These 10 Bible prophecies were fulfilled in 1948 when Israel became
an independent, united nation for the second time in history, and for
the first time in 2,900 years.
1. Jacob's descendants would regain control of Israel
Bible passage: Amos 9:14-15
Written: about 750 BC
Fulfilled: Since 1948
In Amos 9:14-15, the prophet said that there would come a time when the
exiles of Israel would again have Israel as their own land and that they
would never be uprooted again. Amos lived about 2700 years ago, during a
time when the people of Israel were being forced out of their homeland
by a succession of foreign invasions. Despite many centuries of exile,
many Jews returned to Israel and reclaimed sovereignty over a portion of
their ancient homeland. This declaration of independence, in 1948,
triggered a war with the surrounding countries, which objected to the
presence of a Jewish state. On May 15, 1948, the day that armies from
the surrounding countries invaded, Azzam Pasha, the Secretary General of
the Arab League, said "This will be a war of extermination and a
momentous massacre which will be spoken of like the Mongolian massacres
and the Crusades." Similar quotes were uttered by others during the war
of 1948-49 and during the two major wars that followed. Despite its tiny
size, Israel prevailed in these wars, preventing its people from being
uprooted again, as they had been in ancient times.
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Amos 9:14-15
I will bring back my exiled people Israel; they will rebuild the ruined
cities and live in them. They will plant vineyards and drink their wine;
they will make gardens and eat their fruit. I will plant Israel in their
own land, never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them,"
says the Lord your God.
2. Israel would be brought back to life
Bible passage: Ezekiel 37:10-14
Written: between 593-571 BC
Fulfilled: 1948
In Ezekiel 37:10-14, the prophet receives a vision in which Israel was
seen as a scattering of dried-up bones. In this vision, God tells
Ezekiel that the bones (Israel) would be brought back to life. Just as
Ezekiel had prophesized about 2600 years ago, the Jews were brought back
to the land, and the country of Israel was brought back to life. Israel
re-established sovereignty in 1948, a mere three years after the end of
the Holocaust, during which the Nazis killed about one-third of the
world's Jewish population.
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Ezekiel 37:10-14
So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came
to life and stood up on their feet--a vast army. Then he said to me:
"Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, `Our
bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.' Therefore
prophesy and say to them: `This is what the Sovereign Lord says: O my
people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I
will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will
know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from
them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle
you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken,
and I have done it, declares the Lord.'"
3. Isaiah spoke of a Israel being reborn in one day
Bible passage: Isaiah 66:7-8
Written: perhaps between 701-681 BC
Fulfilled: 1948
In Isaiah 66:7-8, the prophet foreshadowed the re-birth of Israel in
1948. Isaiah describes a woman giving birth before going into
labor, and he speaks of a country being born in one day. This accurately
describes what happened on May 14, 1948 - when the Jews declared
independence for Israel as a united and sovereign nation for the first
time in 2900 years.
During that same day, the United States issued a statement recognizing
Israel's sovereignty. And, only hours beforehand, a United Nations
mandate expired, ending British control of the land. During a 24-hour
span of time, foreign control of the land of Israel had formally ceased,
and Israel had declared its independence, and its independence was
acknowledged by other nations. Modern Israel was literally was born in a
single day.
Isaiah said the birth would take place before there would be labor
pains. And that too is precisely what happened. A movement called
Zionism began in the 1800s to encourage Jews worldwide to move to
Israel, which at that time was called Palestine. Within hours of the
declaration of independence in 1948, Israel was attacked by the
surrounding countries of Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Saudi
Arabia.
When reading Isaiah 66:7-8, keep in mind that Israel's status as a
sovereign nation was established and reaffirmed during the course of a
single day, and that it was born of a movement called Zionism, and that
its declaration of independence was not the result of a war but rather
the cause of one.
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Isaiah 66:7-8
"Before she goes into labor, she gives birth; before the pains come upon
her, she delivers a son. Who has ever heard of such a thing? Who has
ever seen such things? Can a country be born in a day or a nation be
brought forth in a moment? Yet no sooner is Zion in labor than she gives
birth to her children."
