Conclusion: A Savior From Before Eden
I introduced this SERIES about our savior, Christ Jesus, who had confirmed to the religious authorities:
“Before Abraham was, I AM!”
Gospel of John 8:58
Moses' five books do not and cannot explain everything.
Disaster From Disobedience, A Savior From Before Eden points back toward Jesus, who was here before the first adam.
Disobedience,
then consequence of sin follows.
Our most recent look at the Abrahamic family tree beyond Noah merely covers Genesis. So now we must move quickly through the generations, sojourning on a once-cleansed earth.
What is your name?” the man asked.
32:28 וַיֹּאמֶר לֹא יַעֲקֹב יֵאָמֵר עֹוד שִׁמְךָ כִּי אִם־יִשְׂרָאֵל כִּֽי־שָׂרִיתָ עִם־אֱלֹהִים וְעִם־אֲנָשִׁים וַתּוּכָֽל׃
“Jacob,” he replied.
28 “Your name will no longer be Jacob,” He said. “It will be Israel because you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed.” 29 Then Jacob asked Him,
“Please tell me Your name.”
But He answered,
“Why do you ask My name?”
And He blessed him there.
Before Israel, God Prevails
Jesus the Messiah proclaimed,
“before Abraham was, I AM!”
His reference means so much more than genealogy, place, Law, leadership or religion, per se.
Israel’s father was Isaac, יִצְחָק Yitschaq (laughter), given by the Lord when a childless old couple doubted any possibility of fulfillment of a promise in their old age. In fact, controversy yet remains about the first born of Abraham and Hagar, the Egyptian.
The continuing drama of Genesis 17 could warrant much more study; but let us concede the meaning of Israel’s name. God prevails. Yes, God prevails even when life drives us in a direction away from God’s promises.
The Lord’s covenant though Abraham is confirmed:
18 So Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael were acceptable to You!”
19 But God said, “No. Your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will name him Isaac. I will confirm My covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his future offspring.
Before Abraham, many descendants of Noah’s sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth chose between good and evil as they populated God’s creation. And we will see in our next series a continuing theme of disobedience to God by Israel’s descendants as well.
Why would the Lord choose Israel as a people led by Him? Remember Jacob’s new name means, God prevails.
Joseph and Israel’s Eleven Other Sons
We often overlook the role and connection of Israel’s preeminent son, Joseph. And we have not yet spoken of the Law of Moses with its defining choices of good and evil.
The sojourn of Israel into Egypt and back is yet another story and illustration that God prevails.
- If you have never noticed a connection between Genesis and Exodus, you may want to focus on Joseph.
- We tend to see Israel (Jacob)
- and then Moses
- and later David as most important to Israel’s history.
A continuing theme of man since Adam has been disobedience, a theme which we will continue. Moses will give us God’s Law and Joseph will demonstrate God’s goodness.
May the Lord walk with you in the wilderness of your heart.
To be continued in our next series, God willing…
NOTE: The Next 2016 SERIES looked at was:
A River of Redemption Flowing from Eden
Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
– Matthew 22:36 KJV
Post Script for our 2026 C.E. readers
Quick SYNOPSIS from Israel to David to the destruction and diaspora — to The Christ.
Joshua to Jesus
ALL dates in the chronology to follow are approximate from multiple sources and provided for your comparison of times passing of the generations between Adam and Christ Jesus the Incarnate Son of God.
Joshua and the Judges of Israel
The LORD had appointed Joshua, the general who would lead the Hebrew armies into the Promised Land, as successor to Moses.
Joshua – yᵊhôšûaʿ – יְהוֹשׁוּעַ
- Joshua or Jehoshua = “Jehovah is salvation”
- yᵊhōvâ – יְהוָה = Jehovah
- “the existing One,”
- the proper name of the one true God
- yāšaʿ – יָשַׁע = to save, be saved, be delivered
- yᵊhōvâ – יְהוָה = Jehovah
- the man Joshua lived ~1400 B.C.
iēsous – Ἰησοῦς –
in Greek from Yeshua, pronounced: yeh-ho-shoo’-ahv= Joshua, in Hebrew, with the same meaning.
