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Subject: Bride Book: Ephraim and Judah become One Stick
Date: Fri, 30 Apr 1999 17:34:26 -0800
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From: Eddie Chumney
To: heb_roots_chr@geocities.com
Subject: Ephraim and Judah become One Stick

GOD'S COVENANT WITH ABRAHAM

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO TORAH

From the Book
"Who is the Bride of Christ?"
by
Eddie Chumney

(PART 4)

THE NORTHERN KINGDOM IS
PROPHETIC OF CHRISTIANITY

In the book of Hosea, God's judgment upon the Northern Kingdom
for forsaking the Torah and the covenant that He made with Abraham
was cutting them off from His covenant and showing them "no mercy"
because they would be called "not my people".

These EXACT words are used to describe those people who have
accepted Jesus Christ as Messiah. In I Peter 2:5, 9-10 it is written:

"Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, a
holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to
God by Jesus Christ ... By ye are a chosen generation, a royal
priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should
show forth the praises of him who called you out of darkness
into marvelous light: Which is times past were NOT A PEOPLE
(Hosea 1:9) but are now the people of God (Hosea 1:10); which
had NOT OBTAINED MERCY, (Hosea 1:6), but now have obtained mercy
(Hosea 1:10) "

Therefore, the judgment upon the Northern Kingdom of Israel who
is prophetic of historical Christianity is summarized by the following
characteristics:

1.Being taken captive by the kingdom of Assyria (II Kings
17:7-23). Prophetically, because God's people have forsaken
His Torah, God's people would live in a Babylonian based
political, economic and religious system that would be
contrary to God's Word.

2.God also declared that his judgement would be the removal of her
feast days, new moons, and Sabbaths because Ephraim had
worshiped idols (Hosea 2:11, 4:17, 5:1-2). Historically, God
removed the celebration of the Sabbath and feast days from Christianity
because she forsook the Torah of God after the days of the first
century church.

3.They would be dispersed, God would show no mercy toward them,
and they would not be called His people. However, later God
would show mercy upon His people and redeem them. (Hosea 1:2-4,6-10, I Peter 2:5,
9-10)

4.By rejecting God's Torah, God people would perish for a lack of
knowledge of God's Word and therefore not be kings and priests (God's Bride)
before God. (Hosea 4:6). Obedience to Torah was a condition for
God making His people kings and priest before Him (Exodus
19:5-6)

GOD'S COVENANT OF MERCY WITH DAVID

Even though both the Northern Kingdom and the Southern Kingdom
forsook God's Torah and the covenant that God made with Abraham, God
allowed the tribe of Judah to remain because of God's promise of
mercy given to David. In I Kings 11:31-32, 34-36, it is written:

"And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith
the Lord, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out
of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee: (But
he shall have one tribe for my servant David's sake, and for
Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the
tribes of Israel:) ... Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom
out of his hand: but I will make him prince all the days of his
life for David my servant's sake, whom I chose, because he kept
my commandments and my statutes: But I will take the kingdom out
of his son's hand, and will give it unto thee, even ten tribes.
And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David my servant
may have a light always before me in Jerusalem, the city which I
have chosen to put my name there "

God's covenant of mercy with David is found in Psalm 89:1-4 as it
is written:

"I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever: with my mouth
will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations. For I
have said, Mercy shall be built up forever: thy faithfulness
shall thou establish in the very heavens. I have made a covenant
with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant. Thy seed
will I establish forever, and build up thy throne to all
generations. Selah "

God covenant of mercy to David is an everlasting covenant. In
Isaiah 55:1-3 it is written:

"Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he
that hath no money: come ye, buy, and eat: yea, come, buy wine
and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend
money for that which is not bread? And your labor for that which
satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that
which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.
Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall
live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the
sure mercies of David "

God made an everlasting covenant of mercy with David. Mercy in
the New Testament is called grace. God made an everlasting promise of
mercy to David and his descendants so that God could fulfill His covenant
with Abraham. In Psalm 89:28-37 it is written:

