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Pastor Scott L. Harris
Grace Bible Church, NY
January 21, 2024
Prophecies of Restoration Near & Far
Selected Scriptures
Introduction
The point of last week’s sermon was rather simple. The Jews are and remain God’s chosen people not because of anything inherent in them and despite their obstinacy and sin (Deut. 7:7; 9:6) but because God set His love upon them according to the oath and covenant He swore to their forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Deut. 7:8). That does not mean that all Jews will receive God’s blessing since their disobedience to Him brings upon them His curses as set forth in the Mosaic law, yet God always has a remnant that are descendants of Abraham both physically and in faith. I should also quickly mention here that there has also always been a remnant of Jews in the promised land even after the deportations by Assyria, Babylon and Rome. That remnant has often been small and oppressed, but Jews have been tied to the land since God made His covenant with Abraham, and there have been at least some Jews in the land since Joshua conquered and supplanted the various Canaanite tribes that had dwelt there. Arab claims to the land are contrary to God’s decrees.
At the present time, the Jews as a people are still in the time of refining and purging to make them pure until the end time which we noted in our study of Daniel 11:35. This includes the current State of Israel which is a nation of unbelief gathered back to the land out of compulsion and under God’s wrath as prophesied. The modern state of Israel should not be confused with the future eschatological nation of Israel even if God’s purging of it eventually results in that eschatological nation.
The importance of the Jews being and remaining God’s chosen people is directly related to God’s attributes and character. God has kept His promises of blessing, curses and restoration as detailed in the Pentateuch and the prophets and demonstrated in the history of the nation. Because of God’s attributes related to His sovereignty and His character of love, faithfulness and veracity, God will also keep all of His promises that are still to be fulfilled including a future nation of Jews gathered in belief and under the new covenant and the blessings that come with it. To discount or deny God’s covenant made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob that extends to their descendants living today and in the future is an attack on God’s attributes and character whether intended or not. A god that cannot be trusted to keep His covenants and promises is not the God who has revealed Himself in the Bible. Our own hope in the gospel of Jesus Christ is completely dependent upon the faithfulness and ability of God to keep His promises. That is Paul’s point in Romans 9-11. (See: Blessings, Curses & Restoration)
This week I want to expand on a point I made somewhat briefly last week that there are multiple restorations of Israel. Failure to recognize that fact is a reason for confusion on the future of Israel as a nation. While the promise of restoration of Israel back to the land following the Babylonian captivity is easily recognized since it has been fulfilled in history, additional restorations are not as easily recognized. This confusion is compounded by theological systems that believe that Jewish rejection of the Messiah resulted in God rejecting them as demonstrated by the destruction and deportation of the nation by the Romans in A.D. 70. Usually this accompanied by the companion belief that God has replaced the Jews with the Church in His covenants. That is simply not true, but it is a common belief that is becoming more popular, but then, Biblical ignorance is also becoming more dominant even among professing Christians.
As I pointed out last week, God’s covenants with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and his descendants were made unilaterally and are eternal. The promises of blessing for obedience and curses for disobedience within the Mosaic Law (Leviticus 26, Deuteronomy 27-28) are only related to what any particular generation or population would experience. They have no effect on the Abrahamic covenant that extends through Isaac, Jacob and his descendants. Within the Mosaic Law there are also promises of restoration. Some aspects are conditional upon repentance and other aspects are unilateral statements of what God will do. This morning I want to point out some of the details of that which will be followed by some detail about the promises concerning the first restoration. This will be followed by prophecies concerning an additional restoration. I will conclude with prophecies concerning a final restoration which corresponds to the Millennial kingdom.
Mosaic Promises of Restoration – Lev. 26:34-45; Deut. 30
I pointed out last week that Leviticus 26:40-43 ties restoration after a deportation to confession of iniquity and unfaithfulness against Yahweh and He would remember His covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and the land. That is a pattern in Jewish history from the time of the Judges onward. Godliness followed by prosperity leading to complacency then unfaithfulness and idolatry resulting in the forewarned curses and oppression. Eventually there would be confession and repentance resulting in God’s deliverance of them.
