«　WEEK 1　DAY 2　»

　　Eph. 1:10 Unto the economy of the fullness of the times, to head up all things in Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth, in Him.

　　3:9 And to enlighten all that they may see what the economy of the mystery is, which throughout the ages has been hidden in God, who created all things.

　　The word economy is not used in the Old Testament, but it is found in the New Testament, especially in the writings of Paul…. Although this word may not be used in Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers, the typology in these books unveils God's economy. God's economy is His administration with His plan, His purpose, and His arrangement to accomplish His plan and attain His purpose for the fulfillment of the desire of His heart. This desire is to have a people not only created by Him but also regenerated, sanctified, transformed, and conformed to the image of Christ as the embodiment of the processed Triune God. Eventually, this people will be brought into glory, into the expression of the Triune God. This is God's economy. In the Old Testament we have a picture of God's economy; in the New Testament we have a clear speaking concerning God's economy. (Life-study of Numbers, p. 346)

　　God's chosen and redeemed people need to receive the divine revelation concerning God Himself and His economy for their training and building up as His testimony…. In Genesis God's people were chosen, and in Exodus they received the divine revelation concerning God and His dwelling place.

　　God's chosen people received the divine revelation after their participation in God's initial salvation as realized in the passover (Exo. 12). God brought the people out of Egypt to the mountain of God, Mount Sinai, and there gave them a full revelation of His dwelling place among the human race on earth. We may say the revelation contained the”blueprints” for the building of God's dwelling place. In order to dwell among the human race, God needs a people who are not only chosen and redeemed but also ready to receive the divine revelation concerning Him and His dwelling place. As the book of Exodus shows us, God's people did receive this revelation and they built the tabernacle according to it. When the tabernacle was set up, God's glory descended upon it.

　　The divine revelation was through the enjoyment of the divine provisions as tasted in the supply of the heavenly manna and the living water flowing out of the smitten rock. The divine revelation was also through the experience of being an army that shared in God's fighting against His enemies, as in their fighting against the Egyptians and the Amalekites.

　　Eventually, in Exodus 19 God's chosen and redeemed people reached and arrived at the mountain of God. When God sent Moses to rescue the children of Israel out of the hand of Pharaoh, God told Moses that after he had brought the people out of Egypt, they would serve the Lord upon this mountain (Exo. 3:12). In Exodus 19 this word was fulfilled.

　　At Mount Sinai God's people received the revelation concerning God Himself that they might be separated unto the holy God as His sanctified people (Exo. 20—24). By the revelation of God Himself, we refer to the law. The law is a portrait of God. Before the children of Israel received the revelation concerning God's building, God gave them a portrait of Himself to show them what kind of God He is. The law reveals that God is a God of love and light and that He is holy and righteous. Therefore, love, light, holy, and righteous are crucial words describing the characteristics of the almighty, Triune God. As the God of love and light, He is altogether holy; that is, He is uncommon, different, and separate from everything else in the universe. Furthermore, God is altogether righteous. He is righteous with Himself, He is righteous in all He does, and He is righteous toward man and all His creatures. This is God as He is revealed in the picture in Exodus 20—24. (Life-study of Numbers, pp. 346-348)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of Numbers, msg. 52