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The Veil and Israel [Part 1]

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Moses, the great prophet with whom the God of Israel spoke face-to-face:

“And it came to pass, as Moses entered into the tabernacle, the pillar of cloud descended, and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the Lord talked with Moses”.   Exodus 33:9 

So the Lord spoke with Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And Moses returned to the camp. ..  Exodus 33:11a

“I speak with him (Moses) face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the Lord. Why then were you unafraid to speak against My servant Moses?”   Numbers 12:8

Since that time, no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face.   Deuteronomy 34:10 

The Glory of the Lord

Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. Isaiah 60:1

In the above scripture, the Glory of the Lord is promised to shine upon Israel and God’s people, which includes us. Now that Yeshua is seated at the right hand of God the Father in heaven, He has received back His Glory as He prayed to the Father in John 17:5:

“And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the Glory which I had with You before the world was…And the Glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one…“Father, I desire that they also, whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.”
 

Mt. Horeb/Sinai

Mt. Horeb, the Mountain of God, known also as Mt. Sinai, is where God first appeared to Moses and spoke to Him from the burning bush. There, Godcommanded Moses to lead the people of Israel out of slavery from Egypt into the Promised Land. Hence, Moses led the people of Israel out of Egypt, through the Sinai desert, and into the promised land.

After the miracle of the crossing of the Red Sea and wandering in the desert, the people of Israel cried for water. God led them to Mount Horeb (Mt. Sinai) and instructed Moses to miraculously get water from the rock.

Exodus 17:6, “Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.”

Later, God met Moses once again at Mount Sinai/Horeb with an awesomedisplay of power: thunder and lightning, a dark cloud, fire and smoke, the blast of a trumpet, and quaking of the earth (Exodus 19:18). This was to warn the people not to approach or touch God’s holy mountain as God is so Holy that anyone doing so would die.

Then, God thundered out His commands, frightening all the Israelites. They asked God to speak only to Moses and let Moses be the intermediary between themselves and God (Exodus 20:19. By the way, Jews often say that they don’tneed an intermediary to talk to God when it comes to Yeshua.)

The Covenant Through Moses

And God called Moses on the mountain to receive the commandments for Israel.

“And all the people answered with one voice and said, ‘”All the words which the Lord has said we will do.’” They made burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the Lord. And Moses took half the blood and put it in basins, and half the blood he sprinkled on the altar. Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that the Lord has said we will do, and be obedient.” And Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, “This is the blood of the covenant which the Lord has made with you according to all these words” (their promise.) Exodus 24:3b, 5-8 

Now the Glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered the Mountain of God for six days. And on the seventh day, God called Moses out of the midst of the cloud. The sight of the glory of the Lord was like a consuming fire on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the children of Israel. So Moses went into the midst of the cloud and went up into the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.” (vs. 13, 16-18)

There on the mountain, Moses received the plans for the Tabernacle and the tablets of stone on which God had written His commandments with His own finger.

However, at the bottom of the mountain, the Israelites had grown impatient waiting for Moses all that time, not knowing what had happened to him. 
They asked Aaron to make them a god in the form of a golden calf. Overjoyed and excited, the people sacrificed to the golden calf, celebrated, and worshiped their new god in a frenzy.

However, at the top of the mountain, God told Moses what was happening in the camp below.

When Moses descended the mountain and saw everyone worshiping the golden calf, he became enraged and smashed to bits the stone tablets on which Godhad written His commandments with His own finger. Moses reproved Israel for its terrible sin against the one true God after promising to serve Him and keep His commandments. (including not making any images for worship) (Exodus 32.)

After dealing with the sin issue (including the death of many of the idol worshipers (Exodus 32:28) Moses burned the golden calf with fire, ground it to powder, scattered it on the water, and made the Israelites drink it (verse 20.)


Then, the Lord said to Moses, 

“Cut two tablets of stone like the first ones, and I will write on these tablets the Words that were on the first tablets which you broke.”

Facing God on the top of the mountain, Moses begged God to forgive the children of Israel, His people. God listened to Moses, forgave them, and renewed the covenant with Israel. He once again wrote His Commandments on new stone tablets (Exodus 34:1–27.)

The Veil on Moses’s Face

Moses spent another 40 days and nights in the presence of God on Mt. Horeb, the mountain of God, not eating or drinking, and God allowed Moses to see His glory. God’s glorious presence sustained him.

