Individuals subscribing to Dispensationalism, Zionism, Pre-Millennialism, and Jewish Restorationism are extremely ignorant of Scripture. Because they fail to pay attention to and understand Scripture, they argue against the strawmen of "Replacement Theology" and "Supersessionism," when what the Bible teaches is Expansion Theology. These individuals argue that any biblical hermeneutic that is not Judeo-centric is "anti-Semetic." Sorry, but you can only be anti-Semetic if you are prejudiced against Jewish people. Stating certain facts as presented and revealed in Scripture is not being "anti-Semetic." We are not to hate the Jews, but neither are we to worship them (see Concerning Jews).
Was Jesus anti-Semetic? Jesus was a Jew, yet He made certain statements concerning physical, national Israel that cannot be ignored—or denied. The parables in Matthew 21:33-46; 22:1-14; and Mark 12:1-12 (see also Matt. 8:11-13; Luke 13:28-29) all speak toward the kingdom of God being taken from the Jews (who were chosen by God to be His representatives to all other nations) and given to a nation producing the fruit of this kingdom. "You are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God's OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light" (1 Pet. 2:9). This was spoken to Christians; Christ's church, which consists of Jewish believers and Gentile believers, Old Testament saints and New Testament saints! The church is the new nation producing the fruit of God's kingdom.
Individuals who try and argue a future for physical, national Israel usually do so from a Pharisaical interpretation of the Old Testament based on a Judeo-centric hermeneutic derived from reading Scripture eisegetically rather than in its historical and theological contexts. Let us look at a couple examples.
EXAMPLE #1: The Land Promise
God promised Abram a land (Genesis 12:7; 13:14-15; 15:18-21; 17:8).
God promises Isaac the land (Genesis 26:2-5).
God promises Jacob the land (Genesis 28:13-15).
Joseph encourages his brothers with God's promise to give them the land (Genesis 50:24).
God promises to bring the Israelites to the land he promised Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Exodus 6:8).
Joshua says they took the land (11:23).
Joshua also says that God gave them the land as He had promised and they possessed it (21:41-45). Promise FULFILLED!
Both Solomon and Nehemiah claim that God gave them the land as promised and they possessed it (1 Kings 4:20-21; Nehemiah 9:12-25).
God promises blessings upon Israel for their obedience (Deuteronomy 28:1-14) and curses upon Israel for their disobedience (vv.15-68). If they obeyed, God promised to prosper them in the land (v.8). If they disobeyed, God promised to remove them from the land (vv.21, 36, 63).
They disobeyed.
God promises that if Israel returns to Him with their whole heart and soul, then God will restore them (Deuteronomy 30:1-10).
There is one return to the land promised in Scripture—not two!
"So it shall be when all of these things have come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have set before you, and you call them to mind in all nations where the LORD your God has banished you, and you return to the LORD your God and obey Him with all your heart and soul according to all that I command you today, you and your sons, then the LORD your God will restore you from captivity, and have compassion on you, and will gather you again from all the peoples where the LORD your God has scattered you." Deuteronomy 30:1-3
What captivity could this passage possibly be speaking of? The Babylonian captivity.
What could it possibly mean by reference to "nations" where they were banished? The northern kingdom was taken captive by Assyria. The southern kingdom was taken captive by Babylon. Assyria and Babylon account for "nations." There is nothing that says the use of "nations" refers to, or must refer to, all nations.
Zionists/Dispensationalists claim that there are two returns to the land, quoting passages like Isaiah 43:5-6; Jeremiah 16:14–15; 23:3, 7–8; 29:14; and 31:7–8. They read into the Isaiah passage something that is not there. "Ends of the earth" does not need to mean "from everywhere on the planet," but "from the ends of the known world," to where they were dispersed.
In the Jeremiah passages of 16:14-15 and 23:7-8, does "Israel" mean all of Israel, or is it speaking strictly of the northern kingdom? In these passages, it mentions "Israel" and bringing them back from "the north," which is where the northern kingdom was taken captive by Assyria. Paying attention to the context of 29:14, you know that this return is from the Babylonian captivity (v.10).
