Good evening, and welcome to EBible Fellowship’s Bible study in the book of Genesis.  Tonight is study #11 of Genesis 31, and we are continuing to read Genesis 31:20-24:

And Jacob stole away unawares to Laban the Syrian, in that he told him not that he fled. So he fled with all that he had; and he rose up, and passed over the river, and set his face toward the mount Gilead. And it was told Laban on the third day that Jacob was fled. And he took his brethren with him, and pursued after him seven days' journey; and they overtook him in the mount Gilead. And God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said unto him, Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.

In our last study, we saw that the Hebrew text in Genesis 31:20 actually reads that Jacob stole the heart of Laban the Syrian.  Again, I will read the King James text in Genesis 31:20:

And Jacob stole away unawares to Laban the Syrian, in that he told him not that he fled.

Again, the literal translation is this: “And Jacob stole the heart of Laban the Syrian.”  And that started us off on a course to learn the spiritual meaning.  In order to better understand that, we have to look more at this whole idea of “stealing” or “theft” in the Bible, especially spiritual theft.  We all know that stealing physical property is wrong.  It is contrary to the Law of God.  The Ten Commandments declare, “Thou shalt not steal.”  But just as with other commandments of God like the command, “Thou shalt not kill,” there is a deeper spiritual meaning.  You can kill someone with a knife or a gun and take away their physical life.  That is murder, and it is a violation of the commandment, “Thou shalt not kill.”  But there is a deeper spiritual meaning that God shows us in the Bible.  Giving people false gospels is like giving them poison, and it points to killing them spiritually, and driving people out of the synagogues (churches), and that is akin to spiritually killing them.  That is what we find in John 16:2:

They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.

The Lord ties together being put out of the synagogues with being killed. 

So too, this is true with bearing false witness, another of the commandments.  People bear false witness when they lie, for example: “I saw this man commit this crime.”  But they did not see it, and they are lying or bearing false witness.  That is a grievous sin in the world that everyone can understand.  But when people say, “I am a Christian, and I believe the Gospel, and I proclaim and teach the true Gospel,” but they are lying in that they are not a true Christian because  God did not save them, and the things they are proclaiming are not the true Gospel.  They are bearing false witness. 

So, too, it is true of stealing, as far as what it identifies with in this world.  But, spiritually, it has another meaning altogether, and we can begin to see this meaning in Jeremiah 23:30:

Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith JEHOVAH, that steal my words every one from his neighbour.

And we suspect that since God is against these prophets, it is unsaved people that are in view who take the Word of God into their mouths and teach the Bible falsely, and that they would be those that “steal” God’s Word from their neighbors.  But we want to learn more about this.  How do they do it?  What exactly is involved with “stealing” the Word of the Lord from one’s neighbor? 

So let us go to Zechariah 5 where we will find an interesting passage that uses this same word for “steal” that we see in our passage in Genesis 31.  It says in Zechariah 5:1-4:

Then I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a flying roll. And he said unto me, What seest thou? And I answered, I see a flying roll; the length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits. Then said he unto me, This is the curse that goeth forth over the face of the whole earth: for every one that stealeth shall be cut off as on this side according to it; and every one that sweareth shall be cut off as on that side according to it. I will bring it forth, saith JEHOVAH of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by my name: and it shall remain in the midst of his house, and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.

I will stop reading there.  Here, the Lord is referring to “a flying roll,” and this flying roll will bring a curse over the face of the whole earth: “…for every one that stealeth shall be cut off as on this side according to it; and every one that sweareth shall be cut off as on that side according to it.”  And we are told, “…and it shall enter into the house of the thief…”

We wonder, “What is this flying roll?”  When we look up the word “roll,” which is Strong’s #4039, it becomes very clear.  It is a Hebrew word that is found 21 times in the Old Testament, and in 14 of the 21 times, it is used in Jeremiah 36.  It says in Jeremiah 36:1-6:

And it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that this word came unto Jeremiah from JEHOVAH, saying, Take thee a roll of a book, and write therein all the words that I have spoken unto thee against Israel, and against Judah, and against all the nations, from the day I spake unto thee, from the days of Josiah, even unto this day. It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them; that they may return every man from his evil way; that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin. Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah: and Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of JEHOVAH, which he had spoken unto him, upon a roll of a book. And Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying, I am shut up; I cannot go into the house of JEHOVAH: Therefore go thou, and read in the roll, which thou hast written from my mouth, the words of JEHOVAH in the ears of the people in the JEHOVAH'S house upon the fasting day: and also thou shalt read them in the ears of all Judah that come out of their cities.

