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Messianic Message
Out of Zion
Volume 1 Number 3 July 11, 2003 The Place of Your Grafting
So, as Believes in the Messiah of Israel, you who are Gentiles have been grafted into the rich tree that is Israel, to become partakers of the blessings of G-d; all of which are promised to and through Israel. So, you are a new branch, but where do you fit in? Israel is a tree of twelve main branches, one for each of the tribes of the nation. And you? Where do you find yourself now? There are books and seminars that attempt to teach how you can determine which tribe you are implanted into based upon your personality and characteristics. There are some who would say that you are Ephraimites. But no, I say, let's look at the word of the L-rd to find the answer to this, and to every question.When G-d instructed Moses to send spies into the Land to investigate it, he selected carefully. From each tribe, he selected one who would be respected and a recognized leader of his own people; "a prince." Look carefully at the selections he made of the tribe of Judah and of the tribe of Ephraim.
And HaShem spoke unto Moses, saying, "Send thou men that they may spy out the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a prince among them." And Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran according to the commandment of HaShem: all of them men who were heads of the children of Israel. And these were their names: Of the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur. Of the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori. Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh. Of the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph. Of the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun. Of the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu. Of the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of SodiOf the tribe of Joseph, namely, of the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of SusiOf the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli.
Just who were these men of choice? Let go to the word of G-d for the answers we seek.Joshua 1:1-8 reads: "Now it came to pass after the death of Moses the servant of Jehovah, that Jehovah spoke unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' minister, saying, Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, to you have I given it, as I spoke unto Moses.From the wilderness, and this Lebanon, even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your border. There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee; I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. Be strong and of good courage; for thou shall cause this people to inherit the land which I swore unto their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous, to observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou may have good success whithersoever thou goes. This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth, but thou shall meditate thereon day and night, that thou may observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shall make thy way prosperous, and then thou shall have good success."
Joshua was the one chosen by G-d to succeed Moses. He promised the land to him on behalf of the people of Israel. He was anointed by Moses to lead the people and was confirmed by G-d as the one who would actually deliver the Promised Land to the recipients of that land. The land is clearly promised to the sons of Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel. The very promise given to Abraham, confirmed to his sons and again to Moses is spoken by G-d to His representative, Joshua. Therefore it is clear that Joshua was surely and truly of Israel; recognized by Moses, called by G-d, and respected among the people as such.
But who is this fellow named Caleb? Numbers 32: 10-12 holds a hint that we often miss; a hint that is certainly overlooked by those Gentiles who align themselves with the House of Ephraim.
And HaShem's anger was kindled in that day, and he swore, saying, 'Surely none of the men that came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land which I swore unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob; because they have not wholly followed me: save Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, and Joshua the son of Nun; because they have wholly followed HaShem.'"
Caleb was the son of Jephunneh, the Kenizzite. What tribe is that? It is not a tribe of Israel at all. Caleb's father was one who had joined himself to the Jewish people as they left Egypt. He was among the ones who had joined himself with the people of Israel. We read in Exodus 12:37-38 about a multitude of such people.
"And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand on foot that were men, besides children. And a mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle."
Yet,when it came time to select a representative from among the tribes, it was this Caleb that Moses selected. This "grafted-in" one was considered "a prince" among his tribe, the clan of Judah. So close was the relationship of Caleb with the true Israelites, that he was given a choice inheritance in the land. He in fact, defended his right to an inheritance that was according to his position as a full-fledged member of the people of Israel. Once one has been joined to Israel, there is no distinction of Jew or Gentile any longer. Even the Passover meal is eaten only by Israelites, but scripture makes it clear that all who have come and joined themselves to the people of Israel are to be treated as equal with the true Jews.
As HaShem commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did; and they divided the land. Then the children of Judah drew nigh unto Joshua in Gilgal: and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said unto him, Thou knows the thing that HaShem spoke unto Moses the man of G-d concerning me and concerning thee in Kadesh-barnea. Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of HaShem sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was in my heart. Nevertheless my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the people melt; but I wholly followed HaShem my G-d. And Moses swore on that day, saying, "Surely the land whereon thy foot hath trodden shall be an inheritance to thee and to thy children forever, because thou hast wholly followed HaShem my G-d. And now, behold, HaShem hath kept me alive, as he spoke, these forty and five years, from the time that HaShem spoke this word unto Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old. As yet I am as strong this day as I as in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, and to go out and to come in. Now therefore give me this hill-country, whereof HaShem spoke in that day; for thou heard in that day how the Anakim were there, and cities great and fortified: it may be that HaShem will be with me, and I shall drive them out, as HaShem spoke. And Joshua blessed him; and he gave Hebron unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh for an inheritance. Therefore Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite unto this day; because that he wholly followed HaShem, the G-d of Israel. Now the name of Hebron beforetime was Kiriath-arba; which Arba was the greatest man among the Anakim. And the land had rest from war. (Joshua 14: 5-15)
Caleb was a Gentile, yet he received his inheritance as an Israelite. But he also met the obligations of his position. When the best was required of him, he willingly gave it to the Kohanim, the priests. He gave the city of Hebron to the sons of Aaron as a city of refuge and as a holy city forever as we read in Joshua 8: 8-16. So, who is Ephraim and who is Judah? Well, according to scripture, the tribe of Judah was chosen as the position of those "grafted in ones." But the example of Caleb is that not only did he accept his share of what was promised to Israel, he also met the requirements of the nation as well.
So where do you who are Gentiles stand? Are you not grafted into Israel by your faith in the Messiah of Israel, who is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah? Are you not then heirs to the promises of G-d because of your position within the nation of Israel because of your faith in the One who set you into the House of Israel? Since you are indeed grafted into the Clan of Judah, you must as surely meet the obligations of your position as did Caleb. Too often in the Church, we are taught that the promises of G-d to Israel are now ascribed to Christians, as the "New Israel." The implication is that the curses befell Israel. Not so, dear ones. For the gifts and the callings of G-d are without revocation. Every promise of G-d to Israel remains a promise to Israel. But now remember, "you were at that time separate from Messiah, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without G-d in the world. But now in Messiah Y'shua you that once were far off are brought near in the blood of Messiah." (Ephesians 2:12-13) Next week, we will look at a "Son of Caleb" to examine how far many have come from the example of their heritage.