However, in Leviticus 26:44-45 God makes a unilateral promise that He will not break the covenant. 44 “Yet in spite of this, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not reject them, nor will I so abhor them as to destroy them, breaking My covenant with them; for I am Yahweh their God. 45 But I will remember for them the covenant with their ancestors, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God. I am Yahweh.” While there sin would result in suffering the curses due their disobedience, God has always kept His covenant promises to a remnant.
Deuteronomy 30 includes more details and specific promises of restoration after deportation and being scattered among the nations. Verses 1-5 are general promises of gathering them from the nations to which they were scattered and bringing them back to the land of their forefathers. Verse 6,8 is a promise regarding a future restoration in which God would circumcise their hearts and those of their descendants to love Yahweh their God with all their hearts and soul so that they would obey Him. Verses 9-10 is a promise of blessing after they have been restored if they obey Yahweh their God. And verses 11-14 is a promise that obeying God’s commandments would not be too hard for them for God’s word would be in their mouth and heart. That would be directly related to having circumcised hearts.
Because of its reference to having circumcised hearts, I equate this with the prophecy of the new covenant in Jeremiah 31:31 in which they would have new hearts. That is a characteristic of a future eschatological restoration and not either of the two restorations that have already taken place in recorded history.
Promises Concerning the First Restoration
The first restoration occurring after the Babylonian captivity is well known due to very specific prophecies concerning it and then the historical record of its occurrence in Ezra and Nehemiah. Sargon II of Assyria had taken Israel captive in 722 B.C. A little more than twenty years later his son, Sennacherib invaded Judah. Not long after this threat was removed when an angel of Yahweh killed 185,000 of the Assyrian army and Sennacherib returned to Nineveh, the prophet Isaiah foretold of the capture of Judah and Jerusalem by the Babylonians (Isaiah 39:5-7). Not long after this Isaiah prophesied of the future destruction of Babylon (Isaiah 43:14-21) and a restoration of the Jews back to the land due to a decree by a future king named Cyrus (Isaiah 44:28-5:1). This prophecy was given about 160 years prior to Cyrus’ decree which is recorded historically in 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 and Ezra 1.
The record of this prophecy and its fulfillment is important in confirming that the additional prophecies still to be fulfilled also come from God and will be fulfilled as stated in Isaiah 44:6–8 (LSB). 6 “Thus says Yahweh, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, Yahweh of hosts: ‘I am the first, and I am the last, And there is no God besides Me. 7 ‘Who is like Me? Let him call out and declare it; And let him tell it to Me in order, From the time that I established the ancient people. And let them declare to them the things that are to come And the events that are going to take place. 8 ‘Do not be in dread and do not be afraid; Have I not long since caused it to be heard to you and declared it? And you are My witnesses. Is there any God besides Me, Or is there any other Rock? I know of none.’”
Jeremiah 29:10 is the prophecy of the time length concerning the Babylonian captivity. “For thus says the Lord, ‘When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you back to this place.” It was this prophecy that prompted Daniel’s prayer followed by the prophetic answer of the angel in Daniel 9. The prophecies concerning the first restoration of the Jews back to the land after captivity and their fulfillment are now matters of history.
Promises Concerning a Compelled Restoration
Last week I also mentioned that Arnold Fruchtenbaum of Ariel Ministries published a book entitled, Israelology – The Missing Link in Systematic Theology, in which he points out that other prophecies foretell of at least two additional restorations. Since the future is still unfolding, it remains possible that there could be more, but the differences in the prophecies indicate there are at least two, one of which began with the Balfour Declaration in 1917 and became a reality with the establishment of the modern State of Israel in 1948 and which continues in the present time as Jews from around the world return to the land of their forefathers.
Though we glanced at both Ezekiel 20:33-38 and 22:17-22 last week we will look at them again today since the details in them describe a different gathering and return than either the first or the last restoration. The first restoration under Cyrus’ decree was of those who freely desired to do so and 42,360 did do so. These passages in Ezekiel describe a return driven by force instead of free desire that is followed by purging and refining under Yahweh’s wrath.
Ezekiel 20:33–38 reads, 33 “As I live,” declares Lord Yahweh, “surely with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out, I shall be king over you. 34 “I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the lands where you are scattered, with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out; 35 and I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face. 36 “As I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you,” declares the Lord God. 37 “I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant; 38 and I will purge from you the rebels and those who transgress against Me; I will bring them out of the land where they sojourn, but they will not enter the land of Israel. Thus you will know that I am Yahweh.”
