Scripture references are from the New King James Version of the Bible unless stated otherwise. Israel plays a key role in God's Plan to reconcile all things in heaven and all things on earth to Himself, having made peace through the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross. (Colossians 1:20) The Israelites are the direct physical descendants of Abraham through the line of Isaac and Jacob. The Bible uses the word Israel to mean both the nation and the land. Scripture says again and again, hundreds of times, that God is the God of Israel, and the Holy One of Israel. The word Israel is mentioned over 2,500 times in the Bible. We all need to grasp the tremendous importance of Israel, of why and how God is using Israel to demonstrate His love, His justice and His righteousness for all people. God made a covenant with Abraham, known as the Abrahamic Covenant. This is a covenant of faith through which God is unconditionally bound to make Abraham and his descendants, the Israelites, a great and blessed nation, and also to bless all of the families (nations) of the earth through the Seed of Abraham, who is Jesus Christ Himself. God also made a covenant with Israel through Moses at Mount Sinai, 430 years after the Abrahamic Covenant. This is known as the Mosaic Covenant, which is a conditional covenant promising blessings for obedience to God's laws, but incurring God's curses and judgements for disobedience. It is extremely important to understand both of these covenants because they are at the heart of God's purpose and plan to judge and then to reconcile all of Israel and all of the nations of the earth. God has a wonderful plan for all people, which He is working out in biblical ages. The Plan of God consists of both separation and reconciliation for all people; separation because of sin and reconciliation because of the free gift of God's Righteousness through Jesus Christ. The history of Israel started when God called one man, Abraham. Genesis 12:1 Now the LORD had said to Abram: 'Get out of your country, from your family and from your father's house to a land that I will show you'. Abraham was chosen and called out of his native land Haran to go to the land of Canaan. This has been estimated to be in the year 1921 B.C. The Abrahamic Covenant - The Unconditional Covenant of Faith Genesis 12:2-3 2 I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. These verses give the main elements of the Abrahamic Covenant. God has put a tremendous importance on this covenant. He affirmed, re-affirmed and then renewed the covenant with Isaac and Jacob. (Genesis 13:14-17, Genesis 15:1-21, Genesis 17:1-11, Genesis 22:15-19, Genesis 26:2-5, Genesis 28:13-17) The Abrahamic Covenant contains three important parts: firstly an unconditional part, 'I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing'; followed by a conditional part, 'I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you'; followed by an unconditional part, 'And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed'. We see that the unconditional Abrahamic Covenant has a conditional part within it. However, this in no way takes away from God's unconditional parts of this promise to Abraham. We will soon comment on each part of this covenant. When God promised Abraham that He would make him a great nation, Abraham was 75 years old and childless. For Abraham to become a great nation, he would have to have multitudes of descendants and land. God promised him both of these. Genesis 15:5 Then He brought him outside and said, "Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them". And He said to him, "So shall your descendants be". Genesis 15:18 On the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying: "To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates". The promise to Abraham to make him a great nation was made in the year estimated to be 1921 B.C. and we are now living in 2008 A.D. This means that almost 4,000 years have passed since God promised Abraham that his descendants would be blessed and be a great nation, living in the land with boundaries from the river of Egypt to the River Euphrates. The important question facing us is: 'Has God yet fulfilled His promise to Abraham?' The answer is an absolute 'no'. God has not yet fulfilled this promise. To date, Israel has never been a great and blessed nation, occupying the full extent of the land promised to Abraham. Also, all the families of the earth have not yet come into the blessing of the Seed of Abraham, who is Jesus Christ. Galatians 3:14, 16 14 that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. 