While We Were Sleeping – Israel
This is my fifteenth, and final, in the series, highlighting key aspects from each chapter of my 2025 book, While We Were Sleeping: A Wake-up Call for All Christians. (Check out my YouTube channel where I am posting a reflection on each chapter, to complement these posts.)
Teri Kempe has been a long-time supporter and writer for The Daily Declaration, and she became my editor for While We Were Sleeping after giving me her testimony for this chapter.
She was born in London but emigrated to Australia at 16. Teri has been a missionary volunteer in Fiji, and in 2013 Teri was invited onto the Fiji branch of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ).
The rest, as they say, is history. Her love of and support for Israel had been ignited! Here are some snapshots from her testimony:
“I volunteered with ICEJ for ten years. Their mandate is, ‘comfort, yes, comfort My people’ (Isaiah 40:1), to comfort the Jews. They are extremely careful not to proselytise, being very conscious of the historical persecution of the Jews by Christians going right back to the Crusades, and the Holocaust.
“I could not have prepared myself for the impact of going to Israel in 2014. It was absolutely life changing. I have an arts degree in Biblical Studies, I have studied the archaeology of Israel, and I was very familiar with the Bible. I had read the Bible many, many times, even though I only became a Christian at 16. The Lord had regularly spoken to me through the Word. But when I went to Israel, suddenly the Bible came even more alive!
“To me the Word of God is very precious and the fact that the Jewish people have preserved it for us, means we owe them a great debt of gratitude. I was beginning to realise they were the vehicle God has used, and the Jewish people have had that responsibility.”
Teri Kempe’s connection with Israel is profound. She would emphatically claim that this connection has been orchestrated by God. She was not looking for Israel, Israel found her.
In order for us to understand the importance of Israel, from a faith and political perspective, let’s review some of the facts, and some of the history of the Arab–Jew conflict.
History of the Arab–Jew Conflict
The landmass of current Israel is tiny, one of the smallest sovereign nations in the world. At its narrowest point it is only 14 km E to W, and 424 km N to S.
Most of us will be familiar with biblical history, but let me highlight a few key features. In about 1000 BC, King David’s kingdom was established, with Jerusalem the capital, where King Solomon built the First Temple around 957 BC.
In 515 BC there was the great return from Babylonian exile (Ezra 6), funded by the Babylonians (the Persian Empire — modern day Iran — specifically King Cyrus), and the Second Hebrew Temple was established.
The Romans invaded in 63 BC, and the land of Judea becomes a vasal state to the Roman Empire. The Second Temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. So, for the majority of biblical history, the land of Israel was the land of the Hebrews, the Jewish people.
There was a massive revolt by the Jews against the Romans in 132–136 AD known as the Bar Kochba Revolt, which was nearly successful, but in the aftermath, the Romans renamed Israel, ‘Palestine’ as an insult to the Jews, after their arch enemy the Philistines.
The religion of Islam was not founded until the 7th Century AD, when the Arabs took over the land in 636 AD. The Crusades followed, a series of religious wars initiated by the medieval papacy, as a response to the expansion of Islam and the desire to reclaim the Holy Land for Christians. By 1291 the Crusaders were finally defeated, and the Muslim Ottoman Empire was established from 1517–1918.
Then, on 14th May 1948 it happened, the State of Israel was declared! Here is the start of the declaration pronounced on that day:
“ERETZ-ISRAEL (the Land of Israel) was the birthplace of the Jewish people. Here their spiritual, religious and political identity was shaped. Here they first attained to statehood, created cultural values of national and universal significance and gave to the world the eternal Book of Books.
After being forcibly exiled from their land, the people kept faith with it throughout their Dispersion and never ceased to pray and hope for their return to it and for the restoration in it of their political freedom…”
Whose land is it — the Jews or the Arabs? The law of first occupation would give it to the Jews, since 1000 BC, and the law of longest tenure would also go to the Jews, 11 centuries verses four centuries for the Arabs.
