The more this war continues, the deeper and more challenging things become. In this article, you will learn about the four dimensions of war and how it affects the whole world. It gives plenty of points to pray about.

Of all the many challenges we face in this ‘world on fire,’ nothing has our attention more than the conflict between Israel and Hamas. My phone regularly ‘pings’ notifications of rocket sirens sounding across the country. The war is definitely ‘On.’ 

In our quest to know what is going on, we need to go a step higher and understand why it is going on. Like the sons of Issachar in 1 Chronicles 12:32, when you understand the what and the why, the Lord will download to you what you need to do.

While the war is in danger of going from single-front to multi-front, especially in the North, one thing is certain: this war is already multi-dimensional. Here are four reasons:

This is a Blood Feud

By definition, a blood feud is an inter-family squabble with a cycle of retaliatory violence. Arabs and Jews are cousins and neighbours, with a history of harmonious community interaction for centuries, even up to now. Yet if violence erupts, vengeance is a possibility. Middle Eastern memories are long and strong. The ‘tit-for-tat’ mindset is a factor, but not the only one.

This is a Civilisational War 

The Israel-Hamas war may appear to be localised but it really is a global conflict with the Western nations on the frontlines. Without exaggeration, it is the ongoing war for the survival of Western civilisation. Based on Biblical Judaeo-Christian principles, the classic West represents some powerful and revered institutions like (monogamous) marriage, family, religious freedom, private property ownership, rule of law, equality of opportunity, human rights, minimal government, and maximum freedom. Contrast this with the neo-Marxist revolutionary anarchic/Islamist front (a Berkley professor confirmed that Hamas and Hezbollah were part of the ‘progressive global Left’) which detests the West and all that it stands for.

The neo-Marxists/cultural Marxists dream of a utopian world of equality of outcomes, a big government that wants to sever the individual’s allegiance to faith, family, and freedom. In their place, it promises to meet your needs, keep you safe, and make you equal and happy. But to obtain these benefits, they demand total compliance. Dissent will not be tolerated. Coercion is their modus operandi. Those who fall out of line will be dealt with swiftly and severely. In short, the Left wants you to trust and obey big government like a Christian trusts in the Lord. 

The Islamist is very similar to the neo-Marxists and also desires a global realm, except they dream of a worldwide caliphate with Jerusalem as the capital. If the neo-Marxist/Islamist-Jihadi alliance succeeds in their goal, there will be an inevitable power struggle between them. 

Which side do you think will prevail? 

In summary, this is not merely a nationalist conflict, though nationalism is a factor. It is a global clash of civilisations. This war is not just Israel’s problem- it is a problem for the West and the world. Israel, which represents the West, is merely the first pin in the bowling alley. Aim the bowling ball at the correct angle, roll it with skill, and not only will the first pin fly but so will all the other pins with it.

This is a Theological War

While the founders of modern Israel were staunch secularists, pious Jews and evangelical Christians saw a prophetic element in the rebirth of the Jewish state. Jeremiah 16:14-15, Isaiah 11:11, and Amos 9:14-15 speak of God gathering the dispersed of Israel for the ‘second time,’ from all lands they have been scattered, and planting them in their own land, never to be uprooted again. 

Hamas and many mainstream schools of Islamic law have a very different theology. The unchanged 1988 Hamas Charter calls for the destruction of the State of Israel and of all Jews worldwide. They believe that Palestine, captured by the Caliph Omar in 638 AD, became Islamic waqf, a sacred and perpetual trust to be reserved for future generations of Muslims until Judgment Day. Once a land comes under Muslim rule, it must remain so permanently. For the waqf to fall into non-Muslim hands is unacceptable, if not blasphemous. Therefore it is the Muslim’s sacred duty to liberate Palestine from the occupation of the ‘infidel Zionists,’ whom they consider an ‘illegitimate entity and usurper of Muslim territory. (Note: In theory, the same logic applies to Spain and India, which were once part of ‘Dar al Islam’ but have since broken away).

According to Israel Today Magazine, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quoted the Bible stating that the Israel-Hamas war was like the battle of Amalek, an ancient enemy. Iran and its Lebanese proxy Hezbollah saw this as a declaration of holy war. The latter made a video, quoting from Surah al -Isra (Surah 17) of the Quran, Islam’s holy book. It says Allah will punish Israel and Islam will defeat the Jewish people, enter their homes, and establish the word of Allah.

This is a Spiritual War

For the mature, Bible-based and Spirit-led Christian, this should come as no surprise. According to Ephesians 6:10-18, we are to put on the whole armour of God because the real fight is not with flesh and blood like Hamas, the Iranian ayatollahs, or the secular Western Left. The battle is with invisible spiritual powers and hosts of wickedness in the heavenly realm.

Daniel 10 speaks of the ‘prince of Persia,’ a powerful entity that temporarily halted the angelic visitation to Daniel, who prayed and fasted. Decades later this same spiritual principality instigated Haman’s devilish scheme to murder all the Jewish people in the Persian empire. The story is in the Book of Esther.

It is no coincidence that Gaza is in the ‘land of the Philistines.’ They, like Amalek, were Israel’s ancient enemy whose name the Greco-Romans translated into Palestine, as a replacement for the name ‘Judaea.’ Today’s conflict mirrors that which happened long ago during the time of the judges and the reigns of kings Saul and David.

