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Part
Six:
A
Voice Cries
Out
Amid Religious
Confusion
How could the world have become so mixed up? Out of this spiritual wilderness, a voice cries out in
clarity and power, with the reassuring truth of the world's only and sure hope!
Ediror's note: We are printing here,
seria/ly, rhe new book by Herbert
W.
A rmsrrong with the same tille as rhis
arríe/e. The book wi/1 appear in U.S.
bookstores later rhis year.
Chapter 5
WHYTHE
NATION ISRAEL?
O
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?
Consider these seemingly para–
doxical facts:
God says He is not a respecter
of persons. Is He, then, a re–
specter of nations? Does He have
a
favorite?
Did you ever realize that God
denied His chosen people salva–
tion-save only their prophets?
September 1980
by
Herbert W. Armstrong
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 the Book of and
concerning only that one people
Israel? And that other nations are
mentioned only if and as they
carne into contact with Israel?
And here's another shocker!–
almost totally unrealized today by
Christianity- even by Judaism!
The northern Kingdom of Israel
was not Jewish!
The first place in
the Bible where the word
Jews
occurs is in II 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
Israel is totally unrealized by any
religion-by Christianity- by
even Judaism!
It 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 special
PURPOSE
preparara-
ry to the ultimare establishment
of the Kingdom of God!
It
is an intriguing story! The
answer to this chapter title,
"WHY
the Nation Israel? " has
great significance in God's
PUR–
POSE
for all peoples! One cannot
understand the real purpose and
incredible potential of man with–
out this vital knowledge.
Supreme Master Plan
The Creator God (as covered in
part 5) is
reproducing Himself
in
and through man! God's ultimate
transcendent
PURPOSE
is breath–
taking beyond words- to be cov–
ered in chapter 1O. The establish–
ment of the ancient nation Israel
is an integral part of the supreme
Master Plan.
So now, to bring into mind the
background, we revert briefly.
We retrace a phase of the unfold–
ing of the great Master Plan from
Adam to the founding of the
nation Israel.
God created the first humans,
perfect specimens physically and
mentally. Yet they were but
5