Introduction

As an undergraduate majoring in religious studies, I was expected to take a semester-long course entitled “hermeneutics.” I had no idea what this term meant. As a young boy, the only religious subjects I ever heard about were in Hebrew school. Unsurprisingly, my synagogue in Newark, NJ, did not offer a course in “hermeneutics.”

The only connection I made to any person named “Herman” was TV’s parody of the Frankenstein monster known as Herman Munster. Maybe the university I attended expected me to take a class on British rock bands, focusing on the British pop group “Herman’s Hermits.” I wasn’t sure lead singer Peter Noone had enough hits to fill a semester’s coursework

I soon discovered other famous Hermans, including the TV character Pee Wee Herman and the NY Yankee baseball great George Herman “Babe” Ruth. Eventually, I wised up and realized the Religious Department of Dallas Baptist University would hardly offer a semester course that catered to my penchant for nostalgia.

So what is hermeneutics? After further investigation, I learned that hermeneutics is a discipline necessary to correctly understand the Scriptures, both the Hebrew text and the New Covenant. I hope I cleared up this mystery for those struggling to understand what “hermeneutics” is all about. Perhaps you feel Pee Wee Herman is more interesting.

The Centrality of Biblical Hermeneutics

I like the definition of hermeneutics offered by the IVP Pocket Dictionary of Τheological Terms (pg. 59, InterVarsity Press, 1999):

The discipline that studies the principles and theories of how texts ought to be interpreted, particularly sacred texts such as the Scriptures. Hermeneutics also concerns itself with understanding the unique roles and relationships between the author, the text, and the original or subsequent readers.

When a student applies hermeneutical skills to the sacred text of the Tenach or the New Testament, they understand the passage(s) being studied with greater respect. Hermeneutical proficiency prevents the Bible student from making superficial observations about a biblical passage. Instead, the student is called to study a passage seriously, in a way that conforms to the author’s original intent.

Are you ready for this? Without understanding hermeneutics, the student of religion cannot begin to comprehend what many Bible verses are about.

Dare I say it? A good grasp of biblical hermeneutics is the central tool for making sense of many hard-to-decipher Scripture passages.

I hope I raised your curiosity. So let’s take a break from listening to our worn-out Herman Hermit’s 45s and take a deep dive into hermeneutical tools.

The Skills Needed in Biblical Hermeneutics

In a previous post on this topic, I wrote that the term “hermeneutics” comes from the Greek word διερμηνεύω/diermayneuō, used in Luke 24:17 and other NT references. This hard-to-pronounce Greek word describes how Yeshua explained the messianic prophecies to two uninformed followers.

The word can be defined as “to translate from one language to another (Acts 9:36) or “to clarify something to make it understandable; explain” (1 Corinthians 12:30; 14:5, 13, 27) (BDAG, pg. 244)

In my previous post I wrote:

Luke noted that Yeshua explained or interpreted the Scriptures to the two disciples. The word used in Luke 24:17 is διερμήνευσεν, or diermayneusen (Luke 24:27 GNT28-T), to indicate interpretation or explanation. This word also appears in Luke 24:27; Acts 9:36; 1 Cor. 14:5, 13, 27. The lexical form of this word is diermēneuō, from which we get the word “hermeneutics,” which is the discipline of interpreting the Scriptures, Yeshua did not merely READ the Scriptures to the disciples. Yeshua expounded or interpreted the passages to them. He offered these two eager learners a mini-course in hermeneutics.

Unless we have tried-and-tested standards of biblical interpretation, we leave ourselves open to subjectivity when attempting to understand the Scriptures. We become like those mystic types who claim they can interpret dreams without any objective standard other than themselves. Unfortunately, too many Christians, both in the pulpit and in the pews, try to understand the Word of God without any OBJECTIVE STANDARD and come up with way-out interpretations of the Scriptures.

For additional clarification, here are three useful hermeneutical dynamics from the IVP Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms. I added my own commentary to each dynamic.

