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If you open the book of Acts you are immediately confronted with a question from the disciples about the great promise of Kingdom restoration:
"When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, will you at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?" Acts 1:6
The answer was not given, or was it?
The kingdom restoration of Israel is perhaps the least taught Sunday school lesson.
Despite the fact it is the last known question the disciples posed, it's largely forgotten. Yet, it's the most recurring promise recorded throughout the narratives of the Torah, the Prophets and the Writings of the Bible that Yeshua taught.
Much of Yeshua's teaching focused on the theme of good shepherd and lost sheep.
The gospel restoration "promise" of God's Kingdom family is the centerpiece of many of Yeshua's sermons. I was deaf, blind and crippled about that for years, misunderstanding the bigger picture because I had heard some sermons that the Old Testament was old and done away with and that the church was a replacement for the families of Israel.
The gospel restoration "promise" of God's Kingdom family is the centerpiece of many of Yeshua's sermons. I was deaf, blind and crippled about that for years, misunderstanding the bigger picture because I had heard some sermons that the Old Testament was old and done away with and that the church was a replacement for the families of Israel.
Just a few years ago I was awakened to the fact the Bible Jesus taught is not tossed aside nor replaced by a Newer Testament. The fact is, God does not change (see Malachi 3:6 and James 1:17) and Almighty God does not break a promise (Numbers 23:19 and Hebrews 6:13-20).
When I understood that, the lights turned on, the Bible exploded and I was on fire. Reading the Bible was like a high speed download and I wanted to learn more.
Not only that, I quickly realized why I could not grasp the fullness of the child of God family name that appears over 2,500 times in Scripture. I also discovered I did not understand wild branch ingrafting adoption or its link to the exodus sojourners with Israel.
The title "The God of Israel" is embedded some 3,500 times in the Bible was a big mystery despite these words:
One shall say, I [am] the LORD'S; and another shall call [himself] by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe [with] his hand unto the LORD, and surname [himself] by the name of Israel. Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I [am] the first, and I [am] the last; and beside me [there is] no God. Isaiah 44:5-6 KJV
I discovered the family surname about a community of faith redeemed by The LORD of hosts.
Because of my Biblical ignorance attributed to the fact that the book of life was covered on my bookshelf with dust, the words of Yeshua and the prophets about the restoration of Israel seemed confusing and difficult to grasp.
Then, I came to consider the mercy woven into these words given to Hosea:
And I will have mercy on No Mercy, and I will say to Not My People, ‘You are my people’; and he shall say, ‘You are my God.’” Hosea 2:23
Then, I read this about lost sheep and it blew my mind:
"These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, 'Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into [any] city of the Samaritans enter not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.'" Matthew 10:5-7
Why only the lost sheep of the house Israel, what about those Gentiles, what about me and my family?
I found one answer at Jacob's well.
If you read John 4 you'll find a Samaritan woman at that well. It's where Jacob the shepherd watered his sheep 2,000 years earlier. The well is located at the entrance to a mountain pass between Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal.
When Yeshua arrived that day, there was a Samaritan woman at the well and she was offered living water.
She is the first non-Jew I know of in the gospel stories that was personally told by Yeshua that He is the promised Messiah. She believed Him and spread the word.
In doing so, other Samaritans believed:
Now from that city many of the Samaritans believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all the things that I have done.” So when the Samaritans came to Jesus, they were asking Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days.Many more believed because of His word; and they were saying to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this One truly is the Savior of the world.” John 4:39-42
There's more.
Many say the first non-Jewish believer was a Roman Centurion named Cornelius. Yet, when we read John 4 as well as Matthew 15, we discover those non-Jew Samaritans as well as a Canaanite woman living just west of the Galilee believed long before Cornelius.
In the first century, tens of thousands of Jews also believed that Yeshua was the Messiah, yet some put religious tradition before the Torah, the Prophets and the Writings. And leadership in the Sanhedrin rejected Him 2,000 years ago, but not all.
Ironically, starting at Jacob's well near that Samaritan town, other non-Jews began to embrace Jesus the Jew as the promised Messiah. They realized the blessing given Abraham was for all nations that seek to be grafted in as the children of the God of Israel.
We don't know the Samaritan woman's name, but we do know she's is the first that Yeshua declared Himself to be The Messiah.
It appears that all other non-Jewish followers of Jesus some 2,000 years ago were introduced to Messiah by faithful Jewish disciples, except the Samaritans. The Samaritan's were foreigners and Yeshua revealed His mission to them personally.
Do you remember the ten Samaritan lepers?
Their story is in Luke 17:11-19 and one of them believed and gave glory to God:
"Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice, and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a Samaritan.
But Jesus responded and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine—where are they? Was no one found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?” Luke 17:15-18
Back at Jacob's well, Yeshua told the Samaritan woman:
“You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews." John 4:22
She left Jacob's well and told the whole town about Yeshua:
Now from that city many of the Samaritans believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all the things that I have done.” John 4:29
After that, a "royal" official approached Yeshua in Capernaum about his sick son.
That account is in John 4 as well. There's not much detail given, but we might consider that official "may have" been a Roman official under Herod Antipas assigned there by Augustus after Herod the Great died. At that time, the Roman emperor Augustus appointed Antipas as the ruler tetrarch of Galilee because the Galilee area was a client state of the Roman Empire at the time of Jesus.
Incredibly, the apostle John wrote "His own" did not receive Him:
"He came to His own and His own did not receive Him. But as many received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name." John 1:11-12
That message appears to be connected to the synagogue in Nazareth. You can read what happened in Luke 4:16-30.
John came to understand. So did Peter and then Paul about the promise given to Abraham. They overcame discriminatory thinking in prejudice as they began to believe the promises that Almighty God gave to Abraham as a blessing to all nations.
Paul remembered what was declared to Isaiah and it connected to the message delivered to the woman at the well. Paul wrote: "to the Jew first and then the Gentile, (see Romans 1:16).
You can find hints of that promise throughout the scroll of Isaiah. Here are just a few:
- Isaiah 2:2-4
- Isaiah 5:26
- Isaiah 11:10
- Isaiah 42:6
- Isaiah 49:6
- Isaiah 52:10
- Isaiah 60:3
Non-Jews aka Gentiles whether Greek, Roman or the Samaritan and all people in-between that repent and turn away from false worship experienced a spiritual new birth, become part of the family adoption taught by Paul in Romans 11 (check it out).
Thankfully, Hosea wrote down what he heard about this as well: "I will say to Not My People, You are my people." One morning, I was reading and arrived at John 10:
“I am the good shepherd, and I know My own, and My own know Me, just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.
And I have other sheep that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice; and they will become one flock, with one shepherd.”
Two flocks becoming one flock, connects to Hosea.
I remembered stories I had heard that the house of Israel went missing and was lost, never to be found again. I'd heard their identity disappeared during the Assyrian invasion that started around 722BC after northern Israel had turned their back against Judah, Benjamin and the Levites in the south.
So, I opened my Bible to the books of Kings and Chronicles that detail the lost sheep disaster that occurred because of northern Israel's aka Ephraim's rejection of Jerusalem and their brothers Judah.
Ephraim's problems started when Jeroboam returned from his hide-a-way in Egypt to lead the north in the land of Ephraim against Judah. I read that in that day, Jeroboam adopted two golden calf idols not just one and that the crowds followed him like wandering sheep behind a delusional shepherd that thought he was a priest inventing his own new religion.
They brought Egyptian paganism to the Galilee, but why?
It was as if the sin of the golden calf at Sinai wasn't enough for Jeroboam! After the split from Rehoboam who led the families of Judah, Benjamin and Levi, the ten tribes of northern Israel led by Jeroboam son of Nebat from the tribe (family) of Ephraim insisted on doubling the crime scene from Sinai. The lost sheep followed Jeroboam as he brought idolatry back into the Promised Land and in doing so they all mocked God's promise to Abraham and Judah's faithfulness to the kingdom way of life God taught to Moses.
Theirs was the original sin of replacement theology that infested the new religion church some 1,000 years later!!
Jeroboam built two golden calf shrines. If you ask me he was trying to out do the Temple in Jerusalem that Solomon built from the plans his father David laid out. After all, two is better than one right?
Don't be offended, but get this: the northern families adopted their own holidays, replacing the Biblical holy days of The LORD with their own. Sound familiar?
For some reason, the ten tribes known collectively known as Ephraim just couldn't shake off ancient Egypt.
I realized that Bible lesson was a picture I was all too familiar with, but things are changing. There is a Torah awakening in church. The Ephraim story is like a Joseph parable for those in the church that think God changes His mind. That a big problem that remains today whether you recognize it or not. For that reason, I will continue to share what I've learned about that in future posts.
I'll also continue to share what I've learned from the Bible as it teaches about being grafted into the olive tree - not a Christmas tree. Like I said, don't be offended -- be convicted and repent. When you do Judah will see you his brother.
The story of Joseph reveals when Judah will recognize his brother Joseph. Sadly, there will be trouble in the land of Israel like there was before. Joseph will help Judah and Judah will see him for who he is.
Praise God, the hearts of many Christians began to believe their Bibles after WWII and they repented and return to the front of the Bible.
Praise God, the hearts of many Christians began to believe their Bibles after WWII and they repented and return to the front of the Bible.
It's important to know Jeroboam went down to Egypt and brought paganism into the mainstream of the Galilee. It was like a new religion. Sound familiar?
Egypt's pagan problem started in Babylon, so did Ephraim's. It showed up at Sinai with the golden calf and it returned to the land of Ephraim, Zebulun and Naphtali through the new religion man: Jeroboam.
If you ask me he's the reason the book of Mark tells us over and again that in the Galilee area Jesus (Yeshua) cast out demon, healed people of leprosy, blindness and birth defects. That's why Almighty God warned, don't go back (see Deuteronomy 17:16). That's why Leviticus 18:3 also warns against imitating the Egyptians.
Imitating Egypt carries a deadly disease called paganism.
Paganism was alive and well in Noah's day and it re-started in Babylon with Nimrod.
According to Jewish historians, Nimrod's wife was Semiramis but you won't find her in the Bible.
Semiramis was Noah's granddaughter, and not only that she was the mother and the wife of Nimrod. Semiramis is credited with the beginnings of paganism and perhaps one reason why Revelation 18 repeats the warning from Jeremiah 51 saying: come out of her my people!
Babylon's pagan problem still infects us.
Once again, don't be offended but many can't see it. The thing is the church morphed in the 4th century like Jeroboam. It turned away from Jerusalem with a replacement theology from anti-semitic new religion voices. The church found its way over to pagan Rome thanks in large part to Constatine and became infiltrated with an untold number of moral challenges that confuses faithful Jewish people to this day about the Jewish Messiah.
Sadly, Greek thinking pervaded the church fathers that called the Hebrew Bible that Jesus taught Old and done away with at the cross despite His words at the Sermon on the Mount:
"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.
Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:17-19
The Roman sermon was that the old was done away with and God's Torah was replaced by grace without the need for God's teaching and instruction. Because of that they ejected the Sabbath and the Feasts of The Lord and claimed the Jews were Christ killers.
The Bible uses imagery to teach us. After all, a picture can be worth a thousand words.
Most of us understand sin is a picture of slavery. Did you know Solomon put Jeroboam in charge of the forced labor over the family house of Joseph?
Yup, Jeroboam was a Torah-less slave master just like the old Pharaoh.
1Kings 11 outlines much more. Solomon regretted his decision very quickly!
Believe it or not, he sought to kill Jeroboam, hang 'em high if you will, so the slave master got out of town and hightailed it to Egypt under the protection of Shishak, the Egyptian that had attacked the southern kingdom of Judah and the holy city of Jerusalem.
My unprovable theory is that old Shishak taught his understudy Jeroboam the ancient pagan ways of none other than Potipherah, the priest of the Egyptian town of On (aka Heliopolis) while Joseph was in Egypt.
By the way, back in Joseph's day centuries earlier, Potipherah was Joesph's father in-law, but widely Joseph didn't follow the priest of On.
This I do know, after returning from Egypt, Jeroboam cast not one but two new but old Egyptian golden calf idols in the northern outposts of Bethel and Dan. You can read about that in 1 Kings 12:25-14:19.
Jacob had warned his son Dan. You can find that seemingly bizarre snake in the grass warning in Genesis 49:17, yet incredibly Jacob knew there was a way out of the snake pit, the conclusion is declared in Genesis 49:18:
"For your salvation (לישועתך Yeshua), I wait O LORD.“
Thank goodness the old words of Jacob are not done away with.
If you ask me, those golden calf idols may be the reason that neither Dan nor Ephraim are honored with their family names in the Revelation 7:4-8 census of the 12 tribes that are connected to the gospel restoration question the disciples posed in Acts 1:6.
Before that, the question of the missing tribes came up in Jerusalem during the festival of Tabernacles when Jesus told the Pharisees:
“I am with you for only a short time, and then I am going to the one who sent me. You will look for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come.” Joh 7:33-34
They knew all about the tribes of Dan, Ephraim and the other scattered sheep when the Pharisees asked each other:
“Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks? John 7:35
Even Caiaphas the High Priest understood the good shepherd's role as he told the Sanhedrin. John explains the lost sheep and the other sheep becoming one fold:
“You know nothing at all. Nor do you understand that it is better for you that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should perish.” He did not say this of his own accord, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but also to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad." John 11: 49-42
Let's go back to the census. Perhaps Dan and Ephraim are not mentioned in the Revelation census because they agreed to allow their land allotments to be polluted by the adoption of many aspects of pagan worship.
How about you, your home, your land, do you need to clean things up??
Jacob's prophecy for Dan is sure and I believe there's a hidden Revelation link with that census found in 1Kings 12:21 and 2Chronicles 11:1 that I had missed for years reading about the last census in the book of Revelation.
I do know this, the LORD's timing for the big Acts 1:6 question will be revealed one day and it's a big part of the gospel.
After all, the gates of Jerusalem are only named after the tribes of Israel in Revelation 21:10-14.
Have you ever noticed, there are no typical church gates, no Methodist, Presbyterian, Catholic or other denomination gates and John was not a Baptist. He was a Levite for crying out loud.
So much for replacement theology, the good news gospel starts with Abraham's blessing promise for many nations and it's alluded to by Jacob's adoption of Joseph's children as well as the sojourners that left Egypt with them. Abraham's faith is a big part of the story-line found in the book of Romans and the summary of Galatians 3:29:
If you are Messiah's, then you are Abraham's descendants and heirs according to promise.
What promise?
It starts with Abraham, the father of many blessed nations.
Long ago, Jacob explained Judah's role for Messiah:
The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his. Genesis 49:10
The book of Romans is about the adoption of faith that is required of a sojourner that wants to join the family of God. The end goal is not to start a new religion, but walk in obedience once God's grace and mercies are given. I know I may have upset your apple cart, I get it, mine was shaken to the core!
If you willing to move on, here's a question: have you ever considered why the Galilee area that was granted to Zebulun, Naphtali and Manasseh just happens to be the first to hear Yeshua of Nazareth preach on repentance and the Kingdom of God?
Let's back track to Jacob's line of bondservant work under his uncle Labin.
Jacob was a shepherd.
After struggling all through the night with God's messenger he was granted a blessing with a new name, it's Israel (Genesis 32:28).
Have you ever asked, why did Yeshua choose those words about "the lost sheep of Israel" that seems to be so difficult in Matthew 15:24 when replacement theology is seen in truth, not deception? It goes hand in hand with the fact that the Galilee is the place Yeshua chose at the end of His ministry to give the great commission to the disciples to go out to the nations in Matthew 28:19-20?
The Galilee is a big Bible deal.
It is prophetic, noted by the prophet Isaiah, you can read it for yourself in Isaiah 9:1-2:
But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone. Isaiah 9:1-2
Both Yeshoshua (Joshua) and Yeshua (Jesus) wrapped up big assignments around the Galilee.
Not only that, it just so happens if we take a 1,500 year Bible detour from Matthew back to the book of Joshua, you'll see the Canaanite connection in Tyre and Sidon just west of the Galilee verified by Matthew 15:21-28.
If we check in with the book of Kings, we'll see Tel Dan's northern border location just north of the Sea of Galilee. Importantly, its the same land area that Abraham pursued the army of Chedorlaomer (see Genesis 14:14) before he met Melchizedek. After Abraham and his men chased the army to Damascus, Abraham returned to Salem aka Jerusalem.
There, perhaps near the location of the Western Wall location today, something big happened.
Melchizedek, the high priest king of Salem brought out bread and wine to meet, greet and bless Abraham in his victory over the pagans.
Abraham responded to the bread and wine blessing by giving one tenth of the spoils of the battle. It was after that the LORD God promised Abraham that he would receive a son from Sarah and myriads of descendants saying:
""Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them." Then he said to him, "So shall your offspring be." And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness."" Genesis 15:5-6
Abraham believed God's promise. Now. fast forward some 700 years to the former battle scene...
As Yehoshua (aka Joshua) concluded his battle (Joshua 11) to toss out the pagans, he was in the same land area that Abraham defeated Chedorlaomer's army. Joshua wrapped up his military campaign at the Galilee of the Gentiles!
There, not far from the Sea of Galilee, Joshua met up with the Canaanites. When he arrived in pagan territory, the LORD told Joshua, don't be afraid.
The men Joshua faced in the Galilee area were the shadow of death to the north of the mountains, and the plains south of Cinneroth in the valley.
Numbers 34:11 calls the area the Sea of Cinneroth (Kinnereth), it's the original name for the Sea of Galilee where Yeshua of Nazareth first called out disciples and started His healing ministry with public declarations to the crowds to repent for the Kingdom is near.
The Galilee is also where Yeshua walked on water during a storm where the disciples caught fish. It's the same place that Yeshua tossed demons out of people possessed. The same area told His followers they would become fishers of men and commissioned them to go out to the nations.
The thing about fishing in open water is you have little control over what fish end up in the net.
The lost sheep mystery is a big part of the Galilee and it's a big part of God's gospel blessing to all lost other sheep nations.
Bt now you might just see...
The great commission gospel ties to the big time promise given to Abraham. That gospel promise is that Abraham will be the father of many blessed nations, people of faith.
The disciples knew the promise given to Abraham that was passed on to Isaac and then Jacob, but so far many sheep have missed the good news about Kingdom restoration and have not understood the house of Jacob promise given to Mary. For that reason some day I'll write more about what I've learned about that.
For now, don't hit the delete button just yet.
The Jewish disciples understood repentance in faith starts the process of restoration. They also came to understand why repentance is so critical to God's Kingdom restoration plan. In the end, they learned that God's big plan includes fishing for other lost sheep.
They all also wanted to know when the end of kingdom division, aka end of age would begin. They were likely zeroed in on the one flock one shepherd promise in Ezekiel 37:
Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the nations to which they have gone, and will gather them from everywhere, and will bring them into his land; and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel, and one king will be king to them all; and they will never again be two nations, nor will they ever again be divided into two kingdoms. Nor will they defile themselves any more with their idols, with their abominations, and with all their rebellions; and I will save them from all their rebellions with which they sinned, and I will cleanse them; and they shall be my people, and I will be their God. My servant David will be king over them, and they will all have one shepherd; and they will walk in my precepts, and my statutes they will keep, and they will do them.
That's why it was the last question the disciples asked.
In Matthew 24, the disciples asked when the end of the age would be. Yeshua said the end would come only after the:
“Gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations.”
The message was do something about the promise. That is why I am writing about the lost sheep Scriptures.
If you turn to Matthew 28, you'll see Yeshua told them to: “make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them . . . teaching them to observe all that I commanded you.”
Fast forward to Acts 1, as Yeshua and the disciples continued their conversation about the end of the age from their discussion in Matthew 24. The big question is seen again as the disciples asked Yeshua when he would restore the kingdom to Israel.
He answered that question by telling them to preach the gospel, beginning in Jerusalem and then spread out from there to the rest of the world. In other words, to the Jew first then to the Gentiles.
The Jewish disciples had not forgotten about God's Kingdom promises outlined in the Torah scrolls as well as the Prophets. Paul knew them too, he wrote later in Romans 4:13-16 that he knew Abraham's promise was passed on not only to Isaac and Jacob but to all of faith.
They knew too that Almighty God's big house is a blessed house of prayer made up of all people (aka all nations) that choose to repent back in faith to God's image ways in a relationship restored in the mercies and forgiveness of Almighty God.
The transformation back to the image of God is what Paul wrote about when he penned this referencing the veil Moses wore only after he stood in the presence of The LORD. In the tent of meeting, in freedom from sin he never wore the veil:
But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:16-18
It took some yeshiva time, but the disciples learned to walk in relationship faith just as Yeshua had taught them. Those disciples from Galilee knew the history of Jeroboam, the lost sheep story of Israel and the Torah fact about the mixed multitude other sheep nations of sojourners that left Egypt with Jacob's family sheep descendants. They were all guided like one flock by The LORD God out of slavery and out of Egypt's pagan ways.
Not only that, the disciples knew about Joseph and Jacob's adoption of Ephraim and Manasseh, the grandsons of the pagan priest of On.
For years, I never thought much about the reason Yeshua's ministry began in the "Galilee of the nations" nor the lost sheep connection with the Canaanite woman when she encountered Yeshua and her daughter was healed (see Matthew 15).
That account reveals the critical test.
It was a faith test for the Canaanite woman and for the rest of us. It reveals faith in action with a mystery about the healing power of restoration.
Here's the thing, only after she passed the faith test, was her Canaanite daughter healed:
Yeshua went out from there, and withdrew into the region of Tyre and Sidon. Behold, a Canaanite woman came out from those borders, and cried, saying, "Have mercy on me, Lord, you son of David! My daughter is severely demonized!"
But he answered her not a word. His talmidim (disciples) came and begged him, saying, "Send her away; for she cries after us."
But he answered, "I wasn't sent to anyone but the lost sheep of the house of Israel."
But she came and worshiped him, saying, "Lord, help me." But he answered, "It is not appropriate to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." But she said, "Yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table."
Then Yeshua answered her, "...Woman, great is your faith! Be it done to you even as you desire." And her daughter was healed from that hour. Matthew 15:21-28
To unwind this further - we might dig into the missing word "but" which is written in the Greek parchments, but oddly and rarely seen in English bible translations. The missing word is the Greek word δὲ transliterated as "de."
What's de? It more fully means: "but on the other hand."
