By Stan Feldsine - www.tojesusbeallglory.com

Israel, the Remnant, Jews and Messianic Jews

Who is Israel

Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum, a Messianic scholar, documents a great deal of variety and complexity in how various Jewish sects and others define Israel, but over all, he makes the case that the only definition of Jews or Israelites that matters is a Biblical definition. How does the Bible define them?

His definition is drawn from Gen 12:1-3, Gen 13:15-16, and Gen 15:4-5, confirmed to Abraham, Gen 26:2-5 confirmed to Isaac, and Gen 28:13-15 confirmed to Jacob.

The promise that Abraham's physical descendants would become a great nation and have land in which to be that great nation.

Gen 12:1-3 The LORD had said to Abram, "Go from your country, your people and your father's household to the land I will show you. (2) "I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. (3) I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you."

Gen 12:7 The LORD appeared to Abram and said, "To your offspring I will give this land." So he built an altar there to the LORD, who had appeared to him.

Gen 13:15-16 All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. (16) I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted.

Abraham, when questioning God about his lack of descendants, questioned God about who his heir would be. God assured him that he would have a flesh and blood heir who would inherit the promise of being a great nation and having land.

Gen 15:4-5 Then the word of the LORD came to him: "This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir." (5) He took him outside and said, "Look up at the sky and count the stars--if indeed you can count them." Then he said to him, "So shall your offspring be."

Abraham took matters into his own hands and had a son, Ishmael, by his slave woman, Hagar. God told him that his heir, Isaac, would be through Sarah.

Gen 21:12 But God said to him, "Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.

Isaac was told that he would continue the line. So he prayed, and His wife conceived, and bore two sons. It would be Jacob, the older, Esau, would serve the younger, Jacob would be the one who would continue the family line and be the one to inherit the promises.

Gen 25:19-26 This is the account of the family line of Abraham's son Isaac. Abraham became the father of Isaac, (20) and Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan Aram and sister of Laban the Aramean. (21) Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was childless. The LORD answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. (22) The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, "Why is this happening to me?" So she went to inquire of the LORD. (23) The LORD said to her, "Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger." (24) When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb. (25) The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau. (26) After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau's heel; so he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them.

God confirms to Isaac that his descendants would carry the promise of being a great nation forward.

Gen 26:2-5 The LORD appeared to Isaac and said, "Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. (3) Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham. (4) I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, (5) because Abraham obeyed me and did everything I required of him, keeping my commands, my decrees and my instructions."

The promise would be brought forth through Jacob.

Gen 28:13-15 There above it stood the LORD, and he said: "I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. (14) Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. (15) I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."

According to the words written by Moses then, Israel is defined ethnically as "a son who is your own flesh and blood".

Therefore, a Gentile cannot be Israel since they do not have blood descendance.

Reference: The Remnant of Israel; The History, Theology, and Philosophy of the Messianic Jewish Community, pages 1-8

The Remnant of Israel

Many state that properly, the term "Jew" comes from Judah. It was also the name given to the southern tribes. Israel was the name for the 10 northern tribes.

However, it also seems that today the terms "Jews" and "Israel" are used interchangeably for all of the tribes who by blood are the sons of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, since the 12 tribes were reunited following the Babylonian exile (See Rom 11:1).

In the time following the exile, during the reign of King Josiah , there existed a Remnant in Israel and Judah.

2Ch 34:8-9 In the eighteenth year of Josiah's reign, to purify the land and the temple, he sent Shaphan son of Azaliah and Maaseiah the ruler of the city, with Joah son of Joahaz, the recorder, to repair the temple of the LORD his God. (9) They went to Hilkiah the high priest and gave him the money that had been brought into the temple of God, which the Levites who were the gatekeepers had collected from the people of Manasseh, Ephraim and the entire remnant of Israel and from all the people of Judah and Benjamin and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

2Ch 34:21 "Go and inquire of the LORD for me and for the remnant in Israel and Judah about what is written in this book that has been found. Great is the LORD's anger that is poured out on us because those who have gone before us have not kept the word of the LORD; they have not acted in accordance with all that is written in this book."

