Let me share with you what I think about the swords mentioned by you.
James replied:
No, I don't think a 9mm has enough stopping power.
Although there is a submachine gun out now that shoots 9mm, but it is very expensive, like about 2 thousand dollars.
I much prefer the Taurus "Judge" or "Public Defender" pistols for home protection.
A good fighting shotgun is also a good idea for home defense.
And oh yes, when Jesus told Peter to not continue fighting, it was because it was Jesus' time to taken by the authorities and hence Peter was violating the will of God.
To say that Christians should not have any arms is wrong, because Jesus TOLD the Disciples to bring a sword with them, and if they did not have one, that they should go and sell something and BUY a sword.
When Jesus said this, one of the disciples checked and said:
"Lord we have two swords", so of course Jesus knew this, and if it was wrong for a Christian to defend themselves, then Jesus would have said so.
Priviet Bahira,
Your attitude is correct and the Christian attitude to have.
In my country, people have had it so easy, that we have some very silly people who lack common sense, and instead are driven by their emotions.
This includes some Christians as well.
In Christ,
James
Brothers, let�s read the context to see why did Jesus need swords.
Luke 22
The Plot to Kill Jesus
1 Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called Passover. 2 And the chief priests and the scribes sought how they might kill Him, for they feared the people.
3 Then Satan entered Judas, surnamed Iscariot, who was numbered among the twelve. 4 So he went his way and conferred with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray Him to them. 5 And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. 6 So he promised and sought opportunity to betray Him to them in the absence of the multitude.
Jesus and His Disciples Prepare the Passover
7 Then came the Day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover must be killed. 8 And He sent Peter and John, saying, �Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat.�
9 So they said to Him, �Where do You want us to prepare?�
10 And He said to them, �Behold, when you have entered the city, a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him into the house which he enters. 11 Then you shall say to the master of the house, �The Teacher says to you, �Where is the guest room where I may eat the Passover with My disciples?�� 12 Then he will show you a large, furnished upper room; there make ready.�
13 So they went and found it just as He had said to them, and they prepared the Passover.
Jesus Institutes the Lord�s Supper
14 When the hour had come, He sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him. 15 Then He said to them, �With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; 16 for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.�
17 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, �Take this and divide it among yourselves; 18 for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.�
19 And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, �This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.�
20 Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, �This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you. 21 But behold, the hand of My betrayer is with Me on the table. 22 And truly the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!�
23 Then they began to question among themselves, which of them it was who would do this thing.
The Disciples Argue About Greatness
24 Now there was also a dispute among them, as to which of them should be considered the greatest. 25 And He said to them, �The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called �benefactors.� 26 But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves. 27 For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? Yet I am among you as the One who serves.
28 �But you are those who have continued with Me in My trials. 29 And I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, 30 that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.�
Jesus Predicts Peter�s Denial
31 And the Lord said, �Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. 32 But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.�
33 But he said to Him, �Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.�
34 Then He said, �I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me.�
Supplies for the Road
35 And He said to them, �When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?�
So they said, �Nothing.�
36 Then He said to them, �But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one. 37 For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me: �And He was numbered with the transgressors.� For the things concerning Me have an end.�
38 So they said, �Lord, look, here are two swords.�
And He said to them, �It is enough.�
The Prayer in the Garden
39 Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him. 40 When He came to the place, He said to them, �Pray that you may not enter into temptation.�
41 And He was withdrawn from them about a stone�s throw, and He knelt down and prayed, 42 saying, �Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.� 43 Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. 44 And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.
45 When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow. 46 Then He said to them, �Why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation.�
Betrayal and Arrest in Gethsemane
47 And while He was still speaking, behold, a multitude; and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him. 48 But Jesus said to him, �Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?�
49 When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, �Lord, shall we strike with the sword?� 50 And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.
