Israel, the Divided Kingdom
God sovereignly set apart Israel as a nation to enter into covenant with so that all the families of the earth would be blessed (Genesis 12:1). God gave Israel the Word of God to guard, protect, and deliver to the world, not only through the Prophets but through the promised Messiah, the Word made flesh (John 1:1). In Israel and Her Covenants, we began to discuss God’s plan for Israel and His covenant relationship with the nation from whom the Messiah, the Savior of the world, would come. We learned how God passed His promises through the patriarchs from generation to generation and how these covenants of land, seed, and blessing were unconditional, eternal, and literal. We followed the bloodline of Jesus from Abraham, through the tribe of Judah to David, who was crowned the King of Israel. Here, we will fly through history and briefly examine what happened to Israel after King David’s death. From David to Solomon David sat on the throne of Israel for 40 years. His son Solomon ruled Israel for another 40 years. This period is often referred to as the “Golden Age” of Israel because Israel flourished during this time. However, toward the end of Solomon’s life, he began to turn away from God. Even after God’s repeated warnings to not follow other gods, Solomon allowed his foreign wives, through their pagan practices, to influence him and to turn his heart towards their gods.As a result, “his heart was not wholly devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been” (1 Kings 11:4). Because of his disobedience, God told Solomon that he would strip his kingdom away, but not yet. Out of God’s love for David, He would wait until after Solomon died and take the Kingdom from Solomon’s son instead. Division of the Dynasty After Solomon died, his son Rehoboam reigned over all of Israel (1 Kings 11:41-43). However, as God had previously warned Solomon, He had other plans for the Davidic dynasty. God spoke through the Prophet Ahijah to Solomon’s servant, Jeroboam, and told him that the Kingdom of Israel would be divided because of Israel’s disobedience. He went on to say that Jeroboam would rule over the ten tribes of the northern kingdom but that “for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel,” Solomon’s son, Rehoboam would hang on to one tribe (1 Kings 11:32). Ahijah’s prophecy was soon fulfilled. King Rehoboam acted foolishly. He would not listen to the people of Israel, and they rebelled against him. Only one tribe, Judah, remained loyal to the house of David (1 Kings 12:20). The tribe of Benjamin split its loyalties between the Northern kingdom of Israel (Samaria) and Judah’s southern kingdom. In an attempt to restore the Kingdom, King Rehoboam gathered 180,000 men to fight against the ten tribes now called Israel. Some Benjamites joined King Rehoboam in this effort. However, God intervened. He sent word through Shemiah, a man of God, saying do not “go up and fight against your relatives the sons of Israel” (1 Kings 12:24). From that point on, Israel was a divided kingdom, with Judah’s capital, Jerusalem, and Israel’s capital, Samaria. Northern Kingdom of Israel Because Israel did not keep God’s law and sinned against Him, God allowed Israel to be invaded by the Assyrians and scattered throughout the surrounding nations (2 Kings 17:6-7). Israel’s lands were resettled by foreigners (2 Kings 17:24). The ten tribes of the northern kingdom have mostly disappeared from history, although their descendants continue to exist. Southern Kingdom of Judah Unlike Israel, Judah managed to fend off the Assyrian invasion. However, eventually the Babylonian empire conquered Judah and deported the Judah citizens to Babylon. Before God allowed this to happen, He time and time again sent word to them “by His messengers, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place; but they continually mocked the messengers of God, despised His words and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against His people until there was no remedy” (2 Chronicles 36:15). The people of Judah were held captive in Babylon for 70 years. During this time, Persia conquered Babylon, and Cyrus, the King of Persia, allowed them to return home to Jerusalem. Just as God promised that he would scatter Israel throughout the nations for their disobedience, He also promises that He will bring them back to their homeland and make them dwell in safety (Jeremiah 32:37). God is faithful. Israel will never stop being a nation. The time is near (Revelation 22:10).
Israel and Her Covenants
To understand the prophetic passages of the Bible and have a clearer picture of Israel’s future and our future, we must have a good understanding of God’s covenant promises with the people of Israel.
The First Prophecy of Jesus: Tracing the Messiah from Genesis to Revelation
As revelation unfolds throughout the Old Testament, it becomes clear that the prophesied Messiah, the godly seed, can only be Jesus Christ.