When Moses came down the mountain after spending this extended time in the presence of the Lord, Moses was unaware that his face shone powerfully, reflecting God’s Glory. Because everyone feared to approach him, Moses covered his face with a veil, hiding the bright light of the Glory that was unbearable to the people in their sinful condition, so they would not be frightened. (Exodus 34:1–29)

Moses went up to speak to the Lord several times and brought Israel the Torah he had received from the Lord for them.

“But whenever Moses went in before the Lord to speak with Him, he would remove the veil until he came out; and he would come back and speak to the children of Israel whatever he had been commanded. And whenever the children of Israel saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face shone, then Moses would put the veil on his face again, until he went in to speak with Him.” (Exodus 34:34-35)

The Prophet Elijah on Mt. Horeb

When the prophet Elijah ran away from Queen Jezebel who wanted to kill him, he stopped to rest in the desert. There, an angel of the Lord fed him, and

“strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb (Mt. Sini,) the mountain of God.” (1 Kings 19:8)

Elijah stayed in a cave at Horeb/Sinai, where he met the Lord Who spoke to him with “a still small voice.” (1 Kings 19:12)

It is interesting that both Moses and Elijah, who were prophets of God, were on the same Mountain of God, sustained by God for 40 days and nights; both met with God there and heard His audible voice.

Yeshua with Moses and Elijah

It is also interesting that when Yeshua was on the Mount of Transfiguration, out of all the people of God, He met with the prophets Moses and Elijah.

While on earth, Yeshua’s divine glory was veiled by His humanity, except for this event when His human appearance was changed and  His face shone like the sun and His clothes turned blazing.

In an audible voice, the Lord spoke from a bright cloud saying: 

“This is my Son, Whom I love; with Him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” (Matthew 17:5) 

This happened in the presence of Peter, James, and John, the brother of James who 

“beheld His Glory, the Glory as of the Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)  

From Glory to Glory

Ephesians 2:6-7 
“And God (the Father) raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Messiah Yeshua, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Messiah Yeshua.”

In the Spirit realm, we are seated with Messiah in the heavenlies. God has taken us from Glory to Glory, just as Yeshua prayed before He ascended to the right hand of the Father.

And just as John, Peter, and James beheld His glory on the Mount of Transfiguration, we too behold His glory.

God’s light shines through us a witness for all to see as we reflect His glory.

As believers in Messiah Yeshua, Who fulfilled the Torah, we also reflect the Glory of the Torah revealed to Moses.

Yet, the Glory of the Torah that shone so brightly on Moses’ face and required a veil covering, faded when Israel broke the Old Covenant.

The Torah, written with the finger of God (Exodus 31:18,) is the same Torah that Messiah Yeshua came to fulfill; it is the eternal and glorious Word of God.

Now, by our faith in Yeshua, we receive glory through the New Covenant that is spiritual, eternal, and doesn’t fade for it is written on our hearts by the Holy Spirit of God.

(Jeremiah 31:33: “But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts…”)

By this, we are transformed from the Glory of Moses to the Glory of Yeshua, from the Glory of the Old Covenant to the Glory of the New Covenant, which far surpasses the Old.

The Torah given to Moses was written on earthly stone, a substance doomed to disintegrate and perish.

God’s Holy, good, and righteous Torah was given to sinners to make them holy as the giver of the Torah is holy. But they had to obey all Torah’s laws.

In fact, the Torah was merely a temporary guardian (Galatians 3:23–25) until something better appeared.

The better thing is the New Covenant that absolves us of all sin and gives us everlasting life (John 6:63). 

Hence, our obedience to God stems from within us. As true believers, we desire to obey Him and love Him with all our hearts and souls, and not out of legality or fear of punishment.

No longer is it an uncaring, animal-blood covenant of rigid rules, written on cold stone tablets but rather a covenant of Messiah’s own blood, written by the Holy Spirit on the tablets of our warm hearts of flesh.

We, His people, no longer need an earthly tabernacle or a mountaintop to meet with God’s Holy Presence. Rather, the Father, and Messiah Yeshua, and the Holy Spirit dwell within us and tabernacle with us in our born-again inner New Man, in loving intimacy, teaching us all things. (John 14:23; 16:13)

“Therefore, if anyone is in Messiah, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

“For God, Who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made His Light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s Glory displayed in the face of Messiah Yeshua.” (2 Corinthians 4:6)

As we move from Glory to Glory, the Holy Spirit transforms us into the image of God’s own beloved Son, Messiah Yeshua. (2 Corinthians 3:18; Romans 8:28–30; Philippians 3:20–21)

When we believe Yeshua is Lord and Savior, receive Him into our hearts by faith, and accept His atonement for our sins, He opens our spiritual eyes and transforms us even in this life to bring us “from Glory to Glory.”  2 Corinthians 3:18 (NKJV)

“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”

[Watch for the next installment of this article soon]

Image by Chil Vera from Pixabay

A Great Miracle Happened Here, Then and Now

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NOT BY MIGHT, NOR BY POWER, BUT BY MY SPIRIT, SAYS THE LORD
(Zech. 4:6)

Yeshua was in the Temple for the Celebration of the Dedication (Hanukka) of the Temple at the time of the Maccabees.

Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Yeshua walked in the temple, in Solomon’s porch…“I and the Father are one.”
(John 10:22, 23, 30)

Tomorrow evening, Israel and Jews around the world will celebrate the beginning of the holiday of Hanukkah, which falls this year on the same day Christians celebrate Christmas. [click here to read the article: Christmas and the Jews]

Hanukkah (dedication) is a holiday of miracles. It commemorates the miraculous victory of a small army of brave Jews over the Syrian/Greek much bigger and better-equipped army, and the liberation of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem from the hands of the pagan ruler Antiochus Epiphanes (read more in the article about the historical account of Hanukkah.)

One of the benedictions Jews say when lighting the candles of the Hanukiah (Hanukkah candelabra) is: “We light the candles for the miracles that You have done for our forefathers in days of old, and are still doing today.”

The “dreidel,” or top that children play with, has four sides, each with a Hebrew letter which together says, “Nes Godal Haya Poe,” meaning “a great miracle happened here.”

In the Oral Law that was written in 500 CE, legend tells us (this does not appear in the historical account in the book of the Maccabees) that the Maccabees upon reclaiming and cleansing the Temple discovered that all of the oil to light the Temple’s menorah had been defiled except for one cruse. That cruse had just enough oil to light the Menorah for one day, but by a miracle of God it continued to burn for eight days.  

In all the wars Israel had to fight against her hostile neighbors, many miracles caused the tiny nation to survive and thrive.

Today, Israel is facing fierce and violent enemies from the north to the south whose aim is to wipe Israel off the map. But if God is for us, who can be against us?

The Full Story of Hanukkah

After the untimely death of Alexander the Great, the Greek Empire was divided into four kingdoms, (see also the prophecies of Daniel)

In 174 B.C.E, Antiochus IV ruled the Seleucus Hellenistic empire that included the Middle Eastern territories (what is today Israel, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Syria, and Lebanon.)

He was a harsh, arrogant, and cruel tyrant who proclaimed himself a god, and called himself Epiphanies— meaning “the gods’ beloved.”

With the influence of Hellenism – idol worship and the Syrian-Greek lifestyle that emphasized physical human beauty – the Israelites were divided between Hellenistic Jews and Jews who worshiped the invisible God of Israel, obeying His Torah commandments.

Antiochus Epiphanies replaced the righteous High Priest Yochanan with his Hellenistic brother, Jason, to serve in the Holy Temple in Jerusalem after Jason bribed the king for the position. Later, King Antiochus replaced Jason with Menelaus, who offered King Antiochus an even greater bribe.

Fearing Jewish rebellion for his actions, Antiochus sent his armies to invade Jerusalem.

The Holy Temple was desecrated and plundered. Antiochus arrogantly entered the temple and stole precious vessels of silver and gold as well as hidden treasure.

An unclean pig – forbidden by Jewish law – was sacrificed on God’s Holy altar which was replaced by an unholy altar to the pagan god, Zeus.

The Jews were forced to bow before Zeus under penalty of death. Syrian soldiers forced the Jews to eat forbidden foods and to engage in other immoral acts.

Antiochus then enacted a series of harsh decrees forbidding Jewish worship, including sacrifices and atonements according to the Law of God; Sabbath rest; the celebrations of the festival days, and the learning and teaching of the Torah. Torah scrolls were confiscated and burned while circumcision and the dietary laws were prohibited under the penalty of death.

Many innocent people were massacred for refusing to eat pork that was forced on them by Antiochus’ men, who went from town to town and from village to village to force the citizens to worship pagan gods.

The Syrians even pursued the Jews to the one remaining refuge area, the hills of Judea with their caves, and many Jews died there too and the survivors were heavily taxed.

Many Jews complied with the king’s commands either voluntarily or out of fear of the penalty of death. However, most God-fearing Jews did not comply with Antiochus’ commands and were willing to take the punishment of great suffering, torment, and death.

They were whipped with rods and their bodies torn to pieces. While they were still alive, they were crucified. 

