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By Arlene Bridges Samuels

Joyful Christian tourists once again arrived in Israel for this year’s Holy Week observances after two years of Israel’s strict COVID-19 lockdown policies had kept them away.

Tour itineraries always include Israel’s capital, Jerusalem. Although visits to the city’s Temple Mount are sparse because of too few visiting hours and too many restrictions, the 36-acre compound is treasured among Bible-focused believers. The Temple Mount is the holiest site in Judaism, yet it is under the authority of the Jordanian Waqf Foundation. 

Here’s how that came about: After Israel unified Jerusalem following its victory in the Six-Day War, in a gesture of religious tolerance the Israelis decided to allow the Waqf to continue as the site’s administrative body. Today the Waqf, combined with rabbinical law—which is also restrictive toward Jews—can make walking around the Mount more than a bit strained. On one of my visits to the Temple Mount with a friend, we were followed by a Palestinian “minder.” Neither Christians nor Jews are allowed to pray there. Our minder often shook his finger in an accusing way, although we were dressed appropriately and doing nothing wrong. The atmosphere was tense and felt somewhat sterile.

Regardless, biblical narratives and historical facts keep the Temple Mount as a true treasure of the Jewish faith. 

Some may wonder why Christians would care about visiting the Temple Mount when it can be such a turbulent spot. In fact, the Temple Mount is often referred to as “ground zero” in the religious and territorial conflict between Israelis and their Arab neighbors. And, as the holy site for the three major monotheistic faiths, there are so many possibilities for clashes and offenses to various sensibilities. Often, this 36-acre landscape of holy sites is vulnerable to a mere word, a visit, or a mindset of hatred that erupts into a blaze of violence. This year it’s especially volatile because, in a rare convergence of the three monotheistic faiths, their celebrations are now taking place at virtually the same time this year: Holy Week for Christians, Passover for Jews, and Ramadan for Muslims. Unfortunately, what is not rare is the violence that breaks out on and around the Temple Mount. 

Violence erupted once again just last week on April 15, which was the first day of Passover and the Christian observance of Good Friday. Following Muslim prayers at dawn, several hundred young Palestinian men launched a rock-throwing campaign against Israeli police, whose job is to keep the peace on the Temple Mount. Waiting until Muslim prayers ended, Israeli police entered the al-Aqsa Mosque and arrested 470 men to quell the violence. 

Many of the global mainstream media ignored how the violence flared up. Nevertheless, the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis describes the facts: “Around 4 a.m. on Friday morning, dozens of Palestinians began marching around al-Aqsa Mosque (some carrying banners associated with Hamas), started breaking stones and then throwing them at police and Jewish worshipers at the Western Wall below—while stockpiling more rocks at the mosque to prepare for further attacks. Palestinians later barricaded themselves inside the mosque and hurled stones and fireworks toward officers. The violence prevented large numbers of Muslims from worshiping at al-Aqsa.”

Christians living outside Israel may not easily comprehend the trauma of terrorism. Yet violence on the Temple Mount or any part of Israel is of deep concern. And hopefully, my thoughts will help explain our reverence for the Temple Mount and its surroundings.

Because Jesus was born into a Jewish culture, we know He grew up celebrating major Jewish feasts—Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles (Pesach, Shavuot, and Sukkot). Luke records a fascinating encounter in chapter 2, verses 41-47. In the Temple, when Jesus was 12 years old, He and the Jewish scholars engaged in theological discussions for three days that “astonished” the learned men. I have often wondered if this was a version of Jesus becoming bar mitzvahed, where young men read from Torah publicly for the first time at 12 or 13 years old. 

Whether believers visiting Israel walk on the Pilgrim Road or sit on the southern steps that led up to the Temple, the realization that our Jewish Savior walked countless thousands of footsteps in Jerusalem is profoundly meaningful. 

Two different Temples stood on the Temple Mount. King Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Solomon’s Temple in 586 B.C. The Romans destroyed the Second Temple in A.D. 70, and Muslims built their sites on the grounds some 600 years later. History does not reveal that a church ever stood on the Temple Mount. However, Jesus’ teaching, walking, and healing makes the area a sacred location for those of us who follow and worship Him. Remembering what happened on the day of His crucifixion, though, is the most powerful magnet drawing Christians to the Temple Mount.

In a physical feat only the mighty Hands of God could achieve, He tore in two the purple, scarlet, and blue veil/curtain (parochet) in the Temple when the Perfect Passover Lamb breathed His last breath on the tree. Luke 23:44-45 relates, “It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two.”

Keep in mind, this massive curtain was 60 feet high, 30 feet wide, and four inches thick. The curtain hid the Holy of Holies, God’s Court. Although the Ark of the Covenant and the Mercy Seat were not in the Second Temple, the Holy of Holies was treated the same. Jews viewed the Holy of Holies as the place of God’s Shekinah glory, the dwelling of His divine presence. Only the High Priest could enter the Holy of Holies, and he could do that just once a year on the Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur. Throughout the centuries—from the movable Tabernacle in the desert, to Shiloh for 369 years, to the First and Second Temples—the Jewish people revered the Holy of Holies with a profound sense of awe, respect, and fear. 

It is easy to imagine the priests’ terror when they saw the curtain rent in two. It was incomprehensible. Yet when God tore the veil in two, He welcomed us into the Holy of Holies through the blood of His Perfect Lamb so that we could step inside to fellowship with Him, both Gentile and Jew! Jesus’ substitutionary death for us, and God Himself tearing the veil, meant that we were no longer separated.

