The concept of ‘arise’ in scripture speaks to a call to action for certain individuals, whether a physical rising or a spiritual awakening to accomplish a task.
In a biblical context, the meaning of ‘arise’ from the Hebrew root (06965 םוּק quwm koom) includes: to stand up, to rise, to fulfil or confirm, to ratify, to establish, or impose; to raise or elevate oneself; to set up, erect, or build; to bring into view; to make binding; and to carry out or give effect to.
Who Asks us or Activates us to Arise?
God is the one who initiates the call and commands us to awaken and activate our inner man to arise and fulfill His plan and purpose. Examples include Jacob (see Gen. 35:1), instructing the children of Israel (see Deut. 2:13; 24), and God calling and commissioning Joshua (see Jos. 1:2). People also call upon God to arise, as seen in the Psalms of David and Solomon (see 2 Chr. 6:12). Also, individuals call one another to rise and act, such as Deborah calling Barak (see Judg. 5:12) and David calling his servants (see 2 Sam. 15:14).
We are Called to Arise to What?
A. Arise to plans: To arise in the sense of setting and achieving a goal. For example, the children of Israel will have evil thoughts arise in their minds, leading them to form an evil plan (see Ezekiel 38:10–11).
B. Arise to a position: To arise to a position or enter upon an office. For example, Prophet Isaiah, speaking of Jesus, is quoted in Romans 15:7 as saying that the root of Jesse, the Son of David, shall arise to reign over the Gentiles (see Romans 15:12).
C. Arise in power: To arise in the sense of rising into the power of authority. For example, Balaam’s fourth prophecy about Israel is that a sceptre (a symbol of authority) shall arise out of there (see Numbers 24:17). Through the Lord’s light, when you fall and sit in darkness, empower us to arise (see Micah 7:8).
D. Arise to possess: To arise in the sense of taking hold, of taking ownership of something. For example, God instructed Abram to arise and walk through the land He promised to him and his descendants to possess (see Genesis 13:17). The psalmist David reiterates that God commanded the fathers to pass on God’s law to their children, and that their children, who will also be born, will arise and proclaim it to their children (see Psalms 78:5–6).
E. Arise from problems: To arise for the purpose of finding safety and security. For example, David instructed his servants to arise from Jerusalem and flee to escape his son Absalom’s rebellion (see 2 Samuel 15:14). Elisha instructed the Shunammite woman and her household to arise and go wherever they could because of a famine that would last seven years, sent by the Lord (see 2 Kings 8:1). Creditors will awaken and rise up suddenly to oppress (see Habakkuk 2:7). The angels of the Lord instructed Lot and his family to arise and leave Sodom and Gomorrah to avoid being consumed in the city’s punishment (see Genesis 19:15). Joseph, the custodian of baby Jesus, was instructed by an angel of the Lord in a dream to arise and take the young Child and his mother to escape Herod’s plan to destroy the child (see Matthew 2:13).
F. Arise into your purpose: To arise in the sense of to fulfil. For example, after Moses’ death, God called and commissioned Joshua to arise and cross the Jordan with him and the rest of the people into the promised land (see Joshua 1:2). A song of Deborah in which Deborah urged herself to be awake and told Barak to arise to lead the captives away (see Judge 5:12). The angel of the Lord directed the apostle Philip to get up and meet an Ethiopian man to share the message with him (see Acts 8:26–27).
G. Arise into presence: To arise means to come on the scene, to appear, and to become visible. For example, the Gentiles will bless Zion because God’s people will arise and shine, and their light has come because the glory of the Lord has risen upon them (see Isaiah 60:1). Jesus is the Sun of Righteousness who shall arise for those who fear God’s name (see Malachi 4:2). A warning about the dreamer of dreams will arise among God’s people (see Deuteronomy 13:1). Jesus warned us that during the end times and last days, many false prophets and deceivers will arise to deceive many (see Matthew 24:11)
Now, let’s see how to apply and combine these areas to arise, and for what purpose to arise. To arise to pursue and pray, in the sense of seeking and calling on God. For example, the remnant of Israel will arise and go to Zion to the Lord their God (see Jeremiah 31:6). During God’s anger with Jerusalem, which caused hunger in the land, God called his people to arise in a sense of to cry out, and pour out their hearts before the face of the Lord (see Lamentations 2:19). God urged the children of Israel to arise and plead their case before the mountains, and to let the hills hear their voice (see Micah 6:1). Arise to possess and to prevail, in the sense of arising in a hostile sense to prevail over one’s enemies, to become powerful. For example, God instructed the children of Israel during their desert years to rise up and cross over to possess nations and to engage in battle to prevail (see Deuteronomy 2:13; 2:24). Arise to possess and to perform, in the sense that to arise means to carry out or give effect to. For example, God told Jacob to arise and return to Bethel and dwell there. Jacob and his family obeyed, and there he built an altar to God who had been there for him (see Genesis 35:1; 35:2–3). Arise in position and power, for example, a new king arose to power in Egypt who neither remembered nor recognized Joseph, his position in Egypt, nor the role he played in saving Egypt (see Exodus 1:8). Arise in position, power, purpose, to prevail, for example, a song of Deborah in which Deborah urged herself to be awake and told Barak to arise to lead the captives away (see Judges 5:12). The Lord commanded Gideon to arise against the enemies of God’s people, as God had given them into his hands (see Judges 7:9). Mordecai informed Esther that if she remains silent and does not use her position and power at this time, when God’s people are about to be annihilated, deliverance and relief will arise for the Jews from another place, and Esther and her father’s house will perish (see Esther 4:14).
Summary
Arise, O Lord God
In Solomon’s prayer of dedication for the temple, he asked God to arise and take His place of rest, along with the ark of His strength (see 2 Chronicles 6:41, Psalms 132:8). In David’s psalms of prayer to the Lord, he calls and cries for the Lord to arise for the following reasons:
- To save me — Psalms 3:7
- For judgment (arise in Your anger) — Psalms 7:6
- To lift up Your hand — Psalms 10:12
- To confront and cast down the wicked — Psalms 17:13
- To deliver the life of the psalmist from the wicked (arise with Your sword) — Psalms 17:13
- To stand up for my help — Psalms 17:13
- To judge the earth — Psalms 82:8
- To let His enemies be scattered — Psalms 68:1
- To let those who hate God flee before Him — Psalms 68:1
The Lord Himself will arise to do the following:
- To set the poor and needy in the safety for which they yearn, free from their oppression — Psalms 12:5
- To be exalted and lift Himself up — Isaiah 33:10
Contributor: Wisdom Grace