51 But Jesus answered and said, �Permit even this.� And He touched his ear and healed him.
52 Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, �Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs? 53 When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness.�
Peter Denies Jesus, and Weeps Bitterly
54 Having arrested Him, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest�s house. But Peter followed at a distance. 55 Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them. 56 And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, �This man was also with Him.�
57 But he denied Him, saying, �Woman, I do not know Him.�
58 And after a little while another saw him and said, �You also are of them.�
But Peter said, �Man, I am not!�
59 Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, �Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a Galilean.�
60 But Peter said, �Man, I do not know what you are saying!�
Immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. 61 And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, �Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.� 62 So Peter went out and wept bitterly.
Jesus Mocked and Beaten
63 Now the men who held Jesus mocked Him and beat Him. 64 And having blindfolded Him, they struck Him on the face and asked Him, saying, �Prophesy! Who is the one who struck You?� 65 And many other things they blasphemously spoke against Him.
Jesus Faces the Sanhedrin
66 As soon as it was day, the elders of the people, both chief priests and scribes, came together and led Him into their council, saying, 67 �If You are the Christ, tell us.�
But He said to them, �If I tell you, you will by no means believe. 68 And if I also ask you, you will by no means answer Me or let Me go. 69 Hereafter the Son of Man will sit on the right hand of the power of God.�
70 Then they all said, �Are You then the Son of God?�
So He said to them, �You rightly say that I am.�
71 And they said, �What further testimony do we need? For we have heard it ourselves from His own mouth.�
Jesus said that it is enough to have two swords. But why did He say that? He answered to this question: the ancient prophecy, said by God 2,000 years before the birth of Jesus on earth, should be fulfilled in the life of Jesus. This prophecy said that the Messiah should be numbered with the transgressors: �And He was numbered with the transgressors.�
Jesus knew that He should be arrested and considered as a criminal. He said to His disciples to take a sword. For protection? Yes. Because Jesus knew that He should make a last miracle, a healing of a man, in the Gethsemane garden:
� Lord, shall we strike with the sword?� And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear. And He touched his ear and healed him.�Luke 22: 49-50, 51
Jesus said to His 11 Apostles, "If you don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one. For it is written: "And He was numbered with the transgressors"{Isaiah 53:12} and I tell you that this must be fulfilled in Me. Yes, what is written about Me is reaching its fulfillment." The disciples said, "See Lord, here are 2 {Not 11}swords." "That is enough." Jesus replied.
Matthew 26:30-34: They seized Jesus and arrested Him. With that, one of Jesus' companions reached for his sword, drew it out and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear. "Put your sword back in its place," Jesus said to him, "For *ALL* who draw the sword will die by the sword...But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way?"
And so the only reason that Jesus allowed the disciples to have 2 swords was so that the Scripture in Isaiah 53:12 would be fulfilled: "He was numbered among the transgressors."
Jesus said to Pilate, "My Kingdom is not of this world. If it were, My servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But NOW My Kingdom is from another place!"
Luke 6:27-29: Jesus commands, "Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you. do not demand it back!"
2 Corinthians 10:3,4: "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are *NOT* the weapons of the world."
The only weapons that NT saints may use who follow the New Covenant commands of Jesus is the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. A NT saint would not even think of joining the army of any nation and becoming a professional killer or defending himself with a gun. Unfortunately very few Groups such as the Amish still obey these sacred commands of Jesus.
I John 2:3-5: "We know that we have come to know Him if we obey His {Jesus'} commands. The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what He commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys His Word, God's love is truly made complete in him.":applause::angel:
Ephesians 6:17 "And take the helmet of salvation, and the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God!"
Hebrews 4:12 "For the word of God is living and active, Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart!":applause::angel::peace:
But let me remind you that Moses killed a group of Jews in the wilderness who wanted to return to their slavery of Egypt.
Moses was a killer in this case who authorized this killing. Why? he should protect his people and teach them that life without God is DEATH and destruction.
Richard, Israel should protect herself during the Third World War and Jews will kill soldiers who will come to attack Israel. God knows that. he is not against protection. Protection is not violence.