It must be said that most Muslims would prefer to coexist alongside, or within, a Jewish state, respecting their borders, rather than fight over it. But Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)’s, with its proxies, the Houthis, Hezbollah and Hamas are hell-bent on the annihilation of all Jews, and the State of Israel. The IRGC’s mission is to eradicate the ‘Great Satan,’ the United States, and the ‘Little Satan,’ Israel.
Replacement Theology
Replacement Theology, also known as Supersessionism, argues that the Jews are no longer the people of God and that the promises made to Israel physically in the Old Testament, are now only to be interpreted spiritually and metaphorically as applying to the Christian Church. Passages like Galatians 3:28 (“There is neither Jew nor Greek”) and Romans 9:6 (“For they are not all Israel who are of Israel”) have been taken out of context and interpreted to indicate God has finished with the Jews because they crucified Christ.
Pastor Gary Hamrick has been most strident in his rejection of Replacement Theology:
“The Catholic Church in the twelfth century believed this, and thus the Crusader Wars, marching through Europe slaughtering thousands of Jews and then headed into the Holy Land slaughtering thousands more and thousands of Muslims too in the process.
“In addition, Martin Luther did some great things, nailing his thesis on the door of the Wittenberg Church and starting the Protestant Reformation. But he also wrote a lot of anti-Semitic things, because he also believed in Supersessionism, that the church has replaced Israel, and that God no longer has any purpose for the Jewish people.
“Luther’s views were so anti-Semitic that Adolf Hitler hailed him in Mine Kampf, quoting him as reasons, in part, for the slaughtering of the Jews in WWII. We have to know our Bibles, as a wrong interpretation of one verse (Romans 9:6), has led to the slaughter of millions of Jews. God is not done with the Jewish people.”
I put it to you; on the one hand the West was repulsed by the Holocaust perpetrated by the Nazi Regime against the Jews in WWII. Yet on the other hand, we can find ourselves aligning with an underlying anti-Semitism that can be traced back to an error in an understanding of Scriptures first made by early Church leaders such as Irenaeus, Augustine, and Athanasius.
If this is true, it might partly explain the inordinate rise in anti-Semitism the West has seen since 7th October 2023.
What About You?
What about your own church? Are there undercurrents of Replacement Theology to be found there? One way of examining this is to analyse the rhetoric from your church leadership.
If they are equivocal, unable to side with either Israel or the Palestinians, that probably indicates they are rusted on Replacement Theologians.
It seems to me that most Western churches have Replacement Theology in their DNA, despite rarely preaching on it, but it manifests in their silence on Israel.
As a result, many Christians fail to appreciate the importance of Israel in today’s world, on account of their Christian leaders not teaching on the significance of the Jewish homeland and God’s eternal purpose with Israel.
“Behold, He who keeps Israel
Shall neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is your keeper;
The Lord is your shade at your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day,
Nor the moon by night.
The Lord shall preserve you from all evil;
He shall preserve your soul.” (Psalm 121:4)
Many Christians, however, then hear the mainstream media (with its (Trump Derangement Syndrome) portraying President Donald Trump as the worst thing to happen to America and the world, the evil man that started the war with Iran, collaborating with the equally evil, President of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu. They demonstrate they have little appreciation for biblical prophecy relating the last days, so they have nothing with which to counter this narrative.
In addition, this deceptive narrative feeds the neo-Marxist ideology that always attacks Judaeo-Christian values, capitalism, and the powerful, while supporting the underdog, the oppressed and the marginalised. (This is illustrated by Professor Gad Saad’s latest book Suicidal Empathy: Dying to Be Kind).
As Christians we are naturally drawn to supporting the poor and vulnerable, which puts us in a dangerous place if we align ourselves with the secular neo-Marxist mindset.
So, it becomes natural, from a Replacement Theology stance, to sympathise with the Palestinian people who, they claim, have been the victims of Israeli genocide in Gaza, which in-turn feeds into the modern day anti-Semitism we have seen around the world and most recently here on Bondi Beach, Sydney.
So, what about you? Do you find yourself aligned with most Western Christians, caring for the marginalised, while seeking to resist the extremes of neo-Marxism, but equivocal about Israel and the Jews?
I put it to you: this position is not sustainable. If we implicitly accept Replacement Theology, we are mocking God, because we are suggesting that God has changed his mind.