We are seeing the most horrific manifestations of anti-Semitism in our lifetime. Who would have guessed that protestors at the Sydney Opera House would chant ‘Gas the Jews’ less than eighty years after the ‘never again’ Holocaust? Since 7 October global anti-Semitism rose 1,180% and in London alone it has skyrocketed 1,350%. If the Jewish people have an end-time prophetic future, then it is no surprise that the forces of darkness seek to destroy them so that these prophecies will not come to pass. Despite their strength and ferocity, they will nevertheless fail, according to those same prophecies.

It’s war, alright, a multi-dimensional one. In the latter arena – the all-important spiritual dimension – the church is best equipped to fight. Its armoury is unbeatable (2 Corinthians 10:4-5; Ephesians 6:10-14; 1 John 3:8; 4:4). 

Intercessors will save the world. It’s time to be strong in the Lord, put on the whole armour of God, and go to work.

The post Israel at War – Part 02: A Multi-Dimensional Conflict appeared first on Teach All Nations inc..

Yet again, in Israel’s seventy-five years of modern history, it is at war with its neighbours. While war is being waged due to the invasion of Israel by Hamas, which targeted civilians of all ages, will it morph into a regional war? A world war? and does it have a link to Bible prophecy? Read on ….

It started off as a quiet morning, which it should have been considering it was the sabbath day and the end of the high holy days. These days include a time of communal fasting on the Day of Atonement, known as Yom Kippur. Then from fasting, the Jewish people go to the festive ‘Simchat Torah,’ rejoicing in the law. There is dancing and celebrating in the synagogues because God gave the law to Moses (Note: why don’t believers in Jesus match Jewish enthusiasm for the law? See Philippians 4:4).

Around 6:00 AM on Saturday, October 7, 2023, a surprise attack was launched against southern Israel. The invader was the Hamas regime which rules the highly-populated Palestinian coastal enclave known as the Gaza Strip. The invaders attacked by land, air (hang gliders), and sea, while thousands of rockets rained down on the Jewish state.

Once invaded, Hamas targeted the Israeli communities near the Strip. They raided homes, butchered men, women, and children, beheaded babies and kidnapped many others. Hamas attacked the attendees of a music festival and slew two-hundred and sixty of them, including many foreigners. One hundred were slain at a farming kibbutz near the border. The dozens of kidnapped Israelis, of all ages, were taken as hostages to Gaza. Some were shamefully abused and paraded in public. Rapes and murders were videoed and posted on social media, adding incalculable pain to already bereaved families.

The deliberations were short: the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared war on Hamas. With Israel at war, what does it mean for the region and the world?

Going Deeper

The Hamas attack on southern Israel occurred one day after the fiftieth anniversary of the outbreak of the Yom Kippur War of 1973. This, too, was a surprise attack on a Jewish holy day by the armies of Egypt and Syria. This war could have brought the world to a ‘nuclear armageddon,’ including a worldwide US military alert. For three days, Israel was losing badly; Prime Minister Golda Meir telephoned US President Richard Nixon for an emergency airlift of military hardware. When Nixon demurred, Golda implied that, without American assistance, Israel would lose the ‘third temple’ and have no choice but to use the ‘nuclear option’ – literally. The prodding worked; Nixon sent the planes and changed the course of the war. At the end of three weeks of fighting, the price tag Israel paid was $4 billion and 2,500 deaths.

What is the significance of the 2023 Hamas surprise attack on Israel? With at least 1,300 dead (a number that is sure to rise), and 2,800 wounded, Israel experienced the highest death toll of Jewish people in a single day since the Holocaust. Hamas was the first entity to capture and hold Israeli territory – briefly – since the 1948 war. It was indisputably the biggest terrorist attack in the Jewish state, making it Israel’s ‘9-11,’ if not ‘Pearl Harbour.’

Even more puzzling was that this surprise attack happened under the leadership of Benjamin Netanyahu. Israel’s longest-serving Prime Minister is known for his counterterrorism expertise and tough-guy approach to terrorism. Terrorist incidents tended to be less under his watch than other prime ministers. But not now. Perhaps the relentless, lengthy, months-long, protests against his proposed judicial reform legislation have drained and distracted him. Israel’s vaunted security sector and intelligence agencies were caught flat-footed as well.

Yet, there were prescient voices foreseeing a conflict at this very time. In Signs Of Possible War In September-October, Yigal Carmon wrote on August 31st the following: ‘Lately, there have been growing indications that a war against Israel may break out in September or October 2023. The trigger may be spiralling violent clashes resulting in many casualties, or the use of new weapons leading to many fatalities on the Israeli side, in the face of which Israel will be unable to suffice with its regular counterterrorism measures.’ Carmon adds that while neither Hamas nor Hezbollah want a comprehensive war at this time, the situation could spiral out of control.

What motivated Hamas to strike? According to their Charter, their goal is the dismantling of the State of Israel. Heavily funded and guided by Iran, Hamas is its Palestinian proxy and dutifully does the bidding of the Islamic Republic. With the Abraham Accords bringing peace treaties between Israel and four Arab countries, and Saudi Arabia talking seriously about normalisation with the Jewish state, Iran would dearly love to be the spoiler. What better way to crash the party than by an attack by Hamas.

