The Bible, comprised of 66 books in the Old and New Testaments, is the word of God given to us by the prophets and apostles, which was received by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit (II Peter 1:20-21).  The entire Bible, given to us as special revelation, is inerrant (Prov 30:2) in the originals in matters of doctrine, science, history, and the scriptures are plenary inspired (II Tim 3:16), but some scriptures are more important than others (Matt 23:23).  Moreover, the scriptures are verbally inspired in that God gave the very words (Jer 1:9).  Solo Scriptura is a term where we view the Bible as our only, final measuring stick for special revelation, and rightly so.  The giving of scripture is by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, while study and understanding of the Word comes by illumination of the Holy Spirit.  Interpretative Revelation is the understanding of prior written scripture, which can only be initiated by the Holy Spirit and is exemplified in Matthew 2:18, where Matthew explains the meaning of Jeremiah 31:15.  Here, Matthew’s write-up is not a commentary, but rather he explains the meaning as God would explain it.  With the prophetic office comes some form of new revelation, as in the case of the two witnesses (Rev 11:3, 10).  It’s possible that the two witnesses will prophecy primarily via written revelation. Were this the case, they would have plenty to prophecy on since their ministry unfolds in Woe two and Woe three (Revelation 13-19) would still be in front of them. New prophetic revelation must line up with present history with perfect precision, and it must line up with existing scripture and, as the canon of scripture is closed (Revelation 22:18).  Lastly, translators of the Bible should to rely on Majority Text as opposed to a small number of manuscripts, which is far safer when translating the scriptures.

While the term trinity didn’t begin to appear until the 2nd century AD (A.D. 180) by Theophilus, the bishop of Antioch, the doctrine has been in the Bible for thousands of years.  The doctrine of the trinity was somewhat obscure in the Old Testament (Genesis 1:1, 2, 26; Micah 5:2), but clearly revealed in the New Testament.  The trinity is God existing in three persons: God the Father (Gen 1:1), the first person in the trinity, God the Son (John 8:58; 20:28), the second person in the trinity, and God the Holy Spirit (Heb 9:14), the third person in the trinity. The members of the trinity can be clearly seen in a number of passages in the New Testament (Matt 3:16; II Co 13:14).  While God in Hebrew does have a plural format, אלהים, and God is referred to in the first person plural (Gen 1:26; 3:22; Gen 11:7), the second and third person plurals in addressing God never surface in the Bible.  Therefore, God is one (Deut 6:4; John 10:30), hence three in one (II Co 13:14) or the trinity.  God is deity (Gen 1:1; Acts 5:3-4; Heb 1:6).

God has existed from eternity past to eternity future, without beginning or end (Gen 1:1; Psalm 45:6).  Each role in the Godhead is distinct, equal in essence (deity), but ranked in role and relationship.  God is a person who thinks, feels, and makes conscious decisions (Gen 6:5-7).  The plural form of God, אלהים, being used as the entity that created the universe clearly exemplifies that Elohim, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, created the heavens and earth.  (In later passages, we find that Christ played the main role in the creation.)  The Father is head of the trinity (John 10:29).  God is omniscient (Psalm 139:4), omnipotent (Job 42:2), omnipresent (Psalm 139:8), self-existent (Exodus 3:14), eternal (Psalm 9:7), infinite (Psalm 147:5), faithful (I Co 1:9), immutable (Mal 3:6), sovereign (Matt 19:26), holy (Lev 11:44), just (John 5:30), loving (John 3:16), merciful (Exodus 34:6), good (Psalm 34:8), and true (Jer 10:10).

