cost, was a new
meal-offering. The meal-offering in the first part of this book
(ii:1-16) is the type of Christ in His perfect humanity. In that
meal-offering there was no leaven, but fine flour was mixed with oil,
and oil was poured upon it before it was exposed to the fire. All this
blessedly foreshadows the Lord Jesus in His spotless humanity and the
sufferings through which He passed. But here is a new meal-offering,
into which leaven was put.

Fifty days after Christ arose, when the day of Pentecost had come, the
Holy Spirit descended out of heaven. While He filled the assembled
believers in Jerusalem, He also baptized them into one body; the
church, the body of Christ, began with this great event. The new
meal-offering, therefore, is a prophetic type of the church. Let us
notice that the loaves of this new meal-offering were also called
"first-fruits." This word identifies them with Him who is the
first-fruits of them that slept, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the
First-fruits and His believing people are likewise called by that name.
"Of His own will begat He us with the word of truth, that we should be
a kind of first-fruits of His creatures" (Jas. i:18). Believers have
the first-fruits of the Spirit (Rom. viii:23). Christ also is the
firstborn, while believers are His brethren destined to share His glory
(Rom. viii:29); and the church is called the church of the firstborn"
(Heb. xii:23).

This new meal-offering, a type of the church, was made of fine flour,
which comes from the corn of wheat. It typifies the true believer, who
is born again, and possesses the new nature, and only those who are
born again are members of the true church. The leaven put into this
offering is the type of sin and the old nature, which is still in the
believer. Therefore the sin-offering was made prominent in connection
with this feast, which tells us of the blessed work of Christ as the
sin-bearer of His people. The two loaves foreshadow believing Jews and
Gentiles, which compose the church. Some day the church will be
presented to the Lord, as the new meal-offering was brought into His
presence. This will happen when the Lord comes for His Saints.

+Jehovah-Shalom+, "the Lord is Peace" (Judges vi:24). How beautifully
this name of Jehovah harmonizes with Pentecost. He has made peace in
the blood of the Cross. "Peace be unto you" was His blessed word of
greeting to the assembled disciples on the resurrection day.