Two Dispersions and Two Re-gatherings

Moses prophesied before Israel entered the Land that God would remove Israel from the Land and return them twice because of unbelief.  This did not have to happen, but unbelief and following after false gods by God’s people would cause this to happen.  God prophesied it all first, and we see it happening throughout “His story”.

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Moses prophesied that God would remove Israel from the Land and return them twice before they set foot in the Promised Land.  This did not have to happen, but unbelief and following after false gods by God’s people would cause this to happen.  God prophesied it all first, and we see it happening throughout “His story”.

Throughout history Israel has been removed from the Land twice. The first removal was in the 500’s BC, because of idolatry and the second removal because they rejected their Messiah Who had been promised throughout the pages of the Old Testament.  God returned His people to the Land after the prophesied 70 years captivity in Babylon had been completed.  During the time of Zerubbabel, Joshua, Haggai, and Zechariah, God returned the people to the Land. Because of God sending messages through His prophets, the people were encouraged to complete the Temple in the sixth year of the Persian King Cyrus.  Although the people went through great persecution from the Grecians after the death of Alexander the Great, they were victorious over their enemies.  Their Messiah arrived in God’s timing and His arrival was announced by God through another Zechariah in the New Testament. Will God’s people and the Kingdom be returned to the Land?  We have a front row seat prepared for us in the prophetical Scripture.

We get a “first-hand prophetical account” of these events years before they happened, while they are happening, and a thorough account of how it will play out in the future. God is faithful to every bit of His Word to the Israelites and we can count on Him to be faithful concerning His promises to the church.

Let’s take a look, first, with Moses’ prophecies concerning Israel being removed from the Land twice.  Let’s look first at Moses’ prophecy concerning the Babylonian Captivity:

Deuteronomy 32:47 Because thou servedst not the LORD thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things;

Deuteronomy 32:48 Therefore shalt thou serve thine enemies which the LORD shall send against thee, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in want of all things: and he shall put a yoke of iron upon thy neck, until he have destroyed thee.

Deuteronomy 32:49 The LORD shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand;

Deuteronomy 32:50 A nation of fierce countenance, which shall not regard the person of the old, nor shew favour to the young:

Deuteronomy 32:51 And he shall eat the fruit of thy cattle, and the fruit of thy land, until thou be destroyed: which also shall not leave thee either corn, wine, or oil, or the increase of thy kine, or flocks of thy sheep, until he have destroyed thee.

Deuteronomy 32:52 And he shall besiege thee in all thy gates, until thy high and fenced walls come down, wherein thou trustedst, throughout all thy land: and he shall besiege thee in all thy gates throughout all thy land, which the LORD thy God hath given thee.

Deuteronomy 32:53 And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, which the LORD thy God hath given thee, in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee:

Deuteronomy 32:54 So that the man that is tender among you, and very delicate, his eye shall be evil toward his brother, and toward the wife of his bosom, and toward the remnant of his children which he shall leave:

Deuteronomy 32:55 So that he will not give to any of them of the flesh of his children whom he shall eat: because he hath nothing left him in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee in all thy gates.

Pretty gruesome isn’t it?  Well the prophets tell us that Nebuchadnezzar camped around Jerusalem and starved them out.  We are reading about God bringing the people back to the Land in Haggai and Zechariah. Now, how about Moses’ prediction concerning the second dispersal?  That is the removal of God’s people from the Land after the rejection of their Messiah.  This account is grim as well:

Deuteronomy 28:63  And it shall come to pass, that as the LORD rejoiced over you to do you good, and to multiply you; so the LORD will rejoice over you to destroy you, and to bring you to nought; and ye shall be plucked from off the land whither thou goest to possess it.

Deuteronomy 28:64 And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other; and there thou shalt serve other gods, which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone.

Deuteronomy 28:65 And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the LORD shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind:

Deuteronomy 28:66 And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee; and thou shalt fear day and night, and shalt have none assurance of thy life:

Deuteronomy 28:67 In the morning thou shalt say, Would God it were even! and at even thou shalt say, Would God it were morning! for the fear of thine heart wherewith thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see.

Now, let’s get into the Book of Zechariah to find out how God deals with His people:

Judah and Israel are to be scattered again, but they will be, at God’s appointed time, returned to God and the Land.  It will be a time of plentiful rainfall.  But first, we deal with the reason for the scattering.  The answer is to seek the Lord and not to seek out an imitation.

Zechariah 10:1 Ask ye of the LORD rain in the time of the latter rain; so the LORD shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field.

This is Teaching Partial Fulfilment and latter Fulfilment of Prophecy –

A. The prophet Joel confirms the fulfillment of this prophecy at the “Day of the Lord”

Joel 2:1 Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand; 

The Prophet defines the “Day of the Lord”

Joel 2:2  A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.

The Message is to return to “Turn to the Lord with all your heart” 

Joel 2:12 Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: 

Joel 2:13  And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil. 

Then the Lord will send the rain for bountiful Blessing

Joel 2:18 Then will the LORD be jealous for his land, and pity his people. 