Jesus Christ, preexistent (Micah 5:2) before the creation and the one who played the main role in the creation (Col 1:16), is the son of God (Matt 16:16), who came to earth and became human flesh (John 1:14).  Christ’s first coming (Gen 3:15) was predicted in the Old Testament by numerous prophets (Micah 5:2), namely Isaiah (Isaiah 53).  He was born of a virgin (Matt 1:23) to be born without the seed of sin, but kept his deity (John 20:21; 8:58; Heb 1:6; Titus 2:13), even until now and forever.  Christ’s main reason to be born of a woman (Gal 4:4) was to become the Savior of mankind (Phil 3:20).  In doing so, he needed a body of flesh and blood (Lev 17:11) so that he could die on the cross (Gal 6:4; Phil 2:8) and shed his blood for man (Matt 26:28; Heb 9:12).  Only by faith in Christ (Eph 2:8-9) apart from works (Gal 2:16) can a man be saved.  The Bible is clear that there is no salvation apart from the finished work on the cross (John 14:6; Acts 4:12).  Furthermore, Jesus, who is at present on the right hand of the father (Acts 2:33), has a number of present ministries: the intercession for the saints (Rom 8:34), the saving of lost men (Heb 7:25; Acts 26:18), ruling of the universe (Matt 28:18), and being the head of the church (Eph 5:23; Col 1:18) to mention a few.  His future ministry will be to rule the nations with a rod of iron (Rev 19:15) in his 1000 year reign on earth (Rev 20:4).

The Holy Spirit, a member of the Godhead (Acts 5:3-4, Heb 9:14), is the third person of the trinity, and he proceeds from both the Father (John 15:26) and the Son (John 14:26), also known as a dual procession.  While his essence of deity would be the same as the Father and the Son’s, he would be subordinate in relationship (John 10:29).  In terms of the ministry of the Holy Spirit, he not only had a part in the creation of the universe (Gen 1:1-2), but he also maintains the universe, even at present (Psalm 104:30).  The Holy Spirit’s present ministry would include drawing men to Christ (John 16:8), regenerating those who get saved (Titus 3:5), a one-time baptizing of a believer into Christ (I Co 12:13), and comforts those in affliction (John 14:26).  Concerning spiritual gifts, it is the Holy Spirit who gives out the gifts to enable for ministry (I Co 12:11), thus concluding that spiritual gifts cannot be taught by brothers and sisters in Christ.  The Lord gives out the offices (Eph 4:7, 11), while the Holy Spirit gives the spiritual gifts (I Co 12:11).  While you can be trained in the scriptures for ministry, you can’t actually be trained to be a pastor, since being this is an office given by the Lord (Eph 4:11).  While we have some limitations in terms of church denomination, the Holy Spirit will work in any true believer.  Out of the 4.3 million churches and worship centers, undoubtedly 100’s of thousands, possibly millions of these churches do not practice tongues, which is a strong indication on the use of tongues for this day.  Of the two types of tongues, one which does not need an interpreter (Act 2:4-13), and the other kind which does need an interpreter (I Co 14).  I have read about happenings with the first one.  The Holy Spirit does not need to be put in a box, so if the second one does happen, you can be assured of this, no man can teach you how to speak in tongues, and if it does happen, it needs to be according to the guidelines of the New Testament (I Co 14).  Anyone claiming to have the prophetic office has to have his new revelation (message from God) proven to line up with the Bible and secular history with perfect accuracy, and not some skewed interpretation that is only alive in the “so-called” prophet’s mind.

God created man as the pinnacle of all creation, but with the ultimate purpose to glorify God (Is 43:7).  Angels, who also are created beings to be messengers, weren’t given a clear spot in the creation account.  God created man (Adam) in the righteous state, but with the choice to be in subservient to God’s commandment or to sin.  Adam’s choice to sin plunged all humanity in the state of sin (Gen 3:6; Rom 5:12).  Adam and Eve (Gen 3:20), the father and mother of all races (Gen 11:6-8; Acts 17:26), bore the image of God (Gen 1:27), which may very well be the main reason God loves man so much to the extent that he was willing to send his only son to die for peoples of the earth.  The only way of salvation for man is by faith (Eph 2:8-9) and repentance (Matt 3:8) in Christ Jesus (Acts 26:18) alone (John 14:6; Acts 4:12).  Responsibilities of man are to glorify God (Is 43:7), which comes by obeying the commandments of God (Deut 13:4), shining your light by your testimony (Matt 5:16), and loving the Lord God with all your heart (Matt 22:37).  Every human creature will stand before Christ Jesus at the BEMA seat as believers (I Co 3:13-15; II Co 5:10) or the Great White throne judgment as unsaved (Rev 20:11-15).  Being obedient to the Lord is a win-win situation, and anybody who won’t submit is fighting against God (Heb 10:31).  All peoples from all races in time will either spend eternity in hell or heaven.