• Understand the role of the author of the text. A serious student who wants to understand a text must ask what the original author intended when he composed a passage. Otherwise, the interpreter risks imposing preconceived ideas onto the biblical content.
• Grasp the details contained in the ancient text. This dynamic compels the learner to observe the surrounding context that precedes and follows the passage. Unless the interpreter includes the surrounding material in his inductive observations, they may be tempted to misunderstand the flow of thought in a biblical passage and draw erroneous conclusions foreign to the original writer’s intent.
• Make an informed application of the scripture reference to the original audience and subsequent audiences. Before applying a biblical passage to today, the expositor must know how the original audience received it. If a modern biblical interpreter fails to use responsible biblical interpretation principles, they will sidestep the original situation the text addresses. The danger is that the expositor might concoct a mistaken application to fit the structure of a modern-day sermon rather than letting the message primarily serve the original audience.

An Example of Sketchy Hermeneutics: Isaiah 54:17

At times, the way Christians apply an Old Testament text to themselves is a nagging head-scratcher. Let me share an example of how Christians use a passage from the prophets while ignoring the hermeneutical guidelines I listed above.

Last weekend, I enjoyed an online worship service at a local Southern California church. In one song, the lyrics included a quote from Isaiah 54:17: “No weapon that is fashioned against you shall prosper “(NRSV). This scripture passage has inspired many contemporary Christian worship songs recited in churches across the US and internationally.

In fact, this well-known verse from Isaiah is often emblazoned on T-shirts, wall plaques, and coffee mugs that Christians love to display. Those who quote this passage believe Isaiah’s words promise Christians that God will protect us from all forms of evil. This verse has become a Christian suit of armor against various weapons used against us, such as demonic attacks, illnesses, financial hardships, marital breakups, harm to our children, and attacks from non-believers against the evangelical faith.

I believe those who employ Isaiah 54:17 to “ward off any evil” have the best of intentions. However, we should ask ourselves several hermeneutical questions that reflect the dynamics I stated above.

What is Isaiah 54:17 saying, and to whom is this promise addressed?’ Is this another case of evangelical Christians misusing Scripture by snubbing Isaiah’s original message meant to encourage the primary audience of Jewish hearers, as well as succeeding generations of Jewish people?

For evangelicals who love Israel and the Jewish people, are we doing them any good by applying this Scripture to ourselves and ignoring the message God gave them through the prophet Isaiah? Wouldn’t it serve a better purpose to declare Isaiah’s message to the Jewish people, especially in the current climate of antisemitism? Instead, Christians have grabbed this verse for themselves and diverted their attention from Isaiah’s message, which was meant to lift the hearts of Jewish people in great need of God’s protection.

Here are my major takeaways from Isaiah 54, especially verse 17.

First, Isaiah 54:17 fits into a series of deliverance oracles from Isaiah 49-57.

We must ask: What context does Isaiah 54 fit into? What prophecies precede this chapter, and what proclamations follow it? Can we even comprehend Isaiah 54:17 without grasping the context in which it appears? Otherwise, we yank a text out of context and misapply the passage to suit our needs.

The main context of this section of Isaiah is God’s desire to comfort the Jewish people living in exile in Babylon. PERIOD. These exiles are temporarily disenfranchised from their homeland-the land of Israel. Consequently, the theme of Isaiah 40-66 is to comfort God’s chosen people, who have been removed from their beloved land because of their rebellion against God. PERIOD.

This theme is seen in Isaiah 40:1-2:

Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.

Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,

and cry to her

that her warfare is ended,

that her iniquity is pardoned,

that she has received from the LORD’S hand

double for all her sins. (Isaiah 40:1-2 ESV)

In light of Isaiah 40:1-2, this portion of Isaiah’s writings is directed to Israel and meant to give the nation COMFORT through the Servant of the Lord, the Messiah (Isaiah 42). Not promise protection to 21st-century evangelicals facing family breakups, sore knees, or endless car problems.

