Christ is Israel

[Luther]

Exodus 4:22 KJV
And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son, even my firstborn:

The LORD wants Moses to tell Pharaoh that Israel is His firstborn son. We know that Jesus Christ is the "firstborn among many brethren" ( Romans 8:29). And look at this:

Psalm 89:27-29 KJV
Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.

[28] My mercy will I keep for him for evermore, and my covenant shall stand fast with him. 

[29] His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.

 

Isaiah 49:2-3 KJV
And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me; 

[3] And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.

( Compare with):

Revelation 1:16 KJV
And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.

We can safely say that God uses the term "Israel" to describe his dear Son the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Isaiah 41:8 KJV
But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.

(The seed of Abraham.... sounds familiar):

Galatians 3:29 KJV
And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

At this point I would like to draw several conclusions.

1)  A person, place or thing in God's word can have a symbolic, spiritual meaning besides the literal meaning. 

2) There are many different names in scripture that symbolize or point to the Lord Jesus Christ. " Israel" is one of those names.

Q: Since Christ can be synonymous with "Israel", can His followers symbolically be represented as " Israel" as well?

That's what I've seen. Let's compare a few verses:

Isaiah 45:25 KJV
In the LORD shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory.

Isaiah 44:1-3 KJV
Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen:

("Jacob my servant"= the Lord Jesus Christ......" Israel, whom I have chosen" = all who are chosen in Christ)

[2] Thus saith the LORD that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen. 

[3] For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring:

( Compare With):

Acts 2:18 KJV
And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:

 

Deuteronomy 30:6 KJV
And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.

( Compare with):

Romans 2:29 KJV
But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

...................................

Psalm 89:29 KJV
His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.

WHOSE SEED?

Galatians 3:16 KJV
Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.

.........................................

There are a lot of verses that we can look at. What you will find absent in this study is any promises made to  "literal seed". You won't find those promises anywhere. Simply because of all those born of the 12 tribes of Israel, only a remnant exists that will serve the Lord. 

You're probably familiar with the blessing and the curse in Deuteronomy.

Deuteronomy 30:1-3 KJV
And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath driven thee,

[2] And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul; 

[3] That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee.

I truly believe that anyone of the 12 tribes of Israel who was able to " return unto the Lord thy God" are those who have the faith of Christ. They are the ones that are going to be brought back to the "land"..... The eternal land of the kingdom of God.

When the 10 tribes were scattered into all the earth, they mixed in with the nations wherever they went. So together, as in all of humanity, a remnant shall come forth.

 

[Orion]

7 hours ago, Luther said:

Exodus 4:22 KJV
And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son, even my firstborn:

The LORD wants Moses to tell Pharaoh that Israel is His firstborn son. We know that Jesus Christ is the "firstborn among many brethren" ( Romans 8:29). And look at this:

Psalm 89:27-29 KJV
Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.

[28] My mercy will I keep for him for evermore, and my covenant shall stand fast with him. 

[29] His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.

 

Isaiah 49:2-3 KJV
And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me; 

[3] And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.

( Compare with):

Revelation 1:16 KJV
And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.

We can safely say that God uses the term "Israel" to describe his dear Son the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Isaiah 41:8 KJV
But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.

(The seed of Abraham.... sounds familiar):

Galatians 3:29 KJV
And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

At this point I would like to draw several conclusions.

1)  A person, place or thing in God's word can have a symbolic, spiritual meaning besides the literal meaning. 

2) There are many different names in scripture that symbolize or point to the Lord Jesus Christ. " Israel" is one of those names.

Q: Since Christ can be synonymous with "Israel", can His followers symbolically be represented as " Israel" as well?

That's what I've seen. Let's compare a few verses:

Isaiah 45:25 KJV
In the LORD shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory.

Isaiah 44:1-3 KJV
Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen:

("Jacob my servant"= the Lord Jesus Christ......" Israel, whom I have chosen" = all who are chosen in Christ)

[2] Thus saith the LORD that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen. 

[3] For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring:

( Compare With):

Acts 2:18 KJV
And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:

 

Deuteronomy 30:6 KJV
And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.

( Compare with):

Romans 2:29 KJV
But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

...................................

Psalm 89:29 KJV
His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.

WHOSE SEED?

Galatians 3:16 KJV
Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.

.........................................

There are a lot of verses that we can look at. What you will find absent in this study is any promises made to  "literal seed". You won't find those promises anywhere. Simply because of all those born of the 12 tribes of Israel, only a remnant exists that will serve the Lord. 

