Christians must Watch Israel!

Jesus was kind and generous to tell us the events that will happen before he is manifested to us. He loves his sheep so much. Knowing that we will indeed slack and slumber, he revealed to us the signs that will wake us from sleep and help us set our ways straight before his appearing. To those who are strong and watchful too, these signs will reassure them that their Lord and king never forgot them and that he who will come will surely come and will no longer tarry. Hebrews 10:36-39.

There are so many signs given by our Lord in the Bible. Indeed, many of them are hard to pinpoint the fulfillment because it can be argued that they are vague in description.

Matthew 24:4-29 tells us of some of the signs that will herald the end of the world. They include wars, earthquakes, famine, pestilences, terrorism, apostacy, etc. but the saints all over the ages found it difficult to point to the exact war, persecution, famine or trouble… meant. This is because some of the signs already had their primary fulfillment in the end of the Jewish world in 70 Ad after the temple was destroyed. But the other fulfilment of the same signs must eventually herald the second coming of the Lord.

Somehow, this uncertainty helped the saints of all ages to stay prepared. From the time of the apostles, the saints always saw these signs in their respective ages and it made them not to give up on the expectation of their Lord.

The signs of the time as the Lord prophesied in the mount Olivet prophecy might have more than one fulfilment but it definitely points to a particular period of time that will usher the second coming of the Lord as we have said. Generally speaking, to the simple reader, these signs appear vague. Because there will always be wars, disease outbreaks, rumors of wars, earthquakes, terrorism, etc.

It is only the experienced student of the Word that can by God’s grace, identify the epoch or the exact signs like the exact wars spoken of, that will bring the Lord back to our planet. One can do this by putting 2 and 2 together, especially by digging deeper in the revelations in the Bible. Most importantly the revelation to Daniel and to John among other prophecies. This we will do in this book.

But our Lord Jesus Christ did not wish that the rest of his followers will be caught in the web of uncertainty and blindness of the signs simply because they are not yet experienced in understanding the apocalypse.

This is why after giving us all of the signs in Matthew 24:4-31, he gave yet another all-important sign in verse 32 that is easier to understand by any Christian who look forward to being a heir of the promise made to Abraham. We can paraphrase this sign simply as: Watch Israel!

Watch Israel!

The surest of all the signs given is simply this: Watch Israel. There are other signs with respect to the church but I think we have more prophecies about Israel in the Bible and we will make less mistake in identifying landmark events with respect to Israel than the church. This is exactly what Jesus mean when he specially diverted our attention to the fig tree in Matthew 24:

“³² “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. ³³ So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. ³⁴ Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.”

Here, the fig tree undoubtedly refers to Israel. That is how the prophets used it in places like Jeremiah 24, Hosea 9:10, etc. In fact, even early Christians interpreted this parable to refer to Israel. The second century community or person that authored the Apocalypse of Peter, which although is believed to be pseudographic, hence uninspired, yet reflects the understanding of the early Christian community of the time, since the book was widely circulated and accepted in some churches as authorized. The fig tree is rightly explained to be the House of Israel there (Ethiopic Text):

“And I, Peter, answered and said unto him: Interpret unto me concerning the fig-tree, whereby we shall perceive it; for throughout all its days doth the fig-tree send forth shoots, and every year it bringeth forth its fruit for its master. What then meaneth the parable of the fig-tree? We know it not.

And the Master answered and said unto me: Understandest thou not that the fig-tree is the house of Israel?”¹

So, Jesus wants us to watch Israel. Whenever they come back to their land and also blossom in that land, then we must know that the time of the end is at hand. Zionism formally started in 1897. Israel became an independent state again in 1948. Israel won Jerusalem in 1967. 50 years later in 2017, The United States recognized Jerusalem as capital of Israel. In 2020, Israel signed the Abraham accord which is the normalization agreement they had with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Sudan and Morocco also normalized ties with Israel same year for the first time in Israel modern history since 1948.

The fig tree or the State of Israel is indeed blossoming since 1948, 1967 till date. Does this mean that the time of the end is in the foreseeable future and even in our time?! I think so, but we will see as we explore other prophecies that has to do with this nation: Israel.