The Sons of Jacob Promised Return Series – The Tribe of Judah
When an important person visits a city, the mayor will often give that special person the “Key” to the city as a symbolic gesture that they are valued in the city. God is now offering those who will see and receive His promised future a “key” to both see and be a part of His coming kingdom. The Tribe of Judah helps us see this key. Get ready to receive a key!
Judah was the fourth son of Jacob and Leah. The name Judah means praise. (Genesis 49:8) Jacob says of him, “Judah, you are one whom your brothers shall praise.” The symbol of Judah is a Lion. This tribe is called “The Royal Tribe” because King Solomon and King David were from this tribe.
Jacob’s full description of Judah describes him as a lion’s whelp. The full description becomes a prophetic picture of what would come out of this tribe:
“Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise; Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; Your father’s children shall bow down before you. 9 Judah is a lion’s whelp; From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; And as a lion, who shall rouse him? 10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people.” (Genesis 49:8-10).
“Your brothers shall praise you and bow down to you.” Vs-8
Kings came from the tribe of Judah including king David and king Solomon. This is a reference to King David’s Kingdom. It is fulfilled in the elevation of the house of Judah to the throne.
“His hand shall be on the neck of his enemies.”
This is a prediction remarkably fulfilled in the victories of king David and Solomon. It was the custom of conquerors to put yokes upon the necks of the conquered. Gen. 27:40; Deut. 28:48.
“The scepter shall not depart from Judah until Shiloh come.”
The scepter was a staff adorned with carvings, handed down from father to son and became an emblem of authority or dominion for the tribe.
The Meaning of, “Until Shiloh Comes.”
The term “Shiloh” is not talking about the town of Shiloh which was a town in the territory of Ephraim. Hebrew theologians translate this word as “Sheloh” which literally means “Whose it is.” The prophet Ezekiel quotes Jacob’s words here, using the Hebrew idiom, “Until He comes.” (See Ezekiel 21:27). Both Christians and Hebrew scholars apply this term to the Messiah (Mashiach), meaning that the scepter of rulership shall not pass from the hand of Judah until the Messiah comes to receive it.
Israel is the only extinct nation that, after 2,000 years, was resurrected along with its language. While man considered this nation dead and buried, God had always kept a remnant of Israel alive. The scepter of Judah was never lost. Imagine how, virtually overnight, this nation was reborn. In the course of just 75 years, Israel transformed swamp land and desert into a modern nation leading the world in technology, science, and agriculture. God kept this nation to fulfill its destiny and biblical purposes which He had promised long ago. He has promised to preserve Israel as He preserves the order of the sun and the moon. He declares, “If this fixed order departs from before me, declares the LORD, then shall the offspring of Israel cease from being a nation before me forever.” (Jeremiah 31:35-36). Christians and Jews are beginning to realize that the restoration of Israel is for the whole world – for everyone.
The Coming Messiah (Mashiach).
Both Christians and Jewish scholars believe in a coming future Messiah but differ in who the Messiah will be. Many Christians believe that Messiah has already come but left and will return to establish his reign on earth. Many Jews believe the Messiah (Mashiach) has not yet come, but that he will establish his reign on earth when the Third Temple is built described in Ezekiel 37:28.
“And the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary
(temple) shall be in the midst of them forever.”
Christians and Jews may have more in common than we thought in waiting for the coming Messiah. We are both waiting for the redemption of the world.
Note: The weekly Jewish Shemoneh Esrei prayer is recited three times a day in Israel. It acknowledges there are several conditions that must be fulfilled before Mashiach returns that include: the ingathering of exiles; restoration of religious courts of justice, and the restoration of the Third Temple and its services.
It seems clear that many Christians and Jews are waiting for the coming Messiah (Mashiach). While some Christians may disagree with events surrounding the return of Messiah, it seems clear that his reign will not be established on the earth until the “Third Temple” is built in Israel according to the prophet Ezekiel as described in Ezekiel chapters 47 & 48. Ezekiel prophesies that “the glory of the God of Israel is coming to fill the temple.” (Ezekiel 43:2-5).