We, Jews, can serve in the official Army and then our actions will be measured by God according to His laws. We cannot serve in the Palestinian Army because their laws act against the laws of the God of Israel. The Islamic laws call Muslims to violence and murder of Jews. It is against the laws of God. The God of Israel commanded Jews and any believers in the God to LOVE people and enemies. He gave this law 2,000 years before the existence of Islam. Any rocket sent from Palestine and Gaza to Israel is a crime against people and God.
God said: "Do not put anyone to death without cause."
Hebrew law recognized accidental killing as not punishable. In Israel, specific cities were designated as "cities of refuge," so that an unintentional killer could flee to escape retribution. God said that the punishment for murder was the death sentence.
God also that that killers/murderers do not inherit the Kingdom of God unless they will repent of their sins, abandon them and start loving people living in the Faith in the Son of God Jesus.
The Bible also prescribes that people have a right to defend themselves against attack and use deadly force if necessary.
Is God's killing justified?
To answer the question whether God breaks His own commandments, we need to determine if God committed murder (i.e., killed people without cause). The Bible is quite clear that God has killed people directly (the most prominent example being the flood) and indirectly. He ordered peoples to be killed by executioners/angels or Israeli soldiers. If God ordered or participated in the killing of innocent people, then He would be guilty of murder. Let's look at two of the most prominent examples.
The flood
According to the Bible, God killed every human except Noah, his wife, his sons, and their wives in the flood. Were any of these people killed unjustly? The Bible says specifically that all people (except Noah and his family) had become corrupted. They were continually plotting evil!
God orders killing
What about when God ordered the Commander of the Jewish Army Joshua and his people to kill every man, woman and child in Canaan/the Promised Land?
What crime could be so great that entire populations of cities were designated for destruction?
God told Moses that the nations that the Jews were replacing were wicked. How "wicked" were these people? The text of the Holy Scripture tells us that they were burning their own sons and daughters in sacrifices to their gods. So we see that these people were not really innocent. For these reasons, God ordered the destruction of the peoples whom the Israelites dispossessed.
What about the children and other "innocents"
Surely God could have spared the children! People tend to assume that children are innocent, even if their parents are doing bad things. The assumption is unfounded. For example, Palestinian Muslim children are officially taught in grammar school to hate their Jewish neighbors. But the God of Israel said that if you hate you are a murderer!!! Such murderers will NEVER inherit the Kingdom of God. The Muslim children are so well indoctrinated that some of them give up their lives in suicide bombings as children and they are a perfect snipers trained in the Hamas military camps to kill Jews. They are not only small children but professional killers. Corruption literally does breed corruption, that�s why God did not want the Israelites tainted by the other corrupt cultures of the Middle East. The God of Israel was preparing the HOLY nation Israel separated from pagan nations, hatred and murders. He was doing that in the Promised Land and He is doing it today. That�s why He shared with us His decision in the Scripture written 2,000 years before the existence of Islam that Palestine and Gaza will be completely destroyed by God during the Third World War of the Muslim states against Israel.
God was asked if He would destroy the innocent along with the wicked. Prior to destroying Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham asked God if God would destroy the righteous along with the wicked. God replied that He would spare the entire city for 50 righteous people.Abraham kept reducing the possible number of righteous people, asking God if He would destroy the entire city along with those number of righteous people.God's reply in each case was that He would not destroy the righteous along with the wicked. The lowest number Abraham asked about was ten righteous people, although the answer would likely be the same with as few as one righteous individual. How do we know this? God sent two angels to warn the four righteous people in Sodom to flee before He destroyed the city. In fact, God saved certain people, namely a family of a harlot Rahab, from being killed in cities such as Jericho because she repented of her sins and accepted the God of Israel. Do you remember this story, we have discussed before?
