In
reading these scriptures, the following information will help you
interpret them properly. The Greek word ethne
has traditionally been translated as “nations”. A better
translation would have been “ethnic groups” or “peoples”. Basileas
is the word for political units or countries but this word was not used in
the Greek. The reference is always to ethne.
So, India is a basilea
containing some 1,800 ethne.
Thus, when reading the verses below you could, in your mind, replace the
word “nations” with “ethnic groups” for a more correct
interpretation of God’s word.
Genesis
12:1-3
The
Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your
father’s household and go to the land I will show you. I will make you
into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and
you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever
curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through
you.”
Genesis
18:18
Abraham
will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth
will be blessed through him.
Genesis
22:18
…and
through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you
have obeyed me.”
Genesis
28:14 Your
descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to
the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on
earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.
Exodus
19:5-6
For
all the earth is mine and you shall be to me a Kingdom of priests
Leviticus
19:24
The
stranger who sojourns with you shall be to you as the native among you,
and you shall love him as yourself.
Deuteronomy
32:43
Rejoice,
O nations, with his people.
Joshua
4:23,24
For
the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over… so that all the peoples of the earth may know
that the hand of the Lord is mighty.
1
Samuel 17:46
This
day the Lord will deliver you into my hand… that all the earth may know
that there is a God in Israel.
2
Samuel 22:50
Therefore
I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations.
2
Kings 19:19
Now,
O Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all kingdoms on earth
may know that you alone, O Lord, are God.
1
Chronicles 16:23-23
Sing
to the Lord, all the earth! Tell of his salvation from day to day. Declare
his glory among the nations.
2
Chronicles 6:32,33
As
for the foreigner who does not belong to your people Israel but has come
from a distant land because of your great name and your mighty hand and
your outstretched arm when he comes and prays toward this temple, then
hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and do whatever the foreigner asks
of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear
you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have
built bears your name.
Ezra
1:2
Thus
says Cyrus king of Persia: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all
the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at
Jerusalem.
Psalm
18:49
Therefore
I will praise you among the nations, O Lord; I will sing praises to your
name.
Psalm
46:10
Be
still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will
be exalted in the earth.
Psalm
47
Clap
your hands, all you nations;
shout
to God with cries of joy.
How
awesome is the Lord Most High,
the
great King over all the earth!
He
subdued nations under us,
peoples
under our feet.
He
chose our inheritance for us,
the
pride of Jacob, whom he loved.
God
has ascended amid shouts of joy,
the
Lord amid the sounding of trumpets.
Sing
praises to God, sing praises;
sing
praises to our King, sing praises.
For
God is the King of all the earth;
sing
to him a psalm of praise.
God
reins over the nations;
God
is seated on his holy throne.
The
nobles of the nations assemble
as
the people of the God of Abraham,
for
the kings of the earth belong to
God;
he
is greatly exalted.
Psalm
57: 9-11
I
will praise you, O Lord, among the nations;
I
will sing of you among the peoples.
For
great is your love, reaching to the heavens;
your
faithfulness reaches to the skies.
Be
exalted, O God, above the heavens;
let
your glory be over all the earth.
Psalm
67
May
God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us,
that
your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations.
May
the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you.
May
the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples justly,
and
guide the nations of the earth.
May
the peoples praise you, O God, may all the peoples praise you.
Then
the land will yield its harvest, and God, our God, will bless us.
God
will bless us, and all the ends of the earth will fear him.
Psalm
105:1
Give
thanks to the Lord, call on his name;
make
known among the nations what he has done.
Psalm
117:1,2
Praise
the Lord, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples. For great is his
love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise
the Lord.
Psalm
150:6
Let
everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Isaiah
49:6b
...
I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my
salvation to the ends of the earth.
Isaiah
11:10
In
that day a Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the
nations will rally to him..
Isaiah
25:6-8
On
this mountain the LORD Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all
peoples… He will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet
that covers all nations; he will swallow up death forever.
Isaiah
60:3
Nations
will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
Jeremiah
32:27
Behold,
I am the Lord, the God of all flesh; is anything too difficult for Me?
Jeremiah
33:9
And
this city shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and a glory before all
the nations of the earth who shall hear of all the good that I do for them
and shall fear and tremble.
Daniel
7:13,14
And
he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him
was given dominion and glory and kingdom, that all peoples, nations and
languages should serve him.
Habakkuk
2:14
For
the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as
the waters cover the sea.
Haggai
2:7
I
will shake all nations, and the desired of all nations will come, and I
will fill this house with glory, says the Lord Almighty.
Zechariah
14:9
The
Lord will be King over the whole earth. On that day there will be one
Lord, and his name the only name.
Malachi
1:11
My
name will be great among the nations, from the rising to the setting of
the sun. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to my
name, because my name will be great among the nations, says the Lord
Almighty.
Matthew
9:37,38
Then
he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are
few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his
harvest field”.
Matthew
24:14
And
this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a
testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
Matthew
28:18-20
Then
Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has
been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy
Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And
surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Mark
11:17
My
house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.”
Mark
13:10
And
the gospel must first be preached to all nations.
Luke
2:30-32
Simeon
prophesies: For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared
in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for
Glory to your people Israel.
