以賽亞書11章11節

神應許以色列第二次歸回

1/12/2011

「當那日，主必二次伸手救回自己百姓中所餘剩的，就是在亞述、埃及、巴忒羅、古實、以攔、示拿、哈馬，並眾海島所剩下的。」（以賽亞書11：11）

因為這是2011年本週的第一個話語，而我們也正在學習如何知道上帝的聲音，以及明白祂所賜給教會的先知性恩賜，所以我要開始分享的訊息，可能是神的百姓一直以來所領受到最多的訊息之一，就是有關於11-11所代表的意思，這可能是我被問到最多的問題。無論是有人一再地看見它或是其他的方式，多年來已有許多人領受到這訊息。今年的元旦是1/1/11或是1-1-11，在以賽亞書11章11節中，這通常是指著第二次機會，因為在這裡上帝應許以色列第二次歸回。

這是以色列被接回樹(神自己)的時候

當以賽亞領受到這訊息時，以色列在地上甚至尚未流散，也還沒有經歷離散後的第一次歸回。當耶穌被問到有關末日的預兆時，祂所說的其中一件事就是我們應該注意無花果樹，那是關於以色列的一個記號，以色列是眾先知們所留心觀看的大膽預言之一。

以色列是人類的氣壓計，他的內外部長期都處在一種衝突的狀態，這已經持續了如此漫長的時間，所以他們非常渴望和平，甚至願意放棄他們狹小土地的一大部分，只希望能達到和平的目標。然而這麼做並無法導向和平，反而使他們所退讓出的土地，成為攻擊他們自己的一個基地，他們的和平無法從人而來，只能從上帝來實現，而好消息是，和平將從上帝而來，這就是以賽亞書第11章的最根本訊息。

和平並不會藉由拱手讓出上帝所量給我們的產業而臨到，而應該是要尊重祂所賜給我們的一切，更勝於與人和平相處，並且明白神的旨意是比生命來得更加寶貴。這是以色列被接回樹(神自己)的時候，是一個被收聚回到這片土地的開始，但是以色列被收聚帶回到神的面前，則是更加地重要。

以色列是上帝話語信實的一個記號。在耶利米書第31章中，神說如果太陽、月亮發光以及大海翻騰的這些定例在祂面前廢掉，祂對以色列(成國)的應許便落空(耶利米書31:36)。有許多人相信現在這些應許已在教會中實現，即「屬靈的以色列」，這對很多人而言是真的，但無法否定這些應許也是針對「屬肉體的(天生的)以色列」。在神的話語中有一些地方很清楚地提到，這些應許是為著亞伯拉罕肉體上的子孫後代，使徒保羅在他最重要的使徒書信—羅馬書中，從第九章至第十一章中亦提到這點，我們在這書信內容中被警告，「向舊枝子誇口」是極大的錯誤(参考羅馬書11:18)。

這是恢復所失去的一年

以色列被收聚成國的主要訊息，就是上帝對祂話語的信實。祂保守信實，即使我們是不忠的，並且在祂的信實中祂將給我們另一次機會。整個以賽亞書第11章是關於地球恢復為起初被創造的樣子，這對全地而言是第二次機會—收聚的以色列的「第二次機會」，是一個接近時候的記號，神的百姓所一直祈求的上帝的國度，自從耶穌來過地球之後，更加接近了。

這是恢復所失去的一年，因為許多應許會實現，而後退者會被帶回，這將以禱告、代求及經常性禁食來開始。當但以理在耶利米的預言中讀到，以色列從其土地第一次離散長達七十年，他並不只是開始高興這是返回的時候，而是開始禁食禱告來祈求神的話語實現。

為什麼上帝的應許需要代禱者來實現？正如我們在詩篇115:16所讀到的，「天，是耶和華的天；地，他卻給了世人。」神將治理地球的權柄給人，這就是為何當我們祈求祂時，祂才會在地上作工，這也是為什麼耶穌成為人而作為中保，而在地上時，祂總是提到祂自己是人子。祂是上帝的兒子，但是祂來到這裡是要恢復人類所失去的。

因此，當我們知道這是上帝應許實現的時刻時，我們需要以禁食禱告來充滿天堂，成為代禱者來與耶穌聯合，「因為他是長遠活著，替他們祈求。」(希伯來書7:25) ，按照麥基洗德的等次，祂是永遠的大祭司，而且按同等次我們也是祭司。為此，在祂百姓中主要的訊息和工作之一，就是去恢復我們都同蒙呼召的祭司身份。

