Good evening, and welcome to EBible Fellowship’s Bible study in the book of Genesis.  Tonight is study #9 of Genesis, chapter 28, and we are going to read Genesis 28:6-9:

And when Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob, and sent him away to Padanaram, to take him a wife from thence; and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan; And that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother, and was gone to Padanaram; And Esau seeing that the daughters of Canaan pleased not Isaac his father; Then went Esau unto Ishmael, and took unto the wives which he had Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael Abraham's son, the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife.

In our last study, we were beginning to look at the phrase, “weeping and gnashing of teeth,” because in Luke 13 where God is giving us that information that the Master of the house rising up and shutting the door in the Day of Judgment, and those outside the door are knocking and saying, “Lord! Lord,” and then there is that awful declaration, “Depart from me.  I never knew you.”  But then it said, “When ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out,” then there would be “weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

We have to explain that.  If we are saying that May 21, 2011 was Judgment Day…and we are, because the Bible teaches it, and it is a prolonged spiritual judgment.  And we have covered that and gone over that often, so I think it is very understandable.  But what about these verses?  If that was the beginning of Judgment Day, and the “weeping and gnashing of teeth” is happening now and for the last several years, are we seeing people “weeping and gnashing their teeth” and being “cast into outer darkness” now at this time?  And the answer is, “Yes.”  It is happening spiritually, and that is why we looked at the word “weeping” in our last study.  We saw that Rachel was weeping for her children and would not be comforted because they are not.  And in Acts 20, the believers were saying goodbye to Paul, and they wept sore.  They were weeping and sorrowful most of all because Paul had said they would see his face no more.  It was their last meeting, and he would be gone.  And that is what happens in death.  And, of course, Rachel or the mothers of Israel were weeping for their young children of two years old and under that the evil Herod had killed, and they would see them no more because they were not.

So there is a certain finality involved with the use of the word “weeping,” and in the case of Luke 13:28, there is weeping and gnashing of teeth when they see all the elect in the kingdom and they themselves are outside the kingdom.  And it is a final judgment.  Just as the blessing was given to Jacob, and remember that Esau sought it carefully with tears: “Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also?”  No – there was only one blessing of the firstborn, and Esau did not receive that blessing, and that is where the “weeping” comes in, and he did weep.  He was crying as he was pleading with his father, but his father could do nothing about it.  Jacob would remain blessed, he was told.  He would have the blessing.  So there is definitely a link between what happened between Jacob and Esau and what happened on May 21, 2011, Judgment Day, when all to become saved had become saved, and salvation was the blessing.  As it says in Psalm 133:33, the blessing is “life for evermore.”   So this is what is in view.  The elect have obtained that blessing of eternal life, while the non-elect, the unsaved people as typified by Esau, have not obtained it and, yet, they “witness” it.  They see it happen, just as Esau was witness to that historical event in his day.

So we saw that weeping has to do with the finality of the fact that the Lord has shut the door of heaven.  There is no more salvation.  There is not going to be another time of rain and another season of fruit.  It is over and done with – it is finished.  And that helps us to understanding “weeping,” but what about “gnashing of teeth”?  Let us look at a couple of places were the word “gnashing” is found, and they are similar.  Let us go to Matthew 22, which is a fairly long parable.  I am not going to read the whole thing, but the first verses lead into the part we are going to read in Matthew 22:11.  You can read the earlier verses when you get a chance.  You will see the call had gone out: “For many are called, but few are chosen.”  And the language of burning up the city is really referring to the judgment on the corporate church, as judgment began on the house of God.  Finally, there is the “wedding” and the wedding feast, according to Revelation 19, is Judgment Day itself.  So what we read in Matthew 22:11-14 applies to our present time period of the world’s final judgment, and it says in Matthew 22:11-14:

And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless. Then said the king to the servants, And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless. Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are called, but few are chosen.

