| Highlights of Dawn | May 1968 |
Return of the Exiles
THE uneasy peace between Israel and her Arab neighbors resulting from cease-fire agreements in 1967 has become increasingly nervous during recent weeks. Border raids by the Arabs, and a short invasion of Jordan by the Israeli Army make it exceedingly difficult for the two sides to come to an understanding which would lead to mutual agreements and to a stable peace. So the Middle East continues to be one of the danger zones in a chaotic world.
Twenty years ago the new state of Israel was born. In these last days many new nations have been born in Africa, Asia, and elsewhere, but these small nations are composed of natives freed from their colonial rulers. It was different with Israel, for the people which, in the beginning, made up this new nation had been transported from many countries throughout the earth, and they went to Israel believing that this was the land of their fathers. Today, of course, a considerable portion of the Jewish population in Israel were born in this Land of Promise.
What is taking place in Israel in our generation is directly related to the outworking of God’s plan of the ages as foretold by the prophecies and promises of the Bible, which go back to God’s original promise to Abraham. God said to him, “I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”—Gen. 12:2,3
Later, in addition to the promise that Abraham’s seed would bless all the families of the earth, God gave him title, as it were, to the land of Canaan. God said to him, “Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: for all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed forever. And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered. Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.”—Gen. 13:14-17
However, despite this wonderful promise, we are informed in the New Testament that although Abraham moved into the Land of Promise upon the death of his father, he never did actually possess it, for we read that God “gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on.” (Acts 7:5) It was not until forty years after the Exodus from Egypt that the descendants of Abraham entered into the Promised Land, and possessed it.
Even then they were almost constantly plagued by the surrounding nations. Finally, in 606 B.C., the whole nation was taken captive into Babylon. Seventy years later they were permitted to return to Palestine, but it was not as a free people. They remained subjects to Gentile governments until after the first advent of Christ. Then the Roman army moved against them, their capital city was destroyed, and the people scattered throughout the then known world. This was their great Dispersion, and it is the regathering from this Dispersion that so many of the prophecies of the Old Testament foretold.
So for the Jews who now believe the Bible as God’s Word the happenings in Israel are indeed thrilling. Our Mr. Ray Krupa of The Dawn had the privilege of interviewing Mr. Levi Eshkol, Prime Minister of Israel, and he clearly indicates his enthusiasm for the Word of God as related to the Promised Land. Asked if he believed that modern Israel and its achievements are in fulfillment of Bible prophecies, he replied:
“It is very difficult not to believe this. If you really want to visit Israel you should go with the Bible to see the places. The places which are already here and are known today and above earth, and the places which have been discovered lately, and that still will be discovered, are all proving the Bible.”
The Prime Minister was then asked what was his favorite topic in the Bible. He answered:
“Israel for me is very favored, because after thousands of years of yearning and praying the Israelites are returning. Not all, of course. The first thing when I came here before the Second World War I felt that it was my duty to climb up the hills to Jerusalem. Then we had no automobiles. We had a cart with two or three horses, but for this you had to pay. We were young—mostly young boys, and we came here without a penny. We used to go by foot because you see more that way. Well, the first thing to go and see was Jerusalem. As a matter of fact, I even worked here in two places near Jerusalem as a laborer. One place was on the road to Shechem. I worked there to establish a settlement. The other was on the way to Joppa, where today you will see a nice Kibbutz. With us it was not only a must, but there was a love for this, even though there was then no Jewish government, we were pushed forward by a heart-longing—Jerusalem must have Kibbutz settlements round about the city to supply food—vegetables, and fruit, and everything.”
Asked what he looked upon as important moments in his life the Prime Minister replied:
“I think that coming back here—the first day or two of being here. There was the simple fact of coming here by boat to Jaffa—a very primitive harbor. I had the feeling that now I am touching the Holy Land, I am touching the land of my dreams, the land of my forefathers.