Remember Hamas, founded in 1987 early in the first intifada (uprising) against Israel (1987-1993), is the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, the oldest and largest Islamist organisation in the world. While claiming to be non-violent, the Brotherhood is the inspiration for many terrorist organisations. Hence, there is a theological/eschatological element to their motive. The Brotherhood is banned in many Arab nations.

Who is to Blame?

Of course, Hamas is to blame for launching a murderous, barbarous, and unprovoked ISIS-style attack against Israel. But what caused them to act so audaciously, knowing full well their invasion would trigger a fiery response? Here are some possibilities:

• The anti-Netanyahu judicial reform protests, which lasted for months, with Israeli military reservists refusing to show up for duty, sent the wrong message to Israel’s enemies: the Jewish state is divided, weak and vulnerable. The unprecedented politicisation of Israel’s military was a dangerous move.
• The Gilad Shalit hostage deal of 2011, where a single Israeli soldier was freed from five years of Hamas captivity in exchange for 1,027 Palestinian prisoners by Israel. The Shalit deal may have set a bad precedent, possibly causing the current hostage crisis.
• Ariel Sharon’s unconditional and unilateral Gaza disengagement of 2005, where twenty-one Israeli settlements and eight thousand settlers were evacuated by the strip and handed over to the Palestinian Authority (PA). Two years later Hamas snatched the territory from the PA in a violent coup and has ruled it with a rod of iron ever since.
• There is a strong consensus that the main motivator for conflict is Iran. The Islamic Republic has hegemonic ambitions in the Middle East and is often credited for being the hidden hand behind all turmoil in the region. The $6 billion released by the current US administration in September is credited with funding and inspiring the invasion from Gaza. The Daily Wire on 7 October wrote: ‘[One] month ago Trump predicted the $6 Billion that Biden gave Iran would be used for terror attacks across the Middle East and specifically kidnapping,” conservative Jack Posobiec captioned a screenshot of Trump’s prediction on X. “This is exactly what we are seeing in Israel this morning.”
• During the time of the Bible, Gaza was part of the ‘land of the Philistines,’ Israel’s historic enemy. Rivalry and hostility emanated from that part of the country, especially during the reigns of Saul and David. As Ecclesiastes says, ‘There is nothing new under the sun’ – Ecclesiastes 1:9

Remember that the core of the Zionist dream was to establish a Jewish state in Palestine where the Jews could defend themselves from anti-Semitic Gentiles. So while the Hamas invasion revealed Israel’s governmental and intelligence failure, it also unleashed the instinct to hit back hard. Over three hundred thousand reservists have been called, the largest mobilisation in the nation’s history. Already Israel has installed a blockade of food, water, and power from going into Gaza in order to weaken Hamas.

What Does It For Us All?

In this unfolding drama, there are moves towards an Israeli unity government but one thing is for sure – Israel is on a total war footing. In previous wars with Gaza, the goal was containment; this time it is the total overthrow of the Hamas regime. 

Yet the price of regime change could be frightfully high. While aerial bombings over Gaza can soften up the enemy, only a ground offensive can capture territory. The Gaza Strip, with two million people squished into territory forty-three kilometres by six kilometres in dimension, is one of the most densely populated places on earth. The city itself can be booby-trapped and the death count on both sides will potentially be high. 

In addition, there is the danger that the conflict will grow into a multi-front regional war with Hezbollah in Lebanon, Iran from Syria, the potential involvement of the PA in the West Bank, and even East Jerusalem and Arab citizens of Israel.

While this may seem to be a conflict confined to Israel and its neighbours, the strategic location as the land bridge between Africa and Eurasia, oil, and theology (yes-theology), means it has ramifications for the wider world. Like the war between Russia and Ukraine, the widening of the Israel-Hamas conflict could morph into a larger war, with the dreaded possibility of a shower of missiles or weapons of mass destruction, be they nuclear or electromagnetic-pulse (EMP). With a mighty push, a regional war can go global.

Conflict in the Middle East can affect oil prices and stock market rates. The interconnected global economy can spread these changes very quickly.

A Word About Prophecy and Prayer

Then there is the underappreciated yet highly consequential theological component. Matthew 24:6 says we will hear of wars and to be not troubled when we do. Key prophecies about end-time wars against Israel include Psalm 83, Ezekiel 38-39, and Zechariah 12,14 (Armageddon). We will look at these separately in our next teaching letter. 

We should all ‘stay awake’ and become prophecy watchers (Mark 13:32-37); we also need discernment to separate the true from the false. Regarding the accurate interpretation of prophecy, take note of the place names written in the Bible and make sure your interpretation of them is correct. 

Pray for the protection of Jewish and Arab civilians; the leadership on both sides (1 Timothy 2:1-4); and for a quick, even supernatural end to this conflict. Above all, pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6): those who do shall prosper. 

Intercessors will save the world! They did so in the British war effort during World War II, they did so at other times in history. They will do so again. Let’s join them.

