“Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go forth from your country,
And from your relatives
And from your father’s house,
To the land which I will show you;
And I will make you a great nation,
And I will bless you,
And make your name great;
And so you shall be a blessing;
And I will bless those who bless you,
And the one who curses you I will curse.
And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.” Genesis 12:1-3
And from your relatives
And from your father’s house,
To the land which I will show you;
And I will make you a great nation,
And I will bless you,
And make your name great;
And so you shall be a blessing;
And I will bless those who bless you,
And the one who curses you I will curse.
And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.” Genesis 12:1-3
Israel is the land that God promised to Abram (later renamed Abraham by God), the father of the Jewish Nation. Abraham left his homeland and traveled with his family to a new land which God showed him. This was around 1700 B.C., and the land would become known as Israel. The land of Israel is tied to the covenant God made with Abraham and the Children of Israel, where Abraham would become a great nation, and whereby all the families of the earth would be blessed. Abraham did dwell in the land God showed him, as did his son Isaac and his son Jacob. Jacob (later renamed Israel by God) lived in the land until forced to relocate to Egypt to survive the famine. There Jacob and his family end up remaining, becoming slaves over time as Egypt’s Pharaoh turns against the Children of Israel.
Around 1300 B.C., Moses led the Children of Israel out of bondage in Egypt and back to the land of Israel, the “Promised Land.” The Israelites possessed the land (after wandering for 40 years in the wilderness) and Israel was once again the homeland of the Jewish people, just as God had promised Abraham. In about 1020 B.C., the Jewish people asked God for a king to rule them, and Saul became King establishing a monarchy over Israel. In about 1000 B.C., King David made Jerusalem the capital of Israel, and shortly after that, the first Jewish temple was built in Jerusalem, the capital of Israel.
In 700 B.C., the Assyrians attacked Israel and scattered the ten Jewish Tribes inhabiting the area known as Israel. The area known as Judah was the part of the Jewish land where the capital Jerusalem was located. In 586 B.C., Babylon attacked Judah, destroyed the temple, and took captive those in Judah. After 70 years of captivity in Babylon, the Jews were allowed to return to their land and establish their government, rebuild their city walls around Jerusalem, and rebuild the temple. In 70 A.D., the Jewish Rebellion against Rome was put to an end when the city was destroyed and the Jewish Temple razed to the ground. As a result, the Romans renamed Israel, and dispersed the Jews throughout the vast empire. Israel ceased to exist as a nation.
“The hand of the LORD was on me, and he brought me out by his Spirit and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones... Then he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live? ” I replied, “Lord GOD, only you know.” He said to me...This is what the Lord GOD says to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you will live. I will put tendons on you, make flesh grow on you, and cover you with skin. I will put breath in you so that you come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.” Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel... You will know that I am the LORD, my people, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you, and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I am the LORD. I have spoken, and I will do it. This is the declaration of the LORD.’ ” Ezekiel 37:1-14
On May the 14th, 1948, following the end of World War 2, the State of Israel was formed. On the very next day, Israel was attacked by the five Arab countries (Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq) which bordered Israel. Israel was once again attacked by surrounding countries in the Six-day war of 1967, when Egypt, Jordan, and Syria attacked Israel. God has blessed and protected Israel and the Jews because they have been, and always will be, His people. The Bible is clear that the Jews will not be driven from their land again, and will dwell in it safely just prior to the start of the seven year tribulation period. The Bible also states that Israel is the site of the future temple location (the “third temple”), and during the Millennial Kingdom, the Messiah will rule from Israel (as described by several Old Testament prophets including Daniel, Ezekiel, and Isaiah).
“The word of the Lord concerning Israel.
A declaration of the Lord,
who stretched out the heavens,
laid the foundation of the earth,
and formed the spirit of man within him.
“Look, I will make Jerusalem a cup that causes staggering for the peoples who surround the city. The siege against Jerusalem will also involve Judah. On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who try to lift it will injure themselves severely when all the nations of the earth gather against her….“Then I will pour out a spirit of grace and prayer on the house of David and the residents of Jerusalem, and they will look at Me whom they pierced. They will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child and weep bitterly for Him as one weeps for a firstborn.” “On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem...on that day Yahweh will become King over all the earth—Yahweh alone, and His name alone.” Zechariah 12:1-11, 14:8-9