At first, the disciples didn't know what was happening with the Canaanite, that's why this was such a big teaching moment about lost sheep and faith.
At the time the disciples still held a discriminatory and prejudicial view of the Canaanite woman. They thought of her as they did the Samaritan woman at the well as a Gentile cast off.
The Canaanite woman the story directly links to Abraham's promise as well as Peter's vision in Acts 10 before he met up with Cornelius the Roman centurion.
The thing is the disciples, including Peter were "forgetting" that both Judah and Simeon married Canaanite women. Beyond that fact, in that prejudice of discrimination, they had forgotten that Joseph married an Egyptian woman named Asenath and she was the mother of Manasseh and Ephraim and as you've seen, her father was a leader of ancient pagan idol worship in Heliopolis.
We can see the problem, the disciples held a narrow field of view as they said: "Send her away; for she cries after us."
Yeshua's reply is dramatic. It opens up when we reconsider that hidden Greek wordt... δὲ :
[But, on the other hand] he answered, "I wasn't sent to anyone but the lost sheep of the house of Israel."
What on earth is He talking about?
He was testing the woman's faith, as well as the disciples.
She came though and passed that test.
The woman persisted and excelled with the test of a sojourner lost sheep. She was granted healing the adoption result of faith.
Faith was required for her daughter's healing and her faith proved the big gospel picture. She, like the woman at the well and like Cornelius later, all give us a picture of restoration and healing for any child of God among the nations.
It's the gospel blessing faith promise given to Abraham, a sojourner in Israel who crossed over from the pagan world of the Ur of the Chaldees.
Bottomline, prejudice does not fit in with true Biblical faith or God's plan!
Yeshua answered her, "Woman, great is your faith! Be it done to you even as you desire."
By what she did, the Canaanite woman passed the great faith test. Do we?
At one time, I didn't understand faith is action, not just belief (opinion). Faith in action is a very big deal in the Bible and that gospel starts with repentance Bible style. It's not just what you think or believe, it's what you do about it after you repent when forgiveness in grace and living water are offered.
That's the bigger picture of faith and the Bible outlines the walk of faith.
Another big gospel truth is hidden in the promise given to Mary.
It's the House of Jacob promise.
It disproves new religion, it disproves replacement theology or so-called "supersessionism" (that the new church supersedes old Israel) .
The House of Jacob promise is the only recorded promise given Mary aka Miriam, the young maiden born in the family line of David. You may have missed it, but the House of Jacob promise is found in the book of Luke.
The House of Jacob is forever tied to Israel's restoration and Mary's promise ties that to the kingdom throne promised to Yeshua's Jewish mother. It starts out with the same don't be afraid instruction given Joshua before he faced fierce opposition:
"And the angel said to her, “Don't be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Yeshua.
He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.
And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” Luke 1:30-33Do you see the New Testament dilemma? If you only think of yourself as a church member based only on the accounts of the New Testament, what do you do about the House of Jacob promise?
The good news is it is linked to the promise of Israel's restoration declared by the Prophets.
That fact was not a mystery for Miriam nor the Jewish disciple students of Yeshua at the end of their yeshiva time with their Master Rabbi. None of them thought of the words recorded by Moses or the Prophets as old or done away with.
As you've already seen, we can know that because it's the last question the eleven remaining disciples asked Yeshua. They knew the history of 1Kings 12:21 and 2Chronicles 11:1 when Israel was divided and they wanted to know when it would all end.
One again, this is their BIG question about the end…
"Is it at this time that you will restore the kingdom to Israel?" Acts 1:6
Their kingdom question is why they took on their assignment with these words:
Their kingdom question is why they took on their assignment with these words:
"James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting." James 1:1.
And it's the reason we read: "Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia" 1Peter 1:1James and Peter were not the only men to reach out to scattered tribes and strangers.
Not only that, but the gospel response about what to do when when forgiveness in grace and living water are offered is revealed by Moses as he recorded what God had to say. Moses wrote it all down in what's called the Torah:
"There shall be one law [Torah] for the native and for the stranger who sojourns among you." Exodus 12:49
"One law [Torah] and one judgment shall be for you and for the stranger who sojourns with you." Numbers 15:16
Torah means God's teaching and instruction, it reveals His heart of lovingkindness is for everyone and how we should live in a kingdom way. It's all there in the Bible.
The house of Jacob promise and the strangers that would join in with them was not a mystery to the Jewish apostle Paul either.
Romans 8, 9, 10 and 11 is his thesis about that.
Paul wrote the Roman letter because he understood that the children of God family name in the exodus journey is the same family name given by the Father according to the riches of His glory to all His children whether native born or grafted-in sojourner.
Paul wrote to the Ephesians about this too:
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being... Ephesians 3:14-16When we first read about Paul in the book of Acts, he did not yet understand God's one Torah of faith or the restoration declared by Hosea. He was prejudiced and bigoted, embedded in religious persecution.
The good news is he was healed from his blindness and hatred of his fellow Jews.
He also learned his lesson about Hosea's promises and they became is a big part of his Roman letter. The mercy given to those called "not my people" and their adoption by faith into "you are my people" is the wild branch focus of the Hosea mystery lesson found in his letter.
Adoption and ingrafting by a faith walk is first seen with the sojourners who chose to leave Egypt to follow and do the will of the Elohim God of Israel,
By the way, both native born and sojourner like two sheep flocks walked into the Promised Land together as one flock forty years later with Joshua in the lead. The gospel good news is both native born and sojourner will again walk together as one flock under one Shepherd into the Kingdom of God led by Messiah with the Torah as the Kingdom constitution.
Long ago, the same land committed to Abraham is mapped out in small part as today's modern Israel, but God's Promise Land is bigger than the maps drawn by men in 1948 or 1967. The map almighty God gave to Abraham, the father of many blessed nations is the land of the plan of God. He will keep that gospel promise and restore His Kingdom on earth in the same place.
The facts are on the ground...
The news headlines for 60 years are that Judah has returned.
What they don't say is why. It's about restoration, it about prepping the Holy Land and Jerusalem for Messiah's return.
Like the men that Abraham faced in battle, like the men Joshua confronted, there's terror and opposition from those that worship a false god and those that don't know the gospel promise of the Almighty God of Israel. That Genesis 15:18 promise is real and the center point of God's creation. The promise was repeated to Joshua after the descendant of Ephraim arrived. You can see it in Joshua 1:4 including everything from the southern border of Egypt to the northern border of Lebanon from the Mediterranean Sea, west to the Euphrates River. Basically, everywhere that Abraham walked.
On our modern maps that shows us the Promised Land in clouds not only the land today's Israel currently possesses, but all of the so-called West Bank and Gaza, all of Jordan, the Sinai of Egypt as well as Syria, Iraq and a huge swath of Saudi Arabia.
It's important to understand Genesis.
It's important to know Joseph was the firstborn son of Rachel and she was Jacob's first love, but it took many years before she conceived her first-born son. When he was born she named him Joseph (to add increase) and she knew God would add another son for her. The second son was Benjamin.
Years later, while in Egypt, Jacob honored God's promise granted to his grandfather Abraham that was passed on to Jacob's father Isaac as he adopted Joseph's two sons and incredibly gave Ephraim the firstborn title and rights that Reuben had lost due to adultery against Jacob.
Joseph couldn't believe or really understand what was happening. Fast forward a couple of hundred years from that day in Genesis to the Exodus Sinai story. It shows us that Elohim God continued His gospel promise to Abraham that he would be the father of many blessed nations.
A prophetic picture of that is seen in Jacob's adoption of Joseph and his wife Asenath's sons. The picture gets clearer with the sojourner nations that chose to leave pagan Egypt with Jacob's former slave family.
What's the end time picture?
They will all gather again in the Promised Land together.
Why? Almighty God, the Elohim God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of Israel will keep His eternal unchanging word by bringing everyone that would follow Him out of a pagan world of sin into the covenant of blessing we now call the Ten Commandments. It's like a marriage vow for the whole House of God whether family sheep of other sheep.
Back in the day, the mixed multitude included the adopted sons of Joseph and their descendants. Importantly, it also included some Egyptians and other nations that wanted to sojourn with the descendants of Israel and follow the God of Israel.
Jacob broke tradition by crossing his right hand over Manasseh to Ephraim granting him first born status. Take note too, the boy's storyline is much like Ishmael's. His mother Hagar was an Egyptian too. Some of his descendants were likely in the crowd.
To get a handle on the big lost sheep picture, we need to remember both Manasseh and Ephraim were the sons of Asenath. She was the one that Egypt's Pharaoh gave in marriage to Joseph. Asenath's Egyptian name declares had been dedicated to the false goddess "Neith." After all, her dad Potipherah was a pagan priest of On (aka Heliopolis). By the way, his name means: "he whom the Ra gave" (Genesis 41:45).
Neith was the fake myth goddess of childbirth and the cosmos. Neith was also the mother of Ra, the fake myth god. Ra-Atum was the ancient Egyptian fake-deity of the sun that the Egyptians illegitimately regarded as a substitute for the Creator of the universe and the source of life.
Do you see the pagan picture?
Asenath and Potipherah literal carried the names of Egyptian pagan cult idols. Their family was dedicated to worshiping the oldest fake-deities of Egypt that you can still find carved like a witness on hieroglyphs. Not only that, the obelisk of the Temple of Ra-Atum still stands. It was put in place by Senusret I, the 2nd pharaoh of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt. Most think he ruled c. 1971 BC to 1926 BC. Incredibly, that obelisk stills stands. It's in the Cairo Governorate in Heliopolis (aka On the "city of the Sun") where Potipherah led idol worship.
As you can see, the mother of Manasseh and Ephraim was not Jewish, not even close. Nonetheless, the boys were adopted, grafted-in as sons of Jacob into the family of Israel connecting the great promise given to his grandfather to bless many nations.
When God promised Abraham that his descendants and many nations would be a blessing to the world, The Creator of the Universe meant it, and He will continue to add others to His gospel promise as The LORD turns what looks cursed into blessing!
Almighty God blessed Joseph in Egypt and beyond. In the exodus, He not only saved Jacob's family, He saved the mixed multitude of people in Egypt that wanted to join as sons of Israel and leave the pagan chaos. They were all there at Sinai and 40 years later, they all crossed the Jordan together:
"They answered Joshua, saying, “All that you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go. Just as we obeyed Moses in all things, so we will obey you; only may the LORD your God be with you as He was with Moses." Joshua 1:16-17
The Joshua story then immediately turns to the story of a pagan Gentile a prostitute in Jericho who was commended for her faith by what she did. A record of her valor is found in James 2:25 as documented from Joshua 6:22-25.
In the end, the prophet Isaiah tells us The Lord's House of Prayer (Isaiah 56:7) will be front and center in the Kingdom of God and that it will be a house of prayer for all nations. That's a big part of Abraham's gospel promise!
If you ask me, the book of Revelation provides a prophetic census somehow relating to Abraham's promise. It lists Manasseh among the 12 tribes WITH: “all nations, and kindreds, and peoples, and tongues” surrounding the God of Israel's throne (see Revelation 7:9 for the proof text).
Why Manasseh? Perhaps because Joshua 16:4 declares: "The people of Joseph, Manasseh and Ephraim, received their inheritance" but Ephraim departed Judah (Isaiah 7:17) much like the so-called Greco-Roman church fathers like Origen of Alexandria, John Chrysostom, Justin Martyr, Melito of Sardis and others like Ignatius Bishop of Antioch that some scholars claim others wrote taking credit under his name,
Nonetheless whoever wrote the works of these men, they all rejected the Jews and the very Bible Jesus read and taught on. Their views were claiming a new church replacement for Israel repeating the dark history of old anti-semitic replacement theology that started with Jeroboam the slave master.
That hatred has a so-called saints list (more on the church fathers in a moment).
Despite Ephraim's replacement theology, Almighty God reveals restoration "at the end" rfor the whole house of Jacob promised to Mary. It's the family of God reunion if you will, and it's already begun!
That may be why you are here still reading.
The outline summary of this restoration promise is found in Jeremiah chapter 30 and continues on through Jeremiah chapter 31, but you can't grasp the big picture gospel if you just read two to three verse snippets found at the end of that chapter as so many insist on doing without realized the damage that can be done. Like Almighty God told Hosea: "My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge."
The gospel foundation promise of one flock restoration begins in Genesis with Abraham, it moves on with Joseph's family story and continues as Yeshua of Nazareth gives a declaration for good reason that ties to Genesis, Exodus, Joshua, Isaiah and Jeremiah linking the bigger story of Joseph and the "other sheep" mixed multitude:
"For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me." John 5:6
The promise of the family of faith restoration has always been the will of the Father.
This is seen in plain sight by Yeshua's words in Matthew 12:46-50:
While he was still speaking to the people, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, asking to speak to him. But he replied to the man who told him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?”
And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers!
For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”Paul explained what he learned in his Roman letter as he zeroed in on God's big family restoration. If you ask me, I think Paul was likely studying the scroll of Hosea when he was inspired to write those pages of his Roman letter we labeled as chapters in Romans 8-11.
When we consider that, we might see Pauls' so called New Testament messages weren't new at all.
We've had access to copies of Paul's Roman letter for nearly two thousand years and it is still misunderstood, but it's time to end the paradox of confusion and provide some damage control on many years of new religion sermons that new replacement theologies have caused.
Today, it's time tot understand the restoration that the disciples questioned.
It's time to get out of the weeds and tares of Ephraim's replacement theology and the misguided anti-Jewish traditions of the church fathers that rose to prominence after the disciples were long gone. Those so-called new church fathers taught an old lie that started in Eden.
The lie of deception starts like this: God does not mean what He says and He changes His mind, after all the Old Testament if old and done away with. It's the first lie found in the Bible.
A remnant of sheep rejects that fake shepherd. Isaiah wrote about this. Check out Isaiah 24:13-16:
"Throughout the earth the story is the same--only a remnant is left, like the stray olives left on the tree or the few grapes left on the vine after harvest. But all who are left shout and sing for joy. Those in the west praise the LORD's majesty. In eastern lands, give glory to the LORD. In the lands beyond the sea, praise the name of the LORD, the God of Israel.We hear songs of praise from the ends of the earth, songs that give glory to the Righteous One!
But my heart is heavy with grief. Weep for me, for I wither away. Deceit still prevails, and treachery is everywhere."
Have you ever considered Jesus the Jew?
Yeshua's family was Jewish, His ancestors were Jewish, the disciples were Jewish. They were Jewish yeshiva talmidim that followed their Rabbi and the multitudes that gathered wherever Jesus went were all Jewish except for a remnant Canaanites and a few Samaritans.
Yet, over time, a disguise of deception, a veil of blindness arose from a Torah famine of replacement theology. Even the calendar was changed and Holy Days were replaced with holidays rooted in ancient pagan myths and superstitions from Babylon and Egypt.
In Greek thinking, Christians were taught by second century antisemitic church leaders like Justin Martyr and Melito of Sardis to reject the Jewish people and forget the promise of restoration saying the Jews hung Jesus on the cross.
The truth hurts.
The Council of Trent officially adopted a lie ignoring the fact that Roman centurions slapped and whipped Yeshua to a pulp. Their relentless beating only stopped when the pagans nailed Him on a Roman torture stake with two others.
Yeshua arose after three days and nights keeping the promise of Jonah and Yeshua lives today because of the power of God in resurrection. That too is a big part of God's plan for the restoration of His Kingdom and that plan includes the Jewish people.
The modern State of Israel is the proof of God's promise to Abraham.
No matter what the Council of Trent says, the Jewish people are front and center in the restoration plan for the Kingdom of God.
Another truth is God's instruction taught by Yeshua as written by Moses remains.
It's the jots and tittles that were written by Moses. They were not hung on a cross no more than the promise of Israel’s tribes and the sojourners with them living together under King Messiah given in Isaiah 11:
"In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples--of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious. In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that remains of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea.He will raise a signal for the nations and will assemble the banished of Israel, and gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth. The jealousy of Ephraim shall depart, and those who harass Judah shall be cut off; Ephraim shall not be jealous of Judah, and Judah shall not harass Ephraim." Isaiah 11:10-13
A law was hung on that tree, that law is death, separation from God from sin spoken in Eden thinning God does not mean what He says, not the covenant of life in the image of God declared at Sinai for the Kingdom.
The law hung on that tree is the curse of sin we bring on ourselves. It began in Eden, but it will end at the end. Read Matthew 5, that Roman cross does not do away the jots and tittles of the Torah of the God of Israel.
If it did, Universe would extinguish and the curse of death could not be broken. The creation of the earth and the heavens above remain, so does the will of The Father to restore mankind to His image.
The Torah still stands in God's image. It is veiled and misunderstood, so repentance (turning back to it) is required. It is the Kingdom of God constitution and the way of life for God's children, both native born sheep and other sheep sojourners with them under the great shepherd, Messiah.
Many choose to think its done away with but:
"Our fathers have inherited nothing but lies,We find Jeremiah's declaration perfectly placed after these words Yeshua reiterated in the great commission assignment:
worthless things in which there is no profit." Jeremiah 16:19
"Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when it shall no longer be said, 'As the LORD lives who brought up the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt,' but 'As the LORD lives who brought up the people of Israel out of the north country and out of all the countries where he had driven them.' For I will bring them back to their own land that I gave to their fathers.
"Behold, I am sending for many fishers, declares the LORD, and they shall catch them. And afterward I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain and every hill, and out of the clefts of the rocks." Jeremiah 16:14-16
As you read that remember this, this was never about a new religion:
"And Jesus said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men." Mark 1:17
After Jeremiah is told that fishermen will be sent out, we see this:
"Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely.
And this is the name by which he will be called: 'The LORD is our righteousness.' "Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when they shall no longer say, 'As the LORD lives who brought up the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt,' but 'As the LORD lives who brought up and led the offspring of the house of Israel out of the north country and out of all the countries where he had driven them.' Then they shall dwell in their own land." Jeremiah 23:5-8
Today, is the time for the hunters and the restoration of truth among the whole house of Israel and among the sojourner nations. It's time to understand what Paul really said about being grafted-in to the House of Jacob and this mystery:
"For I would not, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in." Romans 11:25Paul understood the promise of Abraham and the astounding and amazing prophecies linked to the fullness of time we are in today as a remnant are returning to the Jewish roots of the Biblical faith and God's voice.
Take note too, you may have missed it but the return has happened in earnest after the Jewish people returned to Israel in 1948 and reclaimed Jerusalem in 1967.
These dates are tied into God's lost sheep restoration. Let me explain...
That Greek word plērōma translated as "fullness" is much bigger than you think. It is dimensional and not just a "number." It is tied to the meaning of the word “keeping” and it's linked to Jeremiah 31 and the circumcised heart declared by Ezekiel:
"And the word of the LORD came to me: "Son of man, your brothers, even your brothers, your kinsmen, the whole house of Israel, all of them, are those of whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, 'Go far from the LORD; to us this land is given for a possession.'Therefore say, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: Though I removed them far off among the nations, and though I scattered them among the countries, yet I have been a sanctuary to them for a while in the countries where they have gone.' Therefore say, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: I will gather you from the peoples and assemble you out of the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.'And when they come there, they will remove from it all its detestable things and all its abominations. And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. But as for those whose heart goes after their detestable things and their abominations, I will bring their deeds upon their own heads, declares the Lord GOD." Ezekiel 11:14-21
In Deuteronomy, we see the word "keeping" seven times as the Hebrew word "shamar" which means "to keep, guard and observe." So, if we dig in to understand the picture that Paul is describing regarding the nations aka the "fullness of the Gentiles" we might begin to understand Jacob's blessing over Joseph's two boys, Ephraim and Manasseh that are adopted by Jacob. Read Genesis 48. If we want to understand what really happened, these words will begin to make more sense:
"Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came.
And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares the Lord GOD, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes. I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land.
I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.
You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God. And I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses. And I will summon the grain and make it abundant and lay no famine upon you. I will make the fruit of the tree and the increase of the field abundant, that you may never again suffer the disgrace of famine among the nations. Then you will remember your evil ways, and your deeds that were not good, and you will loathe yourselves for your iniquities and your abominations. 32 It is not for your sake that I will act, declares the Lord GOD; let that be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your ways, O house of Israel." Ezekiel 36:22-32
Despite what you may have heard, Paul did not come up with a new religion teaching pulled out of thin air about the "fullness of the Gentiles." He pulled it straight from the Torah.
Both of Joseph's sons were born and raised in another nation. It was Egypt and Ephraim and Manasseh's mother was Asenath and by the Biblical account she was the Egyptian daughter of Potiphera, priest of the Egyptian false-god named "On". You can read about that in the Genesis account in 41:45; 41:46 and 46:20.
Think about that!
Back in the day, the Pharaoh gave Asenath to Joseph to be his wife as a reward. There's a connection, that pagan man Potiphera is the same idol worshipper that bought Joseph from the Ishmaelites, and the same man whose wife tried but failed to seduce Joseph into adultery and sexual sin.
When Jacob was very old and nearly blind, he called on Joseph to come to his bedside so he could bless his two sons, but little did Joseph know what was about to unfold. Jacob told Joseph that his grandsons were now his. Jacob adopted both boys and he put them in first and second son position for an inheritance saying, "Ephraim and Manasseh shall be mine like Reuben and Simeon."
Can you imagine that?
Joseph was stunned and he got another big surprise, as his father deliberately switched the normal order of blessing the first born son. Instead, Jacob gave Joseph's younger second son Ephraim, the "greater" blessing, the double blessing of the firstborn as Joseph protested what his father was doing.
It didn't stop there...
Jacob then prophesied that Ephraim's descendants would become a vast multitude and guess what... The Hebrew phrase Jacob used as he blessed Ephraim was "m'loh ha goyim" which means "fullness of the Gentiles."
Now you know what Paul was actually writing about. It wasn't new at all. Paul's letter includes Jacob's blessing.
Jacob then prophesied that Ephraim's descendants would become a vast multitude and guess what... The Hebrew phrase Jacob used as he blessed Ephraim was "m'loh ha goyim" which means "fullness of the Gentiles."
Now you know what Paul was actually writing about. It wasn't new at all. Paul's letter includes Jacob's blessing.
Paul is pointing everyone back to the Genesis Torah portion called Vayechi and Jacob's adoption. If you have not known that, no worry. It's the same blessing that Joseph protested because he too didn't fully understand either.
