���������� The Bones and Sticks of Ezekiel
One of the more interesting aspects of Holy Scripture is the hidden message behind the writing of the Evangelists and Prophets. When one become �enlightened� to the Israel Truth, the Truth of the Kingdom Theology, new doors of understanding open up in such a way that the passages, which were once obscured by literal interpretation, are now clearly seen in the light of proper identity of the characters portrayed.
There is a strong desire to day on the part of our people to know their �roots� or heritage, as Genealogical Societies and other organizations attempt to trace the lineage of families to their original Progenitors. There is within each of us a desire to know our history and origin, especially among the Anglo-Saxon, Germanic, Scandinavian, Celtic, Nordic and Slavic peoples of the world.
The identification of the contemporary Israelitish people with the generally Anglo-Saxon, Celtic, Germanic and kindred peoples of the world, and the relationship to this knowledge to the �People of the Book,� open up to us a whole new world of Biblical interpretation.
When one realizes that the peoples under discussion by the Old Testament prophets are, in fact, our ancestors, not only does it become more interesting to us, but we begin to realize that the prophecies put forth concern us directly; it is we who are being addressed in the document.
Once firmly held traditional views are replaced with TRUTH. We no longer see the writings as pertaining to some obscure �ancient culture� but gain a more positive comprehension of the plan of Yahweh for His people. As many have said, 85 percent of the Scriptures and the messages and instructions therein are hidden from the understanding of those who do not know their identity as the descendants of the House of Israel.
What is really sad, there are so many of our people who simply don�t want to know who their ancestors were.
������������������������������ What Difference Does It Make
The expression �What difference does it make?� is frequently heard today, mostly, in two very different ways, which convey entirely different meanings. When used with a question mark ‑ �What difference does it make?� ‑ it can simply be the expression of a person who is not sure which of two or more beliefs, opinions, options, actions or positions is the correct one. He still has a sincere desire to find the correct answer, and is diligently searching for the truth. On the other hand, these same words can, and, is used by most Judeo‑Christians flippantly to imply that it probably doesn�t make very much difference what one believes, thinks, says, or does.
Unfortunately, the latter usage of this expression is the most popular one today. Furthermore, it is important to realize that such an attitude usually winds up with using this expression followed by an exclamation point ‑ �What difference does it make!� ‑ implying that the speaker has reached the place where �anything goes,� that there is no absolutes, no certainties, no unchanging standards. For such an individual, it is obvious that a personal opinion and human reasoning outweigh the plain and eternal truths of God�s Word, the Bible and eternal truths of racial characteristics.
Of course it is true that many of the decisions and choices people make in their daily lives are merely the expression of their own personal beliefs, personal preferences; and will differ considerably from person to person, such differences being of little consequence.
But it is vitally important to recognize the fact that any personal choice or preference which goes contrary to the Bible is of an entirely different character and should be called by its proper name ‑ SIN. The Bible makes it clear that IT MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD WHAT ONE BELIEVES, HOW WE LIVE AND HOW WE REACT TO GOD�S WORD, AND TO ETERNAL TRUTHS.
A major part of Satan�s deceptive arsenal of weapons involves challenging God�s Word; then denying God�s Word; and finally offering by believing and obeying God. Satan used this tactic to deceive Eve in the Garden of Eden:
�Yea hath God said?...Ye shall not surely die...Ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil� (Genesis 3:1‑5)
Both Adam and Eve soon learned: IT DOES MAKE A DIFFERENCE WHAT ONE BELIEVES: ACTUALLY WHO ONE BELIEVES!
