We are coming on to consider the subject of Israel, the fig tree. I believe that, as with the three days of Hosea we looked at earlier, this too has something to teach us about the dating of the Second Coming.
There are three botanic idioms used for Israel, four including the bramble bush. We learn this from the parable of Jotham when speaking to the men of Shechem in Judges 9:7-15. This concerns the trees looking for a king to reign over them. The olive tree replied, “should I cease giving my oil, with which they honor God and men, and go to sway over trees?” The fig tree retorted, “‘should I cease my sweetness and my good fruit, and go to sway over trees?” The vine also refused the offer, “should I cease my new wine, which cheers both God and men, and go to sway over trees?” The bramble was keen to be king yet had little to offer, unlike the other trees. Chuck Missler points out in his audio commentary on Ezekiel 15,[1] that Scripture presents Israel as the olive tree, the vine and the fig tree. He explains that the olive tree symbolises the covenant relationship between the LORD and Israel,[2] the vine speaks of the spiritual relationship between Israel and Yehovah,[3] and the fig tree is an idiom for Israel in a national sense.[4] Indeed, Jeremiah is shown a basket of good figs and bad figs. “Figs, the good figs, very good; and the bad, very bad, which cannot be eaten, they are so bad.”[5] The LORD tells him that both represent Judah and, in effect, Israel. Then, in Joel 1:7, the LORD refers to Israel as both His grapevine and His fig tree, “He has laid waste My vine, and ruined My fig tree”...
[1] Produced by Koinonia House, ISBN 978-157821-039-9
[2] Jeremiah 11, Romans 11
[3] Deuteronomy 32:32, Psalm 80:8-16, Isaiah 5, Hosea 10
[4] Jeremiah 24:2-10, Hosea 9:10, Matthew 24:32
[5] Jeremiah 24:3
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®.