You're probably familiar with the blessing and the curse in Deuteronomy.

Deuteronomy 30:1-3 KJV
And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath driven thee,

[2] And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul; 

[3] That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee.

I truly believe that anyone of the 12 tribes of Israel who was able to " return unto the Lord thy God" are those who have the faith of Christ. They are the ones that are going to be brought back to the "land"..... The eternal land of the kingdom of God.

When the 10 tribes were scattered into all the earth, they mixed in with the nations wherever they went. So together, as in all of humanity, a remnant shall come forth.

 

I agree.  Romans 11:25-26 can be understood thusly: 

"a partial hardening has come upon [literal] Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.  And in this way all in Christ will be saved."

Also Galatians 6:15-16 can be understood thusly: 

"For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, even so upon all those in Christ."

[Luther]

11 hours ago, Orion said:

I agree.  Romans 11:25-26 can be understood thusly: 

"a partial hardening has come upon [literal] Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.  And in this way all in Christ will be saved."

Also Galatians 6:15-16 can be understood thusly: 

"For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, even so upon all those in Christ."

Amen. A blessing to see this. I don't believe God made it complicated for us to understand.

[Anne2]

20 hours ago, Luther said:

Exodus 4:22 KJV
And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son, even my firstborn:

The LORD wants Moses to tell Pharaoh that Israel is His firstborn son. We know that Jesus Christ is the "firstborn among many brethren" ( Romans 8:29). And look at this:

Psalm 89:27-29 KJV
Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.

[28] My mercy will I keep for him for evermore, and my covenant shall stand fast with him. 

[29] His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.

 

Isaiah 49:2-3 KJV
And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me; 

[3] And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.

( Compare with):

Revelation 1:16 KJV
And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.

We can safely say that God uses the term "Israel" to describe his dear Son the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Isaiah 41:8 KJV
But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.

(The seed of Abraham.... sounds familiar):

Galatians 3:29 KJV
And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

At this point I would like to draw several conclusions.

1)  A person, place or thing in God's word can have a symbolic, spiritual meaning besides the literal meaning. 

2) There are many different names in scripture that symbolize or point to the Lord Jesus Christ. " Israel" is one of those names.

Q: Since Christ can be synonymous with "Israel", can His followers symbolically be represented as " Israel" as well?

That's what I've seen. Let's compare a few verses:

Isaiah 45:25 KJV
In the LORD shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory.

Isaiah 44:1-3 KJV
Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen:

("Jacob my servant"= the Lord Jesus Christ......" Israel, whom I have chosen" = all who are chosen in Christ)

[2] Thus saith the LORD that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen. 

[3] For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring:

( Compare With):

Acts 2:18 KJV
And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:

 

Deuteronomy 30:6 KJV
And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.

( Compare with):

Romans 2:29 KJV
But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

...................................

Psalm 89:29 KJV
His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.

WHOSE SEED?

Galatians 3:16 KJV
Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.

.........................................

There are a lot of verses that we can look at. What you will find absent in this study is any promises made to  "literal seed". You won't find those promises anywhere. Simply because of all those born of the 12 tribes of Israel, only a remnant exists that will serve the Lord. 

You're probably familiar with the blessing and the curse in Deuteronomy.

Deuteronomy 30:1-3 KJV
And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath driven thee,

[2] And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul; 

[3] That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee.

I truly believe that anyone of the 12 tribes of Israel who was able to " return unto the Lord thy God" are those who have the faith of Christ. They are the ones that are going to be brought back to the "land"..... The eternal land of the kingdom of God.

When the 10 tribes were scattered into all the earth, they mixed in with the nations wherever they went. So together, as in all of humanity, a remnant shall come forth.

 

Circumcision in the foreskin of the flesh, makes them Jew's. Heirs in the earthly inheritance. They are back...

14  And they said unto them, We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised; for that were a reproach unto us:
15  But in this will we consent unto you: If ye will be as we be, that every male of you be circumcised;
16  Then will we give our daughters unto you, and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people.
17  But if ye will not hearken unto us, to be circumcised; then will we take our daughter, and we will be gone.
 

[AdHoc]

20 hours ago, Luther said:

Exodus 4:22 KJV
And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son, even my firstborn:

The LORD wants Moses to tell Pharaoh that Israel is His firstborn son. We know that Jesus Christ is the "firstborn among many brethren" ( Romans 8:29). And look at this:

Psalm 89:27-29 KJV
Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.

