Hope of Israel Ministries (Ecclesia of YEHOVAH):

Just Who Belongs to Abraham's Seed?

by Bob Vermaat

It is interesting, and very important to note, that here YEHOVAH God chooses Isaac only, and elected him only, of the eight sons of Abraham, to represent the chosen bloodline from which, in due time, would flow all of Israel's blood, a people that YEHOVAH God would set aside to be a peculiar, servant people unto Himself:

Deuteronomy 7:6: "For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto Himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth." 

And, in Amos 3:2, YEHOVAH God says, "You only have I known of all the families of the earth." There are many more verses that I could quote to sustain this fact that YEHOVAH God has set Israel apart for reasons only known to Himself, but is all tied to the promises that YEHOVAH made to Father Abraham. Israel ONLY was chosen by YEHOVAH God, He sanctified them and ordained them to be His servant people on this earth, to be YEHOVAH's witnesses to the world at large. YEHOVAH God anointed them to this task when He formed them into a single nation, instead of twelve individual tribes, at Mt. Sinai.

With all this said, let us now take a look at Paul's Epistle to the Galatians, chapter three and primarily the last few verses:

Galatians 26-29: "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." 

These verses have been the source of a lot of confusion and misconception in the church world for many a year. I was listening to a well-known Evangelist just recently and he expounded on the falsehood that regardless of race or origin all believers in the Messiah are spiritual Israelites, and thus regarded as the seed of Abraham.

Now I, personally, have a hard time getting my head around the concept of spiritual Israelites. It makes no sense and has no Biblical background. YEHOVAH God chose a physical people of flesh and blood to be a peculiar people unto Himself, and even though sinful, YEHOVAH never said that He would replace them. As a matter of fact, it states in His Word that they (Israel) would be a people unto Him forever. 2 Samuel 7:24 plainly states,

"For thou hast confirmed to thyself thy people, Israel, to be a people unto thee forever".

This fact is also confirmed in Jeremiah 31:35,36, where the prophet states that, as long as the sun, the moon, and the stars stay in their orbits, so long shall the people of Israel be a nation before the LORD forever, thus Israel will always be a physical entity and can never be spiritualized or spiritually added to.

Let us, at this point, return again to the verses in Galatians 3 quoted previously. When we look at these four verses we will find the word the Messiah used five times, twice in connection with himself, and three times by itself, and these are the ones we must focus on, for I believe that the misconception lies in how they are used. For many, many, years ministers and pastors in the mainstream churches, and to some extent even Christian-Identity preachers, have used the word, "Christ," as a second or surname for the Messiah. Yeshua is the name mandated by YEHOVAH God, through the Angel Gabriel as stated in Matthew 1:21, Yeshua, NOT Christ.

Christ is not a name, Christ is an indication of what the Messiah is, namely, set apart, anointed of YEHOVAH God, very special. In the New Testament the word "Christ" is used 558 times and, according to Strong's Concordance, it is the Greek word Cristos, Strong's #5547 -- meaning "anointed". So, you can see that the word "Christ" is not a name, but an indication of a person or, as in Galatians 3:29, a people, the seed of Abraham. At this point, using the Diaglott, which is a word for word translation into English of the original Greek text, and paraphrases the verses in Galatians 3, quoted earlier,

"26 For ye are all sons of God by faith in Anointed [Cristos] Jesus. 'For as many of you as have been baptized into the Anointed [Cristos] have been clothed in Anointing. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Anointed [Cristos] Jesus. 29 And if ye be Anointed [Cristos], then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise."

So, you can see that when we use the proper word "Anointed" instead of Christ, there can be no doubt as to who the seed of Abraham is, it is Israel, and cannot, and should not, be spiritualized.

Paul consistently compares YEHOVAH’s Israel people to the BODY, describing YEHOVAH’s people the” Body of Christ”. The word translated as “Christ” is adjectival in the Received Text, which means YEHOVAH’s people are members of an anointed body of people.

The Basic Dilemma

To say that there is a natural Israel and a spiritual Israel is the only way out of the dilemma some people have in trying to fit their doctrines and prophecy together. Their dilemma arises from the WRONG basic traditional teaching that:

(a) The Jews are National Israel, (or "Natural Israel" or "God’s natural people").

(b) The Gentiles are The Church, (or "Spiritual Israel" or "God’s heavenly people").

It is shown that "The Jews" are not Israel and that "Gentiles" may be Israelites. Obviously there are two groups of peoples concerned. There is no denying this. This is why it is so important to determine exactly who the two groups are. In the Old Testament there is no dispute about this. Israel separated into two Kingdoms which were basically:

(a) The House of Israel (ten Tribes)….known as Ephraim.

