For
God so loved the world that he gave his one and only
Son, that whoever believes in him
shall
not perish but have eternal life.
(Jn 3:16)
Contents:
1.
Introductory Questions and Basic Answers
2.
Starting with the Patriarchs – Abram, Isaac & Jacob
3.
Entering the Land - Moses & Joshua
4.
The Ongoing Life of Israel – David & Solomon
5.
The Prophets Look Out to the World
6.
Life in a Foreign Court
7.
Further Instances of Testimony to Gentiles
8.
In the New Testament
9.
And So
1.
Introductory Questions and Basic Answers
Natural
questions that arise in thinking people when we consider God's activities
through Israel, are often What about the rest of the world? Doesn't
God care for the rest of the world as well? The answer, we hope you
will come to see in this pager, is a resounding, “Yes!”
Yet
questions do arise in the minds of thinking people, “Isn't the Old Testament
at least, all about the Jews? What about the rest of us? Why didn't
God work with the whole world?
I
believe the short answer to that, which we will verify by this page,
is that God chose a particular nation, right from its outset, to reveal
Himself through, to the rest of the world. I believe we will see that
throughout the Old Testament the signs are clearly there that Israel
was to be a light to the rest of the world, who would see what was happening
to them, and have their thoughts drawn to the God who was interacting
with this nation.
Everything
about this nation – their founding grandfather, even their actual father,
the way they came into being in Egypt, the way they were delivered from
Egypt, the way they were led and given a new land to live in, the struggles
they had there, the eventual exile and restoration – all this pointed
to the reality and existence of the One God.
So
let's see what signs there are on the Old Testament that God cares for
the whole world and not just Israel:
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2.
Starting with the Patriarchs – Abram, Isaac & Jacob
If
you are not familiar with the story, Abram (Genesis 12 on) was called
by God to go and live in the land
of Canaan.
Eventually he had a son called Isaac and Isaac eventually had two sons,
Jacob and Esau. God chose Jacob and changed his name to Israel.
He had twelve sons who developed into twelve tribes which formed the
nation of Israel.
So let's see some of the encounters these men had with God and how that
reveals God's intention in respect of the rest of the world.
Gen
12:2,3
"I
will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make
your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who
bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples
on earth will be blessed through you."
- I am sure that throughout
his life Abram, or Abraham as he became, really had little or no
idea what this meant. Today we believe it had a fourfold application:
- First,
that he would become the father of a great nation, Israel
, through whom God would reveal
Himself, (actually the grandfather, though culturally considered
one and the same thing) and
- Second, out of his family
line would eventually come the Messiah, who would be God's means
of bringing salvation to the whole world, and
- Third, Abraham became known
as God's ‘friend' (Isa 41:8) showing it was possible for mankind
to have a close relationship with Almighty God, and
- Fourth, Abraham was known
as a man of faith and faith was to become the vehicle by which salvation
was received (see Rom 3-5).
- However, in answer to the
sceptics, perhaps the most important thing here is to note God's
promise to this first man, who was to have an ongoing relationship
with God, was that God would use him to somehow bless the whole
world, to bless all peoples!
- There is nothing parochial
about this and it comes in the first prophetic declaration to Abram
by God.
Gen
17:3-7 Abram
fell face down, and God said to him, "As for me, this is my covenant
with you: You will be the father of many nations. No
longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have
made you a father of many nations. I will make you
very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from
you. I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between
me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come,
to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.
- Not
only will Abram be a blessing in the ways we have considered above,
his family will spread and create other nations – influence further
afield.
Gen
18:17,18
Then
the LORD said, "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?
Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all
nations on earth will be blessed through him.
- Abraham's influence across
the earth reiterated by the Lord
Gen
22:15-18
The angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second
time and said, "I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because
you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I
will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars
in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take
possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring
all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have
obeyed me."
- Abraham's obedience opened
the way for God's blessing to flow and the divine purpose to be
worked out to potentially bless the whole earth.
