We have spent the last three studies discussing Israel. We have seen that biblically there were two Israel’s, a physical/national Israel, and a true/spiritual Israel. We saw that the promises of God were fulfilled in spiritual Israel or true Israel who is Yeshua. This is such an important subject because it destroys the teachings of Christian Zionism.
Zionism is a political movement built on the belief that people who think they are Jewish have the right to possess the land of Palestine as their own. Christian Zionism is essentially a Christian prophetic support for Zionism. It views the modern state of Israel as the equivalent of the biblical Israel and, therefore, the forerunner of the return of Yeshua. Journalist and author Grace Halsell summarizes the message of the Christian Zionist in this way: "Every act taken by Israel is orchestrated by God, and should be condoned, supported, and even praised by the rest of us."
Dispensational Christian Zionism, which is the dominant form, is pervasive within mainline evangelical, charismatic, and independent mega-churches. Tens of thousands of churches have a committed belief in the importance of standing with Israel and blessing the Jewish people. The verse most often referred to as their biblical mandate is,
I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." Genesis 12:3 ESV
Christian Zionist apply this verse to the modern state of Israel. So, if you don’t want to be cursed by God you had better support Israel. I want to tell you that the New Testament says the exact opposite, if you support national Israel, you will be disciplined by God. I’ll explain this later.
Christian Zionism teaches that God's prophetic calendar tied to the modern-day nation of Israel. This is wrong, God is through with national Israel. Yahweh shut down Old Covenant Israel in August of AD 70 when He destroyed the Temple and city using the Roman Army.
Christian Zionism has robbed millions of 21st-century Christians of one of the most precious and vital beliefs of historical Christian teaching, namely, that the church is the true Israel of God and the ONLY Israel through which God's eternal purpose is be consummated.
Well, what is true of Israel is also true of the Jews. When we think of Israel we no doubt think of Jews. So today we are going to look at, who is a biblical Jew.
What do you think of when you hear the word "Jew"? Some may think of someone who is cheap or frugal. That moniker has been given to Jews. Some may think of those who killed Christ. Some may think of those who wear funny little black hats on their heads. What comes to your mind when you hear the word "Jew"?
According to the web site, "Judaism 101":
A Jew is any person whose mother was a Jew or any person who has gone through the formal process of conversion to Judaism.
It is important to note that being a Jew has nothing to do with what you believe or what you do. A person born to non-Jewish parents who has not undergone the formal process of conversion but who believes everything that Orthodox Jews believe and observes every law and custom of Judaism is still a non-Jew, even in the eyes of the most liberal movements of Judaism, and a person born to a Jewish mother who is an atheist and never practices the Jewish religion is still a Jew, even in the eyes of the ultra-Orthodox.
So, their definition of a Jew has nothing to do with the Bible or God. I would agree with this definition as far as Jews today. But what about the Jews of the Bible?
What do the Scriptures say about who is a Jew? That is what we want to look at this morning. Notice what Paul writes in Romans 2.
But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast in God Romans 2:17 ESV
The "if" here is a first class condition meaning: "since"—for since you bear the name Jew. The "you" here is the second person singular, which indicates the nation as a whole, not an individual. The name "Jew" contrasts with "Greek" and calls attention to nationality. The Jews gloried in being members of God's chosen nation.
The term "Jews" was first used in the Babylonian captivity. The Babylonians called them Jews because they were from the land of Judah. At the time of the writing of the New Testament, during the Roman kingdom there were only two tribes in the Palestinian area: Judah and Benjamin. There were certain individuals from other tribes, but for the most part, it was only the two tribes. It was only those two tribes who were called "Jews.
Jew was a title of honor. It designated them as the special people of God. The word even came from a Hebrew root meaning: "praised." They were named "praised" because of the tremendous privileges that they had.
In Paul's time, the Jew is no longer seeing his Jewishness as a revelation of God's goodness and God's grace, but he is seeing it as an indicator of his own superiority. The Jew believed that everyone was destined for judgment except himself. It would not be any special goodness that kept him immune from the wrath of God, but simply the fact that he was a Jew.
