Restoring the Two Houses by Edward Chumney

CHAIM WEIZMANN
AND THE BALFOUR DECLARATION

After Herzl’s death, the new leader of Zionism became Chaim Weizmann. Born in Motol, Russia in 1874, Weizmann attended college at German and Swiss universities. In 1904, he began teaching at Manchester, England. Unlike Herzl, Weizmann believed that a homeland in the ancient land of Israel was the only practical solution for the Jewish people. His reasons were not religious but were derived from his perceived political realities.

Just as Herzl’s journalism caused him to be in the right place at the divinely appointed time, Weizmann’s chemistry talents caused the same thing to happen to him. Because of World War I, Britain had a need that Weizmann was able to meet. When the allies’ supply of acetone to produce munitions began to run out (previously imported from Germany), the British staff called on Weizmann to find some substitute. Following a two-year project, his team developed a superior synthetic that made a considerable contribution to the Allied war effort. 10

Weizmann’s contacts with the Manchester society and his supervision of mass production of synthetic acetone for the Allies war effort gave him visibility and opened doors for him to make contact with high ranking British government officials. These contacts included Prime Minister Lloyd George, First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill, and Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour. Weizmann made personal appeals to these individuals to help him find a homeland in the ancient land of Israel for the Jewish people to further the cause of Zionism. 11

Weizmann’s success in developing synthetic acetone for the Allied war effort so elated the British cabinet that Lord Balfour exclaimed to Weizmann, "You know that after the war you may get your Jerusalem." 12

The major result of Weizmann’s diplomacy was the Balfour Declaration. It granted the Jewish people (house of Judah) an international right to a homeland in Palestine with the help of Great Britain. The substance of the Declaration was given in a letter to Lord Rothschild by the British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour on November 2, 1917. The declarations reads:

His Majesty’s Government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of the existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country.



WWI AND THE FALL OF THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

One of the significant events that contributed to the possibility of the Jewish people returning to their ancient homeland was the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in WWI. Because of this, control of the Middle East came under the rule of Great Britain.

During World War I, Turkey was on the side of Germany. The British through the leadership of Sir Edward Allenby defeated the Turks and ended four hundred years of Turkish rule over Palestine and six hundred years of Muslim dominance in the area. The Palestine armistice was signed on October 31, 1918. This was eleven days before the World War I armistice was signed. 13 This coincidence prompted Lord Balfour later to declare that "the founding of the Jewish National Home was the most significant outcome of the First World War." 14

Oscar Janowsky has summarized this relationship between Zionism and World War I as follows: 15

The First World War proved decisive in the history of Zionism. On November 2, 1917, the British government issued the Balfour Declaration, pledging to facilitate "the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people." Soon thereafter the British conquered the country and, when the war was over, Palestine was administered as a Mandate under the League of Nations, with the United Kingdom as Mandatory or trustee. The Balfour pledge was incorporated in the terms of the Mandate, which recognized "the historical connection of the Jewish people with Palestine" and the right to reconstitute "their national home in that country." Britain was to encourage the immigration and close settlement of the Jews on the land; Hebrew (as well as English and Arabic) was to be an official language; and a "Jewish Agency" was to assist and cooperate with the British in the building of the Jewish National Home.

The British Mandate was given international approval by the Council of the League of Nations on June 28, 1919. The following map shows the land area in the Middle East governed by the British Mandate.

However, before its final sanction on September 29, 1922, the homeland projected for the Jews had been reduced to exclude Transjordan when Great Britain created the state of Transjordan under the kingship of Abdullah ibn Hussein. 16 The following map shows how the land of the Middle East looked after Great Britain gave the land that was originally projected to be a national homeland for the Jewish people to Transjordan. In order to satisfy the Arabs, "land was given for peace."

What Theodor Herzl invigorated in the Jewish people for a national homeland with the writing of his book, Der Judenstaat (The Jewish State), Chaim Weizmann continued with the Balfour Declaration. With the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in WWI and British control over the land of Palestine, the fire of Zionism became a blaze in the hearts of the Jewish people. Jews in the Diaspora became encouraged that they would once again be able to live in the land of their forefathers.



DAVID BEN-GURION AND THE "YISHUV"

While Weizmann furthered the cause of Zion through his diplomatic contacts in the West, David Ben-Gurion became a pioneer for Zionism among the people in the land of Palestine (Yishuv). David Ben-Gurion was born in Poland in 1886. He migrated to the land of Israel in 1906. In the land, he became the most active Zionist during this time. He became involved in the creation of the first agricultural workers’ commune (which evolved into the Kvutzah and finally the Kibbutz). He also helped establish the Jewish self-defense group, "Hashomer" (The Watchman).

In the land, Ben­Gurion was a founder of the trade unions, and in particular, the national federation, the Histadrut, which he dominated from the early 1920s. He also served as the Histadrut’s representative in the World Zionist Organization and Jewish Agency and was elected chairman of both organizations in 1935. He led the Jewish Legion against the Turks in World War I. After leading the struggle to establish the State of Israel in May 1948, Ben­Gurion became Prime Minister and Defense Minister when Israel became a nation.



BEN YEHUDA AND THE HEBREW LANGUAGE

With the rise of Zionism and the return of the Jewish people to their ancient homeland, Hebrew became the common language that all immigrants were required to learn. With the dispersion of the Jewish people into the nations of the world, Hebrew had practically become a "dead" language.

It was the dream of Eliezer Ben-Yehuda that when the Jewish people returned to their ancient homeland that they would speak their ancient tongue of Hebrew. Ben-Yehuda was most responsible for this becoming a reality. Therefore, he is remembered as being the creator of the modern Hebrew language.

Ben-Yehuda, was born Eliezer Yitzhak Perelman, in the Lithuanian village of Luzhky on January 7, 1858. He learned Hebrew at a young age as a part of his religious upbringing. Though migrating from Russia with tuberculosis in 1881, he devoted his life to rejuvenating the language for modern use, even producing a Hebrew dictionary. In spite of much ridicule, he and his wife "took a vow that no words would ever again pass their lips except in Hebrew, a vow that proved to be one of the turning points in the history of Palestine." 17



ARAB RESPONSE TO JEWISH IMMIGRATION

In the decade following the international approval of the Balfour Declaration, many Jews made aliyah and returned to the land of Palestine. During these years, they came mostly from Russia and Eastern Europe. In the eight years since the Balfour Declaration, the Jewish population had doubled from 55,000 to 103,000. Zionism had finally caught the imagination of the Jewish people, and as oppression increased in Europe, thousands of Jews fled to Palestine and the sanctuary of a Jewish national homeland during the decade of the 1920’s. 18

However, all of this was greeted with stiff Arab rejection of Jewish immigration (house of Judah) to the land of Israel. The main source of agitation was the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin al-Husseini. The British had sought to control the country through two leading families of Palestine with large land holdings, the Husseinis and the Nashashibis. 19 Haj Amin was appointed president of the Supreme Muslim Counsel in 1922, giving him immense political, economic, and religious clout. 20 During World War II, he defected to the Nazis, moving to Rome and Berlin. In the twenties and thirties, he missed no opportunity to stir antagonism and wage war against the Jewish families settling in Palestine.

Despite Arab opposition, a flood of 150,000 Jewish immigrants entered Palestine from 1931 to 1935. 21 While the Jewish community was trying to persuade the British to allow increased Jewish immigration, the Arabs were threatening to cut off access to Middle Eastern oil supplies if immigration was increased. 22 However, when European Jews needed the refuge of immigration the most, it was cut off from them. The ominous year was 1939.

On May 17, 1939, the British government of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain issued a paper known as the "MacDonald White Paper" (after Malcolm MacDonald, the Colonial Secretary), which cut the immigration of Jews to Palestine almost to nothing. 23

The 1939 White Paper specified three guidelines for Palestine:

(1) Jewish immigration would be slowed, then halted;

(2) Jews would only be allowed to buy land in areas where they were already the majority population;

(3) Britain would support an independent Palestinian state, controlled by the Arabs, after the war.

Winston Churchill called it a "gross breach of faith." 24 It was the virtual surrender to the demands of Arab terrorists. Yet the Grand Mufti even rejected this paper, demanding "the immediate setting up of an independent Arab state in Palestine and no further Jewish immigration." 25

What happened to the Balfour agreement? It fell victim to the Chamberlain government’s policies of "appeasement." Just as Czechoslavakia was offered to appease the führer in Europe, so the Balfour guarantee was sacrificed to stroke the Mufti in Palestine.

This restrictive British policy appears to have received an immediate frown from heaven. Four months after issuing this White Paper (May 1939), Britain was reluctantly drawn into World War II (September 1, 1939).

One year later Chamberlain was forced to resign when Germany invaded Norway and threatened the British Isles. Nevertheless, the Chamberlain policy on immigration continued throughout the war. Although thousands did escape Hitler’s clutches, they were halted as they approached Palestine. Many were turned back at gunpoint when coming ashore; many more died at sea. 26



ADOLF HITLER AND WORD WAR II

As the Second World War erupted, Jewish emigration to Palestine came to a virtual halt. Visas from Europe were cut off by Adolf Hitler and entrance into Palestine was shut off by the British. 27

Adolf Hitler had a demonic desire to destroy and eliminate the Jewish people from existence. His desire could be seen in five progressive stages. 28

1) The first stage began immediately when he took office and purposed to destroy all Jewish businesses in Germany.

2) The second stage came in 1935 when the Nuremburg laws were passed, depriving all Jews of citizenship.

3) The third stage began with a mass arrest of Jews in September 1939 at the outbreak of war. Jews were put in concentration camps and required to wear the "Badge of Shame" (Yellow Star of David) to distinguish them from non-Jews. For those still allowed to migrate, the ransom price was surrender of all possessions. By 1939, only 200,000 of the 500,000 Jews living in Germany six years earlier still remained.

4) The fourth stage came in 1940 when all Jews were incarcerated in concentration camps. This roundup was later extended to all parts of German-occupied Europe. Nazis hauled Jews in from Austria, Czechoslavakia, Hungary, Poland, Rumania, France, Holland, Switzerland, Belgium, Northern Italy, Yugoslavia, Denmark, and Norway, with only several outstanding exceptions.

5) The fifth and final stage of this madness was called the "final solution" and was initiated by Nazi leadership in 1942. The purpose of the concentration camps changed from detention to extermination, and murder became a full-time German occupation. 29

The main death camps were located in Germany, Poland, Austria, and Czechoslovakia. The memorial at Yad Vashem has listed twenty-two of the largest camps, names known in infamy: Auschwitz, Buchenwald, Dachau, Mauthausen, and Treblinka. The largest was Auschwitz in Poland where over three million were murdered. 30

So, important was this carnage to Nazi leaders that it was given an even higher priority than that of the war effort itself. 31 Although the Nazi cause was clearly lost in early 1945, the gas chambers and furnaces were kept running full blast. As Finkelstein remarks, "The actual annihilation of the Jewish population was one of the main ideological and military objectives of the German Nazified war machine. And this objective was to a large extent achieved." 32

The following figures on Jewish casualties during the Holocaust have been taken and are compiled by Judaica Encyclopedia.

DISTRIBUTION OF JEWISH VICTIMS
OF THE HOLOCAUST

Austria 65,000

Hungary 402,000

Belgium 24,000

Italy 7,500

Czechoslavakia 277,000

Luxembourg 700

France 83,000

Norway 760

Germany 125,000

Poland-Soviet 4,565,000

Greece 65,000

Rumania 40,000

Holland 106,000

Yugoslavia 60,000

------------

Total Jewish Victims 5,820,000



WORLD OUTRAGE DEMANDS A ZIONIST STATE

When international teams of investigators confirmed the horrors of the Holocaust, most of the Western world agreed that immediate measures should be taken to open the door to Palestine. Even the British Labour Party agreed. 33 With "regard to the unspeakable horrors that have been perpetrated upon the Jews in Germany and other occupied countries in Europe," it said, "it is morally wrong and politically indefensible to impose obstacles to the entry into Palestine now of Jews who desire to go there…" 34 It furthermore proposed that the Americans, Soviet, and British governments should "see whether we cannot get that common support for a policy which will give us a happy, free, and a prosperous State in Palestine." 35



POST WWII POLITICS IN ENGLAND

Even before the war ended, a significant shift occurred through the British elections of July 1945. Britain still had the League of Nations’ Mandate to control Palestine. During the war, Prime Minister Churchill had been strongly supportive of Zionism and gave Weizmann his word that a State of Israel would be set up in Palestine after the war with three to four million Jews. 36 That was the view of both the Labour and Tory parties in their electioneering campaigns.

But in 1945, Churchill’s coalition was voted out of office in a landslide. 37 Britain’s severe economic setbacks during the war and its shrinking world empire led to the dissatisfaction that produced this ouster. The Labour party of Clement Atlee took over with high expectations from everyone — including the Zionists.

Despite candidate Atlee’s pro-Zionist stance, however, his administration soon reversed itself on the Palestine issue. Ernest Bevin was made Foreign Secretary and thus became Czar of the Mideast and its problems. Though a sharp statesman and keenly perceptive of growing Soviet power, he did not share the pro-Zionist sympathies of his colleagues and the former administration. 38 "Bevin repudiated all the pledges that had been made officially and unofficially by Labour speakers for the last ten years, some of which may have helped the Party win the election." 39

Several changes made this reversal of policy the politically prudent course for the new foreign secretary. The Arab world was gaining prestige and becoming a factor to be reckoned with. It had just added several independent states to its number and its oil power was claiming international respect. In juggling interests in the Mideast, Bevin tended to favor the Arabs and downplay the rights of Jews. To this end, Bevin came to fiercely oppose the creation of a Jewish state in the troubled area. 40

Another factor contributing to this reversal was the MacDonald "White Paper" of 1939, an anti-Jewish document that continued in effect throughout the war. Designed to mollify the Arabs, it in fact reduced Jewish immigration to Palestine to a trickle and intended to cut it off entirely. Had the White Paper been fully carried out, the hard-won advantages guaranteed the Jews in the Balfour Declaration would have been nullified. Arabs responded to this British reversal by increasing their opposition to Jewish immigration. Encouraged by Bevin, they boldly demanded that all Jewish immigration be stopped and a new Arab State be set up in Palestine. 41

The irony is that none of these Arab nations (except for Transjordan) supported the Allies in World War II. They remained carefully neutral until the final months when Allied victory was assured. The Palestinian leader (ex-Mufti Haj Amin Husseini), in fact, defected to Iraq before the war and later joined Hitler and Eichmann in Germany in their butchery of Jews. 42 Yet, the Arab states were shown amazing respect by the Allied powers in the postwar era; seven seats were given them in the United Nations Assembly. 43



THE JEWISH RESISTANCE MOVEMENT

When many Zionists began to realize that a political solution to establish a national homeland for the Jewish people (house of Judah) could not be achieved, they saw the need for military action. The main Jewish resistance groups were the Haganah, the Irgun and Lehi.

Arab riots in the land of Palestine in 1920 and 1921 strengthened the view that it was impossible to depend upon the British authorities to defend and protect the Jewish people in the land of Palestine. Furthermore, the Arabs would disrupt the agricultural settlements set up by the Yishuv. In addition, after initially encouraging the immigration of Jews to Israel, the British now openly banned Jewish immigration. From these events, it became apparent that the British were not interested in providing security for the Jewish settlers in the land. Therefore, the yishuv needed to create an independent defense force completely free of foreign authority.



THE CREATION OF THE HAGANAH

With the help of the worldwide Jewish Agency, the Hagonah was created. In June 1920, the Haganah was founded by the Histadrut (General Federation of Jewish Labor). At the time, it was considered illegal by the British mandatory authorities. The Haganah became the underground defense organization of the yishuv from 1920 to the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948.

As Arab hostilities increased, the members of the Haganah split over the question of how to react to Arab terrorism. Following Arab disturbances in the summer of 1929, a group of commanders and members of the Haganah, led by Avraham Tehomi, decided to split from the main group and set up their own organization to be more active in pursuing the Arab terrorists.



THE CREATION OF THE IRGUN

This new organization was named the Irgun Zva’i Leumi (National Military Organization) also known by the name of Etzel. It was founded in 1931 and became an underground organization that operated in Palestine in the 1930s and 1940s.

Irgun rejected the "restraint" policy of the Haganah. They carried out armed reprisals against Arabs and preferred to use political powers to forward the goal of reclaiming the land. While the armed reprisals against the Arabs provided relief for the Jewish settlers, it was condemned by the Jewish Agency and brought political embarrassment to them. While the Jewish Agency tried to provide an image of the Jew being a good moral person who was being terrorized by the Arabs in order to win support from the non-Jewish world, the Irgun gave it’s full support to the settlers.

On December 5, 1936, Avraham Tehomi signed an accord with Ze’ev (Vladimir) Jabotinsky, the leader of the Revisionist Movement, making Jabotinsky commander of Irgun. In April 1937, during the Arab riots, the Irgun split. About half its members returned to the Haganah. The rest formed a new Irgun Zeva’i Le’umi (National Military Organization), which was ideologically linked with the Revisionist Movement and accepted the authority of its leader, Vladimir Jabotinsky.



VLADIMIR JABOTINSKY AND
THE REVISIONIST MOVEMENT

Ze’ev (Vladimir) Jabotinsky was born on October 18, 1880, in the city of Odessa, Russia. The pogrom against the Jews of Kishinev in 1903 spurred Jabotinsky to undertake Zionist activity. Jabotinsky was deeply impressed by Theodor Herzl. Jabotinsky was elected as a delegate to the 6th Zionist Congress, the last in which Theodor Herzl participated.

After World War I, Jabotinsky became disenchanted when Great Britain severed almost 80% of the British Mandate originally designated for a Jewish Homeland to create Transjordan (1922). Disillusioned with Britain and angry at Zionist acquiescence to British reversals, Jabotinsky became unhappy with the direction of the Zionist Movement. He was unconvinced that the Turks or the Arabs would accommodate the aims of Zionism. So, he advocated bolder tactics.

Jabotinsky set about establishing a separate Zionist federation based on "revision" of the relationship between the Zionist movement and Great Britain. This federation would actively challenge British policy and openly demand self-determination or Jewish statehood. The goals of the Revisionist movement included restoration of a Jewish Brigade to protect the Jewish community and mass immigration to Palestine of up to 40,000 Jews a year.

In 1925, the establishment of the World Union of Zionist Revisionists (Hatzohar) was announced with Paris as its headquarters. In 1931, Jabotinsky demanded that the Seventeenth Zionist Congress make a clear announcement of its Zionist aims (a Jewish state) but the delegates refused to do so.

In 1923, the youth movement Betar (Brith Joseph Trumpeldor) was created. The new youth movement was aimed at educating its members so that they would have a military and nationalistic spirit. Jabotinsky was also the leader of this movement.

In 1935, after the Zionist Executive rejected his political program and refused to clearly define that "the aim of Zionism was the establishment of a Jewish state," Jabotinsky decided to resign from the Zionist Movement. He founded the New Zionist Organization (NZO) to conduct independent political activity for free immigration and the establishment of a Jewish State.

In 1937, the Irgun Tzvai Leumi (IZL) became the military arm of the Jabotinsky movement and he became its commander. The three bodies headed by Jabotinsky, The New Zionist Organization (NZO), the Betar youth movement and the Irgun Tzvai Leumi (IZL) were three extensions of the same movement.

With the outbreak of World War II, Irgun declared a truce, which led to a second split. Some forces decided to fight with the British against the Nazi Axis powers. This group declared a truce and joined the British army and the Jewish Brigade. The second group led by Avraham Stern was known as the Stern Gang or Lehi. They operated as an underground organization from 1940 to 1948.

THE CREATION OF LEHI

Lehi was an acronym for Lohamei Herut Yisrael (Fighters for the Freedom of Israel). The split with the Irgun was due to disagreement on three main issues:

1) The group’s demand that the military struggle against the British government be continued irrespective of the war against Nazi Germany;

2) Opposition to enlistment in the British army, which Jabotinsky supported; and

3) Willingness to collaborate, as a tactical measure, with anyone who supported the struggle against the British in Palestine.

Lehi’s goals were:

1) Conquest and liberation of Eretz Israel; war against the British Empire;

2) Complete withdrawal of Britain from Palestine;

3) Establishment of a "Hebrew kingdom from the Euphrates to the Nile."



MENACHEM BEGIN BECOMES LEADER
OF THE IRGUN

In December of 1943, Menachem Begin became leader of the Irgun. Begin was a Polish Jew who had escaped a Siberian labor camp in 1943 and made his way to Palestine to join the Irgun.

Menachem Begin was born in Brest­Litovsk in 1913. As a child he was forced to flee with his family to escape the fighting between the German and Russian armies in World War I. A passionate Zionist from an early age, he joined Ze’ev Jabotinsky’s Betar youth movement in his teens, rising quickly to important administrative and leadership positions.

In February 1944, Irgun declared war against the British administration. It attacked and blew up government offices, military installations and police stations. The Jewish Agency and their group, the Haganah responded against the Irgun in a campaign nicknamed the Sezon. The Haganah kidnapped several of the Irgun’s members and handed them over to the British.



THE JEWISH RESISTANCE MOVEMENTS
BECOME UNITED IN PURPOSE

After World War II, the Haganah realized that the British were not relenting their ban on immigration, nor were they helpful in combating Arab terrorism. In late 1945, the three groups (the Irgun, the Haganah, and Lechi) reached an understanding to coordinate the struggle to fight the British.

The unity of the groups was short-lived. In May 1946 the Irgun blew up the wing of the King David hotel in Jerusalem, which housed the British Palestine Command. The organizations’ cooperation broke up following Irgun’s bombing because Haganah claimed that the attack had not been coordinated with them.



THE JEWISH RESISTANCE MOVEMENTS
ARE MERGED INTO THE IDF

After the end of World War II, the Haganah was the largest and most important Jewish military force operating against the British. On May 26, 1948, the Provisional Government of Israel decided to transform the Haganah into the regular army of the State to be called "Zeva Haganah Le-Yisrael" or The Israel Defense Forces (IDF). When the IDF was established on May 31, 1948, Irgun and Lehi announced that its members would join also.

