The roots of Jerusalem

By Rev. Willem J.J. Glashouwer
The roots of Jerusalem! How are we to understand this? What are these roots, especially the spiritual roots of this place? It all happens at Salem, at Jerusalem. There Abraham meets the god-fearing Melchizedek. There Abraham gives him the tithe. There Abraham receives from him, God’s blessing. There the priest-king Melchizedek meets him with bread and wine. In this king-priest Abraham recognizes the God who called him from paganism in Ur of the Chaldeans to the Promised Land. Later in this same place, Abraham is prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac.

In Genesis 22:1-2 we read: “…Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied. Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about..." and in verse 9: “…When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood…”
This is the place where the Lord repeatedly reveals Himself in an unusual manner. It is a place, at every turn in her history, that is connected with heaven. A place, a mountain, a spot, an area, a city with an open connection, an open door if you like, to heaven. The earthly and the heavenly Jerusalem are apparently at every turn and time and time again in open contact with each other.

Salem – Moriah – Zion – Earthly Jerusalem – Heavenly Jerusalem: Hebrews 11:8-10 states: “…By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the Promised Land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God…”
And verse 17 –19 states: “…By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death…”

What comes through loud and clear is that the ‘heavenly’ Jerusalem and the earthly Jerusalem are completely involved with each other. And that is the way it should be. The roots of the earthly Jerusalem lie, as it were, in the heavenly Jerusalem. When that spiritual relationship is present and functioning, then Jerusalem reaches her real destiny. Through Melchizedek, Abraham begins to understand that this spot has a unique place in the revelation of God. There, on Mount Moriah, the Lord provides a lamb/ram/sheep that is sacrificed in the place of Isaac. Hundreds of years later, David understands that this is the place where the Name of the Lord will dwell, and there his son Solomon builds the temple. There, in that temple, it is where His parents present Jesus before the Lord. There, in that same temple, the 12-year old boy Jesus soaks in the things of His Father. There, in Jerusalem, during the Feast of Tabernacles, He completely reveals Himself, John 7. There, He does His entry riding on a foal of a donkey as the King of Peace There it is also that the Lord Jesus Christ establishes the New Covenant during the Passover meal with His Jewish friends. The signs of this new covenant are His broken body and poured out blood. There stands His cross. There the resurrection takes place. From there, He ascends into heaven and there from heaven He shall return. Again His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is on the Eastside of Jerusalem. There it is where at Pentecost, the feast of Shavuot, the Holy Sprit is poured out. From there, from out of Zion, the law will one day go forth and the Word of the Lord into all the world and subsequently the nations will train for war no more. And finally, this is where one day the Holy City, the heavenly Jerusalem will come down out of heaven from God and the dwelling of God will be with men and God will be all in all.

For over 100 years now, the Jews have been busy returning here, after their almost 2000 years of worldwide exile. City, nation and land are being prepared for God’s future, and for His great revelation to Israel. They are being prepared for the Coming of His Kingdom and the King of that Kingdom, who will come to make all things forever new.

In short: the roots of the true earthly Jerusalem are in the heavenly Jerusalem. Her origin is of old, of the days of eternity. Only when these roots of Jerusalem procure their life-giving sap will she as God’s city answer to the purpose to which she has been chosen: to be the place where the LORD will make His Name to dwell in order that from there His blessings may fill His entire creation. God Almighty has His own special relationship with this place on earth: the place where His Name would and will dwell!

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