Women became part of Israel the same way as men - by faith.
Israel.
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You're speaking of spiritual Israel. Any man in the world could become part of natural Israel without faith by becoming circumcised and following the law, but no man could become part of spiritual Israel apart from the physical act of circumcision.
Israel is the Church when again we look at and consider the redemption promise made to Israel Ps 130:7-8
7 Let Israel hope in the Lord: for with the Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption.
8 And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.
The Promise is that the Lord shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities. Now this is fulfilled in the church Titus 2:14
14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Titus is written to the Church, the Elect of God Titus 1:1
Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;
Its the same people, the Church, and Israel being redeemed from all iniquity ! No not ethnic national israel, they were a type, a shadow, but Spiritual Israel, Christ's and Abrahams Spiritual seed.10
7 Let Israel hope in the Lord: for with the Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption.
8 And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.
The Promise is that the Lord shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities. Now this is fulfilled in the church Titus 2:14
14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Titus is written to the Church, the Elect of God Titus 1:1
Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;
Its the same people, the Church, and Israel being redeemed from all iniquity ! No not ethnic national israel, they were a type, a shadow, but Spiritual Israel, Christ's and Abrahams Spiritual seed.10
Israel means .... he who struggles with El.
.... He that wrestles with God. And prevails.
Jacob wrestled with God and his name was changed.
Gen 32:25-28
..... as he wrestled with him. 26 And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. 27 And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. 28 And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.
The blood line is not what gives us the blessing. By a relationship and by struggling with God we resieve the blessing. By not letting God go, like Jacob, unless your blessed you become Spiritual Isreal.
Having power with God and prevailing.
Gods kingdom is not of this world.
It is about our hearts. The battle is over our souls. Those that are Christ's and follow Him are part of the Spiritual Israel.
Physical Israel has not significance on the heart and character. So these souls are not any better off and their conditions are the same as any one else.
I think the scriptures say otherwise.
Romans 4: 8 - 13
8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.
9 Cometh this blessedness then upon the circumcision only, or upon the uncircumcision also? for we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness.
10 How was it then reckoned? when he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision.
11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised; that righteousness might be imputed unto them also:
12 And the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised.
13 For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.
No it doesn't because I've been talking about the old covenant. Paul is referring to those under the new covenant in which physical circumcision is nothing.
Paul's actually talking about Abraham, the first guy to receive circumcision as "a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised". So there's that...
And when the covenant of circumcision was in force no man could become a part of natural or spiritual Israel without being circumcised. Talking around that point is just wasting time and going in circles
I think you're getting it backward by focusing on circumcision, which is the point. Abraham, the father of all believers, believed before any of his works. Works such as circumcision were simply an outward expression of that faith.
Deuteronomy 10:16 Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked.
Moses, while believing, somehow neglected to circumcise his son. God intervened through Moses' wife in order to save him.
Circumcision was obedience to God's command. It wasn't merely a symbolic expression of faith; it was what sealed a man into the people of God. It was not a work to be justifed; it was a work to become a participant in the promises of God
The work to become a participant in the promise of God is to believe in the One whom God sent.
That is under the new covenant.
If you want to keep talking about this, please directly address the point I made that when the old covenant was in force no man could become a member of Israel and share in the promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob without being circumcised.
Yes. Thank you @HeIsHere. As in Abraham's case.
My understanding was that uncircumcision was a capital crime. The foreskin had to be removed, with or without the rest of the male. But there were other capital crimes such as murder and adultery, and we see the punishment for these weren't always strictly administered. Based on this, I don't see it as impossible that some might get away with uncircumcision in natural Israel.
If we're talking about sharing in God's promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, I think that reverts the discussion to spiritual Israel again?
It is nowhere stated in scripture that uncircumcision was a capital crime. Not being circumcised cut one's soul off from Israel. In other words, the uncircumcised were not sharers in the promises of God.
The foreskin was to be "cut off" via circumcision. However, if not the foreskin, the whole man was to be "cut off" from Israel. Not sure how you don't see the parallel?
You're reading into the text that "cut off" means capital punishment, even though it dpesn't say that. It would have been much simpler to circumcise a man or send him into exile than to kill him.
Circumcision is what sealed men of Israel into the people of God. It was the seal of the covenant; it was their very identity as belonging to the people of Abraham. Those who were not sealed were cut off by God from the promises .
And you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a seal of the covenant between me and you. Genesis 17:11
And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant. Genesis 17:14
What was to happen to Moses because of his son's uncircumcision? Was God going to kill him, or simply exile him?
Exodus 4: 24 - 26
And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him.
Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me.
So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision.
Refer also to Leviticus, where "cut off" and "put to death" are used interchangeably.
Leviticus 20:1 - 6
Then the LORD said to Moses,
“Tell the Israelites, ‘Any Israelite or foreigner living in Israel who gives any of his children to Molech must be put to death. The people of the land are to stone him.
And I will set My face against that man and cut him off from his people, because by giving his offspring to Molech, he has defiled My sanctuary and profaned My holy name.
And if the people of the land ever hide their eyes and fail to put to death the man who gives one of his children to Molech,
then I will set My face against that man and his family and cut off from among their people both him and all who follow him in prostituting themselves with Molech.
Whoever turns to mediums or spiritists to prostitute himself with them, I will also set My face against that person and cut him off from his people.
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