So much for the Old Testament being done away with at the cross.
The Hebrew phrase "m'loh ha goyim" is the same one Paul used in Romans 11:25, when he was teaching about the final redemption when "all Israel will be saved."
Paul is not describing just any old pagan idol worshiping "Gentiles" as you think of them (separate from Israel) when he used this term "m'loh ha goyim." As a profound Torah teacher, Paul was referring to adoption and the return to Torah of the sojourners walking with Israel. He was pointing us back to Jacob's prophecy as Paul delivered the same blessing to the Romans and the Ephesians:
Paul is not describing just any old pagan idol worshiping "Gentiles" as you think of them (separate from Israel) when he used this term "m'loh ha goyim." As a profound Torah teacher, Paul was referring to adoption and the return to Torah of the sojourners walking with Israel. He was pointing us back to Jacob's prophecy as Paul delivered the same blessing to the Romans and the Ephesians:
"O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable [are] his judgments, and his ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counselor?" Romans 11:33-34Many look at the "fullness" of the Gentiles" that Paul referenced as a one-sided coin thinking it only means a full measure of time or counting. I believe it has that meaning too and I believe that timeline began its end in 1967, when Israeli troops took back Jerusalem.
"What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded. According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear unto this day." Romans 11:7-8
"That at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: But now in Christ Jesus you who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition [between us]" Ephesians 2:14
"Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God." Ephesians 2:19
Counting or measure of time only touches one aspect of the household of God because the word "plērōma" also means a fulfilling as in "keeping" so there is a deeper message. Consider this:
The fullness also refers to sojourners keeping the way,
the Torah walk of the Jew named Yeshua.
Before 1967, few Christians sought out the Torah ways of Yeshua, many Christians like me never heard the word Torah spoken in a sermon. We never heard the name Yeshua in Sunday school either. I know I never did.
Before 1967, few Christians sought out the Torah ways of Yeshua, many Christians like me never heard the word Torah spoken in a sermon. We never heard the name Yeshua in Sunday school either. I know I never did.
We only read a New Testament as we were thought Jesus did away with the law on the cross.
If you ask me, it's on us that very few Jews have ever seen Jesus as Jewish, or had a Christian friend, that is... before 1967.
Paul's fullness was revealing the amazing prophecy from Jacob concerning the latter time we are in today as non-Jewish believers are returning to the root of their faith and sojourning as brothers and sisters with the Jewish people that both believe in the God of Israel.
Ephraim was lost among the nations, but now a remnant like lost Ephraim are returning to a faith connection with Judah and our Elohim God. Non-Jews are befriending Jews and many Christians are studying Torah, remembering the Sabbath and honoring the Feasts of The Lord.
I like to think of the "Feasts" as the "Feats" of The Lord. The reason, they are the days He chose to engage with mankind's redemption plan.
Back to Paul, his message addresses faith in the promises given Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. We know because:
Back to Paul, his message addresses faith in the promises given Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. We know because:
“I ask instead: Did Israel not understand? First, Moses says: "I will make you jealous by those who are not a nation; I will make you angry by a nation without understanding." Romans 10:19The beginning of the Bible starts with the story of a husband (Adam) and his bride (Eve) and at the end of the Bible, it closes with a husband and a restored bride. Many pastors call this bride the "church" but believe it or not, God uses another name for His household of children and its not church.
“I ask then, did they stumble so as to lose their share? Absolutely not! However, because of their trespass, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel jealous.” Romans 11:11
Here's the thing, our Heavenly Father is called the God of Israel throughout the Bible not the God of the church.
That's what Paul tells us. Please read Romans 11:8-27 and as you do, reconsider the words "all Israel.”
One of the most important, prophetic end-time events before the return of the Messiah as King is the restoration of those "lost" in the nations returning in fellowship and action, sojourning with their brethren Judah.
It is necessary for those who are "lost" among the nations to walk in the "fullness of the Gentiles" and restored before Messiah returns because He will return to be King of all Israel. This is the "mystery" of Romans 11:26-27:
That's what Paul tells us. Please read Romans 11:8-27 and as you do, reconsider the words "all Israel.”
One of the most important, prophetic end-time events before the return of the Messiah as King is the restoration of those "lost" in the nations returning in fellowship and action, sojourning with their brethren Judah.
It is necessary for those who are "lost" among the nations to walk in the "fullness of the Gentiles" and restored before Messiah returns because He will return to be King of all Israel. This is the "mystery" of Romans 11:26-27:
So, if you think of yourself as a non-Jew or a Gentile church believer - think again if you consider yourself a child of the God of Israel. Here's an odd thing about that word Gentile. Noah Webster's 1828 Dictionary sheds some light saying:And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written,
“The Deliverer will come from Zion,
he will banish ungodliness from Jacob”;
“and this will be my covenant with them
when I take away their sins.”
"GEN'TILE, noun [Latin gentilis; from Latin gens, nation, race; applied to pagans.]
If you truly want to follow the Messiah Yeshua and don't understand what the Bible teaches about the house of Jacob's that OK, but it time to dig in because Mary's promise says this:
"He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
The identity of the house of Jacob defines the Kingdom's constituents.
It's time to walk in that truth.
Israel is the Heavenly family name
God gives all His children.
Whether native born or sojourner.
Jacob was not yet called Israel while he struggled in the dark before he was blessed at the end of the night. Only when the morning light came, could Jacob see the face of the one he fought with. Then and only then was he blessed to be called Israel because he grabbed and held on to the "man like God."
The man like God and refused to loosen his grip (so all Israel shall be saved) as Jacob struggled for what he likely thought was the way to win the battle. That is what we all do too. In the end, our dark struggles are with Almighty God, Sovereign of the Universe because He seeks to get our attention, yet:
Some of us always..
want to always blame the devil
for our life struggles.
Jacob was the same. He thought Laban was his problem when he worked 14 years to earn the right to have Rachel as his wife. He did not know it was all a part of God's plan and it remained a mystery hidden in his struggle with Laban's house rules.
Our Heavenly Father wants to change our walk too. So we struggle like Jacob. When we see the light, we must reach out and grab the one called Yeshua. In that way, we can be blessed and adopted into the family name from Heaven. That's Paul's mystery message to the Romans.
Jacob lived out what he had learned about God's glory plan, that is why he adopted Joseph's boys.
In the scriptures, a pagan; a worshipper of false gods; any person not a Jew or a christian; a heathen."
Mr. Webster points to the issue of idol practices as being their character distinction. They were linked to the heathens, the image-worshippers according to the 1880 McClintock and Strong Biblical Cyclopedia:
"As to the religion of heathenism, it is "a wild growth on the soil of fallen human nature, a darkening of the original consciousness of God's deification of the rational and irrational creature, and a corresponding corruption of the moral sense, giving the sanction of religion to natural and unnatural vices."
Paul agrees with Noah Webster, he called the Ephesians “former Gentiles”… you once were separate, excluded "strangers" from Messiah and the identity of none other than… Israel!
“Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles… remember that you were at that time separate from Messiah, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world” Ephesians 2:11-12
"He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
The identity of the house of Jacob defines the Kingdom's constituents.
The man like God and refused to loosen his grip (so all Israel shall be saved) as Jacob struggled for what he likely thought was the way to win the battle. That is what we all do too. In the end, our dark struggles are with Almighty God, Sovereign of the Universe because He seeks to get our attention, yet:
Jacob was the same. He thought Laban was his problem when he worked 14 years to earn the right to have Rachel as his wife. He did not know it was all a part of God's plan and it remained a mystery hidden in his struggle with Laban's house rules.
Our Heavenly Father wants to change our walk too. So we struggle like Jacob. When we see the light, we must reach out and grab the one called Yeshua. In that way, we can be blessed and adopted into the family name from Heaven. That's Paul's mystery message to the Romans.
Jacob lived out what he had learned about God's glory plan, that is why he adopted Joseph's boys.
Their mother Asenath was not a Jew, but she was married to Jacob's son. The two boys were adopted despite the fact that Asenath's father was Potipherah. The fact he was a Priest of On (Genesis 41:45) did not matter. In a way they were redeemed because Jacob understood God's heart of adoption and he knew that life was a struggle but his blessing remained and needed to be passed on.
The boy's names were grafted into the tribes of Israel and they too were allotted a portion of the Promised Land, so hold on to Messiah and be blessed into the family like them.
Isaiah recorded something mind-blowing about this and about identity that you need to read and understand:
"One will say, 'I belong to the LORD'; another will call himself by the name of Jacob; still another will write on his hand, 'The LORD's' and will take the name Israel.Isaiah's message is a revelation. If you belong to "The LORD" you can take on the blessing of the family name of Israel and Israel's firstborn redeemer, the first and the last shown in Revelation 1:17 and Revelation 22:13.
Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts:
“I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god." Isaiah 44:5-6
Jacob's story is real, and it is a living parable. In the Bible, God uses adoption and grafting to show the world how The Lord of Hosts extends His Kingdom in love and not by religious membership in the traditions and customs of men.
The Kingdom is not restricted to strands of DNA, the Kingdom is about faith like Abraham and it starts with repentance. No one can merit a place in God's Kingdom with a chromosome or earn a spot like a paycheck.
A part of Israel's identity is a faith adoption whereby we choose to cry, Abba, Father!! It's where your heart, mind and soul choose to be if you take hold of the faith of Messiah Yeshua and walk in His way. His way is where you get to walk in God's way...
For you have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but you have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. Romans 8:15Father God's adoption promise was never given to just one sect or denomination defined by the tradition of name or religion. The family name of God's chosen, whether Jew or non-Jew comes as a blessing from our Heavenly Father. The people Abba Father calls His own are called "Israel." That's the family name blessing for redeemed children that have turned to Him in repentance as The God of Israel.
Israel is like a bride that choses to receive the family name.
"Israel" is the name of the assembly Abba Father gives His congregation that choose to follow Him into His Kingdom. Father God calls all whether native born, adopted or grafted in, we all have to make the choice to follow Him. That choice gives glory back to Almighty God whether we are like Judah, the adopted sons Ephraim and Manasseh, or the strangers and sojourners that saw the miracles and plagues of God and walked out of Egypt on Passover.
These words can be yours:
"I belong to the LORD"; another will call himself by the name of Jacob; still another will write on his hand, 'The LORD's' and will take the name Israel." Isaiah 44:5If you belong to The Lord, and take the family name as your own, it will change your walk and your view from the beginning of the Bible (Torah) to the Prophets (Nevi'im) and the Writings (Ketuvim).
The fact that the books of Kings (M'lakhim) is a part of the writings of the Prophets is very prophetic. The story there will also help you understand Yeshua's words spoken at none other than Jacob's well.
His words are:
"I came only for the lost sheep of Israel." Matthew 15:24The reason: the family story from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, on to Joseph, David and Yeshua can be your story of a faith family of the God of Israel.
When we read the history of the divided Kingdom and the lost tribes, we see the term “ten tribes” is seen in the Bible twice, and both are in 1Kings 11.
The first is when Jeroboam, the future king of the northern kingdom, meets Ahijah, the prophet. In a prophetic picture, the prophet Ahijah tears his garment, perhaps a prayer shawl into twelve pieces and declares to Jeroboam: “Take for yourself ten pieces; for thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘See, I am about to tear the kingdom from the hand of Solomon, and will give you ten tribes’” (1Kings 11:31).
That event is tied to Isaiah when God tells the prophet of their return: “On that day a great trumpet will be blown, and those who were lost in the land of Assyria ... will come” (Isaiah 27:13),
With that promise in mind, restoring the lost tribes that separated from Judah became the basis for what Yeshua said in the very area that Manasseh received a land grant promise.
Phillip's son of Joseph description to Nathanael noted in John 1:45 has a mystery connection to Joseph in Egypt. We know Joseph's sons were Ephraim and Manasseh and their mother was an Egyptian princess. Her father was a pagan priest but they were adopted by Jacob at the end of his life.
Years before the Genesis adoption account, we see Jacob's seventeen year old son Joseph telling his family about his dream. Later, a man found him wandering in the fields near Shechem, and the man asked him, “What are you seeking?” Joseph's reply: “I am seeking my brothers...” The man told him, “They have gone away."
The lost sheep story is a very big one and it is woven throughout the Bible with a promise that is still unfinished business because it requires Messiah to fulfill the restoration of brothers and adopted sons promised in the Scriptures.
The disciples asked Yeshua about this Kingdom restoration promise in Acts 1:6-8:
"Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority.
But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Did you know that long before Herod Antipas ever ruled, a big part of the Northeast Galilee district was deeded to Manasseh?
That's a part of the family of Joseph connection to adoption.
To take on the family name of the God of Israel requires an "I will do" and provides an identity change. That change is your adoption as a sojourner with Israel after your dark struggle with the man of God. It does not really matter who your are when you are born on this planet, what matters is who you are at the end of your struggle if you seek the miracle salvation of resurrection to be saved from death.
The change that is needed now is on the inside, by faith in the anointed Messiah of Israel as a part of God's Kingdom people with a new heart for God's covenant and a new name as a blessing.
The change that is needed now is on the inside, by faith in the anointed Messiah of Israel as a part of God's Kingdom people with a new heart for God's covenant and a new name as a blessing.
The message in the Bible is a very old promise and Yeshua is the King of [all] Israel whether native or adopted sojourner and stranger.
Nathanael answered Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel.” (John 1:49)
So, look for yourself in the front of the Bible!! There you will find that beginning with Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea, Micah, Zechariah, Ezekiel and other prophets who are quoted below as the "Lost Sheep Scriptures." Many prophets declared in the latter days, a people group would arise scattered like sand and become restored with the family of Judah in the Kingdom. That's happening to you if you feel a kinship with Israel and the Jewish people.
As already noted, the Messiah, the Jew many call Jesus is quoted by His Jewish disciple Matthew stating that His purpose is to gather the lost sheep of Israel. In the book of Revelation John sees that accomplished in the end.
So, look for yourself in the front of the Bible!! There you will find that beginning with Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea, Micah, Zechariah, Ezekiel and other prophets who are quoted below as the "Lost Sheep Scriptures." Many prophets declared in the latter days, a people group would arise scattered like sand and become restored with the family of Judah in the Kingdom. That's happening to you if you feel a kinship with Israel and the Jewish people.
As already noted, the Messiah, the Jew many call Jesus is quoted by His Jewish disciple Matthew stating that His purpose is to gather the lost sheep of Israel. In the book of Revelation John sees that accomplished in the end.
John describes saints who would have a testimony in the faith of Messiah Yeshua, and that they would be keeping God's commandments. Do you?
Yeshua's lineage is tied to Abraham the father of many nations. Matthew 1 is the witness to that fact.
Not only that, check out John's vision, READ Revelation 12:17 and Revelation 14:12.
Isaiah penned these important words as he quoted God's voice:
Yeshua's lineage is tied to Abraham the father of many nations. Matthew 1 is the witness to that fact.
Not only that, check out John's vision, READ Revelation 12:17 and Revelation 14:12.
Isaiah penned these important words as he quoted God's voice:
But thou, Israel, [art] my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend. Isaiah 41:8God calls out both native born and sojourner with them! Israel is a surname shared in common with the family of the God of Israel according to Isaiah.
Webster's dictionary says a surname is "an added name derived from occupation or other circumstance." Today, we call it our last name. The Hebrew word for surname is "kanah" it means a "flattering title."
One shall say, I am the LORD'S; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto the LORD, and surname himself by the name of Israel. Isaiah 44:5
For Jacob my servant's sake, and Israel mine elect, I have even called thee by thy name: I have surnamed thee, though thou hast not known me. I [am] the LORD, and [there is] none else, [there is] no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me:
That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that [there is] none beside me. I [am] the LORD, and [there is] none else. Isaiah 45:4-6The prophet Jeremiah warned Israel as he wrote about a divorce. In divorce, one loses their surname and their former family identity. A common problem with divorce is adultery and the Bible describes that:
"And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also." Jeremiah 3:8,Isaiah gives God's promise of restoration and a second exodus from the nations greater than the first exodus from Egypt and its well worth repeating:
And it shall come to pass in that day, [that] the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.The balance of this lost sheep Scripture study is devoted to looking at the Biblical plan of restoration declared by the prophets as a great end-day reconciliation with Judah for those that hold on to God's Word and keep His commandments.
And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth. The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim. Isaiah 11:11-13
How do we know? We just read it! Isaiah gives the foundation statement, God will assemble the banished of Judah AND GATHER the dispersed of the m'loh ha goyim (multitudes of nations) from the four corners of the earth.
It's time to wake up, that started in 1948. It's time to throw all the refuse of any replacement theologies you may hold into the trash.
Paul wrote a letter explaining this restoration. It's time to re-read Romans 9, Romans 10 and Romans 11.
Because of The Father's mighty work, Messiah is anointed to bring the lost sheep back restored to Judah in keeping Torah as described in Numbers 5 and Matthew 5. Believe it or not, Numbers 5 reveals a mysterious promise that is connected to the resurrection of Messiah Yeshua as the King of all Israel.
Like me, you may ask, but why did Jesus die?
Paul wrote a letter explaining this restoration. It's time to re-read Romans 9, Romans 10 and Romans 11.
Because of The Father's mighty work, Messiah is anointed to bring the lost sheep back restored to Judah in keeping Torah as described in Numbers 5 and Matthew 5. Believe it or not, Numbers 5 reveals a mysterious promise that is connected to the resurrection of Messiah Yeshua as the King of all Israel.
Like me, you may ask, but why did Jesus die?
For resurrection, that's salvation from death. Not only that God's teaching, His Torah instruction shows us the husband must first die to take his bride back into the covenant which she broke. That is what why Jeremiah wrote these words:
The patriarch "Israel" was almost blind when this happened. This fact establishes prophecy for us today because every detail in God's word is there for a specific reason and purpose. Jacob's eyes were dimmed when he adopted and blessed Joseph's two boys Manasseh and Ephraim as his own although their mother was an Egyptian.
Their blessing was bound to Abraham and Issac. It was given to Abram after Almighty God changed his name to Abraham. It was passed on to Isaac and then given to Jacob. His name was changed and then His blessing was passed on in adoption.
Joseph's sons link the name God gave to his father Jacob after God changed his name to Israel and it does not end there. Ephraim was adopted as a firstborn son of Jacob, but the promise is bigger than that:
"They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man's, shall he return unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the LORD." Jeremiah 3:1Paul came to understand this return and that is why he taught the Romans about the mystery of grafting identity of the people God calls Israel in Romans 9-11. Paul finally understood the ancient truths of resurrection and restoration in Scripture, the adoption story of Joseph's sons by Jacob and the covenant promise made to the assembly of native born and sojourner - with adoption in a faith walk comes a new name like a bride:
"Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law [Torah]) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth? For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to [her] husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of [her] husband.
So then if, while [her] husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man. Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, [even] to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God. Romans 7:1-4We need to know the full depth of the adoption story of Jacob when he blessed Joseph's two sons.
"But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel, and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but "Through Isaac shall your offspring be named. This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring." Romans 9:6-8
The patriarch "Israel" was almost blind when this happened. This fact establishes prophecy for us today because every detail in God's word is there for a specific reason and purpose. Jacob's eyes were dimmed when he adopted and blessed Joseph's two boys Manasseh and Ephraim as his own although their mother was an Egyptian.
Their blessing was bound to Abraham and Issac. It was given to Abram after Almighty God changed his name to Abraham. It was passed on to Isaac and then given to Jacob. His name was changed and then His blessing was passed on in adoption.
Joseph's sons link the name God gave to his father Jacob after God changed his name to Israel and it does not end there. Ephraim was adopted as a firstborn son of Jacob, but the promise is bigger than that:
With weeping they shall come, and with pleas for mercy I will lead them back, I will make them walk by brooks of water, in a straight path in which they shall not stumble, for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn. Jeremiah 31:9
When the Israelites left Egypt, the descendants of Ephraim and Manasseh left too along with Egyptians and other sojourners that witnessed those ten plagues and believed in the God of Israel.
They all entered into covenant at Sinai and Moab and inherited the promise given Abraham as native born and sons of adoption. Again, read Romans 11 and you will see, that by faith, you can choose the Father's promise too.
Perhaps like you, I was blind for quite awhile until I came to understand the promise of blessing for all recipients of God's promise that is interwoven throughout the Scriptures. I once thought I was wise, but I was conceited in my own understanding as I was taught by others, I was blind and struggling with The God of Israel.
Paul admonishes us about blindness and this mystery:
"For I don't desire, brothers, to have you ignorant of this mystery, so that you won't be wise in your own conceits, that a partial blindness has happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in, and so all Israel will be saved. Even as it is written, "There will come out of Tziyon the Deliverer, And he will turn away ungodliness from Jacob." Romans 11:25-26Like Jacob who was unable to see Joseph's sons, many of God's people do not see themselves for who they are in God's eyes nor do they see their brothers and sisters in Judah for who they are.
I was a "lost sheep" without the identity God gives his congregation assembly in Scripture. For me, the key to understanding the name Israel and its connection to the restoration of Israel was to begin to understand that God gives us His Torah teaching and instruction for living because He loves ALL of us, both native born and sojourner. God gifted us with a family covenant as Kingdom guidelines about how we are to live in relationship... near Him and with others.
It's the original message of the deceiver to fall for the idea that God does not mean what He says or that He changes His mind. Don't listen to that message any longer. The so-called Old Testament is NOT old and done away with. Jesus declared that plainly at the Sermon on the Mount and the cross di not do away with what He taught.
Yet, if we are to understand the promise of the restoration of the faith of Abrahm, Issaac and Jacob, we need to know it is not about some of the misinformation that have been circulating about as a "two house" or "Ephraimite" movement in a disguised form of a "replacement theology." It's also not about a limited Noahide rule of law either.
God's tree of life message is about one house, one people reunited and restored as the family of God with Messiah as King.
"Lost sheep" need to see who they are in God's Word so that we might understand the Kingdom of God gospel. Much like the first exodus, we need to understand that "restored" Israel includes those who at this very hour that are re-awakening to the truth - whether they be Jew or non Jew sojourner with Israel -- all can choose in faith to be the children of God, hear God's voice and do it.
Back in Jesus' day, people knew about the lost tribes, but not the whole story. John 7:35 says so: “The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks?”
