The captivity of Israel
Today, millions of Christians believe that God has returned his people Israel back to their native land from where they were cast out of (By the judgement and wrath of God) in both the Assyrian captivity and Babylonian captivity.
They will tell you that the state of Israel created in 1948 and return of the Jewish people from Europe and other nations to the state was the fulfilment of the Israelite Prophesies and promise of YHWH.
Does the modern Jewish state of Israel and the Jews return to the state encompass the fulfillment of the prophecies regarding God’s promise to bring again the captivity of Judah and Israel, the twelve tribes of Israel, to the land YHWH gave to their fathers?
It’s my sincere prayer and hope that this study will reveal, Lord willing, an answer to that question.
Let’s start with the prophet Jeremiah. Before we read the scriptures, lets briefly look at what happened under the time of Jeremiah. In Jeremiah’s time he lived and prophesied the Words of God in a time period when the house of Judah, which consisted of two of Israel’s twelve tribes, that of Benjamin and Judah, was undergoing enormous trouble. The Jews of the house of Judah, in Jerusalem, had angered Almighty God by their sins and their worship of other gods of the peoples of the lands, and other acts of disobedience to the Law of God. God, was through the prophet Jeremiah, warning and speaking to the Jews seeking them to repent of their sins and turn from their wicked ways. But they largely ignored Jeremiah and God’s decrees so God was going to cast away the Jews, or the house of Judah. God told Jeremiah he would use the Chaldeans or Babylonian empire to take away the house of Judah and they would also destroy Jerusalem and the burn down God’s holy Temple, carrying Judah away.
You see, God had had enough of Judah’s sin because they had failed not only to obey God, but failed to comprehend and turn from the sins of Israel, or the house of Israel.
The house of Israel was comprised of ten tribes who separated from the house of Judah long ago in the time of the early reign of king Solomon’s son Rehoboam. This was approximately more than three hundred years before Jeremiah. Thus, Israel was divided into two kingdoms, that of Israel, which located in the northern region of Samaria, and the southern kingdom of Judah (the Jews) which resided in and around Jerusalem.
You see, the ten tribes of the house of Israel sinned greatly before God by many evil acts, falling away from God’s laws and customs. They angered God so much that he casts Israel, the ten tribes of Israel, out his sight and off the land of Israel.
God uses the Assyrian empire to cast away Israel to Assyria, and these ten tribes did not return to the land of Israel. This Assyrian captivity took place in 722 BC, many years before the prophet Jeremiah had his ministry. When the Assyrians came and took away Israel, only the Jews of the house of Judah remained in land of Israel as the remnant of Israel.
But the Jews did not learn from Israel’s fall from God’s grace, and they sinned more and more, doing worse than the tribes of the lost house of Israel. Therefore, God would punish Judah, the Jews, and take the rest of the remaining Israelites in the Babylonian Captivity in about 586 BC. Jeremiah witnesses this fall of Judah and the destruction of the temple and captivity of the house of Judah. While the prophet Jeremiah warned Israel of its impending demise, he also spoke the words of YHWH which tell of Israel’s redemption, for God would have mercy on his captive and taken away people. It’s here we begin our study.
Jeremiah 23:5-8
Behold, the days come, saith YHWH, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. 6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, YHWH OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. 7 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith YHWH, that they shall no more say, YHWH liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; 8 But, YHWH liveth, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land.
The first Line refers to “a righteous Branch,” “a King” who shall reign and prosper and execute judgement and justice in the earth. We know this refers to Jesus, whom was born of the line of David and the promised messiah of Israel. Jesus was born to rule over all Israel.
The second line states in those days that Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell safely.
The last line states Israel shall be gathered to their homeland from where they were scattered and driven away from.
Before looking at each of these three points, read Jeremiah 30:3-4
Jeremiah 30:3-4
For, lo, the days come, saith YHWH, that I will bring again the captivity of my people Israel and Judah, saith YHWH: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it. 4 And these are the words that YHWH spake concerning Israel and concerning Judah.
