I365: Israeli govt brings Messiah Closer by Promoting Sabbath Observance to Jews Worldwide
First page of the Babylonian Talmud
Israel365News reported the following:
Israeli govt brings Messiah Closer by Promoting Sabbath Observance to Jews Worldwide
January 24, 2021
According to the Talmud, If Israel will keep just one Shabbat properly, Mashiach will come immediately.
Yerushalmi, Ta’anit 1:1 “Though I have set a limit to ‘the end,’ that it will happen in its time regardless of whether they will do teshuvah or not… the scion of David (Mashiach) will come if they keep just one Shabbat, because the Shabbat is equivalent to all the mitzvot.” (Shemot Rabba 25:12)
Inadvertently or not, the Israeli government has launched an initiative that does precisely that.
Following the ratification of the Abraham Accords, Israeli Minister of Diaspora Omer Yankelevich has held virtual Kabbalat Shabbat services with Jewish communities around the world, sharing the message that now is the time to reach out and support one another. https://www.israel365news.com/164399/israeli-govt-brings-messiah-closer-by-promoting-sabbath-observance-to-jews-worldwide/
The Talmud is essentially views of Jewish scholars about the meaning of various scriptures and teachings. It, while helpful at time, is not scripture.
Now, I actually looked up Shemot Rabba 25:12: in the Talmud. Here is a fuller quotation:
According to Rabbi Levi: If all of Israel were to keep Shabbat properly for even a single day, the Messiah ben David would come. Why? because it is equivalent to all of the commandments, as it is said (Ps. 95:7) “for He is our God, and we are the people He tends, the flock in His care. O, if you would but heed His charge this day:”
According to Rabbi Yochanan: The Holy Blessed One has said of Israel: Even though I appointed a deadline for his coming whether or not they repent by the appointed season of arrival; nevertheless, if they repent even for a single day, I will bring her even though it is not the appointed season. In other words: “O, if you would but heed His charge this day [God would send redemption].” Just as we find that the Messiah ben David will come on account of the commandments collectively, so too [will he come] on account of Shabbat, which is equivalent to all the other commandments together. (https://www.sefaria.org/Shemot_Rabbah.25.12-13?vhe=Midrash_Rabbah_–_TE&lang=bi&vside=Midrash_Rabbah_–_TE&with=Translation%20Open&lang2=en accessed 01/24/21)
Does the Bible teach that the Messiah will come immediately after Israel keeps one Sabbath properly?
No.
Notice that part of the interpretation is supposedly related to Psalm 95:7. Here is it, with some verses that follow:
7 For He is our God,
And we are the people of His pasture,
And the sheep of His hand.Today, if you will hear His voice:
8 “Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion,
As in the day of trial in the wilderness,
9 When your fathers tested Me;
They tried Me, though they saw My work.
10 For forty years I was grieved with that generation,
And said, ‘It is a people who go astray in their hearts,
And they do not know My ways.’
11 So I swore in My wrath,
‘They shall not enter My rest.'” (Psalms 95:7-11)
While rest is mentioned, this says nothing about the Messiah coming or returning.
Of course, the Messiah already has come.
But what about His return?
Jesus’ disciples specifically asked Him how to know when this would happen (Matthew 24:3; Mark 13:4; Luke 21:7)–and He responded with details. Several of those details are yet to be fulfilled.
Jesus DID mention the Sabbath when He was asked, but did not say keeping it by Israel would be a sign of His return:
3 Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”
4 And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. 10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.
15 “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place” (whoever reads, let him understand), 16 “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. 18 And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. 19 But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 20 And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath. 21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22 And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.
23 “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. 24 For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you beforehand.
26 “Therefore if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the desert!’ do not go out; or ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms!’ do not believe it. 27 For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 28 For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together.
29 “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. (Matthew 24:3-31)
Sadly, many professors of Christ overlook what Jesus taught, but instead try to point to other things.
Notice the only time the word “Immediately” is used is related to AFTER the Great Tribulation and it is AFTER even more events before Jesus the Messiah will come.
So, no, Israel keeping the Sabbath is not a sign.
That being said, notice that Jesus did mention the Sabbath in the context of the end times and the Great Tribulation. This shows, to those willing to believe the Bible, that Jesus expected His faithful followers to be keeping the seventh-day Sabbath near the time of the Great Tribulation, otherwise there would be no point in Him says to “pray that your flight may not be … on the Sabbath.” The flight, being fleeing to the wilderness for protection for three and one-half years per Revelation 12:14-17 (see also There is a Place of Safety for the Philadelphians. Why it May Be Near Petra).
