What is the significance of the regathering of the nation of Israel?
Then it will happen on that day that the Lord will again recover the second time with His hand the remnant of His people, who will remain, From Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, And from the islands of the sea. 12 And He will lift up a standard for the nations And assemble the banished ones of Israel, And will gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth. Isaiah 11:11-12 NASB
See also Ezekiel 20:41-42; 37:12-14; Hosea 3:4-5; Zechariah 10:8-10
Why does the focus of conflict always come back to Jerusalem?
“Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes reeling to all the peoples around; and when the siege is against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah. 3 It will come about in that day that I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will be severely injured. And all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it.”
9 “And in that day I will set about to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.” Zechariah 12:2,3,9 NASB
Will the recurring conflict in Israel ever end?
“Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.” Luke 21:24 NASB
What nations are involved in end times conflict?
Son of man, set your face toward Gog of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him 3 and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I am against you, O Gog, prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal. 4 I will turn you about and put hooks into your jaws, and I will bring you out, and all your army, horses and horsemen, all of them splendidly attired, a great company with buckler and shield, all of them wielding swords; 5 Persia, Ethiopia and put with them, all of them with shield and helmet; 6 Gomer with all its troops; Beth-togarmah from the remote parts of the north with all its troops—many peoples with you.”’ Ezekiel 38:2-6 NASB
How should we understand the current war in Israel?
Why are the nations in an uproar and the peoples devising a vain thing? 2 The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together Against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, 3 “Let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us!” 4 He who sits in the heavens laughs, The Lord scoffs at them. 5 Then He will speak to them in His anger and terrify them in His fury, saying, 6 “But as for Me, I have installed My King upon Zion, My holy mountain.” 7 “I will surely tell of the decree of the Lord: He said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. 8 ‘Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, And the very ends of the earth as Your possession.
9 ‘You shall break them with a rod of iron, You shall shatter them like earthenware.’ ” 10 Now therefore, O kings, show discernment; Take warning, O judges of the earth. 11 Worship the Lord with reverence and rejoice with trembling. 12 Do homage to the Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way, for His wrath may soon be kindled. How blessed are all who take refuge in Him! Psalm 2:1-12 NASB
“But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” Luke 21:28 NASB
How does all of this relate to our current focus on prayer?
I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.” 2 Our feet are standing within your gates, O Jerusalem, 3 Jerusalem, that is built as a city that is compact together; 4 To which the tribes go up, even the tribes of the Lord— An ordinance for Israel— To give thanks to the name of the Lord. 5 For there thrones were set for judgment, The thrones of the house of David. 6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: “May they prosper who love you. 7 “May peace be within your walls, And prosperity within your palaces.” 8 For the sake of my brothers and my friends, I will now say, “May peace be within you.” 9 For the sake of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek your good.” Psalm 122:1-9 NASB
For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery—so that you will not be wise in your own estimation—that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; 26 and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob.” 27 “This is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins.” Romans 11:25-27 NASB
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem and the salvation of Israel.
Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven. 2 So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. 5 When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 6 But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. 7 And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. 8 So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. 9 Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]’ 14 For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.” Matthew 6:1-15 NASB
Why are there brackets around a portion of Matthew 6:13?
‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]’ Matthew 6:13 NASB
Are there any errors in the Bible?
“God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” Numbers 23:19 NASB
The words of the Lord are pure words; As silver tried in a furnace on the earth, refined seven times. Psalm 12:6 NASB
Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven. 96 I have seen a limit to all perfection; Your commandment is exceedingly broad. Psalm 119:89,96 NASB
Every word of God is tested; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. Proverbs 30:5 NASB
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.” Matthew 24:35 NASB
“Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.” John 17:17 NASB
“The inerrancy of Scripture means that Scripture in the original manuscripts does not affirm anything that is contrary to fact.” – Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology
Objection: “We have no inerrant manuscripts; therefore, talk about an inerrant Bible is misleading.”
What is true about the Scripture manuscripts available to us?
- For over 99 percent of the words of the Bible, we know what the original manuscript said.
- Even for many of the verses where there are textual variants (that is, different words in different ancient copies of the same verse), the correct decision is often quite clear, and there are really very few places where the textual variant is both difficult to evaluate and significant in determining the meaning.
- In the small percentage of cases where there is significant uncertainty about what the original text said, the general sense of the sentence is usually quite clear from the context. (One does not have to be a Hebrew or Greek scholar to know where these variants are, because all modern English translations indicate them in the marginal notes with words such as “some ancient manuscripts read…” or “other ancient authorities add…”)
- This is not to say that the study of textual variants is unimportant, but it is to say that the study of textual variants has not left us in confusion about what the original manuscripts said. It has rather brought us extremely close to the content of those original manuscripts.
- For most practical purposes, then, the current published scholarly texts of the Hebrew Old Testament and Greek New Testament are the same as the original manuscripts.
- Thus, when we say that the original manuscripts were inerrant, we are also implying that over 99 percent of the words in our present manuscripts are also inerrant, for they are exact copies of the originals.
- Furthermore, we know where the uncertain readings are (for where there are no textual variants we have no reason to expect faulty copying of the original).
- Thus, our present manuscripts are for most purposes the same as the original manuscripts, and the doctrine of inerrancy therefore directly concerns our present manuscripts as well.
-Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology
We can pray the Truth of the Word of God with 100% certainty.
“And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]” Matthew 6:13 NASB
The best commentary on the Truth of the Word of God is itself.
So David blessed the Lord in the sight of all the assembly; and David said, “Blessed are You, O Lord God of Israel our father, forever and ever. 11 Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Yours is the dominion, O Lord, and You exalt Yourself as head over all. 12 Both riches and honor come from You, and You rule over all, and in Your hand is power and might; and it lies in Your hand to make great and to strengthen everyone. 13 Now therefore, our God, we thank You, and praise Your glorious name.” 1 Chronicles 29:10-13 NASB
“And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]” Matthew 6:13 NASB
Jesus closes our pattern for prayer with four TRUTHS:
“For Yours is the kingdom…” Matthew 6:13 NASB
Truth #1: We pray with 100% certainty the kingdom belongs to God.
“Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.’” Matthew 6:9-10 NASB
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Ephesians 2:10 NASB
“For Yours is… the power…” Matthew 6:13 NASB
Truth #2: We pray with 100% certainty the power belongs to God.
And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son
and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20 NASB
So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; 8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” Acts 1:6-8 NASB
For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. 17 For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, “This is My beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased”— 18 and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain. 19 So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. 20 But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, 21 for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. 2 Peter 1:16-21 NASB
“For Yours is… the glory…” Matthew 6:13 NASB
Truth #3: We pray with 100% certainty the glory belongs to God.
“My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.” John 15:8 NASB
“Forever. Amen.” Matthew 6:13 NASB
Truth #4: We pray with 100% certainty it will never change.
The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9 NASB