Lesson 4 : In detailing the fulfillment of God's prophecies to the Jews, the Bible details the history of the Nation of (And surreptitiously details the history of the church age as well!)

Last week we looked what seem to be parallel passages, but which proved to have one significant difference…

What was that difference? ______

The easiest way to figure out how the audience influences the intended message of the passage is to look at what each audience is warned to look for.

MATTHEW CHAPTER 24 LUKE CHAPTER 21

7Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom 10Then he said to them: "Nation will rise against kingdom. There will be famines and against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. pestilence and earthquakes in various places. 8All 11There will be great earthquakes, famines and these are the beginning of birth pains… "Then you pestilences in various places, and fearful events will be handed over to be persecuted and put to and great signs from heaven. 12"But before all death, and you will be hated by all nations because this, they will lay hands on you and persecute of me. you. They will deliver you to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings The Great Tribulation and governors, and all on account of my name.

15 “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of The Destruction of Jerusalem desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place” (whoever reads, let 20 “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by him understand), 16 “then let those who are in armies, then know that its desolation is near. Judea flee to the mountains. 17 Let him who is on 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the the housetop not go down to take anything out of mountains, let those who are in the midst of his house. 18 And let him who is in the field not her depart, and let not those who are in the go back to get his clothes country enter her. 22 For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.

What is Matthew's audience told to watch for? ______

When will that happen (and how do we know? )______

What is Luke's audience warned to watch for? ______

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When does that happen and how do we know? ______

Luke recorded Jesus' prophecy regarding the destruction of Jerusalem. That was actually a summary of a lot of other prophecy:

Israel's History ( In Advance): Fall of Jerusalem through WWII. DATE Event resulting in destruction Prophetic Verse A Jewish revolt in Caesarea caused a skirmish between local authorities and the Jewish resistance, and the Roman contingent was defeated. Emperor Nero acted 67 AD quickly to enforce Roman rule: 60,000 Roman troops, carrying their standard (the eagle) before them, marched into Israel to squash all Jewish rebellion. 68 AD Roman troops, under the command of General Vespasian's, laid siege to and destroyed 985 villages (as well as the inhabitant's crops) on their way to surround Jerusalem. 69 AD Vespasian reaches Jerusalem and sets up camp atop the Mount of Olives to plan his attack on the walled city. Fate intervenes though, as Nero is deposed (and commits suicide) and rule in Rome is up for grabs. Vespasian, a favorite of the people, is called to Rome to become emperor. In the chaos his troops surrounded Jerusalem for about 18 months awaiting orders. This allowed virtually all of the early church to flee to safety. 70 AD The Roman armies, now under the command of Titus (Vespasian's son) begin the siege of Jerusalem in March. (Pilgrims had been allowed to go into the city for Passover, which swelled the population considerably, but not permitted to come out.) Jewish leaders burned food stores to encourage Jews to fight more ferociously. With food stores gone, the misery of the starving population was intense. Some women killed, cooked, and ate their own children to stay alive. 70 AD Jews in the city attempted to sneak food past the Roman guards while Titus constructed ramps and attempted to take the Antionia Fortress, high ground close to the temple on the northeastern end of the city. The Antonia Fortress was taken at the end of August, the fighting igniting fires that destroyed the temple. The city was completely under Roman control by September 7. 70 AD Despite orders to protect the temple (valued even by Rome), a Roman soldier threw a torch into the storehouse, and the temple burned. Gold stored in the temple melted and ran into the cracks between the stones. The Romans dismantled the temple, stone by stone to recover the gold. 70 AD By the end of the siege, about 1 million Jews had been slaughtered, with about 100,000 taken into captivity 70 AD Fleeing the destruction of Jerusalem, Jews begin to scatter to every corner of the earth 135 The Roman emperor Hadrian, in 135 AD, plowed much of Jerusalem AD under to create the Roman city Aelia Capitolina. A coin struck for the occasion displays the emperor with two oxen and a plow. Remaining Jews are expelled from Israel.

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135- Exiled, the Jews cover the globe, finding animosity and persecution everywhere they attempt on to settle, e.g. Europe: Jews were expelled from England in 1290, from France in 1396, from Austria in 1491, from Spain in 1492, and from Portugal in 1497. Extermination of the Jews in Europe was begun in the inquisiton in 1500 and continued for 300 years; in the meantime Hungary expelled them in 1744, Russia began in 1881 (continuing for the next century and half); Germany attempted extermination again beginning in 1933.