4. Israel would be re-established as a united nation
Bible passage: Ezekiel 37:21-22
Written: between 593-571 BC
Fulfilled: 1948
In Ezekiel 37:21-22, the prophet said that God would one day bring the
people of Israel back to Israel, as a united nation. This might have
been a shock for Ezekiel. He lived about 2600 years ago. At that time,
the people of Israel had already divided themselves into two separate
kingdoms. And, both kingdoms had been conquered by foreign invaders, who
forced many of the people, including Ezekiel, into exile. But, when Jews
reclaimed sovereignty in 1948, they did so as a united people, creating
one nation - Israel.
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Ezekiel 37:21-22
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. 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.
5. The second Israel would be more impressive than the first
Bible passage: Jeremiah 16:14-15
Written: sometime from 626 to about 586 BC
Fulfilled: 1948
In Jeremiah 16:14-15, the prophet said the second Israel would be more
impressive than the first. In many regards, it is. The first time that
Israel was established as a country was after Moses led the descendants
of Jacob (typically referred to today as Jews) out of Egypt, where they
had been enslaved for 400 years. They then conquered Canaan and
established Israel about 3400 years ago. But the second time that Israel
was established was after the Jews had been scattered far and wide for a
few thousand years. This time the Jews had to return from as far away as
the United States, China, Russia and South Africa.
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Jeremiah 16:14-15
"However, the days are coming," declares the Lord, "when men will no
longer say, 'As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the Israelites up
out of Egypt,' but they will say, 'As surely as the Lord lives, who
brought the Israelites up out of the land of the north and out of all
the countries where he had banished them.' For I will restore them to
the land I gave their forefathers.
6. Ezekiel predicted when Israel would be re-established
Bible passage: Ezekiel 4:3-6
Written: between 593-571 BC
Fulfilled: 1948
In Ezekiel 4:3-6, the prophet said the Jews, who had lost control of
their homeland, would be punished for 430 years. This prophecy,
according to Bible scholar Grant Jeffrey, pinpointed the 1948 rebirth of
Israel. Here's a summary of Jeffrey's theory:
1. Ezekiel said the Jews were to be punished for 430 years
because they had turned away from God. As part of the punishment, the
Jews lost control of their homeland to Babylon. Many Jews were taken as
captives to Babylon.
2. Babylon was later conquered by Cyrus in 539 BC. Cyrus allowed
the Jews to leave Babylon and to return to their homeland. But, only a
small number returned. The return had taken place sometime around 536
BC, about 70 years after Judah lost independence to Babylon.
3. Because most of the exiles chose to stay in pagan Babylon
rather than return to the Holy Land, the remaining 360 years of their
punishment was multiplied by 7. The reason is explained in Bible's book
of Leviticus. (Leviticus 26:18, 26:21, 26:24 and 26:28). In Leviticus,
it says that if the people did not repent while being punished, the
punishment would be multiplied by 7. And, by staying in pagan Babylon,
most exiles were refusing to repent.
4. So, if you take the remaining 360 years of punishment and
multiply by 7, you get 2,520 years. But, Jeffrey says those years are
based on an ancient 360-day lunar calendar. If those years are adjusted
to the modern solar calendar, the result is 2,484 years.
5. And, there were exactly 2,484 years from 536 BC to 1948, which
is the year that Israel regained independence.
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Ezekiel 4:3-6
(In this Bible passage, Ezekiel is asked by God to symbolically act
out the 430 years of punishment)
… Then take an iron pan, place it as an iron wall between you and the
city and turn your face toward it. It will be under siege, and you shall
besiege it. This will be a sign to the house of Israel. "Then lie on
your left side and put the sin of the house of Israel upon yourself. You
are to bear their sin for the number of days you lie on your side. I
have assigned you the same number of days as the years of their sin. So
for 390 days you will bear the sin of the house of Israel. "After you
have finished this, lie down again, this time on your right side, and
bear the sin of the house of Judah. I have assigned you 40 days, a day
for each year.