Gen
26:2-4 The
LORD appeared to Isaac and said, "Do not go down
to Egypt;
live in the land where I tell you to live. Stay in this land for a while,
and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants
I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your
father Abraham. I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars
in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring
all nations on earth will be blessed”
- The same promise of blessing
for the earth is given to Isaac
- The ‘offspring', down the
human family line at least, would be the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
Gen
28:13,14 I
am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I
will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying.
Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread
out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south.
All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your
offspring.
- This
same promise of blessing to all the earth came to Jacob
whose name the Lord changed to Israel
, and who thus became the immediate
father of the nation.
- As we have seen in a previous
chapter, God changed this twister into a respected, wise old man
of faith. He is thus an example of a crooked human being who God
loved, accepted and straightened out. If God could do that with
Jacob, He can do it with any one of us.
- Possibly the primary sense
of this promise to Jacob to the second reason in the reasons given
above about the fulfilment through Abram.
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3.
Entering the Land - Moses & Joshua
The
nation, because of a worldwide famine, end up in Egypt
and settle there. Four hundred
years later they have grown to a great people, and a threat to the Egyptians
who made slaves of them. Using Moses, God delivered them from Egypt
and sought to lead them into the
Promised Land, Canaan,
yet they rebelled and so ended up wandering in the desert for the next
forty years until Moses died and God used Joshua to lead them into the
land. Let's hear some of the things that the Lord said through Moses
and Joshua which, again, reveal His heart for the world.
Ex
15:14-16
The
nations will hear and tremble; anguish will grip the
people of Philistia.
The chiefs of Edom
will be terrified, the leaders of Moab
will be seized with trembling, the people of Canaan
will melt away; terror and dread will fall upon them.
-
As we will see in a
later chapter, God's presence with Israel as they approach the Promised
Land will bring fear to the surrounding nations – they WILL know
what is happening.
- These things will testify
to the surrounding nations about the presence of Almighty God with
this people.
- This
declaration is made even before they are constituted a nation at
Mount Sinai .
Num
14:13-17 Moses
said to the LORD, "Then the Egyptians will hear about it! By your
power you brought these people up from among them. And they will tell
the inhabitants of this land about it. They have already heard that
you, O LORD, are with these people and that you, O LORD, have been seen
face to face, that your cloud stays over them, and that you go before
them in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. If you
put these people to death all at one time, the nations who have
heard this report about you will say, `The LORD was not able
to bring these people into the land he promised them on oath; so he
slaughtered them in the desert.'
-
This incident points
to the same thing and occurs at Mount Sinai.
- When
Moses argued with the Lord to withhold His hand of judgment from
Israel,
one of his arguments is to do with what the surrounding nations
would think.
- It
indicates very clearly that what was happening to Israel
quickly became common knowledge
in the surrounding nations.
Deut
2:24,25
"See, I have given into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon,
and his country. Begin to take possession of it and engage him in battle.
This very day I will begin to put the terror and fear of you on
all the nations under heaven. They will hear reports of you
and will tremble and be in anguish because of you."
- This
was Moses reminding Israel
of what the Lord had said,
as above, shortly before he dies and before they enter the land
under Joshua.
- The word will spread beyond
the immediate nations to all nations.
Deut
4:5,6
See, I have taught you decrees and laws as the LORD my God commanded
me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering to take
possession of it. Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom
and understanding to the nations, who will hear about
all these decrees and say, "Surely this great nation is a wise
and understanding people."
- Moses
tells Israel that
they will be an example to all other nations to reveal the Lord.
Deut
28:8-10 The
LORD your God will bless you in the land he is giving you. The LORD
will establish you as his holy people, as he promised you on oath, if
you keep the commands of the LORD your God and walk in his ways. Then
all the peoples on earth will see that you are called
by the name of the LORD, and they will fear you.
- A further reference to all
the world seeing and knowing what was going on!
- God will be revealed to the
world.
- So far these are all references
to do with Moses being God's mouthpiece.
Josh
4:23,24 For
the LORD your God dried up the Jordan
before you until you had crossed over. The LORD your God did to the
Jordan just what he had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up before
us until we had crossed over. He did this so that all the peoples
of the earth might know that the hand of the LORD is powerful
and so that you might always fear the LORD your God.”