The creation of Israel as a nation and the return of Jews in 1948 was not a fulfillment of any prophecy! This act was not from God. Deuteronomy 30:1-3 states matter of factly that in order for them to return to their land, they would have to repent and return to God with their whole hearts. What would that returning look like today? They would have to accept and embrace Christ Jesus as the Messiah. This has never happened!
This making Israel a nation again and encouraging Jews to return to their land was an act of Zionists in attempt of a self-fulfilled prophecy based on the erroneous and bankrupt theology of Dispensationalism. All the prophecies about being brought back to the land were speaking with regard to AFTER the Babylonian captivity, which has already been FULFILLED. No other such prophecy of a return exists!
There is one and only one return prophesied in Scripture, and it already happened.
Syria was north of Israel. Assyria was north-east of Israel. Babylon was east of Israel. Egypt was west and south of Israel.
The promises were spoken to Abraham and his Seed—Jesus the Messiah (Galatians 3:16).
The land Abraham was looking forward to was not a patch of land in the Middle East (Hebrews 11:8-10,13-16).
EXAMPLE #2: The Temple
David wanted to build a temple for God (2 Samuel 7:1-17), but God said that Solomon would be the one to do so (v.13).
The first temple was built by Solomon (1 Kings 5-9). It took 7 years.
Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem (Jeremiah 52), and set fire to the temple (v.13).
The first temple was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar.
The captivity of the Jews in Babylon for a period of 70 years took place.
Daniel lived during the captivity.
Over 100 years before he was even born, Cyrus was prophesied to rebuild Jerusalem—by name (Isaiah 44:28-44). He gave the command to rebuild the temple (Ezra 1:1-4) and restored all the temple vessels (vv.5-11).
The second temple was built under the prophets Ezra and Nehemiah. It took 49 years (Daniel 9:25).
The Jews said it took 46 years to build (John 2:19-21).
Jesus predicted the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple (Matthew 24:1-14; Mark 13:1-32; Luke 1-24), prophesying over Jerusalem that their temple was being left to them desolate [lonesome, waste, desert, empty] (Matthew 23:37-39). God would no longer be found in that place.
Titus and the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the temple in A.D. 70.
No prediction was ever made of it ever being rebuilt ever again in the future.
If another temple was ever to be built again, it would be in vain because God would not inhabit it. Re-instituting sacrifices would be in vain because Hebrews makes it clear that Jesus was the sacrifice to end all sacrifices and that the former sacrifices were merely types and shadows of Christ. The passages quoted for support of these supposed re-instituted sacrifices are all past-history passages, specifically stating "to make atonement." There's nothing stated about "memorials."
Various passages in the Old Testament, Zionists/Dispensationalists attempt to quote and apply to a future third temple. No such prophecies were ever made. If you look at history, when these men existed and what took place at that time, and you see who their contemporaries were, they are all speaking with regard to the second temple. After the Babylonian captivity, God would call them back to the land, when they had repented with their whole hearts, and they would rebuild the temple. Period!
Joel, Hosea, Amos, Isaiah, Micah, Nahum, and Zephaniah (in that order) all wrote prior to the Babylonian captivity. Any prophecies about returning to the land and rebuilding the temple had to do with AFTER this period.
Jeremiah lived prior to and during the Babylonian captivity. Any prophecies about returning to the land and rebuilding the temple had to do with AFTER this period.
Daniel, Ezekiel, and Obadiah were written during the Babylonian captivity. Any prophecies about returning to the land and rebuilding the temple had to do with AFTER this period.
Ezra wrote during Cyrus' reign, before and during the rebuilding of Jerusalem.
Haggai, and Zechariah wrote during Darius' reign, before or during the rebuilding of Jerusalem.
Nehemiah wrote during and after the rebuilding of Jerusalem.