This word for “roll” in Zechariah 5 is used in this chapter.  We will  not read the whole chapter, although it would be good for us to read the whole thing, but it would take too long for this study, so we will settle for reading just the first six verses.  If we would read the rest of the chapter, we would find it used 14 times, and each time it is used it is referring to “a roll of a book” that Jeremiah dictated to his scribe Baruch after God had first dictated it to the prophet Jeremiah.  That is, God gave His Word to Jeremiah, and then Jeremiah, in turn, told it to Baruch the scribe, and that is an excellent illustration of how God gave us the Bible.  It came right from the mouth of God, and His Word was proclaimed, and, finally, it was told before the ears of the king of Judah, and he took a pen knife and cut it up and threw it into the fire.  A horrible response!  Then God told Jeremiah to get another “roll of a book,” wherein to write the same words, plus even more of His Word.  This is how the Scriptures came to be, and we are blessed to have the Bible, which is the whole Word of God from beginning to end, from Genesis through Revelation.  God has spoken to His prophets, holy men of old, and it has been compiled for us in this Holy Book.

This Hebrew word translated as “roll” is also found in Ezekiel 2:8-10:

But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee. And when I looked, behold, an hand was sent unto me; and, lo, a roll of a book was therein; And he spread it before me; and it was written within and without: and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.

And that reminds us, of course, of what we read in Zechariah 5 regarding the curse that will go across the earth and cut off those that “steal” on this side of it, and cut off those that “swear” on that side of it.  There are two sides, and each side is really enforcing the commandment of God: “…every one that stealeth shall be cut off as on this side …and every one that sweareth shall be cut off as on that side according to it.” 

So too, Ezekiel was given a “roll,” and he was told in verse 8, “…open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee.”  Then he saw this “roll of a book,” and it says in Ezekiel 2:10:

And he spread it before me; and it was written within and without: and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.

So it was really “three woes,”  And they were written “within and without,” or on this side as well as that side, and that reminds us of the declaration in Hebrew 4:12 concerning the Word of God, which is said to be “quick and powerful, sharper than any twoedged sword.”  A twoedged sword can cut with one side, as well as with the other side.  So too, it is true of the Holy Bible.  The Scriptures are able to cut either way, typically with one side to judgment and one side to the grace, mercy, and salvation of God, as the Lord used His same Word to accomplish His purposes, whether it was to save the elect child of God or to condemn the sinner.  The Bible was equipped to do both, but in Zechariah 5, it is speaking only of judgment and being cut off on this side and on that side.

In the next chapter, we read in Ezekiel 3:1-4:

Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel.  So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll. And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. And he said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them.

Then it say sin Ezekiel 3:7:

But the house of Israel will not hearken unto thee; for they will not hearken unto me: for all the house of Israel are impudent and hardhearted.

It was a condemnation of the house of Israel, but as far as Ezekiel was concerned, he was told to eat the book, and it would be in his mouth as honey for sweetness because “honey” is a figure of the Word of God, the Bible.  We also find some similar language in Revelation 10:8:

And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth.

The “roll of a book” and the “little book” helps us to understand why it is called a “little book.”  The book Jeremiah was moved to dictate to Baruch was the book of Jeremiah.  It was the “roll” of the book of Jeremiah, but it was not the entire Bible, all sixty-six books.  It was a portion of the whole, so that is the meaning that “a roll” carries, as the whole Bible would be numerous rolls, and it could be that Revelation 10 is carrying that idea, as we read, “Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth.”  Then it says in Revelation 10:9-11:

And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey. And I took the little book out of the angel's hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter. And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.

