Category: israel

Posted in anti-semitism, israel, jerusalem, prophecy

Jerusalem! part 2, The Nation. "Israel to define itself as ‘national state of Jewish people’ "

Posted on by elizabethprata

Jerusalem! Introduction

Jerusalem! Part 1, The Land 

Jerusalem! Part 3, Its Glorious Spiritual Future

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jerusalem! It is the eternal city, (Psalm 46:4, Revelation 3:12) God’s city where He has set His name, (1 Kings 11:36, 2 Chronicles 12:13) and is the city in which Immanuel (Matthew 1:23) will dwell in all His glory, (Zechariah 8:3) calling it Jehovah Shammah, The Lord is There.(Ezekiel 48:35). It is the nickname He uses when he calls His people. (Zechariah 3:2). It is a place that it figures solely as the most important land, city, and people in the history of the earth. All of history is dwindling down to one focal point: Jerusalem. So let’s take a look at this incredible place.

God chose a people and a land to bring unto Himself. These are the Israelites and His land is Israel. Its city is Jerusalem. He made this promise to Abram in Genesis 12. God was actually delivering three distinct promises to Abram, later re-named Abraham. God made a land promise, a national promise, and a spiritual promise. In part 1 we looked at the land promise. Here is the verse–

“Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Genesis 12:1-3).

Is Israel a great nation? Well, yes. It has developed some of the world’s most wonderful technology. It has changed an arid place into a garden, and now most of the world’s fruit is exported from there. It is a military nation, strong and mighty. It is a tiny nation, having given away land during successive political parliaments. It is only the size of Massachusetts, but it is incredible in that it simply did not exist for 1900 years and then one day it did!

NatGeo

However as much as Christians bless the nation, and pray for its deliverance, we have to be realistic. This is from a sermon titled “The Cleansing of Israel,” delivered by John MacArthur in 1977. Not much has changed since then-

“Israel is not a religious nation. I would have to say that I doubt whether been in a more irreligious nation in my life than Israel. It’s an irreligious nation. Their god is the god of armies, the god of strength, the god of surprise, the god of might, the god of racial identity, which is the big thing, but not the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and not the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”

Jerusalem is referred to as Salem in Genesis 14:18, when Abram honored Melchizedek, King of Salem and priest of the God Most High (unusual that this one is King AND Priest, something banned later in Israel’s history. Priests always came from the tribe of Levi and Kings from the tribe of Judah).

 The meeting of Abraham with Melchizedek

Ezekiel 21:25-27 prophesied the end of the kings and there has been no king rightfully officiating over Israel since King Jehoiachin in about 600BC, shortly after Ezekiel’s pronouncement. There has been no priest in Israel since the last High Priest serving when the Roman army came and overthrew the Temple in 70AD since Phannias ben Samuel and he wasn’t even from a priestly family, he was just a revolutionary. he died during the Roman overthrow.

There is still no king or priest over Israel today. And of course, no prophet since John The Baptist and then Jesus prophesied there. There was not even any nation Israel between 70Ad and 1948. By this standard, the Israel of today is merely a political entity, led by a Prime Minister, a President, and a Parliament (Knesset).

Even during the period between May 1948 and June 1967, Jerusalem was not in Israel’s hands. They won East Jerusalem back during the Six Day War of June 1967, wresting it from the Jordanians who were occupying it. Later that month the Israeli Knesset declared Jerusalem unified. On July 30, 1980, the Knesset passed a law declaring the City of Jerusalem to be ‘eternal and indivisible.’” The United Nations promptly condemned the action.

There is still contention today. For example, what are the city’s borders? You can search for that answer online and you’ll come up with millions of maps with dotted lines, position papers, and news articles, but no borders.

Why won’t the world declare Jerusalem the capital of Israel? No country in the world has recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Many do not recognize it as a city that is even belonging to Israel! When others proclaim that Jerusalem shall be their capital, not a murmur is heard from the world.

Why won’t America declare Jerusalem the capital of Israel? We won’t even place an embassy there. The Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 is a public law of the United States passed by the 104th Congress on October 23, 1995. It was passed for the purposes of initiating and funding the relocation of the Embassy of the United States in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, no later than May 31, 1999. This law was never enacted, due to opposition from Presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama. (source). The US position is aligned with the United Nations- to ‘internationalize” Jerusalem, make it be an international city.

Source Times of Israel

Why are there maps emerging one after one that not only fail to draw correct boundaries to Israel, but fail to list it in any way as even existing? This has happened over and over, including just a few days ago. Times of Israel reports, “Official UN workers in Lebanon posed with a map in which Israel did not exist, and the entire area from the Jordan to the sea was titled ”Arab Palestine.” At the launch of German-funded projects in Lebanon earlier in May, Ann Dismorr, director of UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East) affairs in Lebanon, held the map, which mentioned Jordan, Syria and the other neighboring countries by name — but neglected to name Israel.”

Why does the world insist on calling Israel a state, and not a nation? Or a nation and not a state? Or a nation-state? The roots of the political conflict with Jerusalem and Israel lay in the fact that the Arab world refuses to declare it a national state for the Jewish people. Israel is set to define itself, “Israel’s new government plans to pass a controversial new law defining the country as a “national state of the Jewish people” despite the presence of 1.5 million Arabs within its borders. It will be enshrined in Israel’s Basic Law – the country’s equivalent of a constitution – and lay down that The State of Israel is the National State of the Jewish People,” as the UK Telegraph reports. 

Think about it. Since 1990 there have been 34 new countries to enter the world stage. A bunch of them came about as the Soviet Union dissolved. One of them was Armenia. The rest are listed below. The most recent is Sudan splitting into (Islamic) north Sudan and (Christian) South Sudan. (source)

March 21, 1990 – Namibia became independent of South Africa.
May 22, 1990 – North and South Yemen merged to form a unified Yemen.
October 3, 1990 – East Germany and West Germany merged to form a unified Germany after the fall of the Iron Curtain.
September 17, 1991 – The Marshall Islands was part of the Trust Territory of Pacific Islands (administered by the United States) and gained independence as a former colony.
September 17, 1991 – Micronesia, previously known as the Caroline Islands, became independent from the United States.
January 1, 1993 – The Czech Republic and Slovakia became independent nations when Czechoslovakia dissolved.
May 25, 1993 – Eritrea was a part of Ethiopia but seceded and gained independence.
October 1, 1994 – Palau was part of the Trust Territory of Pacific Islands (administered by the United States) and gained independence as a former colony.
May 20, 2002 – East Timor (Timor-Leste) declared independence from Portugal in 1975 but did not became independent from Indonesia until 2002.
June 3, 2006 – Montenegro was part of Serbia and Montenegro (also known as Yugoslavia) but gained independence after a referendum.
June 5, 2006 – Serbia became its own entity after Montenegro split.
February 17, 2008 – Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia.
July 9, 2011 – South Sudan peacefully seceded from Sudan following a January 2011 referendum. Sudan itself was the first to recognize South Sudan and did so one day early, on July 8, 2011.

