ISRAEL AT WAR - Part Two
“Behold, He who keeps Israel
shall neither slumber nor sleep.” [1]
Israel’s
war is growing, and many Israelis say it hasn’t yet begun. Still, the war
prophesied in Ezekiel 38 and 39 seems to be on everyone’s mind.
However,
leading up to Ezekiel prophesying, “‘Thus says the Lord God: ‘Behold, I am
against you, O Gog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal,’” the Almighty
provided this prophet with visions of Israel’s future blessing—the first, dry
bones, the second, two sticks. And, both prophecies spoke of the same event: the
people of Judah and Israel united again and back in the Land promised to them
by God Most High.
God
commanded Ezekiel, a priest of Judah captive in Babylon because of Judah’s sin,
to prophesy to dry bones, and when he did, stages of life appeared. The
bones came together, sinew appeared, and skin. The LORD then said to Ezekiel, “Prophesy
to the breath…say…breathe
on these slain, that they may live.” He did, and, “…they lived, and
stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great army.[2]
Immediately,
the Almighty gave the interpretation. “…Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel…prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: Behold, O My
people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up…and bring you into
the land of Israel…’”[3]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel
In
the second vision, Ezekiel was to take two
sticks that became one in his hand. Again, God gave the
interpretation saying, “…Surely I will take the children of Israel
from among the nations, wherever they have gone, and will gather
them from every side and bring them into their own land; and I will make
them one nation in the land…they shall no longer be two
nations, nor shall they ever be divided into two kingdoms again.”[4]
Some
see this prophecy’s fulfillment in 539-538 BC when the Medo-Persian Emperor,
Cyrus the Great, allowed the Jews to return to the land of Israel.[5] Still, these freed captives from Babylon were for the most
part almost continually under the control of other empires: Persia, then
Greece, and finally, Rome, who destroyed Jerusalem and their second temple in
AD 70.
Once
more, the Jews were dispersed into all nations until a miraculous thing
happened. In the late 1800s, God moved upon His chosen to long for their
homeland. He used Theodor Herzl, to write a pamphlet “The Jewish State” in
1896, arguing “that the establishment of a modern, European homeland for Jews
would provide a refuge for a persecuted people and prevent competition with
non-Jews...”[6] Herzl organized the
first Zionist Congress in 1897, where other countries were suggested for this
homeland, but God placed Eretz Israel in their hearts.
In
1914, WWI began, and November 1917 saw another miracle. “…British foreign
secretary Arthur Balfour committed Britain to ‘the establishment in Palestine
of a national home for the Jewish people...’”[7]
WWI
prepared the Land for the people. WWII prepared this incredibly persecuted
people for the Land.
Ezekiel’s
Dry Bones and Two Sticks prophecies saw fulfillment on May 14, 1948.
By
the hand of God, the whole house of Israel was back in the Land He
promised to Abraham and his descendants forever.
On that day, The Balfour Declaration expired, and the United Nations
created the new country of Israel. Eleven
minutes later, US President Harry Truman was the first world leader to
recognize Israel as a legitimate
Jewish state.[8]
A
nation indeed born in one day.[9]
However,
May 15, 1948, saw five Arab nations attack Israel. Miraculously, Israel won
because, in my opinion, the Arabs fought God,[10] just as Hamas is doing today.
A
divided nation reunited, and their dry bones lived an exceedingly great army,
blinded, in part, to the whole truth of God Almighty. He called Abraham, gave
him and his descendants the land, from the river of Egypt [the Nile] to the
great river…Euphrates, forever.
And,
we believers in Yeshua HaMashiach – Jesus, our Messiah – God in Flesh, should
be so very THANKFUL “…the
gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”[11]
Why?
If
Yahweh—God does not keep His promises to Israel,
we cannot trust He will keep His promises to us!
But…Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift! ALL His promises are Yes, and Amen, for JESUS came to CONFIRM
the promises made to the fathers. Thank You, O God, for
Your great faithfulness.[12] …to be continued…
Have a Blessed Thanksgiving, Anita
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