“The Messianic Age is a theological term referring to a future time of universal peace and brotherhood on the earth, without crime, war and poverty.” -wikipedia
Let's dive into the scripture to see how it describes this age to see what impact it may have on our view of God's law and it's relevance to us today.
Isaiah 2:2-3
In the last days
the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established
as the highest of the mountains;
it will be exalted above the hills,
and all nations will stream to it.
Many peoples will come and say,
‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the temple of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways,
so that we may walk in his paths.’
The law will go out from Zion,
the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
Isaiah 51:4-7 NKJV
“Listen to Me, My people;
And give ear to Me, O My nation:
For law will proceed from Me,
And I will make My justice rest
As a light of the peoples...
...For the heavens will vanish away like smoke,
The earth will grow old like a garment,
And those who dwell in it will die in like manner;
But My salvation will be forever,
And My righteousness will not be abolished.
“Listen to Me, you who know righteousness,
You people in whose heart is My law:
Do not fear the reproach of men,
Nor be afraid of their insults.
Ezekiel 37:24-25
‘“My servant David will be king over them, and they will all have one
shepherd. They will follow my laws and be careful to keep my decrees.
They will live in the land I gave to my servant Jacob, the land where your ancestors lived. They and their children and their children’s children will live there for ever, and David my servant will be their prince for ever.
Isaiah 11:1-3
A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.
The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him –
the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of might,
the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord –
and he will delight in the fear of the Lord.
Now let's take a quick rabbit trail to see how the scripture defines the "fear of the Lord". What is that phrase connected to?
Deuteronomy 10:12-13
And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and to observe the Lord’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good?
Psalm 112:1
Blessed are those who fear the Lord,
who find great delight in his commands.
Psalm 19:7-9
The law of the Lord is perfect,
refreshing the soul.
The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
The precepts of the Lord are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the Lord are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
The fear of the Lord is pure,
enduring for ever.
The decrees of the Lord are firm,
and all of them are righteous.
Notice here in Psalm 19, that right in the midst of all the common descriptors for the laws and commands of the Lord, there it is—the fear of the Lord. Fear of the Lord is used here as a synonym for the law, statutes, precepts, commands and decrees. There are more verses like the ones I've used, but I think we can see a pretty clear connection from these three examples, so let's continue with the study.
Zechariah 14:9,16-18
The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name. Then the survivors from all the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, and to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles. If any of the peoples of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, they will have no rain. If the Egyptian people do not go up and take part, they will have no rain. The Lord will bring on them the plague he inflicts on the nations that do not go up to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles.
For anyone that may not be familiar, the Feast of Tabernacles is one of the Feast Days of the Lord commanded through Moses. The church today typically does not keep them. Some don't really know much about it, and others say that those are the laws that we no longer need to keep because they are done away with.
Also, it's important to point out that Zechariah 14 also describes the great battle that will take place before the time of peace. Verse 3 states that, "the Lord will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights on a day of battle." Pay attention to that concept of the "survivors from all the nations" for our next passage. It will help to establish—along with the concepts of restoration, etc.—that the following verse is indeed talking about the last days–the Messianic Age.
Ezekiel 36:26-27
‘“For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws...
...The desolate land will be cultivated instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who pass through it. They will say, ‘This land that was laid waste has become like the garden of Eden; the cities that were lying in ruins, desolate and destroyed, are now fortified and inhabited.’ Then the nations around you that remain will know that I the Lord have rebuilt what was destroyed and have replanted what was desolate. I the Lord have spoken, and I will do it.”
The same concept is given in Jeremiah, but this passage clarifies it to be the new covenant that God will make with his people, Israel. And this is the new covenant talked about in the New Testament according to Hebrews 8. I believe it began with Christ's death on the cross and will come to it's fullness when His Kingdom is established.
Jeremiah 31:33-34
‘This is the covenant that I will make with the people of Israel
after that time,’ declares the Lord.
‘I will put my law in their minds
and write it on their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
No longer will they teach their neighbour,
or say to one another, “Know the Lord,”
because they will all know me,
from the least of them to the greatest,’
declares the Lord.
‘For I will forgive their wickedness
and will remember their sins no more.’
Let's finish off with this one:
Zech 8:22-23
And many peoples and powerful nations will come to Jerusalem to seek the Lord Almighty and to entreat him.’ This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘In those days ten people from all languages and nations will take firm hold of one JEW by the hem of his robe and say, “Let us go with you, because we have heard that God is with you.”’
Food for thought, those who want to seek the Lord are taking firm hold of the hem of the Jew's robe. Why would that be? What could the Lord have given to them that make them so special? Truth be told, He has made them special and set apart in many ways, but ONE of them is the law. Maybe we should not be so quick to think that the law has lost it's value to the believers today.
I've got many more topics I'd like to get into on this blog, but don't know where I'd like to take it next. So please leave your comments, questions, and objections so I know what topics might be helpful to cover next. Also comments are encouraging, these posts take a lot of work and to hear what you think would really mean a lot to me. Thanks for reading and God bless!