Israel :: By Nathele Graham

Published on: March 18, 2018March 25, 2018 by RR7

Israel

“Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying Let us break their bands asunder and cast away their cords from us“ (Psalm 2:1-3).

Good question. The heathen rage against God, which is an exercise in futility. When a person or a nation comes against God they cannot win. This rage is showing itself today in the ungodly hatred towards the nation of Israel. God gave the land to Abraham forever and with no conditions. Today the nation called Israel doesn’t fill the original borders that God declared; but the heathens rage because they want Israel to be wiped out. Unfortunately, this rage will only get worse.

Why is there any argument about Israel having a right to exist? That’s like saying that the sun has no right to exist.

“Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; The LORD of hosts is his name: if those ordinances depart from before me, saith the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever“ (Jeremiah 31:35-36).

God created the sun, moon, and stars; and if His rule over them ever fails, that’s when Israel will cease to exist. In other words, Israel will always exist. God never fails. Meanwhile, the governments of Earth conspire to divide the land, and some are determined to destroy Israel. These efforts are useless, but still the heathens rage.

To understand the situation in Israel today, we need to understand the history of that nation. Abram was born into an idol-worshipping family. One day God spoke and told him to leave his family and the idols behind.

“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 I will bless them that bless thee and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed“ (Genesis 12:1-3).

Eventually Abram, later known as Abraham, obeyed and traveled to the land that God gave him which came to be called Israel. Abraham fathered two sons, Ishmael and Isaac. Ishmael wasn’t the son who would fulfill God’s promise, although he did receive a promise from God.

“And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation“ (Genesis 17:20).

It was Isaac through whom God’s promise would be fulfilled.

“But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year“ (Genesis 17:21).

Abraham received this promise before Isaac was even conceived, and it’s still in effect today. God’s promise was unconditional and eternal.

Isaac grew into manhood and also fathered two sons, twins named Esau and Jacob. The tension between these brothers was great, but it was Jacob who would be the one through whom the nation of Israel would come into existence.

There were many bumps along the road that Jacob followed, but he eventually came to a place where he wrestled with God. God will allow us to fight until we come to the point where we’re ready to follow Him. So it was with Jacob. He wrestled all night, but finally Jacob was ready; and God changed his name.

“And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and has prevailed“ (Genesis 32:28).

Jacob means “supplanter,” but Israel means “God prevails.” Jacob had twelve sons who established the twelve tribes of Israel. It was through the line of his son, Judah, that King David was born and also the Messiah.

David was a great king and ruled from Jerusalem, the eternal capital of the nation of Israel. David had many children, but he passed the kingship to his son, Solomon. The first Jewish Temple was built by Solomon in Jerusalem, and it was beautiful. When Solomon died, the nation of Israel became divided into two kingdoms. The Northern Kingdom was called Israel and the first king was Jeroboam, who was not from the lineage of David.

“And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only“ (1 Kings 12:20).

The succession of leaders who followed Jeroboam went from bad to worse. Sin and idolatry were pervasive. Eventually this kingdom was taken captive by the Assyrians. The Southern Kingdom of Judah, however, was ruled over by Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, and the succession of kings over Judah were all from the house of David, as ordained by God. Some dabbled with pagan religions and were not good rulers, but some did follow God’s laws.

As time went on, this nation forgot to honor God’s law of allowing the land to rest; and this caused God to allow them to be taken captive by the Babylonians. Jerusalem and the Temple were destroyed. It seemed as if this would be the end of the Israelites, but God wasn’t done with His chosen nation. He still isn’t done with it.

During the time of captivity, Daniel was given an amazing prophecy regarding the end days.

“Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy“ (Daniel 9:24).

Just as we use the term “decade” to refer to ten years, a week of years is seven years. Seventy weeks is 490 years. Since Daniel was Jewish and the prophecy specifically says “thy people” and “thy holy city,” we know that it’s about the Jewish people and Jerusalem.

“Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined“ (Daniel 9:25-26).

When the captivity was over, the king of Babylon did allow the Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the Temple. There would be 483 years from the time that decree was given and when the Messiah would come. The Messiah, Jesus Christ, was “cut off” (crucified) after 69 weeks, fulfilling this prophecy. After His death, Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans, and the Jews were dispersed to all nations.

There’s still one week left of this prophecy. Jesus was crucified and the ecclesia (the church) was born. The 70th week will begin after Christ calls Christians Home in the Rapture. During those final 7 years, the man of sin, who is often called the anti-Christ, will confirm a covenant, and the Temple will be rebuilt.

“And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate” (Daniel 9:27).

That final week will be horrendous. You can read more about it in the following chapters of Daniel and also in Revelation beginning in chapter 6.

For all of this to happen, Israel has to be back in the land. Almost 70 years ago they did return. Praise the Lord! We are the generation that is watching the final prophecies being fulfilled.

“And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth“ (Isaiah 11:11-12).