It is the wedding feast, and the king has already gone through a lot (of people) by sending forth the message to come to His marriage for His son.  And, of course, many refused to come or made light of it, and that is why he burned up their city, but now the guests have come.  Again, when we look at Revelation 19 carefully, we see the wedding supper of the Bridegroom, the Lord Jesus, and the bride, the whole company of the elect.  And it is being carried out during this whole judgment period that we are currently in, and it is during this time the king comes in to see the guests.  You see, there is an “inspection,” and this fits in with all the information we have learned from the Bible about God “trying” His people to see if they are really true believers.  He comes in, and right away he sees that there is “a man that which had not on a wedding garment.”  Everybody else had a wedding garment, except this man, and the wedding garment points to the righteousness of Christ.  He is our “covering.”  He is the one who qualifies us to be in the proper wedding entire throughout the wedding feast.  And, yet, this man does not have it, and he has nothing to say for himself.  What can he say?  Salvation is over and done with, and God’s salvation program is now past.  It is the time of the final reckoning and giving account, so the judgment was given on this man: “Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness.” 

We mentioned in our last study that “outer darkness” is outside the kingdom of God, because the whole world has been turned into darkness, with the darkening of the sun and moon and the falling of the stars, spiritually.  There is no more light of the Gospel and, naturally, this cursed world is one of darkness due to man’s fallen condition. 

So some people profess, “I am a believer.  I am a Christian.  I am in the kingdom of God.”  And, yet, God is the one that is doing the casting out.  It is nobody else pointing fingers.  It is God doing it, and He says, “No – you are not.  You do not have on a wedding garment.  You do not have the righteousness of Christ.  Christ did not save you.  Your sins were not covered.  They are open unto my sight.”  Therefore, the proper response of God when He sees sin is to pour out His wrath, and that is what He does, and the man is cast out. 

And now there is weeping, which we understand because it is a final judgment and a determination that cannot be changed.  It cannot be altered and, therefore, it causes “weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

But, again, just the statement does not help us understand it.  We could also go Matthew 25 where the Lord Jesus spoke a parable of the talents.  For instance, we read in Matthew 25:15:

And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey.

Then each of the men did what they would do with the talents.  The one with five talents made five talents more.  The one who received two gained two talents.  Then it says in Matthew 25:18-19:

But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money. After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them.

Then let us just read further down, and we will see what happened to the man who had the one talent and hid it.  It says in Matthew 25:24-30:

Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Here, again, we see the refrain, “weeping and gnashing of teeth.”  In this case, it is the Day of Judgment and Christ comes and reckons with His servants.  He has given them all a particular “talent.”  That is, He has given us the Gospel, and what did we do with it?  The true elect children of God will have been profitable servants and they will show forth their gain.  But the one that was never saved did not take action and do with the Gospel what He should have been doing – studying, digging into the Word, and learning more and more truth.  Especially at the time of the end, there should have been tremendous “gain,” as there was with the one with five talents and the one with two talents, both doubling that which had been entrusted to them.  But this servant just hid the talent. 

It is much like those in the churches and congregations and others that say, “Well, we are not going to look into this doctrine of annihilation.  We have had the teachings handed down to us through the centuries in our confessions and creeds, and it is all written down for us.  So we do not have to do any work to try to better understand it – we cannot gain any higher point of understanding than the Reformers.”  And we could just repeat that response for many other doctrines we have learned, like Christ being slain at the foundation of the world and paying for sins at that point, or like the end of the church age.  “No – we did not go into the Bible, Lord, to search these things out and see if they are true.”  So the Lord takes the talent from the one that was given the single talent, and He gives it unto him that had ten talents, because God’s elect are continuing to learn more and more, and understanding the Word of God better and better.   The Word has been shining brighter and brighter unto that perfect day, as we get closer to that last day.  To those that have much, more is given, but to those that had little and they did not deal in a proper way toward their Lord and they were unfaithful servants, that which they had is taken from them.

We have seen this work out in our day, as there were so many that seemed to have understanding of right doctrine years ago, but at various points when God opened up certain doctrines, it was very difficult for certain individuals, especially when it touched upon their proud hearts.  And they went back.  And in going back, God began to take away their understanding of the previous doctrines the Lord had opened up and which they had professed to know and to hold to.  Now, of course, they are losing sight of truth because God is actively working to take it from them, and that is what we have been witnessing.

