Gathered in Unbelief
The Rebirth of the Nation of Israel
Deuteronomy tells of a complete regathering
where God’s people will no longer be scattered among the nations but will … obey the
voice of the Lord, and do all his commandments… Deuteronomy 30:8
The prediction of
Moses concerning the rebirth of Israel and their gathering back to the land
poses an interesting question (see Deuteronomy 30:1-4).
Given that Moses
definitely says Israel will become a nation again only after they
repent and after the Lord returns to regather them, we are
forced to ask a question that has enormous consequences for the prophetic
significance of our generation.
That question is
this: Why was Israel allowed to become a nation again on May 14, 1948,
seeing that they have not yet repented and believed in Christ; nor has the Lord
returned to regather them?
The nation of Israel
clearly represents Jews gathered in unbelief, which is the opposite of these
prophecies.
For the first time in
almost 2000 years the Jews have regained complete control over the land of
Palestine, including the city of Jerusalem. These events should not be
underestimated.
In our generation, Israel
has again been established as a self-autonomous nation in the Middle East —
beginning to exist soon after World War II as a totally independent state free
from any foreign domination — a situation that has not been true for centuries.
But how could this
have happened? The Bible clearly states that Israel will remain under the
judgment of God for rejecting the Messiah until they repent, and yet the fact
of the modern-day state of Israel is something that simply cannot be ignored .
What’s going
on? Is our twentieth-century Israel really a fulfillment of prophecy or
just a blip on the pages of history?
Many authors writing
on end-times prophecy have quoted similar passages to those mentioned in
previous sections and have attempted to interpret all of them as
finding fulfillment in the Israel of today.
Extreme care must be
taken in how these scriptures are applied, because misinformation can be worse
than remaining ignorant.
The current state of
Israel which remains very antagonistic to Jesus and Christianity cannot be made
by any stretch of the imagination to fulfill the prophecy of Moses in
Deuteronomy.
The nation has by no
means repented, and obviously Jesus has not returned to regather them.
Christians who simply
apply Biblical prophecy ad hoc to any current situation regardless of the
details which may or may not fit are just confusing people and inviting valid
criticism.
In fact, several
books have been published over the years by authors who have realized this
serious deficiency in interpreting prophecy.
Unfortunately, they
have used the numerous incorrect prophetic interpretations about Israel as
‘proof’ in their attempt to refute the nearness of Christ’s coming altogether.
In the book “Israel
Today: Fulfillment of Prophecy?”, Louis DeCaro states in no uncertain terms
that…
“… only a misunderstanding of the prophetic tradition, or a
deliberate disregard for that tradition’s true standing, can lead one to believe
that the power politics and military posture of Israel today are an integral
part of prophecy…” rom Israel
Today: Fulfillment of Prophecy?, by Louis Decaro, p.15, 1974, Presbyterian and Reformed
Publishing Co.
DeCaro’s description
of the political situation in modern Israel was perfectly accurate and remains
true today. It is only by their strong military resolve, which yields no
ground to potential adversaries that the small Jewish nation has managed to
survive at all.
The faith of its
people rests not in the true God of the Bible, but in tanks, missiles, and jet
fighters — exactly the opposite of what the Lord wants.
There can be no doubt
that the political and religious life of twentieth-century Israel is diametrically
opposed to the ways of their Creator.
William Hendriksen
also realized this fact when he wrote,
“It has now become clear that the establishment of the
state of Israel, May 14, 1948, in unbelief — for those who established it are
still rejecting the Christ — has nothing whatever to do with divine
prophecy. This is true for two reasons: a) Prophecy says nothing
about a twentieth-century return and restoration; and b) even if it did, it
speaks about a return of a believing remnant.” From Israel in Prophecy, by
William Hendriksen, p.25, 1979, Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, Mich.
Renald Showers
writing in the magazine “Israel My Glory”
published by The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, Inc., also recognized
additional problems in trying to fit modern-day Israel into these
prophecies. He says,
“The present restoration of Israel to the homeland which
began in the middle of the twentieth century is not the fulfillment of these
prophecies. Several things indicate this. First, these prophecies
foretell a total restoration of the Jews to their land from all the nations of
the world. By contrast the twentieth century restoration has not been
total. … Second, the prophetic passages indicate that, when this future
restoration of Israel to the homeland will take place, all the Jews will be
righteous. … By contrast none of these things is reality for the Jews in
the present state of Israel.” From Israel My Glory by Renald Showers,
Apr/May, 1985, p.28-29, The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, Inc.
