He Hath Prospered Our Belongings by Conrad Gaard
He Hath Prospered Our Belongings by Conrad Gaard
He Hath Prospered Our Belongings by Conrad Gaard
by Conrad Gaard
the basic details of the Story the Bible tells. Con-sequently, even though it is
becoming very clear that we are now living in the last days there is much confusion
and even violent disagreements between the various schools of prophetic interpre-
tation.
Even among those who recognize that the Bible is Israel's book and who know that
modern Israel is today represented by the "U. S. A." and the British Com-
monwealth of Nations" there is much difference of opinion because many vitally
important phases of Jehovah's Revelation are overlooked or ignored.
The only way to overcome such dif-ficulties is to "search the Scriptures," as Jesus
admonished, in order to get a comprehensive understanding of the entire Bible
Story, rather than merely trying to prove the truth or error of any particular theory
or scheme of prophetic interpretation.
COMMON AND NATIONAL SALVATION
Jude in his Epistle, addressed to, "them that are sanctified by Jehovah the Father,
and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called," writes; "Beloved, when I gave all
diligence to write unto you of the common (Gr. 'koinos' literally 'shared by all')
salvation, it was need-ful for me to write unto you, and ex-hort that ye should
earnestly contend for the faith once delivered to the saints."
Jude here very definitely differentiates between the "salvation" which is "shared by
all" and the "faith once delivered to the saints (called out ones)." When we
note that Jude addresses his Epistle to those that have been sanctified (called out)
by the Father it becomes clear that he is referring to a special "faith" which had
once been delivered to them as a "sanctified and called" people and which was not
"shared by all' peoples.
Most modern day Christians, and es-pecially Preachers, theologians and Teachers,
fail to make this distinction and this despite the fact that from be-ginning to end the
Holy Scriptures are very clear in the matter.
The epitome of this Covenant with Abraham is found in Gen. 13:17-19: "And
Jehovah said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing; which I do; seeing that
Abraham shall surely become a .omit and mighty nation, and all the nations on the
earth shall be blessed in him? For I know him, that he will com-mand his children
and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of Jehovah, to do justice
and judgment; that Jehovah may bring upon Abraham that which He hath spoken
of him."
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He Hath Prospered Our Beginnings
This Covenant with Abraham and his seed is certainly not one which offers a
special kind of personal salvation unto life for it is clearly a covenant made with a
Race collectively to make of that race "many nations" and "A great and mighty
nation," but it in no way alters or interferes with the "free gift of ever-lasting life'
offered to all the children of Adam, neither does it in any way exempt the children
of Abraham from the neces-sity of appropriating eternal life as a "free gift" by faith.
As dying children of Adam the chil-dren of Abraham are under the con-demnation
of death individually as long as they are in Adam and hence they, like the rest of
the descendants of Adam, must receive life as a free gift.
Therefore everlasting life through the New Birth in the Spirit and resurrection is
absolutely necessary for every child of Abraham, but this does not alter the fact
that the Race raised up of the "SEED" of Abraham, to which the promise was
made, collectively inherits under the Holy Covenant made by Jehovah with the
fathers of that Race, namely, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob-Israel.
they allow "Jehovah to do it for them" and acknowledge His power and authority.
Now Abraham believed Jehovah's promises and we are told that this faith was
accounted to him for right-eousness which qualified him for citizen-ship in the
Kingdom promised to him and his seed after him.
Paul in the 4th chapter of his Epistle to the Romans explains the "faith of
Abraham" shows how important that faith still is to the children of promise. I shall
quote only a few salient verses: "For what saith the Scriptures? Abra-ham believed
Jehovah, and it was ac-counted unto him for righteousness . . . For the promise,
that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham or to his seed, through
the law, but through the righteousness of faith . . . (Abra-ham) Who against hope
believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to
that which was spoken, so shall thy seed be. And being not weak in faith, he
considered not his own body now dead, when he was an hundred years old, neither
yet the deadness of Sarah's womb."