Have there been successive UN Resolutions condemning their actions? Declaring where they may or may not build apartments? Fighting over which city is allowed to be their capital? Talks and endless talks over unifying territory, or splitting territory? Other nations managing as guardian large swathes of certain other nation’s’ lands? Wars? Of course not.

Only Israel sparks such attention, focus, and hatred.

Though there was a push several years ago for the vaunted ‘two-state solution’ to end the armed conflict over Israel, it subsided in 2008. I watched for years but we heard crickets on the Palestinian-Israeli peace plan. Until now. All of a sudden it revived big time. Secretary of State has rushed to Israel and environs to re-start the talks.

Yesterday the Guardian UK reported, “The British foreign secretary, William Hague, has warned of the risks of failure of the US-sponsored mission to revive the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, suggesting that it was the last attempt possible at reaching a two-state solution to the conflict and there was no realistic “plan B”. Hague spoke in Jerusalem shortly before US secretary of state John Kerry departed at the end of his fourth visit to the area, saying the time was approaching when “hard decisions” needed to be made.”

This current iteration of the two state solution talks is like a cat. A cat will doze for hours, slumbering quietly in the sun. Little snuffles emit from its nose, convincing you it is asleep. Then all of a sudden for no reason it will jump up and RUN LIKE A MANIAC INTO THE NEXT ROOM! It’s like it all of a sudden says “I need to be in there, right now.” That is what the US Secretary of State is like. For at least five years, not a word was said about the Israeli peace talks. Now it is hectic activity as if we’re approaching a cliff. And maybe we are.

The upshot is that Israel, and Jerusalem, is a political entity. It surely is a great nation, but it is without paying homage to her God. God is still with her, and will protect her to the end. She will be ravaged, for it has been the times of the Gentiles since the failure of the last king. Only gentile Kings ruled Israel, such as Cyrus, Nebuchadnezzar, etc. Even now she is without a king, only a Prime Minister.

These are the questions. This is today’s Jerusalem, today’s Israel, a politically buffeted nation without a king or a priest or world regard. The world is against it.

Anti-Semitism widespread among European Muslims
“Anti-Semitism in the Muslim World has always been problematic. After all, a 2008 Pew Research Center study shows that almost 100 percent of people in the Arab countries surrounding Israel hold anti-Semitic views. But what is even more problematic is how this anti-Semitism among Muslims has spread to the Western World, especially to children and teenagers. Anti-Semitism is rapidly spreading and becoming mainstream among young Muslims in Europe …”

Source

Last week a Italian journalist Giulio Meotti asked in an Op-Ed,

How Did 150,000,000 Europeans Come to Hate Israel?
The Jewish religion is under attack in Europe”, declared the Conference of European Rabbis president Pinchas Goldschmidt. Many polls (such as the study on behalf of the German Social Democratic Friedrich Ebert Foundation) bring an iconic number measuring the disaster: 150,000,000 Europeans have a delegitimizing and demonizing view of the State of Israel and its citizens. For a large sector of Europe, the cities, skyscrapers, hospitals, cinemas, and schools on that tiny sliver of land named “Israel” are merely real estate that will be restored to Islam once this malefic Jewish form is swept away. This is a popular mobilization against Israel in the “Raus mit Uns” spirit. 150,000,000 Western citizens believe that Zionism is a misconceived project to be brought to an end as soon as possible.”

He ended his piece this way, “Europe’s public opinion has been persuaded to believe that Israel is a state that ought to be dismantled forthwith. Europe’s population count today is 730,000, 000 citizens. What would happen if the anti-Semitic worm infected the mind of all of them? Can Israel really remain immune from that eruption of psychotic anti-Jewish illness?”

Yes. and No. Political Israel’s days are numbered. The world is coming against it as Zechariah showed in the prophecy. The psychotic illness that is Israel hate is satan’s contribution to his plan to thwart God’ The world will gather against Israel and surround Jerusalem. In this regard, the Italian journalist’s questions is consistent with prophecy.

““Behold, I am about to make Jerusalem a cup of staggering to all the surrounding peoples. The siege of Jerusalem will also be against Judah. On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it.” (Zechariah 12:2-3)

“And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.” (Revelation 12:13)

“For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken and the houses plundered and the women raped. Half of the city shall go out into exile, but the rest of the people shall not be cut off from the city. ” (Zechariah 14:2).

“But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near.” (Luke 21:20).

Things do not look good for the nation Israel and the city Jerusalem. And they aren’t. But the Lord will come and save His nation, His people, and His city. The third part of the series on Jerusalem will look at its glorious future! And it IS glorious! They will go through a dark time, but then things become very bright, as bright as the glory of the LORD himself!

source

Posted in biodiversity, israel, jerusalem

Jerusalem! part 1: The Land. Israel’s biodiversity, geography, & wildlife

Posted on by elizabethprata

Jerusalem! Introduction

Jerusalem! Part 2, The Nation

Jerusalem! Part 3, Its glorious spiritual future
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It all begins and ends with Jerusalem.

Actually let’s back up a bit. It all begins and ends with God.