16 Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, "And to seeds," as of many, but as of one, "And to your Seed," who is Christ. The first unconditional part of the Abrahamic covenant, 'I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing', will be fulfilled by Jesus Christ when He returns to establish His Millennial Kingdom on this earth. The Bible is clear that during Christ's Millennial Kingdom, Israel will indeed be a great nation of blessing. For full details please refer to Chapter 11 'The Millennial Kingdom of God'. The second unconditional part of the Abrahamic Covenant, 'And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed' is universal in scope and refers to the Eternal Kingdom of the New Heaven and the New Earth, which Christ will establish after God's judgement of unbelievers in the Lake of Fire. God's judgements always flow out of His love and lead to repentance, righteousness, salvation and reconciliation. Ultimately, all people without exception will be blessed and reconciled to God through the Seed of Abraham who is Jesus Christ. For full details, please refer to Chapter 12 'The Great White Throne Judgement' and Chapter 14 'The Eternal Kingdom of God of the New Heaven and the New Earth'. Let us now clearly understand the conditional part of blessing and cursing in the Abrahamic Covenant, as it is greatly misunderstood by most Christians. Many Christian Zionists misapply the Abrahamic Covenant and unwisely get involved in supporting the politics of the State of Israel against the Palestinians. The Blessing and Cursing in the Abrahamic Covenant The conditional part of the Abrahamic Covenant says, 'I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you'. God blesses those who bless Abraham and He curses those who curse Abraham. It is important to understand that the Abrahamic Covenant is a covenant of faith. Romans 4:13, 16 13 For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. 16 Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all. All those who have the faith of Abraham to believe in all parts of the Abrahamic Covenant come under the Abrahamic Blessing. They believe that God will make Abraham, meaning Israel, a great nation of blessing and that God will bless (save) all the families of the earth, meaning all people, through the Seed of Abraham, who is Jesus Christ. However, all those who do not have the faith to believe in all parts of the Abrahamic Covenant come under the Abrahamic Curse. Only true believers, God's Elect, have the God given faith to fully believe in all parts of the Abrahamic Covenant. Only true believers will rise at the First Resurrection to join the returning Jesus Christ as His Bride, to rule and reign with Him for a thousand years during Christ's Millennial Kingdom on this earth. All unbelievers, both from the nation of Israel and the Gentile nations, past, present and future, remain under the Abrahamic Curse of unbelief, and they will miss out on the Abrahamic Blessing of entering the Millennial Kingdom of God as the Bride of Christ. All unbelievers will experience the Abrahamic Curse when they are resurrected following the Millennial Kingdom at the Second Resurrection, to face God's Judgement in the Lake of Fire, before they can be reconciled to God. Most 'Christians' also remain under the Abrahamic Curse. Most 'Christians' do not believe in the coming Millennial Kingdom of God on this earth, and they do not believe that God will bless (save) all the families of the earth through the Seed of Abraham. Most 'Christians' believe in the unbiblical doctrine of hell. These 'Christians' will be shocked to hear, on the Day of Judgement, that Jesus Christ never knew them because they did not believe in the Abrahamic Covenant, which is the will of the Father. (Matthew 7:21-23) The will of the Father is nothing less than the universal salvation of all people through Jesus Christ, the Seed of Abraham. (1 Timothy 2:3-6) The Mosaic Covenant - The Conditional Covenant of Law The Mosaic Covenant is a conditional covenant based on God's laws, unlike The Abrahamic Covenant, which is an unconditional covenant based on faith, which God has promised to fulfill Himself. The Mosaic Covenant was made following the exodus of Israel from Egypt around 1491 B.C. This was 430 years after God made the Abrahamic Covenant. The most important commandments in The Mosaic Covenant are the Ten Commandments given to Israel through Moses on Mount Sinai. However, there are hundreds of additional laws, rules and commandments that also come under the Mosaic Covenant. Exodus 24:3 So Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD and all the judgments. And all the people answered with one voice and said, "All the words which the LORD has said we will do". The children of Israel agreed to keep all of God's commandments. However, they did not understand that in their self-righteous state it was impossible for them to obey these commandments as God required. God pronounced both blessings and curses: blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience to the Mosaic Covenant. Leviticus 26:3-13 3 'If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments, and perform them, 4 then I will give you rain in its season, the land shall yield its produce, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit'...and so on. Leviticus 26:14-43 14 'But if you do not obey Me, and do not observe all these commandments, 15 and if you despise My statutes, or if your soul abhors My judgments, so that you do not perform all My commandments, but break My covenant, 16 I also will do this to you: I will even appoint terror over you, wasting disease and fever which shall consume the eyes and cause sorrow of heart. And you shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it'...and so on. This list of curses continues with frightening details in Deuteronomy 28. The story of Israel from the Exodus to the present day is a story of Israel's failure to keep the Mosaic Covenant, thereby incurring God's judgement, wrath and punishment. God understood right from the start that the children of Israel would not and could not keep the Mosaic Covenant, as God had not given them a heart to believe except for a