Who Is The Savior Of All Men?

Christians believe Christ is the Savior of all men, mankind. Yet, Christ, who, in his own words, said he was sent solely to redeem the lost sheep of the House of Israel as he told a gentile woman. Mat. 15:24. And when Christ sent out the apostles he made a very specific point to them. DO NOT go to the gentiles, but only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. Mat. 10:5, 6. So which is it, the Savior of mankind or the House of Israel in the Christian age?

Despite the persistent misinterpretation of John 3:16, the Biblical record does defines itself when allowed to do so. [See the Feature article, Mirror, Mirror On The Wall]. The answer to our question is all part of the great plan of redemption when we understand the continuity between both the Old and New covenants. The Old Testament is not just for the Jews, and the New Testament is not for the Gentiles. The entirety of the Biblical record is for all 12 nations of Israel, not only the Jews. The House of Israel today is comprised of the indigenous Christian nations of the West.

Therefore, as professed Christians we should have a great desire to know the truth of the word of God. So from the theological perspective, there are some verses in the Biblical record from which we can prove for ourselves which is the correct answer to our question, especially as Christ said he was sent only to the non-Jewish nations of Israel in the Christian age, i.e., the House of Israel. [Mat. 15:24]. 

The House of Israel is referred to as Israel Biblically after the death of Solomon and the splitting of the kingdom of Israel into two houses. When this took place, Israel became the nations of all Israel MINUS the Jews who Biblically are the House of Judah, i.e., Judah. See 1 Kings 15:17 for example. They are referenced as Israel and the Jews as Judah. "And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only." [1 Kings 12:20].

Today, the Jews commonly are referred as Israel. Yet, Biblically, they should be referred to as Judah. But seeing as how the people of the House of Israel have lost our identity and Biblical heritage, we are consigned to being "gentiles," though nothing could be further from the truth as we'll see below. 

In the Old Testament we read, "And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah sat each on his throne, having put on their robes, in a void place in the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets prophesied before them." [1 Kings 22:10].

As we see in the New Testament, the correct separation of Israel and Judah is consistent with the word of God. "For finding fault with them, he says, Behold, the days come, says the Lord [Christ], when I will make a new covenant with the House of Israel and with the House of Judah: not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, says the Lord." [Heb. 8:8, 9; Israel and Judah will not be joined again as one kingdom until after Christ's return. This is to occur on the annual high holy day of Atonement, yom Kippur, for all the nations of Israel, and Judah. Eze. 37:15-22; see the Feature article, The Tale Of Two Covenants].

"Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, all were baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea, all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ." [1 Cor. 10:4; see the Feature article, The Tie That Binds].

The incorrect understanding that Christians of the House of Israel are gentiles is due to the 5th century Roman cleric Jerome’s disinformation Latin Vulgate translation. He took the contextual Greek word, ethnos, which refers to the divorced nations of the House of Israel, [Jer. 3:6-8] and deliberately used the word gentiles in its place. [See the Feature article, And It's Still A Mystery]. 

A perfect example of his deceit is found in Mat. 4:12-16. "Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee; and leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; the people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up." 

This is as it reads in the King James Version, as in other New Testament versions, and all are a carry over from Jerome's Latin Vulgate. 

The New Testament Matthew 4 quote is from Isaiah 9:1 in the Old Testament. And in the same KJV it reads, "Nevertheless the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation, when at the first he lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward did more grievously afflict her by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, in Galilee of the nations."

And when we read what shall befall the 12 nations of Israel in these last days, we read in Genesis 49, that both Zabulon, v. 13, and Naphtali, v. 21, are two sons, two nations of the patriarch Israel. They are not gentiles. They are not Jews. Judah, v. 8, is their brother. They are of the House of Israel.

How is it Israel, and his 12 sons, according to the word of God in the Biblical record, came to be the people chosen by our LORD and Savior?  Of all men, Christ/Yehovah chose Abraham, which was then passed to Isaac and then to Jacob/Israel. There was nothing special to commend Israel as we're told. So there are two questions that arise here. One, how did Israel, from Isaac from Abraham come to be chosen by our LORD to be his people, their Redeemer and Savior? And second, who is the Savior of all men, mankind? Let's allow the Biblcal record define itself. 