Haganah and Irgun became the Labor and Likud political parties in Israel. The Haganah and the Irgun have had their political differences since they were created to fight against the British in order that the Jewish people (house of Judah) could have a national homeland. There was an event that took place before they merged themselves into the IDF that highlights the division and tension between these two groups. This division continues to the present day through the modern day political parties in Israel named Labor and Likud whose political roots go back to the Haganah and the Irgun.

The Irgun had a boat, the Altalena, which had supplies and men coming into Jaffa port. The boat was laden with munitions needed by the Jewish defenders. The Haganah wanted to take all supplies. Negotiation between the Irgun and the Haganah ensued. No agreement was forged. The Haganah opened fire on the Altalena, sinking the boat, killing and wounding Jewish lives and destroying supplies. The commander of the Haganah was Yitzhak Rabin. When the nation of Israel was established, the Jewish Agency and its followers took up the leadership of Israel. Today, their political party is known as "Labor." The opposition party, led by the soldiers in the Irgun, became the opposition party to the Haganah and is known today as the "Likud." Still today, these two groups are politically fighting it out between themselves just as they did in the time of the birth of the state of Israel.



THE BRITISH MANDATE
IS TURNED OVER TO THE UN

When the Irgun blew up the King David Hotel in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) where the British government kept their office on July 22, 1946, twenty-eight British were killed. By the beginning of 1947, the British had decided they wanted nothing more than to wash their hands of the whole mandate affair. 44

Thus it was becoming more and more evident that British anti-Zionist policy was bankrupt and that a new approach was needed. The fault lay primarily with "Bevin’s agonized intransigence on the immigration issue, provoking maximal Zionist demands for Jewish statehood." This "ignited the terrorism, launched the illegal refugee traffic to Palestine, undermined Britain’s economy, eroded its international reputation, and finally doomed the Palestine Mandate itself." 45 The Atlee-Bevin government came to see how impossible it was to carry out the British Mandate with conflicting policies toward the Jews and the Arabs. 46

Acknowledging a deadlock on the issue, the British cabinet on April 2, 1947, announced it was referring the Palestine problem to the United Nations General Assembly. This body set up an eleven-nation investigative board (UNSCOP) to devise a plan of action. After several months of review, they recommended endorsing the principle of independence for both the Jews and the Arabs. However, they were divided regarding who should control what area. The majority voted for "partitioning" Palestine, advocating three divisions, an Arab state, a Jewish state, and an international zone in the Jerusalem area. 47

The General Assembly of the United Nations voted on November 29, 1947, to support partitioning. The vote was thirty-three to thirteen, mainly the Western bloc against the Moslems and Asian blocs. Eleven nations abstained, including Britain. It was to be implemented at the termination of the British Mandate on May 14, 1948. 48

The partition plan vote became UN Resolution 181. In Part III, Section A of UN Resolution 181, the city of Jerusalem was established as a "corpus separatum" under a special international regime and shall be administered by the United Nations. Thus, the plan of the UN was for Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) to become an international city.

The Arabs unequivocally rejected it, perceiving it as another step in Zionist expansionism. To maintain good relations with the Arab League, Britain also rejected it. Joining them, the United States State Department under Secretary of State George Marshall cautioned against the plan. In May 1947, the Soviet delegation surprised everyone by endorsing partitioning. In October, the Arab League began a troop buildup in Palestine. 49

President Truman chose to disagree with Secretary of State George Marshall on the issue. Truman accused the State Department of having an Arabic mentality. "Like most of the British diplomats," he quipped, "some of our diplomats also thought that the Arabs, on account of their numbers and because of the fact that they controlled such immense oil resources, should be appeased. I am sorry to say that there were some among them who were inclined to be anti-Semitic." 50 He then instructed the State Department to support the United Nations plan of partitioning Palestine. 51

Many commentators believe that this courageous action by Truman received the smile of heaven. That fall, Truman ran for reelection against the highly favored Republican governor of New York, Tom Dewey, and won. Truman later referred to himself as "Cyrus," the biblical Gentile who in Persian times had assisted the post-exilic remnant in returning from dispersion. 52



ISRAEL’S 1948 WAR OF INDEPENDENCE

The Arabs responded to the Partition Resolution by carrying out their oft-repeated threats. Jewish homes and synagogues in the major cities were immediately attacked while the British stood by. Calls went out for all available forces from the Arabic States to mobilize for war. Arabs saw the British withdrawal as an opportunity to drive out the Jews and settle the immigration question once and for all. The Mufti moved from Cairo to Lebanon to take charge of the Palestinian operation. 53

In the late afternoon of May 14, 1948, the British kept their word and hauled down the Union Jack. Israel proceeded to raise its newly designed flag featuring the Star of David the same day. David Ben-Gurion became Israel’s first prime minister. Chaim Weizmann later became the first President of the new republic. Within minutes, President Truman issued a statement extending de facto recognition to Israel as a sovereign state. 54

Before the day ended, Egyptian planes were already bombing Tel Aviv. Most of the Arab states sent men and material to the attack, including Syria, Transjordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Yemen, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. Additional forces came from North African states. 55

The Arab’s initial attack was full-scale on all sides, confident that their sheer numbers and superior armament would quickly overwhelm the ill-equipped Jews. 56 Their plan was to take Palestine’s key cities within a few weeks and then quickly "drive the Jews into the sea."

From a statistical standpoint, an easy triumph was practically a given: the Arab’s overwhelming power came from seven nations with a combined population of over 140 million; the Jewish remnant they opposed totaled only 650,000 in all Palestine, with no promise of backing from other nations; the Arab Legion of Transjordan was "financed and officiated by the British." 57 However, with divine help from the G-d of Israel, the Jewish people (house of Judah) won the war and the nation of Israel was born.

The UN plan had assigned her 5,500 square miles and the new Arab state 4,500. The spoils of war added additional territory, which gave Israel a total of 8,050 of the total 10,400 square miles in Palestine. 58 King Abdullah of Transjordan acquired 2,350 square miles in the West Bank plus over 750,000 Palestinians. 59

In May 1949, the new nation of Israel was accepted into the United Nations, recognized as an independent, sovereign nation. 60

On four occasions in the next twenty-five years, Israel was forced to mobilize her troops to defend her borders. Each of these was a traumatic episode in itself, but each also resulted in further gain that fortified her position in the Middle East. 61

ISRAEL’S 1956 WAR WITH EGYPT

Egyptian General Gamal Abdel Nasser was elected president of Egypt in 1956. From 1948, Egypt had closed the Suez Canal to Israeli ships. Then in 1955, she began a blockade also of the Gulf of Aqaba, cutting off Israel’s access to the Red Sea and Indian Ocean. Responding to this challenge, Israel again mobilized her citizen army in October 1956, striking at Egypt through the rugged Sinai wasteland. That desert campaign became known as "Operation Kadesh." 62 With divine help from the G-d of Israel, the Jewish people (house of Judah) defeated the plans of Nasser and Egypt and won the 1956 war.



ISRAEL’S 1967 WAR WITH HER ARAB NEIGHBORS

In the spring of 1967 following a vast military buildup of Russian equipment, Nasser again closed the Gulf of Aqaba to Israeli shipping and demanded that UN observers withdraw from the demilitarized zone. By May 17, seven Arabic nations had mobilized armor on three fronts, broadcasting their intentions to "cut the Jews throats." King Hussein of Jordan decided to join the fray, collaborating with Iraqi troops. He hoped to seize the Islamic shrines in Jerusalem for his Hashemite kingdom. 63

When Nasser blockaded the Straits of Tiran and closed off the Israeli port of Eilat, he prevented Israel’s only access from the Gulf of Aqaba to the Red Sea, and from there to the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea, and it meant Israel’s access to oil from the Persian Gulf was cut off. The blockade, considered an act of war by Israel, was provocation of the first order. Israel had already notified the UN Security Council that it would soon have to act in its own self-defense. But, the UN failed to enforce the conditions of the truce that had existed since 1956. 64

The Arabs massed 547,000 troops, 2,504 tanks, and 957 combat aircraft. Israel mustered 264,000 troops, 800 tanks, and 300 combat airplanes. Israeli generals Yitzchak Rabin and Moshe Dayan foresaw that surprise was their only hope. 65 The preemptive strike was decisive. "In 170 minutes Israel’s pilots had smashed Egypt’s best-equipped air bases and had turned three hundred of Nasser’s combat planes into flaming wrecks … The Egyptian air force, the largest in the Middle East, was in ruins." 66 The same scenario was replayed in Syria, Jordan, and Iraq. "By nightfall of June 6, Israel had destroyed 416 planes, 393 on the ground. It had lost twenty-six planes during that time, all to antiaircraft." 67

In two days, the Egyptian army in the Sinai was virtually wiped out, leaving Israel to occupy the Gaza Strip. To the north, after a desperate and costly tank battle, the Syrians were routed and the strategic Golan Heights was taken. Thus ended the long nightmare of Syrian bombardment of Galilean villages. Israel was now secure on her northern border. 68

In the battle with Jordan, Israel gained control of the West Bank and the old city of Jerusalem fell into Israeli hands. By gaining control of the West Bank, the cities of Bethlehem, Hebron, Jericho, and Shechem as well as Jerusalem came into Israel hands. For the first time in nineteen hundred years, the Jews had control of the old city of Jerusalem. A newly composed ballad, "Jerusalem the Golden," became Israel’s popular anthem in the aftermath of the Six-Day War. 69

In the war, "The Arabs suffered 15,000 casualties; Israel’s losses were 777 killed, 2,186 wounded." 70 To its previous eighty-five hundred square miles, it added twenty-eight thousand square miles in the Sinai, Golan Heights, and West Bank. 71 The occupied territories proved to be an ideal bone of contention for the Arabs, leading to further conflicts that would dwarf even the monumental battles of Israel’s first twenty years of nationhood. 72



ISRAEL’S 1973 YOM KIPPUR WAR

On October 6, 1973 on Yom Kippur, the Arabs attacked Israel once again. They had 750,000 troops, 3,200 Soviet tanks, 860 planes, and the latest Soviet missiles. 73 In the first grim hours at the Canal Zone, Israeli reservists were obliterated. Their token defenses consisted of "precisely 436 Israeli soldiers in a series of bunkers seven to ten miles apart, together with three tanks and seven artillery batteries." 74 Coming at them, "were five Egyptian infantry divisions, three mixed infantry and tank divisions, and twenty-two independent infantry, commando, and paratroop brigades. With the air force, the enemy constituted not less than 600,000 men, 2,000 tanks, 2,300 artillery pieces, 160 SAM missile batteries, and 550 combat planes." 75

In the third and fourth days of the war, Israel began to win the war. First, Israel was able to defeat Syria in the north. By October 18, Israeli troops headed toward Damascus. In the battle with Egypt in the Suez, Israel gained the upper edge over Egypt. By October 23, the Israeli army was at the Gulf of Suez. As a result, Egypt and Russia demanded that the United Nations Security Council require Israel to pull back to its pre-1967 borders.

As a result of the war, the United Nations demanded that Israel withdrawal from the West Bank and Gaza Strip based upon UN Resolution 242. When Israel refused to comply, the council nearly voted her out of the United Nations in the summer of 1975. 76



THE POLITICS OF OIL IN THE MIDDLE EAST

The 1973 Yom Kippur war highlighted how imported Arab oil has become an important political and economic issue in understanding the present Israel / Arab conflict. The world economy depends on imported Arab oil and the Arab oil producing countries decided to use oil as an economic and political weapon to influence world opinion against Israel. On October 17, 1973, Arab petroleum ministers met during the Yom Kippur War and decided to cut oil production and exports. "It was under the façade of the war crisis … that the Arabs seized the opportunity to launch a drastic escalation of oil prices. Libya announced on October 18 that the cost of its oil would go up 28 percent — irrespective of the war and Israel’s misdeeds. Iraq thereupon declared a 70 percent price rise. Kuwait matched this figure." 77

Members of the European Common Market took immediate measures to placate Arab oil barons, making new demands on Israel to give up the occupied territories. Thus an oil-thirsty world forced Israel into a diplomatic ghetto. Though the Arabs suffered a devastating loss in the Yom Kippur war, they discovered a powerful new weapon and found themselves in the driver’s seat of the world economy. By a simple turn of oil valves they could further the goals of Palestine. 78



THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE AND ARAB POLITICS

As a result of Israel winning her war of independence and her succeeding wars against her Arab neighbors, the Arabs living in Israel did not have a country of their own. They called themselves Palestinians. Following the 1973 Yom Kippur war, the Palestinians became an increasingly important political issue in the Israel/Arab conflict. Since the creation of the Arab states, the Palestinian people have been mistreated by Arab states and have had bad relations with many of them. During this time, Arab leaders have fought among themselves for the title of being the leader of the Arab world. By not having a state of their own, the Palestinians have been used by the Arab world for their own political purpose and as a political weapon against Israel. While the Arab states all recognize the Palestinians as their cousins, only Jordan was willing to take their refugees.

The root of Arab politics toward the Palestinian people goes back to the early 1920’s when the Arab states were being created following the defeat of the Turks in World War I. Following WWI, the British and French allowed the gradual formation of seven independent Arabic states in the region (Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Transjordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen, followed later by ten others). 79

Winston Churchill gave the area of Transjordan to Abdullah of Arabia. This he did to mollify the Arab leader for the help his father, the sharif of Mecca, had given the British in diverting the Turks in Arabia in 1917. 80 This gift of East Jordan (Transjordan) to Abdullah constituted three-quarters of the area known as Palestine.

The Arabs west of the Jordan also wanted an independent state and had candidates chomping at the bit for rulership. For many years, two leading families, the al-Husseinis and Nashashibis, had alternated in filling the position of Grand Mufti of Jerusalem. 81 Though a religious position, it carried strong political clout throughout Palestine. Both families claimed descent from the Grand Sharif of Mecca, who in turn claimed descendancy from Muhammad himself. These two clans exerted much influence in mayoral offices in the region, but were constantly at loggerheads. From the Nashashibis came King Abdullah, who was given Transjordan, and his brother Feisal. Feisal was first given Syria (until the French took it over) and was later made King of Iraq. At the assassination of Abdullah in 1951, Hussein, his grandson (not of the al-Husseines), became King of Jordan. This family was known as the Hashemites. 82

The al-Husseini family in Jerusalem was represented by Haj Amin al-Husseini who was appointed Grand Mufti by the British in 1921 when only twenty-one. Amin al-Husseini was a Muslim extremist who violently opposed Zionism. Insisting on Palestine becoming an Arab state, he used every influence to halt Jewish immigration. On August 23, 1929, he inspired a massacre of Jews praying at the Wailing Wall. Prior to that, "Haj Amin had instituted a plan to restore the mosques in order to reestablish the primacy of Islam over all of Palestine and to counter the increasingly vocal religious claims of the Zionists to a portion of Jerusalem." 83

When World War II erupted, Haj Amin was forced to flee, first to Iraq and then to Germany where he was welcomed by Hitler and Himmler. 84

These two families, the Hashemites and the al-Husseinis, came to represent the moderate and extreme factions of Palestinian Arabs. 85 Their special bitterness toward each other stemmed from Britain’s bestowal of kingdoms on the Hashemites, which the al-Husseinis viewed as a sellout to the enemy. For this Haj Amin and his followers came to regard both the Jews and the Jordanian Hashemites as bitter enemies. 86



THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE PLO

The Palestinian Liberation Organization was actually the brainchild of Gamal Addel Nasser of Egypt. The PLO was first organized in Cairo in 1964. Its founding document is the Palestine National Covenant. This declaration rejects the Balfour Declaration of 1917, the UN Partition Agreement of 1948, the Jews’ biblical claims to the land, and it denies the right of the Jewish people to have a nation. The Covenant has been revised several times over the years, but it still contains the vehement anti-Jewish sentiments of the original document. It insists that all the territory of the nation of Israel properly belongs to the Palestinian Arabs, and only those Jews living in Palestine prior to the "Zionist invasion" can be regarded as legitimate Palestinians and thus allowed to stay in the land. 87

Nasser sought to promote an underground forum for the Palestinian people. This was first called the Palestine Liberation Army (later the PLO). Chosen as leader was Ahmad Shuqairi, a puppet of Nasser, who set up headquarters in Cairo. The expressed purpose of this organization was to allow the Palestinian people, "to play a role in the liberation of their country and their self-determination." 88 The Arab leaders who set it up, however, had other designs for the organization. They intended to make it an instrument of guerrilla warfare against Israel under their control. They had no intention of creating an independent Palestinian movement. 89



YASSER ARAFAT AND THE FATAH

Six years before Nasser created the PLO, Yasser Arafat started his own group in Syria to "liberate Palestine." Then living in Kuwait, Arafat and a handful of revolutionaries created a military organization. They called it the Palestinian National Liberation Movement. In Arabic, the initials spelled out HATAF (Harekat at-Tahrir al-Wataniyyeh al-Falastiniyyeh). 90 They turned the letters around to spell FATAH, which is a reverse acronym of the name of the movement in Arabic. The word "Fatah" means "conquest by means of jihad [Islamic holy war]."

The major figures in FATAH were two young dyed-in-the-wool guerrilla operators, Yasser Arafat and Abu Jihad. 91 Both were from the militant Muslim community of Gaza. Arafat was born in Cairo in 1929 and grew up in the Gaza strip during the tumultuous Jewish-Arab conflicts of the 1930s and 1940s. His full name is Rahman Abdul Rauf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini. He was later nicknamed as "Yasser" by his guerrilla tutor after a great Arab hero. 92 Through his mother, Arafat was related to Haj Amin, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, and a proud member of the al-Husseini family. That lineage supposedly traced back to Husayn ibn Ali, the son of Fatima, the daughter of Muhammad. 93

From his earliest years, Arafat was engrossed in liberation tactics, devising terrorist activities against the Israelis whom he saw as invaders. As he and his cronies began the Fatah, they saw themselves as the "generation of revenge" — seeking vengeance for the loss of Palestine. 94 Originally, FATAH opposed the founding of the PLO. By 1969, FATAH had become the largest guerrilla group affiliated with the PLO. At that year’s meeting of the PLO’s executive body, the Palestinian National Council, Yasser Arafat won complete control of the PLO. 95

ARAFAT BECOMES THE LEADER OF THE PLO

The very establishment of the PLO by Nasser in 1964 was intended to rebuff Arafat and his FATAH. Incensed by Arafat’s deriding him in his paper, Our Palestine, Nasser "ordered his intelligence service to see to Arafat’s liquidation." 96

Arafat became the leader of the PLO in 1969. Prior to 1968, Palestinians had looked to the pan-Arab nations to liberate their land. In the wake of the 1967 war, they gave up on the promises of the Arab League and determined that they would have to go it alone if they were to "restore their land." 97

When Arafat took over the PLO, the organization reverted to cell groups developed by its FATAH members in Syria. First, it was basically a guerrilla organization that worked underground apart from national armies or agencies. Its single purpose was to evict the Israelis from the land and set up an independent Palestinian state, not one in tandem with Jordan or any other Arab state. Second, it intended to achieve its goals by armed conflict, using infiltration and terror to drive out the occupiers of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. 98



THE PLO AND THE INTIFADA

In December 1987, Palestinian patience ran out and long pent-up feelings were suddenly unleashed with stones and homemade bombs. This uprising was known as the Intifada. It quickly spread through the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. The cities of Nablus, Hebron, and Jerusalem in the West Bank soon became centers of agitation. 99

Most irritating to the Palestinians was the Israeli settlement of Jewish communities in the West Bank. This has received almost continuous coverage by the press since 1977 when Begin began encouraging the program. 100 Various reasons were given for this colonization. Some Jews settled there for religious reasons, such as the hard-core Gush Emunists, searching for their biblical heritage. Others simply sought a place of residence from which to commute to the big cities of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. 101

Through the intifada, the Palestinians have looked to the world media to dramatize their fight against Israel. 102 By being successful at this, it has forced Israel to rethink its policies regarding the settlements in biblical Judea and Samaria (West Bank). While the settlements are a security issue for Israel, world public opinion is demanding a compromise on the issue and encouraging Israel to trade "land for peace." However, will trading land result in peace for Israel? It is highly unlikely because "PLO" after all, means the "Liberation of Palestine," which is not negotiable to the leaders of the movement. 103



THE PLO PHASED PLAN DESTRUCTION OF ISRAEL

Following the 1967 war, two different schools of thought developed among the Arabs concerning their dilemma of what to do with Israel. With the increased territory Israel gained as a result of the war, it was believed impossible to defeat Israel by conventional means.

The first school of thought held that since it was no longer possible to defeat Israel by conventional means, then there was no choice but to make formal peace with the Jewish nation. This view was held by Anwar Sadat of Egypt, who accepted Menachem Begin’s invitation to help negotiate a settlement with Israel. The peace treaty, called the Camp David Accords, was drafted in late 1978 and signed in early 1979.

The second school of thought held that since it was no longer possible to defeat Israel within her existing boundaries, then the course of action should be to first reduce Israel to the pre-1967 borders and then destroy her. This view was officially adopted by the PLO at their 1974 conference in Cairo. It was formalized in a document known as the Phased Plan. Dr. Aaron Lerner, a Middle East analyst, summarizes the goals of the PLO’s Phased Plan as follows:

"First, to establish a combatant national authority over every part of Palestinian territory that is liberated (article 2); second, to use that territory to continue the fight against Israel (article 4); finally, to start a pan-Arab war to complete the liberation of all the Palestinian territory (article 8." 104 The PLO phased plan destruction of Israel and articles 1-4 and 8 are highlighted below.



THE PLO’S PHASED PLAN

Political Programme: Adopted at the 12th Session of the Palestinian National Council, Cairo, June 9, 1974. The text of the Phased Plan resolution:

The Palestinian National Council:

On the basis of the Palestinian National Charter and the Political Programme drawn up at the eleventh session, held from January 6-12, 1973; and from its belief that it is impossible for a permanent and just peace to be established in the area unless our Palestinian people recover all their national rights and, first and foremost, their rights to return and to self-determination on the whole of the soil of their homeland; and in the light of a study of the new political circumstances that have come into existence in the period between the Council’s last and present sessions, resolves the following:

1. To reaffirm the Palestine Liberation Organization’s previous attitude to Resolution 242, which obliterates the national right of our people and deals with the cause of our people as a problem of refugees. The Council therefore refuses to have anything to do with this resolution at any level, Arab or international, including the Geneva Conference.

