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"Never Again!" or "Yes, Again!"

Chapter 8

Time of Israel’s Restoration

As Seen in Jacob’s Exile and Return to the Land

“…I am the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac:  the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed;

And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south:  and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.

And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land;  for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of” (Gen. 28:13b-15).

Jacob’s Exile

Jacob, like the nation of Israel, left the land covenanted to his fathers and became a merchantman and a wanderer in a strange land.  But Jacob, like Israel, possessed God’s promise that in all places where he went, God would be with him and eventually restore him to his own land.

While in a strange land Jacob went to Laban, his mother’s brother, began to serve Laban, was mistreated by Laban, but became a crafty merchantman who grew wealthy at Laban’s expense;  and Laban, at the same time, as well, was blessed and grew even wealthier by Jacob’s presence (Gen. 30:27-43).

Israel, in a strange land during the Times of the Gentiles, has served Gentile causes and has been mistreated by the Gentiles.  And the Jewish people, in turn, as Jacob, have become crafty merchantmen who have grown wealthy at the expense of the Gentiles;  and the Gentiles, at the same time, as well, have been blessed and have grown even wealthier by Israel’s presence out among them (Rev. 17:1-5; 18:1-19).

(“Laban,” though Abraham’s kinsman [Gen. 24:15, 29], can typify the Gentiles because, as Esau, he is not part of the lineage of Abraham through Isaac, Jacob, and Jacob’s twelve sons.

And, within a division of the human race as set forth in I Cor. 10:32 — Jew, Gentile, and Christian — any descendants of Shem other than those in the lineage through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, prior to the present dispensation, would have to be seen as “Gentiles.”)

Jacob’s Return

After acquiring a certain amount of wealth from Laban, Jacob expressed a desire to return to the land of his fathers (Gen. 30:25, 26).

But the time for his return, although near, had not arrived.  God’s command for Jacob to return came only after Jacob had acquired ALL of Laban’s wealth.

“…Jacob hath taken away all that was our father’s;  and of that which was our father’s hath he gotten all this glory…

And the Lord said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred, and I will be with thee” (Gen. 31:1b, 3).

From Gen. 28:15 to Gen. 31:3 God did not speak to Jacob.  The heavens remained closed during the entire time of Jacob’s exile.  God did not speak to Jacob until it was time for him to return.  Jacob then returned to Bethel (meaning, “the house of God”), the same place from which he had departed at the beginning of his exile, bearing the riches of Laban (Gen. 28:19; 31:17, 18; 35:1, 8).  And at Bethel the Abrahamic covenant, concerning ownership of the land, was reaffirmed to Jacob (Gen. 35:9-12).

Israel’s Return

Israel today has acquired a certain amount of wealth from the Gentiles (though far from all wealth) and is expressing a desire to return to the land.  But the time for Israel’s return, although near, has not arrived.  We’re still living during the Times of the Gentiles, and God HAS NOT issued the command for Israel to return.

The present return of a remnant to the land is NOT the restoration prophesied numerous places in the Old Testament and set forth in type by the experiences surrounding Jacob’s return.  This return has occurred during a time when the heavens, relative to God’s dealings with Israel, HAS REMAINED CLOSED.

The heavens ,MUST REMAIN CLOSED during this time.  The type CANNOT BE BROKEN.

The present return (resulting from a Zionistic movement which began during the closing years of the nineteenth century) has occurred during that period depicted by Jacob’s exile, from Gen. 28:15 to Gen. 31:3.

This present return of the Jewish people has occurred during the Times of the Gentiles, during their time of exile, while the heavens remain closed, while God’s timepiece marking time in Daniel’s Seventy-Week prophecy remains idle, prior to Israel’s acquisition of ALL the wealth of the Gentiles, and prior to God’s command for the Jewish people to return.

Regardless of that which has occurred, that revealed in the Word CANNOT CHANGE.  The Word of God clearly declares that during the entire time of Israel’s present exile, the Times of the Gentiles WILL CONTINUE, the heavens WILL REMAIN CLOSED, and God WILL NOT SPEAK to Israel again until that time foreshadowed by Gen. 31:3 (cf. Jer. 30:3, 7-10, 18; 31:8, 9).

God’s command for Israel to return will come ONLY AFTER the Times of the Gentiles has ended,  ONLY AFTER the exile has ended, ONLY AFTER the heavens have once again been opened (Gen. 31:3), and ONLY AFTER Israel has come into possession of ALL the wealth of the Gentiles (Isa. 60:5, 11 [“forces,” KJV, should be translated “wealth,” or “riches”;  ref. ASV, NASB, NIV]).

ONLY THEN will God restore His people to their land;  ONLY THEN will the Jewish people hear God’s command to return to Bethel and hear His voice once again, reaffirming the Abrahamic covenant to them (cf. Ex. 2:23-3:10).

(The remnant of Jews presently in the land, comprised of those returning before it is time for the Jewish people to return, almost 6,000,000 strong today, will be uprooted and driven back out among the nations in the middle of the coming Tribulation.

