Israel: A Chosen People In A Promised Land - Part 9!!!

ISRAEL’S FUTURE

The first thing that many Christians will say about the current nation of Israel is that they are not believers in Jesus, nor do many of them even follow the God of their forefathers – these are true statements, but they are not limiting or negating statements. The drawing back and return of the Jewish people to a right relationship with Yahweh and his son Jesus (Yeshua) the Messiah (HaMashiach) will be their salvation.

In Romans 11, the Apostle Paul speaks of Israel’s disobedience, but also the grace being shown to them by God, as they are still HIS chosen people. This is best illustrated in verses 1-2a, 11-12, 25-29 – which state…

“I ask then: Did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew…Again I ask: Did they stumble so as to fall beyond recovery? Not at all! Rather, because of their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel envious. But if their transgression means riches for the world, and their loss means riches for the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their full inclusion bring!... I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, and in this way all Israel will be saved. As it is written “The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob. And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins.” As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies for your sake; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable.”

We can see from these verses that God’s word holds firm for all time, it is irrevocable, and it will be achieved in the fullness of time and according to God’s will and plan for humanity. In part, those of us who are Gentiles (non-Jews) are holding back the salvation of the entire Jewish nation, because the fulness of the number of the Gentiles who are to come to a faith and understanding of Jesus Christ has yet to be completed.

 So again, we see that Israel has a future hope of salvation and the forgiveness of their sins, and a future role to play in world events. Until the time that Jesus returns for his bride in the clouds (the Church), and then becomes ruler of the whole world in Jerusalem (Zechariah 14:1-21; Jeremiah 3:17; Revelation 14:1-4) – there are some things that need to happen to Israel and around Israel. There are some conflicts that they must endure, conflicts that God (Yahweh) shows his power and authority not only to the nation of Israel but to the nations of the world. Then there is the ‘Tribulation’ period of which those Jewish people who do not believe in Yeshua (Jesus) as their messiah will have to go through – and even though that will be a time of great pain and suffering (for them and for humanity) it will be a time of salvation for the Jewish remnant.

Israel’s Future Wars

 As has already been noted in previous sections, Israel has had to fight for its existence since before the re-establishment of Israel as a nation in 1948. But the fight for their survival as a people group and as a nation continues (as we have seen since Oct 7^th 2023), and will continue until Yeshua returns. There are several Old Testament prophecies, in the psalms and by the prophets, that note specific battles and situations in and around Israel. We will outline three of those next.

 The first prophetic account is from Psalm 83, which is a psalm of Asaph (King David’s chief worship leader). It describes a situation where a confederacy of nations and people groups come to attack Israel. This group of attackers is found in verses 5-8 which notes “With one mind they plot together; they form an alliance against you— the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, of Moab and the Hagrites, Byblos, Ammon and Amalek, Philistia, with the people of Tyre. Even Assyria has joined them to reinforce Lot’s descendants.” If one looks at the map below^[1] of where these groups are situated it becomes apparent that this battle/war may have already come to pass in 1948. Each of these nations and people groups were involved in the attack on Israel as soon as it declared its independence in 1948.

 The view that Psalm 83 has already come to pass in 1948 is one followed by many commentators, however many others have valid points as to why that may not be the case. Some However, on the evidence and readings that I have done, it is my personal opinion that it was fulfilled in 1948. I part this is also because of what is said in verses 3-4 which say “With cunning they conspire against your people; they plot against those you cherish. “Come,” they say, “let us destroy them as a nation, so that Israel’s name is remembered no more.” This is precisely what was being said at the time, when the Arab armies of the nations around Israel attacked in 1948. The rest of the psalm talks about the defeat of those nations at the hand of the Lord.