“God is not a man, that He should lie,
Nor a son of man, that He should repent.
Has He said, and will He not do?
Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” (Numbers 23:19)
And finally, we can only expect a blessing, as long as we are grafted into an Israel, that is alive and well (Romans 11: 11–31), not replacing Israel:
“I will bless those who bless you,
And I will curse him who curses you;
And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Genesis 12:3)
___
Image via Jim Twelves.
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Thankyou for this teaching…… yes I have noticed the church’s silence on Israel…..the church in general ..and I have heard Christians from various denominations speaking out replacement theology….and like you say it stems from a lack of teaching from the scripture and from misinterpretation of isolated verses.
The church needs to teach its people the whole counsel of God….at the moment only we as individual Christians can do that for ourselves ….i think the church is too fearful of man to do so.!
Sue, you have named the elephant in the room (Proverbs 29:25). I think it behooves us speak out and encourage others to speak out without fear of being silenced or cut off.
Jim, you wrote “Replacement Theology argues that the Jews are no longer the people of God and that the promises made to Israel physically in the Old Testament, are now only to be interpreted spiritually and metaphorically as applying to the Christian Church. Passages like Galatians 3:28 (“There is neither Jew nor Greek”) and Romans 9:6 (“For they are not all Israel who are of Israel”) have been taken out of context and interpreted to indicate God has finished with the Jews because they crucified Christ.”
I believe that Paul wrote that believing Jews are people of God together with all believing people in Christ crucufid. The first believers were Jews and they were cruelly persecuted by the unbelieving Jews as as Jesus foretold.
You wrote that Galatians 3:28 and Romans 9:6 have been taken out of context. But who is really taking them out of context? Not Paul!
The context in both cases are confirmed by Paul in Romans e.g., 1:16-7, 2:2:28- For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God.
.And in Galatians e.g., 1:8; 2-16, 21; 3:6-9: 3:3-4. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”— in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Rom 2:28-29 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which, not by the letter.
And Galatians 4:13-14 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”— in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Gal 4:19. My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you
Gal 5:2-6; 5:11-12. But I, brethren, if I still preach circumcision, why am I still persecuted? Then the stumbling block of the cross has been abolished. I wish that those who are troubling you would even mutilate themselves.
Gal 6:14-15: But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither is circumcision anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. And those who will walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God.
I say then with Paul, we believers in the cross are a new creation. We are the Israel of God!
I believe that Paul wrote that believing Jews are people of God together with all believing people in Christ cruc=. The first believers were Jews and they were cruelly persecuted by the unbelieving Jews as Luke wrote as Jesus foretold.
You wrote that Galatians 3:28 and Romans 9:6 have been taken out of context. But who is really taking them out of context? Not Paul!
The context in both cases are confirmed by Paul in Romans (1:16-7, 2:) 2:28- For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter.
And look at Galatians e.g., Gal 1:8; 2-16, 21; 3:6-9: 3:3-4.
Gal 4:13-14 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”— 14 in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Gal 4:19. My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you
Gal 5:2-6; 5:11-12. But I, brethren, if I still preach circumcision, why am I still persecuted? Then the stumbling block of the cross has been abolished. I wish that those who are troubling you would even mutilate themselves.
Gal 6:14-15: But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither is circumcision anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. And those who will walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God.
And read what the Jew Peter wrote to his Jew and Gentile readers—1 Peter:2:10- But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 for you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
I say then with Paul, we believers in the cross are a new creation. We are the Israel of God!
In the New Covenant what has been replaced?
The New Covenant has replaced the Old Covenant
The Cross has replaced the Law
The blessing has replaced the curse
The new Jerusalem above has replaced the wicked evil Jerusalem below
The people who are justified by faith have replaced those who are justified by works of the law
Ian, thank you for your notes and the numerous Bible references, they’re invaluable. Perhaps my piece was not as clear as it could have been. Replacement Theology is a definite thing that many Christians today hold to. Their emphasis is one of ‘replacing’ all the promised made specifically to the ‘children of Israel, ‘ and claiming that they are now exclusively to be applied to the modern day church.
I totally agree, those promises to apply to the modern day church, ‘because’ we have been grafted into ‘Israel.’ (Romans 11: 11-31)
Thanks for this article. It is tragic how historically the Jews have been displaced geographically by political decisions and replaced theologically by the church. Yet they still survive!
The Bible is very clear that God’s covenant with Israel and the giving of the land of Canaan is an everlasting covenant, and God swore to this with an oath – how much clearer could He be? See the following passages:
• In Genesis 12:1–3, God chooses Abram and tells him to leave his country and family, and that God would bless Abram and make him into a great nation and bless him, make his name great and bless all the peoples of the world through him. God later makes a covenant with Abram and changes his name to Abraham and tells him, “I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God” (Genesis 15:18; 17:4-8).
• This covenant is repeated to Abraham’s son Isaac and his grandson Jacob (Genesis 26:2-5; 28:13-15), is recounted in the Psalms (e.g. Psalm 105:8-11) and is the basis for the Mosaic and Davidic Covenant.
• The everlasting nature of God’s covenant with Israel is again declared in Jeremiah 31:35–37, when God states that Israel will remain a nation before Him as long as the created order endures.
• And finally for this comment, the Apostle Paul reminds his readers by asking, “Has God rejected His people?” and he answers with an emphatic “By no means” (Romans 11:1–2).
God did not reject His people in times past, and he has not done so today. In 1948, the Jews returned to their ancestral promised land; they have been gathered together like the bones in Ezekiel’s vision (Ezekiel 37:1-14); however, they are yet to be infilled with the Spirit – but that is best left at this stage for another comment.
Stephen, wow, what an essay! Thank you so much for this walk through he Bible. The key word from you I believe is ‘tragic’. Not just for Israel and God’s people but also Bible believing Christians, who are missing out on so much in their faith journey.
Jim thanks for your reply.
1. the numerous Bible references invaluable.
2. Ok we have been grafted into ‘Israel.’
3. So we are one with our believing brothers and sisters of Israel—that is, one in Christ Jesus.
4. As Paul said we are ‘one new man’: “But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off [j]have been brought near [k]by the blood of Christ. 14 For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the [l]barrier of the dividing wall, 15 [m]by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, so that in Himself He might [n]make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, 16 and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, [o]by it having put to death the enmity. 17 And He came and preached peace to you who were far away, and peace to those who were near; 18 for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the [p]saints, and are of God’s household, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy [q]temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.” Ephesians 2:13-23
Hi Ian, I want to reply to your comment. God determined to have a special people for Himself, and through this people He would bless the whole world. To this end, God called Abraham and ‘cut’ a covenant with Him; what we know as the Abrahamic Covenant. This covenant was initiated by God (Genesis 12:1–3), it was not earned by Abraham and was both unconditional (Genesis 15:2–21) and everlasting (Jeremiah 31:35–37). It included promises of personal blessing, blessing for all nations, possession of the land, and innumerable descendants. The covenant was subsequently reaffirmed to Abraham’s descendants, and the Old Testament records God’s ongoing fulfilment of these promises.
Not all of the promises to Israel have been fulfilled yet. The promised Messiah, Jesus, has come and obtained our salvation through His death at Calvary; I affirm that no one can be saved but through Christ (Acts 4:12). However, the same Paul who wrote Ephesians 2:13-23 that you quote also sees Jews and Greeks (Gentiles) as distinct, calling for evangelism to each separately (Romans 1:16) and wrote that he himself might be accursed, such was his anguish for his fellow Israelites (Romans 9:3). Paul’s prayer for their salvation underscores that Israel remains a distinct group needing the gospel, and while there has been a hardening for a purpose (Romans 11: 25), God has not replaced His people. Whilst the Church might be called the people of God now (1 Peter 2:9), Paul makes it clear that this is only “until the full number of the Gentiles has come in” (Romans 11:25). The Church has not replaced Israel because “as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable” (Romans 11:28-29).
Stephen, (and Ian), thank you to you both for the work you have each put into this discussion. It has been invaluable to me ( and to anyone else who has read through these scriptures).
