The New Israel,[fn]Galatians 6:16[/fn] or the New Sons of Jacob,[fn]Isaiah 44:5[/fn] is an alliance of twelve tribes.[fn]Isaiah 49:6,8; Acts 26:6-7[/fn] Joshua 24 shows the tribes of old Israel gathered one last time under their great commander, Joshua. No longer would his strong leadership hold the tribes together. Now they would have to be a true confederation of twelve self-governing tribes, yet still able to act as one man under their elders, judges, and officers. He called upon the twelve tribes of old to serve Yahweh, the God of Israel, “in sincerity and faithfulness,” putting away all idolatry. It was a call to holiness which they would often forget:

“Now therefore, fear the LORD, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the LORD! And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” … So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and made for them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem. (Joshua 24:14-15, 25)

On the basis of this solemn declaration, the Twelve Tribes of Israel entered into a covenant. Joshua brought them into a covenant fellowship as a confederation, having a sacred bond of unity under the name Israel.[fn]Ephesians 2:12; 4:4-7[/fn]

Many years later Yahshua, the Savior of Israel, would say:

“Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it.” (Matthew 21:43)

And they asked Him, saying, “Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” Then He answered and told them, “Indeed, Elijah is coming first and restores all things…” (Mark 9:11-12)

So old Israel was disqualified, as all the sincere already sensed. A new, spiritual Israel would have to be raised up from the dust to fulfill the promises made to Abraham.[fn]Acts 26:6-7; Genesis 15:18; 18:19[/fn]

In Mark 9, Yahshua prophesied that “Elijah” would have to come again to “restore all things.” By implication, He prophesied of the fall of the first-century church. His words about wisely building on the rock versus foolishly building on the sand weren’t just for His Jewish listeners. They warned of the trouble to come. Indeed, over and over He labored to warn His disciples, the apostles and pillars of the new spiritual Israel, that they too could be cut off just as old Israel had been. Pride and overconfidence had plagued old Israel, stopping their ears and hardening their hearts against the many prophetic warnings of doom and God’s righteous judgment on sin.

New Israel — the Israel of the New Covenant, whose goal is to make God’s name great beyond the borders of the land of Israel[fn]Malachi 1:5,11[/fn] — is also an alliance of twelve tribes. They are brothers allied in the same struggle and cause,[fn]Proverbs 17:17[/fn] in an eternal fellowship with one another. John the Apostle spoke of their ultimate glory in the Book of Revelations. Here you can see the twelve tribes of the New Covenant:

Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed. (Revelation 21:9-12)

Yes, the Bride of Messiah is also a confederation of twelve tribes, the fullness of what old Israel was meant to be and what the first century church was for a brief, shining moment. Confederation means allied together in the same cause, having a bond between tribes, acting in a harmonious concerted fashion. It is a union that expresses the real communion that Messiah, her Bridegroom, prayed she would have.[fn]John 17:23; 13:35[/fn] What a man says, and even more, what he prays in the final hours of his life tell us what is most important to him. Before His crucifixion, Yahshua earnestly prayed that she, His bride, would be one, having the same fellowship with one another as He had with the Father.

Building on the Rock

We are now, at this time, laying the last foundation stones of this “Holy City” on earth — the Confederation of the Twelve Tribes of Israel. It must be established on earth, for this is the first thing He taught His disciples to pray: “Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven!” The Sovereignty of Yahweh — His rule uniting a people in His love — is to be once more visibly apparent in all its glory. Israel is a name given to the twelve tribes collectively, as a completed whole.[fn]1 Kings 18:31[/fn] (One tribe does not constitute Israel.) Israel is Israel only as a completed whole. Yahweh cannot answer the prayers of anything less than a people — His people.[fn]Jeremiah 30:18 - 31:1; Isaiah 49:6,8[/fn]

In the latter days you will understand this. At that time, says the LORD, I will be the God of all the families/clans/tribes[fn]The Hebrew word is mishpachah, which means family, clan, or tribe, as descending from one father.[/fn] of Israel, and they shall be my people. (Jeremiah 30:24 - 31:1)

Jeremiah is prophesying of a fellowship of tribes that God will be the God of “at that time,”[fn]Micah 5:3,7-9[/fn] that is, “in the latter days.”[fn]Jeremiah 30:24[/fn] This is speaking prophetically of the New Covenant tribes of Acts 26:7.[fn]James 1:1; Revelation 21:9,12[/fn] These are the “new sons of Jacob” who serve Him wholeheartedly day and night, putting away all foreign gods. New Israel is a confederation of twelve tribes which has this foundation to their common life: serving the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob —Yahweh alone — through Yahshua in the power of the Holy Spirit.

The Royal Priesthood

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. (1 Peter 2:9)

1 Peter 2:9 describes nothing less than a confederation of twelve self-governing tribes.[fn]Acts 26:7; James 1:1; Galatians 6:16[/fn] This is the holy nation. Each tribe is made up of self-governing clans, and all the men and women in these clans, in every place,[fn]1 Timothy 2:8; 1 Corinthians 1:2,10[/fn] are in total unity.[fn]This is true in all places where a lampstand remains (Revelation 2:4-5; John 13:34-35; 17:11,21-23)[/fn] From every such place the communities (churches) send out evangelists just as the Savior sent out His disciples. These walkers are sent out two by two with the gospel.[fn]Mark 6:7-11[/fn] This leads to new communities forming in nearby towns, just as bees swarm to new locations when the hive is full. This self-replicating life forms itself into a confederation of clans. Each region is coordinated by gifted brothers who gather together in council. This is the pattern in all the tribes of the new Israel. Twelve tribes is the limit, fixed for New Israel, although there is no fixed number of clans within each tribe, and no limit of clusters of households within a township.