In addition, Morris
Glen Bowers in his book Israel: The 51st State… the
Unspoken Foreign Policy of the United States of America (2005), says,
“Some believe that the modern state of Israel is somehow
deeply involved in the “end times prophecies”. It is not so. The
modern state of Israel is not the subject of the prophecies. It was old
Israel that was. The modern state is not the extension of the ancient
state. It is not the ancient state reborn. It is a completely new
state founded by men.” Bowers, Israel:
The 51st State, p. 131
Many other authors
have spoken out against the possibility of the current nation of Israel being a
fulfillment of prophecy by claiming that most of the Old Testament predictions
related to a Jewish return to the land already have found fulfillment in the
rebirth of Israel after the Babylonian captivity.
However, while there
are indeed prophecies which predict a return of the Jews after the Babylonian
period, they are extremely specific and only a complete misunderstanding of
their focus could confuse them with those relating to a return at the end of
the age.
For instance, both
Jeremiah and Daniel prophesied that the Lord would allow the Jews to return to
Palestine exactly seventy years after Nebuchadnezzar’s invasion (see Jeremiah 25:11 and Daniel 9:2).
Isaiah was so
enlightened concerning that event that he even went so far as to predict the
name of the Persian king (Cyrus) who would eventually let his people go (Isaiah 44:28).
While we cannot deny that the reestablishment
of Israel after the destruction of Judah by Babylon was a very significant
event in Biblical history, it does not however totally fulfill the numerous
prophecies which relate to the ultimate ingathering and blessing of the nation
as a whole.
Moses’ prophecy in
Deuteronomy clearly speaks of conditions quite different from those known to
have been present after the return of the exiles in Ezra’s and Nehemiah’s day.
Deuteronomy tells of a complete regathering where God’s
people will no longer be scattered among the nations but will … obey
the voice of the Lord, and do all his commandments…” Deuteronomy 30:8
If this repentant condition was true of the return allowed
in the fifth and sixth centuries B.C. under Persian rule, then the scattered
state of the Jews would not have continued to the time of Christ and the people
certainly would have received Jesus as their Messiah when he appeared.
Obviously, Moses must
be talking about a yet future rebirth of the nation, one that will be followed
by the fulfillment of all the blessings promised to Abraham.
So how should we view
the modern state of Israel that is gathered in unbelief?
Is the nation that
was born on May 14, 1948, a fulfillment of Biblical prophecy or is it just a
temporary anomaly of history without any supernatural significance, similar to
the brief revolt of the Maccabees during the second century B.C.?
If we hope to make
any sense out of end-times prophecy these questions must be answered.
Curiously, throughout
the history of the church there have been always some that believed that
Israel’s rebirth would preface the Return of Christ.
While it is true that
some had written off the rebellious Jews as never figuring into God’s plan
again — applying their promised blessings totally to the church — the
expectancy of a regathered Israel never completely perished, particularly among
the Jews.
The confusion that
may have resulted from wrong interpretations or from just plain denial of
Israel’s significance must not deter us from discovering the End Times Truth.
There are just too
many prophecies that deal with a regathered Israel in the last days to simply
ignore the importance of the nation’s existence today.
There must an
explanation within the Bible for the rebirth of Israel in our time, even if
that rebirth has now occurred in unbelief and is not total in scope.
Some people may think
that because the nation exists today either the Lord’s judgment of scattering
somehow must have mysteriously ended (even without Israel’s repentance) or that
God has some other plan in mind which no one has yet understood.
Whatever your opinion
on this matter, one thing soon will become clear: The rebirth of the nation of
Israel in our generation is no fluke.
The Lord has not
overlooked what is happening, but is in full control of every event.
In fact, we will soon
see that Israel is heading for a day of destiny that is racing at them at an
accelerating pace.
End Times Truth is about warning people that the Coming of Christ is
near and that we are living in the last days just before His Return. During our
lifetime, Bible predictions concerning the Second Coming have been fulfilled
exactly as they were described thousands of years ago. Jesus said that we
could know that his coming was near if we watched world events and compared
them to what was predicted. As the prophecies come true before our eyes,
we know that we are getting closer to the end. While it is true that the
world is heading toward a judgment day, individuals can escape through
knowledge of the truth combined with repentance and faith in Christ
There is nothing more in
biblical prophecy that needs to happen before Jesus comes again. The imminence
of Christ’s return is generally taught among evangelicals, with some
disagreement according to one’s view. Jesus spoke of His return repeatedly
during His ministry, which naturally prompted questions from His disciples. God
does not intend for us to fully understand the timing of His plans. However, the
Bible says that Jesus’ return is near, and we are to wait eagerly for it. Jesus
taught His disciples to watch for His return. The command to “be ready” implies
imminence. Throughout the New Testament, the church is told to be ready 