2. The Liberation Organization will employ all means, and first and foremost armed struggle, to liberate Palestinian territory and to establish the independent combatant national authority for the people over every part of Palestinian territory that is liberated. This will require further changes being effected in the balance of power in favor of our people and their struggle.

3. Any step taken towards liberation is a step towards the realization of the Liberation Organization’s strategy of establishing the democratic Palestinian State specified in the resolutions of previous Palestinian National Councils.

4. Struggle along with the Jordanian national forces to establish a Jordanian-Palestinian national front whose aim will be to set up in Jordan a democratic national authority in close contact with the Palestinian entity that is established through the struggle.

8. The Liberation Organization will strive to strengthen its solidarity with the socialist countries, and with forces of liberation and progress throughout the world, with the aim of frustration all the schemes of Zionism, reaction and imperialism.

The Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization will make every effort to implement this programme, and should a situation arise affecting the destiny and the future of the Palestinian people, the National Assembly will be convened in extraordinary session.



THE OSLO ACCORDS AND
THE PHASED DESTRUCTION OF ISRAEL

The PLO has decided that it would be acceptable to get rid of Israel in stages (by trading land for peace) if it couldn’t be done all at once (by war). Arafat has publicly told his followers, on numerous occasions, that the Declaration of Principles signed with Israel in 1993 (Oslo I) is actually a part of the PLO’s Phased Plan. In November 1994, in a speech marking the celebration of Palestine National Day, Arafat said:

"What has been a dream has become a reality. In 1974, the PNC decided on establishing a Palestinian Authority on the first piece of land from which the enemy has withdrawn or that we have liberated."

Another clue that the PLO has not totally renounced its idea of eliminating Israel, but has merely postponed it, is the fact that the official PLO letterhead still has for its logo a map of the nation of Israel labeled "Palestine." Textbooks in Egyptian and Jordanian schools, as well as those used in Palestinian schools, do not even show the nation of Israel on their maps. 105

Furthermore, Arafat has not eliminated terrorism in his government. Instead, he has elevated it to official status. In May 1996, Arafat set aside four cabinet seats in the Palestinian Authority for representatives of the most active terrorist groups: Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and two PLO rejectionist groups, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP). The US law that provides financial aid to the PA specifically says that aid will be cut off if the PLO allows terrorists to be included in the governing agencies. But to date, Congress has made no move to terminate the annual one hundred million in financial aid to the Palestinians.

The PLO has threatened that if Israel doesn’t exchange "land for peace" that they will continue the struggle to liberate Palestine by any other means. Hamas and Islamic Jihad are part of the "war by other means" by the PLO against Israel. These two Islamic fundamentalist groups are funded, trained, and armed by Iran and Syria. The Hezbollah, or Party of Allah, which operates against Israel primarily out of Syrian-controlled southern Lebanon, is also sponsored by Iran. These groups are adamantly opposed to peace with Israel and, in fact, they are fanatically dedicated to waging continual "war by other means" against all non-Muslim countries. 106

During his youth in Cairo, Arafat’s family had close ties to a group called the Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamic fundamentalist group active in Egypt and the Middle East. As a teenager Arafat fought with the Muslim Brothers in Jerusalem in 1948 and, during his university days, he often went on secret missions with the Brothers when they were fighting the British at the Suez Canal. Many of the early Fatah members were tied to the Muslim Brotherhood, which once tried to assassinate Egyptian president Gamal Adbel Nasser. 107

The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) Charter, released to the public in 1988, states that "Hamas is one of the links in the Chain of Jihad in the confrontation with the Zionist invasion. It links up with … the Muslim Brotherhood who fought the Holy War in 1936; it further relates to another link of the Palestinian Jihad and the efforts of the Muslim Brothers during the 1948 War, and to the Jihad operations of the Muslim Brothers in 1968 and thereafter …" So the current masters of terrorism affirm their historic link to the Muslim Brotherhood. And it’s a link that joins them directly to Yasser Arafat. 108

ISRAEL WANTS PEACE
WITH HER ARAB NEIGHBORS

Beginning in the late 1800s in Europe, political Zionism was birthed. With political Zionism, the Jewish people (house of Judah) dreamed of living in the ancient homeland of their forefathers Abraham (Avraham), Isaac (Yitzchak) and Jacob (Ya’acov) where they would be free from anti-Semitism while living in security and being at peace with her neighbors.

Theodor Herzl is the father of modern Zionism. He established the World Zionist Organization in 1897 with the purpose of establishing a national homeland for the Jewish people (house of Judah). His dream was carried by Chaim Weizmann who influenced the British to help establish a homeland for the Jewish people (house of Judah) by signing the Balfour Declaration.

The Arabs responded to the Jewish (house of Judah) desire for a national homeland with great protest. Because of British politics to appease the Arabs, the Jewish (house of Judah) Zionist dream was delayed until 1948. It was only achieved because of world outrage to the horrors of the holocaust and the Jewish Resistance Movement against the British. With political division, the United Nations approved the partitioning of Palestine into a Jewish state, an Arab state and Jerusalem being an international city through UN Resolution 181 in 1947.

The Arabs rejected this plan and went to war with Israel in 1948 following the passing of the UN partition plan. Israel defeated the Arabs and won her independence. The Arabs went to war with Israel again in 1956, 1967 and 1973 to liberate the land of Palestine. However, Israel won all these wars and increased the territory that she controlled and began to build settlements in these territories.

The Arab world and the PLO became infuriated with Israel for building settlements in these newly conquered land areas. These settlements and Israel’s existence as a nation continued to be a thorny issue to Yasser Arafat and the PLO. Because the PLO and the Arab world could not conquer Israel by war, they decided to go forward with a phased plan destruction of Israel by trading "land for peace."

With the passing of UN Resolution 242 following the 1967 war and UN Resolution 338 following the 1973 war, the principle of Israel trading "land for peace" was established in the international world community. Because UN Resolutions 242 and 338 could be used as a means to accomplish the phased plan destruction of Israel, it was acceptable to the PLO and the Arab world. Because UN Resolution 242 and 338 is a part of the plan to establish the credibility of the UN as an organization to promote World Government and the "New World Order," trading "land for peace" is a high priority to the framers who want to establish World Government. Therefore, the goals to establish World Government and the goal of the PLO to destroy Israel through its phased plan are being united through UN Resolutions 242 and 338. Because of this, Israel is being pressured to trade "land for peace."

In the next chapter, we will learn that all of Israel’s peace agreements with her Arab neighbors beginning with Egypt and the Camp David Accords in the late 1970s have been based upon UN Resolutions 242 and 338. Because the United States has been actively involved in promoting Israel having peace with her neighbors based upon UN Resolutions 242 and 338, it is easy to discern that the United States strongly advocates and promotes the idea of establishing World Government.

Because Israel desires so strongly to have peace with her Arab neighbors, she has agreed to "peace" with her Arab neighbors based upon UN Resolutions 242 and 338. While Israel desires peace with her neighbors, by agreeing to trade "land for peace," she is rejecting the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) when He promised Abraham (Avraham) and his descendents an eternal Promised Land. This land would include the biblical areas of Judea and Samaria (West Bank).

By desiring to have World Government without the rulership of the G-d of Israel, the nations of the world have rejected the G-d of Israel as King of the Universe and have also rejected the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham). By rejecting the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham), the judgment of the G-d of Israel will fall upon Israel and the nations. Rather than having peace (shalom) with her Arab neighbors based upon UN Resolutions 242 and 338, the words of the prophet Jeremiah (Yermiyahu) ring loud and clear. In Jeremiah (Yermiyahu) 6:14 it is written:

"They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace."

In the Brit Hadashah (New Testament), in I Thessalonians 5:3 it is written:

"For when they shall say, Peace and safety [security]; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child [Chevlai shel Mashiach/birthpangs of the Messiah] and they shall not escape."

However, it is during Jacob’s trouble (Chevlai shel Mashiach), that the prophet Jeremiah (Yermiyahu) declares that the two houses of Israel will be reunited in the land of Israel (Jeremiah [Yermiyahu] 30:1-7) when they return to the mountains of Israel (Judea and Samaria/West Bank) (Ezekiel [Yechezekel] 37:15-22).

May the G-d of Israel pour out His Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh) and bring redemption, restoration, reconciliation and unity to both the house of Judah (Judaism) and the house of Israel (Christianity) speedily in our days. Amen !!

THE UNITED NATIONS-ISRAEL-ARAB
PEACE PROCESS


Since Israel became a nation in 1948, she has fought numerous wars with her Arab neighbors. While Israel has won all of these wars, she may be losing the "peace." In the June 1967 Six-Day War, Israel defeated her Arab neighbors and captured the Biblical land of Judea and Samaria (West Bank) and the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) became a united city under Israeli control. The Biblical land of Judea and Samaria is known in the Western world as the "West Bank." In the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Israel gained control of the Golan Heights. Following these wars, the nation of Israel became increasingly interested in having peace and entering into peace agreements with her Arab neighbors. Therefore, in the years to come, Israel made peace agreements with Egypt (1979) and with Jordan (1994). The United States became the facilitator of these peace agreements.

In the early 1990s, Israel began to enter into peace negotiations with the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO). With the help of the United States, the result of these peace negotiations was the signing of the Declaration of Principles with the PLO (Oslo I) on September 13, 1993 at the White House in Washington DC. With further help by the United States, Israel and the PLO signed Oslo II in 1995. The Oslo Accords are intended to become the framework for establishing a permanent peace between Israel and the PLO as well as the basis for Israel to establish peace with all of her Arab neighbors in the years to come.

Because the United States has played such a central and active role in bringing Israel and her Arab neighbors together to discuss peace with each other, it could be perceived that the United States is acting independently to achieve peace between Israel and her Arab neighbors so that they could sign bilateral agreements with each other. However, it may come as a surprise to most of our readers that nothing could be farther from the truth. In fact, it is the desire of the United States that all peace agreements between Israel and her Arab neighbors be United Nations based peace agreements. In reality, the United States is working as an agent in the peace agreements between Israel and her Arab neighbors to ensure that the goals, intent and purpose for the founding of the United Nations is realized. In other words, in desiring for Israel to make peace with her Arab neighbors, the foreign policy of the United States is to advance the cause of the United Nations.

The purpose of this chapter is to show our readers that the United States has been actively involved in promoting peace between Israel and her Arab neighbors making sure that any signed agreements are based upon United Nations resolutions. It was the goal of the founders of the United Nations that the United Nations would be an organization that would be used to promote, encourage and establish World Government at some point in the future.

The Bible teaches that at some point in history, there will be World Government headed by the False Messiah known to the house of Israel (Christianity) as the Antichrist (Daniel 7, Revelation 13). When World Government is established, the False Messiah will enter into a peace agreement with the nation of Israel guaranteeing her peace and security. In I Thessalonians 5:1-3 it is written:

"But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety [security] then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child [Chevlai shel Mashiach/birth pangs of the Messiah]; and they shall not escape."

In this chapter, we will see how the peace agreements that the United States has helped to negotiate between Israel and her Arab neighbors have been based upon United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338. Furthermore, United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338 is based upon the principle of peace with security. Therefore, the United States is hastening the day when Israel will enter into an ominous peace agreement with the False Messiah in the end of days. Quite possibly, the False Messiah will try to enforce peace between Israel and her Arab neighbors by guaranteeing the terms and conditions of United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338 — peace with security.

In the rest of this chapter, the text of United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338 will be shown. Then, peace agreements and peace negotiations between Israel and her Arab neighbors will be reviewed highlighting those parts of the agreements which specify that these agreements are based upon United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338.

The source of the text of the peace agreements and negotiations between Israel and her Arab neighbors comes from the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs website located at http://www.mfa.gov.il and is used with permission. For further detailed study of these documents and other matters pertaining to the nation of Israel, please visit the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs website.



UN SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION 242

(NOVEMBER 22, 1967)

The Security Council:

Expressing its continuing concern with the grave situation in the Middle East,

Emphasizing the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war and the need to work for a just and lasting peace in which every State in the area can live in security,

Emphasizing further that all Member States in their acceptance of the Charter of the United Nations have undertaken a commitment to act in accordance with Article 2 of the Charter,

Affirms that the fulfillment of Charter principles requires the establishment of a just and lasting peace in the Middle East which should include the application of both the following principles:

Withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict;


Termination of all claims or states of belligerency and respect for and acknowledgment of the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of every State in the area and their right to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force;

Affirms further the necessity:

For guaranteeing freedom of navigation through international waterways in the area;
For achieving a just settlement of the refugee problem;
For guaranteeing the territorial inviolability and political independence of every State in the area, through measures including the establishment of demilitarized zones;


Requests the Secretary General to designate a Special Representative to proceed to the Middle East to establish and maintain contacts with the States concerned in order to promote agreement and assist efforts to achieve a peaceful and accepted settlement in accordance with the provisions and principles in this resolution;

Requests the Secretary-General to report to the Security Council on the progress of the efforts of the Special Representative as soon as possible.



UN SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION 338

(OCTOBER 22, 1973)

The Security Council:

Calls upon all parties to the present fighting to cease all firing and terminate all military activity immediately, no later than 12 hours after the moment of the adoption of this decision, in the positions after the moment of the adoption of this decision, in the positions they now occupy;

Calls upon all parties concerned to start immediately after the cease-fire the implementation of Security Council Resolution 242 (1967) in all of its parts;

Decides that, immediately and concurrently with the cease-fire, negotiations start between the parties concerned under appropriate auspices aimed at establishing a just and durable peace in the Middle East.



ISRAEL ENTERS INTO PEACE WITH EGYPT

In the late 1970s, Israel entered into peace negotiations with the nation of Egypt. After twelve days of secret negotiations at Camp David, the Israeli-Egyptian negotiations were concluded with the signing at the White House of two agreements. First, the Camp David Accords were signed on September 17, 1978. Then, a full peace agreement between Israel and Egypt was signed on March 26, 1979. President Carter witnessed the accords that were signed by Egyptian President Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Begin. The United States helped to negotiate these agreements. They are based upon United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338. Those parts of the agreement which highlight that they are based upon United Nations Resolution 242 and 338 will be presented.



THE CAMP DAVID ACCORDS

(SEPTEMBER 17, 1978)

The Framework for Peace in the Middle East

Muhammad Anwar al-Sadat, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, and Menachem Begin, Prime Minister of Israel, met with Jimmy Carter, President of the United States of America, at Camp David from September 5 to September 17, 1978, and have agreed on the following framework for peace in the Middle East. They invite other parties to the Arab-Israel conflict to adhere to it.

Preamble

The search for peace in the Middle East must be guided by the following:

The agreed basis for a peaceful settlement of the conflict between Israel and its neighbors is United Nations Security Council Resolution 242, in all its parts … The provisions of the Charter of the United Nations and the other accepted norms of international law and legitimacy now provide accepted standards for the conduct of relations among all states.

To achieve a relationship of peace, in the spirit of Article 2 of the United Nations Charter, future negotiations between Israel and any neighbor prepared to negotiate peace and security with it are necessary for the purpose of carrying out all the provisions and principles of Resolutions 242 and 338.

Framework

Taking these factors into account, the parties are determined to reach a just, comprehensive, and durable settlement of the Middle East conflict through the conclusion of peace treaties based on Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338 in all their parts. Their purpose is to achieve peace and good neighborly relations. They recognize that for peace to endure, it must involve all those who have been most deeply affected by the conflict. They therefore agree that this framework, as appropriate, is intended by them to constitute a basis for peace not only between Egypt and Israel, but also between Israel and each of its other neighbors which is prepared to negotiate peace with Israel on this basis. With that objective in mind, they have agreed to proceed as follows:

A. West Bank and Gaza

1. Egypt, Israel, Jordan and the representatives of the Palestinian people should participate in negotiations on the resolution of the Palestinian problem in all its aspects. To achieve that objective, negotiations relating to the West Bank and Gaza should proceed in three stages … The negotiations shall be based on all the provisions and principles of UN Security Council Resolution 242 …

The United States shall be invited to participate in the talks on matters related to the modalities of the implementation of the agreements and working out the timetable for the carrying out of the obligations of the parties. The United Nations Security Council shall be requested to endorse the peace treaties and ensure that their provisions shall not be violated. The permanent members of the Security Council shall be requested to underwrite the peace treaties and ensure respect or the provisions…

For the Government of Israel:

Menachem Begin

For the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt

Muhammed Anwar al-Sadat

Witnessed by

Jimmy Carter,

President of the United States of America

FRAMEWORK FOR THE CONCLUSION OF A PEACE TREATY BETWEEN EGYPT AND ISRAEL

In order to achieve peace between them, Israel and Egypt agree to negotiate in good faith with a goal of concluding within three months of the signing of this framework a peace treaty between them:

It is agreed that:

The site of the negotiations will be under a United Nations flag at a location or locations to be mutually agreed. All of the principles of UN Resolution 242 will apply in this resolution of the dispute between Israel and Egypt…

For the Government of

the Arab Republic of Egypt:

Muhammed Anwar al-Sadat

For the Government of Israel:

Menachem Begin

Witnessed by:

Jimmy Carter,

President of the United States of America



ISRAEL’S PEACE TREATY WITH EGYPT IS BASED UPON
UN RESOLUTIONS 242 AND 338

Sixteen months after Sadat’s visit to Israel, the Israel-Egypt peace treaty was signed in Washington. This peace treaty between Israel and Egypt was based upon United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338. Those parts of the agreement which highlight that this peace treaty was based upon United Nations Resolution 242 and 338 will be presented.



PEACE TREATY BETWEEN ISRAEL AND EGYPT

(MARCH 26, 1979)

The Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt and the Government of the State of Israel;

Preamble

Convinced of the urgent necessity of the establishment of a just, comprehensive and lasting peace in the Middle East in accordance with Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338;

Reaffirming their adherence to the "Framework for Peace in the Middle East Agreed at Camp David," dated September 17, 1978;

Noting that the aforementioned Framework as appropriate is intended to constitute a basis for peace not only between Egypt and Israel but also between Israel and each of its other Arab neighbors which is prepared to negotiate peace with it on this basis…

For the Government of Israel

For the Government of the

Arab Republic of Egypt

Witnessed by:

Jimmy Carter,

President of the United States of America



ISRAEL’S PEACE INITIATIVE WITH THE ARABS

The following peace initiative was formulated by Prime Minister Shamir (Likud) and Defense Minister Rabin (Labour) and represents the consensus of Israel policy in the National unity government in the late 1980s. The part of the peace initiative that highlights the commitment to United Nations Resolution 242 and 338 will be presented.



ISRAEL’S PEACE INITIATIVE

(MAY 14, 1989)

General

1. This document presents the principles of a political initiative of the Government of Israel which deals with the continuation of the peace process; the termination of the state of war with the Arab states; a solution for the Arabs of Judea, Samaria and the Gaza district; peace with Jordan; and a resolution of the problem of the residents of the refugee camps in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza district…

The Principles Constituting the Initiative

…The interlock between the stages is a timetable on which the Plan is built: the peace process delineated by the initiative is based on Resolutions 242 and 338 upon which the Camp David Accords are founded…



THE MADRID PEACE CONFERENCE

Following the 1991 Gulf War, US Secretary of State James Baker made eight trips to the Middle East in eight months. As a result of the shuttle diplomacy by James Baker, the United States invited Israel, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and the Palestinians to enter into peace negotiations that were to be held in Madrid, Spain. The following contains the invitation to the Madrid Peace Conference that was held on October 30, 1991. The invitation was jointly issued by the United States and the Soviet Union. Only the part of the invitation that highlights the commitment of the peace talks to United Nations Resolution 242 and 338 will be presented.



LETTER OF INVITATION
TO MADRID PEACE CONFERENCE

(OCTOBER 30, 1991)

After extensive consultations with Arab states, Israel and the Palestinians, the United States and the Soviet Union believe that an historic opportunity exists to advance the prospects for genuine peace throughout the region. The United States and the Soviet Union are prepared to assist the parties to achieve a just, lasting and comprehensive peace settlement, through direct negotiations along two tracks, between Israel and the Arab states, and between Israel and the Palestinians, based on United Nations Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338. The objective of this process is real peace. Toward that end, the president of the US and the president of the USSR invite you to a peace conference, which their countries will cosponsor, followed immediately by direct negotiations. The conference will be convened in Madrid on October 30, 1991.

President Bush and President Gorbachev request your acceptance of this invitation no later than 6 PM Washington time, October 23, 1991, in order to ensure proper organization and preparation of the conference … The European Community will be a participant in the conference, alongside the United States and the Soviet Union and will be represented by its presidency … the negotiations between Israel and the Arab states, will take place on the basis of Resolutions 242 and 338…



YASSER ARAFAT ACCEPTS
UNITED NATIONS RESOLUTIONS 242 AND 338

Beginning with the Madrid peace conference, talks continued between Israel and the PLO. Eventually, these talks resulted in an agreement between Israel and the PLO termed the "Declaration of Principles" which was signed at the White House in Washington D.C. on September 13, 1993. In preparation for the signing of this agreement, Yasser Arafat sent a letter to Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin acknowledging Israel’s right to exist while reaffirming that peace negotiations would be based upon United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338. The letter from Yasser Arafat to Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin is given below. Following Arafat’s letter to Rabin is Prime Minister Rabin’s reply to PLO leader Yasser Arafat.



LETTER FROM YASSER ARAFAT
TO PRIME MINISTER RABIN

September 9, 1993

Yitzhak Rabin

Prime Minister of Israel

Mr. Prime Minister,

The signing of the Declaration of Principles marks a new era in the history of the Middle East. In firm conviction thereof, I would like to confirm the following PLO commitments:

The PLO recognizes the right of the State of Israel to exist in peace and security.

The PLO accepts United Nations Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338.

