That doesn't mean what you probably think it means. It's not chiefly talking about the Jews.
The Messiah said he came only for the "lost sheep of the house of Israel". (Matthew 15:24) But most of those who have heard his call have not been Jews. So what did he mean?
There were some specific people whom he was looking for. The prophet had said, "My people have become lost sheep; their shepherds have led them astray..." (Jeremiah 50:4-6)
So these "lost sheep" had once been the Creator Yahweh's people. They had broken His covenant and been banished. But He wants them back. (Hosea 1:9-10) So He said He would sent a special shepherd--His own personal representative--to retrieve them. (Ezekiel 34)
That shepherd did come, and told us who he was, though his message got garbled in the transmission, sometimes deliberately, sometimes not.
But if you've heard the shepherd's voice at all, then you are one of those "lost sheep". You don't have to stay lost! But if you don't recognize that you're lost, you will. So it's time to wake up from that deep sleep.
You might say, "I'm not lost; I'm already saved!" But how well do you really know your Messiah?
Yahweh said that a renewed covenant would be made available, and it is specifically for the purpose of addressing sins committed against the covenant originally made with Israel. (Hebrews 9:15.) Some misinterpreted a Hebrew word and said it was something "new", as if what came before it was now obsolete. But the word is the same as for the "new" moon--it is renewed each month, but isn't something different from what it was before.
And Jeremiah 31:31 tells us that this "renewed covenant" is made with only two parties: the House of Judah and the House of Israel.
The House of Judah is what today we call the Jews. Who is this House of Israel? It's a second category of people addressed quite often in the prophets.
When Yahshua's disciples asked him after his resurrection,
"Is it now that you are going to restore the kingdom to Israel?" (Acts 1:6)they were not mistaken about their mission, as many say; they knew from the prophets that this was the primary job of the Messiah:
"It is too small a thing that you should be My servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and RESTORE those of Israel who are preserved; I will also make you a light to the nations...as far as the ends of the earth." (Isaiah 49:6) That part is just the bonus prize for being faithful to the point of death.
Those scattered among the nations who responded to that original, pure Gospel were soon called "FORMER Gentiles, having once been far off, but who have now been brought near." (Ephesians 2:11-19)
This was an allusion to Daniel's prayer for "...all Israel, [whether] near or far off, in all the lands to which You have scattered them because of their crossing the line..." (9:7) So those who returned proved to have actually been Israelites, once estranged from a covenant that had been their own, and now returning to the same covenant that was being offered to them again.
If you read Acts 15:19 in Greek, when the apostles reported success in their mission, they actually said many were REturning (not just turning, but turning BACK) to Yahweh from among the Gentiles.
Hosea tells us specifically who was "among the Gentiles":
"Israel is swallowed up; now they will be among the Gentiles..." (Hosea 8:8)Jacob said that from Ephraim--son of Joseph--would come that "fullness of the Gentiles" mentioned above. (Genesis 48:19)"My Elohim will refuse them, because they would not listen to Him, and they will be wanderers among the Gentiles." (Hosea 9:17)
"Ephraim (the Northern Kingdom of Israel) has mixed himself among the peoples." (Hosea 7:8)
Put two and two together. The implications are staggering.
Where did the apostles go to look for those "Gentiles" they were seeking? In the synagogues! Because they were feeling the pull back to their very own roots. Their ancestors had left Israel and become Gentiles. But now he said they were Gentiles no more.
And many of us are feeling that same pull today.
That's because the sentence of exile is now up. The nap is over. The alarm clock has rung. It's time to wake up and be who we really are!
Jeremiah 50 tells us that the descendants of Israel will come ALONG WITH the descendants of Judah (the Jews), search for the way back to Zion. (See? If you haven't arrived there, you're still lost.)
King Solomon prayed this prayer with us in mind:
"When they sin against You... and You hand them over to their enemies, and they carry them into exile in a far-off land... if, in the land of their exile, they return to You with all their heart... then listen from the Heavens, and forgive Your people..." (2 Chronicles 6:36-39)
Yahshua echoed Jeremiah's words that if we turned back to the "ancient path", we would "find rest for our souls". (Matthew 11:29; Jeremiah 6:16) And he said no detail of the Torah would ever be nullified. (Mat. 5:17-19)
Those who say you could never keep the Torah are partly right. You can't keep it by yourself. But you were never meant to. Yahweh Himself said it was not out of reach. It is meant to be done in community. That is the only context in which it can work. How can we love our neighbors as ourselves if we only see each other once a week? Jeremiah 31 said Yahweh would not just call, but gather, His people again. The day of mere personal salvation is over.
The Apostles knew it would take time to change our lifestyle completely, so they gave us a few basics so we could sit at the same table with those from Judah who were more experienced, and learn from them at a reasonable but purposeful pace. (Acts 15:19-21)
But then there are the things that seem more right to a man. The Reformation got rid of a lot of paganism, but if you take even a brief look at Scripture, and you merely scratch the surface of research on the history of Christmas, Easter, even the term "God"-- it is clear that the church does not line up with the standard. Be brave, and take the full dose of the medicine.
So how do you return? Where do you start?
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