Sequence of events in the End of Days that Ezekiel sees:
- The Scattered Tribes return. Ezekiel 37:21.
- The Building of the Third Temple. It follows the return of the tribes. Ezekiel 37:28.
- The Gog and Magog war reveals God’s intervention. Chapters 38 & 39.
- Restored Temple & New City Vision. This is the temple Messiah (Mashiach) will come back to when he is revealed in Ezekiel 47-48. No temple, as described by Ezekiel, has ever existed.
Note: Ezekiel does not explain about the manner of the Messiah’s coming or the time gaps in between the events he highlights. He gives a sequence of the End of Days events that all focus on Israel. Judgment of the nations takes place because “they have scattered God’s inheritance, which is Israel, and divided her lands”. (Joel 3:2).
Last day teachings that leave out Israel distort the end-time events of the Bible.
The land of Israel is drawing both Jews who are returning to it, and Christians who
come to see it, back to biblical roots and the God of the Bible. My own experience as
a Christian has been deepened by walking the historical lands of Israel.
Description of the restored temple & redeemed world.
The restored temple will have supernatural manifestations coming out of it from the Messiah (Mashiach). Ezekiel 47 describes water coming out from the gates, which create a river. Wherever the river goes, every living thing will be healed. (Ezekiel 47:9). This healing means redemption for the whole earth. Isaiah chapter eleven may also be describing a new city with the restored temple. The prophet Isaiah tells us, “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together.” Then the Lord assures us of the perfect peace in this new dwelling place of Messiah (Mashiach), “They shall not hurt of destroy in all my holy mountain, ‘for the earth’ will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:6-9). Restoration of God’s purpose in Israel means redemption for the whole earth!
The coming New City. A new city of hope will exist in the midst of the tribes in the restored temple location. Its gates will have the names of the tribes of Israel on them. (Ezekiel 48: 31). This is a literal city. Its dimensions are given. The distance around the city is 18,000 cubits or six miles. This city will have a new name given to it. It will be called, “The Lord is there.” (Ezekiel 48:35)
All of these wonderful promises of restoration for the earth includes the return of the scattered tribes to the land of Israel. They will exist in the Land of Israel. The Messiah (Mashiach) will come with the scepter of Judah to rule in the earth from Israel. The redemption which follows is for the whole world.
Notice: Everything in the End of Days sequence includes the Jews being restored in Israel along with the new temple and city and with the Messiah returning to this city. To leave the Jews out of end-time teachings is to displace them from the Messiah’s stated purpose of returning.
The Voice of Aliyah is being heard in the Nations for Judah.
Declaration of Return for Judah.
“Judah, the sons of praise who stood with the one who holds the scepter, shall return to the land of their inheritance. Bethlehem shall rejoice at your return. The coming Messiah (Mashiach) of Judah has redeemed the land of your inheritance, and in it you shall praise Him. The roar of Adonai shall be in the land. (Gen. 49:18-12/Rev 5:5) Return from the nations to your inheritance and worship the God of your fathers in the Promised Land. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is waiting for your return! HaShem knows your name!”
Lands given and restored to Judah.
The lands given to Judah include the territory just below Jerusalem and would include Bethlehem.
Location of the Tribe of Judah now in the world.
There are some who believe that the tribe of Judah was among the Sephardic Jews and were scattered to the nations with the Spanish Inquisition. When Christopher Columbus set sail for America, it is said that some of his crew were Jews fleeing from the persecution of the Spanish Inquisition. Christopher delayed his voyage a day so he could set sail on the Jewish holiday Tisha B’ Av, which begins the first day of mourning for the destruction of the two Jewish temples. (The Times of Israel, October 8, 2018). This tribe is likely scattered to many places on the earth but is returning in fulfillment of Ezekiel’s prophecies.
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