Where Are We and What Are We To Do?

United Israel is dedicated to answering these two questions in a progressive manner as the Prophets’ messages aboutand tothe Northern Ten Tribes of Israel are unfolding today. It disseminates knowledge about where the people of the Ten Tribes, also known as Joseph, Ephraim, or the House of Israel, are in time and space. All of Hosea’s, and a great many of the other Biblical Prophets’ prophecies revolve around the Northern Tribes enstrangement from God and their regathering to Him, to His Torah, to His Covenant, to their brothers, Judah/the Jews, and to the Land of the Covenant. Their rehabilitation in Messianic times is an integral part of the restoration of all Israel. This, God does so that Israel can function as a nation of priests, to teach Abrahamic Faith to the whole world (See Restoring Abrahamic Faith, Dr. James Tabor, 1993). In short, United Israel brings the “good news” of the “raising up of the tribes of Jacob,” so that we can fulfill the terms and raison d’etre of the Covenant: “that we may be His people and He may be our God” (Lev. 26:12; Jer. 30:22; Isa.49:6). In this newly revealed framework of prophesied realities, we are finding ourselves perplexed as to what to do as an appropriate response to His calling.

However, God anticipated our confusion. He has written instructions to us on what to do at the appointed time of our awakening, centuries in advance of our ability to act on them (Isa. 49:8). Studying to find these directives, we find further comforting good news of impending deliverance to the prisoners of ancient captivities (Jer. 29:11, 30:10 & 18; Amos 3:5). The God of Israel, who delights in mercy, has decreed that when the time of our punishment, i.e., enstrangement from Him in dispersion, would end, we would turn to Him (Isa.40:2; Jer. 30:11; Micah 7:18). He tells us that at the appointed time of our awakening by the shofar-call, signaling His Redemption, the rem- nant of Jacob would begin to respond to His directives (Hos. 2:23; Isa. 51:14-17, 55:5; Ezek. 37:4-6).

In line with its stated purposes, United Israel is also dedicated to sound the call to prepare for the work in these primary directives. They are summed up in these two citations: “For there shall be a day, that the watchmen upon the mount Ephraim shall cry: Arise, and let us go up to Zion to the LORD our GOD. For thus says the LORD, sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout on the hilltops of the nations: announce, praise, and say, O LORD, save Thy people, the remnant of Israel” (Jer. 31:5-6). “Gather My pious ones (saints) to Me; those that have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice” (Psalm 50:5). These verses give a nutshell summary of where we are and what we are to do. Let’s look at these coordinates and instructions in more detail.

We are in the beginning of the regathering of the Tribes of Jacob, in the teshuvah (return/ repentance) movement of today (see “An Insight Into Repentance/Teshuva,” Rabbi Chaim Richman). At this time, the early contingent of the pioneers of this movement are being called out of their wanderings in the wilderness of the nations (Hos.1:6, 8:1, 9:3 & 17). They are coming home- ward to Torah-faith, “one from a city, two from a family,” (Jer. 3:15; Cf. Isa. 10:20-23). Interes- tingly, they are coming from both Judah and Ephraim. They are repeating the pattern of the two spies who return with an encouraging report about God’s promises to the whole nation of Israel (Num. 13:5-16, 14:7-9; Jer.33:7). They seem to be a very small lot, who will be followed later by the great many of regathered Israel. United Israel is publishing the Prophets’ summons to the preparation we must do in anticipation of this regathering. This article is part of that summons to prepare the pioneer con- tingent from Ephraim for service.

Amos’s warning to the Northern House of Israel speaks to their descendants today, who are equally unrepentant:

“I have overthrown some of you as I have overthrown Sodom and Gemorah, and you were as a brand plucked out of the burning, yet have you not returned unto Me, says the LORD. Therefore thus will I do to thee, O Israel; and because I will do this to thee, prepare to meet thy GOD, O Israel”(Amos 4:12).

“According to the Prophets, the spiritual and moral foundations will have to be laid before the rehabilitation of our people can take place” (The World of Prayer, Vol. 1, Rabbi Elie Munk, Feldheim Publishers, 1963, p. 126). Speaking specifically to Joseph, Amos tells us how to prepare for this rehabilitation:

“Seek goodand not evil, that you may live, and so the LORD, the GODof hosts shall be with you, as you have spoken. Hate the evil and love the good, establish justice in the gate; it may be that the LORD GOD of hosts will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph” (Amos 5:13-15).

The Prophets predict this seeking and searchingfor His ways:

“...afterwards shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their GOD, and David their king, and shall come trembling to the LORD and His goodness in the latter days” (Hos. 3:5).