Succinctly stated, sin is the transgression of divine law (I John 3:4).  While the first sin was committed by Beelzebub (Isaiah 12:14-15; John 8:44), the prince of the devils, the first sin committed by man was that of Adam and Eve (Gen 3:6), consequently effecting the entire universe (Gen 3:18-19; Romans 8:21) and all those born after the seed of Adam (Romans 5:12).  The penalty of sin is death (Romans 6:23).  All mankind, being conceived in sin (Psalm 51:5), has either been tainted with sin, as is the case before the age of accountability, or has willfully sinned after the age of accountability (Ecc 7:16; Romans 3:23; I John 1:8-10).  When death (Romans 6:23) and hell are cast into the lake of fire, this will do away with sin (Rev 20:14) forever (Rev 21:4).  Even though angels, who are also created beings, cannot be redeemed, man can be redeemed (John 3:16), but this redemption is only found in Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12; John 14:6), which is attained by faith and repentance in Christ and belief in Christ’s finished work on the cross, his burial, and resurrection on the third day (I Co 15:3-4).  Since life is in the blood (Lev 17:11), and for sin to be paid for, there has to be a perfect, blood sacrifice (Heb 9:22), which is only found in Jesus Christ (I John 1:7; Rev 1:5).  Any human creature that is not covered by the blood of Christ will suffer in the lake of fire forever as payment for their sins (Rev 20:15), but any human creature who accepts Christ as Savior will forever enjoy the benefits of salvation forever (Matt 25:46; Romans 10:9-10).  Angels, not having a body comprised of flesh & blood and not bearing the image of God, cannot be redeemed from sin, which may be why they are so curious as to what salvation is (I Peter 1:12).

Angels are created spiritual beings who are messengers for God (Heb 1:14).  Originally, all angels were holy, but after Beelzebub led a rebellion in heaven, 1/3 fell from grace (Rev 12:4).  While angels are superior in knowledge and power to mankind (II Kings 19:35), saved men will eventually have a higher status than angels (I Co 6:3).  Angels are not to be worshipped (Col 2:18; Rev 22:9), cannot marry (Matt 22:30), and since they are not made of flesh and blood, they cannot be redeemed.  The scriptures don’t say anything on whether holy angels are able to sin at present, but it would be certain that they would not since being they witnessed what happened to the angels who did sin.  The ministry of angels included giving the law (Gal 3:19).  In regard to the Lord’s ministry while on the earth, they announced the Lord’s birth (Luke 2:10), protected the Lord (Matt 2:13), and strengthened him (Matt 4:11) while he was on the earth.  Furthermore, they encourage believers (Heb 1:14) and take care of them at death (Jude 9).