John 11:49-52 notes: “Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, ‘You know nothing at all! You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.’ He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die to save all."
To understand this lets go back to the covenant that God made with the second generation of those that left Egypt. As they stood before the Jordan River, ready to enter the Promised Land, only two men over the age of 20 of the first generation that crossed through the sea survived the wilderness journey after they left Egypt by the glory of the outstretched arm of the God of Israel.
It's the original message of the deceiver to fall for the idea that God does not mean what He says or that He changes His mind. Don't listen to that message any longer. The so-called Old Testament is NOT old and done away with. Jesus declared that plainly at the Sermon on the Mount and the cross di not do away with what He taught.
Yet, if we are to understand the promise of the restoration of the faith of Abrahm, Issaac and Jacob, we need to know it is not about some of the misinformation that have been circulating about as a "two house" or "Ephraimite" movement in a disguised form of a "replacement theology." It's also not about a limited Noahide rule of law either.
God's tree of life message is about one house, one people reunited and restored as the family of God with Messiah as King.
"Lost sheep" need to see who they are in God's Word so that we might understand the Kingdom of God gospel. Much like the first exodus, we need to understand that "restored" Israel includes those who at this very hour that are re-awakening to the truth - whether they be Jew or non Jew sojourner with Israel -- all can choose in faith to be the children of God, hear God's voice and do it.
Back in Jesus' day, people knew about the lost tribes, but not the whole story. John 7:35 says so: “The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks?”
John 11:49-52 notes: “Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, ‘You know nothing at all! You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.’ He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die to save all."
To understand this lets go back to the covenant that God made with the second generation of those that left Egypt. As they stood before the Jordan River, ready to enter the Promised Land, only two men over the age of 20 of the first generation that crossed through the sea survived the wilderness journey after they left Egypt by the glory of the outstretched arm of the God of Israel.
The two men from the first census were Joshua of the tribe of Ephraim, the other was Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite.
It appears the Caleb was not a direct descendant of Jacob. The Kenizzites were descendants of Kenaz. They were the Edomite descendants of Eliphaz, he was Esau's son born of his Canaanite wife. Her name was Adah, she was the daughter of Elon the Hittite.
By the way, Eliphaz had a brother, his name was Amalek.
His descendant, another Amalek fought against Israel at Rephidim.
The Kenite connection proves God's children, the ones The LORD calls Israel include those who in faith are adopted into the big blessing of all nations given to Abraham and passed onto Isaac and Jacob even though many hold the view that Caleb was a Jew because he had faith, but the lineage of Caleb point us to the adopted-in faith sojourners.
The point is Almighty God's ways, His thoughts, character, promises and plans are bigger than ours (see Isaiah 55:7-9). Understanding that is critical if we are to ever get a grasp on the covenant blessing of the lost sheep scriptures:
On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying,To your descendants I have given this land,From the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates:the land of the Kenite, the Kenizzite, the Kadmonite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Rephaim, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Girgashite, and the Jebusite. Genesis 15:18-21
A few years after the end of the exodus, we learn more that Caleb the Kenizzite was greatly blessed for his faith and gifted a monumental piece of real estate that Abraham held the deed to in Hebron:
So Joshua blessed him and gave Hebron to Caleb the son of Jephunneh as an inheritance. Therefore, Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he followed the LORD God of Israel fully. Joshua 14:13-14
Hebron is one of the oldest cities on the planet. As it was in Biblical times over 3,000 years ago, Hebron is still in the Judean hill country south of Jerusalem despite the poor judgement at the Wye River Accords in 1995, that gave the Muslim waqf control of most of the Cave of Machpelah.
Hebron is where David ruled as the king of Israel for the first seven years of his 40 year reign. It's also where Abraham sojourned near the oak at Mamre and bought the land that became the Cave of the Patriarchs as a burial place for his wife Sarah from a Hittite. Abraham is buried there too along with Isaac and Jacob and their wives Rebecca and Leah in that ancient cave below the field of Machpelah that Abraham purchased (see Genesis 23).
You won't find it in the Bible, but in Jewish tradition its thought that Adam and Eve were buried there when Abraham received the deed from Ephron the Hittite.
Joshua was the descendant of Jacob's adopted grandson Ephraim who mother was an Egyptian and Caleb the sojourner Kenizzite were the only two faithful ones left behind that believed Almighty God when He said go check out the land I am giving to the people of Israel. Because of their faith they entered the Promised Land while all others died in the wilderness over the 40 year journey.
Why? Their report was the only good one.
The following is the covenant add on from God. It was given in Moab to build on the message given at Sinai and it was not just for those people who were there at the time. You can know this covenant is given to you too if you choose it in faith like Caleb the sojourner:
"These [are] the words of the covenant, which the LORD commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab, beside the covenant which he made with them in Horeb (Mt. Sinai)." Deuteronomy 29:1
"Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and do them, that you may prosper in all that you do. You stand this day all of you before the LORD your God; your heads, your tribes, your captains, and your officers, even all the men of Israel, your little ones, your wives, and your foreigner who is in the midst of your camps, from the one who cuts your wood to the one who draws your water; that you may enter into the covenant of the LORD your God, and into his oath, which the LORD your God makes with you this day; that he may establish you this day to himself for a people, and that he may be to you a God, as he spoke to you, and as he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.
Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath, but with him who stands here with us this day before the LORD our God, and also with him who is not here with us this day." Deuteronomy 29:10-15This covenant and oath is misunderstood.
Many think it was only for Jews, but the gospel good news is foreigners and sojourners were there at Moab too. Many not there are now finding their identity in God's gospel promise of Kingdom restoration for the whole community of people that he may be to you The LORD our God.
Paul wrote to the Galatians about faith like Caleb's and take note, they were not Jewish. After all, Paul was known as the apostle to the gentiles, and the faith mystery he revealed in Galatia is about faith justification to Abraham's blessing promise and it is this:
“Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God/Elohim would justify the gentiles [Nations] by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, ‘In you all the nations shall be blessed.’ So then those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham.” Galatians 3:7-9Heirs to the gospel blessing that started with Abraham!
"If you are Messiah's, then you are Abraham's seed and heirs according to promise." Galatians 3:29
The identity of the Galatian people is that they became people of faith. The Galatians held faith in Yeshua (Jesus) the Jew as their Messiah. Like an adopted child you too can share in the sojourner promise of the family for God's children Israel and the oath that goes back to Abraham for blessing a multitude of nations.
You should know too that Messiah is declared in the Torah, the Prophets and the Writings. Thank God they are NOT done away with because your faith identity, your family name as a believer in faith is found in the Torah, the Prophets and the Writings over 2,200 times in those scrolls.
The Bible is a big book, it complex so this is a big study. The Bible not only describes Messiah in a hidden way, like a treasure, it speaks of "you" if you choose to journey in faith like Abraham, the friend of God.
You can be a friend, a part of the household of The God of Israel by faith and the blood of Yeshua, not your own!
Once you understand this adoption masked by sermons, doctrine, tradition and replacement theology, the integrity and promise of the restoration of God's Kingdom found throughout the Bible becomes an amazing personal blessing.
By adoption and grafting-in faith you can join the family of Israel following the Jewish Messiah of Israel and see there is no truth to be found in replacement theology. It is a lie and sadly it started in a Christian church long ago with people that tossed away God's promises thinking they were old and done away with.
We are just getting started here, the following commentary provides an extensive list of Scripture about those promises because blindness is a problem, we need to see the lost sheep Scriptures. If you will study the Bible verses quoted here, I pray that you will begin to open your eyes to understand the reason Yeshua (the Hebrew name of Jesus) said this:
Once you understand this adoption masked by sermons, doctrine, tradition and replacement theology, the integrity and promise of the restoration of God's Kingdom found throughout the Bible becomes an amazing personal blessing.
By adoption and grafting-in faith you can join the family of Israel following the Jewish Messiah of Israel and see there is no truth to be found in replacement theology. It is a lie and sadly it started in a Christian church long ago with people that tossed away God's promises thinking they were old and done away with.
We are just getting started here, the following commentary provides an extensive list of Scripture about those promises because blindness is a problem, we need to see the lost sheep Scriptures. If you will study the Bible verses quoted here, I pray that you will begin to open your eyes to understand the reason Yeshua (the Hebrew name of Jesus) said this:
"For had you believed Moses, you would have believed me: for he wrote of me. But if you believe not his writings, how shall you believe my words?" John 5:47If you believe Yeshua's words - you can begin to understand the critical importance of brother Judah and the modern nation of Israel because we are living in Bible times. Our Jewish brothers and sisters are there living in the land of promise with a God purpose to prepare it for the return of their Messiah.
So, it's time to join in, to help them, to be a friend and sojourn with them in spirit and truth as a family member.
You may have never understood the reason for the miracle of the modern nation born in a day, but open your eyes and heart. I have to repeat what you need to know if you label your faith as Christian, the Jewish people are in Israel, chosen by Almighty God to prepare His land for the return the lost sheep shepherd, the Messiah of "all Israel."
"But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel." Matthew 2:6Because of the anti-Semitic writings of the early church fathers, many have gone astray from this basic truth:
My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray... Jeremiah 50:6That is why Paul tells us something VERY MUCH worth repeating…
“If you be in Messiah, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise,” Galatians 3:29
And “Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of promise.” Galatians 4:28.Many that think they believe in Jesus, don't really know Him or His family. It's a tragedy that has to be undone.
Many Christians have been led astray and can't relate to being a part of the family faith of Israel. Some can't see themselves living in the Promised Land one day under the King of Israel.
Like I once did, they believe they will be whisked away on a rapture cloud while the Jewish people are left behind to suffer.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
Some go to Israel as a curious vacation visitor, but miss the fact that they are sojourners in the promise of the land along with Judah. It's hard, if not impossible to understand because many think their faith is a new replacement religion.
Our Father wants us to see ourselves for who we REALLY ARE and “the promise” given for what it means be a part of the exodus good news story in repentance turning toward the restoration of the Kingdom of God.
Some go to Israel as a curious vacation visitor, but miss the fact that they are sojourners in the promise of the land along with Judah. It's hard, if not impossible to understand because many think their faith is a new replacement religion.
Our Father wants us to see ourselves for who we REALLY ARE and “the promise” given for what it means be a part of the exodus good news story in repentance turning toward the restoration of the Kingdom of God.
The truth is there in the Bible, but to understand the Gospel of God that Paul and Peter wrote about, we can't just read the Bible, we must study it and walk in it. We aren't to just know about the words, we are to do them. For that reason, this my Scripture study is filled with the unchanging truth of the Bible.
That is why I have called this commentary: "The Lost Sheep Scriptures" and why you will see so many Bible verses quoted and repeated here. I pray you will prayerfully and patiently study them and re-consider every verse for what it really says to you, not what I say.
That is why I have called this commentary: "The Lost Sheep Scriptures" and why you will see so many Bible verses quoted and repeated here. I pray you will prayerfully and patiently study them and re-consider every verse for what it really says to you, not what I say.
My hope is that you will experience the end of blindness, and walk away from the will of the Gentiles (see 1 Peter 4).
Paul eyes were opened after three days of blindness in Damascus. It's described in Acts 9, Christian eyes can be opened too.
Israel is not the "people" you have been thinking about because many "shepherds" have mistakenly led people astray from the truth of the grafting faith of the children of God.
Paul eyes were opened after three days of blindness in Damascus. It's described in Acts 9, Christian eyes can be opened too.
Israel is not the "people" you have been thinking about because many "shepherds" have mistakenly led people astray from the truth of the grafting faith of the children of God.
Consider too, if you read the Bible, Almighty God refers to "a day" as "a thousand years" for good reason. God has a clarion message we can understand. It's been 3,000 years since the Kingdom of Israel was united under king David and it is time to open our eyes to its restoration on day three.
There's more on that later, so keep reading but don't take my word for it, take God's - - from the lost sheep Scriptures.
Remember too that the the disciples were called “fishers” of men for good reason and we need to think about that. After all, God's family plan is much like fish that cannot be seen below the surface of the water.
Remember too that the the disciples were called “fishers” of men for good reason and we need to think about that. After all, God's family plan is much like fish that cannot be seen below the surface of the water.
His people must be found and pulled out of the "sea" of humanity. To do that, we have to keep our line in the water. While studying Scripture, it is important to know that the ”sea” is often a metaphor for all nations of people. That is one reason why Yeshua (Jesus) began His ministry at the Sea of Galilee.
Did you know it's located the land of Ephraim? It's no coincidence, because Ephraim turned away from God's voice. The northern ten tribes that followed Jeroboam's fake worship are collectively called Ephraim. The reason: Jeroboam was from the tribe of Ephraim.
The first four disciples Peter, Andrew, James and John were fishermen...
"Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee; And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying, The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, [by] the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles [the nations]; The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death, light is sprung up. From that time Yeshua began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. And Yeshua, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. Matthew 4:12-19Did you see it?
The Galilee of the nations. Hosea tells us (7:8) "Ephraim mixes himself with the nations..." we need to understand this fact from the prophet. It is central to literally understanding the Bible. In Hebrew, "nations" is the word goyim.
Understanding the restoration of the lost is one of the hidden keys to opening an understanding of the lost sheep theme in the gospel of the Bible.
It is like the message given by God in the Garden of Eden when He instituted marriage. Just as a bride and groom become one when they are married, believers become one when they are restored in Messiah's house.
Multitudes can be healed:
Healing is the hidden theme of the restoration of the Kingdom of God that must be known.
Multitudes can be healed:
"It happened when Yeshua had finished these words, he departed from Galilee, and came into the borders of Judah beyond the Jordan. Great multitudes followed him, and he healed them there. Matthew 19:1-2The Greek word translated as "healed" is "therapeuō"? It literally means "restore" to health.
Healing is the hidden theme of the restoration of the Kingdom of God that must be known.
Thankfully there are wonderful resources well beyond this commentary to help open your eyes to these awesome truths.
I have assembled many of the "Lost Sheep" Scripture verses here as a witness that I hope it will provide you with a healing "outline" to allow you to begin your own lost sheep "restoration."
I pray what you see here will also clarify Paul's word's in his first letter to Timothy when he wrote of Messiah's first appearance:
After the division of the Kingdom of the twelve tribes, the northern families of Israel were called "Ephraim" by the people and prophets of Scripture after the tribe of their first king, Jeroboam.
I pray what you see here will also clarify Paul's word's in his first letter to Timothy when he wrote of Messiah's first appearance:
...God was revealed in the flesh,First, let's look a big picture look at an explanation of "the nations" from Biblical history.
justified in the spirit,
seen by angels,
preached among the nations,
believed on in the world, and
received up in glory. (1Timothy 3:16)
After the division of the Kingdom of the twelve tribes, the northern families of Israel were called "Ephraim" by the people and prophets of Scripture after the tribe of their first king, Jeroboam.
They are also called the northern kingdom of "Israel" and "Ephraim" in many places in Scripture. Keep in mind, Ephraim received Jacob's blessing of the greatest numbers of descendants.
The southern kingdom has always carried the name "Judah" or Judea just as it was in Yeshua's time.
Once the north was divided by a religion that replaced God's ways, the southern kingdom led by king Rehoboam remained faithful to God's sabbaths and Feast Days while the north changed things.
Rehoboam's father was Solomon and his grandfather was king David, a descendant of Judah ben Jacob.
Even today, many of the descendants of the family of Judah are called Jews, and Ephraim is lost among the nations, or is he? Has Almighty God forgotten something?
When Jeroboam of the family of Ephraim and Rehoboam of the family of Judah appear on the Biblical scene, the Scriptures records that they divided David's unified kingdom of Israel after Solomon's death.
At that time, The LORD God sent a prophet named Ahijah with a message to Ephraim's leader Jeroboam. There in a field just outside the city walls of Jerusalem, the prophet found Jeroboam all alone in the open countryside:
When Solomon died, his son Rehoboam (tribe of Judah) became the successor king over the twelve family of tribes, but due to the huge tax burdens levied on the nation by Solomon (he was rich for a reason), the leaders of the people came to the new king Rehoboam and they brought Jeroboam with them to plead their case for lower taxation.
When Jeroboam of the family of Ephraim and Rehoboam of the family of Judah appear on the Biblical scene, the Scriptures records that they divided David's unified kingdom of Israel after Solomon's death.
At that time, The LORD God sent a prophet named Ahijah with a message to Ephraim's leader Jeroboam. There in a field just outside the city walls of Jerusalem, the prophet found Jeroboam all alone in the open countryside:
"Then Ahijah laid hold of the new garment that was on him, and tore it into twelve pieces. And he said to Jeroboam, "Take for yourself ten pieces, for thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'Behold, I am about to tear the kingdom from the hand of Solomon and will give you ten tribes (but he shall have one tribe for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city that I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel)"" 1Kings 11:30-32When Solomon heard about God's message to Jeroboam, he became enraged as he wanted his son to rule alone. Against the word of God that was given to Ahijah, Solomon tried to find a way to kill the Ephramite, but Jeroboam ran for cover and fled south into the safe haven of Egypt and remained there until he had heard the news of Solomon's death.
When Solomon died, his son Rehoboam (tribe of Judah) became the successor king over the twelve family of tribes, but due to the huge tax burdens levied on the nation by Solomon (he was rich for a reason), the leaders of the people came to the new king Rehoboam and they brought Jeroboam with them to plead their case for lower taxation.
They said to the young king Rehoboam, "Your father put a heavy tax burden upon us and made our lives very difficult. If you will lighten our tax load and treat us kindly, we will be happy to serve you as we did your father."
Rehoboam replied, "I must have time to think it over. Come back to me in three days and I will tell you what decision I make."
Rehoboam's youthful arrogance combined with poor judgment and leadership resulted in his accepting the advice of his younger, inexperienced advisors with whom he had grown up... he should have listened to the words of the older and wiser men who had served his father.
Three days later, the people returned for Rehoboam's answer, and he spoke roughly to them and said, "You think my father treated you severely? Here's my answer.... I will tax you more heavily that he did! Now go, and don't bother me about the matter of taxes again!"
The people and Jeroboam were very angry at the tax increase, so Jeroboam of Ephraim left town and only two families remained with Rehoboam in Jerusalem God's chosen city. Those that remained were Judah and Benjamin and today they have returned.
The people and Jeroboam were very angry at the tax increase, so Jeroboam of Ephraim left town and only two families remained with Rehoboam in Jerusalem God's chosen city. Those that remained were Judah and Benjamin and today they have returned.
Thousands of years ago, people heard the news that Jeroboam returned from Egypt, so they sent for him and made him king over the northern kingdom of families that left Jerusalem behind. They would now be given an identity in the Scriptures as "Israel" and called collectively out by Jeroboam's family name, Ephraim while Judah and Benjamin become known simple as Judah.
That's not the beginning of the story of a divided Kingdom then or even today. We can see the kingdom division pre-cast in Egypt for Ephraim as well as the book of Samuel. There, Samuel shows us that David returned from the wilderness after his son Absalom tried to take the throne from his own father because David's commitment was that his son Solomon would succeed him.
During that family revolt, the two armies of Absalom and David met in battle in a forest of the land allotted to Ephraim. Absalom's army was routed by the warriors of David which included 600 men loyal to David. Running from the battle on a mule, Absalom's long hair was caught in the branches of a tree. Joab gave the order to kill Absalom and the battle ended then and there.
He was a traitor, but David mourned the death of his son Absalom and returned to Jerusalem. When he did, an argument between the men of Israel (Ephraim) and the men of Judah arose because the Jewish clan of Judah claimed the privilege of bringing back the king to Jerusalem contending that David was their nearer kinsman:
"But the men of Israel answered the men of Judah and said, “We have ten parts in the king, therefore we also have more claim on David than you.
Why then did you treat us with contempt? Was it not our advice first to bring back our king?”
Yet the words of the men of Judah were harsher than the words of the men of Israel." 2Samuel 19:43That argument continues in the 2,000 year old dispute of Messiah's identity.
The gospel of Yeshua is woven this story. The Kingdom restoration He preached that begins with repentance started there.
I know this might be a pretty long read for some, but I pray you will find it worth your time and prayerful study of the Word of God. My goal is to show more on the background to the real mission given the disciples in Galilee:
"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." Matthew 28:19-20If you continue reading on, above all check everything you see for yourself in the Scriptures, it is critical that you open your own Bible and read the words quoted here on your own. Never take my word or anyone else's, get the second witness from the Scriptures. Study God's voice, not mine.
It is my prayer - that the Scriptures noted here will give you an incredible sense of the wonderful and eternal weave of God's unconditional covenant with all people He chooses to call His children. I also pray that you realize you pause and carefully think about a paradigm shift in your views to the big question... who is "Israel"?
Isaiah often referred to the nation Israel as the “servant” of the LORD but the declaration in this passage is bigger than that.
“And He said to me, ‘You [are] My servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified’” Isaiah 49:3
Here, the servant is not just the nation, but Israel’s Messiah.
Once you get your mind around that, the next step in understanding God’s plan for Kingdom "restoration" is what that means for your role in that future?
Once you get your mind around that, the next step in understanding God’s plan for Kingdom "restoration" is what that means for your role in that future?
Spectators are fine but they have no player's position in the game. They can't do a thing but watch, cheer or moan. Players make things happen. Think about that.
The prophets promise restoration of "the elect" as the people of Israel and one nation under God. This is part of the eternal covenant that was given Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Like I once did, you too may think God's covenants to Israel are so called "old covenants" through some short-sided preaching, but they are not "old." They are eternal commitments that build on each other in God's restoration plan.
God's covenants, His words and His promises are all eternal and unchanging. They tie to each other just like the laws of physics that God established at creation. Thankfully this is true, otherwise the universe would literally implode.
This may be the first step in understanding:
God started His marriage covenant by giving of the Ten Commandments so that those that were there at the base of the mountain could become His people, and know His terms of love, mercy, grace and blessing. All God asked is that His people, whether the Israel of the wilderness or whether they be people today that demonstrate love through faith and obedience to His word is that we all show Him how much we love and trust Him.
Remember, this begins with the Ten Commandments, the Ten Words.
God's covenant with Israel is eternal and He tells us we have to hear it, we have to respond to it with an I do. Those are the words Israel used at Sinai because God's promise is a covenant relationship, and like all of God's covenants, Sinai remains eternal, but the time to dwell within the land given to the people in the wilderness was not unconditional.