Israel is the dominion of Yahweh on earth. It is made up of willing subjects who willingly submit to His rule. The Holy City is made up of these willing servants, who collectively are the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.[fn]Revelation 21:9,12; 22:3-5; John 7:17[/fn] There is no central sanctuary or centralized government other than the Spirit of our Master Yahshua. He is found where His people dwell together in unity and serve Him night and day. This is “where He is”[fn]John 12:26[/fn] as He told His disciples in John 12. He is in every place where a lampstand gives light.[fn]Revelation 2:5; John 1:4[/fn]

The elders in each place are in submission to all the other elders. All these councils of elders, such as Paul called to meet with him from the Community in Ephesus,[fn]Acts 20:17 and forward[/fn] are in fellowship with the apostles. For new Israel, confederation means a fellowship of tribes and their tribal leaders. The clan leaders (elders) within each tribe must always be in fellowship with the apostles.[fn]1 John 1:3[/fn]

The name Israel means “Elohim rules,” and He rules through His servants who serve Him where He is.[fn]John 12:26[/fn] Service and obedience is required of all who make up a tribe and its clans. Elohim rules where He dwells in the fellowship of tribes.[fn]Numbers 23:9,21[/fn] He rules through the Word of God, the Ruler who gathers into one.[fn]1 Corinthians 1:2,10; John 17:23[/fn]

Our Twelve Tribes

Organized religion is institutional in nature, meaning all “religious” activities are planned out (prescribed), right down to the worship. Within the Twelve Tribes there is no trace of such deliberately created institutions for the ordering of life and limb. Instead, all are led by the one Spirit and taught by Him.[fn]John 6:45[/fn] The rule of Elohim is the very life of the Confederation of the Twelve Tribes. These tribes are not governed merely by good principles such as political states use to organize themselves. Our twelve tribes are governed by good shepherds who obey the Master’s command in Matthew 28:18-20 to teach them to obey everything He commanded His first disciples.

Our twelve tribes are the twelve tribes of Acts 26:7 restored in these last days in fulfillment of Isaiah 49:6.[fn]Acts 13:47[/fn] Here, each person, out of his own free choice, serves the only true God day and night. We were not brought under the control of a man-made government or order of priests (the clergy), such as the organized institutions of the world’s religions — including Christianity. The truth is that Yahweh rules in Israel, and since He is not the god of confusion, but of peace, there is no independent action or movement among His people, which is lawlessness.

Ours is a supra-natural culture, one that transcends the natural boundaries of race, culture, and nationality, as prophesied in Ezekiel 17:22-24, speaking of the restored twelve tribes in these last days. Ours is a culture that does not change according to the whims of fashion or popular opinion. The world saw another supra-culture twenty centuries ago in the first-century church, but it mutated beyond recognition in comparison to its beginning. The result was the death of community, of sharing all things in common, of the daily life of love that so astounded the ancient world. How infinitely far is Christianity today from this?

So, the Twelve Tribes is not an institutional order of priests ruling over the laity. It is a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and a confederation. To confederate is to bond together in a union of self-governing tribes, allied in the same cause and struggle.[fn]Proverbs 17:17[/fn]

The Acceptable Year of the Lord

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn. (Isaiah 61:1-2)

We are now in preparation for another fulfillment of Isaiah 61:1-2.[fn]Matthew 21:43; Luke 4:21; Mark 9:11-13[/fn] Now is the hour in which the rule and authority of our God is growing into its fullness in His people. The new sons of Jacob are now being brought into being. By His mighty word He is bringing us into existence as a new people, a new nation.[fn]1 Peter 2:9-10; Matthew 21:43; Mark 9:11-12; Isaiah 49:6[/fn] He is gathering us together from both the Gentiles and the Jews.[fn]Romans 11:11,15,17-24[/fn] From the trunk of the holy tree of the Old Covenant, branches were cut off and the Gentiles were grafted in. So the present restoration of the Twelve Tribes lives from the roots of the first-century church, which in turn, as Romans 11:21 says, lived from the roots of the old Israel.

Now, in the present hour,[fn]Daniel 12:4,9; 2:44; 7:24 (as Revelation 17:12)[/fn] the New Israel is being restored to produce the fruit that both old Israel and the first expression of the New Israel didn’t produce.[fn]Matthew 21:43[/fn] The holy nation is now being restored.[fn]Mark 9:11-12; Isaiah 49:6[/fn] It has to be restored since the first expression in Acts 13:46-47 didn’t produce the fruit either, as Paul hoped it would.[fn]Acts 26:7[/fn] Just as old Israel was cut off, so was the first church. It did not abide in His goodness, as Paul warned the Roman Church to do. Otherwise, he said, “you also will be cut off.”[fn]Matthew 21:43; Romans 11:22[/fn] And so it was, obviously and evidently.

The Decline and Fall of the First Church

Towards the end of the first century A.D., John “gathered” the tribes of new Israel at “Shechem” again in his first letter. Like Joshua, he summoned them to serve God in sincerity and truth. He told them that those who did not love their brothers did not love God.[fn]1 John 4:20 defines hate as simply not loving one’s brother, a principle which applies also in 1 Corinthians 16:22.[/fn] He warned them to “keep themselves from idols.”[fn]1 John 5:21,18,4 (KJV)[/fn] This new Israel failed to do, so, just as old Israel failed before them, they ceased being a light to the world and became one more corrupt worldly religion. We know it as Christianity.