YHWH, The God of Israel, says he will bring again the captivity of Israel retuning them to their land. Notice that he mentions Israel and Judah, distinguishing the two separate kingdoms of all twelve tribes of Israel.
Now why is this important to the question I posed earlier about the Israeli state of modern Israel?
For the modern Jewish state of Israel to be the fulfillment of this prophesy, it must include both houses of Israel to be true. The present-day state of Israel is a Jewish state “for a Jewish people.”
The prophesy concerns both Israel and Judah, not only one house, but two.
The house of Israel was comprised of ten tribes, none of whom were called biblically “Jews.” Only the two tribes of Benjamin and Judah, which made up the house of Judah, were biblically labeled as “the Jews”
Furthermore, the ten tribes of Israel by the time of the Assyrian captivity were so far gone from following the laws, rituals, customs of YHWH, they were essentially worshiping other gods and acted as the non-Israelite heathen living around their land. Thus, they in no way conformed to any kind of form of religion even close to Judaism.
The ten tribes were then a huge number of Israelites, likely numbering in the millions, taken away by Assyrians and cast off to disappear from history into the Gentile nations. The house of Israel became no more a people of God and vanished into the heathen or Gentile nations, which in time would be losing their religion and culture and identity as Israelites.
The overwhelming majority would not return to YHWH or even Judaism, yet God says they will be one day returned back to their land. So that means the house of Israel has a place in prophesy to do just that, but they will not be identifiable as “Jews."
A brief note about the word “Judaism,” because it is believed today by many to be the religion of the ancient Israelites. Judaism, as it is known today, came not out of pre-captivity Israel, it originated after the fall of Jerusalem by the Babylonians and its origins come from the Jews living thereafter, in the captivity in Babylon. It is a religious phenomenon that develops in the absence of the temple and the introduction of the what the Jews call the Oral Torah. This new oral law becomes the basis of Halakha or Halakhic laws and the root of the formation of Pharisaical Judaism.
In order for the prophesy to be fulfilled, the house of Israel must also have returned with the Jews. At the present time only the Jewish people and those identifiable as Jews reside in the state of Israel, not the remaining ten tribes of the house of Israel.
Let’s continue to read Jeremiah 30:7-11.
Jeremiah 30:7-11
Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble; but he shall be saved out of it. 8 For it shall come to pass in that day, saith YHWH of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him: 9 But they shall serve YHWH their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them. 10 ¶ Therefore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith YHWH; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid. 11 For I am with thee, saith YHWH, to save thee: though I make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished.
Notice closely what God’s prophet says. God says they shall serve YHWH, and David their king. God continues to say he will gather Jacob, or Israel, and he shall return to his (Israel) land and rest, and be quiet, none shall make him afraid.
First point, they shall serve YHWH in the land of Israel after their gathering by God.
Do the Jews today serve YHWH? Many citing the Jews belief in YHWH will say yes, they serve YHWH. One Jewish might try to argue that case.
What about “David their king?” Do the Jews in the state of Israel serve David their King?
Clearly “David”, is a reference to Christ, the Messiah who is without a doubt Jesus our Lord and Savior.
Do the inhabitants of the state of Israel serve Jesus the Christ as their King?
According to God, Israel shall when they are returned to the land be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid.
Does this describe the state of Israel today?
Is there not much strife and conflict and many years of bloody warfare in the land of Palestine today, the state of Israel?
It would seem this prophecy has not been fulfilled in the Jewish state.
Read Jeremiah 30:17-22.