Women who circumcised their baby sons were strangled and their sons were hanged by their necks. Any Torah books that were found were destroyed and their owners were killed.

The honorable, old priest, Mattityahu the Hashmonite, who lived in the village of Modiin with his sons and brothers, was determined to remain loyal to the covenant of the God of Israel and to obey only His commandments. They refused to offer sacrifices to the Greek gods on the altar that the Syrians had built in the village marketplace.

In his jealousy for the God of Israel, old Mattityahu slaughtered a Hellenistic Jew who approached the altar to offer a sacrifice to the foreign gods.

Then, together with his sons and friends, Mattityahu attacked the Syrian officers, killing many of them and chasing the rest away. They then destroyed the altar.

Mattityahu called with a loud voice in Hebrew: “Mi La’Adonai Ela-eye” (whoever is for our God, let him follow me.)

Knowing that Antiochus would send his soldiers to retaliate and punish them, Mattityahu and his sons and friends fled to the Judean hills. Many loyal and courageous Jews joined them in answer to Mattityahu’s call.

They formed a small army and from time to time came out of their hiding places to attack enemy outposts, and to destroy the pagan altars Antiochus had erected.

Old Mattityahu, nearing his time to die, gathered his sons and urged them to continue to fight in defense of God’s Torah, even at the risk of losing their lives for the cause of keeping God’s covenant.

He appointed his son, Shimon the Wise, as an adviser and his son, Judah the Strong and Courageous, to be the military leader.

Judah was called “Maccabee” – a word composed of the initial letters of the four Hebrew words Mi Kamocha Ba’eilim YHWH, “Who is like You, O God.” Exodus 15:11.)

Maccabee also means “big hammer” in Hebrew as Judah’s attacks were hard like big hammers.

Antiochus sent his general, Apolonius, to destroy the small army of Yehuda the Maccabee. However, the greater and better-equipped Syrians were defeated.

Antiochus then sent Seron, captain of the army of Syria, to fight the rebellious Maccabees with a greater army, sure that his mighty soldiers would destroy the rebellious, small Jewish army.

Judah, the courageous Maccabee, was ready to face them. However, when his people saw the size and strength of the enemy’s army, they said to Judah: “How can we, being so few, fight against such a great and strong army?”

Judah, in the spirit of King David, answered them with great faith:
“Fear not their multitude, for the success of war is not in the multitude of the army, but in strength from heaven. The Lord himself will overthrow them before us.”

Then, Judah the Maccabee led his small army in a surprise attack on Seron and his army, destroying and killing many of his soldiers. The surviving soldiers fled to the southern coastland.

Enraged by the news of the defeat of his soldiers, Antiochus sent even greater more powerful forces, consisting of more than 40,000 soldiers and seven thousand horsemen to go into the land of Judah to destroy the small Maccabee’s army, sure that this time his two great commanders, Nicanor and Gorgias, could defeat Judah and his Jewish Maccabees.

Merchants from the nations who heard of the great Greek army coming to battle the small Maccabean army, were also sure of the Jews’ defeat, so they came with large quantities of silver and gold ready to buy the Jews for slaves.

Judah and his brothers, zealous to defend the Holy Temple and willing to fight unto death, gathered in Mitzpah, which was a place of prayer (where Samuel, the prophet of old, had offered prayers to God,) to prepare for battle, to pray and ask for His mercy and compassion.

They fasted that day, in sackcloth and ashes, rent their garments, and cried with a loud voice to God in heaven:
“For your holies are trodden down, and are profaned, and your priests are in mourning, and are brought low. The nations are coming together against us with the intent to destroy us. How can we stand up to them, unless you, O God, help us?”

After sending men who built houses home; newlyweds; planters of vineyards and all who were fearful, Judah appointed captains over the thousands, over hundreds, over fifties, and tens, and he and his small army left the camp in Mitzpah and camped on the south side of Emmaus.

Facing the big and strong enemy army, Judah prayed to God and said: “Blessed are You, O Savior of Israel, Who destroyed the fierce and mighty uncircumcised giant by the hand of Your servant David. Now give up this army into the hands of Your people Israel. Let their army and horsemen be confounded. Strike them with fear, cause the boldness of their strength to vanish, and let them quake at their own destruction. Cast them down with the sword of the ones who love You, and let all that know Your Name praise You with hymns.”

Then Judah turned to the men that were with him and said: “Fear not their multitude, neither be afraid of their assault. Remember how our fathers were saved in the Red Sea when Pharaoh pursued them with a great army. And now let us cry to heaven, and the Lord will have mercy on us, and will remember the covenant of our fathers, and will destroy this army before us this day. And all nations shall know that there is One Who redeems and delivers Israel.”

