AFTER the death of Jacob his sons continued to reside in the land of Egypt. While Joseph lived and ruled, the Israelites were well treated, and prospered. But the time had come for a change.
"And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence. So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old; and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt." — Gen. 50:24-26.
"Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph." (Ex. 1:8) This new Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, dealt wickedly with the Israelites. He caused the babes to be killed. Moses was born; and the Lord miraculously preserved him, and caused him to be nourished and brought up in the house of the king. Moses, learning of the promises made to his forefathers, and seeing his brethren persecuted and ill treated, rather than to be called the son of the daughter of Pharaoh and enjoy the pleasures of the great kingdom, chose to suffer affliction with his own people. He forsook
Egypt and sought to know and to do the will of God.
The afflictions of the Israelites increased under the wicked rulership of the Egyptian king. God called to Moses and said:
"I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. . . . And the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; and I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt." — Ex. 3: 6-10.
Then the Lord spoke unto Moses and told him to appear before the king of Egypt and demand the release of the Israelites. The Lord had appeared unto Abraham, Isaac and Jacob by the name of God Almighty; but now for the first time he appears as Jehovah, and he says to Moses:
"And I have also established my covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage, wherein they were strangers. And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage; and I have remembered my covenant." — Ex. 6:4, 5.
Pharaoh continued to increase the burdens of the Israelites. God visited the various plagues upon the Egyptians. Still the king refused to permit Israel to go. Then came the plague of the death of the firstborns. This was the time of the institution of the Passover. It marked the beginning of time with the Israelites. The Lord commanded that on the tenth day of the first month each family should take a lamb, which must be without blemish, a male of the first year. The lamb should be kept up until the fourteenth day of the same month, on which day it should be killed and the blood of the lamb sprinkled on the two sideposts and the lintel of the door of the house of the family. Then the lamb should be roasted with fire and eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs; and the family eating thereof should have their loins girded, shoes on their feet and staff in hand; and at midnight of that day, when the angel of the Lord should pass through the land of Egypt and smite with death the first-born, both of man and beast in Egypt, the first-born of the Israelites would be spared, provided they
had sprinkled the blood upon the door as directed.
The families of Israel obeyed this command, and thus showed their faith in God's promise; and their first-born were spared from death. On that fateful night the Lord smote with death the first-born of the households of Egypt, from the king to the humblest servant. There was a great cry in Egypt, and now the king and the people thrust out the Israelites. The Israelites borrowed from the Egyptians their silver, their gold, and their raiment. The descendants of Israel, or Jacob, had now grown to upwards of 600,000 people; and these on foot marched to the Red Sea. When the king had bemoaned the fate of his first-born for a time, then he summoned his army and followed after the Israelites to slay them.
When Moses and Aaron had appeared before the king and requested that the Israelites be permitted to go and worship their God, Pharaoh said: "Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go." (Ex. 5:2) When the Egyptians had oppressed the Israelites hard, God said unto Moses: "And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gotten me honour upon Pharaoh, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen." (Ex. 14:18) Then God went behind the camp of Israel and shielded them with a cloud and a pillar of fire. The Lord commanded Moses to stretch forth his
hand over the sea; and by a strong east wind the Lord caused the sea to go back, so that the Israelites passed through the Red Sea on dry land. When the Egyptians started to follow after them, they were engulfed in the sea and were destroyed. God thus demonstrated to the Israelites that he was their God, their shield and their protector.
When they were safely on the other side of the sea, Moses and the children of Israel sang a song of praise unto Jehovah: "The Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father's God, and I will exalt him. The Lord is a man of war: the Lord is his name." — Ex. 15: 2, 3.
The Lord Jehovah now began to teach the Israelites lessons of faith. Their miraculous deliverance from the hands of their enemies should have been sufficient to establish their faith in God. Faith and faithfulness is one of the hardest lessons that man has to learn. According to one's faith is his reward and blessing.