remnant, who are God's Elect. Deuteronomy 29:4 Yet the LORD has not given you a heart to perceive and eyes to see and ears to hear, to this very day. It is within God's plan and purpose to punish His chosen people for their sins and rebellion, but never to reject them totally. He continues to work with them. The time will come in the future when He will give them new hearts to believe under the New Covenant. God's Judgements on Israel for Disobedience Let us now go on to see how God has been working with His chosen people, Israel, since the Exodus to this present day, and understand God's plan for them. This is powerfully and wonderfully described and summarised in the book of Ezekiel Chapter 36. We shall start from verse 16. Ezekiel 36:16-18 16 Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 17 "Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their own ways and deeds; to Me their way was like the uncleanness of a woman in her customary impurity. 18 Therefore I poured out My fury on them for the blood they had shed on the land, and for their idols with which they had defiled it. After the Exodus from Egypt in 1491 B.C., the children of Israel finally occupied a part of the Promised Land known as Canaan, under the leadership of Joshua. Only those who were under the age of twenty, with the exception of Caleb and Joshua, entered the land after forty years of wandering and judgement in the wilderness of Sinai. The rest of the Israelites could not enter because of their unbelief. After entering the Promised Land, the children of Israel failed to keep the Mosaic Covenant, so God judged them severely. He allowed foreign armies to invade and remove them from their land, and scattered them among the Gentile nations. Ezekiel 36:19 19 So I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed throughout the countries; I judged them according to their ways and their deeds. God says that He scattered the Israelites from their own land. The word Diaspora means a scattering of the Israelites to other countries. Let us see the relevant dates of when this scattering historically took place. Israel was divided into two kingdoms, a Northern Kingdom and a Southern Kingdom. In 721 B.C., the Assyrians conquered the Northern Kingdom, which comprised the ten tribes of Israel, and took them captive. All of the Israelites who were taken captive never returned to the land of Israel. However, a remnant of the ten tribes managed to escape captivity and joined the Southern Kingdom of Judah, which comprised two tribes of Israel known as the Jews. (2 Chronicles 30:6-11) In 586 B.C., 135 years after the fall of the Northern Kingdom to the Assyrians, the Babylonians conquered the Southern Kingdom of Judah comprising the two tribes, Judah and Benjamin, plus the remnant of the other ten tribes of Israel who had escaped being taken captive by the Assyrians. The Babylonians took the Jews into captivity and removed them from the Southern Kingdom to Babylon. However, once again a remnant escaped and remained in the Southern Kingdom of Judah. (Nehemiah 1:2) In 538 B.C., Babylon fell to Persia. By this time the captured Jews had been 48 years in captivity. Cyrus, king of Persia, freed the Jews and gave them permission to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. Under the leadership of Zerubbabel, many Jews returned to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple, which was completed in 516 B.C. In 301 B.C., Ptolemy, the Greek general, who succeeded Alexander the Great, took Jerusalem from the Persians and ruled over Judea. In 63 B.C., Pompey, the Roman commander, took Jerusalem from the Greeks and Judea then became a Roman protectorate. The period 4 B.C.-27 A.D. saw the birth, the crucifixion and the resurrection of the Seed of Abraham, Jesus Christ. This is the most central event in God's Plan for All, which will lead to the fulfillment of all parts of the Abrahamic Covenant. In 66-70 A.D., the Jews revolted against the Roman Empire under Emperor Titus. This revolt was crushed in 70 A.D., when up to one million Jews died and the Romans destroyed the temple in Jerusalem. In 132-134 A.D., the Jews again revolted against the Roman Empire under Emperor Hadrian. The Romans also crushed this revolt, and approximately 580,000 Jews were killed. This revolt is known as Bar-Kokhba's revolt after the name of the Jew who led it. Most of the Jewish population who survived these two revolts were either sold into slavery or exiled to other countries. Ezekiel 36:20-21 20 When they came to the nations, wherever they went, they profaned My holy name--when they said of them, 'These are the people of the Lord, and yet they have gone out of His land.' 21 But I had concern for My holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations wherever they went. It is amazing what God is saying in these verses. God is saying that the land of Israel is His land, and that any Israelite living outside of His land is profaning His holy name. Ezekiel 36:22-23 22 Therefore say to the house of Israel, 'Thus says the Lord God: "I do not do this for your sake, O house of Israel, but for My holy name's sake, which you have profaned among the nations wherever you went. 23 And I will sanctify My great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst; and the nations shall know that I am the Lord," says the Lord God, "when I am hallowed in you before their eyes. We know