Although God ordered the extermination of entire cities, He did so in righteous judgment on a people whose corruption had led to extreme wickedness, including child sacrifice. Did God destroy the righteous along with the wicked? In an exchange with Abraham, God indicated that He would spare the wicked to save the righteous. He demonstrated this principle by saving righteous people from Sodom and Jericho prior to their destruction. The charge that God indiscriminately murdered people does not hold to to critical evaluation of the biblical texts.
Do you remember who is the God of Israel? His nature is LOVE and justice, holiness. Have you a difficult time reconciling - God's love versus. God's righteousness? God's love requires God's justice. God would have been completely just and loving in destroying all of us for our disobedience/crimes/ to Him. He judges rapists and this is His love toward the raped children. It is only through His extraordinary love and grace that we are allowed into His presence. Because we all are criminals. God imputed us the righteousness of His divine and holy son who died on the cross and took the sin of the world. That�s why we are holy and able to approach God in our prayer and in afterlife.
The Bible says about the people who were destroyed in the Canaan/the Promised Land:
"It is not for your righteousness or for the uprightness of your heart that you are going to possess their land, but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the LORD your God is driving them out before you, in order to confirm the oath which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. (Deuteronomy 9:5)
How "wicked" could those people have been? How about killing their own sons and daughters by burning them in sacrifices to their gods:
"You shall not behave thus toward the LORD your God, for every abominable act which the LORD hates they have done for their gods; for they even burn their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods. (Deuteronomy 12:31)
So we see that these people are not quite as innocent as you would like you to believe. For these reasons, God ordered the destruction of the peoples whom the Israelites dispossessed. For the same reasons, God is going to destroy Egypt, Syria, Palestine, Gaza and Jordan. Today you know the answer to your question. God�s judgment will judge these Muslim states. That�s why again the Promised Land/the Holy Land, given by God to Israel, will be taken from Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine and given to Jews again for their possession during the millennium reign of Jesus on our planet earth.
Look what happens in our Palestine:
Palestine concluded the Agreement for the liberation of abducted Israeli Soldier Gilad Shalit. Gilad Shalit will be liberated in return for the release of 1027 Palestinian terrorists, including 27 women terrorists.
Terrorists? Yes. God considers them as terrorists. Why? They all are murderers. And according to the God�s laws, which they so boldly violated, they will NEVER inherit the Kingdom of God unless they turn their hearts to the God Jesus.
Twenty-five of the 27 women terrorist operatives will be permitted to return to their homes. Two of them will be deported, one to the Gaza Strip and one abroad. The two who will be deported are:
(1)Amna Muna: The terrorist responsible for the seduction, abduction and murder of Israeli teenager Ofir Rahum, 16, from Ashqelon, whom she met on the Internet in 2001.
(2) Ahlam Tamimi: Drove the suicide bomber who blew himself up at the Sbarro restaurant in Jerusalem to the target. The attack killed 15 people.
Abu Attaya, spokesman for the Salah al-Din Brigades of the Popular Resistance Committees' military wing, said that Gilad Shalit's abduction would not be the last, but that other actions would follow of abducting Israeli soldiers, "until all the prisoners have been released from Israeli jails".
Ismail Haniya, head of the de-facto Hamas administration in the Gaza Strip, said that he had spoken with the Muslim Brotherhood's General Guide in Egypt, who had blessed the Palestinians on their historic moment (Al-Quds TV, October 11, 2011).
Ismail Haniya should be born of God and love people to be able to enter into the Kingdom of God. Then the God of Israel will bless him and use him for peace.
Today Ismail Haniya does not know God because God is LOVE and those, who do not love their enemies and brothers, do not know God. Ismail hates Jews and does not know the Holy Scripture that�s why he so boldly disobeys God. But we pray to God about him and believe that God will use any chance to talk to his heart through people and the Holy Jewish Scripture Bible.
Jesus Himself addressed the issue:
"Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name,
and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?'
And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you;
DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'"
(Matthew 7:22-23)
Thus if Ismail Haniya and Muslims will violate the HOLY laws of God then they will be destroyed by the God of Israel.