Amos 9:11 says, "In that day I will raise up the fallen booth of David, And wall up its breaches; I will also raise up its ruins And rebuild it as in the days of old." Amos was written BEFORE the Babylonian captivity. This prophecy has to do with the building of the SECOND temple. However, James quotes this passage in Acts 15:15-17 in connection with something Peter had said. In 1 Peter 2:4-5, Peter clearly acknowledges the church as the temple of God.
Ephesians makes it clear that we, the church, are the new temple (vv.19-22). God does not dwell in temples made by human hands (Acts 7:48; 17:24). He indwells us.
There will never be another physical God-ordained temple!
EXAMPLE #3: The Kingdom
At the beginning of Jesus' ministry, He announced, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand" (Mark 1:15). What time is He referring to? For the good student of the Word the answer is simple. Daniel had predicted four empires: Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome. Then, "in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom" (Dan. 2:44). In the days of which kings? In the days of the Roman kings. Jesus later said, "There are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of god after it has come with power" (Mark 9:1). When the Pharisees asked Jesus about this kingdom, He stated clearly to them, "The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed" and "behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst" (Luke 17:20-21). He said to Pilate, "My kingdom is not of this world" (John 18:36). Yet Dispensationalists and Zionists are still looking for the coming of a physical kingdom to be preceded by signs. Talk about willful ignorance and deliberately ignoring or denying what Jesus said. Wow!
These individuals think that Jesus will be sitting on a literal, physical throne, when Scripture teaches no such thing. If they bothered to pay attention to what their Bible has to say, they would see exactly what kind of throne it was. When you get right down to it, these individuals are incapable of putting two and two together. They rip Scripture out of context and then force their own future agenda upon their randomly isolated verses.
The miracle of the cursed fig tree (Matt. 21:18-22; Mark 11:12-14) and the parable of the fruitless fig tree (Luke 13:6-9) all have to do with the physical nation of Israel. God was seeking fruit from them, since He chose them as a nation and gave them His statutes. They were supposed to be salt and light to the other nations. But Israel failed time and time again, rejecting God and chasing after false idols.
When Peter asked Jesus how many times he was to forgive his brother, and Jesus responded with "seventy times seven times," He was addressing something deeper and making a point. Seventy times seven is 490. Daniel was told that 490 years had been determined upon the physical nation of Israel. In the middle of the 70th week, they crucified their Messiah. At the end of the 70th week, they stoned Stephen to death. The Jews had finally and utterly rejected their Saviour. Since bringing Israel out of captivity and back into their land, God had been forgiving Israel for 490 years while they never learned their lesson and continued to turn their back on God.
These ignorant individuals who today want to revere the physical nation of Israel and put them on some kind of pedestal, need to educate themselves. Concerning the religion of the Jews today, Herman Wouk writes:
“The Talmud is to this day the circulating heart's blood of the Jewish religion. Whatever laws, customs or ceremonies we observe—whether we are Orthodox, Conservative, Reform or merely spasmodic sentimentalists—we follow the Talmud. It is our common law.”
Here are just some of the kinds of things you will find written in the Talmud:
“Jesus seduced, corrupted, and destroyed Israel.” Sanhedrin 107bIn Zohar III:282, the Talmud says that Jesus is buried in that:“dirt heap ... where they throw the dead bodies of dogs and asses, and where the sons of Esau and of Ishmael [Turks], also Jesus and Mohammad, uncircumcised and unclean like dead dogs, are buried.”