"My mercy will I keep for him forevermore, and my covenant shall
stand fast with him. His seed also will I make to endure
forever, and his throne as the days of heaven. If his children
forsake my TORAH, and walk not in my judgments; If they break my
statutes, and keep not my commandments; Then will I visit their
transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.
Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him,
nor suffer my faithfulness to fail. My covenant will I not
break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips. Once
have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David. His
seed shall endure forever, and his throne as the sun before me.
It shall be established forever as the moon, and as a faithful
witness in heaven. Selah "

God promised David that even though God's people would break His
Torah, God would extend His mercy to them forever. God promised that
one from the seed of David would sit on the throne of David forever. This
would be fulfilled through Jesus the Messiah. God chose to show mercy
upon the house of David and the tribe of Judah because David kept the
commandments (Torah) of God ( I Kings 11:32, 34). God did this for
the sake of the city of Jerusalem ( I Kings 11:32). Spiritually, the
city of Jerusalem is the city of God's Bride (Revelation 21).
Therefore, God promise of mercy to David was given as an extension of
God's covenant with Abraham so that God could fulfill His covenant
that He made with Abraham.

THE ROLE OF THE KINSMAN REDEEMER
TO SAVE GOD'S PEOPLE

Because God had cut off his covenant relationship with the
Northern Kingdom of Israel, God made a provision in the Torah that a
near kinsman could redeem his brothers if their covenant was cut off
from God. In Leviticus 25:25 it is written:

"If thy brother be waxen poor, and hath sold away some of his
possession, and if any of his kin come to redeem it, then shall
he redeem that which his brother sold "

Since the Northern Kingdom has sold their covenant inheritance
with God by committing spiritual whoredom and forsaking the Torah and
worshiping other gods, God made provision in the Torah that one of
his brothers (a member of the Southern Kingdom, the house of Judah,
the Jewish people) could redeem him. Therefore, Jesus was born a Jew
from the seed of David to redeem the Northern Kingdom who was cut off
from their covenant relationship with God. In doing so, Jesus brought a
new (or renewed) covenant which was also Torah based. In Jeremiah
31:33 it is written:

"But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house
of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my TORAH
in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be
their God, and they shall be my people "

Jesus came to the earth so that God could fulfill His covenant
with Abraham. This would be accomplished by the Messiah fulfilling
the role of the kinsman redeemer and saving His people who lost their
covenant relationship with God.

Jesus came to fulfill the following things:

1.Jesus came to redeem the Northern Kingdom by establishing a new
(renewed) covenant because the first covenant had been broken
because the people assimilated themselves with the nations
around them and forsook God's Torah. In establishing a new
(renewed) covenant with the Northern Kingdom who had assimilated into Gentile
culture, God's salvation would be offered to ALL those who did
not have a covenant relationship with God through the Torah by
receiving the Messiah into their heart and life.

2.Jesus came so that God through the Holy Spirit could indwell His
people so that they could have the power of God to keep His commandments and be
obedient to the Torah of God. The indwelling Holy Spirit
promised to write God's Torah upon the hearts of His people so
that they would be able to keep God's Torah in spirit and in
truth. (Jeremiah 31:33, John 4:24, John 16:13, Hebrews 10:15-16,
Revelation 21:1-3)

3.Jesus would regather those who were dispersed in all the nations
of the earth and bring them back to the land of Israel where they would obey His
Torah when they returned. (Isaiah 49:5-6, Ezekiel 36:24-28,
37:15-27, Acts 1:6-8)

These things would be accomplished by the kinsman redeemer, the
Messiah, during His two comings. During His first coming, Jesus played the
role of Messiah ben Joseph, the suffering Messiah who would die for
the sins of the world and establish a new (renewed) covenant. During
His second coming, Jesus will play the role of Messiah ben David, the
kingly Messiah who will gather the exiles of Israel (both Northern
Kingdom (Christianity) and the Southern Kingdom (Judaism) and bring
them back to the land of Israel where they would be obedient to Torah
and usher in the 1,000 year Messianic Age.