We cannot spiritualize meaning of these verses so as to make the Christian’s faith
in Jesus Christ for his own personal salvation the faith of Abra-ham here referred
to, because "the promise was that he should be the heir of the world," and that
Abraham should "become the father of many nations."
The next verse makes it clear these many nations were to be peopled by Abraham's
literal children for we are told that Abraham believed that a son would be born to
them even though both he and Sarah were beyond the normal age for childbearing.
And then Paul continues: "He stag-gered not at the promise of Jehovah through
unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to Jehovah; and being fully
persuaded that, what He (Jehovah) had promised, He was able also to perform. And
therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.'"
Here then we see that the faith of Abraham was the faith to believe that Jehovah,
according to His promise, would fulfill His covenant to multiply Abra-ham's seed
in a race which would be-come "many nations, according to that which was
spoken, So shall thy seed be."
This same promise was passed on to Isaac and to Jacob-Israel and they too had to
accept this promise by faith. When we look up the meaning of the word saints we
find that it means "the set apart ones." Therefore the "faith once delivered to the
saints" can only refer to the faith of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob-Israel, who were the
sancti-fied, or called out, ones.
THIS FAITH STILL IMPORTANT
That this "faith of Abraham" is im-portant to Abraham's children today is clearly
explained by Paul, when in the next verses of this same chapter he writes: "Now it
was not written for his (Abraham's) sake alone, that it was imputed to him; but for
us also, if we believe on Him that raised up Jesus our Master from the dead."
The real import of this statement is that the same faith which was imputed to
Abraham for righteousness (not sal-vation) shall also be imputed to us, if me
believe on Him who raised Jesus from the dead. In other words the heirs to this
righteousness of faith must believe the promises of Jehovah, on whom Abraham
believed, for Jesus Himself claimed Jehovah as His Father and it was the Father
who raised Him from the dead.
Everlasting life, then, is promised for believing in Jesus as Savior, but it is the faith
of Abraham, which "was once delivered to the saints," that "shall be imputed unto
us" for the righteous-ness which qualifies us for the King-dom, while belief in
Jesus assures us of "everlasting life."
after him . . .My covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear thee at
this set time in the next year."
So we see that the "seed of Abraham, which IS Christ, to which the promise was
made," passed on to Isaac.
Now let's turn back to the 9th Chap-ter of Romans where Paul continues his
explanation: "And not only this (that the seed is called in Isaac); but when Rebecca
also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac; (For the children being not yet
born, neither having done any good or evil; that the purpose of Jehovah according
to election might stand, not of works, but of Him that calleth;) It was said unto her,
The elder shall serve the younger. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau
have I hated."
Here Paul is again merely referring to the fact so clearly told in the 25th and 27th
chapters of Genesis that the "birth-right," in the promise to the seed of Abraham
and the "blessing" went to Jacob rather than to Esau and that Esau and his
descendants did not share in the promises made to the "one seed of Abraham and
Isaac."
The sum of the whole matter is that we have now traced to Jacob the "ONE seed,
which Paul said "IS CHRIST," and to which the promise was made.
Now all bible students know that Jacob's name was changed to Israel and that
Jehovah continued His promises and covenants with him but the full
significance of this fact has greatly been overlooked.
to another, hence the birthright was the inheritance in the promises and covenants
to make "many nations" and "One great and mighty nation" of the race in which the
seed of Abraham was to be multi-plied.
The "blessing" of Isaac also went to Jacob and in blessing him Isaac said,
"Therefore Elohim give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and
plenty of corn and wine; let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee;
cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee." (Gen.
