The Two Sticks Unite
Ezekiel 37 and Romans 11
“Dispatch Your light and Your truth; they will guide me. They will bring me to Your holy mountain and to Your dwelling”
Psalm 43:3
The salvation of my countenance or the renewal of my joy, says the Psalmist, is the reconciliation of the exiles to God’s holy mountain and dwelling—Jerusalem.
Ancient Jerusalem witnessed the division of her tribes and the exile of her people. First the northern tribes designated as “Israel” or “Ephriam,” the dominant northern tribe, fell prey to the Assyrians in 722 BCE. The prophet Hosea, from the tribe of Ephriam, repeatedly warned Israel/Ephriam of her waywardness, to no avail. And so, God brought correction to his people.
Likewise, the southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin went into Babylonian exile in two waves until in 586 BCE nearly all were enslaved. History would record that Judah returned from exile under the decrees of the Media/Persian kings (Cyrus the Great and Darius). They remain to this day, but the northern tribes were scattered among and assimilated within the Gentile nations. Yet, God had a plan for “all Israel” to be saved.
Then Joseph took the two of them—Ephraim with his right hand across from Israel’s left, and Manasseh with his left hand across from Israel’s right—and brought them close to him. But Israel stretched out his right hand and placed it upon Ephraim’s head (though he was the younger), and his left hand upon Manasseh’s head, crossing his hands (though Manasseh was the firstborn). Then he blessed Joseph and said,
“The God before whom my fathers
Abraham and Isaac walked,
The God who has shepherded me
throughout my life to this day,
The Angel who redeemed me from all evil,
May He bless the boys, and may they be called by my name,
and by the name of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac.
May they multiply to a multitude in the midst of the land.”
When Joseph saw that his father placed his right hand upon Ephraim’s head, it was wrong in his eyes. So his took hold of his father’s hand to remove it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. Joseph said to his father, “Not like that, my father, because this one’s the firstborn. Put your right hand upon his head.”
But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also will become a people, and he also will become great. But his younger brother will become greater than he and his seed will be the “fullness of the nations.” Then he blessed them that day saying,
“In you shall Israel bless by saying:
‘May God make you
like Ephraim and like Manasseh.’ ”
Thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh. (Emphasis added, Genesis 48:12–20, TLV)
Now here is the stunning revelation, and so much so, that it caused Paul to exalt the Name of the Lord in awe of God’s wisdom and with fervor and enthusiasm, proclaim God’s judgments unsearchable and ways unfashionable (Rom. 11:33):
Now if their transgression leads to riches for the world, and their loss riches for the Gentiles, then how much more their fullness. …For I do not want you, brothers and sisters, to be ignorant of this mystery—lest you be wise in your own eyes—that a partial hardening has come upon Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; and in this way all Israel will be saved (emphasis added, Romans 11:12, 25–26, TLV).
The “fullness of the Gentiles” (Rom. 11:25) does not refer to the number of Gentiles saved, but that the Gospel will reach every tribe and tongue among which resides Ephriam! They will hear and receive the Good News along with the Gentiles. Ephriam, who became a “multitude of nations” (melo ha goyim) among the Gentiles as per Israel’s blessing, was not, for the most part, in the Land at the time of Yeshua. They are not veiled. The veil is upon the southern tribes who remain to this day in Israel and veiled. The “partial” blindness refers to the House of Judah (Jews), but not Ephriam (Israel), so it’s only the southern tribes. This is what I believe is meant by “partial.” The whole house will be reunited and in this way “all Israel” will be saved.*
The Two Sticks Unite
The word of Adonai came to me saying: “You, son of man, take one stick and write on it, ‘For Judah’—for Bnei-Yisrael joined with him. Then take another stick and write on it, ‘For Joseph’—the stick of Ephraim and all the house of Israel joined with him. Join them one to another for yourself, as one stick, so they may become one in your hand.
“When the children of your people speak to you saying, ‘Won’t you tell us what you mean by these?’ say to them, thus says Adonai Elohim: ‘Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph—which is in the hand of Ephraim and the tribes of Israel joined with him—and I will put them together with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick. They will be one in My hand’ (Ezekiel 37:15–19, TLV).
The Sifting Begins
Modern Jerusalem is a cacophony of sights, sounds, and smells—some pleasant, some not so much. This year’s journey found a greater confrontation of light and dark, truth and deception. I shared this observation with new friends from South Africa who confirmed these views. Jerusalem, the holy city that bears God’s Name, is usually a more conservative environment, noting that the Temple Platform surveys the city.
I walked out of a prayer meeting into a street rave (a mash of party-goers jumping and jostling pints of beer to a continuous base beat). Jolted and slathered with various brands of beer, I recorded my way throught the crowd. Later, aftering having washed the remnants of hops, I joked with friends, “You’d think they would tire of the same beat.” My new friends told me that the continuous base beat heightens the affects of drugs and alcohol. I was stunned and not a little concerned because I heard words in the “music.” I couldn’t make them out and it happened only once. Truth be told, my hearing is not as sharp as once before. Nonetheless, it was clear to me that the atmosphere was thick with deception. On the outset, it looked like a party of concert-goers. A second look revealed a cleverly disguised deception masked in music and drink.
My friends and I continued the comparasion between our past trips to Jerusalem. I noted, with their looks of affirmation, that more and more people are scantily dressed, the Goth move with intention, and political parades invade the night air with bull horns and banging drums—all with the intention of disturbing the peace.
Please pray for the peace and Prince of Peace of Jerusalem.
Then, there is the Spirit of Adonai. The contrast is startling. Prayer and praise also permeate the air—a thanksgiving offering for God’s overarching protection. Sirens ignite the atmosphere, but still we praise. The secular and religious together huddled in tunnels or bunkers. We praise. There is no fear only peace, the peace of Adonai and the knowlegde that He, who neither sleeps nor slumbers, watches over Israel (Ps. 121).
So, the lines are being drawn. If Jerusalem is the spiritual barometer, then light and dark stand toe-to-toe. We must drop the things in our lives that distract from our relationship with Abba, Father—in Messiah, Yeshua. Present a continuous sound of praise with fasting that confronts the catatonic base beat.
The Power of God When He Finds Faith
But about midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them; and suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened (Acts 16:25-26).
* I am indebted to the publishers at www.fleefrombabylon.com for “And Thus All Israel Will Be Saved.” This publication is no longer available.
Blessings, dear readers—