JESUS CAME TO FULFILL
GOD'S COVENANT WITH ABRAHAM

Jesus came from the tribe of Judah to play the role of the
kinsman redeemer in order to fulfill God's promise to Abraham
through His mercy to David. (Romans 1:3, Hebrews 7:14, Revelation 5:5).

Jesus came to reign over the house of Jacob forever. The house of
Jacob refers to a united Northern Kingdom (the house of Israel,
Ephraim, the house of Joseph) AND the Southern Kingdom (the house of
Judah, the Jewish people). Therefore, if Jesus is going to rule over
the house of Jacob (a united Northern Kingdom and Southern Kingdom)
they must be united at some time in history so that Jesus can reign
over the house of Jacob during the 1,000 year Messianic Age and then
for all eternity. In Luke 1:31-33 it is written:

"And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a
son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall
be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give
unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over
the house of Jacob forever: and of his kingdom there shall be no
end "

In Luke 1:67-73, Zacharias prophesied by the Holy Ghost that God
would redeem His people by bringing a deliver from the house of David
to fulfill God's covenant with Abraham as it is written:

"And his father Zacharias, was filled with the Holy Ghost, and
prophesied, saying, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he
hath visited and redeemed his people, And hath raised up a horn
of salvation for us in the house of his servant David: As he
spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since
the world began: That we should be saved from our enemies, and
from the hand of all that hate us: To perform the mercy promised
to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant; The oath
which he sware to our father Abraham"

Through the words given to him by the Holy Spirit, Zacharias is
associating God's redemptive work to be completed through Jesus to
the promise that God made with Abraham through David. When this
redemption is complete, Jesus will rule over a united Israel, the
house of Jacob, forever (Luke 1:31-33).

Earlier in this book, we learned that the Torah that was given to
the children of Israel at Mount Sinai was not an independent event
from the covenant that God made with Abraham. Instead, it was a
fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham that God would fulfill His
oath to Abraham through Abraham's descendants. We also learned that
what made the event at Mount Sinai unique was that it was at mount
Sinai that the descendants of Abraham became a NATION. In addition,
God entered into a marriage with the descendants of Abraham and the
marriage contract was the Torah. Because the children of Israel were
unfaithful in their marriage to God by being disobedient to God's
Torah, God judged the nation of Israel and scattered them among the
nations of the world. However, God made a promise to David that God
would extend His mercy to the nation of Israel and fulfil His
covenant that He made with Abraham through the redeemer of Israel,
the Messiah. Therefore, God's promise of mercy to David was done to
fulfill God's covenant with Abraham.

THE PURPOSE OF THE FIRST AND
SECOND COMING OF THE MESSIAH

The fulfillment of God's covenant with Abraham was dependent upon
the obedience by the descendants of Abraham to God's Torah. God's
covenant with Abraham was extended to the descendants of Abraham at
Mount Sinai when they became a holy nation unto God and made a
covenant with God to keep His Torah. Because the children of Israel
broke the Torah, God dispersed both the Northern Kingdom and Southern
Kingdom into exile among the nations. God's judgment upon the
Northern Kingdom of Israel for forsaking His Torah was cutting them
off from His covenant with them. However, because David kept the
Torah of God, God granted mercy upon David so that God could fulfill
the covenant that He made with Abraham.

The Messiah was promised to come from the lineage of David. There
are two primary roles that the Messiah will fulfill during His first and
second coming. During His first coming, Jesus played the role of
Messiah ben Joseph, the suffering Messiah, who would be a Jew from
the tribe of Judah and who would be a kinsman redeemer to the
Northern Kingdom of Israel who became assimilated into the nations of
the world. In doing so, the Messiah would bring a new (renewed)
covenant so that the Northern Kingdom who was cut off from their
covenant with God through disobedience to God's Torah could be
grafted into a new covenant relationship with God (Romans 11:16-24).
This new (renewed) covenant is also Torah based (Jeremiah 31:33,
Hebrews 10:15-16). The new (renewed) covenant is the Torah written
upon our hearts.