Jeremiah 30:17-22
For I will restore health unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy wounds, saith YHWH; because they called thee an Outcast, saying, This is Zion, whom no man seeketh after. 18 ¶ Thus saith YHWH; Behold, I will bring again the captivity of Jacob’s tents, and have mercy on his dwellingplaces; and the city shall be builded upon her own heap, and the palace shall remain after the manner thereof. 19 And out of them shall proceed thanksgiving and the voice of them that make merry: and I will multiply them, and they shall not be few; I will also glorify them, and they shall not be small. 20 Their children also shall be as aforetime, and their congregation shall be established before me, and I will punish all that oppress them. 21 And their nobles shall be of themselves, and their governor shall proceed from the midst of them; and I will cause him to draw near, and he shall approach unto me: for who is this that engaged his heart to approach unto me? saith YHWH. 22 And ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.
There are many things to note, but specifically the mention of “their governor shall proceed for the midst of them” we know this Governor is again, referring to Christ; for out of Israel will come the Messiah of Israel and this is Jesus.
Read Jeremiah 31:2-10.
Jeremiah 31:2-10
Thus saith YHWH, The people which were left of the sword found grace in the wilderness; even Israel, when I went to cause him to rest. 3 YHWH hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee. 4 Again I will build thee, and thou shalt be built, O virgin of Israel: thou shalt again be adorned with thy tabrets, and shalt go forth in the dances of them that make merry. 5 Thou shalt yet plant vines upon the mountains of Samaria: the planters shall plant, and shall eat them as common things. 6 For there shall be a day, that the watchmen upon the mount Ephraim shall cry, Arise ye, and let us go up to Zion unto YHWH our God. 7 For thus saith YHWH; Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations: publish ye, praise ye, and say, O YHWH, save thy people, the remnant of Israel. 8 Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the coasts of the earth, and with them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and her that travaileth with child together: a great company shall return thither. 9 They shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them: I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble: for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn. 10 ¶ Hear the word of YHWH, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock.
There is much stated in this prophesy, but it largely concerns not Judah, but Ephraim, or the ten tribes of Israel, which were removed in the Assyrian captivity. The very use of Ephraim refers to the head tribe of Ephraim, which is the birthright holder of all twelve tribes of Israel, denoted by use of “Ephraim is my first born.”
According to God, Ephraim, or the house of Israel, will be brought out of the nations from the “north county” and “coasts of the earth.” Indeed, the ten tribes were lost into the Gentiles or the nations.
Again, the ten tribes have not, to date, returned to the land of Israel. If they did, they would be returned to the northern region of Samaria, as God states “the mountains of Samaria” from where the house of Israel resided long ago.
Today “the mountains of Samaria” is a region apart of the Occupied Territory of the Palestinian West Bank.
Do the people of the “mountains of Samaria” today even believe in YHWH, or know Jesus?
If the answer is no, they do not, then this prophesy has yet to be fulfilled.
Next read Jeremiah 31:31-37.
Jeremiah 31:31-37
Behold, the days come, saith YHWH, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: 32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith YHWH: 33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith YHWH, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know YHWH: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith YHWH: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. 35 ¶ Thus saith YHWH, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; YHWH of hosts is his name: 36 If those ordinances depart from before me, saith YHWH, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever. 37 Thus saith YHWH; If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith YHWH.
This prophetic scripture involves the New Covenant made with Israel and Judah. We know that this is the same as the New Testament which Jesus made before he died on the cross for the sins of his people Israel, all twelve tribes.
We also have the witness of the sun, the moon, and the stars which still lighten the sky to this day, so the Covenant is still in force and Israel is still in existence.
Read Jeremiah 32:37-42.
Jeremiah 32:37-42
Behold, I will gather them out of all countries, whither I have driven them in mine anger, and in my fury, and in great wrath; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely: 38 And they shall be my people, and I will be their God: 39 And I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me for ever, for the good of them, and of their children after them: 40 And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me. 41 Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul. 42 For thus saith YHWH; Like as I have brought all this great evil upon this people, so will I bring upon them all the good that I have promised them.
Does the current state of the Jewish state of Israel sound like the fulfillment of what God is describing?