Prior to the exile, Isaiah prophesies that of the people of Israel, a the remnant will return. Following the context of the preceding passages being ethnic Israelites, Isaiah also is speaking of ethnic Israelites, not Israelites of lost tribes absorbed into Gentile nations.

The entire section of Isa 10:20-34 speaks of a remnant of Israel returning. An excerpt is below:

Isa 10:20-25 In that day the remnant of Israel, the survivors of Jacob, will no longer rely on him who struck them down but will truly rely on the LORD, the Holy One of Israel. (21) A remnant will return, a remnant of Jacob will return to the Mighty God. (22) Though your people be like the sand by the sea, Israel, only a remnant will return. Destruction has been decreed, overwhelming and righteous. (23) The Lord, the LORD Almighty, will carry out the destruction decreed upon the whole land. (24) Therefore this is what the Lord, the LORD Almighty, says: "My people who live in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrians, who beat you with a rod and lift up a club against you, as Egypt did. (25) Very soon my anger against you will end and my wrath will be directed to their destruction."

Isaiah very clearly speaks prophetically of the Remnant of Israel who were carried off to Assyria as surviving that exile, all the way to the end times restoration.

Isa 11:11 In that day the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the surviving remnant of his people from Assyria, from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt, from Cush, from Elam, from Babylonia, from Hamath and from the islands of the Mediterranean.

Isa 11:16 There will be a highway for the remnant of his people that is left from Assyria, as there was for Israel when they came up from Egypt.

Isa 37:4 It may be that the LORD your God will hear the words of the field commander, whom his master, the king of Assyria, has sent to ridicule the living God, and that he will rebuke him for the words the LORD your God has heard. Therefore pray for the remnant that still survives."

The "remnant of the people of Israel", are sustained, carried, and rescued.

Isa 46:3-4 "Listen to me, you descendants of Jacob, all the remnant of the people of Israel, you whom I have upheld since your birth, and have carried since you were born. (4) Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.

Jeremiah also speaks to the issue of the remnant of Israel, the ethnic northern tribes.

Jer 31:7 This is what the LORD says: "Sing with joy for Jacob; shout for the foremost of the nations. Make your praises heard, and say, 'LORD, save your people, the remnant of Israel.'

Jer 50:17-20 "Israel is a scattered flock that lions have chased away. The first to devour them was the king of Assyria; the last to crush their bones was Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon." (18) Therefore this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: "I will punish the king of Babylon and his land as I punished the king of Assyria. (19) But I will bring Israel back to their own pasture, and they will graze on Carmel and Bashan; their appetite will be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and Gilead. (20) In those days, at that time," declares the LORD, "search will be made for Israel's guilt, but there will be none, and for the sins of Judah, but none will be found, for I will forgive the remnant I spare.

Following the Babylonian exile, people from all of the tribes returned to Jerusalem. The reason there were people returning who were of the northern kingdom is Nebuchadnezzar's conquest of Assyria. There are passages all through Ezra and Nehemiah that speak of the northern tribes, for example, vs 2 below introduces "the people of the province who came up from the captivity" who included "the list of men of the people of Israel":

Ezra 2:1-2 Now these are the people of the province who came up from the captivity of the exiles, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had taken captive to Babylon (they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to their own town, (2) in company with Zerubbabel, Joshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum and Baanah): The list of the men of the people of Israel:

Not only do Ezra and Nehemiah speak of the actual ethnic people of Israel who had previously been taken captive to Assyria, but chapter 2 of Ezra goes on to mention many from tribes other than Judah, Benjamin and Levi who are among the tribes who return from exile.

The following passage indicates that in spite of the people of Israel sinning greatly, never the less, "God has been gracious in leaving us a remnant and giving us a firm place in His sanctuary".

Ezra 9:1, Ezra 9:8 After these things had been done, the leaders came to me and said, "The people of Israel, including the priests and the Levites, have not kept themselves separate from the neighboring peoples with their detestable practices, like those of the Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Jebusites, Ammonites, Moabites, Egyptians and Amorites. (8) "But now, for a brief moment, the LORD our God has been gracious in leaving us a remnant and giving us a firm place in his sanctuary, and so our God gives light to our eyes and a little relief in our bondage.

The preservation of a remnant of Israel in spite of what they have done is repeated:

Nehe 9:2 Then those of Israelite lineage separated themselves from all foreigners; and they stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers.

