BIBLE TRUTH Q&A
Part 3
CONCERNING THE KINGDOM OF GOD
What is the kingdom of God?
(73)
It is a kingdom that God will set up on earth which will overthrow and take possession of all others.
- "And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed... it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever" (Dan 2:44).
- "I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms, and I will destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the nations" (Hag 2:22).
- "There was given him (the Son of Man) dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him" (Dan. 7:13-14).
- "And the Lord shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one Lord, and His name one" (Zec 14:9).
- "And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever" (Rev 11:15).
Who will be king in the Kingdom of God?
(74)
Jesus Christ.
- "These all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus" (Acts 17:7).
- "God hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained" (Acts 17:31).
- "The Lord shall reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth, even for ever" (Micah 4:7).
- "His Christ; and he shall reign for ever" (Rev 11:15).
- "Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion" (Psa 2:6).
Will Christ reign alone in the Kingdom of God, or will others reign with him?
(75)
Others will reign with him.
- "If we suffer, we shall also reign with him" (2 Tim 2:12).
- "Thou hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth" (Rev 5:10).
- "Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment" (Isa 32:1).
- "Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom" (Mat 25:34).
Who are they that will reign with Christ in the Kingdom of God?
(76)
The saints.
- "The time came that the saints possessed the kingdom" (Dan 7:22).
- "The saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever" (Dan 7:18).
- "Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world?" (1 Cor 6:2).
- "To execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments upon the people... this honour have all his saints" (Psa 149:7-9).
Who are the saints?
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Those who believe and obey the Gospel.
- "To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints" (Rom 1:7).
- "Unto the ecclesia of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints," (1 Cor 1:2).
- "Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ" (2 Thess. 2:14).
- "To the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus... in whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation" (Eph 1:1, 13).
Did God ever have a kingdom on earth before?
(78)
Yes: the Kingdom of Israel was the Kingdom of God.
- "The kingdom is the Lord's: and he is the governor among the nations" (Psa 22:28).
- "When Israel went out of Egypt... Judah was his sanctuary, and Israel his dominion" (Psa 114:2).
- "And now ye think to withstand the kingdom of the Lord in the hand of the sons of David" (2 Chr 13:8).
- "Then Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord as king instead of David his father" (1 Chr 29:23).
Will the Kingdom of God, in which Christ and the saints will reign, have any relation to the Divine Kingdom of Israel that existed in the past?
(79).
The Kingdom of God, in which Christ and the saints will reign, will be the Kingdom of Israel restored.
- "Wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?" (Acts 1:6).
- "I will restore thy judges as at the first, and thy counsellors as at the beginning" (Isa 1:26).
- "In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old" (Amos 9:11).
- "In the regeneration (restoration) when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel" (Mat 19:28).
Will the restored Kingdom of Israel occupy the same land that it was established in before?
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Yes, it will be re-established in the very land where David reigned and where Christ was crucified.
- "The desolate land shall be tilled... And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden" (Ezek 36:34-35).
- "Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate" (Isa 62:4).
- "Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations" (Isa 60:15).
- "They shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations" (Isa 61:4).
- "They shall look upon me whom they have pierced" (Zec 12:10).
- "The law shall go forth from Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem" (Micah 4:2).
Will the Kingdom be composed of the same nation that it formerly consisted of, namely, the Jews who are now scattered?
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Yes; the Jews, the descendants of Abraham now dispersed in all the countries of the world, will be gathered to their own land, and made there a great and righteous nation.
- "He shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth" (Isa 11:12).
- "He that scattered Israel WILL GATHER HIM, and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock" (Jer 31:10).
- "Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Behold, I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country. And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness" (Zec 8:7-8).
- "I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land. And I WILL MAKE THEM ONE NATION in the land upon the mountains of ISRAEL; and ONE KING shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all" (Ezek 37:21-22).
CONCERNING ABRAHAM, ISAAC AND JACOB
Who was Abraham?
(82).
Originally he was a dweller in the land of the Chaldeans, on the eastern side of the river Euphrates, but when he was 75 years old, he left his friends and moved to Canaan.
- "I took your father Abraham from the other side of the flood (the Euphrates), and led him throughout all the land of Canaan" (Josh 24:3).
- "Thou art the Lord the God, who didst choose Abram, and broughtest him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and gavest him the name of Abraham" (Neh 9:7).
- "Then came he out of the land of the Chaldaeans, and dwelt in Charran: and from thence, when his father was dead, he removed him into this land, wherein ye now dwell" (Acts 7:4).
Why did Abraham remove to Canaan?
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Because God commanded him to do so.
- "The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran, and said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall show thee" (Acts 7:2-3; Gen. 12:1).
Why did God command Abraham to remove to Canaan?
