All Israel Will Be Saved (Part 3 of 3)

ALL ISRAEL WILL BE SAVED

“A partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, ‘The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob.’  ‘This is My covenant with them, when I take away their sins.’” (Rom 11:25-27)

The writers of the New Testament follow the existing pattern and make a distinction between the names Jacob and Israel.  Jacob is used when referring to the Patriarch, while Israel is used in reference to the collective descendants of Jacob (Matt 8:10), sometimes referred to as the “house of Israel” (Matt 15:24), the “sons of Israel” (2 Cor 3:7), the “nation of Israel” (Phil 3:5), and the “commonwealth of Israel” (Eph 2:12).  The name Israel is also used in reference to the physical land of the promise, the “land of Israel” (Matt 2:20). 

In the New Testament, the name “Israel” is rarely used in reference to the Patriarch.  However, at least one time, the name Israel was used by Paul in reference to both the man and the nation, “For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel,” (Rom 9:6).  In using the name “Israel” instead of “Jacob”, Paul alludes to the spiritual and not the physical.  Paul tells us that a person can physically descend from Jacob, but not be a spiritual descendant of the promise, who are called “Israel”.  Paul reinforces this point by offering the example of Abraham.  Abraham had two sons, but only “through Isaac your descendants will be named” and “the children of the promise are regarded as descendants,” (Rom 9:8).  It is not the physical sons of Jacob, but the spiritual sons of Israel that have a place in the world to come. 

Fifteen hundred years before the birth of Christ, Balaam prophesized, “I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; A star shall come forth from Jacob, a scepter shall rise from Israel,” (Num 24:17).  A “star” alludes to the physical nature of Jacob, like the “stars” in Joseph’s dream that represented Joseph’s brothers.  A “scepter” is the sign of a kingdom and the ruler of the kingdom of heaven.  Even Isaiah appears to use this pretext in writing, “It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved ones of Israel,” (Isa 49:6).  It is Jacob who is raised up in the physical resurrection, and Israel who are the spiritual “preserved ones” in the world to come. 

The contrast between the names Jacob and Israel does not work in every case.  Sometimes scripture just reinforces a statement by using both names as the testimony of two witnesses, “Gather together and hear, O sons of Jacob; and listen to Israel your father,” (Gen 49:2).   Isaiah has an interesting passage that relates the two names, “But now, thus says the LORD, your Creator, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel,” (Isa 43:1).  The words allude to the original creation with Jacob as the original created man and Israel as the woman who was “fashioned,” (Gen 2:22).   Both go together, and like marriage, represent the full manifestation of the Creator.  Without the Spirit, the flesh accounts for nothing.

Paul’s statement, “All Israel will be saved” (Rom 11:26), was said to be “provocative” by Dwight Pryor, as it was open to numerous interpretations.  However, when we see the historical usage of the names Jacob and Israel, we come to understand the truth being conveyed by Paul, “For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God,” (Rom 8:14).  The physical will be resurrected, but it is the those “led by the Spirit of God” that are the sons of Israel and have a place in the world to come, as written, “All Israel will be saved” (Rom 11:26).

Scott

 

All Israel Will Be Saved (Part 2 of 3)

DISTINCTIONS BETWEEN THE NAMES JACOB AND ISRAEL IN THE TANAK
 
Although the names Israel and Jacob are both used in the Hebrew text for the second son of Isaac, a close examination of scripture reveals a distinction in the use of the names. Israel is most frequently used in reference to the believing and spiritual filled condition of the Patriarch, while Jacob is more often used in reference to the original undegenerated man.
 
An example of this contrast comes from the Torah Club. When Jacob’s sons brought news to him that Joseph was still alive, the Patriarch did not initially believe and was referred to as “their father Jacob,” (Gen 45:25). As Jacob came to believe that Joseph was alive, “The spirit of their father Jacob revived. Israel said, ‘It is enough; my son Joseph is still alive,’” (Gen 45:28). Joseph is a type of Christ, the suffering Messiah and Jacob is a picture of the nation of Israel. As long as the Patriarch thought Joseph was dead, he is called “Jacob”. However, as soon as Jacob believes that Joseph is alive, his spirit is revived and he is referred to as “Israel”.
 