"For you are a holy [Heb. qāḏôš, to set apart] people to the LORD [Heb. Yehovah] your God; the LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth. The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least [Heb. mᵊʿaṭ, fewest of all peoples]; therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments." [Deu. 7:6-9].

As Matthew Henry noted in his 1706 commentary, "And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls: for Joseph was in Egypt already." [Exd. 1:5] Today, the House of Israel numbers about one billion. It was as if our LORD God chose the runt of the litter. And it reminds one of the parable of the mustard seed. "And he said, Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: But when it is sown, it grows up, and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it." [Mark 4:30-32]. 

In the JFB Commentary concerning Israel as being chosen by our LORD, we read, "For you are an holy people unto the Lord thy God--that is, set apart to the service of God, or chosen to execute the important purposes of His providence. Their selection to this high destiny was neither on account of their numerical amount (for, till after the death of Joseph, they were but a handful of people); nor because of their extraordinary merits (for they had often pursued a most perverse and unworthy conduct); but it was in consequence of the covenant or promise made with their pious forefathers" [Abraham and Isaac].

We find acknowledgment of this thoughout the Biblical record in both the Old and New Testaments. "Now if you [all Israel] obey me [our LORD, Yehovah] fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole Earth is mine ...." Exd. 19:5

" ... for you are a people holy [set apart] to the LORD your God. Out of all the peoples on the face of the earth, the LORD has chosen you [all Israel] to be his treasured possession." Deu. 14:2

"And the LORD has declared this day that you are his people, his treasured possession as he promised, and that you are to keep all his commands." Deu. 26:18

"For the LORD has chosen Jacob [Israel] for himself, Jacob as his treasured possession." Isa. 135:4 

"On the day when I act, says the LORD Almighty, they will be my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as a father has compassion and spares his son who serves him." Mal. 3:17

"Who [Christ, Greek, Yehovah is salvation] gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people [Greek, periousios, a people selected by God from other nations for his own possession], zealous of good works." Tts. 2:14

"But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy [set apart] nation, a peculiar people [again, a people selected by God from other nations for his own possession], that you should show forth the praises of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvellous light." 1 Pet. 2:9 

"For I am the LORD your God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;" Isa. 43:3 [Again the word Holy here is qāḏôš, meaning to set apart. Christ was set apart for Israel. " ... sent only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel].

" … our Redeemer, the LORD [Heb. יהוה yᵊhōvâ] of hosts is His name, the Holy One of Israel." Isa 47:4

"For there is born to you this day, in the city [Bethlehem] of [the king of all Israel] David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:11 [See Rev. 22:16]. 

"But Peter and the apostles answered and said: We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree. Him God has exalted to His right hand, Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins." Acts 5:31

It should be very clear from the above quotes that Israel, and not the gentiles of the world, were chosen by our LORD to be his treasured possession, the Redeemer and Savior of Israel. But we need to remember, it is all Israel, including the House of Israel, that is saved by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thus, the common phrase, "the chosen people," refers not only to Judah, the Jews, as is mistakenly believed today, but to all 12 nations of Israel. However, today, the House of Israel has disappeared from modern Christianity. 

"It's probable that few today have heard of the House of Israel, not to be confused with the nation-state of Zionist Israel, or Edom, who claim to be Jews and are not [Rev. 3:9], and the Jews, who Biblically, are the House of Judah. They are entirely different Biblical entities. Theologically, it's as if the House of Israel was made of the element gallium and somewhere between the last page of the Old Testament and the first page of the New Testament, it was dipped into a cup of warm water, vanishing before our very eyes. [See the book, The Disappearing Spoon, p. 54, Sam Kean, 2010].

"Knowing our true Biblical identity puts us back on the right path of insight and relevancy in life. It makes new the entire Biblical record, providing us with the understanding of the two thousand year old original message lost along the way since it was delivered to our ancestors of the House of Israel in the first century. [See the Feature articles, The Good News Colour Revolution and Moving Forward]." [Quote from the Feature article, The Love Of The Truth].

Now, this leads us into answering the second question, who is the Savior of all men, mankind? Again, let's let the Biblical record define itself.