Now, even though I believe that it has already come to pass, others believe that the events which are currently unfolding in Israel right now – and that is a possibility because I am not going to be dogmatic about when this psalm may have or have not been fulfilled. However, if you look at the map above, the areas to the east of the Jordan River – Ammon, Moab, Edom, Ishmaelites – currently form the nations of Jordan and Saudi Arabia, both either have a current peace treaty in place with Israel and are unlikely to change that stance based on Israel’s defensive actions against the Hamas terrorists (given that Jordan itself has killed hundreds of thousands of Palestinian Arabs over the years), and Saudi Arabia was working towards an agreement with Israel when these terrible events unfolded. They were however, involved in attacking Israel in 1948. So, let us set aside the possibility of Psalm 83 being part of the events currently unfolding in Israel.

Now, let us turn to a war that is often termed ‘The War of Gog & Magog’. It is mentioned extensively in Ezekiel 38-39, it talks about a massive war with some very key nations coming against Israel, some notable nations who stay out of the fight and speak against it, and some that are not mentioned at all.

Firstly, there is another “War of Gog & Magog” which is mentioned in Revelation 20:7-10, in regard to the final acts and subsequent judgement of Satan after the millennial kingdom, where Jesus rules from Jerusalem for 1000 years. Some commentators believe that the Ezekiel 38-39 war and the Revelation 20 Gog & Magog wars are the same, merely because of the presence of the same names of Gog and Magog in both sets of scriptures. However, I, and other more qualified commentators than I – do not believe this is the case. The two wars have different actors within them. In Ezekiel 38, there is a very specific list of coalition partners that have never in human history formed an alliance – yet they do so to attack Israel – this type of named coalition is not found in Revelation 20. Rather, the war mentioned in Revelation 20 is against Jesus who rules the world from Jerusalem, and the war is stirred up by Satan who was released for a short time to deceive ‘all’ the nations (verses 7-8), prior to his final judgement (verses 9-10). So, we can see that not only are there different nations being described and mentioned in these verses, but the intention of each is different.

So, now we can separate the Ezekiel 38-39 passages and investigate how they may relate to future events that are to happen to the nation and the people of Israel. The Ezekiel 38-39 War is an interesting conflict, on one hand it seems as if God is pulling the enemies of Israel into a battle with the nation of Israel – especially in verse 4 which states “ I will turn you around and put hooks in your jaws to lead you out with your whole army—your horses and charioteers in full armour and a great horde armed with shields and swords.” Notice that is says ‘I will put hooks in your jaws and lead you’ – this is God talking, it is He who is going to bring about the end of Israel’s enemies. But, what is the ‘human’ reasoning behind the attack on Israel, especially when a coalition of unlikely allies are gathered together to accomplish the same goal. Ezekiel 38:13 provided the answer, by way of statements of nations who are verbally supporting Israel – this verse says “But Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish will ask, ‘Do you really think the armies you have gathered can rob them of silver and gold? Do you think you can drive away their livestock and seize their goods and carry off plunder?” The nations that are listed here are current Saudi Arabia (Sheba and Dedan), who Israel is in continuing discussions over a trade and defence agreement – the other is either current Lebanon or Spain (commentators are split on the historical meaning of the name Tarshish). Either way, nations that are not currently in alliance with Israel will stand up against the aggressors who are attacking to rob Israel of its wealth and its natural resources (of which it is finding more of as each passing year goes by). It is interesting to note that nations have their own agendas that they think are helping their cause, but it is God who is directing the events of the End Times.

The map below^[2] shows the very specific nations that align themselves in a coalition to attack Israel in the last days. These are listed in verses 2-6 of Ezekiel 38…

This list includes the current nations of; Algeria and Lybia (Put), Ethiopia and Sudan (Cush), Iran (Persia), Turkey (Gomer and Togarmah), Russia (Rosh), Georgia and Azerbaijan Kazakhstan (Mesgech and Tubal) maybe even including Chechnya, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgystan and possibly even Afghanistan (all the ‘Stan’ nations from the region of Magog). It is also interesting to note that all of these regions are Islamic nations known for extreme forms of either the Sunni or Shi’ite sects – including the southern regions of Russia where the region of Chechnya is found. What is also of note is that in recent years the ties between Russia, Iran and Turkey – who form the backbone of this coalition – have been increasingly stronger, as too is their united voice against Israel.