雷克．喬納 (Rick Joyner)

晨星事工（MorningStar Ministries）

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Rick Joyner:

Isaiah 11:11: God Promises to Restore Israel to Their Land a Second Time

In that day the Lord will reach out His hand a second time to reclaim the surviving remnant of His people from Assyria, from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt, from Cush, from Elam, from Babylonia, from Hamath and from the islands of the Mediterranean. –Isaiah 11:11

Since this is the first Word for the Week of 2011, and we are studying how to know God's voice and the prophetic gifts that He has given to His Church, I want to begin by sharing what may be one of the most prolific messages God's people have been receiving. The question I may be asked more than any other is what 11-11 means. Whether seeing it repeatedly on their clocks or in other ways, many people have been receiving this for years. New Year's Day was 1/1/11 or 1-1-11. This usually speaks of a second chance, which is the message of Isaiah 11:11 because it is here that God promises to restore Israel to their land a second time.

It is Time for Israel to be Grafted Back into the Tree—God Himself

When Isaiah received this message, Israel had not even been scattered from the land and re-gathered the first time. When Jesus was asked about the signs of the end of the age, one of the things He said was that we should consider the fig tree, which is a symbol for Israel. Israel is one of the bold prophetic messages that prophets watch and consider.

Israel is a barometer of mankind. It is in a perpetual state of conflict, both within and without. This has lasted for so long and they have desired peace so much that they have even been willing to give up large parts of their tiny bit of land in the hope of achieving peace. However, instead of leading to peace, the land they surrendered has become a base for attacking them. Their peace will never come from man, but only from God. The good news is that it will come from God, which is the most basic message of Isaiah 11.

Peace will never come by giving away what God assigned to us, but rather by esteeming everything He has given to us even more than peace with men and by seeing His purpose as even more valuable than life. It is time for Israel to be grafted back into the Tree—God Himself. It is a beginning to be re-gathered to the land, but it is more important to be re-gathered to the Lord.

Israel is a sign of God's faithfulness to His Word. In Jeremiah 31, the Lord states that the order of the sun, moon, and the roaring of the sea would cease before His promises for Israel would fail. Many believe that these are now fulfilled in the church, "spiritual Israel." This is true of many of them, but this does not negate that they are also for "natural Israel." The Lord makes it clear in His Word in a number of places that these are for the physical seed of Abraham. The Apostle Paul also asserted this in his most important Epistle on New Covenant theology, the Book of Romans, as we read in chapters nine through eleven. As we are warned in this text, it is a big mistake to "become arrogant toward the natural branches" (see Romans 11:18).

This is a Year for Recovering What Has Been Lost

The main message of the re-gathered nation of Israel is that God is faithful to His Word. He remains faithful even if we are unfaithful, and in His faithfulness He will give us another chance. The whole chapter of Isaiah 11 is about the restoration of the earth to the paradise it was originally created to be, a second chance for the whole earth—the re-gathering of Israel "the second time" is a sign that this is near. The Kingdom of God that God's people have been praying for since Jesus walked the earth is near.

This is a year for recovering what has been lost, for many promises to come to pass, and for the backsliders to be brought back. This begins with prayer, intercession, and often fasting. When Daniel read in the prophecy of Jeremiah that Israel was to be scattered from the land the first time for seventy years, he did not just start rejoicing that it was time to return, but he started fasting and praying for God's Word to be fulfilled.

Why do the promises of God need intercession to be fulfilled? As we are told in Psalm 115:16, "The heavens are the heavens of the Lord, but the earth He has given to the sons of men." The Lord delegated authority over the earth to men, which is why He will not do things on the earth until we ask Him to. This is also why Jesus became a Man to become the Mediator, and while on earth, He always referred to Himself as the Son of man. He was the Son of God too, but He came here to be a Man to recover what man had lost.

Therefore, when we know it is time for the promises of God to be fulfilled, we need to engage Heaven with prayer and fasting, being intercessors in unity with Jesus who we are told "ever lives to intercede" (see Hebrews 7:25). He is a Priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek, and we are priests in the same order. For this reason, one of the primary messages and works among His people will be to restore the priesthood to which we are all called.

Rick Joyner
MorningStar Ministries
Email: info@morningstarministries.org