This particular article might seem nitpicky…like, who cares?
The reason I have written this, along with some similar articles, is that I understand there is a prophetic aspect to this war. As I listen to certain people speak, I can tell that there is a need for more people to understand a little background. In any case, because I believe peace is better than war, I feel I need to at least present what I know and let people decide. I don’t pretend to be an expert. But I do give you the scriptures. You can decide.
There is a scripture, the little foxes spoil the vine. If you live long enough, you know that details matter. You begin to be more careful about the details.
God’s throne is based on righteousness. There is a right and wrong way to do things. The details of the Word of God matter to the Lord.
The Bible often has a double meaning or shadows a truth. The meaning of the divorce laws of a wife can be mirrored in God’s relationship to the nation of Israel.
Because it will be easier to read and understand this by giving the explanation first and the scriptures below, that is the format I will follow (in part, I’ve edited in a few more scriptures since first writing this).
God was married to Israel. Israel committed spiritual adultery. God gave Israel a bill of divorcement. The indication that Israel was no longer under the protection of her husband, the Lord, is that Assyria came and took her away, took her name away, she became known as Samaria or the house of Omri, and she became “lost” in identity. She was divorced from the Lord and He did not come to her aid or protection.
In the law of marriage and divorce, if a divorced woman who has a bill of divorcement marries another man, and then ends up leaving that marriage, i.e., perhaps her second husband dies, she cannot go back to the first husband.
Israel was divorced.
According to the law of divorce, even if Israel wanted to come back to the Lord, she could not.
Remember, Israel became a divided kingdom. Israel consisted of the ten northern tribes. Judah consisted of the two southern tribes. God divorced Israel. He did not divorce Judah. Judah was allowed to return to the land after the Babylonian captivity.
So we have Israel who, under the law of divorce and remarriage, cannot remarry the Lord even if she wants to.
How is this solved? The Lord God of the Old Testament sent his Son Jesus to redeem mankind. Jesus came in fulfillment of prophecy, was crucifed, died and resurrected. Israel can now come to the Lord in a new covenant and relationship as the death (and resurrection) of Jesus took the relationship out of the old forbiddens of the law of the law of divorce into a new possibility of a new covenant marriage with the Lord. The death of the testator made way for the new covenant and a new marriage covenant with the Lord.
Hosea 2:19 And I will betroth thee unto me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in lovingkindness, and in mercies. 20 I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness: and thou shalt know the Lord.
So if someone says that God has to fulfill covenant promises to Israel, I maintain, (and again, you will find other opinions), that because Jesus died and made it possible for Israel to remarry in a covenant relationship the Lord. He has already fulfilled covenant promises. As the saying goes, “the ball is in Israel’s court”. Israel needs to accept what Jesus has already done. Those of the “lost” house of Israel, originally taken into captivity, scattered among the world through the generations since then, need to come to Jesus. And so does the rest of mankind. After the death of Stephen, the gospel began to be spread throughout the earth to all mankind. It was for all mankind.
Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus took the law out of the old covenant and created the new covenant.
Jesus by dying and resurrecting, has made a way for Israel to be remarried to the Lord. There is no greater sacrifice for the former wife that he could have made than his own death on the cross in the attempt to make a way for Israel to come back and be able to marry the Lord in a new covenant under new conditions.
Here are the promised scriptures to go along with what is written above.
Deuteronomy 24:1 When a man hath taken a wife, and married her, and it come to pass that she find no favour in his eyes, because he hath found some uncleanness in her: then let him write her a bill of divorcement, and give it in her hand, and send her out of his house. 2 And when she is departed out of his house, she may go and be another man’s wife. 3 And if the latter husband hate her, and write her a bill of divorcement, and giveth it in her hand, and sendeth her out of his house; or if the latter husband die, which took her to be his wife; 4 Her former husband, which sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after that she is defiled; for that is abomination before the LORD: and thou shalt not cause the land to sin, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.