This searching for God and the Messianic legacy of David is to begin while the Tribes are yet in dispersion:

“Then shall you call upon Me, and you shall go and pray to Me, and I will hearken to you. And you shall seek Me and find Me, when you shall search for Me with all your heart. And I will allow Myself to be found by you, says the LORD: and I will restore you from captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations...” (Jer. 29:13-14).

They will prepareto receive the Messiah of Israel, who comes specifically to the repentant of Jacob (Isa.59:20).

We see that this searching for God is a process of coming near, after a long period of estrange- ment. To many it will be shocking to discover that they have been separated from God for many centuries (Hos. 3:4-5). Because we have turned from God, He has turned from communicating with us (Isa. 59:2). Yet in our captivity, while we were yet far from Him, and not being heard, He has preserved us. He has decreed to us: “Keep silence before Me O Islands; and let the people renew their strength; let them come near, then let them speak, let us come near together to judgment” (Isa.41:1). When we begin to be awakened by Him, though we have little spiritual strength, He encourages us: “..but thou Israel art My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham My friend.... Fear not thou worm, Jacob, and ye few of Israel, I will help thee, saith the LORD and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel” (Isa. 41:8-14).

So how are the few (now), to prepare with all their heart to come near? We saw above, that for Ephraim, coming out of the sins and ways of the nations is paramount. Chief of these ways are the idolatries of replacement theology religions (Isa.29:13). Leaving them means not just acquiring a Hebraic understanding of the Scriptures, to which many are drawn today. Most importantly it is the wholehearted declaration of the creedal statement of Biblical faith, the Sh’ma, and espousing its proclamation to listen to the One God of Israel: “Hear O Israel, the LORD is our GOD, the LORD is ONE” (Deut.6:4). It is also a call to return to Covenant-prescribed living, i.e., to take on the yoke of the kingdom, which the rest of the Sh’ma proclaims (Deut. 6:5-9, 11:13-21; Num. 15:37-41). This means doing the commandments of God, which we had thrown away (Hos. 8:12; Jer. 13:10; Ps. 78:37), and being clean from corporate and personal sins, which caused our sickness as a people, and brought God’s judgment upon us (Deut. 29:21). The good news is that God, our Healer, promises us His help in our recovery from this state of uncleanness, to come near to Him again (Jer. 33:7-8, 14).

But why does God want us to come near? So that we might be heard and that He may conduct a dialogue with us. This was His original intent, that, as a Father, He could talk to His children (Ex. 19 & 20). For us, the very few pioneers being called out of Babylon (Isa. 48:20; 52:8-12), it is incumbent upon us to prepare our hearts, come near, and engage our hearts in dialogue on behalf of the rest of Israel in the galut (dispersion) (Cf. Jer. 30:21). This “coming near” and “standing in” by the pioneering few for the rest of Israel is necessary for her speedy deliverance and healing. This function is reflected in the Jewish custom of “standing in” for somebody who is not there to receive a blessing (Deut. 29:15). The one who is carrying a burden for the healing of another stands up or goes up (comes near), to the bema to have the Rabbi recite the prayer for healing. This is because, “like the recognition of truth, teshuvah (repentance), requires divine assistance. If a man is filled with earnest desire to return, then God helps him” (Talmud, Tractate Yoma 38b).

According to the Rabbis, this service by the few is much needed because “all sacred acts require summoning” (Rabbi Munk, p. 90). Though God, by His grace and mercy, has already started to wake us up without any initiative on our part, the ready continuance and peacefulness of the process depends on our coming near to Him. Doing so by the few, will not only speed up the process of redemption, but will also mitigate Divine corrective judgments on the many (Isa. 41:1, 48:8-9; Mal. 4:22-24). We are expected to turn to Him, when He begins to draw near to us (Isa. 54:7, 55:6-7). Then we can start a reciprocal dialogue and interaction with God:

Then shalt thou call and the LORD shall answer, thou shalt cry and He shall say, Here I am, ...if thou shalt take away from the midst of thee the pointing of the finger, and the speaking of iniquity; if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry...the LORD shall guide thee continually, ...and they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations, and thou shalt be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of the paths to dwell in (Isa. 58:9-13).

Jeremiah gives further details:

“Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the ends of the earth, ...a great company shall return there. They shall come with weeping and with supplication will I lead them: I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in the straight way, in which they shall not stumble, for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn” (Jer. 31:7-8; See also Isa. 43:19).