27:28-29)
Because of the enmity of his brother Jacob was compelled to flee from his wrath
but before he left his father Isaac "called and blessed" him, saying "El Shaddai
bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a
multitude of people; and give thee the blessing of Abraham, and to thy seed with
thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a stranger, which Elohim
gave unto Abraham." (Gen. 28:3-4)
On the way to Padanaram, where Isaac had sent him, Jacob stopped for the night at
Luz and there Jehovah ap-peared to him in a dream, as we read in Gen. 28:13-15:
"And, behold, Jehovah stood above it (the ladder), and said, I am Jehovah Elohim
of Abraham thy father, and the Elohim of Isaac; the land whereon thou liest, to thee
will I give it, and to thy seed; and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and
thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the
south; and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
And, behold, I am with thee and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest,
and will bring thee again to this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done
that which I have spoken to thee of."
Jacob dwelt with his mother's brother Laban for 20 years and during this time 11
sons were born to him.
After leaving his uncles home with his entire household, Jacob returned to Luz. In
Gen, 35:9-10" we are told: "And Elohim appeared unto Jacob again, when he came
out of "Padanaram, and blessed him. And Elohim said unto him, Thy name is
Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name;
and he called his name Israel."
Note that Jacob is told, "thy name shall not be called any more Jacob," and note
also that Jacob's sons are not included in this change of name. These sons were"
born Jacob and they con-tinued as "the house of Jacob."
In other words from this time on the prophecies and promises made to the house of
Jacob apply to the 11 sons born as Jacob but the promises and prophecies made to
"Israel" apply only to "Israel" (the renamed Jacob) and to those rightfully entitled
to the name.
It must be remembered that the terms "the house, or, the children, of Israel"
naturally includes all the de-scendants of Jacob-Israel. An illustra-tion may help to
clarify this matter. Suppose a man named Mr. Smith had 11 sons and then Mr.
Smith changed his name to Mr. Brown without including his 11 sons in the change.
The names of these 11 sons would still be Smith but any children born after Smith's
name was changed to Brown would of course be named Brown.
As a result Mr. Brown would have children named both Smith and Brown but
when referring to his whole house or family they would al] be included in the term
"the children of Mr. Brown."
It is clear that Jacob, whose name had been changed to Israel, is to carry out a
divinely appointed destiny as "Israel," for in verses 11-12 of the 35th chapter of
Genesis we read: "And Elohim said unto him, (Israel), I am El Shaddai; be fruitful
and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall
come out of thy loins; and the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee
(Israel) I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land."
Now the Bible tells us that Benjamin was born after Jacob's name was changed to
destiny as Israel that he dealt with the two sons of Joseph, therefore we are told
that "Israel strengthened him-self."
Only once more is the name Jacob used in this entire chapter, when in verse 3 we
read: "And Jacob said to Joseph, El Shaddai appeared unto me at Luz in the land of
Canaan, and blessed me, and said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful and
multiply thee, and' I will make thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to
thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession." (Cf. Gen. 35:10-12)
Jacob continued to tell Joseph that he wanted to adopt Joseph's two sons, Ephraim
and Manasseh, and give to them the "birthright" which by right of birth should
have gone to Reuben and Simeon. (See I Chron. 5:1-2)
From this point on it is Israel who speaks and acts in the story related in this 48th
chapter and we are told that Joseph agreed to his father's re-quest (verse 9) and we
read beginning with verse 13: "And Joseph took them, Ephraim in his right hand
toward Israel's left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel's right hand,
and brought them near unto him. And Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it
upon Ephriam's head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh's
head, crossing his hands wittingly; for Manasseh was the firstborn. Arid he blessed
Joseph, and said, Elohim, before whom my fathers Abra-ham and Isaac did walk,
Elohim which fed me all my life long unto this day, the Angel which redeemed me
from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name, of
my fathers Abraham and Isaac, and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of
the earth."
In this solemn "act of adoption" Israel makes his grandsons, Ephraim and
Manasseh, his heirs to the "birth-right promises" in Abraham and Isaac and he also
confers his name "Israel" upon them thus making them Israelites by adoption and
he asks that they may fulfill the destiny of Israel by becoming "a multitude of
people in the midst of the earth."