Whenever people persisted in disobedience to God's holy teaching and instruction (Torah) they were exiled from His chosen Promised Land just as Moses warned in his sermon we call the book of Deuteronomy at the end of his exodus journey.
This may be the first step in understanding:
God is not a man. He does not change His mind. See Numbers 23:19 and Malachi 3:6If we study the Bible carefully, we will find that the covenants were not just given to those that were present there at Sinai and Moab - but to those that were not there. We know because Moses said so.
God started His marriage covenant by giving of the Ten Commandments so that those that were there at the base of the mountain could become His people, and know His terms of love, mercy, grace and blessing. All God asked is that His people, whether the Israel of the wilderness or whether they be people today that demonstrate love through faith and obedience to His word is that we all show Him how much we love and trust Him.
Remember, this begins with the Ten Commandments, the Ten Words.
God's covenant with Israel is eternal and He tells us we have to hear it, we have to respond to it with an I do. Those are the words Israel used at Sinai because God's promise is a covenant relationship, and like all of God's covenants, Sinai remains eternal, but the time to dwell within the land given to the people in the wilderness was not unconditional.
Whenever people persisted in disobedience to God's holy teaching and instruction (Torah) they were exiled from His chosen Promised Land just as Moses warned in his sermon we call the book of Deuteronomy at the end of his exodus journey.
Exile started with Adam and Eve, they were cast out of the garden for a reason… disobedience. Next we saw northern Israel divorced from the land for idolatry and then Judah for their breach in honoring God's instruction to let the land rest during the Shemittah.
Yet, due to God's covenants, there remains an eternal promise of God to re-gather all of His lost sheep. This regathering of lost sheep, this restoration within God’s family has been initiated on a broad, worldwide scale by God's Spirit. In Genesis (49:10) Moses provides us a prophecy that The Messiah would gather His people: "The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him [shall] the gathering of the people [be]."
Moses also recorded that Joseph's son Ephraim would become the fullness of nations that Paul referred to when he wrote these words: "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 fullness of the Gentiles be come in." Romans 11:25
The Greek word here is often translated in our English bibles as "Gentiles" but it is actually the Greek word "ethnos" whose Hebrew counterpart is "goyim", meaning "nations." Did you notice Paul also mentioned blindness, just as Jacob's story does? Jacob did not see his two grandchildren when he adopted them, but it did not matter.
Paul speaks about a mystery and the "fullness" of the Gentiles. It's been a mystery but non-Jews are now beginning to see the Greek word plērōma that Paul used in Romans 11:25 to prophesy of the "fullness" of the Gentiles, is that which is filled with the presence, power, agency, riches of God and of Messiah; a fulfilling, a keeping of His way of life shown in the Torah of God.
It's been a mystery for about 2,000 years but the time has come to know Paul is not just describing a counting as many think. The mystery that is unfolding today is that across the globe many in churches are turning away from the replacement theology traditions of Rome's church fathers and they are returning to the covenant ways of "The Father." This is opening the eyes of many of Judah. They are now seeing Yeshua because they now know He never turned away from The Lord's Sabbath, the Feasts of The Lord or the Torah.
Yet, due to God's covenants, there remains an eternal promise of God to re-gather all of His lost sheep. This regathering of lost sheep, this restoration within God’s family has been initiated on a broad, worldwide scale by God's Spirit. In Genesis (49:10) Moses provides us a prophecy that The Messiah would gather His people: "The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him [shall] the gathering of the people [be]."
Moses also recorded that Joseph's son Ephraim would become the fullness of nations that Paul referred to when he wrote these words: "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 fullness of the Gentiles be come in." Romans 11:25
The Greek word here is often translated in our English bibles as "Gentiles" but it is actually the Greek word "ethnos" whose Hebrew counterpart is "goyim", meaning "nations." Did you notice Paul also mentioned blindness, just as Jacob's story does? Jacob did not see his two grandchildren when he adopted them, but it did not matter.
Paul speaks about a mystery and the "fullness" of the Gentiles. It's been a mystery but non-Jews are now beginning to see the Greek word plērōma that Paul used in Romans 11:25 to prophesy of the "fullness" of the Gentiles, is that which is filled with the presence, power, agency, riches of God and of Messiah; a fulfilling, a keeping of His way of life shown in the Torah of God.
It's been a mystery for about 2,000 years but the time has come to know Paul is not just describing a counting as many think. The mystery that is unfolding today is that across the globe many in churches are turning away from the replacement theology traditions of Rome's church fathers and they are returning to the covenant ways of "The Father." This is opening the eyes of many of Judah. They are now seeing Yeshua because they now know He never turned away from The Lord's Sabbath, the Feasts of The Lord or the Torah.
When Jacob blessed Ephraim, he gave us the prophecy of the fullness of the nations that Paul writes about:
"And his father refuseth, and saith, 'I have known, my son, I have known; he also becometh a people, and he also is great, and yet, his young brother is greater than he, and his seed is the fullness of the nations;'" Genesis 48:19 [Young's Literal translation].Jesus, the Jew whose Hebrew name means "salvation" calls Himself the good shepherd: "I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep." John 10:11
I think Jacob knew who the good shepherd was to be. Just look at his words to his son Dan: "I have waited for thy salvation (Yeshua), O LORD (YHVH). Genesis 49:18
Messiah Yeshua said: "I am the good shepherd, and know my [sheep], and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, [and] one shepherd." John 10:14-16
Yeshua is the great shepherd and the rock of salvation, the stone that Jacob tells us about in Genesis: "But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty [God] of Jacob; (from thence [is] the shepherd, the stone of Israel)" Genesis 49:24.
Yeshua tells us, there are sheep and that there are "other sheep" ... Which of these are you, the sheep or the other sheep? Why did Messiah Yeshua say I must bring those other sheep?
Consider this question. Why does Peter's letter say that it was written to a specific audience? Have you ever noticed that? In the salutation of His first letter he writes: "Peter, an apostle of Yeshua Messiah, To those who reside as aliens of the diaspora in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father..." 1Peter 1-2.
Hum, Galatia that would be the former goyim Galatians that Paul reached out to as well. So much for thinking that the Galatians were just some group of pagans, they were those who were now the "aliens" among Gentiles…
Please don’t give up on this just yet...
You remember Peter, he the Jew that had a vision and wasted to go see Cornelius, the Roman centurion.
Peter goes on to write ti those scattered people of the nations: "As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy." And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Messiah like that of a lamb without blemish or spot." 1Peter 1:14-19
The futile ways... Peter is the ignorance of replacement theology and theidol making of their forefathers who used gold and silver as a god. He continues his encouragement to the scattered exiles and he references the words of the prophetic book of Hosea (2:23) and the words of Moses from Exodus 19 when he writes:
"But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.
Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. 1Peter 2:9-12James, also known as the half brother of Jesus wrote in the same manner:
"James, a servant of God and of the Lord Yeshua Messiah, to the twelve tribes which are of the Dispersion, greeting. Count it all joy, my brethren, when you fall into manifold temptations; Knowing that the proving of your faith works patience. And let patience have [its] perfect work that you may be perfect and entire, lacking in nothing." James 1:1-4It is my prayer that after you read this you will no longer see the Bible as old... but that you will see yourself hidden among its words.
Let's look back for a moment at the events just before the great Passover week of Messiah described by John. The high priest Caiaphas not only proclaimed a death sentence for Yeshua (Jesus) from a false testimony, but he provides a KEY prophecy of the sheep of Judah and the other sheep just days before that Passover week.
My {comments} are added for clarity as Caiaphas references the history of Israel's dispersion 700 years earlier:
The two Messianic missions are described by the prophets.
The disciples understood this, they also knew the prophecy of Isaiah 49:6:
The High Priest in Jesus' time, Caiaphas, gave us an amazing prophecy that we need to understand.
"And one of them, [named] Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, You know nothing at all, Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation {of Judah} perish not. And this he spoke not of his own authority: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Yeshua should die for that nation{Judah}; And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God {long lost Ephraim} that were scattered abroad {by the Assyrians}.
Then from that day forth they took counsel together for to put him to death. Yeshua therefore walked no more openly among the Jews; but went thence unto a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, {look it's right there} and there continued with his disciples {in the land given to the nations of Ephraim}." John 11:49-54Have you ever considered this great truth as it is written? Yeshua gave His life to "cover" our sins (the sins of all Israel, native born and sojourner) and to provide redemption for breaking God's "marriage" covenant given at Mount Sinai, but that He would return to gather together all of God's children of faith into the covenant land promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as King?
The two Messianic missions are described by the prophets.
The disciples understood this, they also knew the prophecy of Isaiah 49:6:
"And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the {all twelve} tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of {ALL not just Judah}: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles {the sojourner nations}, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth."The ends of the earth is where the lost are scattered. That is why the disciples asked Yeshua...
"When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, will you at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?" Acts 1:6They were not just referencing Israel as the land or only as Judah, but as all the children of God, the people God calls Israel include the sojourners.
The High Priest in Jesus' time, Caiaphas, gave us an amazing prophecy that we need to understand.
Now ask yourself, why else would he say scattered abroad? Hey, weren’t the Jews of Judea living in the land at the time of His coming? Of course they were! To understand this parable picture, we need to remember where the Master Rabbi called His disciples... the city was known as Ephraim.
Caiaphas, because of the office of the high priest that he held during Messiah Yeshua's ministry declared this lost sheep mystery of the Scriptures! But, if this is confusing if you have come from where I was with this teaching, hidden within God's Word - this may take much more study, but first things first.
First of all, the exile judgment given Adam is the same given to each us unless we do something about Messiah's blood covering and redemption.
Second, if we do this, if we receive Him, we receive the family name given to Jacob and we become adopted like Ephraim and Manasseh grafted into the assembly of God's people. We are like the sojourners, the "other sheep" in the Shepherd's one fold called "Israel."
First of all, the exile judgment given Adam is the same given to each us unless we do something about Messiah's blood covering and redemption.
Second, if we do this, if we receive Him, we receive the family name given to Jacob and we become adopted like Ephraim and Manasseh grafted into the assembly of God's people. We are like the sojourners, the "other sheep" in the Shepherd's one fold called "Israel."
In this way, "other sheep" are grafted into God's family!
Third, as His children... "Israel" is the family name and there will be a family reunion with Judah, as "one new man", a royal priesthood to serve God in unity in His Kingdom.
Third, as His children... "Israel" is the family name and there will be a family reunion with Judah, as "one new man", a royal priesthood to serve God in unity in His Kingdom.
The name Israel is important. Revelation tells us there are twelve gates to New Jerusalem. There are no Gentile church gates, we need to understand (Revelation 21:12-14).
We must understand the words of Messiah Yeshua (Jesus) too when He said: "thy will be done on earth" before we can know our role of doing God's will on Earth as it is in Heaven. We have to listen to what Yeshua has to say - to do that - we have to study, seek truth, and do the word of God. We all need to say I will do, and then do it. Doing things God's way does not earn salvation or resurrection, but it's how we show Go we love Him.
Our duty is to hear first, repent and then in faith do what is right. That is true faith worship.
Many people stop with the hearing, others agree and repent but only a remnant go on in faith to do by following Messiah in the path of His teaching and instruction for living which is God's Torah.
We must understand the words of Messiah Yeshua (Jesus) too when He said: "thy will be done on earth" before we can know our role of doing God's will on Earth as it is in Heaven. We have to listen to what Yeshua has to say - to do that - we have to study, seek truth, and do the word of God. We all need to say I will do, and then do it. Doing things God's way does not earn salvation or resurrection, but it's how we show Go we love Him.
Our duty is to hear first, repent and then in faith do what is right. That is true faith worship.
Many people stop with the hearing, others agree and repent but only a remnant go on in faith to do by following Messiah in the path of His teaching and instruction for living which is God's Torah.
Fourth, the nations are promised that we can be a part of God's plan for restoring all things the way He intended them to be, so we must reconsider our assignment just as the disciples did.
Out end-time assignment is not to watch, wait and worry.
Many are looking for the battle of Armageddon, the desolation of abomination, pestilences, famines, swords, earthquakes, the mark of the beast, wars and rumors of war, but lost sheep restoration is not on people's list of God's end time goal.
Yet, if we read God's word carefully, it becomes central to our understanding of Scripture, prophecy and what God has purposed:
Moses speaks of this restoration prophecy in the "sermon" we call the book of Deuteronomy.
"This [is] the purpose that is purposed upon the whole earth: and this [is] the hand that is stretched out upon all the nations. For the LORD of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul [it]? and his hand [is] stretched out, and who shall turn it back?" Isaiah 14:26-27It is time to understand the prophecies that Yeshua and the disciples focused on, the restoration of the Kingdom of the people of God, the children named "Israel" and the others adopted into the God family fold.
Moses speaks of this restoration prophecy in the "sermon" we call the book of Deuteronomy.
Take a look at chapter five, there Moses gives us a big clue to a problem so many of us have today. He calls it "following Baal Peor." When I first realized that I needed to dig into this to find out what Moses was talking about I was BLOWN AWAY and SHOCKED at what I learned about my own worship!
I was following the traditions, teaching and instruction of men, not my Creator and His word.
So, in the past eight years, my family and I have sought the manner of worship not according to religious men, instead we began to hold fast to God and His easy instruction stated in the same written Torah that Yeshua taught. It was always there, but somehow we had missed it. We realized Jeremiah was speaking about us:
Hosea gives us a key prophecy on the timing of the beginning of the restoration of keeping the commandments of God among the nations that's connected with the Jewish people.
So, in the past eight years, my family and I have sought the manner of worship not according to religious men, instead we began to hold fast to God and His easy instruction stated in the same written Torah that Yeshua taught. It was always there, but somehow we had missed it. We realized Jeremiah was speaking about us:
"...Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit." Jeremiah 16:19We realized the words given by Moses are still valid:
"And now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the rules that I am teaching you, and do them, that you may live, and go in and take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you.
You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you. Your eyes have seen what the Lord did at Baal-peor, for the Lord your God destroyed from among you all the men who followed the Baal of Peor." Deuteronomy 4:1-2We remember John's description of patience: "Here is the patience of the saints: here [are] they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Revelation 14:12
Hosea gives us a key prophecy on the timing of the beginning of the restoration of keeping the commandments of God among the nations that's connected with the Jewish people.
The revival and the in-gathering began two thousand years after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 AD. To understand Hosea's promise, we have to know a prophetic day equals a thousand years (see Numbers 14:33, 34; Ezekiel 4:4-6; Psalms 90:1-4 and 2Peter 3:8, 2Peter 3:10).
Time is short. Do you remember Jacob’s dream?
"Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.
Then shall we know, [if] we follow on to know the LORD: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter [and] former rain unto the earth. O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? O Judah, what shall I do unto thee? for your goodness [is] as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goeth away." Hosea 6:1-4We can also see Hosea's timeline promise from the gospel writer Mark: "We heard Him say, 'I will destroy this temple made with hands, and in three days I will build another made without hands.'" Mark 14:58
Time is short. Do you remember Jacob’s dream?
He took one of the stones and Jacob lay down and “slept.” Then in his ladder dream, he heard The Lord God promise him that his offspring will “spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south.”
In that dream, God promised Jacob that “in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.”
God gave the prophet Jeremiah details on the blessing: "For behold, days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel and Judah, says the Lord, and I will bring them back to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall take possession of it."
God told Jeremiah that this will not happen until the time of Jacob’s trouble: "Alas! That day is so great there is none like it; it is a time of distress for Jacob; yet he shall be saved out of it.”
“Then fear not, O Jacob my servant, declares the Lord, nor be dismayed, O Israel; for behold, I will save you from far away, and your offspring from the land of their captivity. Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease and none shall make him afraid.”
Have you connected the dots? How about the Holocaust?
In that dream, God promised Jacob that “in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.”
God gave the prophet Jeremiah details on the blessing: "For behold, days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel and Judah, says the Lord, and I will bring them back to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall take possession of it."
God told Jeremiah that this will not happen until the time of Jacob’s trouble: "Alas! That day is so great there is none like it; it is a time of distress for Jacob; yet he shall be saved out of it.”
“Then fear not, O Jacob my servant, declares the Lord, nor be dismayed, O Israel; for behold, I will save you from far away, and your offspring from the land of their captivity. Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease and none shall make him afraid.”
Have you connected the dots? How about the Holocaust?
God’s Word gives a promise of the restoration of God’s people “Judah” and “Israel” to His land and into His Kingdom after "Jacob's trouble" on this earth. This is not a story of two houses but of the unity of one house, the people of God aka the sheep and other sheep in one sheepfold.
Jeremiah says: “Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion: And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.”
The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: “Have you not observed that these people are saying, 'The Lord has rejected the two clans that he chose'? Thus they have despised my people so that they are no longer a nation in their sight.”
Jeremiah goes on to tell us that in the end, many of “Israel” will come to understand: “The fierce anger of the Lord will not turn back until he has executed and accomplished the intentions of his mind. In the latter days you will understand this.”
Why the land of Israel?
The land is in the place given to Abraham who was told all nations will be blessed.
To receive this blessing promise, Ephraim must discover his identity and overcome the mixed pagan doctrines of Baal, Balaam and Jezebel that are hidden and embedded in today’s church traditions. I know those are strong words, but they are not a condemnation, the church fathers started them 1,700 years ago. We didn't know, we inherited lies like Ephraim did from Jeroboam.
The great mystery is that exiled "Ephraim" or "Joseph" will be called out by God to return to His promised covenant land too, just like Judah has been returning since 1948.
As you consider this, did you know that Judah has always led first?
Judah in the lead is clearly seen in Scripture. Easton's Bible Dictionary tells us: "It was Judah that interposed in behalf of Joseph, so that his life was spared (Genesis 37:26, 27). He took a lead in the affairs of the family, and "prevailed above his brethren" (Genesis 43:3-10; 44:14, 16-34; 46:28; 1 Chronicles 5:2.)"
Judah led the way to Israel in 1948. Yet, there's a prophetic day coming that remnant watchmen (natsar נָצַר) of the harvest will follow Judah to Zion and sing with gladness for Jacob:
A big promise for renewed life in the kingdom restoration is in the wind, in God's Spirit.
When those remnant watchmen cry and shout and come out as Ephraim, they will be called by God to reconnect with Judah and they will be ready to receive the Spirit of “truth.” The called out watchmen the natsar, the followers of the Nazarene Yeshua will reject the traditions of the church fathers steeped in antisemitism and return to the ancient paths of God.
They will return to seek out God's word and friendship with Judah. They will return to Sabbath, to The Lord's Feast Days and to The Father's separation of clean and unclean.
Almighty God will call on them like Ephraim to come back to His Holy Land where He will bind them in His hand with brother Judah.
People everywhere feel this calling by God's Spirit and each person that does seeks to be willing to do what is pleasing in God’s sight in the straight way by the water of His word. They know they have been called when they will want to help Judah and walk in God's teaching and instruction for living from their heart of love for God as the sovereign and live set apart for Him just like Yeshua did.
The remnant, the called out ones are beginning to see Biblical truth does not change.
The great mystery is that exiled "Ephraim" or "Joseph" will be called out by God to return to His promised covenant land too, just like Judah has been returning since 1948.
As you consider this, did you know that Judah has always led first?
Judah in the lead is clearly seen in Scripture. Easton's Bible Dictionary tells us: "It was Judah that interposed in behalf of Joseph, so that his life was spared (Genesis 37:26, 27). He took a lead in the affairs of the family, and "prevailed above his brethren" (Genesis 43:3-10; 44:14, 16-34; 46:28; 1 Chronicles 5:2.)"
Judah led the way to Israel in 1948. Yet, there's a prophetic day coming that remnant watchmen (natsar נָצַר) of the harvest will follow Judah to Zion and sing with gladness for Jacob:
"For there shall be a day, [that] the watchmen (natsar נָצַר) upon the mount Ephraim shall cry, Arise ye, and let us go up to Zion unto the LORD our God. For thus saith the LORD; Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations: publish ye, praise ye, and say, O LORD, save thy people, the remnant of Israel.
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.
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.
Hear the word of the LORD, 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. Jeremiah 31:6-10We are living in Biblical times... the prophets wrote about today. Jeremiah's promise you've just read is happening right now. Joel is a second witness:
"And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you." Joel 2:25A third witness inspired this commentary, his name is Ezekiel and he points to the lost sheep:
“For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, [even] I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out. 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.
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.
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. I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord GOD.
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.” Ezekiel 34:11-16Fast forward to Ezekiel chapter 37 and we see that sinews and flesh will come together first. This is exactly what the world has seen in Israel's restoration process after WWII.
A big promise for renewed life in the kingdom restoration is in the wind, in God's Spirit.
When those remnant watchmen cry and shout and come out as Ephraim, they will be called by God to reconnect with Judah and they will be ready to receive the Spirit of “truth.” The called out watchmen the natsar, the followers of the Nazarene Yeshua will reject the traditions of the church fathers steeped in antisemitism and return to the ancient paths of God.
They will return to seek out God's word and friendship with Judah. They will return to Sabbath, to The Lord's Feast Days and to The Father's separation of clean and unclean.
Almighty God will call on them like Ephraim to come back to His Holy Land where He will bind them in His hand with brother Judah.
People everywhere feel this calling by God's Spirit and each person that does seeks to be willing to do what is pleasing in God’s sight in the straight way by the water of His word. They know they have been called when they will want to help Judah and walk in God's teaching and instruction for living from their heart of love for God as the sovereign and live set apart for Him just like Yeshua did.
The remnant, the called out ones are beginning to see Biblical truth does not change.
Just look around, many are repenting and returning to the Jewish root of Yeshua and like a sign they are observing His rest on God’s Sabbath day, not the traditional church Sunday. People are being called out by God to return to honor His ordained Sabbaths, His feast holidays (holy days) not the green trees of Christmas or the bunny eggs of Easter.
People everywhere are adopting God’s healthy diet plan too and turning away from the old Easter ham!
If you sense restlessness and yearn to return to Biblical truth, you too are hearing the words that Hosea spoke of:
We must understand that we are in the generation of the TWO WITNESSES, the two voices for the God of Heaven and Earth and His Messiah.