“The most important thing for me here was later when I was put in charge of an agricultural settlement looking for water; and we started to dig and to drill. Israel was known as a dry country, the arid zone. Engineers from various places in the First World War had always said that there is no water, it is a dry country. You can find water only where there is rain.
“So we knew that Israel was a dry country, and we believed there must be a way to solve the problems of millions of Jews wanting to come. They must leave their countries, and they wanted to come here. So, in spite of the opinions of experts, we started to drill and to dig. And when we started we found huge quantities of water underground. So there was the first well, and then the second well—it was really the joy of my life. I remember that once I was asked how we knew where to drill. I said that we consult geologists and engineers, then we simply go out in the field, throw a hat, and where that hat falls, there we drill; and we usually find water.
“Now we are discovering water here in the wells in the mountains of Jerusalem—six, seven hundred meters deep. It is very good, sweet water. So this is really an important chapter in my life. I often say that if you write a story of modern Israel, you will have to include this one about the water. The Jews are coming back. The sons of Israel are coming back to the mother. And Israel is no longer a dry country.”
Since Mr. Eshkol had spoken of their hope that many more Jews would return to the Holy Land, he was asked where he thought they would come from. To this he replied:
“There are still many Jews in the countries from which they have been coming during the last twenty years. And there are more than three millions of Jews in Soviet Russia. We know that many, many of them would like to come; but just now the Russian government does not allow Jews to emigrate. But we believe that this will change in another ten or twenty years—or maybe in five years, or even day after tomorrow. So this is a reservoir. The Russians were first to lay the cornerstone for the revival nation here. Then we have Jews in Europe even today. There is a trickle of immigration of young people pioneering from England and from France. I firmly believe that we will have an immigration of especially the younger generation from the United States, from Canada, from South America,—altogether some six or seven million people. And we have very close ties with them, and they feel part and parcel with us. Of course we will have to do our share in helping people to come here. My idea is that by the end of the twentieth century we can double our population.”
Another question: “Has reading the Bible played an important part in your life, Mr. Prime Minister?”
“I started reading the Bible when I was very young, and memorized many chapters, and many of the psalms. The Jewish prayer book comprises many chapters of the Bible, and many psalms. The Bible has played an important part in the Zionist movement which called us back here to the place where the Jewish nation has been born. So the Bible no doubt has played a sizable role in my life.”
We all know that the Six-day War of 1967 between Israel and the Arabs did not result in a stable peace, and Mr. Eshkol was asked if he believed there would be peace and good will on the borders of Israel in his lifetime. To this he replied:
“The question is, What is my lifetime? But nowadays, with God’s help, and medicine, they are prolonging the lifetime of mankind, and I surely believe there will be peace on our borders within that time. For peace you need at least two parties. One party may be ready, but only a fraction of the other party is. But peace must come. People will come to their senses. We know of countries with tens of millions of people which are on the verge of starvation. Where they spend millions and millions of dollars for armaments they could use this money for the betterment of the people, which would be much, much better. The same is true with us. We are compelled to spend huge sums of money—much more than for education, for instance.”
“Fishers” and “Hunters”
One of the prophecies concerning the regathering of the Israelites is recorded in Jeremiah 16:14-16. We quote: “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that it shall no more be said, The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; but, The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had driven them: and I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers. Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the Lord, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks. For mine eyes are upon all their ways: they are not hid from my face, neither is their iniquity hid from mine eyes.”
This is a definite promise that the Israelites were to experience an exodus from the various countries in which they were scattered, and restored to their Promised Land. The methods to be used by the Lord to accomplish this are symbolically described as “fishing” and “hunting.” Many students of prophecy believe that one of the “fishers” referred to in this prophecy is the Zionist movement, which was organized by Theodore Hertzl.
The Prime Minister of Israel mentioned the powerful influence the Zionist movement had in causing him to emigrate from Russia to the Holy Land. But the number stirred to make this move as a result of Zionist activities was comparatively small. The Jewish people in Israel today recognize the part Zionism played in the restoration of the land, and have erected a suitable monument to Hertzl so that the people may remember it.