Then they sounded their trumpets, cried out with a loud voice, and marched to battle. The brave Maccabees were ready both to live or die.

Thousands of Syrian soldiers fell. The Maccabees had set fire to the enemy’s camp and the Syrian soldiers were struck with great fear of the Jews and fled.

Judah and the Maccabees returned to the camp to take the spoils of great riches, including a lot of gold and silver. Upon returning home they sang a hymn, and blessed God in heaven, Who is good; Whose Mercy endures forever and Who gave Israel a great deliverance that day.

The victorious Maccabees returned to Jerusalem to liberate the Holy City. They entered the Temple and saw the sanctuary desolate, the altar profaned, and the gates burnt.

The Jews destroyed the odious idols; renewed the sacred vessels and the lampstand, and brought the altar of incense and the table into the Temple.

They decorated the front of the Temple with golden wreaths and ornamental shields, renewed the gates and the priests’ rooms, and fitted them with doors. Then they put the Bread of the Presence on the table and hung the curtains.

They destroyed the altar that had been defiled and threw it out. Then they took whole stones according to God’s instructions and built a new altar upon which they offered a holy sacrifice according to the law (Torah) of God.

On the twenty-fifth of the month of Kislev in the year 3622, 164 BC, the same day when the heathens had defiled it, the temple was dedicated anew with music and celebration. And all the people fell upon their faces and worshipped God, and blessed Him for the great victory He gave them.

The joyous Celebration of the Dedication of the Temple (Hanukkah in Hebrew) lasted for eight days, with offerings of sacrifices, praising God for salvation and deliverance from the reproach of the Syrians.

Judah, his brothers, and all the congregation of Israel decreed that the Day of the Dedication of the Altar should be kept every year from the twenty-fifth day of the month of Kislev for eight days, with joy and gladness. (Kislev is the tenth month of the Jewish calendar corresponding, approximately, to early December on the Gregorian calendar.)

What About Now?

As the Jews celebrate Hanukkah and the Christians celebrate Christmas, Israel is still at war against enemies that surround the small nation intending to destroy the tiny nation and take the Land God has promised to His people Israel.

Let us pray, as Judah did:

“Fear not their multitude, for the success of war is not in the multitude of the army, but the strength that comes from heaven. The Lord himself will overthrow them before us.”

For a “deliverer will come from Zion, “His name is Salvation (Yeshua.)
Pray for a miracle, the safe return of the Jewish captives in Gaza to their homes in Israel.

Christmas and the Jews

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Most Jews in Israel and around the world reject the idea that Christmas is a Jewish holiday. As far as they are concerned, Christmas is a Christian holiday that celebrates the birth of someone they don’t believe to be the Messiah and is in direct opposition to their Jewish faith. Many Holocaust survivors claim Hitler and the Nazis were Christians and that the Christian church is anti-Semitic; that in the name of Jesus, the Church persecuted Jews as “Christ-killers.”

Even non-Jews around the world who celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ on Christmas day do not realize that He is the Messiah of Israel, as well as the Savior of the world.

Nativity Image by Michelle Scott from Pixabay

The prophet Isaiah made this Messianic prophecy to Israel about the Jewish Messiah, Who also fulfilled the promise God gave to Abraham in Genesis 12, that through Him all nations would be blessed. Therefore, the prophecies of the Messiah’s coming, His sacrifice for humanity, His resurrection, and His return to earth apply to Israel as well to all nations.

“The people living in darkness have seen a great light; upon those living in the land that lies in the shadow of death, light has dawned. For a child is born to us, a son is given to us; dominion will rest on His shoulders, and He will be given the name Pele-Yo‘etz (Wonderful Counselor,) El Gibbor (Mighty God,) Avi-‘Ad (Everlasting Father) Sar-Shalom (Prince of Peace)”. Isaiah 9

The world celebrates Christmas with cheers, decorated evergreen trees, flickering lights, manger scenes, and baby Jesus, all the while unaware of its Jewish roots. That the story took place in Israel with Israelites and angels who spoke Hebrew seems far away. But the fact is that Mary was Miriam, Joseph was Yoseph and Jesus was Yeshua – all Hebrew names. Yeshua was born in Beth Lehem (the house of bread in Hebrew) fulfilling the Hebrew prophet Micah’s words as recorded in Micah chapter 5:1 “But you, Beit Lehem Ephratah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall He come forth unto Me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting days.”