Before the foundation of the world, God determined in His mind and His heart to select a people for Himself to have fellowship with. (Ephesians 1:4). And so began the creation of worlds, and His creation of people. (Genesis 1). Thereafter, several different dispensations occurred, being the various methods and means God used to enact this fellowship. A dispensation is a period of time in which man is tested in respect to obedience to some specific revelation of the will of God. These dispensations in my opinion are used to show man that he cannot attain God’s standard of holiness on his own. I personally believe that in the Millennium when all people enter as either righteous or glorified righteous, Jesus is physically present on earth, and the demons and satan are bound in the abyss (so no temptation), that it will again be revealed that man cannot adhere to God’s holy standards. This is proven by the final battle occurs. (Revelation 20:7-10)

In the Garden of Eden, after man sinned, he was no longer innocent, therefore God’s next method to persuade man to willingly love and serve Him was to appeal to his conscience. This Dispensation of Conscience, which began with man being expelled from the Garden of Eden and ended with the flood, lasted for approximately 1,656 years. “This dispensation is referred to as “The Age of Conscience” because of the fact that man was tested on the basis of obedience to his own conscience – that is, to his knowledge of what was right or wrong. Since there were no “laws” until after the flood, man was free to obey, or disobey, the dictates of his own conscience. Because man’s conscience was awakened in him as a result of his eating of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, man became conscious of sin and, as a result of this consciousness, became responsible to God for his conduct on the basis of his conscience. God’s purpose during this “Age of Conscience” was to prove to man that, when left to his own choice between right and wrong, nothing but failure can result.” (source)

The Noahic Covenant began the next dispensation, the Age of Government. After that, when the flood

Noah’s Sacrifice by Daniel Maclise, 1806-1870

waters subsided from the earth, we began the Age of Promise. “Man under promise Out of the dispersed descendants of the builders of Babel, God called one man, Abram, with whom He enters into covenant. Some of the promises to Abram and his descendants were purely gracious and unconditional. These either have been or will yet be literally fulfilled. Other promises were conditional upon the faithfulness and obedience of the Israelites. Every one of these conditions was violated, and the dispensation of promise resulted in the failure of Israel and closed in the judgment of bondage in Egypt.”

During this dispensation, the LORD made a promise to Abram, found in Genesis 12.

The LORD chose Israel to be His nation and the Israelites to be His people. Now the Lord had said to Abram: Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Gen. 12:1-3).

God was actually delivering three distinct promises to Abram, later re-named Abraham.

He made a land promise, a national promise and a spiritual promise.

1. The Land Promise: “A land that I will show you.”
“He also said to him, “I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.” (Genesis 15:7). Genesis 15:18-21 describes the boundary of the promised land in terms of the territory of various ancient peoples: “On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates – the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.” This is the “borders of the Land” (Gevulot Ha-aretz).

This land promise has never been fulfilled. The land that God promised His people the Israelites is very extensive. It would encompass all of today’s Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Gaza, part of Iraq to the Euphrates & Tigris, the Nile Delta of Egypt, and part of Saudi Arabia.

To compare, today the Arab League includes 21 separate Arab states spanning an area of more than 5,000,000 square miles (12.9 million sq. km.) However, there is only one Jewish state consisting of 8,000 square miles (20,715 sq. km.). It is called Israel. It is only slightly larger than Massachusetts.

Ancient maps placed Jerusalem in the center of the page. They knew that Jerusalem is God’s city and is the fulcrum of history, the axle of the wheel, and the center of the world stage. In the Jewish tradition, the Ark in the Temple in Jerusalem, through which God revealed himself to His people, rested on the Foundation stone marking the “navel of world” wiki omphalos. Ezekiel 5:5, “This is Jerusalem; I have set her at the center of the nations.” We read a similar reference in Ezekiel 38:2, “to seize spoil and carry off plunder, to turn your hand against the waste places that are now inhabited, and the people who were gathered from the nations, who have acquired livestock and goods, who dwell at the center of the earth.”

And what of this land? What is it like? It is wonderful! From deserts of the southern Negev to the snow-capped mountains to the north, to the 270 miles of coastline along the Mediterranean and to the frontier at the east, it is a diverse land.

Mountains of Judea, source Wikipedia commons

Northern coast. Source Wikipedia commons

Jordan’s Rift Valley, Source Wikipedia commons
Acacia tree in Negev Desert, Makhtesh Gadol, Wiki photo

The wildlife of Israel includes the flora and fauna of Israel, which is extremely diverse due to the country’s location between the temperate and the tropical zones, bordering the Mediterranean Sea in the west and the desert in the east. (Wiki: Wildlife of Israel)

God called it a land flowing with milk and honey. (Exodus 3:8). A land with abundant milk means that it had abundant cattle (or goats), and that means abundant grasslands and pastures. I have read in several Jewish commentaries that the honey is not bee nectar but the syrup one extracts from dates or figs. Either way, it evokes the same sense of abundance, this time from vegetation.

According to Israel Birding website, “Israel is situated at an intercontinental junction- a bottleneck for

A Hoopoe, Israel’s national bird

migration routes. An estimated 500 million (!!) birds pass through every spring and autumn, with 530 species in record. This website features Israel’s latest birding news.”

Israel’s climate varies from semi-arid to temperate to subtropical. The region is home to a variety of plants and animals; at least 47,000 living species have been identified, with another 4,000 assumed to exist. 116 species of mammals are native to Israel, as well as 511 bird species, 97 reptile species, and seven amphibian species. There are also an estimated 2,780 plant species. There are insects belonging to roughly 27 orders in Israel, out of about 29 worldwide. (biodiversity in Israel)

From Nature Israel, “From ancient times Israel’s native mammals have had an important role in Jewish culture, featuring in colourful biblical metaphors and prophecies, as symbols of the tribes of Israel or discussed at length in the dietary codes so central to the Jewish culinary tradition. The young David battles a bear and a lion, and Samson struggles with a juvenile lion. Torah scrolls are written on parchment from deer or antelope skins, the Jewish New Year is commemorated by blowing on the ram’s horn and the very Land of Israel itself is described as the “Land of the Gazelle”. Song of Solomon 8:14 mentions the gazelle in terms of its speed.  One of the sons of Zeruiah was compared to the speed of a gazelle in 2 Samuel 2:18.

Sadly the local lions and bears are now extinct, but most of Israel’s native mammals familiar from the bible and folklore remain – the jackal and the gazelle, the rock hyrax and the ibex, the wolf and the leopard, the wild boar and the hare.”

Psalm 104 mentions many different kinds of vegetation, birds, and mammals of Israel.

mountains are for the wild goats; the rocks are a refuge for the rock badgers.” (Psalm 104:18). Proverbs 30:24 says the following animals are ‘exceedingly wise’ and the hyrax, or rock badger, is one of those, “the rock badgers are a people not mighty, yet they make their homes in the cliffs;” (Prov 30:26). (Left, rock badger)

Lions and cheetahs are now extinct in Israel, but imagine young David, armed only with a slingshot, guarding his flock against wolves, lions, bears, leopards, and cheetahs. Not to mention hyenas and jackals. Leopards still exist in Israel today, as do other wild felines including caracals (a kind of lynx), bog cats and wild cats.