70 AD The Jewish nation does not exist from 70 AD to 1948. Scattered over the globe, the Jews -on have neither political nor religious systems in place until their return as a nation in 1948. 135 After the end of Roman rule, Israel became a desolate wasteland, a situation which remained 0n unchanged until the return of Jewish rule in 1948. American writer Mark Twain visited Israel in 1867: " the spell of a curse has withered its fields and fettered its energies… Palestine is desolate and unlovely… It is a hopeless, dreary, heartbroken land." 1500- Jews in Spain or Portugal are forced to outwardly practice Catholicism, often by kissing the 1800 crucifix (wood or stone) to avoid being executed 1800- Beginning in the late 1800s, thousands of Jews fleeing persecution in Eastern Europe return on to Israel and buy parcels of land from absentee landlords in cities like Beirut and Damascus. 1917 England adopts the Balfour Declaration which commits England to working towards Jewish return to their land. Two years later the empire reaches its peak, ruling so much of the world (just under 25%) that the sun literally never set on the British Empire. The close of WWI puts England in charge of creating a homeland for the Jews in Israel. England, however, covetous of Arab oil, forbade further immigration and dragged their feet on Israeli sovereignty. The British Empire, on which the sun literally never set in 1919, disintegrated and within just a few decades their holdings had decreased to about 1%.

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Israel's History ( In Advance): A NATION REBORN.

The United Nations, who had controlled Israel since the Thus says the Lord, who stretches out the heavens, lays end of WWI, declared in early 1948 that it would pull the foundation of the earth, and forms the spirit of out its troops on May 15. On May 14, a committee of man within him: 2 “Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup Jewish leaders met (1:30 pm) to finalize a declaration of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when of Jewish statehood. The meeting ended at 3:00 pm, statehood was proclaimed at 4:00 pm. The declaration they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem. Zechariah became official when British rule ended at midnight. 12: 1-2 The US recognized Israeli statehood eleven minutes later. All the official steps that created Israeli statehood occurred in less than 24 hours!

The new nation of Israel , after 2500 years, reunited the kingdoms of Judah and Israel that had split the kingdom 30 And I will multiply the fruit of your trees and the that David and Solomon ruled. (Both halves were increase of your fields, so that you need never again conquered and enslaved, one by Assyria and one by bear the reproach of famine among the nations. Babylon, and for nearly 2500 years were never again Ezekiel 36:30 united. In 1948, however, in the new nation of Israel, both areas came again under one Jewish ruler.) . I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will Many Israeli cities which had lain in ruins, including bring you to the place from which I cause you to be Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth, Jericho, and Hebron, carried away captive. Jeremiah 29: 14 are rebuilt and inhabited.

Agricultural exports have increased 4000% since the 10 I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, Jews regained control of the land in 1948. Exports of all of it; and the cities shall be inhabited and the ruins agricultural products were virtually zero in the first few rebuilt. Ezekiel 36: 10 years of the new nation's existence, but now brings in $33 billion annually. Beginning with the surrounding countries after the Who has heard such a thing? …Who has seen such Israeli War of Independence, and quickly followed by things? shall a nation be born in a day? For as soon as Jews from every corner of the world taken captive or Zion was in labor, She gave birth to her children… 10 driven out 2000 years or more before, , the refugees “Rejoice with Jerusalem, And be glad with her, all you come home in droves. who love her…That you many drink deep and be delighted With the abundance of her glory.” Isaiah 66: 8-11 The number of Jews in Israel has increased from about …My people Israel; They shall build the waste cities 640,000 in 1948 to more than 6 million today, an and inhabit them; They shall plant vineyards and drink increase of nearly 1000%. wine from them;…,And no longer shall they be pulled up From the land I have given them, ”Says the Lord your God. Amos 9: 14-15 Jerusalem was regained in the Six-Day war in 1967 and 21 “Then say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Surely is currently the most hotly contested piece of land on I will take the children of Israel from among the the planet. In fact, Jerusalem stands seemingly at the nations, wherever they have gone, and will gather them from every side and bring them into their own brink of being the focus of the next world war, with all land; 22 and I will make them one nation in the land, the world's nations divided on its fate. on the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king over them all; they shall no longer be two nations, nor shall they ever be divided into two kingdoms again. Ezekiel 37: 21-22

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BEFORE OUR VERY EYES! We're going to look at these last few prophecies a little closer, because these are being fulfilled on our nightly news, right before our eyes!

3) The regathering of the exiles: the refugees of the three diasporas are being regathered to Israel at a furious pace!

Country Group Times of major aliyahs 1948 pop. Current population DNA testing? (approx)

Iraq 1949-1951 (Operations 150,000 Estimated 7; all say too old None Ezra and Nechemiah) to make trip needed (NN)

Iran 1980s, after Ayatollah 100,000 25,000 (NN) Khomeini came to power

Yemen 1949-1950 63,000 200 (NN)

(Op. Magic Carpet)

Tunisia/ 1962 ,1994 140,000 Less than 100 (NN)

Algeria

Morocco 1948-55 , 1963-70 265,000 3500 (NN)

Bahrain Early 1950s, 1967 600 Approx 30 (NN)

Egypt 1948 on 80,000 Less than 100 (NN)

Lebanon 1967, 1976 5000 About 40 (NN)

Libya 1948-1951 38,000 0 (NN)

Qatar Handful (NN)

Syria 1947 .1994 30,000 Less than 30 (NN)