The story of Christmas starts with God’s angel appearing to the priest Zecharya (Zechariah in English which means God remembers in Hebrew) who was chosen by lot to enter the Temple of the God of Israel for the incense offering (Luke 1:9-11). This was in accordance with the law God gave to Moses for the priests from the tribe of Levi. Exodus 30:7-8: “Aaron must burn fragrant incense on the altar every morning when he tends the lamps. He must burn incense again when he lights the lamps at twilight so incense will burn regularly before the Lord for the generations to come.” The angel announced to Zecharya that his barren wife would bear him a child to fulfill the prophecy of Malachi 3 to “go as a forerunner before Him (the Messiah) in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children” (Luke 1:16-17). His name would be Yohanan, meaning God pardons (known as John the Baptist in English.)

A short time later the angel Gavriel (Gabriel, means God is my strength) appeared to Miriam, announcing that she would conceive by the Holy Spirit of God. Miriam was a young Jewish virgin from the Jewish village of Natzeret, Israel, engaged to a Jewish man, Yoseph, of the house of David. The angel Gavriel told her (in Hebrew,) “Do not be afraid, Miriam; for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Yeshua (meaning Salvation in Hebrew.) (Jesus is the English letters of the name Yeshua.) He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and God will give Him the throne of His father David (the Jewish king.) And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end” (Luke 1:26-33).

It is no coincidence that the Savior of the world would have a Hebrew name and would be born of a Jewish mother in a Jewish town near Jerusalem, the Jewish capital. He is Emmanuel (God with us in Hebrew) Who will sit on King David’s throne forever and rule from Jerusalem. All nations will come to hear the Word of the Lord from Zion (Jerusalem). (Isaiah 2)

When Yoseph (Joseph) learned Miriam was pregnant, he feared she had been unfaithful to him. As a righteous man, he didn’t want to expose Miriam to public disgrace and planned to divorce her in secret. But the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said (in Hebrew), “Yoseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Miriam as your wife because what is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Yeshua (meaning Salvation) because he Yoshia (will save) his people (Israel) from their sins. All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ – which means (in Hebrew, ‘God with us.)” Matthew 1:18-25

We present this holiday to our Jewish people in this Jewish setting with Jewish characters, saying that Yeshua is our Jewish Messiah, as well as the Savior of the world, and that He didn’t come to start a new religion. As a matter of fact, Yeshua was against religion as well as men’s traditions.

Pray for the Holy Spirit to open the eyes of our Jewish friends, family, and neighbors to see that Christmas celebrates the birth of our Jewish Messiah Who came to the world in Israel.

From the first verses in the New Testament, we see how Jewish it is. This is the genealogy of Yeshua the Messiah (a Hebrew word,) the son of David, the son of Abraham (the father of the Jewish nation). Yeshua’s birth and reincarnation were prophesied in the Hebrew Bible, written in Hebrew, by Hebrew prophets. His Jewish parents took him to the Jewish Holy Temple when He was eight days old to be circumcised; how much more Jewish can you get?

Image: Nativity by Michelle Scott from Pixabay

How Persia Became Iran

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How Persia Became Iran

Iran was known for centuries as Persia – a name originating from “Parsa”. However, this term was given by foreigners, not the people of the land itself.

The indigenous people used the name “Iran,” a word that derives from “Airyam” which is a term found in the country’s ancient texts dating back to the time of Cyrus the Great (4th century BC).

The glorious Persian Empire was vast and included many religions, cultures, and civilizations. It was known for its literature, poetry, art, and variety of food. By the 4th century AD, the term Iran was being used in writing and literature.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the Pahlavi dynasty was established, led by Reza Shah Pahlavi who was influenced by the West. Reza Shah changed the name Persia to Iran in an attempt to reconnect with the nation’s ancient glorious imperial past while at the same time aiming to modernize the nation.

Reza Shah’s attempt to officially change the country’s name from Persia to Iran came into force in March 1935. However, the British who occupied Persia and Iraq during WWII objected to the change as the name Iran was too similar to Iraq and could cause confusion.

In 1959, Reza Shah’s son announced that the terms Iran and Persia could be used interchangeably in formal correspondence.

When oil was discovered in Persia in the early 20th century, its development made permanent changes in the political and economic arena in the Middle East. It drew the attention of other international countries to Persia. The British were the first to capitalize on Iran’s oil discovery when in 1909 they gained full control of Iran’s oil industry by establishing the Anglo-Persian Oil Company.

Iran’s oil and petroleum industry has remained at the heart of internal and external politics ever since.