It is God�s LOVE and JUSTICE will judge them for their terrorist activity, rockets fired to Israel from Gaza and Palestine.
God�s mercy gives them chance to be reconciled with God and people and God�s justice will judge him for his crimes.
What about you?
Are you saved?
Were you born of God?
Believe in the Son of God, repent, abandon your sins, confess them to God in a prayer and start LOVING people. Then He will adopt you and give you a right to your FREE entrance to the Kingdom of God.
Jesus says, "ALL who draw the sword will die by the sword."
Bahira: You keep forgetting that Jesus gave us a New Covenant and that the OT Covenant is now OBSOLETE! And Jesus commands us to make disciple from all nations teaching them to *OBEY EVERYTHING* I have commanded as per Matthew 28:18-20!
Hebrews 9:15,26b-28: Christ is the mediator of a **NEW COVENANT** so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance--now that He has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant...But now He has APPEARED once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the SACRIFICE of Himself... so Christ was SACRIFICED ONCE to take away the sins of many people, and He will *APPEAR* a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for Him.
Hebrews 8:8,9,13: God found fault with the people and said: The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a **NEW COVENANT** with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will **NOT** be like the covenant I made with their forefathers.....By calling this covenant **NEW**, He made the first one **OBSOLETE**; and what is **OBSOLETE** and aging will soon disappear.� When all the words of the New Covenant were completed by the Book of Revelation in AD 96.
Jesus said to Pilate, "My Kingdom is not of this world. If it were, My servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But NOW My Kingdom is from another place!"
Luke 6:27-29: Jesus commands, "Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you. do not demand it back!"
2 Corinthians 10:3,4: "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are *NOT* the weapons of the world."
The only weapons that NT saints may use who follow the New Covenant commands of Jesus is the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. A NT saint would not even think of joining the army of any nation and becoming a professional killer or defending himself with a gun. Unfortunately very few Groups such as the Amish still obey these sacred commands of Jesus.
I John 2:3-5: "We know that we have come to know Him if we obey His {Jesus'} commands. The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what He commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys His Word, God's love is truly made complete in him."
Ephesians 6:17 "And take the helmet of salvation, and the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God!":angel:
Hebrews 4:12 "For the word of God is living and active, Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart!":applause::angel::peace:
God is not against our laws if they comply with His laws.
He always protected Israel and our land called as the Holy land.
That's why God Himself we kill all Muslim nations which will come to attack Israel.
And this shall be the plague with which the LORD will strike all the people who fought against Jerusalem:
Their flesh shall dissolve while they stand on their feet,
Their eyes shall dissolve in their sockets,
And their tongues shall dissolve in their mouths. Zechariah 14
God did not cancel our military forces and Army. But God supports us by the Army and Army protects our country Israel. That's why Israeli Army tried to prevent any terrorist attacks. Recently over 200 rockets were fired to Israel from Palestine.
If our Army would not protect our children, then Muslims would establish their reign in Jerusalem. Is it the will of God? No. He protect Israel by our Army, our soldier and God is going to defend our land according to God's prophecies.
Richard, study these prophecies to know God's plans!
And this shall be the plague with which the LORD will strike all the people who fought against Jerusalem:
God is not going to cancel any covenant. He is the same today as before and His Covenant means that God will be always with us. A biblical covenant is an agreement found in the Bible between God and His people in which God makes specific promises and demands.
The Abrahamic covenant, found in Genesis 12-17, is known as the Brit bein HaBetarim, the "Covenant Between the Parts" .The covenant was restated for the descendants of his son Isaac found in Genesis 17:2-9 and Deuteronomy 1:7-8.
This is the Covenant: In Gen. 12 and 15, God grants Abram land and descendant. To make of Abraham a great nation and to bless those who bless him and curse those who curse him and all peoples on earth would be blessed through Abraham.[Gen 12:1-3] To give Abraham's descendants all the land from the river of Egypt to the Euphrates. Later, this land came to be referred to as the Promised Land or the Land of Israel, however the land specified by the Abrahamic Covenant also includes the modern nations of Saudi Arabia, Omen, Yemen, Turkey, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Kuwait, UAE, and several other nations within the Middle East Region. So, God made a covenant with Israel to make Abraham a father of many nations and of many descendants and the land of Canaan as well as the entire middle-east to his descendant.