 The Ezekiel 38-39 War is going to be a brutal war, one where Israel’s enemies will be within her borders. This can be seen in Ezekiel 39:4 which states “You shall fall upon the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops and the peoples who are with you; I will give you to birds of prey of every sort and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.” Even though God destroys the enemies of Israel, he does so at a point when they are on the mountains (or hills) of Israel, which run from north (from Lebanon) to south (into the Negev Desert) on the eastern border of Israel (almost following the Jordan Valley).

It is because of the severity of this war that the people and nation of Israel is going to have to call out the name of Yahweh for salvation. Israel has a very technologically advanced military (the IDF), which it is proud of. And as defence forces go, so it should be. However, they as a nation may get to a place where they put too much pride in their military and it faces a challenge on the battlefield that it struggles with, so Psalm 20:7 comes to mind, it says “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.”. Which is sort of ironic, because the most advanced armoured vehicle in the IDF is called the ‘Merkava’ which means ‘chariot’ in Hebrew. No matter how advanced and skilled the IDF is (and it is very much both), they will still need to call upon the name of Yahweh to save them from their enemies.

In Ezekiel 38:14 - 39:16 you can read about the total destruction of Israel’s enemies by God. The wrath of God will be seen in the following ways:

·      Earthquakes (38:19-20)

·      Confusion within the coalition forces resulting in them attacking each other (38:21)

·      Diseases (pestilence) within the ranks of the enemy (38:22)

·      Flooding rains and hail (38:22)

·      Brimstone (burning lumps of pure sulphur) like what destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah (38:22)

·      The enemy forces will be disarmed (39:3)

·      The birds and beasts will feast on the enemy dead (39:4)

So, why does God bring about such a cataclysmic destruction of the enemy forces that attacked Israel? The answer lay in Ezekiel 38:6a-8 which notes, “Then they shall know that I am the Lord. So, I will make My holy name known in the midst of My people Israel, and I will not let them profane My holy name anymore. Then the nations shall know that I am the Lord, the Holy One in Israel. Surely it is coming, and it shall be done,” says the Lord God. “This is the day of which I have spoken. In these verses we can see that Yahweh is proclaiming that Israel is His people, despite their disobedience (as it is today with the nation of Israel), and that He is going to protect them with the fulness of His wrath. And by doing so, not only will the nation of Israel come back to a right relationship with Yahweh (and His son Yeshua, their Messiah) – but that all of the nations will know that Yahweh is GOD!

I believe that Ezekiel 38-39 is a future war because of the following verse (38:11), “You will say, “I will invade a land of unwalled villages; I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people—all of them living without walls and without gates and bars.” It shows that Israel must be in peace, true peace when this war comes upon its borders. It must be at a level of peace and security that it has never experienced since the re-establishment of the nation in 1948. It must not have walls (which are still currently on much of the borders, including the internal borders with the Palestinian Arab regions of the West Bank and Gaza. In order to have that level of peace, not only does Israel have to be at peace with the nations around it (like Syria, Jordan, Egypt), but also the current Islamic terrorist/extremist groups that are in Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon. At this point in history, the chance of the Islamic extremists laying down their weapons and stopping their calls for jihad and intifada against Israel is almost none – which is why Israel is currently (end of Nov 2023) undertaking military action in the northern part of Gaza – to destroy the Hamas terror organisation. The time of the Ezekiel 38-39 war is still to come.

Now we can see why Israel must be in some final battles that shake it to its very core. They as a group of people and as a nation need to return to Yahweh. But the fulness of their return is not complete until just before the return of Yeshua to Jerusalem. It is in the days of the tribulation that Israel fully commits to acknowledging and worshipping Yeshua as their Messiah.

