Israel & The Assembly

I think it was two/3 weeks ago when I gave the message of El is Israel’s G-d.

In that we went over what/who is Israel, and we broke it down by what Scripture says in Genesis. Now that we are in the portion to which we see Joseph, I find it very important to talk about what we see happening before we get into Moses very shortly.

We get the description of Israel in Gen. as shown below:

1. Israel is Jacob’s new name

2. A nation (Nation of Israel) will come from you

3. An assembly of nations (not Israel) will come from you (Israel).

4. From your loins will come forth kings.

5. The land that I gave to Abraham and to Isaac—I give it to you Israel,

6. The land that I gave to Abraham and to Isaac—I give it to your seed after you, I will give the land (Israel).

This is an incredible thing to see, and this actually makes sense as it give us an order to what will take place prophetically.

The last time we spoke about Israel the person. His name was Jacob, but G-d changed it to Israel which means… struggled with God and prevailed.

The second step is what we will be going over today, and this is because it is quite simple. we see in Gen. in the second part of promise, a nation will come from you. This was the promise to Abraham, Isaac, and to Israel (formerly known as Jacob).

So this blessed man of G-d had twelve children, and who can name all the names of Jacob’s children?

Reuben - Adonai has seen... my affliction

Simeon - For Adonai heard me… that I was hated

Levi - He will join himself to me… because I gave birth to three sons

Judah - I praise Adonai

Dan - G-d has judged my cause, heard my voice, and gave me a son.

Naphtali - I have wrestled and won

Gad - How fortunate

Asher - Daughters have called me Happy

Issachar - G-d gave me my reward

Zebulun - G-d has presented me a good gift, and my husband will finally honor me

Joseph - May Adonai add another son for me

Benjamin (Ben Oni) - Son of my right hand (Son of my trouble/Vigor/Strength)

This is very important, because scripture shows that this was the man (Israel) that G-d had chose to bring about a single nation! This man’s children would grow into a numerous nation that would be difficult to keep count.

In this Parsha Vayigash, Israel is one giant family that has their son Jospeh missing from Israel, but he is ruling over Egypt!

On the other hand, Benjamin is with his brothers, but very much the son of trouble, because though Israel wanted Benjamin home, he had to be with his brothers in order for the family to have food again. In Israel’s mind, Benjamin was also gone, and now you have two sons separated on top of not knowing if your other children are coming back. Ben Oni, why did Rachel have to name that boy Ben Oni.

However, Joseph walked with G-d, and knew it was time to reveal Himself. The very moment that he did, his family was stunned. But check this out, who was the one that stood for Benjamin to say, if Benjamin is trouble, take me instead!! It was Judah!

Having this in mind, Judah not Benjamin would have been separated as Joseph who was the father of Ephraim and Manasseh was separated.

So we see two sons of Israel who are spread out amongst the nations. In fact Ephraim is the son of the prince of Egypt (who is a direct son of Israel), and you have Judah (son of Israel who took the place of his brother)

The reason why I point this out is because in the future of Judah and Ephraim, they would be separated, and Ezekiel speaks of this saying that two sticks will once again be one.

Yisrael would again be separated as Israel was in Genesis, and it happened during the 1900 years between Yeshua’s death & Resurrection and the time Israel was reborn as a state

During the second temple Israel had many internal struggles but was gathered and recieved… Messiah!! Ezekiel 37:23 was fulfilled as it is written… “I will purify them”.

Today, we are seeing the reunification of the children of Israel where Judah and Jospeh are brought and are being brought back together. I have to say this, because this is explicitly written about Israel and his sons. The two sticks is not about Americans, europeans, germans, and it is not about christians or Messianic believers… the two sticks in Ezekiel is explicitly the son’s of Israel. It is about the sons who were separated, but are being brought back together in order to make Israel (Jacob) and Israel (the land) complete again. You cannot have Israel without Judah and you cannot have Israel without Ephraim. The dry bones that were dead in the valley are alive. The state of Israel is reborn. Now Judah and Ephraim are being brought back as we speak! Israel now has to be restored back unto G-d! a few days ago, I read an article which says that many Rabbi’s (more than 25 prominent Rabbi’s) issued a statement calling for a renewed look at Yeshua!

“Yeshua brought a double goodness to the world,”declared the group of well known rabbis. “on the one hand he strengthened the Torah of Moses majestically… and not one of our Sages spoke out more emphatically concerning the immutability of the Torah.” At the same time “he removed idols from the nations.”

Jews, children of Israel (living in and not living in Israel) that were unbelievers are becoming believers in the Messiah who is the the son of David, and many more will come to faith that He is the SON OF G-D!

This is how Ezekial then ends chapter 37:

“THEN THE NATIONS WILL KNOW THAT I AM ADONAI WHO SANCTIFIES ISRAEL, WHEN MY SANCTUARY IS IN THEIR MIDST FOREVER!”

Israel is not the center of attention… Yeshua/G-d is! G-d is the one who is in the midst. Israel is drawn close to G-d as Messiah Yeshua brings about the gift of Shalom! Yeshua has set His Sanctuary within us, and it was because of that that the nations are drawn because of what G-d has done with Israel!

Ezekiel’s prophetic message sets the stage for the time of the gentiles to be fulfilled. Messiah speaks to his disciples telling them, it is time to spread the Besorah (Good news) that the Kingdom of Heaven has come! So Yeshua appoints the twelve who accomplished what they were set to do.

And it is in this that we begin to see an assembly of nations, because G-d is in the midst of Israel!

2. Israel is the nation of Jacob’s twelve sons and their direct lineage. Without Jacob’s sons, there is no Israel. Judah and Joseph had to be unified in order Israel to be as G-d promised so that Messiah would come to bring the dead to life and establish His Shalom gifting us with the Ruach HaKodesh so that that Nations would see that El is Israel’s G-d! It is in this that we will see the nations grab the garment of the Jews as some oh you have here, and begin the great Assembly of nations!

L-rd willing we will talk about the great assembly of nations next week.