Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28 sum up the obedience-disobedience dichotomy that permeates the Old Testament, and for their habitual disobedience – or the Satan they allowed into their tabernacle – the Israelites on more than one occasion were enslaved until they were destroyed (Dt 28:48). Babylon absolutely devastated Judea, but not so much that it couldn’t be rebuilt, much to the chagrin of Judea’s neighbors. On behalf of these neighbors, Rehum and Shimshai explained to Artaxerxes king of Persia the consensus of opposition to rebuilding Jerusalem:
But Cyrus king of Babylon had already freed the exiles to return to their capital and rebuild it. Although a faithful remnant would manage to rebuild their way of life, even after Babylon destroyed it in 586 BC, the factious tribal people persisted in their proclivities toward idolatry and warmongering, as the Old Testament generally illustrates, and ultimately were unable to rebuild their way of life after Rome destroyed it in AD 70.
This was Israel. Catch that: was Israel. Past tense. Chosen by God as a faithful people, they proved themselves largely unfaithful. Throughout their history, a faithful remnant persisted, but by and large, they disappointed God.
Now they’re extinct, and some of the righteous remnant foresaw this extinction, especially in the first century as they saw world-changing events occurring in Palestine: the crucifixion and resurrection; Pentecost and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit; mounting tensions in Judea between the Romans and the Jews.
I have got some blowback recently from people who insist that modern Jews are the same people as the ancient Jews, but is that really the case? Do modern Jews worship idols? Do they make war on those who don’t worship their God? Are they the violent, incestuous, drunkards that the Israelites were? Do they abide all the preposterous, draconian edicts of Old Covenant law?
I don’t think so. I find modern Jews rather industrious – prolific Nobel Prize recipients. They seem quite tolerant of outsiders and are arguably among the most civil of people.
If I were Jewish, I would find some kinship with Jacob’s progeny (though not genetic), but would keep my distance from the disobedient majority.
To Artaxerxes the king: Your servants, the men of the province Beyond the River, send greeting. And now be it known to the king that the Jews who came up from you to us have gone to Jerusalem. They are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city. They are finishing the walls and repairing the foundations. Now be it known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and the walls finished, they will not pay tribute, custom, or toll, and the royal revenue will be impaired. Now because we eat the salt of the palace and it is not fitting for us to witness the king’s dishonor, therefore we send and inform the king, in order that search may be made in the book of the records of your fathers. You will find in the book of the records and learn that this city is a rebellious city, hurtful to kings and provinces, and that sedition was stirred up in it from of old. That was why this city was laid waste. We make known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and its walls finished, you will then have no possession in the province Beyond the River. (Ezr 4:11-16)
But Cyrus king of Babylon had already freed the exiles to return to their capital and rebuild it. Although a faithful remnant would manage to rebuild their way of life, even after Babylon destroyed it in 586 BC, the factious tribal people persisted in their proclivities toward idolatry and warmongering, as the Old Testament generally illustrates, and ultimately were unable to rebuild their way of life after Rome destroyed it in AD 70.
This was Israel. Catch that: was Israel. Past tense. Chosen by God as a faithful people, they proved themselves largely unfaithful. Throughout their history, a faithful remnant persisted, but by and large, they disappointed God.
Now they’re extinct, and some of the righteous remnant foresaw this extinction, especially in the first century as they saw world-changing events occurring in Palestine: the crucifixion and resurrection; Pentecost and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit; mounting tensions in Judea between the Romans and the Jews.
I have got some blowback recently from people who insist that modern Jews are the same people as the ancient Jews, but is that really the case? Do modern Jews worship idols? Do they make war on those who don’t worship their God? Are they the violent, incestuous, drunkards that the Israelites were? Do they abide all the preposterous, draconian edicts of Old Covenant law?
I don’t think so. I find modern Jews rather industrious – prolific Nobel Prize recipients. They seem quite tolerant of outsiders and are arguably among the most civil of people.
If I were Jewish, I would find some kinship with Jacob’s progeny (though not genetic), but would keep my distance from the disobedient majority.