The physical rending of the curtain was certainly spectacular, and the result is eternal. Our repentance—recognizing His sacrifice and inviting the Lord Jesus to come into our hearts—bridged the impassable gap between Holy God the Father and us. 

We are familiar with Jesus’ last words on the Cross: “It is finished.” The Greek word tetelestai supplies more insights, meaning as it does “to end, to pay or discharge,” as in a debt. In ancient times, tetelestai was stamped or written on important documents in the New Testament era to show that a bill had been paid in full. 

On a hill outside Jerusalem’s walls, Jesus proclaimed, “It is finished.” His death on the cross coincided with God the Father tearing the veil on the Temple Mount opening the Holy of Holies. Jesus paid our sin debts in full. He took our place. 

Somewhere atop the Temple Mount, the Second Temple stood. The magnificent veil was torn from top to bottom. And we know our risen Lord will one day return!

Please join CBN Israel in praying for Israel, the Middle East, and believers worldwide:

• Pray that all believers will gain a deeper understanding of the depth of Jesus’ sacrifice. 
• Pray with gratitude that Jesus loves us enough that He willingly died as our substitute. 
• Pray for those in our nation and world who have rejected the fact of Jesus’ resurrection.
• Pray for peace in Jerusalem as tensions have been high, especially as holidays for the three major religions overlapped for the first time in three decades.
• Pray for the nations within the Abraham Accords to stand firm in their peace agreement with Israel—even amid the ongoing conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.

Now, more than ever, may we continue to pray for “the peace of Jerusalem” (Psalm 122:6).

Arlene Bridges Samuels pioneered Christian outreach for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). After she served nine years on AIPAC’s staff, International Christian Embassy Jerusalem USA engaged her as Outreach Director part-time for their project, American Christian Leaders for Israel. Arlene is an author at The Blogs-Times of Israel and has traveled to Israel since 1990. She co-edited The Auschwitz Album Revisited and is a volunteer on the board of Violins of Hope South Carolina. Arlene has attended Israel’s Government Press Office Christian Media Summit three times and hosts her devotionals, The Eclectic Evangelical, on her website at ArleneBridgesSamuels.com.

By Arlene Bridges Samuels 

When Jesus, the Perfect Lamb of God, rode into Jerusalem at the age of 33, He was about to experience His last Passover on earth. He had arrived in Jerusalem on lamb selection day, when thousands of lambs were chosen for the Temple sacrifices. Multitudes of His followers filled the air with joyful shouts on the Day of Lambs—Palm Sunday. Jesus attended Passover each year, along with Jews traveling from all over the known world for the most significant Jewish festival. 

The initial outpouring of ecstatic shouts eventually shifted into disappointment among many Jews, who hoped for a secular king riding in on a stallion—a symbol of overthrowing their Roman oppressors. Instead, Jesus rode a humble donkey, symbolizing a servant-king. Along with waving their palm and olive branches, the crowds may have wished for regal banners and guards leading the way ahead of Jesus. 

Dramatic events swiftly moved forward. Walking the Pilgrim Road up to the Temple on lamb selection day, Jesus shocked everyone by angrily overturning the moneychangers’ tables in the Temple, accusing them of turning that house of prayer into “a den of thieves” (Matthew 21:12-13). 

Later in the week, Jesus and His disciples assembled in the Upper Room for Passover (in Hebrew, Chag Ha-Matzot), the feast of freedom. However, freedom was not Jesus’ destiny that night. His destiny was embodied, literally, as the substitute for our sins, which through His shed blood guaranteed our freedom instead. Along with His profound sermon in John 17, Jesus performed another surprising act that week: The King of Kings humbly knelt to wash the feet of His disciples and instructed them to serve others. 

How must Judas have felt that night, his feet washed by His Savior, already having been paid off with silver to betray Him. Their conversation unfolded this way in John 13:21-28 (HCSB): 

“When Jesus had said this, He was troubled in His spirit and testified, ‘I assure you: One of you will betray Me!’ The disciples started looking at one another—uncertain which one He was speaking about. One of His disciples, the one Jesus loved, was reclining close beside Jesus. Simon Peter motioned to him to find out who it was He was talking about. So he leaned back against Jesus and asked Him, ‘Lord, who is it?’ Jesus replied, ‘He’s the one I give the piece of bread to after I have dipped it.’ When He had dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas, Simon Iscariot’s son. After Judas ate the piece of bread, Satan entered him. Therefore Jesus told him, ‘What you’re doing, do quickly.’ None of those reclining at the table knew why He told him this.”

And in John 18:3, we’re told that Judas slipped out of the Upper Room and met up with those carrying torches to the garden of Gethsemane.

Jesus and His remaining disciples—now numbering 11—also departed from the Upper Room. The disciples must have been puzzled, nervous, even angry when Judas left. The day had already proved different from any other in the three years they had been with their Rabbi. In the darkness the group walked about a mile to the Mount of Olives, familiar to all Jerusalemites as it was an important manufacturing area that produced valuable olive oil. At the foot of the Mount of Olives, they arrived at Gethsemane. The English word “Gethsemane” combines two Hebrew words, Gat and Shmanim, and is defined as “the place where olive oil is pressed”—the “Garden of the Olive Press.”

