Shalom, veteran.
Well, that's not true. Just look at the verses again. I've quoted for you from Psalm 89, 2 Chronicles 6-7, and Romans 11. Did no one read what I quoted?! I wrote seven lines of my own words. All the rest was GOD'S Word! I would suggest you learn these passages and take them to heart, because GOD DOES NOT CHANGE! HE REMAINS FAITHFUL! The Hebrew word is "chesed" and was translated as "lovingkindness" in the KJV. The concept behind the word is that GOD KEEPS HIS COVENANTS! Paul told us that God does not renig on His promises! He's not an "Indian giver!" And, the Jews ARE a part of national Isra'el! Y'hudah was a son of Isra'el! Therefore, they DO still have the promises of God!
There's a difference between unbelieving Judah as still beloved of God by His calling vs. His Birthright promises to Israel (which include the covenants and promises Paul mentioned the Gentiles have come into per Ephesians 2 involving Christ's Church as "the commonwealth of Israel"). God's Birthright is the matter I speak of regarding the promises. They remained with believing Israel of the scattered ten tribes.
There are certain things God did promise involving even unbelieving Judah for this world time, examples like 1 Kings 11 where He promised to always leave one tribe in Jerusalem for His servants David's sake, and Jerusalem sake; and His promise of Jer.24 to bring them back to the holy land and not remove them again, and also per Paul in Rom.11 to remove their blindness in final when the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. But His Birthright, which includes His promises to Israel per the promise to Abraham, is no longer with the unbelieving Jews today. This is why Paul also taught in Rom.11 that anyone in unbelief is cut off.
When God removed the ten tribes of Israel out of the holy land, His Birthright promises went with them, for that Birthright was given to the sons of Joseph, not to Judah, excepting Judah remaining as "chief ruler" which is about the royal sceptre (1 Chronicles 5). The care of David's throne is no longer with
unbelieving Judah today. But it is still with 'believing' Judah, thus fulfilling God's promise in Gen.49:10 that one of Judah would keep the sceptre until Shiloh (Christ) returns. In the Christian West is where we find all of God's Birthright promises still established today, and that's about The Gospel of Jesus Christ and His Church.
Your heart may sing out for your brethren that still refuse to receive Jesus of Nazareth as The Christ, much as how Paul himself felt about them. I feel the same way. Yet God's Plan is His and not ours, and it will be established as He said. Ps.89 is especially about God's Promise to David that there would never fail a man of Israel to sit upon his throne to all generations. 2 Chronicles 6 is much about the same matter of God's Promise to David about his throne and ruling over His people. But Rom.11:25-32 is about God putting blindness upon Israel "in part", meaning only upon a portion, the unbelieving Jews of the "house of Judah" (Judah, Benjamin, and Levi).
Yechezk'el is talking about the sons of Tsaadowq (Zadok), which means "righteousness" or "justice," just as Malkhiy-Tsedeq (Melchizedek) means "my King of Righteousness."
Notice the distinction between the Levites that fell away vs. the Zadok in that Ezekiel 44 chapter. The Zadok do not represent just the 'believing' seed of Israel, it represents the believing Gentiles too, as per Christ's promise of His servants becoming priests and kings in Revelation. The name Zadok is not a specific name applied to only the seed of Israel there. All those who remain in Christ Jesus are the Zadok, meaning The Just, or the Righteous, for He is The King of the Zadok. The Levites there represent those of Israel that went astray when Israel went astray; they point to unbelieving house of Judah (Jews) today that still refuse The Gospel of Jesus Christ, but also to Christian leaders that lead astray.
And, it is an HONOR to serve in the House of God, regardless the job! They weren't being "punished!" Where'd you get a silly notion such as that?! They just couldn't serve in the office of cohen! Think, veteran, is it a "punishment" to serve in the motor pool? Or, is a GI still doing a necessary service for his country?
I'm not going to allow you to try and diminish what God said those unbelievers will be under in that future time and why, for it is a very important matter to our LORD GOD, and it should be to us also...
Ezek 44:6-24
6 And thou shalt say to the rebellious, even to the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; O ye house of Israel, let it suffice you of all your abominations,
7 In that ye have brought into My sanctuary strangers, uncircumcised in heart, and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in My sanctuary, to pollute it, even My house, when ye offer My bread, the fat and the blood, and they have broken My covenant because of all your abominations.
8 And ye have not kept the charge of Mine holy things: but ye have set keepers of My charge in My sanctuary for yourselves.
9 Thus saith the Lord GOD; No stranger, uncircumcised in heart, nor uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter into My sanctuary, of any stranger that is among the children of Israel.
The first problem with "strangers" was how Israel disobeyed God's command to specifically destroy the nations of Canaan (Deut.20; Judges 2 & 3). They failed in that, and thus God allowed them to become a test upon Israel, to see if Israel would follow Him or not. Then after a while, Israel allowed them entrance into the temple to do 'menial' duties that the Levite priests only were supposed to do. Those were the priests and Nethinims of Ezra 2 which were not of any genealogy of Israel.
