God will YET choose Israel ... In light of somethig I just read in another topic

by Bella15 8 Replies latest watchtower bible

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  Bella15

  Sharing ...

  God will yet choose Israel

  Isaiah 14:1 says, "For the LORD will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land: and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob."

  Many denominations hold to the view that God has forsaken the nation of Israel forever. They feel that because Israel crucified their Messiah, Jesus Christ, that God has taken away the promises He made to Israel, and has applied those promises to the present day predominantly Gentile church. However, we must not put "what we feel" above what God's Word actually says. In this article, we will examine the following three statements:

  1. God made an unconditional everlasting covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

  2. According to Bible prophecy, Israel will be back in their own land and will be the central focus in the end times.

  3. God revealed the mystery of Israel's temporary fall to the Apostle Paul.

  God's Unconditional Everlasting Covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob

  God made unconditional promises to Abraham (originally named Abram) that were not dependent upon any action of Abraham or his descendants. In Genesis 12:3, God told Abram, "... I will bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed." At that time, Abram was 75 years old, and he and his wife, Sarai (later named Sarah), had no children.

  Abram was also promised a vast amount of land in Genesis 15:18, "... the LORD (Jehovah) made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates ...." This includes the land where Israel now exists plus a considerable amount of additional middle eastern land.

  After more than ten years had passed, Abram and Sarai were still childless. They were growing impatient, and their faith that God would fulfill His promise was weak. So Sarai convinced Abram to have a son by her handmaid, Hagar, and they named the boy Ishmael.

  Then about 14 years later, God appeared to Abram. The "everlasting covenant" (Genesis 17:7) is for Abraham and his seed after him: "... all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession ..." (Genesis 17:8). The covenant was later passed down to Isaac. Genesis 17:18-21 says, "And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee! And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year." So God's covenant with Abraham passed on to Isaac, but not to Ishmael.

  Isaac was the child of God's promise, but Ishmael had been born as a result of Abram and Sarai's lack of faith. So in the eyes of God, Abraham only had one son. We know this because God told Abraham in Genesis 22:2, "... Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt-offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of." Ultimately God spared Isaac's life, but Abraham passed this test of faith by trusting God and being willing to do as He said.

  This covenant was once again confirmed to Isaac in Genesis 26:3-4, "... 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; And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed ...."

  When Isaac blessed Jacob in Genesis 27:29 he said, "... cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee."

  God also confirmed His covenant to Jacob in Genesis 28:13-15 saying, "... I am the LORD (Jehovah) God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again unto this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of." God confirmed His covenant with Jacob again in Genesis 35:11-12.

  Israel will be the Focus of the End Times

  Another reason that we know that God has not forsaken Israel forever is the prominence Israel has in the end time prophecies which are yet to be fulfilled. The Old Testament is rich with prophecies of end time events. All of the prophecies and visions were given to Hebrew prophets, and most of the events take place in, or are centered around the nation of Israel. Here are four examples:

  1. The abomination of desolation will take place in the temple which will be rebuilt in Jerusalem (Daniel 9:27 and Matthew 24:15).

  2. The battle of Armageddon will take place in the Valley of Megiddo in Israel, where all nations will come to fight against Jerusalem (Zechariah 12:2-3 and Revelation 16:13-16).

  3. When Jesus Christ returns to the earth, He will come down to the Mount of Olives, just east of Jerusalem (Zechariah 14:4 and Acts 1:9-11).

  4. In the millenial kingdom, all nations will be required to come to Jerusalem to worship Jesus Christ the King and to keep the feast of tabernacles (Zechariah 14:16).

  There are also end time prophecies recorded in the New Testament which show the prominence of Israel. Here are four examples:

  1. In the book of Revelation, our Lord Jesus Christ confirmed through the Apostle John that during the tribulation, 12,000 young men will be chosen from each of the 12 tribes of Israel (Revelation 7:4-8).

  2. The division between the people of Israel and the Gentiles is quite evident in Revelation 11:1-2 which says, "And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein. But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles ...." Under the law of Moses, Gentiles were not permitted inside the temple. This passage reveals that this will once again be the case during the future seventieth week of Daniel's prophecy, which is commonly referred to as the tribulation.