Man, having fallen from grace, is in need of forgiveness of sin.  God, who knew all about this before the foundation of the world (Rev 13:8), had already decided to send his Son Jesus Christ to die for us that we might have life.  Salvation, being promised at the time of the fall (Gen 3:15) and prophesied in the Old Testament on numerous occasions, including the law (Deut 18:15-18) and the prophets (Isaiah 53), comes only in Jesus Christ (John 8:24; 14:6).  No church and no works can save you now and forever.  Jesus’ vicarious atonement (II Co 5:21) became man’s propitiation (I John 2:2) and justification (Romans 5:8), and thereby, we can pursue sanctification (I Th 4:3), which actually starts at salvation, and glorification (Rom 8:17, 30) will take place at our entrance into heaven.  Salvation has been made available to mankind with the following requirements: you must acknowledge you have sinned, repent of your sin, believe that Jesus is the Son of God (John 3:18), believe on the finished work of Christ in the shedding of his blood and death on the cross (I Thess 4:14), believe in the deity of Christ (John 8:24), believe in his resurrection (Rom 10:9-10) all apart from any works in order to fulfill the requirements for salvation (Eph 2:8-9).  None of us are worthy of this so great a salvation.  Salvation is full and free.

Salvation (the gospel) is not to be linked up with Israel, the law of Moses (Galatians 2:16), works (Ephesians 2:8-9), or anything in the seen world.  Israel is going to sit in the center of the earth for a very long time.  With that said, it was imperative that the gospel was going to be separated from the Israeli domain, the time called Christianity, to show what the gospel is, and what it does.

Heaven is for the righteous (Matt 25:46), where God lives (Psalm 14:2; 53:2; Ecc 5:2), and hell is for the unrighteous (Matt 25:41).  At present, there are three levels of heaven, the first level being the atmosphere of the earth, which we see as the sky (Gen 1:7-9), the second level being further than the atmosphere of the earth (Gen 1:14-15), and the third level the unseeing level being the abode of God, the angels, and believers at death (II Co 12:2).  Hell, which is the place where unbelievers go at death (Ezek 33:11; Luke 16:23) to be tormented forever, will eventually be cast into the lake of fire (Rev 20:14).  During the 1000 year reign of Christ, only the beast and false prophet will be in the lake of fire (Rev 20:10), but eventually all the fallen angels, the unsaved, death, and hell, will all be cast into the lake of fire (Matt 25:41; Rev 20:10, 14-15).

The Lord Jesus Christ, who is the head of the ἐκκλησία (Col 1:18), sent out his disciples to lay the foundation of the ἐκκλησία in the first century.  Jesus builds his ἐκκλησία (Matt 16:18) through human vessels.  While the first converts were comprised mostly of Jews, the ἐκκλησία would eventually be comprised mostly of Gentiles.  The ἐκκλησία was initially established (Acts 2) in 30 AD.  The universal ἐκκλησία is comprised of all believers across the globe, while the local ἐκκλησία is comprised of believers in a particular assembly.  (The launch of the modern Messianic Jewish movement in 1967 is discussed later.)  The two primary offices in the ἐκκλησία are the pastorate (I Tim 3:1-7) and deacon (I Tim 3:8-13), and with ἐκκλησία members, you have an ἐκκλησία.  The ministry of the deacon is to alleviate the pressures of the pastors or elders in an ἐκκλησία (Acts 6:1-7), and while teaching is not required, there isn’t anything in the New Testament saying a deacon can’t teach.  A plurality of elders is up to each individual ἐκκλησία.  Having at least one formally, trained pastor in an ἐκκλησία should be a must.  Ministries of the ἐκκλησία include the ministry of the Word, carrying out of the Great Commission (Matt 28:18-20), giving of mercy, protecting the flock from false teaching, worshiping God in a formal setting (Heb 10:25), disciplining of members (Matt 18:17; I Co 5:5) to name a few.  The ἐκκλησία proper is not mentioned after Revelation 3.  After Revelation 3, the word “ἐκκλησία” is found only once, but it doesn’t refer to the existence of the ἐκκλησία after Revelation 3, but rather it refers back to the ἐκκλησία (plural) in the letters to the seven ἐκκλησία (plural) in Revelation 1-3.  It has been taught that the ἐκκλησία age would end at the rapture, but with the launch of the Messianic Jewish movement, you can’t just say the “the rapture of the ἐκκλησία.” The Messianic Jewish movement does not claim to be part of Christianity. “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the ἐκκλησία and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen (ESV, Eph 3:20-21).” How the Messianic Jewish movement and the ἐκκλησία will co-exist and unfold will simply need more history to tell.

UPDATE: The early ἐκκλησία was actually led by Jews, meaning they most certainly involved the Jewish flavor in their ἐκκλησία (plural).  With the onslaught of this prophetic movement (Messianic movement), it is only a matter of time that the Messianics will be leading in God’s work in the earth or in the ἐκκλησία.  Israel is going to gain global dominance in the matter of religion, politics and the way of living (Jeremiah 12:16-17).  Nations who do not abide will get removed by God himself.  Christianity is the name that refers to the time when the Gentiles were leading the ἐκκλησία.  “Church” is the English term from ἐκκλησία.  Given enough time, English will get destroyed.  The Jewish Rabbis of the future will decide on a term that will be representative of the ἐκκλησία in the lingua franca in that day.

Specifically, some of the changes that will be made pertain to the Rabbis reintroducing the ways of the Jews to the world, especially to those who are saved.  See Jeremiah 12:16-17, Isaiah 49:6, Acts 13:47, Romans 2:28-29, Galatians 2:14, Revelation 2:9, and Revelation 3:9.  There are other passages, but these are the main ones.

The two church ordinances, baptism and the Lord’s Supper, both minister non-salvific grace to those who participate as “of-age” believers.  Believer’s baptism, being a physical sign of salvation to be employed after one has gotten saved, is to be by immersion (Matt 3:16; John 3:23; Acts 8:38-39). The core doctrine of baptism is in Romans 6:3-6. There have been stories of baptisms taking place in the winter time with frozen lakes and ponds having to be broken up first all the way to makeshift baptistries in tubs and miniature swimming pools in places of worship.  While baptism cannot save (Eph 2:8-9), this ordinance does not need to be diminished in importance.  The one being baptized needs to be saved, but it’s not clear who does the actual baptizing.  The length of time from the actual salvation experience to the baptizing also is not clear (Acts 2:38).  Moreover, the main purpose of the second ordinance, the partaking of the bread and fruit of the vine, is for believers to remember the sacrifice of Christ on the cross (I Co 11:24-25).  The bread represents the body of Christ and the fruit of the vine represents the blood of Christ, as opposed to consubstantiation and transubstantiation.  The use of wine or grape juice in communion is largely governed by the region of your church.  Some regions demand that wine be used at the threat of a church split.  Others must use grape juice, which is fine also.  Scripture does not set a standard which one has to be used.  The main reason foot washing is not considered a church ordinance by the larger body of Christ is because the washing of feet is not discussed after the gospels, whereas baptism and communion are discussed in the epistles.

When Christ returns, he will return bodily (Acts 1:11) and personally (John 14:3).  There is a resurrection of man (John 5:29), some to everlasting bliss (I Co 15:12-58), others to everlasting condemnation (Rev 20:4-5).  Eschatology is the study of last things or The End Times as many have put it.  With an acceptable definition of The End Times being comprised of the rapture, tribulation, and the second coming, not all prophecy is necessarily linked up to the end times.  New Israel in Ezekiel 36 takes place in the Latter Years (linked up to Ezek 38:8, 16), which is en route even at present.  At the going rate, New Israel’s prophecies in Ezekiel 36-39 won’t be completed anytime soon.  The rapture verse, the Apocalypse in Revelation, spoken of by the Apostle John, the tribulation (or Jacob’s trouble), spoken of by Daniel, Jeremiah, Jesus, and the Apostle John will take place in its own time, but at present, we are witnessing  the prophecies in New Israel, and all of it is live before our very eyes.  Please click here.  Every prophecy on this road to Revelation 22 will come to fruition in it’s own time with perfect accuracy, and unless you have been given insight from God, we will see and understand this road as the road comes to fruition. The key doctrine in understanding End Times prophecies is found in Daniel. (Jesus tried to steer us in this direction.) Basically, end times prophecies need to be revealed (Daniel 12:4, 9). “But you, Daniel, keep this message a secret. You must close the book and keep this secret until the time of the end. Many people will go here and there looking for true knowledge, and the true knowledge will increase (ESV, Daniel 12:4).” Large scope prophecies concerning the end won’t be figured out. Until the prophecies are revealed by God or the prophecies come to fruition, they will remain a mystery. Further, not only are there two more prophets arriving onto the scene (Rev 11:10), but there is an indication that there may be more prophets (Matt 23:34; Luke 11:49).  No one in Revelation jumps up and down because they called the date of the rapture verse or the second coming.  Neither is there a prophet of the rapture verse (Matt 24:36; I Thes 4:17) or of the second coming (II Peter 3:10; Rev 16:15).  The end of the world is not in sight (Matt 24:6).  Other than what is written in the scriptures, we’ll understand timing and historical context of the rapture verse and second coming after the fact.  Period.