But more drastic methods were needed to induce large numbers of Jews to immigrate to Israel, and so Jeremiah, in his prophecy, speaks of “hunters.” Hunting is more ruthless than fishing, and we can see this symbolic hunting in the great persecutions which came upon the Jewish people during the Hitler regime, when six million Jews were cruelly murdered. This led to the return of many Jews to the Promised Land. They went there to find security and to escape further persecution. The Jews in Israel have erected a fitting memorial to this massacre of their brethren under Hitler.
Death’s Captives Restored
It is faith-strengthening to realize what has been taking place in Israel since the beginning of the Zionist movement. However, up to now it has come far short of a complete solution to the problems confronting the Jewish people. For example, Theodore Hertzl, who gave his life to help his people go back to the Promised Land, is now dead, and unable to participate in the results of his efforts. And think of the six million Jews who were killed by Hitler! While this experience greatly accelerated the exodus of Jews to Palestine, these six million are dead.
And then we think of the millions of Jews who, throughout the centuries, have longed for and prayed for the restoration of Israel. These also are dead. There is only one answer to this situation, which reveals the justice and love of God in dealing with his people; and that answer is found in his many, many promises to restore the dead to life.
What this means is that Hertzl will, in God’s due time, be awakened from the sleep of death, and will rejoice when he sees what God has wrought in the land of his dreams, the Promised Land. Those six million Jews murdered in northern Europe will also be awakened from death and have an opportunity to share in the blessings of that new age when Christ will be King of Israel and over the whole earth. Actually, in ancient times this was the hope of all the faithful of Israel. The Apostle Paul said that those who believed in the Law and the Prophets had hope toward God that there will be a resurrection of the dead, “both of the just and the unjust.”—Acts 24:14,15
The “just” ones of that period prior to our Lord’s first advent are mentioned by Paul in Hebrews, chapter 11, and he assures us that they will have a “better resurrection.” Paul also speaks of their being “made perfect,” the thought being, we believe, that they will be raised from the dead as perfect humans. The “unjust,” however, will need to progress to perfection after they have been awakened from the sleep of death, this progress being based upon the acceptance of Christ and obedience to the laws of the messianic kingdom.
We often speak of those faithful ones of the past as the “Ancient Worthies.” The prophet explained that these would be “made princes in all the earth.” (Ps. 45:16) Jesus foretold that in the kingdom the people from all quarters of the earth would recognize these, and would “sit down” with them; that is, be taught by them. These will be the human, or visible representatives of the divine Christ, the promised “Seed” of Abraham which was to bless all the families of the earth.
In Galatians 3:16 the Apostle Paul explains that Christ is the “Seed” of Abraham—the blesser seed, that is, by whom all the families of the earth are to be blessed. In verses 27-29 he gives us the further information that the faithful followers of Jesus—those who are baptized into his death—will be associated with him as a part of the blesser seed of Abraham; that these also are “heirs according to the promise.”
Jesus and his faithful church will be a spiritual, invisible Seed—constituting the invisible phase of the kingdom. The Ancient Worthies will be the visible phase. Together they will function to fulfill the promise of blessing for all mankind. Through this messianic kingdom arrangement universal and lasting peace will come to mankind, as will also prosperity and health and life—everlasting life as humans to all who, under the laws of the kingdom, prove worthy.
It will be during that glorious day that all the Israelites who throughout the centuries have died, including the six millions murdered by Hitler, will be awakened and blessed. It will be then that the Gentiles will also be awakened and blessed. The Bible speaks of those asleep in death as being “captives,” and the Apostle Paul, speaking of Jesus’ resurrection, informs us that he led forth a multitude of captives.—Eph. 4:8, marginal translation
So today we rejoice to realize that the Israelites, exiled among the Gentiles for so long, are returning, and building up the Promised Land. And we are glad that in this we can see evidence that soon all Jews and Gentiles who are hell captives in death will be released from this exile, and receive the blessings which God promised through the Seed of Abraham for all the families of the earth.