TYPES OF CHRIST IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
A
Bible Study - Commentary by Jim Melough
Copyright
2001 James Melough
URIAH
THE HITTITE
There
is no more unlikely place to find a type of Christ than among the Hittites,
yet we can't read the scriptural account of the man who was Bath-sheba's
husband without seeing that in him God would indeed have us see a picture of
His Son.
The
account is preserved in 2 Sa 11, where he is introduced as the husband of
Bath-sheba, which means, "Daughter of the oath." Remembering that
Christ is God, in relation to Whom Israel is frequently described as His
adulterous wife, it isn't difficult to see here a picture of Christ and
Israel. The omission of any
recorded evil relative to Uriah points to the moral perfection of Christ,
while the adultery of Bath-sheba portrays, not only the sin of Israel, but of
the whole world. All men have
proved unfaithful to God. The
meaning of her name reminds us that the nation she represents is also the
"daughter of the oath," for it is to Israel that God has promised
every blessing.
The
meaning of Uriah's name is equally significant, for it means, "My light
is God." It was so with
Christ. God the Father was His
light always, the Lord Himself being the Light of the world.
David's
treacherous scheming to accomplish the death of this upright man scarcely
needs comment. It is clearly a
foreshadowing of the treacherous scheming of the Jewish leaders to slay
Christ.
Christ's
perfections, however, are symbolically portrayed, not only in the absence of
any recorded evil concerning Uriah, but also in the good that is recorded of
him. His concern for the things
of God are expressed in his words to David who had unsuccessfully attempted to
have him go down to his own house, "The ark, and Israel, and Judah, abide
in tents; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, are encamped in the
open fields; shall I then go into mine house...?" verse 11.
This is but a faint picture of the greater concern that Christ had for
the things of God.
We
should note also that twice it is recorded that Uriah, instead of going to his
own house, choose rather to sleep at the door of the king's house, with the
servants, verses 9, 13. Surely no
one will fail to see in this that zeal for God's glory that led Christ to take
the place of a servant, and renounce every earthly comfort.
Every
detail enhances the clarity of the symbolic picture. It was Uriah's own hand that carried the letter containing
the details of the plan for his own death.
The very same Scriptures which detailed the death Christ was to die,
were continually upon His lips. There
was one notable difference, however. Uriah
had no knowledge that he carried his own death warrant.
Christ was familiar with every word of Scripture.
"Set
ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that
he may be smitten, and die," verse 15.
In comparison with the battle fought at Calvary, all earthly battles
pale into insignificance, but no one will fail to see Calvary foreshadowed in
that battle where Uriah died. Nor
will any spiritual mind miss the significance of David's command to Joab,
"... and retire ye from him...."
This detail was also fulfilled in Christ, for in regard to Him it is
written, "... they all forsook Him and fled," MK 14:50.
“...
and Uriah the Hittite died," verse 17; but with all his scheming which
resulted in the death of this innocent man,
David's sin wasn't covered. It
was, in fact, now compounded by murder! 2
Sa 12:7 records the denunciation pronounced by Nathan the prophet, "Thou
art the man," wringing from the lips of the guilty king the cry, "I
have sinned against the Lord," verse 13; but bringing from God the
assurance, "The Lord also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not
die." That assurance was
given only because God had his eye on the One represented by Uriah - His only
Son the Lord Jesus Christ, and on the day when that Son would die, "the
just for the unjust," 1 Pe 3:15, not only for David's terrible sin, but
for all the sins of a guilty world.
The
value God sets upon that Son may be measured by the frequency with which He
sets Christ before us on the pages of the Old Testament, Uriah being only one
of many such types of Christ.
In
spite of the ever increasing tendency of an unspiritual Christianity to
attempt to hide its spiritual blindness by disparaging biblical typology, the
truth is that we are reading Scripture correctly when we look for these types;
the discovery of them being simply the witness of the Holy Spirit with our
spirit that it is He Who has illuminated our minds; that it is He Who is
fulfilling the Lord's words, "The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost ...
shall teach you all things," Jn 14:25.
"Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you
into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall
hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
He
shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto
you," Jn 16:13-14.