“Jesus is in hell and is being punished by being boiled in hot semen. Christians are boiled in dung.” Gittin 57a
“Jesus fornicated with his jack ass.” Sanhedrin 105a-b
“For murder, whether of a Cuthean (Gentile) by a Cuthean, or of an Israelite by a Cuthean, punishment is incurred; but of a Cuthean by an Israelite, there is no death penalty” Sanhedrin 57a
“A heathen is executed on the ruling of one judge, on the testimony of one witness, without a formal warning, on the evidence of a man, but not of a woman, even if he [the witness] be a relation.” Sanhedrin 57b
“Murdering Goim is like killing a wild animal” Sanhedrin 59a
“Whatever a Jew obtains from robbery of a Gentile, he may keep” Sanherin 57a
“A Goi who pries into the Law must be killed ...” Sanhedrin 59a
“When a grown man has intercourse with a little girl, it is nothing, for when the girl is less than three years old, it is as if one puts a finger into the eye - tears come to the eye again and again; and so does virginity come back to the little girl under three years” Kethuboth 11b
“…but when a small boy (less than nine years of age) has intercourse with a grown-up woman he makes her as 'a girl who is injured by a piece of wood (masturbating).” Kethuboth 11b
“When a grown man has had sexual intercourse with a little girl less than three years old or when a small boy less than nine years of age has intercourse with a grown up woman, or when a girl was accidentally injured by a piece of wood [during masturbation] ... there is in regard to them no charge of non-virginity” Kethuboth 11aThe reader should consider that Kethuboth 11a-b are part of the Mishnah or “Core Doctrine” of the Talmud.“Rab said: Pederasty with a child below nine years of age is not deemed as pederasty with a child above that. Samuel said: Pederasty with a child below three years is not treated as with a child above that” Sanhedrin 52b
“A Jew may sodomize a child as long as the child is less than nine years old” Sanhedrin 54b
“MISHNAH. A GIRL OF THE AGE OF THREE YEARS AND ONE DAY MAY BE BETROTHED BY INTERCOURSE; … IF SHE WAS MARRIED TO A PRIEST, SHE MAY EAT TERUMAH.” Niddah, 44b
“GEMARA. … R. Joseph said: Come and hear! A maiden aged three years and a day may be acquired in marriage by coition, and if her deceased husband's brother cohabits with her, she becomes his.” Sanhedrin 55b
Is it not ironic how much of these quotes are extremely similar to the same filth we find written in the Qur'an and other Islamic sources? These quotes are part of the heart of Jewish religion today. Therefore, it is irrefutable proof that God was not behind Israel becoming a nation again in 1948! Why?!? Because Scripture makes is abundantly clear in Deuteronomy 30:1-10 that in order for God to bring physical, national Israel back into the land, they would have to turn back to Him with their whole hearts. What would that look like?!? They would have to embrace Christ Jesus as their Messiah and Saviour!
Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, "It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first; since you repudiate it and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. For so the Lord has commanded us, 'I HAVE PLACED YOU AS A LIGHT FOR THE GENTILES, THAT YOU MAY BRING SALVATION TO THE END OF THE EARTH.'" When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed. (Acts 13:46-48)
Jesus commanded His disciples to start in Jerusalem and then go to all the world. In every place they went to, they were to go to the Jew first and then to the Gentile. If you desire to learn the truth as presented in the Bible concerning the Mystery of the Gentiles, then learn your Bible and its timeline in history well. Individuals of the Dispensational/Zionist persuasion tend to ignore the New Testament and read the Old Testament in the same manner in which the Pharisees did, which is what lead to them missing the first coming of Christ and not understanding His kingdom in the least.
There is no physical kingdom!
There is no "thousand-year" millennial kingdom!
There is no promise(s) yet to be fulfilled!
There is no rebuilt temple!
There is no returning to sacrifices!
READ your Bibles!!!
Make no mistake about it, there is a future for Jews. Paul addresses this in Romans 11:1-10. He says in verse 5, "In the same way then, there has also come to be at the present time a remnant according to God's gracious choice." The same can be said today. Each and every single Jew will not be saved, but throughout all time God has kept a remnant of Jews for Himself, who believe the Gospel and trust in Christ as their Messiah Saviour. God has not forgotten them.
The Bible's eschatology is Christ-centric—not Judeo-centric! There is no future for physical, national Israel. The New Testament has made this abundantly clear for those who have eyes to see, ears to hear, and minds to understand. The physical nation of Israel is not going to sit in judgment over other nations; the church is! The church will also judge angels! The true Israel is the church, and the church is spiritual Israel.