PROPHECY FULFILLMENT: BY CHURCH OR FUTURE ISRAEL
Many prophecies by Dispensationalists are fulfilled in the end times especially in a millenial kingdom where Israel and Jerusalem are rebuilt. The thought process is that Jesus will reign on a throne they call Davids throne and he will sit among Israel and its saved members who lived through the tribulation and the people saved during the Church age. They will have children and they too must accept Jesus before age 100 or they die in sin. Most every prophecy pertaining to Israel or the jews is placed in an end time/millenial kingdom setting. Lets look at some of these prophecies and see when it could be fulfilled and what is more likely the time of its fulfillment.
Jeremiah 23: 3 "I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in number. 4I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing," declares the LORD. 5"The days are coming," declares the LORD, "when I will raise up to David[1] a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. 6In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness.
Jeremiah was written years before the jews return to Israel and rebuilt the temple. To take this literally would have to place this prophecy at this time and not skip it and go to the millenial kingdom. Jesus is the root of David, the branch who reigns for his people now as we know but is this during the church age. It says they will be fruitful and increase in number. This gives us an idea of people being born or people being saved. It could be taken either way. Jesus was from the tribe of Judah and verse 6 states he will be saved and Israel will be safe.
The new testament says the new Jerusalem is in heaven where Jesus reigns and in Zion. This verse lines up more with this line of thinking more than a literal fleshly kingdom since it points out Judah. There is however enough here to give dispensationalists fuel for their placement of this prophecy if we dont take scripture and the new testament as a whole. Lets look at another.
Jeremiah 32: 37 I will surely gather them from all the lands where I banish them in my furious anger and great wrath; I will bring them back to this place and let them live in safety. 38They will be my people, and I will be their God. 39I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear me for their own good and the good of their children after them. 40I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me, so that they will never turn away from me. 41I will rejoice in doing them good and will assuredly plant them in this land with all my heart and soul.
I think this passage is more clear on the subjects. We can take this literally in the flesh and show some of a fulfillment when the jews returned to build the temple around 457bc. The thing that shows a more future fulfillment pertaining to the church is as follows. Verse 38 says they will be my people and I will be there God. This is a verse in the new testament pointing to the church as being the fulfiller of this prophecy. Verse 39 says I will give them single heart so that they will fear me and their children after me. This verse shows also a new testament fulfillment in that it says he will give them a single heart which means they cant choose to not accept Christ like in the millenial teaching and it says they will fear him. The Church taught a fear of the Lord. Verse 40 says I will make an everlasting covenant with them. Not 1000 years but everlasting. The Church as the disciples raised the cups at the Lords supper instituted this new covenant also promised in Jeremiah 31. The book of Hebrews talks about this covenant beginning as Jesus sat on the throne in heaven after being raised from the dead. Verse 40 also says they will never turn from me and Paul wrote about this in the new letters. We who are saved will not turn but will endure to the end. People in a millenial kingdom reigning with Jesus but not accepting him and dying at age 100 doesn't fit this prophecy. This is probably a double fulfillment prophecy to the jews in 450s bc and the Church age.
Ezekiel 20: 34 I will bring you from the nations and gather you from the countries where you have been scattered--with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and with outpoured wrath.
This is another prophecy fulfilled when the jews returned from Babylon and Assyria and the surrounding countries over 100 years after the prophecy was made. This was already fulfilled before Jesus returned.
Ezekiel 36: 24 "`For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land.
Again this prophecy fulfilled over 100 years after it was made when the jews returned to Israel a second time around 450bc.
Zechariah 8: 7 This is what the LORD Almighty says: "I will save my people from the countries of the east and the west. 8I will bring them back to live in Jerusalem; they will be my people, and I will be faithful and righteous to them as their God."
Clearly a reference to the new covenant believer as all of Zachariah pertains to the Jesus and early believers. We are saved from the east and west and will sit with Isaac and Jacob, the true believers and followers of God. He is our God as Paul states this prophecy. He is faithful and just to forgive us from all sin, those who repent.
Genesis 28: 10 Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Haran. 11When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. 12He had a dream in which he saw a stairway[1] resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. 13There above it[2] stood the LORD, and he said: "I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. 14Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.
Clearly God is talking about all believers spread throughout the ages over the whole world. We will be as dust blessing the world. You and your offspring will bless the world. Clearly these are references to the new covenant believer and not a centralized jewish nation. Jews can not bless the world from Israel. They have to be spread throughout the world like the passage states through generation to generation which the new covenant Church continues to do.