Paul says you "Rely on the Law"—If there was one thing the Jew prided himself on, it was his possession of the Law. It was delivered to Jews, through Jews. It had been preserved and passed down by Jews. Every Jewish boy would have been trained up in the Law, and he would have been able to know the will of God, and he would have been able to discern right and wrong, and he would have been catechized. This did distinguish the Jews from other people. God had chosen them out of all the nations and deposited His Law with them so that they might bear testimony to the other nations concerning the Creator.
In Romans 3 Paul asks,
Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? Romans 3:1 ESV
"Jew" is used here as it is in 2:17, of the national/physical/ethnic Jew, not of a true Jew/Christian. So, the question is what is the advantage of being an ethnic Jew?
These were descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They received the covenant promises. They were delivered from Egypt by God's mighty hand. They inherited the Promised Land by God's mighty power. They were the people of King David and the Prophets. Surely, this would count for something!
Paul answers the question,
Much in every way. To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God. Romans 3:2 ESV
The one reason that he gives here is, "Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God"—the expression "the oracles of God," has been given several different interpretations. It seems best to see it as meaning the "Word of God."
God gave the Jews His Word! No other nation received the revelation of God. The Lord overlooked the educated Egyptians and Greeks, the cultured Babylonians and Phoenicians. On the mountain, God revealed Himself to Israel, not only on tablets of stone, but also by the divine voice coming from the mountain that burned with fire while covered in smoke (Exodus 19). The Assyrians, Amorites, and Amalekites had no such advantage. None of the other nations had the Word of God.
And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate. And they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses that the LORD had commanded Israel. Nehemiah 8:1 ESV
Notice that it is the book of the law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded or given to Israel. The word "commanded" here is the Hebrew tsavah which means, to command, charge, give orders, lay charge, give charge to, order. The Scriptures were entrusted to the Jews. You would have thought that they would have absolutely cherished that, but as you read the Tanakh you find there were times in their history when they couldn't even find the Scripture, they didn't even know where it was. And when somebody would discover it and bring it out, it would be something that was a marvel, because that which was lost for so long had finally been found.
Let’s look at what Paul says about a Jew in Romans 2,
For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God. Romans 2:28-29 ESV
"For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly"—he is saying that being a racial descendant of Abraham does not make you a Jew. This again is what we saw in Romans 9:6, there were two Israel’s and there were two types of Jews, the ethnic and the spiritual. Paul even says that circumcision is not outward and physical. Judaism and circumcision were intimately connected.
Let's look at some background on Judaism and circumcision. The Jews believed that they alone were the people of God. Remember, for 1600 years God dealt solely with the Jewish nation. If you wanted to come to God, you had to come through Judaism. They believed that they maintained a covenant relationship with God that secured their salvation. The proof of their identity and belonging was a mark. They bore a mark as the children of Abraham naturally, which they thought affirmed their right to be called the children of God supernaturally. The Jews held on to that mark, and by it they assumed that they were secure with God. That mark is called circumcision. To the Jews of Yeshua’s and Paul's day, circumcision not only distinguished them from the Gentiles, but also served as their get out from under the wrath of God card.
Listen to what their rabbis taught in that era. Rabbi Levi said: "In the Hereafter Abraham will sit at the entrance to Gehenna, and permit no circumcised Israelite to descend therein. What then will he do to those who have sinned very much? He will remove the foreskin from babes who died before circumcision and set it upon them [the sinners] and then let them descend into Gehenna."
The Talmud was a collection of Jewish writings that the Jews wrongly came to hold more sacred than the Scripture. The Talmud said, "The commandment of circumcision is more important than all the injunctions of Scripture." That shows the value they placed on circumcision. The Jews believed that if a Jew was so vile and so evil that he was sent to Hell, before he could enter Hell, there were angels at the gate that removed his circumcision. The most important thing a Jew could do to secure his relationship with God was to be circumcised.
The English word "circumcision" comes from a Latin word which means: "to cut around," it describes the original biblical reference to a surgery that was performed on little boys and often on adult males. The simple surgery removes the foreskin from the male organ. Where did the idea of circumcision come from? God Himself established the practice.