In a similar vein Ezekiel 22:17–22 states, 17 And the word of Yahweh came to me, saying, 18 “Son of man, the house of Israel has become dross to Me; all of them are bronze and tin and iron and lead in the furnace; they are the dross of silver. 19 “Therefore, thus says Lord Yahweh, ‘Because all of you have become dross, therefore, behold, I am going to gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. 20 ‘As they gather silver and bronze and iron and lead and tin into the furnace to blow fire on it in order to melt it, so I will gather you in My anger and in My wrath and I will lay you there and melt you. 21 ‘I will gather you and blow on you with the fire of My wrath, and you will be melted in the midst of it. 22 ‘As silver is melted in the furnace, so you will be melted in the midst of it; and you will know that I, Yahweh, have poured out My wrath on you.’”
Please note that both of these passages describe a return to the land that is by compulsion and is accompanied by God’s judgment and wrath. Again, that does not match the first return which was voluntary and accompanied by blessings when they obeyed and curses when they did not according to the promises and warning in the Mosaic Law. As we will see in a few minutes, the future Final restoration is also one that though preceded by great judgment of the nations will conclude in great blessing for the Jews in which they will never be made a reproach to the nations or put to shame (Joel 2:9, 26) and they will be planted in the land and never be rooted out again (Amos 9:15).
The restoration that does fit the prophecies of Ezekiel 20:33-38 and 22:17-22 is the current one in which the modern state of Israel was born out of the holocaust and its expansion of population has largely been due to persecution suffered in other nations. Certainly there has been positive voluntary immigration from places like the United States in which persecution has been relatively minor, but the living situations in many other nations have compelled Jews to immigrate to Israel. Europe was a major source of immigrants in the aftermath of World War II. European Jews still immigrate due to persecution to this day. Jews in Communist countries got out if they could, and when the Iron Curtain finally fell, many fled at first opportunity. After the formation of the state of Israel, the Jews in the Islamic nations were forced to leave areas where they had lived since the Assyrian and Babylonian deportations. Seldom was there any compensation for the homes and business they had to leave behind. Those are facts conveniently ignored by the apologists for the so called and misnamed “Palestinians.” The current rise of anti-Semitism, which should actually be termed “anti-Israeli” or “anti-Jewish” since Jews are only one of several Semitic peoples (descendants of Shem), is also compelling Jews to immigrate to Israel even though it is a country that is in constant danger.
Since its founding, the state of Israel has been under constant attack if not in outright war as at the present time, then intifadas, by terrorists and in the halls of the United Nations. The people there have learned to live in the tension of being under constant threat. When I visited Israel in 2017 I admit that for the first few days I was a bit unnerved by the sight of Israeli military walking around carrying their Uzi sub-machine guns since that was so new to me. However, by my third week there I actually felt more at peace at the sight since I recognized these were people who were actively patrolling to keep people like me safe. The modern state of Israel fits the restoration foretold in Ezekiel 20 & 22, but it does not fit the still to come final restoration.
Promises Concerning a Final Restoration
Whatever becomes of the modern state of Israel, it should be understood that there is still yet a future restoration that will be quite different from what the state of Israel is today. The first hint of that is actually in the Abrahamic covenant itself. Some elements of the covenant have been fulfilled and are on going. Abraham’s name has been made great. He became a great nation and the father of a multitude of nations. All the families of the earth have been blessed through the Messiah who is descended from him. Those who bless him will be blessed and those who curse him will be cursed. There is one element in the covenant which is still to be fulfilled. A specific land described in Genesis 15:18-21 is promised to him and his descendants as an everlasting possession (Genesis 13:15; 17:8). Modern Israel possesses less than half of the area in the covenant.
Deuteronomy 30. The next clue is in the Torah in the promise of restoration in Deuteronomy 30. As I pointed out earlier it includes God circumcising their hearts to love Yahweh with all their heart and soul. That is the reason the Lord’s commands would then be near them in their mouth and heart to observe so that it is not too difficult for them or out of reach. Again, this matches the new covenant of Jeremiah 31:31-40. Please note the details of this covenant and what God will do for the Jews in the future.