Joel 2:19  Yea, the LORD will answer and say unto his people, Behold, I will send you corn, and wine, and oil, and ye shall be satisfied therewith: and I will no more make you a reproach among the heathen: 

Then the Lord will Remove the Northern Army and destroy it

Joel 2:20  But I will remove far off from you the northern army, and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things. 

There will be prosperity in the “Day of the Lord”

Joel 2:23  Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. 

Joel 2:24  And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the fats shall overflow with wine and oil. 

Joel 2:25  And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. 

Joel 2:26  And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. 

Joel 2:27  And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed. 

Now look what happens after that in the “Day of the Lord”:

Joel 2:28  And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: 

Joel 2:29  And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. 

And After that:

Joel 2:30  And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. 

Joel 2:31  The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come. 

 

B. A Partial Fulfillment First – Christ’s disciples were tarrying in Jerusalem as instructed Acts 1:8)

Acts 2:1  And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 

Acts 2:2  And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 

Acts 2:3  And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. 

Acts 2:4  And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. 

Acts 2:5  And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven. 

Acts 2:6  Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. 

Acts 2:7  And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans? 

Acts 2:8  And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born? 

Acts 2:9  Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, 

Acts 2:10  Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, 

Acts 2:11  Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. 

Onlookers were amazed at the situation and accused the apostles of being drunk

Acts 2:12  And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this? 

Acts 2:13  Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine. 

Peter's Sermon at Pentecost

Acts 2:14  But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: 

Acts 2:15  For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. 

Acts 2:16  But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; 

Acts 2:17  And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: 

Acts 2:18  And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy: 

Prophetic teaching there can be partial fulfilments before the prophecy is fulfilled

A Condemnation of the false prophets

Zechariah 10:2 For the idols have spoken vanity, and the diviners have seen a lie, and have told false dreams; they comfort in vain: therefore they went their way as a flock, they were troubled, because there was no shepherd.

Zechariah 10:3 Mine anger was kindled against the shepherds, and I punished the goats: for the LORD of hosts hath visited his flock the house of Judah, and hath made them as his goodly horse in the battle.

Satan always seems to have a counterfeit for the things of God.  The word, “idols’,  is the Hebrew “terepheem” , like Rachel stole from her father,  Laben. (Genesis 31)   Whoever had the “gods” in those days could inherit the family estate.  The “gods” were Satan’s Pagan counterfeit for God’s prophecy.  They were used in divination, “literally  to divide”  used in Pagan religions:

Ezekiel  21:21  For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination: he made his arrows bright, he consulted with images, he looked in the liver.

Many references to Christ  in both His first and second Advents

Zechariah 10:3 Mine anger was kindled against the shepherds, and I punished the goats: for the LORD of hosts hath visited his flock the house of Judah, and hath made them as his goodly horse in the battle. 

 

Zechariah 10:4 Out of him came forth the corner, out of him the nail, out of him the battle bow, out of him every oppressor together.

A. Out of the Lord of Hosts comes the cornerstone:  Isaiah 28:16, Psalm 118:22-23, Matthew  21:42, Act4:11, 1Peter  2:4-5.

Isaiah 28:16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste. 

Psalm 118:22  The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner. 

Psalm 118:23  This is the LORD'S doing; it is marvellous in our eyes. 

Psalm 118:24  This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. 

Matthew 21:42  Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes? 

Act 4:11  This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. 

1Peter 2:1  Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, 

1Peter 2:2  As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: 

1Peter 2:3  If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. 

1Peter 2:4  To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, 

1Peter 2:5  Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. 

B. Out of the Lord of Hosts comes the Nail: Isaiah 22:23-24

Isaiah 22:22  And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. 

Isaiah 22:23  And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father's house. 

Isaiah 22:24  And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father's house, the offspring and the issue, all vessels of small quantity, from the vessels of cups, even to all the vessels of flagons. 

Isaiah 22:25  In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, shall the nail that is fastened in the sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off: for the LORD hath spoken it. 

C. Out of the Lord of Hosts comes the battle bow: Isaiah  63:1-4, Revelation  19:11-16

Isaiah 63:1  Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save. 

Isaiah 63:2  Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat? 

Isaiah 63:3  I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment. 

Isa 63:4  For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come. 

D. Out of the Lord of Hosts comes the King of Kings :  Revelation  19:16

Revelation  19:16  And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. 

Zechariah 10:5 And they shall be as mighty men, which tread down their enemies in the mire of the streets in the battle: and they shall fight, because the LORD is with them, and the riders on horses shall be confounded.

The Lord will hear them and regather Both Israel and Judah

Zechariah 10:6 And I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will bring them again to place them; for I have mercy upon them: and they shall be as though I had not cast them off: for I am the LORD their God, and will hear them.

Zechariah 10:7 And they of Ephraim shall be like a mighty man, and their heart shall rejoice as through wine: yea, their children shall see it, and be glad; their heart shall rejoice in the LORD.

Zechariah 10:8 I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased.