[28] My mercy will I keep for him for evermore, and my covenant shall stand fast with him. 

[29] His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.

 

Isaiah 49:2-3 KJV
And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me; 

[3] And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.

( Compare with):

Revelation 1:16 KJV
And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.

We can safely say that God uses the term "Israel" to describe his dear Son the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Isaiah 41:8 KJV
But thou, Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend.

(The seed of Abraham.... sounds familiar):

Galatians 3:29 KJV
And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

At this point I would like to draw several conclusions.

1)  A person, place or thing in God's word can have a symbolic, spiritual meaning besides the literal meaning. 

2) There are many different names in scripture that symbolize or point to the Lord Jesus Christ. " Israel" is one of those names.

Q: Since Christ can be synonymous with "Israel", can His followers symbolically be represented as " Israel" as well?

That's what I've seen. Let's compare a few verses:

Isaiah 45:25 KJV
In the LORD shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory.

Isaiah 44:1-3 KJV
Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen:

("Jacob my servant"= the Lord Jesus Christ......" Israel, whom I have chosen" = all who are chosen in Christ)

[2] Thus saith the LORD that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen. 

[3] For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring:

( Compare With):

Acts 2:18 KJV
And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:

 

Deuteronomy 30:6 KJV
And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.

( Compare with):

Romans 2:29 KJV
But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

...................................

Psalm 89:29 KJV
His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.

WHOSE SEED?

Galatians 3:16 KJV
Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.

.........................................

There are a lot of verses that we can look at. What you will find absent in this study is any promises made to  "literal seed". You won't find those promises anywhere. Simply because of all those born of the 12 tribes of Israel, only a remnant exists that will serve the Lord. 

You're probably familiar with the blessing and the curse in Deuteronomy.

Deuteronomy 30:1-3 KJV
And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath driven thee,

[2] And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul; 

[3] That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee.

I truly believe that anyone of the 12 tribes of Israel who was able to " return unto the Lord thy God" are those who have the faith of Christ. They are the ones that are going to be brought back to the "land"..... The eternal land of the kingdom of God.

When the 10 tribes were scattered into all the earth, they mixed in with the nations wherever they went. So together, as in all of humanity, a remnant shall come forth.

 

What profit does the student of scripture have to call Christ "Israel". Here is a short history of Israel:
1. While Jacob walked with the Lord, his 12 sons, except for Joseph, were criminals
2. Israel worshiped idols in Egypt
3. Israel carried idols 40 years in the wilderness
4. All except for 2 Israelite men fell in the wilderness because of unbelief
5. Israel crossed the Jordan uncircumcised
6. Israel served God very sporadically in the 800 or so years they occupied the Land
7. Israel went a whoring spiritually
8. Israel walked not in all the law and thus are cursed
9 Israel broke Covenant with God
10. Israel were ejected from the promised Land for their evil
11. Israel called for Caesar as their king when offered Jesus
12. Israel took responsibility for Christ's blood
13. Israel forfeit the kingdom
14. Israel were dispersed among all nations for their evil
15. Israel are concluded in unbelief till the fullness of the Gentiles

Israel have very little to do with God's declared purpose in Genesis 1:26-28. They neither carry His image nor have dominion on the earth. Jesus Himself declared His disconnection with Israel at the end of Mathew Chapter 12. It is by pure mercy that they are forgiven (Rom.11) and not annihilated. We Christians are admonished in 1st Corinthians 10:1-11 NOT to copy them.

It is for God's name's sake that they are restored as a Nation - not because they are Christ-like.

[AdHoc]

12 hours ago, Orion said:

I agree.  Romans 11:25-26 can be understood thusly: 

"a partial hardening has come upon [literal] Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.  And in this way all in Christ will be saved."

Also Galatians 6:15-16 can be understood thusly: 

"For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, even so upon all those in Christ."

Not so. The "and" between "peace and mercy" is the same word ("kai") as the word your translation renders "even so". It is a conjunction, joining two different things like it joins "peace" and "mercy". "And" is cumulative, copulative and sequential. The context also forbids "even so" as Israel is CONTRASTED wit the New Man. The whole book forbids this as it CONTRASTS the Galatian saints with Israel. The New Man is taken OUT OF the Nations and the NATION of Israel (Ephesians 2:15) and has NO ethnicity (3:28). It is a fully New Creature with no past (2nd Cor.5:17).

