When considering the historical interpretation of Scripture, Dwight J. Pentecost, author of Things to Come, includes an excerpt by Louis Berkhof’s Principles of Biblical Interpretation. In that passage, Berkhof warns us to guard carefully against the rather common mistake of transferring the author of Biblical times to the present day and making him speak the language of this century.
Interpretation of Scripture, with all of its prophecy and eschatological inferences is sensitive and challenging business for certain. A correct interpretation of the Bible is possible, but there is no guarantee that we will discover it. Extreme care must be taken, as if we are standing on holy ground, for this is the living, breathing, eternal Word of God.
With several posts, I hope to demonstrate the supernatural resiliency of God’s Chosen People through a broad overview of 19 centuries of persecution. The land of Israel – the Promised Land – is central to the history, the present status, and the future of the Children of Israel. I offer these posts in the hopes that they will be satisfactory in accuracy and thoroughness for a better understanding of the Promised Land for a Chosen People. Most importantly, I pray it will be pleasing to the Everlasting and Merciful God, and to the Lamb.
What is it about the land and why did God choose the Promised Land for His Chosen People? Unique to the Middle East is that it is the only place in the world where three continents come together. It has been called the crossroads of the world, that links Asia, Africa and Europe, making it a very strategic location for commerce and highly desirable for conquest and possession. This also makes it very strategic for information dissemination. There was no better place on earth to start spreading the Good News of Yeshua as right there in the Promised Land (Acts 1:8).
When Joshua entered the Land, it was beautiful and fruitful (Numbers 13:21-24). However, by the time of Jesus, the land was barren and eroded to the level of bedrock. The change in the land, according to many Biblical scholars, was due to the rebellion and sin of Israel which brought about destruction of the land through poor conservation, war, overpopulation and natural disasters.
The result of Israel’s sin had consequences not only on the Promised Land, but also on the Chosen People, the Children of Israel, the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, or today simply referred to as the Jewish people. The treatment which the Jewish people meted out to God, God meted out to them. God was provoked to jealousy. The people turned away from Him to run after fake gods and their ridiculous idols. Throughout this series, it will be evidently clear what happens when we chase after false idols.
Much like today, the Middle East in Ancient times was often in turmoil. The armies of one group after another conquered all or part of the region and then imposed their own way of life on the people they conquered. For example, the Hellenistic influence of the Greek empire had a major influence on the region, which can still be seen today.
These empires, once dominant in the world, no longer exist but their influence in areas such as religion, had a major influence (and repercussions) on the Children of Israel. Unlike these vanished nations, the Jewish people and culture survived and even flourished. They have regained possession of their land, at least in part, and the once thought dead Hebrew language has been revived. How is this possible? The answer is found in the New Covenant. When the disciples asked: Who then can be saved? Jesus, in Matthew 19:26 said: “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” The land belongs to the Jewish nation, regardless of what the Gentile world-powers do, which is why God has never allowed any nation but Israel to get permanent hold of it.
To understand the Land and the Chosen People, it is necessary to understand God’s promises. To quote from the Moody Atlas of Bible Lands: “It is critical to observe the centrality of “land” contained in covenantal promises and eschatological expectations. There is in Scripture, an umbilical cord that ties land to several aspects of theology.”
In essence, the Jewish people are heirs to the promises by God to Abraham given in Genesis 12:1-3: The promises of the seed, the land, and the blessing. God repeated these promises to Abraham’s son, Isaac, and to his grandson, Jacob/Israel. He also repeated them many times and elaborated upon them by giving more information through the prophets. This is an everlasting Covenant because God, who is pledged to its fulfilment, can never fail.
The seed is Messiah. He is a seed that comes out of the ground buried and He is a seed that comes out of a dead man’s lineage. That’s life from the dead. There is resurrection in Jewish history. From the barren wombs of Sarah and Rebekah came life and lineage of Yeshua. Everything in Jewish history points to the Messiah, always a picture of Messiah…. and always pointed ahead.
I will make of thee a great nation… (Genesis 12:2)
A great nation in those times could have been many different things such as military strength or tremendous wealth. What God intended as a great nation, He defined in the Torah: Great in their knowledge of God, great that they had the Scriptures, great in their spiritual leadership.
God takes one nation out of all the others, starting with one man. He makes them a great nation, and deposits His Torah and His plan. Why does God do that? Because the world was not keeping that plan; individuals are not safe with that plan. So the special task was given to Israel.
And what is Israel? It is to be a light to the nations, so again, we get another picture of Messiah. What is Messiah? He’s a light of the world. What is Israel? A light to the world. What is Messiah? A Suffering Servant of God. What is Israel? Servants of God. What is Israel called? Princes/rulers with God. What is Messiah called? The Prince of Peace, Lord of lords, King of kings. Everything that Israel was given as roles, Messiah Jesus fulfills. Israel is a picture of Yeshua. The Jewish People and Yeshua are inseparable.