- Already
the understanding was that the world would see and know when they
heard what God had done for Israel
- This is now conveyed by Joshua
as they enter the land.
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4.
The Ongoing Life of Israel – David & Solomon
After
Israel
settled in the Land, they were ruled by judges. Eventually they asked
God for a king and were given Saul who didn't make a good job of it.
God replaced him by king David whose son, Solomon, eventually followed
him. David was described as “a man after God's own heart” and the Lord
used him to build up and strengthen the nation and make it powerful.
When Solomon took over, the Lord gave him great wisdom which resulted
in great prosperity for the nation. Both these two men understood God's
calling on the nation to be a light to the rest of the world:
1
Chron 16:8, 24
Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make known among
the nations what he has done… …
Declare his glory among the nations, his marvellous deeds among
all peoples.
- On
the day David brought the ark to the Temple
he wrote this psalm.
- In it he clearly understands
that their calling is to tell the rest of the world of the wonders
of the Lord.
Psa
57:9
I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations;
I will sing of you among the peoples.
- This became a familiar refrain
by David in the Psalms.
Psa
67:1-4 May
God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us,
that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all
nations. May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples
praise you. May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the
peoples justly and guide the nations of the earth.
- In this unnamed psalm (?possibly
by David) the same theme is expanded upon
- It extends to include God's
sovereign activity across all the earth.
Psa
96:3 Declare
his glory among the nations, his marvellous deeds among
all peoples.
- Another unnamed psalm (?possibly
by David) has the same theme
Psa
96:10,13
Say among the nations, "The LORD reigns."
The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity….. he comes
to judge the earth. He will judge the world
in righteousness and the peoples in his
truth.
- Yet another unnamed psalm
(?possibly by David) declares the same thing – tell it to the world!
- Let the world know that God
is the Supreme Judge of all peoples.
Psa
108:3-5 I
will praise you, O LORD, among the nations; I will
sing of you among the peoples. For great is your love,
higher than the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies. Be
exalted, O God, above the heavens, and let your glory be over
all the earth.
- In this psalm by David, again
David is quite specific in his understanding
- God's praise and glory is
for the whole earth to see and know.
1
Kings 4:29-34 God
gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight, and a breadth of understanding
as measureless as the sand on the seashore. Solomon's wisdom was greater
than the wisdom of all the men of the East, …. And his fame spread to
all the surrounding nations. He spoke three thousand
proverbs and his songs numbered a thousand and five. He described plant
life, from the cedar of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of walls.
He also taught about animals and birds, reptiles and fish. Men
of all nations came to listen to Solomon's wisdom, sent by
all the kings of the world, who had heard of his wisdom
- This
amazing account shows us how the Lord gave Solomon such wisdom that
news of it spread across the world.
1
Kings 8:41-43
"As for the foreigner who does not belong to
your people Israel but has come from a distant land because
of your name -- for men will hear of your great name and your
mighty hand and your outstretched arm--when he comes and prays toward
this temple, then hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and do whatever
the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth
may know your name and fear you, as do your own people Israel,
and may know that this house I have built bears your Name”.
- This
is part of Solomon's prayer of dedication of the Temple
in Jerusalem
- This is a remarkable openness
to the rest of the world – Solomon recognises that people from other
lands can come and pray in this temple and when they do God will
answer!
- By this all peoples will
know of the Lord!
1
Kings 8:59-61 “may
these words of mine, which I have prayed before the LORD, be near to
the LORD our God day and night, that he may uphold the cause of his
servant and the cause of his people Israel according to each day's need,
so that all the peoples of the earth may know that
the LORD is God and that there is no other. But your hearts must be
fully committed to the LORD our God, to live by his decrees and obey
his commands, as at this time."
- After he prays, Solomon addresses
the people
- He sees that as God blesses
them, the rest of the world will see and know.
- All they have to do is be
faithful to the Lord.
