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The Body
Much of the
language of Paul's epistles is rooted in the subsoil of covenant.
Being a Hebrew of the Hebrews and a Pharisee beyond reproach [Phil
3:5] the framework of his writings is grounded firmly in
redemptive workings of a covenant keeping God. Paul's first century
audience would have had less difficulty in grasping the "covenantal
nature" of his words than the modern penchant for literalness.
Paul's use of
'body' in 2Cor 5 has nothing to do with an individual's
personal status after death then or now, but everything to do with
that 'corporate body' of the old covenant Israel from which the
first-fruit believers in the "this generation" [Mt 24:34]
were in the process of coming out of. Theirs was a resurrection like
unto Christ's a coming up out of from among the dead
[Act 26:23; Rev 1:5] i.e., out of old covenant Israel. They,
the first-fruits 'body' of believers were the new, restored or
"raised" Israel [Ezek
37:1-14], being refashioned in the likeness of their
master; they were the first-fruits of and thus ON BEHALF OF the whole
harvest the whole harvest being historic Israel of the Old
Covenant. Israel's redemption came through Christ THE first-fruit
and was duly administered through His first-fruits elect [2Cor
5:19-20]; this in turn wrought the reconciliation of the whole world
Israel was the means to this ends, i.e., the restoration
of humanity to God. This was the outworking of Christ's victory
established through the Cross.
Paul using
clear Old Covenant language said:
2Cor 5:4
For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being
burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that
mortality might be swallowed up of life.
Paul's mortality or fleshliness was in relation to that of
the limitations of the Old Covenant in regards to receiving the promised
redemption that in which they were in transition from, to the full
life of redemption in the New Covenant through Christ. Jesus was one
born under the Old Covenant to redeem those of the Old Covenant to bring
them from child-hood to "son-ship" [Gal 4:1-4]. He died in and to
the body of the Old Covenant, and so fulfilled its requirements that
was the "body" of which Paul speaks. Note, the Greek tense is
singular not plural "bodies". cf., Phil 3:21; Rom
8:23 on the redemption of our [plural] body
[singular] i.e., the corporate body. It is the same language, therefore
same understanding i.e., covenantal transition that Paul uses in
being delivered up and dying daily out of the old and
into the new. And particularly on behalf of those to whom he writes,
hence what is "working death in us" means "life in you" [2Cor
4:12]. In no way is any of Paul's language speaking of literal
individual fleshly [of whatever nature] bodies post death.
Not only that, but the Greek tense of absent and
present in 2Cor 5:8 are both aorist infinitive
meaning actions as having occurred with ongoing results i.e., it was a
then process and NOT something that was to occur later
upon or beyond physical death.
Further
Paul's statement: "Therefore we also have as our ambition,
whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him" 2Cor 5:9
shows this understanding of the 'corporate body' image. It makes
no sense at all supposedly being at home "in heaven" in a
"glorified fleshly" body [never actually stated], trying "to be
pleasing to Him" or as the KJV has it "accepted" what? is
there still more to do after death to be accepted and
found pleasing to Him? This makes no logical or biblical sense at
all. Their being "at home" or "absence" [from the body]
was the continual putting off and putting on of the
old/new natures [covenants] respectively progressively. They were
in the process in that transitional generation of moving out of one
glorious House [covenant] whose splendour was fading and ready to
crumble [Heb 8:13], into another more glorious
House [covenant] built without hands, complete and glorious in the
heavens [2Cor 3:7-11]. It is all covenantal language [2Cor 5:1]
the House of Moses was being replaced
by the House of Christ the covenant of
Law being replaced by the covenant of Grace:
Heb 3:5-6
And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a
servant, for a testimony of those things which would be spoken
afterward, but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we
are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope
firm to the end. [The
writer of course speaking to the then perseverance of the elect]
Thus their
walk was in the likeness of Christ's faith, not according to
fleshly ordinances i.e., they were to walk by New Covenant faith
and not by Old Covenant sight. The Old Covenant was natural,
corruptible, dying and ready to pass away, but the New Covenant
spiritual, incorruptible and full to life.
For Paul 'the body' was one entity, that is, historic
Israel just having two modes or worlds of existence
in that transitional time period AD30-70. The first mode was that of the
Old Covenant world i.e., Law-works. The second mode was the New Covenant
i.e., Grace-faith. As one was being "cast out" [Gal 4:30]
the other was being "put on" [Eph 4:22-24]. Resurrection
was about the finality of the transformation of that one entity,
Israel that's why Paul in relation to the body uses the
singular descriptive word IT:
1Cor 15:42-44 So
also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in
corruption [old covenant], it is raised in incorruption
[new covenant]. It is sown in dishonor [old covenant],
it is raised in glory [new covenant]. It is sown in
weakness [old covenant], it is raised in power [new
covenant]. It is sown a natural body [old covenant],
it is raised a spiritual body [new covenant]. There is a
natural body [old covenant], and there is a spiritual body
[new covenant].
Further textual proof of this is found in parsing the Greek: each "it
is sown
it is raised" is in the present tense, thus
literally reading "it is being sown
it is being
raised" actions that were ongoing and continuous in that
age, and not beyond the grave i.e., the old Mosaic life was being put
off as the new covenant life in Christ was being put on [Eph
4:22-24; Col 3:5, 8-10; Rom 6:4; 7:6; 8:13].
In this passage there is NOT two distinct separate "bodies" as such, but
rather the one body in transition. The natural body
answers to the old covenant world that was passing, the
spiritual body answers to the burgeoning new covenant life
"IT" was the one body in transition death, embodied in
the old covenant was being swallowed up in new covenant life [Isa
25:8;
1Cor 15:54-57]. IT was the redemption corporately of historic Israel
and thus in consequence the reconciliation of the whole world. Israel
was the divinely appointed means to this end in Christ and the
first-fruit saints this has been fulfilled.
[DISCUSS
HERE]
David G. Embury
© Copyright 2004ΰ
Email:
contact@pantelism.com
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