AT MOUNT SINAI
In the third month after the Israelites were delivered from the Egyptians they came to the wilderness of Sinai and pitched their camp at the base of Mount Sinai. At the invitation of Jehovah, Moses went up into the mountain, that God might communicate with him and arrange
for the ratification of the covenant which had been made in Egypt.
A covenant is a solemn agreement made between two or more parties, upon a sufficient consideration, in which both parties agree to do or not to do certain things. In the law covenant ratified at Mount Sinai God promised to do certain things, and the Israelites agreed to do all that God proposed unto them. The Lord spoke through Moses, the mediator for Israel. God there promised the Israelites that if they would be faithful to their agreement, they should be unto him a holy nation. — Ex. 19: 3-8.
"And Moses went up unto God, and the Lord called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel: Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself. Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel."
Then the Lord told Moses to prepare the people, for on the third day thereafter he would come down and give unto them the law. The people were assembled at the foot of Mount Sinai; and on the morning of the third day, amidst thunders and lightnings and while thick
clouds hung over the mountain, the voice of a trumpet sounded exceedingly loud and all the mountain quaked so that the people trembled with fear; and then the Lord spoke unto them. Amidst these great convulsions of the earth and the elements, God through Moses gave unto the Israelites the law, the fundamental portion of which is set out in the Scriptures as follows:
"And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
"Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; and shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
"Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
"Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant,
nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
"Honour thy father and thy mother; that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
"Thou shalt not kill.
"Thou shalt not commit adultery.
"Thou shalt not steal.
"Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
"Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbour's.
"And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.
"And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not. And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was.
"And the Lord said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with yon from heaven. Ye shall not make with me gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold. An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee. And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it. Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon." — Ex. 20:1-26.
For a record of the divers statutes and ordinances which God gave to Israel the reader is referred to Exodus, chapters twenty-one and twenty-two.
But many ask: Why should God make a covenant with the people of Israel? The answer is: God had now organized the Israelites into a nation for his purposes. He had promised that through the line of Judah should come the great Messiah, to whom the people should be gathered, and who would administer to them the blessings according to the promise which God had made to Abraham. Of course God knew the weaknesses of men, and knew that the Israelites would now be the special target of the enemy; but he knew that the law would be unto
the Jews a teacher or schoolmaster to keep them separate and distinct from other peoples of the earth and prepare them to receive the great Messiah in due time. The law also served to teach them the real significance of the sacrifices which they were caused to perform, and which in due time they would fully understand. The sacrifices of animals were merely types and shadows, showing that better things would follow.
It is observed that, of all things stated in the law, that which is made the most prominent is that the people should worship Jehovah God and should have no other gods besides him. Why is that feature of the law made so prominent? If Jehovah God is all powerful and is the personification of love, why should it be necessary for him to make such a provision in his law? Did Jehovah God make this law for a selfish purpose, that he might have the worship of the people? No; God did not make this law for a selfish purpose. He made it for the special benefit of the Jews and also for the ultimate benefit of all men. The proper answers to the above questions are very essential to an understanding of God's specific dealings with Israel and of the general blessings he purposes for all mankind.
ENEMY'S ORGANIZATION
It is recorded in the book of Job (38:4-7) that when God laid the foundations of the earth as a habitation for man, "the morning stars
sang together" for joy. The Holy Scriptures show that the term "morning stars" refers to two mighty beings of heaven, namely, Michael (the Logos) and Lucifer. Here something is said about Lucifer, and later herein something will be said concerning the Logos.
Lucifer proved to be the disloyal son of God, while the Logos is the "Faithful and True". Since this prophecy refers to the laying of the foundations of the earth as a place for man's habitation, it is necessary to examine here the account of the creation of man.
The Genesis account, written by Moses under inspiration of God, discloses that when God had created the earth, he made a portion thereof exceedingly beautiful and called it Eden. He planted a garden in the eastern part of Eden, and then made man and woman and placed them in this garden of the Lord. (Gen. 2: 8-15) God clothed man with power and authority to produce his own species and to fill the earth in due time.