From the second century onward, the Christian Church has always shown this drift from its roots. It was a paradigm shift from community to doctrine, from obedience to lawlessness, from self-sacrificing love and unity to self-preservation and doctrinal conformity, from full participation of each member to rote ritual and a paid clergy.

They embraced the separation Paul warned them was coming in Romans 11:22. They deliberately distanced themselves from old Israel. They adopted Greek names for Israel’s Elohim and the Savior Yahshua, abandoned Sabbath keeping and the festivals, and became one with the world’s governments. There was no separation between church and state. They took on the world’s cultures, traditions, and festivals as though Israel had none! All the while they were wholly unaware of their shift from Israel’s roots to the roots of the world which Satan rules.[fn]1 John 5:19[/fn] All of this happened because they had long before cut themselves off from Messiah, excluding Him from their hearts and their councils.[fn]Romans 11:22[/fn]

The Twelve Tribes of the New Covenant[fn]James 1:1; Acts 26:7; 1 Peter 2:9; Ephesians 2:12; Galatians 6:16; Revelation 7:4-8; 21:9-12[/fn] was the nation of Matthew 21:43 that was to bear the fruit of the Kingdom. Sadly, they did not endure in the unity and oneness of the Father and the Son. They failed because they left behind the love of Messiah,[fn]John 13:34-35; Revelation 2:4[/fn] choosing instead the love of the world. The leaven of wickedness crept in over the wall and even arose from within. Eventually, the whole lump was leavened.[fn]1 Corinthians 5:6[/fn] Every lampstand was taken out of its place — the light of revelation from heaven, such as had illuminated Peter’s soul the day He proclaimed Yahshua “the Messiah, the Son of the Living God,” went out.[fn]Revelation 2:5; Romans 11:20,22; Matthew 16:16[/fn] Darkness fell over all the land, even over all the earth. The night had come, as the Savior had prophesied.[fn]John 9:4-5[/fn]

So Malachi 1:11 was not fulfilled to its completeness. No holy people made His name great to the ends of the earth.[fn]Isaiah 49:5-6[/fn] Never has there been a 49-year witness of righteousness and justice, culminating in a celebration of the Year of Jubilee on the 50th year, fulfilling the epic commands of Leviticus 25. Neither old Israel nor the first-century church could do so. It was too radical and revolutionary for them. They tolerated the old leaven in their midst instead. The price of being a new, unleavened lump was too high.

An evil religious spirit that Christians wrongly call the Holy Spirit interprets the Scriptures to allow divisions, enmity, and even war between believers (and against unbelievers, whom the Savior came to seek and save). This evil spirit brainwashed the “church fathers” in such a powerful way that Ephesians 4:2-7 lost all meaning. Instead, the leaven of pride, malice, and wickedness was tolerated.

Conspiracy: Defeat of the Confederacy

So in both old Israel and the new Israel of the first century, the confederacy was lost. Forced toleration of compromise and insincerity took its place. No longer were there sons of God led by the one Spirit of the true Elohim, the same Spirit who led our Master Yahshua. He is one with the Father as we also are to be.[fn]1 John 2:6[/fn] So the confederacy was over. No longer was there the bond of peace Paul spoke of in Ephesians 4. No longer was there an alliance, the league or compact, covenanted together for common action[fn]Proverbs 17:17[/fn] to carry out the will of Abraham’s God. But there rose up in their midst a satanic deception. An unconscious conspiracy destroyed the confederacy of mutual support, as Paul warned in Acts 20:28-30. “Savage wolves” he called them, perverse men (corrupters[fn]Jeremiah 6:28-30; 2 Peter 2:1[/fn]) who would “draw away the disciples after themselves.”[fn]Acts 20:28-30 sounds like the start of denominations, doesn’t it?[/fn]

Civil war is always triggered by such savage men conspiring together to promote strife (war) and division (denominationalism). This is evidently and irrefutably in full bloom today among those who claim to love one another as the Son loved them, in spite of their countless divisions, both within and between their countless denominations. They are as divided as they can be — fully leavened.[fn]1 Corinthians 5:6[/fn]

Conspiracy is the action of plotting or secretly combining — a joint effort made by many towards a particular end. To conspire is to use such means to accomplish the persuasion of the innocent, ignorant people to do the conspirator’s bidding. In pre-Civil War America, it reached the point of inspiring northerners to invade the South, unleashing torrents of bloodshed which all of America’s other wars added together do not equal. It’s the same thing Satan conspired to do against the Church in the first century. All who were deceived conceded. They gave way to his persuasion when they accepted his lies as true and valid.

