Zechariah 14: 16-17 and the Christian Zionist Literalist "Hermeneutic"
Zecharian 14: 16-17 says "And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. 17. And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain."
The people of Israel of the Old Covenant were told to go up, make Aliyah, to Jerusalem three times a year to appear before God in Deuteronomy 16:16, Exodus 23:17, Exodus 34:24.
The prophecy of Zechariah 14: 16-17 could be interpreted in the New Covenant time, after the Old Covenant system of worship was ended by Christ, to mean that Christians are to worship God.
Or, Zechariah 14: 16-17 could be literally interpreted by Christian Zionism to mean there is to be a future restoration of he Davidic Kingdom in a Jewish dominated millenniumm Zechariah 14: 16 refers only to keeping the Feast of Tabernacles.
But if Zechariah 14 is interpreted to be talking about a restoration of the Davidic Kingdom in a future Jewish millennium, other institutions of the Old Covenant might also be restored, such as an Old Covenant type priesthood, animal sacrifices in a new temple, celebration of all the feast days and male circumcision
And it is the literalist way of interpreting scripture by Christian Zionism which would lead those in this theology to see Zechariah 14: 16-17 as being a future restoration of Old Covenant Israel.
John Darby introduced a literal system of Bible interpretation, which was made into one of he fundamental starting postulates of dispensationalism,.
This literal system of interpretation resulted in dispensationalism's radical separation of Israel from the Capital C Church.
The dispensationalist or Christian Zionist Capital C Church ignores the fact that church is a translation of ekklesia, which is a common noun and means a meeting, assembly or congregation. The Catholic Capital C Church was continued to some extent in the Christian Zionist church to be one in which a clergy class rules over the doctrines of the church members. Israel is a proper noun.
In the Capital C Church the clergy act as "lords over God's heritage," and do not act as "ensamples to the flock." This is from I Peter 5: 3
Christian Zionism then uses its literal method of interpretation to assume that Israel must always be literally those of the physical bloodline from Abraham, discarding what Galatians 3 says about this. In dispensationalism-Christian Zionism, and in most of the Capital C Churches, Israel cannot ever be the redeemed Israel of Luke 1: 68-69. Nor can Israel be all the elect of God, regardless of their DNA. Israel in dispensationalism is never the Israel of God in Galatians 6: 16, contrasted to the Israel of the flesh only, and of the physical bloodline in Romans 9: 8, who are said not to be the children of God
Christian Zionism "rightly divides" the Scriptures, not merely into dispensations, but also into sections of scripture that apply either to Israel or to the church or to the Gentiles, a division derived they think derives from I Corinthians 10: 32. This text says "Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God:
Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God:"
The dispensationalist-Christian Zionist interpretation of I Corinthians 10: 32, that Paul here is making a basic distinction, in line with dispensationalism, that Israel, the Gentiles and the Church are separate. Paul says in other texts that there is no difference for those in Christ between Jews and Gentiles (Romans 10: 12 and Galatians 3: 28).
Dispensationalist J. F. Walvoord says of the Book of Revelation that , "the book as a whole, is not occupied primarily with God's program for the church." J. F. Walvoord, The Revelation of Jesus Christ (Chicago: Moody Press, 1967, 2d printing), p. 103.
Walvoord's claim that the Book of Revelation is not for the Church comes out of the literalist method of interpretation of dispensationalism, and its radical separation of Israel from the Church and claim that the Old Covenant somehow is still in existence, making the theology into a Dual Covenant system.
Charles C. Ryrie, states: "Since consistent literalism is the logical and obvious principle of interpretation, dispensationalism is more than justified." C. C. Ryrie, Dispensationalism Today (Chicago: Moody Press, 1965), p. 97.
"Dispensationalism is a result of consistent application of the basic hermeneutical principle of literal, normal, or plain interpretation. No other system of theology can claim this." Ryrie again, age 96.
"Consistent literalism is at the heart of dispensational eschatology." Ryrie again, page 158
Dispensationalism- Christian Zionism insists, from its literal method of interpretation, that Christ offered himself to Old Covenant Israel as the messianic king to establish an earthly and physical kingdom that was promised to David. Then the theology claims, contrary to Romans 11: 5, which says that the New Covenant grew from a remnant of the Old Covenant, that Christ "postponed" His kingdom offer when Israel rejected him. Then, the theology claims,Christ began to offer his kingdom of grace as a temporary covenant of grace to the "Gentgiles" that would end when Christ would again at the end of the age, again establish the Jewish nation as His theocracy.
And again, all this is a result of starting from a literalist system of interpretation.
The system of interpretation from scripture says "Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. 10. For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:" Isaiah 28: 9-10
Isaiah 28: 10 does not say anything about a literal system of interpretation. Instead,, Isaiah 28: 10 says to put relevant scriptures together to make interpretations of another scripture.Scripture is a whole, and verses agree with other verses,.
"I have also spoken by the prophets, and I have multiplied visions, and used similitudes, by the ministry of the prophets." Hosea 12: 10
"All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them:" Matthew 13: 34
Zecharian 14: 16-17 says "And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. 17. And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain."
