's word so
much to encourage us and then finally this evening turning from the figure of the
dove let me say something with regards to the movements of the
doves they fly They fly. Who are these that fly as a cloud
and as the doves to their windows? Flying as a cloud. It indicates
such quick movement. Or we sang it in the psalm there
at verse 6, or that I like a dove. had wings, said I, then would
I fly far hence that I might find a place where I in rest
might bury, or to have the wings of a dove to fly away, to fly
away to the Lord Jesus Christ." He does this idea of quickness. Interestingly, the same figure
as we have here in the text is used on other occasions Job,
you see, when Job speaks of his troubles. And his troubles coming
so quickly. He says, my welfare passeth away
as a cloud. It's gone. Quickly. It's the
same in the prophet Jeremiah. When Jeremiah speaks of that
judgment that is to come upon Judah. Behold, this is the enemy
coming in, overwhelming, overthrowing. Behold, he shall come up as clouds
and his chariot shall be as a whirlwind. His horses are swifter than eagles.
Woe unto us, for we are spoiled. All this has the idea of something
happening quickly, suddenly, unexpectedly. And so here, coming
back to our text this evening, this movement of these doves,
why they fly as a cloud, it says, and as doves to their windows. It is that that is done in a
moment. It is the great work of God,
and God is able. Do we believe that? Do we believe
that God is able to change everything in a moment of time, if it should
please Him? For the dawning, you see, of
the Gospel day, going back to the opening verses of the chapter,
Twice there we have the word Arise and then we have the word
Risen also Arise Shine for thy light is come and the glory of
the Lord is Risen upon them for behold the darkness shall cover
the earth and gross darkness the people but the Lord shall
Arise upon them and His glory shall be seen upon them three
times in Arise or God's rising And interestingly, the particular
word that's used here has this idea of to rise above the horizon. To rise above the horizon. It's the dawning of the day.
That's the imagery that we have. It's the dawn of the Gospel day. It's arising. And they say that
the darkest hour is that hour before the dawn of the day. That's
when it's at its darkest. And then suddenly, O unto you
that fear my name, shall the sun of righteousness arise, with
healing in his wings. For the Lord will come, you see. The Lord will come. Though ye
lie among the pots, says the psalmist, yet shall ye be as
the wings of a dove, covered in silver and his feathers with
yellow gold. That's the promise. Now at times
we feel that we do lie among the pots, and yet the Lord is
able to come and to revive. Maybe that work in our own souls
needs to be revived. Oh, we're such strange creatures,
we are like silly doves at times. Now we need the Lord to come
and to visit us in His mercy, and to quicken us again, and
to refresh us, and restore us to His favour, to His blessing.
Who are these that fly as a cloud and as the doves to their windows.
O God, grant that we might have that grace to fly away unto Him,
to be those whose trust, whose confidence is all together in
the Lord our God. O the Lord be pleased then to
bless this truth to us. Amen.