Afghanistan 1951-1979 5000 1 (Z. Simentov, 48) (NN)

Arab States Almost 1 About 7500 (NN) Total million

Europe 1948-1951 9 million (6 mil dead) 2 mil left (NN)

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(1933)

Soviet Union 1948-1951 Almost 2 Less than 200,000 (NN) million 1989-1994

S. Africa Lemba None yet 70,000 70,000 Yes (+)

Ethiopia 1984-1991: 120,000 8700 Yes, no (Op.Joshua,Moses) definite 1991: (Op.Solomon) result

India Cochin Early 1960s 8000 52 Yes Y+

Bene 1964-1970 60000 2500 Yes Y+ Israel

Bene 2005- present 7000 Virtually 0, last seven Yes Menashe thousand brought back in (mtDNA+) summer of 2011

Bene 2002 (only 1 person) 300 299 In progress Ephraim

India Total 80,000 3600

Argentina Late 1990s till present 250,000 235,000 NN

NN indicates none needed; Jews who returned were unquestionably exiled Jews

Look at peak populations and total remaining for the Arab countries: What percent remain (roughly) ______. How about Europe? ______Ethiopia ______Soviet Union? ______

India______?

And all this has been going on in our lifetimes!

And, as it happens, it has been fulfilling prophecy in some very interesting ways!

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The LEMBA—Zimbabwe and South Africa

Tradition: they were the “chosen people”, left Israel about 2500 years ago, settled first in Yemen, then came to Africa. Oral history was that a man named Buba, a priest, led the Lemba out of Judea about 2700 years ago. They seemed to have taken to heart one other exhortation to Jewish exiles: Set up signposts, Make landmarks; Set your heart toward the highway, the way in which you went. Turn back, O virgin of Israel, Turn back to these your cities. Jeremiah 31:8,21. Specifically, in the form of their Ndinda Festival Song: We came from Sena, we crossed Pusela, we rebuilt Sena. In Sena they died like flies. We came from Hundji, to Chilimani. From Chilimani to Wedza. The tribes went to Zimbabwe. They built the walls and lived on the hill. Mwali sent the star. From Zimbabwe to Mberengwe. From Mberengwe to Dumghe. …We came to Venda, Solomon led us. Baramina was our ancestor." They made sure they remembered the route, anticipating their return. And it was that deliberate retention of the route that enabled their verification as Jews. What's more, it fulfilled prophecy: Though I scatter them among the peoples, yet in distant lands they will remember me. They and their children will survive, and they will return. Zechariah 10:9.Vestigial Judiasm: did not intermarry with other African tribes, kept Sabbath, practiced circumcision, some Kosher dietary practices (ritual slaughter, avoided pork products), others. Y-chromosome DNA: definitely Jews, higher prevalence of the priestly chromosome than even normal Jewish population.

Bnei Menashe. Border of Myanmar and India.

Prophecy fulfilled: The people group called the Shinlung, 2 million strong, inhabit the mountainous areas at the junction of Bangladesh, India, and Myanmar (formerly Burma). Their oral history recounts a tumultuous past. Conquered and driven out of a beloved homeland in slavery, they eventually escaped from their captors, and after an arduous journey through Afghanistan, fled over the silk road to China. Ongoing conflict with neighboring tribes forced them eventually into Burma, where they earned the name Shinlung, meaning “dwellers of caves”. Their legends speak of a book, lost in the conflicts, that told them about God, but it was burned by their enemies. Eventually they tired of the continual attacks and fled in multiple directions, spreading over the area into what is now three separate countries.

They were immigrants, with customs unfamiliar to their neighbors. They circumcised their sons (on the eighth day of life), slaughtered animals on stone altars and wore ritual prayer shawls. These rituals were important to them because they were memories of an ancient ancestor named Manmasi.

That was all the past they remembered, a history that echoed God's promise to Israel: Then the LORD will scatter you among all nations, from one end of the earth to the other. …Among those nations you will find no repose, no resting place for the sole of your foot. … You will live in constant suspense, filled with dread both night and day, never sure of your life. Deuteronomy 28: 64-66

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The Bnei Menashe remembered their festival song and traditions, and that their ancestor was Manmaseh, but had completely forgotten that they were Jews. After World War II, with increased western contact and exposure to the Bible, some tribal elders recognized Bible stories in their tribal legends and began to realize that their practices were Jewish, their ancestor was Mannaseh, and their oral history described was the result of the Assyrian conquest of Israel.