that the land of Israel was given through the unconditional Abrahamic Covenant to the physical descendants of Abraham through the line of Isaac and Jacob. As long as Jews live outside the promised land of the Abrahamic Covenant, the reputation of the God of Israel is at stake in the eyes of other nations, and His name is being profaned. God says that He will sanctify His great name and make sure that the Jews spread throughout the world will return to their own land. Ezekiel 36:24 For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. Jews endured much persecution for centuries whilst living in other countries, but they have always remained a separate and distinct people who could not be assimilated into other nations because of their traditions under the Mosaic Covenant. This is how God intended it to be. Traditional Christianity, both Roman Catholicism and Protestantism, has misunderstood Scripture when it believed for centuries that God had rejected His people, Israel. It believed that the Jews had been replaced by the Church comprised mainly of Gentile Christians, which it believed to be the New Israel of God. This belief has been called 'Replacement Theology'. It is this unbiblical belief, which has fueled anti-Semitism in Europe for centuries. Jews suffered much persecution during the Crusades (1099-1244) and the Inquisition (1478-1765). They suffered expulsion from many countries including England, France, Spain, Lithuania, Portugal and Germany. Jews were blamed for The Black Death plague (1347-1351), which decimated the population of Europe. They were charged with having provoked the plague through their unbelief in Christianity. The persecution of Jews during the Black Death resulted in an eastward migration of many Jews to Poland and Russia, where they remained until the twentieth century. Anti-Semitism climaxed in the Holocaust of Hitler's torture chambers, where more than six million Jews died between 1940-1945. The Holocaust led to the return of many Jews to Israel, and the country of Israel was re-established in 1948. The re-establishment of Israel has 'woken-up' many Christians to acknowledge the fact that God has not rejected Jews as believed by traditional Christianity for centuries. Some Christians have now become very strong supporters of Israel. In 1600, it was estimated that only 1% of Jews lived in the land of Israel, whilst the remaining 99% lived in other countries throughout the world. However, by 1991, the 'Historical Atlas of the Jewish People' estimated that 32% of Jews had returned to Israel. This still left 68% living outside Israel. We believe that many more Jews have returned to Israel since 1991, but we do not have the latest figures. God's work of gathering the Jews out of all countries back to Israel is far from complete and will continue until the return of their Messiah, at the second coming of Jesus Christ. Israel is now once again a nation in its own land. It is a tiny nation with only a few million people, yet it is the most powerful nation militarily in the Middle East. Israel is leading the world in many technological developments, such as in biotechnology and the Internet. It is also a world leader in environmental research. Over a hundred Israeli companies are listed on NASDAQ. Israel's importance and contribution to the world's list of great names in literature, science, art, music, finance and medicine, is greatly out of proportion to its small size and numbers. However, God's plan to make Israel a great nation of blessing not only to themselves but also to all nations of the earth, as promised under the Abrahamic Covenant, has not even begun yet. It can only begin when their Messiah, Jesus Christ, returns to this earth as the King of the Jews. Israel remains an unbelieving nation except for a few Messianic Jews. In God's eyes they still have unbelieving hearts of stone and their list of sins is still as long as that recorded by their prophets in the Old Testament. God has not yet finished judging and punishing His people. The Bible prophesies that God will punish and judge the whole world including Israel, before Jesus Christ returns to this earth. This will be a time of cataclysmic events and worldwide destruction of peoples called the Great Tribulation, lasting for three and a half years. The Great Tribulation will be the most horrific unprecedented time that the world will have ever experienced, or will ever experience again. (Matthew 24:2) Daniel also refers to this time of trouble when the power of the holy people, meaning Israel, will be completely shattered. (Daniel 12:1, 7) Also, Jeremiah refers to this time as 'The Time of Jacob's Trouble'. (Jeremiah 30:7) The final battle to be fought on this earth before Jesus Christ's return is called the battle of Armageddon. God Himself will gather all nations to battle against Jerusalem and use them to judge and punish His people for their sins. Jerusalem shall be taken and half of the city shall go into captivity. (Zechariah 14:1-2) However, this will be the last time God will use foreign armies to punish His people. The God of Israel will then fight against these armies of the nations and destroy them. (Zechariah 14:3) We are living in momentous times leading towards the fulfillment of God's covenant with Abraham, when God will make Israel a great nation of blessing both to itself and to all the nations of the earth. The Fulfillment of