7. The people of Israel would return to "their own land"
Bible passage: Ezekiel 34:13
Written: between 593-571 BC
Fulfilled: after May 14, 1948
In Ezekiel 34:13, the prophet said that God would gather the people of
Israel scattered throughout the world and bring them back to "their own
land." After many centuries of dispersion, hundreds of thousands of Jews
returned to their ancient homeland beginning in the late 1800s. But,
millions more returned after Israel declared independence in
1948. In other words, millions of exiles returned to their ancient
homeland which was now truly "their own land" in the sense that it was
now a sovereign Jewish state.
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Ezekiel 34:13
I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the
countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture
them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and in all the
settlements in the land.
8. God would watch over the people of Israel
Bible passage: Jeremiah 31:10
Written: sometime from 626 to about 586 BC
Fulfilled: 1948, etc.
In Jeremiah 31:10, the prophet said that God would one day gather the
Jews back to Israel and that He would watch over them like a shepherd.
Believe what you wish, but there is evidence that God indeed has watched
over the re-established nation of Israel. Hours after Israel declared
independence in 1948, the surrounding countries attacked, hoping to
replace the Jewish state with an Arab state. These countries are much
larger than Israel. But tiny Israel prevailed in that war and was able
to capture additional land, increasing the land size of Israel by 50
percent. Israel also prevailed in the two other major wars that
followed.
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Jeremiah 31:10
"Hear the word of the Lord, O nations; proclaim it in distant
coastlands: 'He who scattered Israel will gather them and will watch
over his flock like a shepherd.'
9. Israel's army would be disproportionately powerful
Bible passage: Leviticus 26:3, 7-8
Written: perhaps around 1400 BC
Fulfilled: 1948-49, 1967, etc.
In Leviticus 26:3, 7-8, the Bible says that the army of Israel would
have a supernatural power to prevail during times of conflict, if the
people are obedient to the Lord. This Bible passage says that 5 people
would be able to chase away 100 people, and that 100 would be able to
chase away 10,000. Is there any proof to this incredible claim? Judge
for yourself:
Example 1: Within hours of Israel's declaration of independence
in 1948, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and Lebanon invaded Israel. The
combined population of those countries was at least 20 million at that
time. Israel had fewer than 1 million Jews. Even so, the Jews won the
war and expanded the size of Israel by 50 percent.
Example 2: During the War of 1967, Israel attacked the air force
bases of the surrounding countries and took control of Jerusalem for the
first time in about 2000 years. They also seized additional territory.
That war lasted a mere 6 days.
Example 3: On Oct. 6, 1973, Israel was attacked by Egypt and
Syria. Other countries later joined the attack. But the Jews were able
to push back the attacking armies and occupy land outside of Israel's
borders.
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Leviticus 26:3, 7-8
"If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands, … You
will pursue your enemies, and they will fall by the sword before you.
Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten
thousand, and your enemies will fall by the sword before you."
10. The fortunes of the people of Israel would be restored
Bible passage: Deuteronomy 30:3-5
Written: perhaps 1400 BC
Fulfilled: 1948, etc.
In Deuteronomy 30:3-5, the Bible said the Jews would be scattered
worldwide and that they later would return to their homeland and have
their fortunes restored. This prophecy began to be fulfilled in modern
times during the late 1800s when many Jews returned to Israel, from as
far away as China and the United States, Russia and South Africa. Israel
declared independence in 1948. Today, Israel is among the world's most
prosperous countries. In 1999, for example, Israel's per capita Gross
Domestic Product was twice as prosperous than the neighboring countries.
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Deuteronomy 30:3-5
then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on
you and gather you again from all the nations where he scattered you.
Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the
heavens, from there the Lord your God will gather you and bring you
back. He will bring you to the land that belonged to your fathers, and
you will take possession of it. He will make you more prosperous and
numerous than your fathers.