Read Jeremiah 33:5-11.
Jeremiah 33:5-11
They come to fight with the Chaldeans, but it is to fill them with the dead bodies of men, whom I have slain in mine anger and in my fury, and for all whose wickedness I have hid my face from this city. 6 Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them, and will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth. 7 And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first. 8 And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against me; and I will pardon all their iniquities, whereby they have sinned, and whereby they have transgressed against me. 9 And it shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and an honour before all the nations of the earth, which shall hear all the good that I do unto them: and they shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and for all the prosperity that I procure unto it. 10 ¶ Thus saith YHWH; Again there shall be heard in this place, which ye say shall be desolate without man and without beast, even in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, that are desolate, without man, and without inhabitant, and without beast, 11 The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise YHWH of hosts: for YHWH is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of YHWH. For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the first, saith YHWH.
God says he will pardon all of Israel’s sins. We know that God has already pardoned Israel’s sins when his Son bled on the cross for the remission of sins of the children of Israel and all others.
God also states he will bring goodness and prosperity upon Israel and the land of Israel.
Does this match at all the current state of Israel?
Or is this yet another example of a prophesy yet to be fulfilled?
Next Read Jeremiah 33:14-22.
Jeremiah 33:14-22
Behold, the days come, saith YHWH, that I will perform that good thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah. 15 In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land. 16 In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this is the name wherewith she shall be called, YHWH our righteousness. 17 ¶ For thus saith YHWH; David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel; 18 Neither shall the priests the Levites want a man before me to offer burnt offerings, and to kindle meat offerings, and to do sacrifice continually. 19 And the word of YHWH came unto Jeremiah, saying, 20 Thus saith YHWH; If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, and that there should not be day and night in their season; 21 Then may also my covenant be broken with David my servant, that he should not have a son to reign upon his throne; and with the Levites the priests, my ministers. 22 As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, neither the sand of the sea measured: so will I multiply the seed of David my servant, and the Levites that minister unto me.
The Branch of Righteousness refers to the Christ.
YHWH states in those days Judah shall be saved and Jerusalem dwell safely
Do the inhabitants of Jerusalem today dwell safely?
Read Jeremiah 50:17-20.
Jeremiah 50:17-20
Israel is a scattered sheep; the lions have driven him away: first the king of Assyria hath devoured him; and last this Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath broken his bones. 18 Therefore thus saith YHWH of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria. 19 And I will bring Israel again to his habitation, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan, and his soul shall be satisfied upon mount Ephraim and Gilead. 20 In those days, and in that time, saith YHWH, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve.
Again, here we see the distinction between Israel and Judah with the mention of Assyria and Babylon. Both houses of the twelve tribes will be brought to their habitation by God.
Next let’s look at scriptures of the prophet Ezekiel.
Ezekiel 34:11-16
For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out. 12 As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. 13 And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of the country. 14 I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel. 15 I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord GOD. 16 I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment.
God promises to search for and gather his sheep, Israel, and bring them out of all places where they have been scattered. He will bring them from the countries and bring them to their own land.
Note the last line of the scripture are similar language that likely pertains to the ministry of Jesus as he said he would seek that which was lost, bind up the broken hearted and heal many that were sick.
Jesus is also the Good Shepherd who laid his life down for his sheep.
Read Ezekiel 36:24-28.
Ezekiel 36:24-28
For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. 25 ¶ Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. 26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. 28 And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.
God promises to cleanse his people Israel of their sins and give them a new spirit and a new heart.
Again, this is the same language in Jeremiah’s prophesy of the New Covenant made with Israel and Judah.
This promise of “a new spirit” has to do with the New Testament where Jesus bled for the sin of his people Israel and told his disciples that God would send them a Comforter, or the Holy Spirit, which once the Church age came about the Spirit of God dwells inside the baptized believer of Christ Jesus.