We have come to understand these verses. The Lord has added here that not only is the “little book,” the Bible, in his mouth as sweet as honey, but we are also told that after he had eaten it, his belly was bitter.  And this would tie in with the sending forth of the Word, as it “flowed out of the belly” of those God has saved as living water.  But if our belly is made bitter, the “water” that is coming forth is bitter water from the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit is within each elect child of God.  Why would the Word be as honey in the mouth, but bitter in the belly, causing the waters to be bitter?  Back in Revelation 8, that is exactly what God did to the “waters” of the church when He caused a star called “Wormwood” to come down, as it says in Revelation 8:11:

And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.

Bitter water does not bring salvation, but it brings death, and that is the answer because this “prophesying again” is related to the Day of Judgment at a time when God has commanded, “Feed my sheep.”  And in order to obey that command, it is necessary to go forth with the Word to declare far and wide to all the nations in a worldwide manner by prophesying.  And prophesying is to speak forth the Word of God in its proper time and season, and in the Day of Judgment, it would include declaring that the door is shut, and God has ended His salvation program, and He is bringing judgment on the world, and so forth.  We declare all the things the Bible reveals, and we did so over the time of the Great Tribulation and now into this Day of Judgment, but now there is no message of “active salvation,” where an unsaved sinner can hear the Word of God and the Lord might save them.  That is why the belly is “bitter.”  The place where the Holy Spirit will send forth the Gospel waters is as “bitter water” because it cannot save.

So we see that the word “roll” in the Old Testament is used 21 times, and 14 out of the 21 times is in Jeremiah 36.  And we saw it a few times in Ezekiel 2 and Ezekiel 3.  Overall, this Hebrew word is translated as “roll” 20 times out of the 21 times.  Only one time is it translated as a different word, and that is in Psalm 40:6-8:

Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required. Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.

The word “volume” is verse 7 is our word used in this glorious statement: “Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me.”  It is “the roll of the book,” the entire Scriptures, that is being referring to, and this is helpful in our understanding. 

Right now, we are understanding whatever we can as we go to these verses, and they will help us to understand the word “roll” when we go back to Zechariah 5, concerning the fact that this roll enters into the house of the thief.  But for now, let us continue to follow the word “roll” that is translated here as “volume.”  And now we can follow it to the New Testament because this verse is quoted in the New Testament.  We find the quotation in Hebrews 10, and we will see much of the verses that I just read.  It says in Hebrews 10:5-7:

Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.

And here it is.  Here is the same statement, and it reads very much the same as Psalm 40:7.  But of course it is a Greek word that is translated in Hebrews 10:7 as “volume.”  However, it is quoting from Psalm 40, so when we look up this word, we should be helped, and it will give us more information. 

When look up the Greek word translated as “volume,” it is Strong’s #2777, and it is the word “kephalis,” which I would pronounce, “kef-al-is',” and it is also the only place in the New Testament where it is found.  It is not used anywhere else.  That could be a problem, but it is derived from another Greek word, #2776, and it is very closely related.  Strong’s #2776 is a word I would pronounce “kef-al-ay'.”  They are definitely related Greek words, and “kef-al-ay'” is used 76 times, and it is always translated as the same word.  What is that word?  That word is the word “head.”  And, yes, this is the word that speaks of Christ as the “head” of the church.  It says in Ephesians 5:23:

For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.

Christ is the head of the church.  It also says in Colossians 1:18:

And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

Christ is the head.  And if we would look at the figure of the body of Christ, it is in view here as well.  You know, the “head” is where the mind is, and the head is the leader.  It is that which controls the body.  So I think that is the reason why God used this word in order to quote from Psalm 40:7, where the word “volume” is clearly the word “roll” that identifies with the Word of God.  It is the Word of God, so He uses a word that has to do with the head.  Christ is the head, and Christ is the Word, and Christ controls the “body.”  How does Christ control the body?  For example, how does He give command to His feet?   It says in 1Corinthians 12:12-14:

For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. For the body is not one member, but many.

So the “foot” is given command by the “head” to go in a certain direction: “How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!”  You see, we are controlled by the Word of God as the Spirit operates and moves through the Scriptures and directs the course of the “body,” just like the “head.”