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Because of the purpose God had formed concerning him and all the earth.
- "I called him (Abraham) alone, and blessed him, and increased him, for the Lord shall comfort Zion... the isles shall wait upon Me, and on Mine arm shall they trust" (Isa 51:2-5).
- "This people (the seed of Abraham, My friend) have I formed for Myself; they shall show forth My praise" (Isa 43:21; 41:8)
What was the purpose God had formed? (85)
To make of Abraham a great nation for the glory of God and the blessing of all mankind at last.
- "I will make of thee (Abraham) a great nation... and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed" (Gen 12:2-3).
- "As truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord" (Num 14:21).
- "I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear" (Isa 45:23).
Did God make known this purpose to anyone else than Abraham?
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Yes, to Abraham's son, Isaac, and to Isaac's son, Jacob.
- "The Lord appeared unto Isaac and said... In thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed" (Gen 26:4).
- "In thee (Jacob) and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed" (Gen 28:14).
- "Which covenant he made with Abraham, and his oath unto Isaac" (Psa 105:9).
- "By faith he (Abraham) sojourned in the land of promise... dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise" (Heb 11:8-9).
How did God lay the foundation of His work with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob?
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He made a covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, wherein they were strangers, for an everlasting possession.
- "All the land which thou (Abraham) seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever" (Gen 13:15).
- "In the same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates" (Gen 15:18).
- "And confirmed the same unto Jacob for a law, and to Israel for an everlasting covenant: Saying, Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan, the lot of your inheritance" (Psa 105:10-11).
- "Unto thee (Isaac), and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries" (Gen 26:2-4).
- "The land whereon thou (Jacob) liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed" (Gen 28:13-14).
Did Abraham, Isaac and Jacob receive possession of the land of Canaan thus promised to them?
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No; they were strangers in the land of promise during their lifetime and died (and were all three buried at Hebron) without receiving it.
- "These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect" (Heb 11:13-15,39,40).
- "And he (God) gave him (Abraham) none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on: yet he promised that he would give it to him for a possession" (Acts 7:5).
- "By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise" (Heb 11:8-9).
Will God fulfill His promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob by giving them the land of Canaan, wherein they dwelt as strangers during their mortal days?
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God will certainly fulfill His promise. He will raise Abraham, Isaac and Jacob from the dead, and give them possession of the land, when the Kingdom of God having been established there, it will have become a heavenly country.
- "Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old" (Mic 7:20).
- "As touching the dead, that they rise: have ye not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spake unto him, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?" (Mar 12:26).
- "Ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God" (Luke 13:28).
- "Many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven" (Mat 8:11).
- "They desire a better country (than the one from which they came out), that is, an heavenly (constitution)" (Heb 11:16).
CONCERNING ISRAEL'S DELIVERANCE FROM EGYPT
After having established the Covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, what next did God do in preparation for the carrying out of His purpose?
(90).
He sent Jacob’s family down into Egypt, where in process of time they grew numerous, and were enslaved by Pharaoh, who used them as makers of brick for the building of
cities.
- Genesis 35 to Genesis 50; also Exodus 1 and 2
How long were they in Egypt?
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Between two and three hundred years.
How did they get away from Egypt?
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God sent Moses to Pharaoh to demand their release, and when Pharaoh refused to let them go, God sent plagues into the land, one after another, to the number of ten, and at
the last, Pharaoh was glad to let them go.
Did they go straight to the land of promise?
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No; God led them to the west side of the Red Sea, where they were brought into great danger; for Pharaoh, hearing that they were in a place where they could not get away, came out with a great army to catch them, and take them back again into Egypt.
What did God do to release His people from the strait they were in?
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He opened a way in the sea for Israel to pass through. Israel got safely to the other side, and when the Egyptians followed them, God brought the sea upon the Egyptians and
drowned them all.
For what purpose did God perform all these wonderful works?
(95)
That He might make His existence and power known to Israel and to all the earth.
- "All that the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes: Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the Lord he is God; there is none else beside him" (Deut. 4:34-35).
- "He saved them for his name’s sake, that he might make his mighty power to be known" (Psa 106:8).
- "In the day that I lifted up mine hand unto them, to bring them forth of the land of Egypt... I wrought for my name’s sake, that it should not be polluted before the heathen, among whom they were, in whose sight I made myself known unto them, in bringing them forth out of the land of Egypt" (Eze 20:6-9).
- "I have hardened his (Pharoah’s) heart, and the heart of his servants, that I might shew my signs before him... that ye may know how that I am the Lord" (Exod. 10:1-2).
- "In very deed for this cause have I raised thee (Pharoah) up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth" (Exod. 9:16).
- "To the end thou mayest know that I am the Lord in the midst of the earth" (Exod. 8:22).