  3. Chapter 12 of Revelation tells how the remnant of Israel will be chased into the wilderness by Satan and his armies where they must remain protected by God for the final three and a half years, commonly referred to as the great tribulation (Revelation 12:6 and 17).

  4. Finally, Revelation 21:12 says the new Jerusalem will have "... a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel ...."

  We know from the scriptures and from history that many prophecies about Israel have already been fulfilled, and that God, sooner or later, always fulfills His prophecies. In addition to the prophecies above, there are many other great prophecies about the prominence of Israel that have never been fulfilled. So this can only mean that they are yet going to take place. Zechariah 8:22-23 says, "Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord ... In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you."

  The Mystery of Israel's Temporary Fall

  Perhaps the greatest reason that we know that God will one day bring the nation of Israel back into prominence is provided by our apostle Paul in Romans chapter 11. He explains God's plan "to provoke them (Israel) to jealousy" (v.11), adding "... if the fall of them be the riches of the world ... how much more their fulness?" (Romans 11:12). Through the temporary setting aside of Israel, God brought salvation to the Gentiles. But when Israel is returned to that place of prominence in fulfillment of the Bible prophecies, even more Gentiles will be saved as a result.

  Paul reveals the mystery of Israel's temporary blindness in Romans 11:25-29 "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. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion a Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob(the unbelieving portion of Israel): For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching election, they are beloved for the fathers' (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob) sakes. For the gifts of God are without repentance." When God made His promises to the nation of Israel, He already knew all the wrong that they would do, including crucifying their Messiah, but He still did not add any conditions to the promises. Despite all of this, God will still fulfill all of the promises which He made to the nation of Israel in both the Old and New Testaments. The Almighty God is a God of His Word.
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  Larsinger58

  "Israel" can be figurative, sometimes applying to natural Israel and sometimes to spiritual Israel. I offer this as context to the atove.

  God promised Abraham he would make through him a kingdom of priests. This is represented by a tree. But due to disobedience, this tree was chopped down and a tenth left remaining in it, that would remain the root. (Isaiah 6:13) Thus due to disobedience and in connection with what was stated above, this stumble allowed for the gentiles to participate in the kingdom. The gentiles thus replace 90% of what was taken away but not the sacret root, 1/10th.

  Isaiah 6:13 " 13 And there will still be in it a tenth, and it must again become something for burning down, like a big tree and like a massive tree in which, when there is a cutting down [of them], there is a stump; a holy seed will be the stump of it.”

  So when speaking of "choosing Israel" and fulfilling the covenant, it would be in regard to this remnant of 1/10th. This 1/10th, the 144,000 (12K from each tribe) would join the gentiles under the Christian covenant and then become one. This occurs after 1996, when the Abrahamic covenants cease.

  If you note Daniel 9, it states that the covenant would remain in force for the "many" until the end of the week. When the Bible refers to "the many" (Daniel 9:27) or "the greater number" (Matthew 24:12) it is a reference to fleshly Israel vs. the chosen temple sect under the Christian covenant, which are Jehovah's witnesses.

  Daniel 9:27 "And he must keep the covenant in force for the many for one week"

  This, of course, means that after one week the covenant would end. That week was the final 70th week for the Jews, a jubilee week of 49 years from 1947 to 1996. After 1996 the covenant ends but lives on in fulfillment through spiritual Israel, which is made up of 10% Jews of 144,000 and 90% gentiles of 1,296,000 for a total number of kingdom king-priests of 1,440,000.

  So again, when the Bible refers to Jehovah yet choosing Israel, it could apply to that remnant of 144,000 prior to 1996 or to the entire body of spiritual Israel post 1996, which includes 144,000 Israelites.

  The technical fulfillment of this reflects a prophecy found at Isaiah 60:22 where it says: " 22 The little one himself will become a thousand, and the small one a mighty nation. I myself, Jehovah, shall speed it up in its own time.”

