History of Ancient Israel
History of Ancient Israel - Today can Last Forever
History is marked with days which, for good reason or bad, are worth remembering; this includes the history of Ancient Israel. Ancient Israel has helped shape the tomorrows of our world since its formation by the voice of God.
When we awake in the morning, the world today takes on a whole new look and meaning. The only way to make today something to remember is to make it count; to do something that will cause the tomorrows of life to exist more unforgettably. When this is accomplished, today will last forever.
History of Ancient Israel - Since the Dawn of Time
Israel is a nation that has existed in modern times since 1948; however, the history of Ancient Israel and its people began from the very dawn of time. The first set of feet to walk upon the earth was a man named Adam. All people, nations, and tribes would eventually come from this one individual. He was a man created from the very dust we sweep off our floors everyday. He was later joined by a woman, named Eve, who was taken quite literally from a rib in his chest. These two individuals, like the nation of Israel would eventually do, walked with God, talked with God, and lived together in a paradise called Eden alone with God. However, their fall into sin ended all this and has since led to the formation of the world we know today.
Centuries have passed since Adam and Eve walked in the Garden of Eden. Today, mankind can only imagine what these two saw during their time on this planet. The little we do know, however, tells the very beginning of the most important story humanity will ever know or understand. It is the story of a nation that would eventually be the earthly home to the Savior of all mankind; Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
History of Ancient Israel - As a Nation
Though Ancient Israel would have much to do with many amazing and historical events since the creation of Adam and Eve -- such as the flooding of the earth and the dispersion of races -- it wasn’t until a man named Abraham came along that the people would begin to truly form as a nation.
Abraham, as the 15th chapter of Genesis explains, received a promise, a covenant of truth, from God. In this promise Abraham was assured that his people would be as numerous as the stars in the sky (Genesis 15:5) and that his people would receive the land on which he stood (Genesis 15:16-21). From Abraham’s body would come the most influential and controversial nation of all time. Since their existence as a nation, the Israeli people are either highly loved or hated greatly. Through them many have received blessings and many have received curses. Through them, one way or the other, we are what we are because of their existence.
The nation would receive its name from Abraham’s grandson Jacob. After wrestling with God (Genesis 32:22-31) Jacob’s name was changed to Israel. Later, as predicted by God, the people of Israel would enter the land promised to them. However, this would not happen until a series of events led the nation into slavery with Egypt. Joseph, one of Jacob’s sons became second in command in Egypt and would provide his people a home in the land of Pharaoh. Yet after his life, they would fall out of favor with Pharaoh and become harshly enslaved for 400 years. However, God raised up a deliverer from among them to eventually free His chosen people. This deliverer, Moses, was used by God in a powerful and supernatural manner to exit the Israelites from Egypt and lead them to the Promised Land.
Due to sin in the camp, along side a disobedient act by Moses, the Israelite nation would wander in the desert for forty years and Moses would never see the Promised Land. However, God provided leadership upon the entry of the Promised Land through one of Moses’ high-ranking leaders, Joshua. With the disobedient deceased and a new generation in place, Israel would enter their Promised Land and would inhabit it for the next 1500 years.
Israel’s time in the Promised Land would be far from peaceful. During the early years the nation, ruled by Joshua and a group of judges and Kings, would conquer the Promised Land by purging it of all ungodly peoples. They would worship the Lord and begin to make their mark as a nation of influence. Many leaders such as Samuel, King David, King Solomon, Elijah, Jeremiah, and Daniel, among others, would influence the nation and its people. However, the nation would struggle to walk a straight and obedient path with God. As a result, Israel never truly grasped the blessings offered them by God. In fact, Ancient Israel would spend a number of years split as a nation, exiled from their land and separated from their Father God. Time and time again Ancient Israel would disobey God only to return in repentance under God’s grace. Yet, in time, their unfaithfulness separated them from God and their historical influence began to wane.
However, after 400 years of silence, in which there is no recorded communication between Israel and God, Ancient Israel’s influence would be felt once again and with everlasting effects. With these words, “A voice of one calling in the desert, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him. Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth. And all mankind will see God’s salvation’” (Luke 3:4-6), a man named John the Baptist would ready the world for the most important person to ever live. Jesus, the savior of souls, was born in Israel. His life, death, and resurrection became the everlasting saving point for all generations and the connecting point of the human heart with God.
History of Ancient Israel - An Example to All
Ancient Israel’s history is an example to all nations and peoples. Through their example, we know today the importance of obedience to our creator. Through their example we understand the greatness of God’s grace and the power of His might. Even from a practical standpoint our world today has learned many things from how to live a sanitary life to how to live by the rule of law in our societies.
In 70 AD Israel would be destroyed. Its people, however, would remain and the influence they carried continued; especially through the many who followed the name of Jesus. Almost 2000 years later, Israel would regain its status as a nation and the influence, though not accepted by all, remains a powerful force in our world.
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- What is the relationship between secular history and the history of biblical Israel?
- Why is the history of Israel so important to our world today?
- History of the Middle East – What is the connection between Israel’s history and the tensions in the Middle East?
- Israel History – What are the key events?