Cain was also to learn this bitter lesson as he was guilty of the first murder in contrast to his brother Abel who became the first martyr. (Genesis 4:1‑8). All the people in Noah�s day (except for his own family) were to discover IT WAS A FATAL MISTAKE TO IGNORE GOD�S WARNING THROUGH NOAH OF THE IMPENDING WORLD‑WIDE FLOOD while listening instead to their pleasure‑mad, race‑mixed, families and friends. (Genesis 6:5‑13)
At the Tower of Babel, an ecumenical spirit of false unity and self effort led the majority of the people of that day to seek their own way to heaven and follow human wisdom in seeking to preserve their society on earth. (Genesis 11:1‑9). In each of these instances, people learned the hard way: IT DOES MAKE A DIFFERENCE WHAT ONE BELIEVES!
Most Judeo‑Christians today have been brainwashed into believing that the Jews are God�s Chosen People; that fellowship with false teachers, disobedient brethren, and the things of the world is not only permissible but advisable.
If a Scripture question arises, they do not study it out for themselves, trusting in Almighty God, and Christ for guidance; they stupidly go to a Jewish Rabbi (an Anti‑Christ in every sense of the word {1 John 2:22; 4:3; 2 John 1:7}) to tell them the meaning.
��� This, in spite of the fact that God�s Word specifically forbids and warns about the dangers of all such relationships. (2 Corinthians 6:14‑18; Ephesians 5:11; 1 John 2:15‑17; 2 John 9‑11).
The Rabbis of Judaism understand this just as do the leaders in the Christian movement. Rabbi Moshe Maggal of the National Jewish Information Service said in 1961 when the term Judeo‑Christian was relatively new,
�There is no such thing as a Judeo‑Christian religion. We consider the two religions so different that one excludes the other.� (National Jewish Information Service, 6412 W. Olympic Blvd. L.A. CA).
And with statements from the Jews such as:
�The Jew is not satisfied with de‑Christianizing he Judiazes. He destroys Catholic or Protestant faith. He provokes indifference, but he imposes his idea of the world; of morals; of life upon those whose faith he ruins. He works at his age old task, THE ANNIHILATION OF THE RELIGION OF CHRIST.� (Benard Lazare, L�Antisemitism)
Of course, many believers seek to excuse such disobedience on the false assumption that such broadening of fellowships is necessary for effective evangelism and missions in today�s world. But, note how God specifically warns about the deception of just such a policy in 1 Corinthians 15:33:
�Be not deceived: evil communications [fellowship(s)] corrupt good manners [Godly living].�
This divine principle has been stated, re‑stated and re‑emphasized from Genesis to Revelation; yet, the majority of Judeo‑Christians still base their fellowships on personal choice and beliefs rather than on the clear‑cut commands of God.
Compromised fellowships always result in disaster no matter how attractively they may be initially presented. Abraham�s nephew, Lot, is a prime example of the tragic consequences suffered by all who follow the path of compromise.
Lot�s first mistake came from his choice of the �well watered plain of Jordan� as his dwelling place. (Genesis 13:10‑11). Obviously this was a choice made by him on his own personal desire and belief, even though he might have justified it (as many Judeo‑ Christians of today) on the basis of, supposedly, desiring to take the best possible care of his wife and family. However, walking by his own �beliefs� instead of seeking the �truth� and walking in Spirit and seeking Yahweh�s guidance, always brings disappointment, physical and spiritual disaster.
Furthermore, in Lot�s case, his selfish choice at the beginning opened the door for him to �pitch his tent toward Sodom� even though he knew that �the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly.� (Genesis 13:12‑13). Was Lot trying to influence the wicked for good and for God? Perhaps, but he was to find out to his sorrow and shame that God�s servants CANNOT LEAD THE WICKED TO GOD. FOR THE WICKED, THE JEWS, CANNOT BE SAVED!
Now, read Genesis 19:1‑38, which not only records God�s complete destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah by fire from heaven (God did not send in a swarm of so‑called Evangelists, Missionaries and etc., to convert them did He? No! He destroyed them for He knew they could not be saved!], but also reveals how much Lot lost through his original and continuing compromises, no matter how well intentioned he might have been at first.