The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is the God of Israel and His Messiah is being revealed to Judah by Ephraim as the lost brother returns to the truth of Torah. "And you shall be a blessing… And all the families of the earth shall bless themselves by you" Genesis 12:2-3
You might consider how you fit into these lost sheep promises:
"The Lord GOD which gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith, Yet will I gather [others] to him, beside those that are gathered unto him." Isaiah 56:8
"For I [know] their works and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come, and see my glory." Isaiah 66:18
People everywhere are adopting God’s healthy diet plan too and turning away from the old Easter ham!
If you sense restlessness and yearn to return to Biblical truth, you too are hearing the words that Hosea spoke of:
"Ephraim has surrounded me with lies,This "move" of the Spirit of God that is happening everywhere is a prophetic sign before the return of Yeshua the Jewish Messiah. It's God's call to the Kingdom because the Kingdom is comprised of Jew and non-Jew as one new man. Paul wrote about those from the nations that understand:
and the house of Israel with deceit,
but Judah still walks with God
and is faithful to the Holy One." Hosea 11:12
“If ye be in Messiah, then ye are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise” Galatians 3:29Jeremiah received the promise these signs would come about:
“Go, and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, 'Return, faithless Israel, declares YHVH. I will not look on you in anger, for I am merciful, declares YHVH; I will not be angry forever.
Only acknowledge your guilt, that you rebelled against YHVH your God and scattered your favors among foreigners under every green tree, and that you have not obeyed my voice, declares YHVH.
Return, O faithless children, declares YHVH; for I am your master; I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion. And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.” Jeremiah 3:12-15Yeshua spoke of the Scripture's great promise and quoted Nehemiah's prayer (Nehemiah 1:9) saying:
“If you love me, keep my commandments.” John 14:15The eternal One YHVH says, “In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.” That's why there are two families of Israel representing the twelve families in Scripture. They are Judah and Ephraim, two olive trees, two lamp stands, two loaves of leavened bread and in the end the two witnesses.
We must understand that we are in the generation of the TWO WITNESSES, the two voices for the God of Heaven and Earth and His Messiah.
The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is the God of Israel and His Messiah is being revealed to Judah by Ephraim as the lost brother returns to the truth of Torah. "And you shall be a blessing… And all the families of the earth shall bless themselves by you" Genesis 12:2-3
You might consider how you fit into these lost sheep promises:
"The Lord GOD which gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith, Yet will I gather [others] to him, beside those that are gathered unto him." Isaiah 56:8
"For I [know] their works and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come, and see my glory." Isaiah 66:18
"At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the LORD; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the LORD, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart. In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers.
The Lord sent a word into Jacob, and it hath lighted upon Israel. And all the people shall know, [even] Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria, that say in the pride and stoutness of heart, The bricks are fallen down, but we will build with hewn stones: the sycomores are cut down, but we will change [them into] cedars. Therefore the LORD shall set up the adversaries of Rezin against him, and join his enemies together " Isaiah 9:7-11
"At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the LORD; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the LORD, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart. In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers." Jeremiah 3:17-18
Who are the lost sheep?
"These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, 'Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into [any] city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.'" Matthew 10:5-7
"But he answered and said, 'I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel'" Matthew 15:24
We need to look for them.
Yeshua met the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well after he told His disciples to not follow the way of the Gentiles. But what really happened there? To answer that let's look at some details of the encounter:
"At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the LORD; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the LORD, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart. In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers." Jeremiah 3:17-18
Who are the lost sheep?
"These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, 'Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into [any] city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.'" Matthew 10:5-7
"But he answered and said, 'I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel'" Matthew 15:24
We need to look for them.
Yeshua met the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well after he told His disciples to not follow the way of the Gentiles. But what really happened there? To answer that let's look at some details of the encounter:
"And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon." But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, "Send her away, for she is crying out after us."He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, help me." And he answered, "It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." Then Jesus answered her, "O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire." And her daughter was healed instantly." Matthew 15:21-28
As we've noted, the words "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel" comes from the Lord's meeting with a Gentile, a Canaanite woman. Even though she begs Yeshua for help for her daughter, it "seems" that Yeshua appears to reject her pleas by asking, "It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to the dogs?"
Using the term dog was used about outsiders such as Canaanites. That would appear to be a derogatory description to this woman. However, as a mother, she knew what a mess children make while eating. They drop all drop crumbs under any table! This gives any household dog quite a treat.
Using the term dog was used about outsiders such as Canaanites. That would appear to be a derogatory description to this woman. However, as a mother, she knew what a mess children make while eating. They drop all drop crumbs under any table! This gives any household dog quite a treat.
In her declaring this, Yeshua declared her "great faith" and promised her prayer request!
There is no contradiction in Yeshua being "sent to the lost sheep of the House of Israel" since His offering of salvation to ALL nations starts with the family of Judah first just as Yeshua said:
There is no contradiction in Yeshua being "sent to the lost sheep of the House of Israel" since His offering of salvation to ALL nations starts with the family of Judah first just as Yeshua said:
"Salvation is from the Jews" (John 4:22)!
To the Jew first... THEN the Gentile.
Some one has to go first, it is that simple. Let's look more closely.
To the Jew first... THEN the Gentile.
Some one has to go first, it is that simple. Let's look more closely.
When we read Matthew 15 in its full context, you’ll notice that Yeshua (Jesus) did not say those words, “sent to the lost sheep of Israel” to the Canaanite woman, He spoke those words to His disciples. He was teaching, letting them know the truth, that anyone grafted in to the people God calls "Israel" is a child of God.
At the end of the day, Yeshua was instructing the disciples that the woman was to become a former Gentile, a part of the lost sheep that He came to save. That woman was just like Ruth and Rahab because they all made the right choice.
Paul tells us that Jews were ordained to keep the oracles of God (the Bible). It's true, the family of Judah, the Jewish people were given the high honor of bringing both the written word (the Scriptures) and the living - breathing word (Yeshua) to the entire world.
Thank about it. Without the Jewish people, we would not know about Yeshua.
Paul tells us that Jews were ordained to keep the oracles of God (the Bible). It's true, the family of Judah, the Jewish people were given the high honor of bringing both the written word (the Scriptures) and the living - breathing word (Yeshua) to the entire world.
Thank about it. Without the Jewish people, we would not know about Yeshua.
The the "Restoration" of Judah and the House of Israel or Ephraim is a common theme that permeates throughout all of Scripture.
House Divided.
In the books of Kings, we learn about the two divided "houses" 1) Ephraim and 2) Judah:
"Yet the LORD testified against Israel, and against Judah, by all the prophets, [and by] all the seers, saying, Turn from your evil ways, and keep my commandments [and] my statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets." 2 Kings 17:13
This division period began when the 40-year reign of Solomon (1Kings 11:42) ended. The united nation broke apart c. 977 BC into two rival nations. The Bible then calls the division: Israel and Judah.
Israel was in rebellion against the house of David and 390 years later, Judah fell after the destruction of the Temple when the Jewish were deported to Babylon in 587 BC for disregarding the Shemittah, but 70 years later, Nehemiah the prophet recorded a great prayer of repentance, the first part of the answer came when Judah would return (see Nehemiah 1).
The future restoration for the exiles of Israel and Judah was promised by Messiah when He foretold of a future time to be marked by solar and lunar eclipses, a great shaking and pestilence that is noted in Matthew 24:7 and Luke 21:11. Mark does not mention the end day pestilence but He records this:
But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven. Mark 13:24-27
There is an instruction that goes with the re-gathering recorded by John. It's the same as Nehemiah's:
John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
John 15:10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.
What word does God have to say about restoration, to bring man back to His "original" fellowship design, plan and will?
God declares the end from the beginning.
Revelation 22:12-14 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward [is] with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega (Aleph Tav), the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed [are] they that do His commandments that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Where does this blessed in commandments promise begin?
From the Torah, the only Bible Jesus read and taught.
Deuteronomy 7:12 Therefore it shall come to pass, if you give heed to these judgments, and keep, and do them, that the Lord your God shall keep with you the covenant and the mercy which he swore to your fathers;
Deuteronomy 11:1 Therefore you shall love the Lord your God, and keep his charge, and his statutes, and his judgments, and his commandments, always.
Deuteronomy 11:22-23 For if ye shall diligently keep all these commandments which I command you, to do them, to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, and to cleave unto him; Then will the LORD drive out all these nations from before you, and ye shall possess greater nations and mightier than yourselves.
What about "the kingdom" promises from Samuel and Isaiah?
2Samuel 7:16 And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.
Isaiah 1:26-27 And I will restore thy judges as at the first, and thy counselors as at the beginning: afterward thou shalt be called, The city of righteousness, the faithful city. Zion shall be redeemed with judgment, and her converts with righteousness.
So what went wrong?
2Kings 17:7-9 For [so] it was, that the children of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, which had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods, And walked in the statutes of the heathen, whom the LORD cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they had made.
And the children of Israel did secretly [those] things that [were] not right against the LORD their God, and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city.
2Kings 17:22-23 For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them; Until the LORD removed Israel out of his sight, as he had said by all his servants the prophets. So was Israel carried away out of their own land to Assyria unto this day.
Do you see the distinction of Judah from Israel?
2Kings 17:22-23 For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them; Until the LORD removed Israel out of his sight, as he had said by all his servants the prophets. So was Israel carried away out of their own land to Assyria unto this day.
Do you see the distinction of Judah from Israel?
Nathan gave a prophecy to King David about this. After King David’s son, Solomon died the Kingdom of Israel was divided into North and South, between Israel and Judah.
The kingdom was divided, but look back to the word of the LORD that came to Nathan to tell King David.
The no book named after Nathan, but God chose to speak to him and deliver one of the greatest prophecies of all time before the breakup. At firs glance it seems to be about Solomon, but it's not. it's about Messiah:
1 Chronicles 17:7-15 Now, therefore, thus shall you say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be prince over my people Israel, and I have been with you wherever you have gone and have cut off all your enemies from before you.
1 Chronicles 17:7-15 Now, therefore, thus shall you say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be prince over my people Israel, and I have been with you wherever you have gone and have cut off all your enemies from before you.
And I will make for you a name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more. And violent men shall waste them no more, as formerly, from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel.
And I will subdue all your enemies. Moreover, I declare to you that the LORD will build you a house.
When your days are fulfilled to walk with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. I will not take my steadfast love from him, as I took it from him who was before you, but I will confirm him in my house and in my kingdom forever, and his throne shall be established forever.’”
In accordance with all these words, and in accordance with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David.
Now, let's rewind to reconsider the prophecy of Moses.
Deuteronomy 30:1-8 And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call [them] to mind among all the nations, whither YHVH thy God hath driven thee, And shalt return unto YHVH thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul;
That then YHVH thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither YHVH thy God hath scattered thee. If [any] of thine be driven out unto the outmost [parts] of heaven, from thence will YHVH thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee: And YHVH thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers.
And YHVH thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love YHVH thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live. And YHVH thy God will put all these curses upon thine enemies, and on them that hate thee, which persecuted thee. And thou shalt return and obey the voice of YHVH, and do all his commandments which I command thee this day.
These scriptures outline God's big plan.
We all know who Judah is, after all the Jewish people returned from Babylon after the dispersion in 586BC and again some 2,500 years later in 1948 but... where are the lost tribes of Israel? After all they never returned from the Assyrian dispersion in 722BC.
Is it shown in this parable about a family reunion?
Luke 15:11-32 And he said, A certain man had two sons: And the younger of them said to [his] father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth [to me]. And he divided unto them [his] living. And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want. And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him.
These scriptures outline God's big plan.
We all know who Judah is, after all the Jewish people returned from Babylon after the dispersion in 586BC and again some 2,500 years later in 1948 but... where are the lost tribes of Israel? After all they never returned from the Assyrian dispersion in 722BC.
Is it shown in this parable about a family reunion?
Luke 15:11-32 And he said, A certain man had two sons: And the younger of them said to [his] father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth [to me]. And he divided unto them [his] living. And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want. And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him.
And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants. And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put [it] on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on [his] feet: And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill [it]; and let us eat, and be merry:
For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry. Now his elder son was in the field: and as he came and drew nigh to the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called one of the servants, and asked what these things meant. And he said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound. And he was angry, and would not go in: therefore came his father out, and entreated him. And he answering said to [his] father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment: and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends: But as soon as this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fatted calf. And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine. It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found.
Let's look to The Prophets...
Check out Micah:
Micah 4:6-7 In that day, saith the LORD, will I assemble her that halteth, and I will gather her that is driven out, and her that I have afflicted; And I will make her that halted a remnant, and her that was cast far off a strong nation: and the LORD shall reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth, even for ever.
Micah 4:12 But they know not the thoughts of the LORD, neither understand they his counsel: for he shall gather them as the sheaves into the floor.
Micah 5:5-9 And this [man] shall be the peace, when the Assyrian shall come into our land: and when he shall tread in our palaces, then shall we raise against him seven shepherds, and eight principal men. And they shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in the entrances thereof: thus shall he deliver [us] from the Assyrian, when he cometh into our land, and when he treadeth within our borders.
And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people as a dew from YHVH, as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men.
Check out Micah:
Micah 4:6-7 In that day, saith the LORD, will I assemble her that halteth, and I will gather her that is driven out, and her that I have afflicted; And I will make her that halted a remnant, and her that was cast far off a strong nation: and the LORD shall reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth, even for ever.
Micah 4:12 But they know not the thoughts of the LORD, neither understand they his counsel: for he shall gather them as the sheaves into the floor.
Micah 5:5-9 And this [man] shall be the peace, when the Assyrian shall come into our land: and when he shall tread in our palaces, then shall we raise against him seven shepherds, and eight principal men. And they shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in the entrances thereof: thus shall he deliver [us] from the Assyrian, when he cometh into our land, and when he treadeth within our borders.
And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people as a dew from YHVH, as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men.
And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles in the midst of many people as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep: who, if he go through, both treadeth down, and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. Thine hand shall be lifted up upon thine adversaries, and all thine enemies shall be cut off.
Ezekiel lays it out... Just take a look.
Ezekiel lays it out... Just take a look.
Ezekiel 37:1-28 The hand of YHVH was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley which [was] full of bones, 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. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live?Can you imagine that Ezekiel's two sticks when held together in his hand looked just like the ancient Hebrew letter Tav, formed together as the sign of the covenant?
And I answered, O YHVH GOD, thou knowest. Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of YHVH. Thus saith YHVH GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: 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] YHVH.
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. 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.
Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith YHVH GOD; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. 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.
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.
Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith YHVH 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. And ye shall know that I [am] the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, 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 the LORD have spoken [it], and performed [it], saith YHVH.
The word of YHVH came again unto me, saying, 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: And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand.
And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou [meanest] by these? Say unto them, Thus saith YHVH 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.
And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes. And say unto them, Thus saith YHVH 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: 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:
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 dwelling places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God. 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. 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 forever.
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. My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And the heathen shall know that I YHVH do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.
Amazingly, the ancient Hebrew letter Tav word meaning is covenant and Ezekiel notes two sticks, two branches, two bones of a tree of you will.
Now turn to Isaiah as he declares the restoration of the outcasts of Israel and the dispersed of Judah:
Now turn to Isaiah as he declares the restoration of the outcasts of Israel and the dispersed of Judah:
Isaiah 11:11-12 And it shall come to pass in that day, [that] the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.
And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.
Who is the ensign for the nations?
Next, check out Joel and Amos, again there's Judah and Israel.
Joel 3:20-21 But Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation. For I will cleanse their blood [that] I have not cleansed: for the LORD dwelleth in Zion.
Amos 9:14-15 And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit [them]; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them.
And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God.
Next Zechariah, he calls them Judah and Joseph, aka Jew and Joe. Sound familiar?
Zechariah 10:6-10 And I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will bring them again to place them; for I have mercy upon them: and they shall be as though I had not cast them off: for I [am] the LORD their God, and will hear them.
And [they of] Ephraim shall be like a mighty [man], and their heart shall rejoice as through wine: yea, their children shall see [it], and be glad; their heart shall rejoice in the LORD. I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased.
And I will sow them among the people: and they shall remember me in far countries; and they shall live with their children, and turn again. I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and [place] shall not be found for them.
Their children shall see it and be glad... see what?
Joel 3:20-21 But Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation. For I will cleanse their blood [that] I have not cleansed: for the LORD dwelleth in Zion.
Amos 9:14-15 And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit [them]; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them.
And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God.
Next Zechariah, he calls them Judah and Joseph, aka Jew and Joe. Sound familiar?
Zechariah 10:6-10 And I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will bring them again to place them; for I have mercy upon them: and they shall be as though I had not cast them off: for I [am] the LORD their God, and will hear them.
And [they of] Ephraim shall be like a mighty [man], and their heart shall rejoice as through wine: yea, their children shall see [it], and be glad; their heart shall rejoice in the LORD. I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased.
And I will sow them among the people: and they shall remember me in far countries; and they shall live with their children, and turn again. I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and [place] shall not be found for them.
Their children shall see it and be glad... see what?
The prophet Jeremiah calls for Jacob and Israel. This has to remind us again of the promise Gabriel gave to Miriam, Yeshua's mother.
Mary's House of Jacob promise points toward 2 Samuel 7:12-14 and God's words to David through Nathan:
When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son...."
Gabriel ties the prophetic connection of Mary a descendant of David to the Son of the Most High:
And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Yeshua. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." Luke 1:31-33
Jeremiah explains more on the house of Jacob:
Jeremiah 2:4 Hear the word of YHVH, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel.
Hosea focuses on Israel's exile with a restoration promise in repentance (return) in the latter days that are already here:
Hosea focuses on Israel's exile with a restoration promise in repentance (return) in the latter days that are already here:
Hosea 3:4-5 For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and [without] teraphim:
Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.
The Boundaries Around Israel Will Crumble.
As we have seen Isaiah 49 is very powerful. Isaiah 49:6 is worth repeating: "And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth."
To understand this great purpose we have to read and believe what Yeshua said:
John 4:22 "You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.
It's a promise that nothing has changed in the oracles of God that the Jewish people wee chosen to uphold...
Matthew 5:17-18 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
The good news gospel is Israel will be saved and Jacob will return.
Jeremiah 46:27 But fear not thou, O my servant Jacob, and be not dismayed, O Israel: for, behold, I will save thee from afar off, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and be in rest and at ease, and none shall make [him] afraid.
The re-gathering of the whole assembly of the mixed multitude, the children of God is revealed throughout the word of God to His prophets:
Ever wonder why God compares people to the sea?
Believe it or not, it's about boundaries and the sea shore. Can you see that the seas have their boundaries that are set by God. Yet the sea by its very nature constantly opposes the shore with its waves.
Any time the sea flows past their boundaries, there is chaos.
The boundaries God set forth for the sea of humanity are His instruction manual, the Kingdom constitution for living... that's the Torah. Genesis 2:2-5; Jeremiah 5:22; Proverbs 8:29
Isaiah tells us: Woe to the multitude of many people, [which] make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations, [that] make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters. Isaiah 17:12
What did Yeshua do with chaos?
He calmed the sea. Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still. Mark 4:29
Ever wonder why does God compare the descendants of Abraham to the sand of the shore? Because we are to uphold the boundaries He set. That is the reason He compares those of the faith of Abraham to the stars too. We have an assignment too, to be bright lights in darkness.
Both the sand and the stars are God's creative work.
So, the entire Bible is an instruction manual in which God encourages us to walk within the boundaries the word of God that He has set for us in all areas of life because when we walk within these boundaries, we can enjoy peace given by Him despite the tempests of life.
God's Children of Promise are destined for His Covenant Land.
It was passed on to Isaac, the second boy born to Abraham as the Scripture says, then as seen in Genesis 48 to Jacob the second born son to Isaac. From Jacob it was given to his children and his adopted grandchildren, the sons of Joseph.
Matthew 5:17-18 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
The good news gospel is Israel will be saved and Jacob will return.
Jeremiah 46:27 But fear not thou, O my servant Jacob, and be not dismayed, O Israel: for, behold, I will save thee from afar off, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and be in rest and at ease, and none shall make [him] afraid.
The re-gathering of the whole assembly of the mixed multitude, the children of God is revealed throughout the word of God to His prophets:
Ezekiel 28:25 Thus saith YHVH God; When I shall have gathered the house of Israel from the people among whom they are scattered, and shall be sanctified in them in the sight of the heathen, then shall they dwell in their land that I have given to my servant Jacob.Gilead is modern Jordan, with a new name. It will be filled with God's children as will as Lebanon.
Micah 2:12 I will surely assemble, O Jacob, all of thee; I will surely gather the remnant of Israel; I will put them together as the sheep of Bozrah, as the flock in the midst of their fold: they shall make great noise by reason of [the multitude of] men.
Zechariah 10:8 I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased.
Zechariah 10:10 I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and [place] shall not be found for them.
Genesis 49:1-2 And Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days. Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father.
Numbers 10:4 And if they blow [but] with one [trumpet], then the princes, [which are] heads of the thousands of Israel, shall gather themselves unto thee.
Numbers 14:24 But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land where into he went; and his seed shall possess it...Abraham the father of many nations, both natural and grafted-in measured the land not for the first exodus, but for the return, the greater exodus:
Deuteronomy 30:3-4 That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee. If [any] of thine be driven out unto the outmost [parts] of heaven, from thence will the LORD thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee:
Nehemiah 1:9 But [if] ye turn unto me, and keep my commandments, and do them; though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven, [yet] will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there.
Genesis 13:14-17 And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.
And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.
Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.Abraham's Vision is Critical:
Genesis 15:1-21 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.
And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus? And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir.
And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.
And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.
And he said unto him, I am the LORD that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it. And he said, Lord GOD, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it? And he said unto him, Take me an heifer of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon. And he took unto him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another: but the birds divided he not.
And when the fowls came down upon the carcasses, Abram drove them away. And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him. And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance. And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age.
But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full. And it came to pass, that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking furnace, and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces.
In the same day the LORD 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:The Covenant of God's Blessing is for Many Nations:
Genesis 17:1-8 And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly.
And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying, As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations.
Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee.
And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.
And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.Next, we see the promise of the the stars and the sand. Anywhere you look up from earth, you see stars surrounding it. Anywhere you look down at a seashore you see sand. They represent a multitude scattered all across the earth will be gather to the Promised Land!
Genesis 22:15-18 And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.So, what is a Multitude?
Genesis 24:60 And they blessed Rebecca, and said unto her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them.Can you number the stars or the sand along the seashore, yet Abraham obeyed God's voice.