the Promised Blessing to Israel Jesus Christ, the Jewish Messiah, will return to this earth immediately after the battle of Armageddon, and His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives. (Zechariah 14:4) This marks the beginning of the really GOOD NEWS. Jesus Christ will return to bring complete fulfillment of the Abrahamic Covenant in all its parts. The first unconditional part of the Abrahamic Covenant, which is to bless the nation of Israel and make it a great nation, will be fulfilled during the wonderful prophesied Millennial Kingdom of Jesus Christ. Ezekiel 36:25-27 25 Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. Jeremiah 31:31 Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah How beautiful and how wonderful are God's reassuring words to Israel. God's promise of the New Covenant should bring tremendous rejoicing in the heart of every Jew. The New Covenant like the Abrahamic Covenant is unconditional. In fact, the New Covenant is the outworking of the Abrahamic Covenant itself, under which the whole nation of Israel will receive the blessing as promised to Abraham. Ezekiel 36:28-30, 35 28 Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God. 29 I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses. I will call for the grain and multiply it, and bring no famine upon you. 30 And I will multiply the fruit of your trees and the increase of your fields, so that you need never again bear the reproach of famine among the nations. 35 So they will say, 'This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden... During the Millennial Kingdom, God will enter into a New Covenant with the whole house of Israel, with ALL of the Jews who survive the Great Tribulation and the battle of Armageddon. Israel will be both spiritually and physically blessed. Please refer to Chapter 11 'The Millennial Kingdom of God' for more information about this glorious Age in God's Plan. ALL Israel will be Saved Only a remnant of Israelites will enter the Millennial Kingdom of God. However, God's ultimate purpose is to save ALL Israel, even though He has blinded the majority of His people to this day and given them unbelieving hardened hearts. The important questions we need to ask and answer are: 'Why has God blinded the majority of His chosen people?' and 'How and when will God save all Israel?' Apostle Paul was an Israelite from the tribe of Benjamin. He had great sorrow and continual grief in his heart because he knew that the vast majority of his fellow Israelites had been cut off from the blessing (salvation), which God promised to Abraham. However, he understood that this cutting off was only temporary and not permanent. Romans 9:1-4 1 I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, 2 that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh, 4 who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises. Paul says that he would have been willing to swap places with his fellow Israelites and be cut off from Christ, if it meant that they would accept Jesus as their Saviour, now in this present age. Paul was willing to be accursed from Christ for the sake of his fellow Israelites. The curse Paul was talking about was the Abrahamic curse of unbelief, "I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you". Paul wanted his fellow countrymen to be saved before they died so that they would not remain under God's curse and therefore have to face God's judgement in the Lake of Fire, at the Great White Throne Judgement. If it were possible for God to accept Paul's sacrificial offering of being accursed from Christ for the sake of the Jews, it would have meant that Paul would have missed out on the blessing of the Abrahamic Covenant, which is to enter the Millennial Kingdom as God's Elect. It would have also meant that Paul would have had to bear God's judgement in the Lake of Fire instead of his unbelieving fellow countrymen. Just think about it. If the doctrine of hell were to be true and all Israelites who died as unbelievers ended up in hell's never-ending torment, it would have been absolutely absurd for Paul to want to swap places with them. It would have meant that Paul's love for God's chosen people would have surpassed God's love for them, as God would have been willing to throw them into a hell of eternal torment. It simply does not make sense for anyone to believe that Paul was willing to be separated from Christ forever in hell in order to save his fellow countrymen. The truth of the Bible is that Paul believed in and taught Universal Reconciliation (Colossians 1:20) and he never believed in the doctrine of eternal torture in hell. He did not want his fellow Israelites, as God's chosen people, to miss out on the Abrahamic blessing of Christ's Millennial Kingdom, and for them to have to endure God's judgement in the Lake of Fire. However, Paul understood that all of God's judgments flow out of His love, and lead to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. Ultimately, all Israelites without exception will be saved and reconciled to God. They will all enter God's Eternal Kingdom of the New Heaven and the New Earth. There is not a single verse in the New Testament where Paul supports the doctrine of eternal torture in hell. Paul continues his case for unbelieving Jews in Romans Chapter 11. He says emphatically that God has not cast away unbelieving Jews, whom He foreknew. Romans 11:1-2 1 I say then, has God cast away His people? Certainly not! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Paul understood that it was never God's purpose to save all Israel before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, but only a remnant. This remnant is God's Elect, according to the election of grace, and the rest of Israel is blinded in unbelief. However, God has not cast away His people forever, to end up in a hell of eternal torture. Romans 11:5-7 5 Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace. 6 And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work.7 What then? Israel has not obtained what it seeks; but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded. Paul continues his case for unbelieving Jews. Have the unbelieving Jews stumbled and fallen so that they are lost forever? The answer is an emphatic no. Romans 11:11 I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Certainly not! But through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles. So why has God blinded the vast majority of His people to the truth of the gospel to this very day? Paul gives the answer in this same verse above. Many unbelieving Jews, especially Orthodox Jews, think that God has rejected the Gentiles, and that they are an unholy people. Unbelieving Jews will be provoked to jealousy when they come to realise that their God has chosen a number of Gentiles before them and in favour of them. This jealousy is a holy jealousy, which will cause Jewish unbelievers to want the same salvation as the Gentile Elect. Romans 11:12 Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness! The amazing thing about the plan of God is that God will bless the whole world through unbelieving Jews when He removes their blindness in the future, and reveals to them the truth of the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. Paul says that if the failure of the Jews to believe means riches for the Gentiles, then how much more blessing will come to the whole world when all unbelieving Jews come to accept Jesus Christ as their Lord? This can only happen in Christ's Millennial Kingdom, when all unbelieving Jews who survive the Great Tribulation and their descendants will be saved, and Israel will be a nation of great blessing to the whole world, both physically and spiritually, as promised under the Abrahamic Covenant. As previously mentioned in this chapter, the Bible says that God will enter into a New Covenant with all Israel in Christ's Millennial Kingdom. Romans 11:15 For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead This verse confirms three important truths. Firstly, we see that the casting away of the Jews is only for a temporary period. Secondly, we see that God is using the casting away of the Jews to reconcile the world. Thirdly, we see that when unbelieving Jews accept their Saviour, they will have the resurrected life of Jesus Christ. Romans 11:16-18 16 For if the firstfruit is holy, the lump is also holy; and if the root is holy, so are the branches. 17 And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, 18 do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you. Paul continues his case for the unbelieving Jews. Even though they are temporarily broken off, they remain part of the same olive tree, which is holy to God. Paul warns Gentile Christians not to boast against Jewish unbelievers. This is because the Jewish unbelievers have been temporarily sacrificed so that Gentile believers can be grafted into the Jewish Holy Olive Tree supported by the Root who is Jesus Christ, the Seed of Abraham. Romans 11:22-24 22 Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off. 23 And they also, if they do not continue in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. 24 For if you were cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, who are natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree? In verse 22 above, Apostle Paul asks us to consider the goodness and severity of God. This verse has been greatly misapplied and misunderstood by those who believe in the doctrine of eternal torture in hell. They misinterpret this verse to mean that God is both good and severe, good to those Gentile believers who are saved but severe to those unbelieving Jews who are judged to go to hell. However, Eternal Torture preachers forget to read the next two verses, verses 23 and 24, which prove that the cutting off of the branches was only temporary and that God will graft back the unbelieving Jews into their own Holy Olive Tree. These verses also totally disprove 'Replacement Theology', which says that the church has replaced Israel and that unbelieving Jews are lost forever. Verse 22 gives a warning to Gentile Christians to be sure to continue in the goodness of God, otherwise God will cut them off too, like He did the unbelieving Jews. Romans 11:25-26 25 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And so ALL Israel will be saved.... Paul has been powerfully developing his case for all unbelieving Jews right from the beginning of this chapter, and now he makes a crystal clear, unambiguous statement that ALL Israel will be saved. Let us continue with the verse 26 above, to see how and when God will save ALL Israel and to understand what Paul means by ALL Israel. Romans 11:26-27 26 And so ALL Israel will be saved, as it is written: "The Deliverer will come out of Zion, And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob; 27 For this is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins." The Deliverer, their Messiah Jesus Christ, will return to Zion (Jerusalem) at His Second Coming and start the glorious Millennial Age. He will then take away all ungodliness and sins from Jacob (Israel). Please notice that Jesus Christ returns to earth to fulfill God's Covenant with Israel, which is the Abrahamic Covenant whereby ALL Israel will be blessed with salvation. 