Lucifer was appointed to the high position of overlord of man. He was assigned to the duty of overseeing man and of carrying out God's purposes concerning humanity. Lucifer therefore occupied a confidential of fiduciary relationship toward God, and a position of confidence and trust on behalf of man. The Prophet Ezekiel records concerning Lucifer that he was "in Eden the garden of God". The same prophet further says concerning Lucifer: "Thou art the
anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee." (Ezek. 28:14,15) The title "covering cherub", used herein, shows that Lucifer occupied a position of trust and authority.
The greatest crime that can be committed is to wilfully betray a trust, resulting in injury to another. Such is an act of treason. It makes the perpetrator of the wrong a wicked and nefarious creature. Lucifer was guilty of this very thing. He knew that man was so created that he must worship a higher being. He knew that man would enjoy the beauties of Eden and worship Jehovah God, his Creator and Benefactor. He knew also that man was clothed with authority to bring forth children and fill the earth with a race of people. Lucifer became ambitious that he might have from man the worship to which God alone was justly entitled. He reasoned that if he could turn man away from God, in due time Adam and Eve and all their offspring would worship Lucifer, and that then he would be like the Most High. God's prophet says concerning Lucifer:
"How art thou fallen from heaven, 0 Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend
into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds: I will be like the Most High." — Isa. 14:12-14.
To accomplish his selfish and wicked purpose Lucifer resorted to fraud, deceit and lying, which resulted in murder. Therefore he was a liar and a murderer from the beginning of man's history. He employed the serpent in Eden through which to speak to Eve, in order to deceive her. God had told Adam and Eve that growing upon the trees of Eden there were certain fruits which they must not eat. Lucifer, in his wily and subtle way of deceiving man, approached Eve first and said: "Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" And the woman replied: "We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die." —Gen. 3:1-3.
Now Lucifer knew that in order to succeed in his wicked purpose he must make God appear to be a liar, and that he, Lucifer, must appear as a benefactor. Hence he replied to Eve:
"Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired
to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat." — Gen. 3: 4-6.
Thus yielding to the seductive influence of Lucifer, operating through the serpent, Eve ate of the fruit in violation of the law of God; and Adam joined her in the transgression.
THE JUDGMENT
Jehovah God must be consistent. He can not deny himself. Having announced the penalty for the violation of his law, he must see to it that the law, when violated, must be enforced. By the terms of that judgment (Gen. 3:14-24) it is provided that henceforth there should be enmity between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent; that in God's due time the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head; that the woman should bring forth her children in sorrow; that man should thereafter earn his bread in the sweat of his face until he should return to the dust, whence God had taken him. To enforce this judgment God drove Adam and Eve out of Eden and prevented them from returning, lest they should eat of the tree of life and live for ever. Outside of Eden, feeding upon the unfinished fruits of the earth, which were poisonous, gradually they went into death.
The name Lucifer means "light-bearer"; and now, since he had become wicked, God changed his name, so that thereafter he was, and has been, known by four different names: Serpent,
Dragon, Satan, and the Devil. Each one of these names has a special significance. Serpent means deceiver; and he has sought to deceive every one who has tried to do right. Dragon means devourer; and he has attempted to devour every one who has tried to walk in the way of righteousness. Satan means opposer, or adversary; and he has opposed everything of righteousness. Devil means slanderer; and he has made it his chief business to slander God and every one who has tried to be in harmony with God. The sentence of God against him is that in due time he shall be destroyed. The prophets Ezekiel and Isaiah both make this clear:
"Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty; thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness; I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee. Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffic; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee; and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth, in the sight of all them that behold thee." (Ezek. 28:17,18) "Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit." — Isa. 14:15.