In Genesis 12 Yahweh promises to make of Abraham a great nation. Then in chapter 15, the covenant is inaugurated. Then in chapter 17, God gives Abraham a symbol of the covenant, so he won't forget the promise that was made:
And God said to Abraham, "As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. Genesis 17:9-11 ESV
This covenant is a sign of the Abrahamic Covenant:
He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring, both he who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money, shall surely be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant." Genesis 17:12-14 ESV
To be "cut off" meant to be put to death or physically separated from the people. He was a physical Jew, but if he was uncircumcised he was cut off and had no right to go to Jerusalem to worship. If you can't worship God, you're spiritually dead:
If a stranger shall sojourn with you and would keep the Passover to the LORD, let all his males be circumcised. Then he may come near and keep it; he shall be as a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person shall eat of it. There shall be one law for the native and for the stranger who sojourns among you." Exodus 12:48-49 ESV
In order for one to participate in the Passover meal, which every Israelite male was commanded to do, one had to be circumcised. Strangers (Gentiles, for all practical purposes) could participate, but only after being circumcised.
There are not many commands for circumcision in the Bible, because the people did it. They were very good at doing the outward things. Circumcision was to be much more than just an outward sign. It was to be the outward sign of an inward reality, but they lost the true meaning and kept only the outward sign. They missed the spiritual aspect because all they focused on was the physical. But the physical was to be a sign of a spiritual circumcision. Look at what Jeremiah says:
Circumcise yourselves to the LORD; remove the foreskin of your hearts, O men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem; lest my wrath go forth like fire, and burn with none to quench it, because of the evil of your deeds." Jeremiah 4:4 ESV
Here God is talking to men who have been physically circumcised and says, "Circumcise... your heart." This spiritual aspect is seen in:
"Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will punish all those who are circumcised merely in the flesh— Jeremiah 9:25 ESV
Notice how the NASB translates this,
"Behold, the days are coming," declares the LORD, "that I will punish all who are circumcised and yet uncircumcised— Jeremiah 9:25 NASB
How can they be circumcised and yet be uncircumcised? They were physically circumcised, but not spiritually circumcised. As the ESV puts it their circumcision was "merely in the flesh". They missed the reality and clung to the sign.
Notice what Paul says in Romans 2,
Then he who is physically uncircumcised but keeps the law will condemn you who have the written code and circumcision but break the law. Romans 2:27 ESV
What do you see in this verse that is strange, almost comical? How can the uncircumcised man keep the requirements of the Law when one of the Laws requirements, as we have seen, was that you be circumcised?
This uncircumcised man who keeps the requirements of the Law is the same idea that we see in:
For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. Romans 2:14 ESV
They don't have the Law, but they do the things of the Law. How is that possible? They are Gentile Christians, they have trusted Christ, and the requirement of the Law is fulfilled in them. In the same way the Gentile Christian, who is physically uncircumcised keeps the requirements of the Law by faith in Yeshua, which shows that he has been circumcised in heart.
Physical circumcision pointed to man's spiritual need. The symbol means nothing without the reality. The Jews were circumcised on the outside, but not the inside. Circumcision is the external symbol depicting the need for a total cleansing from sin, but Israel had reduced it to a tribal tatoo. They felt as long as they were circumcised, they had God's blessing. Paul shatters their false confidence in circumcision.
For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. Romans 2:28 ESV
Here Paul makes a distinction between the outward/physical and the inward/spiritual.
The "outward Jew" is a transgressor of Torah since he is not honoring Torah of the heart, which is only done by having faith in the Gospel of Yeshua and receiving the promised Spirit.
Once the New Covenant arrived, the only true Jews were those who trusted in the Christ. All other Jews were covenant breakers, and God haters, no matter what rites they held to according to John.
Who is the liar but he who denies that Yeshua is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. 1 John 2:22-23 ESV
"Who is the liar but he who denies that Yeshua is the Christ?"—who is a liar? Do those who call themselves Jews deny that Yeshua is the Christ? Yes, and they are liars and "This is the antichrist." Is that too strong for you? Anyone who denies that Yeshua is the Christ is a liar and an antichrist—this would apply to all those who call themselves Jews since Pentecost.