The PLO commits itself to the Middle East peace process, and to a peaceful resolution of the conflict between the two sides and declares that all outstanding issues relating to permanent status will be resolved through negotiations…

In view of the promise of a new era and the signing of the Declaration of Principles and based on Palestinian acceptance of Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338, the PLO affirms that those articles of the Palestinian Covenant which deny Israel’s right to exist, and the provisions of the Covenant which are inconsistent with the commitments of this letter are now inoperative and no longer valid. Consequently, the PLO undertakes to submit to the Palestinian National Council for formal approval the necessary changes in the Palestinian Covenant.

Sincerely,

Yasser Arafat

Chairman

The Palestine Liberation Organization



LETTER FROM PRIME MINISTER RABIN TO YASSER ARAFAT

September 9, 1993

Yasser Arafat

Chairman

The Palestinian Liberation Organization

Mr. Chairman,

In response to your letter of September 9, 1993, I wish to confirm to you that, in light of the PLO commitments included in your letter, the Government of Israel has decided to recognize the PLO as the representative of the Palestinian people and commence negotiations with the PLO within the Middle East peace process.

Yitzhak Rabin

Prime Minister of Israel

THE DECLARATION OF PRINCIPLES
AGREEMENT IS BASED UPON
UN RESOLUTIONS 242 AND 338




Declaration of Principles on Interim

Self-Government Arrangements

September 13, 1993

The Government of the State of Israel and the PLO team (in the Jordanian-Palestinian delegation to the Middle East Peace Conference) (the "Palestinian Delegation"), representing the Palestinian people, agree that it is time to put an end to decades of confrontation and conflict, recognize their mutual legitimate and political rights, and strive to live in peaceful coexistence and mutual dignity and security and achieve a just, lasting and comprehensive peace settlement and historic reconciliation through the agreed political process. Accordingly, the two sides agree to the following principles;

Article I

Aim of the Negotiations

The aim of the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations within the current Middle East peace process is, among other things, to establish a Palestinian Interim Self-Government Authority, the elected Council (the "Council"), for the Palestinian people in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, for a transitional period not exceeding five years, leading to a permanent settlement based on Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338. It is understood that the interim arrangements are an integral part of the whole peace process and that the negotiations on the permanent status will lead to the implementation of Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338 …

Done at Washington, DC, this thirteenth day of September 1993.

For the Government of Israel

For the PLO

Witnessed By:

The United States of America

The Russian Federation



ISRAEL’S PEACE TREATY WITH JORDAN IS BASED UPON
UN RESOLUTIONS 242 AND 338

Following the signing of the Declaration of Principles between Israel and the PLO on September 13, 1993, Israel signed a declaration to enter into peace with Jordan on July 25, 1994. This declaration resulted in a peace treaty between Israel and Jordan on October 26, 1994. The United States helped to make this peace treaty possible. This peace treaty is also based upon United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338. The part of the peace treaty that highlights the commitment to United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338 will be presented.



THE WASHINGTON DECLARATION
ISRAEL- JORDAN-THE UNITED STATES

(JULY 25TH, 1994)

After generations of hostility, blood and tears and in the wake of years of pain and wars, His Majesty King Hussein and Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin are determined to bring an end to bloodshed and sorrow. It is in this spirit that His Majesty King Hussein of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, Mr. Yitzhak Rabin of Israel, met in Washington today at the invitation of President William J. Clinton of the United States of America. This initiative of President William J. Clinton constitutes an historic landmark in the United States’ untiring efforts in promoting peace and stability in the Middle East … In their meeting, His Majesty King Hussein and Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin have jointly reaffirmed the five underlying principles of their understanding on an Agreed Common Agenda designed to reach the goal of a just, lasting and comprehensive peace between the Arab States and the Palestinians, with Israel.

1. Jordan and Israel aim at the achievement of a just, lasting and comprehensive peace between Israel and its neighbors and at the conclusion of a Treaty of Peace between both countries.

2. The two countries will vigorously continue their negotiations to arrive at a state of peace, based on Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338 in all their aspects, and founded on freedom, equality and justice…

…In recognition of their appreciation to the President, His Majesty King Hussein and Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin have asked President William J. Clinton to sign this document as a witness and as a host to their meeting.

His Majesty King Hussein

Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin

President William J. Clinton



TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN THE STATE OF ISRAEL
AND THE HASHEMITE KINGDOM OF JORDAN

(OCTOBER 26, 1994)

Preamble

The Government of the State of Israel and the Government of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan:

Bearing in mind the Washington Declaration, signed by them on July 25, 1994, and which they are both committed to honor;

Aiming at the achievement of a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in the Middle East based an Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338 in all their aspects…

Reaffirming their faith in the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and recognizing their right and obligation to live in peace with each other as well as with all states, within secure and recognized boundaries…

Bearing in mind that in their Washington Declaration of July 25, 1994, they declared the termination of the state of belligerency between them;

Deciding to establish peace between them in accordance with this Treaty of Peace;

Have agreed as follows…

For the State of Israel

Yitzhak Rabin, Prime Minister

For the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

Abdul Salam Majali, Prime Minister

Witnessed by:

William J. Clinton

President of the United States of America



AGREEMENT BETWEEN ISRAEL AND THE PLO
ON THE GAZA STRIP AND JERICHO IS BASED UPON
UN RESOLUTIONS 242 AND 338

As a part of the Declaration of Principles agreement signed between Israel and the PLO on September 13, 1993, Israel agreed to withdraw from the Gaza Strip and Jericho. This agreement was signed on May 4, 1994. It is also based upon United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338. The part of the agreement that highlights the commitment to UN Resolutions 242 and 338 will be presented.



AGREEMENT ON THE GAZA STRIP AND THE JERICHO AREA
(MAY 4, 1994)

The Government of the State of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (hereinafter "the PLO"), the representative of the Palestinian people;

Preamble

WITHIN the framework of the Middle East peace process initiated at Madrid in October 1991;

REAFFIRMING their determination to live in peaceful coexistence, mutual dignity and security, while recognizing their mutual legitimate and political rights;

REAFFIRMING their desire to achieve a just, lasting and comprehensive peace settlement through the agreed political process;

REAFFIRMING their adherence to the mutual recognition and commitments expressed in the letters dated September 9, 1993, signed by and exchanged between the Prime Minister of Israel and the Chairman of the PLO;

REAFFIRMING their understanding that the interim self-government arrangements, including the arrangements to apply in the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area contained in this Agreement, are an integral part of the whole peace process and that the negotiations on the permanent status will lead to the implementation of Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338…

Done in Cairo this fourth day of May, 1994.

For the Government of the State of Israel
for the PLO

Witnessed By:

The United States of America

The Russian Federation

The Arab Republic of Egypt



INTERIM AGREEMENT BETWEEN ISRAEL
AND THE PLO (OSLO II) IS BASED UPON
UN RESOLUTIONS 242 AND 338

The Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement on the West Bank and Gaza Strip (Oslo II) is based upon United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338. The part of the agreement that highlights the commitment to UN Resolutions 242 and 338 will be presented.



ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN INTERIM AGREEMENT
ON THE WEST BANK AND THE GAZA STRIP



Washington, DC,

September 28, 1995

The Government of the State of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (hereinafter "the PLO"), the representative of the Palestinian people;

Preamble

WITHIN the framework of the Middle East peace process initiated at Madrid in October 1991;

REAFFIRMING their determination to put an end to decades of confrontation and to live in peaceful coexistence, mutual dignity and security, while recognizing their mutual legitimate and political rights;

REAFFIRMING their desire to achieve a just, lasting and comprehensive peace settlement and historic reconciliation through the agreed political process;

RECOGNIZING that the peace process and the new era that it has created, as well as the new relationship established between the two Parties as described above, are irreversible, and the determination of the two Parties to maintain, sustain and continue the peace process;

RECOGNIZING that the aim of the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations within the current Middle East peace process is, among other things, to establish a Palestinian Interim Self-Government Authority, i.e. the elected Council (hereinafter "the Council" or "the Palestinian Council"), and the elected Ra’ees of the Executive Authority, for the Palestinian people in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, for a transitional period not exceeding five years from the date of signing the Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area (hereinafter "the Gaza-Jericho Agreement") on May 4, 1994, leading to a permanent settlement based on Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338…

MADELINE ALBRIGHT REAFFIRMS
THE COMMITMENT OF THE UNITED STATES TO
UN RESOLUTIONS 242 AND 338

At this point, there should be no doubt in the reader’s mind that the Middle East peace process between Israel and her Arab neighbors is based upon United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338. Furthermore, there should be no doubt in the reader’s mind that the United States fully supports United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338 and has played a central and active role in making sure that any peace agreements between Israel and her Arab neighbors is based upon United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338. Therefore, it can be reasonably concluded that the United States is in favor of future World Government and is actively working to help bring it into reality.

The following article appeared in the Jerusalem Post Internet Edition on November 17, 1997. At the time of the writing of this book, the article could be found on the Jerusalem Post website located at:

http://www.jpost.com/com/Archive/17.Nov.1997/News/Article-0.html

In this article, the United States Secretary of State Madeline Albright reaffirms the United States commitment to the peace process between Israel and the PLO based upon United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338.



ALBRIGHT TO ISRAEL: TIME IS RUNNING OUT

BY STEVE RODAN

DOHA, Qatar (November 17) — Warning that time is running out for the peace process, US Secretary of State Madeline Albright yesterday called on Israel to implement the interim agreements with the Palestinians.

"Palestinian leaders must intensify cooperation on security issues and speak more consistently the language of peace," Albright told the opening of the Middle East and North Africa economic conference in the Qatari capital.

"Israeli leaders must meet their responsibilities by taking steps to restore Palestinian and Arab confidence in their commitment to implementing Oslo."

…She reiterated US support for UN Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338, "including the principle of land for peace."

Her words reflected what US officials said is Washington’s frustration with the stalled peace process.



PRESIDENT BILL CLINTON REAFFIRMS THE COMMITMENT OF THE UNITED STATES TO UN RESOLUTIONS 242 AND 338

In the May 14, 1999 edition of the Jewish Press newspaper (Brooklyn, New York) on page 80, there was an article that featured a letter from President Bill Clinton to Yasser Arafat that was sent to him on April 26, 1999. An excerpt of the letter reads as follows:

"Dear Mr. Chairman, I appreciated the opportunity to see you at the White House last month and exchange views on the current situation … I am asking that you continue to rely on the peace process as the way to fulfill the aspirations of your people … the objective of the negotiating process is the implementation of UN Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338, including land for peace…"



THE UNITED NATIONS
ISRAEL/ARAB PEACE PROCESS

At this point, it should be understood that the Middle East peace process between Israel and her Arab neighbors has been based upon United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338. The basis of UN Resolutions 242 and 338 is for Israel to exchange "land for peace." These resolutions are intended to grant Israel the assurance of having "peace with security."

The United States has played a central and active role in each and every peace negotiation and agreement between Israel and her Arab neighbors. The United States fully supports United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338 and wants to ensure that each peace agreement between Israel and her Arab neighbors is based upon these UN resolutions. In doing so, the United States is taking an active role in promoting the intent, purpose and goals of the founders of the United Nations to use the United Nations as an instrument to help bring about World Government. By looking at the United States involvement in the Middle East peace process and how the United States seeks to promote United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338 as a central part of this process, it can be easily discerned that the foreign policy of the United States is to help promote the empowering of the United Nations and to advance the goal to eventually establish One World Government.

Knowledgeable students of Bible prophecy also know that the False Messiah will eventually be the leader of this coming World Government. Furthermore, the G-d of Israel declares in His Holy Word that the second coming of the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus as the Kingly Messiah known as Messiah ben David will crush to pieces the world rule of this False Messiah through ushering in the Messianic Age (Athid Lavo) (Daniel 7, Revelation 13).

Because the United States is leading a world wide rebellion against the nation of Israel by basing Israel’s peace negotiations and treaties with her Arab neighbors upon United Nations Resolutions 242 and 338 and subsequently, hastening the advent of World Government and the rise of the eventual False Messiah who will be the ruler of this World Government, the wrath and curse of the G-d of Israel will come upon the United States because she is turning her back on the nation of Israel and siding with Ishmael rather than Isaac in this conflict. The G-d of Israel made a promise to Abraham (Avraham) in Genesis (Bereishit) 12:3 as it is written:

"And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed."

In Zechariah (Zecharyah) 2:8 it is written:

"…he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye."

Therefore, let us remember the inspired words of the G-d of Israel in Psalm (Tehillim) 121:4 as it is written:

"Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep."

And let us also remember the inspired words of the G-d of Israel in Psalm (Tehillim) 122:6 as it is written:

"Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee."

On behalf of the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) when the G-d of Israel promised ALL twelve tribes of Israel a Promised Land and for the sake of the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) which He has chosen, may the G-d of Israel pour out His Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh) upon the house of Judah (Judaism) and upon the house of Israel (Christianity) and unite our hearts by bringing redemption, restoration, reconciliation and unity to both houses of Israel speedily in our days because of our love for Zion. Amen!

JERUSALEM: THE CITY OF THE GREAT KING


There is no other city on the earth that is closer to the heart of the G-d of Israel than the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). Combining both the TeNaKh (Old Testament) and the Brit Hadashah (New Testament), it is mentioned over 800 times. The heavenly Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) is the city of the G-d of Israel (Hebrews 12:22). It is the city of the great King (Psalm [Tehillim] 48:2, Matthew [Mattityahu] 5:35). The throne of the G-d of Israel is located in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) (Ezekiel [Yechezekel] 43:7). It is from the heavenly Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) that He sits upon His throne as King of the universe (Psalm [Tehillim] 47:2). The heavenly Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) is also the city of the Bride of the G-d of Israel (Revelation 21:2, 9-10).

Both in ancient and in modern times, Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) has always been the heartbeat of religious life for the nation of Israel. The special significance of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) is emphasized throughout the Bible.

The G-d of Israel placed His name in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) (II Kings [Melachim] 21:4) and His name would be there forever (II Chronicles 6:6, 7:16, 33:4).

Abraham (Avraham) offered his son Isaac (Yitzchak) on mount Moriah in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) in the event known by the house of Judah (Judaism) as the Akeida (Genesis [Bereishit] 22).

Three times a year, males from the nation of Israel went to Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) to celebrate the Biblical Festivals. (Deuteronomy [Devarim] 16:16).

The Temple (Beit HaMikdash) was built in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). (Psalm [Tehillim] 68:29).

The Priests (Cohanim) and Levites (Levi’im) taught the Torah and the Sanhedrin administered the G-d of Israel’s court of justice from Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). (Deuteronomy [Devarim] 16:18, 17:8-11).

The throne of David was in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) (I Chronicles 11:3-7).

The Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus died as the suffering Messiah (Mashiach) known as Messiah ben Yosef (Joseph) on a tree in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). (Matthew (Mattityahu) 16:21, 20:17-19).

The Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh) indwelled and empowered the early Jewish believers in the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) (Acts 2).

Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) will become the center of controversy and a cup of trembling to the nations of the world and all nations will be gathered against her in the end of days (Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 34:8, Zechariah (Zecharyah) 12:2, 14:2).

Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) is the apple of the G-d of Israel’s eye and He will fight against those nations who fight against Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) with the plague of nuclear war (Zechariah [Zecharyah] 2:1-2, 8, 14:3, 12).

The Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus will set His feet upon the mount of Olives in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) as the Kingly Messiah (Mashiach) known as Messiah ben David at His second coming (Zechariah [Zecharyah] 14:4).

The Torah will be taught from Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) by the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus during the Messianic age (Athid Lavo) (Isaiah [Yeshayahu] 2:2-3) and all nations will celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) (Zechariah [Zecharyah] 14:16).

JERUSALEM AND THE JEWISH PEOPLE

The city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) is constantly in the remembrance of the Jewish people (house of Judah) as they live their lives. She is regarded as the "mother of Israel." Prayers are said daily for Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). She is remembered in the prayers of the Jewish people when they thank the G-d of Israel for their food and when they have their Sabbath (Shabbat) and holy-day observances. In fact, the Passover (Pesach) Seder and the Yom Kippur service ends by proclaiming, "Next Year in Jerusalem." When a Jew says, "Next Year in Jerusalem," it is actually a prayer for the coming of the Messianic Age (Athid Lavo).

At the conclusion of every Jewish wedding ceremony, it is a tradition for the groom to break a glass (Orach Chaim 560:2, Evven HaEzer 65:3 in Hagah. See Tosafot, Berakhot 31a, s.v. "Isi."). Among Ashkenazic Jews, the custom is to shout Mazel Tov at this point. However, Sefardic Jews recite the verse:

"If I forget thee O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its cunning" (Psalm [Tehillim] 137:5).

The glass is broken so that even at the happiest moment of their lives, the bride and groom should recall the destruction of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). This is in keeping with the next verse:

"Let my tongue stick to my palate if I remember you not, if I set not Jerusalem above my greatest joy" (Psalm [Tehillim] 137:6).

The joy of marriage is associated with the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). In Jeremiah (Yermiyahu) 33:10-11 it is written:

"Thus saith the Lord; Again there shall be heard in this place … even in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem … the voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride…"

The heavenly Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) is the city of the Bride of the G-d of Israel. In Revelation 21:2, 9-10 it is written:

"And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband … and there came unto me one of the seven angels … saying, Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife. And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God."

Every synagogue in the world is built with the ark on the side toward Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). Therefore, whenever a Jew prays, he faces the Holy city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). Whenever King Solomon (Shlomo) dedicated the Temple (Beit HaMikdash) to the G-d of Israel, it was established that all prayer to the G-d of Israel should be directed toward Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). In I Kings (Melachim) 8:1, 3, 22-23, 28-30 it is written:

"Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of David, which is Zion … and all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark … and Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven: And he said, Lord God of Israel … yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O Lord my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer, which thy servant prayeth before thee today: that mine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said, My name shall be there: that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which thy servant shall make toward this place. And hearken thou to the supplication of thy servant, and of thy people Israel, when they shall pray toward this place…"

To the Jewish people, Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) is known as the "gate of heaven." So much is Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) a focal point of Jewish heart and life and the joy of the whole earth that it is written in the Talmud:

"Ten measures of beauty descended to this world. Nine were given to Jerusalem and one to the rest of the world."

To the Jewish people, the remembrance of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) radiates in every aspect of their lives. In truth, it is more than just a city. It is the heart and soul of the Jewish people and the entire nation of Israel.



JERUSALEM: THE CITY OF PEACE

Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) is first mentioned in the book of Genesis (Bereishit) 14:18 by the name of Salem. Salem was an early name for Jerusalem (Josephus, Antiquity of the Jews, Book 1, Chapter 10:2). In Genesis (Bereishit) 14:18-20 it is written:

"And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth: And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all."

The word Salem is the Strong’s word (8004) in the Hebrew dictionary. Shalom is the Strong’s word (7965) in the Hebrew dictionary. Shalom in Hebrew means "peace, wholeness or to be complete." Both Salem (8004) and Shalom (7965) come from the Hebrew word Shalam, which is the Strong’s word (7999).

Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) is the Strong’s word 3389. It is also related to the Hebrew word shalam which is the Strong’s word (7999) and the Hebrew word shalom (7965). These are the Hebrew words for "peace, wholeness or completeness." Therefore, the Hebrew name for Jerusalem is associated with shalom or peace.

In Genesis (Bereishit) 14:18, Melchizedek is mentioned as being the king of Salem. Melchizedek is the Strong’s word (4442) in the Hebrew dictionary. Melchizedek comes from two Hebrew words, Melech, and tzedek. Melech is the Strong’s word (4428) which means, "king." Tzedek is the Strong’s word (6664) which means, "righteous." Therefore, the king of Salem (peace) was Melchizedek (the king of righteousness).



THE JEWISH MESSIAH
IS THE KING OF PEACE AND RIGHTEOUSNESS

The Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus is the King of peace and the King of righteousness. He is the High Priest of the G-d of Israel after the order of Melchizedek. In Hebrews 3:1, 6:20, 7:1-2 it is written:

"Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle [Shaliach] and High Priest [Cohen HaGadol] of our profession Christ Jesus … made a high priest forever after the order of Melchisedec. For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace."

The Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus is not only a High Priest (Cohen HaGadol) forever after the order of Melchizedek (Psalm [Tehillim] 110:4) and the King of righteousness but He is also the King of peace. In Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 9:6 it is written about the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus:

"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace [Sar Shalom]."



THE AKEIDAH: ABRAHAM BINDS ISAAC
ON MOUNT MORIAH

Genesis (Bereishit) 22 is one of the most important Torah readings to the house of Judah (Judaism). In some Jewish communities, it is read every day of the week except for the Sabbath (Shabbat). It is the primary Torah reading for Rosh HaShanah (Feast of Trumpets). The major event of the chapter is Abraham’s obedience to the G-d of Israel to offer his son Isaac (Yitzchak) as a burnt offering (olah) and bind him upon an altar. This event is known to the house of Judah (Judaism) as the Akeidah.

What is also important in this chapter is that the G-d of Israel provided for Abraham (Avraham) a lamb for a burnt offering (olah) as a substitute for Isaac (Yitzchak). When He did, Abraham (Avraham) called the name of that place "Jehovah-Jireh" which means "the Lord will see." In Genesis (Bereishit) 22:1-2, 4, 6-8, 13-14 it is written:

"And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. And he said, Take now thy son, thy only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of … Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off … And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together … And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah-jireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen."

Mount Moriah is located in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). In II Chronicles 3:1, it is written:

"Then Solomon began to build the house of the Lord at Jerusalem in mount Moriah…"



THE LAMB OF G-D IS THE JEWISH MESSIAH

The Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus referred to the binding of Isaac upon the altar as a prophetic foreshadowing of Himself. In John (Yochanan) 8:56-58, it is written:

"Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad. Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I AM."

Spiritually, (sod/deeper meaning), Abraham (Avraham) is a type of the G-d of Israel. Isaac (Yitzchak) is a type of the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus. In a Orthodox Rabbinical commentary of Genesis (Bereishit) 22, the "thicket" represents the sins of the children of Israel. When the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus died upon the tree (Deuteronomy [Devarim] 21:22-23, Galatians 3:13, I Peter [Kefa] 2:24) as the suffering Messiah known as Messiah ben Yosef (Joseph), He did so as the spiritual Lamb of the G-d of Israel whom the G-d of Israel willingly gave as a burnt offering (olah) when He allowed Him to be bound to the tree to take away the sin of the entire world. In John (Yochanan) 1:29, it is written:

"The next day John seeth, Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world."