Jeremiah 31:32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:
Jeremiah 3:6 The LORD said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot. 7 And I said after she had done all these things, Turn thou unto me. But she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it. 8 And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.
Hosea 2:2 Plead with your mother, plead: for she is not my wife, neither am I her husband: let her therefore put away her whoredoms out of her sight, and her adulteries from between her breasts;
Isaiah 50:1 Thus saith the LORD, Where is the bill of your mother’s divorcement, whom I have put away? or which of my creditors is it to whom I have sold you? Behold, for your iniquities have ye sold yourselves, and for your transgressions is your mother put away.
Jeremiah 3:1 They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man’s, shall he return unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the LORD.
Jeremiah 31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: 32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: 33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.
Below Paul says, “I speak to them that know the law.” That’s us right now. That is who he is talking to, he is talking to us. He is talking to people who understand that things must conform to God’s law since God is a righteous God. We know the law and need to understand through the law where Israel stands regarding the covenant of marriage.
Romans 7:1 Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth? 2 For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband. 3 So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man. 7:4 Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.
Another aspect to all this is what is the promise to Abraham? The ultimate promise is the seed of Abraham, who ultimately is Jesus Christ, offers eternal life to all. Whosoever will, may come.
Galatians 3:16 Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.
Galatians 3:29 And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Hebrews 8:13 In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.
Romans 11:23 And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be graffed in: for God is able to graff them in again.
In addition, there are questions about the land. Israel held the promised land in times past. They lost it through disobedience.
Joshua acknowledged fulfillment of the land promise.
Joshua 21:43 And the LORD gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein. 44 And the LORD gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers: and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the LORD delivered all their enemies into their hand. 45 There failed not ought of any good thing which the LORD had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass.
Solomon acknowledged fulfillment of the land promise.
1 Kings 8:56 Blessed be the LORD, that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: there hath not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant.
Here is the summary.
Jeremiah 3:8 And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.
Jeremiah 31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
Romans 7:4 Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.
Israel cannot come to the Lord through the old covenant. Israel was given a bill of divorcement.
For those who want God to fulfill the covenant promises to Israel, the ONLY way that that can be done is through Jesus Christ. Israel “blew it” so to speak, committed spiritual adultery, and was divorced. Jesus was crucified to pay the price for sin, for the redemption of mankind. His blood was shed. Jesus was buried and raised from the dead and instituted a new covenant. He spoke of it at the communion table.
“Testament” is the same Greek word as “covenant”.
Luke 22:19 And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. 20 Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.
In other words, Jesus does not have to “do” something for the Israel to enter into a new covenant with the Lord. Jesus already did something. He was crucified, died, buried and resurrected. His blood was shed for the redemption of mankind. Whoever receives him, whoever is born again, to them gives he power to become the sons of God.It is finished. Israel must receive what Jesus has done.
Again, I will caution the reader that the position I write here is not the popular one.
I feel I have an obligation to present these facts as much as I have studied them, because pathways do matter.
If God has already done what is necessary for Israel to enter into the new covenant, then we don’t really need to go to war. At least that is how I understand the argument.
Admittedly, I don’t get too deep into the “70th week by itself” discussion as I believe that week has been fulfilled. If you are at a crossroads of two highways, and take one as the pathway to the destination, you won’t spend a lot of time thinking about the other. So I don’t dig into the details as I have already taken the highway that says the 70th week has been fulfilled. As a reader, you should know that. I’m convinced it has been fulfilled, so why should I did deeper?
It is only right that I let you know that there are other people with other opinions. I have based mine on the Word of God above.
According to the law, it seems Jesus has done what needs to be done for Israel to enter back into covenant with the Lord through Jesus Christ.
Romans 10:1 Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved.
2 For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.
3 For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.
4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.
5 For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them.
6 But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above:)
7 Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead.)
8 But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;
9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
12 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.
13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.