God, because of the continued disobedience of His people, over centuries of time, drove the Jewish people out among the nations for a purpose, yet to be realized — repentance.  And it is out among the nations, not in the land, that God will deal with His people relative to repentance, with a view to restoration.)

Note God’s command to Jacob with respect to his return to the land — completely within God’s timing, not Jacob’s — and that which followed:

“And the Lord said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred;  and I will be with thee” (Gen. 31:3).

“And the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land” (Gen. 35:12).

In complete accord with these verses — the heavens being opened again and God again speaking to Jacob — God will one day again resume His dealings with Israel.  And in that coming day, the Jewish people will be commanded to return unto the land of their fathers (God’s land [Joel 3:2], typified by Jacob’s return to Bethel, “the house of God”).  And once back in the land, as following Jacob’s return, God will reaffirm the Abrahamic Covenant to Israel.

The Jewish people will be brought back into the land, possessing the wealth of the Gentiles (as Jacob returned to Bethel bearing Laban’s wealth).  And not only will Israel possess Gentile wealth, but the Gentiles will be subservient to Israel, as Israel dwells in the most valuable piece of real estate on the face of the earth (cf. Isa. 14:1, 2; 60:10-12; 61:5, 6, ASV).

Once back in the land, “Jacob’s” name was changed to Israel.  “Jacob” means, Supplanter;  “Israel” means, a Prince with God.  And Esau, whose descendants were the bitter enemies of the Israelites during the wilderness journey under Moses, was no longer Jacob’s enemy (Gen. 34, 35).

In that future day when Israel returns to the land, the nation will no longer be the crafty supplanter, but will be a Prince with God.  Nor will the descendants of Esau continue to be Israel’s enemy.

The land of Edom, as Babylon and Egypt, will be desolated because of “the violence against the children of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land” (Egypt though only for the first forty years of the Messianic Era [Isa. 19:5-9, 22-25; Jer. 49:17, 18; Ezek. 29:10-15; Joel 3:19]).  And any Edomites, as all other Gentiles entering the kingdom, will be subservient to Israel.

Pharaoh’s Two Dreams

The same thing can be seen after another fashion in the account of Joseph interpreting two dreams which God had caused the Pharaoh of Egypt to have — two dreams having to do with two interrelated periods of time, a time of plenty, followed by a time of famine (Gen. 41:14-32).

The length of each period of time in the dream was seven years.  “Seven” is one of several numbers used in Scripture to show completeness.  This number is used, more specifically, to show the completeness of that which is in view.  And, in this case, in the account, two complete periods of time were in viewa time of plenty, followed by a time of famine.

This is what occurred during Joseph’s day, foreshadowing two complete periods of time — one, a time of plenty, during which Israel, as Joseph’s brethren, are unseen, and not being dealt with;  the other, a time of famine, during which the Jewish people, as Joseph’s brethren, reappear, and are dealt with.

And the time of famine in the type occurred in connection with Joseph again appearing in his brethren’s presence, ultimately revealing himself to them, being received by them, and their going forth with a dual message:  “Joseph is yet alive, and he is governor over all the land of Egypt” (Gen. 42:1-45:26).

All of this foreshadows that which is about to occur, taking one from the present time of plenty through the coming time of famine to that day when a repentant, converted, and restored Israel will go forth as God’s witness to the nations:  “Jesus is yet alive, and He is Governor over the entire earth.”

And all of this is AS CERTAIN as the day follows the night.  It has ALL been pre-recorded in God’s unchangeable Word.

The time of plenty will one day end, and the time of famine will then begin. Famine came during Joseph’s day in an account foreshadowing that occurring at the end of the time of plenty;  and, accordingly, it will come at the termination of the present time of plenty, the present day — a time so different and severe that the previous time of plenty was not even remembered during Joseph’s day;  nor will it be remembered in our day (Gen. 41:31, 53-57).

Past, Present, Future

The brethren of Joseph faded from view after he had been sold into the hands of the Gentiles (37:28), and they DID NOT reappear until following the time of plenty, during the time of famine (42:1).

The brethren of Jesus, according to the flesh, faded from view after He had been sold into the hands of the Gentiles.  Israel has been set aside while God, during the time of plenty, takes out of the Gentiles a people for His name.  And, according to the type, THEY CANNOT, THEY WILL NOT reappear UNTIL…

When the present dispensation is over and the time of famine (the Tribulation) begins — marked by time once again resuming in Daniel’s Seventy-Week prophecy, marking off time covering the final seven years of this prophecy — just as the brethren of Joseph in the type reappeared, the brethren of Jesus in the antitype will reappear.  And then, as Joseph dealt with his brethren, God, in the person of His Son, will deal with Israel on a national basis once again.

But, UNTIL that day, UNTIL the arrival of the time of famine following the time of plenty — the Tribulation, the final seven years in Daniel’s Seventy-Week prophecy — the heavens, of necessity, WILL REMAIN CLOSED relative to God’s dealings with Israel.

UNTIL that time (the end of the time of plenty and the arrival of the time of famine), God will remain silent relative to carrying out His revealed plans and purposes for Israel, with the heavens REMAINING CLOSED.

But WHEN that time arrives…