Eze 9:3-8 Now the glory of the God of Israel went up from above the cherubim, where it had been, and moved to the threshold of the temple. Then the LORD called to the man clothed in linen who had the writing kit at his side (4) and said to him, "Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it." (5) As I listened, he said to the others, "Follow him through the city and kill, without showing pity or compassion. (6) Slaughter the old men, the young men and women, the mothers and children, but do not touch anyone who has the mark. Begin at my sanctuary." So they began with the old men who were in front of the temple. (7) Then he said to them, "Defile the temple and fill the courts with the slain. Go!" So they went out and began killing throughout the city. (8) While they were killing and I was left alone, I fell facedown, crying out, "Alas, Sovereign LORD! Are you going to destroy the entire remnant of Israel in this outpouring of your wrath on Jerusalem?"

Ezra 9:13-15 "What has happened to us is a result of our evil deeds and our great guilt, and yet, our God, you have punished us less than our sins deserved and have given us a remnant like this. (14) Shall we then break your commands again and intermarry with the peoples who commit such detestable practices? Would you not be angry enough with us to destroy us, leaving us no remnant or survivor? (15) LORD, the God of Israel, you are righteous! We are left this day as a remnant. Here we are before you in our guilt, though because of it not one of us can stand in your presence."

Ezra mentions Israel and Israelites some 37 times, and Nehemiah some 20 times. This would be strange if Israel had been completely absorbed into the nations surrounding Assyria and no longer existed.

Ezekiel was a prophet during the Babylonian exile. He asks God if He will completely destroy the remnant of Israel. The answer, God will bring them back.

Eze 11:13-17 Now as I was prophesying, Pelatiah son of Benaiah died. Then I fell facedown and cried out in a loud voice, "Alas, Sovereign LORD! Will you completely destroy the remnant of Israel?" (14) The word of the LORD came to me: (15) "Son of man, the people of Jerusalem have said of your fellow exiles and all the other Israelites, 'They are far away from the LORD; this land was given to us as our possession.' (16) "Therefore say: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Although I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries where they have gone.' "Therefore say: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will gather you from the nations and bring you back from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you back the land of Israel again.'

Other prophets also foresee the remnant of Israel returning to the land.

Amos 5:15 Hate evil, love good; maintain justice in the courts. Perhaps the LORD God Almighty will have mercy on the remnant of Joseph.

Mic 5:7-8 The remnant of Jacob will be in the midst of many peoples like dew from the LORD, like showers on the grass, which do not wait for anyone or depend on man. (8) The remnant of Jacob will be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, like a lion among the beasts of the forest, like a young lion among flocks of sheep, which mauls and mangles as it goes, and no one can rescue.

Mic 7:18-19 Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. (19) You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.

Zep 3:12 But I will leave within you the meek and humble. The remnant of Israel will trust in the name of the LORD.

Paul quotes Isaiah to confirm the continued existence of the Remnant of Israel. Given the unbroken line of the remnant as spoken by the prophets, Paul would not have understood the Remnant of Israel to be anything but ethnic northern tribes.

Rom 9:27-29 Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: "Though the number of the Israelites be like the sand by the sea, only the remnant will be saved. (28) For the Lord will carry out his sentence on earth with speed and finality." (29) It is just as Isaiah said previously: "Unless the Lord Almighty had left us descendants, we would have become like Sodom, we would have been like Gomorrah."

Paul confirms the continued existence of the Remnant of Israel. He declares that he is an Israelite, and connects that to the ethnic Remnant of Israel through the example of Elijah. Elijah was prophet to Ahab, King of Israel (Northern Kingdom). This passage clearly speaks of a Remnant of the Northern Kingdom still surviving to Paul's day.

Rom 11:1-5 I ask then: Did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. (2) God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew. Don't you know what Scripture says in the passage about Elijah--how he appealed to God against Israel: (3) "Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars; I am the only one left, and they are trying to kill me"? (4) And what was God's answer to him? "I have reserved for myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal." (5) So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace.

The ethnic line today continues to exist. Although naysayers will claim that due to intermarriage and absorption any true descendants are long gone and cannot be identified. The good news for Israel though is that the ethnic lineage of the Jews does not need to be proven by DNA, for God's word explicitly states that there will always be ethnic descendants.