Rumors of this “lost tribe” reached the ears of Eliyah Avichail shortly after Israel again became a nation. Obsessed with returning the lost children of Israel to their newly regained homeland, Avichail travelled to Myanmar to investigate the Shinlung for himself. To their dismay, many of the Shinlung had already assimilated, with no memory of their oral history or former customs. The trip appeared to be a waste of time. Eventually, however, Avichail and his researchers found older Shinlung who remembered the traditional ways, and it was the Sikpui Festival Song that convinced the researchers of the validity of the tribe’s claims. The song, sung traditionally at harvest time, went like this:

The big red sea becomes divided; As we march along fighting our foes, We are being led by pillar of cloud by day,'' And pillar of fire by night. Our enemies, O ye folks, are thick with fury, Come out with your shields and arrows. Fighting our enemies all day long, We march forward as cloud-fire goes before us. The enemies we fought all day long, The big sea swallowed them like wild beast. Collect the quails, And draw the water that springs out of the rock.

DNA proved the Shinlung were Jews, fulfilling this prophecy in Zechariah: I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased. And I will sow them among the people: and they shall remember me in far countries; and they shall live with their children, and turn again. Though I scatter them among the peoples, yet in distant lands they will remember me. They and their children will survive, and they will return. Zechariah 10:9

Falasha - Ethiopia

Tradition: some Falashas believe they are part of the Assyrian exile and of tribe of Dan, some believe they are descendants of Solomon through his son with the Queen of Sheba (Menelik), some believe they fled Israel after temple destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar in 586 BC. Vestigial Judaism: Falasha practices predate the Babylon captivity, with no knowledge of Talmudic practices that date from that point on and no celebration of Purim or Hannukah. They kept Sabbath, circumcision, and did not intermarry with surrounding tribes.

The Falasha were the focus of the most memorable Aliyahs in history; specifically through three different airlifts: , Operation Joshua, and Operation Moses, which spanned the years

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1984-1991 and brought back, in total, almost 24000 people. The Falasha had had a tradition that they would return to Israel on “wings of eagles” (Exodus 19:4) and they viewed their eventual return in three airlifts as definitive confirmation of that prophecy.

Prophecy fulfilled: See, I will bring them from the land of the north and gather them from the ends of the earth. Among them will be the blind and the lame, expectant mothers and women in labor; a great throng will return. They will come with weeping; they will pray as I bring them back. Jeremiah 31:8-9 , the last and largest of the airlifts, was conducted in complete secrecy in 1991. Jewish- American advocates, in cooperation with the Israeli Air force and the toppling Ethiopian regime, loaded the planes ahead of the advance of rebel forces which threatened Falasha lives. Teams landed, loaded and lifted off 37 jumbo jets in 36 hours, loading 14, 284 passengers but disembarking 14, 287, as three babies had been born in flight— a rather startling fulfillment of the prophecy that the regathering of some women would be short enough to be fulfilled while in labor.

Prophecy fulfilled: Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, 'Give them up!' and to the south, 'Do not hold them back.'. Isaiah 43:5-6 It required a fair amount of pressure from the US and Israel, including concessions on the part of both nations, to persuade Ethiopia to let the Falasha go. They had to be persuaded to “give them up”! (And Israel is north of Ethiopia.)

Kaifeng: Jews of China Tradition: Oral history lost, but evidence from stone inscriptions puts the presence in Jews in Kaifeng at about the time of the conquest of the northern kingdom by Assyria. Vestigial Judaism: Judiasm survived in Kaifeng until the middle 1800s, but loss of understanding of Hebrew and repeated destruction of synagogue by Yangtze River flooding eroded Jewish life, prompting few remaining faithful to lament the loss of the Hebrew language and offer reward to anyone who could translate their scrolls. Some practices remained, like painting lintels with red paint on Chinese New Year. Interest in heritage has revived in their descendants in the last 20 years. DNA: Jewish heritage not disputed. Ming emperor (medieval period) designated seven surnames for Jewish citizens (Lao, Jin, Li, Shi, Zhang, Zhao, Ai) which persist today.

Shavie Israel is actively involved with Kaifeng’s Jewish descendants, and have translated numerous Jewish materials for them and provided them with basic materials for worship. Some members are interested in converting and making Aliyah. Shi Lei, studied three years in Jerusalem at Bar- Ilan University in Jerusalem and then Mechon Meir Yeshiva. He eventually returned to China to give classes on Judaism and Hebrew to the rest of Kaifeng’s Jewish residents. In September 2008 six young Kaifeng men applied for residency in Israel under the Law of Return, and a seventh later joined them , all arriving in their new home in late 2009.

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Prophecy fulfilled: Surely these shall come from afar; Look! Those from the north and the west, And these from the land of Sinim.” Isaiah 49:12

CRYPTO-JEWS: NEW MEXICO (and elsewhere)

Background: Old Hispanic families in central New Mexico, most practicing Catholics. Recent DNA studies have demonstrated clearly origin from Jews seeking refuge from Spanish inquisition after New World discovered in 1492. Vestigial Judaism: rituals of unrecognized origin: flat biscuits at Easter, tops at Christmas, aversion to pork, lighting candles in shed on Friday nights DNA: Y +, clearly Jewish in origin. Albuquerquw Catholic parish tested had 30/78 men with the genetic signature of the priestly line, including the parish priest.