A burnt offering (olah) is an offering that is totally consumed. It is freely given and done freely, willingly, and joyfully by both parties involved. The Bible tells us that the G-d of Israel freely offered the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus who is also the only Son of the G-d of Israel (Proverbs [Mishlei] 30:4) freely and the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus was willing and obedient to His death upon the tree. In Philippians 2:8-11 it is written:

"And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross [tree]. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 53 is written about the suffering Messiah (Mashiach) known as Messiah ben Yosef (Joseph). In Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 53:1, 4-5, 10, it tells us that G-d the Father offered up the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus willingly as a burnt offering (olah) for the sins of His people as it is written:

"Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm [zeroa] of the Lord revealed? … Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed … Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin…"

Therefore, the binding of Isaac (Yitzchak) to the altar by Abraham (Avraham) has great significance to both the house of Judah (Judaism) and the house of Israel (Christianity).

THE G-D OF ISRAEL CHOSE JERUSALEM
TO PUT HIS NAME THERE

The G-d of Israel chose Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) as His holy city and has chosen to put His name there. In II Chronicles 6:6 it is written:

"But I have chosen Jerusalem, that my name might be there…"

The G-d of Israel’s name will be in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) forever. In II Chronicles 7:11-12, 16 it is written:

"Thus Solomon finished the house of the Lord … And the Lord appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him … For now have I chosen and sanctified this house, that my name may be there forever: and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually."



THE PRIESTS AND LEVITES MINISTERED
FROM JERUSALEM

It was the duty of the Priests (Cohanim) and the Levites (Levi’im) to teach the Torah from Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) to the children of Israel. In Deuteronomy (Devarim) 17:8-11 it is written:

"If there arise a matter too hard for thee in judgment, between blood and blood, between plea and plea, and between stroke and stroke, being matters of controversy within thy gates: then shalt thou arise, and get thee up into the place which the Lord thy God shall choose; And thou shalt come unto the priests the Levites, and unto the judge that shall be in those days, and inquire; and they shall show thee the sentence of judgment: And thou shalt do according to the sentence, which they of that place which the Lord shall choose shall show thee: and thou shalt observe to do according to all that they inform thee; According to the sentence of the law [Torah] which they shall teach thee, and according to the judgment which they shall tell thee, thou shalt do: thou shalt not decline from the sentence which they shall show thee, to the right hand, nor to the left."



THE COURT OF JUSTICE IS IN JERUSALEM

The G-d of Israel established that a court of justice be set up to judge the children of Israel with righteous judgments. In Deuteronomy (Devarim) 16:18 it is written:

"Judges and officers shalt thou make thee in all thy gates, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, throughout thy tribes: and they shall judge the people with just judgment."

This commandment was carried out by the Sanhedrin. The Sanhedrin consisted of 71 members. Their commissioning is derived from Numbers (Bamidbar) 11:16 as it is written:

"And the Lord said unto Moses, Gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel … and bring them unto the tabernacle of the congregation, that they may stand there with thee."

It was believed that Moses (Moshe) was the head of the original seventy elders. Therefore, they consisted of 71 members. During the days of the Temple (Beit HaMikdash), the Sanhedrin met in the outer north wall of the Temple in a room known as the Chamber of Cut Stone. As long as the Sanhedrin convened, it functioned as both the supreme court and the central legislative body for all Israel. The Sanhedrin ceased to exist after the destruction of the Temple (Beit HaMikdash) by the Romans.



THE FESTIVALS ARE TO BE CELEBRATED
IN JERUSALEM

Three times a year, the G-d of Israel instructed the males from the nation of Israel to keep the Feasts of the Lord (Leviticus [Vayikra] 23) in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). In Deuteronomy (Devarim) 16:16 it is written:

"Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the Lord thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles…"



THE JEWISH MESSIAH CELEBRATED THE FESTIVALS

The Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus celebrated the Festivals of the G-d of Israel. In Luke 2:41-42, He celebrated Passover (Pesach) as it is written:

"Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast."

The Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot). In John (Yochanan) 7:2, 37-38 it is written:

"Now the Jews feast of tabernacles was at hand …In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water."



SACRIFICES AND OFFERINGS
ARE GIVEN IN JERUSALEM

The G-d of Israel commanded that various kinds of sacrifices and offerings be given in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). In Deuteronomy (Devarim) 12:11, 14:22-23, it is written:

"Then there shall be a place which the Lord your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the Lord … Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year. And thou shalt eat before the Lord thy God, in the place which he shall choose to place his name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine and of thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the Lord thy God always…



THE TEMPLE WAS BUILT IN JERUSALEM

The Temple (Beit HaMikdash) was built in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). In Psalm (Tehillim) 68:29 it is written:

"Because of thy temple at Jerusalem shall kings bring presents unto thee."



THE THRONE OF DAVID WAS IN JERUSALEM

The throne of David was in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). In I Chronicles 11:3-5 it is written:

"Therefore came all the elders of Israel … and they anointed David king over Israel … and David and all Israel went to Jerusalem … David took the castle of Zion, which is the city of David…"



THE JEWISH MESSIAH WILL SIT
ON THE THRONE OF DAVID

The Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus was born to sit on the throne of David and rule over the house of Jacob which consists of the house of Judah (Judaism) and the house of Israel (Christianity) forever. In Luke 1:30-33 it is written:

"And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary [Miryam]: for thou hast found favor with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus [Yeshua]. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end."



THE JEWISH MESSIAH DIED AND
WAS RESURRECTED IN JERUSALEM

The Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus died as the suffering Messiah (Mashiach) known as Messiah ben Yosef (Joseph) on a tree in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). In Matthew (Mattityahu) 16:21, it is written:

"From that time forth began Jesus [Yeshua] to show unto his disciples [talmidim], how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day."



THE HOLY SPIRIT EMPOWERED JEWISH BELIEVERS OF YESHUA IN JERUSALEM

The Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh) empowered the Jewish (house of Judah) believers in Yeshua/Jesus as the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) to be His witnesses on the day of Shavuot (Pentecost). In Luke 24:44-49 it is written:

"And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the law [Torah] of Moses, and in the prophets [Nevi’im] and in the Psalms [Ketuvim], concerning me. Then opened he their understanding that they might understand the Scriptures, And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ [Mashiach] to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: And that repentance [Teshuvah] and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And ye are witnesses of these things. And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high."

This was fulfilled in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) on the day of Pentecost (Shavuot). In Acts 2:1-5 it is written:

"And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost [Ruach HaKodesh], and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven."

THE ANCIENT BATTLE FOR JERUSALEM

The prophets of Israel wrote that the final battle of the age before the coming of the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) will be a battle of the nations over Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). In truth, this battle over Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) is an ancient battle between the kingdom of darkness (HaSatan) and the kingdom of light (the kingdom of the G-d of Israel).

The modern battle over Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) is being played out among the actors on the world’s stage who are participating in this ancient battle. For those who have rejected the G-d of Israel as King of the Universe, their plans, ideas, beliefs and ideology are being influenced by the kingdom of darkness (HaSatan). They desire to divide the Promised Land of the G-d of Israel and desire to make Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) an international city. For those who put their faith, trust and confidence (emunah) in the G-d of Israel and His promises to His people and follow after the kingdom of light, they oppose dividing the land which the G-d of Israel promised to Abraham (Avraham) and his descendents forever through Isaac (Yitzchak) and Jacob (Ya’acov) and want Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) to be the eternal undivided capital of the nation of Israel.



LUCIFER DESIRES G-D’S THRONE

The origin of this battle over Jerusalem took place before the creation of Adam in the Garden of Eden (Gan Eden) when HaSatan tried to overthrow the throne of the G-d of Israel in the heavenly Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). In Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 14:12-14 it is written:

"How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High."

The throne of the G-d of Israel is in the heavenly Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) (Hebrews 12:22) in mount Zion, on the sides of the north, which is the city of the great King. In Psalm (Tehillim) 48:1-2 it is written:

"Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness. Beautiful for situation the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King."

Therefore, HaSatan stirred a rebellion against the G-d of Israel in the heavenlies with the desire and purpose to exalt his throne above the G-d of Israel and to sit upon the throne of the G-d of Israel in the heavenly Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). In doing so, HaSatan wanted to establish a government in the heavenlies without the G-d of Israel.



SATAN IS CAST OUT OF HEAVEN

When HaSatan rebelled against the G-d of Israel, he was cast down. The Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus witnessed this event. In Luke 10:18 it is written:

"And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven."

When HaSatan was cast out of heaven, one-third of the angelic hosts rebelled with HaSatan against the G-d of Israel and were cast out of heaven also. In Revelation 12:3-4 it is written:

"And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth…"



THE TOWER OF BABEL:
WORLD GOVERNMENT ON THE EARTH

When the G-d of Israel created Adam in the Garden of Eden (Gan Eden), this ancient battle between the G-d of Israel and HaSatan began to be played out on the earth through mankind. When HaSatan tempted Eve, he told her the ancient lie that he believed when he tried to overthrow the throne of the G-d of Israel in the heavenly Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) by telling her that she could be like gods. In Genesis (Bereishit) 3:4-5 it is written:

"And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil."

In the process of time, HaSatan inspired the people on the earth to try to establish the first world government without the G-d of Israel and exalt themselves and their name above the G-d of Israel and reject Him as being King over all the earth. In Genesis (Bereishit) 11:1, 4 it is written:

"And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech … And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth."

When the people of the earth through the inspiration of the kingdom of darkness (HaSatan) rebelled against the G-d of Israel and tried to build a city and a tower that would reach unto heaven and exalt their name above the G-d of Israel, the G-d of Israel judged their evil plan and it was called the tower of Babel. In Genesis (Bereishit) 11:8-9 it is written:

"So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the Lord did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the Lord scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth."



THE RESURRECTION OF THE TOWER OF BABEL

The tower of Babel became a blueprint of HaSatan’s rebellion against the G-d of Israel through the people living on the earth. This has continued throughout the ages and will be brought to its final conclusion in the ends of days when the nations of the world try to resurrect the tower of Babel and establish a world government without the G-d of Israel. The goal of the framers of world government is to make the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) the capital of this godless "New World Order."

This end-time plan of the nations to resurrect the tower of Babel and to create a world government without the rule of the G-d of Israel was given for us to understand as a type and shadow by the G-d of Israel through the world empires of Egypt (Mitzrayim), Babylon, Greece and Rome. The preview of these world kingdoms as a type and shadow of world government at the end of the age (Olam Hazeh) was given to Daniel the prophet. With the conclusion of the last world kingdom seen by Daniel the prophet (which is world government or the "New World Order" and a resurrection of the tower of Babel of old), the G-d of Israel will crush this end-time world government at the same time when they try to make Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) an international city. After this, the G-d of Israel through the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus will set up His world government which will be a Torah based government during the Messiah age (Athid Lavo). In Daniel 7:1-3, 7, 9-10, 13-14 it is written:

"In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters. Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. And four great beasts [future world kingdoms] came up from the sea, diverse one from another … After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast [the last world kingdom which is world government or the "New World Order"] dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly … and it had ten horns … I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened … I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed."

Daniel’s vision will be fulfilled in the end of days when the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus will return to the earth as the Kingly Messiah known as Messiah ben David, defend Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) and crush the resurrected tower of Babel known as world government or the "New World Order." This will happen during the days when the nations of the world seek to divide the land of Israel and make Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) an international city and the capital of their world government.

The ancient battle between the kingdom of darkness (HaSatan) and the kingdom of light (the kingdom of the G-d of Israel) which originated before the creation of Adam in the Garden of Eden (Gan Eden) when HaSatan tried to overtake the throne of the G-d of Israel in the heavenly Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) will be played out on the earth in the end of days over the land that the G-d of Israel promised Abraham (Avraham) and His descendents forever through Isaac (Yitzchak) and Jacob (Ya’acov) and over the sovereignty of the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). The G-d of Israel described this battle through the prophet Isaiah (Yeshayahu) as the "controversy of Zion."

The "controversy of Zion" (Isaiah [Yeshayahu] 34:8 will conclude with the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus fighting against the nations (Zechariah [Zecharyah] 14:2-3), defending the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim), delivering/saving the nation of Israel from her enemies, ending the exile and bringing about the reunification of the two houses of Israel (Ezekiel [Yechezekel] 37:15-28 and establishing the Messianic Age (Athid Lavo).



THE CONTROVERSY OF ZION

In the end of days, the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) will become a stumbling block and a cup of trembling for all the nations who will be gathered against her because of the controversy of Zion. In Zechariah (Zecharyah) 12:1-3 it is written:

"The burden of the word of the Lord for Israel saith the Lord, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it."

In Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 34:1-3, 8 it is written:

"Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people: let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and all things that come forth of it. For the indignation of the Lord is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the slaughter. Their slain also shall be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcasses, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood … for it is the day of the Lord’s vengeance, and the year of recompences for the controversy of Zion."



WHAT IS THE CONTROVERSY OF ZION?

How will the nations be gathered against Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) and what is the controversy of Zion? The controversy of Zion is over two primary issues. The first is the controversy of the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) and His descendents forever when He promised them a land. The descendents of Abraham (Avraham) became the house of Jacob. The house of Jacob consists of the house of Judah (Southern Kingdom) and the house of Israel (Northern Kingdom). Secondly, the controversy of Zion is over the future, destiny and sovereignty of the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim).



G-D WILL JUDGE THE NATIONS
FOR DIVIDING HIS LAND

The G-d of Israel promised that He will judge all the nations for dividing His land. In Joel (Yoel) 3:1-2 it is written:

"For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land."



UN RESOLUTIONS: LAND FOR PEACE

The plan of the nations of the world to divide the land that the G-d of Israel promised to Abraham (Avraham) and His descendents forever through Isaac (Yitzchak) and Jacob (Ya’acov) is being expressed by the nations of the world through the United Nations based upon UN Resolutions 181, 242 and 338. UN Resolution 181 was passed by the United Nations in 1947. The idea of this plan was to establish a Jewish state, a Palestinian state and make Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) an international city. This plan by the nations is the foundation for the controversy of Zion. This plan does not recognize the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) and does not recognize the sovereignty of the G-d of Israel over the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim).

UN Resolution 242 was passed following Israel’s 1967 war with her Arab neighbors when the entire city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) came into the hands of the Jewish people (house of Judah). UN Resolution 338 was passed following Israel’s 1973 Yom Kippur war with her Arab neighbors. UN Resolutions 242 and 338 is based upon the principle of Israel trading "land for peace."

In trading "land for peace", the nations of the world are rejecting the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) and His descendents forever through Isaac (Yitzchak) and Jacob (Ya’acov). In Leviticus (Vayikra) 25:23 it is written:

"The land shall not be sold forever: for the land is mine; for ye are strangers and sojourners with me."

THE PLO AND THE ARAB NATIONS SEEK
TO DESTROY THE NATION OF ISRAEL

Furthermore, the nations of the world are putting their trust in having a "just, lasting and comprehensive peace in the Middle East" into the hands of Yasser Arafat and the PLO. Yasser Arafat is a murderer and a terrorist and the PLO was founded to destroy the nation of Israel and drive them into the sea. It is completely illogical for the nations of the world to believe that there can be a "just, comprehensive and lasting peace in the Middle East" by putting their trust for peace into the hands of a murderer and a terrorist (Yasser Arafat) and an organization (PLO) which was founded with the initial goal of destroying the nation of Israel and driving them into the sea. The plans of the PLO in confederacy with her Arab nations to destroy the nation of Israel and drive them into the sea is prophesied in Psalm (Tehillim) 83:1-8 as it is written:

"Keep not thou silence, O God: hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God. For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate thee have lifted up the head. They have taken crafty counsel against thy people, and consulted against thy hidden ones. They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance. For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee: The tabernacles of Edom, and the Ishmaelites; of Moab, and the Hagarenes; Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek; the Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre; Assur also is joined with them: they have helped the children of Lot. Selah."



G-D WILL JUDGE THE NATIONS

This injustice by the nations of the world against the Jewish people and the nation of Israel by rejecting the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham and His descendents forever and by rejecting the sovereignty of the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) will bring the wrath of the G-d of Israel upon the nations of the world. The wrath of the G-d of Israel will be fully expressed during the period of time known as the tribulation or Jacob’s (Ya’acov’s) trouble to the house of Israel (Christianity) and as the Chevlai shel Mashiach or the birth pangs of the Messiah to the house of Judah (Judaism). The wicked plan of the nations and the judgment of the G-d of Israel against the nations because of the controversy of Zion is spoken about in Psalm (Tehillim) 2:1-4 as it is written:

"Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision."

Because of the wicked plans of the kings of the earth against the L-rd, against His land, against His people and against His holy city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim), the nations of the world will drink the cup of the wrath of the G-d of Israel. In Jeremiah (Yermiyahu) 25:15-17, 27-28 it is written:

"For thus saith the Lord God of Israel unto me; Take the wine cup of this fury at my hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it. And they shall drink, and be moved, and be mad, because of the sword that I will send among them. Then took I the cup at the Lord’s hand, and made all the nations to drink, unto whom the Lord had sent me …Therefore thou shalt say unto them, thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Drink ye, and be drunken, and spew, and fall, and rise no more, because of the sword which I will send among you. And it shall be, if they refuse to take the cup at thine hand to drink, then shalt thou say unto them, Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Ye shall certainly drink."

The G-d of Israel will judge the nations who come against the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) with the plague of nuclear warfare. In Zechariah (Zecharyah) 14:12 it is written:

"And this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth."



THE SCORNFUL MEN WHO RULE JERUSALEM

Not only will the nations of the world be severely chastised because of the controversy of Zion but the nation of Israel will also be severely chastised by the G-d of Israel for agreeing to the plan of the nations of the world to divide the land of Israel and make Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) an international city. By agreeing to these plans, the nation of Israel will experience the most difficult time in her existence as a nation. This period of time is known by the house of Israel (Christianity) as the tribulation or Jacob’s (Ya’acov’s) trouble and to the house of Judah (Judaism) as the Chevlai shel Mashiach or the birth pangs of the Messiah.

The G-d of Israel through the prophet Isaiah (Yeshayahu) warns of the scornful attitude of the modern day leaders of the nation of Israel who have no regard for the land that the G-d of Israel promised to Abraham (Avraham) and his descendents forever through Isaac (Yitzchak) and Jacob (Ya’acov) and the judgment which will come upon them and the nation of Israel as a result of their scornful attitude. In Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 28:14-18 it is written:

"Wherefore hear the word of the Lord, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem. Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves: Therefore, thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation; he that believeth shall not make haste. Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place. And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it."



THE NATION OF ISRAEL WILL SUFFER
GREAT TRIBULATION

Because of the rejection of the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) and the embracing of the "covenant with death" as advocated by the nations of the world, the scornful leaders and the entire nation of Israel will experience their most difficult time that they have ever experienced as a nation. However, the wise will understand these things and give instruction and counsel to many. In Daniel 12:1-3 it is written:

"And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars forever and ever."



THE G-D OF ISRAEL WILL PURIFY HIS PEOPLE

During this time, the G-d of Israel will bring His people through the fire and refine them as silver is refined and try them as gold is tried. They will call upon the name of the L-rd and the L-rd will deliver His people through the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus. In Zechariah (Zecharyah) 13:9 it is written:

"And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God."



THE JEWISH MESSIAH WILL SAVE
THE NATION OF ISRAEL

The Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus will arise as a mighty warrior and save the nation of Israel and deliver them from their enemies when they call upon His name. In Luke 13:35 it is written:

"…verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see me, until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord."

In that day when the nations of the world seek to destroy the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim), the G-d of Israel will pour out the spirit of grace and supplication upon the house of David and the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). When the nation of Israel calls upon the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus, He will save them and deliver them from their enemies. In Zechariah (Zecharyah) 12:8-10 it is written:

"In that day shall the Lord defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the Lord before them. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn."



THE JEWISH MESSIAH WILL FIGHT FOR JERUSALEM

When the nations of the world seek to destroy Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) and when the nation of Israel calls upon the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus for their deliverance, the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus will fight against those nations and defend the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) and His descendents forever, the land, the people and the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). Then, He will set His feet down upon the mount of Olives and be King over all the earth. In Zechariah (Zecharyah) 14:2-4, 9 it is written:

"For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle … then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east … And the Lord shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one Lord, and his name one."



THE G-D OF ISRAEL IS KING OF THE UNIVERSE AND HIS THRONE IS IN JERUSALEM

The G-d of Israel is King over all the earth and the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) is the place of His throne. Psalm 47 is a coronation psalm proclaiming that the G-d of Israel is King over all the earth. In Psalm (Tehillim) 47:1-9, it is written:

"O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph. For the Lord most high is terrible; he is a great King over all the earth. He shall subdue the people under us, and the nations under our feet. He shall choose our inheritance for us, the excellency of Jacob [both the house of Israel (Christianity) and the house of Judah (Judaism)] whom he loved. Selah. God is gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet. Sing praises to God, sing praises: sing praises unto our King, sing praises. For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding. God reigneth over the heathen: God sitteth upon the throne of his holiness. The princes of the people are gathered together, even the people of the God of Abraham: for the shields of the earth belong unto God: he is greatly exalted."

The G-d of Israel is our King of glory. In Psalm (Tehillim) 24:1, 8, 10 it is written:

"The earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein … Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle … Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah."

In Psalm (Tehillim) 48:2, it is written:

"Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King."

The throne of the G-d of Israel is in Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). In Jeremiah (Yermiyahu) 3:17 it is written:

"At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord…"

THE G-D OF ISRAEL WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER
THE CITY OF JERUSALEM

Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) is always in the remembrance of the G-d of Israel. In Psalm (Tehillim) 137:5-6 it is written:

"If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning. If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy."



THE MESSIAH REMEMBERS
THE CITY OF JERUSALEM

Traditional Judaism (house of Judah) expects that the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) will fulfill two primary roles. He will be a suffering Messiah (Mashiach) known as Messiah ben Yosef (Joseph) as well as being a Kingly Messiah (Mashiach) known as Messiah ben David. However, traditional Judaism (house of Judah) believes that these two roles will be fulfilled by two different people. The suffering Messiah (Mashiach) was seen as being a humble Messiah (Mashiach) who would ride into Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) on a donkey. On the other hand, the Kingly Messiah (Mashiach) was seen as riding on a white horse.