The Abrahamic Covenant of Isaac did not pass to all the descendants of Isaac, however. From Isaac the Covenant passed to Jacob [Gen 27] and from Jacob the Covenant passed to Joseph [48:3-4]and then to his son Ephraim.
The Mosaic Covenant, beginning in Exodus 19-24, contains the foundations of the Torah. In this covenant, God promises:
To make the children of Israel His special possession among all people if they obey God and keep his covenant [Exo 19:5]
To make the children of Israel a kingdom of priests and a holy nation [Exo 19:6]
To give the children of Israel the Sabbath as the permanent sign of this covenant. As part of the terms of this covenant, God gives Moses the Ten Commandments.
The Davidic covenant [2 Sam 7] establishes David and his descendants as the rightful kings of Judah from whom also the Messiah comes.
You said that the Old Covenant was abrogated. But which one? God is the same.
In the Gospels: Luke tells of the birth of John the Baptist. His father, Zacharias, prophesied at the time. In his prophecy he says that God has remembered His holy covenant. The events at the beginning of the Christian story are connected to the covenant God made with Abraham.
In the Book of Acts: Peter and John heal a crippled man. Peter speaks to the wondering crowd. He says they are the children of the covenant God made with their fathers and quotes the promise to Abraham, "And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed." Peter tells them that God has sent the resurrected Jesus first to them to bless them and forgive them of their sins. He proclaims Jesus to be the covenant "seed" promised to Abraham.
Christian laws of faith fulfill and complete God's Mosaic covenant.
��Behold, days are coming when I will seal a new covenant with the House of Israel and with the House of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them," declares the Lord. "This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time," declares the Lord. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord,' because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest," declares the Lord. "For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more." (Jeremiah 31:31-34)
Thus, God did not cancel any Covenant with Israel but He concluded a new Covenant with us writing His laws on our hearts. According to this Covenant God forgives our sins through the faith in the God Jesus.
Thus Jesus came not to cancel any laws but He came to fulfill the laws of the prophets. If we love people then we fulfill the law. Because in this case we do not kill.
But God has NEVER been against the protection of Israel and Israeli borders that's why Israeli protects Israeli people and God Himself protects people through the Army.
Defense is not violence and God Himself is going to defend Israel during the Third Word War. He even said in Zechariah 12 that our soldiers will fight like God and like David.
Defense and protection of our land or better to say PEOPLE means LOVE in action toward millions of people if we protect them according to our laws which comply with God's laws.
Thus, God did NOT cancel any Covenant with Israel but He concluded a NEW Covenant with us writing His laws on our hearts.
Because people failed to fulfill the Mosaic Covenant- God's laws.
According to this Covenant God forgives our sins through the faith in the God Jesus.
13 In that He says, �A new covenant, � He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.
'OBSOLETE' does not mean abrogated!!!!!
I would say that by the New Covenant God reached His goals to draw us lovingly near to Himself and make us to implement His HOLY laws. That's why He said in the New Covenant: "without righteousness NO ONE will see God!"
WERE THE OT JEWISH SAINTS ALSO WAITING FOR THE ETERNAL HEAVENLY NEW JERUSALEM??
Romans 10:12: �For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile�the same Lord is Lord of all.� Galatians 3:28,29: �There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male or female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise!!� :applause:Read Ephesians 2:11-22!!