Many Hispanics who have discovered that they are the descendants of Jews who fled persecution in late 15th century Spain and Portugal have embraced their heritage and converted. For example, Rosario Hinojosa , one of a class of 17 Hispanics formally welcomed to Judaism in Portland, OR in September of 2008, has already made aliyah to Israel (changing her name to Hadassah Aliyah); the rest of her class intends to follow. A center for Sepharic Anusim (“forced ones”) has been set up in the Negev.

Prophecy fulfilled: "My people have been lost sheep; their shepherds have led them astray and caused them to roam on the mountains. They wandered over mountain and hill and forgot their own resting place. … But I will bring Israel back to his own pasture...at that time," declares the LORD, Jeremiah 50:6-7, 19-20

Prophecy fulfilled: The exiles from Jerusalem who are in Sepharad will possess the towns of the Negev. Obadiah 1:20

REFUSENIKS-Russia

Tradition: Jewish settlements established in Russia since the third century, often comprising largest population of Jews in the world. Interest in modern homeland peaked after six-day war in 1967, but communist authorities refused to allow Jewish citizens to make aliyah. (Thus earning those desiring to return to Israel the name “refuseniks”.) Vestigial Judaism: Persecuted under tsarist and communist regimes; Soviet policies against religious expression destroyed Jewish cultural and religious life. Some maintained practices in secret. DNA: No verification necessary

Interest in the land of their heritage was kindled in Russian Jewry by the late 19th century tsarist policy of pogroms and expulsions. Many Russian Jews were involved in early Zionism and in the Bolshevik revolution, but the new Communist regime instituted suppression of both Christianity and Judaism as

Lesson 4 Page 10 official Soviet policy. Interest grew substantially after the nation of Israel was established (particularly after the six-day war), but aliyah was consistently denied, earning those who wished to emigrate the name “refuseniks”. US pressure convinced the USSR to begin to allow emigration beginning in about 1980; when the Soviet Union crumbled emigration reached a frenzied pitch. To date over 1,000,000 Soviet Jews have made aliyah to Israel.

Prophecy fulfilled: Isaiah 49: 25 But this is what the LORD says: "Yes, captives will be taken from warriors, and plunder retrieved from the fierce; I will contend with those who contend with you, and your children I will save. (Tsarist empire overturned shortly after policy of pogroms; Communist Russia crumbles after denying Right of Return for millions of Jewish citizens. One million return to Israel, now largest group in Israel. )

Prophecy fulfilled: Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, 'Give them up!' and to the south, 'Do not hold them back.' Isaiah 43: Political pressure had to be exerted on the Soviet Union, including pressure from the US in which relaxation of the emigration policy would be rewarded with favorable trade agreements. The Soviet Union was not willing to “give them up” and had to be coerced.

Prophecy fulfilled: "Come! Come! Flee from the land of the north," declares the LORD, "for I have scattered you to the four winds of heaven," Zechariah 2:6

THE ABAYUDAYA (PEOPLE OF JUDAH)-UGANDA

Background: The Abayudayah are native Ugandans who converted to Judaism in the early 20th century. Vestigial Judaism: They maintained vestigial practices until the late 60s, when they were able to make contact with the Israeli embassy in Uganda. They are now instructed by Israeli rabbis. The Abayudayah hope to make aliyah to Israel. After three years of study in LA and one in Jerusalem, Gershom Sizomu, in May 2008, became the first Abayudayah to be formally instituted as a rabbi, a landmark which the Abayudayah believe will facilitate their acceptance by the rabbinical establishment in Jerusalem and pave the way for their eventual aliyah to the land they view as home.

Prophecy fulfilled: The LORD will have compassion on Jacob; once again he will choose Israel and will settle them in their own land. Aliens will join them and unite with the house of Jacob. Isaiah 14:1

God fulfilled incredibly detailed prophecies with regards to the regathering of the Jews!

With the Jews largely back in the land, he then turned to the prophecy of Jerusalem being the center of world politics:

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PROPHECY FULFILLED, ISRAEL: Jerusalem as the center of the world

The nation of Israel accounts for only 1/10,000 of the earth’s land mass. It could fit inside the borders of Texas 33 times. Svalbard and Tokelau are bigger. (Who? ) (Exactly.) Yet one-third of the UN's resolutions ("resolutions" meaning "condemnations" ). focus on Israel, more particularly Jerusalem.

In case we harbored any doubt, the BBC has provided us with statistics on what the world thinks of Israel, gathering public opinion all across the world. The good news is that Israel came out the winner. The bad news? The title won was ''Most Hated Country in the World''.

Hatred is highest, no surprise, in its largely Muslim neighbors among whom only 5% of the combined populations had a positive view of Israel. But the Muslim odium towards Israel had a surprising group of sympathizers: a substantial majority of the people in Brazil, Great Britain, Italy, France, Portugal, Germany, Greece, South Korea, China and (even more surprisingly) Australia also hold a negative view of Israel. In fact, on average, 73% of those countries’ citizens viewed Israel as a problem. Hostility towards the tiny country of Israel was, in fact, the majority opinion in the majority of the world. Even in the United States (largely viewed as Israel’s strongest ally) only 41% of the population reported a positive opinion of Israel. And we were their second biggest fan base Nigeria had a higher opinion, but still less than an outright majority.