During His second coming, Jesus will play the role of Messiah ben
David, the kingly Messiah who would gather both the engrafted
Northern Kingdom who have assimilated into Gentile culture
(Christianity) and the Southern Kingdom (Judaism) and bring them back
to the land of Israel from all the nations of the world. Upon their
return to the land of Israel from the nations of the world where they
have been scattered, they will keep the Torah of God. After this, the
Kingly Messiah will return back to the earth to dwell with His
people. This is the fullness of the completion of God's covenant with
Abraham.

THE FULLNESS OF GOD'S
COVENANT WITH ABRAHAM

The fullness of the covenant that God made with Abraham has not
yet been fulfilled. Let's reexamine several scriptures again so that
we can understand the fullness of the covenant that God made with
Abraham. In Genesis 17:6-8 it is written:

"And I will make thee exceedingly fruitful, and I will make
nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will
establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after
thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a
God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto
thee, and thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a
stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession;
and I will be their God "

In Leviticus 26:3, 11-12 it is written:

"If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do
them ... And I will set my tabernacle among you: and my soul
shall not abhor you. And I will walk among you, and will be your
God, and ye shall be my people "

In Genesis 17:6-8 and Leviticus 26:3, 11-12, we can see the
fullness of God's covenant with Abraham. It consists of the following
things:

1.God's people bearing much fruit (The fruitful works of the
Bride)
2.God's people keeping His Torah (Because it is written
upon their heart)
3.God's people living in the land of Israel (from being scattered in
the nations of the earth)
4. God dwelling with His people (His Bride)

THE GATHERING OF THE EXILES
BACK TO THE LAND OF ISRAEL

In Acts 1:6-8, the Apostles asked Jesus if He was going to
regather the exiles back to the land of Israel at His first coming.
Jesus answered by saying that this event would happen through the
outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon God's people to be a witness of
this restoration. In Acts 1:6-9 it is written:

"When they therefore were come together, they asked of him,
saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom
to Israel? And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the
times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own
power. But ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is
come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in
Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the
uttermost part of the earth. And when he had spoken these
things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received
him out of their sight "

These are the very last words of Jesus before He ascended unto
heaven. Therefore, they are VERY significant. The last words which we
are reminded to understand prior to the ascension of Jesus unto
heaven is the regathering of the exiles from BOTH the house of
Israel, the Northern Kingdom and the Southern Kingdom through the
outpouring of God's Holy Spirit. This is a MAJOR significant event
and witness to the nations of the world prior to the second coming of
Jesus.

The two primary duties of the Messiah is to bring salvation to
the Gentiles and to regather BOTH houses of Israel, the Northern
Kingdom (Christianity) and the Southern Kingdom (Judaism) back to the
land of Israel. These two things can be seen in Isaiah 49:5-6 as it
is written:

"And now, saith the Lord that formed me from the womb to be his
servant, to bring Jacob (all twelve tribes) again to him, Though
Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of
the Lord, and my God shall be my strength. And he said, It is a
light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the
tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will
also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be
my salvation unto the end of the earth "

Therefore, in these two verses, we see the following two
functions of the Messiah.

1.Salvation to the Gentiles
2.Raise up the tribes of Jacob (all twelve tribes) and restore the
preserved of Israel (back to the land of Israel). God
proclaimed this to be a light (easy) thing.

During the first coming of Jesus, He brought salvation to the
Gentiles. During the second coming of Jesus, He will restore the
preserved (remnant) of Israel back to the land of Israel by the
outpouring of God's Holy Spirit.