Because of this promised comfort, the nation will be restored, and its enemies (Babylon) will be judged (Isaiah 43-47). The solace promised to these exiles in Babylon appears in the prophecy of the Messiah-Redeemer (49:1-57:21). Within these passages, 21st-century evangelicals correctly see the prophecy of spiritual deliverance provided by the Servant of the Lord (Isaiah 52:13–53:12).

As messianic believers, we know this Servant to be Yeshua, the promised Messiah, who made atonement for Israel and the world. Next, in Isaiah 54:1-55:13, the prophet pens a section, emphasizing the salvation of Israel and the nations.

The Servant of the Lord brings not only spiritual salvation, but also national restoration for Israel. In fact, in Isaiah 54, Israel’s restoration is guaranteed. This restoration will come through the Servant of the Lord.

Many commentators see this passage as promising Israel security in the final Messianic Kingdom. It is in the context of the restoration of Israel-spiritually and nationally-that we discover the assurance of verse 17: “No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. (Isaiah 54:17 ESV).

Any use of Isaiah 54 by evangelicals that ignores the divine commitment to ultimately restore Israel to her land physically and to her God spiritually is a serious misapplication of the Word of God.

Louis Lapides

The words in Isaiah 54:17 do not directly pledge to Christians that God will protect them from all evil. Can God do this for His people? Of course, nevertheless, Isaiah 54:17 speaks primarily of God’s care for Israel, especially after they underwent the divine discipline of seventy years of exile.

In addition, this divine oath is meant to comfort Israel TODAY by pointing the Jewish people to rely on God’s faithfulness. Isaiah 54:17 is not a conditional promise to Israel. Rather, this pledge to Israel rests on God’s faithfulness and is not conditioned on Israel’s obedience.

Second, the immediate context of Isaiah 54 compares Israel to a disgraced woman who will be restored.

In Isaiah 54:1-3, God promises to repopulate desolate, barren, and exiled Israel. Check out Isaiah’s encouragement to His people:

“Enlarge the place of your tent,

and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out;

do not hold back; lengthen your cords

and strengthen your stakes.

For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left,

and your offspring will possess the nations

and will people the desolate cities. (Isaiah 54:2-3 ESV)

If Isaiah 54:17 is employed to encourage Christians, then how are we to understand God’s promise in verses 2-3 to an exiled people trusting in God to return them to their homeland, increase their borders, and rule the nations that oppose them? Is the alternative to wrench verse 17 out of its context and randomly claim this passage belongs to Christians?

In verses 4-10, God describes His plan to restore His nation and remove its reproach. This is seen in verse 7:

For a brief moment I deserted you, but with great compassion I will gather you (Isaiah 54:7 ESV)

Then, in verses 11-17, God promises spiritual renewal for the nation. The Moody Bible Commentary observes that God will not allow any nation to defeat Israel, as seen in verse 17. In the past, God allowed the destroyer (Babylon) to bring ruin to His chosen nation. However, in the end of days, no weapon formed against Israel will prosper (v. 17) (James Spencer, Moody Bible Commentary, Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2014, pg. 1092).

Isaiah’s message to Israel is this: God has brought (v. 14) all this chaos upon His people as a way to discipline them for their disobedience. For further evidence of God’s disciplining hand on His chosen nation, peruse Isaiah 54:16: “Behold, I have created the smith who blows the fire of coals and produces a weapon for its purpose. I have also created the ravager to destroy (ESV).

Yet God will change it all and give Israel a better future through His protection. He will not allow Israel’s enemies to taste victory over His people. Even their best weapons will be useless against God’s protection of Israel. No weapon formed against Israel will be successful in overcoming God’s chosen nation.

Now that you hopefully understand the flow of Isaiah 54, re-read verse17: “No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment” (ESV). In the ESV Study Bible, Raymond C. Ortlund Jr. perceives that this passage provides security to the people of Israel because (1) all the powers of evil are under God’s control and 2) God will defend His people. Yes, God will defeat every enemy of Israel. (The ESV Study Bible, paragraph 11975).