Israel & The Tribulation

Jeremiah 30 outlines how Yahweh promises to bring the nation of Israel back to the land promised to it (especially in verses 3, 18-19), this was achieved in 1948. However, in verse 7 it speaks of a future time when it will face horrific events, “In all history there has never been such a time of terror. It will be a time of trouble for my people Israel. Yet in the end they will be saved!” This salvation is not just by defeating the enemies of Israel in military battle, or overcoming them economically, or even by expanding Israel’s borders – no, this verse speaks of such a horrific event that the only recourse of ‘Israel’ is to turn to Yahweh and ask for salvation, and they will turn to Yeshua for their salvation.

Further to this time of trouble, Daniel 9:20-27 speaks of a 70 Year period, as illustrated by the metaphor of 70 Weeks. In the first 69 weeks Jerusalem (meaning the nation of Israel and her people) will be rebuilt as will the Temple (which happened) and the Messiah will come and be killed. Then a period of time will pass before the establishment of the 70^th Week which will be a period of upheaval, turmoil, destruction and the rise of the antichrist. In that time a peace treaty will be made with Israel, and then the Anti-Christ will break that treaty and desecrate the Temple and cancel the sacrificial offerings.

            Jesus himself spoke of this time as recorded in Matthew 24:15-22, which says…

“So, when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand— then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let no one on the housetop go down to take anything out of the house. Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak. How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. For then there will be great distress, unequalled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equalled again. “If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.”

The fact that these verses talk about the Sabbath day, and fleeing from Judea shows that this is not referring directly to the church, but rather, is referring to the Jewish people in those times…this time of ‘Jacob’s Trouble’. Jesus reiterates how terrible these times are going to be.

            However, despite how terrifying and destructive the time of Jacob’s Trouble will be for the people and nation of Israel, there is hope. As always, Yahweh will protect a remnant. In Revelation 12:1-6 we see a woman (which is symbolic for Israel) who had given birth to a child (symbolic of Jesus) who had been taken up to be with God – this woman is being attacked by the great dragon (symbolic of Satan) – and Yahweh protects her and prepares a place for her in the desert where she is protected for 1260 days (which is coincidently the remaining 3.5 years of the Great Tribulation). Yahweh always protects His people from an unrighteous aggressor when they call upon His name.

Furthermore, not only does Yahweh bring about the salvation of the remnant of Israel, but He also turns around and uses them as missionaries and voices for the gospel of Jesus as the Messiah. The evidence for this can be found in Revelation 7:3-8 where it tells us that 144,000 men from all the tribes of Israel will be marked (sealed) as God’s. In Revelation 14:1-5 mentions them again and notes that they will be a special group of Jewish believers in Jesus and that what they speak will be the pure truth – the pure Word of Yahweh – and that they will have a special song that they sing as an act of worship when Jesus returns to Earth and rules from Jerusalem. Now some commentators do not follow that the 144,000 are Jewish at all, but rather a chosen group of Christian believers. But the logic of this fails in two aspects. Firstly, after Revelation 3, the ‘church’ is not mentioned until the end of the book and the believers come with Jesus Christ on His return to rule the world - this is found in 1 Thessalonians 3:11-13. The second point flows from the first – the reason the 144,000 cannot be ‘Christians’ and are actual Jewish believers in Jesus is because each tribe (excluding Dan – it’s a long story) is specifically mentioned. Those tribes do not correspond with specific groups of Christians (denominations, Christian countries etc) – there is absolutely no evidence for this in the Bible at all. So, it must mean what is says, and indeed relates to a group of Jewish believers that will have an impact on end times events.

Part 10 of this series will outline the broad Christian responses to the unfolding war in Israel that was set off by the horrific events of Oct 7th 2023.

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^[1] Looking For The Blessed Hope, (July 14, 2014), https://looking4theblessedhope.com/2014/07/18/are-we-seeing-a-psalm-83-prophecy-fulfillment/

^[2] Emissary of the Way Ministries, (nd), “Gog & Magog”, https://www.way.org.il/gog-and-magog