There are some people who have misinterpreted God’s word, saying that the ecclesia (the church) has replaced Israel. That is heresy. The literal descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob…the outcasts of Israel and the dispersed of Judah…are returning to their God-given land. This is fulfilling prophecy. The struggle to hold onto their God-given land is a challenge, but they won’t be uprooted.

“Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it“ (Zechariah 12:2-3).

The main focus is on Jerusalem. The Muslim world tries to claim they have rights there, but the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob gave it to His chosen Jewish people. In these latter days in which we live, it truly is a burdensome stone. Many nations are angry, and many negotiators have tried to bring about peace by dividing the land and dividing Jerusalem. It won’t work. Unless the world recognizes that Israel is the only nation with God-given rights to that land, there will be no peace.

One day a covenant will be agreed upon, and there will be a false sense of peace – and Daniel’s 70th week will begin. That week won’t happen until after Christians are taken Home in the Rapture, so we cannot have replaced Israel. The covenant will seem to be the solution to all the problems. As I watch the efforts of Jared Kushner to orchestrate a peace plan in Israel, I can only wonder how close we are to the day that covenant will be made.

The Temple will be rebuilt. The people at the Temple Institute have been busy crafting the items required for use in the Temple, and are training priests for Temple service and to offer sacrifices. The Temple will be rebuilt, but it will be defiled.

“And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days“ (Daniel 12:11).

Some people would have us believe this happened when Antiochus Epiphanes defiled the Temple, but Jesus talked of it as a future event.

“When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains“ (Matthew 24:15-16).

This will occur 3 ½ years into those final 7 years. As the 70th week approaches, our world grows more and more wicked, but Jesus said it will be worse than anything ever seen.

“For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be“ (Matthew 24:21).

Wickedness grows stronger every day.

God’s wrath will be poured out, but Christians have a blessing. We won’t be on Earth during that final week. In Revelation chapters 2 and 3, Jesus dictated letters that John was to send to seven churches. A careful study of those letters reveals a picture of the history of the Church. Then John saw the Rapture.

“After this I looked, and behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter“ (Revelation 4:1).

Beginning in chapter 6, John describes events that will take place on Earth when Daniel’s 70th week begins. God will seal 144,000 from the twelve tribes of Israel to be servants during this time.

“Saying, Hurt not the earth neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel“ (Revelation 7:3-4).

Then it names each of the tribes of Israel. This has nothing to do with Christians and everything to do with Israel.

At the end of that final week, God will prevail. That time of Tribulation will be horrendous. Whether you were born Jewish or Gentile, Christ died for you. Place your faith in Him and you will avoid the events that will soon come upon the earth.

God bless you all,

Nathele Graham

twotug@embarqmail.com

www.straitandnarrowministry.com

ron@straitandnarrowministry.com

Ron and Nathele Graham’s previous commentaries archived at https://www.raptureready.com/featured/graham/graham.html

All original scripture is “theopneustos,” God breathed.

If you’d like to be on my mailing list to receive the commentaries, just drop me an email and let me know.

How Long Will He Delay? :: By Nathele Graham

Published on: March 11, 2018March 24, 2018 by RR7

“And the LORD said unto Abram, after 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“ (Genesis 13:14-15).

This is a promise from God and isn’t contingent upon anything Abram or his descendants have done. The land of Israel belongs to the descendants of Abraham, the Jewish people forever, and the capital is Jerusalem. Over the years, they have been forced out of the land (slavery in Egypt, captivity in Babylon, etc.); but God didn’t put any conditions on His land grant to them, and no other people have the right of ownership.

The Jewish people were chosen by God, and through them the Messiah, Jesus Christ, was born. The ownership of Jerusalem and the land of Israel is not for the United Nations to say, nor is it up to Muslim groups. Israel belongs to the Jewish people. God gave it to them.

Israel as a nation hasn’t always obeyed God, and their disobedience caused them to be taken captive – the Northern Kingdom (at that time called Israel) by the Assyrians and the Southern Kingdom (at that time called Judah) by the Babylonians. It was during the Babylonian captivity that Daniel was given an amazing prophecy regarding the end times, and specifically the final seven years known as Daniel’s 70th week.

In the following chapters, the prophecy goes into much detail; but the thing to understand is that it is about “thy people” (Daniel was Jewish) and “thy holy city” (which is Jerusalem).

Even though they were in captivity and had been taken away from their land, God made it clear that they would return. At the end of the 70 years of captivity, they did return and they rebuilt the temple; but the prophecy given to Daniel was not about that return. In 70 AD they were dispersed again and the rebuilt Temple was destroyed.

Today there’s an effort underway to rebuild the Temple, and the items required to be used in the soon-to-be rebuilt Temple have been crafted; and many men have stepped forward to learn the proper ways of the priesthood.