"No one who denies the Son has the Father"—John is repeating an idea here that Yeshua expressed often, as recorded in the Gospel of John. Yeshua said,
And Yeshua cried out and said, "Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me. And whoever sees me sees him who sent me. John 12:44-45 ESV
Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me." John 13:20 ESV
It is false to say that Jewish people who believe in the God of the Tanakh are accepted into God's Kingdom, they are not, they are liars and antichrist. They therefore deny the God who is Father and Son. Those who deny the Son do not have the Father. Those who confess the Son have the Father. There is no way to the Father except through the Son. There is no true understanding of God unless you understand the God who is God and Father of our Lord Yeshua, the Christ, and that He is one in essence with Christ.
This seems pretty clear from this text and yet it is denied by one of the most popular preachers in America today, John Hagee, who is a Zionist. He teaches a "Dual Covenant Theology." It is totally unbiblical.
Hagee calls himself a friend of Israel and is constantly supporting the Jews. In John Hagee's 2007 book, In Defense of Israel, He recounts facing down opposition from both Jews and evangelicals to found "Christians United for Israel" and their "Night to Honor Israel." From the beginning, Hagee said, "I set forth an unbendable ground rule: members had to agree to set aside both theological and political agendas and focus on a single issue-support for Israel. We agreed that all 'Night to Honor Israel events would be nonconversionary." (p46 ) Notice what John Eleazar says about Hagee.
For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Yeshua the Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. Watch yourselves, so that you may not lose what we have worked for, but may win a full reward. Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works. 2 John 1:7-11 ESV
Hagee is taking part in the wicked works of Israel, who is antichrist.
Back to Paul.
But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God. Romans 2:29 ESV
In this context, Paul uses "Jew" as the people of God, those chosen by Him, those shown God's favor, and those in covenant with God; which is different from how he used it in 2:17:
But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast in God Romans 2:17 ESV
Here Paul uses it of the national/physical Jew, those physically decedent from Abraham. Whereas, in 2:29 he uses it of Christians—any Jew or Gentile who has trusted in Yeshua as the Messiah.
The point of verse 29 is that the Holy Spirit is the one who makes uncircumcised Gentiles into circumcised Jews, namely, by circumcising their hearts. Circumcision, Paul says, is, in essence, an internal change of heart, not an external change of the sexual organ.
The Jews outwardly sought to receive praise from men, but a true Jew receives praise from God. The word "Jew" comes from Judah, and Judah means: "praised." "His praise is not of men but God" is a play on words. He is a true Jew for he lives up to his name. He is praised by God. That is a true Jew.
In the Tanakh and second temple Jewish literature there was the expectation that God would come, by His Spirit, and circumcise the hearts of His people so that they would keep the Law. Paul's reference to the "circumcision of the heart by the Spirit" would signify that the eschatological promises had become a reality. The nations are now circumcised in heart, having Torah written in their hearts in fulfillment to the New Covenant. The New Age had dawned. The Old Covenant was fading away and about to disappear. For the Jew to resist what God is doing through Christ by the Spirit makes him a transgressor of the Torah. Only those who trusted in Messiah would escape the coming judgment of God.
What Paul is doing here in Romans 2:28-29 is redefining what a Jew is. What Paul says here in Romans about the Jews, he says throughout the New Testament. Look at what Paul wrote to the Philippians:
Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you is no trouble to me and is safe for you. Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh. For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh— Philippians 3:1-3 ESV
In the beginning of verse 3, Paul says, "For we are the circumcision." The "we" is a reference to Paul and the Philippian Christians. But what Paul says of them is true of all Christians. Theologically, this is very significant. This is Paul's description of the church of Yeshua the Christ. He calls the church "the circumcision." This is very significant because as it developed down through the history of Israel and even into the time of our Lord, it became very clear that "the circumcision" was a title, a technical designation of the children of Israel. Jews were synonymously called "the circumcision." There are many passages in Acts and some in Paul's letters in which instead of saying, "Israel" or "the Jews," they are simply called "the circumcision."
