Right Place, Right Time

The Time Of Grace

Since it is so important for us to be at the right place at the right time, let us take a closer look at the words “time and chance happen” in Ecclesiastes 9:11. The word “time” in Hebrew is eth. Eth can also mean “in its season”.

Psalm 1:3 talks about the blessed man being “like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season”. Deuteronomy 28:12 says, “the Lord will open to you His good treasure, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season, and to bless all the work of your hand. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow.”

Eth is also used for “in the evening”. Under Levitical law, a man who had sores or a bodily discharge was unclean until the evening. I used to wonder why. Then I found out that God had instructed the Israelites to offer two sacrifices, one in the morning and one in the evening. Both times, lambs were offered. (Exodus 29:38–39)

This is interesting because the Bible tells us that Jesus Christ was crucified at the third hour (9am) and that He breathed His last at the ninth hour (3pm). (Mark 15:25; Luke 23:44–46) Thus, He is the Lamb of God who fulfills both the morning and evening sacrifices. So we see that the time of the evening sacrifice is the time of the finished work, the time of grace. Now I understand why a man was unclean until the evening—he was unclean until the evening sacrifice, which speaks of Jesus’ finished work!