1
Kings 9:6,7 if
you or your sons turn away from me and do not observe the commands and
decrees I have given you and go off to serve other gods and worship
them, then I will cut off Israel from the land I have given them and
will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. Israel
will then become a byword and an object of ridicule among all
people.”
- The Lord in a dream warns
Solomon
- Not only can the world see
their blessing, but if they turn away from God, the world will see
and know that too.
1
Kings 10:1-10 When
the queen of Sheba
heard about the fame of Solomon and his relation to the name of the
LORD, she came to test him with hard questions… When the queen of Sheba
saw all the wisdom of Solomon and the palace he had built, the food
on his table, the seating of his officials, the attending servants in
their robes, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he made at the
temple of the LORD, she was overwhelmed. …… happy your men must be!
How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear
your wisdom! Praise be to the LORD your God, who has delighted in you
and placed you on the throne of Israel
.
Because of the LORD's eternal love for Israel,
he has made you king, to maintain justice and righteousness."
- This
is a classic case of fame spreading to other countries and God being
glorified.
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5.
The Prophets Look Out to the World
Throughout
the life of Israel,
‘prophets' who spoke out the heart and mind of God to the people, conveyed
the same message: this nation is all about letting God's light shine
to the rest of the world:
Isa
2:3,4
Many peoples
will come and say, "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that
we may walk in his paths." The law will go out from Zion,
the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
He will judge between the nations and will settle
disputes for many peoples.
- Isaiah
prophesies about a time in the future where the world will focus
on Jerusalem
because they want to know God's ways.
Isa
11:10
In
that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples;
the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will
be glorious.
- Isaiah speaks of the Messiah
who will draw people from all nations
Isa
25:6-8
On this mountain the LORD Almighty will prepare a feast of rich
food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine--the best
of meats and the finest of wines. On this mountain he will destroy the
shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers
all nations; he will swallow up death forever. The
Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces;
he will remove the disgrace of his people from all the earth.
- Isaiah is absolutely clear
that God's ultimate purposes include blessing for all the earth.
Isa
34:1,2 Come
near, you nations , and listen; pay attention, you
peoples! Let the earth hear, and all that
is in it, the world, and all that comes out of it!
The LORD is angry with all nations;
- But he is equally clear that
all the earth will be answerable to the Lord.
Isa
42:6 I
will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and
a light for the Gentiles
- This is Isaiah's classic statement
of God's purpose – to be a light to the Gentiles, to the rest of
the world
Isa
49:6 I
will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my salvation
to the ends of the earth.
- Isaiah reiterates the ‘light'
picture as he speaks of the coming Messiah
Isa
49:22 This
is what the Sovereign LORD says: "See, I will beckon to
the Gentiles, I will lift up my banner to the peoples;
they will bring your sons in their arms and carry your daughters on
their shoulders.
- When
there is a returning of Israel
to their land, the whole world
will know about it
- (Fulfilled after the Exile
and in the middle of the 20 th century)
- Zeph
3:19,20
says the same sort of thing.
Isa
55:4,5 See,
I have made him a witness to the peoples, a leader
and commander of the peoples. Surely you will summon nations
you know not, and nations that do not know you will hasten
to you, because of the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he
has endowed you with splendor."
- God's
blessing of Israel
(through the Messiah?) will draw all nations of the world.
Isa
60:1-3
Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD
rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is
over the peoples, but the LORD rises upon you and his
glory appears over you. Nations will come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
- Yet
again the same thing: God's blessing of Israel
will be seen by the whole
world who will be drawn
Isa
61:9 “Their
descendants will be known among the nations and their
offspring among the peoples. All who see them will
acknowledge that they are a people the LORD has blessed."
- This part of this prophecy
draws together much of the rest of it – that God's people will be
seen and recognised by the earth – seen to be a blessed people,
blessed by God.
Joel
2:17
Let the priests, who minister before the LORD, weep between the
temple porch and the altar. Let them say, "Spare your people, O
LORD. Do not make your inheritance an object of scorn, a byword among
the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, `Where
is their God?' "
- Even the minor prophets were
aware that their nation was on view to the rest of the world.