'All Israel' means ALL ISRAEL without exception. Why don't we take the Word of God at face value and believe what God says that ALL ISRAEL actually does mean ALL ISRAEL? God has a time and order in which to save ALL ISRAEL. God first saves His Elect from the nation of Israel who will be resurrected at the First Resurrection with His Gentile Elect. God will then save all the surviving Jews who enter Christ's Millennial Kingdom and all of their descendants, who will be born, live and die during this thousand-year Age. But what about the multiple millions of Jews who have lived and died as unbelievers before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, and who will miss out on being in the First Resurrection and Christ's Millennial Kingdom? Let us now go on to see that God has not forgotten them or condemned them to eternal torment in hell. Romans 11:28-32 28 Concerning the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. 29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. 30 For as you were once disobedient to God, yet have now obtained mercy through their disobedience, 31 even so these also have now been disobedient, that through the mercy shown you they also may obtain mercy. 32 For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all. These are the beautiful words of God, spoken through Apostle Paul, which confirm that unbelieving Jews are not lost forever. Unbelieving Jews have been sacrificed temporarily for the sake of the Gentile Elect. However, notice verse 28 says that unbelieving Jews have remained beloved for the sake of the fathers, meaning Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to whom God made the unconditional promise of the Abrahamic Covenant. It is God’s purpose that through His mercy shown to the Gentile believers that all unbelieving Jews will also obtain mercy. God has committed all unbelieving Jews to disobedience that He might have mercy on all, as stated in verse 32. Let us now understand how and when, God will have mercy on all unbelieving Jews. Ezekiel 37 is a prophecy, which powerfully describes the resurrection and salvation of the whole house of Israel. Ezekiel 37:11-14 11 Then He said to me, "Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They indeed say, 'Our bones are dry, our hope is lost, and we ourselves are cut off!' 12 Therefore prophesy and say to them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, O My people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up from your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. 13 Then you shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O My people, and brought you up from your graves. 14 I will put My Spirit in you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I, the LORD, have spoken it and performed it," says the LORD.'" This wonderful prophecy will be completely fulfilled after Christ's Millennial Age through the Great White Throne Judgement. Israel's hope is not lost. Every Israelite, without exception, will be given God's Spirit and they will know their Saviour, and they will enter the Eternal Kingdom of God of the New Heaven and the New Earth. For full details, please refer to Chapter 14 'The Eternal Kingdom of God of the New Heaven and the New Earth'. Isaiah 45:17, 25 17 But Israel shall be saved by the Lord with an everlasting salvation; you shall not be ashamed or disgraced forever and ever. 25 In the Lord all the descendants of Israel shall be justified, and shall glory. Can we believe the Bible? God says that ALL ISRAEL will be saved, and none of them will be disgraced forever. All Israel will be justified. To be justified means to receive the Righteousness of God through repentance and faith in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Scripture is clear that God will save all Israel without exception - every physical descendant of Abraham through the line of Isaac and Jacob. This is not only good news for all Jews, but it is also good news for all Gentiles. There is a biblical principle, which 'to the Jew first and also to the Gentile'. (Romans 2:10) In fact, as we have clearly shown from Scripture, the salvation of all Jews together with all Gentiles is an integral part of the Abrahamic Covenant. 1 Corinthians 15:22-23 22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. 23 But each one in his own order. Let us rejoice in the truth that Adam and Eve and all of their descendants, every Jew and every Gentile, will be saved in God's time and in His order. Let us praise God for the wonderful truth that He is the loving and merciful Saviour of all people, and reject any false teaching, which makes God out to be either a murdering annihilator or a horrific torturer of people in hell. We welcome your input. Please CONTACT US if you would like to make any comments on this or any other chapter in our on-line book, 'God's Plan for All'       Copyright © 2005 All rights reserved GOD'S PLAN FOR ALL