What a shame that modern-day evangelicals seize this verse to apply to themselves and IGNORE the blessing God has sworn to the Jewish people. This misapplication of Isaiah 54:17 powerfully illustrates replacement hermeneutics. But there’s more.

Third, the future context finds its realization in Israel’s coming messianic kingdom.

The promises found in Isaiah 54 establish God’s eternal commitment to Israel as seen in 54:10, “For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,” says the LORD, who has compassion on you” (Isaiah 54:10, bold formatting mine, ESV).

This divine protection of Israel fits His care for Israel in the final messianic kingdom. James Spencer in the Moody Bible Commentary observed that in the messianic kingdom, “There is no blacksmith in the world who can forge a weapon that will defeat Israel in those days. God’s people have been vindicated and stand before God as part of an everlasting covenant. God’s involvement comforts Israel, since His mercy and compassion will check His wrath against His covenant people. Israel will be vindicated, as stated in Isaiah 54:17, “This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD and their vindication from me, declares the LORD” (Isaiah 54:17 ESV) (James Spencer, Moody Bible Commentary, 1092).

God’s eternal commitment to Israel is as clear as can be in vvs. 7-10:

For a brief moment I deserted you, but with great compassion I will gather you. In overflowing anger for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,” says the LORD, your Redeemer. “This is like the days of Noah to me: as I swore that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth, so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you, and will not rebuke you. For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed,” says the LORD, who has compassion on you. (Isaiah 54:7-10, bold formatting mine, ESV)

Honestly, would it make any sense to read a passage like this and replace Israel with a renamed spiritual version of Israel, now called “the Church”? I contend that the RT belief system casts a dark shadow on our ability to trust the promises of God.

I maintain that evangelicals today should use this passage to remind Israel of God’s care for them. Yes, the passage finds ultimate fulfillment in the messianic kingdom. However, God’s compassion and protection of Israel described in this verse still hold for the Jewish people, especially in this current climate where Israel’s enemies are set on destroying the nation.

Israel needs to be reminded that God will always protect His people from now through the millennial kingdom. His love for the Jewish people will never change. To Israel, God promises in Malachi, “For I the LORD do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed (Malachi 3:6 ESV)

I ask again, “Can evangelicals legitimately apply Isaiah 54:17 in their worship songs?” Yes, because this passage describes a trait of the Lord that applies to any of His followers. However, evangelicals must respect Isaiah 54:17 in its original context and honor Isaiah’s intent to give Israel a powerful message about their future stability.

Do any New Testament passages promise Christians divine protection against individuals and circumstances out to harm us?

• What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31, ESV)
• Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil (Ephesians 6:11, ESV).
• Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm (Ephesians 6:13)
• But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.
  So we can confidently say,
  “The Lord is my helper;
  I will not fear;
  what can man do to me?” ((2 Thessalonians 3:3, ESV).
• Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you (James 4:7, ESV).
• Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8).
• Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4 ESV).

Many passages in the Jewish Scriptures promise divine protection to God’s people-Jews and Christians. Nevertheless, we are admonished to be careful, as followers of the Messiah of Israel, not to pry texts from the Hebrew Bible and make these passages ONLY apply to evangelicals.

When evangelicals ignore Isaiah’s communication to the Jewish nation in Isaiah 54:17 and grab the passage for a Christian worship song, their misappropriation of this passsage smacks of biblical identity theft.

Louis Lapides

The Centrality of Israel in the Jewish Scriptures

Since the centrality of Israel is NOT a MAJOR doctrine in the New Testament, according to RT, present-day Christians should assume Israel takes a backstage role in God’s program or has no place in God’s script at all.

But is this perception true? Does Israel’s centrality still matter in Christian theology?

First, Israel’s centrality is seen as the conduit through which the promised Messiah came.

Throughout the 39 books of the Hebrew Bible, the promise of the Messiah is central. Don’t forget that Israel has been the tool God used to bring the Messiah into the world to bless both Gentiles and the Jewish people. Yeshua Himself elucidates to the Samaritan woman in John 4:22, “You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews (John 4:22, bold formatting mine).

