The Restoration of the Kingdom of Israel and the Gathering of the Lost Sheep
In April 2018, I had a dream where I heard the audible voice of God throughout the night telling me about two kingdoms that were divided and that were very different.
This dream was very different from all the dreams I’ve ever had because usually you dream one thing and then move on to the next one, but this particular dream repeated itself through the night.
I remember as if it was yesterday hearing God’s audible voice telling me to pay attention to the two kingdoms because they were very different and they were divided. The voice repeated the same thing over and over. I remember waking up a few times through the night and feeling the presence of God in my bedroom. And then I will go back to sleep and through the night the voice of God kept telling me the same thing over and over.
Immediately when I woke up Ezekiel 37:15-18 came to mind. I took my bible and read it: “ The word of the Lord came to me: 16 “Son of man, take a stick of wood and write on it, ‘Belonging to Judah and the Israelites associated with him.’ Then take another stick of wood, and write on it, ‘Belonging to Joseph (that is, to Ephraim) and all the Israelites associated with him.’ 17 Join them together into one stick so that they will become one in your hand. 18 “When your people ask you, ‘Won’t you tell us what you mean by this?’ 19 say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am going to take the stick of Joseph—which is in Ephraim’s hand—and of the Israelite tribes associated with him, and join it to Judah’s stick. I will make them into a single stick of wood, and they will become one in my hand.’ 20 Hold before their eyes the sticks you have written on 21 and say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land. 22 I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. There will be one king over all of them and they will never again be two nations or be divided into two kingdoms.
Ever since I had that dream, I had a burning desire to understand what each kingdom in Ezekiel 37:15-18 truly represented. I kept reading this passage over and over, discussing it with people, and asking others what kind of revelation they had about the stick of Ephraim and the stick of Judah. I knew this passage wasn’t just talking about the tribes of Israel as we traditionally know them, but had a deeper meaning. I sensed that there was actually an end time mystery prophecy hiding in that passage. And I knew the Lord wanted to unlock understanding about a scripture that was about to mark me for the rest of my life. And indeed this passage has been the one scripture the Lord has used to give me understanding about the two remnants of the Lord. In this passage we can see one of the greatest prophecies about the End Time revival that will occur when the jewish remnant and the gentile remnant join forces and become one, as one new men in Christ. This scripture lays out the magnificent plan of the full restoration of jews and gentiles as he brings them into unity to be used in a powerful way in the Last Days. This scripture in fact points to the fulfillment of Amos 9:11 and the restoration of the fallen tabernacle of David. When jews and gentiles will worship the Lord freely, in unity and without any kind of walls of division. This scripture also points to the full manifestation of the one new man spoken of in Ephesians 2:14-18
Ephesians 2:14-18 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, 16 and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. 17 He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit
As my search for God’s mystery found in Ezekiel’s 37:15-22 began, the Lord started to reveal to me many other wonders about his plan for Israel and the role of the gentile believers in regards to Israel’s salvation the End Times. Many scriptures started opening up to me and I started seeing a lot of types and shadows and patterns through all the bible typifying the two different flocks of the Lord, gentiles and the jews.
John 10:1616 Also I have other sheep which are not from this pen; I need to bring them, and they will hear my voice; and there will be one flock, one shepherd.
John 11:52-54 “Now he didn't speak this way on his own initiative; rather, since he was High Priest that year, he was prophesying that Jesus was about to die on behalf of the nation, 52 and not for the nation alone, but so that he might gather into one the scattered children of God. 53 From that day on, they made plans to have him put to death. 54 Therefore Jesus no longer walked around openly among the Judeans but went away from there into the region near the desert, to a town called Ephraim, and stayed there with his disciples.”
Little by little, through different things that started happening in my life the Lord began whispering “I am about to break the wall of division between my two divided kingdoms, the Christians and the Jews, and I will make them one in my hand in the last days.”
Just as in John 10:6 we see that Jesus says that he has sheep from another pen that he wants to gather into one flock to be led by him, we see in Ezekiel 37:19-22 that the Lord tells Ezekiel that he will gather all his lost ones and they will become one, and one king will be king for all of them. The Lord also tells Ezekiel that they will never again be divided into two kingdoms, but they will be one in his hand.
“Tell them that Adonai Elohim says this: ‘I will take the stick of Josef, which is in the hand of Ephraim, together with the tribes of Israel who are joined with him, and put them together with the stick of Judah and make them a single stick, so that they become one in my hand.’ The sticks on which you write are to be in your hand as they watch. Then say to them that Adonai Elohim says then say to them that Adonai Elohim says: ‘I will take the people of Israel from among the nations where they have gone and gather them from every side and bring them back to their own land. I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king will be king for all of them. They will no longer be two nations, and they will never again be divided into two kingdoms.”
We know this prophecy in Ezekiel 37:19-22 is a promise that the Lord will restore the Kingdom of Israel that was once divided. As we all know on the succession of Solomon's son, Rehoboam, around 930 BCE, the biblical account reports that the country split into two kingdoms: the Kingdom of Israel (including the cities of Shechem and Samaria) in the north and the Kingdom of Judah (containing Jerusalem) in the south.
In the Hebrew Bible, the Kingdom of Israel has been referred to as the "House of Joseph". It is also frequently referenced (particularly in poetry) as Ephraim, the tribe whose territory housed the capital cities and the royal families. It has also been referred to as "Israel in Samaria". As we all know the northern tribes were scattered all over the world during the diaspora, and those tribes are known today as the lost tribes of Israel.
According to Ezekiel 37 the totality of these tribes are supposed to be regathered back in the land of Israel and they will become one single nation with one king. They will no longer be two different houses, and they will never again be divided into two kingdoms. We certainly know that God will do this literally for the twelve tribes as he says in his word, but there is a mystery that we must understand. And that is that to the stick of Joseph, the Lord had in mind to add more. He always had in mind to add the nations.
The name Joseph in Hebrew means “He will add”. The name Joseph comes from the Hebrew verb yasaf (to increase). So in fact the final fulfillment of the stick of Joseph becoming one with the stick of Judah will occur when the fullness of the gentiles occurs and when all Israel becomes saved. Then we will see the fullness of the wild olive branches which are the gentiles (the stick of Joseph), grafted into olive tree, together with the natural olive branches which are the jews (the stick of Judah) become reinserted into their own olive tree.
Romans 11:17-19 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, 18 do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. 19 Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.”
Romans 11:23-24 And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again. 24 For if you were cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, the natural branches, be grafted back into their own olive tree.
Here we can see that the very reason Jesus did not restore the kingdom of Israel on his first coming, was because he still needed to add and gather all of his sheep, the nations and the jews, into one pen, under one shepherd. Geula won’t occur unless Ephraim and Judah are restored. But along with Ephraim many others from the nations had to be added first! Geula could not occur until the Gentiles were grafted in!!
In other words, once the fullness of the gentiles has come, and all the sheep from another pen get added into the stick of Joseph, then all Israel shall be saved and the Lord Jesus will be ready to come back as a King to establish and restore the physical kingdom of Israel.
Romans 11:25-2625 hLest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written,
“The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob”.