Bears are mentioned in 2 Kings 2:24 as animals that came out of the woods and tore up 42 youths who were mocking Elisha. Of course the lion is prominent in fact and in metaphor in the Land. Proverbs 30:30 says of the lion, “the lion, which is mightiest among beasts and does not turn back before any;”. Proverbs 28:1b “but the righteous are as bold as a lion.” The LORD used lions as a judgment when Assyrians settled in the Land and did not worship the LORD. (2 Kings 17:25).

The Lord has blessed His land with biodiversity, geographical diversity, a wondrous climate, and beautiful flora and fauna of all kinds. After the restoration when the curse is reversed, it will finally be all that He intends it to be, His city, His dwelling, named “The Lord is there” (Ezekiel 48:35. (Jehovah Shammah!)

Posted in albania, gog magog, israel, middle east unrest, prophecy

Israel: A Nation waiting to exhale

Posted on by elizabethprata

Israel is God’s chosen nation. He created a people from Abraham to be His people, to bear His spiritual fruit, and to be His everlasting trophy. That is His history with them.

Israel’s history with God is less holy and less even-keeled. They clung to Him. They left Him. They were punished by Him. They clung to Him. They left Him. They were punished by Him. They clung to Him. They left Him. They were punished by Him. They clung to Him. They left Him. They were punished by Him. They clung to Him. They left Him. They were punished by Him. They clung to Him. They left Him. They were punished by Him. They clung to Him. They left Him. They were punished by Him.

And so on.

One of the ways God punished His people was to use another nation to overrun the Israelites, or to defeat them in war, or just to harass them endlessly. This excerpt from the short essay “God’s providential use of other nations” explains,

The Use of Righteous Nations

The Lord can use a righteous nation to overthrow a wicked one. This certainly was the case in Israel’s early history when God led his people into Canaan and commanded them to destroy the tribes of that land (Deuteronomy 20:16-17). The ultimate potential redemption of humanity was at the root of this moral surgery. The failure of the nation to carry out completely the instructions was a source of severe hardship in the years that followed.

The Use of Wicked Nations

Jehovah may use an evil nation to chastise a relatively better one. There is no question but that the nations of Assyria and Babylon were far worse than both Israel and Judah, yet the Lord employed both of these pagan powers to punish his people who gradually (and sometimes more than gradually) were drifting into apostasy.

The essay goes on to use the verse from Acts in which Paul explains, perhaps, God’s thinking on why He does this,

“And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, (Acts 17:26-27).”

Here is a biblical example of how God used a nation. For example, Judges 10:6-8,

“And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim, and Ashtaroth, and

Baal statue 1200BC, Wikipedia

the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines, and forsook the LORD, and served not him. And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he sold them into the hands of the Philistines, and into the hands of the children of Ammon. And that year they vexed and oppressed the children of Israel: eighteen years, all the children of Israel that were on the other side Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilead.”

The long and unsettled history of Israel has made them weary today. They want peace. They want security. They want peace and safety. But it is not to be, yet.

“While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.” (1 Thessalonians 5:3).

Even today, with Israel’s military prowess tested and proven again and again, enemies all around Israel either harass them constantly or are in a war-like state of their own. (Below, Jerusalem at night)

Just a few of the headlines showing Middle East boiling point-
Syria PM survives assassination car-bombing
Claims of Hezbollah getting chemicals
And now some Albanian Islamists are joining the Syrian war. “In recent months, the “Albanian world,” which consists of five contiguous states (Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro), has been increasingly interested in what is happening in Syria and the controversy over whether Albanians should go fight there.”

This is interesting because in the future Gog-Magog war, described in Ezekiel 38-39, a coalition of nations surprise attacks Israel. Part of the coalition will be Russia and the Baltic states, of which Albania region is a part. I wrote about the Chechen connection to Gog-Magog when the Boston bombers were revealed to be Chechen.
Iraq getting more murderous, unrest permeates
They pulled the license of the news organization Al Jazeera and closed the border with Jordan.
Egypt pulling out of talks, protesting Israel’s nukes

All around Israel, tiny Israel, monster nations are at war, either with themselves, with each other or with Israel.

Israel is a nation that is still holding its breath. Peace and safety hasn’t come yet. It is not on the horizon, either. Prophecy says there will be another war, and this one Israel would lose. If it wasn’t for their holy God, that is. God uses nations once again in His providential manner to make His point-

“And I will set my glory among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see my judgment that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid upon them. So the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God from that day and forward. And the heathen shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity: because they trespassed against me, therefore hid my face from them, and gave them into the hand of their enemies: so fell they all by the sword. According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions have I done unto them, and hid my face from them.” (Ezekiel 39:21-24). Below, what Armageddon might look like…

Israel is waiting to exhale. Hold on a while longer His people! Turn from your heathen ways and cling to your Holy God. His promises never fail. Your weariness will lead you to making deathly decisions, such as accepting the antichrist as savior, (Dan 9:27) and eventually, the armies of the world will encamp around you to fight the very LORD Himself at Armageddon. (Revelation 16:14-16; Zechariah 14:2). But He is trustworthy and will save a remnant, (hiding out at Bozrah/Petra, Isaiah 63:1) and will ensure peace for all in the Millennium Kingdom. (Zechariah 14:11). This is what’s coming for you, O Israel!

The Glory of the Lord Fills the Temple!

“Then he led me to the gate, the gate facing east. And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east. And the sound of his coming was like the sound of many waters, and the earth shone with his glory. And the vision I saw was just like the vision that I had seen when he came to destroy the city, and just like the vision that I had seen by the Chebar canal. And I fell on my face. As the glory of the Lord entered the temple by the gate facing east, the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the temple.” (Ezekiel 43:1-5).

Peace will flow like a river!

“Then he led me back to the bank of the river. As I went back, I saw on the bank of the river very many trees on the one side and on the other. And he said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, and enters the sea; when the water flows into the sea, the water will become fresh. And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes.” (Ezekiel 47:6b-9)

Posted in archaeology, israel, major find

Is Israel Hiding a Major Bible Era Find?