Luke
24:44-47
He
said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you:
Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses,
the Prophets and the Psalms.” Then he opened their minds so they could
understand the Scriptures. He told them, “This is what is written: The
Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance
and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations,
beginning at Jerusalem…”
John
1:12,13
Yet
to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the
right to become children of God - children born not of natural descent,
nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
John
3:16
“For
God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever
believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
John
4:35
Do
you not say, “Four months more and then the harvest”? I tell you, open
your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.
John
10:14-16
I
am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me – just as the
Father knows me and I know the Father – and I lay down my life for the
sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring
them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock
and one shepherd.
John
17:22,23
I
have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are
one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let
the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved
me.
Acts
1:8
But
you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be
my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all of Judea and Samaria, and to the
ends of the earth.
Acts
3:25
You
are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers.
He said to Abraham, "Through your offspring all peoples on earth will
be blessed.”
Acts
10:34,35
Then
Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not
show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who will fear him and do
what is right.”
Acts
13:47
For
this is what the Lord has commanded us: “I have made you a light for the
Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.”
Acts
26:17b,18
I
am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to
light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive
forgiveness of sins…”
Acts
28:28
Therefore
I want you to know that God’s salvation has been sent to the Gentiles,
and they will listen!
Romans
1:5
Through
him and for his name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship to call
people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith.
Romans
10:14
But
how can they call on one in whom they have not believed? And how can they
believe in one of whom they have not heard? How can they hear without
someone preaching to them, and how can they preach unless they are sent?
As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good
news!” (Isaiah 52:7)
Romans
15:8,9
For
I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews on behalf of
God’s truth, to confirm the promises made to the patriarchs so that the
Gentiles may glorify God for his mercy, as it is written: “Therefore I
will praise you among the Gentiles…”
All
the missionary journeys of the apostles. See as an example Paul’s
description in Romans 15:19-26. In 15:20a Paul writes: “It has always
been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known”.
Romans
15:20
It
has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not
known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation.
Romans
16:25-27
Now
to him who is able to establish you by my gospel… so that all nations
might believe and obey him – to the only wise God be glory forever
through Jesus Christ! Amen.
1
Corinthians 9:22b
I
have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might
save some.
2
Corinthians 5:19
that
God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s
sins against them…
Galatians
3:6-9
Consider
Abraham: “He believed God, and it was credited to him as
righteousness.” Understand,
then, that those who believe are children of Abraham. The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith,
and announced the Gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be
blessed through you.” So
those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
Galatians
3:14
He
redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the
Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the
promise of the Spirit.
Ephesians
6:19
Pray
also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that
I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel..
Philippians
2:9-11
Therefore
God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above
every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and
on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ
is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Colossians
1:6
..
All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it
has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s
grace in all its truth.
1
Thessalonians 1:7,8
And
so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. The
Lord’s message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia –
your faith in God has become known everywhere…
1
Timothy 3:16
Beyond
all question, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in a body,
was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the
nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory.
Titus
2:11
For
the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.
1
Peter 5:9
Resist
him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers
throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.
2
Peter 3:9
The
Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He
is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to
repentance.
1
John 4:14,15
And
we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Saviour
of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God
lives in him and he in God.
Revelation
5:9-10
Your
are worthy …because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased
men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation …and
they will reign on the earth.
Revelation
7:9
After
this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could
count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the
throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were
holding palm branches in their hands.
Romans
10:13-15
..”Everyone
who calls in the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Joel 2:32, Acts 2:21)
How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can
they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear
without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are
sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring
good news!” (Isaiah 52:7)
Examples
of God Blessing Gentiles via His Covenant People (Taken
from “Vision for the Nations - Leader’s Guide pp10. US Centre for
World Mission)
-
Abraham,
as an individual, blessed other nations as he came into the presence of kings and rulers (Gen. 14:21-24;
20:17,18; 21:22-34; 23:1-20).
-
Through
his prayers, Abraham persuaded God to delay the judgment on Sodom and
Gomorrah (Gen. 18:16-33).
-
Joseph
became CEO of Egypt and kept much of that part of the world from famine
(Gen. 41:41-57; 47:13-26)
-
Moses
drew his Midianite father-in-law, Jethro, into God’s plan for the
Hebrews (Exod. 18:1, 9-27).
-
Some
of the Egyptians who witnessed the ten plagues, as well as the counterfeit
miracles of the court magicians, saw the greatness of God (Exod. 8:19;
9:27,28; 14:17).
-
The
Moabite woman, Ruth, was blessed by God through Naomi, a Hebrew (Ruth
1-4).
-
Many
of David’s right-hand men were people of other nations, such as Hittites
(2 Sam. 23:24-39).
-
Solomon
interacted with the Queen of Sheba, and she praised his God, the Lord (1
Kings 10:1-13).
-
Elijah
healed the son of the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:8-24).
-
Elisha
healed the leper, Naaman, from Syria (2 Kings 5:1-15).
-
Daniel
was a blessing to the Babylonian and Persian leaders (Daniel 1-12).
-
God
used Esther, a Jewish woman, in the Persian kingdom to bless others,
especially the king – her husband (Esther 1-10).
-
Jonah,
though reluctant, was a blessing to the Ninevites as they repented and
turned en masse to God (Jonah 3).
The
material for this page was kindly supplied by www.houstonperspectives.com
|