In the weekly Internet Orthodox Jewish Parasha Ki-Tetze 5757 written by Orthodox Jewish Rabbi Mordecai Kornfeld who is associated with Ohr Somayach, he writes about the Messiah (Mashiach) and his role of riding on a donkey and on a (white) horse. In the article, he explains that horses represent war and conquest. Furthermore, he states in this parasha that the prophet (Zecharyah 9:9) describes the Messiah as "a poor man, riding upon a donkey." He then explains that the Gemara (Sanhedrin 98a) describes how King Shevor of Persia scoffed:

"Why doesn’t your Messiah come riding on a horse? If he lacks one, I’ll be glad to provide him with one of my best!"

The article continues and the question is asked:

"Why, indeed, should the Messiah come on a donkey? Isn’t a horse a more appropriate sign of military victory?"

Rabbi Kornfeld’s article concludes with the response that the answer may be learned from the words of the Gemara earlier on that same page (ibid.). A poor man on a donkey is a description of how the Messiah will appear if the Jews are not found deserving of a spectacular salvation. Whether we deserve it or not, we will eventually be redeemed; however, if we are not deserving the Messiah will only arrive riding on a donkey. A horse is a sign of proud conquest; this Messiah will provide but a humble Exodus. As the Gemara says in Shabbat 152a:

"One who rides a horse is a king; one who rides a donkey is but a freeman."



THE JEWISH MESSIAH RODE ON A DONKEY

The house of Israel (Christianity) understands that the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus will fulfill both the role of the suffering Messiah (Mashiach) known by the house of Judah (Judaism) as Messiah ben Yosef (Joseph) as well as the role of the Kingly Messiah (Mashiach) known as Messiah ben David. The suffering Messiah rode humbly into Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) at His first coming on a donkey and proceeded to weep over the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) because of her future destruction which happened in 70 CE. At His second coming, He will ride in conquest and victory on a white horse. In Matthew (Mattityahu) 21:1-9 it is written:

"And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples, Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an donkey tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me. And if any man say aught unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy king cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an donkey, and a colt the foal of an donkey. And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, And brought the donkey, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon. And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strewed them in the way. And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest."

After the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus rode into the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) humbly on a donkey as the suffering Messiah (Mashiach) known as Messiah ben Yosef (Joseph), He wept over the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) realizing her future destruction to come by the Romans in 70 CE. In Luke 19:41-44 it is written:

"And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! But now they are hid from thine eyes. For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, and shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation."



THE JEWISH MESSIAH WILL RIDE
ON A WHITE HORSE

When the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus returns to the earth at His second coming as the Kingly Messiah (Mashiach) known as Messiah ben David, He will ride on a white horse as a mighty warrior in victory over His enemies. In Revelation 19:11-16 it is written:

"And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King of kings, and Lord of lords."

When the nations of the world gather against Jerusalem (Yerushalayim), the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus will fight against those nations as a mighty man of war. Following His victory over the nations in battle, He will set His feet down on the mount of Olives and be King over all the earth. In Zechariah (Zecharyah) 14:2-4, 9 it is written:

"For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle … Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives … And the Lord shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one Lord, and his name one."

Following this event, the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus will set up His Messianic Kingdom and rule and reign on the earth from Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) teaching the Torah to all nations. In Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 2:2-3 it is written:

"And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the G-d of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law [TORAH], and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem."

The G-d of Israel desires to someday have a Torah based world government with the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus ruling, reigning and teaching the nations of the world the Torah of the G-d of Israel from Jerusalem (Yerushalayim). When this happens, peace (shalom) will come upon the entire earth. May the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus come to the earth as the Kingly Messiah known as Messiah ben David and bring redemption, restoration, reconciliation and unity to both houses of Israel and usher in the Messianic Age speedily in our days. Amen!



NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM !!!

THE JUDGMENT OF THE NATIONS


By Israel embracing the plan of the nations of the world (UN Resolutions 242 and 338) for her to have "peace" with her Arab neighbors rather than believing the ETERNAL covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) whereby his descendents would inherit the land of Canaan (Genesis [Bereishit] 17:7-8, the nation of Israel will experience a time of trouble such that she has never experienced in her entire history as a nation and as a people (Jeremiah [Yermiyahu] 30:7, Daniel 12:1). However, she will be redeemed/saved/delivered through it. This time of trouble is known as the tribulation to the house of Israel (Christianity). It is known as the birth pangs of the Messiah [Chevlai shel Mashiach] to the house of Judah (Judaism).

During this time, the G-d of Israel will judge ALL the nations on the earth. Some nations will NOT make it through the entire tribulation or birth pangs of the Messiah (Chevlai shel Mashiach). In Jeremiah (Yermiyahu) 30:10-11 it is written:

"Therefore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith the Lord; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid. For I am with thee, saith the Lord, to save thee: though I make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished."

The G-d of Israel will judge the nations based on three primary things:

The dividing of Israel’s Promised Land.

The dividing of the city of Jerusalem.

The historical treatment of the nations of the world toward the house of Judah (Jewish people) when they were in exile in the nations.



THE JUDGMENT OF THE NATIONS
OVER THE CONTROVERSY OF ZION

The G-d of Israel will judge the nations over the controversy of Zion. What is the controversy of Zion? The controversy of Zion is the dispute and rejection among the nations of the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) giving him and his seed the land of Canaan as an everlasting possession (Genesis [Bereishit] 17:7-8 and the plan of the nations to make Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) an international city. By rejecting the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham), the nations of the world will be OPPOSED to the restoration and reunification of BOTH houses of Israel (house of Judah [Judaism] and house of Israel/Christianity) to the land of Israel (Ezekiel (Yechezekel) 37:15-28. Regarding the controversy of Zion and the judgment of the nations, in Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 34:1-2, 4, 8 it is written:

"Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people: let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and all things that come forth of it. For the indignation of the Lord is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the slaughter … And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: [nuclear war] and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree … for it is the day of the Lord’s vengeance, and the year of recompences for the controversy of Zion."



JUDGMENT FOR DIVIDING THE PROMISED LAND

The G-d of Israel will judge the nations of the world for their plan to divide/part the land that the G-d of Israel promised the seed of Abraham (Avraham). In Joel (Yoel) 3:1-2 it is written:

"For, behold, in those days, and in that time [a Jewish idiom for the advent of the Messianic Age], when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem, I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land."



JUDGMENT FOR DIVIDING THE CITY OF JERUSALEM

The G-d of Israel will judge the nations of the world for dividing the city of Jerusalem (making it an international city). In Zechariah (Zecharyah) 14:2-3 it is written:

"For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle."



THE JUDGMENT OF NUCLEAR WAR

The judgment of the nations that have fought against Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) will be nuclear war. ONLY the nations who fight against Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) and SURVIVE will celebrate Sukkot (the Feast of Tabernacles) during the Messianic Age (Athid Lavo). In Zechariah (Zecharyah) 14:12, 16 it is written:

"And this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth [nuclear war] … And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles."



THE JUDGMENT FOR THE TREATMENT
OF THE JEWISH PEOPLE

In Genesis (Bereishit) 12:1-3, the G-d of Israel made a promise to Abraham (Avraham) and to his seed as it is written:

"Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country … And I will make of thee a great nation … And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee, and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed."

The Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus calls those nations of the world who bless the Jewish people "sheep nations" and those nations of the world who curse the Jewish people "goat nations." The "sheep nations" will enter into the Messianic Age (Athid Lavo). The "goat nations" will not enter into the Messianic Age (Athid Lavo). In Matthew (Mattityahu) 25:31-46 it is written:

"When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed [Genesis 12:3] of my Father, inherit the kingdom [Messianic Age/Athid Lavo] prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was hungry, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous [sheep nations] answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungry, and fed thee? Or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren [the JEWISH BRETHREN of the JEWISH MESSIAH], ye have done it unto me. Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand [goat nations], Depart from me [cannot enter the Messianic Age/Athid Lavo] ye cursed [Genesis 12:3], into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: For I was hungry, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungry, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these [the JEWISH BRETHREN of the JEWISH MESSIAH], ye did it not to me. And these [goat nations] shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous [sheep nations] into life eternal." [Zoe/the highest form of life which in the case of the nations is the Messianic Age/Athid Lavo.]

THE JUDGMENT OF THE UNITED STATES

While the G-d of Israel will judge ALL NATIONS during the tribulation or the birth pangs of the Messiah (Chevlai shel Mashiach), I would like to focus the rest of this chapter upon the judgment of one particular country in the world. This country is the United States of America.

I was born in the United States. I love my country. I praise the G-d of Israel that He allowed me to be born in a country that has probably been blessed greater by Him than any other country since the creation of the world up until the beginning of the tribulation period. Furthermore, I have been blessed to live not only in probably the most blessed country but also in the most blessed generation of any generation since the birth of the United States. Therefore, I praise the G-d of Israel for His historical blessings upon the United States and I praise and thank the G-d of Israel that I have been blessed to live in the United States in the most blessed generation of its history.

However, in spite of being blessed so greatly by the G-d of Israel, no generation since the founding of the USA has sinned greater than the current generation. The USA has forgotten her Judeo/Christian heritage and has forgotten the L-rd G-d of Israel in the days of her richest blessings. The USA has fornicated with the god of materialism. Rather than using the blessings of the G-d of Israel to establish the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham), she has used the blessings of the G-d of Israel to satisfy her own lusts. Both the members from the house of Israel (Christianity) and the members from the house of Judah (Judaism) have been guilty of these sins. In the Torah, the G-d of Israel warned His people against behaving in such a manner in the time of great blessing. In Deuteronomy (Devarim) 8:11-14, 17-18 it is written:

"Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day: Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied; Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the Lord thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage [European religious persecution for the house of Israel/Christianity and pogroms and the holocaust in Europe and Russia for the house of Judah/Judaism] … And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth. But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day."



THE USA WILL BE JUDGED
FOR DIVIDING THE LAND OF ISRAEL

The USA will be judged by the G-d of Israel for being the LEADER among the nations of the world in dividing the land of Israel. All of the peace agreements that Israel has made with her Arab neighbors have been based upon UN Resolutions 242 and 338. The USA has been the main negotiator with Israel and her Arab neighbors and has played a central role in ensuring that all peace agreements between Israel and her Arab neighbors would be based upon UN Resolutions 242 and 338. Because the USA had led the rebellion of the nations against Israel to part the land of Israel, she will be judged by the G-d of Israel for dividing/parting the land of Israel (Joel [Yoel] 3:2).



THE USA WILL BE JUDGED
FOR DIVIDING THE CITY OF JERUSALEM

The United States has not recognized Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) as being the capital of Israel since it came into the possession of the nation of Israel in 1967 following the June war between Israel and her Arab neighbors. The reason is because the USA desires for Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) to be an international city after the full implementation of UN Resolutions 242 and 338.

The United States maintains diplomatic relations with more than 160 countries, and in each of those countries our state department maintains a US embassy in the capital city. Each of those countries, that is, except Israel. Under pressure from the Arab world, the US has maintained its embassy in Tel Aviv since 1948. 1

To rectify this injustice, the US Congress finally enacted The Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995, which calls for the embassy to be moved to Jerusalem by May 31, 1999. There was broad bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate, and the measure was passed by over 90 percent majorities. Campaigning for president in 1992, Bill Clinton said:

"I do recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, and Jerusalem ought to remain an undivided city."

He even put it in writing. In a June 1992 letter to the Rabbinical Council of America he wrote:

"I recognize Jerusalem as an undivided city and the eternal capital of Israel."

But by 1995, the president had changed his tune. His administration opposed the Jerusalem Embassy Act, and he refused to sign it when it was passed. Clinton could not veto the bill, with a 90 percent majority supporting its passage. However, nothing has been done about moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem. A waiver was written into the bill allowing the president to put the new embassy construction on hold for six-month intervals if he deems vital national security interests to be at risk and so reports to Congress. Since then, the Clinton administration immediately moved to take advantage of the waiver, claiming national security interests would be jeopardized by moving the embassy, because it might disrupt the Middle East peace process. 2

Just two months after the Congressional vote to finally recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, the Fiftieth General Assembly of the United Nations passed a resolution chastising Israel for her claims on all of Jerusalem. The resolution passed by a vote of 133 to one — Israel was the only nation to vote against it. The United States, once Israel’s staunch ally, abstained from voting. 3

Because the USA does not recognize Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) and seeks to divide Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) and make it an international city, the USA will suffer the judgment of nuclear war and will NOT make it as a nation through the tribulation period (Zechariah [Zecharyah] 14:12, 16).



THE USA EMBRACES ARAFAT THE MURDERER AND TERRORIST AS A MAN OF PEACE

Rather than the USA embracing the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) whereby He gave the seed of Abraham (Avraham) the land of Canaan as an EVERLASTING possession (Genesis [Bereishit] 17:7-8, the USA is embracing Yasser Arafat as a man of peace and a peace partner to the nation of Israel even though the USA once did not allow Yasser Arafat into the USA because he is a terrorist. The history of this event is as follows.

The Forty-third General Assembly of the United Nations was scheduled to take up the Palestinian issue at a session in early December 1988. Yasser Arafat requested a visa so he could come to New York and address a special session of the UN. Under the direction of President Reagan, Secretary of State George Shultz denied the visa because antiterrorist legislation in the USA specified that no waiver on visa requirements could be issued to anyone known to be actively engaged in terrorist activity. 4

The UN conference was rescheduled to be in Geneva, Switzerland. On December 14, 1988, Arafat called a press conference to announce that he recognized Israel’s "right to exist," and he accepted the terms of UN Resolutions 242 and 338 and renounced the use of terrorism. From that point forward, the United States openly supported the PLO. 5



THE USA IS MODERN DAY BABYLON

Spiritually (sod/deeper meaning), the USA is the land of Babylon. The word Babylon means "confusion" (Genesis [Bereishit] 11:9). Babylon is a generic term in the Bible that refers to the ways of the adversary (HaSatan) and his kingdom of darkness. The Bible talks about a financial Babylon, a political Babylon, a religious Babylon and a land of Babylon. Literally (Peshat), the modern land of Babylon is the area of Iran and Iraq. However, today, very few members of the house of Judah (Judaism) and the house of Israel (Christianity) live in Iran and Iraq. Therefore, there must also be a spiritual (sod/deeper meaning) land of Babylon.

Today, the USA is the spiritual land of Babylon. The prophets of Israel had much to say about the judgment of the land of Babylon in the end of days. The judgment of the land of Babylon in the end of days is prophesied in Isaiah (Yeshayahu) chapter 13, 21:1-10 and chapter 47, Jeremiah (Yermiyahu) chapters 50 and 51. In the Brit Hadashah (New Testament), the judgment of the land of Babylon in the end of days is spoken about in Revelation 18.

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF BABYLON

Babylon is an end-time nation who is judged by the G-d of Israel "in those days and in that time" and in the "day of trouble." This is a reference to the time of Jacob’s trouble or the birth pangs of the Messiah (Chevlai shel Mashaich) (Isaiah 13:8, 13, 21:3, Jeremiah 50:4, 20, 51:2, 43).

Babylon is a rich and economically prosperous country (Jeremiah 50:37, 51:13, Revelation 18:3, 19).

Babylon is a land of "mixed/mingled people" (Jeremiah 50:37).

Babylon is a world military power (Jeremiah 51:53).

Babylon is a country that has defeated mighty kingdoms through war (Jeremiah 50:23, 51:20-21).

Babylon is a land that sits among many waters (Jeremiah 51:13).

Babylon is a country that has a heritage in the G-d of Israel but has sinned and has turned from the G-d of Israel (Jeremiah 50:11, 14, 24, 29, 38, 51:7).

The G-d of Israel would have healed the land of Babylon if she would have repented but she will not repent (II Chronicles 7:14, Jeremiah 51:8-9).

The good news of Messiah is going forth from the land of Babylon but it will be "cut off" in "the time of harvest" which is the end of the age (Jeremiah 50:16, Matthew 13:39).

Babylon is a country that does not believe that it will experience the wrath and judgment of the G-d of Israel (be a widow) (Isaiah 47:5, 7-10, Revelation 18:7-8.

The attacking power against Babylon is from the north (Jeremiah 50:3, 9, 26, 41, 51:48.

Babylon is destroyed by extremely accurate arrows (missiles) and the attack is devastating (Jeremiah 50:9, 14, 29, 42, 51:3, 11).

A fire is kindled in the cities of Babylon from the accurate arrows (missiles) (Jeremiah 50:32, Revelation 18:8.

Babylon will be destroyed in the way that Sodom and Gomorrah was destroyed (Isaiah 13:19, Jeremiah 50:40).

When Babylon is destroyed, it will never be inhabited again (Isaiah 13:19-20, Jeremiah 50:3, 13, 26, 39-40, 51:2-3, 26, 29, 37, 43, 63-64).

The nations of the world tremble and shake in fear at the defeat of Babylon (Jeremiah 50:46, Revelation 18:9-10).

The house of Judah (Judaism) and the house of Israel (Christianity) who live in Babylon are called to flee from Babylon and go to the land of Israel (Isaiah 13:14, Jeremiah 50:4-5, 16-19, 28, 33, 51:9, 45, Revelation 18:4).

The house of Judah (Judaism) and the house of Israel (Christianity) who live in Babylon and who have escaped the sword (judgment upon the land of Babylon) are called by the G-d of Israel to let Jerusalem come to their mind (Jeremiah 50:4, 51:50).

When Babylon is destroyed, the sins of the house of Judah (Judaism) and the house of Israel (Christianity) will be pardoned (the exile will be over and the house of Judah and the house of Israel will be restored) (Jeremiah 50:20).

20) When the house of Judah (Judaism) and the house of Israel (Christianity) flees the land of Babylon and returns to the land of Israel, they will enter into an ETERNAL covenant that will not be forgotten (the Messianic Age/Athid Lavo) (Jeremiah 50:4-5 = Ezekiel 37:26-27).

From the 20 characteristics of the land of Babylon given above, I believe that the evidence is overwhelmingly conclusive that the nation being portrayed by these characteristics is the United States of America. Because of the just described characteristics of the USA and because the USA has been the most influential nation of the world in encouraging Israel to divide/part her land by trading "land for peace" and because the USA desires to make Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) an international city, the USA will be totally destroyed during the tribulation period or the birth pangs of the Messiah (Chevlai shel Mashiach).



JUDAH AND EPHRAIM FLEE BABYLON
AND RETURN TO THE LAND OF ISRAEL

During the tribulation period/Jacob’s trouble, the house of Judah (Judaism) and the house of Israel (Christianity) will be fleeing from the land of Babylon and returning to the land of Israel. When both houses of Israel return to the land of their forefathers, the centuries of exile will be over. The house of Judah (Judaism) and the house of Israel (Christianity) will be one nation when they return to the land of Israel. They will be redeemed, restored, reconciled and unified in the land of Israel (Ezekiel [Yechezekel] 37:15-28. After this event happens, the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus will set His feet on the mount of Olives and be King over all the earth (Zechariah [Zecharyah] 14:4, 9) and usher in the Messianic Age (Athid Lavo) teaching the Torah to the nations from the city of Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) (Isaiah [Yeshayahu] 2:2-3).

May the G-d of Israel bring redemption, restoration, reconciliation and unity to both houses of Israel speedily in our days. Amen!

EPHRAIM AND JUDAH
BECOME ONE HOUSE



THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO TORAH


How will the two houses of Israel (house of Israel/Christianity and house of Judah/Judaism) become one house? When will the prophecy of Ezekiel (Yechezekel) 37:15-28 be fulfilled and Ephraim (house of Israel) and Judah (house of Judah) become one in the hand of the G-d of Israel? In this chapter, we will discuss how and when the two houses of Israel will be redeemed and restored to the G-d of Israel and reconciled to each other.

In order to understand how and when the two houses of Israel will be reunited, you need to understand how the restoration and unification of the two houses of Israel is related and associated with the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham). This covenant is also paramount in understanding the prophetic significance of the nation of Israel making peace with her Arab neighbors in the end of days. By being willing to trade "land for peace" based upon UN Resolutions 242 and 338, the leadership of the nation of Israel and all Jews (house of Judah) who approve of trading "land for peace" are rejecting the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham).

The covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) is an everlasting covenant (Genesis [Bereishit] 17:7. In Genesis (Bereishit) 15:18-21, the G-d of Israel promised the descendents of Abraham (Avraham) a land forever. In Leviticus (Vayikra) 25:23, the G-d of Israel commanded that the land is not to be sold forever.

By rejecting the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) and by being willing to trade part of the eternal Promised Land for "peace," the nation of Israel will experience the greatest time of trouble that she has ever experienced since she has been a nation (Daniel 12:1-2). This period of time is also known as Jacob’s trouble (Jeremiah [Yermiyahu] 30:7 or the birth pangs of the Messiah (Chevlai shel Mashiach). However, during the time of Jacob’s trouble, the two houses of Israel (Ephraim and Judah) will be reunited in the land of Israel (Jeremiah [Yermiyahu] 30:1-7) through a great outpouring of the Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh) upon the remnant in the house of Israel (Christianity) and the house of Judah (Judaism) who believe the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham).

The restoration of both houses of Israel and a return to the land of Israel will be done by the G-d of Israel with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm in the sight of all the nations. The G-d of Israel will gather His people as a shepherd who gathers His lost sheep and bring them to the land of Israel (Ezekiel [Yechezekel] 34:11-13) from all the nations of the earth where they have been scattered (Deuteronomy [Devarim] 30:1-5). The restoration of both houses of Israel and their return upon the "mountains of Israel" (West Bank) (Ezekiel [Yechezekel] 37:18-22) will be the end of the exile of both houses of Israel into all the nations of the earth. After returning to the land of Israel following this "Messianic redemption" and the ending of the exile of both houses of Israel from all the nations of the earth, the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus will set His feet down upon the mount of Olives (Zechariah [Zecharyah] 14:4) and be King over all the earth (Zechariah [Zecharyah] 14:9) and rule and reign from Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) teaching the Torah to the nations during the Messianic Age (Athid Lavo) (Isaiah [Yeshayahu] 2:2-3) for 1,000 years (Revelation 20:4,6).



THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO TORAH

In this chapter, we will learn how the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) is related and associated to the nation of Israel making peace with her Arab neighbors in the end of days and how this is related and associated with the restoration and unification of the two houses of Israel. We will do this by seeing how the G-d of Israel has historically judged His people based upon whether or not they believed the covenant that He made with Abraham (Avraham). In doing so, we will see how the TeNaKh (Old Testament) is related and connected to the Brit Hadashah (New Testament) and reveals the role of the Jewish Messiah Yeshua/Jesus as the suffering Messiah (Messiah ben Yosef) and the Kingly Messiah (Messiah ben David) who will redeem and restore the two houses of Israel through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh) upon both houses of Israel in the end of days prior to the Messianic Age (Athid Lavo).

This is the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) and this is the Gospel according to Torah! (Galatians 3:8.

THE GRAFTING OF THE SEED OF ABRAHAM

In Genesis (Bereishit) 12:1-9, the G-d of Israel called Abraham (Avraham) out of Ur of the Chaldeeans and promised him that if he would obey the G-d of Israel that He would promise the seed of Abraham (Avraham) a land. Furthermore, the G-d of Israel declared to Abraham (Avraham) that He would bless those who would bless the seed of Abraham (Avraham) and curse those that would curse the seed of Abraham (Avraham). In Genesis (Bereishit) 12:3 it is written:

"And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed."

However, in Hebrew, this verse is more profound in understanding how ALL FAMILIES of the earth would be "blessed" through the seed of Abraham (Avraham). In Hebrew, the phrase in Genesis (Bereishit) 12:3 that reads in English as "And in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed" is written:

"Ve nivrecu bekah kol mishpachot ha-adamah."

The Hebrew word "nivrecu" is translated in most English texts as "be blessed." However, the usual Hebrew word for "be blessed" is not nivrecu. It is yivrecu. The word "nivrecu" is the "niphal" conjugation of the Hebrew word, barak. The Hebrew word barak has a deeper meaning than just "blessed." The simplest Hebrew meaning of the word barak is blessing which invokes the G-d of Israel’s presence, favor or choice in a given situation. Jewish prayers (house of Judah) begin with the phrase, "Baruk atah Adonai…" which in English is "Blessed are you, Lord…" and reflects the idea that "blessed" is related to being "chosen" or "favored" by the G-d of Israel.

In five places in the Talmud and other Rabbinic literature, nivrecu is translated as "grafted or intermingled." In the Orthodox Jewish ArtScroll Tenakh Series, Volume 1, page 432, it is written:

There is … an opinion shared by Rashbam [to Genesis 28:14], Chizkuni, Da’as Zekeinum, and quoted by Tur that the verb (ve nivrecu) in Genesis 12:3 is related to the root barak as in the Mishnaic term mavreek meaning to "intermingle or graft." [cf Kelaim 7:1, Sotah 43a.] As Heidenheim explains it, this interpretation is inspired by the fact that nowhere else besides here do we find barak in the sense of blessing in the niphal conjugation, while in the sense of "grafting" it is common in that form.

Therefore, based upon this insight of the Hebrew language by respected Hebrew scholars within the house of Judah (Judaism), Genesis (Bereishit) 12:3 is better understood to be translated as:

"And in thee shall all families of the earth nivrecu [will be grafted or intermingled]."

The only PHYSICAL way ALL FAMILIES of the earth would be nivrecu (grafted or intermingled) is by the seed of Abraham (Avraham) being assimilated into EVERY FAMILY of the earth.

How does the Bible explain that this happened? Abraham (Avraham) had a son named Isaac (Yitzchak) who had a son named Jacob (Ya’acov) whose named was changed to Israel. Jacob (Ya’acov) had twelve sons who became head of the twelve tribes of Israel. Following the reign of king Solomon (Shlomo), the kingdom of Israel was divided into Northern Kingdom (house of Israel) and Southern Kingdom (house of Judah). The judgment of the Northern Kingdom (house of Israel) as recorded by the prophet Hosea in Hosea chapter 1 was that the Northern Kingdom (house of Israel) would be assimilated into all families of the earth in fulfillment of the G-d of Israel’s promise to Abraham (Avraham) that his seed would be in all families of the earth.

While the seed of Abraham (Avraham) was prophesied by the G-d of Israel to be in all families of the earth, not every person and not every family of the earth will believe the "Gospel according to Torah" that the G-d of Israel preached to Abraham (Avraham) that through His seed all families of the earth would "be blessed" (grafted or intermingled). Spiritually (sod/deeper meaning), those who would believe the promise that the G-d of Israel made to Abraham (Avraham) would become a spiritual member of the family of the G-d of Israel by the salvation offered from the G-d of Israel through the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus. In Galatians 3:8, 16, 29 it is written:

"And the Scripture, [TeNaKh/Old Testament] foreseeing that God would justify [make righteous] the heathen through faith [emunah], preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed [nivrecu / grafted or intermingled] … Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ [Mashiach] … And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise."

Spiritually (sod/deeper meaning), any person on the earth who accepts that Yeshua/Jesus is the Jewish Messiah and repents (teshuvah) of their sins becomes a member of the commonwealth of Israel and grafted into the family of the G-d of Israel. In Ephesians 2:11-13 it is written:

"Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh … That at that time ye were without Christ [Mashiach], being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel … but now in Christ Jesus [Yeshua HaMashiach] ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ [Mashiach]."

In Romans 11:13, 17 it is written:

"For I speak to you Gentiles … and thou, being a wild olive tree, wast GRAFTED in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree."

When the physical seed of Abraham (Avraham) becomes grafted or intermingled in every family of the earth, the Bible calls this event the "fullness of the Gentiles." In Hebrew, this would be the "melo ha goyim." The Apostle Paul (Rav Sha’ul) talks about the "fullness of the Gentiles/melo ha goyim" being a mystery (sod/deeper meaning) that the family of the G-d of Israel should understand. In Romans 11:25 it is written:

"For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery [sod/deeper meaning], lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel [both the house of Israel/Christianity and the house of Judah/Judaism], until the fullness of the Gentiles [melo ha goyim] be come in."

Therefore, we can see how the grafted Northern Kingdom (house of Israel) would be recognized today as being "Gentiles" and Christians (followers of the Jewish Messiah [Mashiach] Yeshua/Jesus) by the house of Judah (Judaism). Upon the fullness of the Gentiles (melo ha goyim) (Romans 11:25), the G-d of Israel will gather the grafted and assimilated house of Israel (Christianity) along with the house of Judah (Judaism) in fulfillment of the two houses being reunited in Ezekiel (Yechezekel) 37:15-28 and allow them to return to the land of Israel (Ezekiel [Yechezekel] 37:21-22) in the end of days during Jacob’s trouble (Jeremiah [Yermiyahu] 30:1-7) or the birth pangs of the Messiah (Chevlai shel Mashiach).

In the rest of this chapter, we will learn how the Bible details how the seed of Abraham (Avraham) would be grafted into all families of the earth (Genesis [Bereishit] 12:3) and how after being assimilated into all the nations of the earth for not believing the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) that the two houses of Israel would be reunited in the end of days and return to the land of Israel.



ABRAHAM IS THE FATHER OF OUR FAITH

The complete redemptive plan of the G-d of Israel is fulfilled according to the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham). For this reason, Abraham (Avraham) is called the father of our faith (emunah) (Romans 4:16). Furthermore, the G-d of Israel tells His people that they are to look unto (understand the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with) Abraham (Avraham) our father and Sarah who bore us. In Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 51:1-4 it is written:

"Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the Lord: look unto the rock whence ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit where ye are digged. Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you: for I called him alone, and blessed him, and increased him. For the Lord shall comfort Zion ... Hearken unto me, my people; and give ear unto me, O my nation: for a law [TORAH] shall proceed from me, and I will make my judgment to rest for a light of the people."

In Genesis (Bereishit) 17:1-8, the G-d of Israel reaffirmed His covenant that He made with Abraham (Avraham) as it is written:

"And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him … I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly … As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations … And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God."



SEVEN PROMISES OF THE COVENANT THAT
G-D MADE WITH ABRAHAM

Exceedingly fruitful (Genesis 17:6).
Nations shall come out of Abraham (Genesis 17:6).
Kings shall come out of Abraham (Genesis 17:6).
The covenant is with the seed of Abraham (Genesis 17:7).
G-d’s covenant with Abraham is everlasting (Genesis 17:7).
The seed of Abraham will possess the land of Canaan (Genesis 17:8.
The possession of the land of Canaan is an everlasting possession (Genesis 17:8.
These seven promises that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) and his seed after him have never been fulfilled in their fullness. Even so, the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) will be fulfilled both physically and spiritually. Since the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) is everlasting and eternal, these promises are still valid today. The fullness of the fulfillment of these promises will be during the Messianic Age (Athid Lavo) when the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus will teach the Torah to all nations from Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) (Isaiah [Yeshayahu] 2:2-3).

FROM ABRAHAM TO ISAAC TO JACOB

From Abraham (Avraham), the covenant was passed to Isaac (Yitzchak). In Genesis (Bereishit) 26:1-4 it is written:

"And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar. And the Lord appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of: Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father; And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth [nivrecu] be blessed [grafted or intermingled]."

From Abraham (Avraham), the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with him was passed to Isaac (Yitzchak) and then to Jacob (Ya’acov). In Genesis (Bereishit) 28:10, 13-14 it is written:

"And Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran … And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed [nivrecu / grafted or intermingled]."

Later, the G-d of Israel reiterated His promise to Jacob (Ya’acov) and changed his name to Israel. In Genesis (Bereishit) 35:9-12 it is written:

"And God appeared unto Jacob again, when he came out of Padan-aram, and blessed him. And God said unto him, thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: and he called his name Israel. And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins."



FROM ABRAHAM TO ISAAC TO JACOB
TO THE CHILDREN OF JACOB

Jacob (Ya’acov) had twelve sons. Each son became the head of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. In Genesis (Bereishit) 49:1-28, Jacob blesses his twelve sons. In Genesis (Bereishit) 49:28 it is written:

"All these are the twelve tribes of Israel: and this is it that their father spake unto them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them."



THE FULL BLESSING OF ABRAHAM WAS
GIVEN TO EPHRAIM AND MANASSEH

One of the twelve sons of Jacob (Ya’acov) was Joseph (Yosef). The blessing of Abraham (Avraham), Isaac (Yitzchak) and Jacob (Ya’acov) was bestowed upon the grandsons of Jacob, Ephraim and Manasseh. Jacob (Ya’acov) adopts Ephraim and Manasseh and gives them the blessing of the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham), Isaac (Yitzchak), and Jacob (Ya’acov) and they are given the rights of the first born son and the fruitful fulfillment of the G-d of Israel’s covenant with Abraham (Avraham). In Genesis (Bereishit) 48:3-6 it is written:

"And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me, And said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession. And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine. And thy issue, which thou begettest after them, shall be thine, and shall be called after the name of their brethren in their inheritance."

Reuben and Simeon are the natural first born sons of Jacob. The double portion blessing of the inheritance belongs to the first born son. Not only is Jacob (Ya’acov) adopting Ephraim and Manasseh into his family by giving them his blessing, but they are being given the double portion blessing of the firstborn. Jacob’s blessing upon Ephraim and Manasseh is recorded in Genesis (Bereishit) 48:12-16, 19 as it is written:

"And Joseph brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth. And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near unto him. And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands wittingly; for Manasseh was the firstborn. And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day, The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth … truly his younger brother [Ephraim] shall be greater than he [Manasseh], and his seed [Ephraim] shall become a multitude of nations [melo ha goyim]."



EPHRAIM IS FRUITFUL

The word Ephraim is the Strong’s word 669. The Hebrew word, Ephraim, means "double fruit." Being exceedingly fruitful was a promise that the G-d of Israel made to Abraham (Avraham) concerning his seed (Genesis [Bereishit] 17:6).

In Genesis (Bereishit) 48:19, Jacob (Ya’acov) prophesied that Ephraim would be a "multitude of nations." In Hebrew, a multitude of nations is "melo ha goyim." This phrase can also be translated as "fullness of the Gentiles." The Apostle Paul (Rav Sha’ul) referred to the "fullness of the Gentiles/melo ha goyim" in Romans 11:25. By being a "fullness of the Gentiles/melo ha goyim", Ephraim would be fruitful.

In order for this prophecy to be fulfilled, Ephraim would have to be recognized as being "Gentiles" to the house of Judah (Judaism) in the end of days when the two houses would be reunited (Ezekiel [Yechezekel] 37:15-28.

As mentioned in the first chapter of this book, there are various "Christian" groups who teach that there are two houses of Israel in the context of elitism (they are a special race of people) and replacement theology (Ephraim is the "New Israel") and have replaced the house of Judah (Judaism) in the redemptive plan of the G-d of Israel. Because there are many misplaced teachings which exist concerning Ephraim, let me take this opportunity to identify the unbiblical doctrines regarding Ephraim and the house of Israel. Ephraim is NOT the following:

Ephraim is NOT associated with British Israelism.
Ephraim is NOT associated with white supremacy.
Ephraim is NOT associated with replacement theology.
As has been expressed in explicit detail in this book, Ephraim (the house of Israel/Christianity) has been grafted into the olive tree of the G-d of Israel. The house of Judah (Judaism) is the natural root of this olive tree. Therefore, Ephraim, the (house of Israel/Christianity) has NOT replaced or superceded the house of Judah (Judaism) but has been grafted into the natural root of the house of Judah (Judaism).



EPHRAIM (NORTHERN KINGDOM) IS A
SPIRITUAL PICTURE OF CHRISTIANITY

Ephraim (Northern Kingdom) is a spiritual picture of future Christianity. How is this so?

Ephraim was adopted into Jacob’s family. Believer’s in the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus are adopted into the family of the G-d of Israel (Romans 8:14-17, 22-23, Galatians 4:4-6).

Ephraim is the Strong’s word 669 and means "double fruit." The G-d of Israel promised Abraham that his descendants would be exceedingly fruitful (Genesis [Bereishit] 17:6). This alludes to the fact that Ephraim (the house of Israel/Christianity) would be numerically greater than the house of Judah (Judaism).

Ephraim is the masculine word in Hebrew for the female equivalent Ephratah. Ephratah is another name for Bethlehem and is the place where the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus was born (Micah 5:2, Matthew (Mattityahu) 2:1-6).

Ephraim is a term for the Northern Kingdom of Israel who forsook the Torah of the G-d of Israel by calling the Torah "a strange thing." So has historical Christianity (Hosea [Hoshea] 8:12).

Ephraim, the Northern Kingdom, instituted a substitute place of worship (Dan and Bethel) rather than Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) (I Kings [Melachim] 12:29, Deuteronomy [Devarim] 16:16). When Christianity departed from her Jewish roots, she began to worship in a church rather than a synagogue where the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus worshiped (Luke 4:16).

Ephraim, the Northern Kingdom, instituted substitute holidays (I Kings [Melachim] 12:32-33) rather than observing the dates and times of the Biblical holidays that the G-d of Israel gave to His people in Leviticus (Vayikra) 23. Christianity has adopted the original pagan holidays of Christmas and Easter from Roman Mythraism rather than keeping the Biblical holidays in Leviticus (Vayikra) 23.

Ephraim, the Northern Kingdom, instituted a substitute priesthood rather than have priests from the tribe of Levi (I Kings [Melachim] 12:31). Christianity allows pastors and priests to be ministers of the sheep of the G-d of Israel who are not anointed and called by the G-d of Israel into their office or ministry.

Ephraim, the Northern Kingdom, mixed paganism with the true worship of the G-d of Israel and called it the true worship of the G-d of Israel. The G-d of Israel called this the golden calf system of worship (I Kings [Melachim] 12:28. Historical Christianity has mixed Roman and Babylonian practices and beliefs with the true worship of the G-d of Israel and calls this mixture true worship of the G-d of Israel.

DELIVERANCE FROM EGYPT ON BEHALF
OF G-D’S COVENANT WITH ABRAHAM

At mount Sinai, the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) was made with the twelve tribes of Jacob (Ya’acov), the children of Israel. In Exodus (Shemot) 19:1, 3 it is written:

"In the third month, when the children of Israel were gone forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day, came they into the wilderness of Sinai ... And Moses went up unto God, and the Lord called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel."

The G-d of Israel brought the children of Israel out of Egypt (Mitzrayim) because of the covenant that He made with Abraham (Avraham). In Genesis (Bereishit) 15:13-14 it is written:

"And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance."

The G-d of Israel called Moses (Moshe) because of the covenant that He made with Abraham (Avraham). In Exodus (Shemot) 2:23-25 it is written:

"And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage. And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God had respect unto them."

Moses (Moshe) delivered the children of Israel from Egypt (Mitzrayim) by the mighty hand of the G-d of Israel. After the G-d of Israel delivered the children of Israel from Egypt (Mitzrayim) and the rule of Pharaoh, the G-d of Israel instructed Moses (Moshe) to take the children of Israel to mount Sinai. In Exodus (Shemot) 3:1, 11-12 it is written:

"Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb ...And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt? And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain."

In Exodus (Shemot) 19:1-3, Moses (Moshe) brought the house of Jacob (Ya’acov), the children of Israel, to mount Sinai where the G-d of Israel confirmed the covenant that He made with Abraham (Avraham) and entered into a marriage contract with the seed of Abraham (Avraham).



G-D’S COVENANT WITH ABRAHAM WAS MADE WITH ABRAHAM’S DESCENDANTS AT MOUNT SINAI

Many members within the house of Israel (Christianity) view the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) and the marriage contract that the G-d of Israel made with the seed of Abraham (Avraham) as two independent events and two separate covenants. In reality, what happened at mount Sinai was an extension of the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham). At mount Sinai, the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) was formally made to the seed of Abraham (Avraham) and to his descendents forever just as the G-d of Israel promised Abraham (Avraham) in Genesis (Bereishit) 17:7. In Deuteronomy (Devarim) 29:14-15 it is written:

"Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath; But with him that standeth here with us this day before the Lord our God, and also with him that is not here with us this day."

Every generation who lives after the generation who was at mount Sinai are to see themselves as if they were actually redeemed from Egyptian bondage and passed through the Red Sea to mount Sinai on their way to the Promised Land. In I Corinthians 10:1-4 it is written:

"Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; And did all eat the same spiritual meat; And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ [Mashiach]."

Spiritually (sod/deeper meaning), all those who have accepted the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus from among the nations and who are grafted into the olive tree of the G-d of Israel are heirs of the promise that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham). In Galatians 3:8, 16, 29 it is written:

"And the Scripture, [TeNaKh/Old Testament] foreseeing that God would justify [make righteous] the heathen through faith [emunah], preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, in thee shall all nations be blessed [nivrecu/grafted or intermingled] … Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ [Mashiach] … And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise."



THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL BECOME
A NATION AT MOUNT SINAI

As we just studied, the G-d of Israel called Moses (Moshe) because of the covenant that He made with Abraham (Avraham) (Genesis [Bereishit] 15:1-5, 13-14, 18-21, Exodus [Shemot] 2:23-25, 3:15-17) to deliver the children of Israel from the bondage of the Egyptians. The Torah of the G-d of Israel is a tree of life to the family of the G-d of Israel (Proverbs [Mishlei] 3:17-18. The leaves of the tree of life (the pages of the Torah scroll) is for the healing of the nations (Revelation 22:2). Abraham (Avraham) kept the Torah of the G-d of Israel (Genesis [Bereishit] 26:5). Because the tree of life was in the Garden of Eden (Gan Eden) and because Abraham (Avraham) kept the Torah of the G-d of Israel, the Torah of the G-d of Israel did not first come into existence at mount Sinai. The Torah of the G-d of Israel has always existed and will always exist.

The unique event at mount Sinai was that the G-d of Israel entered into a marriage contract with the seed of Abraham (Avraham). When this was done, the seed of Abraham (Avraham) became a covenant nation of people unto the G-d of Israel. The Torah became the ketubah (marriage contract) or covenant agreement that made the seed of Abraham (Avraham) a nation of people unto the G-d of Israel. Therefore, the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) was extended to the seed of Abraham (Avraham) at mount Sinai and they became a covenant people and a holy nation unto the G-d of Israel. Never before in the history of the world did the G-d of Israel enter into a covenant with a specific nation of people. In Exodus (Shemot) 19:5-6 it is written:

"Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests and a HOLY NATION..."



G-D BETROTHED HIMSELF TO ISRAEL
AT MOUNT SINAI

At mount Sinai, the G-d of Israel betrothed Himself to the children of Israel and entered into a marriage contract with them. In Jeremiah (Yermiyahu) 2:1-3 it is written:

"Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying, go and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the Lord; I remember thee, the kindness of thy youth, the love of thine espousals, when thou wentest after me in the wilderness, in a land that was not sown. Israel was holiness unto the Lord, and the firstfruits of his increase: all that devour him shall offend, evil shall come upon them, says the Lord."

There are two stages to the Biblical wedding. The first stage is betrothal and the second stage is the consummation of the marriage. During betrothal, you are legally married to your bride but you do not physically dwell with her.

At mount Sinai, the G-d of Israel betrothed Himself to the seed of Abraham (Avraham) and entered into a marriage contract with them. This marriage contract included a "mixed multitude" (Exodus [Shemot] 12:38 who came out of Egypt (Mitzrayim) with the seed of Abraham (Avraham). These "mixed multitude" of people were GRAFTED into the natural seed of Abraham (Avraham).

In order for a Biblical marriage to be legal, both the bride and the groom must agree to the terms of the marriage. The terms of the marriage are stated in a marriage document known in Hebrew as a Ketubah. When the G-d of Israel betrothed Himself to Israel at mount Sinai, the Ketubah (marriage contract) was seen as being the Torah. The children of Israel accepted the terms of the condition of the marriage by saying the words, "I do." In Exodus (Shemot) 19:8 it is written:

"And all the people answered together, and said, All that the Lord has spoken we will do..."