Mic
1:2
Hear, O peoples , all of you, listen, O
earth and all who are in it, that the Sovereign LORD may witness
against you, the Lord from his holy temple.
- Even Micah has a worldwide
perspective – God is the God of the whole world and the whole world
is accountable to Him.
Zech
8:20-22 This
is what the LORD Almighty says: "Many peoples
and the inhabitants of many cities will yet come, and the inhabitants
of one city will go to another and say, `Let us go at once to entreat
the LORD and seek the LORD Almighty. I myself am going.' And many
peoples and powerful nations will come to Jerusalem
to seek the LORD Almighty and to entreat him."
- Zechariah
also has a sense of a time when Jerusalem
will be a focus of people
from all over the world
- Again definitely a world view.
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6.
Life in a Foreign Court
The
book of Daniel is a remarkable book. It recounts the
story of a young Israelite man who turns out to be a prophet who gets
taken to another country where he lives in the court of a Gentile king,
an all-powerful king, Nebuchadnezzar. He is a witness to this and following
kings and we have remarkable accounts of God's dealing with them. This
is most definitely the God for whom national boundaries mean nothing.
Dan
4:1,2
“King Nebuchadnezzar, To the peoples, nations and men
of every language, who live in all the world: May you prosper greatly!
It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders
that the Most High God has performed for me.”
- This is possibly the most
amazing testimony of Scripture – this all-powerful king who has
been humbled by God now testifies to it to the whole world – incredible!
- It is a testimony that says
God deals with non-Jews – and blesses them!
Dan
4:34,35 At
the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my
eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most
High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever. His dominion is
an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation.
All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he
pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one
can hold back his hand or say to him: "What have you done?"
- This is the end of this great
king's testimony
- It
is not so much about Israel
being a testimony to the rest
of the world, but this gentile king making these amazing declarations.
Dan
6:25-27
Then King Darius wrote to all the peoples,
nations and men of every language throughout the land: "May
you prosper greatly! "I issue a decree that in every part of my
kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel. "For
he is the living God and he endures forever; his kingdom will not be
destroyed, his dominion will never end. He rescues and he saves; he
performs signs and wonders in the heavens and on the earth. He has rescued
Daniel from the power of the lions."
- Again another incredible testimony
from a Gentile king about the greatness of God
- It was not to the whole earth
but to all of his kingdom which was very extensive, peoples who
were not Jews.
Dan
7:13,14 "In
my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son
of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient
of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory
and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men
of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion
that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”
- Daniel's vision has worldwide
implications.
- This part speaks about the
coming Messiah who will have worldwide impact, but other parts of
the vision are all about other ‘kingdoms' that God will have dealings
with.
Ezra
1:1-3 In
the first year of Cyrus king of Persia ,
in order to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah, the LORD
moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout
his realm and to put it in writing: "This is what Cyrus king of
Persia says: "The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the
kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for
him at Jerusalem in Judah. Anyone of his people among you--may his God
be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple
of the LORD, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem.”
- Cyrus was a later successor
to Nebuchadnezzar
- Here
we find him being inspired to by God to release the Jews back to
their land to rebuild the Temple
and later the city.
- Again a great move of sovereign
God to bring about His purposes, using a Gentile king.
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7.
Further Instances of Testimony to Gentiles
a)
Rahab
Josh
2:1,2 Then
Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. "Go, look
over the land," he said, "especially Jericho
."
So they went and entered the house of a prostitute (or
possibly an innkeeper) named Rahab and
stayed there.”
- She
harbours these spies and sees them out safely and eventually, when
Jericho
is taken, she becomes part of Israel
and eventually marries Salmon,
an Israelite, and becomes part of the Messianic family line (see
Mt 1:4,5).
- She tells why she did it:
Josh
2:8-11 she
went up on the roof and said to them, "I know that the LORD has
given this land to you and that a great fear of you has fallen on us,
so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of
you . We have heard how the LORD dried up the water
of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did
to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom
you completely destroyed. When we heard of it , our
hearts melted and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the
LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.
•
She, with the whole city, had heard
what had been happening.
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