The geographic location of Gethsemane is rich with symbolism. Knowing the mechanics of olive presses makes it easier to visualize why Jesus led His disciples to that specific spot for prayer before His arrest. 

During Roman rule, olive presses numbered in the thousands—in groves scattered all over Israel and the Roman Empire. Large and small presses made of stone crushed the harvested fruit. The larger presses included stones suspended with ropes from wooden crossbeams—stones that weighed up to a ton. The pulp eventually underwent enough crushing that the precious commodity could be emptied into clay jars. The refined oil was used in cooking, anointing oil, and Temple lights.

In Isaiah 53:5 (NKJV) we read this compelling verse, “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.” Like the wooden beams holding the stones on the olive presses, our Savior Jesus bore the wooden beams of the crucifixion tree crushed under the incalculable weight of our sins. 

In the Garden of the Olive Press, Jesus cried out: “Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will” (Mark 14:36 NKJV). The Christian community is well versed in the fact that Jesus prayed in anguish and wept tears of blood prior to his arrest. Although one might wonder if sweating blood is an exaggeration, it is true. In fact, Hematidrosis is the medical term for the rare occurrence where blood is mixed in sweat. It happens in extreme situations where someone is facing death or another incredibly stressful event. And Jesus faced anguish, a burden that only one person in the history of the world confronted. On the cross, His death and sacrificial blood was for all people for all time. Untold billions of sin burdens crushed Jesus. 

The olive press in Gethsemane represented physical symbols of the crushing emotions Jesus experienced as Hematidrosis took place in His body. Crushing is the method of getting what is most valuable, the oil, out of the olive. Jesus’ emotional crushing in the garden of olive presses produced the precious oil and blood of our redemption. 

Eventually, after three periods of praying in the Garden—and His disciples unable to stay awake despite their Master’s admonition to do so—Jesus announced, “Here comes my betrayer.” Judas Iscariot led a mob armed with clubs and swords dispatched by the power structure, the Chief Priests, teachers of the law, and the elders. After Judas had placed the kiss of death on Jesus’ face, the arrest, interrogation, mocking, and abuse went operational. Later Judas committed suicide.

Following Jesus from the Garden of the Olive Press into the traumatic, violent night, it is essential to recall what He said to the Pharisees: “Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father” (John 10:17-18 NKJV). 

Jesus was willing to be crushed and to pour out the pure oil of His life on the cross to redeem mankind. No one could stop God’s redemptive plan! Not the Jews, not the Romans who carried out the death sentence. 

When Roman soldiers hammered spikes into Jesus’ body, Temple priests had spent untold hours slaughtering the Bethlehem lambs by the thousands. Priests threw lambs’ blood all over the Temple court. Expertly wielding their knives, the priests chanted the Hallel Psalms (113–118). Maybe Jesus could hear snippets of the chants where He hung outside Jerusalem’s walls.

When the skinning, bloodletting, then roasting of lambs for food began, the priests hung the lambs on wooden hooks stretching out their front legs onto a crossbar in the shape of a cross. Jesus hung on the cross, thus removing the need for thousands upon thousands of lambs dying on a conveyor belt of killing and hanging.

God’s Perfect Lamb perfected John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” 

Knowing more about Gethsemane and Jesus’ identification with the olive presses, let us rejoice that Jesus freed us from sin’s grip, crushed for us! 

Join CBN Israel in prayer this week, thanking Jesus for being the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29): 

• Pray during Holy Week for an outpouring of Jesus’ loving sacrifice to touch hearts of those who don’t know Him.
• Pray for millions suffering in Ukraine to sense God’s saving grace.
• Pray for Christian and Jewish organizations inside and outside Ukraine that are bravely helping to rescue those in peril.
• Pray for Christians worldwide to keep easing suffering and persecution.

As we approach Good Friday and Easter, may we reflect upon these words of the Apostle Peter: “He did not commit sin, and no deceit was found in His mouth; when He was reviled, He did not revile in return; when He was suffering, He did not threaten but entrusted Himself to the One who judges justly. He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that, having died to sins, we might live for righteousness; you have been healed by His wounds. For you were like sheep going astray, but you have now returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls” (1 Peter 2:22-25 HCSB).

Arlene Bridges Samuels pioneered Christian outreach for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). After she served nine years on AIPAC’s staff, International Christian Embassy Jerusalem USA engaged her as Outreach Director part-time for their project, American Christian Leaders for Israel. Arlene is an author at The Blogs-Times of Israel and has traveled to Israel since 1990. She co-edited The Auschwitz Album Revisited and is a volunteer on the board of Violins of Hope South Carolina. Arlene has attended Israel’s Government Press Office Christian Media Summit three times and hosts her devotionals, The Eclectic Evangelical, on her website at ArleneBridgesSamuels.com.

The future looked bright when Masaret first met and married her husband in Ethiopia—and they both planned to live in Israel. But problems arose when they attempted to move here in 1993.

Masaret was allowed to immigrate from Ethiopia to Israel, but her husband was not because their marriage documentation was called into question. So he took a dangerous route and entered the country by way of Egypt. Masaret hired a lawyer to help him sort out his legal status—but the wait to resolve it grew long, and they started a family.

Masaret was sad to see her husband become depressed and abusive, often turning to alcohol. He abandoned Masaret and their two children and was jailed by immigration police for forging documents.

At 55, Masaret found herself a single mom struggling to provide for her family. They lived in an apartment on the top floor of a neglected old building. The roof leaked, causing severe damage. With little income, she could make only small repairs, which weren’t enough.