The terms and the conditions of the marriage including the blessing for obedience and the curses for disobedience is stated in Leviticus (Vayikra) 26 and Deuteronomy (Devarim) 28. In order to understand the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham), we need to understand the blessings and the curses and the consequences for obedience and disobedience in the marriage contract.

The Biblical wedding that the G-d of Israel gave to His people will traditionally have two witnesses. They are called the friends of the bridegroom. One is assigned to the groom and one is assigned to the bride. Spiritually (sod/deeper meaning), there are two witnesses that Yeshua/Jesus is the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach). These two witnesses are the Torah and the Prophets. In Luke 24:44, the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus spoke to His disciples (talmidim) and stated that the Torah, Prophets and Writings (TeNaKh) speak of Him as it is written:

"And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law [Torah] of Moses, and in the prophets [Nevi’im], and in the Psalms, [Ketuvim] concerning me."

When the G-d of Israel betrothed Himself to Israel at mount Sinai, Moses (Moshe) was seen as being one of the two witnesses whose primary job was to escort the bride (Israel) to meet the groom under the chuppah (wedding canopy) which was seen as being mount Sinai. In Exodus (Shemot) 19:17, Moses (Moshe) escorted the children of Israel to mount Sinai to be married to the G-d of Israel under the chuppah (mount Sinai) as it is written:

"And Moses brought forth [escorted] the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount."



WHAT IS THE SPIRITUAL MEANING
OF BETROTHAL?

Spiritually (sod/deeper meaning), everybody who accepts Yeshua/Jesus as the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) and asks Him into their heart and life by repenting (teshuvah) of their sins and by trusting (emunah) in His shed blood on the tree for the forgiveness of their sins is betrothed to Him.

The ketubah (marriage contract) for all believers in Yeshua/Jesus as the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) is the Torah written upon our heart. This is the New Covenant (Jeremiah [Yermiyahu] 31:33, Hebrews 10:15-16). The fullness of the marriage will be when we live and dwell with the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus during the Messianic Age (Athid Lavo).



THE FULFILLMENT OF G-D’S PROMISE TO ABRAHAM IS CONDITIONAL UPON OBEDIENCE TO G-D AND HIS TORAH

The G-d of Israel promised Abraham (Avraham) that his seed would be given a land for all eternity (Genesis [Bereishit] 15:18-21, 17:7-8. In order to fulfill this promise that the G-d of Israel made to Abraham (Avraham), it was conditional upon the seed of Abraham (Avraham) being an obedient people to the Torah of the G-d of Israel, keeping His commandments and loving the G-d of Israel with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. In Deuteronomy (Devarim) 10:12-14 it is written:

"And now Israel, what does the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul. To keep the commandments of the Lord, and his statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good?"

In Deuteronomy (Devarim) 4:5-9 it is written:

"Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should do so in the land whither you go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. For what nation is there so great, who has God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for? And what nation is there so great, that has statutes and judgments SO RIGHTEOUS AS ALL THIS LAW [TORAH], which I set before you this day? Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons."

The terms and the conditions of the marriage contract (ketubah) that the G-d of Israel made with the seed of Abraham (Avraham) can be seen in Leviticus (Vayikra) 26 and Deuteronomy (Devarim) 28. The conditional aspect of obedience to the Torah in order to receive these blessings can be seen in Deuteronomy (Devarim) 28:1-2 as it is written:

"And it shall come to pass, IF thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, IF thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God."

The relationship between the G-d of Israel fulfilling the covenant that He made with Abraham (Avraham) and his seed to give them an eternal Promised Land based upon obedience to the Torah of the G-d of Israel can also be seen in Leviticus (Vayikra) 26:1-12. In these scripture verses, we see the following:

IF you walk in my statutes and keep my commandments and do them (Leviticus [Vayikra] 26:3) ... then the G-d of Israel will give:

Rain in due season (Leviticus [Vayikra] 26:4)
Peace in the land (Leviticus [Vayikra] 26:6)
Victory over enemies (Leviticus [Vayikra] 26:7)
Be fruitful and multiply (Leviticus [Vayikra] 26:9)
G-d’s covenant with Abraham (Avraham) would be established (Leviticus [Vayikra] 26:9)
G-d would set His tabernacle among His people (Leviticus [Vayikra] 26:11, Revelation 21:2-3)
G-d’s family would be called my people (Leviticus [Vayikra] 26:12, Revelation 21:2-3)
The G-d of Israel setting His tabernacle (Mishkan) in the midst of His people is an allusion to the establishment of the Messianic Era (Athid Lavo) when the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) would live and dwell with the family of the G-d of Israel teaching the Torah from Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) to all the nations of the earth (Isaiah [Yeshayahu] 2:2-3).

THE PUNISHMENT FOR DISOBEDIENCE WAS
DISPERSION INTO THE NATIONS

The G-d of Israel declared that the punishment of Abraham’s seed for not believing and walking in His promise to them specifying that they would be given a Promised Land and by not being faithful to the marriage contract (Ketubah) made at mount Sinai (being obedient to the Torah) that they would be scattered unto all the nations in the earth. In Deuteronomy (Devarim) 28:15, 36-37, 45 it is written:

"But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee ... The Lord shall bring thee, and thy king which thou shall set over thee, unto a nation which neither thou nor thy fathers have known; and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone. And thou shall become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all nations whither the Lord shall lead thee ... Moreover all these curses shall come upon thee, and shall pursue thee, and overtake thee, till thou be destroyed; because thou hearkenedst not unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded thee."



G-D WARNS AGAINST ADOPTING
THE WAYS OF THE OTHER NATIONS

The G-d of Israel instructed the children of Israel that when they entered the land of Canaan that they were to totally destroy the culture of the Canaanite people. In Deuteronomy (Devarim) 7:1-5 it is written:

"When the Lord thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and has cast out many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than thou; And when the Lord thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor show mercy unto them: Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son. For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the Lord be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly. But thus shall ye deal with them; ye shall destroy their altars, and break down their images, and cut down their groves, and burn their graven images with fire."

In this scripture passage, the G-d of Israel warned the seed of Abraham (Avraham) not to mix paganism with their worship of Him. In the previous section of this chapter, we saw that the G-d of Israel declared that the punishment for disobeying His Torah and not believing His covenant with Abraham (Avraham) was dispersion into the nations of the world. However, the G-d of Israel made a promise to Abraham’s seed in His marriage contract (ketubah) to them that if they would repent (teshuvah) after they had been scattered into the nations of the earth that He would redeem His people and bring them back to the Promised Land and fulfill the promise that He made with Abraham (Avraham). In Deuteronomy (Devarim) 30:1-5 it is written:

"And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations whither the Lord thy God has driven thee, And shalt return unto the Lord thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children with all thine heart, and with all thy soul; That then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the Lord thy God has scattered thee. If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the Lord thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee: And the Lord thy God will bring thee into the land which your fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above your fathers."

The fulfillment of this promise is the restoration of the two houses of Israel (house of Israel/Christianity and the house of Judah/Judaism) as prophesied in Ezekiel (Yechezekel) 37:15-28.



THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL ARE COMMANDED
TO POSSESS THE PROMISED LAND

The G-d of Israel commanded the seed of Abraham (Avraham) through the word of Moses (Moshe) to possess the land that the G-d of Israel had promised Abraham (Avraham). In Deuteronomy (Devarim) 1:3, 5, 8 it is written:

"And it came to pass in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that Moses spake unto the children of Israel, according unto all that the Lord had given him in commandment unto them ... On this side Jordan, in the land of Moab, began Moses to declare this law [Torah] saying ... Behold I have set the land before you: go in and possess the land which the Lord sware unto your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them."



TWELVE SPIES SEARCH OUT
THE LAND OF PROMISE

In Numbers (Bamidbar) 13:1-17, the G-d of Israel commanded Moses (Moshe) to have the children of Israel select one individual from each of the twelve tribes and search the land of Canaan that the G-d of Israel had promised the seed of Abraham (Avraham). A summary of this event is as follows:

One member from each of the 12 tribes was selected to spy out the land (Numbers [Bamidbar] 13:1-17).

Only Joshua and Caleb came back with news that the children of Israel could possess the land that the G-d of Israel promised Abraham (Avraham).

a) Joshua was from the tribe of Ephraim (Northern Kingdom).

b) Caleb was from the tribe of Judah (Southern Kingdom).

Ten spies came back with an evil report that the children of Israel could not possess the land that the G-d of Israel promised Abraham (Avraham) (Numbers [Bamidbar] 13:17-20, 25-33)

The G-d of Israel’s punishment for those that believed the evil report was traveling 40 years in the wilderness. One year for each day of searching (Numbers [Bamidbar] 14:26-34)



G-D COMMANDS JOSHUA
TO CONQUER THE PROMISED LAND

When the G-d of Israel commanded Joshua and the seed of Abraham (Avraham) to enter the Promised Land, the G-d of Israel reiterated to Joshua the promise that He made with Abraham (Avraham). In Joshua 1:1-4 it is written:

"Now after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord it came to pass, that the Lord spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying, Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast."



THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL ONLY POSSESS
PART OF THE PROMISED LAND

Following the death of Joshua, the children of Israel possessed (in part) the land of Canaan. (Joshua 21:43-45). The children of Israel did not possess the fullness of the land that the G-d of Israel promised Abraham (Avraham). The G-d of Israel promised Abraham (Avraham) that His descendants would possess the land from the Nile to the Euphrates (Genesis [Bereishit] 15:18-21) including the land of Canaan (Genesis [Bereishit] 17:8.



G-D APPOINTS JUDGES TO FINISH
CONQUERING THE PROMISED LAND

Following the death of Joshua, we enter into the period of the Judges. During this time, the entire land of Canaan was still not yet conquered (Judges [Shoftim] 1:27-34). The G-d of Israel allowed for some of the land of Canaan that He had promised Abraham (Genesis [Bereishit] 17:7-8 to be left unconquered to test the hearts of the seed of Abraham [Avraham] to determine if they would be obedient to His Torah and believe the covenant that He made with Abraham [Avraham]. In Judges [Shoftim] 3:1-4 it is written:

"Now these are the nations which the Lord left, to prove Israel by them, even as many of Israel as had not known all the wars of Canaan; Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at the least such as before knew nothing thereof; Namely, five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and the Sidonians, and the Hivites that dwelt in mount Lebanon, from mount Baalhermon unto the entering in of Hamath; And they were to prove Israel by them, to know whether they would hearken unto the commandments of the Lord, which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses."



THE SINS OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL
IN THE PROMISED LAND

When the G-d of Israel entered into a marriage contract (ketubah) with the seed of Abraham (Avraham) at mount Sinai to keep His Torah, He gave specific instructions to His people regarding how they were to conduct themselves in the presence of the other nations who dwelt in the land of Canaan (Deuteronomy [Devarim] 7:1-5). In these verses we see the G-d of Israel commanding His people to do the following things:

Do not make marriages with the daughters of the nations who dwell in the land of Canaan.
Do not serve the gods of the nations that dwell in the land of Canaan.
Destroy the places of worship of those nations who dwell in the land of Canaan including their altars, graven images and groves.
Spiritually (sod/deeper meaning), the G-d of Israel was asking the seed of Abraham (Avraham) to live among the people in the land of Canaan but don’t practice the ways of their culture. The same cultural values that existed in the land of Canaan during the days when the G-d of Israel instructed the seed of Abraham (Avraham) to conquer the Promised Land is still present today in our society in the Western world through our Greco/Roman/Babylonian based value system. The G-d of Israel still commands the people who are called by His name within the house of Israel (Christianity) and the house of Judah (Judaism) to depart from practicing the ways and values of our Greco/Roman/Babylonian based culture. In Revelation 18:4 it is written:

"And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plaques."



THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL ARE UNFAITHFUL TO THEIR MARRIAGE CONTRACT

While in the land of Canaan, the seed of Abraham (Avraham) forsook their marriage contract (obedience to the Torah) and the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham). They served the gods of the Canaanite nations (Judges [Shoftim] 2:12) and intermarried with their people (Judges [Shoftim] 3:5-6). Because of these sins, the seed of Abraham (Avraham) did not conquer all of the land of Canaan that the G-d of Israel promised Abraham (Avraham) (Genesis [Bereishit] 17:7-8. Therefore, the fullness of the promise that the G-d of Israel made Abraham [Avraham] remained unfulfilled.

Nevertheless, when the seed of Abraham (Avraham) repented (teshuvah) to the G-d of Israel for their sins, the G-d of Israel raised up Judges who would deliver the seed of Abraham (Avraham) from their enemies. However, when the Judge died, the seed of Abraham (Avraham) returned to their ways of sin and disobedience to the Torah of the G-d of Israel (Judges [Shoftim] 2:11-21).

One of the gods that the seed of Abraham (Avraham) served in Canaan was Ashtaroth (Judges [Shoftim] 2:13). Ashtaroth was the goddess of sex and fertility. The house of Israel (Christianity) "Christianized" the original pagan worship of Ashtaroth during the days of the Roman Empire and has named this holiday Easter. The custom of Easter eggs and rabbits is associated with the worship of Ashtaroth and the fertility of the earth.

An overview of the seed of Abraham’s sin during the time of the Judges and the G-d of Israel’s judgment upon His people for not being faithful to their marriage contract (obedience to the Torah) is recorded in Judges (Shoftim) 2:11-21 as it is written:

"And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim: And they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, which brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves unto them, and provoked the Lord to anger. And they forsook the Lord, and served Baal and Ashtaroth. And the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of the spoilers that spoiled them, and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies. Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the Lord was against them for evil, as the Lord had said, and as the Lord had sworn unto them: and they were greatly distressed. Nevertheless the Lord raised up judges, which delivered them out of the hand of those that spoiled them. And yet they would not hearken unto their judges, but they went a whoring after other gods, and bowed themselves unto them: they turned quickly out of the way which their fathers walked in, obeying the commandments of the Lord; but they did not so. And when the Lord raised them up judges, then the Lord was with the judge, and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge: for it repented the Lord because of their groanings by reason of them that oppressed them and vexed them. And it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that they returned, and corrupted themselves more than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down unto them; they ceased not from their own doings, nor from their stubborn way. And the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel; and he said, Because that this people hath transgressed my covenant which I commanded their fathers, and have not hearkened unto my voice; I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the nations which Joshua left when he died."

ISRAEL DESIRES A KING

Following the period of the Judges, the seed of Abraham (Avraham) began to cry out for a king. Rather than allowing the G-d of Israel to be their King and to be a separate people from the nations who lived around them, the seed of Abraham (Avraham) wanted to have their own king. In I Samuel (Sh’muel) 8:1, 3-10 it is written:

"And it came to pass, when Samuel was old, that he made his sons judges over Israel ... And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes and perverted judgment. Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah, And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the other nations. But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the Lord. And the Lord said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them. According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also unto thee. Now therefore hearken unto their voice: howbeit yet protest solemnly unto them, and show them the manner of the king that shall reign over them. And Samuel told all the words of the Lord unto the people that asked of him a king."

The G-d of Israel warned the seed of Abraham (Avraham) that if they chose a king to rule over them that the king would treat them with hardship. Furthermore, the G-d of Israel warned the seed of Abraham (Avraham) that when they would cry out to Him because of the burden placed upon them by their king that He would not listen and answer their prayers. Nevertheless, the seed of Abraham (Avraham) desired and asked for a king so that they could be like all the other nations. Therefore, the G-d of Israel was upset with His people because they wanted a king and rejected Him as their King. In I Samuel (Sh’muel) 8:18-20 it is written:

"And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king which ye shall have chosen you; and the Lord will not hear you in that day. Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, Nay, but we will have a king over us; That we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles."

Saul becomes the first king of Israel (I Samuel [Sh’muel] 10. After the reign of Saul, David became the next king of Israel (I Samuel [Sh’muel] 16:1-13).



G-D’S PROMISE OF MERCY TO DAVID

David was a man after the G-d of Israel’s own heart (Acts 13:22) because David loved the Torah of the G-d of Israel (Psalm [Tehillim] 119). Therefore, the G-d of Israel promised to extend mercy to David and to the seed of David. The G-d of Israel’s promise of mercy to David and his seed is found in II Samuel (Sh’muel) 7:11-17 as it is written:

"And as since the time that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel, and have caused thee to rest from all thine enemies. Also the Lord telleth thee that he will make thee a house. And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men: But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee. And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established forever before thee: your throne shall be established forever. According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David."

In Psalm (Tehillim) 89:1-4 it is written:

"I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations. For I have said, Mercy shall be built up forever: thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens. I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant, Thy seed will I establish forever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah."



WHY DID G-D EXTEND MERCY
TO THE SEED OF DAVID?

The G-d of Israel extended His mercy to the seed of David on behalf of the covenant that He made with Abraham (Avraham) and on behalf of the Torah that was given to the seed of Abraham (Avraham) at mount Sinai. Even though the seed of Abraham (Avraham) was unfaithful to their marriage contract (obedience to the Torah) and broke it, the G-d of Israel promised that His mercy would be extended to the seed of David. This was done so that the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham) would be fulfilled through the redemptive work of the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus who would be born of the seed of David. In Psalm (Tehillim) 89:20, 24, 28-36 it is written:

"I have found David my servant; with my holy oil have I anointed him ... But my faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him: and in my name shall his horn be exalted ... My mercy will I keep for him forevermore, and my covenant shall stand fast with him. His seed also will I make to endure forever, and his throne as the days of heaven. If his children forsake my law [TORAH], and walk not in my judgments; If they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments; Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes. Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail. My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips. Once have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David. His seed shall endure forever, and his throne as the sun before me."

David reminded the seed of Abraham (Avraham) to ALWAYS remember the covenant that the G-d of Israel made with Abraham (Avraham). In I Chronicles 16:13-18 it is written:

"O ye seed of Israel his servant, ye children of Jacob, his chosen ones. He is the Lord our God; his judgments are in all the earth. Be ye mindful always of his covenant; the word which he commanded to a thousand generations; Even of the covenant which he made with Abraham, and of his oath unto Isaac; And has confirmed the same to Jacob for a law, and to Israel for an EVERLASTING covenant, Saying, Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan, the lot of your inheritance."

Therefore, the G-d of Israel extended His mercy to the seed of David so that He could fulfill the covenant that He made with Abraham (Avraham) through the redemptive work of the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus who was born of the seed of David. (Hebrews 7:14, Revelation 5:5)



THE REIGN OF SOLOMON

Following the reign of David, Solomon (Shlomo) was made king over Israel. Solomon (Shlomo) is widely believed to be one of the wisest persons who ever lived. Solomon (Shlomo) wrote the wisdom of the Proverbs (Mishlei). Why was Solomon so wise? The wisdom and understanding that the G-d of Israel gave to rule the seed of Abraham (Avraham) through Solomon (Shlomo) was knowledge of how to rule them according to the Torah and keeping the commandments of the G-d of Israel.

The G-d of Israel appeared to Solomon (Shlomo) in a dream and asked Solomon (Shlomo) what He should give him. Solomon (Shlomo) responded by asking the G-d of Israel for wisdom to discern between good and bad (how to keep the Torah). In I Kings (Melachim) 3:9-12, 14 it is written:

"Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people? And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing. And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither have not asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of your enemies; but hast asked for yourself understanding to discern judgment; Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given you a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee ... And if thou will walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days."

During the reign of Solomon (Shlomo), the seed of Abraham (Avraham) enjoyed the greatest land area of its borders. The reign of Solomon (Shlomo) is a prophetic picture of the peace (shalom) that the nation of Israel will enjoy during the Messianic Age (Athid Lavo) when the Jewish Messiah (Mashiach) Yeshua/Jesus will be teaching the Torah to the nations from Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) (Isaiah [Yeshayahu] 2:2-3).



SOLOMON’S KINGDOM IS DIVIDED

The G-d of Israel told Solomon (Shlomo) to keep His Torah, commandments and statutes. Failing to do so and following after other gods would result in the G-d of Israel dispersing the seed of Abraham (Avraham) into all the nations of the earth. In I Kings (Melachim) 9:1-9 it is written:

"And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the Lord, and the king’s house, and all Solomon’s desire which he was pleased to do, That the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon. And the Lord said unto him ... if you will walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and will keep my statutes and my judgments: Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel forever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel. But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them: Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people: [being scattered among the nations — Deuteronomy 28:37] And at this house, which is high, every one that passes by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the Lord done thus unto this land, and to this house? And they shall answer, Because they forsook the Lord their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold upon other gods, and have worshiped them, and served them: therefore has the Lord brought upon them all this evil."

Solomon (Shlomo) disobeyed the G-d of Israel and His Torah by marrying the women of the nations who dwelt in the land of Canaan. The G-d of Israel warned His people in the Torah not to marry the women of the nations who dwelt in Canaan (Deuteronomy [Devarim] 7:1-4).

Because the G-d of Israel appeared to Solomon (Shlomo) twice and instructed him not to marry foreign women, the G-d of Israel became angry at Solomon (Shlomo) for his disobedience and told him that his kingdom would be divided. In I Kings (Melachim) 11:9-13 it is written:

"And the Lord was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the Lord God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice, And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the Lord commanded. Wherefore the Lord said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to your servant. Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father’s sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son. Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen."

Solomon’s kingdom was divided into Northern Kingdom and Southern Kingdom. The Northern Kingdom was called the house of Israel. The Northern Kingdom is a prophetic type of future Christianity. The Southern Kingdom was called the house of Judah. The Southern Kingdom is a prophetic type of future Judaism.



THE NORTHERN KINGDOM OF ISRAEL

Following the death of Solomon (Shlomo), his kingdom was divided. Jeroboam, an Ephrathite became the ruler of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Rehoboam became the ruler of the Southern Kingdom of Israel. Concerning the selection of Jeroboam as king of the Northern Kingdom, in I Kings (Melachim) 11:30-38 it is written:

"And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces: And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee: (But he shall have one tribe for my servant David’s sake, and for Jerusalem sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel:) Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his father. Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand: but I will make him prince all the days of his life for David my servant’s sake, whom I chose, because he kept my commandments and my statutes: But I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand, and will give it unto thee, even ten tribes. And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David my servant may have a light always before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen me to put my name there. And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign according to all that thy soul desires, and shall be king over Israel. And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that is right in my sight, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did, that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee."