Israel’s Place In God’s Plan To Redeem Mankind

BEYOND THE BASICS | William Stewart | Kingston, Ontario

To understand Israel’s role in God’s plan, we need to start with the threefold promise made to Abram in Genesis 12:1-3, 7. There we find God’s promise to (1) make a great nation from Abram, (2) bless them with a land, and (3) bless all families of the earth through him.

The nation promise was fulfilled when Joshua brought the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt. Deuteronomy 26:5 states, “…My father was a Syrian, about to perish, and he went down to Egypt and dwelt there, few in number; and there he became a nation, great, mighty, and populous.” Thus, God fulfilled His promise, and Israel was set to fulfill their role in God’s plan.

The land promise was fulfilled when Joshua brought the children of Israel into the land of Canaan. Joshua 21:43, 45 reads: “…the LORD gave to Israel all the land of which He had sworn to give to their fathers, and they took possession of it and dwelt in it … Not a word failed of any good thing which the LORD had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass.” According to Deuteronomy 30:17-18 (cf. 4:26-27; 28:63; Leviticus 20:22; 26:33) the land promise was not perpetual. It was conditional upon their faithfulness to the Lord.

The seed promise is key to understanding Israel’s role in God’s plan. His plan was not to save one nation but all nations. His plan was not about people inheriting Canaan but having the hope of heaven. To accomplish this, God needed a nation from whom the Messiah would come, and that nation was Israel. The lineage becomes important. Of Abraham’s offspring, the Lord chose Isaac, not Ishmael. Of Isaac’s offspring, the Lord selected Jacob, not Esau. Of Jacob’s children, God’s plan would be accomplished through Judah, not Reuben (or any of the other brothers). In Genesis 49:10, Jacob said, “The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh comes; and to Him shall be the obedience of the people.” This prophecy foretells the coming of the Messiah through the tribe of Judah.

As we move forward in the history of Israel, we come to the time of the Judges, which is neither here nor there so far as the fulfillment of the Seed promise. However, the people rejected the system of the judges in the days of Samuel and sought a king. Their first king was the people’s king – that is, he is what they were looking for. Saul was head and shoulders above everyone else, a Herculean type among his people. However, he turned out to be a dud. Despite his humble beginnings, he soon became arrogant and did his own will rather than God’s will. And not only that, but he was from the wrong tribe – he was from Benjamin. So, a new king was selected – David, the son of Jesse, of the tribe of Judah. As there were prophecies about the Messiah coming as the Seed of Abraham, at this point, new prophecies would begin to reveal the Messiah as the Seed of David (2 Samuel 7:12-16; Psalm 89:3-4; 110:1-2; 132:11; Isaiah 11:1, 10; Jeremiah 33:14-17; Ezekiel 34:23-24).

Solomon would be the last king to reign over a united Israel. The nation divided after him with the line of David continuing in the southern kingdom (Judah). The northern tribes (Israel) quickly turned away from the Lord through the wicked innovations of Jeroboam. The Lord removed them from the land just over 200 years after the division as they were defeated and destroyed by the Assyrians (722 BC). Second Kings 17:18 tells us, “…the LORD was very angry with Israel and removed them from His sight; there was none left but the tribe of Judah alone.” Many of the Israelites were killed, others were taken as slaves, and only a small number were left in the land. Assyria would repopulate the region with various Gentile people. The land would not be resettled by those who had been forcibly removed from it, nor by their descendants.

Judah was guilty of many of the same sins as Israel. Eventually, God would bring Babylon against Judah, much the same as He brought Assyria upon Israel. The Babylonians ravished the land, leaving Jerusalem and its temple would be destroyed (586 BC), but not with the permanency of Israel’s destruction. God had not yet fulfilled the Seed promise. Thus, it was necessary for the people to return to the land. Amos 9:14-15 and Jeremiah 30:3 both speak about God restoring the captives of His people – they would return to the promised land. The people of Judah were captive in Babylon for 70 years (Jeremiah 29:10). Then in the latter years of Daniel’s life, the Persian king Cyrus sent the Jews home to rebuild Jerusalem and her temple (Isaiah 44:26-28; 45:1, 13). The return would happen in three phases: Zerubbabel (536 BC), Ezra (457 BC), and Nehemiah (444 BC). Though they were back in the land with a rebuilt city and temple, they had no king reigning over them.