God appointed Israel as the channel through which He brought the Messiah into the world. Nevertheless, even after God brought the promised Messiah into the world, He did not shed Israel from His program like an ear of corn, whose outer covering served its purpose and needed to be shucked and thrown away.

In contrast, Covenant theologians see Israel as a temporary conduit God used to bring Jesus to the Gentiles. However, according to RT, Israel was then discarded after the Messiah accomplished His promised salvation. Replacement theologians will cite Romans 9:4-5 and conclude Israel was merely a temporary tool God used to bring the Messiah into the world.

Read Romans 9:4-5, “They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the Law, the worship, the promises. To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Messiah, who is God over all, blessed forever is the Messiah (bold formatting mine, Romans 9:4-5).

With this verse in mind, replacement theologians believe that now that the Messiah has come, Israel is no longer necessary and has been replaced by the spiritual entity known as the Church.

Second, Israel’s centrality continues after the Messiah comes

In contrast to replacement theology, Rabbi Shaul writes in his letter to the believers at Rome that God continues His covenant with the Jewish people. Check out Romans 11:28-29: “As regards the gospel, they are enemies for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. (Romans 11:28-29 ESV).

Even though the nation as a whole rejected their Messiah, God’s election of Israel continues, and His gifts and calling on Israel have NOT changed. God still treats Israel as CENTRAL to His plan for the nations. More to follow on this point.

Some rightly call the doctrine that fleshes out Israel’s centrality in the Word of God “Israelology.” Very few Bible colleges and Christian seminaries offer a class in Israelology.

I highly recommend the classic work by messianic Jewish scholar Arnold Fruchtenbaum, Israelology—the Missing Link in Systematic Theology.

Let’s start with a few basics about Israel’s identity as a centerpiece of the Jewish Scriptures. From reading the OT, the student can see Israel as an ethnic identity given by God. According to Michael Vlach’s book on Dispensational Hermeneutics (pg. 18), he states that Genesis shows Israel includes a physical seed-line connection tied to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In addition, Israel is a national identity. The Jewish people have a history, traditions, a language, and many other practices that define them as a nation. Finally, Israel is a territorial entity. Throughout the Torah and the Hebrew prophets, Israel is linked with the promise of a defined homeland.

Almost every book of the Tenach concerns Israel’s three identities, given by God and rooted in His eternal promises to the Jewish nation. As I have expounded in other posts, evidence suggests that God NEVER discontinued these three identity markers of Israel. The idea that Israel was discontinued as a nation, an ethnicity, and a homeland is mainly found in the writings of supersessionist theologians.

The question arises regarding the RT belief that the church has replaced Israel. In contrast to this belief, Romans 11:2 states, “God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew (Romans 11:2 ESV). Israel has never been booted out as God’s people.

Regarding the view that the Church has replaced Israel as God’s new centerpiece or the “new Israel,” many contrasts exist between Israel and the New Covenant church.

1) The church is NEVER presented as one ethnicity as with Israel. Rather, the church is multi-ethnic (see Acts 10:35; Galatians 2:1-14). Many New Covenant passages show the multi-ethnic makeup of the NT assembly, or church. In John 12:32, Jesus promised, “And I, when I am lifted from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (bold formatting mine).

2) The church had its inauguration in Acts 2, not Genesis 12. The church was birthed in Acts 2 on the day of Shavuot (Pentecost). Israel already existed at this momentous occasion, when the Spirit of God was poured out on followers of Yeshua the Messiah to CREATE the one new Man (Ephesians 2:14, 19-20).

3) The church was commissioned to proclaim the good news of redemption through Yeshua to all nations (Matthew 28:19-20). In contrast, God commissioned Israel to model and teach their children and the nations God’s laws (Deuteronomy 6:4-7; Isaiah 2:2-3).

Nowhere in the New Testament is the church ever called a “new Israel.” In fact, throughout the New Covenant, as I have shown in previous posts, the Church and Israel are TWO SEPARATE ENTITIES.

