The Signpost of Israel

1. 1. There are a significant number of unfulfilled Bible prophecies that presuppose the following conditions for their fulfillment:
      1. a substantial number of Jewish people living in the actual land of Israel in a state of unbelief
      2. Jews controlling and living in the actual historical city of Jerusalem
      3. the city of Jerusalem being the center of the world’s attention
      4. the existence of a functioning Jewish temple in the city of Jerusalem
   2. These passages include but are not limited to: Isaiah 1:21-31, 29, 33, 40, 52, 59; Daniel 8, 9, 11:40-45, 12; Joel 2-3; Zephaniah 1:14-2:3; Zechariah 12-14; Ezekiel 38-39; Malachi 3; Matthew 24; Mark 13; Luke 17, 21; and 2 Thessalonians 2. These Scriptures, moreover, primarily relate to God’s plan to discipline the nation and draw her to repentance in context to the pressures she will face in the days last.

1. 1. Zechariah

A day of the Lord is coming when your plunder will be divided among you.

I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city. Then the Lord will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights in the day of battle. On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south. You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him. On that day there will be no light, no cold or frost. It will be a unique day, without daytime or nighttime—a day known to the Lord. When evening comes, there will be light. On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half to the eastern sea and half to the western sea, in summer and in winter. The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name. The whole land, from Geba to Rimmon, south of Jerusalem, will become like the Arabah. But Jerusalem will be raised up and remain in its place, from the Benjamin Gate to the site of the First Gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the royal winepresses. It will be inhabited; never again will it be destroyed. Jerusalem will be secure. This is the plague with which the Lord will strike all the nations that fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths. On that day men will be stricken by the Lord with great panic. Each man will seize the hand of another, and they will attack each other. Judah too will fight at Jerusalem. The wealth of all the surrounding nations will be collected—great quantities of gold and silver and clothing.  A similar plague will strike the horses and mules, the camels and donkeys, and all the animals in those camps. Then the survivors from all the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, and to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. If any of the peoples of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, they will have no rain. If the Egyptian people do not go up and take part, they will have no rain. The Lord will bring on them the plague he inflicts on the nations that do not go up to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. This will be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not go up to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. On that day holy to the Lord will be inscribed on the bells of the horses, and the cooking pots in the Lord’s house will be like the sacred bowls in front of the altar. Every pot in Jerusalem and Judah will be holy to the Lord Almighty, and all who come to sacrifice will take some of the pots and cook in them. And on that day there will no longer be a Canaanite (or “any merchant” [TEV], or “any buyers or sellers” [NCV]) in the house of the Lord Almighty. (^NIVZech 14)

1. 1. 2 Thessalonians 2

Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.  Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God (^ESV2 Th. 2:1-4)

• Now we beg you, brothers, in regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus the Messiah and our being gathered to him, not to become so quickly disturbed or alarmed when someone claims—whether by some spirit, or through some fine-sounding message, or by a letter supposedly from us—that the Day of the Lord is already here. Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way! For that Day will be here only when the rebellion has taken place and the man of wickedness been revealed—the man doomed to destruction, who is going to oppose and “exalt himself” (cf. Dn. 11:36) above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he “seats himself”  (cf. Is 14:13-14 and/or Ezk 28:2-10) in the very sanctuary of God, publicly declaring himself to be God. (^BHT2 Th. 2:1-4)

1. 1. Paul wrote the letter of 2 Thessalonians in the early AD 50s. When he wrote 2 Thessalonians, the Jewish Temple was still standing in Jerusalem. In 70 AD, armies led by the future Roman Emperor Titus destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple. When this happened, most of the Jews in Israel were again scattered throughout the world. Paul died (65-67AD, under Nero) before Jerusalem was destroyed by Titus. 
   2. When the Temple was destroyed and the Jewish people were sent into exile under the Romans, the historical and contextual conditions for the above mentioned prophecies related to Israel at the end of the age were no longer in place.
   3. In the twentieth century, something very significant happened. Beginning in the late 19^th century, many Jews began returning to the land of Israel. During World War II (1939-1945), millions of Jews were killed by Hitler and the Nazi regime in the Holocaust. After World War II, thousands of Jewish survivors moved to Israel. In 1948, the modern state of Israel was formed, and in the 6-day war of 1967, Israel captured Jerusalem. For the first time in nearly two thousand years, the land of Israel was back in the hands of Jews, most of whom did not know the Lord.
   4. The formation of the state of Israel in 1948 and Israel’s recovery of Jerusalem in 1967 means that the prerequisite conditions mentioned above are almost once again in place. Only those who do not read the newspaper would deny that Israel is once again at the center stage of the world’s attention. Israel is surrounded on every side by Islamic nations who hate her and seek her destruction. Also, although there is a small remnant of believing Messianic Jews in Israel, the vast majority of the Jews in Israel are still in a state of unbelief. All that remains is for the Jewish temple to be rebuilt in Jerusalem. Will the temple be rebuilt? The answer to this question must be yes, because 2 Thessalonians 2 and Malachi 3 require the existence of a temple in Jerusalem in order to be fulfilled.

1. 1. As important as it is to recognize the signs of the times, the more important story is what God is accomplishing through the events that will take place before Jesus’ return. God is weeping for the return of His firstborn son. The dismissal or neglect of this topic, or its reduction to a fringe theological issue or concern (the “Israel thing”), in many Christian circles, is a telling sign of where we are as the Body of Christ. It’s like saying to me, “Tim, I don’t get the ‘Faith thing.’ Why does this matter so much to you?” Dan Gruber’s question: What percentage of the Bible relates to Israel in some way? How many messages have you heard on Israel? On the other hand, some pro-Israel groups don’t take God’s hatred for sin (and the warnings connected to violations of covenant) sufficiently into account. In the end, it is about the gospel being put on display through His dealings with His firstborn. In the end, mercy will triumph over judgment.

I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit— I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race,  the people of Israel. (^NIVRom. 9:1-4.a.)

Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. (^NIV Rm 10:1).

When all these blessings and curses I have set before you come upon you and you take them to heart wherever the Lord your God disperses you among the nations, and when you and your children return to the Lord your God and obey him with all your heart and with all your soul according to everything I command you today, then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you and gather you again from all the nations where he scattered you.  Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the heavens, from there the Lord your God will gather you and bring you back. He will bring you to the land that belonged to your fathers, and you will take possession of it. He will make you more prosperous and numerous than your fathers. The Lord your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love him with all your heart and with all your soul, and live. (^NIVDt. 30:1-6)