Lot lost his testimony, his sons‑in‑law, his earthly possessions, and his wife. Furthermore, his two daughters, undoubtedly morally corrupted by their associations with the Queers, the Sodomites and the Wicked, led their father into drunkenness and moral depravity.
There is a great need for every believer today to carefully read every verse in the book of Jude and realize that the Spiritual and moral depravities prophesied there, are happening before our very eyes today, right here in America.
How can any true believer, be he ecumenical, evangelical, charismatic, fundamentalist or protestant, remain silent and fail to contend earnestly for the faith when so many ungodly and anti‑Christ men have crept into the church? How can anyone who claims to be a true believer, go along with the rapidly growing trend of considering queers (so‑called) homosexuals, lesbians and other heinous, despicable, detestable, degenerate sins of immorality as either �irreversible genetic conditions,� �alternative life styles� or, worst of all, �gifts of God?� (Jude 7).
There is a great need for all true believers today to hear and heed the warnings God gave His people in the Old Testament through the prophet Ezekiel:
�There is Edom, her kings, and all her princes, which with their might are laid by them that were slain by the sword: they shall lie with the uncircumcised, and with them that go down to the pit.� (Ezekiel 32:29).
�There is a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof, like a roaring lion ravening the prey; they have devoured souls; they have taken the treasure and precious things; they have made her many widows in the midst thereof. Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they shewed difference between the unclean the unclean and the clean...� (Ezekiel 22:25‑26)
�Thus saith the Lord; For three transgressions of Edom, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof: because he did pursue his brother with the sword, and did cast off all pity, and his anger did tear perpetually, and he kept his wrath for ever. But I will send a fire upon Teman, which shall devour the palaces of Bozrah.� (Amos 1:11‑12).
�And the house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, AND THE HOUSE OF ESAU [Edom ‑ Genesis 36] for stubble, and they shall kindle in them, and devour them [Edom ‑ the Jews]; and THERE SHALL NOT BE ANY REMAINING OF THE HOUSE OF ESAU [Edom ‑the Jews]; for the Lord hath spoken it.� (Obadiah 18)
Then, as now, there was a great shortage of faithful leaders, pastors, missionaries, teachers, and other believers who not only refuse to go along with the modern day �conspiracy of the prophets,� but who are willing to life their voices in warning against those who have become mixers to please men rather than separators to please God.
Without exception, the most highly regarded leaders of our day, both evangelical, charismatic�s and etc., are men who fellowship and work with Roman Catholics, Jews, Orthodox and Ecumenists who preach a false gospel and use worldly music and methods in their ministries. So‑called evangelical leaders such as Billy Graham [a Jew], Benny Hinn, Mike Evans [a Jew], Jim Bakker [a Jew], Oral Roberts [a Zionist], Pat Robertson [a Zionist], Paul Crouch [a Zionist] and others, are giving �NO� emphasis to sound doctrine while placing a �GREAT� emphasis on fellowship with every perverted form of religion on earth. It is a wrong, unscriptural, dangerous fellowship which they preach and practice; it is a false gospel of race‑mixing and ungodly doctrines they espouse.
It is time to recognize just how dangerous and deceptive it is to think or say WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE? when it relates to any matter on which God has spoken. Those who truly study the Word, search the Scriptures in a sincere desire to know God�s Will and to obey His Word can escape being
�...carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive.� (Ephesians 4:14).
THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TRUTH AND ERROR; BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL; BETWEEN CHRIST AND SATAN; BETWEEN GOD�S WORD AND MAN�S WORD; BETWEEN OBEDIENCE AND DISOBEDIENCE; BETWEEN SALVATION AND REWARDS; BETWEEN LIFE AND DEATH; AND KNOWING WHO IS TRUE ISRAEL AND WHO ARE THOSE WHO
�SAY THEY ARE JEWS [Judeans ‑ true Israelites] AND ARE NOT, BUT ARE THE SYNAGOGUE OF SATAN.� (Rev. 2:9; 3:9)
WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE? IT MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD!