Thus we have three tribes named "Israel," namely Benjamin born Israel and
Ephraim and Manasseh who became Israelites by adoption. In this connection it is
interesting to read Psalm 80, where the Psalmist prays, "Give ear, O Shep-herd of
Israel, Thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; Thou that dwellest between the
cherubims, shine forth. Be-fore Ephraim and Benjamin and Manas-seh stir up Thy
strength, and come and save us. Etc."
NATIONAL CONSEQUENCES
We have already noted that the covenants and promises made with the "seed of
Abraham and Isaac" were col-lective in character and national in scope and the
same thing is true of the covenant that El Shaddai made with Israel at Luz.
Now the culmination of the Holy Covenant made with Abraham and his seed was
that the "children of Abra-ham," raised up from this "seed," should become "a
great and mighty nation and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in it," and
since Israel was an heir to this covenant it is inconceivable that the special
covenant made with him as- Israel at Luz can be in conflict with it.
First we should note that the Holy Covenant made with Abraham and his seed is an
everlasting covenant but we are not told that the special covenant under which the
multitude of Israel should become "a nation and a company of nations" is such an
everlasting covenant.
However, since Israel inherits under the Everlasting Holy Covenant made with the
seed of Abraham, Israel must and will become ONE Great Nation through which
all the other nations of the earth shall be blessed. Therefore the special covenant
that Israel should be "a nation and a company of nations" must be an interim
Covenant and it must fit into the revealed program of Jehovah without
contradiction of, or change in, Jehovah's Avowed Plan.
We shall consider that matter later but first let's return to the story of Israel's
adoption of his grandsons into Israel. After conferring his name on the boys and
praying that they may "grow into the multitude of Israel," Israel prophesied, in
verse 19: "He (Manasseh) also shall become a people, and he also shall be great;
but truly his younger brother (Ephraim) shall be greater than he, and his seed shall
be-come a multitude, (or, company,) of nations."
This clearly indicates that Manasseh and Ephraim, as Israel, are to fulfill the
destiny assigned to Israel by El Shaddai at Luz, when Jacob's name was changed to
Israel.
The next verse continues: "And all the people answered together and said, All that
Jehovah hath spoken we will do." In short, in a solemn popular ref-erendum the
people accepted Jehovah's offer and the next sentence adds: "And Moses returned
the words (or, 'Vote') of the people to Jehovah," thus ratify-ing the contract.
Through Moses Jehovah then codified His laws in terms of social relationships,
economic practices and governmental ad-ministration and He gave these "Com-
mandments, Statutes and Judgements" to the Nation for a National Constitu-tion
and Body of Law under which judgment and justice should be executed equally to
all the citizens of the nation. After giving this national Law to the people Moses
told the children of Israel, "Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse;
a blessing, if ye obey the Commandments of Jehovah your Elohim, which I
command you this day; and a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of
Jehovah your Elohim, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this
day."
All Bible students know that the chil-dren failed to "obey the voice of Jehovah"
and that the Nation substi-tuted "the Statutes of Omri," i. e. "manmade laws, for
the Commandments, Statutes and Judgments of Jehovah. Therefore they broke the
compact that they had made with Jehovah at Sinai and came under the "curse of
the law." It was to "redeem them from the curse of the law" that Christ (the
Messiah) came as their Redeemer out He did not come to destroy that Law.
Jehovah also sentenced the "children of Israel" to wander as exiles among the
nations of this World order for seven times, or 2520 years. This judgment fell upon
the children of Israel exactly as promised and so completely was it car-ried out that
the whole family of Jacob-Israel became lost to the sight of men and even, lost
consciousness of their own identity, with the exception of a small remnant of Judah
today mixed with a much larger number of so-called non-Israelite Jews.
Patently the children of Israel did not fulfill their destiny under the Abrahamic
declared, "And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of
Israel; and one king shall be king to them all; and they shall be no more two
nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all."
Now the whole text and context where these restoration prophecies occur in-dicate
that all of these prophecies are still future and that this "Union" has not yet
occurred.
