“For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation …with the robe of righteousness”
(Isa. 61:10, OKJV)
In the previous teaching we pointed out that there are various instances in the Bible where we find the term “the spirit of …”, and we explained that this terms does not imply that the Holy Spirit is replaced, but that the expression points to a spiritual mantle.
To understand the concept of mantles the history of Elijah and Elisha is central, but before we can get to that a broader context needs to be sketched.
A mantle is the spiritual authority and anointing that accompanies a particular spiritual calling. Throughout Scripture people’s fates are spelled out in terms of their clothing. In Scripture we find that clothing carry important symbolic value. In the Dictionary of Biblical Imagery (Ryken, R; Wilhoit, JC & Longman III, T. eds.) it is explained as follows: “the literal investing and divesting of garments becomes overtly metaphoric of spiritual states” (p. 319).
The first reference to clothing, or the lack thereof rather, is presented early in Genesis. The first man and the first woman, Gen. 2:25 explicitly states, “were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed”. After the fall, we read in Gen. 3:7, “the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings”. The nudity acts as symbol of spiritual lack and revealing that which is hidden, or covered up (Deut. 28:48; Ezek. 16:39; 23:29). From then on the following Scripture from Isa. 59:6 became the marker of man’s spiritual garment: “Their webs will not become garments, nor will they cover themselves with their works; their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.” Our garments reflected how polluted we are (Rev. 3:4; Zech. 3:3-6). This “garment defiled by the flesh” (Jude 1:23), displays man’s fallen state: “But we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags.” (Isa. 64:6). In Ps. 109:29 it is beautifully illustrated: “Let my accusers be clothed with shame, and let them cover themselves with their own disgrace as with a mantle.”
For this reason people are encouraged to acquire “white garments … that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed” (Rev. 3:18).
It is interesting that this Scripture is followed by: “I counsel you to buy from Me … salve, that you may see”. Part of our spiritual nudity is undeniably spiritual blindness. In Matt. 6:22-23 Jesus does, after all, say, “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” In the Garden of Eden man also lost his spiritual insight, and thus needs “the eyes of your understanding being enlightened” (Eph. 1:18), “so that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you” (CENT).
This calling is then indeed also a garment, a covering, with a great variety of attributes, as is clear from the following Scriptures (each Scripture should be studied in depth to better understand the extent of spiritual mantles – we’ll do this later):
- “I will also clothe her priests with salvation, and her saints shall shout aloud for joy.” (Ps. 132:16)
- “Awake, awake! Put on your strength, O Zion; put on your beautiful garments, o Jerusalem, the holy city!” (Isa. 52:1)
- “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” (Isa. 61:10)
- \“I clothed you in embroidered cloth and gave you sandals of badger skin; I clothed you with fine linen and covered you with silk.” (Ezek. 16:10)
- “Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” (Matt. 6:30)
- “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ …” (Rom. 13:14)
- “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ” (Gal. 3:27)
- “and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:24)
- “and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him” (Col. 3:10)
- “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering.” (Col. 3:12)
- “But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.” (Col. 3:14).
In this light almost all of the specific garments in the Old Testament gain typological meaning (1 Cor. 10:11; Rom. 15:4). Only a few are presented to illustrate this point:
- The mantle Jacob gave to his son Joseph, and of which we read in Gen. 37, is clearly a spiritual mantle of various anointings (thus the multicoloured nature of it – verse 32). From the prophetic word spoken over Joseph (Gen. 49:22-26 and Deut. 33:13-17), as well as looking at the trajectory of his life, we know that this is an extraordinarily important mantle of statesmanship, financial prowess, agriculture, and more.
- The profound garments of the priests in Ex. 28 is clearly a priestly mantle that is worn by someone with a priestly anointing. (See again the teachings of Day 27-28.)
- Saul wanted David to fight the battle in his armour, but it was too heavy for David (1 Sam. 17:38-39), and he had to receive his anointing of El Gibbor (“The Lord is a man of war” – Ex. 15:3; Isa. 9:6; Jer. 32:18), and thus carry a mantle of humility and Godly authority in order to defeat the Philistine (1 Sam. 17:34).