[Orion]

1 hour ago, Luther said:

Amen. A blessing to see this. I don't believe God made it complicated for us to understand.

Hi @Luther

A day is coming when all will see that God has always only had one plan of redemption for one people, His people, and that His people are the faithful from every generation and every ethnicity throughout all of time that have had faith in God's promised Seed of Genesis 3:15, which is Christ. 

Peace

 

[AdHoc]

51 minutes ago, Anne2 said:

Circumcision in the foreskin of the flesh, makes them Jew's. Heirs in the earthly inheritance. They are back...

14  And they said unto them, We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised; for that were a reproach unto us:
15  But in this will we consent unto you: If ye will be as we be, that every male of you be circumcised;
16  Then will we give our daughters unto you, and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people.
17  But if ye will not hearken unto us, to be circumcised; then will we take our daughter, and we will be gone.
 

Nicely written. Circumcision for a seed of Abraham to put him in line for the earthly inheritance - Canaan. For those born to the Spirit, circumcision is replaced by Baptism (Col.2:1o-13, Jn.3:5) and puts one in line for the Kingdom of God (the whole earth (Rom.4:13).

[Luther]

53 minutes ago, Anne2 said:

Circumcision in the foreskin of the flesh, makes them Jew's. Heirs in the earthly inheritance. They are back...

14  And they said unto them, We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised; for that were a reproach unto us:
15  But in this will we consent unto you: If ye will be as we be, that every male of you be circumcised;
16  Then will we give our daughters unto you, and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people.
17  But if ye will not hearken unto us, to be circumcised; then will we take our daughter, and we will be gone.
 

Genesis 34:13 KJV
And the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully, and said, because he had defiled Dinah their sister:

Genesis 34:25-29 KJV
And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah's brethren, took each man his sword, and came upon the city boldly, and slew all the males. [26] And they slew Hamor and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem's house, and went out. [27] The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and spoiled the city, because they had defiled their sister. [28] They took their sheep, and their oxen, and their asses, and that which was in the city, and that which was in the field, [29] And all their wealth, and all their little ones, and their wives took they captive, and spoiled even all that was in the house.

Jacob was not happy about that. I don't believe God's blessing was in what they did, either.

[Luther]

43 minutes ago, AdHoc said:

What profit does the student of scripture have to call Christ "Israel". Here is a short history of Israel:
1. While Jacob walked with the Lord, his 12 sons, except for Joseph, were criminals
2. Israel worshiped idols in Egypt
3. Israel carried idols 40 years in the wilderness
4. All except for 2 Israelite men fell in the wilderness because of unbelief
5. Israel crossed the Jordan uncircumcised
6. Israel served God very sporadically in the 800 or so years they occupied the Land
7. Israel went a whoring spiritually
8. Israel walked not in all the law and thus are cursed
9 Israel broke Covenant with God
10. Israel were ejected from the promised Land for their evil
11. Israel called for Caesar as their king when offered Jesus
12. Israel took responsibility for Christ's blood
13. Israel forfeit the kingdom
14. Israel were dispersed among all nations for their evil
15. Israel are concluded in unbelief till the fullness of the Gentiles

Israel have very little to do with God's declared purpose in Genesis 1:26-28. They neither carry His image nor have dominion on the earth. Jesus Himself declared His disconnection with Israel at the end of Mathew Chapter 12. It is by pure mercy that they are forgiven (Rom.11) and not annihilated. We Christians are admonished in 1st Corinthians 10:1-11 NOT to copy them.

It is for God's name's sake that they are restored as a Nation - not because they are Christ-like.

The Israel of God is the remnant.

Romans 11:27-28 KJV
For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. [28] As concerning the gospel, they  (unregenerate Israel) are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they ( regenerated Israel) are beloved for the fathers' sakes.

Christ and His people have nothing to do with National Israel, because National Israel has nothing to do with God. They are not His chosen people anymore. That ended a long time ago.

Actually my  friend, the whole point of this post is to beautify the name Israel because it is intimately associated with Christ and His people. It always has been.

God wanted all of Israel to be obedient to him. They had a choice:

Deuteronomy 30:15-18 KJV
See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil;

[16] In that I command thee this day to love the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the LORD thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it. 

[17] But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them;

[18] I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it.

So what do we mostly read about in the Old Testament? The disobedience of the Israelites. However, there was a remnant throughout all of this that remained obedient because and only because they had the faith of Christ, Just like Abraham.