Everyone hates Israel. (But God calls them the apple of his eye, and predicts that Jerusalem will be the center of conflict in the end times:

“Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem. 3 And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it. Zechariah 12: 2-3

Jerusalem is currently the most hotly contested topic in the world. Most of the world's nations, including the US, the UK, and Canada, do not recognize it as Israel's capital and have their embassies in Tel Aviv. Even the few countries that recognize Jerusalem as the capital have their embassies in Tel Aviv. The Vatican is lobbying heavily for Jerusalem to be named an international city, and that position has much support in the UN.

Which leads us to the final topic…

EZEKIEL 38 & 39: the war of Gog and Magog

3) AN ALLIANCE OF NORTHERN NATIONS

Read the passage below carefully. It is packed with vital information!

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1 The word of the LORD came to me: 2 "Son of man, set your face against Magog is mentioned in Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of [a] Meshech and Tubal; Genesis 10 as a son of 3 prophesy against him and say: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am Japheth (son of Noah) [b] 4 against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal. I will turn you whose descendants around, put hooks in your jaws and bring you out with your whole army— colonized Europe. Voltaire, a your horses, your horsemen fully armed, and a great horde with large and very famous French scholar 5 [c] small shields, all of them brandishing their swords. Persia, Cush and Put from the 1700s, studied the 6 will be with them, all with shields and helmets, also Gomer with all its genealogies of ancient man troops, and Beth Togarmah from the far north with all its troops—the many extensively and determined nations with you. that Magog was the ancestor of the Russian 7 " 'Get ready; be prepared, you and all the hordes gathered about you, and people. Many scholars take command of them. 8 After many days you will be called to arms. In future years you will invade a land that has recovered from war, whose before and after Voltaire people were gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel, which have reached the same had long been desolate. They had been brought out from the nations, and conclusion. now all of them live in safety. 9 You and all your troops and the many nations with you will go up, advancing like a storm; you will be like a cloud covering the land.

10 " 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: On that day thoughts will come into your mind and you will devise an evil scheme. 11 You will say, "I will invade a land of unwalled villages; I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people—all of them living without walls and without gates and bars. 12 I will plunder and loot and turn my hand against the resettled ruins and the Vladimir Putin, current president of Russia, people gathered from the nations, rich in livestock and in the last decade has shut down elections goods, living at the center of the land." 13 and eliminated protestors, making Who is the prophecy addressed AGAINST: (verse 2) newspapers across the world name him a New Czar. He has also steeply increased ______military spending. Despite promising to step down in 2008, he now plans to rule Who is this person? Where does he come from? (verse until 2020 and has claimed that Russia 6) owns the Arctic circle, threatened to attack ______Europe, and announced his intention to take back all of the former Soviet republics. It may help to know that Meschech is now spelled (He has already attacked the former Soviet Moscow, and Tubal is now spelled Tbolsk. So you can republic of Georgia.)Members of his probably figure out how we now spell Rosh. administration have revealed that the ultimate goal is a revival of the Byzantine ______empire.

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One of Putin's top leaders, Vladimir Let's confirm that with Scripture. Where is the land of Zhirinovsky,current vice-chairman of the Magog said to be? (Ezekiel 38:15) State Duma (sort of like our House of Representatives) has written a book ______outlining the necessity for Russia to have an outlet on the Mediterranean sea, and Does that check out on a map? What country is to the "far detailing plans to expand the Russian north" of Israel? ______empire to the south, and eventually What is this person prophesied to do? (verses 8-11) through Israel. He even reveals his code- name for the operation: the "Final Thrust ______to the South" Zhirinovsky, Final Thrust tothe South.

How is Israel described at the time that their evil scheme is devised? (verses 8, 11)

______Although Israel may seem like a dangerous place to us, Israeli leaders have viewed their nation as relatively secure. Yassar Arafat and What other countries form an alliance against Israel Saddam Hussein are dead, the Soviet Union with him? is no more, and they have peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan (who have attacked ______them before). Their military and intelligence are the top in the world, and their economy

is growing at a furious pace. But that was Although no country has retained its ancient name, and before Arab Spring and Iranian nucleaar capability. many of the ancient countries have broken up into several countries, we can make some pretty confident identifications:

Country Modern equivalent

Magog Russia and the former Soviet republics

Persia Iran

Cush Parts of Ethiopia and the Sudan

Put Libya , Somalia, Tunisia, Algeria

Gomer Eastern Turkey, possibly Germany

Tagarmah Western Turkey, Armenia, other Turk inhabited areas

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Putin and other Russian leaders see great potential in What was the reason for the "evil scheme?" developing relations with Islamic interests as a way to verse 12 bring in money and increase Russian power in ______relationship to the west. Traditional enemies, Russia and Iran entered into the first alliance in their countries' history in 2007, and Putin has actively courted the rulers of of Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the Sudan, Syria, ______Libya, Algeria, and Egypt, as well as leaders of the Palestinian Liberation Organization and Hamas. The thirty-four day war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006 served as an interesting preview: Putin sent troops ______to Lebanon (who initiated the conflict), as did Turkey and Germany. Iran, Syria, and the Soviet Union have been re-arming Hezbollah ever since.

4)THE NORTHERN ALLIANCE INVADES ISRAEL

Look at the following verses:

Ezekiel 38: 14-16 14 "Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say to Gog: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: In that day, when my people Israel are living in safety, will you not take notice of it? 15 You will come from your place in the far north, you and many nations with you, all of them riding on horses, a great horde, a mighty army. 16 You will advance against my people Israel like a cloud that covers the land. In days to Israel is a very small country that until 1948 was come, O Gog, I will bring you against my land, so that pretty much a wasteland. What spoils could the nations may know me when I show myself holy they have that would be worth causing a war? through you before their eyes. As noted, they have access to the Mediterranean Sea, which is valuable, but What does this verse predict? (because of the Dead Sea) also have huge stores of sodium, chloride, sulfur, potassium, This verse gives us a little more information: calcium, and magnesium. But now there's more: Geologists working from scriptures Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish and all which seem to describe oil reserves in Israel her villages will say to you, "Have you come to plunder? (which has never had any), have now found oil Have you gathered your hordes to loot, to carry off silver reservoirs under a site called Givot Olam and gold, to take away livestock and goods and to seize totalling more than a billion barrels! And a much plunder?" ' Ezekiel 38: 13 Christian engineer from the US appears to have identified another huge deposit under Who protests this action? (interestingly enough!) the site of Armageddon.

______

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Ezekiel 38:14-16 gives us God's purposes for allowing this invasion: Sheba and Dedan are Saudi Arabia. 14 "Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say to Gog: 'This is Tarshish was used to identify the furthest what the Sovereign LORD says: In that day, when my people reaches of Europe, probably England and Israel are living in safety, will you not take notice of it? 15 You maybe Spain. "All her villages" (is in the will come from your place in the far north, you and many King James "all her young lions), meaning the nations that have sprung from the nations with you, all of them riding on horses, a great horde, a loins of Tarshish. We can only speculate, mighty army. 16 You will advance against my people Israel but it seems reasonable to think that like a cloud that covers the land. In days to come, O Gog, I will those "young lions" might be the US, bring you against my land, so that the nations may know me Australia, and Canada, who all sprung when I show myself holy through you before their eyes. from England's loins and who, along with Saudi Arabia, have been consistent Summarize his purpose in your own words: English allies.

______

Finally the Ezekiel passage gives us the outcome of this attack:

This is what will happen in that day: When Gog attacks the land of Israel, my hot anger will be aroused, declares the Sovereign LORD...I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Sovereign LORD. Every man's sword will be against his brother. 22 I will execute judgment upon him with plague and bloodshed; I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him. 23 And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.'

What will the outcome be? The Vilna Gaon, a highly revered Rabbi from 18th century Lithuania, ______understood clearly that the person described in Ezekiel 38 was a Is it a natural or a supernatural victory for Israel? Russian leader, and taught his ______followers this little rhyme* as a warning: When the Russian navy What is the purpose of this outcome? passes through the Bospores (the strait that leads from the Black Sea ______to the Mediterranean), it will be time to put on Sabbath clothing (because this signals the soon arrival of the Messiah).

Ezekiel continues to give us details of the outcome of the battle: BTW : Vilna Gaon means "revered Scholar from Vilna", a town in Lithuania)

* Maybe it rhymes in Lithuanian.

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1 "Son of man, prophesy against Gog and say: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of [a] Many scholars of prophecy predict Meshech and Tubal. 2 I will turn you around and drag you along. that the attack on Gog and Magog's I will bring you from the far north and send you against the troops described in these verses will mountains of Israel. 3 Then I will strike your bow from your left hand and make your arrows drop from your right hand. 4 On the bring about the end of Russia as a mountains of Israel you will fall, you and all your troops and the military power. nations with you. I will give you as food to all kinds of carrion birds and to the wild animals. 5 You will fall in the open field, for I have spoken, declares the Sovereign LORD. 6 I will send fire on Magog and on those who live in safety in the coastlands, and they will know that I am the LORD.

7 " 'I will make known my holy name among my people Israel. I will no longer let my holy name be profaned, and the nations will know that I the LORD am the Holy One in Israel. 8 It is coming! It will surely take place, declares the Sovereign LORD. This is the day I have spoken of.

What effect does the complete, apparently supernatural destruction of the attacking armies seem to have on the people in Israel?

