In ancient culture, except for the Israelites, every little tribe or city-state or loosely defined nation had its own gods (and/or goddesses).
These so-called deities were also culturally known as “territorial” gods. a term likely coined by some anthropologist.
Extreme Bible critics try to say that “El” (the Root of God’s Name “Elohiym”) is just an adaptation of one of those little gods! AN ACCUSATION I FLATLY DENY! The noun “El” means “Power, Strength” and our God carries that Name/Title because He is Omnipotent! The God of All Power!
My point today … GOD IS NOT A TERRITORIAL GOD, NOT AT ALL! He is (and will yet in the future more literally be) the … God of all the nations!
As in Psalm 108. “God hath spoken in his holiness; I will rejoice, I will divide Shechem, and mete out the valley of Succoth. Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine; Ephraim also is the strength of mine head; Judah is my lawgiver. Moab is my washpot; over Edom will I cast out my shoe; over Philistia will I triumph.”
Look at this list!
Several of these little nations (Moab, Edom, Philistia) historically claim one or more local gods and goddesses … BUT HERE IN OUR TEXT GOD HAS USURPED THEIR POWER, THEIR POSITION, THEIR HONOR! There is simply no god like our God!
Here in Psalm 108 Gilead, Manasseh, and Ephrain (all names regularly used for Israel, the Northern Kingdom) alongside little Judah … shamefully had their false gods at certain low points of their lives! BUT THE DAY IS COMING … AS PER OUR TEXT … THAT OUR GOD WILL BE THE GOD OF ALL THE NATIONS!
After the Tribulation.
After Jesus comes again.
After the antichrist and the devil are eternally banished.
Then Isaiah 45:23 will be realized … “I (the Lord God) 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.” Words directly quoted by Paul in both Romans 14:11 and Philippians 2:10.
“Every knee, every mouth?”
Yes!
And that necessarily includes every nation!
As in Revelation 15:4 … “Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for ALL NATIONS shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.”
And Psalm 22:27 … “All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD: and ALL THE KINDREDS OF THE NATIONS shall worship before thee.”
Psalm 86:9 as well … “ALL NATIONS whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and shall glorify thy name.”
Zechariah 14:6 promises … “And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of ALL THE NATIONS which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles.” During the Millennium!
Stated more generally … “And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall ALL FLESH come to worship before me, saith the LORD.” Isaiah 66:23 is quite clear, “all flesh!”
I rest my case!
Ample Scripture has been presented (though many Passages remain unmentioned) to prove the point.
Our great God is not merely a little, local deity of some kind.
He is Creator of all who live!
And Redeemer of all who believe!
He assuredly is “Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, the first and the last, that which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” Blending Revelation 1:8 and 1:11 and Revelation 21:6 and 22:13.
Wow!
Let us worship Him today!
He is worthy!
— Dr. Mike Bagwell
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