Israel, Current Events, and Eschatology

Their History In the Old Testament

Really we are endeavouring to answer two questions, (1) Who is Israel?, (2) What is their significant to us, as the church?

Who Is Israel?

There are three biblical terms associated with who we call the nation of Israel today. They are:

Hebrews

Israel

Jews

I have listed these in successive order according to their historical and national significance.

These terms are discovered in the Bible in this order as well.

In other words, the very first term used in the Bible that describes this special people-group is the term Hebrew.

The first occurence is discovered in Genesis 14:13 in reference to Abram.

‘Hebrew’ in the OT

When begin in the book of Genesis, with the account of creation, God shows us to different lines of people. One is considered the godly line. One is considered the sinful or worldly line.

These two lines are contrasted right from the beginning with Cain and Able.

As we move past the great catastrophic worldwide flood, we are given the tables of nations that come from the sons of Noah. It is in connection with these genealogies that we are introduced the lines that will result in that Father of faith Abraham.

With that being said, we would first understand that the term Hebrew is derived from the name of Eber.

Eber is found in the Bible in the line of Shem.

Genesis 10:21 “21 Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born.”

Genesis 11:10 “10 These are the generations of Shem: Shem was an hundred years old, and begat Arphaxad two years after the flood:”

As this line continues the Bible shows us that Abram is the descendent of Shem of the “children of Eber.”

This gives us understanding of the term Semitic or the recently often term ‘anti-Semitism’ (In Luke 3:36, Shem is spelled as Sem which is a transliteration from the Greek. Shem become Sem in LXX) .

Although you will see many articles on this dealing with language only, it in fact deals with their posterity from Shem.

In saying that we would understand then that Semites or we might say Shemites are a much larger group of people.

“The Elamites, Assyrians, Lydians, Arameans, and several Arab tribes were known to be descendants of Shem. A number of these people groups spoke related languages in ancient times. These are the Semites.” - Gotquestion.org

“

The line whom we are concerned with, focuses on Eber.

Eber by the way means ‘one who is from beyond’, ‘from a foreign land’.

Perhaps this is why we find the early reference to ‘Abram the Hebrew’ --- from beyond.

Genesis 11:16 “16 And Eber lived four and thirty years, and begat Peleg:”

Genesis 11:25–26 “25 And Nahor lived after he begat Terah an hundred and nineteen years, and begat sons and daughters. 26 And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran.”

In Genesis Chapter 14, we find the first mention of the word ‘Hebrew’ in verse 13, this is in reference to Abraham.

Genesis 14:13 “13 And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew; for he dwelt in the plain of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner: and these were confederate with Abram.”

Most of the Old Testament references come from Gentiles speaking about who we would call the children of Israel. (Please do note that in a technical sense it is anachronism [any error in chronology, by which events are misplaced] to speak of the Israelites before Jacob’s posterity.)

Here is one reference where Gentiles use the term.

Genesis 39 gives us the account of when Potiphar’s wife accused Joseph of immorality.

Genesis 39:14 “14 That she called unto the men of her house, and spake unto them, saying, See, he hath brought in an Hebrew unto us to mock us; he came in unto me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice:”

In your notes is a list of all the Old Testament references:

Genesis 14:13, 39:14, 17, 40:15, 41:12, 43:32

Exodus 1:15-16, 19, 2:6-7,11, 3:18, 5:3, 7:16, 9:1,13, 10:3, 21:2

Deuteronomy 15:12

I Samuel 4:6,9, 13:3,7,19, 14:11,21, 29:3

Jeremiah 34:9, 14

Jonah 1:9

‘Hebrew’ in the NT

In the NT, many of the references for the word ‘Hebrew’ speak of the language (Hebrew). This is perhaps why modern day secular scholars tend to refer to Semites as purely language rather than referring to the biblical connection of genealogies.

When the word is found in the singular (‘Hebrew’) it is referring to the language — with the exception of Philippians 3:5 where Paul states he is a ‘Hebrew of Hebrews.’

When it is found in the plural, it is referring to the nationality.

Luke 23:38 (which also has the term Jew in the same verse.)