As we will see in the Book of Ezekiel, long held doctrinal views and positions do much to pervert and corrupt the real meaning and truth found in the Scriptures. The �traditions of men� and denominational doctrines keep the sincere student of the Bible in darkness and ignorance.
When such a person becomes �enlightened� as to the truth of just who the prophet is writing about, then a whole new and glorious insight comes to the reader. Preconceived bias and doctrinal mandates from early church teachings are seen for what they are: ERROR. If we approach the study of prophecy with tradition, doctrineal �absolutes,� then we will miss altogether the message of Yahweh for His children.
The TIMING, as well as other clues and nuances in the parables of Ezekiel, is necessary to comprehend, that we may know to whom the document is addressed. As to Bible versions, my choice is the King James (authorized version), as we find fewer mistranslated words or ideas. Let us give you an example. In Paul�s epistle to the Galatians he speaks of faith:
�...And the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God...� (Galatians 2:20; KJV)
�...And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God...� (Galatians 2:20; RSV)
This is a big difference. This is only one example where the entire meaning of the writing is completely changed, as to understanding of just WHO has the faith. The authorized version, therefore, follows more closely to the original manuscripts. We also recommend use of a good concordance; our favorite is �Strong�s Exhaustive Concordance.� It is easy to check out words in their original languages and get a better handle on their meaning as they were originally intended. Keep in mind that the prophecies written in this chapter (2500 years ago), have short-range and long-range fulfillment. Understanding the timing involved is most important.
With this ground-work laid, let us proceed to discover the secrets held within this 37th chapter of Ezekiel.
���������������������������� The Valley of Bones
The plan of Yahweh for His Israel people has and always will be made known by the voice of those whom He has chosen to speak on His behalf to His people. Such as the task of Ezekiel as he received instructions concerning the prophecy for the House of Israel:
�The hand of the LORD was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest.� (Ezekiel 37:1-3)
Knowing that it takes along time for bones to completely lose their flesh and become �very dry,� this is a reference to the long period of time in which the children of Israel had been in their dry, lifeless condition. The large number of bones tells us that an immense multitude of people were in this state of spiritual death.
After asking the question: �Can these bones live?� Ezekiel, aware that Yahweh was/is omniscient (knows all things), admits that only He can know the answer. Then the commission is given to the prophet to �speak� to the bones or spiritually lifeless people that they may hear His word and live. Even in that day it was only through the Word of Yahweh that spiritual life can manifest itself within and faith imparted. (Romans 10:17)
Continuing, we read:
�Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.� (Ezekiel 37:5-6)
As the Holy Spirit was given to the Israelites at Sinai, so here is a promise of an outpouring (at some future time) of the Spirit (breath) which will produce a viable, spirit-filled life within the people. Ezekiel does as he is commanded and life, indeed, returns to the bones. He is then instructed to speak to the wind in a rather peculiar manner:
�Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these SLAIN, that they may live.� (Ezekiel 37:9)
This is an interesting use of the word, �slain,� as it tells us that the house of Israel was, in deed, spiritually killed by false doctrine; traditions of men, idiolatry and disobedience.
So he prophesied and they �STOOD UP UPON THEIR FEET, AN EXCEEDING GREAT ARMY.� This vast multitude had been at war with Yahweh and each other and now they cry unto Yahweh for that which would produce spiritual life and salvation. They realize their condition of lifelessness of spirit and believe that their situation is hopeless:
�Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts.� (Ezekiel 37:11)
There is nothing more distressing than to be separated from the care, protection and love of Yahweh and, until the outpouring of the Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2), the people were without hope. The whole House of Israel was dispersed (cut off) and was in desperate need of a Savior, and Redeemer. Yahshua promised that, after His Ascension, He would send the Holy Spirit, The Comforter, The Paraclete, Who would infill them and teach them all things. Verses 12& 13 give us a reference to a spiritual resurrection, in which new life would be available to �My People.� This is the new life found only in Chris and given to us by the power of His Holy Spirit.
