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Measuring-Line.
I will make
justice the measuring line
and
righteousness the plumb line
Isaiah28:17 NIV
Measuring-line or measuring-tape: a graduated line or tape for making linear measurements (see: Chambers).
The line or tape may be graduated, [inclusive] or there may be a separate scale for taking measurments.
The line can be used to measure linear length. Or it can be used to set some sort of standard, or level of compliance: in the picture above, the tops of the coping stones of the wall are required to touch the line. Any disparity will show up as 'error'.
Justice: the administration of the law (Oxford Dictionary of English).
It can't have escaped people's notice that new-covenant justice is far removed from that of the Mosaic Covenant! Not only that, but it changes with the political or social winds. Opinion is divided, perhaps leaving conscience to be the decider of what is right and what is wrong (eg, Rom. 9:1).
The destruction of the Temple rendered the Covenant unenforceable at the Physical Level. Nevertheless, it remains in force at the Spiritual Level. Those Old Testament sins which were punishable by physical execution are now dealt with directly at the Spiritual Level by the Lord. The evil doctrine of Paul and the unknown writer to the Hebrews suggests that such punishment no longer applies: after all, have they not annulled the Covenant on the grounds that it was lethal, based on inadequate promises, faulty, and past its sell-by date?
Paul mistakenly states that the whole law is summed up in a single commandment:
[14] For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." (Galatians 5:14 NRSV)
Paul contradicts the Lord Jesus (see the Two Abstract Rules). This behaviour is reckless and dangerous, putting lives at risk.
What Paul and the unknown writer to the Hebrews have done is to annul the Covenant and change the law to that of their new-covenant. They have effectively changed the justice system!
Enter the Lord stage 'right' some eight centuries earlier:
I will make justice the measuring line
and
righteousness the plumb line
(Isaiah 28:17 NIV)
The Lord has effectively put Paul et al in their place before they were even born!
In making 'justice the measuring line', the Lord sets the standard, namely that of Covenant Law. If standards fall below that level, then they become measurable errors. Justice - the administration of the law - is required to remain consistent across the timeline. Recall that the Court of No Appeal will be open and completely transparent across the timeline.
The Lord has been monitoring David's fallen Tent for the lasl two thousand or so years. He undoubtedly has applied the Measuring Line and found that standards are way below what He requires, and that there are serious inconsistencies across the timeline. This is no big secret, since such knowledge is available to anyone who cares to open the Scriptures and their eyes...
So far, justice has been used in a way not far removed from the Plumb-Line, as a measure of sin and error.
Now, stand well back and look at the measuring line again. Justice is but one of the many Covenant deliverables. Consequently, there is nothing to stop the measuring line being used to measure any other deliverable.
Hence, Plumb-Line and Measuring-Line are complementary. Used together, they provide a metric which will allow an assessment of the Covenant, the educational system, the justice system...
To summarise, the Plumb-Line separates truth from lies, while the Measuring-Line measures Covenant performance.
[Dissertation: The Plumb-Line reveals sin and error; the Measuring-Line reveals any failure in delivering the Covenant-deliverables. Used together, they provide a metric of Covenant integrity and performance.]
Version: 2024-08-02