John 5:2, 19:13,17,20

Acts 6:1, 21:40, 22:2, 26:14

II Corinthians 11:22

Philippians 3:5

Revelation 9:11, 16:16

The most prominent reference in the Bible to this special God-chosen people is the second term which is ‘Israel.’

The terms Israel and Israelite are referenced more than any other term for this chosen people used in the Bible. (2576 matches - Israel)

The term ‘Israel’ has direct reference to Jacob who was named by God ‘Israel.’

And because of this, just like the prophetic utterance of Noah concerning His sons and their line, Israel’s prophetic utterance is very important. (Genesis 48-49).

Israel is the nation of people that come from the line of Abraham -> Isaac -> Jacob (who God renamed Israel. Genesis 32:28) The reference in Genesis 32 (verse 28) concerning Jacob is the first occurence of the term/name Israel.

Names are significant. And as we will see, the name Israel and its occurrence in the Word of God stresses the significance of this nation in God’s plan and in relation to the church.

Israel as defined by God’s Word means ‘Prince with God.’

It is a compound of two words ‘power as a prince’ (שׂרה - śârâh) and ‘God.’ (אֵל - el)

The nation itself was divided into 12 tribes whose heads were the twelve sons of Jacob.

“The term “Israel.”...As a title/name given to Jacob, meaning it has commonly been used to designate the physical descendants of Jacob.”

This is important. Usage of terms in the Bible may progress in their meaning or have added meaning, but they do not suddenly change meanings.

Murder is murder. Sin is sin, and Israel is God’s special nation of people. They are the descendents of the one who God called Israel.

In the book of Genesis, the vast majority of the references have to do with Jacob directly.

However, toward the end Genesis the usage of the word indicates Jacob’s sons, termed the ‘tribes of Israel’ or the ‘children of Israel.’

When we get into the opening chapters of Exodus, this is the name in which the people are referenced.

Significantly, God calls them the children of Israel in Exodus 3:14 in connection with His eternal name I AM.

In Exodus 4:22 God tells Moses to call Israel His son, this of course was to show the contrast between the ‘Pharaohs’ who were attributed to sons of deity (i.e. Son of Ra.)

As Exodus progresses, there are a couple of references where the phrase ‘children of’ is dropped and Israel becomes the term to communicate the nation as a whole. (Exodus 4:22, 5:1,2,12:15,14:25, 30,31,15:22,17:11,18:1,8,9,25,19:2, 24:10, 32:4, 8,27,34:23,27)

As a side note, I want you to understand that the Bible hold, is a Jewish Bible…meaning

Old Testament - All 39 - Penned by Jews.

New Testament - 25 of 27 - Penned by Jews.

Why is there such importance placed on Israel?

Because God placed an importance on Israel.

The covenant God made with Abraham.

Genesis 12:1–3 “1 Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: 2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: 3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”

Genesis 15 gives the unconditional nature of the covenant.

Genesis 12:

“...a land that I will shew thee...” vs. 1

“...I will make of thee a great nation...”

“...I will bless thee...”

“...I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee...”

“...in thee shall families of the earth be blessed.”

This covenant with Abraham was confirmed to Abraham.

Genesis 13:15 “15 For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.”

Genesis 13:16 “16 And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.”

Genesis 15:

Abraham’s seed should be as the stars of heaven in number. vs. 5

Abraham was given land to be possessed. vs. 7

Abraham was given the timing of His seed’s captivity and their exodus. vs 13-14

Abraham was given the broad boarders of the land. vs 18 (See Map)

Genesis 17:8 “8 And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”

Genesis 26:3 The LORD speaking to Isaac “3 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father;”

Genesis 26:24 “24 And the Lord appeared unto him the same night, and said, I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham’s sake.”

Promises were personal, national, and universal.

Abraham’s name is great in Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. - His name is great.

“Fundamental to the Abrahamic promises is the possession of a particular land”

“Now until Israel possesses that land for themselves as a homeland, the promises that God made to Abraham have not been fulfilled. They are not fulfilled today. Israel only possesses a little land of about twelve thousand square miles or so, and she has been promised a land of three hundred thousand square miles, so there is a great difference between the Israel that we see today and the Israel that God has promised to Israel.”