Jeremiah 31:31–40 (LSB). 31 “Behold, days are coming,” declares Yahweh, “when I will cut a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant which I cut with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, but I was a husband to them,” declares Yahweh. 33 “But this is the covenant which I will cut with the house of Israel after those days,” declares Yahweh: “I will put My law within them, and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 “And they will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know Yahweh,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares Yahweh, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.” 35 Thus says Yahweh, Who gives the sun for light by day And the statutes for the moon and the stars for light by night, Who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar; Yahweh of hosts is His name: 36 “If these statutes are removed From before Me,” declares Yahweh, “Then the seed of Israel also will cease From being a nation before Me forever.” 37 Thus says Yahweh, “If the heavens above can be measured And the foundations of the earth searched out below, Then I will also reject all the seed of Israel For all that they have done,” declares Yahweh. 38 “Behold, days are coming,” declares Yahweh, “when the city will be rebuilt for Yahweh from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate. 39 “The measuring line will go out farther, straight ahead to the hill Gareb; then it will turn to Goah. 40 “And the whole valley of the dead bodies and of the ashes, and all the fields as far as the brook Kidron, to the corner of the Horse Gate toward the east, shall be holy to Yahweh; it will not be uprooted or pulled down anymore forever.”
1) Yahweh will put His law within them, writing it on their heart
2) Yahweh will be their God, and they shall be Yahweh’s people
3) Each one will know Yahweh
4) Their iniquity will be forgiven and their sins remembered no more
5) The seed of Israel will not cease to be a nation before Yahweh forever.
6) The seed of Israel will not be rejected by Yahweh
7) Jerusalem will be rebuilt and be holy to Yahweh forever
And while Hebrews 8 quotes this new covenant and those who are part of the church are beneficiaries of this covenant mediated by Jesus and ratified by His blood since we are grated into the root of Israel, this is specifically a “new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah” (Jeremiah 31:31 & Hebrews 8:8). This is the new covenant made with the remnant referenced in Romans 11:26 of “all Israel will be saved.” The church does not replace Israel for the “gifts and calling of God are irrevocable” (Romans 11:29).
There are additional prophecies given to Israel that will only be fulfilled in this future and final restoration as demonstrated in the language used in describing its blessings. Again, these are promises made by God to Jewish people that would be a future nation long before the church was born. The simple rule in hermeneutics that a Scripture passage must be interpreted according to the meaning intended for those to whom it was written excludes reading into these ancient texts that the church is a replacement for Israel as God’s chosen people. Again, that the church benefits from God’s promises to Israel is not the same as the church replacing Israel as the recipient of God’s promises. The church is but one subgroup of all the redeemed people of God. Old Testament saints were saved on the basis of faith in God to provide a future redeemer. Church saints are redeemed by faith in person and work of Jesus Christ as that redeemer. In the future there will be Tribulation saints who will be saved by faith in Jesus while the church itself is in heaven with Jesus. Future Millennial saints will be saved by faith in Jesus while the Church rules and reigns with Christ.
JOEL. Turn to the book of the prophet Joel. His book is found after Daniel as the second in minor prophets. Joel is written as a response to a terrible plague of locusts described in the first chapter. However, in 1:15 the prophet projects forward concerning a coming “day of Yahweh” that is near. This results in description of this impending day of the Yawheh in 2:1-14 and a call to repent in verses 15-17. From 2:18 – 3:21 Joel describes the eschatological day of Yahweh. That is the section I want us to concentrate our attention which begins, “Then Yahweh will be zealous for His land And will spare His people.”
Joel 2:19 is a promise from Yahweh to send them “grain, new wine, and oil” which will satisfy them in full followed by the statement “And I will never again make you a reproach among the nations.” Verse 20 is God’s destruction of the military forces that threatened Israel. Verses 21-25 is a call to rejoice because agriculture will be revived with plenty of grain, new wine and oil that will replace the prior depredations. In verses 26 & 27 the statement is repeated, “My people will never be put to shame.” Those are statements that do not fit anything in history or the present time.