So what is the bottom line? The only doorway into saving grace is through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. But what are we to think of what is happening in the Middle East today? Is it the playbook of Godless peoples acting out the just rewards for man’s sin? Or are we witnessing the hand of God fulling prophesies made about His nation, His original chosen people, the Jews?
Forgive me, I could not resist adding this postscript, if you will:
Replacement Theology. It sounds like a rather irrelevant topic for theologians to argue about, yes? No, the more I think about it, listen to people talk about it, and pray about it, the more I see it is vital to every living and breathing Christian.
Take Dr David Reagan for example – full of research and his decades of ministry experience: please listen and share with folks everywhere.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m03PAH7Z-VM
Thanks Jim! Great video.
This is my ‘canned’ response as a starting point…
Replacement theology, also called supersessionism, is the belief that the Christian Church has replaced Israel in God’s plan, and that the promises made to Israel in the Old Testament now apply only to the Church. Critics of this theology argue that it misrepresents the biblical narrative and undermines God’s faithfulness to His covenant with Israel.
Here is a detailed explanation of the case against replacement theology:
1. God’s Covenant with Israel Is Everlasting
🔹 Genesis 17:7-8
“And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your descendants after you.”
Argument: God’s covenant with Abraham and his descendants is called everlasting. Replacement theology implies that God has broken or altered this covenant, which contradicts this passage.
2. God Will Not Reject His People
🔹 Romans 11:1-2
“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. God did not reject His people, whom He foreknew.”
Argument: Paul directly refutes the idea that God has rejected Israel. If the Church had fully replaced Israel, this reassurance would be unnecessary.
3. Gentiles Are Grafted Into Israel, Not Replacers
🔹 Romans 11:17-18
“If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others… do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches.”
Argument: Gentile believers are grafted into the root (Israel), not replacing it. The metaphor emphasizes inclusion, not replacement.
4. God’s Promises to Israel Are Irrevocable
🔹 Romans 11:28-29
“As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies for your sake; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable.”
Argument: Even in Israel’s unbelief, Paul asserts that God’s calling and promises to them remain. Replacement theology would imply that God has revoked His promises.
5. Jesus Affirms the Future for Israel
🔹 Matthew 19:28
“Jesus said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things… you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.’”
Argument: Jesus refers to a future judgement and leadership role over Israel, which implies Israel continues to have a prophetic role.
6. The Prophets Foretell Israel’s Future Restoration
🔹 Ezekiel 36:24-28
“For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you… Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors…”
Argument: This prophecy speaks of national and spiritual restoration of Israel. If Israel were permanently replaced, these promises would go unfulfilled or need to be reinterpreted allegorically.
🔹 Zechariah 12:10
“They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him…”
Argument: This looks forward to a national repentance of Israel, recognising their Messiah—something yet future and incompatible with replacement theology.
7. Revelation Speaks of Tribes of Israel in the End Times
🔹 Revelation 7:4
“Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.”
Argument: In the eschatological vision, the twelve tribes of Israel are still distinct and present in God’s plan.
Summary of the Case Against Replacement Theology
Point Summary Key Scripture
1. Everlasting Covenant God’s promises to Israel are eternal Genesis 17:7-8
2. Not Rejected Paul says God has not rejected Israel Romans 11:1-2
3. Grafted In Gentiles join Israel’s blessings, not replace them Romans 11:17-18
4. Irrevocable Calling God’s covenant with Israel stands Romans 11:28-29
5. Future for Israel Jesus affirms Israel’s role Matthew 19:28
6. Prophetic Restoration OT prophets foretell Israel’s return Ezekiel 36, Zechariah 12
7. Israel in Revelation Israel is present in end-time prophecy Revelation 7:4
Final Thoughts
The case against replacement theology is rooted in a consistent, literal interpretation of both Old and New Testament scriptures. It maintains that God’s character is faithful, and His promises to Israel—though delayed in some respects—are not revoked or reassigned. This view affirms both God’s ongoing plan for Israel and the inclusion of the Gentiles through Christ, without negating either.
Also…
A big question… Is God a liar in terms of His covenants?
