As believers from all nations continue with their fervent intercessions on the current situation in the Middle East, with events unfolding which impact directly on Israel, the sovereign power, protection goodness and compassion of our God is displayed in an almost casual manner whilst panic and chaos abounds within the enemy camp!
We must get used to the idea that God is in full control of His creation and nothing can change His eternal purposes. Let it become a good habit. As the prophet declared: “I would have fainted had I not believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living!” (Psalm 27:13) Let’s choose to believe God’s Word rather than fainting through the intimidations and lies of Satan, not least when it concerns Israel and the Jewish people!
One of the ways we can do this is to regularly remind ourselves how God has intervened in the affairs of men in modern history, particularly with the re-birth of Israel as a sovereign state in 1948. These things were clearly prophesied in Scripture and simply beckon without argument or defence. Here are some examples:
1. Jacob’s descendants would regain control of Israel (Amos 9:14-15) This was written around 750 BC and fulfilled in 1948. Following Israel’s declaration of independence on May 14, 1948, Israel was attacked by six powerful armies who surrounded them: Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and Syria where they boasted that “This will be a war of extermination and a momentous massacre…” (Azzam Pasha, Secretary-General of the Arab League). Unfortunately for them they did not take into account the Divine hand of the Living God!
2. Israel would be brought back to life (Ezekiel 37:10-14) This was written around 590 BC and fulfilled in 1948.
3. Israel would be reborn in one day (Isaiah 66:7-8) This was written around 700 BC and fulfilled in 1948. This accurately portrayed what literally happened on May 14, 1948, when for the first time in almost 3000 years, the Jewish people declared Israel a united and sovereign nation, officially acknowledged by the UN. The prophet Isaiah described this event with the unusual description that birth would precede the labour pains: one day after Israel’s declaration of independence it was attacked by the surrounding hostile Arab nations. We must remember that Israel did not gain its independence from a war, but was the cause of one.
4.The divided kingdoms of Judah and Israel would become a united people (Ezekiel 37:21-22) This was written around 590 BC and fulfilled in 1948. It was an astounding revelation for Ezekiel since at that time the people of Israel were divided into two
kingdoms.
5. The latter would be a greater nation than the former one. (Jeremiah 16: 14-15). This was written sometime between 610-586BC and fulfilled in 1948. On this second occasion in 1948, the scattered remnant of Jewish exiles returned literally from the furthest four corners of the Earth as opposed to neighbouring countries such as Egypt and Babylon.
6. Ezekiel prophesied exactly when Israel would be re-established. (Ezekiel 4:3-6) This was written around 590BC and fulfilled in 1948. The Bible scholar, Grant R. Jeffrey offers compelling scientific and rational proof to support this claim as detailed in his book, “The Signature of God.” This prophecy according to Jeffrey pinpointed the 1948 rebirth of Israel. Here’s a summary of it. Ezekiel prophesied that the Jewish people would be punished for430 years due to their unfaithfulness which included their exile to Babylon that occurred in 586BC.
Babylon itself was later conquered by Cyrus in 539 BC who permitted the Jewish exiles to return to their homeland but only a few responded. The return occurred sometime around 536 BC, 70 years after Judah had lost its independence to Babylon.
Due to poor choice, most of the exiles chose to remain in pagan Babylon rather than return to the homeland, causing the remaining 360 years of their punishment to be multiplied by
7. The explanation for this is found in the Book of Leviticus 26 where it warns that if the people did not repent while being punished, the punishment would be multiplied by 7. Remaining in pagan Babylon was equivalent to an act of rebellion rather than one of repentance.
If one takes the remaining 360 years of punishment and multiply by 7, one gets a total of 2,520 years. However, Jeffrey rightly noted that those years are based on the ancient 360- day lunar calendar. When adjusted to the modern solar calendar, the result is 2,484 years. From this, we find that there were exactly 2,484 years from 536 BC to 1948, which is the year that Israel regained independence.
7. God would watch over the people of Israel (Jeremiah 31:10) This was written around 600BC and fulfilled in 1948. Jeremiah likened the intimate care of God over His people to a shepherd guarding his sheep. Military strategists unite in their opinion that it was an impossibility for the tiny group of Jews to have prevailed over the might of the invading armies, as they have done in each successive conflict to date.
8. Israel’s army would be divinely empowered. (Leviticus 26:3-8) This was written around 1400BC and fulfilled from 1948 onwards. The (IDF) Israeli Defence Force has been supernaturally endowed with power from God to defeat those who seek her destruction. The passage in Leviticus states that five people would be able to chase a hundred and a hundred, ten thousand! This has been demonstrated persuasively in every war that Israel has had to fight in her defence.
9. Israel would prosper disproportionately. (Deuteronomy 30:3-5) This was written around 1400BC and fulfilled from 1948 onwards. This Scripture prophecy needs little explanation since the reality speaks for itself and is evident for all to see throughout the world.
If you were to include a tenth pointer to round things up, which Bible passage would you select?