Jesus = “Jehovah is salvation”
- the Judges of Israel – from later days of Joshua to Samuel and the anointing of Saul and David as Kings.
Israel
- the man Jacob son of Isaac – ~2000 years Before Christ
- the United Kingdoms of Saul, David, & Solomon – ~1000 B.C.
- the prodigal Northern Kingdom – ~931 B.C. – 722 B.C.
- after which only Judah survived destruction until ~ 600 B.C.
Exile – Expelled from the Promised Land
- ~ 605 B.C. – First Exile of the Jews to Babylon
- Prophets of the LORD between fall of Israel [722 B.C.] and fall of Judah include: Nahum. Jeremiah, Zephaniah, Ezekiel, Daniel and Habakkuk
- Prophets of the LORD at the time of Judah’s Exile included: Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Habakkuk and Obadiah [586 B.C.]
- 609 B.C. – 586 B.C. the last three Kings of Judah – Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin and Zedekiah – all died in Babylon as captives.
- 586 B.C. Temple of Solomon and Jerusalem destroyed after a lengthy siege and deportation of ~7000 Jews to Babylon, with many more exiled to Babylon later.
Some Jews Return to the Promised Land
- ~537 B.C. Persia allowed some Jews to return after defeating Babylon
- a Second Temple will not be completed until ~516 B.C.
- 332 B.C. Alexander the Great conquers Egypt, including Aram (which included Jerusalem) from the Persians and Hellenizes the world from Greece to distant Asia during his lifetime [d. 323 B.C.]
- ~300 B.C. – ~200 B.C. A Mediterranean military power, which had taken control of the Italian peninsula from Rome, defeated Greek kings, ending classical Greek power and controlling all of Greece by 146 A.D.
- ~200 B.C. The Seleucid Empire begins to rule Judea and recognizes Jewish Priests.
- 168 B.C. – 164 B.C. Maccabean Revolt
the Greek king Antiochus IV Epiphanes invaded Jerusalem and captured the city. He marched into the Jewish temple, erected a statue of the Greek god Zeus, and sacrificed a pig on the altar of incense. This provoked a revolt in Judea as the Jews fought to remove Antiochus’ sacrilege from the temple. Under the leadership of the Maccabees, the Jews drove Antiochus and his army out, and the Jews gained control of their land for about one hundred years until..
- 63 B.C. – Pompey, an acclaimed Roman general, captured the Holy Land and brought it under Roman rule.
The Herod’s – client Kings of Roman Judea
If you are interested in more of the duciplicitous first century B.C. history that swept the Herod's to power, I provided several dates, characters and intrigue of how the Roman-raised Herod the Great came to power in a brief post in 2014.
Take a look:
Are you the One?
John answered, .. I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.
He must increase, but I must decrease.”
Gospel of John 3:27-30 excerpt RSV – John the Baptist concerning Jesus
the Gospel of Matthew 11:
Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to him,
“Are you he who is to come, or shall we look for another?”
And Jesus answered them,
“Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is he who takes no offense at me.”
Herod said, “John I beheaded; but who is this about whom I hear such things?” And he sought to see him (Jesus).
Gospel of Luke 9:8 RSV
Jerusalem
“Hoshia
na to the son of David!
Blessed is he who comes
in the name of the Lord!
Hoshiana in the highest!”When he had come
into Yerushalayim,
all the city was stirred up, saying,
“Who is this?”
The multitudes said,
“This is the prophet, Yeshua,
from Natzeret of the Galil.”
Yeshua entered into the temple of God…
Gospel of Matthew 21 excerpt – Hebrew Names Version
https://www.blueletterbible.org/hnv/mat/21/11/s_950011
Talk of JESUS .com
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