Since the 1979 revolution, the official name of the country is the Islamic Republic of Iran, which emphasizes the Iranian Shi’i Muslim domination of the regime. This has caused divisions within the newly established state of Iran which persist today.

Today, most of the world refers to the country as Iran, while some cultural exports such as food, art, and literature are often referred to as Persian goods because they come from this historic region.

The Relations Between Iran and Israel

In biblical times, Iran was known as Persia. The Hebrew biblical books of Isaiah, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, Chronicles, and Esther contain references to the life and experiences of Jews in the Persian empire.

In 586 BC, the Babylonians expelled large populations of Jews from Judea in the Babylonian captivity. Subsequently, the Persian Empire conquered the Babylonian kingdom. Persia was known to have a tolerant attitude toward the cultures and religions of the people under its rule.

In the book of Ezra, the Persian King Cyrus the Great permitted and even enabled the Jews to return to Judea and rebuild the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. In late 6 BC, the reconstruction of the temple was carried out “according to the decree of Cyrus.” King Cyrus died before it was completed and his successor, Darius the Great, as well as successive kings of the Persian empire, Darius and Artaxerxes, ordered the completion of the temple. (Ezra 6:14). The last chapters of the Tanach, the Hebrew Bible – 2 Chronicles 36:23 and the Book of Ezra – speak of Cyrus’ decree allowing the Jewish exiles in Babylon to return to Judea, along with the commission to rebuild the temple. King Cyrus is honored in Jewish history as a righteous king.

Not all Jews left Persia and Jewish communities have existed in today’s Iran for over 2,700 years.

According to the Book of Esther, there was a large number of Jews in the Persian empire. In 6 BCE, during the reign of Persian King Ahasuerus, (aka Xerxes the Great, son of Darius the Great), The evil antisemite, Haman, plotted to annihilate all the Jews in the Persian Kingdom.

And though God’s Name is absent from the book of Esther, it is obviously He Who used a beautiful Jewish maiden and the Persian King to thwart Haman’s evil plot and save the Jews from annihilation. Evil Haman and his sons were hanged on the gallows and the Jews’ enemies were destroyed. This event is celebrated by the Jews as the holiday of Purim.

Israel-Iran Relationship From the 20th Century

After the establishment of the State of Israel in May 1948, Iran – a non-Arab Muslim majority country – recognized Israel as a sovereign state and maintained close ties with it for years. Israel even had a permanent delegation in Tehran which later became an embassy.

However, pro-Palestinian Ayotallahs criticized the Iranian government’s diplomatic relations with Israel and they, along with Iranian citizens who were sympathetic to Palestinians, supported the Palestinians financially, much to the dismay of the Iranian government.

In 1953, the pro-Western leader Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was reinstated as the Shah of Iran. After the Six-Day War, relations between Iran and Israel flourished, and trade between the two countries was very active. Iran supplied Israel much needed oil and Israel provided the means by which Iranian oil was shipped to European markets via the joint Israeli-Iranian Eilat-Ashkelon pipeline. Israeli construction firms and engineers were active in Iran and El Al, the Israeli national airline, operated direct flights between Tel Aviv and Tehran. Iran and Israel exchanged military projects, though kept secret, such as the joint attempt in the years 1977–79 to develop a missile in the Project Flower.

After the Islamic Iranian Revolution in 1979 and the expulsion of the Shah, Ayatollah Khomeini became supreme ruler of Iran and declared that Israel was an “enemy of Islam” called the “Little Satan. The United States was called the “Great Satan.”

Iran severed all diplomatic and commercial ties with Israel. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its Quds Force were established to carry out military assignments.

Theocratic regime, now named the Islamic Republic of Iran, does not recognize the legitimacy of Israel as a state.

Aggressive posturing and hateful rhetoric against Israel coming out of the leaders in Tehran became common occurrences. The then-Iranian President Ahmadinejad said that Israel should be “wiped off the map.” Other factors that have contributed to the escalation of bilateral tensions include Iran’s development of nuclear technology, aimed mainly against Israel, and Iran’s funding of Islamist terror groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the Houthi movement. Iran has also been involved in terrorist attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets in other parts of the world.

Israel has hit Iranian targets in Iran through assassinations and cyber attacks.

Overall, the Iran-Israel proxy conflict is a complex and ongoing dilemma that has had a significant impact on the political and security dynamics of the Middle East.

The Threat of Ramadan

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With war in Gaza raging, tensions in East Jerusalem and in Judea and Samaria, (aka the West Bank territories) are escalating with the start of the holy month of Ramadan, particularly on the Temple Mount. Located in east Jerusalem’s Old City, the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound on the Temple Mount is considered the third holiest site in Islam, while to the Jews it is the most holy site as the location of the two ancient Holy Temples.