This interchange follows a pattern in scripture for the Patriarch. Genesis Chapter 37 begins, “Now Jacob lived in the land where his father had sojourned, in the land of Canaan. These are the records of the generations of Jacob,” (Gen 37:1-2). The passage then switches to the story of Joseph saying, “Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons,” (Gen 37:3). When speaking of Joseph, a type of Christ, the Patriarch is referred to as “Israel,” as written, “Israel said to Joseph, ‘Are not your brothers pasturing the flock in Shechem? Come, and I will send you to them,’” (Gen 37:13).
 
Shortly thereafter, the brothers of Joseph sold him into slavery. To cover the truth, they slaughtered a male goat and dipped Joseph’s tunic in blood to deceive their father into believing that Joseph is dead. We know that the Patriarch immediately believed that Joseph was dead because scripture records, “So Jacob tore his clothes,” (Gen 37:34). In the span of thirty-one verses, the Patriarch has gone from the believing and loving father “Israel”, to the grieving and unbelieving father “Jacob” who accepts Joseph as dead. The name “Israel” does not appear again in scripture until the family re-establishes their relationship with Joseph, “The sons of Israel came to buy grain among those were coming, for the famine was in the land of Canaan also. Now Joseph was the ruler over the land,” (Gen42:5-6).
 
The Patriarch remained as Jacob until he learned that Joseph was alive, (Gen 45:28). The believing Patriarch then set out for Egypt, “Israel set out with all that he had, and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac,” (Gen 46:1). Although referred to as Israel, the passage reflects some unbelief or concern on the part of the Patriarch by saying he offered sacrifices to “the God of his father Isaac,” but not saying to “the God of Israel”. Outwardly, the Patriarch doubted, whether or not his trip to Egypt was part of God’s plan. His doubting was reinforced by the next verse which contrasts both names, “God spoke to Israel in visions of the night and said, ‘Jacob, Jacob.’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ He said, ‘I am God, the God of your father; do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you a great nation there,” (Gen 46:2-3). Although referred to as “Israel”, God addressed the Patriarch as “Jacob, Jacob”.
 
Calling the Patriarch “Jacob, Jacob” appears to run contrary to an earlier verse is scripture, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob; But Israel shall be your name,” (Gen 33:10). The Sages have various explanations for God calling the Patriarch, “Jacob, Jacob”. The Zohar stated that the repetition of the name was “intended to animate his spirit and spur him on.” Radak offers, “God now called his name twice so that he should truly understand that it was a Prophetic Spirit that was summoning him.” Artscroll summarizes the event this way,
 
“God had given Jacob the name Israel and that name is used three times in this section (verses 46:1, 2, and 5), but, in addressing him now, God calls him Jacob. This implies that during his forthcoming stay in Egypt he would not ‘contend with God and man and triumph’, as the name Israel intimates, rather he would be in a house of bondage until God will bring him back…The family is given a name alluding to their future growth in Egypt ‘children of Israel’, but the father, who would not live to share that happy fate, is called Jacob.”
 
From this point onward in scripture, the nation will be referred to as “the sons of Israel”, but the Patriarch will be referred to as “Jacob”, “the sons of Israel carried their father Jacob and their little ones and the wives in the wagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him,” (Gen 46:5). One exception to this pattern occurred when the Patriarch came into the presence of Joseph:
 
“Joseph prepared his chariot and went up to Goshen to meet his father Israel” (Gen 46:29), “Then Israel said to Joseph, ‘Now let me die, since I have seen your face, that you are still alive” (Gen 46:30), “When the time for Israel to die drew near, he called his son Joseph” (Gen 47:29), “When it was told to Jacob, ‘Behold, your son Joseph has come to you,’ Israel collected his strength and sat up in the bed” (Gen 48:2), “Israel saw Joseph’s sons” (Gen 48:8, 48:10, 48:11, 48:14, 48:21), “Listen to Israel your father” (Gen 49:7), “So the physicians embalmed Israel,” (Gen 50:2).
 