But friends like you were there for Masaret and her children. Through CBN Israel, caring partners helped cover the costs to make proper roof repairs—sealing the leak and fixing the damage. They also made it possible to give her grocery vouchers to buy nutritious food for her family. She says, “I am so appreciative for your love and kindness!”

Your gift to CBN Israel can help many single mothers in crisis like Masaret—as well as Holocaust survivors, refugees, terror victims, and more. As the cries for help in Israel persist, you can bring groceries, shelter, essentials, and financial aid to those who are hurting. 

Please join us in making a difference for those who need a helping hand!

GIVE TODAY

By Marc Turnage

The traditional location of the crucifixion, burial, and resurrection of Jesus is the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which sits within the heart of the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. The origin of the church goes back to the Emperor Constantine. His mother the Empress Helena on a visit to the Holy Land (326 A.D.) was shown this location by local Christians and identified as the place where Jesus’ crucifixion and burial took place. Upon that site, her son built the first church, which was called the Church of the Resurrection. 

Archaeological excavations within the church have uncovered the history of the site. In the 8^th-7^th centuries B.C., the location of the Holy Sepulchre was a large limestone quarry to the northwest of the walled city of Jerusalem. According to the excavator, the site continued to be used as a quarry until the first century B.C. when it was filled in with soil and stone flakes from the quarry. The site at this time became a garden or orchard that contained fig, carob, and olive trees. At the same time, it developed into a cemetery. Within the complex of the Holy Sepulchre, tombs dating to the first century have been discovered.

One of the challenges for modern visitors to the church is its location within the modern Old City of Jerusalem and its walls. Jesus was crucified outside of the city walls. The modern Old City walls, built in the 16^th century, however, have nothing to do with the walls of Jesus’ Jerusalem. Jews did not bury within the walls of city, but rather outside. The presence of first century tombs within the Holy Sepulchre complex indicates that this location stood outside the walls of Jerusalem in Jesus’ day. 

Jewish tombs in the first century consisted of two types: kokhim and arcosolia. The most common being the kokhim. A kokh (singular) was a long, narrow recess cut into a rock tomb in which a body, coffin, or ossuary (bone box) could be laid. The typical kokhim tomb was hewn into the hillside and consisted of a square chamber. The entrance to an ordinary kokhim tomb was a small square opening that required a person entering to stoop. The height of the chamber was usually less than that of a person, so they often cut a square pit into the floor of the chamber. This pit created a bench on three sides of the chamber where the bodies of the deceased could be prepared. 

After the chamber and the pit were cut, the kokhim were cut level with the top of the benches and perpendicular to the wall of the tomb in a counter clockwise direction, from right to left, in every wall except the entrance wall. One to three kokhim were usually cut per wall. The kokh had roughly vaulted ceilings and were the length of the deceased or a coffin. After the deceased was placed into the kokh, a blocking stone sealed the square entrance of the tomb. Small stones and plaster helped to further seal the blocking stone. The tomb was sealed in a manner that it blended into the surrounding hillside. 

In addition to the kokhim tomb, arcosolia tombs began to appear sporadically during the first century. The arcosolia is a bench-like aperture with an arched ceiling hewn into the length of the wall. This style of burial was more expensive since only three burial places existed within a tomb chamber instead of six or nine, as typically found within kokhim tombs. Approximately 130 arcosolia tombs have been discovered in Jerusalem and over half of them also contain kokhim. Ossuaries (bone boxes) could be placed on the arcosolia benches.

The tomb identified within the Holy Sepulchre as the tomb of Jesus was originally an arcosolium (singular) with an antechamber; however, the centuries of pilgrims and the various destructions of the church have deformed and obliterated the tomb. What visitors see today is a later structure; nevertheless, the tomb originally contained a first century arcosolium tomb. 

The Roman Emperor Hadrian built on top of the quarry-garden-cemetery a raised platform with another platform on it where he built a temple to Venus/Aphrodite in the second century. This pagan temple was removed when Constantine built his church. 

Constantine built a rotunda around Jesus’ tomb. The rock of Golgotha was exposed to the open air in a garden, and on the other side of the garden, Constantine built a basilica church. 

The question arises whether or not the Holy Sepulchre contains the location of Jesus’ tomb. What we can say is this: 1) The site was a cemetery in the first century with first century tombs. 2) From the second century until the arrival of the Empress Helena, the actual tomb had been covered for 300 years. The fact that the local Christian memory remembered this location, where a first century cemetery existed, even though it was covered by the Hadrianic temple strongly suggests the authenticity of the site. 3) When Helena was shown this site, it sat like now within the walled, urban city of Jerusalem, which would have seemed strange to ancient pilgrims as it does to modern. 

Yet, the memory of the local Christian community remembered that this location once lay outside of the walls of Jerusalem. Ten to fifteen years after Jesus’ death and burial a wall was built in Jerusalem that enclosed this area into the city. 

Pilgrims to Jerusalem often wonder if the Holy Sepulchre marks the site of Jesus’ crucifixion, burial, and resurrection. The archaeology and tradition of the site support its claims. 

Marc Turnage is President/CEO of Biblical Expeditions. He is an authority on ancient Judaism and Christian origins. He has published widely for both academic and popular audiences. His most recent book, Windows into the Bible, was named by Outreach Magazine as one of its top 100 Christian living resources. Marc is a widely sought-after speaker and a gifted teacher. He has been guiding groups to the lands of the Bible—Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, Greece, and Italy—for over twenty years.