Posted on by elizabethprata

I had noted previously that there seemed to have been a LOT of biblical-era finds this month

–Mysterious stone structure at the bottom of the Sea of Galilee
–Rare 2,000-Year-Old Mikveh Uncovered in Jerusalem
–Archaeologists in Iraq find ancient complex near Ur, home of biblical Abraham
–Well-Preserved Wine-Making Facility Found in Southern Israel

The links to each one of those above are at the main link above. Now this from Arutz Sheva / Israel National News, and I’m posting this article in full.

Is the State Hiding a Major Bible Era Find?
Makor Rishon says authorities are keeping lid on what may be a royal castle from David’s time.
For unknown reasons, Israeli authorities are keeping lid on an archaeological find that may turn out to be a royal castle from David’s time, reports Makor Rishon newspaper.

According to the paper, the site was identified by Binyamin Tropper, of the Kfar Etzion Field School. As he descended into a cave in the area of southern Jerusalem, he identified what professionals know as “a proto-aeolic capital” connected to a column.

The capital – which is the decorated stone at the head of an ancient column – dates back to the Biblical era, according to Field School Director Yaron Rosental. Only 30 such capitals have been found in Israel so far, and only five of them were found in areas in which Biblical-era kings lived.

Unlike all of the other proto-aeolic capitals found in Israel – this one is not separate from the column but connected to it.

“For reasons that are not completely clear,” the newspaper writes, “several authorities in Israel have decided to silence the find, which may mark a breakthrough in the perception of the period of King David and his son, Shlomo [Solomon], and of the entire Judean kingdom.

The capital “apparently indicates that an entire temple of castle is buried beneath it,” the newspaper adds. However, when Rosental contacted the Israel Antiquities Authority to inform them of the find, the person he spoke to simply said – “Yaron, good for you. You found it, but we already are aware of it. Now forget about the whole thing and keep your mouth shut.”

Rosental said that he later found out that the IAA had known about the side for 18 months. He said that no digging has taken place since then, and that even steps like cordoning off the area to prevent damage to the rare find, have not been taken.

Rosental calls this “a scandal” but says that no less worrisome is that the state appears to have plans to move the separation fence between Israel and the PA in a way that will leave the site in the PA’s hands,

According to Rosental, excavation of the site has potential for uncovering a complete castle from the Judean kings’ period, for the first time ever. “We appear to have a complete castle here,” he said. “Those who came after it did not know of its existence.” The details found inside could be “amazing.”

The IAA confirmed to Makor Rishon that the find is an important one that appears to date to the period of Judean kings. However, the IAA added, the subject is “sensitive” and “requires serious and responsible handing.”

The IDF said that it offered the IAA “the full assistance needed” in order to remove the capital and column from the site.

If you can believe it, “there are still, to this day, raging debates between the school of archeologists who claim there was a great Jewish dynasty begun by David and Solomon, and the school that doubts there ever really existed two people by those names,” reports the Jewish Press on this archaeological find.

However the Jewish Press also asks this question- “The question is, based on their track record, how respectful would the future owners of the area, the PA [Palestinian Authority], of a site that could prove beyond doubt that it used to belong to a Jewish empire – the very empire the PA officially says never existed.”

I think all this is highly interesting. When confronted with truth, they suppress it, not just in their minds but actively on the earth.

From GotQuestions regarding archaeology

“Many secular archaeologists used to say that David was a legendary figure, on par with King Arthur, rather than a historical king. That is, until they found the Tel Dan Stela, a basalt stone dating from the 9th century B.C. bearing David’s name and identifying him as king of Israel. Thus, up until the stela was found, archaeology did not overtly support the Bible’s references to David. But, eventually, it was proved that God’s Word was true all along. David was a real person who was king of Israel, and archaeological naysayers turned out to be wrong.

“Many more archaeological discoveries have substantiated events and people in the Bible. Egypt’s invasion of Israel (1 Kings 14:25); the Assyrian siege of Lachish (2 Kings 18-19); the trade relations between Israel and Sheba (1 Kings 10); the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem; and the reigns of Kings Omri, Ahab, Uzziah, Hezekiah, Ahaz, Jeroboam II, and Jehoiachin (1 and 2 Kings) have all been confirmed by archaeology. And the previously mentioned Dead Sea Scrolls, the discovery of which was one of the most significant of the 20th century, are decisive proof of the reliability of the Bible’s manuscripts.”

And this also—

“It is archaeological evidence that provides the best possible physical information on the life and times of the ancients. When proper scientific methods are applied to the excavation of ancient sites, information emerges that gives us a greater understanding of the ancient peoples and their culture and proofs that validate the biblical text. Systematic recordings of these findings, shared with experts worldwide, can give us the most complete information on the lives of those who lived in Bible times. Christian archaeology is just one of the tools scholars can use to present a more complete defense of the biblical narrative and the gospel of Jesus Christ. Often, when sharing our faith, we are asked by non-believers how we know the Bible is true. One of the answers we can give is that, through the work of Christian archaeologists, many of the facts of the Bible have been validated.”

Posted in israel, naming names of false teachers, north korea, writing on the wall

Naming names, where is USS John McCain? Israel surrounded, writing on the wall ain’t what it used to be.

Posted on by elizabethprata

I found a few things I think are interesting. I hope you do too.

Israeli newspaper Haaretz laments the cultural co-opting of the phrase “the writing on the wall.”
Wordplay: The writing on your (Facebook) wall
Today’s ‘writings’ are not what they used to be. There are ‘texts,’ ‘tweets’ and ‘posts,’ and walls are not what they used to be either.
“The key part of the well-known phrase “the writing was on the wall” − which is, according to most lexicons, an idiom that presages “imminent doom or misfortune” − is the verb “to be,” in the past simple ‏(“was”‏) tense. Only by virtue of that “was,” with hindsight, do mere words inscribed on a partition become validated, and acquire the heavy weight of a warning unheeded.” … “But today “writings” are not what they used to be. There are no “writings” anymore per se: There are “texts,” “tweets” and “posts” in our post-writing post-modern age. And walls are not what they used to be either. A “Wall” was once the original Profile space of Facebook users, something they could cover with their own “posts” and keep unblemished by other people’s ‏(friends’ or foes’‏) words.”

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Making a new life after 20 years of false imprisonment

Frank Carrillo was falsely imprisoned in California and after 20 years released after witnesses admitted they had lied. It took 15 years even to get anyone to listen to him. This 3-minute video is a first-person recounting of his journey and how he feels now. He is not bitter he says. Not angry, either. He only wants to finish his education and live a free life.

