ISRAEL WILL BE GATHERED

Scripture Reading: Joel 3 | Sabbath: February 3rd, 2024
Memory Verse: Joel 3:1
Joel 3:1 For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,
Weekly Proverb: Proverbs 8:17
Proverbs 8:17 I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me.
Introduction: Israel was taken from Egypt. They were given commandments to live by and a promise that they would occupy their own land. But, years of breaking God’s law was the reason they were expelled from the land. But comforting prophecies guaranteed their return to their land. There are more prophecies to be fulfilled.

1. Before Israel entered Canaan, what did Moses prophesy concerning their future homeland? Was it clear that they would be expelled? Was it clear that they would return? Deuteronomy 30:1-5.
Deuteronomy 30:1 And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath driven thee,
Deuteronomy 30:2 And shalt return unto the Lord thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul;
Deuteronomy 30:3 That then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath scattered thee.
Deuteronomy 30:4 If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the Lord thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee:
Deuteronomy 30:5 And the Lord thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers.
2. By Whose hand would they return? v 4, 5.
Deuteronomy 30:4 If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the Lord thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee:
Deuteronomy 30:5 And the Lord thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers.
3. The Jews were expelled and taken to Babylon. After seventy years they returned to Canaan. (Jeremiah 25:8-12, 2 Chronicles 36:20, 21, Jeremiah 29:10) Was this the final fulfillment of the promise to return God’s people? Isaiah 11:11, 12.
Isaiah 11:11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.
Isaiah 11:12 And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.
4. Why does God specify that a “second time” the remnant will return? Will this be a second return from Babylon? This second return will be from how many places? How far away? v 11, 12.
Isaiah 11:11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.
Isaiah 11:12 And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.
5. How impressive will their return be? Their second return will exceed what great event? Jeremiah 16:14, 15.
Jeremiah 16:14 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that it shall no more be said, The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;
Jeremiah 16:15 But, The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had driven them: and I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers.
6. Will the gathering be pleasant? Who are the “fishers”? Who are the “hunters”? Explain these metaphors. v 16.
Jeremiah 16:16 Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the Lord, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks.
Answer: Many Jews have returned willingly. Some have needed an incentive, and some will not go without intimidation. Fishers are those that use persecution to force the Jews out of their countries. The hunters are those that use violence to force them out.
7. When the gathering started, their land was a desert wilderness. What promise was made to those that were gathered? Can their nation now be described by the words “fruitful and increase”? Jeremiah 23:3.
Jeremiah 23:3 And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase.
8. The little nation is in the news almost every day; sometimes for good reasons and sometimes for bad reasons. How can such a small plot of land be so popular in the newspapers and on television? Do the words “praise and fame” describe Israel today? Zephaniah 3:19, 20.
Zephaniah 3:19 Behold, at that time I will undo all that afflict thee: and I will save her that halteth, and gather her that was driven out; and I will get them praise and fame in every land where they have been put to shame.
Zephaniah 3:20 At that time will I bring you again, even in the time that I gather you: for I will make you a name and a praise among all people of the earth, when I turn back your captivity before your eyes, saith the Lord.
9. God has gathered and who can scatter them again? Once they have been gathered and planted, who can pull them up? Amos 9:13-15.
Amos 9:13 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt.
Amos 9:14 And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them.
Amos 9:15 And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God.
10. Israel has been gathered. And there are other prophecies to be fulfilled. Once gathered, the stage is set for what?
Revelation 16:12-16, Joel 3:1, 2, 9-21.
Revelation 16:12 And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.
Revelation 16:13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
Revelation 16:14 For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
Revelation 16:15 Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
Revelation 16:16 And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.
Joel 3:1 For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,
Joel 3:2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.
Joel 3:9 Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up:
Joel 3:10 Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong.
Joel 3:11 Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about: thither cause thy mighty ones to come down, O Lord.
Joel 3:12 Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about.
Joel 3:13 Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great.
Joel 3:14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.
Joel 3:15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.
Joel 3:16 The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
Joel 3:17 So shall ye know that I am the Lord your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more.
Joel 3:18 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth out of the house of the Lord, and shall water the valley of Shittim.
Joel 3:19 Egypt shall be a desolation, and Edom shall be a desolate wilderness, for the violence against the children of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land.
Joel 3:20 But Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.
Joel 3:21 For I will cleanse their blood that I have not cleansed: for the Lord dwelleth in Zion.
Conclusion: God has not forsaken His people. They have been gathered back to their land and the gathering continues. There are still millions of Jews around the world, so there is much to be done.