Third, Israel’s centrality is demonstrated in the final messianic kingdom.

I am describing Israel as taking center stage AFTER the establishment of the church, because there is more to come. The Jewish scriptures describe a coming messianic kingdom with Israel at the heart of God’s messianic program, with Yeshua as their head.

Let’s use Isaiah 11:1-9 as an example of a passage in the Tenach that describes Israel’s continuing future after the establishment of the NT church.

1) The Promise and Character of the coming Davidic King Messiah (Isaiah 11:1-3a). The coming One will arise from the root of Jesse, the father of King David: “There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse (Isaiah 11:1 ESV).

He will be known for His godly wisdom and fear of the Lord. In addition, as the Spirit of the Lord rested upon David, his messianic descendant will also be empowered by the Spirit of God. Isaiah reports about the spiritual character of the coming messianic seed of David,

And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him,
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and might,
the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. (Isaiah 11:2 ESV)

2) The rulership of the coming Davidic King (Isaiah 11:3b-5). In the Bible Knowledge Commentary, John A. Martin writes of this coming anointed King, “As world Ruler, the Messiah will judge the world (cf. 2:4). But He will not be like an ordinary judge who may be swayed by superficial knowledge. He will judge impartially and in righteousness. The needy and the poor will not be oppressed by Him as they often are by human leaders (John A. Martin, Isaiah, The Bible Knowledge Commentary; Wheaton: Victor Books, 1985, 1:1056-1057)

3) The righteous kingdom set up by the Davidic King (Isaiah 11:6-9). Isaiah speaks of a time when the messianic king will rule all the earth. It is a time when the curse on the earth described in Genesis 3:14-18 and 9:2 will be lifted, and even the animal kingdom will experience harmony.:

The wolf shall dwell with the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together;
and a little child shall lead them. (Isaiah 11:6 ESV)

This is a time when wild animals will be in concert with domestic animals. A little child will be safe with lions, bears, cobras, and poisonous snakes.

4) The universal knowledge of the God of Israel brought by the Messiah (Isaiah 11:9).

They shall not hurt or destroy
in all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD
as the waters cover the sea. (Isaiah 11:9, bold formatting mine, ESV)

This text recalls Jeremiah 31:34, where the prophet speaks of a time when all people will know the Lord and partake of the new covenant of promised messianic redemption, forgiveness of sin, the filling of the Spirit of God, and a deep knowledge of God.

And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” (Jeremiah 31:34 ESV)

Martin comments on Isaiah 11:9:

The idea is that people everywhere will live according to God’s principles in His Word. Animals will be affected, as well. This will occur in the Millennium when the Messiah will be reigning (Isa. 9:6-7), Jerusalem will have prominence in the world (2:2), and Judah and Israel will be regathered to the land in belief and will be living according to the New Covenant. The Millennium can hardly be in existence now since these factors do not characterize the present age. (John A. Martin, Isaiah, The Bible Knowledge Commentary, bold formatting mine: 1:1057).

These prophecies in Isaiah 11 do not describe the present Church Age. Thus, the prophet speaks of a future time, after the first coming of the Messiah, when He brings spiritual redemption.

I have already pointed out the atonement provided by the Suffering Servant in Isaiah 52:13-53:12. Chronologically, the Servant of the Lord brings spiritual redemption to Israel and the nations, and then in chapter 54 of Isaiah, the prophet describes how the messianic age will follow the first coming of the Messiah, which compels Him to return to establish the messianic kingdom in Jerusalem.

Either these are literal promises in Isaiah 11:1-9 given to Israel, or the biblical interpreter must reinterpret these statements subjectively to apply them to followers of Yeshua in the church age. To my knowledge, I don’t know any Christians who visit zoos and enjoy climbing into enclosures with hungry lions, vicious tigers, or snapping crocodiles.

Those who hold to replacement theology are forced to move away from a literal understanding of Isaiah 11:1-9 and spiritualize these promises, turning Isaiah’s literal promises into metaphors and symbols.