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Here is a map I found in Facebook (HT Julie Sommerkamp Pence) showing in visual style the breadth of the hostile territory surrounding Israel. Even the white blob is too big, for Israel is truly tiny. Zechariah 12:3 says that “On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it.”

They will not prevail.

God will save all Israel (Romans 11:26.) At the end of the Tribulation God will redeem His nation, not just the individual people. Jeremiah 31:31, Jeremiah 32:38). The LORD said it, it will come to pass.

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Here is a Pentagon release on the status of the ships in the Asian theatre of operations:

“Pentagon official on status of USN destroyers in Pacific: “The guided missile destroyers USS John S. McCain (DDG 56) and USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) have arrived at pre-determined positions in the Western Pacific, where they stand poised to respond to any missile threats to our allies or our territory. USS Decatur is finishing a deployment to the 5th and 7th Fleet areas of responsibility and the hope is to not extend her deployment any further. USS Fitzgerald is forward-deployed to Yokosuka,Japan and is fully-capable of taking over for Decatur.”‘

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Naming false teachers? Don’t be so mean! Except … in one book of the bible, Paul named eight. (2 Timothy). From “Naming Names…Is it Biblical?“
1) Phygellus 1:15
2) Hermogenes 1:15
3) Hymenaeus 2:17
4) Philetus 2:17
5) Jannes 3:8
6) Jambres 3:8
7) Demas 4:10 (apostate)
8) Alexander the coppersmith 4:14

“We see clearly here that fighting the good fight and finishing our course involves and includes marking deceivers. Men of God today are mandated to do the same, yet only by the revelation of the Word of God. Marking people is commanded in the Bible (Rom. 16:17-18). If a public leader is teaching people falsehood, he is to be confronted and exposed. The fruit of truly repenting of teaching something that contradicts God’s Word is that the leader will publicly amend his way and doctrine. Naming names must never be done recklessly or out of a personal vendetta, but only according to the Word and in the Spirit for the glory of God and protection of His beloved people.”

Posted in israel, jews, Obama, prophecy, turkey, zechariah

Israel PM brother-in-law says Obama is an anti-Semite

Posted on by elizabethprata

I happen to agree with Israel Prime Minister Netanyahu’s brother-in-law. Here is news today regarding Obama in Israel-

Netanyahu’s Brother-In-Law Says Obama Is An Anti-Semite, Hates Israel
“In the midst of trying to ease tensions following one of the worst diplomatic rifts between the US and Israel in recent memory, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was forced to distance himself from his brother-in-law Wednesday after he accused US President Barack Obama of being an anti-Semite during a radio interview. “It’s not that Obama doesn’t like Bibi,” Hagai Ben-Artzi said during the interview, according to Haaretz. “He doesn’t like the nation of Israel.” Ben-Artzi attributed Obama’s alleged anti-Semitism to his long association with Rev. Jeremiah Wright, whose views Obama came to disavow during his presidential campaign in 2008. “When there is an anti-Semitic president in the United States, it is a test for us and we have to say: We will not concede. We are a nation dating back 4,000 years, and you in a year or two will be long forgotten. Who will remember you? But Jerusalem will dwell on forever,” Ben Artzi said.”

Netanyahu immediately distanced himself from his brother-in-law and rejected his opinion.

However, as with anyone, anywhere, check to see that what they say and what they do match up. Obama’s behavior over the last 4 years as president toward Israel’s prime minister has not been one of love or even regard, but of barely disguised disdain.

Last September, Reuters reported, In an unusual snub, Obama to avoid meeting Netanyahu

In 2010 the UK Telegraph reported, “Obama snubbed Netanyahu for dinner with Michelle and the girls, Israelis claim“
“Benjamin Netanyahu was left to stew in a White House meeting room for over an hour after President Barack Obama abruptly walked out of tense talks to have supper with his family, it emerged on Thursday.”

In January 2013, an American columnist with close ties to the White House described Obama’s disdain for Netanyahu.

This is not how you treat your ONLY ally in a harsh and hostile part of the world, not if you have regard and respect for its people nation to nation, that is.

Obama seems to be getting some props for “brokering” a rapprochement between Israel and Turkey. Their relations had broken down after Turkey violated (allegedly) a marine blockade by Israel and Israel shot several Turkish officers in the sea scuffle. Diplomatic relations had been called off since late 2010-early 2011, with only one phone call by Netanyahu to Turkey to offer help after Turkey’s earthquake. Turkey said no thanks.

The Japan Times explains, “Israel and Turkey were once close allies. Relations began to decline after Erdogan, whose party has roots in Turkey’s Islamist movement, became prime minister in 2003. Erdogan has embarked on a campaign to make Turkey a regional powerhouse in an attempt to become the leading voice in the Muslim world but has in the process distanced the country from Israel.”

However, despite those ambitions, at least for today, the two nations appeared to ‘bury the hatchet’ as Japan Times said. Haaretz reports, “In November 2012, Israel and Turkey resumed talks on ending the crisis in relations between the two countries. On March 22, 2013, Netanyahu made the phone call to Erdogan, apologizing over the deaths of the nine Turkish citizens in the flotilla incident. The normalization agreed by both countries included the return of the Turkish ambassador to Tel Aviv and the Israeli ambassador to Ankara.”

Some say that it is good that diplomatic tensions have eased between the two nations. The region is aflame with Syria’s civil war and refugees streaming into Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon. Israel could use Turkey’s help with the situation and vice versa. Others say it is not a good idea, Israel looked weak to bow to Turkey after all this time and lowered morale of the soldiers. His apology created a firestorm at home. And after all, biblically, Turkey will attack Israel in the Gog-Magog war. (Ezekiel 38:6). If they form warm relations now, it won’t last.

At the end of Obama’s trip to Israel, he stopped to tour the ancient rose-red city of Petra in nearby Jordan. Petra means rock, and it is located in the region of Bozrah, which means sheepfold. It is the place where the Jews will flee to when they see the abomination of desolation. (Matthew 24:16). How do we know this?