Christian writers to this day are still under the same persuasion. That is why they write such intellectual nonsense praising “unity in diversity,” as if such confusion existed between the Father and the Son! Under this false persuasion they talk about how the nations of the world are still full of confusion and hostile ambitions, but they don’t see their own confusion. They claim to be the light of the world, but what do they see when they look at the world but a mirror of themselves? They see themselves as full-fledged citizens of the world, and, as such, they are certainly and willingly “strangers to the Commonwealth of Israel.”[fn]Ephesians 2:12[/fn]

All that the nations have seen in the past, from the third and fourth centuries until today, is the same thing they saw in old Israel. They saw warring between the tribes then, and ever since the fall of the first church they have seen divisions between all who claim to see and to know the God who is one. So what they see above all is those who claim Jesus as Lord but do not love as He loved. John rightly called them all liars for claiming to know Him but not keep His commandments.[fn]1 John 2:4[/fn] What then awaits such presumption but guilt that remains eternally?[fn]John 9:41[/fn]

The Restoration of All Things

The restoration of all things in Mark 9:11-12 is one of the greatest prophecies of Yahshua — and also the most disregarded.[fn]Matthew 21:43; Mark 9:11-12[/fn] The twelve tribes of Acts 26:7 and James 1:1 must be restored if “all things” are to be restored, if there is ever to be a nation that will bear the fruit of the kingdom. Paul hoped in Acts 13:47 to bring Isaiah 49:6-8 to fruition by “our twelve tribes” in Acts 26:7-8, since the redemption of his fellow Israelites was the hope and goal of Paul’s calling[fn]Romans 11:15; Genesis 15:18; 18:19[/fn] — to fulfill Matthew 19:28, as the Prophet spoke.

In the restoration of all things, a new people will emerge out of the dust that will fulfill the Law in the most remarkable manner. They will do this by the grace their Master Yahshua supplies in obedience to the Word of Yahweh. Jeremiah 31:31-34 sets forth this promise, which is the very promise of the New Covenant itself, that in the last days Yahweh Himself will write His law upon our minds and in our hearts. With it comes the promise of the power to fulfill it.[fn]Romans 8:4[/fn] This is what the promised Holy Spirit is for.

This set-apart Spirit, “given to those who obey Him,”[fn]Acts 5:32[/fn] has not been given to one soul of man since the fall of the early church. That church turned into what is commonly known as Christianity, including Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, and Protestantism. Ever since the Spirit departed, the church has been under the Law. For as Paul makes plain in Galatians 5, to be under the Law is all that is left to those who are not led by the Spirit.[fn]Galatians 5:18[/fn] This law could never be obeyed without the Holy Spirit of love poured out into the hearts of the redeemed.[fn]Romans 5:5; Psalms 40:8[/fn]

The attitude of the redeemed to the law of God can be understood only in the light of Jeremiah 31:31-34. The time of salvation will return only after the restoration of Mark 9:11-12 has begun. This will bring about what is prophesied in Isaiah 49:6. This unified twelve tribes of one heart and one way occurred for a short time in the first century.[fn]Acts 26:7[/fn] Paul applied Isaiah 49:6 to himself in Acts 13:46-47.

Only now, in the “latter days” prophesied of in Jeremiah 30:20 - 31:1 (“at that time”) can it be “The Time” of Micah 5:3 when “the remnant of His brethren shall return to the children of Israel.” That time is now when the Law will not be oppressive as it is for those without the Holy Spirit’s power.[fn]Romans 8:4[/fn] For them it will be as David sang in Psalms 19:7-10, where the Law of God was his delight, more desirable than fine gold. This psalm will be sung by the new Israel. No longer will the Law be regarded as an oppressive, exacting burden, but in reality it will be what brings joy to the heart. In new Israel, that heart to obey the Law actually provides the assurance of nearness to the heart of God. It will be the evidence of the new people of God coming into existence to restore all things at the time of the end, bringing it about.[fn]Matthew 24:14[/fn]

That is when joy in doing the will of God finds such simple expression as Psalms 19:7-10. As verse 11 promises, great reward awaits all who do. This is the manifesto of the new people of God who live in a new obedience, which can only be possible with the newly poured-out love of Romans 5:5. This love is the Holy Spirit, by which God’s purpose will be restored and fulfilled on the earth.[fn]Acts 2:40-47; 4:32-37; Isaiah 49:6; Matthew 21:43[/fn]

Only when God Himself sets His Law within a people’s heart[fn]Psalms 19:7-11; Jeremiah 31:31-34[/fn] can it be the evidence of the coming kingdom. Then it will be seen by all that a new people is bearing the fruit of the kingdom.[fn]Matthew 21:43[/fn] Jeremiah 31:1 is the newly formed Body of Messiah in twelve geographical areas of the earth in the last days. They live by the New Covenant, which re-creates the royal priesthood and holy nation of 1 Peter 2:9-10. This brings into existence the new people of God. They are a confederation of twelve self-governing tribes who are not under the Law. Instead, the Law is in their hearts.[fn]Jeremiah 30:18 - 31:1,31-34[/fn]

The Time is Now

In the latter days you will understand this. At that time, says the LORD, I will be the God of all the families/clans/tribes of Israel, and they shall be my people... Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah... (Jeremiah 30:24 - 31:1,31)

The time of Jeremiah 31:31 and Micah 5:3 is here, and it requires the whole house of Israel. Israel is Israel only as a completed whole.[fn]1 Kings 18:31[/fn] Jacob had twelve sons, so now there must be the new sons of Jacob, twelve in number. These new people will produce the fruit that old Israel never produced.[fn]Matthew 24:14[/fn] Nor did the new Israel in the first century.[fn]Matthew 21:43; Romans 11:19-22[/fn]

Jeremiah 31:1 says “At that time” — NOW IS THE TIME for the restored twelve tribes, with all their clans. They are the sign of Revelation 12:1-6. “At that time” — the time is now. Now is the time! “In the latter days you will understand this.”[fn]Jeremiah 30:24[/fn] Do you understand?[fn]Daniel 12:10; Matthew 13:14-17[/fn]

In Matthew 21:43, the fruit of the kingdom is Jeremiah 30:19-20:

From them will come songs of thanksgiving and the voices of those who make merry. I will add to their numbers, and they will not be decreased; I will bring them honor, and they will not be disdained. Their children will be as in days of old, and their community will be established before me; I will punish all who oppress them.

