In our love relationship with the Lord we are the wife, the female, and He is the Husband, the male. In the Old Testament there are several women that can be considered as a type of the church due to their marriage to certain men who were types of Christ.
Paul himself expounded on people in the Old Testament being types of Christ and of the church. As we see these types we see how rich the meaning of Christ and the church is, and we appreciate the Lord, our Husband much more.
Some of the women in the Old Testament which are a type of the church are Eve, Rebekah, Ruth, Abigail, and the Shulammite.
Eve: the church coming out of Christ to match Christ
Eve is a type of the church as the counterpart of Christ; just as Eve came out of Adam and had the same life and nature as Adam to match Adam as his wife, so the church came out of Christ having the same life and nature as Christ to match Christ as His wife (see Gen. 2:21-24; Eph. 5:23-32).
Paul says that Adam and Eve are a type of Christ and the church, and this is a great mystery. Eve was not created but she was built out of Adam, with a rib God took out of his side.
When the Lord Jesus was dying on the cross God took something of Christ, His resurrection life, the unbreakable life, and built the church. The church is a product purely of Christ, and the church is Christ in every way with His life and nature to match Him!
Rebekah: the church being chosen from the world
Rebekah is a type of the church being chosen from the world (Gen. 24). Isaac is a type of Christ as the Son of God inheriting all the Father’s riches, and God prepared, courted, and brought Rebekah / the church to Christ to be His counterpart.
Rebekah was chosen out of her parents’ house, and the church was chosen out of the world to be brought to Christ as His wife. The Father (Abraham) planned everything, and He sent the Holy Spirit (the servant) to bring Rebekah through a long journey to Christ (Isaac) to be His wife.
What a wonderful picture this is! Here we see that Rebekah as a type of the church depicts how the church was chosen OUT of the world and she was brought all the way into the heavenly tabernacle to enjoy Christ’s love and to satisfy Him!
Ruth: the church being redeemed
Ruth is a type of the church as the counterpart of Christ being redeemed (Ruth 4:13; 1 Pet. 1:18-19; Rev. 5:9). Ruth was not of the people of God, she was from Moab, but Boaz (a type of Christ) redeemed her and married her, bringing her into the people of God.
We were far away from God, not born in the people of God, but God as the Richest Person in the universe fell in love with us and He redeemed us, bringing us into the people of God.
We are the redeemed people of God, and what comes out of this love union is just Christ (Boaz and Ruth were the forefathers of David, the forefather of Christ). We are not only called (as we see in Rebekah) but we are also redeemed and brought into the people of God.
Abigail: the warring church in the midst of sufferings
Abigail as David’s wife is a type of the warring church in the midst of sufferings (1 Sam. 25:40-42). The greatest type of Christ in the Old Testament is David (Matt. 12:3), and so David’s wife, Abigail, is a type of the church in a certain aspect.
David typifies the warring Christ (he fought the wars of God defeating all the enemies around him) in the midst of sufferings (Saul persecuted him, and later there were many sufferings in his family and country) – Abigail “stuck with him” from the beginning to the end.
The real David, Christ needs a counterpart to be one with Him and comfort Him as He is warring today. Just as we see in Psalm 110, the church as His counterpart needs to be like a brook, refreshing Him as He is fighting today for God’s interests.
The Shulammite: the church as the duplication of Christ
The Shulammite is a type of the church as the counterpart of Christ, the reproduction and duplication of Christ to match Him for their marriage (Song of Songs 6:13).
The Shulammite starts off as a country girl and goes through a long process of transformation until she is the same as Solomon, the Beloved, to the extent that she is called, The Shulammite. She became the same as Solomon in life, nature, and image, to fully match him for their marriage.
We are now in the process of being made the same as Christ in life, nature, expression, image, function, and in any possible way, to match Him for our marriage!
Christ will always be the Head, having the Godhead, being omnipresent, omniscient, and omnipotent; but in every other respect, we will become His duplication and reproduction to match Him! Hallelujah!
Lord, thank You for regenerating us with Your life and making us Your counterpart. You chose us from the world to be Your wife. Lord, thank You for redeeming us with Your precious blood to be the church, the bride of Christ. Today, Lord, we want to be those who satisfy You as You are warring to accomplish Your economy and defeat Your enemy. Lord, make us the same as You are in every possible way to match You as Your counterpart, Your beautiful bride!
References and Further Reading
- Sharing inspired from, Three Aspects of the Church, Book 1: The Meaning of the Church (chs. 7-9, by Witness Lee), as quoted in, the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization-Study of the Minor Prophets, week 1 (entitled, The Centrality and Universality of Christ and the Union of God and His People to Be a Universal Couple).
- Hymns on this topic:
# It was for her the church — His bride / It was for her, willingly He died
# The Lord is longing for His Bride, / All glorious within.
# Wherever you go, I will go, / Wherever you dwell, I will dwell; - Picture source: a sketch of Ruth (a type of the church).
amen! praise the Lord!
Thank the Lord that we have His Life.. We can be His Bride.. Lets continue enjoying Him for us to grow and transform to be became His match, His counterpart..