Joel 2:28-32 is the section Peter quotes in Acts 2:17-21. Verses 28-29 describes the coming of the Holy Spirit and His ministry in people. Verses 30-32 described the celestial and terrestrial signs that accompany the day of Yahweh – blood, fire, columns of smoke, the darkening of the sun and the moon into blood. The same or similar signs are described in other eschatological passages (Matthew 24:29; Revelation 6:12-17; Isaiah 13:19; etc.). These signs are part of the judgment which is further described in 3:1-16 of Yahweh’s judgment on the nations that accompanies His restoration of the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem. Joel 3:19, 21 describe God’s judgment on Egypt and Edom and His avenging of innocent blood
Joel 3:17-18, 20 describes the bounty of the restoration of Judah and Jerusalem which also goes beyond anything in history or the present and therefore is future. Yahweh will dwell in Zion so Jerusalem will be holy with strangers passing through it no more. “The mountains will drip with sweet wine, And the hills will flow with milk, And all the brooks of Judah will flow with water; And a spring will go out from the house of Yahweh To water the valley of Shittim.” And “Judah will be inhabited forever And Jerusalem from generation to generation.”
AMOS. In the very next book in the minor prophets, Amos, there are five promises of a future restoration of Israel that are also far beyond anything in history or the present. These future blessings for Israel follow God’s judgment of the nations.
Amos 1-2 contain eight prophecies of judgment against the nations for their sins. Amos 3-6 gives three sermons about Israel. Two concern God’s judgments about them because of there sin and one is a call to repent and seek Yahweh that they might live. Amos 7-9:10 reveals five visions of God’s condemnation of Israel, but Amos 9:11-15 is God’s promise of restoration. This prophecy follows the same pattern found throughout the Hebrew Scriptures. Warnings and calls to repentance followed by condemnation for sin but concluding with a message of hope because there would be future restoration.
Amos 9:11–15 (LSB), 11 “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 ancient days, 12 That they may possess the remnant of Edom And all the nations who are called by My name,” Declares Yahweh who does this. 13 “Behold, days are coming,” declares Yahweh, “When the plowman will overtake the reaper And the treader of grapes him who sows seed; When the mountains will drip sweet wine And all the hills will melt. 14 “Also I will restore the captivity of My people Israel, And they will rebuild the desolated cities and live in them; They will also plant vineyards and drink their wine And make gardens and eat their fruit. 15 “I will also plant them on their land, And they will not again be uprooted from their land Which I have given them,” Says Yahweh your God.
This is an unparalleled prosperity. And while the idea of the plowman who prepares the field for the next crop overtaking the reaper who is taking in the previous crop seems impossible to those who live in a northern climate where harsh winters separate growing seasons, it is not that way in many areas of Israel even today. There are many places in which crops can be grown all year. The prosperity described here is of an outstanding abundance. However the element in these blessings that distinguishes it as promises for the final eschatological restoration is verse 15. “I will also plant them on their land, And they will not again be uprooted from their land Which I have given them,” Says Yahweh your God.” This is a final restoration because there will never be another deportation, and applying what is said in other prophecies concerning the same period, the reason there will never be another deportation is that the new covenant will be implemented. God’s law will be on the hearts of the remnant of Jews that are saved so that they will walk in obedience to Yahweh and receive His blessings and never again in disobedience to fall under His curses.
Conclusions
There are prophecies of restoration given to the Jewish people that were both near and far. The first restoration following the Babylonian captivity is now ancient history. The formation of the modern state of Israel is in keeping with the restorations foretold in Ezekiel 20 & 22. There will be a future restoration of Israel that will be permanent for it will bring forth all the aspects of the new covenant. Yahweh will be their God, and they will be His people.
Why is all of this important to us who are Christians who are living in the twenty-first century? First and foremost because it is the display of the attributes of God. He is sovereign, faithful and true. Because He will fulfill every one of his covenant promises to Israel we can be confident He will fulfill every promise He has made to us who have placed our faith in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. I can trust God in the present and for the future because He has proved Himself faithful throughout all of History. And for me at this moment that means when I officiate at my dad’s funeral on Tuesday, I will sorrowful that I cannot talk with him in the present, but I know only his shell is being buried for He is with Jesus and one day I will join him either in heaven or in the air when Jesus comes.