Solomon with his many concubines and wives of the nations allowed them to have their idols and false worship among Israel. So God rent the kingdom from Solomon's son Rehoboam and gave Israel to Jeroboam of the tribe of Ephraim (1 Kings 11 forward).
And then eventually among the remaining house of Judah that returned after the 70 years Babylon captivity, the Kenites of the nations of Canaan still dwelling among them were allowed to become the 'scribes' in Judea (1 Chronicles 2:55). Per the histories by the Jewish historian Josephus, even sons of Esau were allowed to become high priests in Jerusalem. And many of Esau became Jews mixed in among the house of Judah. This is why John the Baptist, Christ Jesus Himself, and His Apostles rebuked the scribes, Pharisees, and Sadduccees, because of all the foreigners with their pagan doctrines that had crept in among them and in the seat of Moses (law), and in the priesthood.
But God foreknew that would happen, as He sent His Son to them first knowing those crept in unawares were not of His fold and would not receive Him, but want to kill Him thinking to steal His vineyard of Israel instead, and then He would remove His vineyard of Israel from their care, as it still is to this day (Matthew 21).
To this day, our times, the "crept in unawares", i.e., the wolves in sheep's clothing, are still dwelling among God's people in high positions of authority and in Christ's Church, not just among the house of Judah (Jews) only. Apostle Paul specifically warned of this for after his departing, a counsel from God that is mysteriously left out of most Churches today (Acts 20:27-32). Some... of God's people are guilty in allowing that to happen among the scattered house of Israel also, so it does not apply only to Israelite history in Old Testament times, but today also involving Christ's Church. (Ezekiel was sent as a prophet especially to the "house of Israel", i.e., the ten tribes, and not for the house of Judah, though he is given some prophecies concerning Judah).
10
And the Levites that are gone away far from Me, when Israel went astray, which went astray away from Me after their idols; they shall even bear their iniquity.
11 Yet they shall be ministers in My sanctuary, having charge at the gates of the house, and ministering to the house: they shall slay the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister unto them.
These Levites represent all those leaders that led Israel astray through history, which includes... Christian leaders over Christ's Church that lead their congregations astray, even for today. They will "bear their iniquity" like God said there through His prophet Ezekiel. They will be assigned specific ministering duties in God's House that the Zadok (Just) priests will NOT... be doing. So God gave there an example of how... those priests of Israel that went astray will "bear their iniquity".
12 Because they ministered unto them before their idols, and caused the house of Israel to fall into iniquity; therefore have I lifted up Mine hand against them, saith the Lord GOD, and they shall bear their iniquity.
God will not be pleased with them because of what they did and allow, and therefore they will not be allowed to approach our Lord Jesus Christ in that time.
13 And they shall not come near unto Me, to do the office of a priest unto Me, nor to come near to any of My holy things, in the most holy place: but they shall bear their shame, and their abominations which they have committed.
That is about a penance for those, not a time of joy.
14 But I will make them keepers of the charge of the house, for all the service thereof, and for all that shall be done therein.
(KJV)
The fact that God is not going to literally destroy those Levites which led His people astray to worship idols and the coming "abomination of desolation" shows His mercy upon them, and how He will not go against His calling upon them (Rom.11:29). So this should be a fair warning for leaders over God's people today, especially those given authority as stewards over His Church.
there are several areas i do not agree with you. take time to understand Daniel chapter 11 and 12. Muslim plays no role in the last days. look at the Daniels dream of the four beats and carry all that to revelation. i will definitely teach all this here
http://www.christiantruthcenter.com/. But still realize that we have the spirit of the anti-Christ in place today.
http://www.christian.../the-antichrist
Then you have not looked at other prophecy, like the list of nations against Israel on the last day per Ezekiel 38 and 39.
Shalom, veteran.
Yochanan simply meant that there were already people in the first century against the idea that the Messiah had come in the flesh, that Yeshua` is that Messiah, and that He is the Son of God.
That's all.
One must separate John's first phrase that they had already heard that antichrist shall come, from the second phrase he gave that acts as additional info for the subject of the first phrase.
They first had heard that the Antichrist shall come, and that was regarding the old prophecies like in the Book of Daniel, and then later with what Christ gave in His Olivet Discourse, and then Paul in 2 Thess.2:3-4 and 2 Cor.11 about the "another Jesus".
But John's second phrase was more info to point out how there are "many antichrists" here already. He was not detracting from his first clause at all.
But that's exactly what the devil's servants do with it that have spread the lie that there is no specific singular Antichrist that's coming in our near future. For them to do that, it shows how they are in strong denial of all... those other specific Scriptures about the coming a particular false one in the last days. And to their own destruction they are doing that.