It is also self-evident that the cove-nant that Israel should become "a na-tion and a
company of nations" was not fulfilled by the children of Israel in Palestine, as we
have already pointed out. It is also quite certain that Israel could not, and did not,
fulfill this cove-nant while they were in exile for then they were to be under the
dominion of the Babylonian nations. Furthermore it is impossible for the Holy
Covenant that Israel should be "ONE great nation," and the covenant that they
should be "a nation and a company of nations" to be fulfilled simultaneously.
Therefore the only time El Shaddai's Covenant with Israel could possibly be
fulfilled would be during the interim between the expiration of the Seven Times of
exile and the restoration of the whole house of Israel as the '"ONE great nation"
promised to Abraham,
Now let's see if this fits. Remember that Israel had prophesied that Manasseh
should become the "Great People or Nation," and that Ephriam should be-come "a
multitude, or Company of Na-tions."
We know from historic records that the Half tribe of Manasseh went into captivity
in 745-39 B. C. Therefore the seven times of punishment would end for them in
1775-81 A. D. and if our conclusions are correct then at that time, namely 1775-81
A. D. a "Great People, or Nation," would be born.
Now it is a fact that during these very years the founding fathers built the
foundations for our own nation, the U. S. A. and it is also a fact that in our
Constitution and national documents we call our nation, "We, The People," thus
using the very words prophesied for Manasseh in Gen. 48:19 and we have
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He Hath Prospered Our Beginnings
Jews," tells us that the "children of Israel," (not the Jews) moved from Media,
where the Assyrians had placed them, into the territory between and around the
Black and the Caspian Seas.
Historians also tell us that in Scythia and Crimea, where Esdras and Josephus leave
the Israelites, there lived peoples variously known as the Gimiri, the Cimiri, the
Sakai, the Saccae, the Scythians, the Getae, the Massagatae, etc., and these
historians trace these people from the "Saks" and the "Khumri" of Media.
Herodotus says that the Khumbri, in the Crimea, and the Scuths, located at
Arsareth, came from Media. Pliny writes that the Cimmerians, later known as the
Cymri came from Asia Minor, and this same writer also says, "The Sakai were
among- the most distinguished peo-ple of Scythia . . . and were called the Saccae-
Sani."
Sir Henry Rawlinson, who deciphered the Behistun Rock, says, "The ethnic name
Gimri occurs in the cuniform writ-ing of the time of Darius. It is the equivalent of
the Greek Cimmeri and of the Danish Cumbri, and of the Welsh Khumri." He also
expressed the opinion that "we have reasonable grounds for regarding the Gimri, or
Cimmerians, who first appeared in the confines of Assyria and Media in the
seventh cen-tury B. C., and the Sacae of the Behistun Rock nearly two centuries
later, as identical with Israel."
The reasonableness of this conclusion becomes apparent when we remember that
all of these peoples, whose names clearly were derived from the "Khumri" and the
"Saks," came from the very territory where the Assyrians had placed the captive
Israelites.
Historians trace the later Saxons from these same peoples. Ptolemy finds that the
Saxons were a race of Scythians, called the Sakai, who came originally from
Media. Albinus writes, "The Saxons were a Scythian nation, and were called Saca,
Sachi, Sacki, Sachsen, etc."
In the same way we can trace the "Thiuda Guta" of the Persians down to the
"Getae," from which came the more recent "Goths," and the trek of the Saxons,
Angles and Goths into Northwestern Europe and the British Isles is a matter of
undisputed historic record.
M. Paul de Chaillu, the French his-torian, after extensive investigations of old
records of northern European coun-ties, declares, in his great work, "The Viking
Age," that the modern Celto-Anglo-Saxon and kindred peoples are descended from
the more ancient Sacae, Scythians, Sakai, Cimmerians, Getae, etc.
Now we know that it was these Celto-Anglo-Saxon and kindred peoples who