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Two key periods in the last one thousand years were the Crusades and the rise of the Ottoman (Turkish) Empire. Due to its central location and sacred association, Jerusalem had a front row seat. The city that we know today was greatly impacted by both entities.

Jerusalem’s central location and sacred association guaranteed it a front-row seat to history’s greatest drama. One of these key events was the Crusades in the Middle Ages.

The Crusades 1099-1187 AD

The Crusades were a period of several European invasions of the holy land; they were considered a long overdue pushback after four centuries of Islamic conquests. It was a controversial period of claims and counterclaims. The main thing is that the pilgrims were motivated by piety to ‘defend the Holy Sepulchre’ and guarantee free access to all Christian holy sites in the land.

The first crusade succeeded in conquering Jerusalem in July 1099. The victorious Christians set up the ‘Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem.’ They turned the Dome of the Rock and the al Aqsa Mosque into Christian houses of worship. They left an architectural legacy that remains to this day. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, destroyed in 1010 AD, was completely restored and the building you now see today dates back to the Crusader period, though it was only a third of its Constantinian size.

In 1187 Saladin, the Ayyub leader, won the battle at the Horns of Hattin near the Sea of Galilee. This gave him the springboard to take Jerusalem from the Crusaders. Even the militarily gifted King of England, Richard the Lion-Hearted, failed to recover Jerusalem. Except for a brief period of negotiated Crusader rule from 1229-1244, Jerusalem would not have another Christian ruler until the 20th Century.

Second Muslim Period: 1187-1917 AD

1187-1260: The holy city returned to Ayyubid rule back in 1187 AD, though the crusader presence in the holy land continued until the fall of Acre in 1292. The Mongols, who once had the largest empire in history, were almost unstoppable but yet met their defeat at Ain Jalut in the Jezreel Valley at the hands of Sultan Baibars.

1260-1517: From this date in 1260 the Mamluks took over. Ruling from Egypt, these freed slaves became a powerful force in the land. Some of their buildings still stand in the Muslim Quarter of the Old City to this day.

1517-1917: Another Muslim power, this time from Turkey, won battles at Marj Dabiq (Aleppo) and Younis Khan (near Gaza). Thus commenced the four-hundred-year occupation of the Ottomans, based in Constantinople (Istanbul). Their rule was so long and their footprints so deep that abundant evidence of the Ottoman presence, physically and legally, is still with us to this day. Their Central Asian conquering heritage caused them to capture and administer lands in three continents: North Africa, SE (Balkan) Europe, and Western Asia. Though Islam has a history of successful military conquests, the Ottomans were the first Muslim military to have a potent navy, and they used it to full effect.

The first Sultan to rule over Jerusalem, Selim, had gone a step further. He named himself the Caliph of (Sunni) Islam. This title was bestowed on all his successors until the caliphate was abolished in 1924 by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of the Turkish Republic.

For those who have visited Jerusalem, you will appreciate the legacy of the next Sultan, Suleiman the Magnificent. An ‘Islamic Nehemiah,’ in the years 1535-38, he is credited for building the walls of the Old City that we have with us today. In 1541, he did something of symbolic significance: Suleiman sealed the Golden Gate, known as the Eastern Gate, the one Jesus used to enter the holy city after His triumphal procession. It is expected that He will again enter through this gate – unsealed – during His glorious return.

After the high point of Suleiman’s wall-building legacy, Jerusalem declined economically from the 16th to 19th centuries. Despite this neglect, the European powers became vitally interested in the city, particularly the holy places. Russia took the side of the Greek Orthodox Church while France and the Venetians aligned themselves with the Roman Catholics, locally known as ‘the Latins.’

Unholy Fight for a Holy Site

The biggest rope in the tug-o-war was Christendom’s premier site, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the traditional location of Calvary and the tomb of Christ. It was administered by six denominations, the major ones being the Orthodox, Catholics and Armenians. It is no secret that the prime chapels of the Church were held by the Greeks, including the Chapel of the Crucifixion and the actual sepulchre itself. The competition between the groups was so fierce that it was not uncommon for one group to lock out another from the church. There have even been physical altercations. Any changes in the status of these chapels could spark an international incident; the missing silver ‘Star of Bethlehem’ in the Grotto of the Nativity was one of the pretexts for starting the Crimean War.

For years, the Catholics put pressure on the Ottomans to restore their rights to these chief chapels. An Ottoman ruling in 1757 gave ‘joint ownership’ of the shrines but the Catholics viewed it as a Greek triumph, especially because they continued to retain the prized chapels. When the Catholics objected, the Ottoman representative said bluntly: These holy sites, though Christian, belong to the sultan and he can give them to whoever he wants.

Nearly a century later in 1850, France demanded the Ottomans restore Catholic oversight of key sites, like the church’s rotunda, the sepulchre itself, the stone of unction, etc. In February 1852 Sultan Abdul Megid issued his famous landmark firman (decree) which said: whoever owns a chapel today, owns it forever. The erstwhile de facto situation became de jure. This decree, known as ‘The Status Quo of the Holy Places,’ remains in force to this day.