Of course God could have destroyed Satan the Devil at once, but his wisdom provided a more effectual course. Knowing that the wicked course which Satan would take would test the
faith of every righteous one, God permitted him to be used to try the faith of men. Thus a way was open where man could exercise his own free will. He could choose to follow evil or choose to follow righteousness. The enemy, Satan, marks the course of evil. God points out the way of righteousness and good. Every man must have an opportunity to exercise his own free will-power; and, if he follows evil, the consequences will be disastrous; but, if good, he will receive God's blessings.
From the time of Eden until now Satan has opposed every effort on the part of men or peoples to do that which is right. Those who have attempted to obey God have been the special targets of the Devil. When Abel would serve God, the Devil induced Cain to murder his brother. From then till now Satan the enemy has planted murder in the hearts of men, and has caused them to kill one another and to attempt the destruction of every one who believes and serves God.
The enemy, Satan the Devil, seduced a number of the angels of heaven and turned them away from God, until there came to be a great host of devils of whom he is the chief. He proceeded to set up his organization, composed of a wicked heaven and a wicked earth. Heaven means the invisible ruling realm and power, while earth has reference to the organization of the governments of men on earth.
In Noah's day Satan the enemy had seduced the people and turned them away from God, and none except Noah and his family remained true and faithful. God brought the great deluge upon the earth and destroyed all the creatures on earth except Noah and his family, thereby expressing his displeasure at wickedness, and demonstrating his power as superior to that of others, that mankind might have faith in him and know that he is the living God. In Abraham's day few people had any faith in God. Abraham was one of the faithful, and for this reason he received God's approval and favor.
The Scriptures disclose that it has ever been the policy of Satan the enemy to induce the people to worship him, either directly or indirectly; and that if he could not induce them to worship him directly, then he would cause them to worship graven images or idols, or to worship anything except Jehovah God. Satan the enemy organized all the nations outside of the offspring of Abraham, and induced them to worship him or some of his representatives.
When the Israelites were domiciled in Egypt every nation and people under the sun, aside from the Israelites, were under the control and influence of Satan the enemy. Pharaoh was Satan's chief representative on earth. The Scriptures show that Pharaoh was a type of Satan, and that Egypt was a type of the wicked world under Satan. The great persecution of the Israelites in Egypt was due to the fact that
Israel was the only people of God, and that Satan the enemy sought to destroy them because God had declared that the seed of promise should bruise Satan's head in due time. The Lord God miraculously delivered the Israelites from Egypt, and thus demonstrated that he is all-powerful and able to save them to the uttermost.
God led Israel up to Mount Sinai and there gave them the law by which they should be governed, and which would serve as a protection to them against the wiles of the enemy Satan. The law also served as a schoolmaster to teach them and lead them in the way that they should go as long as they would obey the law. The purpose of the Lord was to thus lead them until the coming of the great Messiah, to whom the people should be gathered and blessed, according to his promise. But the people soon fell into the habit of offering their sacrifices unto devils. And then God spoke unto Moses and commanded that they should offer their sacrifices unto the Lord: "And they shall no more offer their sacrifices unto devils, after whom they have gone a whoring. This shall be a statute for ever unto them throughout their generations." — Lev. 17: 7.
And now the question is answered, why God commanded the people that they should have no other god besides him. The answer is: Because he saw how the enemy Satan had turned all the nations and peoples into the course of
wickedness, and he knew that the only safeguard for the Israelites was for them to remain faithful to Jehovah God. He commanded that they should worship him as the only true God; and this command was for their good. It was the love of God for the people of Israel that induced him to give them the law.
GOD'S ORGANIZATION
The Scriptures abundantly testify to the fact that there are many pure and holy angels in heaven who are loyal to Jehovah God. These form the invisible part of God's organization, which organization is righteous. "When the people of Israel were organized into a nation and entered into a covenant with Jehovah God that people and nation became a part of God's organization. Zion is one of the names applied to God's organization. Israel is often mentioned in the Scriptures under the name Zion. The reason for this is that for a long time Israel was the visible part of God's organization on earth.
