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AGE
Mysteryof
Israel
We continue, with this seventh installment, the serial
publication of Herbert W. Armstrong's latest book
Mystery of the Ages.
D
ID IT EVER STRIKE
you as most unusual
that the Great God
should have raised up the
ancient nation Israel to be his
chosen
people?
Consi der these seemingly
paradoxical facts:
God says he is not a respecter of
persons. l s he, then, a respecter of
nations? Does he have a
favorite?
Did you ever realize that God
deni ed his chosen people salva–
tion- savt1 only their prophets?
That the chosen nation was given
only material and national prom–
ises- that God's Holy Spirit was
inaccessible to. them?
Did it ever occur to you that the
Holy Bible is tbe book of and con–
cerning only that one people Israel?
And that other nations are men–
tioned only if andas they carne into
contact with Israel ?
And here's another shocker!–
almost totally unrealized today by
Christianity-even by Judaism and
not recorded or understood by his–
torians! The northern kingdom of
Israel
was not Jewish!
The first
place in tbe Bible where the word
Jews
occurs is in
IJ
Kings chapter
16 and verse 6, where the nation
Israel was at war, in an alliance
with Syria, against the Jews!
The truly amazing truth about
10
Israel is a mystery totally unknown
by any religion- by Christianity–
by even Judaism!
1t is indeed true that the nation
Israel was God's chosen people. But
understand: They were not chosen
as "teacher 's pet" nor for special
favors. They were chosen for a spe–
cial
PURPOSE
preparatory to the
ultimate establishment of the
kingdom of God!
It is an intriguing story! Tbe
answer to this chapter tit le, "Mys–
tery of Israel," has great significance
in God's
PURPOSE
for all peoples!
One cannot understand the real pur–
pose and incredible potential of man
without this vital knowledge.
Supreme Master Plan
The Creator God is
reproducing
himself
in and through man! God's
ultimate transcendent
PURPOSE
is
breathtaking beyond words. The
establishment of the ancient nation
Israel is an integral par t of the
supreme master plan.
Seven generat ions after the
Flood, the Eterna! found a man
who would obey him. His name was
Abram. He lived in Haran, in
Mesopotamia. This man was to
become a type of God the Fatber.
It
was from him that the nation
Israel descended. Througb this
nation God raised up bis propbets,
and in due time God's own Son,
Jesus Christ.
Man of Oestlny
Abram, as he was originally named ,
was not seeki ng God. But God
chose to call and test Abram. This
ancient patriarch, later in Scrip–
ture, is called the father of the
faithful. God was calling him for a
very special purpose. That purpose
was not to "give him salvation" or
"get him into beaven." God was
calling him because be bad seen in
this man the potentialities of obe–
dience to God and of leadership.
God was calling him to be prepared
for special service and ultimately
high position in the kingdom of
God- the coming world tomorrow.
I quote now from a book 1 wrote
more than 50 years ago,
The
United States and Britain in
Prophecy,
1980 edition, commenc–
ing with page 16:
To this man, Abram, God com–
manded: "Get thee out of thy
country, and from thy kindred,
and from thy father's house, unto
a land that 1
will
shew thee: and 1
will make of thee a great nation"
(Gen. 12: 1-2).
Here was a command, which
was a
condition
and a
PROMISE,
provided the condition of obe–
dience was met.
And so now , as God had
started the whole world with one
man, he started bis own peculiar
nation in the world from one sin–
gle man- Abraham. As the
world, which has strayed far from
The
PLAIN TRUTH