What the Ottomans learned was that adjudicating the Christian holy sites was a thankless job. What they wisely learned is: to make a decision, seal it in concrete, and don’t touch it again. Their British, Jordanian, and Israeli successors were destined to learn this same lesson. Though none of them were bound by Ottoman decrees, they discovered that even mentioning a possible change of the status quo stirred up a hornet’s test. Touching this issue was simply not worth it inevitable fallout.

After Caliph Omar’s conquest of Jerusalem in 638 AD, apart from the Crusader period, Christians would not rule the city again until General Allenby walked through the Jaffa Gate on Hanukkah, in December 1917. The time of the Gentiles was entering its twilight.

TO BE CONTINUED

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Even the mature and most patient among us have their patience tried by life’s circumstances. But we must take hold of the ‘fruit of the Spirit’ – patience – for it is a key to unlocking the blessings of God.

What circumstance in life tries your patience? For me, it’s driving on the residential streets and country roads of the United Kingdom. They are way too narrow and clogged with parked cars, and there is a continuous weaving between the stationary cars and those that are in motion.

Worse still are the little country lanes, lined with vegetation, that are wide enough for only one car but host two-way traffic. The last thing I want to see is another car coming from the opposite direction or, worse still, a large tractor. Once encountered, either they or I have to back up in a wide space on the side so the other can pass. Recently the lane was so narrow my Kia Sportage barely fit and there was no place to back into if another car came. Yet, the ‘stiff-upper lip’ ‘keep calm and carry on’ Brits take it all in their stride.

Another real-life incident happened to us as our plane landed at its destination. The safety protocol dictates that everyone stays in their seats until the plane comes to a complete stop. On this particular flight, a few passengers got up while the plane was still taxing. Normally, the diligent steward(ess) will politely tell the passengers to be seated. In this case, the amount of ‘transgressors’ was so great that the pilot personally got involved and rebuked the impatient passengers from the cockpit. His words:

Please be seated. Never in aviation history has there been an occasion where the passenger reached the terminal before the plane.

As individuals, we can be patient in many things and tried in a few, but ultimately we need to realise that patience is not only a mark of maturity, but it is key to the promises of God. We can even pray for patience but it often sounds like this: Lord, grant me patience and give it to me now!

That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises — Hebrews 6:12

Note that it is not by faith alone but by ‘faith and patience.’

Amplified Definition of Patience

Patience is steadfastness, constancy, continuance, forbearance, and divinely inspired long-suffering in the face of life and all its challenges.

It does not buckle under but leaps over the hurdles we face. 

Patience does not surrender to circumstances but defies, overcomes, and outlasts every obstacle.

We are called to patience because our Heavenly Father is the paragon of patience. 

Romans 15:5: Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:

Patience in a Nutshell: To trust God with all your heart at all times and wait on Him.

Patience means to take the ‘long view,’ to be far-sighted and look at the ‘big picture.’ Patience focuses on the forest and not just the trees; the end goal and the road that leads you there; the spiritual reward and not just the temporal.

It is the development of maturity, especially in times of trouble, that positions you for a spiritual breakthrough. James 1:2-4: Tells us to do an incredible thing – count it all joy when we fall into various temptations. To this day I have yet to see someone turn cartwheels because they are entering into a season of trials. Yet there is divine wisdom from James, because the trial of faith develops patience which ripens, matures, completes and perfects. You will lack nothing.

We are exhorted to run the race of faith with patience (Hebrews 12:1). Come to the starting line, get on your track, start running when you hear to gun go off, and keep your eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of your faith (v. 2). With so much distraction and competition, it is tempting the compare oneself with other runners. Yet consider this: no Olympic gold medal winner keeps looking to the runner on the left or the right. They focus on their track, run with all their strength, and keep their eyes on the goal. That’s what we do in the race of faith and the goal is Jesus.

Patience: The Farmer and Job

Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. 8. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. 9. Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door. 10. Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. 11. Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy — James 5:7-11

What do we learn from this passage in James? 

• Patience is linked and viewed in the light of the coming of Christ (v. 7).

• The life of a farmer: He works, waters, weeds, and waits.

• We patiently, faithfully, and watchfully wait for Christ’s return (v. 8);

• Do not grumble against one another so you won’t be judged. Patience will spare you a lot of grief. (v. 9);

• Christ is returning to earth as a warrior, king, and judge. He is at the door (v. 9).

• The prophets of the Lord are role models of suffering affliction and patience as they spoke God’s Word to the people (v. 10);

• Happy, not miserable, is the saint of the Lord who patiently endures trials, tribulations, indignities, and reproaches (v. 11). While it seems like nonsense to the carnal mind, it is wisdom in the Spirit realm to be happy, since we are not celebrating the afflictions but the victorious endurance during the affliction: Patience is blossoming and God’s promises are just around the corner.
• You have heard of the patience of Job – and we will learn more from this patient template in our next article.

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In the future, Messiah is destined to reign from Jerusalem. But first, the Holy City will experience the ‘Times of the Gentiles.’ What does this mean? You will better appreciate the present when you understand the past.

Luke 21:23: And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.