Thou shall be a blessing…
This is a channel of blessing and with it is this fundamental principle “I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse those who curses you;” (Genesis 12:3). Study of the history of the nations that went against Israel and what happened to them is quite interesting. Consider Germany, Russia, Spain, Poland, and look what occurred after they cursed Israel. And when we took the Jewish people in on our shores in the United States, we were and continue to be blessed. Isn’t that amazing? This principle still holds true whether the Jewish people believe it or not. It only stands to reason then, what will happen to the US if, actually, when, we turn our backs on Israel.
It’s through the Jews that we get Messiah (Matthew 1:1; Luke 3:23), the Bible, and through them, ultimately, that the world will be blessed in the millennium (Zechariah 8:23). They are blessed and God uses them as a blessing. And beyond that, we continue to be blessed daily by the innovations in medicine, technology, agriculture and other advances that come out of amazing Israel.
Although the land is mentioned first in these promises, it is addressed here last to emphasize an important point. There is one thing that guides the Jewish history and that is to get out of your country and separate. That’s sanctification, the basic premise that God had for Israel, to separate from all the other nations. And it all began with a pagan gentile, Abram (later Abraham), who became the first Hebrew. And what does the word Hebrew mean? One who has crossed over. Amazing.
What is striking in Genesis 12:1-3 is all of the “ “I wills.” Notice all the “I’s” there. It’s all done by God! Abraham has nothing to do with this Covenant that’s being made because it is unconditional. He believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness (Romans 4:3; Galatians 3:6; James 2:23). Salvation has always been about faith. Abraham’s time preceded the giving of the law by God to Moses. All of this comes about by the will and the power of God and that’s sets the basis of Jewish history. How heart-saddening that most Jewish people today do not know this; they do not know their own Scriptures.
In 1948, the Jewish people went into Israel as Zionists to settle it by their own sweat through their own effort. What they didn’t realize, is that they were there in that land because of God’s plan and promises. On the outset, the current Jewish inhabitance of part of the land promised by God may not seem impressive. Yet God works in pictures. To quote again from The Moody Atlas, it states: “There was…an inextricable and vital interconnection between landlessness and hopelessness…the whole notion of “land, and more important, being in possession of it, that become at once a powerful medium to display God’s mighty acts and through which His promises might be realized by Israel.” It goes on to state: “Monarchic, Messianic, and eschatological expectation cannot be dissociated from, and often find their context precisely within, the concept of “land.”“
In this unconditional covenant of free grace which God made with the Jewish Patriarchs, includes many exceedingly great promises. The greatest of all these promises is the Messiah and the Gospel. The Apostle Paul reminds us, “And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand unto Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.”” But to Israel, nationally, there was one outstanding promise confirmed by oath declared in Psalm 105, verse 11, Saying, “To you will I give the land of Canaan, as the allotment of your inheritance.”
The Bible is impeccably clear that God intended for Israel to possess the land of Canaan. He provides numerous verses from the book of Genesis to demonstrate that the Land was an everlasting gift to Israel. Yet, because Israel chose to live like the world in defiance of God, He drove them out of the land. God has been chastising His Chosen people and will continue to do so until they are ready to recognize Yeshua as Messiah, and fulfill their calling to be a light to the nations. This is not to the glory of the Jewish people, but to the glory of God…for His name’s sake. When we look back at the history of the Jewish people we have to keep one key thing in mind, the very survival of the Jewish people is nothing short of miraculous.
The existence of the Jewish people in the State of Israel stands in testimony to the existence of God who acts in history. By any historical measure, the Jewish people should have disappeared long ago. A spot on quote by David Ben Gurion, the first Prime Minister of the State of Israel, sums this up beautifully: “A Jew who does not believe in miracles is not a realist.” Why would he say that? Because miracles are the only possible explanation for the existence of the Jewish people. God linked His promise not to destroy the nation of Israel with His promises not to fail Israel or forget the Abrahamic Covenant which He swore to Israel’s ancestors. This implies that the Abrahamic Covenant guarantees Israel’s permanent existence as a nation. Regardless of their sin and rebellion, Scripture (Jeremiah 30:11, 46:27-28, Amos 9:8, Romans 11: 28) exhorts that God will chastise for their disobedience, but will not utterly destroy them.
Lord willing, future posts will highlight some of the major events in Jewish history, starting with the destruction of the second Temple in 70 AD up through the historic date of May 14, 1948 and beyond. There may be a slight interruption in this series since Hanukkah is right around the corner. Although this is not a festival instituted by God, it celebrates God’s deliverance of the Jewish people from a Syrian tyrant. Hanukkah is one of the many examples of the promises of Genesis 12:1-3 in action so we will likely dedicate two posts to this incredible historic series of events that led to its celebration.
Blessings to you! Please keep praying for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6-9).
What a wonderful explanatory read brought better understanding