As the apostle Paul stated, "For therefore we [the apostle Paul and the other disciples] both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, specially those that believe." [1 Tim. 4:10].

The apostle Paul is making the point, the living God, Greek, zaō living, theos God, is the Savior of all men, Greek pas all, men anthrōpos.

"When Jesus [Greek, Yehovah is salvation] came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? They said, Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets. He said to them, But who do you say that I am? Simon Peter answered and said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Did Jesus rebuke Peter for his blasphemy? Did he rebuke Peter for his ignorance, 'Don't you know I am come to save all mankind?' No, Christ didn't.

And who made this known to Peter, the gathered disciples, and in the Biblical record to Christians? God the Father, obviously a credible source for anyone professing to be a Christian. So, Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah [the apostle Peter], for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven." [Mat. 16;13-17]. Jesus Christ is the SON of the living God the Father. Greek, υἱός, huios, son, Greek, zaō living, theos God.

It is our Father in heaven who is the Savior of all men. Christ is the Savior of all Israel.

Christ admits he is the son of the living God, not the living God, the Father, who is the savior of all men according to the Biblical record. Christ was sent, exactly as he said, to redeem the lost sheep of the House of Israel, all those of Israel who are not the Jews, in the Christian age. [See Rom. 11:25, 26, Jews are blind to the coming of Christ in the Christian age. It will be so until the return of Christ on the day of Atonement]. It’s all part of the plan of God from before the beginning of time." … who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began." 2 Tim. 1:9.

It is as the apostle Paul clearly stated, God the Father, the living God, is the savior of all men. This includes all the people of Israel. And out of all the people of the Earth, our LORD chose the fewest among men, which is all Israel. Paul wrote in Acts 13:23, 24, God the Father, the Savior of all men, raised up for Israel, not all mankind, a Savior, His son Jesus, Yehovah is salvation, who is the son of the living God, Christ, the Anointed One,"after John [the Baptist] had first preached, before His coming, the baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel."

Christ was raised up for us as our Savior by God the Father, the Savior of all men. 

When it comes to judgement day, it is God the Father who will be the Savior of those men not of Israel judged worthy of eternal life. "And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead [all mankind] were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books." [Rev. 20:12]

There is a different situation for all the nations of Israel. All the sins of Israel were covered by our Savior, by his sacrifice on our part for all our transgressions. 

"For if we have been united together in the likeness of His [Christ's] death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man [living in sin] was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that also we shall live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all [Israel, as their Savior]; but the life that He lives, He lives to God [the Father]. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God [the Father] in Christ Jesus our Lord." [Rom. 6:5-11].

The point to all this is that Christ died to cover all the sins of all Israel. Recall, that sin is a legal term. As the apostle John said, "Sin is the transgression of the law" [covenant, 1 John 3:4], which was made only with Moses and the children of Israel. [See the Feature article, Can A Christian Sin?]. Christ died to sin on our behalf. And as he lives, so are we alive in Christ too. As it is written, "All Israel shall be saved." [Rom. 11:26, 27; see Heb. 9:14, 15].

Paul also noted, "Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: whom God has set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remisson of sins that are past [the transgressions of the law covenant made with Moses and the nations of Israel, Zec. 11:10-13], through forbearance [Greek, anochē, tolerance] of God." [Rom. 3:24]. See Titus 2:14 above. 

So while all men will be judged by our Father in heaven [Rev. 20:11-15], those of Israel have had Christ stand in for us by his death and resurrection. The second death [Rev. 20:6] has no power over us as it potentially does for those who are judged by their works.

Therefore to answer our question in the title, who is the Savior of all men? it is as the aposte Paul wrote. "For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, specially those that believe." And those believers who are not of the 12 nations of Israel, yet are saved by our Father, will be given a good name. For as our LORD said, "Even unto them will I give in my house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters [of Israel]: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off." [Isa 56:5; see the Sneakers article, What About Everyone Else?].

Therefore, we must not lose sight of the fact that Jesus Christ is the Savior of all Israel, but not all mankind, which is the purview of our Father in heaven.

"For I am the LORD your God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;" Isa. 43:3 "For there is born to you this day in the city [Bethlehem] of [the king of all Israel] David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:11

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