The Beginning of Sorrows
Matthew 24:7-8
For nations shall rise against nations and kingdoms against kingdoms and there shall be famines and diseases and earthquakes in various places All these are the beginnings of the birth pangs
Comments: Matthew 24:8 Birth pangs—labor pains—always conclude with a birth. Some teach that the birth is the 2nd Coming of Christ, ushered in by his followers evangelizing the world, but that is not taught in scripture.
The birth pangs Jesus speaks of, like all other labor pains—contractions—will conclude with a birth, or, rather, a rebirth. The nation of Israel will be BORN AGAIN in one day. We read about this in Isaiah 66:8-9. Zechariah and Ezekiel also write about the spiritual rebirth of the nation of Israel Ezekiel 37:1-14, Zechariah 12:10.
We do not write here about the miraculous resurrection of a dead nation that took place in 1948. The birth that takes place at the consummation [Jesus spoke] of will be a spiritual rebirth.
Israel was born through the obedience of one man, Abraham, who was later called the Hebrew, and then through his son, Jacob, and his grandson Isaac. Through these, God eventually created a nation. But the Hebrews were a spiritual people long before the nation was created during their 40-year wandering in the wilderness.
Israel is the only nation ever created by God Isaiah 43:15.
The Jews continued to exist as a people after the devastation of A.D. 70, the nation of Israel was no more. The extinction happened in two phases when the divided kingdoms of Israel and Judah were overthrown.
Judah was conquered last, after the leadership and the people rejected Jesus as Messiah and called for his crucifixion, choosing to release Barabas instead.
God did not recreate Israel in 1948. He did not have to. Through hideous persecution, the Jewish people were miraculously preserved, and after World War II, what had previously been a dead nation was born. Part of Israel’s original land area was restored to the Jewish people, and it officially became a secular nation.
Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Zechariah all foretold spiritual rebirth of Israel, and this will happen on a national level. The birth pangs Jesus foretold will result in a birth, and it will not be a still-birth This will happen in one day, on the day Christ returns, and Israel finally accepts Jesus as their long-awaited Messiah Isaiah 66:8-11, Ezekiel 37:1-14, Zechariah 12:10.
Jocelyn Andersen is the author of several non-fiction books, including, Redemption: Bible Prophecy Simplified, a Study of HOPE.
Note from the editor: I read my Bible every day, always picking up today where I left off yesterday. I call this my “on-track” Bible reading. I have been doing this for over 44 years. It was the best advice I was ever given, and it changed my life. If you are not presently doing the same, I invite you to join me. How much you read on a daily basis isn’t important. It only matters that you read, feeding your spirit with a prayerful dose of the living and powerful Word of God.
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