Galatians 3:16 “16 Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.”

Galatians 3:28–29 “28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”

“Abraham was of the stock of Shem and now he is made the depository of the promises of God.”

Isaiah 51:1–2 “1 Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the Lord: Look unto the rock whence ye are hewn, And to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged. 2 Look unto Abraham your father, And unto Sarah that bare you: For I called him alone, And blessed him, and increased him.”

Revelation 12:1–3 “1 And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars: 2 And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered. 3 And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.”

Isaiah 43:11–12 “11 I, even I, am the Lord; And beside me there is no saviour. 12 I have declared, and have saved, and I have shewed, When there was no strange god among you: Therefore ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord, that I am God.”

Isaiah 43:21 “21 This people have I formed for myself; They shall shew forth my praise.”

The covenant God made with David.

The northern exile - Assyria II Kings 17; Reuben Ephraim, Simeon, Gad, Mannaseh, Asher, Dan, Issachar, Zebulon, Naphtali

The southern exile - Babylon II Chronicles 36 Judah, Benjamin, Levi

Ezra 1 - The scattered tribes are once again called Israel.

Ezekiels Vision of the restoration of Israel

Ezekiel 48:1–9 “1 Now these are the names of the tribes. From the north end to the coast of the way of Hethlon, as one goeth to Hamath, Hazar-enan, the border of Damascus northward, to the coast of Hamath; for these are his sides east and west; a portion for Dan. 2 And by the border of Dan, from the east side unto the west side, a portion for Asher. 3 And by the border of Asher, from the east side even unto the west side, a portion for Naphtali. 4 And by the border of Naphtali, from the east side unto the west side, a portion for Manasseh. 5 And by the border of Manasseh, from the east side unto the west side, a portion for Ephraim. 6 And by the border of Ephraim, from the east side even unto the west side, a portion for Reuben. 7 And by the border of Reuben, from the east side unto the west side, a portion for Judah. 8 And by the border of Judah, from the east side unto the west side, shall be the offering which ye shall offer of five and twenty thousand reeds in breadth, and in length as one of the other parts, from the east side unto the west side: and the sanctuary shall be in the midst of it. 9 The oblation that ye shall offer unto the Lord shall be of five and twenty thousand in length, and of ten thousand in breadth.”

Genesis 14:13 “13 And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew; for he dwelt in the plain of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner: and these were confederate with Abram.”

The term Jew is derived from the Judah, the Southern Kingdom, but would be synonymous with the term Israel. (Esther 2:5-6)

When we come to New Testament times, we see that term “Jew” is used synonymously with the term Israelite.

“After the Babylonian exile, “Jew” replaced “Israelite” as the most widely-used term for these survivers. This was because, by that time, virtually all Israelites were descendants of the kingdom of Judah. Also, the Jewish religion was known as Judaism.After Jerusalem was rebuilt, Judea was ruled by the Greeks, Egyptians, Syrians and Romans. Although the terms “Hebrew” and “Israelite” continued in use into the New Testament period (Rom 9:4; 2 Cor 11:22; Phil 3:5), by then the term “Jew” was more commonly used. At His death, the Romans referred to Jesus as the “king of the Jews” (Mt 27:37). Hebrew is the culture, Israelite is the race, and Jew is the religion.”

Romans 11:1 “1 I say then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.”

Romans 11:25–29 “25 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. 26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: 27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. 28 As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sakes.”

Romans 11:29 “29 For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.”

Israel has been blinded until the fulness of the Gentiles has come in.

Clearly from this passage it will be noted that this is for a period of time.

The purpose for this instruction is so we would not be ignorant.

Ezekiel 37 - The prophecy of the dry bones, speaks to the return of Israel back to their land.

We have witnessed this in our lifetime. But there is still portions of that passage to be filled.

This took place in May 14, 1948, when Israel was recognized by the world as a nation.

Yet to be fulfilled is what is given in verses 26-28 in Ezekiel chapter 37.