EPHRAIM (CHRISTIANITY) AND JUDAH
(JUDAISM) BECOME ONE STICK

In Ezekiel 37:15-27, God promised that He would unite the two
houses of Israel, Ephraim and Judah, and they would become one stick
at the time of the reign of the kingly Messiah. When they became
united, God would bring BOTH houses back to the land of Israel. When
they returned back to the land of Israel from being scattered in all
the nations of the world, they will keep the Torah of God in the land
of Israel. Then, God promised to dwell with His people (bride). In
Ezekiel 37:15-27 it is written:

"The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying, Moreover, thou
son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah,
and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another
stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and
for all the house of Israel his companions: And join them one to
another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand.
And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee,
saying, Wilt thou not show us what thou meanest by these? Say
unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the
stick of Joseph (Christianity), which is in the hand of Ephraim,
and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with
him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and
they shall be one in mine hand. And the sticks whereon thou
writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes. And say unto
them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the children
of Israel from among the heathen, whither they have gone, and
will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own
land: And I will make them one nation in the land upon the
mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king over them all:
and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be
divided into two kingdoms any more at all: Neither shall they
defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their
detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I
will save them out of all their dwelling places, wherein they
have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people,
and I will be their God. And David my servant shall be king over
them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk
in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. And they
shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant,
wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein,
even they, and their children, and their children's children
forever: and my servant David shall be their prince forever.
Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be
an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and
multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them
forevermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will
be their God, and they shall be my people "

In Ezekiel 37:15-27, we see the fulfillment of God's covenant
with Abraham as follows:

1.God's people living in the land of Israel (from being scattered
in the nations of the earth) (Ezekiel 37:21-22, 25)
2.God's people keeping His Torah (Because it is written upon their
heart) (Ezekiel 37:23-24)
3.God dwelling with His people (His Bride) (Ezekiel 37:23, 26-27)
4.The kingly Messiah, Messiah ben David, ruling over His people
(Ezekiel 37:22, 24)

GOD'S PEOPLE FLEEING FROM
THE LAND OF BABYLON

In Revelation 18:4, God commands His people to come out of
Babylon as it is written:

"And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her,
my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye
receive not of her plaques "

There are many babylons that have the people of God captive.
There is religious Babylon, there is financial Babylon, there is
political Babylon and there is also the land of Babylon. The land of
Babylon cannot be modern day Iraq. Very few Christians and Jews live
in Iraq. Therefore, the land of Babylon has to have a spiritual application.

The most populous nation in the world today of Christians and
Jews is the United States of America. The United States of America is
the land of Babylon today. God's greatest judgment of any nation on
the earth will fall upon the United States of America because no
other nation of the world has been given the freedom to preach and
hear the gospel of the Kingdom of God as the United States of
America. Yet, America is the land of abortion, homosexuality, drugs,
gambling and pornography. The United States of America is the modern
day Sodom and Gomorrah. In Jeremiah 50:4-6, 17-18, 51:50 it is written:

"In those days and at that time (a reference to the second coming of
the Messiah), saith the Lord,the children of Israel shall come (the
assimilated Northern Kingdom/Christianity), they and the
children of Judah together (the Southern Kingdom/Jews) going and
weeping: they shall go, and seek the Lord their God. They shall
ask the way to Zion (the land of Israel) with their faces
thitherward, saying, Come, and let us join ourselves to the Lord
in a perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten. My people
hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go
astray (pastors in the church and rabbi's in the synagogues),
they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from
mountain to hill, they have forgotten their resting place
...Israel is a scattered sheep; the lions have driven him away:
first the king of Assyria hath devoured him (the Northern
Kingdom) and last this Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon hath
broken his bones (the Southern Kingdom). Therefore thus saith
the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will punish the
king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of
Assyria ... Ye that have escaped the sword, go away, stand not
still: remember the Lord afar off, and let Jerusalem come into
your mind "

In these verses in Jeremiah, we see the following:

1.The children of Israel (the Northern Kingdom/Christianity)
fleeing Babylon and seeking their way to the land of Zion
(Israel) (Jeremiah 50:4)

2.The children of Judah (the Southern Kingdom/Jews) fleeing
Babylon and seeking their way to the land of Zion (Israel)
(Jeremiah 50:4)

3.Their shepherds (religious leaders) in Christianity and Judaism
have led the people of God astray (Jeremiah 50:6)

4.Those who have escaped the sword (judgment upon the land) are
seeking the way to Jerusalem (Jeremiah 51:50)

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