{"id":53369,"date":"2019-09-12T11:57:43","date_gmt":"2019-09-12T08:57:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wingulamashahidi.org\/?p=53369"},"modified":"2025-07-23T22:55:41","modified_gmt":"2025-07-23T19:55:41","slug":"israelites-are-returning-to-their-homeland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wingulamashahidi.org\/en\/2019\/09\/12\/israelites-are-returning-to-their-homeland\/","title":{"rendered":"ISRAELITES ARE RETURNING TO THEIR HOMELAND"},"content":{"rendered":"

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR US TODAY?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Shalom, beloved of God.<\/strong> Let us reflect on the Word of the Lord together. Scripture tells us:<\/p>\n

\u201cYour word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.\u201d<\/em> (Psalm 119:105)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

God\u2019s Word lights the way for our lives, guiding us through a dark world. That\u2019s why it\u2019s vital that we meditate on it daily, so we can live uprightly before Him.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word.\u201d<\/em> (Psalm 119:9)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

We Are Living at the End of the Last Days<\/strong><\/h3>\n

We\u2019re not just in the “last days”\u2014we’re at the very edge of them. The \u201clast days\u201d began at Pentecost (see Acts 2:17), but we now live in the final stretch before the return of Christ. One of the most powerful prophetic signs of this final hour is the restoration of the nation of Israel<\/strong>\u2014a fulfillment of multiple Old Testament prophecies.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe will set up a banner for the nations, and will assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.\u201d<\/em> (Isaiah 11:12)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Despite being a small nation, Israel is constantly at the center of world attention. This isn\u2019t coincidence\u2014it\u2019s prophetic fulfillment<\/strong>. The world\u2019s increasing focus on Israel signals that God\u2019s redemptive plan is moving forward rapidly.<\/p>\n

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Israel\u2019s Long Exile and Prophetic Restoration<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Many of us were born when Israel was already a nation, but historically, Israel ceased to exist as a sovereign state for nearly 2,500 years<\/strong> after the Babylonian exile and the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. It wasn\u2019t until May 14, 1948<\/strong>, that Israel was reestablished as a nation\u2014fulfilling Ezekiel\u2019s vision of dry bones coming to life:<\/p>\n

\u201cI will bring you into your own land. Then you shall know that I am the Lord.\u201d<\/em> (Ezekiel 37:12\u201313)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The scattering of the Jews was part of God’s plan to open the door of salvation to Gentiles (non-Jews)<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

\u201c…Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.\u201d<\/em>
\n(Luke 21:24)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This period\u2014\u201cthe times of the Gentiles\u201d\u2014refers to the era where God’s focus shifted toward the salvation of the nations.<\/p>\n

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The Fall of the Jews Brought Salvation to the World<\/strong><\/h3>\n

When the Jewish people rejected Jesus as their Messiah (John 1:11), it wasn\u2019t the end of their story\u2014it was the beginning of God\u2019s plan to extend grace to the Gentiles. As painful as their rejection was, it opened a doorway for the rest of the world:<\/p>\n

\u201cThrough their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles.\u201d<\/em> (Romans 11:11)
\n\u201cFor if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?\u201d<\/em> (Romans 11:15)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This doesn\u2019t mean the Jewish people were permanently rejected. Paul makes it clear: God has not cast away His people<\/strong> (Romans 11:1). Rather, their partial blindness is temporary<\/strong>, and their full restoration is coming<\/strong> (Romans 11:25\u201326).<\/p>\n

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God Used Their Scattering for His Glory<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Even in exile, God used the Jewish people to bless the nations they were sent to:<\/p>\n