It is the most famous city in the world with a long, illustrious, and troubled history. Four thousand years in total, with its second millennium being under Israelite rule. The ministry of Jesus of Nazareth was the watershed; from the point of His rejection and crucifixion by and at Jerusalem, the city would enter into a turbulent period called the ‘times of the Gentiles.’^[1] In any case, before Messiah rules from Jerusalem, the city will be subjected to a variety of Gentile imperial occupiers for the next two millennia. If you visit the holy city in the future, you may hear some of their names.

Volumes have been written about Jerusalem after the time of Jesus. The city has been invaded and occupied dozens of times. Our main purpose is to give you a general overview, from the time of Christ to the end of Ottoman rule in 1917. You will better appreciate the present when you understand the past.

Roman Rule: Three Stages

Stage One from 63 BC – 70 AD: Jerusalem’s central position, geographically and theologically, gave it a front-row seat to a grand imperial parade: Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, and now Rome. The first stage of Roman rule in the holy city commenced in 63 BC with the entry of Pompey. It was characterised by a pagan Rome over a Jewish city. The first Jewish revolt of 66-70 AD commenced against the empire. Stage One continued until the city’s destruction by Titus, son of Emperor Vespasian, in the year 70 AD. The city and Herod’s temple were completely obliterated and its smouldering rubble served as a camp for the Roman X Legion. It remained in its devastated condition for the next sixty years.

Stage Two from 130 – 312 AD: In 130 AD, Roman Emperor Hadrian decided to build a thoroughly pagan city on the ruins of Jerusalem. He called it Aelia Capitolina. This action lit the fuse of a second Jewish revolt led by Simon Bar Kochba. He was proclaimed ‘The Messiah’ by Rabbi Akiva. The Jews under Bar Kochba retook Jerusalem, offered sacrifices on the temple mount (minus the temple), and decimated the Roman troops. It took the empire three years under Sextus Julius Severus to brutally crush the revolt.

With Bar Kochba’s defeat and death, Aelia Capitolina was established and the second stage of Roman rule began: a pagan Rome over a pagan city. The Romans built a temple to Jupiter on the Temple Mount and a temple to Venus on the site of Calvary. Though meant to overwrite Judaeo-Christian sacred memories, this sacrilege inadvertently made the future identification of these sacred sites easier.

Stage Three from 312-638 AD: Stage Three of Roman rule began in 312 AD when the faith Rome once tried to destroy was adopted by its Emperor, Constantine. Now we had a Christian Rome ruling over a Christian city: Heathen Aelia was transformed into Christian Jerusalem. Constantine’s mother, Helena, went on a well-known pilgrimage to the holy city. She ‘discovered’ Calvary, the ‘true cross,’ a ‘holy tunic’ and ‘holy nails.’ Helena ordered the destruction of the temple to Venus, thus making room for the construction of Christendom’s most sacred shrines: these included The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Church of the Eleona (Ascension) on the Mount of Olives; and the Church of the Nativity in nearby Bethlehem. Two of these churches still stand today.

First Muslim Period: 638-1099 AD

The Christianised Eastern Roman Empire ruled Jerusalem for three centuries, except for a brief occupation by the Sassanid Persian Empire (614-629 AD). During this torrid period, the Persians destroyed many buildings and massacred many residents. The Roman Christians at Constantinople recovered Jerusalem in 629 AD, only to lose it for good nine years later.

Islam came to Jerusalem early in its history. The city, under the leadership of Patriarch Sophronius, peacefully surrendered to Caliph Omar in 638 AD. It became part of Jund Filastin province of the Arab Caliphate.

Though Jerusalem was under Muslim rule for the coming centuries, as you are about to see, the actual Muslim regimes, and their capital cities, changed.

638-750 AD: Jerusalem was ruled by the Ummayad dynasty out of Damascus. During their tenure, two famous Muslim sites were constructed on Mount Moriah: the Dome of the Rock in 691 AD and the al Aqsa Mosque in 702 AD. Both buildings still exist.

750-877 AD: Abbasid Empire, based in Mesopotamia and the new city of Baghdad. At one point, the Abbasids governed all the way to Spain.

877-1071 AD: Egyptian/Fatimid rule out of Cairo. It was their Caliph al-Hakim that made it his mission to entirely destroy the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which he did in 1010 AD. His action helped spawn the Christian Crusades decades later.

1071-1099 AD: Seljuk Turks – the Turks migrated from Central Asia westward. Originally adherents to Shamanism, they adopted Islam en route to settling in Asia Minor. They replaced the four-hundred-year Arab leadership of the Muslim community and dominated the Islamic world for nearly a millennium. Their harassment of Christian pilgrims en route to Jerusalem provided another pretext for the Crusades.

While the Ummayads adorned Mount Moriah, known as al Haram al Sharif (the noble sanctuary) and the Temple Mount, with their famous buildings, Jerusalem did not prosper for many centuries. It was never the capital of any entity except for the Crusader Kingdom (1099-1187) and the British Mandate (1922). While one could argue that it was trodden down by the Gentiles over the years, it also remained on the map by attracting Jewish and Christian pilgrims from all over the known world.

In the next article, we will learn about Jerusalem from the time of the Crusades to the beginning of the twentieth century.

TO BE CONTINUED

^[1] Note: Some scholars begin this period with the Babylonian captivity around 586 BC. That’s when Nebuchadnezzar conquered and destroyed Jerusalem and Solomon’s temple.