By the time we get to the first century AD, there was great expectation and anticipation that the promised Messiah would soon come. Notice:

Prior to our Lord’s birth, His mother Mary was told, “…the Lord God will give 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 1:32-33).
Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, prophesied, “…He has visited and redeemed His people, and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David…” (Luke 1:68-69)
Joseph, the husband of Mary, was told, “…you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).
Angels told the shepherds in the fields, “…there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11).
Luke tells us about Simeon, who was “…waiting for the Consolation of Israel…” (Luke 2:26) and thanked God for allowing him to see “…the glory of Your people Israel” (v 32).
Anna, having seen Jesus, “…spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem…” (Luke 2:38).
The Magi followed a star from the East to Jerusalem searching for “He who is born King of the Jews” (Matthew 2:2).
Andrew, after spending an afternoon with Jesus, rushed to tell his brother Peter, “We have found the Messiah!” (John 1:41)
Philip, convinced that Jesus was the Messiah, told Nathanael, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote…” (John 1:45)
Though Nathanael was skeptical at first, he would soon declare of Jesus, “You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” (John 1:49)
A week before Jesus was crucified, He was received by a crowd in Jerusalem, saying, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD! The King of Israel!” (John 12:13).

During the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry, He spoke about His kingdom. In Matthew 16:28, He states that it would be established in the first century before that generation passed away. To Pilate, Jesus revealed that it would not be a physical or earthly kingdom (John 18:36). It is a spiritual kingdom.

Unfortunately, the Jews misunderstood and continue to misunderstand the Messiah’s mission and the nature of His kingdom. Note a statement about the Messiah from Judaism 101:

The Mashiach will be a great political leader descended from King David … He will be a great military leader, who will win battles for Israel. He will be a great judge, who makes righteous decisions … he will be a human being, not a god, demi-god, or other supernatural being. … The Mashiach will bring about the political and spiritual redemption of the Jewish people by bringing us back to Israel and restoring Jerusalem. He will establish a government in Israel that will be the center of all world government, both for Jews and Gentiles. He will rebuild the Temple and re-establish its worship. He will restore the religious court system of Israel and establish Jewish law as the law of the land. (jewfaq.org/mashiach.htm)

Even Jesus’ disciples did not understand the Lord’s mission, thinking it was about the restoration of Israel (Luke 24:21; Acts 1:6). However, it is noteworthy, after they received the Spirit, we never again see the apostles, or any other inspired writer speak about the restoration of the kingdom to Israel.

In Acts 3:25-26, Peter preached victory to the Jewish people. Notice:

“You are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ To you first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.”

Peter didn’t speak about Israel being exalted and made a mighty earthly nation again. What was God’s plan? Turning people away from sin. He cited the promise to Abraham but made no mention of the nation or land promises. God’s plan was not about exalting Israel as a mighty earthly nation. Instead, he offered the forgiveness of sins by Jesus Christ, the Seed of Abraham.

Within one generation of Jesus ascending to heaven, the temple, and city of Jerusalem were destroyed. The city has been rebuilt, but the temple has not. In fact, the Dome of the Rock, a Muslim structure, has sat on the temple mount since 1023 AD. Jerusalem and its temple have nothing to do with the messianic kingdom. Remember, Jesus said some who were standing there would see the kingdom come with power (Mark 9:1). It was not about the physical nation. Israel was a means to an end – the LORD needed a nation by which the Messiah would come. Once the Messiah came, Israel’s function had been fulfilled, for then, in the Seed of Abraham, in the Seed of David, in the Christ, God offered an eternal hope for all who would come to Him, whether Jew or Gentile, that they might be added to the church, a spiritual kingdom.

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October 2021 | GROW magazine