The question of whether God’s covenant with Israel is eternal can be examined through key biblical covenants associated with Abraham, Moses, David, and the New Covenant.
1. The Abrahamic Covenant
The covenant with Abraham is foundational for Israel, promising land, descendants, and blessing. In Genesis 17:7, God says, “I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.” The term “everlasting” (Hebrew: *olam*) suggests permanence. Genesis 17:8 further promises the land of Canaan to Abraham’s offspring “as an everlasting possession.” This covenant is reiterated in Genesis 15:18, where God binds Himself to the promise without conditions on Abraham’s part, emphasising its unilateral and eternal nature. The covenant’s focus on Abraham’s descendants through Isaac (Genesis 17:19) ties it directly to Israel, indicating an enduring commitment. Also Psalm 147:19-20 continues the promise to Yakov (Israel).
2. The Mosaic Covenant
The covenant with Moses, given at Sinai, includes the Law and establishes Israel as a “kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exodus 19:5-6). Unlike the Abrahamic covenant, this covenant is conditional, requiring Israel’s obedience: “If you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession” (Exodus 19:5). Deuteronomy 28 outlines blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience, suggesting the covenant’s benefits depend on Israel’s faithfulness. However, Leviticus 26:44-45 states that even if Israel is unfaithful, God will not “reject them or abhor them so as to destroy them completely, breaking my covenant with them,” recalling the covenant with their ancestors (Abraham). This implies that while the Mosaic covenant’s blessings are conditional, God’s commitment to Israel’s existence endures, rooted in the Abrahamic promise.
3. The Davidic Covenant
God’s covenant with David promises an eternal dynasty: “Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever” (2 Samuel 7:16). Psalm 89:3-4 reinforces this: “I have made a covenant with my chosen one, I have sworn to David my servant, ‘I will establish your line forever and make your throne firm through all generations.’” The term “forever” underscores permanence. This covenant focuses on the Davidic line ruling Israel, suggesting an eternal role for Israel as a nation under God’s chosen king. Even when Israel faced exile, passages like Jeremiah 33:20-21 affirm that God’s covenant with David (and the Levites) is as unbreakable as the day and night, reinforcing its eternal tie to Israel.
4. The New Covenant
The New Covenant, prophesied in Jeremiah 31:31-34, is explicitly made “with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.” It promises forgiveness of sins and a new relationship with God: “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” (Jeremiah 31:33). The eternal nature is implied in Jeremiah 32:40: “I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them.” Ezekiel 37:26-28 also ties this covenant to Israel, promising an “everlasting covenant” of peace and God’s presence among them forever. In the New Testament, Hebrews 8:8-12 cites Jeremiah 31, applying the New Covenant to believers, including both Jews and Gentiles through Christ (Hebrews 9:15). However, the original promise in Jeremiah is directed to Israel, showing continuity with prior covenants.
The BIG question raised: Is the Covenant with Israel Eternal?
The Abrahamic and Davidic covenants explicitly use “everlasting” language, tying God’s promises to Israel’s existence, land, and Davidic rule. The Mosaic covenant, while conditional in its blessings, does not negate God’s enduring commitment to Israel as a people, as seen in Leviticus 26 and its link to the Abrahamic promise. The New Covenant, while fulfilled in Christ and extended to all believers, is rooted in God’s promises to Israel and Judah, maintaining continuity with the earlier covenants.
Romans 11:25-29 provides insight: Paul states that “Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in,” yet “all Israel will be saved” because “God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable.” This shows that God’s covenantal relationship with Israel remains intact, even as the New Covenant broadens salvation. The eternal nature of these covenants is tied to God’s faithfulness, not Israel’s performance, as seen in passages like Psalm 105:8-10: “He remembers his covenant forever, the promise he made, for a thousand generations, the covenant he made with Abraham, the oath he swore to Isaac. He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant.”
