Eze. 39:23-24

23 And the heathen [gowy] shall know [yada`] that the house [bayith] of Israel [Yisra'el] went into captivity [galah] for their iniquity [`avon]: because they trespassed [ma`al] against me, therefore hid [cathar] I my face [paniym] from them, and gave [nathan] them into the hand [yad] of their enemies [tsar]: so fell [naphal] they all by the sword [chereb].

24 According to their uncleanness [tum'ah] and according to their transgressions [pesha`] have I done [`asah] unto them, and hid [cathar] my face [paniym] from them. KJV-Interlinear

23 And the nations will know that the house of Israel went into exile for their iniquity because they acted treacherously against Me, and I hid My face from them; so I gave them into the hand of their adversaries, and all of them fell by the sword. 24 According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions I dealt with them, and I hid My face from them. ' NASB

Ezekiel lived a good many centuries before Christ s first advent, and before the exile of the Jews in 70 A.D. In these verses, he was not speaking of the exile caused by the Babylonian invasion, nor the Persians after them, nor the Greeks. But, it is the Roman invasion into the land from which Israel will receive its final exile order from God. For the next 1900 plus, years, the Israelites will be spread throughout the world. Even though there is a country in the Middle East now, there are still many Jewish people living around the world.

The reason the Jewish people were sent into exile, and still remain there, is now given. They have been unfaithful to God. Yes, they have their Judaism religion, but that is a false religion. Judaism rejects Christ, and anything that rejects Christ, is false.

Judaism is not the faith of Moses, nor of the Old Testament. Jesus Christ is the faith of the Bible, the entire Bible.

Between the time of Moses and Christ s birth, the Old Testament scriptures were diluted with tons of manmade regulations. That transformation of the scriptures and its meaning, developed into the religion we now call Judaism. Salvation became a system of mans works, and not faith in the Savior. Even the Savior was rejected because He could not be recognized, due to the blindness imposed by religion. The Jewish people looked to the Father, but they rejected His plan for access through His Son. Therefore, God finally rejected them.

That is the case of all people who reject God. Reject God first, and after a time, once you have demonstrated your pattern of rejection and refusal to turn back to Him, then He will turn His back on you. You are in effect, sent into exile, or away from God.

That leaves you at the mercy of the jungle. And jungle laws are merciless to everyone sooner or later.

It will not be until that last generation of the Church Age, that Jewish people will turn away from their religion, and back to God. But remember, when the Rapture occurs, all believers will be removed from the world. Everyone left behind, well be an unbeliever. These will include both Jews and gentiles of course.

But this last generation of Jewish people, will not remain stiff necked given their circumstances, they will turn hot for God, in the truest sense. They will not only believe in Christ, but many will advance to spiritual maturity under the most difficult of situations in human history.

Certainly we all feel sorry for people who have to undergo difficulties in life. The Jewish people as a race, have had more than their share of trouble. But, why is that? Well, you could say that they were simply disliked by prejudiced people throughout history. And that is true.

But, God, who could come along at anytime and deliver those who belong to Him, did not. Thus their many disasters and holocausts in history.

The Jewish people are not the only people who have suffered. Some races like the Inca s, have disappeared completely from history. Probably others have as well. They were evil, otherwise they would still be around.

This same principle applies to you as well. It applies to everyone in history. When you turn your back on God, and remain defiant toward Him, then one day He will let the jungle have you. You are in big doggie doodoo, when that happens.

The Jewish people are the example of history, because they are the descendents of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They were the recipients of the scriptures. They were the first ambassadors from God to mankind. And, they failed.

Again, this principle applies to you. You are the recipient of Gods Word. You can either study it, and accept it into your life, or you can ignore it. What happens next in your life is up to you, really.

On the one hand, if you reject God, then your life is in the hands of the jungle. Good luck!

On the other hand, if you accept God into your life, meaning that you dedicate yourself to a daily study of His Word, learn it, come to understand it, apply its principles to your life and grow up spiritually, then God has a plan for your life and that plan functions as it was intended to, for you.

In the first instance, you are nothing more than fuel for the fires of history. Historical filler, I call it. In the latter case, you are the apple of Gods eye, the prized gem, the one of whom God is jealous, and who will defend and protect to no end.

Which do you suppose is the better deal?

By the time of the Second Advent, all delivered people will be mature believers. All of them will understand the principles of history, and of Gods protection.

They will know why the Jewish peoples were sent into exile, and that, that exile was now over. It is over for everyone. At the Second Advent, all Jewish people, who by the way happen to be believers in Christ, as well as all believers everywhere, will re-gather in the promised land, in the Middle East, in Israel, but more importantly, in faith, in Christ. And in that frame of mind, they will live forever, never turning again to false doctrines.

Don t get into a situation where God hides His face from your life. That is definitely not a good deal. Don t be fooled because lightening doesn t strike you immediately when you stray from God. He knows that you know what you are doing. And He will give you lots of loose rope just as the hangman gives to the condemned, at least initially. Don t come to the end of your rope before you wake up to the realities of life.

Now is the time to post a prayer.