Following on the heels of yesterday’s post…
And for all you Bible students out there…
Here’s what you gotta know about the term “Israel”.
The meaning of the word changes with the context of time.
Lemme explain…
In the beginning, the word “Israel” was just one man’s name after Jacob’s wrestling encounter with God.
“Then the man said, ‘
Your name will no longer be Jacob,
but Israel, because you have
struggled with God and with
humans and have overcome.’”
-Genesis 32:28
Afterward, Israel became a clan
Then after hundreds of years of residing in Egypt, the clan grew large enough to be seen as a separate people or ethnic group.
Next, after each of Jacob’s families grew bigger, they each became tribes in their own right.
Then at Sinai, God finally pronounced them as a nation to be set apart for Him:
“You will be for me a
kingdom of priests
and a holy nation.’
These are the words
you are to speak
to the Israelites.”
-Exodus 19:6
However, here in the Book of 1st Samuel, the 12-tribe Hebrew conglomerate was not yet considered a nation.
Recall that was the main goal of the Northern tribes.
Their whole reason for demanding a king in the first place was so they could be like the gentile “nations”…
And they reasoned the only way to achieve that goal was to install a king over them.
Without a king, you were considered an illegitimate hodge podge of tribes, clans, and families without any identifiable central authority or government.
So the takeaway is you have to interpret the word “Israel” in context.
The word changes its meaning depending on whether you’re in the book of Genesis, Exodus, Samuel, Ezekiel, and yes, even in the New Testament.
In the New Testament, the so-called “commonwealth of Israel” refers to a spiritual entity that includes both gentile and Jewish believers in the body of Messiah.
So what does “Israel” mean here in Samuel Chapter 11?
It means all the tribes except the southern tribes of Judah and Simeon.
And out of the two southern tribes, the tribe of Judah was the most dominant.
This would change a bit over the years after Saul’s death.
But at the end of the day, Simeon was pretty much swallowed up by Judah.
In fact, the majority of Jews alive and living in Israel today are from the Tribe of Judah.
That’s what a “Jew” means by the way.
A Jew is a Hebrew from the tribe of Judah.
Ya feel me?
So there you have it.
Israel doesn’t mean the same thing yesterday as it does today…
And I gather that depending on which religious faction you affiliate yourself with, the definition of Israel differs.
So let me close by asking you these two questions…
Based on your beliefs or background…
Who do you consider to be Israel today?
And…
Do you consider yourself to be part of Israel today?
Would love to hear your thoughts.
CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT
“He answered,
‘I was sent only to
the lost sheep of Israel.'”
-Matthew 15:24
I am pretty much part of Israel today
Also
Yesterday, Today and Forever with explanation
I was part of Israel in retrospect; when we left Egypt and at Sinai
I lost it until David became the king of Israel
Again got lost after the reign of king Solomon and several other times until the arrival of YESHUA
I am among the lost sheep that YESHUA found, as he declared
in Matthew 15:24 . . . I was sent only to the lost sheep of ISRAEL
I am part of Israel today
I am grateful to God for Yeshua
Many thanks sir
Amen Abraham.
i think i am just a bit more confused?????? i kinda understand, but still confused…does that mean jews who live in israel now are not jews, because they are not circumcised of the heart , because i remember someplace where it says that we are now a jew not by being circumcised of the flesh but circumcised of the heart , we gentiles become a jew in GODs eyes…. so yes , GOD still owns the land and always has and did not give it to HIS people but has let them live there and use the land but not out right own the land , although they could in a sense buy and sell GODs land between themselves.
So, are the modern day jews ,not jews / GODs people in GODs eyes, because they have not been circumcised of the heart? and they will not be one of GODs people until they are circumcised of the heart??
Hi Tony,
For sure there is a paradox at work here.
Jews (from the tribe of Judah) reman part of God’s Israel…
But on a spiritual level, gentile believers through their faith in the Jewish Messiah are grafted in as well…
Those are two excellent questions, Rich.
” Israel today” brings to my mind Eretz Yisrael, the land, and those who live there. A hugely diverse bunch of people, yet undeniably a place where YHWH is at work.
I have not been there myself, (and might not in this life – I’m a few months older than present Israel) Nevertheless I long for the day when their Messiah and mine will return and set foot on His holy mountain.
Why?
Because in Messiah Yeshua I am become part of the Israel of YHWH, and my destiny is now now inextricably bound to theirs, just like Ruth’s.
I put my faith and trust in Him fifty years ago. I was baptised into His death and my sin was taken away. He baptised me in His Holy Spirit and set me with Him in the presence of His Father and mine. This is the life I now live by faith, like Paul and the rest of us.
Amen Desd. Great answer.
I do believe the term “Israel” carries dual meanings depending on context.
There is physical Israel, those who are living in ERETZ YISRAEL, and they remain forever God’s chosen.
And there is spiritual Israel, those who are grafted in, like you are.
I pray for the salvation of ALL Israel.
Be blessed!
I consider myself from the lost 10 tribes of Israel (stick of Ephraim) now grafted in with the stick of Judah to be one stick of Israel.
Amen William. I would agree with you.