Jehoshua is on the throne of David in New Jerusalem and He is the King of a New Israel
Ezekiel 34:23-24
23 And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. 24 And I, Jehovah, will be their God, and my servant David prince among them; I, Jehovah, have spoken it. The phrase "the Davidic Messiah," would sound strange to a lot of Christians including some of the more seasoned ones. Yet Jehoshua being a Davidic saviour is paramount to who Jehoshua is and what qaulifies him to be the Messiah. In the above passage, Ezekiel prophesies of a future Davidic King who will be set up as Israel's shepherd. This Davidic King would serve and feed the people of Israel unlike the wicked shepherds in that nation. This perfectly describes the circumstances of Jehoshua's arrival on the scene after his baptism. The Pharisees, Saducees and Herodian kings had largely ruled the people with vigor and put many burdens on them that they themselves would not bear. These are the words of Simeon to Jehoshua's mother Mary: Luke 2:34 "and Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this [child] is set for the falling and the rising of many in Israel; and for a sign which is spoken against" The falling of many fulfills what Ezekiel prophesied in Ezekiel 34 that Jehovah's hand would he against the wicked shepherds: 10 Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my sheep at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the sheep; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; and I will deliver my sheep from their mouth, that they may not be food for them. This verse is in connection with the raising up of the Davidic shepherd. Simeon tells Mary that Jehovah is going to use Jehoshua as the instrument to bring low the wicked shepherds of Israel such as the religious establishment and the puppet king Herod. Jehoshua came to do the things Jehovah said he would do in Ezekiel 34:16: "I will seek that which was lost, and will bring back that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but the fat and the strong I will destroy; I will feed them in justice" Remember, the above verses leads up to verses 23 and 24 quoted above so it is the Davidiv King that Jehovah is going to use to do the things mentioned above in verse 16. Matthew 12:18-20 18 Behold, my servant whom I have chosen; My beloved in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my Spirit upon him, And he shall declare judgment to the nations. 19 He shall not strive, nor cry aloud; Neither shall any one hear his voice in the streets. 20 A bruised reed shall he not break, And smoking flax shall he not quench, Till he send forth judgment unto victory. In Ezekiel 34 it is Jehovah that does the binding of the broken, however in Isaiah 42 it is His servant that does the binding of the bruised reeds. There is no contradiction here as Jehovah has always used men and women to accomplish His will. Luke 4:18 "The Spirit of Jehovah is upon me, Because he anointed me to preach good tidings to the poor: He hath sent me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovering of sight to the blind, To set at liberty them that are bruised" Jehoshua is describing the character of what his ministry will look like and it echoes Ezekiel 34 in what Jehovah says He is going to do at the time of the restoration under the Davidic King. In Ezekiel 34 the Davidic King is posited as the saviour of Israel. Ezekiel 34 is about the regathering of Israel at the end time under the Davidic King. When modern Christians think of the end times they think this means a future seven year period. However, the bible teaches that the end times began at the baptism of Jehoshua Messiah: Hebrews 1:1-2 1 God, having of old time spoken unto the fathers in the prophets by divers portions and in divers manners, 2 hath at the end of these days spoken unto us in [his] Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds; According to the author of Hebrews the last days began during Jehoshua's ministry. The last days have nothing to do with the concept of 3 and a half or 7 years before the Messiah comes back. This shows that the arrival of the Davidic Messiah was when the prophesies of Ezekiel 34 and 37 unfolded and were fulfilled. Ezekiel 34:30-31 30 And they shall know that I, Jehovah, their God am with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, saith the Lord Jehovah. 31 And ye my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the Lord Jehovah. The coming of the Davidic saviour was to coincide with the house of Israel being made Jehovah's people again. Again, we see that this was fulfilled during the apostolic church era as both Paul and Peter quote from Isaiah 1 and apply it to the nations that were being given the gospel. At the time of Ezekiel writing this the house of Israel had been dispersed hence they were not Jehovah's people. Following the gathering of the house of Israel with Judah under the Davidic King they would again become His (Jehovah's) people (Hosea 1:10-11). The people of Jacob, both Judah and Israel, are Jehovah's sheep. Although Jehovah is the ultimate shepherd of Israel He has placed the Davidic Messiah as His under shepherd. This is why the language of Jehoshua being our shepherd in the gospel of John is used because the Davidic king was the shepherd of Israel: 2nd Samuel 7:7-8 7 In all places wherein I have walked with all the children of Israel, spake I a word with any of the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to be shepherd of my people Israel, saying, Why have ye not built me a house of cedar? 