This is a life of righteousness and justice whose joy is expressed in festivals as a foretaste of the coming age.[fn]Jeremiah 31:4,13, as in Colossians 2:17[/fn]

The New Covenant scriptures are chiefly to explain how Matthew 21:43 happened to both old Israel and the first-century church so that there can be a people who will produce the fruit. How else, since the kingdom was taken away from them, can anyone ever produce the fruit of it?[fn]Matthew 24:14[/fn] The Old Covenant scriptures did not inspire the bulk of the people of God to obey Him. The words alone didn’t keep them from being as Matthew 21:33-46 says they were. So Paul was inspired to say in Acts 26:7 that “our twelve tribes” would produce its fruit in order to bring to fruition the promise to Abraham in Genesis 15. Acts 26:6-7 says that “our twelve tribes” will do it for them who did not do it. This is the sad tale that Matthew 21:33-45 tells, how the servants sent by the Owner of the vineyard to obtain its fruit were instead beaten or killed. And verse 43 says it would be taken away from them and given to a nation who would produce the fruit of it — for them.

That is why we have all that Yahshua said, in order to be the Twelve Tribes of Israel who will obey Him. We also have the Spirit to show us the way to do it.[fn]Acts 2:40-47; 4:32-37[/fn] So now we know the significance of the New Covenant scriptures, erroneously called the “New Testament.”

Unless His new people obey Him, the age will not come to its end.[fn]John 13:34-35; 17:11,21-23; Matthew 21:43; 24:14[/fn] Unless our newly restored twelve tribes bear the fruit of the kingdom, Genesis 15:18 will never happen. This is the land grant made by God to Abraham, which no power on earth will ever bring about. Only God Himself will ever give Abraham’s seed that land in peace. And Genesis 18:19 is the only way it can be done — by a spiritual people who turn their hearts to their children, raising up generations who walk in the way of Yahweh. Then, and only then, can He, the mighty God, bring about all that He has promised Abraham.

This special people will do this by obedience to the New Covenant scriptures (both the Gospels and the Epistles). This obedience qualifies and enables our twelve tribes to bear the fruit of Matthew 24:14. If we are not obedient, 1 John 2:4 says what we actually are — a bunch of liars. And what else is Christianity, which disavows obedience as a matter of doctrinal necessity? If the new twelve tribes disobeys His word, we will be no better than anyone else who has ever claimed to be God’s people.[fn]John 9:41[/fn]

So our Master Yahshua came to enlist a people to take old Israel’s place for an age. He did this in order to restore Israel to its proper place in the Kingdom.[fn]Matthew 19:28[/fn] Then the curse of Jeremiah 34:18 would not come to pass upon the One who promised to keep the covenant with Abraham in Genesis 15:18. It was a self-cursing oath that God humbly took that day when His presence went between the animals which Abraham had split in half. So upon Him lies the weight of keeping His word — and the penalty of non-compliance seen in the divided carcasses of the sacrifice.[fn]Jeremiah 34:18-20[/fn]

Paul knew of the oath in Genesis 15 and knew that if Israel, Abraham’s descendants, would not do Genesis 18:19 — the very purpose God chose him — and if Yahshua’s disciples would not do it, then Yahweh Himself would be as Jeremiah 34:18. It was a self-maledictory oath: “May this be done to me if I do not keep this covenant.”[fn]Genesis 15:17-18[/fn]

Israel did not do Genesis 18:19, which Abraham himself was foreknown to do, but the promise would be fulfilled only if his offspring would do as he did. But they would prove to be impostors.[fn]John 8:39[/fn] At first they took the land,[fn]Joshua 1:2-9[/fn] but it is another thing to keep it, which requires faithfulness to raise up the generation after them to maintain it. That generation must likewise do what Abraham did in commanding their children and household and walking in the way of righteousness.[fn]Genesis 18:19[/fn] We must do what Joshua and the Twelve Tribes did at first. It is one thing to raise up the twelve tribes,[fn]Isaiah 49:6; Matthew 21:43[/fn] but another thing to bear the fruit of it, to maintain unity for 49 years.[fn]John 13:35; 17:23[/fn] Abraham was faithful to the end with Isaac, then Isaac was faithful with Jacob, then Jacob was faithful to give birth to his twelve sons. Their descendants formed a confederation of twelve self-governing tribes, and later the Law was added.[fn]Galatians 3:16-18; 1 Chronicles 16:16-18[/fn]

Genesis 18:19 says, “his children and his household after him,” but his house, the house of Israel, did not do what was right and just in order for Yahweh to bring about what He promised in His oath. So He knew when He walked through the split animals that He would give the bearing of the fruit to another nation to fulfill His oath by the fruit they would bear.[fn]Psalms 105:8-11,42-45[/fn]

So the New Covenant scriptures are written down for us.[fn]1 Corinthians 10:7-13[/fn] They remind us of the Old Covenant which was not obeyed by Abraham’s offspring, except in a few periods of history. Joshua 1 is such an example. But we, as Revelation 17:14 beckons, must be faithful, and not just called and chosen. How many times did old Israel think as 1 Corinthians 10:12? In Joshua 21:43 was the promised oath, but it was not long until Israel became unfaithful again and again, until Matthew 21:43 came upon them, as Joshua 22:18 and 24:20-25 foreshadowed.