Even after Israel won the Six Day War and conquered and annexed east Jerusalem in 1967, including the Temple Mount, the Muslim religious facilities of the Temple remained under the administration of the Waqf, dedicated to Muslim religious purposes. All Islamic religious activity has remained under Jordanian control since the cease-fire of the 1948 war of Israel’s independence.

In Islam, the holiday of the Ramadan fast (and feasting every night) observed by millions of Muslims around the world is supposed to be a time of prayer, reflection, and community. The Muslims believe that during this holy month, their holy book, the Quran, was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad.

However, since Israel gained control of the grounds of the Temple Mount, each year, the time of Ramadan has become particularly inflammatory. Every year violence erupts on Ramadan as Palestinians use the compound and even the mosque itself to riot and throw rocks in provocation of Israeli forces who are there to keep law and order. When Palestinian rioters are injured and many are arrested as a result of Israeli police dispersing rioters, even more violence ensues.

Image above: Cartoon by Alaa’ al-Laqta. Right: Incitement to violence.  The Arabic reads, “The meal of young Jerusalemites before the Ramadan fast” (Alaa’ al-Laqta’s Facebook page, April 23, 2021).

In 2022 and 2023 during Ramadan, inspired by Hamas and carrying Hamas flags, Palestinian terrorists shot, stabbed, and threw bombs on Israelis praying at the Western Wall below. PA (Palestinian Authority in Judea and Samaria) President Mahmoud Abbas negated any Jewish connection to Jerusalem by declaring, “We alone have the religious, historical, and legal right to Al-Buraq Wall (the Western Wall).”

Ramadan is not like any holiday in other religions. Rather than being a month of peace and harmony, it is a month of war and violence. From Islam’s beginnings, Ramadan was a time to wage war.

History of Ramadan

In 624 CE, during Ramadan, the Prophet Muhammad waged his first jihad (holy war). In 632, during the month of Ramadan, Muhammad attacked and conquered the city of Mecca with its Kaaba stone, which is Islam’s most holy site today.

Throughout the centuries, Muslims have waged wars and conquests during Ramadan. A few more examples are:

  • The conquest of Rhodes in 653 CE
  • The invasion of Spain in 710 CE and 
  • Battles against the Crusaders over Jerusalem led by Salah Al-Din in 1187 CE.
  • In 1260, Muslims defeated the Mongols in Palestine (now Israel,)
  • In the 20th century, between 1962 to 1970, during the Yemeni Civil War, Muslims fought each other through nine Ramadans.
  • In 1973 on the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur, Egypt and Syria, on Ramadan launched a surprise attack on Israel. The Israelis call it the Yom Kippur War whereas they call it the Ramadan War.  
  • In 1981, Iran rejected an offer for a Ramadan cease-fire from Iraq, and a year later attacked Iraq in what they called, “Operation Ramadan.”
  • Likewise, in 1987, Iran again rejected an offer of a Ramadan cease-fire from Iraq.
  • In Israel, Palestinians rioted from the years 1987 to 1993 during six Ramadans. From the 1990s and well into the beginning of the 21st century, during Ramadan, Muslims continued to war in other locations than just in Israel. For example, widespread fighting occurred in Kashmir when Muslims rejected a Ramadan cease-fire offered by India as a step for peace.

Ramadan Today

Now, at the start of Ramadan, as the war in Gaza continues, Hamas is calling for violence against Jews.

In a speech prior to the start of Ramadan which began on March 10th, Hamas political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, incited Palestinians in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria to storm the Al-Aqsa mosque on the Temple Mount.

Haniyeh also called for the Iran-aligned “Axis of Resistance” members including Hezbollah, the Houthis, and various Iraqi Shia militias to escalate their attacks against Israel. A spokesman for Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), another Iranian-backed Palestinian terror group, called for a “month of terror” against Israel during Ramadan.

It is obvious that Hamas, under the guise of this holiday, intends to inflame religious tensions and increase attacks against Israelis, so the month of Ramadan begins the second phase of their plan that began on October 7th. Unfortunately, also the PA has increased incitement against Israel during this fragile period.

Unlike Hamas, Israel intends to do everything possible to decrease tension and prevent violence during this volatile time. Israel’s policy is to maintain religious freedom and access to holy places for all religions, including access for Palestinians and Israeli Arabs to Muslim holy sites on the Temple Mount.