Louis Lapides

In addition, Zechariah 14 describes a time when the messianic King of Isaiah 11 will come to Jerusalem, and His feet will stand on the Mt. of Olives (Zech 14:4). This will happen when the nations of the earth gather against Jerusalem to destroy it. However, the Lord will battle against Israel’s enemies: “Then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations as when he fights on a day of battle” (Zechariah 14:3 ESV). I would like to know how this fits into the Church Age.

On that day, the Messiah will be reigning over the earth: “And the LORD will be king over all the earth. On that day the LORD will be one and his name one.” (Zechariah 14:9). Plus, Jerusalem will be established in security. “And it shall be inhabited, for there shall never again be a decree of utter destruction. Jerusalem shall dwell in security” (Zechariah 14:11 ESV).

The Jewish Scriptures portray a wonderful future for Israel, tied to their embrace of the Davidic Messiah, Yeshua. My point is that Replacement theology either ignores this future for the redeemed Jewish nation, spiritualizes these passages, or twists these texts to force them to belong to the church age.

Fourth, Israel’s centrality does not negate the spiritual promises given to the Church.

Here is the gist of my concern with Replacement theology: In light of Israel’s centrality in the Tanakh, diminishing or ignoring this core biblical truth leaves the Bible interpreter with a huge gap in his understanding of Scripture. The OT has 39 books. Eighty percent of these documents focus on Israel. They include promises to the Jewish nation yet to be fulfilled.

According to the Hebrew prophets (Isaiah 2:1-5), Israel is to be the geographical center of a worldwide earthly messianic kingdom. This is a huge part of the fullness that will take place when Israel accepts Yeshua (Romans 11:12). If RT want to excise Israel from their theology, what do they do with the myriad of unfulfilled promises God gave to Israel throughout their history?

Yes, many of the spiritual promises given to Israel strongly intersect with those shared with the New Covenant community. However, those promises do not provide NT theologians the freedom to take over the centrality of Israel and substitute Israel with the Church.

Rabbi Shaul warned Gentile Chrisrtians to know their place in God’s program for the spiritual body of the Messiah, the Church:

If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root, do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches. If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you. (Romans 11:17-18, bold formatting mine, NIV11-GK).

Vlach offers an excellent explanation of how the Church partakes of Israel’s spiritual blessings but never overtakes them.

Since the purpose of Israel’s covenants was to someday bless Gentiles, there is partial fulfillment of the covenants of promise in this age with the church. This involves spiritual blessings such as messianic salvation, the permanent indwelling ministry of the Holy Spirit, and Jew-Gentile equality in salvation. But the fulfillment of restoration promises to Israel and nations, along with physical blessings and land promises for Israel, awaits the second coming of Jesus and His earthly kingdom. So the Israel-church distinction means that promises and covenants made with Israel do not find complete fulfillment in the church in this era (Michael Vlach, Dispensartional Hermeneutics, bold formatting mine,pg. 19).

Conclusion

The replacement-theology version of the Bible is truncated. Major sections of the Hebrew Bible are tossed aside or spiritualized. Replacement theology leaves the Christian with a reduced Bible, with the OT containing mainly first-coming messianic prophecies, stories, and writings that teach the Christian believer how to walk with God.

Replacement theology pastors omit God’s promises to Israel in practical ways, such as in weekly sermons. Honestly, the Replacement Theology pastor teaches from an “Israel-less Bible.”

I conclude by reinterpreting Pete Seeger’s poignant 1955 anti-war song, “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” Folk singers Peter, Paul and Mary made this song a pro-peace anthem. The verses describe how flowers are picked by girls, who marry young men, who then go off to be soldiers and die, leading to graveyards covered in flowers, showing the sadness of war.

However, I am going to change a few lines to describe another sadness found among voices in the anti-Israel spaces in evangelical Christianity.

Where have all the promises to Israel gone?
Long time passing
Where has God’s commitment to Israel gone?
Long time ago
Where has God’s future for Israel gone?
Replacement theologians have deleted them, every one
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?