Website: WITBUniversity.com
Facebook: @witbuniversity
Podcast: Windows into the Bible Podcast

“Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying: ‘Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!’” (Luke 19:37-38 NKJV).

Jesus came to Jerusalem riding a wave of popularity and redemptive expectations. As He ascended toward Jerusalem, Luke tells us that those traveling with Him were anticipating that the kingdom of God would appear immediately. We hear in the voices of the disciples on the road to Emmaus the redemptive hopes many had pinned on Jesus: “But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel” (24:21 NKJV). 

Their hopes were not misguided. After the resurrection, the disciples asked Jesus about the restoration of the kingdom to Israel (Acts 1:6), but Jesus did not rebuke them for failing to understand God’s redemptive plans and purposes. Rather, He affirmed their hopes but said that now is not the time. When He came to Jerusalem, the time of redemption for the nation of Israel had not yet come. Instead, God had other immediate plans for Jesus—a path of suffering, the path of the cross.

Jesus came to Jerusalem riding on a donkey, surrounded by the rejoicing of His loyal disciples. Their song of praise, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest,” echoes the angelic proclamation at Jesus’ birth, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men” (Luke 2:14 NKJV). The jubilation of Jesus’ disciples during His entry into the city and the announcement of the angels both herald God’s redemption through Jesus. At His birth, it referred to the hopes carried by the newborn baby; as He rode into Jerusalem, it pertained to hopes deferred. Jesus had things to accomplish.

We do not always understand what God is doing and where He is taking us. Yet do we have the confidence to trust that He will get us there? We want to know the future, understand the signs of the times, but Jesus said, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority” (Acts 1:7 NKJV). Can we trust God even when the times of His plans and redemption are not fully known to us? 

The New Testament affirms and declares God’s faithfulness to His promised redemption; it has dawned and has come near. But can we remain faithful knowing that the loving Father who promised redemption, who led Jesus to the cross knowing that the empty tomb stood on the other side, stands with us, and He will accomplish what He promised? 

May we echo the jubilation of Jesus’ disciples as they entered Jerusalem, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

PRAYER

Father, our lives are in Your hands. We trust in You. Peace in heaven, and glory in the highest heaven. Amen.

By Ellie Cohanim

Reports from the Vienna talks indicate that a new “Iran Deal” is expected to be announced imminently. Based on the public information on the probable terms of this agreement, there are six outcomes that I predict are likely consequences of this new Iran Deal for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The end result of this Biden Iran Deal will be seismic shifts in the region and a weakening of the U.S. as the leading global power.

The first, and perhaps the most significant, outcome is the perception by all of America’s historic allies in the MENA region that the United States is about to commit a historic betrayal of long-term U.S. allies Israel and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), by signing on to this new Iran Deal. In the last few weeks, Saudi Crown Prince MBS has refused Joe Biden’s phone calls; Saudi Arabia has refused Biden’s request to pump more oil to make up for oil shortages as a result of the Russian war on Ukraine; and when asked recently in the Atlantic if he is misunderstood by Joe Biden, MBS responded, “Simply, I do not care,” and went on to say, “It’s up to him to think about the interests of America.”

While the Israelis have been less public in broadcasting their perception of American betrayal, the sense is there, nevertheless. Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is reported as telling his cabinet in a March meeting, “We pick our battles with the Americans; there’s no reason for an international campaign against the nuclear deal—because it will be signed.” The Israeli premier believes he is serving his country’s interests by not waging a public campaign against the U.S. president as his predecessor did against then- President Barack Obama and the original 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) Iran agreement, but the sense of futility in trying is certainly there.

The second outcome of the Iran Deal is a trend that has been observable for a handful of years, which is Israel’s Gulf Arab neighbors depending on this young nation to take the action necessary against Iran to protect them all. This is a wonder to behold—that little Israel, only 76 years old and engaged throughout its history with both internal and external enemies that wish to destroy her— has somehow become the protector of the region.

Israel has proven itself, time and again, to have astonishing intelligence capabilities in terms of its reach into Iran and capability to disrupt Iran’s march toward the bomb. Whether it was the daring Mossad operation into Iranian territory to withdraw Iran’s nuclear archives, or the elimination of Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, or the multiple explosions at Iran’s nuclear and other facilities—Israel has proven itself capable of what it seems no other country can achieve.

Due to Israel’s success with these operations, the Sunni Gulf states are now relying on Israel to contain Iran and protect them all from the Iranian threat. This dependence on Israel will only continue to grow following the signing of the Iran Deal, which naturally yields to my third prediction—and that is the continued strengthening of the Sunni-Israel alliance. 

The Sunni-Israel alliance was formalized with the signing of the Abraham Accords brokered by the Trump Administration, which for the first time in history saw warm peace deals being made between Israel and her Arab neighbors. Last week’s historic Negev Summit—hosted by Israel on Israeli soil and bringing together the Foreign Ministers of Bahrain, Egypt, Morocco, the UAE, and the U.S.—was a significant step forward in the strengthening of that alliance. We can expect the Iran Deal to cause a further strengthening of the Sunni-Israel alliance, and it will do so with the blessing of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia whether the Saudis have formal diplomatic relations with Israel or not. 