Verses 21 and 22 answer that question: "I will display my glory among the nations, and all the nations will see the punishment I inflict and the hand I lay upon them. 22 From that day forward the house of Israel will know that I am the LORD their God.

Ezekiel 39:9-10 describe a seven-year period that is required to clean up all the military equipment, and verses 11-15 describe a seven-month period required to bury all the dead:

11 " 'On that day I will give Gog a burial place in Israel, in the valley of those who travel east toward [b] the Sea. [c] It will block the way of travelers, because Gog and all his hordes will be buried there. So it will be called the Valley of Hamon Gog. [d] 12 " 'For seven months the house of Israel will be burying them in order to cleanse the land. 13 ... " 'Men will be regularly employed to cleanse the land. Some will go throughout the land and, in addition to them, others will bury those that remain on the ground. ... 15 As they go through the land and one of them sees a human bone, he will set up a marker beside it until the gravediggers have buried it in the Valley of Hamon Gog.

Some scholars think that this passage describes hazardous waste practices as the results of the use of nuclear weapons. What do you think?

Whether this war is fought with conventional or nuclear weapons, it will set the stage for the final world war predicted in Revelation. But we are getting ahead of ourselves. We have followed the fate of the Jewish people after the "birth pangs". Next week we will look at what is prophesied for the church.

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Israel in Exile

Match each verse to its historic fulfillment:

Deuteronomy 29:23 The Roman emperor Hadrian, in 135 AD, plowed much of Jerusalem under to create the Roman city Aelia Capitolina. A coin struck for the occasion displays the emperor

with two oxen and a plow.

Jeremiah 16:13 After the end of Roman rule, Israel became a desolate wasteland, a situation which remained unchanged until the return of Jewish rule in 1948. American writer Mark Twain visited Israel in 1867 and recorded his impressions: " the spell of a curse has withered its fields and fettered its energies… Palestine is desolate and unlovely… It is a hopeless, dreary, heartbroken land."

Micah 3:12 After the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, Jews are

scattered to every corner of the earth and persecuted in every place they attempt to settle.

Jeremiah 32:44 Many Jews, particularly those from Spain or Portugal, are forced to outwardly practice Christianity from about 1100- 1800 AD.

Mark 14:27 The Jewish nation does not exist from 70 AD to 1948. Scattered all over the globe, the Jews have neither political nor religious systems in place until their return as a nation in 1948.

Hosea 3:4-5 The Jews were exiled from their homeland in 70 AD, but God, through the prophet Jeremiah, had promised them that they would eventually be able to return and purchase land in their homeland. During the last years of Ottoman rule in Israel (late 1800s and 1900s) thousands of Jews fleeing persecution in Eastern Europe returned to Israel and bought parcels of land from absentee landlords in cities like Beirut and Damascus.

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HISTORICAL EVENT DATE PROPHECY A Jewish revolt in Caesarea caused a skirmish between 67 AD Luke 21:5-6 local authorities and the Jewish resistance, with Rome defeated. Emperor Nero acted quickly to enforce Roman rule. 60,000 Roman troops, carrying their standard (the eagle) before them, marched into Israel to squash all Jewish rebellion. Roman troops, under the command of General 67-68 Luke 21:24 Vespasian's, laid siege to and destroyed 985 villages (as AD well as the inhabitant's crops) on their way to surround Jerusalem.

Vespasian reaches Jerusalem and sets up camp atop the 69 AD Daniel 9:26 Mount of Olives to plan his attack on the walled city. Fate intervenes though, as Nero is deposed (and commits suicide) and rule in Rome is up for grabs. Vespasian, a favorite of the people, is called to Rome to become emperor. In the chaos his troops surrounded Jerusalem for about 18 months awaiting orders. This allowed virtually all of the early church to flee to safety. The Roman armies, now under the command of Titus 70 AD Deuteronomy 28: (Vespasian's son) begin the siege of Jerusalem in March. 51-52 (Pilgrims had been allowed to go into the city for Passover, which swelled the population considerably, but not permitted to come out.) Jewish leaders burned food stores to encourage Jews to fight more ferociously. With food stores gone, the misery of the starving population was intense. Some women killed, cooked, and ate their own children to stay alive. Jews in the city attempted to sneak food past the Roman 70 AD Deuteronomy guards while Titus constructed ramps and attempted to 28:49-50 take the Antionia Fortress, high ground close to the temple on the northeastern end of the city. The Antonia Fortress was taken at the end of August, the fighting igniting fires that destroyed the temple. The city was completely under Roman control by September 7. Despite orders to protect the temple (valued even by AD70 Luke 21:20-21 Rome), a Roman soldier threw a torch into the storehouse, and the temple burned. Gold stored in the temple melted and ran into the cracks between the stones. The Romans dismantled the temple, stone by stone to recover the gold. By the end of the siege, about 1 million Jews had been 70 AD Deuteronomy slaughtered, with about 100,000 taken into captivity 28:53

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