This next Scripture is one most commonly associated with the formation of the Jewish state of Israel, according to many modern preachers who often are witnessed supporting the state of Israel.
Read the prophesy of the dry bones of the house of Israel.
Ezekiel 37:1-28
¶ The hand of YHWH was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of YHWH, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, 2 And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. 3 And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest. 4 Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of YHWH. 5 Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: 6 And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am YHWH. 7 So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. 8 And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them. 9 Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. 10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army. 11 Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts. 12 Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. 13 And ye shall know that I am YHWH, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, 14 And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I YHWH have spoken it, and performed it, saith YHWH. 15 ¶ The word of YHWH came again unto me, saying, 16 Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions: 17 And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand. 18 And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these? 19 Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand. 20 And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes. 21 And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: 22 And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all: 23 Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God. 24 And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. 25 And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever. 26 Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. 27 My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 28 And the heathen shall know that I YHWH do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.
Again, the prophet Ezekiel writes of two houses of Israel, or two sticks of Israel. One stick is the stick of Joseph, connected with Ephraim, designating to us the ten tribes of the house of Israel. The second stick is Judah. The prophesy states God will take both houses and both sticks and they shall become one stick, one united kingdom. Furthermore, they shall have one King “David my servant”, or as we know this means Christ Jesus. Jesus is the King of Israel. He was born to rule over Israel.
This description in no way matches the present-day Jewish state of Israel.
Read these prophecies in Ezekiel which gives us the border inheritance of the twelve tribes of Israel.
Ezekiel 47:13-23
¶ Thus saith the Lord GOD; This shall be the border, whereby ye shall inherit the land according to the twelve tribes of Israel: Joseph shall have two portions. 14 And ye shall inherit it, one as well as another: concerning the which I lifted up mine hand to give it unto your fathers: and this land shall fall unto you for inheritance. 15 And this shall be the border of the land toward the north side, from the great sea, the way of Hethlon, as men go to Zedad; 16 Hamath, Berothah, Sibraim, which is between the border of Damascus and the border of Hamath; Hazarhatticon, which is by the coast of Hauran. 17 And the border from the sea shall be Hazarenan, the border of Damascus, and the north northward, and the border of Hamath. And this is the north side. 18 And the east side ye shall measure from Hauran, and from Damascus, and from Gilead, and from the land of Israel by Jordan, from the border unto the east sea. And this is the east side. 19 And the south side southward, from Tamar even to the waters of strife in Kadesh, the river to the great sea. And this is the south side southward. 20 The west side also shall be the great sea from the border, till a man come over against Hamath. This is the west side. 21 So shall ye divide this land unto you according to the tribes of Israel. 22 And it shall come to pass, that ye shall divide it by lot for an inheritance unto you, and to the strangers that sojourn among you, which shall beget children among you: and they shall be unto you as born in the country among the children of Israel; they shall have inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel. 23 And it shall come to pass, that in what tribe the stranger sojourneth, there shall ye give him his inheritance, saith the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel 48:1-8
¶ 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, Hazarenan, 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.
Ezekiel 48:23-29
As for the rest of the tribes, from the east side unto the west side, Benjamin shall have a portion. 24 And by the border of Benjamin, from the east side unto the west side, Simeon shall have a portion. 25 And by the border of Simeon, from the east side unto the west side, Issachar a portion. 26 And by the border of Issachar, from the east side unto the west side, Zebulun a portion. 27 And by the border of Zebulun, from the east side unto the west side, Gad a portion. 28 And by the border of Gad, at the south side southward, the border shall be even from Tamar unto the waters of strife in Kadesh, and to the river toward the great sea. 29 This is the land which ye shall divide by lot unto the tribes of Israel for inheritance, and these are their portions, saith the Lord GOD.
Did you notice all of the names of the tribes of Israel which receive a land inheritance, that only two tribes of Judah and Benjamin make up possibly the Jews which populate the state of Israel?