Genesis 26:3-5 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father; 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; Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.
Ever wonder why God compares people to the sea?
Believe it or not, it's about boundaries and the sea shore. Can you see that the seas have their boundaries that are set by God. Yet the sea by its very nature constantly opposes the shore with its waves.
Any time the sea flows past their boundaries, there is chaos.
The boundaries God set forth for the sea of humanity are His instruction manual, the Kingdom constitution for living... that's the Torah. Genesis 2:2-5; Jeremiah 5:22; Proverbs 8:29
Isaiah tells us: Woe to the multitude of many people, [which] make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations, [that] make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters. Isaiah 17:12
What did Yeshua do with chaos?
He calmed the sea. Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still. Mark 4:29
Ever wonder why does God compare the descendants of Abraham to the sand of the shore? Because we are to uphold the boundaries He set. That is the reason He compares those of the faith of Abraham to the stars too. We have an assignment too, to be bright lights in darkness.
Both the sand and the stars are God's creative work.
Ephesians 2:10; 14 For we are his workmanship, created in Messiah Yeshua unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. For He is our peace...It's hard to believe from many sermons, but "good works" is a term constantly used by Paul. It means following Torah, doing something in love for others.
So, the entire Bible is an instruction manual in which God encourages us to walk within the boundaries the word of God that He has set for us in all areas of life because when we walk within these boundaries, we can enjoy peace given by Him despite the tempests of life.
God's Children of Promise are destined for His Covenant Land.
Galatians 4:28 Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.
Genesis 28:3-4 And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of people; And give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a stranger, which God gave unto Abraham.
Genesis 28:13-14 And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD 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.
Genesis 35:11-12 And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins; And the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land.
Genesis 48:3-5 And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me, And said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession.
And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine.
Genesis 48:14-19 And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim's head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh's head, guiding his hands wittingly; for Manasseh was the firstborn. And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day,
The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.
And when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him: and he held up his father's hand, to remove it from Ephraim's head unto Manasseh's head. And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head.
And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations.What happened with the blessing that was promised to Abraham?
It was passed on to Isaac, the second boy born to Abraham as the Scripture says, then as seen in Genesis 48 to Jacob the second born son to Isaac. From Jacob it was given to his children and his adopted grandchildren, the sons of Joseph.
The blessing and birth order of Manasseh and Ephraim are important. In Genesis 41:51-52 the we read, "And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: for God, said he, hath made me forget all my toil, and all my father's house. And the name of the second called he Ephraim...." Of the two sons of Joseph, Manasseh was the first child to be born. Ephraim was the second but received the firstborn's blessing.
When Jacob was giving the two sons of Joseph his blessing, Joseph made sure that Manasseh was standing on Jacob's right hand, after all he was Joseph's firstborn. He guided young Ephraim over to Jacob's left side as the one on the right hand would receive the double blessing and pre-eminence. Nonetheless Jacob crossed his arms one over the other and put his right hand on Ephraim's head and his left hand on Manasseh's. Of course Joseph protested but it was the second born son who received the blessing to be adopted as the "firstborn".
Almighty God gave the blessing of the nations to Abraham that was given to his grandson Jacob and Jacob aka Israel passed it on to his grandsons. Almighty God declared that as His adoption and that fact is verified in Jeremiah 31:9:
When Jacob was giving the two sons of Joseph his blessing, Joseph made sure that Manasseh was standing on Jacob's right hand, after all he was Joseph's firstborn. He guided young Ephraim over to Jacob's left side as the one on the right hand would receive the double blessing and pre-eminence. Nonetheless Jacob crossed his arms one over the other and put his right hand on Ephraim's head and his left hand on Manasseh's. Of course Joseph protested but it was the second born son who received the blessing to be adopted as the "firstborn".
Almighty God gave the blessing of the nations to Abraham that was given to his grandson Jacob and Jacob aka Israel passed it on to his grandsons. Almighty God declared that as His adoption and that fact is verified in Jeremiah 31:9:
"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."As you might see, blessings from God do not always coincide with man's birthright rules. This is proven because God's ways are higher than our ways and like Joseph we may not agree with The Father, but that does not matter. After all Ishmael is blessed as Abraham's firstborn. Esau is not blessed as Isaac's firstborn, he made the choice not to fast as he succumbed to temporary hunger and traded his blessing for a bowl of stew for crying out loud. Jacob the second born received the birthright of the firstborn. Also, in 1 Chronicles 5:1-2:
"Now the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel, for he [was] the firstborn; but, forasmuch as he defiled his father's bed, his birthright was given unto the sons of Joseph the son of Israel: and the genealogy is not to be reckoned after the birthright. For Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him [came] the chief ruler; but the birthright [was] Joseph's."We also see God calling David His "firstborn" in Psalms 89:27: "Also I will make him my firstborn..." It is evident that God said He would make David His firstborn. However, 1 Samuel 17:13 says that Eliab was the first son born to Jesse. So we have to understand grafting in.
Adoption... it's metaphor is “grafted-in.”
Adoption goes hand in hand with mercy, goodness and love. Paul knew this and he ties it to the fullness of the gentiles in the adoption of Ephraim and Manasseh with all Israel:
Romans 11:22-27 Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.
And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be grafted in: for God is able to graft them in again.
For if thou wert cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and wert grafted contrary to nature into a good olive tree: how much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree?
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 fullness of the Gentiles be come in.
And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.Wake up to Your Child of God Identity!!!
Don't be blind to what your'e reading, if you are you may be a victim of identity theft. The fullness of Gentiles is reflected in the picture of the adopted nations of Ephraim and Manasseh into Israel. That's the blessing Jacob passed on in Egypt to Joseph's two sons.
After the division of the Kingdom of David, the northern ten tribe generations including the adopted two sons of Joseph by Jacob were identified in Scripture as "Ephraim" the first born. The northern ten tribe generations collectively known as Israel separated themselves from Judah, Jerusalem and their first born portion in the Promised L, but God's blessings and promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are irrevocable. Jacob granted the first born blessing to the multitude of Ephraim so he will be restored into his inheritance in the Kingdom, but the choice must be made.
Do you want to be a church member replacing Israel and rejecting God's ways or repent and walk in righteousness with clean hands and a pure heart like Yeshua into the Kingdom?
Psalms 24:1-6 The earth is the LORD'S, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods.
Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place?
He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
This is the generation of them that seek him, that seek thy face, O Jacob.Like all Covenants - God's Promise Still Stands.
Jeremiah 31:3-9 The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn thee. 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.
Thou shalt yet plant vines upon the mountains of Samaria: the planters shall plant, and shall eat them as common things.
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 the LORD our God. For thus saith the LORD; Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations: publish ye, praise ye, and say, O LORD, save thy people, the remnant of Israel.
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. 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.Remember the Rebellion of the Ten Tribes... Are you following in those foot steps?
1 Kings 11:29-39 And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field: And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces: And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee:
But he shall have one tribe for my servant David's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel: Because that they have forsaken me and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his father.
Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand: but I will make him prince all the days of his life for David my servant's sake, whom I chose, because he kept my commandments and my statutes: But I will take the kingdom out of his son's hand, and will give it unto thee, even ten tribes.
And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David my servant may have a light alway before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen me to put my name there.
And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign according to all that thy soul desireth, and shalt be king over Israel. And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that is right in my sight, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did; that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee.
And I will for this afflict the seed of David, but not for ever.
1 Kings 12:19-24 So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day.
And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only.
And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin, an hundred and fourscore thousand chosen men, which were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon.
But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of God, saying, Speak unto Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people, saying, Thus saith the LORD, You shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is from me.
They hearkened therefore to the word of the LORD, and returned to depart, according to the word of the LORD.
1 Kings 12:26-33 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David: If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.
Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan. And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.
And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi.
And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar.
So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made.
So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.How Does God Promise Restoration?
Genesis 49:8-10 Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father's children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion's whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up?
The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.
Hosea 1:1-11 The word of the LORD 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. The beginning of the word of the LORD by Hosea.
And the LORD said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from the LORD. So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; which conceived, and bare him a son. And the LORD 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.
And it shall come to pass at that day, that I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.
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. But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them by the LORD their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, by horses, nor by horsemen. Now when she had weaned Loruhamah, she conceived, and bare a son. Then said God, Call his name Loammi: for ye are not my people, and I will not be your God.
Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered.
And in the place where it was said to them, "You are not my people," it shall be said to them, "Children of the living God."
And the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together, and they shall appoint for themselves one head.
And they shall go up from the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel."
There's more in the Family Reunion Back Story...
Half-baked Ephraim wandered off the path and got lost for a reason, but God is faithful to His blessings.
Hosea 7:8 Ephraim, he hath mixed himself among the people; Ephraim is a cake not turned.
Hosea 8:8 Israel is swallowed up: now shall they be among the Gentiles as a vessel wherein is no pleasure.
Hosea 8:11-17 As for Ephraim, their glory shall fly away like a bird, from the birth, and from the womb, and from the conception. Though they bring up their children, yet will I bereave them, that there shall not be a man left: yea, woe also to them when I depart from them! Ephraim, as I saw Tyrus, is planted in a pleasant place: but Ephraim shall bring forth his children to the murderer. Give them, O LORD: what wilt thou give? give them a miscarrying womb and dry breasts.
All their wickedness is in Gilgal: for there I hated them: for the wickedness of their doings I will drive them out of mine house, I will love them no more: all their princes are revolters. Ephraim is smitten, their root is dried up, they shall bear no fruit: yea, though they bring forth, yet will I slay even the beloved fruit of their womb. My God will cast them away, because they did not hearken unto him: and they shall be wanderers among the nations.
Hosea 10:1 Israel is an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit unto himself: according to the multitude of his fruit he hath increased the altars; according to the goodness of his land they have made goodly images.
Hosea 12:1-6 Ephraim feedeth on wind, and followeth after the east wind: he daily increaseth lies and desolation; and they do make a covenant with the Assyrians, and oil is carried into Egypt.
The LORD hath also a controversy with Judah, and will punish Jacob according to his ways; according to his doings will he recompense him. He took his brother by the heel in the womb, and by his strength he had power with God: Yea, he had power over the angel, and prevailed: he wept, and made supplication unto him: he found him in Bethel, and there he spake with us; Even the LORD God of hosts; the LORD is his memorial.
Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgment, and wait on thy God continually.
Hosea 1:10-11 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, You are not my people, there it shall be said unto them, You are the sons of the living God.
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.
Hosea 2:19-23 And I will betroth thee unto me forever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in loving-kindness, and in mercies. I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness: and thou shalt know the LORD.
And it shall come to pass in that day, I will hear, saith the LORD, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth; And the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and they shall hear Jezreel.
And I will sow her unto me in the earth; and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to them which were not my people, Thou art my people; and they shall say, Thou art my God.There will be a Return to Torah, the Land and to Jerusalem.
Zechariah 1:16-17 Therefore thus saith the LORD; I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies: my house shall be built in it, saith the LORD of hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem. Cry yet, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; My cities through prosperity shall yet be spread abroad; and the LORD shall yet comfort Zion, and shall yet choose Jerusalem.
Zechariah 2:10-12 Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the LORD. And many nations shall be joined to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people: and I will dwell in the midst of thee, and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto thee. And the LORD shall inherit Judah his portion in the holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again.
Amos 9: 8-9 Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD are upon the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from off the face of the earth; saving that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob, saith the LORD.
For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth.
Amos 9:15 And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God.
Amos 9:11 In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old:
The gospel of the Kingdom.
God will restore the breach and ruin of the tent of David, the Kingdom of God will be established.
Matthew 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
Matthew 28: 18-20 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.The Gospel is the Restoration Through Messiah.
Jeremiah 23:3-8 And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase. And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the LORD.
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, 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. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that they shall no more say, The LORD liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; But, The LORD 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.
Ezekiel 37:15-28 The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying, 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:
And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand.
And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these? 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.
And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes. 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:
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:
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 dwelling places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God.
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.
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 forever.
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.
My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And the heathen shall know that I the LORD do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.
Isaiah 49:5-12 And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength.
And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.
Thus saith the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the LORD that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.
Thus saith the LORD, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages; That thou mayest say to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places.
They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them. And I will make all my mountains a way, and my highways shall be exalted. Behold, these shall come from far: and, lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.The process Has Begun, but there is an Assignment for Messiah's Return.
Deuteronomy 7:1-2 When YHVH thy Elohim shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and hath cast out many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than thou; And when YHVH thy Elohim shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, [and] utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them:
Deuteronomy 7:23-24 But YHVH thy Elohim shall deliver them unto thee, and shall destroy them with a mighty destruction, until they be destroyed. And he shall deliver their kings into thine hand, and thou shalt destroy their name from under heaven: there shall no man be able to stand before thee, until thou have destroyed them.
Isaiah 59:15-20 Yea, truth faileth; and he [that] departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the LORD saw [it], and it displeased him that [there was] no judgment. And he saw that [there was] no man, and wondered that [there was] no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance [for] clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke.
According to [their] deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompense. So shall they fear the name of YHVH from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of YHVH shall lift up a standard against him. And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith YHVH.Why Have We Not Discerned God's Gospel plan?
Psalms 149:6-9 Let the high praises of El be in their mouth, and a two edged sword in their hand; To execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments upon the people; To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron; To execute upon them the judgment written: this honor have all his saints. Praise ye YHVH.
When David heard it he was astonished. You can read about that in 2Samuel 7:18-29. Paul comments on it:
1Corinthians 2:9-11 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which Elohim hath prepared for them that love him.
But YHVH hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of YHVH. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of Elohim knoweth no man, but the Spirit of Elohim.But there is a Day of Judgment.
Jude 1:14-15 Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, "Behold, YHVH comes with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are wicked among them of all their wicked deeds which they have wickedly committed, and of all the harsh things which wicked sinners have spoken against Him."
Yet the Sadducees were wrong, Resurrection is Real.
All will sing a Victory Song.1Corinthians 15:51-53 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
Revelation 14:1-5 Then I looked, and behold, a Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and His Father's name written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, like the voice of many waters, and like the voice of loud thunder. And I heard the sound of harpists playing their harps. They sang as it were a new song before the throne, before the four living creatures, and the elders; and no one could learn that song except the hundred and forty-four thousand who were redeemed from the earth. These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These were redeemed from among men, being first fruits to YHVH and to the Lamb. And in their mouth was found no deceit, for they are without fault before the throne of YHVH.The Good News is.... the Kingdom timing comes after the day of Battle.
Revelation 15:2-3 And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, [and] over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of Elohim. And they sing the song of Moses the servant of Elohim, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvelous [are] thy works, YHVH Elohim Almighty; just and true [are] thy ways, thou King of saints.
Exodus 15:1-3 Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto YHVH, and spake, saying, I will sing unto YHVH, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. YHVH [is] my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he [is] my Elohim, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father's Elohim, and I will exalt him. YHVH [is] a man of war: YHVH [is] his name.
Zechariah 14:3-4 Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.
And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which [is] before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, [and there shall be] a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.
Jeremiah 31:31-34 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: 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 the LORD: But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel;
After those days, saith the LORD, 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. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:
Zechariah 14:8-11 And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be. And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one. All the land shall be turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin's gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto the king's winepresses. And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited.
Hebrews 8:9-13 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.
For this [is] the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: And they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.There are Twelve Tribes and Gates for Israel - Sorry, no Gentile gate.
Matthew 2:6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, art not the least among the princes of Judah: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.
Revelation 21:12-14 And had 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: On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates. And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.Repent... Israel are Chosen as a Royal Priesthood.
Matthew 19:28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
Isaiah 43:15 I am the LORD, your Holy One, the creator of Israel, your King.
James 1:1-2 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting. My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
1Peter 1:1-2 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.
Jeremiah 33:24 Considerest thou not what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which the LORD hath chosen, he hath even cast them off? thus they have despised my people, that they should be no more a nation before them.
1Peter 2:9-10 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light: Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.
Hosea 1:11 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.
Romans 9:24 - Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles? As he saith also in Hosea, I will call them my people, which were not my people; and her beloved, which was not beloved. And it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people; there shall they be called the children of the living God.
Galatians 3:26-29 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Galatians 4:28-31 Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now. Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman. 31 So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.
1Corinthians 10:1-4 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; And did all eat the same spiritual meat; And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
1Corinthians 5:7-8 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
Acts 3:19-26 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.
For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people. Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days. Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed. 26 Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities.
John 10:15-18 As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.
John 11:49-52 And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not.
And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation; And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad.
Isaiah 49:1-6 Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me; And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.
Then I said, I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain: yet surely my judgment is with the LORD, and my work with my God. And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength.
And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.Return to The King's Authority if you want to be eligible to ask when.
Hosea 11:1 When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.
Acts 24:14 But this I confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets: Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.
Hosea 6:2-7 After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.
Then shall we know, [if] we follow on to know the LORD: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter [and] former rain unto the earth.
O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? O Judah, what shall I do unto thee? for your goodness [is] as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goeth away. Therefore have I hewed [them] by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of my mouth: and thy judgments [are as] the light [that] goeth forth.
For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings. But they like men have transgressed the covenant: there have they dealt treacherously against me.God's Summary was relayed to Nathan... Restoration in the Kingdom.
2Samuel 7:8-17 "Now therefore so shalt thou say unto my servant David, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I took thee from the sheepcote, from following the sheep, to be ruler over my people, over Israel: And I was with thee whithersoever thou wentest, and have cut off all thine enemies out of thy sight, and have made thee a great name, like unto the name of the great [men] that [are] in the earth.
Moreover I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them anymore, as beforetime, And as since the time that I commanded judges [to be] over my people Israel, and have caused thee to rest from all thine enemies.
Also the LORD telleth thee that he will make thee an house. And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.
He shall build an house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son.
If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men: But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took [it] from Saul, whom I put away before thee.
And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever. According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.
Other Witnesses.
Deuteronomy 30:1-8 And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call [them] to mind among all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath driven thee, And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul;
That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee.
If [any] of thine be driven out unto the outmost [parts] of heaven, from thence will the LORD thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee: And the LORD thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers.
And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live. And the LORD thy God will put all these curses upon thine enemies, and on them that hate thee, which persecuted thee. And thou shalt return and obey the voice of the LORD, and do all his commandments which I command thee this day.
Jeremiah 29:14 And I will be found of you, saith the LORD: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the LORD; and I will bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive.
Jeremiah 31:8 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.
Jeremiah 31:10 Hear the word of the LORD, 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.
Jeremiah 32:37 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:
Ezekiel 11:16-20 Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come. Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.
And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence. And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.
Ezekiel 37:12-14 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. And ye shall know that I [am] the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, 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 the LORD have spoken [it], and performed [it], saith the LORD.
Ezekiel 37:21 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:Two Houses Restored - One Kingdom One People.
Hosea 8:10 Yea, though they have hired among the nations, now will I gather them, and they shall sorrow a little for the burden of the king of princes.
Ezekiel and Isaiah has this to say about the greatest reunion of all time.
Ezekiel 37:19-28 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. And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes. 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: 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: 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 dwelling places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God.
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. 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 forever.
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. My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And the heathen shall know that I the LORD do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.Isaiah describes Judah and Israel will come together from the four corners of the earth:
Isaiah 27:12-13 And it shall come to pass in that day, [that] the LORD shall beat off from the channel of the river unto the stream of Egypt, and ye shall be gathered one by one, O ye children of Israel. And it shall come to pass in that day, [that] the great trumpet shall be blown, and they shall come which were ready to perish in the land of Assyria, and the outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship the LORD in the holy mount at Jerusalem.Ephraim Will Have a Global Impact.
Isaiah 43:5 Fear not: for I [am] with thee: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west
Isaiah 49:18 Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, [and] come to thee. [As] I live, saith the LORD, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them [on thee], as a bride [doeth].
Isaiah 54:7 For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.
Isaiah 54:15 Behold, they shall surely gather together, [but] not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake.
Zechariah 10:6-10 And I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will bring them again to place them; for I have mercy upon them: and they shall be as though I had not cast them off: for I [am] the LORD their God, and will hear them.
And [they of] Ephraim shall be like a mighty [man], and their heart shall rejoice as through wine: yea, their children shall see [it], and be glad; their heart shall rejoice in the LORD. I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased.
And I will sow them among the people: and they shall remember me in far countries; and they shall live with their children, and turn again. I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and [place] shall not be found for them.Back to the Garden!
The Bible, the word of God describes God's desire and plan to restore all people to Himself as one house, one family, one new man to serve Him.
In the end, there is one house, one assembly united by lifeblood, the blood of Yeshua. God will keep His plan to faithfully restore His children to His garden Kingdom of Heaven on Earth.
Ezekiel 20:30-44 Wherefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Are ye polluted after the manner of your fathers? and commit ye whoredom after their abominations? For when ye offer your gifts, when ye make your sons to pass through the fire, ye pollute yourselves with all your idols, even unto this day: and shall I be enquired of by you, O house of Israel? [As] I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will not be enquired of by you. And that which cometh into your mind shall not be at all, that ye say, We will be as the heathen, as the families of the countries, to serve wood and stone.
[As] I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out, will I rule over you: And I will bring you out from the people, and will gather you out of the countries wherein ye are scattered, with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out.
And I will bring you into the wilderness of the people, and there will I plead with you face to face. Like as I pleaded with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so will I plead with you, saith the Lord GOD.
And I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant: And I will purge out from among you the rebels, and them that transgress against me: I will bring them forth out of the country where they sojourn, and they shall not enter into the land of Israel: and ye shall know that I [am] the LORD. As for you, O house of Israel, thus saith the Lord GOD; Go ye, serve ye everyone his idols, and hereafter [also], if ye will not hearken unto me: but pollute ye my holy name no more with your gifts, and with your idols. For in mine holy mountain, in the mountain of the height of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, there shall all the house of Israel, all of them in the land, serve me: there will I accept them, and there will I require your offerings, and the first fruits of your oblations, with all your holy things.
I will accept you with your sweet savor, when I bring you out from the people, and gather you out of the countries wherein ye have been scattered; and I will be sanctified in you before the heathen. And ye shall know that I [am] the LORD, when I shall bring you into the land of Israel, into the country [for] the which I lifted up mine hand to give it to your fathers. And there shall ye remember your ways, and all your doings, wherein ye have been defiled; and ye shall loathe yourselves in your own sight for all your evils that ye have committed. And ye shall know that I [am] the LORD, when I have wrought with you for my name's sake, not according to your wicked ways, nor according to your corrupt doings, O ye house of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel 34:13 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.
