Isaiah 48:1-2
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“Hear this, O house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel, and have come forth from the wellsprings of Judah; Who swear by the name of the Lord, and make mention of the God of Israel, but not in truth or in righteousness;” Isaiah 48:1
“Hear this, O house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel“: Why is the house of Jacob and Israel referred to as being one and the same in that verse? Because the twelve tribes of Israel are named after the twelve sons of Jacob. Jacob’s sons are the fathers of all the descendants of the twelve tribes of Israel. Why are they called the “Twelve Tribes of Israel”? Because Jacob’s name was changed to Israel as written in Genesis 32:22-28, “So He said to him, “What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.” And He said, “Your name will no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.” Genesis 32:27-28 Therefore, the house of Jacob is now called by the name of Israel.
“… and have come forth from the wellsprings of Judah“: A wellspring is a source of water and Judah was that wellspring. The Israelites of the kingdom of Judah survived the destruction and scattering that came to the Israelites of the kingdom of Israel years before. In that sense, the Israelites that Isaiah was speaking to were the wellsprings of Judah. In Isaiah’s day, the Israelites were divided between the kingdom of Israel to the north and the kingdom of Judah to the south, as seen on the map below. The kingdom of Israel included ten of the twelve tribes while the kingdom of Judah included the tribe of Judah and Benjamin.
After Isaiah’s period of prophecy, the Israelites of Judah were taken captive by Babylon. Daniel [Belteshazzar], Hananiah {Shadrach], Mishael [Meshach], and Azariah [Abed-Nego] were all from the tribe of Judah, as described in Daniel 1. The tribe of Judah continued to be a wellspring of the Israelites’ survival and existence.
Because the tribe of Judah survived throughout the centuries, the birth of Christ Jesus was possible. By prophecy, it was necessary for Jesus to born [in earthly terms] from the tribe of Judah. That’s because king David was from the tribe of Judah and the Christ would set on David’s throne to rule over God’s eternal Kingdom, “He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.’ From this man’s seed, according to the promise, God raised up for Israel a Savior—Jesus—” Acts 13:20-23
Our Lord Jesus Christ is from the tribe of Judah and is the Water of Life that causes the wellspring of the Water of Life to spring up in us, “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” John 7:38 In that light, as followers of Jesus Christ, we are born of the tribe of Judah through our Lord Jesus, and we have come forth from the wellsprings of Judah.
“Who swear by the name of the Lord, and make mention of the God of Israel, but not in truth or in righteousness;” The Israelites, whom the Spirit of the Lord was speaking through Isaiah, were Israelites in name only. They were not truly obedient to His word, were not living righteously through the Ten Commandments, and the animal sacrifices to atone for sin meant nothing to them. Today, as followers of Jesus Christ, from the wellsprings of Judah, we are the new Israel that serves God by the truth and righteousness of Jesus Christ, “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh; but he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God.” Romans 2:28-29
The map to the right shows the kingdoms of Israel and Judah while the map on the left is modern day State of Israel.
“For they call themselves after the holy city, and lean on the God of Israel; The Lord of hosts is His name:” Isaiah 48:2
Today, we see how the Israelis of the State of Israel continue to call themselves by the name of the Holy City Israel. Also, Jewish people everywhere associate themselves with Israel. But they are Israel in name only, not the Israel of God that serves Him through the truth and righteousness of Jesus Christ, “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation. And as many as walk according to this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, upon the Israel of God.” Galatians 6:15-16
The Jewish culture claims to be leaning on the God of Israel, but Christ Jesus says, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you will see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ” Matthew 23:37-39
The Lord of hosts is His name, and we know that name is Jesus, the Lord of lords and King of kings, “Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:9-11
“….to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets,
‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.’
“I am coming soon.
Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.’”
Revelation 2:24-25, 3:11
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