But, again, the statement is made, “And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness,” and we understand that, and we understand the statement that “There shall be weeping,” but as far as “gnashing of teeth,” it does not help us to understand it any better, from what I can see.  Now the Greek word for “gnashing” is “brugmos,” and it is found seven times.  It is Strong’s #1030.  It is found six times in Matthews in passages similar to the two we read, and once it us used in Luke 13:28 where they saw all the prophets in the kingdom of heaven and they themselves thrust out and there was weeping and gnashing of teeth. 

So it is used consistently in this way, and we could go to all the passages, but we would be left with the same understanding, and that is why we need to go to a related word, which is Strong’s #1031.  So Strong’s #1030 is “brugmos,” and Strong’s #1031 is “bruchō.”   It is the only word I could see in the concordance that is related, and this word is found only one time, in Acts 7.  It is translated as “gnashed,” so let us read Acts 7, where Stephen is about to be stoned to death, and these are his last words that led to his stoning.  It says in Acts 7:51-60:

Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye. Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers: Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it. When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth. But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God. Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man's feet, whose name was Saul. And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

The Jews heard Stephen quoting from the Bible throughout Acts 7, especially at the end, in Acts 7:51:

Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.

It was extremely offensive language to them, but that it the nature of the Word of God, the Bible.  God does not try to flatter and please men.  He tells us the truth, and the truth to men who are desperately wicked and deceitful hearts above all things is offensive.  And they took offense, and in furious anger they were cut to the heart and they “gnashed on him with their teeth.”  We know that they ran upon him and stoned him to death.  That is how angry they were.  And we can see how this relates to Esau when his brother received the blessing, and he did not.  First, he tried “weeping” to convince his father that he should get the blessing, and then he got angry and plotted to murder his brother – and there is the “gnashing of teeth.” 

And this helps us to understand what it is to “gnash” with one’s teeth.  Even though the word “gnashed” is only used here, the word “cut” that is used in Acts 7:54 where it says, “they were cut to the heart,” is used two times in the Bible; once here, and once in Acts 5 in a context where the disciples are teaching the Word of God, just as Stephen was declaring the truth from the Word of God.  We read in Acts 5:25-33:

Then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the men whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple, and teaching the people. Then went the captain with the officers, and brought them without violence: for they feared the people, lest they should have been stoned. And when they had brought them, they set them before the council: and the high priest asked them, Saying, Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name? and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man's blood upon us. Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him. When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and took counsel to slay them.

Then Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, rose up and prevented that action, but we can see that it is the same pattern.  The teaching of the Word of God was very offensive to them.  It was pointed out to them that they had slain the Prince and the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.  The disciples asserted that they were the true witnesses of God and the Holy Ghost, which the Lord has given to those that obey Him.  And, of course, the strong implication was that these (temple rulers) were not obeying Him and, therefore, would lack the Holy Ghost.  And remember that the subject of the Holy Ghost has also come up through Stephen in Acts 7:51: “Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.”  So they were getting the message very clearly: “You are saying we are not saved.  You are saying we do not have the blessing of God.  You are saying we do not have the Spirit of God which accompanies salvation.”  And they became so angry, they wanted to kill him.  And, here, in Acts 5, they were “cut to the heart” and they took action to slay the apostles, and we can be sure they certainly would have slain them if a doctor of the law and man of reputation had not stood up.  They would have killed them, just as they killed Stephen in Acts 7.

And this is what it is to “gnash” upon someone with the teeth.  You see, there is “weeping and gnashing of teeth,” and “gnashing of teeth” is against the people of God that are bringing forth the message from the Bible (in our day) that the door is shut and there is no more salvation, and all to be saved have been saved.  “And you are on the other side of the door.  You are in the churches, or you are not following and believing the things the Lord has opened up, which means you do not have the Holy Spirit.”  We are not saying that by pointing the finger at any particular person, but as we declare the things the Bibles says, that is the obvious implication.  And, in response, there is “gnashing of teeth,” and they would “kill” the people of God.  Of course, they do not physically kill, but they kill with hatred or character assassination.  They “kill” with their mouths and their words.  That is how they are killing the people of God at this time, and that is what the “gnashing of teeth” has to do with.