UPDATE: Ezekiel 36-39 is the written record of the original Israel of God.  In my vision, there were periods of time when Israel was not approved by God.  To see more on this, see the page on my vision.  You can click here.

Since whenever, all prophecy has been linked up to the end of the world, meaning the term “eschatology” defines all prophecy regarding the end.  Either the definition of eschatology will change, or a new term will arrive onto the scene.  The seventh bowl in the Apocalypse hosts a Pangaea, meaning there are at least 250 million years left.  In the sixth seal, John saw tens of millions years when he saw the continents move around.  In my vision, I saw life on earth 170 million years from now.

The institution of marriage, a union between one man and one woman (Gen 2:24), was originally established in the garden of Eden, and it has been in force ever since (Matt 19:6).  Any sexual practices and sexual relationships outside the bounds of marriage, including but not limited to homosexuality (Lev 18:22; 20:13; Rom 1:27), adultery (Ex 20:14), and fornication (I Co 6:13; Gal 5:19) is sin.  Homosexuality is an abomination in the sight of God (Leviticus 18:22).  Believers can only marry believers (II Co 6:14).  The marriage state, which should only end at death (Matt 22:30), is for life, to be severed only by death (I Co 7:39), or by divorce due to infidelity (Matt 19:9) at the initiative of the one violated, which is the only biblical grounds for divorce.  Remarriage after divorce is adultery (Matt 19:9; Luke 16:18); remarriage after the death of one’s spouse is allowed (I Co 7:39).  Any minister who is divorced is unqualified for the pastorate (I Tim 3:2) or for the office of deacon (I Tim 3:12).  The marriage state, the second biggest decision in life, with all of its blessings and challenges needs to be made in line with the will of God or not made at all.

The institution of government is the second institution established by God (Gen 9:6).  Believers are to submit themselves to government (Romans 13:1-2; I Peter 2:13), as Jesus himself submitted himself to the government of that day (Matt 22:21).  Corrupt or inept governments are far better than no government at all.

When the early ἐκκλησία was being established, the Jews were leading.  With the amount of time that will be in front of life on earth, it does not make any sense to say that the New Testament times was meant to be what is called Christianity.  (Christianity does have a purpose.)  The religion in the Old Testament is Rabbinic Judaism, with the religion in the New Testament acting as Messianic Judaism.  This conclusion was not derived by me, but the Messianic Jews.  Messianic Judaism emphasizes the keeping of the commandments (also called being Torah Observant), whereas Christianity does not.  All Christians know that they do not keep the commandments.  The time is coming when Israel will regulate life on earth (Jeremiah 12:16-17).  In the opening scene in my vision, Israel long had global influence.  As Israel went, so went the world.  There were dry spells in Israel in my vision (Romans 9:27), but it was clear that Israel’s call is to be a light to the nations, meaning that the Messianic movement not only will take over Israel, but will become the new leader in the Jesus religion in the world.  The grace that will be given to the Jews has not been given to the Gentiles.