  This addresses the elephant in the room question, which is, how will 12,000 from each tribe be chosen during the end times when the nation of 12 triges do not exist any more? The answer is that they will! This is done by a miracle though. That miracle is that some from each tribe who could prove their lineage during Jesus day, individuals, would be chosen to re-create the entire 12 tribes of israel during the end times. That is, some would not die but be chosen to live throgh the centuries until a suitable time prior to the 2nd coming. These individuals would marry into various indigenous peoples and by the time of the sealing of the 144,000 the descendants would number into the millions and will have recreated the 12 tribes of Israel. When it notes Jehovah will "speed it up in its own time" is a reference to larger families, especially in the earliest generations. So even if a single person was chosen and they had a family of say 18 children and the next generation likewise had large families of 10-18 children, then you can see how in just a few hundred years the descendants would number into the millions. In this way, the 12 tribes of Israel are now in existence and restored through the "little one" or the "small one", meaning individuals of no special greatness chosen to survive down to the time of the second coming and re-start the 12 tribes of israel.

  So that's how it works. 10% or 144,000 are sealed out of the newly constituted 12 tribes of Israel now in existence, and the other 90% are sealed out of the gentiles, totaling kingdom seats of 1,440,000, who constitute spiritual Israel. This fulfills the Abrahamic covenant.

  But the natural Jews themselves see an end of the covenant after the 70th jubilee week of 1947-1996. We did see the fulfilliment of their restoration after the "great tribulation", which was the Holocaust. The promised was to bless that nation after God's anger against them rested, which destroyed 2/3rds of the natural Jews during the Holocaust (six million out of nine million). This ratio was prophesied at Zech 13:8, which also promises to restore and recognize the remnant coming out of the Holocaust as God's chosen people:

  ZECH 13: 8 “And it must occur in all the land,” is the utterance of Jehovah, “[that] two parts in it are what will be cut off [and] expire; and as for the third [part], it will be left remaining in it. 9 And I shall certainly bring the third [part] through the fire; and I shall actually refine them as in the refining of silver, and examine them as in the examining of gold. It, for its part, will call upon my name, and I, for my part, will answer it. I will say, ‘It is my people,’ and it, in its turn, will say, ‘Jehovah is my God.’”

  So, within the context of the natural Jews celebrating their restoration during the 70th jubilee of 1947-1996, a covenant "week" that ends in 1996, and 144,000 being the remnant root of spiritual Israel, 90% of which are gentiles, all prophecies about God choosing Israel can be seen to be fulfilled, especially post 1947 and post 1996.

  It's complex, but it is being fulfilled.

  Thanks for posting this topic!

  LS
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  EndofMysteries

  Bella - For quite some time I had been researching on Israel itself being restored, even Russell taught that, then less then 5 years before Israel was restored as a nation (which from those and other scriptures he thought was going to happen) the teaching was discontinued by JW's and said it was all just symbolic.

  The angle I'm looking into now, is those prophecies about God taking back Israel, also seem to match up with some in OT and NT which claim someone else is doing those things.....
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  designs

  'We never Lost It'
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  Shanagirl

  So are you talking about "Yaheweh" the god of Abraham? The god of Israel, Christianity, and Islam? Yahweh, Jehovah , Allah?

  Shana
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  EndofMysteries

  Bella15 - another thing to look into......compare the 1,000 year reign and Satan's release when Gog and Magog surround the camp of the holy ones mentioned in Revelation with Ezekiel 38/39 (I believe thats it, 2 whole chapters about the battle of gog and magog). Notice the additional information Ezekiel gives on this.
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  Larsinger58

  Gog of Magog is white supremacist decentant of Japheth. Ezekiel deals with the "great tribulation" wherein Jehovah himself renews his anger over Israel's disobedience and brings Gog in to desolate "Judea", meaning where the Jews had resettled in exile. So "Judea" is symbolic of Eastern Europe for the most part, and anti-typical "Jerusalem" is Warsaw, Poland. That is the setting for this attack. Whatever entity thus desolates "Judea" destroyikng 2/3rds of it (Zech 13:8) is the fulfillment of the "disgusting thing in a holy place." Since JWs represent the true temple at this time, though already a mix of "wheat and weeds" the attack of Gog against JWs is also significant. Thus the "disgusting thing" in a "holy place" is the focus of Nazi Germany against Jews and JWs.