5 Reasons to Study Prophecy
Prophecy is a prediction of future things to come. According to “The Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy” by J. Barton Payne, there are 1,239 prophecies in the Old Testament and 578 in the New Testament. Prophecies constitute 26.8 percent of the Bible’s volume. In the prophetic verses, there are around 333 prophecies about Christ. Out of these 333 prophecies, 109 were fulfilled at Christ’s first coming, and 224 will be fulfilled at His second coming. Many shy away from the study of prophecy for a variety of reasons. Some avoid studying it because they believe prophecy is irrelevant to their Christian walk and a waste of time. Others believe that prophecy is too complicated and that they will never understand it. And still, others believe that prophecy is all doom and gloom; they don’t want to think about the end. They are all mistaken. Prophecy is relevant, understandable, and good news for believers; it also demonstrates that the Bible can be trusted. Here, we will discuss five reasons to study prophecy. Reason 1: God Considers the Study of Prophecy Important Through the prophets, then through Jesus Christ, God spoke of the future. The Bible begins with prophecy and ends with prophecy; it is an essential part of the Bible’s message comprising more than 25 percent of the Scripture. Any topic that makes up over 1/4th of the Bible must be important. God’s intent has never been to leave us in the dark but to reveal His plans through His chosen messengers, the prophets (Amos 3:7). The Prophetic Word is a light shining in the darkness, illuminating the path before us and making our way clear until Jesus comes back (2 Peter 1:19-21). We are to pay attention to prophetic Scripture, and if we do, we will be blessed (Revelation 1:3). To further highlight the importance of prophecy, especially end-time prophecy, out of 46 Old Testament prophets, less than ten mention Jesus’ first coming. However, 36 of them speak of His second coming. The Old Testament refers to the second coming of Christ 1,500 times. One out of 25 New Testament verses alludes to His second coming. For every mention of the first coming of Christ, the Bible refers to the second coming eight times. And if that is not enough, Jesus talks about His second coming 21 times, and over 50 times, we are told to be ready for His return. Reason 2: Prophecy Enables Us to Recognize the Times Beginning in Genesis, God started to reveal to us through Moses and the Prophets His salvation plan through a Messiah. Later, in the New Testament, Jesus confirmed that it was Him about which they wrote. Even though the Prophets had prophesied His coming no less than 333 times, Israel did not recognize Him; they did not believe He was the Messiah. Instead, they hardened their hearts to God’s message He had sent to them through His prophets. Because of Israel’s inability to recognize their own Messiah, Jerusalem was leveled, and all of its inhabitants were killed (Luke 19:44). Another consequence of their unbelief was that the Kingdom of God was taken away from them and given to the Church (Matthew 21:42-44). Furthermore, because the Israelites rejected the Gospel, the message went to a new nation, a nation of Believers, the Church. We must not harden our hearts to God’s message, but instead keep our hearts soft and pliable, ready to receive the Word with joy when He comes again! God tells us things before they happen so that when they do occur, we will believe. When we know what the Word says about the future, we can recognize the times and act accordingly. Knowing the signs of the times is like an early warning system: we are alerted to upcoming threats and, as a result, we know when to take precautions to protect our minds and our hearts from deception and fear. Jesus implores us always to be alert and ready for His return (Matthew 24:42-44). We should not be indifferent to the signs around us but instead, watch and be ready. Just as Noah prepared for the flood, we should also prepare ourselves for Jesus’s return. Reason 3: Prophecy Gives Us an Eternal Perspective Studying prophecy sets our hearts and minds on God’s eternal nature. Jesus said, “I am the Alpha and the Omega…who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty (Revelation 1:8). The alpha and the omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. Jesus referred to himself as the alpha and the omega because He is the first and the last and the beginning and the end. He is eternal. Because He has put eternity in our hearts (Ecclesiastes 3:11), nothing can satisfy us except the eternal things of God: His Word, His love, and His pleasures. Knowing this encourages us to set our minds, not on earthly things but things above (Colossians 3:1-2) and live differently, only focusing on those things that matter for eternity. Reason 4: Prophecy Strengthens Our Faith and Gives Us Hope About Our Future When we look at the prophetic scriptures, we see our future – that one day we will wake-up with bodies that will never die (1 Corinthians 15:42-44). We see that there will be a new heaven and a new earth, and no longer any death, mourning, crying, or pain (Revelation 21:1-4). We find out a priceless inheritance is waiting for us in heaven, and our salvation is guaranteed by the Holy Spirit who lives in us (1 Peter 1:3-5, Ephesians 1:13-14). Knowing our future strengthens our faith and gives us hope. Because of this hope, we should live our lives disciplined and in pursuit of holiness, As believers, we should embrace the hope of heaven as an anchor for our souls (Hebrews 6:19) and pursue the things of God relentlessly. Reason 5: We Learn More About Jesus in His Exalted State Finally, studying prophecy, especially the book of Revelation, gives us a breathtaking view into the throne room of God, where we see Jesus in His exalted state with “myriads upon myriads” worshiping Him (Revelation 5:11). Christ’s first coming was one of humiliation, but His second coming will be one of exaltation. Only a few noticed His first coming as a