Given that Israel now finds itself in the position of defender of the region, what options will be left to Israel following the signing of this Biden Iran Deal to counter the Iranian threat? If the Israelis can continue to successfully set back Iran’s nuclear development through their sabotage and other covert activities, in theory Israel would maintain a status quo between the countries.

On the other hand, is it possible that the Israelis might find themselves cornered into a position in which they will have to conduct actual strikes on Iranian nuclear sites?

Israel’s security experts have told me that historically their expectation was that they would handle the threats at their borders (Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, Iranian presence in Syria), with an understanding that it would be the U.S. that would take the lead on any necessary strikes against the Iranian homeland. Last week, however, Senator Lindsay Graham (R – SC) stated in an interview that an Israeli attack on Iran was “probably” the only way to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, and he said that an Israeli strike on Iran, “is probably the way this movie ends.” 

I have argued that at minimum the U.S. should supply Israel with the bunker-buster bombs she needs to penetrate Iran’s underground nuclear sites so that Israel has the equipment necessary, should the IDF ever make the assessment to attack.

My fifth prediction is the expectation that we will see a nuclear arms race in the region. With the Sunni states realizing that, due to the Iran Deal, the Islamic Republic of Iran is on the legal pathway to achieving nuclear weapons state status, it is only logical for them to seek achieving this same status. In fact, in a 2018 interview on 60 Minutes, MBS stated: “Saudi Arabia does not want to acquire any nuclear bomb, but without a doubt, if Iran developed a nuclear bomb, we will follow suit as soon as possible.”

In August 2020, both the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and the New York Times reported that China was building an industrial capacity facility in KSA to produce nuclear fuel that could later be enriched to weapons-grade level. I am confident that Saudi Arabia will continue to pursue a nuclear program, which it undoubtedly perceives as a defensive measure against the Islamic Republic of Iran , and perhaps other states in the region will follow suit.

My sixth and last prediction is the weakening of the United States as a global power, and the strengthening of China as one, as a result of Biden’s Iran Deal. In addition to the cooperation between KSA and China listed above on the construction of its nuclear facilities is an expected state visit to Saudi Arabia in May by Chinese President Xi JinPing—as well as and troubling recent reports that Saudi Arabia is considering receiving payment in yuan (Chinese currency) for their sale of oil to China going forward. According to the WSJ, “The Saudi move could chip away at the supremacy of the U.S. dollar in the international financial system, which Washington has relied on for decades to print Treasury bills it uses to finance its budget deficit.” This is a serious development that should jolt the Biden Administration from its destruction of the U.S.-Saudi relationship.

The Saudis are not the only ones working closely with China. Israel just celebrated its 30th anniversary of China-Israel diplomatic relations and announced the China-Israel Innovation Cooperation Action Plan (2022-2024), as well as seven cooperation agreements in the fields of science and technology, health, culture, environmental protection, clean energy, and intellectual-property rights.

In 2021 China’s Shanghai International Port (Group) finished construction on a new port in Haifa, which it is franchised to run for 25 years. 

Since 2015, China has also been host to the China-Israel Changzhou Innovation Park, which is host to 155 Israeli-owned and China-Israeli joint ventures and has facilitated 40 China-Israel scientific and technological cooperation projects. In 2019, the China-Israel Innovation Hub in Shanghai was inaugurated with 70 companies operating there. Data shows that bilateral trade in goods between China and Israel reached $20.4 billion in the first 11 months of 2021, up 28.9 percent year-on-year.

Washington’s entire argument for withdrawal from the MENA region is so that the U.S. can channel its abilities to confronting China. However, as a result of the impending Iran Deal, the Biden Administration is effectively creating a security crisis for our allies and leaving them nowhere else to turn but into China’s warm and open arms. The Biden Administration’s betrayal of our allies Israel and Saudi Arabia, and the Administration’s entry into an Iran Deal, will ultimately facilitate China’s global dominance rather than thwarting it.

Ellie Cohanim is the former U.S. Deputy Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism and a political and national security contributor to CBN News. You can follow her on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @EllieCohanim.

By Arlene Bridges Samuels

When John the Baptist saw Jesus walking toward him at the Jordan River, he announced, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”

Those awaiting baptism may have been startled. They knew all about lambs. Their Jewish culture was saturated with them, as they not only provided a livelihood by means of food and clothing but were also an essential part of the ancient Jewish sacrificial system. So, what did John’s title for Jesus mean?

The slaughter, the lamb’s blood, symbolized a temporary redemption, a covering for sin that God inaugurated in ancient Egypt. Looking into history’s rearview mirror, when Israelites were enslaved in Egypt, God instructed them to choose an unblemished, perfect lamb to kill and then apply its blood to their doorposts. In the 10th plague, which took the lives of Pharoah’s firstborn, God promised that when the Angel of Death swept over Egypt and saw the blood, the Israelites’ firstborn would not die. The blood of lambs saved lives!

Some 1500 years later, the Jews who gathered at the Jordan that day could not imagine the significance of John’s greeting to Jesus. They did not know it was a day of beginnings—the day Jesus presented Himself officially for baptism, then ministry. The Lamb of God sent as a sacrifice not in the Temple, but to die on a cross. One death for all sin—a radical idea from God the Father who radically loves us.

Holy Week 2022 begins this Sunday, April 10—our Christian celebration of Palm Sunday with remembrances of Jesus’ last days before His sacrificial death on the cross. Churches have numerous customs on Palm Sunday to celebrate Jesus’ triumphal entrance into Jerusalem.

