Today we're going to discuss who is a part of Israel. I've touched on this a few times throughout, but I wanted this to be a stand-alone discussion on Israel.
You've likely seen me write that if you believe that Jesus is your Savior, that you are therefore grafted into the commonwealth of Israel. Some read this and think that this is some sort of replacement theology, where the church replaces the Jewish people as Israel. I am here to lay out why that is simply not the case.
First, let's discuss the tribes of Israel. Jacob, whose name was later changed by God to Israel, had 12 sons. Each of those sons was the head of a tribe: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph and Benjamin. There is more detail involving Joseph's sons, but to keep things simple, we'll hold off on that discussion.
A common misconception in the Western world is that ALL 12 tribes were Jewish. This is actually not the case at all. Only ONE of those tribes is Jewish - Judah. This is why Jesus was Jewish... he was "the lion from the tribe of Judah".
ALL 12 tribes were Israelites, or Hebrews, but only ONE tribe - Judah - was Jewish. "JEW-DAH" --> it's where we get the term "Jew" or "Jewish."
The other 11 tribes were NON-Jewish tribes. So, here we see that the nation of Israel was made up of both Jews AND NON-Jews.
When Moses gave the law at Mt. Sinai, he gave it to ALL 12 tribes, not just to the tribe of Judah. Jews AND NON-Jews that were Israelites were governed by this law. So it is a misnomer to say that God's law was only given and/or kept by the Jewish people. You can see in Numbers 1:1-16, where Moses takes a census of Israel at Sinai, that all the tribes are included:
"The Lord spoke to Moses in the tent of meeting in the Desert of Sinai on the first day of the second month of the second year after the Israelites came out of Egypt. He said: “Take a census of the whole Israelite community by their clans and families, listing every man by name, one by one. You and Aaron are to count according to their divisions all the men in Israel who are twenty years old or more and able to serve in the army. One man from each tribe, each of them the head of his family, is to help you. These are the names of the men who are to assist you:Further, Exodus 19-24 discusses how ALL of the people of Israel (Jews and NON-Jews) agreed to keep these things that the Lord had commanded them at the base of Mt. Sinai.
from Reuben, Elizur son of Shedeur;
from Simeon, Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai;
from Judah, Nahshon son of Amminadab;
from Issachar, Nethanel son of Zuar;
from Zebulun, Eliab son of Helon;
from the sons of Joseph:
from Ephraim, Elishama son of Ammihud;
from Manasseh, Gamaliel son of Pedahzur;
from Benjamin, Abidan son of Gideoni;
from Dan, Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai;
from Asher, Pagiel son of Okran;
from Gad, Eliasaph son of Deuel;
from Naphtali, Ahira son of Enan.”
These were the men appointed from the community, the leaders of their ancestral tribes. They were the heads of the clans of Israel."
We also see this concept elaborated on when we read about non-Israelite Gentiles (for instance, Egyptians or any other nationality) being "grafted into" the nation of Israel. Once they were grafted in, they were then heirs to the promises of the covenants made to Israel, as well as responsible for keeping the laws of the nation. See Romans 11. These folks then became a part of the nation of Israel, irrespoective of their nationality at birth. This is the same for us today. Regardless of where we were born, one we accept that God is our Father, and Jesus is our Messiah - we become a part of the nation of Israel.
This is similar to how a naturalized citizen of the USA comes from another country, but once they accept citizenship, they then are eligible to receive benefits for USA citizens, and are responsible for following our laws. I challenge you today to read through (at least) Exodus 19-24 and Romans 11. If you're feeling adventurous, start reading through the entire book of Exodus. When you do, anytime you see the word "Israel," place your name there instead. This will help you to better understand how God is STILL speaking to you today, because yes, you ARE Israel. Therefore, you are heirs to those same covenants and promises, and in so doing are held to the same standards as the early Israelites. <3
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