Daniel 11:41 declares that Jordan is the only place that will escape the domination of the antichrist in the last days. The Jews at that time will flee over the mountains as per Matthew 24:16 and as Revelation 12:14 says, they will cross the desert. Geologically, the only mountains and desert is toward the southwest, over the Jordan river and into Edom. Isaiah 63:1 shows the Lord Jesus coming from Bozrah with blood stained robes, indicating one of His stops before He lands on the Mount of Olives (Zechariah 14:4) will be to save the Jews hiding there.

To see a person such as Obama who has such a strong antichrist spirit (1 John 4:3 and also here) standing in such a prophetically wonderful and important place for the Jews, and he who hates Israel so much…it is a jarring juxtaposition.

As far as Netanyahu’s brother-in-law goes, I am in total agreement. Obama by his behavior and by his placement here at this time in America, seems to have severe disdain for the nation of Israel. But that is no more or no less than the rest of the world, which seems to be hurtling toward fulfillment of the following prophecy:

“On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it.” (Zechariah 12:3)

Zechariah has much to say about the coming times. There is an incredible amount of last days prophecy throughout Zechariah’s book, including parallels with Revelation. As Pastor Steve Hadley says, pound for pound, Zechariah has it almost over even Daniel in terms of prophecy. If you would like to listen to a preacher preach through this book, verse by verse, I’d recommend Steve Hadley at Harvest Family Fellowship, here.

Always keep your eyes on the Lord through His word. What He is doing is amazing. We look at the news in wonder but the real wonder comes when we read His valuable and precious word, and see what He has planned. Did you ever stop to think that it is amazing in itself that He even tells us what He plans to do? He is God after all. He doesn’t have to. Just reading the bible is a miracle for us, because it is the place where His holiness and perfection and love is revealed. If your bible is dusty, brush it off and open it up. There are many wonders awaiting you there.

Posted in israel, jerusalem

Temple Mount firebombing

Posted on by elizabethprata

This morning I read an interesting news item in the daily Israel National News

Unprecedented: Firebombs on Temple Mount
“Jewish Temple groups demand inquiry as videos show policeman’s uniform alight after he was struck by a fire bomb. Jewish Temple organizations demanded Sunday that the Prime Minister immediately establish an official commission of inquiry into Friday’s events on the Temple Mount and the way the Temple Mount police handled them. Friday’s events were worse even than those that took place during the Great Terror War that began in 2000, the groups said. For the first time ever, they said, fire bombs were thrown at police on the Mount, and one policeman caught fire and miraculously suffered only slight wounds.”

Jerusalem has been set apart by our Holy God as his land and His city since the beginning. (Psalm 132:13). It was where Melchizedek, both a priest and a king of “God Most High,” ruled from about 4 millennia ago. (Then called Salem, Genesis 14). It is the place where we read of Abraham binding Isaac for the sacrifice of the son which God commanded. (Genesis 22) it is where the Presence of God dwelt in the Temple. God chose to place His name there (2 Chronicles 6:6).

It is a holy patch of ground. That is the point.

The site has nothing to commend it in human terms. Jerusalem does not lie on any of the ancient important trade routes. There is no natural reason why this city should be one of the most important places in the world for more than four thousand years. A low range of hills are a barrier to winter rains from the Mediterranean Sea just 30 miles to the west. Just to the East, annual rainfall drops nearly to zero in the Judean Wilderness. The elevation to the East drops too- the Dead Sea is 15 miles away and is 1290 feet below sea level.

And yet it is hotly contested.

So the Muslims built a mosque on the patch and claim it is theirs and that the Jews never owned it or have claim to it. It is a contested piece of ground, and the only reason is that it is God’s and satan does not want God to have it.

The city is called the city of Peace, the root of Jerusalem, meaning Shalom. It has never known peace. Things are going to get much darker for Jerusalem before they get better. But it will. It will get better.

“And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts. The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts.’ (Haggai 2:7-9)

“It shall come to pass in the latter days
that the mountain of the house of the Lord
shall be established as the highest of the mountains,
and shall be lifted up above the hills;
and)all the nations shall flow to it,
and many peoples shall come, and say:
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of the God of Jacob,
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths.”
For out of Zion shall go the law,
and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
He shall judge between the nations,
and shall decide disputes for many peoples;
and they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war anymore.” (Isaiah 2:2-4)

No more firebombs on God’s holy ground. That will be a glorious day. And get this:

“They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:9)

What a glory and a delight when all the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the Lord!

Posted in damascus, iran, israel, north korea, tribulation

Syria conflict: Many dead in huge Damascus bombing

Posted on by elizabethprata

BBC News reported yesterday,
“A huge car bomb in the Syrian capital Damascus has sent smoke billowing across the capital’s skyline.

“Syrian media and pan-Arab satellite station al-Jazeera have spoken of deaths and injuries resulting from the blast, which state media have blamed on “terrorists”. Ambulances rushed to the scene near headquarters of the ruling Baath party. The violence comes as Russia and the Arab League say they want to broker direct government-opposition talks. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described the violence as “a road to nowhere”.

“The opposition Syrian National Coalition is holding a two-day meeting in Egypt to discuss a framework for a possible solution to the Syrian war. Some 70,000 people have died since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011, the UN says.”

Other estimates have the casualties over the two-year civil war period as high as 90,000.

This photo from Syrian State Media Sana of the bombing shows a tragic story.

When Jesus said in Matthew 24:6 that as a sign of the end there would “be wars and rumors of wars,” that was a statement meant for the Tribulation. The discourse Jesus gave in Matthew 24 was regarding the 7-year Tribulation AKA Time of Jacob’s Trouble. The Tribulation as prophesied in Revelation 6-20 has not begun.

However, it is interesting to note the severity of the current situation both in the Middle East and in the Asian spheres (North Korea vs. South Korea, & China vs. Japan). It is even more interesting to note this in light of the fact that those two regions are specifically mentioned as being participants in the global end time Tribulation wars. (Isaiah 17, Isaiah 19, Psalm 83, Ezekiel 38-39, Rev 16:12, etc)

In Israel, war has taken on a heightened priority. Iran is nearing the red line in which there would be no turning back if they get close enough to developing a nuclear bomb. The red line refers to the moment of no return that Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu said Israel would not let Iran cross, when he spoke to the UN in September 2012. He said at that time that Iran would be close to finishing a bomb in the spring.

Israel-watcher Joel C. Rosenberg has more.

