'My people' in the Old Testament is Israel — the Jewish nation, God's covenant people.
God called Israel 'My people' when they walked in obedience and blessing, but when they rebelled He often spoke of them as 'thy people' to Daniel and the prophets. Les Feldick shows that the title belongs specifically to Israel, not to the Gentile nations.
Ezekiel 37:23 — God explicitly promises cleansed Israel, 'so shall they be my people, and I will be their God.'
Daniel 9:24 — God speaks of 'thy people' to Daniel, identifying Israel as the people in view for the seventy-week prophecy.
In the Old Testament, the phrase 'My people' is applied to the nation of Israel. In Ezekiel 37:23, God promises, 'so shall they be my people, and I will be their God.' Daniel 9:24 shows the angel speaking to Daniel about 'thy people' and 'thy holy city' — that is, Daniel's people, Israel. Zechariah 13:9 also records God saying of Israel, 'I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.' These passages show that Israel is the people God calls His own in the Old Testament.
Les explains that God's use of 'My people' is tied to Israel's spiritual condition. When Israel was in the land and in a place of obedience and blessing, God called them 'My people.' When they fell into idolatry, rejected Jehovah, and went into captivity, God no longer used that intimate pronoun but instead told the prophet Daniel, 'Thy people.' Les emphasizes that this did not cancel God's covenant promises, but it reflected their broken relationship. He also points to the future, when God will again call Israel 'My people' and Israel will say 'The Lord is My God.' Because this unique relationship belonged to Israel, Les notes that Gentiles were not called 'My people' in the same way; in the present age they are more correctly referred to as His 'born ones.'
Les teaches that God switched from 'My people' to 'thy people' when Israel was in rebellion. In Babylon, because of idolatry and rejection of Jehovah, God told Daniel 'thy people' — not claiming them as His own at that moment. This was a matter of relationship and fellowship, not a withdrawal of the covenant promises.
According to Les, Gentiles did not come into that intimate relationship with God that Israel had when He called them 'My people.' God was dealing exclusively with the covenant nation of Israel and did not instruct the Jews to proselyte the Gentiles. In the New Testament, God is calling out a people for His name from the Gentiles, but as Les puts it, we as Gentiles are more correctly referred to as His 'born ones.'
Yes, Les points to Zechariah 13:9 and Ezekiel 37:23 for a future day when God will again claim Israel. After cleansing them and making them one nation under one King, God will say, 'It is My people,' and they will respond, 'The Lord is My God.' This restoration comes at the return of Christ and the fulfillment of the new covenant with Israel.
The Burning Bush & The Angel of the Lord: Who Did Moses Really See?
It's just verses 1 and 2. Now, this is a lesson all in itself. Verse 1 says, God—just plain, simple G-O -D—God, the triune, the eternal, sovereign God, at sundry times and in diverse manners spake in times past unto the fathers by the prophets, the Old Testament, that same God hath in these last days—now, remember, the last days in Scripture are not the closing days of the age.
Israel's Future Restoration
Les teaches that although Israel is presently 'Not My people,' the day is coming when God will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and they will again be God's people.
The 'Thy People' Pronoun in Daniel
Les explains that when Israel was in rebellion in Babylon, God called them 'thy people' rather than 'My people,' yet the 490-year prophecy in Daniel 9 still concerns Israel.
Gentiles and 'My People'
Les teaches that Gentiles were never called 'My people' in the same intimate way as Israel; in the present age they are referred to as God's 'born ones.'
The Switch Between 'My People' and 'Thy People'
Les shows that in the Old Testament, God called Israel 'My people' when they were in obedience and blessing, but switched to 'thy people' when they were out of fellowship.
Future Reversal: 'It Is My People'
Les points to Zechariah 13:9 for a future day when God will again claim Israel, saying 'It is My people,' and they will say 'The Lord is My God.'
Ezekiel 37 and Israel's Re-gathering
Les uses Ezekiel 37:23 to show that after God cleanses Israel, 'they shall be My people' — a promise that has not yet been fulfilled.
Israel as God's Separated Covenant People
Les emphasizes that Israel is God's covenant people, set apart from the pagan nations, and that God never instructed the Jews to proselyte the Gentiles.
Ezekiel 37:23: Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God.
This verse directly identifies Israel as 'my people' after God's future cleansing.
Daniel 9:24: Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.
Here 'thy people' points to Daniel's people, Israel, as the subjects of the seventy-week prophecy.
Zechariah 13:9: And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.
This verse looks forward to the day when God again claims Israel as 'my people.'
Jeremiah 31:31: Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
This is the new covenant promise for Israel that will accompany their restoration as God's people.
'My people' refers to Israel, the Jewish nation. God used this title for Israel when they were in a place of obedience and blessing, and the prophets referred to them as 'thy people' when they were in rebellion.
Israel was in rebellion in Babylon, so God did not claim them by the intimate pronoun 'My people.' Les teaches that this showed they were out of fellowship, but it did not cancel God's covenant promises.
Yes. At the future return of Christ, God will cleanse Israel and say, 'It is My people,' and they will respond, 'The Lord is My God' (Zechariah 13:9).
Watch the Teaching: The Burning Bush & The Angel of the Lord: Who Did Moses Really See?