Isaiah 35: 1 The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus, 2it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.
Written over 200 years before the jews returned to Israel and built the temple again this verse tells of the people seeing the glory. Jesus would fulfill this verse when he came the first time among them.
Jeremiah 23: 3 "I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in number. 4I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing," declares the LORD. 5"The days are coming," declares the LORD, "when I will raise up to David[1] a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. 6In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness.
Jeremiah was written years before the jews return to Israel and rebuilt the temple. To take this literally would have to place this prophecy at this time and not skip it and go to the millenial kingdom. Jesus is the root of David, the branch who reigns for his people now as we know but is this during the church age. It says they will be fruitful and increase in number. This gives us an idea of people being born or people being saved. It could be taken either way. Jesus was from the tribe of Judah and verse 6 states he will be saved and Israel will be safe.
The new testament says the new Jerusalem is in heaven where Jesus reigns and in Zion. This verse lines up more with this line of thinking more than a literal fleshly kingdom since it points out Judah. There is however enough here to give dispensationalists fuel for their placement of this prophecy if we dont take scripture and the new testament as a whole. Lets look at another.
Jeremiah 32: 37 I will surely gather them from all the lands where I banish them in my furious anger and great wrath; I will bring them back to this place and let them live in safety. 38They will be my people, and I will be their God. 39I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear me for their own good and the good of their children after them. 40I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me, so that they will never turn away from me. 41I will rejoice in doing them good and will assuredly plant them in this land with all my heart and soul.
I think this passage is more clear on the subjects. We can take this literally in the flesh and show some of a fulfillment when the jews returned to build the temple around 457bc. The thing that shows a more future fulfillment pertaining to the church is as follows. Verse 38 says they will be my people and I will be there God. This is a verse in the new testament pointing to the church as being the fulfiller of this prophecy. Verse 39 says I will give them single heart so that they will fear me and their children after me. This verse shows also a new testament fulfillment in that it says he will give them a single heart which means they cant choose to not accept Christ like in the millenial teaching and it says they will fear him. The Church taught a fear of the Lord. Verse 40 says I will make an everlasting covenant with them. Not 1000 years but everlasting. The Church as the disciples raised the cups at the Lords supper instituted this new covenant also promised in Jeremiah 31. The book of Hebrews talks about this covenant beginning as Jesus sat on the throne in heaven after being raised from the dead. Verse 40 also says they will never turn from me and Paul wrote about this in the new letters. We who are saved will not turn but will endure to the end. People in a millenial kingdom reigning with Jesus but not accepting him and dying at age 100 doesn't fit this prophecy. This is probably a double fulfillment prophecy to the jews in 450s bc and the Church age.
Ezekiel 20: 34 I will bring you from the nations and gather you from the countries where you have been scattered--with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and with outpoured wrath.
This is another prophecy fulfilled when the jews returned from Babylon and Assyria and the surrounding countries over 100 years after the prophecy was made. This was already fulfilled before Jesus returned.
Ezekiel 36: 24 "`For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land.
Again this prophecy fulfilled over 100 years after it was made when the jews returned to Israel a second time around 450bc.
Zechariah 8: 7 This is what the LORD Almighty says: "I will save my people from the countries of the east and the west. 8I will bring them back to live in Jerusalem; they will be my people, and I will be faithful and righteous to them as their God."
Clearly a reference to the new covenant believer as all of Zachariah pertains to the Jesus and early believers. We are saved from the east and west and will sit with Isaac and Jacob, the true believers and followers of God. He is our God as Paul states this prophecy. He is faithful and just to forgive us from all sin, those who repent.
Genesis 28: 10 Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Haran. 11When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. 12He had a dream in which he saw a stairway[1] resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. 13There above it[2] stood the LORD, and he said: "I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. 14Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.
Clearly God is talking about all believers spread throughout the ages over the whole world. We will be as dust blessing the world. You and your offspring will bless the world. Clearly these are references to the new covenant believer and not a centralized jewish nation. Jews can not bless the world from Israel. They have to be spread throughout the world like the passage states through generation to generation which the new covenant Church continues to do.
Isaiah 35: 1 The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus, 2it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.
Written over 200 years before the jews returned to Israel and built the temple again this verse tells of the people seeing the glory. Jesus would fulfill this verse when he came the first time among them.
posted by Stacy at 11:23 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home