“The Arabian nations promised to “drench the soil with Jewish blood” if this recognition were to be acknowledged by the world. The day after recognition, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq invaded Israel with all their fury. Against insurmountable odds, a nation less than a week old was able to regroup and defend itself. Not only did they drive these nations out of their territories, but they also gained new territory including Jerusalem. After utterly defeating the invaders, the Israeli army isolated the Egyptian army and were in route to the capitol of Egypt to overthrow it. Under the pressure of the Soviet Union, the UN declared a cease-fire in order to end the conflict and protect the 5 attacking nations. Though costly, Israel gained much of its ancient territory by victory over the invading countries.”

“Under another attack, Syria launched an attack and sent 1000 planes into Israeli airspace. None returned and Israel regained Jerusalem and more of its ancient territories. Each time Israel has been attacked, it has benefited territorially. This is Israel after the 1967 war cease-fire. If history does not persuade us that God has a plan for Israel, the scriptures should. Hatred against the reborn Israel has been prophesied long ago.”

Ezekiel 38 speaks to a powerful coalition of nations that will assault Israel in the latter days, they are

Rosh - which is the region of Russia.

Meshech - is Western Russian.

Tubal - is Siberia.

Iraq and Iran - is Persia.

Ethiopia and Lybia.

Gomer - region surrounding Germany.

Togarmah - Turkey

Zechariah 14 speaks about the Lord’s return and the fact that He will defend Israel in that day.

This is found described also in Revelation 14.

Revelation describes a 200 million man army to invade Israel from the east. China boasts of a 200 million man army.

Zechariah’s description of the flesh dissolving off their bodies before they can fall to the ground sounds very much like a nuclear blast. However, God is not limited to man-made devices. This very well could be nuclear warfare or a natural event such as the Great Siberian Explosion in Tunguska which occurred in 1908. Before man discovered how to split the atom, an unexplained fireball streaked across the sky and exploded just before hitting the ground. Based on the damage, it is estimated to have been 40 kilotons. This is 2,000 times more powerful than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima in World War 2. The radius destroyed by the blast was roughly half the size of Rhode Island. Trees just below the explosion were stripped and scorched. The trees in a 1300 square mile radius were scorched, stripped and knocked flat. The description in Zechariah could be a nuclear blast, a meteorite or the power of God unveiled without natural explanation.

“As long as Israel’s back is to God, they cannot see the grace He has for them. After God has judged the sin of Israel, He has promised to remove the sins of the remnant.”

Zephaniah 3:11–17 “11 In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings, Wherein thou hast transgressed against me: For then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that rejoice in thy pride, And thou shalt no more be haughty because of my holy mountain. 12 I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, And they shall trust in the name of the Lord. 13 The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; Neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth: For they shall feed and lie down, and none shall make them afraid. 14 Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; Be glad and rejoice with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. 15 The Lord hath taken away thy judgments, he hath cast out thine enemy: The king of Israel, even the Lord, is in the midst of thee: Thou shalt not see evil any more. 16 In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not: And to Zion, Let not thine hands be slack. 17 The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; He will s…”

Isaiah 45:21–25 “21 Tell ye, and bring them near; Yea, let them take counsel together: Who hath declared this from ancient time? who hath told it from that time? Have not I the Lord? and there is no God else beside me; A just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me. 22 Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: For I am God, and there is none else. 23 I have sworn by myself, The word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, Every tongue shall swear. 24 Surely, shall one say, in the Lord have I righteousness and strength: Even to him shall men come; And all that are incensed against him shall be ashamed. 25 In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory.”

Zechariah 2:7–13 “7 Deliver thyself, O Zion, that dwellest with the daughter of Babylon. 8 For thus saith the Lord of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: For he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye. 9 For, behold, I will shake mine hand upon them, And they shall be a spoil to their servants: And ye shall know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me. 10 Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: For, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the Lord. 11 And many nations shall be joined to the Lord in that day, And shall be my people: And I will dwell in the midst of thee, And thou shalt know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto thee. 12 And the Lord shall inherit Judah his portion in the holy land, And shall choose Jerusalem again. 13 Be silent, O all flesh, before the Lord: For he is raised up out of his holy habitation.”