The purpose of the “Bible 101” series is to introduce some of the core Old Testament subjects that are necessary for understanding God’s overall purpose and plan. Although God has operated through different dispensations at different points in history, the topics in “Bible 101” demonstrate the cohesive, focused plan of God throughout Scripture.
Previously we have considered the uniqueness of the Bible. Today’s topic is the nation of Israel.
The Importance of Israel to the Bible as a Whole
Let's be clear about something right up front: God is not done with Israel, and the Church has not replaced Israel. While that may sound like common sense, that particular set of errors has been floating around for a long time, and it seems to having a growing group of followers today. Even those who do not consciously subscribe to it may be influenced by those who do, and it has serious ramifications for doctrine. That is why this section of "The Bible 101" is is such great importance, second only to the doctrines the Bible teaches about itself (as seen in the first Bible 101 post). With that in mind, let's lay the groundwork:
Israel is central to God's plan for the Kingdom of Heaven (see this post for the difference between the Kingdom of Heaven and the Kingdom of God).
Israel is central to the Messiah King - Jesus Christ (Whom we will focus on in a future Bible 101 post).
Israel is central to the law - although the Christian is not under the law, we would not know sin apart from it (Romans 7:7). Furthermore, all Scripture is profitable (II Timothy 3:16).
Israel: A Unique Beginning
In the first post of this series, we addressed that the Bible is primarily a history book. Although all of world history is in view, most of Scripture looks at history from Jewish ground, starting a few chapters into the book of Genesis. Humanity's "family tree" begins with Adam, but at Noah humanity is divided into three distinct groups: those who descend from Ham, who descend from Japheth, and who descend from Shem. The nation of Israel (the Jewish people) are in the line of Shem through Abram (later renamed Abraham), and they began in the most unusual way: Abram and wife wife were a childless couple, were called out from among the other existing nations, promised a land, and given unconditional promises.
Here's what Scripture says in Genesis 12:1-2, 6-7:
Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite [was] then in the land. And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.
It continues in 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.
And continues further in Genesis 17: 1-16:
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. And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations. This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised. And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you. And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed. He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant. And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be. And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.
From here forward the “family tree” focuses on Abram (now Abraham), his son Isaac, and grandson Jacob (who is renamed Israel), and Jacob's twelve sons, who are the twelve tribes of Israel. Things are quickly starting to look like the start of a nation, but those twelve tribes - with all of their wives, children, and grandchildren, are then enslaved in Egypt.
From a human perspective, the slavery in Egypt - which was the world superpower at that time - should have been the end of Israel. Historically, any time a nation becomes enslaved to another, they are either obliterated or assimilated. But God keeps His promises, and He made many to the nation of Israel. The book of Exodus records the dramatic account of God rescuing Israel from bondage via Moses and the ten plagues. While the story is thrilling, we cannot lose sight of what is happening: God is going to war for his people. Each plague is a direct assault on the heathen gods of Egypt. No other religion in the world has had their god openly war on the gods of another nation, and has the historical proof to back it up! The chart below illustrates how the LORD God undermines each Egyptian deity, moving up the hierarchy until He strikes at Pharaoh himself, who was considered "god in the flesh" according to Egyptian beliefs.
EGYPTIAN GOD or GODDESS | SUPPOSED DOMINION | CORRESPONDING PLAGUE |
Hapi | The Egyptian god of the Nile River | The LORD God turned the water of the Nile into blood; Pharaoh's magicians replicate the plague |
Hecket | The Egyptian goddess of fertility, water, and renewal; depicted with the head of a frog | The LORD God sent a plague of frogs out of the Nile River; Pharaoh's magicians replicate the plague |
Geb | The Egyptian god of the earth | The LORD God sent a plague of lice from the dust of the earth; Pharaoh's magicians cannot make life from the dust of the ground and exclaim “This is the finger of God...” |
Khepri | The Egyptian god of creation, movement of the sun, and rebirth; known for having an insect for a head | The LORD God sent a plague of flies |
Hathor | The Egyptian goddess of love and protection; sometimes depicted with the head of a cow | The LORD God sent a plague that killed the cattle and livestock |
Isis | The Egyptian goddess of medicine and peace | The LORD God sent a plague of boils and sores |
Nut | The Egyptian goddess of the sky | The LORD God sent a plague of fiery hail raining from the sky |
Seth | The Egyptian god of storms and disorder | The LORD God sent a plague of locusts |
Ra | The Egyptian god of the sun | The LORD God sent the plague of darkness |
Pharaoh | The ultimate Egyptian god; considered "god in the flesh" | The LORD God sent a plague that killed the firstborn children of Egypt |
Israel: A Unique Law
After their rescues from the clutches of Egypt, God institutes the law. The law God gave to Israel was moral, ceremonial, and practical. It separated Israel from all other nations and people in every way: they are not to look like others, dress like others, eat like others, worship like others, etc. They are meant to be peculiar.
