Chastening by God has a history in the scriptures concerning Israel. In Leviticus 26 God lays out the seven courses of chastisement for the nations if they fail to keep His statutes and judgements in their hearts. This chastening is recorded throughout the historical books of the Old Testament. It is prophesied of in the prophetic books. The 70th week of Daniel will be the ultimate fruition of all of this chastisement to bring the nation’s heart back to God.
This chastening was always to correct the nation and bring their hearts and minds back to Jehovah God. The reason for this chastening is because Israel was treated as a child, and not as an adult son. This is plain from Hebrews 12:5 and Galatians 4:1-7.
In this dispensation the body of Christ is treated as adult sons (Gal. 4:1-7; Rom. 8:15-17; Eph. 1:1-5). As members of the body of Christ we are considered adult sons of God who have received our inheritance and are fully equipped to serve God (II Tim. 3:16) We are not as children, enduring our Father’s corrective punishment to bring us back to Him. We are to find our chastening in His Word.