The post ‘Times of the Gentiles’ – History of Jerusalem – Part 05 appeared first on Teach All Nations inc..

2023, like all years, has been eventful for Israel. What makes the difference is the intensity and unprecedented nature of those events. The shadow of Iran is growing.

Even without Israel, the geo-political situation in the Middle East is strategic, complicated and potentially dangerous. Yet things become hot and spicy when the Jewish state is added to the mix.

Like every year, the calendar year 2023 has been eventful in Israel. The difference is that the challenges, external and internal, have been unprecedented.

Endless Protests

For starters, the returning premiership of Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, has been confronted by serious internal opposition from Day One. Mass protests have been staged for weeks and months. Part of the problem is that Israel had gone from a left-leaning government under Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid to a conservative government in coalition with Itamar Ben-Gvir of Otzma Yehudit and Bezalel Smotrich of the Religious Zionist Party. Both leaders and their parties are considered ‘far-right,’ which is anathema to the Left. Also, Netanyahu’s long tenure in office means the longer he serves, the more enemies he makes. Does Israel have ‘Bibi fatigue?’

The trip wire for these protests has been Netanyahu’s proposed ‘judicial reform’ legislation. This topic has been visited in earlier articles but in summary, Israel’s fifteen-member, left-of-centre, supreme court holds an absolute veto over any and all legislation that comes out of the Israeli parliament, The Knesset. Since Israel does not have a written constitution, only – basic laws – the justices are making their decisions on the basis of a nebulous concept called ‘reasonableness.’ If, in the court’s opinion, the legislation is not ‘reasonable,’ it will be struck down, even if it enjoys widespread parliamentary support. This means that court decisions can be politically expedient, arbitrary, and sometimes contradictory. This kind of unfettered power is out of kilter with normal ‘checks and balances’ in good democratic governance.

While the media likes to paint the protests as grassroots, as if to make them more legitimate, the fingerprints of powerful labour unions, coupled with foreign meddling, are everywhere. Some of the protestors sincerely think the status quo with the court should remain. Others are using this topic to protest a bigger threat: the rise of the religious right. The fear is those ( secular ) freedoms are endangered by Netanyahu’s coalition partners Ben Gvir and Smotrich. With this fear in mind, many of the protestors simply want to bring down the coalition government, thus nullifying a democratic election. Change of government outside of an election is true ‘regime change.’

Where the protests became ominous is when major sectors of society refused to function if the reforms went through; also, reservists were refusing to report for military duty – a serious national security consideration. All of this is like an Israeli version of the culture war which is raging in the United States at present. While talk of civil war is premature, the situation needs to be watched.

The Shadow of Iran

The temperature with the Palestinians and neighbouring Lebanon and Syria has also gone up a few notches. These groups are heavily influenced by Iran. The Islamic Republic has a long shadow and it goes from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea.

Both the Jewish Passover and Muslim Ramadhan occurred at the same time this year and these passionate holidays saw sparks fly. On Passover 2023, Hamas and Hezbollah launched simultaneous rocket attacks from Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria. Is this an ominous precursor for a multi-front rocket war against Israel, not unlike the Second Lebanon War of 2006 with Hezbollah?

Radical Muslims continue to accuse Israel of ‘undermining the al Aqsa Mosque.’ Despite the lack of evidence, it is a war cry that continues to spawn a strong reaction. There’s been an uptick in Palestinian attacks against Israelis with thirty-three killed in 2022 and over twenty so far in 2023.

Let us not forget the power behind it all. Iran has sought hegemony in the Middle East since the founding of the Islamic Republic in 1979. There is an eschatological overtone to this ambition. The long-oppressed Shia Muslims, of which Iran is the leader, are destined to prevail against their Sunni rivals at the ‘end of days.’ Iran’s rulers believe that victory is now.

Prudently, Iran normally rejects direct confrontation and uses proxies like Hezbollah and Hamas to do its work of it. Iran’s controversial nuclear program and repeated declarations that Israel will disappear off the world map have led to a shadow war with the Jewish state during the past decade.

The scorecard for Israel is impressive. It introduced the Stuxnet computer virus that attacked Iran in 2010, one of several successful attempts to sabotage its nuclear facilities. High-profile assassinations in Iran have targeted military personnel and nuclear scientists. The Israeli spy agency Mossad launched a successful operation at a Tehran warehouse which netted a treasure trove of Iran’s nuclear archive. Add to Israel’s repeated air attacks on Iranian forces and installations in Syria and it gives the appearance that Israel has the upper hand in the shadow war. Iranian counter-attempts to assassinate Israelis overseas have thus far failed.

The Islamic Republic has two options:

First, utilise its proxies. Taking the long view, Iran has sought to surround Israel with Iran-friendly groups like Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, the Houthis in Yemen, and possibly Palestinian groups in the West Bank. Once they are courted, Iran makes sure they are well-armed with rockets, drones, and conventional weapons. Together they can confront the Jewish state, especially in tandem with a coordinated effort among themselves.