Hebrews 11:9,10,13-16: By faith he {Abraham} made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the City with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. {The Eternal New Jerusalem not an earthly Jerusalem built by man}
All these people were all living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised, they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had the opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country�a **HEAVENLY ONE**. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a City for them {The eternal Heavenly New Jerusalem!}
Hebrews 11:39-40: �These {OT Saints} were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us {NT saints} would they {OT saints} be made perfect!�{Receive New heavenly bodies and the Eternal, Heavenly New Jerusalem}
Galatians 3:29: If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise.:applause:
Galatians 4:22-26: For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman. His son by the slave woman was born in the ordinary way; but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a promise. These things may be taken figuratively, for the women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves: This is Hagar. Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem that is **ABOVE** is free, and she is our mother!!�:applause::angel::peace:
WILL ALL ISRAEL BE SAVED BY THE END OF THE GREAT TRIBULATION??
Luke 21:24: Jesus says, �Jerusalem shall be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are complete.� The Times of the Gentiles was from AD 70 to June 7th, 1967 when the Jews again gained complete control of Jerusalem after 1897 years. In 1948 the Jordanian Gentiles destroyed 34 of the 35 Jewish Synagogues in Jerusalem and kicked out almost all the Jews. Obama would like Israel to return to its 1948 borders.
During the Great Tribulation Moses and Elijah will most likely witness miraculously to people in the uttermost parts of the earth in all 6,000 languages. Presently the Bible has been translated into about 2,000 languages from the inspired Greek and Hebrew manuscripts and faith comes from hearing or reading the sword of the spirit which is the Word of God. The Bible still has not been translated into about 4,000 languages and Rev 5:9b and Rev 7:9,13,14 must be completely fulfilled. Surely the courageous tribulation saints will help Moses and Elijah spread God's Word. They will do a fantastic job since according to Rev 7:9,14 there will be a great multitude from EVERY TRIBE AND LANGUAGE who will be �washed in the Blood of the Lamb� during the Great Tribulation.
Rev 6:9-11: When He {Jesus} opened the 5th seal, I saw the souls of those who had been slain {Just like Jesus} because of the testimony they had maintained. They called out in a loud voice, �How long until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?� The each of them was given a *WHITE ROBE*, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed. Rev 7:9,13,14,15a,17a: �After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from *EVERY* NATION, TRIBE, PEOPLE AND LANGUAGE, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb {Jesus}. They were wearing *WHITE ROBES*�Then one of the {24} elders {Rev 4:4} asked me, �These in *WHITE ROBES*�who are they and where did they come from?�� And he said, �These are they who have come out of the Great Tribulation; {Martyrs just like Jesus} they have washed their robes and made them WHITE in the *BLOOD OF THE LAMB* {Jesus}. They are before the throne of God and serve him day and night... The Lamb {Jesus} at the center of the throne will be their Shepherd.� {See Rev 12:11 & Rev 13:8-10}
This passage in Rev 7:9 above shows that the Great Tribulation will be mainly for Christians in *EVERY Gentile nation and not just Jacob�s Jewish trouble which absolutely contradicts the main thesis of the pre-trib fairy tale. Revelation 14:13: Then I heard a voice from heaven say {During the Great Trib}, "Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Yes," says the Spirit, "they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them." Rev 12:11: �They {THE TRIBULATION MARTYRS} overcame him {Satan} by the *BLOOD OF THE LAMB* and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.�
Revelation 7:3,4: The angel said, �Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God,� Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the {12} tribes of Israel.
This event occurred just before the land and sea were harmed by the first 6 trumpet plagues in Rev chapters 8 & 9. Also occurring just before the first 6 trumpet plagues will be the scene in heaven above of martyrs from every nation in Rev 7:9-18. So it is completely obvious that the 144,000 Jews did NOT participate in the evangelizing of the Gentiles from every nation in the world. There are many who believe that the 144,000 Jews will then evangelize Jews through out the world and possibly only Jews will be saved during the rest of the Great Tribulation since Gentiles from every nation of the world will already be saved. According to Zechariah 12;10; 13:8,9: Two-thirds of the Jews will be struck down and perish but one-third will call on my name and will say, �The Lord is our God.�
Presently there are approximately 15 million Jews and about 2 % or 30,000 are Christians. During the Great Tribulation 10 million Jews will die and 5 million will be saved which is and additional 4 million 970 thousand if 30 thousand are now Christians.