Revelation 22:1-6 And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, [was there] the tree of life, which bare twelve [manner of] fruits, [and] yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree [were] for the healing of the nations.
And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: And they shall see his face; and his name [shall be] in their foreheads. And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign forever and ever.
And he said unto me, These sayings [are] faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to show unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.Ezekiel 34 provides the big picture gospel outline.
- Gradual, worldwide immigration from the nations. Ezekiel 34:11-13
- Improvement of the land for living. Ezekiel 34:14
- Messiah's Kingship rule when restoration is complete. Ezekiel 34:23-24
- Israel will have a covenant of peace. Ezekiel 34:25-31
Ezekiel 36:22-38 “Therefore, say to the house of Israel, “Thus says the Lord God, it is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for My holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you went.
And I will vindicate the holiness of My great name which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord,” declares the Lord God, “When I prove Myself holy among you in their sight.
For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols.
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. You will live in the land I gave your forefathers; you will be my people, and I will be your God. I will save you from all your uncleanness.
I will call for the grain and make it plentiful and will not bring famine upon you. I will increase the fruit of the trees and the crops of the field, so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famine. Then you will remember your evil ways and wicked deeds, and you will loathe yourselves for your sins and detestable practices.
I want you to know that I am not doing this for your sake, declares the Sovereign YHVH. Be ashamed and disgraced for your conduct, O house of Israel! On the day I cleanse you from all your sins, I will resettle your towns, and the ruins will be rebuilt. The desolate land will be cultivated instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who pass through it. Then the nations around you that remain will know that I YHVH have rebuilt what was destroyed and have replanted what was desolate.Backed up by the book of Hebrews.
I YHVH have spoken, and I will do it.
Once again I will yield to the plea of the house of Israel and do this for them: I will make their people as numerous as sheep, as numerous as the flocks for offerings at Jerusalem during her appointed feasts. So will the ruined cities be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am YHVH.”
Hebrews 6:13-14 For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself, Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.Let's look at the story of the Prodigal son, the story of two brothers.
Brothers Reunited as One New Man in Messiah.
This is a very significant parable told by Yeshua about the gospel since the parable of the prodigal son is a thematic prophecy that describes the future restoration of the people that God has called Ephraim and Judah, restored as the whole House of Israel.
Luke 15:11-32 "And He said, A certain man had two sons; and the younger of them said to his father, “Father, give me the share of the estate that falls to me.” And he divided his wealth between them. And not many days later, the younger son gathered everything together and went on a journey into a distant country, and there he squandered his estate with loose living.
Now when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country, and he began to be in need. And he went and attached himself to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he was longing to fill his stomach with the pods that the swine were eating, and no one was giving anything to him. But when he came to his senses, he said, “How many of my father's hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger!
I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men.’”
And he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him, and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him, and kissed him. And the son said to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.” But the father said to his slaves, “Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet; and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and be merry; for this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.” And they began to be merry.
Now his older son was in the field, and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. And he summoned one of the servants and began inquiring what these things might be. And he said to him, your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound. But he became angry, and was not willing to go in; and his father came out and began entreating him.
But he answered and said to his father, Look! For so many years I have been serving you, and I have never neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a kid, that I might be merry with my friends; but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with harlots, you killed the fattened calf for him.
And he said to him, My child, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours. But we had to be merry and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found."Paul understood this mystery. That is why he wrote this:
Romans 11:25-26 "For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery, lest you be wise in your own estimation, that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and thus all Israel will be saved; just as it is written of Israel, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob.” Romans 11:25-26Jeremiah wrote about the promise:
Jeremiah 31:18-20 Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, like an untrained calf; bring me back that I may be restored, for Thou art the Lord my God. For after I turned back, I repented; and after I was instructed, I smote on my thigh; I was ashamed, and also humiliated, because I bore the reproach of my youth.
“Is Ephraim My dear son? Is he a delightful child? Indeed, as often as I have spoken against him, I certainly still remember him; therefore My heart yearns for him; I will surely have mercy on him,”" declares the Lord.At the End of The Day.
Jeremiah 30:3 “For, behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “When I will restore the fortunes of My people Israel and Judah.” The Lord says, “I will also bring them back to the land that I gave to their forefathers, and they shall possess it.For the big picture re-read Jeremiah chapter 30 and chapter 31 and consider the question, how are we to walk together and be blessed in the life journey to the Kingdom of God?
Jeremiah 30:7 "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."
Revelation tells us:
Revelation 22:13-14 I am Alpha and Omega (Aleph and Tav), the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed [are] they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.Hosea is where I will begin to conclude my Scripture study.
Hosea 1:10 records that many will enter and the number of the sons of Israel will be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered; and it will come about in the place where it is said to them, “You are not My people,” It will be said to them, “You are the sons of the living God.”
But before this restoration, just as is outlined in Revelation, there will be a time of great difficulty and calamity.
But before this restoration, just as is outlined in Revelation, there will be a time of great difficulty and calamity.
Judah has always led first. We have already seen this in Hitler's Holocaust of World War II and before that the pogroms and the inquisitions. Immediately after WWII, Judah led the way and began to return to the land of Israel in great earnest in 1948 after the state of Israel was recognized by the UN on May 14, 1948.
Zechariah tells us about another problem.
Zechariah tells us about another problem.
The problem: it's for the nations against Jerusalem and Judah.
Are you prepared or are you looking for a secret rapture ride out of town among the nations?
Yeshua is not a liar nor are his witnesses:
Just as the family of Jacob and the "mixed multitude" that followed the God of Israel out of Egypt... all God Believers share in the family name, child of God identity, native born or grafted-in. It's one of the least understood end-time Kingdom prophecies and it is focused on the restoration of lost sheep Ephraim with Judah, indeed all of Israel.
Why is this an "end-time" prophecy?
Simply, it is the end of the scattering of lost sheep. It is the end of the separation of Judah and Joseph, the restoration of the Kingdom people of God, under the authority of Messiah. It is the time the disciples questioned:
Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes reeling to all the peoples around; and when the siege is against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah. And it will come about in that day that I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will be severely injured.
And all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it.
“In that day,” declares the Lord, “I will strike every horse with bewilderment, and his rider with madness.” But I will watch over the house of Judah, while I strike every horse of the peoples with blindness. Then the clans of Judah will say in their hearts, “A strong support for us are the inhabitants of Jerusalem through the Lord of hosts, their God.”
In that day I will make the clans of Judah like a firepot among pieces of wood and a flaming torch among sheaves, so they will consume on the right hand and on the left all the surrounding peoples, while the inhabitants of Jerusalem again dwell on their own sites in Jerusalem.
The Lord also will save the tents of Judah first in order that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem may not be magnified above Judah.
In that day the Lord will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the one who is feeble among them in that day will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the Angel of the Lord before them. Zechariah 12:2-8There's more...
Are you prepared or are you looking for a secret rapture ride out of town among the nations?
Yeshua is not a liar nor are his witnesses:
John 15:18-20 If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.Who is Israel?
Acts 14:21-22 When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.
2 Corinthians 12:10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
1 Peter 4:16 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.
Just as the family of Jacob and the "mixed multitude" that followed the God of Israel out of Egypt... all God Believers share in the family name, child of God identity, native born or grafted-in. It's one of the least understood end-time Kingdom prophecies and it is focused on the restoration of lost sheep Ephraim with Judah, indeed all of Israel.
Why is this an "end-time" prophecy?
Simply, it is the end of the scattering of lost sheep. It is the end of the separation of Judah and Joseph, the restoration of the Kingdom people of God, under the authority of Messiah. It is the time the disciples questioned:
Acts 1:6 When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, will you at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?The end times are not what you think. There is no so called "end of the world" destruction as many would have you believe. Instead, there is a restoration of "all" Israel both lost sheep sojourners with those that carry God's family name. The prophets understood this. The disciples understood this.
David was told that God's Kingdom will be restored by Messiah as the House of God and nations will return in fullness to the Kingdom constitution called Torah that Judah has upheld for centuries.
This is the fullness of the Gentiles joining Judah and the one new man Paul wrote about.
Restored Israel will come into the fullness of the promised Royal Priesthood as it was intended from the beginning just as The Lord told Joel:
Joel 2:27-28 Thus you will know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the Lord your God and there is no other; and My people will never be put to shame.
And it will come about after this that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; and your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.Many Christians and Jews who live in the sorted history of a church that thinks they replaced Israel may find this unbelievable. Christians thinking they replaced Israel or that think they want to worship God nothing like the Jewish people do since they believe the front of the Bible is old and one away with and do not believe the Scriptural truths that are in plain sight for everyone will come to understand:
Matthew 25:10-12 And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, 'Lord, lord, open to us.'But he answered, 'Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.'
Many like myself have been taught by the error of dispensational, replacement theology that there are two divided parts to the Bible, an Old Testament for the Jews and a New Testament with a new religion for Christians, but God is One, His Word does not change!
Wake up if you have thought that the "church" replaced "Israel" or that you are just a saved Gentile sinner. Perhaps you still believe that your promised salvation is up and away destined to a clouds playing a harp in a mansion in an ethereal heaven ignoring the Lord's prayer from our Savior about Heaven on Earth:
..."thy Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven."The Prayer of Manasseh is Important for you if you Repent.
The Prayer of Manasseh is a short prayer of king Manasseh. Manasseh is recorded in the Bible as one of the most idolatrous (2 Kings 21:1-18); however, after having been taken captive by the Assyrians, he prayed for mercy (2 Chronicles 33:10-17). The Prayer is included in certain editions of the Septuagint and the Codex Alexandrinus. It is found in 2 Chronicles in the 1599 Geneva Bible and the Latin Vulgate. It even appears in the Biblical apocrypha of the original King James Bible.
Today it's been shortened in the pulpit as it morphed into what many call the church "sinner's prayer."
A Prayer for today:
The restoration of the two houses in the Covenant of Peace is coming together.
A Prayer for today:
"O Lord, Almighty God of our fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and of their righteous seed; who hast made heaven and earth, with all the ornament thereof; who hast bound the sea by the word of thy commandment; who hast shut up the deep, and sealed it by thy terrible and glorious name; whom all men fear, and tremble before thy power; for the majesty of thy glory cannot be borne, and thine angry threatening toward sinners is importable: but thy merciful promise is unmeasurable and unsearchable; for thou art the most high Lord, of great compassion, longsuffering, very merciful, and repentest of the evils of men.Are the 12 restored tribes a thing of the past? Not if you believe the Bible...
Thou, O Lord, according to thy great goodness hast promised repentance and forgiveness to them that have sinned against thee: and of thine infinite mercies hast appointed repentance unto sinners, that they may be saved.
Thou therefore, O Lord, that art the God of the just, hast not appointed repentance to the just, as to Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, which have not sinned against thee; but thou hast appointed repentance unto me that am a sinner: for I have sinned above the number of the sands of the sea.
My transgressions, O Lord, are multiplied: my transgressions are multiplied, and I am not worthy to behold and see the height of heaven for the multitude of mine iniquities. I am bowed down with many iron bands, that I cannot life up mine head, neither have any release: for I have provoked thy wrath, and done evil before thee: I did not thy will, neither kept I thy commandments: I have set up abominations, and have multiplied offences.
Now therefore I bow the knee of mine heart, beseeching thee of grace. I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned, and I acknowledge mine iniquities: wherefore, I humbly beseech thee, forgive me, O Lord, forgive me, and destroy me not with mine iniquities.
Be not angry with me forever, by reserving evil for me; neither condemn me to the lower parts of the earth. For thou art the God, even the God of them that repent; and in me thou wilt shew all thy goodness: for thou wilt save me, that am unworthy, according to thy great mercy. Therefore I will praise thee for ever all the days of my life: for all the powers of the heavens do praise thee, and thine is the glory forever and ever. Amen."
Revelation 7:4-8 And I heard the number of them which were sealed: [and there were] sealed an hundred [and] forty [and] four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel. Of the tribe of Judah [were] sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben [were] sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad [were] sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Asher [were] sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Naphtali [were] sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasseh [were] sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Simeon [were] sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Levi [were] sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar [were] sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Zebulon [were] sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph [were] sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin [were] sealed twelve thousand.We have all been blind in one way or another. Christian and Jew have been separated as two "houses" both believing in The God Of Israel but one blinded to the identity of Messiah and the other "house" blind to the Torah.
Revelation 21:14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
Revelation 21:19 And the foundations of the wall of the city [were] garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation [was] jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.
Revelation 21:1-3 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God [is] with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, [and be] their God.
Revelation 7:9-10 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.
The restoration of the two houses in the Covenant of Peace is coming together.
Together, led by the Spirit of God we will reconcile in the shalom of Torah and Grace. Together we will become one stick in the Hand of God. You do not want to miss this gospel!
Today, in geography and government, Israel is known as a sovereign country, but in Scripture we must know Israel is a people the God of Israel calls His own!
God prevails. Israel is the people who hear the Creator's words of life and do something about them. The essence of the meaning of Israel’s name ישראל is “he who wrestles with God.”
Virtually all the prophecies concerning Israel speak of its people restored and returning to the Promised Kingdom where the lost sheep nations of Joseph who wrestle with God will be restored in faith with Judah. There has always been a mixed multitude assembly that came out of Egypt, people saved by the Passover lamb, baptized in the sea, people wandering in the wilderness and in some way constantly disputing God's voice by adding to it or taking away from it. But in the end, by God's grace two sticks or branches will become one in God's hand and we will finally cross over together to serve in the Kingdom of God.
It's not my idea, God revealed this promise to Jeremiah:
Today, in geography and government, Israel is known as a sovereign country, but in Scripture we must know Israel is a people the God of Israel calls His own!
God prevails. Israel is the people who hear the Creator's words of life and do something about them. The essence of the meaning of Israel’s name ישראל is “he who wrestles with God.”
Virtually all the prophecies concerning Israel speak of its people restored and returning to the Promised Kingdom where the lost sheep nations of Joseph who wrestle with God will be restored in faith with Judah. There has always been a mixed multitude assembly that came out of Egypt, people saved by the Passover lamb, baptized in the sea, people wandering in the wilderness and in some way constantly disputing God's voice by adding to it or taking away from it. But in the end, by God's grace two sticks or branches will become one in God's hand and we will finally cross over together to serve in the Kingdom of God.
It's not my idea, God revealed this promise to Jeremiah:
Jeremiah 50:4-6 In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD (YHVH), the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together, going and weeping: they shall go and seek the LORD (YHVH) their God.
They shall ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward, [saying], Come, and let us join ourselves to the LORD (YHVH) in a perpetual covenant [that] shall not be forgotten. My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away [on] the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their resting place.The Lost Sheep Scriptures are summarized by Ezekiel:
Ezekiel 34: The word of the LORD came to me, saying, Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and tell them, even to the shepherds, Thus says the Lord GOD: Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Shouldn't the shepherds feed the sheep? You eat the fat, and you clothe yourself with the wool, you kill the fatlings; but you don't feed the sheep. You haven't strengthened the diseased, neither have you healed that which was sick, neither have you bound up that which was broken, neither have you brought back that which was driven away, neither have you sought that which was lost; but with force and with rigor you have ruled over them.
They were scattered, because there was no shepherd; and they became food to all the animals of the field, and were scattered. My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and on every high hill: yes, my sheep were scattered on all the surface of the earth; and there was none who searched or sought. Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: As I live, says the Lord GOD, surely because my sheep became a prey, and my sheep became food to all the animals of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my sheep, but the shepherds fed themselves, and didn't feed my sheep; therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my sheep at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the sheep; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves anymore; and I will deliver my sheep from their mouth, that they may not be food for them.
For thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I myself, even I, will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered abroad, so will I seek out my sheep; and I will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. I will bring them out from the peoples, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them with good pasture; and on the mountains of the height of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie down in a good fold; and on fat pasture shall they feed on the mountains of Israel.
I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will cause them to lie down, says the Lord GOD. I will seek that which was lost, and will bring back that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but the fat and the strong I will destroy; I will feed them in justice. As for you, O my flock, thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I judge between sheep and sheep, the rams and the male goats. Does it seem a small thing to you to have fed on the good pasture, but you must tread down with your feet the residue of your pasture? and to have drunk of the clear waters, but you must foul the residue with your feet? As for my sheep, they eat that which you have trodden with your feet, and they drink that which you have fouled with your feet.
Therefore thus says the Lord GOD to them: Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. Because you thrust with side and with shoulder, and push all the diseased with your horns, until you have scattered them abroad; therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between sheep and sheep. I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. I, the LORD, will be their God, and my servant David prince among them; I, the LORD, have spoken it. I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause evil animals to cease out of the land; and they shall dwell securely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods.
I will make them and the places around my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in its season; there shall be showers of blessing. The tree of the field shall yield its fruit, and the earth shall yield its increase, and they shall be secure in their land; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bars of their yoke, and have delivered them out of the hand of those who made slaves of them. They shall no more be a prey to the nations, neither shall the animals of the earth devour them; but they shall dwell securely, and none shall make them afraid. I will raise up to them a plantation for renown, and they shall be no more consumed with famine in the land, neither bear the shame of the nations any more. They shall know that I, the LORD, their God am with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, says the Lord GOD.
You my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, says the Lord GOD
Israel’s restoration involves you too...
For over ten years now I have continued to study lost sheep Scriptures and I heartily recommend that you continue your own personal study.
The people "Israel" are a royal priesthood by which YHVH God manifests His presence in this world to follow the Great Shepherd Messiah Yeshua. As good sheep, our job is to carry His name as His people.
When you believe and follow in the footsteps of the Messiah of Israel, you get the honor to carry His household name as citizens of His commonwealth. A Kingdom whose citizens God calls "Israel" (look once again if you need to at Paul's letter to the Ephesians 2:11-22).
Because God has determined what He will do, we must believe His promises. When the Father restores “both houses of Israel” (Isaiah 8:13-14), when He makes the two sticks of Judah and Joseph - Ephraim, as one stick in His hand, He will do it honor His name.
The blessing is:
Don't forget God told the "former aliens" to the commonwealth Kingdom how they were to learn to regard themselves:
Ezekiel 37:16-27 “‘Son of man, take for yourself one stick and write on it, For Judah and for the sons of Israel, his companions;’ then take another stick and write on it, ‘For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim and all the house of Israel, his companions.’
Then join them for yourself one to another into one stick, that they may become one in your hand. And when the sons of your people speak to you saying; ‘Will you not declare to us what you mean by these?’ say to them, ‘Thus says YHVH Elohim,’ ‘Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, his companions; and I will put them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in My hand...
I will take the sons of Israel from among the nations where they have gone, and I will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land; and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king will be king for all of them; and they will no longer be two nations, and they will no longer be divided into two kingdoms.
And they will no longer defile themselves with their idols, or with their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions....And they will be My people, and I will be their God....They will all have one shepherd....and I will...set My sanctuary in their midst forever. My dwelling place also will be with them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people.’”Whether native and sojourner we are no more strangers and foreigners when we know and follow Almighty God like those that left Egypt and followed the cloud of glory!!
Don't forget God told the "former aliens" to the commonwealth Kingdom how they were to learn to regard themselves:
“Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to YHVH say, ‘YHVH will surely separate me from His people....The foreigners who bind themselves to YHVH...these I will bring to my holy mountain and give them joy in my house of prayer....for My house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations.’
The LORD God [YHVH Elohim], who gathers the dispersed of Israel, declares, ‘Yet others I will gather to them, to those already gathered.’” Isaiah 56:3,6-8In the end, the Promised Land will be given to the faithful in God's inheritance.
Ezekiel 47:22-23 “‘You shall divide it by lot for an inheritance among yourselves and among the aliens who stay in your midst, who bring forth sons in your midst. And they shall be to you as the native-born among the sons of Israel; they shall be allotted an inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel. And in the tribe with which the alien stays, there you shall give him his inheritance,’ declares the Lord GOD.”There is still an uncomplete assignment for the family of the House of Joseph:
"Then Joshua said to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh, "You are a numerous people and have great power. You shall not have one allotment only, but the hill country shall be yours, for though it is a forest, you shall clear it and possess it to its farthest borders. For you shall drive out the Canaanites, though they have chariots of iron, and though they are strong."" Joshua 17:17-18John describes an amazing scene with every people group in Revelation 5:9 and Revelation 7:9-10:
"And they sang a new song, saying, Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation."Again, never simply take my word for granted, get a second witness from the Scriptures. The "Church" has not replaced Israel and we are not British Israelites.
"...I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, "Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb."
Stay in your study of God's word and let it be your witness.
Update May 2013: I can recommend a concise digest on redeemed Israel that is now available from author Batya Wooten. I was blessed that she asked me to provide some editing along with other trusted friends.
The title is: Who Is Israel? Redeemed Israel – A Primer. Take a look, and reach to me if you have questions. I'll do my best to point you in the right direction.
It means we need to know "Who is the One Called Jesus.
What does this all mean?
Consider a prayer: Please, God guide me as to what I should do.
It's time for you to repent and return to God's voice, return to hear and do His word and walk in the faith of His Kingdom path so that you can ready your lamp for your coming assignment.
It means we need to know "Who is the One Called Jesus.
It's time to repent and return to God's voice, return to hear and do His words and walk in the faith of His Kingdom path so that you can ready your lamp for your assignment.
Stretch out your hand, and take from the tree of life, and live forever.
Open a Bible, read it, listen to God's voice and do Yeshua's teaching about the forever jots and tittles.
You can learn how the things which are written in the Torah, the Prophets, and the Psalms are concerning Messiah and you can teach others to live life like Jesus, it's love in God's way:
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved." John 3:16-17
Today is the time, open your eyes if you're dead in your own valley of dry bones.
Look up and you'll recognize Messiah from Abraham's promise passed on to Isaac and Jacob as written by Moses in the Torah. You can see Him too in the Prophets and the Writings.
Repent and walk your Emmaus Road with Messiah. Study the Scriptures He taught every Sabbath that are filled with doing life God's way in the Kingdom, and tell others about Him. Be a gatekeeper until the house is complete.
Shalom.