Related to the Great Tribulation, the Continuing Church of God (CCOG) is put out the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:
Is the end coming in 2021? Jesus’ disciples specifically asked Him how to know when this would happen (Matthew 24:3)–and He responded with details (Matthew 24:4-22). Sadly, many overlook what Jesus taught, but instead try to point to other things. Is it possible for the Great Tribulation to start in 2021 or before 2024? What about the so-called Big Reset and the so-called Great Reset. The World Economic Forum has posted, “The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development sets out a 17 Global Goals (SDGs) to facilitate equal, sustainable and inclusive growth across the world, while promoting peace. … The platform seeks to form 4IR technology partnership … There is an urgent need for global stakeholders to cooperate in simultaneously managing the direct consequences of the COVID-19 crisis. To improve the state of the world, the World Economic Forum is starting The Great Reset initiative.” What are the main points of that according to Klaus Schwab? Will that happen in 2021? Did Glenn Beck warn against the Great Reset? What about property ownership changes? Will artificial intelligence and other 4IR technologies lead to the peaceful world that the United Nations is promoting for 2030 or instead to a totalitarian rule? Dr. Thiel answers these questions and more as he points to the return of Jesus and the establishment of the Kingdom of God.
Here is a link to the video: 2021: The Great Tribulation or the Great Reset?
And related to the time of the Messiah’s return, that is mentioned in the following video:
Anyway, we in the Continuing Church of God do keep the seventh-day Sabbath, we believe the Bible. And Jesus did not even hint that proper Sabbath-keeping would be a sign that He would return.
But, His words do support the idea that His followers would be keeping the Sabbath until at least the end of this age.
Some items of possibly related interest may include:
Proof Jesus is the Messiah This free book has over 200 Hebrew prophecies were fulfilled by Jesus. Plus, His arrival was consistent with specific prophecies and even Jewish interpretations of prophecy. Here are links to seven related sermons: Proof Jesus is the Messiah, Prophecies of Jesus’ birth, timing, and death, Jesus’ prophesied divinity, 200+ OT prophecies Jesus filled; Plus prophecies He made, Why Don’t Jews Accept Jesus?, Daniel 9, Jews, and Jesus, and Facts and Atheists’ Delusions About Jesus.
Is Revelation 1:10 talking about Sunday or the Day of the Lord? Most Protestant scholars say Sunday is the Lord’s Day, but is that what the Bible teaches?
The Sabbath in the Early Church and Abroad Was the seventh-day (Saturday) Sabbath observed by the apostolic and post-apostolic Church? Here is a related sermon video The Christian Sabbath and How and Why to Keep It.
The Christian Sabbath. This is a series of articles from the Catholic Mirror essentially proving that the biblical Sabbath was Saturday, that the Lord’s day in Revelation 1 is not a reference to Sunday, that the Church of Rome implemented Sunday, and that nearly all Protestants followed Rome. Here is a link to a related sermon: Catholic teachings on the Sabbath, Sunday, and Protestantism.
Early Sabbath Keeping in North America When did Europeans first keep the Sabbath in North America? Did the pilgrims who arrived on the Mayflower keep Saturday or Sunday?
How to Observe the Sabbath How should you keep the Sabbath? This is an old article by Raymond Cole, with updated information for the 21st century.
Can You Keep Your Job, Get Your Degree, and Keep the Sabbath? This article has some information on that. Here is a link to a related video titled: Can you keep the Sabbath and your job? What about college?
The Dramatic Story of Chinese Sabbathkeepers This reformatted Good News article from 1955 discusses Sabbath-keeping in China in the 1800s.
There is a Place of Safety for the Philadelphians. Why it May Be Near Petra This article discusses a biblical ‘place of safety,’ Zephaniah 2 to ‘gather together,’ and includes quotes from the Bible and Herbert W. Armstrong on fleeing to a place–thus, there is a biblically supported alternative to the rapture theory. Two sermon-length videos of related interest are available Physical Protection During the Great Tribulation and Might Petra be the Place of Safety? Here is something related in the Spanish language: Hay un lugar de seguridad para los Filadelfinos. ¿Puede ser Petra?
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2021, 2022, or 2023? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede comenzar la Gran Tribulación en 2018 o 2019? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? You can also see the English language sermon videos: The Great Tribulation from the Mount of Olives and Can the Great Tribulation begin before 2020? A shorter and newer video is: 2021: The Great Tribulation or the Great Reset?
The Times of the Gentiles Has there been more than one time of the Gentiles? Are we in it now or in the time of Anglo-America? What will the final time of the Gentiles be like? A related sermon is available and is titled: The Times of the Gentiles.
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2028 or or 2031 or 20xx? There is also a video titled 6000 Years: When will God’s Kingdom Come? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?
Might the U.S.A. Be Gone by 2028? Are there prophetic reasons to believe that the USA will not last two complete presidential terms? Yes. There is a tradition attributed to the Hebrew prophet Elijah that humanity had 6,000 years to live before being replaced by God’s Kingdom. There are scriptures, writings in the Talmud, early Christian teachings that support this. Also, even certain Hindu writings support it. Here is a link to a related video: Is the USA prophesied to be destroyed by 2028?
The Great Tribulation: What Happens First? What events have happened? What are some events that are now happening? And what events need to happen for the Great Tribulation to start? Here is a link to a related sermon video: Counting Down to the Great Tribulation.
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