Most of the land goes to the other tribes of the twelve tribes of Israel.
It does not belong to Judah or the Jews!
Nor do the Jewish people have a God given right to receive most of the land of Israel! It’s simply not theirs to own or inherit.
Lastly let’s read the prophet Hosea.
Hosea 1:1-11
¶ The word of YHWH that came unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel. 2 ¶ The beginning of the word of YHWH by Hosea. And YHWH said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from YHWH. 3 So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; which conceived, and bare him a son. 4 And YHWH said unto him, Call his name Jezreel; for yet a little while, and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel. 5 And it shall come to pass at that day, that I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel. 6 And she conceived again, and bare a daughter. And God said unto him, Call her name Loruhamah: for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel; but I will utterly take them away. 7 But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them by YHWH their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, by horses, nor by horsemen. 8 ¶ Now when she had weaned Loruhamah, she conceived, and bare a son. 9 Then said God, Call his name Loammi: for ye are not my people, and I will not be your God. 10 Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the sons of the living God. 11 Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head, and they shall come up out of the land: for great shall be the day of Jezreel.
This prophesy is dealing with both houses of Israel and Judah. God’s prophet says they shall be gathered together and appoint themselves one head. This “one head” must refer to Christ or “David my servant” the king of kings and Lord, our savior Jesus Christ.
So, in conclusion, we have read the prophesies of YHWH regarding his chosen people Israel have clearly not come to full fruition. They all are consistent with the fact that Jesus Christ will one day reign over the twelve tribes of Israel when Israel is recovered and regathered from the Gentile lands of the earth and settled in the land of Israel.
The present-day state of Israel in no way matches this description.
The overwhelming nine million plus inhabitants of the modern Israeli state of Israel do not even remotely believe or claim Jesus as their messiah or Christ or King.
Clearly the earthly land of Israel does not fulfill these prophecies, certainly not at the present time.
One wonders if it will at all in this evil world.
Isaiah 42:9
Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them.
Isaiah 65:17
For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
Isaiah 66:22
For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith YHWH, so shall your seed and your name remain.
For God promises to make a new thing and create all things new and as Christians we seek a better new world, a new Jerusalem, and a new homeland or new holy habitation where God is King and His Son Jesus is our KING, and the prince of Peace returns joy and peace to the new world.
I have no reason to doubt the promises of God, but I see no evidence of yet that the Jewish state created in 1948 and the return of the Jews to the state, bears any resemblance to the great promises God promised Israel.
These promises are not fulfilled in the earthy Israeli state, but the new heavenly Israel, in the new earth and the new heavens God promises to bring about. It is at that time in the future to come, that God will restore Israel to his promised land and they shall be his people and he shall be their God. Then ALL shall know God and worship God.
I believe that God has already begun gathering his people, those lost sheep of the house of Israel which Jesus spoke would hear his voice and come to him as the Good Shepherd. God has already redeemed Israel from her iniquity and many sins by his Son on the cross in 33 AD. Now God is working even today with Israel, bringing them one by one to know Him and through knowing his Son Jesus the Christ.
Will Israel return to their land?
Yes! But most likely only when they have fully come to know Jesus, or when Jesus returns to take away his people all of God's children, in Christ.
It would be great if the earthly land of Israel would be rebirthed in the new spirit to serve the living God with faith in Jesus the king of Israel, but until that happens these prophecies have yet to happen to the Jewish state of Israel.
Let’s all thank YHWH for his amazing Grace and Mercy toward Israel and all who take hold of his New Covenant God made with his people Israel! What a wonderful God we serve! What great promises he has instore for those he loves and those who love him!
Praise God for he has redeemed his people, Israel!
If you would like to learn more about Israel and God’s plan for you, read this 8-page article on Israel.
Do you know Jesus? If not, learn of him now!
Did you know Jesus died for your sins?
May God bless you and bring you to know and experience God’s glorious plans for Israel.