Romans 11:25-29: I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part **until the full number of Gentiles has come in **{As per Rev 7:9,14 above}. ***AND SO ALL ISRAEL WILL BE SAVED***, as it is written: {In Jeremiah 31:33,34} �The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob {Israel}. And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins.� As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies on your account; but as far as election is concerned they are loved on account of the patriarchs {Moses, Abraham, David ,Joseph, Isaiah, Elijah etc etc etc}, for God's gifts and His call are irrevocable. {Read Romans 11:11-32 and Hebrews 11:39-40}
Acts 1:6-8: The Jewish disciples asked Jesus, �Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel??� Jesus said to them: �It is not for you to know the times and dates the Father has set by His own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and to the ends of the earth.!!� Matthew 24:14: Jesus says {During thr Great Tribulation} �This gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to **ALL NATIONS** and **THEN** the **END** will come!�
God also inspired 40 Jewish men to write every Word in God's Word in both the OT and NT. Jesus was 50 % Jewish and is called the King of the Jews 12 times in the NT and the 12 Apostles including Paul were all Jewish who brought the Gospel to the Gentiles in the 1st Century. The Israelites are called Jews 80 times in the OT beginning with the book of Esther about 600 BC and the Israelites are called Jews over 200 times in the NT.
Acts 2:5: �Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.� And on the day of Pentecost 3,000 Jews were saved as per Acts 2:5,14,41. John 4:22b: Jesus says, "Salvation is from the Jews.!" Matthew 2:1,2: Wise men from the East asked, �Where is the One who has been born King of the Jews?� Matthew 27:11: Pilate asked Jesus, �Are you the King of the Jews?� �Yes it is as you say,� Jesus replied!
God said to Abraham, in Genesis 17:8: �The whole land of Canaan I will be give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you.�
Quotes from Obama on May 20th, 2011: �Israel must learn do defend itself **BY ITSELF**!!� �Israel must return to **PRE-1967 BORDERS**!!� Nations from all over the world have heartily agreed with King Obama's 2 statements including the European Union, Russia and the United nations. Obama has also stated that he does not have to abide by the War Powers Act or the Constitution in declaring war thus making Obama a King with the power to make war against anyone he desires as long as he desires!
Bahira: Once one third or about 5 million Jews are saved including the 144,000 they will follow all of the commands of the New Covenant including Matthew 5:38-40: Jesus says, "You have heard that it was said, "Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth." {In Deut 24:1} BUT I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also!!"
2 Corinthians 10:3,4: "For though we live in the world we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are **NOT** the weapons of the world."
Matt 26:52 Jesus says, "ALL:devil: who draw the sword will die by the sword."
Ephesians 6:17 "And take the helmet of salvation, and the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God!":angel:
Hebrews 4:12 "For the word of God is living and active, Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart!":applause::angel::peace:
When you join the Israeli army and become a professional killer and user of the sword; you take an oath that you will obey all the commands of your commanding officers even if they command you to drop an Hydrogen bomb that will kill 100,000 civilians including about 30,000 children; and you are therefore breaking two commands of the New Covenant.
Matthew 5:33-39: Jesus says, "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, "Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord." But I tell you. Do not swear at all, either by heaven, for it is God's throne or by the earth, for it is His footstool, or by Jerusalem for it is the city of the Great King... Simply let your "Yes," be "Yes, and your "No," "No"; anything beyond this comes from the evil one."...You have heard that it was said,{In Deut 24:1} "Eye for an eye, and tooth for tooth." "But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also!"
Matthew 26:52: Jesus says, "Put your sword back in its place for all who draw the sword will die by the sword!"
Romans 12:19-22: "Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord..Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good."
2 Corinthians 10:3-5: "We do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are *NOT* the weapons of the world yet they have power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God."
