“Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honor the face of the old man, and fear thy God. I am the LORD.” Leviticus 19:32
Hoary Head! Face of an old man!
A great mark of distinction in Israel.
Singled out for honor and esteem by those who are younger in the congregation of God. That is the place where our God is to be feared and obeyed. Give honor to those to whom honor is due, yes, honor in the very place where Jehovah is the I AM, the covenant, faithful God.
JAH is great in Zion. He is the LORD alone. And He has set the face of the “old man” in the midst of Israel, the church. He has established this as a precept of God’s covenant in Israel by the mouth and pen of Moses, the man of God, with whom he speaks not as with a common prophet in visions and dreams, but face to face.
Put off your shoes from your feet young reader!
The Hebrew speaks of the “face’’ of the hoary man, and of the “face” of the old man. There is much meaning to the term face in the Bible. The face is the mirror of the soul. On this face we see that man is image-bearer of God. There are beautiful faces, and ugly, unkind faces, smiling faces and sad faces. There is the face of the man and woman who have lived in sin, drunkenness and debauchery. And then there is the face of a winsome and loving smile, and there is the face of those who repulse with a fierce grimace; or stem and uninviting severity, so that their skin would crack if they attempted a smile.
Faces are a study of the life of the soul.
Yet, withal, ideally there should be in the face of a “man” dignity, rooted in godliness!
There is dignity which commands respect in the face of the hoary man. This is the hoary head of a man found in the way of righteousness. (Prov. 16:31) Dignity of the godly old man; “but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed” (Isaiah 65:20b).
Yes, the hoary head is a crown of glory!
In those who fear the LORD.
Rise up before the face of such, young man, young woman!
Rise up! Honor such!
Young men and women in Israel, rise up!
Give honor where honor is accorded by the LORD, thy God.
It is an ordinance in Israel in perpetual generations. Presently you will thus be honored when you grow old and receive the dignity of the face of the hoary. That is growing old graciously. No, you will then not be the “grand ol’ man”, the kindly grandmother of the world. You will be qualitatively different. You will be crowned with a hoary head on higher ground. It will be a place, as a pillar in God’s church. You will not sing the swan-song of a worldly army general, who once stood on the pinnacle of authority and glory, and who feels that his power is waning. You will not sing the elegy “old soldiers never die, they just fade away”.
No, your place will be as a nail in the holy place of God’s church. It is a place rooted in an ordinance in Israel forever.
Rise up, young people, give honor to the face of the hoary, and be blessed!
No, you must not simply be polite to the old people, and perform your “boy scout” deed, helping an aged man cross a busy street. Yes, do that, but do it on a higher plane. Work out your salvation with fear and trembling. Let it reflect your giving honor to your father and to your mother.
And live long on the earth!
Rising up before the face of the hoary is as far apart, as are the “poles” from the customs cultivated even by the heathen, e.g. the Egyptians, the Spartans, and the ancient Romans, and which custom is still followed in the East. The latter is not godliness but is idolatrous superstition. God is not in all the thoughts of such.
Rise up before the face of the hoary man where you meet the commandment, the covenant obligation of all God’s people, who have been redeemed in the blood of the Lamb. Yes, then you will see dignity on this “face” of the old man. It is the dignity of the sceptre of God’s throne established in righteousness.
Many years of toil and labor, the enduring the afflictions of Christ is mirrored on that face of the godly old man. It is the face of the man of God, who has seen the face of God, which face shines upon him. This gives him great peace, a peace which passes all understanding.
Yes, such a hoary head is an adornment of righteousness.
It is the crown of a fruitful life of godliness.
The face of the hoary and the face of the old man! It is the face of a “father” in Israel. Honor belongs to such. He is known in the gates, sitting among the wise. He is known and recognized in the gates of the city of God. They are not some has-been nobody, but have a God-assigned dignity, worthy of the highest respect.
Rise up before such a head!
Blessed are the youth, who do.
Yes, blessed in the church in the world. . . .
Fear thy God!
Tremble before Him in the beauty of holiness.
This is no mere advice on polite mannerisms. It is to bespeak deep reverence from the heart. God is not mocked.
Fear the LORD thy God. Yes, He is thy God. He has redeemed you with precious blood, with a great price. He is thy SAVIOR! He sent Jesus, His Son into this world. He sent him and condemned Him in our place to the death of the accursed under law. He has set us free. Let us walk in this liberty.
He places us in the midst of a crooked generation, which has no eye for the hoary head, nor are there really any “hoary saints” in their midst. Such have never caught the symbolic implication of the vision of the Ancient of days, sitting upon His holy Throne as portrayed to Daniel in the night visions upon his bed. They have never pondered in holy awe the scene of the Son of Man coming in the deep way of His being lifted on the Cross, to draw nigh unto “the Ancient of Days, whose garment was white as snow, and hair of his head like pure wool. …” (Dan. 7:9)
They have not reflected in childlike faith the Hoary Head of the Ancient of Days. Here is eternal and unchangeable dignity. Rise up before the face of God, stand at attention to Him who calls the stars by name, so that they in attention at His bidding, stand, by the greatness of His power!
Fear God, honor the kingly face of the “old man” in the church.
No they are not the same. The former is the basis of the latter. For Moses is told: Honor the face of the old man, and fear thy God. The former is the fruit of the latter. That is the great principle of the Fifth Commandment. To all things there is an end, but God’s commandment is very wide. (Ps. 119:96) Is there an end to God’s commandment? It is a principle, a leaven which permeates all truth!
Then you see the faces of the hoary in light of heaven, sub specie eternitatis! We see such as have stood in the battle of truth against error, not ashamed of the name of Jesus. Elders and ministers and parents and teachers who have grown grey in God’s service. Yes, we see then a Moses, a Samuel, an Elijah, a John the Baptist in prison, a Paul with his battle- scarred body, bearing the “marks of the Lord Jesus.”
They have not loved their life unto death.
They have their faces turned heavenward toward the face of God in Jesus Christ. Soon the battle is o’re for them. They have their hope in the living God, .their God, their Savior.
Their names are written in the book of life.
Rise up for such, and fear God!
Honor the face of the hoary head, young man, young woman!
Soon you will then join their ranks!
Here below and in glory above. . . .