  But note this "great tribulation" is over before the second coming. "Immediately after the tribulation of those days... the sign of the son of man will appear in heaven..." (Matthew 24:29). Thus this prophesied "great tribulation" against the "holy ones", a unique event that never happened before that would never happen again was the Holocaust. How could the "worst event in human history" focussed on the people of the Bible not be mentioned as part of the signs of the last days? Answer: It can't! And it isn't. The "great tribulation" as part of the signs of the last days, which is focussed on the "holy ones" (meaning the Jews and JWs) was the Holocaust/WWII. After this is when there is spiritual darkness and also the restoration of the 1/3 remnant coming out of this tribulation to the Holy Land. Thus the "end" of the gentile times occurs on November 30, 1947. This is a completely different context for Gog of Magog than its return after the 1000-year reign.

  Thus Gog of Magog, meaning Nazism/white supremacy beliefs and practices, is not an ongoing entity but a concept among Germans/whites which resurfaces by Satan's inspiration after the millennium. It just means a large group of those who rebel against Christ at the 2nd coming will have adopted the tenents of Nazism and white supremacy

  So in summary, "Gog of Magog" represents white supremacist peoples following tenants of Nazism. Gog of Magog of Ezekiel linked with the "great tribulation" specifically refers to Nazi Germany and its attack of the "holy ones" during WII, that is, their focus on Jews and JWs. This Gog is destroyed after they desolate "Judea" meaning the Jews in exile, killing of 2/3rds of them during the Holocaust. Then later, after the millennium, Satan inspires Nazism again which then attacks Christ and his followers. And why not? Since Christ is in the body of a gay black male, two target groups of white supremacy and the Christian Identity Movement. Of note, the Bible says their camp "surrounds" the holy ones, which is more easily accomplished if Christ is actually in the flesh and on the earth. How would someone on the earth attack Christ and his fellow king-priests if they were in heaven? What threat is some earthly army against someone in heaven? So even the context here confirms that Christ and the elect (144K Jews + 1,296,000 gentiles = 1,440,000 total) are actually in the flesh. This is a fact that is confirmed by other scriptures quite easily. Christ and the elect do not become angels until after Judgment Day, which sees the resurrection of all the dead, both righteous and unrighteous, which is a time that follows the death of Satan.

  We must follow the Scriptures and let them lead us to the truth without superimposing our preconceived ideas and thus try to twist the Scriptures to fit those erroneous concepts. When we do, we remain in darkness and confusion as is the WTS.

  Satan identifies with white supremacy. Jehovah hates it, which is probably why he choose a gay black male to be the physical manifestation of the messiah at the second coming, meaning all who do not bow to him will be eliminated from the kingdom. Bottom line is that whites who want a separate world where they can be rich and empowered will not be continued in a world which embraces multi-culturalism. The rich man/solider white man will be eliminated, but the surfer/hippie white man will be happy.

  It should be more than apparent that Jehovah choosing me, a gay black male, to be the messiah is making a strong statement against the Christian Identity Movement. Some people don't care if I'm black or gay, in fact, they embrace that. Those who are overly offended by it, though, are those whom Jehovah sees unfit to be in the kingdom. "What is lofty among men is a disgusting thing" to Jehovah.

  The "rich man" is the capitalist. The one who enjoys competition and being the best and having the fine home and lots of servants. The world of Christ is fundamentally communistic though it is a government ruled by king-priests rather than someone elected by the people. It will be a world where everything is shared equally. There will be no rich class/poor class world as we know it today.

  So the new order under Christ, fairly communistic otherwise, will be a challenge for those who enjoy "the good life", with lots of money and the big fine home and fancy cars. You can have the mansion if you want, but you'll have to cut those expansive lawns and clean those 23 bedrooms and 32 baths! Being rich isn't all that fun if you have to do all the housework and don't have servants.