(b) The House of Judah (two Tribes)…known as Judah.

These two Houses had enmity between them and, according to prophecy, they retain this enmity until unity is restored under the New Testament that the two Houses receive nationally. The timing of the reunion is at the time of the re-gathering of both Houses of all Israel. Ephraim and Judah are unique identities through Scripture, from the time of the division of Israel into two Kingdoms, until the re-gathering of Israel as a whole. Ephraim was, and is, the leader of the House of Israel -- (ten tribes) whereas Judah was, and is, the leader of the House of Judah -- (two tribes).

Isaiah 11:12-13: "...and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth. The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim."

Here, in the Old Testament, we find two groups within all Israel which stay two national groups until the time given to once again become one group. They are still the two groups to whom the New Testament was given.

Hebrews 8:8-9: "Behold the days come, saith the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah: not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt;…"

There is no record in Scripture of the New Testament being made with any other two groups. This verse says that they are the same race with which YEHOVAH God was involved in the Exodus from Egypt. Again we have definition in the words "their fathers." This gives a racial statement of meaning that cannot be spiritualized. The problem that then arises is, that if the covenant people were to be spiritualized into two different groups, one Israelite and the other non-Israelite, then one of the original two national groups would have to have vanished, or the two combined before the appointed time.

Despite the fact that this cannot be found in prophecy in the Old Testament, or in the New Testament as fulfillment of prophecy, the belief about Jews and non-Israel Gentiles is still taught as being truth. In order to accommodate all races, the other doctrine had to be created and this is actively promoted.

This non-scriptural doctrine pre-supposes that non-Israel races need salvation from a broken law that they were not given to break in the first place. This idea cannot be found as a doctrine in either Testament.

The idea about all races needing redemption comes mainly from the misuse of "all", "whosoever" etc. in the New Testament. But there is no denial that the non-Israel nations should be made subject to the Law of YEHOVAH God. YEHOVAH God will rule with a rod of iron, and the nations will bring their glory to the New Jerusalem, but we are told that the other non-Israelite nations ruled will be outside that City.

The extra-scriptural doctrine about "Jews and Gentiles" arises from interpretations of the books of Romans and Galatians. But, the racial statements cannot be eliminated from these books, even if it is thought YEHOVAH God should have given the covenants to every race on Earth. The expressions, "The House of Israel", and "The Twelve Tribes" still are found through the New Testament.

In concluding his argument about the so-called "Jews and Gentiles", the apostle Paul says:

Romans 11:26: "And so all Israel shall be saved; as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away un-godliness from Jacob."

From whom? There is no mention about any but all Israel being saved. None other than the seed of Jacob are included in being turned from un-godliness. Other races can never be part of "all Israel" or "Jacob".

Romans 3:30: "Seeing that it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith."

Those whom YEHOVAH God would justify are shown to be:

(a) The Circumcision…….The House of Judah….Basically two tribes.

(b) The Uncircumcision…The House of Israel…..Basically ten tribes.

The House of Israel had become dispersed among the nations and were known as the uncircumcision. They had become as strangers and aliens to the Judeans, but they were still Israelites by race.

To the Judeans, who had the Temple worship, the House of Israel was unclean and was despised.

Romans 4:13: "For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith."

It is still to Abraham’s seed through Isaac that the promises were made. This includes all from Jacob to the Messiah who believed YEHOVAH God. All Israel is saved by the Messiah, but it is personal belief in what YEHOVAH God says that saves the individual person within that seed. The popular, but false, doctrine says the seed is only a spiritual seed which can be made up from all races.

Romans 4:16: "...to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed."

Paul is not talking about other races. It is always to the one seed of Abraham through Isaac and Jacob. These are the children of promise. Prophetically the New Testament is made only with the two Houses, the House of Israel and the House of Judah. Hebrews 8:8 shows the promise of the New Testament concerns only these two Houses. This is the fulfillment of Jeremiah 31:31. Paul sums up the two parties, and declares:

Romans 9:4: "Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption."

All the objections in the world are not going to change what pertains to Israel or to the Word of the LORD. This verse says Who ARE Israelites. "Adoption" and "grafting in" ONLY applies to Israelites.

None of either African or Asian origin races, for instance, can ever be called an Israelite, therefore they cannot be called Abraham's seed! That distinction is only set aside for Abraham's kin through the genetic line of Isaac. "For in Isaac shall thy seed by called."

What About the Non-Israelite Races?

-- Edited by John D. Keyser.

Hope of Israel Ministries -- Courage for the Sake of Truth is Far Better Than Silence for the Sake of Unity!

Hope of Israel Ministries P.O. Box 853 Azusa, CA 91702, U.S.A. www.hope-of-israel.org

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