Amos 9:12

"That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and all the nations that are called by thy name, saith Jehovah that doeth this."

Without any doubt, "The possession of the heathen nations by Israel is spiritual."[31] Israel's possession of the remnant of Edom, and all other heathen nations was also foretold by Isaiah thus:

"And the sons of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee The city of Jehovah, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel (Isaiah 60:14)."

Both passages (here, and in Isaiah) are fulfilled in this manner: Christ is the true Israel, of which ancient Jacob was only a feeble type; and all who are Christ's and worship him, are therefore worshipping Israel! Indirect reference to this is found in Revelation 3:9, where, in the present dispensation, the false Jews who opposed Christianity, received the word from Jesus that they would "come and worship before the feet" of the church at Philadelphia, fulfilled when Jews were converted and bowed before Christ with whom, for ages during the present order, Gentiles have been identified. "Thus, `the taking possession' referred to here will be of a very different character from the subjugation of Edom and other nations to David."[32] "The relationship between Israel and the nations will not be that of a conqueror to the conquered because it will be the Lord 'who will do this.'"[33] Still another excellent commentary concerning the proper interpretation of these verses is that of J. A. Motyer:

"The warlike metaphor in many of these passages is, of course, to be understood in terms of the kingship of the Lord Jesus Christ and the missionary expansion of his Church. This is the interpretation authorized by the New Testament (Acts 15:12-19).[34]

"All the nations that are called by thy name ..." A very interesting fact regarding this passage concerns the variation of it that appears to be in Acts in the passage cited above:

"Through slight changes, almost infinitesimal in the Hebrew, the Septuagint translators (circa 250 B.C.) rendered this passage: "That the residue of men may seek after the Lord," these last two words being supplied as a necessary object to the transitive verb "seek"; and so it is quoted by James at the Council in Jerusalem (Acts 15:17). This passage is especially interesting as an outstanding example in textual criticism."[35]

In the manner thus indicated, the scholars, some of them, have made this example (as they call it) their carte blanche permission to change the Hebrew text in any manner that pleases them; but we reject this. In the first place, we have already noted that there is no certainty that James quoted this verse, having categorically stated that what he quoted came from more than one prophet (Acts 15:15); and the words might well have been James' own inspired words derived from interpretation of the general message of many Old Testament prophets. But even if it could be proved that he actually quoted this changed translation from the LXX, the explanation would then be that offered by Barnes:

"James quoted the words as they were familiar to his hearers (the Gentiles accompanying Paul), not correcting those that did not impair the meaning. This showed, incidentally, that even imperfection of translation does not empty God's Word."[36]

Authority for recklessly changing the Hebrew text every time some scholar thinks he could improve it is certainly not resident in this so-called "example."