Leviticus 11:1-8 demonstrates the dietary law, which was also meant to separate them from other nations and people - they couldn't even eat like everybody else! As a side note, while some of it may have been a matter of hygiene (as many commentators suggest) we cannot lose sight of the fact that most of this is a matter of separation!
And the Lord spake unto Moses and to Aaron, saying unto them, Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth. Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and is clovenfooted, and cheweth the cud, among the beasts, that shall ye eat. Nevertheless these shall ye not eat of them that chew the cud, or of them that divide the hoof: as the camel, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you. And the coney, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you. And the hare, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you. And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be clovenfooted, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you. Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcase shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you.
In addition to their diets, Leviticus 19:19 mandates that their clothing separate them as well:
Ye shall keep my statutes. Thou shalt not let thy cattle gender with a diverse kind: thou shalt not sow thy field with mingled seed: neither shall a garment mingled of linen and woollen come upon thee.
In Leviticus 19:27-28 even the way they style their beard and lack of tattoos was explicitly meant to separate them:
Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard. Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the Lord.
Israel: A Unique People
To further add to their uniqueness, the Israelites had God among them in the most literal way. For example, Exodus 20:1-21 the common people (not just “prophets”) were witnesses of God’s presence at the giving of the 10 Commandments:
And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lordwill not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it. Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. Thou shalt not kill. Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's. And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not. And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was.
Exodus 25:8-9 shows that the Tabernacle and the Ark meant that God was literally living among the Israelites:
And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it.
They were to set their entire calendar around their God through yearly - even weekly - observances such as the Sabbath and seven yearly feasts, each of which commemorates Israel's past while also picturing the future of God's plan.
The feasts of Israel were instituted by God as one set of signposts (among many) that would help Israel to not only identify the Messiah, but also understand and have confidence in Him. They are an elaborate yearly illustration of major events on God’s timeline as shown above.
Israel: God's Nation
Exodus 19:3-6 shows that the Israelites were to expressly, publicly be God’s people:
And Moses went up unto God, and the Lord called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel; Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself. Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.
They were meant to be utterly different from every other nation on earth, and unlike the religions of other cultures, they were expected to give their best to God, and they didn’t get to keep any of it when they made a sacrifice. That the sacrifices were to be without blemish, which is mentioned 39 times in the Old Testament, and the concept of human sacrifice is wholly absent. Compare that to any other culture - even the revered "intellectual" Greeks, who's mythology often included elements like infanticide and excuses for giving Zeus the parts of the animal nobody else wanted - and you'll quickly see that the Jews were "peculiar" in some very good ways.
And what was the greatest benefit of being God's chosen people? Undoubtedly it is the promise made in Genesis 12:3:
And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
No other nation in history has ever had such a promise made, nor has any other promise been so easily observed being kept throughout history. There is no other explanation why Israel still exist today - the ancient Egyptians could not eliminate them, and neither could the Babylonians, the Persians, the Romans, or the Nazis. Try as they might, the nations of the world today have not been able to scrub them off the map, either. Why? Because God made a promise, and He is going to keep it. Period.
Application for Christians
As evidenced in their historical literature, the nation of Israel is a unique people with a unique beginning and unique laws. They are separate from all other peoples (including the Church) by God’s direct design. But we would be fools to ignore the abundant riches that are to be found by understanding the Old Testament, the people it focuses on, the incredible ways they embody dispensational truths through types and illustrations, and the incredible plans God has for their future.
Zola Levitt, a Messianic Jew, said it his booklet "The Seven Feats of Israel" that “The events of the New Testament, the vital future events involving the Church and the Jews – indeed, all of God’s plan from chaos to eternity – are ingeniously revealed through the nature of timing of these seven annual feasts. [We] become aware that we are now existing, as it were, between two feasts, and that it is ultimately important for us to comprehend God’s calendar in its essence.” He goes on to say, “Believers in Christ are not responsible to keep these feasts, of course, but a knowledge of them greatly enhances their faith.”
We should also pause to make a spiritual application of the "peculiar" nation of Israel to the Church, who are also God's people. If God expects those to whom will inherit the Kingdom of Heaven to be separate and distinct in every way, how much more should those who will inherit the kingdom of God apply the principle of the law (rather than the letter) and strive be be a "peculiar" people ourselves, separate from the worldly, carnal practices around us in every way we can manage?
Food for thought until next time...
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