Next, we see the promise of being led into a land of their own, a sign by which the Israel people would know that they are under Divine guidance and care:
�And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I SHALL PLACE YOU IN YOUR OWN LAND: then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord.� (Ezekiel 37:14)
That the timing of this prophecy of the �valley of bones� is pre-consummation is borne by the fact that there is no mention of a �King� to rule this new land, nor is there any reference tot he presence (parousia) of Yahshua. It is, therefore, a prophecy only of a plan for spiritual renewal and geographic relocation, that the House of Israel may fulfill the earlier prophecies of salvation and service to Yahweh. The call to repentance and life in the spirit has long been the message of Christianity, from Pentecost even to these, what we believe to be the last days.
������������������������������ Life in The Sticks
Part two of this chapter deals with prophecy using symbolic �sticks� to describe the two separated and distinct Kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Ezekiel is directed to take one stick and write upon it for �Judah� and for the children of Israel, his companions. This is an obvious reference to the Southern Kingdom of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin and a portion of the tribe of Levi.
He is then told to take another stick and write upon it for the House of Joseph and Ephraim, which of course represents the other tribes of the Northern Kingdom:
�Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions: And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand.� (Ezekiel 37:16-17)
Here, we find one instance in which the House of Joseph is given over to his son Ephraim. It was the tribe of Ephraim which became �chief among the tribes� over the Northern Kingdom. The book of 1 Kings, chapters 9 & 10, gives the history of Solomon�s reign over the whole kingdom, and upon his death the kingdom was divided into two separate nations; with Rehoboam (one of his sons) ruling in the South and Jeroboam being appointed King in the North. The tribe of Benjamin was �loaned� to the southern domain.
When the children of Israel ask for an interpretation of the sticks �coming together,� Ezekiel is to tell them that this is a prophecy of the �coming together� of both houses into one people in the hand of Yahweh, to be used for His divine purpose at some future time.
David gives us a prophecy of this happening when he writes about the �brethren� in Psalm 133:
�Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron�s beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments; As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.� (Psalm 133:1-3)
Though prophecies had been given to the House of Israel, they were, nevertheless, in a state of apostasy, bitterness and in political turmoil at this time. Moreover, they were separated into two distinct nations, which eventually went into captivity. Their national sins had led them into exile and bondage.
Yahweh then unveils His plan of redemption for the whole House of Israel, for we read:
�And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all: Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwelling places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God.� (Ezekiel 37:21-23)
This situation, as explained to the prophet, obviously has never been in existence. A REMNANT of the House of Judah did return to old Palestine to fulfill their destiny to rebuild the temple, thus keeping the mandate assigned to them until the first Advent of Christ. But the main portion of Israel would be consigned to the seven times of punishment (2520 years), later to be restored in the prepared place as found in 2 Samuel 7:10; 1 Chronicles 17.
That we, in the Israel world of today, have been given this land to �dwell in� is patently clear to those with �eyes to see� and �ears to hear.� Please realize also that the outpouring of the Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2) has in no way created within the hearts of the people that which would make them WANT to keep God�s national statutes and judgments. Nor has it brought about the aforementioned unity between he Sceptre (Judah) and the Kingdom (Israel).
The Spirit given at Pentecost was but an �earnest� of the Spirit, not the �fullness,� as is promised to us in the coming consummation of the Age:
�And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children�s children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever.� (Ezekiel 37:24-25)
Please notice that in verse 24 David is referred to as �King,� whereas in verse 25 the title for David is �prince.� The name David in these verses refers to Yahshua and not the person of King David who reigned prior to Solomon. Yahshua is frequently called �Son of David� to verify His lineage from the House of David, the chosen line from which the Messiah was to come. This reference to Him as �Prince� we believe to be at the time when He shall have delivered up the Kingdom to the Father in perfect submission.