The first six thousand years of recorded history have been spent establishing Israel.  In the beginning, there were only Adam and Eve, not enough people to form a nation.  By the time of Abraham, history had evolved enough to begin the line of the Jews.  By the time of Moses, it was time to officially begin the religion of the Bible, Judaism.  Most of the history in the Bible is spent going through the line of the Jews.  That is not to say that there is not a place for the Gentiles, but the Jews have been the chosen vessels to act as the light of the world via Israel (Isaiah 49:6; Acts 13:47).  The call of the Jew and Israel did not surface until the time of Isaiah, meaning that in the times of Kings Saul, David and Solomon, Israel most certainly had a purpose, but it was not to fulfill the official call of the Jew and Israel.  After the first advent of the Messiah, separating the gospel from the Israeli domain for a time was a necessary step.  It is of utmost importance to recognize that Ephesians 2:12 was written while Israel was not enjoying nation status.  “remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world (ESV, Ephesians 2:12).”  With man being obsessed with things you can see, it was necessary for Israel not to be a nation during the first advent of the Messiah, thus keeping the Jews from linking the gospel up to Israel.  Further, the gospel having been put in the Gentile domain for a full period of time, it proved what the gospel is, and what it does.  By the 19th century, it was time for Israel to be resurrected from the grave.  Israel will not be toppled.  Ever!  The original Israel of God (Galatians 6:16), the only Israel of God that comes with a written record (Ezekiel 36-39), is forming right now in the Middle East in the 21st century.  In my vision, I saw at least two separate Israels of God, but there were also times when Israel was not one that was approved of God.

Below is more explanation of the history of Israel in the Bible.

National Israel, promised to Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3, was established between God and the children of Israel at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19-24).  Old Israel, as a country, would be established after entry into the promised land (Joshua 21:43) just as God had promised.  Saul, who was Israel’s first king, was eventually rejected by God, which the Jews should have known at his inauguration since being Saul was a Benjamite (I Sam 9:21). The kings of Israel were to come out of the tribe of Judah (Gen 49:10), not Benjamin.  In addition, king David kept the commandments of God (I Kings 11:34), but his son Solomon did not (I Kings 11:11), which caused the kingdom to be rent in two (I Kings 11:31), and the rending in two was instigated by God (I Kings 12:15, 24). With the disobedience of the children of Israel and their kings, Israel (the northern kingdom) was destroyed in 722 BC when the Assyrian army conquered it (II Kings 17:18, 23), and the southern kingdom of Judah finally fell completely in 586 BC to Babylon (II Kings 25:9-12).  Old Israel fell because they were under the old covenant and their entrance into the land (Deut 1:26-33, 41-45) and prosperity thereafter was completely contingent on national Israel’s obedience (Exodus 19:5; Deut 28), which included the demand of obedience by the kings on the throne (II Chron 7:18-22).  Admittedly, the weight on Old Israel was heavy to say the least.  All failed, and Old Israel was gone forever.