Sermon Notes – 1/21/2024
Prophecies of Restoration Near & Far – Selected Scriptures
Introduction
The _________are and remain God’s chosen people
At the present time, the Jewish people are still in the time of ____________and purging (Daniel 11:35)
God’s faithfulness in keeping His covenants is a reflection of His ____________and character
There are _______________restorations of Israel
The Mosaic covenant does not change any ____________ in the Abrahamic covenant
Mosaic Promises of Restoration – Lev. 26:34-45; Deut. 30
Leviticus 26:44-45 – God makes a ____________promise that He will not break the covenant
Deuteronomy 30 includes more details & specific promises of _____________after deportation
The reference to having circumcised hearts in vs, 6 parallels the _______________________in Jeremiah 31
Promises Concerning the First Restoration
The prophecies of the ___________restoration (Isa. 44:28-5:1) are fulfilled in 2 Chron. 36:22-23 & Ezra 1
Fulfillment of prophesy confirms its _____________in God (Isaiah 44:6-8)
Promises Concerning a Compelled Restoration – Ezekiel 20:33-38 and 22:17-22
The first restoration was of those who _______desired to do so while the second will be by force with wrath
Ezekiel 20:33–38 & Ezekiel 22:17–22
The prophesied return does not match the _____________of either the first return or the final restoration
The current return being fulfilled in _____________Israel matches these prophecies – compelled with wrath
Modern Israel has been under constant ______________- war, intifadas, terrorists, diplomatic treachery
Promises Concerning a Final Restoration
Aspects of Abrahamic covenant are fulfilled or being fulfilled, but not yet those concerning the _________
Deuteronomy 30 – future promise of having circumcised _______________
Jeremiah 31:31–40 – The New Covenant is made with the house of __________and the House of ________
Seven aspects of the New Covenant are made with the Jewish people
While the church benefits from God’s promises to Israel, the church does not __________Israel
JOEL – is written as a response to a terrible plague of ______________described in the first chapter
Joel 1:15 introduces an _________________day of Yahweh
Joel 2:18-3:21 concerns a future ____________________day of Yahweh
Joel 2:19-27 – Yahweh’s people will ________________be a reproach again or be put to shame
Joel 2:28-32 – Celestial and terrestrial ___________that match other eschatological passages
Joel 3:17-18, 20 – the bounty of a restored Judah & Jerusalem which will be inhabited ____________
AMOS – prophecies, sermons and visions of _________________- Amos 1:1-9:10
Amos 9:11-15 – promises of ____________of Israel with unparalleled prosperity never to be uprooted again
Conclusions
The first restoration following the Babylonian captivity is now ancient ______________
The formation of _____________Israel is in keeping with the restorations described in Ezekiel 20 & 22
There will be a _______restoration of Israel that will be permanent with all the aspects of the New Covenant
This is important because it displays the ______________of God who is sovereign, true and faithful
KIDS KORNER
Parents, you are responsible to apply God’s Word to your children’s lives. Here is some help. Young Children – draw a picture about something you hear during the sermon. Explain your picture(s) to your parents at lunch. Older Children – Do one or more of the following: 1) Write down the scripture references and look them up later 2) Count how many times the term “restore / restoration” is mentioned 3) Discuss with your parents the three restorations of Israel described in the sermon.
THINK ABOUT IT!
Questions to consider in discussing the sermon with others. Has the church replaced Israel in God’s covenants? Why or why not? Why is it important to recognize there are multiple restorations of Israel? Does the Mosaic Covenant have any effect on the elements of the Abrahamic covenant? Explain. What are the conditional aspects of the restorations described in Leviticus 26:34-45 and Deuteronomy 30 and what re the unconditional aspects? What elements in the restoration described in Deuteronomy 30 parallel those in Jeremiah 31? What were the prophecies concerning the first deportation and restoration? When were these prophecies fulfilled? How do the prophecies described in Ezekiel 20:33-38 and 22:17-22 differ from those related to the first restoration and with those concerning the last restoration? How does the formation and continued existence of the modern state of Israel correspond with those prophecies (Ezk 20-22)? What elements in Deuteronomy 30, Jeremiah 31:31-40, Joel 2:18-3:20 and Amos 9:11-15 demonstrate that each is referring to a future eschatological restoration? Why are prophecies concerning a future eschatological restoration of Israel important to Christians?
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