The above prophecies, speaking of Israel as a nation �wanting to keep Yahweh�s statutes and judgments� and putting away �their detestable tings,� have never seen their fulfillment, and are a picture of life in the millennial Kingdom. Such a scenario is nowhere apparent in the Israel world toady, nor will it be a reality until after the First Resurrection and closing of the Church Age. The parallels between the resurrection motif and the Harvest Feasts are striking.
At The time of the Second Advent all will be well in the Kingdom, for we are told:
�Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And the heathen shall know that I the LORD do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.� (Ezekiel 37:26-28)
During this millennial reign of Yahshua life will go on, but not in the usual manner as before. A covenant of peace will necessitate the end of all wars and petty bickering and skirmishes in the Israel world. Life will continue as before, only in that there will be multiplication of peoples for the Glory of Yahweh.
This great �Covenant of Peace� and the accompanying promises of a sanctuary in the midst of the people is also spoken of in Revelation 21:3:
�And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.�
Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 6:19:
�What? Know ye not that your body is the temple (tabernacle) of the Holy Ghost, which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?�
This, the Spirit of God dwelling in men, is the promised fulfillment of �Christ in you, the hope of Glory� (Colossians 1:27); it is the time of the �manifestation of the sons of God.� (Romans 8:19)
The final verse in this chapter shows us the purpose of God�s intervening Grace to Israel:
�And the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.� (Exodus 37:28)
Perhaps the most misunderstood aspect of this chapter of Ezekiel is the distinction between the two �House;� i.e., Israel and Judah, and their coming together into one domain. Most Judeo-Christians in the �church world,� though sincere, mistakenly imagine that �Jewry� is that which composes Judah.
Nothing could be further from the truth. The Jews, as we find them today, are essentially a religious sect and are not of the Israel nations, in spite of their claims. They rejected the Messiah at His first Advent and they reject Him still. Hence, Yahshua said to them:
�The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits (of the kingdom) thereof.� (Matthew 21:43)
The true House of Judah is found wherever the �Sceptre� resides in fulfillment of the promise given to the sons of Jacob. Though the Judah tribe can be found essentially in the German people of today (including the Royal House of Windsor), Judah, as with Israel, is scattered throughout the nations of the world. Much can be said regarding the migrations of the Tribes of Israel (including Judah), but this is not within the scope of this study. The important point to be remembered is the TIMING of the appearing (parousia) of Yahshua, when the sceptre shall be in the hands of the reigning Monarch.
�David my King,� is, therefore, none other than the �Body of Christ,� the �Barley Overcomers,� the �True Church� who will reign with Christ (within) for a thousand years with authority and power, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. With authority comes responsibility, and it will be the mission of those chosen and elect to govern the Israel nations teaching TRUTH. This is the time when the WHOLE House of Israel will be awakened to their identity and blindness will be removed.
This will be in preparation for the proclamation of the Word of Yahweh to the nations of the world. Geographical location in �nationality� of the tribes is irrelevant, as the covenant which Yahweh makes with His people (verse 26) will be a covenant of peace, having conditions as with any covenant, in order to put down all rule and authority. The blending of the two sticks into one then represents a unity of people who will be taught to �put on the mind of Christ.� this will be accomplished by the empowerment of the glorified remnant, �the presence of Christ.�
They in turn sill be responsible for the teaching of the nations and their ultimate conversion. It will be the time when Israel sings the �Song of the Lamb� as recorded in Revelation 15:3-4 and elsewhere:
�And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.�
It is the time of the fulfillment of the prophecy given to the apostle Paul and recorded in Philippians 2:10 where
�Every knee shall bow...and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.�
One of the most heart warning and glorious covenant promises spoken of by Ezekiel is recorded in the 31st Chapter of Jeremiah:
�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: 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: 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. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.� (Jeremiah 31:31-34)
What a blessed HOPE we have in the promises of our God for His Israel people. It is our hope that you will be encouraged to search deeper into the mysteries of His Word.