When Israel had crossed the Red Sea, what did God next do with them?
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He led them to the wilderness of Sinai among great and barren mountains, and showed His presence in a visible manner before them by descending to the top of Sinai in the midst of dense cloud, smoke, and earthquake; and speaking to them with a loud voice which they all heard.
- Exod. 19:20; Deut. 4:10-14; 5:4
Why did He do that?
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That the people might believe in Moses as the prophet of God, and be prepared to obey the law which he purposed to give them through him.
- "And the Lord said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever. And Moses told the words of the people unto the Lord" (Exod. 19:9).
- "I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth" (Deut. 4:10).
What did God say in the hearing of the children of Israel?
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He recited the ten commandments.
- "The Lord spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words... and he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments" (Deut. 4:12-13).
Did He deliver a law to them besides the ten commandments?
(99).
Yes, He spoke to Moses many other things which Moses spoke to the people.
- "He wrote them (the ten commandments) upon two tables of stone. And the Lord commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it" (Deut. 4:13-14).
CONCERNING THE FIRST COVENANT
Did God make a covenant with the people about these things?
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Yes; God offered to bless them with many blessings if they would obey the law that He would give them, and the people promised to do all that the Lord would command. Then
the Lord gave the law, and Moses wrote it in a book, and read it to the people. He then sprinkled the book and the people with the blood of sacrifices, and thus a covenant was
established between God and the people.
- "Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do. And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord... and he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient. And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words" (Exod. 24:3-8; also Heb 9:19-21).
What is this covenant called in the Scriptures?
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It is called the first, or the old, covenant.
- "If that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second... He saith, Behold, the days come when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel... In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old" (Heb 8:7-13).
Why is it called the first or the old covenant, seeing there was a covenant before it, namely, the covenant made with Abraham, spoken of in Question
(86)? (102).
Because, although the covenant of the law of Moses was the last to be given, it was the first to come into force, and was the law of Israel’s national life for many hundreds of years before the confirmation of the covenant made with Abraham by the shedding of the blood of Christ.
- Gal 3:17-19; Rom. 15:8; Luke 22:20; 1 Cor. 11:24-26).
CONCERNING ISRAEL IN THE WILDERNESS
What happened after the giving of the law to Israel, and the establishment in their midst of all things pertaining to it?
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God commanded Israel to march and enter the land of Canaan and subdue the nations that were there.
- Num. 13:1-20; Deut. 1:19-21.
Did they do as they were commanded?
(104)
They meant to do it, but when they heard that the nations of Canaan were strong, they were afraid, and made up their minds not to go, but to kill Moses, and set up another
captain over them who would lead them back into Egypt.
- Num. 13:31-33; 14:1-10; Deut. 1:22-23, 32, 33.
What did God do to them for this disobedience?
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Having showed His glory visibly in the camp to protect Moses, He ordered the whole congregation to go back into the wilderness, and there to remain for 40 years till the
whole of the men over 20 years of age were dead.
- Num. 14:10-35; Deut. 1:34-40.
What happened at the end of forty years?
(106)
At the end of the forty years, the Israelites came to Canaan from the east side of the river Jordan. When the nations on that side had been conquered, Moses died; and then the children of Israel crossed the Jordan and attacked the nations of Canaan.
Was it wicked for Israel to make war upon the Canaanite nations?
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No. The Canaanitish nations were sunk in wickedness, and God had commanded Israel to execute judgment upon them. It would have been wickedness if they had not done it.
- Lev. 18:26-28; 20-23; Deut. 9:4
CONCERNING RIGHT AND WRONG
What is wickedness? and what is righteousness?
(108)
That is wicked which God forbids: and that is righteous which God commands - whatever it is.
- "What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it" (Deut. 12:32).
- "Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams" (1 Sam. 15:22).
- "Sin is the transgression of the law" (1 John 3:4).
- "By one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous" (Rom 5:19).
Since God has said, "Thou shalt not kill", was it not wicked to kill the Canaanites?
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No; because God commanded Israel to kill the Canaanites. There is a time to kill and a time to keep alive. God knows the one thing and the other, and when He commands, man
has nothing to do but obey. God can do as He pleases. None can call Him in question.
- "Thou shalt smite them (the Canaanites), and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them... thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth" (Deut. 7:2; 20:16).
- "To every thing there is a season and a time... a time to kill, and a time to heal" (Ecc 3:1-3).
- "Cursed be he that doeth the work of the Lord deceitfully, and cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood (when the Lord commands)" (see 1 Sam. 15:1-3, 9, 23, 33), Jer 48:10).
- "He doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?" (Dan 4:35).
- "Whatsoever the Lord pleased, that did he in heaven, and in earth" (Psa 135:6).