Men as Trees Singing

     I like the idea of Christians as trees singing, and the choir as forests singing. When I read the passage from the Book of Isaiah below I thought of the song, "Go Tell It On the Mountains:"

Go tell it on the mountain
Over the hills and everywhere
Go tell it on the mountain
Our Jesus Christ is born

     What does Isaiah relate about the mountains:

I have formed thee; thou art my servant: O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me. I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee. Sing, O ye heavens; for the Lord hath done it: shout, ye lower parts of the earth: break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein: for the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Israel. (Isa 44:21-23)

     Just as we are to "go tell it on the mountains," Isaiah said "to break forth into singing, ye mountains," and the forest, and every tree within the forest! Isaiah was not only writing of the restoration of Jerusalem and the nation of Israel; he was also writing about the gospel of Jesus Christ, and the final restoration of the Israelites:

Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel. (Rev 7:3-4).

     One-hundred and forty-four thousands of Jews will be glorified. Isaiah made reference to the promise of a Savior and the salvation of the Israelites from the Abrahamic Covenant. His words were a reminder of things to come. Isaiah was so confidant that God would keep His promises that he asked the Israelites to go tell it on the mountain... and everywhere. The Israelites were "as trees" and the nation as "a forest." I have written previously that the blind man who Jesus gave partial sight to, saw men as trees walking (https://kentuckyherrin.blogspot.com/2019/01/trees-walking-continued.html) . Well, Isaiah saw men as trees singing! What is the song? "The Lord... hath glorified Himself in Israel."

     It's important to understand glorification: Before taken into the presence of God, the souls of Christians are made perfect, as well as their flesh. Perfection can never be achieved in life, but it is rewarded in death. Glorification, then, is when Christians - those who have been born again - are snatched up into the presence of God. As Paul said, "to die is to gain" (Phil 1:21)! What is gained by dying? Glorification - a soul filled with the Holy Ghost and a new incorruptible glorified body.
     Previously, I have written that Christians are not filled with the Holy Spirit at regeneration, but imbued with God's Holy Spirit. There is always iniquity in the hearts of men, so I think of the soul of mankind as a "spiritual sponge" imbued with living water (the Holy Spirit). Glorification is when the remnants of original sin are removed (the sponge) and God fills the soul entirely with His Spirit. That filling is Christian perfection, but only occurs at glorification... for all of us with the exception of one!
     Jesus was glorified at his transfiguration (Mat 17). God didn't rapture Jesus, but came down to the mountain for the glorification of His Son. Since Jesus was without sin, only his flesh was transformed. The transformation of Jesus was glorification before he went to his Father. Why would God do something special for Jesus? Firstly, Jesus was not only His genetic Son but His own Spirit. In other words, his flesh was of this world but his Holy Spirit emanated from the Father (John 15:26). Before Jesus became the Lamb to die for mankind, he had to be made the perfect sacrifice (Exod 12:5).
    The skeptic might say, But Jesus ascended to Heaven with the blemishes from crucifixion. Not so! We think of blemishes wrongly; those were battle scars and as such are honored by the Father! In special cases for special causes, God wanted a different kind of sheep. The Lord gave the person Israel what he asked for:

I will pass through all thy flock to day, removing from thence all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown cattle among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of such shall be my hire. (Gen 30:32).

     That separation of the flock was an outcome of the provision of the Abrahamic Covenant. God prospered the Israelites with both the land and the Savior. Jesus was the spotted and speckled Lamb that was so special as to be sufficient for the perfect sacrifice. Note that Jesus's Spirit was not spotted, but his flesh was spotted and speckled with scars. That's who Isaiah was talking about, and who the trees were singing of!
     Jesus needed glorification immediately because of what he was about to do! Worldly sacrifice had never been sufficient. The priests had to repeat it time and time again (each year), but Jesus made the perfect sacrifice once and for all (Heb 10:3-4, 10). Jesus would take all the sins of mankind onto his shoulders and dump them off in Hell. He needed special, incorruptible flesh to bear that burden and to withstand Hell. He was transfigured for that reason; his flesh was made incorruptible to bear the cross. Spiritual death is experiencing Hell. Jesus didn't die spiritually, but experienced Hell. He thought his Father had abandoned him when that happened! Non-Christians will die by experiencing Hell. That's what God meant when he issued His first command (Gen 2:17). Adam misunderstood the concept of death because never before had death been experienced, not even by Lucifer.
     Jesus bore the sins of mankind and Christians will never see nor feel Hell. All us lesser "trees" shall never have a forest fire. Our transfiguration will take place as we are gathered to Jesus in the sky (Mat 24:1).
     Now back to Jesus: Isaiah saw Jesus glorified, and in Israel. He wasn't there at the transfiguration as was Moses and Elijah but Isaiah saw the face of God from the distance of time. Because Isaiah saw THE Tree of Life, he is one of the "trees" of the "forest" as well!

Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: (Epes 2:19-21)

     Solomon built the temple of God with trees from the forests of Lebanon - plain old cedar trees. God built his own temple with perfect "trees" from His "forest." I am writing of the Church of which Isaiah was one of the "trees" whose lumber was used for the foundation of the Christian Church.
     One might ask, How did Isaiah see what others could not see? "Before the throne there was as it were a sea of glass, like crystal" (Rev 4:2). God gave Isaiah a special vision. As did the blind man who Jesus healed, Isaiah saw through the crystal clear "sea of glass" which separates what the world sees from what the righteous see.
     Sacred scripture says that those with bright natures have bright eyes. They could see through the darkness because of the crystalline sea of glass. Because Isaiah saw Jesus and him born, baptized, glorified, and resurrected, he was part of the foundation of the Church.
     Unlike the sight of the blind man who saw men as trees walking, Isaiah saw men as trees singing. I submit as a joyful forest the choir was both singing and walking, perhaps to the mountaintops from whence the singing came!
     Jesus will come back and bring the City of God with him. New Jerusalem will replace old Jerusalem, and indeed there will be singing on Mount Moriah again (Rev 21:2). What song do you suppose they were singing? "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God" (Rev 21:3). That's sort of the same song as, "Go Tell It On the Mountains."