- Esther took up her “royal robes” (5:1), in other words her mantle and her anointing (2:12) to redeem a nation. Her royal mantle was ordained by God “that thou mightest be ready in such a time as this” (Est. 4:14, DRB).
- In Isa. 22:20-21we read of the mantle Eliakim had received and that clearly carried an anointing of both being a father and a king.
We read of John the Baptist in Matt. 3:4 – “Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist …” This garment has a very pertinent mantle history. In Matt. 11:7-9, when John says to the crowd, concerning John, “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? … A man clothed in soft garments? Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet”. This statement establishes a clear link between the clothing John the Baptist wore, and his prophetic anointing and mantle. (As Jesus says, it is however much more than a prophetic mantle; it is also a mantle for reformation.)
It is of great importance that we notice the parallel with 2 Kings 1:8, where it is asked about the identity of the prophet Elijah: “So they answered him, ‘A hairy man wearing a leather belt around his waist.’ And he said, ‘It is Elijah the Tishbite.’ ” It is very important to note that Elijah is consistently referred to as “Elijah the Tishbite” (1 Kings 17:1; 21:17 & 28; 2 Kings 1:3; 2 Kings 1:8; and 9:36). Apart from the fact that according to the apocryphal book Tobias 1:2 it is probably an indication of the place from which Elijah hailed. According to Easton’s Bible Dictionary: “There is mention made of a town called Thisbe, south of Kadesh, but it is impossible to say whether this was the place referred to in the name given to the prophet.” Nevertheless it is important to also understand “Tishbite” in terms of its typological meaning.
According to Strong’s Hebrew Dictionary “Tishbite means “recourse”. Webster’s Dictionary explains the word as follows: “. [L. recursus; re and cursus, curro, to run.] Literally, a running back; a return.] 1. Return 2. A going to with a request or application, as for aid or protection. 3. Application of efforts, art or labor. 4. Access. 5. Frequent passage.”
This entire explanation was needed to point out that part of Elijah’s name, and thus his identity, points to the recourse he’ll provide for later generations! For this reason we then find that John the Baptist wears the same clothing as Elijah the Tishbite, as John was wearing the same anointing and mantle as Elijah!
We also find a further addition to Elijah’s history in 1 Kings 17:1 – “And Elijah the Tishbite, of the inhabitants of Gilead …” According to The Complete WordStudy Dictionary “Gilead” means “heap of a witness”. Synonyms for ‘heap’ include agglomerate, cumulation, cumulus. Clearly in this light Gilead can also means: cloud of witnesses, especially because Gilead is associated with anointing in Scripture:
- “Is there no balm in Gilead …?” (Jer. 8:22a)
- “Go up to Gilead and take balm, O virgin, the daughter of Egypt” (Jer. 46:11a)
- In for instance 2 Sam. 2:4 refers to the anointing of David as the king over the house of Judah, and we find that in the same breath Gilead is mentioned, even though it is in a different context!
Often in Scripture we read that “the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud” (Ex. 16:10; also 40:34-35, for instance). God “appear[ed] in the cloud above the mercy seat” (Lev. 16:2). Have a look at Num. 9:15-16: “Now on the day that the tabernacle was raised up, the cloud covered the tabernacle, the tent of the Testimony; from evening until morning it was above the tabernacle like the appearance of fire. So it was always: the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of fire by night.” Tent of the Testimony = “heap of a witness” = cloud of witnesses!
A beautiful illustration of this is found in Num. 11:25: “Then the Lord came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed the same upon the seventy elders; and it happened, when the Spirit rested upon them, that they prophesied …” This foreshadows how salvation and mantles are carried over in the new covenant – by the laying on of hands. (We will get to this in more detail later.)
It is in the cloud, the anointing fire of the corporate Christ, that the invisible God (1 Tim. 1:17), “that You, Lord, are seen face to face” (Num. 14:14). More on this in the next teaching!
- Selah: Try to understand exactly what the cloud of witnesses is.
- Read: 1-9.
- Memorise: 1:5, 7 & 12 (A beautiful Scripture concerning calling.)