Psa 89:3-4 You said, "I have made a covenant with my chosen one, I have sworn to David my servant, (4) 'I will establish your line forever and make your throne firm through all generations.'"

Psa 89:28-29 I will maintain my love to him forever, and my covenant with him will never fail. (29) I will establish his line forever, his throne as long as the heavens endure.

Psa 89:35-36 Once for all, I have sworn by my holiness-- and I will not lie to David-- (36) that his line will continue forever and his throne endure before me like the sun;

Jews - Judah or the Nation of Israel

The usage of the word "Jews" to define the nation of Israel, all 12 tribes, can be seen in the history of the usage of the term.

Jew = Judah

2Ki 16:6 is the first usage of the word "Jews". At this time, the usage was consistent with "the men of Judah". The KJV renders "yehûdı̂y" as "Jews", while the NIV renders "yehûdı̂y" as "people of Judah".

2Ki 16:6 KJV At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drave the Jews from Elath: and the Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there unto this day.

2Ki 16:6 NIV At that time, Rezin king of Aram recovered Elath for Aram by driving out the people of Judah. Edomites then moved into Elath and have lived there to this day.

Jew = Southern Kingdom

However, transition in the usage of the word becomes apparent following the exile. In Esther we read:

Est 2:5 Now there was in the citadel of Susa a Jew of the tribe of Benjamin, named Mordecai son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish,

Either the writer of Esther is mistaken, for Mordecai is a Benjaminite, or "Jew" is taking on a wider meaning for the nation of Israel. I would submit that the word is taking on a wider meaning, for the infallible word declares a Benjaminite to be a Jew. (See also Est 2:5, Est 5:13, Est 6:10, Est 6:13).

Further, we see that Mordecai's people are also called "Jews".

Est 3:6 Yet having learned who Mordecai's people were, he scorned the idea of killing only Mordecai. Instead Haman looked for a way to destroy all Mordecai's people, the Jews, throughout the whole kingdom of Xerxes.

Now this can only mean that "Jews" is taking on a wider meaning that just "people of Judah", for if the word still identified tribal affiliation, then Mordecai's people would be Benjaminites, not Judeans.

Jew = All Israel

In Ezra we read in the letter to King Artaxerxes the complain that "the Jews" were again building the walls of the city.

Ezra 4:12 Be it known unto the king, that the Jews which came up from thee to us are come unto Jerusalem, building the rebellious and the bad city, and have set up the walls thereof, and joined the foundations. (See also Ezra 5:1, Ezra 5:5).

We know that "the Jews which came up" included "a large group" of Israelites with them.

2Ch 15:9 Then he assembled all Judah and Benjamin and the people from Ephraim, Manasseh and Simeon who had settled among them, for large numbers had come over to him from Israel when they saw that the LORD his God was with him.

This wider usage of the term "Jew" follows through into the time of Christ. The Festivals would have included members from all of the tribes, yet, the Festivals are called "Jewish" festivals. The Jewish Passover Festival (Joh 6:4), The Jewish Festival of Tabernacles (Joh 7:2). Obviously, the Passover and Tabernacles festivals were not for Judah alone.

In Act 2:5 we read the reference to "Jews from every nation" being gathered into Jerusalem. As a result of the activities there, Peter gives a speech in which He addresses his "fellow Israelites" (Act 2:22). It should be clear that in addressing "fellow Israelites" he is speaking to the nation of Israel, who has gathered together for Pentecost, the nation of Israel whom earlier were addressed as "Jews".

Act 2:5 Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.

Again, in Act 6:1 we have another example of a wider usage of the term "Jews". Luke refers to "Hellenistic Jews" in his narrative.

Act 6:1 In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food.

The Hebraic Jews were those who remained in Judea, near Jerusalem. The Hellenists were those who were scattered among the Gentiles, spoke Greek, used the Septuagint. They were from other parts of the world, and thus, could not have been Judeans, in fact, they were basically outsiders to the Judean Jews. Yet, Luke refers to them as Hellenistic "Jews". This is a strong evidence that the word "Jews" is not being used as a reference to those of the tribe of Judah, but for all of the people of the nation of Israel.