David was the beloved king of Israel. He was a man after God's own heart. His name means beloved. He was a type of the great Messiah to come. His son Solomon was a type of the glorified Messiah reigning in riches and glory. A city is often used as a symbol of an organization or government. It is written in 1 Kings 8:1: "Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel,
unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of David, which is Zion."
The Scriptures declare that God dwells in Zion, as it is written in Psalms 9:11 and 132:13: "Sing praises to the Lord, which dwelleth in Zion: declare among the people his doings." "For the Lord hath chosen Zion: he hath desired it for his habitation." Thus it is shown that Zion is the habitation of Jehovah. "Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined." — Ps. 50:2.
Israel, when in harmony with God, being the only government on earth with which the Lord dealt, was properly called Zion, because a part of his organization; and being the only part of God's visible organization, it is easily understood why God hedged about the Israelites with his perfect law. Israel was favored above any other people on earth, because God chose Israel for his people.
The great lessons that God was teaching to the Israelites, which all men must ultimately learn are these, to wit: That Satan the enemy is the wicked one; that his course leads to destruction, and that those who wilfully follow him will in due time be destroyed; that God is the great righteous One, the God of wisdom, justice, love and power, and that he has provided the way to life and eternal blessedness for all those who will obey him and follow righteousness. The Lord has thus expressed it
through his prophet in Psalm 145:20: "The Lord preserveth all them that love him: but all the wicked will he destroy."
The nation of Israel, therefore, was used for more than 1800 years as examples to teach a great lesson to humanity. All the way Satan the enemy sought to blind Israel and turn that people away from God. Now the time has come for the Jews to see that God's gracious purpose in dealing with them lovingly and patiently was for their own benefit; and not for them only, but that all the families of the earth might learn the important lesson that righteousness alone exalteth the people.
Therefore the Israelites, the Jews, during the time of God's dealing with them, were a typical people. Their law was typical, foreshadowing some better things to come. Moses plainly says that he was a type of the great Messiah: "The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken. I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him." (Deut. 18:15,18) Isaiah prophesied that he and his sons were types of things future: "Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me are for signs and for tokens [types] in Israel, from the Lord of hosts who dwelleth on Mount Zion." (Isa. 8:18, Leeser) To the same effect Zechariah prophe-
sied that God intended Israel as a typical people. — Zech. 3:8.
Seeing then that the people of Israel were used to make pictures foreshadowing better things in the future, all peoples, whether Jew or Gentile, who love righteousness and who desire to live, should study the law of Israel and God's dealings with that people with the keenest interest. It will be found that the things which happened unto Israel were for examples for the special benefit of those who should be living on earth at the end of the world and at the time when God's favor would return to the Jews, even in the time in which we are now living. When we see and understand that for many centuries the Devil has had an organization, that he is the opposer of God and righteousness, and that for a long time the nation of Israel was a part of God's organization, it is easy to understand why Satan would busy himself in trying to overreach and destroy the nation of Israel. Thus we are enabled to understand many things concerning the history of Israel which are otherwise not understandable. It is also apparent that any one who falls to the wiles of the Devil must lose God's favor, and that any one who will receive the favor of God must turn away from the Devil and from his organization and diligently seek the Lord and obey him. God never put an evil thought into any man's mind. He never induced man to do an evil act. Inasmuch as Satan the Devil is the enemy of God
and is the great evil one, it is absolutely certain that he has injected into men's minds the evil thoughts and evil desires that have led to all the evil deeds.
From the time that Cain murdered Abel to this very hour Satan the enemy has been the one who has induced all the murders and other wicked deeds of humankind. "Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people." (Prov. 14: 34) The facts show that God offered the nation of Israel an opportunity to follow righteousness and to be exalted above all others. (Ex. 19: 5, 6) They yielded to the evil one, fell into sin, and became a reproach. Thus the history of Israel stands as a monument, teaching a lesson to all nations and peoples of earth.