The second option is riskier and has never been tried before: confront the Jewish State militarily in an actual Iran-Israel war. They have the troops, weapons, and long-range missiles (and soon nuclear weapons), so what’s stopping them? Long unrecognised Iranian pragmatism urges restraint since it is better to wait for maximum effect with little effort versus an ‘all guns blazing’ approach which could entail great damage, international repercussions, and worse.

At the same time, Netanyahu has threatened to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities for many years. He has been under intense pressure not to do it. Could a real hot war throw all restraint to the wind?

It’s time to pray for the people from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean in the spirit of Psalm 122:6. When you pray for the peace of Jerusalem – and its neighbours – you will prosper.

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It was among the most critical days in the life of this ancient city. The long prophesied Messiah, Son of David, had come to the City of the Great King. Though it rapturously welcomed Him on the Palm Sunday triumphal entry, the city crucified the King of glory a few days later. What can we learn about Jesus and Jerusalem? They have a soon-coming future appointment.

He was born a Judean but raised a Galilean. The first thirty years of His life were spent in an obscure village with less than three hundred inhabitants. Because of Him, His hometown has grown to 78,000 today. Regarding His famous ministry, it was also Galilean-based by the shore of what is now the most famous body of water in the world, the Sea of Galilee.

Yet our King, Saviour, and Lord – Jesus of Nazareth – had an appointment in Jerusalem. Indeed, He had several but the most important one occurred at the end of His natural life. While His visits to Jerusalem were occasional, they were also notable.

These visits started when Jesus was eight days old; the time of His circumcision and then presentation to the Lord at the temple in Jerusalem. A simple sacrifice was offered of a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons. While the sacrificial side of the visit was routine, some extraordinary things happened. A man named Simeon was told that he would not die before seeing the Lord’s Christ with his own eyes. He prophesied that the infant would cause the fall and rising again of many in Israel (see Luke 2:21-35).

After Simeon, came an old prophetess Anna, daughter of Phanuel, from the obscure tribe of Asher. She pointed to this same infant as the means of redemption in Jerusalem – which was accomplished nearly thirty-three years later.

Jesus’ next recorded visit was when He was twelve years old. His family took Him to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover. When they returned to Nazareth, unbeknown to them, He stayed behind with the theological doctors, listening to them and asking questions. He astonished everyone with his words. Then the curtain descends between Jesus and Jerusalem and we hear nothing more for eighteen years. At the age of thirty, at the Jordan River, the Triune God – The Heavenly Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit made their visible public earthly debut at the site of John the Baptist’s ministry.

Remember that much of Jesus’ public ministry was done along the western, northwestern, and northern shore of the Sea of Galilee; from Magdala on the mid-western shore to Bethsaida on the Northeast corner of the lake. The eastern shore was Gentile country; hence, the herding of swine and the deliverance of the Gadarene demoniac. The southern half of the western shore was the area of Tiberias. Built by ‘that fox’^[1] Herod Antipas on an abandoned cemetery, good Jews refused to live in Tiberias. There is no record of Jesus visiting the city, despite its proximity to His ministry headquarters.

When Jesus did miracles in Galilee, they were universally celebrated and acclaimed. Duplicate the miracles in Jerusalem and the Lord received, at best, a mixed response. There were those who reacted just like the people of Galilee, yet others became resentful, hardened and hateful. His popularity in Jerusalem was not helped by the cleansing of the temple at the early part of His ministry (John 2:13-22), with another round after His Palm Sunday entry into the sacred precincts just days before His crucifixion.

Another example of the mixed response to miracles occurred in the sheep market at the pool of Bethesda (John 5) where a man with an infirmity of thirty-eight years. Jesus came to him and commanded that he rise, take up his bed, and walk. Immediately, he was healed and was able to comply. Only one problem: it was the sabbath day. The Jewish elite was highly offended, not impressed, by this powerful miracle. They viewed it as a violation of the Sabbath. The healed man went out of his way to tell them that his healer was Jesus; from that point, they persecuted the Lord until the time of His death. A similarly mixed response happened when Jesus healed the blind man at the Pool of Siloam; the whole of John 9 is devoted to this miracle and the controversy surrounding it.

This mixed response, love-hate, double-minded attitude by Jerusalem towards Jesus was fully manifested in the last week of His life. During the Palm Sunday entry into the city, the crowd rapturously welcomed him. They called Him the ‘Son of David,’ which was tantamount to recognising Him as the Messiah – the Anointed One – and coming king. This was a threat to the current ruling Jewish religious establishment and the Roman occupying authorities. Jesus took time from the adulation to view the city of Jerusalem and weep, knowing its celebration of Him was brief, its soon-coming rejection of Him deadly, and its own destruction by Rome was a few years away.

A second cleansing of the temple and strife-riddled arguments with the scribes and Pharisees, the communal temperature was raised to boiling point. His enemies would not rest until He was destroyed. Within a few short days, Jesus would be betrayed, arrested, tried, convicted, mocked, humiliated, then crucified and buried in a new but borrowed tomb. Three days later He rose from the dead. The city of His crucifixion and ratification of the New Covenant in His blood also became the dissemination centre of the glorious gospel of salvation to the ends of the earth. As it says in Luke 24:47: And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. So from the city where it all began, in the fullness of time, He will return.

TO BE CONTINUED

^[1] Luke 13:32

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