When the Temple was destroyed in 70 AD, the Jewish people either fled the destruction or they were killed. From that time until 1947, it seemed as if prophecy had failed; and a heresy began stating that Christians had replaced Israel. The people who promote this lie just don’t study God’s word. Not only was Daniel given the prophecy of the Jewish return to Jerusalem in the end times, but there are other prophecies which also declare their return to their God-given land.

“And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea“ (Isaiah 11:11).

It happened. On November 29, 1947, the United Nations passed a resolution allowing for the formation of the Jewish state of Israel. The UN has no authority over God’s covenant, but this resolution allowed the Jewish people in Assyria, Egypt, and the other nations listed to return to their God-given land.

“And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth“ (Isaiah 11:12).

This includes the “outcasts” in Germany, Poland, Russia, the United States, and anywhere else the Jews had been dispersed to. The “he” in this verse is the Lord. The UN may pass resolutions, but it’s God who is in control. On May 14, 1948, the nation of Israel was officially re-established.

Even though the land was given by God to the Jews forever, Muslims believe they have rights to Jerusalem and have fought for these “rights” ever since 1948. The rightful ownership of Israel was passed from Abraham to Isaac to Jacob (whom God renamed Israel), through King David to the modern-day descendants of those men. These descendants are being called to Israel, and they will never be uprooted again.

“And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God“ (Amos 9:14-15).

When the Jewish people returned to Israel, this is exactly what happened. They began to build the cities again and their farms flourished; and today this nation is a leader in agriculture and a major exporter of produce. Unfortunately, many of these lush farms have been confiscated by the UN and given to Muslims who have laid them waste. God will not allow the Jewish nation to be dispersed again, but there is a satanic push to remove the Jews from their land. Tensions in the Middle East are strong, but this did not surprise God.

“Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it“ (Zechariah 12:2-3).

Is Jerusalem a burdensome stone? Are all the people of the earth gathered against it? If you read the news, you’ll see that prophecy is being fulfilled. The hatred against the Jews is satanic. Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, and that’s where the seat of government is located. It belongs to the Jewish people, not Islam.

“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 I will bless them that bless thee: and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed“ (Genesis 12:1-3).

When Israel declared their independence on May 14, 1948, Tel Aviv was a temporary capital because there was a war raging in Jerusalem. Today foreign embassies are located in Tel Aviv instead of the true capital, Jerusalem.

When Donald Trump was running for office, he promised to support Israel; and this year President Trump made the bold proclamation that the US Embassy would be moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. This set off a firestorm of anger but is exactly what needed to be done in order to support Israel. The reports were that it would take a few years to make the move, and it seemed that it would be a slow process filled with red tape. Not so. The US Embassy will be moved on May 14, 2018, which is exactly 70 years since Israel declared their independence.

Mr. Trump, may God bless you and may His mighty hand of protection be upon you, because Satan is mad.

Why is this significant? Brothers and sisters, we are rapidly nearing Daniel’s 70th week. That week will be the most horrific time the earth has ever known. Israel is back in their land, and that fulfills prophecy. They are ready to build the Temple, which will be built to be used during those final seven years; but the satanically indwelt man of sin will defile it with the abomination prophesied by Daniel and reiterated by Jesus.

Every nation is joining together against Israel, and the alliances between nations described in various prophecies are in place. That final week is ready to begin, but Christians have a special blessing. We won’t be here. God promised that we will be Raptured prior to the beginning of that final week.

I’m not setting dates, but I am reading signs. May 14, 2018, will mark 70 years of Israel’s statehood, and it will be the date that the US Embassy opens its doors in Jerusalem. Most of the world is angry about this and it could trigger the events that have been described in prophecy. Only God knows the time, but He has given us signs. We are rapidly drawing closer to that event.

For generation upon generation, people have talked of these events but the Lord delayed. The time wasn’t right then, and it may not be the right time now. The point is, be ready.

“Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, Where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers fell asleep all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation“ (2 Peter 3:3-4).

The signs are all pointing to apocalyptic events on the near horizon.

If you’re one who scoffs and walks in the lusts of the flesh, you need to do some research. The harpazō (Rapture) will happen in the twinkling of an eye, and you won’t have time to repent of your sin. Even if that blessed event is in the far future, you still need to walk in the ways of the Lord rather than after the lusts of the flesh. A car wreck, heart attack, or any number of other things could claim your life unexpectedly. Now is the time for you to be right with God, and you need to witness to your friends and family.

Jesus told of a rich man who died and, because of his choices in life, he’s spending eternity in torment. He knew he deserved his punishment but he wanted Abraham to send a message to his family.

“For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come to this place of torment“ (Luke 16:28).

The only way to avoid spending eternity in the lake of fire is to place your faith in Jesus Christ. Repent of your sin, ask Jesus to forgive you, and begin a new life by walking close to Him. Witness to those you love and those you come into contact with. If the Rapture happens before they accept Christ, they will face a time of judgment the likes of which have never been seen before.

How long will He delay? He may not call us Home this year, but that day is closer than you think.