Renewing the Covenant

Our twelve tribes must renew the covenant inaugurated in Luke 22 in the first century. Mark 9:11-12 is the New Covenant restored in order to bear the fruit for old Israel and the first church.[fn]Matthew 21:43[/fn] As in Acts 26:7, now we must renew the covenant to bear the fruit they did not bear. Acts 26:7 is referring to the oath of the Old Covenant in Genesis 15:17-18, which is kept by Genesis 18:19. It takes a faithful generation “after us” to keep the covenant so that Yahweh can do what He said. Exodus 20:5 says, “to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me,” but verse 6 speaks of those who love Him.[fn]Revelation 12:1-6[/fn]

Israel violated every one of these “ifs” in Joshua 23:12-16. Verses 1-5 show the promise, but it requires obedience and faithfulness as verses 6-11 exhort, while verses 12-13 warn, “BUT IF YOU TURN AWAY…” Then Genesis 15:18 will not be a continued victory, but rather a fall,[fn]Matthew 21:33-45[/fn] and it is the same with the New Covenant Israel. They did not remain faithful, but turned away as 2 Timothy 3:1-7, in spite of 2 Timothy 4:1-5. But Paul himself remained faithful,[fn]2 Timothy 4:6-8[/fn] and a few others who did not soil their garments.[fn]Revelation 3:4[/fn]

1900 years of Christian history provide ample proof that the churches of the first century died out,[fn]Romans 11:19-22[/fn] as Ephesus 6:24 gave way to Revelation 2:4-5 in every place. In Romans 11:22, “IF” is a condition, or as some versions read, “provided that you…” The holy nation of 1 Peter 2:9-10 in the first century took the place of old Israel to bear the fruit of the kingdom for them. But they also had the kingdom taken away from them, since they became Christianity.

The nation that replaces old Israel[fn]Matthew 21:43; Acts 26:7[/fn] MUST produce the fruit of Genesis 18:19 in order to bring old Israel back to be restored when Messiah returns. And He will not return until the restored holy nation of Mark 9:11-12 replaces the first church in Acts 26:7. They will do for them what they did not do or remain faithful to do, in order to have the promised oath made by God to Abraham.[fn]Genesis 15:17-18[/fn] It cannot by any means be fulfilled by what is called Christianity today, for Christianity did not begin until the first church was “cut off.”[fn]Romans 11:22[/fn] Then they all started calling themselves by the name the world called them in derision.[fn]Acts 11:26[/fn]

Old Israel will rise again,[fn]Acts 26:6-8[/fn] but only when heaven releases Yahshua to return.[fn]Acts 3:21[/fn] They will only rise at the end of this age — “in the latter days.”[fn]Jeremiah 30:24 – 31:1[/fn] That end will be brought about by the good news of the kingdom being proclaimed and demonstrated to all the earth.[fn]Matthew 24:14[/fn] This is the fulfillment of Matthew 21:43, bearing the fruit of the Kingdom.

The restoration in Acts 3:21 comes after the restoration in Mark 9:11-12, which is the restoration of Isaiah 49:6 in order to bring about verse 8.[fn]Matthew 28:18-20[/fn] Romans 11:12-15,25 is a mystery which comes about through Matthew 28:20. That apostolic ministry produces the witness of Matthew 24:14, which is the restoration of Isaiah 49:6, the nation that bears the fruit of Matthew 21:43. Only that restoration will allow Him to return in Acts 3:21[fn]returning just as He went in Acts 1:9-11[/fn] to restore all things in the next age for Israel and the world. But Hebrews 10:13 stands in the way of Acts 3:21.

When the end comes, Yahshua will return with and for those who remained faithful.[fn]1 Thessalonians 4:16-17[/fn] They will be caught up together to be with Him in the air as Paul prophesied. Then, they will return to earth for the dreadful war of Revelation 19:11-21. There will be a 30-day war followed by a 45-day judgment.[fn]Revelation 12:6; Daniel 12:11-12; 2 Corinthians 5:10 (1290 – 1260 = 30 days; 1335 – 1290 = 45 days)[/fn] Hebrews 10:26-30 is speaking of His people. The faithful are worthy to rule with Him, for they are compatible with Him and comparable to Him.[fn]Daniel 12:2-3,10; Revelation 2:11; 3:5; 17:14; 1 Peter 1:4-9; 4:7-11[/fn]

The Messiah “is come” in the flesh,[fn]1 John 4:2, KJV[/fn] since He said He would send the Spirit, not leaving us as orphans.[fn]John 14:3,18,20-23[/fn] John 14:20 is the reality of “is come in the flesh.” All who have surrendered all to Him will be where He is and serve Him there.[fn]John 12:25-26[/fn] He is made manifest in His Body to the world. The oath His Father made to Abraham can now only be fulfilled in the restored Body of Messiah. This means all who are actively being built up together in love,[fn]Ephesians 4:16[/fn] who serve Him night and day for the hope of Israel having that enemy-free land promised to Abraham’s descendants. Those among Abraham’s physical offspring who did what He did[fn]John 8:39[/fn] will also be raised to live in that land in the Kingdom age.[fn]Genesis 18:19; 15:17-18[/fn] Only those whose Father is Abraham’s Father will dwell there.[fn]John 8:37-47[/fn]