Conclusion
Based on the biblical references, God’s covenant with Israel—through Abraham, Moses, David, and the New Covenant—is eternal in its core commitments to Israel’s existence as God’s people, their connection to the land, and their role in God’s redemptive plan. While the Mosaic covenant’s blessings are conditional, the overarching promises to Abraham, David, and through the New Covenant use “everlasting” language, affirmed by God’s irrevocable call in Romans 11. Thus, the covenants collectively point to an enduring relationship with Israel, fulfilled ultimately through Christ in the New Covenant, which includes but does not replace Israel’s unique role.
Dear Kym, you have written an excellent and thorough overview of the biblical narrative and God’s faithfulness to Israel. Thank you. It builds on what has been written before on this important issue but then details the place of the covenants and their importance for Israel. I like your comment that the eternal nature of these covenants is tied to God’s faithfulness, not Israel’s performance.
Some churches (maybe many), would accept the scriptures you relate, but teach that the Church through Christ has fulfilled the promises to Israel and that Israel is no longer significant in God’s purposes. They do not talk of Replacement Theology, but Fulfillment Theology. However, the outcome of such theology is the same, Israel is seen as a secular state which has no relationship to ancient, biblical Israel. The eschatology of such churches tend to be amillennialism, which teaches that when Christ returns, history is wound up and there is no Millennial reign of Christ on Earth from Jerusalem. I believe such churches fail to embrace the enduring nature and authority of God’s word.
Kym, thank you for your prolific commentary on this ‘vexed’ question of the place of the Jews and the land of Israel in God’s present economy. Your scriptural argument is water-tight from my perspective.
However, how do you relate all this to the Christian community within which you live and serve? Have you had any ‘discussions’ with church leaders who hold ‘replacement theology.’ or some variant of it, in their belief? If so, how have your ‘discussions’ progressed?
For me, a difference on views of the Jews and Israel would not close fellowship doors; but, I would love to see church leaders take a public ‘stance with the Jews,’ rather than ‘sitting on their hands.’
Jim, it manifests as a bi-polar response.
A. People get it and agree, not much discussion needed.
B. Some disagree, and often with vitriol and personal attack (you would cry if you saw what we have been accused of).
This includes blood libels around Israel committing genocide etc.
Also, modern Israelis are not the biblical Jews.
Only once did someone change sides.
He was a brother who was anti-Israel and anti-Semitic, but I challenged him to check the word.
We had a lot of history so he did.
I did ask the following personal questions…
Genuine questions:
1. How long have you spent on the ground in Israel? Also how often have you travelled to Israel?
2. How many Arab friends so you have from both Israel and the west bank?
3. Have you been to Gaza?
4. How many hostage families have you met, prayed with, wept with?
5. How many 7th Oct Massacre survivors do you know personally?
6. How much time have you spent with the local Jewish community hearing their stories?
7. How many Arabs, Egyptians, Persians, etc. do you connect with locally (Australia)?
8. Have you been in the Golan during a Hezbollah attack? (Okay it was a few kms away across the valley)
9. Have you been threatened with death, or attacked physically, for being at the many bring the hostages home vigils here in Adelaide?
And also shared a story I’ve put in comments before…
Finally, we looked at the DNA tests showing direct linkage for all Jews to biblical times, both Ashkenazi (European), and Mizrachi (from the Levant and Mediterranean regions).
He listened and evaluated because we had a good Godly relationship.
Kym, your quoted post to Yusaf is most helpful. I am seeking to navigate ‘discussions’ regarding these vexed issues and your testimony is invaluable. You bring ‘primary’ data to the table as opposed to ‘secondary’ that can so easily be ‘adjusted’ in war. Thank you.
Thanks for the insights from your book, Jim, and for the discussion provided by Ian and Kim. By this little sample of an on-going debate, it appears to be an internal struggle of the Pre-millennial version of the future. Thankfully, there scholars, past and present, who are not going to take sides with either case for pro- or anti-Replacement Theory. Our common intent is to preach Christ, and him crucified. The whole world owes so much to Him, the King of Kings. He is the vine, we are the branches. In Christ we are made a new creation. Let us concentrate on our common petition in our Lord’s Prayer Let your kingdom come, let your will be done. Perhaps a little excursion into the works of Augustine, Calvin and more recently Rushdoony, will provide new impetus for our common desire to seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness.
