There will be a great spiritual transformation of Israel before Christ’s final return.
Those before us in Dispensational Theology developed the scriptural conviction that the people of Israel will one day be saved as a nation in their Promised Land. Dispensationalists taught this boldly—as was the case when The Friends of Israel was born in 1938, even before the modern State of Israel existed.
But this clear biblical teaching has fallen on hard times, and many are conflicted.
Some reason that modern Israel simply cannot be the people that God promises to bring back to the land because the nation is largely unbelieving. They see its current presence in the Middle East as entirely inconsequential.
Such thinking misses the mark entirely. Israel’s return to its land is an event unparalleled in all history. The idea that the nation’s restoration is utterly unrelated to the biblical predictions regarding Israel’s future seems to strain credulity.
I agree with prophecy scholar Dr. Thomas Ice’s statement: “Modern Israel is prophetically significant and is fulfilling Bible prophecy.”[i]
Yet, Israel today remains largely in unbelief! How can this possibly be the result of God’s work?
A Two-Phased Return
Just like numerous prophetic events, Israel’s return takes place in two distinct phases. Ice explains:
… readers of God’s Word need to be careful to distinguish which verses are being fulfilled in our day and which references await future fulfillment. In short, there will be two end-time regatherings: One before the tribulation and one after the tribulation.[ii]
Ezekiel 36 and 37 clearly demonstrate this reality. Both chapters speak of both aspects of Israel’s return and restoration. Utilizing a writing style common in the Hebrew Scriptures, chapter 36 gives us the broad overview, then chapter 37 retells the story, providing additional details for emphasis.
Ezekiel 36:24 promises that God will bring the people of Israel “from among the nations … out of all countries.” The Jewish people’s return from the Babylonian/Medo-Persian captivity that commenced under King Cyrus of Persia in 539 BC (Ezra 1:1–4) does not fully encompass this prophecy. Something far greater will happen as the world approaches the end times.
In Ezekiel 36:25–38, we see that the people of Israel will be spiritually transformed once they come back “into [their] own land” (v. 24). The land itself also will be physically transformed and will one day “become like the garden of Eden” (v. 35).
The key is understanding that this transformation takes place with the people in the land. Astute Bible students know that Israel must be back in the land, constituted as an unbelieving nation, to submit to a covenant with the Antichrist (Daniel 9:27). That covenant will mark the beginning of the Tribulation. Even at the midpoint of the Tribulation, Jerusalem will still be “spiritually … called Sodom and Egypt” (Revelation 11:8).
Ezekiel 37—the well-known dry bones passage—reemphasizes this pattern, showing that Israel will be regenerated spiritually only after returning to its land. It is there that the lifeless bones of the people of Israel will come alive again (vv. 1–21). Then, finally, the whole nation and land will be transformed (vv. 22–28), which will involve the permanent reunification of all 12 tribes (v. 22), a political revival (vv. 24–25), and a spiritual renewal in which the land will house God’s “sanctuary … forevermore” (v. 26).
Zephaniah 2:1–2 teaches explicitly that God will “gather” the “undesirable nation,” which will take place “before the LORD’S fierce anger comes upon” them. This is the chastening of the Tribulation, the purpose being to bring Israel to repentance and to receive its king (Zechariah 12:10). Only then can there be a final, spiritual regathering in preparation for His Kingdom (Matthew 24:31).
The Great End-Time Revival
How will such wonders unfold during the days of the Tribulation? The people of Israel must return to their land as an unbelieving nation. God will confront them and draw them to their Messiah through the gospel ministry of the two witnesses (Revelation 11:3) and their 144,000 disciples who will be sealed from “all the tribes of the children of Israel” (7:4). Together, these end-time ministers will help bring the salvation of a countless multitude of Gentiles (vv. 9–17), as well as “all Israel” (Romans 11:26; cf. Zechariah 13:8–9).
God has long been bringing the Jewish people back to their ancient homeland. Many return in unbelief, but God will bring them to faith and spiritual life in the land before their ultimate return to receive all the blessings He has promised them in the coming Kingdom. We must proclaim these biblical realities with certainty and conviction.
As Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum writes,
When the Bible speaks of a worldwide regathering of the Jewish people, it speaks of two distinct events. … First, there is to be a worldwide regathering in unbelief in preparation for judgment—specifically, the judgment of the tribulation. That is to be followed by a second worldwide regathering in faith in preparation for blessing—specifically, the blessing of the Messianic kingdom. … Once it is recognized that the Bible speaks of two such regatherings, it is easy to see how the present State of Israel fits into prophecy.[iii]
Believers who firmly grasp Israel’s coming transformation will be reinforced in the hope “that He who has begun a good work in [us] will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6).
May God help us clearly comprehend His revealed plan for Israel in the future and for us who trust Him today.
Used by permission of The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry.
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Paul J. Scharf (M.A., M.Div., Faith Baptist Theological Seminary) is a church ministries representative for The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, based in Columbus, WI, and serving in the Midwest. For more information on his ministry, visit sermonaudio.com/pscharf or foi.org/scharf, or email [email protected].
Scripture taken from the New King James Version.
[i] Thomas D. Ice; “Is Modern Israel Fulfilling Bible Prophecy?”; Liberty University; May 2009; https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1023&context=pretrib_arch; Internet; accessed 7 July 2024; p. 2.
[ii] Ibid.
[iii] Arnold Fruchtenbaum, The Footsteps of the Messiah: A Study of the Sequence of Prophetic Events, 6th ed. (San Antonio, TX: Ariel Ministries, 2023), p. 104.
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