David Barron on the "Lost Tribes"

David Barron, in "The History or the Ten 'Lost' Tribes, Anglo Israelism Examined" points out that in Anglo-Israelism, like the Hebrew Roots Movement:

"members of the Ten Tribes are never called "Jews," and that "Jews" are not "Israelites"; but both assertions are false. Who were they that came back to the land after the "Babylonian" exile? Anglo-Israelites say they were only the exiles from the southern kingdom of Judah, and call them "Jews." I have already shown this to be a fallacy, but I might add the significant fact that in the Book of Ezra this remnant is only called eight times by the name "Jews," and no less than forty times by the name "Israel." In the Book of Nehemiah they are called "Jews" eleven times, and "Israel" twenty-two times. As to those who remained behind in the one hundred and twenty-seven provinces of the Persian Empire, which included all the territories of ancient Assyria, Anglo-Israelites would say they were of the kingdom of "Israel"; but in the Book of Esther, where we get a vivid glimpse of them at a period subsequent to the partial restoration under Zerubbabel and Joshua, they are called forty-five times by the name "Jews," and not once by the name "Israel"! In the New Testament the same people who are called "Jews" one hundred and seventy-four times are also called "Israel" no fewer than seventy-five times. Anglo-Israelism asserts that a "Jew" is only a descendant of Judah, and is not an "Israelite"; but Paul says more than once: "I am a man which am a Jew." Yet he says: "For I also am an Israelite." "Are they Israelites? so am I" (Act 21:39; Act 22:3; Rom 11:1; 2Co 11:22; Php 3:5).

Baron, David. The History of the Ten "Lost" Tribes Anglo-Israelism Examined (pp. 35-36). Kindle Edition.

Act 21:39 Paul answered, "I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city. Please let me speak to the people."

Act 22:3 "I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city. I studied under Gamaliel and was thoroughly trained in the law of our ancestors. I was just as zealous for God as any of you are today.

Rom 11:1 I ask then: Did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin.

2Co 11:22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they Abraham's descendants? So am I.

Php 3:5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee;

Conclusion

The above should be sufficient to understand usage of the word "Jews" from the time of following the exile was in transition to mean "the nation of Israel". "Jews" is no longer used to refer to just Judah as the transition has taken place since that time towards the wider usage.

Messianic Jews

The term Messianic Jew and Messianic Believer has been co-opted by a number of groups, and what is meant by the term depends on who is using it. The scriptural use of the term is pointed out by Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum, as stated in his book, "The Remnant of Israel; The History, Theology, and Philosophy of the Messianic Jewish Community", (Page 8).

Jewishness Defined

As previously expressed, Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum shows that a Jewishness is scripturally defined ethnically as "a son who is your own flesh and blood", or a physical descendant of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

"From the Abrahamic Covenant a simple definition of jewishness can be deduced. It lies in the repeated statement that a nation will come through the line of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and thus defines Jewishness in terms of nationality." (Gen 12:1-3, Gen 15:4-5, Gen 26:2-5, Gen 26:24, Gen 28:13-15).

Messianic Defined

Dr. Fruchtenbaum shows that a Messianic Jew is scripturally defined as follows:

"What then is a Messianic Jew? If a Jew is a descendant of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, which we believe to be the proper definition, then a Messianic Jew is a Jew who believes that Yeshua/Jesus is his or her Messiah. By faith Messianic Jews align themselves with other believers in Yeshua/Jesus whether Jews or Gentiles, but nationally they identify themselves with the Jewish people."

Paul agrees with this definition in Romans 11. He defines the Remnant of Israel who are today's Messianic Jews as "his people" (vs 1), the present time "Remnant chosen by grace", who are believers in Messiah (vs 5), who are the branches still attached to the root (vs 17). Today's Messianic Jews are the Remnant of Israel, ethnically, and consist of all 12 tribes (Act 26:7).

Rom 11:17 If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root,

Act 26:7 This is the promise our twelve tribes are hoping to see fulfilled as they earnestly serve God day and night. King Agrippa, it is because of this hope that these Jews are accusing me.

To Jesus Be All Glory

Tuesday, July 2, 2024