“You can’t really know where you are going until you know where you have been” – Maya Angelou
If history isn’t your cup of tea, reading about people, places and events that seem so far removed from 21st-century American culture can seem unrelatable. Not only may it be tough to hold your attention, but you may be wondering, is the history of Israel’s people and events something I even really need to know? Sure, it can have some good life lessons, but isn’t the New Testament much more relevant to Christians today? After all, we’re Gentiles, right?
I’d like to challenge you to take a look at the Old Testament through a different lens. For a moment, think of the Old Testament as your family’s history, the people and events that shape your family tree. As it is written in Galatians 3:27-29
…for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
If you belong to Christ you are Abraham’s seed! Let’s take a quick look at Abraham’s seed…
Abraham had two sons, Ishmael and Isaac. God promised Abraham and his wife Sarah a son in their old age. Like many of us, they got impatient and took matters into their own hands. Ishmael was Abraham’s first born son, however he was born of Abraham and Hagar, not Sarah. Later, Abraham and Sarah had the child God promised, and his name was Isaac. Isaac became Abraham’s sole heir, and thus the heir of God’s promise.
As he grew, Abraham’s son Isaac got married to Rebecca, and together they had twin sons, Esau and Jacob. Esau was the first born son, however once again, the second born son received the birthright of the eldest. Esau traded his birthright with Jacob in exchange for food. After receiving the birthright, Jacob had fled home in fear of Esau. Eventually God told Jacob to go back home, and along his journey he astonishly wrestles with God and God changes his name to Israel. Genesis 32:26 Then he said, “Let me go, for the day has broken.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” And he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” Then he said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed.”
Jacob whose name was changed to Israel, had twelve sons. Each son became a separate tribe of Israel and together they became known as the twelve tribes of Israel! The tribes of Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Gad, Asher, Joesph, Benjamin, Dan and Naphtali.
Did you know..
All Jews are Israelites but NOT all Israelites are Jews?
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A good example of this is America. Let’s say you live in the state of Wisconsin, you would be called a Wisconsinite, and you would also be called an American because it is your nation. Same for Israel. If you were from the tribe of Judah, you would be called a Jew, and also an Israelite because Israel is your nation.
The part that seems to often cause confusion is that not every Israelite is a Jew. So in the Bible, when you read about the Jews, especially in the New Testament, it is not referring to the whole nation of Israel. Take a look at these two verses for example:
Jeremiah 31:31 – “The days are coming,” declares YHWH, “when I shall make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.”
Hebrews 8:8-9 – “I shall make with the house of Israel and house of Judah a new covenant, not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers when I lead them out of Egypt.”
As mentioned in the previous example, every Wisconsinite is an American, but not every American is a Wisconsinite. And a Floridian (person from Florida), is also an American. Even though both Floridans and Wisconsinites are Americans, a Floridian is not a Wisconsinite. This is the same for Israel. You could be a Benjamite (from the tribe of Benjamin) and an Israelite, you could be a Jew (from the tribe of Judah) and an Israelite and so on. Being able to decern throughout the Bible who is being referenced shines a whole new light on understanding the message of the scriptures and God prophecy that is yet to be fulfilled.
I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come.
Isaiah 46:9-10
That is why this is relevant! Understanding history is to have an understanding of what God instructed his people to watch for, that which is still to come.
The 12 Tribes of Israel become 13, when at Jacob’s death he adopts Joseph’s two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, as his own and passes the blessing on them along with his other children.
Genesis 48:1-6 – “Some time later Joseph was told, “Your father is ill.” So he took his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim along with him. When Jacob was told, “Your son Joseph has come to you,” Israel rallied his strength and sat up on the bed. …“Now then, your two sons born to you in Egypt before I came to you here will be reckoned as mine; Ephraim and Manasseh will be mine, just as Reuben and Simeon are mine. Any children born to you after them will be yours; in the territory they inherit they will be reckoned under the names of their brothers.”
At this time, all the tribes were One Nation Under God
This was the Nation of Israel. According to the account given in the book of Kings, a civil war broke out in Israel and the nation was divided into two…The House of Israel and The House of Judah.
From that time forward in the Bible when we read of Israel (Israelites) or of Judah (Jews), we are reading about two different groups of people, each with different blessings, curses and prophecies.
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TO BE CONTINUED…
More coming soon on The Gentiles, Israel & Judah today, and the covenant God made with Abraham