The Jewish context of our Christian faith, though, is often lost in the annals of history. Two thousand years ago, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on what was called the “Day of Lambs”—the day that Jewish shepherds annually herded huge flocks of Passover lambs into Jerusalem, which signaled the beginning of the Passover celebration.

Jesus fulfilled the prophetic descriptions of the Old Testament, poignantly shown in the 53rd chapter of Isaiah. Then, in the New Testament, Jesus’ birth to a young Jewish woman fastened the Old and New Testaments into one glorious story in the history of humanity.

The New Testament reveals an extraordinary one-of-a-kind DNA where Creator God blended Jewish genetics and the Holy Spirit.

Born into a Jewish family and culture, Jesus lived His life on earth engaged in Jewish customs and religious observances. When the time came for His holy destiny as our sacrificial Lamb, our Savior Jesus entered Jerusalem, a city He loved, fully understanding that His interrogation, beatings, betrayals, and crucifixion lay ahead.

Prior to Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, His reputation for teaching and miracles was well known. His fame spread throughout the land, as did the growing rage of the religious and political hierarchy. Jesus healed a blind man, ate with sinners, attended a joyful wedding, and raised Lazarus from the dead.

Throngs of Jewish followers viewed Him as their Savior. Crowds lined the streets, waving their greenery and throwing down their cloaks thinking He was their hoped-for king, a human king to liberate them from their Roman oppressors. Jews waved palm fronds and olive branches shouting “Hosanna,” which in Hebrew means, “God saves.”

Estimates are hard to come by, but the historian Josephus says that a million or more Passover pilgrims were already flowing into the capital from all over the known world. Passover, the highlight of the Jewish year, was one of the three most important Jewish festivals.

When Jesus rode a donkey into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, it occurred on the same day when Bethlehem shepherds annually herded huge flocks of Passover lambs into Jerusalem. The Day of Lambs! It was a divine cultural context with awe-inspiring purpose.

The Sadducees, in charge of Temple sacrifices, also owned the Bethlehem fields and the lambs raised there. They hired shepherds who were experts in animal husbandry. The Sadducees considered these shepherds as Levitical priests, because the lambs they tended when ewes gave birth were destined for Temple sacrifices. Exodus 12:5 instructs, “Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats.” Historian Josephus estimates that as many as 265,000 lambs could be sacrificed in the Temple for Passover.

However, the Sadducees first required that each animal be inspected at Jerusalem’s Lamb Gate to make sure none was blemished. Perfection was the rule! When Jesus rode by on a donkey, the priests missed the fact that He was the Perfect Lamb, considering Him a threat to their power, wealth, and corrupt system. They controlled every step of the sacrificial process, including selling the lambs to the Passover pilgrims. You can now understand why, later the same day, Jesus walked to the Temple Mount in a display of righteous anger. He overthrew the money changers’ tables and coins as recorded in Matthew 21:13, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a ‘den of thieves.’”

Jesus, the Perfect Lamb of God, rode into Jerusalem with thousands of bleating, scampering Bethlehem lambs that were paraded into the holy city by shepherds from Bethlehem, Jesus’ birthplace. I wonder: Did some shepherd priests who beheld Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem live long enough to behold Him once again as He entered Jerusalem among thousands of lambs?

Although we may have commemorated decades of Holy weeks, let us make sure we behold Jesus at this Holy season in a new and profound way. Our world is filled with chaos; however, Father God made a redemption plan through Jesus, the Perfect Lamb, giving us the kind of peace that overcomes the chaos.

We invite you to join us at CBN Israel for the holiest week of our year beginning with Palm Sunday, the Day of Lambs. John 1:14 reminds us, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

Pray that we will draw closer to God this Holy Week and that we will have an even deeper gratitude for Jesus’ redemptive gift:

• Pray for people around the world to recognize Jesus at the promised Messiah.
• Pray for the safety of the IDF and Israel’s police during the violence of Ramadan.
• Pray for the safety of Christian pilgrims and churches during Holy Week.
• Pray for families grieving the murder of their loved ones by terrorists.

Arlene Bridges Samuels pioneered Christian outreach for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). After she served nine years on AIPAC’s staff, International Christian Embassy Jerusalem USA engaged her as Outreach Director part-time for their project, American Christian Leaders for Israel. Arlene is an author at The Blogs-Times of Israel and has traveled to Israel since 1990. She co-edited The Auschwitz Album Revisited and is a volunteer on the board of Violins of Hope South Carolina. Arlene has attended Israel’s Government Press Office Christian Media Summit three times and hosts her devotionals, The Eclectic Evangelical, on her website at ArleneBridgesSamuels.com.

Rima and Yaakov came to Israel from Belarus and became citizens in 2007—and they’ve always been happy about their decision to immigrate. These senior citizens are committed to staying in their town of Sderot, despite the fact that it is a target for bombings. 

But during a recent barrage of rocket attacks, their daughter, who lives an hour away, insisted they stay with her. Several days later, when the bombs subsided, they returned home—and were shocked to find their building had received a direct rocket hit, with huge damages. 

Their laundry room, washing machine, windows, and water pipes were destroyed. They were also shocked by the insurance assessment, which was much lower than expected. It wouldn’t cover the cost of repairs and replacing their belongings. Rima, 78, has had knee replacements and uses a walker to get around. She and Yaakov needed help—but where could they turn? 