  Now, I know about the rich lifestyle, I have lots of rich friends. I mean those who have live-in maids. It's a nice lifestyle. You get up and open the curtains to the sun which shines so brightly on you and your nicely cleaned pool. You go down to the kitchen and make your coffee and sit down and enjoy the morning news as your breakfast is being prepared for you. You don't have to do any housework so you have time to run down to Rodeo Drive and shop all day for clothes. You hug your little miniature dogs who adore you and send the housekeeper out to walk them for you. You then decide whether you will travel to Europe or not, then after you get back, go to Hawaii to recuperate from your trip to Europe. I actually have friends like that. They go on an extended tour of Europe, staying withi rich relatives, I mean the kind that have their own cook and maids. When they get back, they are so exhausted, they have to go to Hawaii to rest and recuperate.

  It's a great life! They don't hate anyone. They paise God for the wonders in the world and their good health and their wonderful life. But can they have that grand life in the New Order? I mean, what about the fancy gourmet restaurants where they love to eat and sip on expensive wines? It's a wonderful life! But who will serve them in the New Order? Who will be their maid in the New Order? Bottom line is, as wonderful as that rich lifestyle is, it requires a second class to serve the first class. In the New Order, rich and poor will be done away with. Like I said, how much fun is a big house if you have to do all the cleaning? You wouldn't have time to sit back and enjoy the view. For equality in the world, everyone will have to embrace the simple life. Basically, you will have a lifestyle where you do your own laundry, cook for yourself, etc. The more things you have, the more cumbersome your life will be. So the bottom line is, the rich lifestyle that are enjoyed by the rich now, won't be possible in a communistic world of Christ's kingdom. So I can see even on that basis why some, used to this and who enjoy the lifestyle of the rich and famous would rebel against a kingdom where no one will be able to achieve great wealth, even if they were willing to work hard for it. It's not that those things are bad or not enjoyable, it's just that it requires the suppression of a larger group of people to enjoy that lifestyle. I presume some would rather die than be just an average person or share their lives with others whom they may think are inferior to them in some way. That's why the Bible says it is a difficult thing for a "rich man" to get into the kingdom. That's because his perception of himself, his ego, is too big. He needs to be prominent and exceptional and there is just no room for that in the new system.

  There are those who want more and there are those who want too much. The desire to have a rich man's lifestyle is too much. Eventually, all those wanting more than they deserve or whose needs require the suppression of others will be eliminated from the universe.

  Satan doesn't want to play by God's rules. He wants more and the worship of others. So he opted out and heads this rebellion against God and Christ as his final statement. God's final statement to Satan is that the peson wo has POWER and owns things is the one who makes the final decisions.

  We can understand this. Lots of rich men who went bust during the Great Depression jumped out of windows, preferring death over poverty.

  Now I hope I don't offend anyone, but some might think if you can't have the rich lifestyle, how can you enjoy life. I mean, if you have to do your own dishes and laundry and never go out to eat, how can life be enjoyable? Everybody is equal. What kind of a world will it be. Well, think of a world similar to that of hippies, where everybody shares, everybody gets to have lots of sex and do drugs all day. There are some people who would love to lie around all day, go surfing, having no material possessions and get high. That's a DREAM life for some. But ironically, that lifestyle is more individual, doesn't require any servants to wait on you, and it is addictive. Just a thought. After all, Jehovah created cocaine and marijuana, two natural substances. Without the desire for wealth, legalized drugs is really not a problem. Take the money and greed out of the drug world and you just have people having a great time enjoying their own bodies and drug enhanced minds. It will be a place where people like having fun with other people; not a place where you aspire to succeed and be rich so you can enjoy looking down on others who are not as fortunate as yourself.

  So if you like sex and doing drugs, the new order is going to be a fun place. If you need to be rich and stuck up and love the gated communities, then you'll be disappointed.

  I know that's raw, but everyone needs to think about the REALITY of what equality for all will be. A lot of things that are not wrong, but that the rich and famous enjoy will simply disappear.

  LS
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  mrquik

  Thanks Lars; I was concerned about not having sex & drugs in Paradise. You've taken quite a load off. But you failed to address RocknRoll. Can Paradise be perfect without tunes?
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  Think About It

  After all, Jehovah created cocaine and marijuana, two natural substances. Without the desire for wealth, legalized drugs is really not a problem.

  He created grapes too, but he still condemned drunkeness........don't make me call you an idiot.

  Think About It