And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles. Acts 10:45 ESV
The Jews who are called "the circumcised" were astonished because the Holy Spirit was poured out on the Gentiles.
So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcision party criticized him, saying, "You went to uncircumcised men and ate with them." Acts 11:2-3 ESV
The Jews, "the circumcision," were upset because Paul ate with the uncircumcised, the Gentiles.
since God is one—who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith. Romans 3:30 ESV
The circumcision" was simply a way of saying "Israelites" or "Jews." The "uncircumcisied," we the Gentiles.
Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called "the uncircumcision" by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— Ephesians 2:11 ESV
The term "the circumcision" was a technical designation for Israel. The significance of this should not be lost in Philippians 3:2-3.
Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh. Philippians 3:2 ESV
Paul says, "These Jews are not 'the circumcision,' they are in fact the mutilators." The word "mutilate" in verse 2 is a play on words in the Greek with the word "circumcision" in verse 3. The words he uses are katatome and peritome. Kataome means: "To mutilate." Paul is saying to these Jews, "You think that you are the circumcision. but you are, in fact, the mutilation party."
Who then is "the circumcision"? Paul tells us in Philippians 3:3,
For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Yeshua and put no confidence in the flesh— Philippians 3:3 ESV
The true circumcision is those who "worship God in the Spirit, glory in Christ Yeshua, and have no confidence in the flesh."
"They glory in Christ Yeshua"—the word "glory" means: "To boast, to glory, to pride oneself in something, to exult." As Christians, the only thing we should be boasting about is Christ and His work. Our boasting is not in ourselves, which is the essence of sin, but in Another whose arm alone has brought salvation, and on whom we rest in utter confidence and self-distrust. It is an attitude which deflates pride, especially in our religious virtues and attainments, and exalts the sovereign grace of God. This is the Church, Christians, true believers. Paul is saying that the church is the "true circumcision," the true Israel, and the true Jew.
Paul seems to be telling us that the "true circumcision" is not determined by ethnic derivation, not determined by the blood flowing in your veins, but rather by the faith that is in your heart. It's a matter of circumcision of the heart.
Who is a true Jew? Is it ethnic background that makes you a Jew? Is it who your mother is who makes you a Jew? NO! Many people today still consider the Jewish people as a race, but there is no Jewish race today. After the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, the nation of Israel, after the flesh, was scattered throughout the earth and lost all tribal relations. This scattering was made immutable due to the fact that all tribal genealogical records were destroyed with the Temple in A.D. 70. Consider the following quotations.
The Encyclopedia Brittanica (1973)
"The Jews As A Race: The findings of physical anthropology show that, contrary to the popular view, there is no Jewish race. Anthropornetric measurements of Jewish groups in many parts of the world indicate that they differ greatly from one another with respect to all the important physical characteristics." (vol. 12, page 1054)
Encyclopedia Judaica Jerusalem (1971)
"It is a common assumption, and one that sometimes seems ineradicable even in the face of evidence to the contrary, that the Jews of today constitute a race, a homogeneous entity easily recognizable. From the preceding discussion of the origin and early history of the Jews, it should be clear that in the course of their formation as a people and a nation they had already assimilated a variety of racial strains from people moving into the general area they occupied. This had taken place by interbreeding and then by conversion to Judaism of a considerable number of communities. . . ."
"Thus, the diversity of the racial and genetic attributes of various Jewish colonies of today renders any unified racial classification of them a contradiction in terms. Despite this, many people readily accept the notion that they are a distinct race. This is probably reinforced by the fact that some Jews are recognizably different in appearance from the surrounding population. That many cannot be easily identified is overlooked and the stereotype for some is extended to all a not uncommon phenomenon" (Encyclopedia Judaica Jerusalem, 1971, vol. 3: p. 50).
Encyclopedia Americana (1986)
"Racial and Ethnic Considerations. Some theorists have considered the Jews a distinct race, although this has no factual basis. In every country in which the Jews lived for a considerable time, their physical traits came to approximate those of the indigenous people. Hence the Jews belong to several distinct racial types, ranging, for example, from fair to dark. Among the reasons for this phenomenon are voluntary or involuntary miscegenation and the conversion of Gentiles to Judaism" (Encyclopedia Americana, 1986, vol. 16: p. 71).