Fortunately, friends like you were there for this couple through CBN Israel. Caring donors paid for emergency repairs, including the broken pipes and windows, and replaced her washing machine. Rima shared, “We are so grateful for your compassion during this difficult time!”

And your gift to CBN Israel can provide food, essentials, and trauma counseling for many other victims of terrorism, as well as reaching out to help single mothers, aging Holocaust survivors, and immigrant families in need. 

The cries continue daily in the Holy Land from those who are hurting. Your support can provide them with groceries, housing, and financial aid—while also reporting true stories and news from Jerusalem. You can be a blessing to this special land—join us today!

Please join us in blessing Israel and her people in need!

GIVE TODAY

By Marc Turnage

Mark and Matthew identify Gethsemane as the place Jesus went with His disciples after eating the Passover within the city of Jerusalem, prior to His arrest (Matthew 26:36; Mark 14:32). These two Gospels provide the only mention of this place within ancient sources; thus, pinpointing its location proves difficult. 

The Gospel of Luke describes Jesus going to the Mount of Olives (22:39), which sits to the east, across the Kidron Valley (see John 18:1), from the city of Jerusalem. Passover pilgrims would consume their Passover meal, which was the lamb offered in the Temple, within the walled city of Jerusalem, but they stayed outside of the city on the surrounding hillsides. 

The name Gethsemane comes from the Hebrew, gat and shemen. A gat typically refers to a “wine press,” but it can refer, as a more generic term, to any pressing installation. Shemen refers to olive oil, which the olive groves on the mountain gave it the name, Mount of Olives. Thus, Gethsemane most likely refers to an olive oil pressing installation. 

Pilgrims to Jerusalem today can visit four different sites, which Christian traditions (Roman Catholic, Russian, Armenian, and Greek Orthodox) have identified as Gethsemane. All reside on the Mount of Olives. The traditions of these sites only date back at the earliest to the fourth century A.D. The most popular is the Roman Catholic site, maintained by the Franciscans. 

This site contains a church built by the Italian architect Antonio Barluzzi and a grove of olive trees. Some of these trees are several hundred years old, but they do not, as some claim, date back to the time of Jesus. The first century Jewish historian Josephus relates how the Roman army that laid siege to Jerusalem cut down all the trees in the vicinity to build their siege engines (War 6:1). 

While we do not know the precise location of Gethsemane, its location on the Mount of Olives offers an important geographic window into Jesus’ prayer in Gethsemane. The Mount of Olives sits on the eastern watershed of the Jerusalem hill country. Beyond the mountain’s ridge, the land drastically falls away toward the Jordan River Valley and the area of Jericho and the Dead Sea. This wilderness served bandits and refugees for centuries as it provided natural concealment to those hiding from authorities. 

When Jesus prayed in Gethsemane, He physically stood at the door of escape. He could have walked less than an hour and disappeared from Caiaphas and Pilate. This heightens the tension of His prayer, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done” (Luke 22:42). In that moment, He turned His back on the door of escape to face God’s will that lay in front of Him, the cross. 

This is something that can only be truly appreciated when one stands in this geography and realizes the choices that lay in front of Jesus: how easily He could have saved Himself, yet He submitted to His Father’s will.

Marc Turnage is President/CEO of Biblical Expeditions. He is an authority on ancient Judaism and Christian origins. He has published widely for both academic and popular audiences. His most recent book, Windows into the Bible, was named by Outreach Magazine as one of its top 100 Christian living resources. Marc is a widely sought-after speaker and a gifted teacher. He has been guiding groups to the lands of the Bible—Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, Greece, and Italy—for over twenty years.

Website: WITBUniversity.com
Facebook: @witbuniversity
Podcast: Windows into the Bible Podcast

“Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and they hid themselves from the Lord God among the trees of the garden” (Genesis 3:8 HCSB).

When Adam and Eve disobeyed God by eating the fruit from the forbidden tree and God came to walk with them in the garden, they responded by hiding themselves. Children who disobey a parent often respond in the same manner; they hide themselves. But God did not leave Adam and Eve in hiding; He searched and called for them. You could say that, from the time of the Garden, the story of the Bible is God in search of mankind.

The psalmist realized how intimately God knew him, and he recognized that even if he wanted to hide from God, he could not: “Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol [the underworld], behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, if I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, even there Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will lay hold of me. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, and the light around me will be night,’ even the darkness is not dark to You, and the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You” (Psalm 139:7-12 NASB). The psalmist finds himself overwhelmed with the realization that even when he wants to hide from God, he cannot.  

Think about this: Even in those moments when our disobedience and shame drive us to hide from our Father in heaven, He searches us out. He pursues us and doesn’t allow us to remain in hiding. When we want to wrap ourselves in darkness to hide from Him, He dispels the darkness in His pursuit of us. What an incredible reality!

When Adam and Eve came out of hiding, God provided clothing to cover their nakedness; He continued to care for them. He could have unleashed His fury, but He didn’t. The psalmist’s realization that God knows him intimately, that God pursues him to the ends of the earth, elicits in him the response of obedient surrender: “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts; and see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way” (Psalm 139:23-24 NASB). 

While our disobedience may drive us to hide from God, His pursuit and searching of us should cause us to respond with a yearning to walk obediently in His ways.

PRAYER

Father, even in those times when I want to hide from You, You are still there. You search me out and pursue me. Lead me in Your paths. Amen.