The people of Israel of the Old Covenant were told to go up, make Aliyah, to Jerusalem three times a year to appear before God in Deuteronomy 16:16, Exodus 23:17, Exodus 34:24.
The prophecy of Zechariah 14: 16-17 could be interpreted in the New Covenant time, after the Old Covenant system of worship was ended by Christ, to mean that Christians are to worship God.
Or, Zechariah 14: 16-17 could be literally interpreted by Christian Zionism to mean there is to be a future restoration of he Davidic Kingdom in a Jewish dominated millenniumm Zechariah 14: 16 refers only to keeping the Feast of Tabernacles.
But if Zechariah 14 is interpreted to be talking about a restoration of the Davidic Kingdom in a future Jewish millennium, other institutions of the Old Covenant might also be restored, such as an Old Covenant type priesthood, animal sacrifices in a new temple, celebration of all the feast days and male circumcision
And it is the literalist way of interpreting scripture by Christian Zionism which would lead those in this theology to see Zechariah 14: 16-17 as being a future restoration of Old Covenant Israel.
John Darby introduced a literal system of Bible interpretation, which was made into one of he fundamental starting postulates of dispensationalism,.
This literal system of interpretation resulted in dispensationalism's radical separation of Israel from the Capital C Church.
The dispensationalist or Christian Zionist Capital C Church ignores the fact that church is a translation of ekklesia, which is a common noun and means a meeting, assembly or congregation. The Catholic Capital C Church was continued to some extent in the Christian Zionist church to be one in which a clergy class rules over the doctrines of the church members. Israel is a proper noun.
In the Capital C Church the clergy act as "lords over God's heritage," and do not act as "ensamples to the flock." This is from I Peter 5: 3
Christian Zionism then uses its literal method of interpretation to assume that Israel must always be literally those of the physical bloodline from Abraham, discarding what Galatians 3 says about this. In dispensationalism-Christian Zionism, and in most of the Capital C Churches, Israel cannot ever be the redeemed Israel of Luke 1: 68-69. Nor can Israel be all the elect of God, regardless of their DNA. Israel in dispensationalism is never the Israel of God in Galatians 6: 16, contrasted to the Israel of the flesh only, and of the physical bloodline in Romans 9: 8, who are said not to be the children of God
Christian Zionism "rightly divides" the Scriptures, not merely into dispensations, but also into sections of scripture that apply either to Israel or to the church or to the Gentiles, a division derived they think derives from I Corinthians 10: 32. This text says "Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God:
Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God:"
The dispensationalist-Christian Zionist interpretation of I Corinthians 10: 32, that Paul here is making a basic distinction, in line with dispensationalism, that Israel, the Gentiles and the Church are separate. Paul says in other texts that there is no difference for those in Christ between Jews and Gentiles (Romans 10: 12 and Galatians 3: 28).
Dispensationalist J. F. Walvoord says of the Book of Revelation that , "the book as a whole, is not occupied primarily with God's program for the church." J. F. Walvoord, The Revelation of Jesus Christ (Chicago: Moody Press, 1967, 2d printing), p. 103.
Walvoord's claim that the Book of Revelation is not for the Church comes out of the literalist method of interpretation of dispensationalism, and its radical separation of Israel from the Church and claim that the Old Covenant somehow is still in existence, making the theology into a Dual Covenant system.
Charles C. Ryrie, states: "Since consistent literalism is the logical and obvious principle of interpretation, dispensationalism is more than justified." C. C. Ryrie, Dispensationalism Today (Chicago: Moody Press, 1965), p. 97.
"Dispensationalism is a result of consistent application of the basic hermeneutical principle of literal, normal, or plain interpretation. No other system of theology can claim this." Ryrie again, age 96.
"Consistent literalism is at the heart of dispensational eschatology." Ryrie again, page 158
Dispensationalism- Christian Zionism insists, from its literal method of interpretation, that Christ offered himself to Old Covenant Israel as the messianic king to establish an earthly and physical kingdom that was promised to David. Then the theology claims, contrary to Romans 11: 5, which says that the New Covenant grew from a remnant of the Old Covenant, that Christ "postponed" His kingdom offer when Israel rejected him. Then, the theology claims,Christ began to offer his kingdom of grace as a temporary covenant of grace to the "Gentgiles" that would end when Christ would again at the end of the age, again establish the Jewish nation as His theocracy.
And again, all this is a result of starting from a literalist system of interpretation.
The system of interpretation from scripture says "Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. 10. For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:" Isaiah 28: 9-10
Isaiah 28: 10 does not say anything about a literal system of interpretation. Instead,, Isaiah 28: 10 says to put relevant scriptures together to make interpretations of another scripture.Scripture is a whole, and verses agree with other verses,.
"I have also spoken by the prophets, and I have multiplied visions, and used similitudes, by the ministry of the prophets." Hosea 12: 10
"All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them:" Matthew 13: 34