In the presence of Joseph, the savior of Israel and a pattern of the Messiah, the Patriarch is revived and referred to as Israel. Apart from Joseph, the Patriarch remains Jacob. The Patriarch is seen to pass from this world in a state of belief, “So the physicians embalmed Israel.”
 
Scott

All Israel Will Be Saved (Part 1 of 3)

INTRODUCTION
 
The three Patriarchs are commonly referred to in scripture as “Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,” (Matt 8:11). As most believers know, Jacob is also called “Israel”, a name given to him after he struggled with the Angel of God as Jacob reentered the land of Canaan, (Gen 32:28). What I fail to comprehend is why the predominant name used in scripture for the Patriarch is Jacob. After all, once Abram’s name was changed by the LORD to Abraham (Gen 17:5), he is thereafter referred to as Abraham. Abraham’s wife Sarai also received a name change to Sarah (Gen17:15), and Sarai is not used again in scripture. Further, God instructed Abraham and Sarah to name the son of the promise Isaac, (Gen 17:19). However, the name Jacob, “heel catcher” was apparently given by his parents for events surrounding his birth, (Gen 25:26).
 
If given the opportunity to choose between a name given by a person’s parents or one given by God, the name given by God should win out. Yet, over and over in the Hebrew text, the covenant God made with the Patriarchs is referred to as “His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,” (Ex 2:24). For this and other scripture references, the daily Amidah prayer, as in most Hebrew prayers, refers to the Patriarchs as “Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” Even Jesus, when discussing the resurrection of the dead used as His proof text, “‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ He is not the God of the dead but of the living,” (Matt 22:32). In reference to the future banquet of the saints, Jesus said, “I say to you that many will come from east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven,” (Matt 8:11).

JACOB’S NAME CHANGED TO ISRAEL
 
A fascinating exercise is to study how the names Jacob and Israel are used to identify the Patriarch in the Hebrew text. When Jacob fled from his brother, we are told “He came to a certain place and spent the night there because the sun had set; and he took one of the stones of the place and put it under his head, and lay down in that place,” (Gen 28:11). The phrase “the sun had set,” is seen by some to indicate the spiritual condition of Jacob as he left the land of Israel. At this place and time, Jacob had not fully embraced the God of Abraham and Isaac, but vowed, “If God will be with me and will keep me on this journey that I take, and will give me food to eat and garments to wear, and I return to my father’s house in safety, the LORD will be my God,” (Gen 28:20-21).

Over twenty years later, Jacob returned to the land with his wives and children. During the night just prior to his re-entry into the land, Jacob wrestled with the Man of God and received the name Israel, “for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed,” (Gen 32:28). Jacob concluded, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been preserved,” (Gen 32:30). The next verse relates a change in the spiritual condition of the Patriarch, “Now the sun rose upon him just as he crossed over Penuel,” (Gen 32:31). The imagery for the reader is clear. Jacob left the land when the sun was setting, doubting the existence of God. When Jacob re-entered the land, he had an encounter that made God very real to him. Jacob received a name change to Israel reflecting a change in his spiritual condition, i.e., the “sun rose upon him” both physically and spiritually. He then crossed the Penuel and entered into the Promised Land.

After the killing of Hamor and his son Shechem by Simeon and Levi (Gen 34:26), Jacob fled to Bethel in the land of Canaan, where the LORD first appeared to him. During this time, after struggling with the Angel of God, the Patriarch is still referred to as Jacob. At this time, the LORD appeared to Jacob a second time, blessed him and said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob; But Israel shall be your name,” (Gen 35:10). Again we see the name Israel used for the Patriarch when he has a relationship with God.

Have a Blessed New Year - Scott