All who do the works of Abraham[fn]John 8:39; Genesis 18:19[/fn] are his spiritual offspring.[fn]Galatians 3:7,29[/fn] Therefore, know that only those who are of the same faith (i.e., persuasion) as Abraham are the sons of Abraham. It is not impressive to God that someone shares his DNA; what matters is who shares his faith! They are persuaded to do the works God had for him to do in Genesis 18:19 in order for God to keep His oath in Genesis 15:17-18. This is the reason and cause or purpose for which God chose Abraham — to procreate people to fill the universe — as many as the stars and the sands of the seashore and even the dust of the earth.[fn]Genesis 13:16; Psalm 102:28[/fn] But “first things first.” Genesis 15:18 is an enemy-free land.

In Genesis 15:18, the word give means not temporary, but forever. That means lasting for an age only, as “forever and ever” means eternally. The age of peace will come when all of God’s enemies are put under His Son’s feet.[fn]Hebrews 10:13; Acts 3:21[/fn] But this is done “for them” by “our twelve tribes.”[fn]Acts 26:6-8; Isaiah 49:6,8; Romans 11:15[/fn] If no holy nation will keep Genesis 18:19, then God’s promise cannot be kept. But God made this oath in His infinite foreknowledge that His special, chosen people[fn]1 Peter 2:9-10[/fn] would do it for them, for Abraham and his descendants.[fn]Genesis 15:18-21; 18:19; Romans 9:25[/fn] He chose us[fn]Ephesians 1:4; 2:10[/fn] to do the works of Abraham, which were prepared for us to do.[fn]Ephesians 4:16; 2:22[/fn] We were chosen to be the faithful ones[fn]Ephesians 1:4,9; 1 Peter 1:2; 2:9[/fn] who would do Genesis 18:19.

Make no mistake about it: The mystery here concerning the restoration of the twelve tribes in the last days requires exponential increase for the full number[fn]Mark 10:29-30[/fn] to come into the Body of Messiah. They are the New Sons of Jacob, the Sons of God[fn]Galatians 3:26-29[/fn] in the time of the end. Nothing can happen before the full number[fn]Romans 11:25-26; Luke 21:24[/fn] of the nations are saved and brought into the restored Twelve Tribes in every place.[fn]Malachi 1:5,11[/fn] The physical seed of Abraham, known as the Jews or Israel, are blind as far as their own twelve tribes are concerned. Matthew 19:28 is fulfilled in the next age for them. But it can only happen then after Isaiah 49:6 happens in this age. This is what Paul was saying in Acts 13:41,46-48. Verse 47 was put off until the end of days in this age, since they (“our twelve tribes”) in his day did not produce the fruit of the kingdom.[fn]Matthew 24:14[/fn] Acts 13:47 is referring to Isaiah 49:6. Verse 8 is after the full number of the Gentiles comes in[fn]Luke 21:24[/fn] to produce the fruit. Matthew 28:19 is now, at the end of this age.[fn]Isaiah 49:6; Acts 13:47; 1 Corinthians 10:11[/fn] Now is the time.[fn]Jeremiah 30:24 – 31:1[/fn]

The end of the age is brought about by the faithfulness and service of the new people of God in all the world.[fn]Acts 26:7[/fn] They are living in just such a situation of crisis as that which old Israel had to wrestle with.[fn]Deuteronomy 8:2-3; 1 Corinthians 10:11[/fn] So the Scriptures have recorded now not only old Israel’s struggle, but also that of the nation of Matthew 21:43 in the first century. Remember, it fell in the same way.[fn]Hebrews 4:11[/fn] So now it is being restored, and it remains for us to be faithful,[fn]Hebrews 3:7[/fn] since we have the way they fell recorded, and we are now warned not to fall in the same way. It is according to whether we have the attitude of the One who endured to the end.[fn]Philippians 2:5[/fn] We must walk as He walked.[fn]1 John 2:6; Hebrews 2:10,11,17,18[/fn]

Time of Crisis

Our Father will bring the work which began in Abraham to its final end, even though the new people of God will be thrown into a state of grave crisis.[fn]Luke 21:16,17,19; John 15:18[/fn] Do you think by any means the crisis has already begun?[fn]Mark 13:9-12[/fn] This crisis is coming in an unstable or crucial time, a severe test or situation in which concentrated forces interact, but they do so to cause change or development into the kind of people God needs to rule the earth and then the universe. Crucial means a necessary and final determination in the crucible of testing. It is crucial, essential, necessary to His purpose that we pass the test as our Master did, who endured to the end.[fn]Matthew 24:9-13[/fn] This produces the end result of determination — the goal of the time in the crucible. This preparation and testing is what it means to be His followers.