I agree that preaching the gospel of the kingdom, that is Jesus is paramount. That said…
Below are 10 quotations from early church fathers that strongly reflect the idea of distinct administrations (“economies”) in God’s redemptive plan.
While they do not present a fully developed modern dispensational system, the language and concepts often sound strikingly similar to later dispensational theology.
Thus we see dispensational theology pre-dates Darby by more then 1,500 years.
The key Greek term used by many fathers is “oikonomia” (economy/administration)—the same concept behind the biblical word translated “dispensation” in Ephesians 3:2.
1. Irenaeus – God works through different covenants in different ages
Irenaeus (c.130–202)
“The law was a preparation for the Gospel… God introduced different covenants suited to different ages of mankind.”
(Against Heresies 4.9.3)
This clearly teaches progressive stages in God’s dealings with humanity.
2. Irenaeus – Distinct dispensations throughout history
“There is therefore one God the Father… who has formed and arranged all things according to His dispensations for the salvation of mankind.”
(Against Heresies 3.16.6)
The word translated dispensations comes from oikonomia.
3. Irenaeus – Progressive revelation through successive eras
“For inasmuch as God is always the same, He has nevertheless varied the covenant according to the times, and adapted it to the human race.”
(Against Heresies 4.11.2)
This resembles the idea that God administers different rules or responsibilities in different periods.
4. Justin Martyr – The Mosaic law as a temporary dispensation
Justin Martyr (c.100–165)
“God commanded you to keep the Sabbath, not because He needed such observances, but on account of your sins and the hardness of your hearts.” (Dialogue with Trypho 18)
Justin argues that the Mosaic system was temporary, anticipating a new covenant.
5. Justin Martyr – A new law replacing the old
“For the law promulgated on Horeb is now old, and belongs to yourselves alone; but this is for all universally.” (Dialogue with Trypho 11)
This reflects a transition from the Mosaic dispensation to the universal gospel age.
6. Tertullian – God organizes history into divine economies
Tertullian (c.155–220)
“The Creator… distributed the times and seasons and arranged the divine economies according to the order of the ages.” (Against Marcion 4.11)
This language is extremely close to dispensational terminology.
7. Clement of Alexandria – God educating humanity in stages
Clement of Alexandria (c.150–215)
“Before the coming of the Lord, philosophy was necessary to the Greeks for righteousness… as the Law also was to the Jews.” (Stromata 1.5)
Clement sees different divine administrations given to different peoples before Christ.
8. Hippolytus – Successive eras in God’s plan
Hippolytus of Rome (c.170–235)
“The law and the prophets continued until John… after which the kingdom of heaven is preached.” (Fragments on Daniel)
This recognises a clear transition in God’s redemptive administration.
9. Augustine – Distinct historical ages
Augustine of Hippo (354–430)
“The divine Scripture speaks of six ages of the world, as of six days, in which the human race is gradually educated.” ( City of God 22.30)
Augustine viewed history as structured into eras of divine activity.
Augustine described different ages in salvation history.
In City of God he divides history into six ages, paralleling the six days of creation.
These ages included:
– Adam to Noah
– Noah to Abraham
– Abraham to David
– David to the exile
– Exile to Christ
– Christ to the end
Though not dispensational in the modern sense, Augustine still recognised distinct historical administrations of God’s plan.
10. Irenaeus – Humanity matured through successive stages
“God formed man at the beginning… and permitted him to pass through every stage of discipline, that he might attain to maturity.” (*Against Heresies* 4.38.1)
This reflects the idea that God progressively advances His plan through stages.
— Why these quotations matter?
These passages demonstrate that long before John Nelson Darby (1800–1882):
Early Christian writers already taught:
• Successive divine economies
• Different covenants for different eras
• Progressive revelation
• Transitions between historical administrations
• Distinct phases of God’s redemptive plan
Darby did not invent the concept, but rather systematised and expanded earlier theological ideas that were already present in the early church.
In short: The early church fathers did not develop a full modern dispensational system, but their language about divine economies, successive covenants, and historical stages in God’s plan shows that the core concept of dispensational thinking existed many centuries before Darby.