Collier's Encyclopedia (1977)
"A common error and persistent modern myth is the designation of the Jews as a 'race.' This is scientifically fallacious, from the standpoint of both physical and historical tradition. Investigations by anthropologists have shown that Jews are by no means uniform in physical character and that they nearly always reflect the physical and mental characteristics of the people among whom they live" (Collier's Encyclopedia,1977, vol. 13: p. 573).
Today, being a Jew simply means that one is of the Judaistic religion or a convert to it, or else in a "brotherhood" of those who are. Therefore, being a Jew has nothing to do with race. We are familiar with a number of notable figures, such as Sammy Davis, Jr., Elizabeth Taylor, and Tom Arnold, in fact, who became Jews by conversion to the religion of Judaism.
John Bray said, "Many Christians do not know that the vast majority of so-called Jews in the world today are the Ashkenazim Jews, while the remainder of them are the Sephardim Jews. The Ashkenazim Jews have as their background not the nation of Israel but a country called Khazaria, which country at one time was the largest country in Europe. The settlers of Khazaria were Turks and Huns. In A.D. 740 King Bulan of Khazaria decided to adopt the Judaistic religion for his country. A number of Jews were already living there. So he converted to Judaism, along with all his officials, and whole nation ended up being known as a nation of Jews. In 970 Russia came in and dominated the situation, and the Khazars were scattered, many of them going down into Poland and Lithuania. Where at the dawn of our modern civilization the largest concentration of Jews were found. Today, the largest percentage of so-called Jews in the world have as their background this group of people." (This information is fully documented in detail in John Bray's book Israel in Bible Prophecy).
Funk and Wagnall's New Encyclopedia (1970)
"In 1970 the Israeli Knesset adopted legislation defining a Jew as one born of a Jewish mother or a convert." (vol. 14: p. 214)
H.G. Wells writes,
"There can be little doubt that the scattered Phoenicians in Spain and Africa and throughout the Mediterranean, speaking as they did a language closely akin to Hebrew and being deprived of their authentic political rights, became proselytes to Judaism. For phases of vigorous proselytism alternated with phases of exclusive jealousy in Jewish history. On one occasion the Idumeans, being conquered, were all forcibly made Jews. There were Arab tribes who were Jews in the time of Muhammad, and a Turkish people who were mainly Jews in South Russia in the ninth century. Judaism is indeed the reconstructed political ideal of many shattered peoples - mainly Semitic… The main part of Jewry never was in Judea and had never come out of Judea" (The Outline of History)
Therefore, we can clearly and confidently assert that there is no such thing as a Jewish race today, nor ever can there be. These facts are devastating to Dispensationalism and Christian Zionism. There are no twelve tribes today, there is no Jewish race today. A true Jew is anyone who has been circumcised in heart, who had trusted in the Lord Yeshua and Him alone for their salvation.
Believers, be careful about your support of Israel as God’s people, they are not God’s people, they are liars and antichrists. Most of the people who identify today as Jews are atheists. Those who would call themselves Orthodox Jews follow the Talmud, not the Torah. If you look at the Babylonian or Jerusalem Talmud it says horrible things about Christ.
In his 2007 work, "Jesus in the Talmud" Peter Schafer argues that the message conveyed in the Talmud was a "bold and self-confident" assertion of correctness of Judaism, maintaining that "there is no reason to feel ashamed because we rightfully executed a blasphemer and idolater."
The Talmud ridicules Yeshua’s birth from a virgin, as maintained by the Gospels, and they contest fervently the claim that Yeshua is the Messiah and the Son of God. They subvert the Christian idea of Yeshua’s resurrection by having him punished forever in hell and by making clear that this fate awaits his followers as well, who believe in this impostor. There is no resurrection, they insist, not for him and not for his followers. This is the Judaism that Christian Zionism supports. And John warns us:
If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works. 2 John 1:10-11 ESV
Instead of blessing Israel, we ought to be calling them out as Christ rejecting God haters. It would be wise of Christian Zionist to heed John’s warning.