The Nation of Israel - Sign of the Fig Tree

[farouk]

18 hours ago, NConly said:

I see this in Hosea Ch 1 and Ch 6: 1-2

2 Peter 3:8 Psa 90:4

Luke 21:24;;; Matt 26:31;;; Zech 13:7

last John 10:11

@NConly Hosea which you refer to seems to be a neglected little book in the Minor Prophets. I find the lesson of the Lord's patience through Hosea towards Gomer an amazing message.

[farouk]

16 hours ago, Alive said:

I am interested in what the Lord meant. If these things are seen through the Darby lense, there is little hope of a lack of bias. It seems to me, the primary position of context comes from who Jesus came to address.

Whether one reads Darby or not, the distinction in Scripture between Israel and the church is clear.

[NConly]

6 minutes ago, farouk said:

Whether one reads Darby or not, the distinction in Scripture between Israel and the church is clear.

Romans 11 whole chapter, here they are the Olive tree

Edited May 17, 2023 by NConly
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[Biblican]

19 hours ago, Vine Abider said:

From what I read, the nation of Israel was actually established this month in 1948.  The UN voted on various things the year before to set the scene, but the official establishing was 75 years ago in 1948.

So if you hold a particular view, then you see real significance in these verses from Matthew 24:

“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near.  So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place."  (verses 32-34)

The fig tree is generally thought of as a metaphor for Israel. So many believe this happened when the nation of Israel retuned to her home to become a nation again, almost 2000 years after being dispersed (70 AD). This is remarkable and something unheard of, that has never taken place with any country over that significant period of time.  And Psalms 90:10 it tells us regarding a generational time span,  "As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years, Or if due to strength, eighty years."

Therefore many think this prophesy of Jesus in Matthew 24 regarding His return to the earth (in the preceding verses), if the above reasoning is correct, will come to pass before May of 2028, which would be 80 years.  (and if it doesn't, then back to the proverbial drawing board for the umpteenth time . . .)

I'm not a date setter, because it was made abundantly obvious that this is a futile effort.  However, we can know seasons . . .

I think a generation also prophetically does not have to coincide with a literal generation, it can just mean a designated period of time before the Lord returns, but people can live much longer than eighty years. So a generation can be the length of time that a human can live. I think it may be a bit longer than eighty years, but in any case we are getting close. We are seeing the other signs that Jesus talked about, earthquakes, famine, persecution happening now. So I really do believe that the establishment of Israel is a sign for the latter days. Thank you and blessings.

[farouk]

5 minutes ago, NConly said:

Romans 11 whole chapter, here they are the Olive tree

@NConly Clearly indeed Paul is speaking about two different groups: Israel and the church, and how they relate to each other....

[NConly]

16 minutes ago, farouk said:

@NConly Clearly indeed Paul is speaking about two different groups: Israel and the church, and how they relate to each other....

and time is drawing near as in Hosea says, and Romans 11 shows Israel will be saved and grafted back into the Olive tree soon.

[farouk]

27 minutes ago, Biblican said:

I think a generation also prophetically does not have to coincide with a literal generation, it can just mean a designated period of time before the Lord returns, but people can live much longer than eighty years. So a generation can be the length of time that a human can live. I think it may be a bit longer than eighty years, but in any case we are getting close. We are seeing the other signs that Jesus talked about, earthquakes, famine, persecution happening now. So I really do believe that the establishment of Israel is a sign for the latter days. Thank you and blessings.

@Biblican Although Matthew 24 and Luke 21 seem to be about tribulation saints rather than the church, yet even before the church is taken it's very possible that there will be signs of coming events on earth, indeed.

The priority for the church is indeed to continue to proclaim the Gospel.

[farouk]

10 minutes ago, NConly said:

and time is drawing near as in Hosea says, and Romans 11 shows Israel will be saved and grafted back into the Olive tree soon.

@NConly So we indeed need to keep proclaiming the Gospel, 'redeeming the time, because the days are evil' (Ephesians 5.14); I'm sure you would agree.

[BibleWords]

1 hour ago, farouk said:

Whether one reads Darby or not, the distinction in Scripture between Israel and the church is clear.

So true.

The confusion about the church and Israel is man made and Scripture clearly speaks separately of both.

God is not done with Israel.

Israel-one line throughout the Old Testament

Israel and church-two lines throughout the New Testament 

[farouk]

4 minutes ago, BibleWords said:

So true.

The confusion about the church and Israel is man made and Scripture clearly speaks separately of both.

God is not done with Israel.

Israel-one line throughout the Old Testament

Israel and church-two lines throughout the New Testament 

@BibleWords Indeed, while we see Christ in all the Scriptures, I don't see the church directly in the Old Testament at all, the church being a revealed mystery (Ephesians 1).