The crucible requires a high degree of heat to cause the development into His vessels. It is like the the word crucifix. Crucify speaks of an extreme, painful test. We shall then say, after it is over, “It is finished. His will and purpose have been accomplished on earth.” Then He will have the finished vessels of highest honor.[fn]2 Timothy 2:20-21[/fn]

To be baptized into Messiah means nothing less than Romans 6:2-6. We are baptized as Galatians 3:27 into the crucible, the Body of Messiah.[fn]1 Corinthians 12:13; Malachi 3:2-3[/fn] 1 Corinthians 1:2 is the result of being baptized into the Body of Messiah, which is a real body of people living together in a set-apart place. There, they are in the world but not of it. They are a community where this purifying process can take place. That is where we can be made holy, as our God is holy. There can be no one who is “called to be a saint” anywhere else except where He is. Only where He is can one serve Him, now and forever and ever.[fn]Revelation 22:3-5[/fn]

It is a major process for the Holy Spirit to make us into the image of Messiah.[fn]1 John 3:1-3[/fn] We must be malleable[fn]Malleable — able to be hammered, pounded, or pressed into various shapes without breaking or returning to its original shape; yielding, amenable, adaptable (John 6:44-45; Matthew 24:13).[/fn] to be shaped and formed into His image, surrendered into His hands. If we are not malleable, we will be malformed.

Process means something going on, a spiritual phenomenon marked by a gradual change. This leads toward a particular result — a saint, holy as God is holy, pure, undefiled.[fn]Revelation 14:1-5[/fn] A process is a series of actions conducive to an end,[fn]Revelation 19:7-8; Ephesians 2:10; 4:16[/fn] a continual operation or treatment. We are made into saints[fn]1 Corinthians 1:2[/fn] by a special process, but by no artificial means or modification, but a continuous procession,[fn]Procession — moving forward, continuous forward motion for success (pro=for; cess=success) — to go through the process, to gain success, successful journey.[/fn] a forward movement, a progression, effluence on the way to effulgence[fn]Effulgence — radiant splendor.[/fn] — from glory to glory.[fn]Romans 8:17-18,29[/fn]

We will be glorified together with Him if we go through the process in the crucible.[fn]Acts 14:22; 1 Peter 4:12-13; Romans 8:17-21[/fn] 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 speaks of those who will receive an immortal body, but they are only those who are saved. That is, they went through the refining process in this present age. It is a process of going through “much tribulation” as Paul encouraged the saints in Acts 14:22. He spoke of how saints are made on the winnowing floor of the community.[fn]1 Corinthians 1:2; Matthew 3:12; Luke 3:17[/fn] A process is what one must go through to reach the other side, as in the process in making a vessel of highest honor to set on the king’s table. Do you know what a vessel must go through to be useful to the Potter (our Master)?

He is making something out of us, so as to do 1 Corinthians 2:9. To go through this process you must love the Potter who puts you through the whole process, from the streets of asphalt in mid New York to the streets of gold in the Holy City. To reach the center of God’s will and purpose we are immersed into the fiery process to make us like our Master[fn]1 John 3:1-3[/fn] through the purifying process. Our Father has had enough who were like Jeremiah 6:28-30 — reprobate silver.[fn]Malachi 3:1-3[/fn] In the process of refining silver, the lead was consumed as the alloys were drawn off. But too many times, the process failed because the silver ore had too many impurities. His people must overcome their inherited iniquities[fn]Exodus 20:4-5[/fn] and not bow down to them, or they will be as rejected silver.[fn]Jeremiah 6:29-30; Malachi 3:2-3; Isaiah 1:21-23; James 1:26-27; Zechariah 13:9; Revelation 18:2[/fn]

The word refine[fn]Hebrew Tsaraph, #6684, to smelt, refine, test by fire.[/fn] means to smelt, test, purify, to prove, examine, try by fire; the smelting process where impurities are removed from precious metals such as gold or silver.[fn]Psalms 12:6; 17:3; 66:10; Isaiah 1:25; Malachi 3:2-3; 1 John 3:1-3[/fn] In Jeremiah 6:30, “like reprobate silver” they resist the purification process, having no understanding,[fn]Daniel 12:10[/fn] like foolish virgins. Silver is silver as a virgin is a virgin, but one virgin is wise and another is foolish. One’s offering is accepted and one’s is not.[fn]Malachi 3:2-3[/fn] Acceptable offerings are what He wants.[fn]Revelation 3:4-5; Exodus 20:5-6; John 14:15,21; Daniel 12:10; Matthew 24:40-41; 1 Corinthians 16:22[/fn] For some it is in vain that the process goes on.[fn]Jeremiah 6:28-30[/fn] Reprobate means rejected as worthless, not standing the test — an unacceptable sacrifice.[fn]Malachi 3:2-4[/fn]

Conspiracy in the Church

In the Twelve Tribes, the Body of Messiah, there will be no deliberate conspiring to divide, even as there were none even in the early church. But as Hebrews 2:1-3, when disciples drift away, they fall into the hands of Satan, the great conspirator.

Matthew 6:33 is in contrast to verses 31-32. Verse 33 is the righteousness of God, by which the Holy must surpass the righteousness of the nations. In doing so, they go into another dimension altogether. In Revelation 22:11, the Just or Righteous and the Holy are in entirely different realms. Matthew 6:33 goes beyond natural righteousness to spiritual righteousness. As Yahshua commands us, our righteousness must exceed the most righteous ones in the natural realm. Seek first God’s own righteousness in conformity to all He commands: obedience to this call cannot be avoided by any who know Him. Those who claim to know Him but do not heed this call are, as John said, liars. God Himself is the standard for the Holy, who seek only His approval.

The righteousness of God means the righteousness which belongs to God, or God-like righteousness — to be holy as He is holy.[fn]James 1:20; Romans 5:17; 10:5; Galatians 3:21; Romans 10:3; Philippians 3:6[/fn] He is holy and we must be holy. He is set apart for us, and we are set apart for Him. We cannot have the kingdom we seek for without having the righteousness of God to rule over His kingdom.