New Israel, during the forming of the original Israel of God, will be prosperous in all aspects (Eze 36:11), and everything is contingent on the promises by God (Eze 36:22), which is why in New Israel, even though faced with so much opposition, has been so prosperous in such a short amount of time.  Apart from that, all Israel has yet to be saved, but even with most of national Israel being lost, God is still blessing the nation and especially their wars (Eze 36:7, 22).  New Israel, established on May 14th, 1948, is the second Israel (New Israel) as promised to the prophet Ezekiel (36-39).  These promises began in the 19th century, and by 1967 with the launch of the Messianic Jewish movement, all of Ezekiel 36 has been en route.  Ezekiel 36 is linked up to chapters 37-39.  Not that New Israel only gets 4 chapters in the Old Testament, but this is the crux passage on New Israel in the Old Testament.  Many Old Testament passages line up with Ezekiel 36.  Ezekiel 36 includes the immigration of the Jews, the wars in the Middle East crisis, the Messianic Jewish movement as well as the overall economic figures coming out of Israel.  While Ezekiel 36 seems like it is a cut from a block of time, but if you line of the history in Ezekiel 36 with Ezekiel 37-39, it lines up perfectly.  All the Jews on the planet will return to Israel (Ezekiel 39:28), and the Messianic Jewish movement, which is done by Ezekiel 39:25, 29, will take over all of Israel.  Israel will be the winner of the Arab-Israeli conflict (The Middle East Crisis), and Israel will become the dominant power in the world in the Latter Years.  In fact, by the Zach 14 war, New Israel has gotten so powerful that the entire world gangs up on New Israel, but New Israel still wins the war.  When you attempt to bring in the eschatological teachings that have had a strong presence in the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries, the direction of Israel’s biblical forecast just gets mangled.  If you understand Ezekiel 36, you can see what’s imminent in prophecy and even prophecy in the distant future.  Other passages from the Bible will support the conclusion that Modern Israel springs out of Ezekiel 36.  Amos 9:14-15 & Luke 21:24 support Ezekiel 36:24 as it pertains to the Jews returning to Israel.  Luke 21:24 clearly states that there will be life in Jerusalem at or near the end of the times of the Gentiles, which also indicates that the residents will be Jewish.  For this to happen, the Jews have to return to Israel.  In addition, Romans 11:25 says that national Israel will be lost until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.  The fertility rate of the Gentile world peaked out in the early to mid-1960s, after which the Messianic Jewish movement (salvation of the Jews) began in 1967.  It doesn’t seem like a coincidence at all that two major turning points in world history could coincide like that. Furthermore, regarding the age of wars, Jesus said that while there are still wars, the end is not imminent.  While the war in Ezekiel 38-39 takes place in the Latter Years, that war is not imminent because the situation in the early parts of Ezekiel 38 have yet to be fulfilled.  Matter of fact all of Ezekiel 36-39 will take place in the Latter Years.  New Israel in Ezekiel 36 lines up with other New Testament passages.  Even with the formal nation of Israel being off the scene during Peter’s day, he knew that the physical restoration of Israel would one day take place (Acts 1:6-7).  Israel’s formation as a nation on May 14th, 1948 is often viewed as a one-time event known as the restoration of Israel.  The restoration of Israel is a process that began in the 19th century.  Israel’s formation as a nation in 1948 is confirmation that Israel is on the way to restoration and that we are in the Latter Years.  Further, there was an indication in the New Testament of the activity with the land of Israel and the Jews.  One, Jerusalem would be controlled again by the Jews (Luke 21:24), and in that same passage it can be certainly implied that the Jews, the descendants of Jacob, would be the ones who would be controlling Jerusalem—basically, the opposite of the Gentiles would be in control of Jerusalem when the passage comes to fruition.  In the Luke 21:24 passage, Jews and Gentiles are both assumed as players in the verse.  Jews being in Jerusalem at the time of the verse coming to fruition also assumes that the Jews would be returning to their homeland—basically, Jews would first have to return to Israel in order to take over the city.  Jesus did imply that Israel would be restored, but just mentioned that the timing would be in the hands of the Father (Acts 1:6-7).  Also, apparently, the Lord did not want people to be preoccupied with New Israel before New Israel arrived onto the scene, and so, not much is said about Israel in the New Testament, but much has been said about New Israel in the Old Testament.  For example, Psalm 83 being the Middle East crisis fits the situation in present Israel.  Rome, an enemy of Israel in the first century, is not mentioned in the list of enemies in Psalm 83, which is a strong indication that Psalm 83 is speaking of the present Israel. 

Isaac Yoder.  

April 10, 2018

Edited

May 7, 2022; October 15, 2024