What a promise—to be given the privilege of becoming partakers in God’s restorative and redemptive work! For Joseph, who has not kept the Torah, this “redemptive” function is especially an extraordinary measure of God’s grace. But what is this “work?” What part of this service is incumbent on us as “debilitated” early pioneer representatives of Joseph? We know that “the paths to dwell in” is “the straight way” of the Torah, the “heritage of Jacob” (Deut. 33:4). It is quite clear that Ephraim is called to return to walk in, and be partakers of, the Torah Heritage which Judah has preserved (Hos. 11:12 [12:1 in the Hebrew] Editors’ Note: Some versions, e.g., the New American Standard Bible completely mistranslates this verse. The King James Version and most Hebrew Bibles give a better translation).

Part of this Heritage is the prayers of Israel, preserved by Judaism. They can be found in the Hebrew prayer book, called the Siddur, meaning “order” of prayers. This treasure house of David contains the order of prayers for the daily and Shabbat services of prayer for the observant Jew. Most of these prayers are taken directly from, or based on, the Scriptures. Among this inspired collection, covering centuries and even millennia, the Sh’ma is the oldest. The Rabbis teach that the phrase, “you shall love the LORD your GOD with all your heart” is the “service of the heart” for all Israel (Prayer [audiotape], Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald). The purpose of this article is to sound out to the people of United Israel the call to prayer, i.e., the call to do this service of the heart before God. This is appropriate, not just at this time of need in particular, but also as a means for Ephraim to return to his Torah Heritage in general.

God’s admonition to the returnees of Ephraim is: “O Israel, return to the LORD thy GOD; for thou hast stumbled in thy iniquity. Take with you words, and turn to the LORD; say to Him: Forgive all iniquity and receive us graciously; so we will offer the words of our lips instead of calves” (Hos. 14:2-3). Once we start to do this, God will help us to come out of captivity, both in scope and numbers. He promised us so: “...with supplications will I lead them...” (Jer. 31:10). According to the teaching of the Rabbis, He will thus enable us to repent further, and guide us home to the rest of the Heritage of Jacob. According to the Prophets, our former “sacri- fices” were not in accord with Torah require- ments. Mixed with paganism, they were not acceptable (Amos 4:4-5). They did not reconcile us to God. As before, He now tells us anew: “Hear, O My people, and I will speak; O Israel, and I will testify against thee, I am GOD, thy GOD, ...Offer to GOD a thanksgiving and pay thy vows to the Most High, and call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me” (Psalm 50:6-15; See Joel 2:12-13).

God is looking forward to the time when we will pay our vows. But how are we to pay our vows, and what vows are we to pay? For prodigal Ephraim, there is only one answer: It is to be again true to the Covenant of the One God of Israel, contracted (vowed) at Mt. Sinai. It is to do justice to His choosing of Israel, the people called by His Name (Isa. 43:7). It is to finally return to Him and to be a nation of priests to the world (Ex. 19:6; Deut. 7:6-9, 30:8; Isa. 66:6). That is what true “witnessing” is about. It is standing up for the deliverance of Israel, thus facilitating her deliverance now (Ex. 14:13-14). As a result, the Gentiles will be drawn to His Torah ways (Isa. 43:10-12, 44:8). As the few forerunners and representatives of Ephraim, we can start that witnessing in the Hebrew manner, by standing in now. By praying now for all Israel with the prayers of Israel, the few begin to submit to His deliverance, and further it (II Chron. 7:14; Joel 2:32).

Where are we and what are we to do? God asks: “Who will hearken in the time to come?” (Isa. 42:23) The answer according to God’s own heart is: “Gather my pious ones (saints) to Me; those that have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice” (Psalm 50:5). If you are drawn to respond to Him with the service of your own heart, first ask God to guide you in your prayer according to the foregoing promises. Ask Him to give you the “spirit of repentance.” Study the references in this article; they will open your heart. Then pray Psalm 30, 103, and 118 to give thanks on behalf of Joseph for the beginning of his regathering. Psalm 30 is entitled, “A Psalm for the Dedication of the House, by David.” It is used to start every Shabbat service in the Synagogue. Use Psalm 74 and 80 to plead for mercy for Joseph. Psalm 80 is especially written for the use of Joseph in the latter days. It instructs us to ask God to strengthen and revive us.

Especially following this season of Chanukkah, when minds and hearts naturally turn toward “rededication,” your prayers may even be instrumental in the “rededication” of the (now symbolic) “House of Prayer” of all Israel and of all the world. With His aid we can start rebuilding the fallen tabernacle of David now. God says He “inhabits the praises of His people,” and as in the Temple, His heart dwells therein (Psalm 22:3; II Chron. 7:15-16). May His Presence sanctify our prayers and speed up the Redemption of Joseph and all Israel.

Steve Mathe