What Scripture says
The Old Testament prophets promised that God would gather Israel back to its land after exile:
- “I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land” (Ezekiel 36:24, ESV).
- Ezekiel’s vision of dry bones coming to life pictures Israel restored (Ezekiel 37:1–14).
- “He will… assemble the banished of Israel, and gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth” (Isaiah 11:12).
- “Shall a land be born in one day? Shall a nation be brought forth in one moment?” (Isaiah 66:8).
Paul writes that “a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And in this way all Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:25–26), and that “the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable” (11:29).
The New Testament also describes the church, Jews and Gentiles together, as heirs of Abraham’s promises: “if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise” (Galatians 3:29). Paul calls the church “the Israel of God” (Galatians 6:16), though what he means is debated.
What the evidence says
History
The return
The Jews were scattered from their land after the Babylonian exile (586 BC), and again after the Roman wars of AD 70 and 135. For nearly 1,900 years, there was no Jewish state. From the late 19th century, the Zionist movement encouraged Jewish return. After the Holocaust, the State of Israel was declared on May 14, 1948. Millions of Jews have since moved there from around the world.
Earlier fulfilment
Many of the prophecies of return were first fulfilled when Jews returned from Babylon under Cyrus (538 BC; Ezra 1). The question is whether they also point to a later, greater return.
Interpretation
The main views
| View | Israel and the church | 1948 |
|---|---|---|
| Dispensationalism | Distinct; God has separate promises for ethnic Israel | Fulfilment of prophecy and a sign of the end times |
| Historic premillennialism | The church shares Israel’s promises, but ethnic Israel has a future salvation | Possibly significant, but not necessarily prophetic |
| Covenant theology | The church is the continuation of Israel, fulfilling the promises in Christ | Not a fulfilment of prophecy; a historical event |
| Progressive covenantalism | Promises fulfilled in Christ and the church, with some ongoing role for Israel | Debated |
Dispensationalists emphasize that God’s promises of land to Abraham’s descendants (Genesis 15:18–21, 17:8) are unconditional and literal. They see 1948 as a dramatic fulfilment and a sign that Christ’s return is near. This view is widespread in American evangelicalism and shapes support for the State of Israel among many Christians.
Covenant theologians argue that the promises are fulfilled in Christ, the true seed of Abraham (Galatians 3:16), and in the church, made up of Jews and Gentiles. Many interpret Romans 11 as a future turning of many Jewish people to Christ, without a political dimension. Some critics call this “replacement theology”, a label its holders often reject.
Cautions
- Political and moral questions about modern Israel and the Palestinians are separate from the theological question.
- Some prophecies of return are conditional on repentance (Deuteronomy 30:1–5). Modern Israel is a largely secular state.
- Predictions based on 1948, such as Hal Lindsey’s suggestion in The Late Great Planet Earth (1970) that Christ would return within a generation of 1948, have not come true.
Where they meet
Many dispensationalists see Israel’s 1948 rebirth as prophetic; other traditions see the church as the focus of fulfilment. All agree that God’s promises are fulfilled in Christ.
What’s still open
Whether the promises of land have a future literal fulfilment, and how to read Romans 11.
Bottom line
Many dispensationalists say yes; other traditions say the church is the focus of fulfilment. This is rated Debated.