The Lord will not only scatter them - He will bring them back to the Land also

Zechariah 10:9 And I will sow them among the people: and they shall remember me in far countries; and they shall live with their children, and turn again.

Zechariah 10:10 I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and place shall not be found for them.

This  promise to gather Israel is repeated over and over in the New Covenant:

Deuteronomy  30:1-6, Jeremiah  23:1-8, Jeremiah  32:37-41, Ezekiel  11:16-20, Ezekiel  36:16-28 Though Israel was scattered to the nations, they shall remember Me in far countries and come back to the land.

Zechariah 10:11 And he shall pass through the sea with affliction, and shall smite the waves in the sea, and all the deeps of the river shall dry up: and the pride of Assyria shall be brought down, and the sceptre of Egypt shall depart away.

Zechariah 10:12 And I will strengthen them in the LORD; and they shall walk up and down in his name, saith the LORD.

Jesus Christ is to be rejected as the King at His first coming – Appears another army from the North

Zechariah 11:1 Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars.

False shepherds deceived the people – An army is coming from the North – What Army?

Zechariah 11:2 Howl, fir tree; for the cedar is fallen; because the mighty are spoiled: howl, O ye oaks of Bashan; for the forest of the vintage is come down.

Zechariah 11:3 There is a voice of the howling of the shepherds; for their glory is spoiled: a voice of the roaring of young lions; for the pride of Jordan is spoiled.

Zechariah 11:4 Thus saith the LORD my God; Feed the flock of the slaughter;

Zechariah 11:5 Whose possessors slay them, and hold themselves not guilty: and they that sell them say, Blessed be the LORD; for I am rich: and their own shepherds pity them not.

Zechariah 11:6 For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, saith the LORD: but, lo, I will deliver the men every one into his neighbour’s hand, and into the hand of his king: and they shall smite the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them.

The true Shepherd with 2 staves – Looks like Zechariah takes on a job as a shepherd with staves.

Zechariah 11:7 And I will feed the flock of slaughter, even you, O poor of the flock. And I took unto me two staves; the one I called Beauty, and the other I called Bands; and I fed the flock.

“Beauty” is literally “grace” — He is the Savior and will save His people.

“Bands” is literally “union” — He will unite Judah and Israel.

The Lord rejects the false shepherds – We will see shortly who these false shepherds are.

Zechariah 11:8 Three shepherds also I cut off in one month; and my soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred me.

Zechariah 11:9 Then said I, I will not feed you: that that dieth, let it die; and that that is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let the rest eat every one the flesh of another.

Zechariah 11:10 And I took my staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the people.

Zechariah 11:11 And it was broken in that day: and so the poor of the flock that waited upon me knew that it was the word of the LORD.

A reference to the betrayal of Christ by Judas – see also See Matthew 26:15; 27:3-10; Acts 1:17-20

Zechariah 11:12 And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver.

Zechariah 11:13 And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD.

Zechariah 11:14 Then I cut asunder mine other staff, even Bands, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.

The Antichrist is a false shepherd utterly destroyed

Zechariah 11:15 And the LORD said unto me, Take unto thee yet the instruments of a foolish shepherd.

Zechariah 11:16  For, lo, I will raise up a shepherd in the land, which shall not visit those that be cut off, neither shall seek the young one, nor heal that that is broken, nor feed that that standeth still: but he shall eat the flesh of the fat, and tear their claws in pieces.

Zechariah 11:17 Woe to the idol shepherd that leaveth the flock! the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened.

 

For the application today let’s turn to the Book of Hebrews where we will find a contrast of Moses and Christ in chapter 3:

 

Hebrews 3:5  And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after; 

Hebrews 3:6  But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end. 

Of course the contrast is between Moses and Christ.  Moses was faithful in all his “house”, but Christ as a Son over His own house, notice “whose house we are if!  That is, if we hold fast the confidence and rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.

Again, the message is in verses 7-8: 

Hebrews  3:7  Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice, 

Hebrews 3:8  Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness: 

What was the Day of Provocation?

Hebrews 3:9  When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. 

Hebrews 3:10  Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways. 

Hebrews  3:11  So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.) 

And again the explanation – It is actually :An evil heart of unbelief”:

Hebrews 3:12  Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. 

Hebrews 3:13  But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. 

Hebrews 3:14  For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end; 

Hebrews 3:15  While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation. 

Hebrews 3:16  For some, when they had heard, did provoke: howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses. 

Hebrews 3:17  But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases fell in the wilderness? 

Hebrews 3:18  And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not? 

Hebrews 3:19  So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief

Chapter 4 Begins:

Heb rews 4:1  Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. 

Hebrews  4:2  For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. 

Hebrews  4:3  For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

Now we have to take heed of the coming instruction in I Corinthians 10.  It is the same today as it was in the Old Testament:

1Corinthians 10:5  But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness. 

1Corinthians 10:6  Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted. 

1Corinthians 10:7  Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play. 

1Corinthians 10:8  Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand. 

1Corinthians 10:9  Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. 

1Corinthians 10:10  Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. 

1Corinthians 10:11  Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. 

1Corinthians 10:12  Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.