Netanyahu warns: IAEA centrifuge report shows Iran nearing nuclear “red line.”
“Iran has begun installing advanced centrifuges at its main uranium enrichment plant, a UN nuclear report said on Thursday,” according to Reuters and the Jerusalem Post. “In response, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said that Iran is closer today than ever before to obtaining the necessary enriched uranium for a nuclear bomb. … Netanyahu termed the report “very grave,” and said it proved that Iran is moving swiftly toward the red line he set out at the UN in September. He said during that address that Iran must be stopped before it crosses that line, something he said at the time could happen as early as the spring.”

Several weeks ago, North Korea released a video that seemed to show an American city, likely New York, in flames due to a NK nuke. They have released another video, this time, depicting Obama on fire from flames in a nuclear blast. It is a crude response to the world condemnation for North Korea’s latest nuclear test. It does, however, remind us that our most potent enemy perhaps is North Korea.

Two weeks ago, I wrote about Iran’s boast that claimed they were already nuclear. In that piece I said that in my opinion nuclear exchanges will take place during the Tribulation, and showed how several verses from the bible seemed to show us either death from a nuclear war and cleanup from a nuclear war. In the same piece I’d linked to above, Joel Rosenberg write about Iran, NK, Israel, US and nukes, stating,

“This is particularly troublesome in the light of the fact North Korea recently conducted another nuclear warhead test. Guess who was present at the test? The head of Iran’s nuclear program. Did Pyongyang just help Iran test an A-bomb? As I’ve written on my blog, there is growing evidence that Iran and North Korea are working hand in glove in developing nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles. Netanyahu warns that the North Korea nuclear bomb test proves that economic sanctions are not enough to stop Iran. …”

As I drove to work today, the car ahead of me was decorated at the back bumper with stickers. One said, “If you’ve seen one nuclear war, you’ve seen them all.”

That sentiment, as darkly humorous as it is, will soon be all too true.

Posted in google earth, iran, israel, star of david

Google earth reveals Star of David emblazoned on Iran airport roof, Iranians outraged

Posted on by elizabethprata

Outrage After Google Image Reveals Star of David on Roof of Iran Airport
“Iranian officials reportedly are outraged after learning that a Google Earth satellite image revealed a star of David emblazoned atop the roof of the Tehran airport. According to Arabic language news outlet Al Arabiya, national leaders called for the immediate removal of the Zionist symbol after it was discovered on top of the main building of Iran Air. Although Israel and Iran broke ties more than 30 years ago, Al Arabiya reported that the Iran Air building was built by Israeli engineers before the Islamic Revolution in 1979. Citing local reports, it also said that not only did the Iranian government hire Israeli engineers to build the airliner’s headquarters, it also scheduled regular flights between the two countries.”

O, the horra.

I think it’s funnier that it took the Iranians 30 years to notice…

Posted in israel, peace talks, two-state solution, wrath

Ariel Sharon showing significant signs of brain activity

Posted on by elizabethprata

‘Significant brain activity’ in comatose Ariel Sharon
“Comatose for seven years, Israel’s iconic former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is showing “significant brain activity.” The 84-year-old suffered a devastating stroke January 4, 2006, and a brain hemorrhage. He was presumed to be in a vegetative state. But on Monday, a team of surprised neuroscientists and doctors said Sharon’s brain appeared to respond when they showed him pictures of his family and had him listen to his son’s voice. Doctors also used tactile stimuli to measure Sharon’s reaction. Does this mean the man Israelis once dubbed the “Lion of God” could wake? Doctors urge caution.”

I remind us that four years ago I reported his doctors said Sharon may soon wake up. He didn’t.

The End Time: Is Ariel Sharon waking up?
October 22, 2009
Close to four years after suffering a massive hemorrhagic stroke, Dov Weisglass, who served as bureau chief to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, told Israel Radio’s Reshet Bet on Thursday that the former prime minister’s medical team indicates he may emerge from his coma, soon.” “Not really explaining his words, Weisglass exhibited a measure of optimism, seemingly confident the former war hero, prime minister and architect of the Disengagement Plan will awaken from his coma. He did not address earlier reports that Sharon sustained profound neurological compromise as a result of massive cranial bleeding from the stroke(s).” (Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)

Ariel Sharon was Prime Minister of Israel, 2001-06. Sharon was a commander in the Israeli Army from its inception in 1948. As a paratrooper and then officer he participated prominently in the 1948 War of Independence, becoming platoon commander of the Alexandroni Brigade and taking part in many battles, including Operation Ben Nun Alef. He was an instrumental figure in the creation of Unit 101, the Retribution operations, the 1956 Suez War, the Six-Day War of 1967, the War of Attrition and the Yom-Kippur War of 1973. As Minister of Defense, he directed the 1982 Lebanon War. During his military career, he was considered the greatest field commander in Israel’s history, and one of the country’s greatest ever military strategists. The Israeli public nicknamed him “The King of Israel” and “The Lion of God”.

So you can see that Sharon is (was) an influential figure. He looms large in Israel’s history, even having been comatose for nearly 8 years.

Suddenly, after years of dormancy, the talk is abruptly of a two-state solution again. Of a Palestinian state. Of peace talks. Here is one news article about it:

Netanyahu would agree to interim Palestinian state, ex-minister claims
“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is willing to agree to the creation of a Palestinian state in provisional borders, even before his conditions for a final-status agreement are met, former minister and veteran peace activist Yossi Beilin said. “I don’t think that Netanyahu, who is far from being a warmonger — he’s a very cautious person — [is ready to commit to] a permanent solution. Not because he doesn’t want it — all of us want it — but because he’s not ready to pay the price,” Beilin said Monday night. “But to speak about a provisional border with the Palestinians, this is something that I heard from him that we would be ready to do it.”

[Outgoing Secretary of State] Hillary Clinton Sees Opening for Revived Mideast Peace talks
“Outgoing U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says a new coalition government in Israel could lead to resumption of talks toward a two-state peace accord with Palestinians. “I think the outcome of the election in which a significant percentage of the Israeli electorate chose to express themselves by saying ‘We need a different path than the one we have been pursuing, internally and with respect to the Middle East peace process,'” Clinton said. That could mean a resumption of stalled talks with Palestinian authorities, something that she said the Obama administration will pursue at “every possible opening.”

Just as the bonfire reaches maximum, God throws another log onto the fire…and things get hotter.

“I will gather you and blow on you with the fire of my wrath, and you shall be melted in the midst of it.” (Ezekiel 22:21)

photo credit: Captain Kimo via photopin cc