The concept of “New Israel” refers to God’s spiritual kingdom that was inaugurated through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It represents the community of all believers in Christ, both Jews and Gentiles, who place their faith in Him for salvation. The New Testament develops this idea of a “new” covenant people of God in contrast to “old” Israel under the Mosaic covenant.
The term “New Israel” does not imply a replacement of ethnic Israel, but rather an expansion and fulfillment of God’s purposes for Israel in including Gentiles as equal heirs of the promises of God. The Gospels, Acts, and the Epistles trace this development of God’s plan to create one new people of God united in Christ. Jesus is the fulfillment of Israel and mediates the new covenant where faith, not ethnicity or observance of the law, determines membership among God’s people.
Old Testament Background
Several Old Testament prophecies and themes provide background for the New Testament concept of the church as New Israel. Passages such as Isaiah 49:6 predict the expansion of Israel’s mission to be “a light for the Gentiles.” Hosea 1:10 foretells a day when Israel will be called “sons of the living God” and his people will include both Jews and Gentiles. Ezekiel 37 depicts Israel resurrected from exile as a regenerate, faithful people of God. These and other prophecies point ahead to the inclusion of the nations within God’s covenant people.
Theremnant motif in the Old Testament also contributes to the framework of New Israel. Repeatedly, only a faithful subset of Israel remained devoted to Yahweh while the majority turned to idolatry and disobedience. Isaiah 10:20-22 refers to a remnant of Israel that will survive judgment and be the nucleus of the nation’s restoration. The idea of a faithful remnant of true Israel connects organically to the New Testament church comprised of both Jews and Gentiles who faithfully follow Jesus.
Jesus and the New Israel
Jesus laid the groundwork for New Israel through His ministry, death, and resurrection. He proclaimed the arrival of the kingdom of heaven and called the nation to repentance as God’s renewed people. Jesus viewed His mission as focused on the “lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matthew 15:24). Throughout His ministry, Jesus worked to restore Israel from its waywardness and prepare the people for the coming of God’s kingdom.
Christ’s death and resurrection constituted the climactic redemptive event toward which Old Testament history had been moving. After rising from the dead, Jesus commissioned His followers to take the message of salvation to all nations, expanding Israel’s missionary purpose. As the Messiah, Jesus embodied true Israel and became the mediator of the new covenant prophesied by Jeremiah (Luke 22:20). Through His atoning work, Jesus created a new Israel defined by faith in Him rather than ethnicity.
The Church as New Israel
Several New Testament passages depict the church as the renewal and restoration of Israel according to God’s intended purposes. Acts presents the founding of the church as a reconstituted Israel in line with the prophetic hope of Israel’s restoration. In Acts 1:6, the disciples ask Jesus if He will restore the kingdom to Israel at that time. However, the more significant kingdom reality was the Spirit’s coming at Pentecost to inhabit the church as God’s new temple.
The church assumed the role of Israel as the people of God sharing in the mission and purpose of Israel. God’s promises to Israel are now applied to the multi-ethnic church composed of both Jews and Gentiles. Romans 2:28-29 and 9:6-8, for example, explain that Jewish identity consists of those who have experienced spiritual circumcision of the heart by faith in Christ.
Paul uses Old Testament language for Israel to describe the church. Hosea 1:10 in Romans 9:25-26 now refers to Gentiles coming to faith in Christ. Galatians 6:16 speaks of the church as the true Israel of God. First Peter 2:9 describes the church with imagery taken from Israel’s covenant identity as God’s chosen people. Revelation frequently equates the church with Israel as the people of God.
The unifying theme is that Jesus Christ has become the true Israel who then transforms His followers collectively into New Israel. This community lives out God’s initial purposes for Israel as a holy people belonging to God and testifying to His glory.
Characteristics of New Israel
As New Israel, the church manifests several key characteristics that stood at the heart of God’s plans for Israel.
- New Israel fulfills the role of a chosen people elected by God as His unique possession and called to obey Him fully (Deuteronomy 7:6-11, Titus 2:14).
- New Israel functions as a holy priesthood that has direct access to God and serves as His representatives on earth (Exodus 19:4-6, 1 Peter 2:5).
- New Israel exists as God’s covenant people who relate to Him by faith on the basis of His gracious promises (Genesis 17, 2 Corinthians 6:16).
- New Israel carries out the mission of being a light to the nations (Isaiah 42:6, Acts 13:47).
Therefore, the church as New Israel lives out the Abrahamic covenant, the Mosaic covenant, the Davidic covenant, and the new covenant in a fuller way through union with Christ by the Spirit. God’s plans for Israel find their ultimate fulfillment in Jesus Christ and the multi-ethnic community of New Israel.
Implications of “New Israel”
Understanding the biblical concept of the church as New Israel carries several important implications:
- The church fulfills God’s covenant purpose for Israel, not replaces ethnic Israel.
- All followers of Christ are Abraham’s offspring and heirs to the biblical covenants and promises (Galatians 3:7-9, 29).
- The church is called to holiness and witness as participants in Israel’s covenants.
- Membership in New Israel is based on faith in Christ, not ethnicity.
- God’s plans for Israel and the nations focus on the church as the new covenant community.
In Christ, God has created an entirely new humanity that transcends ethnicity, uniting Jews and Gentiles to share equally in the blessings of salvation. The New Testament church comprises this new humanity called to live out Israel’s covenant identity for the glory of God.
The concept of New Israel finds its center in the person and work of Jesus Christ. The incarnate Son of God fulfilled Israel’s destiny and enabled God’s plans for Israel to include the Gentile nations grafted into the olive tree of new covenant Israel. All who repent and believe inherit the promises made to Israel as fellow citizens and members of God’s household.