8 Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto my servant David, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, I took thee from the sheepcote, from following the sheep, that thou shouldest be prince over my people, over Israel; Jehovah God commanded David to be a shepherd to Israel. David himself was a shepherd over his father Jesse's sheepcote. The Davidic shepherd was also to be the prince (king) of Israel. Now we can put in context Jehoshua's words in John chapter 10: John 10;11-14 11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd layeth down his life for the sheep. 12 He that is a hireling, and not a shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, beholdeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth, and the wolf snatcheth them, and scattereth [them]: 13 [he fleeth] because he is a hireling, and careth not for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd; and I know mine own, and mine own know me. Remember that the shepherd language is not unique to Jehoshua but rather it is rooted in the Davidic covenant. Who are the hirelings? They are the Edomite Jews who try to position themselves as authorities within the congregation of Israel. These are the Pharisees and the Herodians who have no Davidic lineage and have no right to shepherd the people of Israel. They rejected the Davidic King Jehoshua and for that Jehovah God destroyed their temple and city. Today these hirelings and wolves are the Pastors of Christendom who try and lord their authority over others and put themselves between the sheep and the Messiah in terms of the sheep's relationship with God. They also promote a false Jehoshua by saying that he is God Almighty and they downplay his Davidic lineage or know very little about it. Like their spiritual forefathers, (Pharisees, Sadducees, Herodians), they reject the true Davidic Messiah and promote a blasphemous pagan messiah. The theme of reunification under the Davidic Saviour continues in Ezekiel 37: 23 neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions; but I will save them out of all their dwelling-places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God. 24 And my servant David shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in mine ordinances, and observe my statutes, and do them. Verse 23 perfectly describes the situation that the northern tribes were in. They had been dispersed among the nations and were worshipping idols. However, Jehovah God gathered them back to Himself during the advent of Jehoshua. Through Jehoshua's blood Jehovah cleansed the house of Israel. After shedding his blood Jehoshua was then set at Jehovah's right hand and given the sceptre, crown and throne of David. Again, this is what both Paul and Peter refer to when they quote Hosea 1:10-11. They are attributing the apostolic ministry to the nations as a fulfilment of prophecy that Jehovah God would save the house of Israel and cleanse them from their sins. Coinciding with this Jehovah would set the Davidic Saviour over them as their shepherd and prince (King). Notice that the placing of the Davidic shepherd over Israel does not do away with the law but rather they would walk in the commandments and statutes (verse 24). This proves that this prophesy laid out in Ezekiel 37 has already been fulfilled and that we don't need to wait for some future event. This exposes dispensationalism as outright heresy. The apostles attribute their mission as fulfilling Hosea 1:10-11 which is the same thing Ezekiel is speaking about above. Also, Acts 2 and 13 as well as Hebrews 1 show that Jehoshua was enthroned on the throne of David which shows that Ezekiel 37:24 has already been fulfilled. Verse 26 of Ezekiel 37 connects the setting up of the Davidic king with the giving of the new covenant: "Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore" This of course is about the new covenant which Jehoshua, Paul and the author of Hebrews says already began. This indeed shows that most of Ezekiel 37 has been fulfilled. Notice that this is all in connection with Israel being given their Davidic Saviour. Matthew 1:1 "The book of the generation of Jehoshua Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham" The first verse in the new testament identifies Jehoshua as the son of David. This is important because it immediately shows that indeed the Saviour of Israel would be a Davidic Saviour and not some greco-roman demigod. Matthew 12:23 "And all the multitudes were amazed, and said, Can this be the son of David?" The Israelites knew that the coming Messiah would be from the house of David. Psalm 144:10 "Thou art he that giveth salvation unto kings; Who rescueth David his servant from the hurtful sword" Did you know, that just like hia father David, Jehoshua has a saviour? Just as Jehovah God was the saviour of David He is also the Saviour of Jehoshua the Messiah. Psalm 145:1-3 1 I will extol thee, my God, O King; And I will bless thy name for ever and ever. 2 Every day will I bless thee; And I will praise thy name for ever and ever. 3 Great is Jehovah, and greatly to be praised; And his greatness is unsearchable. This is a psalm of David. What many Pastors dont want to preach is that truly David is the type of Jehoshua. Pastor's and scholars try to make Jehoshua into the angel of the LORD or the LORD Himself in the old testament but this is false as Jehoshua is the antitype of the Davidic kings namely David. This has crucial implications in terms of the identity of Jehoshua in that he himself has a God and that God is Jehovah. We can apply the above Psalm to Jehoshua saying it. David refers to Jehovah as his King and his God and that He (Jehovah) is to be praised greatly. This means that Jehoshua is a worshipper of Jehovah God and not Jehovah God Himself. Instead, Jehoshua is the Davidic Saviour of Israel. ReplyForward
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