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Conclusion: The sign of Israel in biblical prophesy

The existence of Israel is yet another sign that biblical prophecy is accurate and reliable.

Prophecy (biblically foretelling future events) is among the most prevalent writings of the Bible. In his work, The End: Everything You'll Want to Know about the Apocalypse, Mark Hitchcock discusses the importance of Bible prophesy by pointing out that 27% of all the Bible is, in fact, prophesy. God seems to have included this remarkably high number of prophetic statements in the Bible for various reasons. Here are just three.

1. God wants humanity to know and understand the future.
Many people believe that events transpire without any providential oversight. Some believe life is a matter of chance, luck, and alignment of the stars. Many people place their trust in their reasoning capabilities and human perspective to understand their lives and their future. Many people appear to believe that the forces of nature and the universe guide their destiny and that of the world's affairs.

The Bible makes the repeated claim that God has sovereign control and knowledge of the world's future including its inhabitants. The Bible informs us that God graciously explains many truths to humanity through the Scriptures. In doing so, God provides to each of us a significant amount of information about the future of our world, the events shaping our future, and the future destiny of each one of us.

2. God wants humanity to understand the general situation of the conclusion of the history of mankind and to know that all persons will give an account for their lives before him.
The central truth about the end times is that Jesus Christ will return to the earth physically. Moreover, the Bible repeatedly explains and warns us that all people, each person as an individual, will appear before Jesus Christ to give an account. This aspect of prophesy is clearly annunciated throughout the Bible and is one of the most clearly stated statements found in the Book of Revelation.

Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing be-fore the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. (Revelation 20:11-12 ESV).

God does not hide the truth from us. God tells us plainly about who we are and where we are headed. God graciously explains and forewarns us of the most important information we need. In order to disseminate these vital truths, God often employs prophesy to communicate the information. God's inclusion of such prophetic statements is beneficial for all who will listen and believe.

3. God has woven a large amount of prophesy into the Scriptures because He chooses to display his ability to declare future events as an undeniable proof of his power and sovereign rulership over all his creation.
Consider just one biblical statement about this matter:

…remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done…', saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose… (Isaiah 46:9-10 ESV, italics added).

Prophesy as evidential proof

The importance of biblical prophecy cannot be overstated ‒ it is a primary aspect of God's divine evidence for himself. We might go so far as to say that biblical prophecy, fulfilled biblical prophecy, is to God what identification is to human beings ‒ authentic evidence of what one claims to be. Fulfilled biblical prophecy provides undeniable evidence for who God claims himself to be.

As an example of this, the most pronounced fulfilment of biblical prophecies pertains to the coming of the Son of God, Jesus Christ. Scholars believe that as many as 456 prophetic references are recorded in the Old Testament that refer to Christ's coming to the earth, both First and Second Comings. This is a remarkable series of evidential proofs that God has provided. Here are two well-written articles explaining this point and the evidence God's writings produce. The first can be read here. The second can be read here.

Biblical prophecy provides undeniable proof not only for the existence of God, but attests also to the effort God has expended to inform humanity about His work on mankind's behalf. The single most important effort being God sending his Son, Jesus Christ, into the world and Christ's substitutionary death on the cross for all mankind. These events were plainly foretold in the Old Testament and fulfilled, and explained in the New Testament. For example, consider the following prophesy and its subsequent fulfillment.

Surely, he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed" (Isaiah 53:4-5 ESV).

"He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed" (1 Peter 2:24 ESV).

God foretold the suffering of Christ on our behalf and fulfilled it with the substitutionary death of Christ on a Roman cross. And in the same manner, God has foretold the events of the final years of the world prior to the close of the age. As the prophecies of Jesus Christ were fulfilled to the letter, so will the events surrounding the end of the age ‒ the events that we seem to be able to recognize currently transpiring in the world.

And one of those evidentiary proofs is the existence of Israel as a reconstituted nation.